History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois, Part 34

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 34
USA > Illinois > Crawford County > History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois > Part 34

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).

The first educational effort attempted in the county was a school taught by Peleg Spencer, west of York on Union Prairie, about the year 1820. He afterward removed to Law- rence County, and is described as having been

a successful teacher for the period, but very harsh and severe; a grim tyrant in his little literary realm, over which he ruled with des- potic sway. He was a conscientious man, it is said, and ever bore in mind the golden maxim. "Spare the rod, and spoil the child." And from his freedom with the hazel and hickory it is safe to say his pupils were not spoiled. The next school was on Walnut Prairie, in a log building, where the brick school-house, near Shaw's Ferry, on the Wa- bash, now stands. It was taught by Robert Taylor, a pioneer and highly respected citizen of Clark, and who died in 1869. Mr. Taylor was eminently successful, as an educator; was a marked exception and far superior to the teachers of his day and age. There are estimable citizens now living in the county who remember him as their best benefactor. These were the pioneer schools of Clark County, no others being established until about the year 1825, under the Duncan law, when three or four were put into operation: one in Washington, now Wabash Township, and was taught by a man named Johnson; one near the present town of Westfield, and one near Charleston, which was then included in this county. After the repeal of the Dun- can law, education, for over a generation, was in anything but a flourishing condition, either in the county or State. Like the stag- nant waters of a southern lagoon, it was dif- ficult to tell whether the current flowed back- ward or forward. For nearly forty years the school-houses, school books, school teachers and the manner of instruction, were of the most primitive character throughout a large portion of the county.

The early school-houses, as a general thing, were of the poorest and rudest kind, and are fully described in other chapters of this work. A few of these humble school-houses-time- worn relics of the early days-are yet stand- ing, eloquent of an age forever past. The

270

HISTORY OF CLARK COUNTY.

writer recalls one, rotten and shaky to the last degree, and serving as a receptacle for a farmer's corn-fodder. The huge, open-throated chimney has fallen down; the broad clap- boards of the roof, held on by crumbling and worm-eaten weight poles, are deeply covered with moss and mold; the rude door is gone and the puncheon floor has disappeared. The The genius of learning has long since flown to finer quarters, and over the whole edifice hangs a gloom-a mist of decay.

The old-time pedagogue was a marked and distinctive character of our early history- one of the vital forces of our earlier growth. He considered the matter of imparting the limited knowledge he possessed, a mere ques- tion of effort, in which the physicial element predominated. If he couldn't talk or read it into a pupil, he took a stick and mauled it into him. This method, though somewhat distasteful to the urehin, always had a charm- ing result,-a few blubbers, red eyes and a good lesson. The schoolmaster, usually, by common consent was a personage of distinc- tion and importance. He was of higher au- thority, even in the law, than the justice of the peace, and ranked him in social position. He was considered the intellectual center of the neighborhood, and was consulted upon all subjects, public and private. Generally, he was a Hard-shell Baptist in religion, a Demo- crat in polities, and worshipped General Jack- son as his political patron saint. But the old- time pedagogue-the pioneer of American letters-is a thing of the past, and we shall never see his like again. He is ever in the van of advancing civilization, and fled before the whistle of the locomotive, or the click of the telegraph were heard. He can not live within the pale of progress. His race became extinct here over a quarter of a century ago, when our common school system began to take firm hold, and became a fixed institution among our people. Our older citizens re-

member him, but to the young of to-day, he is a myth, and only lives in story and tradi- tion.

The Legislature, in 1837, again revised the school law, making several important changes, repealing many objectionable features of for- mer enactments, and adding several wise and liberal amendments. Under this act, any township might become incorporated by a two thirds vote of the inhabitants. Three trustees were elected, whose duty it was to divide the township into school districts. Teachers were to be paid wholly, or as far as the same might extend, out of the interest arising from the proceeds of the sales of school lands, then or thereafter made. Any excess remaining, was to be added to the principal of the township fund, at the option of the trustees, and any existing deficiency to be raised either by taxation or subscription, as the voters might determine. No teacher was to be paid, except on presentation to the town- ship treasurer, of a certificate of qualification to teach. A section of this act, and which is embodied in the school law of the present day, created what is known as the Sarplus Revenue fund, and from it is derived a por- tion of the State Interest fund.

The first step toward establishing a higher or more advanced institution of learning in the county, than the common district school was in 1839, when a bill was passed incorpo- rating the "Marshall Academy," with Wil- liam B. Archer, James Whitlock, William C. Griffith, Channing Madison, Justin Harlan, Nineveh Shaw, William McKeen, Woodford Dulaney, Stephen Archer, James Plaster, John Bartlett, Jonathan K. Greenough, William Tutt, Nathan Tefft, Thomas T. Wethers and Joshua P. Cooper as trustees. Stephen Arch- er is the only survivor of the original board. The act provided, that if at any time, the trustees desired to change the character of the institution, from an academy to a college, they

271

HISTORY OF CLARK COUNTY.

should memorialize the Legislature to that ef- fect, when a liberal charter would be granted, with all the necessary powers to carry the same into effect, and that the name and style should be the " Marshall College, of the East- ern Division of Illinois." The first academic building stood where the present brick high school of Marshall is situated; it was a long one-story frame structure, and was afterward removed to the present premises of M. R. Chenoweth. The academy was placed in charge of the late Rev. Dean Andrews, and many are the living representatives through- out the county, who received instruction in that humble building and from that able pre- ceptor. The main portion of the present brick building was afterward erected, and about 1836, the building and grounds were sold to the Methodist denomination, which conducted the school for many years. In 1872, the people of school district, number five, Marshall township, became the purchas- ers of the building and converted it into a graded c mmon school, and by additions to it, and improvements to the grounds, have ren- dered them commodious and sightly.

