History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois, Part 17

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago : O.L. Baskin & Co.
Number of Pages: 826

USA > Illinois > Clark County > History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois > Part 17
USA > Illinois > Crawford County > History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois > Part 17

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).

A book as full of humor as Mark Twain's "Innocents Abroad," could be written of the sayings and doings of the Seven Jesses, with- out exaggerating any of their characteristics. They all lived to be old bachelors before they tried the slippery and uncertain paths of mat- rimony; Jess was the first to make a break, as the bell-wether always leads the flock, and he was over thirty when he married. How well he liked the venture is indicated by the fact that the others went and did like- wise.

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HISTORY OF CRAWFORD COUNTY.

Lamotte Township contains some pre-his- toric relics. In the southeast portion of the town of Palestine there was a mound, now nearly obliterated, but when the town was laid out, was in a fine state of preservation. Judge Harper informs us it was some sixty feet in diameter at the base and at least twelve feet high, and cone-shaped. Upon its summit stood an oak tree about three feet through at the stump, which was cut down by Judge Kitchell, who owned the land, and made it into rails. When Levi Harper built his blacksmith shop, which stood on rather low ground, he hauled forty odd wagon loads of dirt from this mound to fill up and level the ground around his shop. In so doing many human bones were exhumed, but so long had they been under ground, that as soon as they were exposed to the atmosphere, they crumbled into dust. A number of other mounds south and west of the town are still to be scen. There is one near where Judge Harper now lives, which has been nearly lev- eled with the surface, but no bones have been

discovered. Flint arrow heads, however, · have been found in quantities in the imme- diate vicinity. These evidences are conclu- sive that the lost race once inhabited this region, ages before it was occupied by the Anglo-Saxons. But they have faded away from the face of the earth, and have left no traces behind of their existence save the mounds and earthworks found in many parts of the country.

Milk-sick .-- That scourge of the western frontier, "milk-sick," was common in this portion of the county, and the early settlers suffered severely from its effects. Many people died of this worse than plague. A case is related of Thos. Gill's butchering a beef, and after the meat was dressed, he sent a quarter of it to his son-in-law, John Woodworth. But as soon as he looked at it he discovered evi- dences of its being "milk-sick" beef, and

would not take it. A neighbor who happened to be present, said if he would let him have it he would risk it being milk-sick beef. He took it, and every one of his family who ate of it came near dying. Thus milk-sick lay in wait for man and beast along nearly all the streams throughout the county, and often proved as fatal as the horrible malaria which freighted the air, floating out from its noisome lurking places, spreading far and wide its deadly poison. Milk-sick is a dis- ease that has puzzled the wisest medical men for years, and is still an unsolved question.

The early life of the people of Lamotte Township, and indeed, of Crawford County, for the time was when what is now Lamotte Township comprised the settled portion of the county, may be learned by a brief extract from an address delivered by Hon. O. B. Ficklin, before the old settlers of Crawford County, October 6, 1880. Upon that occa- sion, Mr. Ficklin said: "This country was taken from the English by Gen. George Rogers Clark in 1778, and the people heard of it in the older settled States, though there were no telegraph lines then - but the peo- ple heard of it all the same. The Revolu- tionary soldiers heard of this Northwestern country, and the news was transmitted to Virginia, to the Carolinas-all over the country, everywhere. To be sure it was not done then as it is now, but our people had sufficient word of it. They knew enough about it. They had heard enough about it to want to emigrate to the new country, and we are a wonderful people to emigrate; we go everywhere; we penetrate every new country, and the pioneers started from Vir- ginia, they started from Pennsylvania, and from the Carolinas. and from Georgia, and all that Atlantic belt of country, and came out as pioneers to this newly acquired region. They stopped in Ohio, they stopped in Indi- ana, they stopped in Illinois-stopped in each

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successive State they came to. A few peo- ple-pioneers, men and women of nerve, of pluck, of energy and industry have come here and settled in this country, dotted around, some on the Ohio, some on the Wabash and some on the Mississippi River, and from this handful, Illinois has grown into a great State."

