History of Bond and Montgomery Counties, Illinois, Part 21

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Chicago : O. L. Baskin
Number of Pages: 758

USA > Illinois > Montgomery County > History of Bond and Montgomery Counties, Illinois > Part 21
USA > Illinois > Bond County > History of Bond and Montgomery Counties, Illinois > Part 21

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Numerons small streams flow through Okaw Precinct, and among them is one of consider- able importance, namely, the "Kaskaskia," commonly known as the "Okaw," which flows just across the southeastern corner, through Section 36. This stream abounds in large numbers of the finny tribe, and is a great re- sort for fishing parties. Another stream is " Flat Creek," which takes its rise in " Calamus Lake," a small body of water in the northwest corner of Section 16. and. flowing a little west of south, leaves the precinct near the line, between Sec- tions 31 and 32. Little Beaver Creek, another small stream, flows across the northwest corner, through Sections 5 and 6. Another stream de- serving of mention is " Keysport Creek," which, rising in the northern part of Section 14, flows directly south and leaves the precinct at the southern boundary line of Section 35.

It is sweet, yet sad, to reeall the scenes of the past ; sweet, because we see the faces of dear ones ; sad, because the picture is unreal, and will vanish like the mists of the morning. Though the early settlement of Okaw Precinct is not so remote, still most of the earliest set- tlers have been laid away in the quiet grave- yards, and, " though lost to sight, are to memory

* By T. J. Riley.

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HISTORY OF BOND COUNTY.

dear." Among the first settlers who located in Okaw Precinct was Josiah Austin, who came in 1833, and located in the southern part, on See- tion 32. Two men, one named Bateman and the other named Martin, settled near him about the same time.

John Butler came in prior to the coming of Josiah Austin, and located in the southern part of the precinct. Alexander Myatt came in an early day, and settled in the west half of See- tion 33, and about the same time a man, named Fix, settled in the southeast part of the pre- ciuct. Among the earliest settlers in this see- tion was Mathew Henry, who first settled in Greenville Precinct, about four miles west of the county seat, and after remaining there some time, located in this precinct, where, at present, a number of his descendants reside. On his way to Bond County, Mr. Henry came through St. Louis, and it is said that, while there, he was offered five lots where the Southern IIotel now stands for a little pony mare, which he refused. Mr. Henry also was the possessor of one of the first " cook stoves " in this county.

But little can be said of the early schools in , Okaw Precinct, and for many years after its settlement but little attention was given to the subject of education, but of late years a great improvement has been made in this direction, and at present there are several schoolhonses in the precinct, in which school is taught by efficient instructors for the usual term each year.

At present, there are two churches in this precinet, the Methodist Episcopal and the Evan- gelieal Lutheran. The former was established early in the year 1842. For some time after the organization of this church, meetings were held at the residence of Alexander Myatt. Among the first members were Alexander Myatt and wife, Joshua Sharp and wife, Micajah Bowen, Mr. Zimmerman, Mrs. Rainey, Mrs. Gillespie, Robert Tueker, wife and mother, and the Skel- ton family. Ahont the first minister was the !

Rev. Joshua Barnes. Their present church building was erected about the year 1856, on the southwest quarter of Section 33. It is a frame building forty-fonr feet long and thirty- four feet wide, and was built at a cost of about $1,000. The first minister who assumed the pas- torate, after the building of this new church, was the Rev. J. W. Low. The Trustees were A. L. Cole, William Hoppock, B. F. Taylor and A. J. Cole, and the first Class-Leader was A. L. Cole. Alexander Myatt was chosen the first Steward. The church is now in a highly, prosperous and flourishing condition, and the present Class- Leader is J. D. Blackwell, and J. B. Myatt and D. L. Reynolds are acting as Stewards. A good Sunday school is and has been maintained ever since the organization of this church.

The last named, the Evangelical Lutheran, or St. l'eter's Church, was built in the fall of 1874, on the southeast quarter of Section 33. Among the men who were instrumental in getting the church built were, Frederick Meyer, J. Il. Pah- man, Julius Meyer, Conrad Kromer, Henry Shumaker, Henry Brauchmiller, etc. Their first minister was Rev. Kornbeaun. Prior to the erection of their church building, the society worshiped at the private residences of its mem bers, and continued thus until their present church was built. It is a frame building, thirty feet long and twenty-four feet wide, and was built at a cost of about $600.