In 1839, also, a law was passed, incorporat- ing the "Marshall Female Academy," with James McCabe, Isaac Hill, Thomas Hender- son, Thomas Carey, Justin Harlan, John Bart- lett, Stephen Archer, Woodford Dulaney and William B. Archer as trustees. This institu- tion was never carried into successful oper- ation.

Matters pertaining to education and com- mon schools, remained substantially un- changed until 1845, when a law was passed making the secretary of State ex-officio State superintendent of common schools, and autho- rizing a school tax to be levied in each dis- trict, subject to the decision of the voters. The secretary reported to the Legislature in 1847, that the common schools throughout the State, with the exception of a few localities,

were in a deplorable condition, especially in the southern portion.

After the adoption of the constitution of 1848, the school law was again revised in all its details. From the passage of this act, dates the office of school commissioner, who was made ex-officio county superintendent. School lands could be sold when two thirds of the white male inhabitants thereof, over twenty-one years of age, should petition the school commissioner. Each congressional township, was established as a township for school purposes; the law provided for the election of three trustees in each township, who had supreme control of the schools. The trustees divided the township into school dis- tricts, and three directors were elected in each, the employment of teachers, building and repairing school houses, and many other duties. Taxes could be levied by a majority of the voters of each district, but the levy was limited to twenty-five cents on the hund- red dollars valuation of property. The law required that all teachers be qualified to teach orthography, reading in English, penman- ship, arithmetic, English grammar, modern geography and the history of the United States. Each teacher was required to exhibit a certificate of the school commissioner certi- fying to his qualifications. This revision is es- sentially the foundation on which our present superstructure rests.

The Constitution 1818, is silent upon the subject of educating the masses through the medium of common schools. The framers of the Constitution of 1848, went a little further, and said, in a subjunctive way, that the gen- eral assembly might provide a system of free schools. But it was not until after half a century of existence as a State, that, our dele- gates in convention assembled, engrafted upon the pages of our organic law, a manda- tory section, declaring that " the general as- sembly shall provide a thorough and efficient

272

HISTORY OF CLARK COUNTY.

system of free schools, whereby all children of this State may receive a good common school education."

The following exhibit of the condition of the common school system in the county, for the year ending June 30, 1882, is not unin- teresting to the friends of education. There are at present, in the county, on hundred and two school districts, and one hundred and four school buildings. There were em- ployed, during the year, one hundred and seventy-seven teachers, who imparted instruc- tion to six thousand and thirty-eight pupils. Of the one hundred and four schools taught in the county, six are graded, and two of the six are high schools proper, one each at Mar- shall and Martinsville. A graded school is where there are more than one teacher, and where the school is divided into departments, usually with a reference to the age and advancement of the pupils, and known as the primary, intermediate and advanced grades. The county in addition to her excellent and flourishing common school system, and her high and graded schools, has one college, conducted by an able faculty, and with a reputation inferior to none; it is under the direction and management of the United Brethren denomination, and is located at Westfield. All these will be fully written up in the respective townships in which they are situated. The educational history of each

township will also be given, from the small and humble beginnings, through their various changes and improvements to the almost per- fect state of the | resent.

The total school expenditures, in each township, for all purposes, including wages of teachers, repairs, fuel, erecting school buildings, etc., are as follows:

Anderson, $1,392.92; Casey, $14,794.93; Darwin, $1,497.65; Dolson, $3,908.53; Doug- las, $619.05; Johnson, $1,150.18; Marshall, $6,721.84; Martinsville, $4,439.19; Melrose, $1,955.32 ; Orange, $1,417.91 ; Parker, $1,325.88; Wabash, $4,336.51; Westfield, $8,018.87; York, $2, 459.65. - Total, $54,143- .43.

In the townships of Westfield and Casey new school-houses were built, which will ex- plain increased expenditures over those of the other townships. The above expenditures were for the year ending June 30, 1882. About one hundred and eighty unexpired teachers' certificates are outstanding, of which about twenty are first grade, the remainder second grade. The county received from the State school fund, for the year, the sum of $7,437.13; from the State interest fund, $423.45; from fines and interest on loans, the sum of $189.42, making in all $8,050.00, which was distributed by the county superin- tendent to the treasurers of the different townships in the county.

CHAPTER VI.

INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS-THE OLD NATIONAL ROAD-HOW IT WAS BUILT-RAIL- ROADS-THEIR APPEARANCE IN CLARK-BUILDING OF THE VANDALIA ROAD -WABASH AND OTHER RAILROAD PROJECTS-CONCLUSION, ETC., ETC.