What was it stopped the stream of emi- gration in this particular spot? What was there here to tempt emigrants to brave all danger, and cause them to pause, and fix here the nucleus around which all this present peo- ple and their wealth has gathered? They could not see the toil and danger that lurked upon every hand, yet they could see enough, one would think, to appal the stoutest heart. The wily and treacherous savage was here, the horrible malaria was in the air they breathed, the howling, and always hungry wolf and the soft-footed panther crouched in every thicket, and scores of other impediments were encountered at every step. Then what was the attraction ? Doubtless, it was the broad expense of rolling prairie, the primeval forests that towered along the Wabash and its trib- utaries, combining a vision of loveliness con- vincing to the pioneer fathers, that if the Garden of Eden was not here, then there was a mistake as to its place of location. Imbued with this idea, when a town was laid out, they called it Palestine, after the capital city of the Holy Land. Considering all the difficulties under which these "strangers in a strange land " labored, it is a wonder indeed that they ever came to this earthily paradise, or re- mained after they came. But the pioneers, with something of that spirit with which the poet invests Rhoderick Dhu

" If a path be dangerous known, The danger's self is lure alone,"

faced the perils of "flood and field," wholly indifferent to, if not actually courting the

danger that met them on every side. Such as they were they had to be, in order that they might blaze the way into the heart of the wilderness for the coming hosts of civili- zation.

Cotton was extensively grown here in early times, not so much as an article of commerce as to satisfy the necessities of the times. It was the custom then for each family to manu- facture their own clothing, and to this end cotton was cultivated to a greater or less extent by every settler who made any pre- tensions to farming, while some planted laige crops of this, now great staple. Mr. Wiley Emmons informed us that he has seen as much as seventy acres of cotton in one field. Sand prairie produced it well, yielding as much as 200 pounds per acre. Half that amount was the usual crop on ordinary land. William Norris put up the first cotton gin in that portion of the county now embraced in Lawrence County. But experience dorel- oped the fact that the county, upon the whole, was not adapted to cotton growing, and as a crop it was eventually abandoned.

The first school in Lamotte township was taught in Palestine, as the carly settlement encircled that place. The township now has a comfortable school building in each neigli- borhood, and is provided with excellent schools. The early schools will be more par- ticularly mentioned in connection with the history of the town.

A village called " Bolivar," was staked off in an early day on Lamotte Prairie, on the high ground near the north end of the Moore pond. But it was never regularly laid out, nor otherwise improved.

Churches .- The early preacher, as "one crying in the wilderness," came with the tide of immigration, and the pioneers received gladly his spiritual counsels. Mr. Samuel Park, at an old settler's meeting, gives a true picture of the frontier preacher in the follow-

dos woodworth

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HISTORY OF CRAWFORD COUNTY.

ing: " But see yonder in the distance, wind- ing along the path that leads to the cabin, is a stranger on horseback. He is clad in home- spun, has on a plain, straight-breasted coat and a broad brimmed hat, and is seated on a large and well-filled pair of saddle-bags. Ah! that is the pioncer preacher, hunting up the lost sheep in the wilderness. He brings glad tid- ings from friends far away, back in the old home of civilization. Not only so, but he brings a message from the celestial regions, assuring the brave pioneer of God's watchful care of him and his household, telling him of God's promise of deliverance and salvation from all sin to all who faithfully combat and overcome the evils with which they are sur- rounded. Most of those brave spirits have already realized the truths of the message they bore by entering upon their reward. Others are still westward bound over the un- explored plains of time toward the setting sun. Soon, very soon, they will reach that point where the sun will set to those old pio- neers to rise no more. Already their tot- tering limbs show weariness from many hard- fought battles, and their eyes have become dim to the beauties of this world." Such was the pioneer preacher, and in his humble way, he did more to advance civilization than any other class that penetrated the wilderness of the west. He may have been very ignorant, but he was wholly honest and sincerely hum- ble. Generally illiberal and full of severity, and warped and deformed with prejudices, he took up the cross of his Master, seized the sword of Gideon and smote His Satanic Maj- esty wherever he could find him. But he was a God-fearing good man, and but few, if any ministerial scandals were known.

The Methodists and the Hardshell Baptists were cotemporaneous in their coming, and, as one informed us, " the Methodists shouting, and the Hardshells singing their sermons through their nose, but in their different fields

of usefulness, they dwelt together in truc Christian love and friendship." Thomas Kennedy, who was among the very early set- tlers of this section, was a Hardshell preacher, and "old Father " McCord, John Fox and John Stewart were early Methodist preachers. These veteran soldiers of the Cross first preached the Gospel to the people of what now forms Lamotte and Montgomery town- ships. But after this long lapse of years, it is hard to say when or where the first church society was organized, whether in Palestine or in the adjoining neighborhoods. We shall not attempt to decide the question, but give brief sketches, so far as we have been able to obtain them, of the churches in the town and township.