No regular meetings were held here until in 1880, but before this time, Rev. H. Wolfman, who had dedicated the church, preached at in- tervals. Since November, 1880, they have been having meetings every Sunday, and Rev. Il. Baker, the present minister, is employed at a yearly salary of $300, which, it may be said to their credit, is always promptly paid. At pres- ent the church is in a prosperous, thriving con- (lition, and maintains a large and very interest- ing Sunday school. The Trustees at present are Julius T. Brauchmiller and John Turenek.

Solomon Harrey

LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY of ILLINOIS

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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

CHAPTER I .*

MONTGOMERY COUNTY - INTRODUCTORY - DESCRIPTION AND GENERAL TOPOGRAPHY -THE VARIETIES OF TIMBER - GEOLOGICAL FEATURES-LIMESTONE AND SANDSTONE-COAL

MEASURES- QUALITY OF THE COAL-QUARRIES OF BUILDING STONES-

OBSERVATIONS-CLIMATOLOGY-TIIE CHANGES OF SEASONS- NOW, AND FIFTY YEARS AGO.

" When rust shall eat her brass, when Time's strong hand

Shall bruise to dust her marble palaces, Triumphant arches, pillars, obelisks ; When Julius' temple, Claudius' aqueducts, Agrippa's baths, and Pompey's theater ; Nay, Rome itself shall not be found at all, Historians' books shall live."

T THE annals of time are marked by various ages under different denominations. The ancients had their fabled ages of iron and of gold. To the downfall of the Roman Empire succeeded the Dark Ages, with their dismal concomitants of superstition and crime. Next came the age of the Revival of Letters, which was followed by that of the Reformation of Religion. Great men have also stamped their names on ages, as their likenesses have been perpetuated by statues and medals. Egypt had her age of Sesostris, Greece of Pericles, and Rome of Cæsar, Pompey and Cicero. Brit- ain boasts of her age of Alfred the Great, and France that of Henry the Fourth. History will yet speak of the age of Washington, Franklin and Jefferson, and that of Napoleon will also be commemorated. In splendor, use- fulness, the wonders of science, and the power of art, the present age far surpasses all that

have preceded it, and may be fitly denominated the age of improvement. Instead of the monk laboring to ameliorate the condition of man by the dreams of his dusky and secluded closet, the real philosopher now walks abroad in open day, looks at things around him as they are, consults nature as his oracle, receives her re- sponses as pure emanations from the fountain of truth, and employs them successfully for the benefit of his race.

In the wonderful changes which the present age has witnessed, the period of vision and hy- pothesis has gone by. Fact has assumed the place of abstract theory, and practice has ejected speculation from her seat. All this and much more has been accomplished, but we will not follow up the subject. In nothing are the changes of the present age more strikingly illustrated than in the wonderful improvement and advancement of our country, and especially the great West. But a few decades ago, and this country was the home of the red man and his kindred ; these broad prairies his hunting- grounds, where he chased the buffalo and deer. Less than a century has passed ; the Indian of the haughty bearing and the falcon glance has disappeared, and Cooper's " Last of the Mohi- cans " preserves in romance a story of the race. J

*By W. 11. Perrin.

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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

From a wilderness, infested with savages and wild beasts, the country has been reclaimed, and transformed into an Eden of loveliness, unsurpassed in glory and beauty, nowithstand- ing the poet has sung of

The land of the orange, the myrtle and vine." - - a clime more delightful than this ;

The history which attaches to every portion of our country increases in interest as time rolls on. Its wonderful development and ad- vancement are more like magic tales than act- ual occurrences, and its vast resources the won- der of all nations. No section but has its tra- ditions and memories ; no spot, however small, but is more or less historical. Montgomery County, which forms the subject matter of the pages following, bears no mean part in the his- tory or the importance of the State of Illinois, as she bears no inconsiderable part in the his- tory of our common country.

Topography .- The county of Montgomery, as formed at present, is bounded on the north by Sangamon and Christian Counties, on the east by Christian, Shelby and Fayette, on the south by Fayette, Bond and Madison, on the west by Maconpin, and has an area of 702 square miles. Of its topography, timber growth, prairies and general surface features, the following has been published, which we give entire for the benefit of our readers : "On Ramsey Creek, the hills are low and the country gently undulating; near Nokomis there are several mounds, with long, gentle depressions between, stretching off into rich plains. Westwardly, across the country, through Townships 10, 11 and 12 north, the country is for the most part rather flat. Near the East Fork of Shoal Creek, the hills are gen- erally low, becoming higher as we descend the stream; in the south part of Township 8 north, they are forty to fifty feet high. On Shoal Creek and Middle Fork, the hills are forty to fifty feet high, and rise by long, gentle ascents. On the West Fork of Shoal Creek the country is generally broken for a few miles from the

stream, and the hills sixty to seventy feet high; near Lake Fork, the hills are not very high. In the south half of the county, between the main streams, there are occasional monnds, often a mile or more across their base, and about fifty feet above the adjacent plain, with which they are connected by a long descent.

"A little less than two-thirds of the area of this county is probably prairie. The northern part is mostly prairie; the southern has a large proportion of timber. Near Hurricane Creek, there are post oak flats, changing to large white oak hills near the creek. At the edge of the prairie, the growth is mostly laurel oak, sumac, hazel, plum, etc. Near Ramsey Creek, the upland growth consists of white-oak, black- oak, post-oak, laurel oak, hazel and sassafras. The East Fork hills have mostly pin oak, black- oak and post-oak, changing near the prairie to laurel oak, black-oak and hazel. Shoal Creek hills have mostly white-oak, black-oak, sassa- fras and hickory, often extending to the prai- ries. Near Hillsboro, the growth is principally black-oak, with some white-oak, hickory, sassa- fras and hazel. Near Walshville and Lake Fork, the country is gently undulating, with a growth principally of plum, black walnut, honey-locust, wild-cherry and grapevines. Wild vines loaded with grapes are observed nearly everywhere in the woods, proving the soil to be naturally well adapted to the grape. Post-oak flats occur near West Fork, as far as Township 10 north. Sugar trees are occa- sionally found along the Middle and West Forks, and some extensive groves are found on the bottoms of main Shoal Creek.

"The following comprises a list of such trees and shrubs as were observed occurring in this county : Crabapple, ash, prickly ash, red birch, buckeye, box-elder, button bush, bitter- sweet, blackberry, coralberry, chokecherry, common cherry, coffee tree, cornus (two spe- eies); cottonwood, Clematis Virginiana; elder, grape (four or five species), gooseberry, black

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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

haw, hackberry, honey-loenst, hop tree; hazel, shellbark and thick shellbark hickory, pig- nut hickory, black hickory and common hickory, iron-wood, linden, white maple, sugar tree, red mulberry, papaw, persimmon, plum; black, red, white, post, laurel, pin, chestnut, black-jack, burr and swamp white- oak; red and American elm, red-bud, rasp- berry, rose, red-root, poison oak, sassafras, service berry, sarsaparilla, sumac, trumpet creeper, Virginia creeper, willow (several spe- cies), and black and white walnut."

Geology .- The geological formations of a country are the most important part of its his- tory. By the science of geology, the history of the earth is traced back through successive ages to its rudimental condition. It is not in- appropriate then to introduce the history of this county with a brief sketch of its geological structure, as compiled from the official survey of the State. A familiarity with the subject should be of interest to all citizens, for we are told by men of science that upon the " geological structure of a country depend the pursuits of its inhabitants and the genius of its civilization. That agriculture is the outgrowth of a fertile soil; mining results from mineral resources," etc., etc. Hence, for the benefit of our readers, a few pages will be devoted to the geology of Montgomery County, as reported in the geological survey. " Along the various streams," says this authority, " are occasional exposures of sand and pebbles, with some beds of brownish-yellow clay. Five miles northeast of Litchfield forty-five feet of drift is exposed, the lower part a compact bed of dark clay, with some sand and pebbles. The following description is given of the various clays passed through in well-digging in the vicinity of Hillsboro: First, soil; second, yellow clay or hardpan; at twenty-four feet, reached a three- foot bed of sand, then soft, moist clay. Seventy- five yards from this, another well was dug, showing in the upper part brownish-yellow clay

at twenty feet, and at thirty-eight feet was a two-foot bed of sand, and, at forty-two feet, specimens of wood.

" On the head-waters of the Ramsey, there are many springs slightly chalybeate, and some containing sulphate of iron, issuing from beds of drift, sand and pebbles. There is certainly evidence that at some former period of time the whole surface of the county was fifty to seventy-five feet higher than at present; that since the original drift deposition ( it may have been just at the close of the drift period), large masses of these deposits were washed off, leav- ing occasional mound-like elevations, several of which may be seen near Nokomis, a few be- tween the East and West Forks, and the hills be- tween Hillsboro and Butler.

" The upper coal measures appear in part in this county, and underly all the superficial deposits, and include coal beds No. 11 and No. 13, and a trace of No. 12, and embrace 150 feet of rock, reaching from the base of No. 33 to No. 20 of the upper coal measure section. Nos. 20 and 21, in Section 12, Township 10 north, Range 1 west, there crops out along the creek eight feet of sandy shale and blue lime- stone; close by is an outerop of brown, shaly, soft limestone, containing Hemipronites crassus and crinoid stems; Machrocheilus and Spirifer cameratus were also found. The exact thickness between 21 and 22 is unknown; the outerops are ten miles apart, with no evidence of a con- tinuous easterly dip, but it is probable that twenty-five or even fifty feet may intevene.