There are some four or five church buildings in the township, outside of Palestine, but the original organization of the different churches can not, in all cases, be given. The old Lamotte Baptist church, originally organized by Elder Daniel Parker in a very early day, was no doubt the first church in the town- ship, but it has long since become extinct, through death of members, removals, and the formation of other churches. But they once had a church building on Lamotte Prairie and a large congregation.

East Union Christian Church in the south part of the township, was organized in 1848, by Elder John Bailey, with fifty mem- bers. It has prospered, and has now about 120 members. Their first meetings were held in a log school-house, and in 1862, their pres- ent frame church was erected at a cost of about $1,000. The present pastor is Elder J. T. G. Brandenburg. The pastors since its organization, have been Elders John Bailey, L. Thompson, John Mullins, David Clark, G. W. Ingersoll, John T. Cox, J. H. Sloan, J. Chowning, Jacob Wright, O. T. Azbill, John Ingle, P. E. Cobb, J. J. Lockhart, F. G. Roberts, and J. T. G. Brandenburg, the pres-

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HISTORY OF CRAWFORD COUNTY.

ent pastor. A Sunday school was organized in 1873, and has a regular attendance of about fifty, under the superintendence of John Miller.

Richwoods Baptist Church is situated in the southeast corner of the township, and was founded in the fall of 1871, by Elder D. Y. Allison, with eight original members. The first meetings were held in the Harding school- house. In 1873 the congregation built a good, substantial frame church. The pastors have been Elders D. Y. Allison, J. L. Cox, Jacob Clements, and Isaiah Greenbaugh. In 1881 it had 36 members, and at the present time is without a pastor.

There are two church buildings in the north part of the township: the Union church at the Jack Oak Grove cemetery, and the Dankard church near by. The circumstances attending the formation and building of these churches were as follows: About the year 1870-71 there was quite a revival of religion held on " Rogue's Island," as it is called, at the old Wright school-house, under the auspices of the New Lights. The religious interest awakened suggested the thought of erecting a church building. As the subject was can- vassed sentiment became divided as to the spot where the church should be located. Some wanted it on the island where the revival had been held, while another faction insisted on having it at the Jack Oak cemetery, inas- much as the latter was an old burying ground. The controversy finally culminated in the building of two churches, one at the cemetery, and the other a little east, on the old State road. Both were erected by a general sub- scription from all denominations, and were built by the same carpenter in the summer of 1871. About 1875, the one erected on the State road was burned down, and has never been rebuilt. The one built at the cemetery is still standing, is open to all denominations,

but is used chiefly by New Lights and the Methodists.

The Jack Oak Grove Cemetery is one of the oldest burying grounds in the county, and contains the mouldering dust of many of the pioneers of this township. Some of their graves are unmarked and unknown, and their fast receding memories are alike unhonored and unsung. They quietly sleep in this lonely graveyard where the grass grows rank with the vapors of decaying mortality, without so much as a rude boulder to mark the spot where they lie. Here rests Thomas Gill, a Revolutionary soldier who fought under Gen. Putnam, and around him sleep some of the red sons of the forest, who, from this quiet spot, took their flight to the happy hunting grounds, so often described in the rude wild eloquence of the medicine men. But not all of the graves here are neglected. Many are marked by stones, moss-grown from age, with dates running back to 1825-30. There also are some very handsome stones and monu- ments. When the first burial was made, is not known, but many who died in this portion of the township in early days were interred in this cemetery. Several Indians were buried here, which shows its age as a place of sepul- ture. Side by side the white and red man sleep, and "six feet of earth make them all of one size."

The Dunkards had an interest in the Jack Oak Grove church when first built, but there were too many interested to suit them, as they could not always have the use of it when they wanted it. Hence, in the summer of 1882, they built a church of their own in the vicin- ity, which is a neat and handsome frame building.

Swearingen Chapel, Methodist Episcopal, has been recently built, and is situated in the southwest part of the township. It was built principally by Samnel Swearingen. Rev. J.

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HISTORY OF CRAWFORD COUNTY.

B. Reeder was the first, and is the present pastor.

Harmony Church is located in the extreme northwest corner of the township, and is a union church. It was built by general sub- scription and is open to all denominations who choose to occupy it. But it is used mostly by the United Brethren, Methodists and New Lights. It is a neat and substantial frame building, and will comfortably seat about two hundred persons.