" Northeast of Irving on East Fork, and down stream for a mile, there are occasional onterops of an ash-blue hard shelly limestone, abounding in a large variety of Productus Prat- tenianus. It also contams P. costatus, P. punc- tatus, P. Nebrascensis, Spirifer cameratus, Ari- culopecten carboniferous, Chonetes, Verneuiliana, Ch. Flemingii, and a branching coral. A quar- ter of a mile up stream, the limestone appears in a regular layer, stretching across the bed of

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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

a small branch. Three miles up stream, many fossils were collected, weathered out of the shale beds in a fine state of preservation, inelnding beautiful specimens of Pleurotomaria, sphæru- lata, P. tabulata, Orthoceras, Macrocheilus pa- ludinaformis, and one like the M. primigenius, but with body, whorl and spire more elongated ; Goniatites globulosus, Bellerophon carbonarius, Leda bella-striata, Nucula ventricosa, Astar- tella vera, Conularia, Leda Oweni, Euompha- lus, subrugosus and Polyphemopsis peracuta. These shales contain round and oblong clay and ironstone concretions. In Section 28, Town- ship 10 north, Range 3 west, a few fossils were obtained, indicating the presence of the same beds as those last named. The upper blue limestone, named above, undulates along East Fork for about eight miles, which is regarded as equivalent to No. 22 of general section. Near Section 36, Township 8 north, Range 3 west, on the East Fork of Shoal Creek, there crops out eight feet of sandy shale and sand- stone. On West Fork, at the bridge on the Hillsboro and Walshville road, there is a bluff of thirty-five feet of bluish-gray sandy shales with a thin bed showing markings resembling those of Fucoides cauda galli, and containing one Bellerophon. East of Litchfield, at the creek bluffs, is seen thirty feet of sandy, shale, and below that ten feet of thick-bedded sand- stone, resting on limestone. Four miles up stream, this sandstone is quite ferruginous at the base, and contain many remains of plants, Calamities, Sigilara, etc. One mile farther up stream, there were observed forty-eight feet of darkish mieaceous sandy shale. On Five-Mile Creek, in Section 26, Township 10 north, Range 5 west, there are twelve feet of sandy shales, with a thin bed of partially carbonized wood, containing a fossil fern. A quarter of a mile up the creek, there is an exposure of sixteen feet of this olive-drab clay shales, with iron- stone nodules. These shales are evidently con- tinuations of the same beds, and make the

total thickness of No. 26 not less than eighty- five feet. The best exposures of Nos. 27 to 33 inclusive are on Lake Fork and at Liteh- field. The section on Lake Fork, at the Bond County line, near MeCracken's, coal, is as fol- lows :

Ft. In.

Drift slope. 20 0

No. 27-Lead blue limestone, with crinoid stems, and Athyris subtilita. 0

No. 28-Coal. 0 2

No. 29-Blue clay shales. 10 0

No. 30-Shale and shaly limestone abonnding in fossils, but many are much crushed including Spirifer cameratus, Produc- tus punctatus, P. Nebrascensis, Spiri- ferina Kentuckensis, Ilemipronites crassus Productus, Prattenianus,

Athyris subtilita Terebratula bovidens, Myalina subquadrata, a Macrocheilus,

a Pleurotomaria, and one in fish tooth 4 0

No. 31- Ash-gray limestone ; in the lower part there is from one to one and a half feet of dark ash-colored limestone, often traversed by fine lines of cale- spar ; fossils not abundant contains Productus longispinus. 13 0

Bitnminous shale. 4

No. 33-Coal No. 11. 1 5

" Part of No. 27 appears two and one-half miles northwest in the bed of the creek, con- taining Spirifer cameratus, Fistulipora, Pro- ductus costatus, P. Nebrascensis, P. Pratteni- anus and Myalina subquadrata. The fossils here have a well preserved and nacreons ap- pearance. One and a half miles southwest of Bethel, part of No. 31 crops out along the creek ; the upper portion is an even bedded bluish-gray sub-crystalline limestone ; but he- low it is more irregularly bedded. Productus longispinus abounds, associated with Ariculo- pecten carboniferus. Four miles northeast of Litchfield, the upper part of No. 31 is a thick bedded brownish-gray limestone, abounding in Rhynchonella Uta.

Coal .- " On J. Wilson's land, Section 7, Township 8 north, Range 2 west, coal No. 13 (No. 24 of upper coal measures seetion) has

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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

been mined ; that used was from near the out- crop, and does not appear very favorable ; the quality and thickness might improve by thor- ough opening. The same coal has also been taken out on the land of John L. Newsman, in Section 28, Township 10 north, Range 3 west, some eighteen inches thick, but could not be thoroughly examined on account of the over- lying debris. On the land of Mr. MeCracken, near the south county line (probably in Bond County) Coal 13 is seventeen inches thick. Oc- curring as it does below the bed of the creek, it can only be reached at low water, and even then the labor of one man is required most of the time to keep the pit sufficiently dry for two others to work ; but with this trouble it will repay very well to work for neighborhood pur- poses. The same bed has also been worked at Ross' old mill, on Shoal Creek, at the south county line, and may also be reached just be- low the surface of the water on Shoal Creek above Long bridge. At the limestone quarries on the creek near Butler, it may be reached at about ten to fourteen feet beneath the bed of the creek; also about four feet beneath the darker colored limestone at the base of Mi- chael Cleary's quarry east of Litchfield.

Building Rock .- " On East Fork, abont Sec- tion 26, Township 8 north, Range 3 west, there is a tolerably good bed of hard bluish lime- stone. On Rocky Branch, east of Litchfield, there are extensive quarries of pretty good limestone; the beds are rather irregular, but the rock is very extensively used for ordinary stone work, and makes very good lime. North of the railroad on the West Fork, there are ser- eral outerops of a brown and gray limestone in three-foot beds. The same rock is also found four miles farther up stream. At the latter place, part of it presents a beautiful bluish-gray variegated appearance. This limestone pos- sesses much durability, and being in a thiek even bed, may become in time very useful for large columns. It is believed to be equivalent

to that used in the construction of the old State House at Springfield. West of Butler, there are good quarries of limestone for lime, and it is also much used in the neighborhood for ordi- nary building purposes."

The foregoing presents a pretty good digest of the geology of Montgomery County, and its wealth of coal measures, building rocks, etc., and will be found of interest to land-owners at least.

The climate of Montgomery County, in com- mon with Southern and Central Illinois, is vari- able. No one who has lived here long needs to be told this ; it very soon becomes an estab- lished fact in his own personal experience. Of the temperature, elimate, and the various changes of Southern Illinois weather gener- ally, Foster's Physical Geography has the fol- lowing : "The melting snows of winter, gen- erally attended by rains, convert the rich soil of the prairies into mud, and render early spring the most unpleasant part of the year. The heat of summer, although more intense than in the same latitude on the Atlantic, is greatly relieved by the constant breezes which fan the prairies. Autumn, with its slowly di- minishing heat, terminates in the serene and beautiful season known as Indian Summer. Its mild and uniform temperature, soft and hazy atmosphere, and forests beautifully tinted with the hues of dying foliage, all conspire to render it the pleasant part of the year. Next comes the boreal blasts of winter, with its so- cial firesides, and tinkling bells in the mystic light of the moon, as merry sleighs skim over the level snow-clad prairies. The winter has its sudden change of temperature, causing colds and other diseases arising from extreme vicissitudes of weather. This is the most un- favorable feature of the climate, which in other respects is salubrious." These sudden changes seem to increase both in number and in ex- tremes, a fact doubtless attributable to natural causes-the settling-up and cultivation of the

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HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

country. It is very common to hear old eiti- zens who have lived in the State forty or fifty years, tell how different the seasons are now and when they first came here. There is more or less snow or rain, the seasons are less favor- able for farming, the springs more backward, ete., etc., just as their fancy happens to get the start of them.

The following extract from an article in the old Illinois Gazetteer, published in 1834, would indicate that there had been considerable atmospherical changes within the last half- eentury : "There are a great proportion of clear, pleasant days throughout the year. Dr. Beek, who resided at St. Louis during the year

1820, made observations npon the changes of the weather, and produced the following results: ' Clear days, 245; cloudy, including all the variable days, 110.' The results of my own observations, kept for twelve years, with the ex- eeption of 1826, and with some irregularity from traveling into different parts of Illinois during the time, do not vary in any material degree from the above statement." Taking the present year of grace (1882) as a sample of cool, cloudy, disagreeable weather, it presents a striking contrast to the observations of Dr. Beck quoted above, and proves conclusively that changes are taking place in the elimate and sea- sons.

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History of Bond and Montgomery Counties, Illinois, Part 21

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892? Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Chicago : O. L. Baskin Number of Pages: 758

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Chicago : O. L. Baskin
Number of Pages: 758