The old Wabash Valley Railroad which is noticed at some length in a preceding chap- ter, created a great interest in this portion of the county in its day. As a railroad project it grew out of the old internal improve- ment system of the State, and was inaugurated as early as 1850. About 1854 work com- menced on it in this county, and much of the grading was done, and the most sanguine hopes entertained of its ultimate completion. An amount of money, aggregating $60,000 was subscribed to the enterprise, mostly in this portion of the county. A corps of men, were sent here to take charge of the work. They opened an office in Palestine, and in- stead of pushing the work with energy, they spent most of their time in town, drinking, carousing, and in "riotous living." The funds disappeared faster than the enterprise pro- gresscd. Nearly enough money had been subscribed along the line to have built the road, had it been judiciously and economi- cally used. But it was squandered, and the project of building the Wabash Valley Rail- road finally abandoned. The old grade is still to be seen, an eye-sore to the people of this scetion, and a daily reminder of " what might have been." Later, when the project was revived under the Paris & Danville Railroad, in building the same, it diverged from the old Wabash grade a little south of Hutsonville, and run to Robinson, leaving this township out in the cold. It was not until the building

of the Springfield, Effingham & Southeastern narrow-guage railroad that Lamotte Township and Palestine received railroad communica- tion with the outside world.

Trimble station is on the Wabash Railroad just on the line between Lamotte and Robin- son Townships, but most of the town, if town it can be called, is on the Robinson side of the line. It consists of merely a store, post-office, a shop or two, a saw mill, Harmony church, and some half a dozen dwellings.

" I can not throw my staff aside, Or wholly quell the hope divine, That one delight awaits me yet, - A pilgrimage to Palestine."

Palestine .- The town of Palestine, the orig- inal capital of the county, and fifty or sixty years ago one of the most important towns in the State, was laid out on the 19th and 20th days of May, 1818, by Edward N. Cul- lom and Joseph Kitchell, the owners of the land, and David Porter, agent for the county. The original plat embraced 160 lots of ground, each fronting 75 fect, 'and 142 feet deep, with the public square containing two acres. This was Palestine as it was laid out sixty-five years ago. Several additions have since that time been made, but they are not pertinent to this sketch. Of the first build- ings and the first business we have been un- able to gather much satisfactory information. A communication written by D. W. Stark, Esq., to Mr. Finley Paull, who has taken an active interest in aiding us in our researches, gives some interesting facts of the early busi- ness. We make the following extract from his communication to Mr. Paull:

"About 1818-19 John Houston, in connec- tion with Francis Dickson, of Vincennes, purchased lot No. 111, in Palestine, built a house intended for dwelling and store-room combined; finished off the south room on the corner for a store-the room was about 16 or 18 feet square. In the year 1819, or in the

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HISTORY OF CRAWFORD COUNTY.

beginning of 1820 they brought on a stock of goods to Palestine. This, I believe was the first stock of goods ever in Palestine, or, as far as I know, ever on the west side of the river, north of Vincennes. John Houston married my oldest sister, Jane M. Stark, in the spring of 1821. They were ever after residents of Palestine until their deaths a few years ago.

"John and Alexander Houston were the sons of Robert Houston, a minister of the Presbyterian church, who broke off from the church in Kentucky, in the year 1803, at the time Stone, Dunlevy, MeNemar and others did. Houston embraced the Shaker faith, moved to the Wabash country about 1806. He located at the old Shaker town, to which point a considerable body of Shakers soon collected and built the old Shaker village. A few years later, Houston for some reason or other left the Wabash, and went to reside at the Shaker village, in Logan County, Ken- tucky, where he lived until his death at the advanced age of 95 years. John and Alex- ander Houston both left the Shakers when quite young-before they were scarcely grown. Alexander left a short time first, going to Nashville, Tenn., to an uncle who re- sided there. John, when he left, remained on the Wabash, and when the war of 1812 broke out joined the Rangers and continued in the service until peace in the beginning of 1815. Then for three or four years was en- gaged in running barges and keel-boats on the Ohio and Wabash rivers, in connection with an uncle of the same name, who lived in Mason County, Ky., but who afterward moved to Palestine and died there-the fath- er-in-law of David Logan.

"Alexander M. Houston in a short time after going to Nashville, entered the regular army where he remained for seven or eight years, rose to the rank of lieutenant and quartermaster, and then resigned. He came

to Palestine, and went into partnership with his brother John (who had bought out Dick- son's interest), probably about 1822. The two brothers remained in business together in Palestine until 1835, when Alexander moved to Rockville, Ind., where he lived for some years, but his wife's health failing, he re- turned to Palestine, where she afterward died. He finally married again, moved to the State of New York, and died there. Neither of the Houstons had any children; John was up- ward of 86 when he died, and Alexander was 76; both they and their wives are dead, and both families are extinct.

" My father, David W. Stark, moved from Mason County, Ky., to Palestine in the fall of 1820, and built a residence east and directly across the street from the old Wilson tavern. My mother died in 1822, and a year or two later my father married a widow Neeley, who resided at the head of Lamotte prairie, where he died in the year 1846. I went to reside with John Houston in 1821, when I was about fifteen years old. I remained with him until I was married in 1831, and continued business with him and Alexander Houston until 1839, when I removed to Rockville, Ind., where I have since lived. I am now 77 years old, and the last of my father's family that is alive.

" As it may be of some interest to you to know, I think I can give you the names of at least nine-tenths of the heads of families, re- siding in Palestine in 1820. They are as fol- lows: Joseph Kitchell, Wickliffe Kitchell, Mrs. Nancy Kitchell and family, she a widow, Edward N. Cullom, James Otey; James Wil- son, Wm. Wilson, David Stewart, Dr. Ford, Edward N. Piper, Daniel Boatright, David W. Stark, Guy W. Smith, George Calhoun, John Houston, Robert Smith-the two latter unmarried."

These lengthy extracts give much of the early history of Palestine, when it was a straggling village, and the backwoods county

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seat of a realm of almost undefined bounda- ries. From a series of articles published in the Robinson Argus some years ago, entitled, "Palestine Forty Years Ago," we gather some items of interest. From them we learn that in 1832, Palestine was a place of some five or six hundred inhabitants, and contained five dry goods stores, two groceries, two sad- dle shops, three blacksmith shops, one car- penter shop, one cabinet maker shop, one wagon shop, one cooper shop, one tailor shop, one hatter shop, two shoe shops, two tan yards, two mills with distilleries attached, one cotton gin, one carding machine, two taverns and one church.

Palestine was an important place then-a more important place than Hutsonville ever was, for it was the county seat, and this gave it an air of great dignity. The business men could number among their customers meu who lived twenty-five and thirty miles dis- tant. The merchants were John Houston & Co., Danforth & McGahey, Wilson Lagow, James & Mauzy, A. B. Winslow & Co., Otey & Waldrop, Ireland & Kitchell. The part- ner of Ireland was J. H. Kitchell. They bought up and loaded a flat boat with pro- duce, and Asa Kitchell started with it to New Orleans. It is a fact remembered still by many of the old citizens, that he nor the boat were ever after heard of. The supposition was that the boat was swamped and all on board lost, or that it was captured by river pirates and the crew murdered.

Of the two mills, one was an ox-mill, the power made by oxen upon a tread-wheel, and was owned by John Houston & Co., but was being run by James aud Peter Higgins. It had a distillery in connection with it, also in operation. The other was a horse-mill, and belonged to Joseph Kitchell, but was rented to one Morris. A distillery was in operation in connection with it also. Morris died, and both mill and distillery ceased operation.

Corn was then cheap and plenty, and making whisky was profitable. It was shipped to New Orleans mostly-what was not used at home as antidote for snake bites (!) only. An incident is related of the proprietor of a dis- tillery being reproved by his pastor for fol- lowing a business, even then considered disre- putable and inconsistent with religious teach- ings. He listened attentively to the holy man, and then informed him that he was shipping it down south to kill Catholics. There is no record of what further took place, but as Protestant ministers then were more prejudiced against Catholics, if possible, than now, it is supposed the preacher considered that the end justified the means, and the man might continue the business. The ox-mill stood for many years, and furnished much of the flour and meal for the surrounding coun- try. It was afterward converted into a steam- mill, and is still standing, but is old and rickety, and belongs to Mrs. Noll. Reuben Condit built a mill in 1830-52. It is now owned by Miesenhelder & Son, and stands in the southeast part of town. It is a frame building, and still doing a good business. A saw-mill is connected with it.

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History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois, Part 17

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892? Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Chicago : O.L. Baskin & Co. Number of Pages: 826

Author: Perrin, William Henry, d. 1892?
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago : O.L. Baskin & Co.
Number of Pages: 826