-T

" When the iron steed shall know why man restrains His fiery course, or drives him o'er the plain," etc. TINHE old National Road and its construc- tion created as much interest in its day, not only in this county, but in all the country through which it passed, as any internal im- provement ever inaugurated in the State of Illinois, perhaps. It was originally called the Cumberland Road, after the old stage road from Washington, D. C., to Cumberland, MId., a great highway in its time, and forming the eastern division and terminus. This road was a national work. It had been provided for in the reservation of five per cent of the sale of public lands in Illinois and other States, and biennial appropriations were its depend- ence for a continuance to completion. When Congress made any appropriation for this road, it required that "said sums of money shall be replaced out of any funds reserved for laying out and making roads, under the direction of Congress, by the several acts passed for the admission of the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri into the Union, on an equal footing with the original States."

The work was commenced on the road in this county in 1827-'28, by the cutting out of the timber on the line, and was pushed to practical completion as far west as nearly to the east line of Fayette County. Then with scattering work at the streams as far west as Vandalia, such as a levee across the Okaw bottom, and several bridges at that place, had exhausted the appropriations of Congress,

and the people of Illinois, becoming crazed over the foolish State policy, were divided in sentiment to the extent (some wanted it to go to St. Louis and others to Alton) that no fur- ther appropriations were procured, and the great work was stopped. To this portion of the country it was a most important public work. It gave the people access to the out- side world, where, before, they had been pent up by almost impossible obstacles. People could go to Terre Haute, and even to St. Louis, and thus reach markets and sell the little portable stuff they had, and buy such things as their necessities demanded and haul them home. But the growth of county im- provements was slow indeed. The county, like the people generally, was poor, and while they made commendable efforts, yet often the money was wasted through being expended by inexperienced or ignorant men.

In after years, it may be of interest to some, to know which of the public highways passing through Clark County, was once known as the old National Road, and just where it was located. It is the road passing east and west through Marshall, on the north side of the public square, and known as Cuni- berland or Main street within the corporate limits, taking its name from the original title of the road. It was a great thoroughfare be- fore the era of railroads, and was intended to cross the continent, even as railroads now cross it. But railroads were invented a little too soon for its entire completion, and its im-

.274

HISTORY OF CLARK COUNTY.

portance in this age of steam, is no greater than any ordinary county or State road.

A branch diverged from the main line at Zanesville, Ohio, and crossed the Ohio River at Maysville, Ky., passing through Lexington, thenee to Nashville, Tenn., and on to New Orleans. Thus the country was to be spanned from east to west and to the extreme south.

Railroads .- As we have stated in a pre- ceding chapter, all of Clark's early railroad projects resulted in failure, and she was doomed to sit idly by and see many of her sister counties, younger in years than herself, prospering through means of railroad commu- nication, of which she, herself, was wholly deprived. This was the case until a compar- ative late day in railroad building and rail- road enterprise.

Hon. W. S. Wait, an old and prominent citizen of Bond County, in a letter to B. Gratz Brown, June, 1863, makes the best in- troduction to the history of the rise and pro- gress of the St. Louis, Vandalia & Terre Haute Railroad-the first road built through Clark County. Mr. Wait says: " The rail- road projected so early as 1835, to run from St. Louis to Terre Haute, was intended as a direct line of railway to the Atlantie cities, and its first survey was taken over the exact line of the great Cumberland road. We ap- plied to the Illinois Legislature for a charter in 1846, but were opposed by rival interests, that finally succeeded in establishing two lines of raiload connecting St. Louis with the Wabash-oue by a line running north, and the other by a line running south of our survey, thus demonstrating by the unfailing test of physical geography that our line is the central and true one; the two lines alluded to are the Terre Haute & Alton and Ohio & Mississippi. We organized our company with the name of the Mississippi & Atlantic Company in 1850, by virtue of a general rail- road law passed the year previous, and im-

mediately accomplished a survey. An ad- verse decision of our Supreme Court led us to accept the offer of eastern capitalists to help us through, who immediately took nine- tenths of our stoek, and gave us John Brough for president. Our right to contract was finally confirmed, in February, 1854, the road put under contract and the work com- menced. The shock given to all railroad enterprises by the 'Schuyler fraud' suspend- ed operations, and before confidence was restored, the controlling power, which was enthroned in Wall street, had arrived at the conclusion, as afterward discovered, to pro- ceed no further in the construction of the Mississippi & Atlantic Railroad. For purposes best understood by themselves, the eastern manager amused us for several years with the hope that they were still determined to pros- ecute the work. When we were finally con- vineed of the intentional deception, we aban- doned the old charter and instituted a new company, under the name of the Highland & St. Louis Railroad Company, with power to build and complete by sections the entire road from St. Louis to Terre Haute. The charter was obtained in February, 1859, with the determination on the part of the Highland corporators to make no delay in constructing the section connecting them with St. Louis, but were prevented at the outset by difficul- ties since overcome, and afterward by the existing rebellion."

This public letter portrays some of the chief difficulties with which the friends of this road had to contend. "State policy," the stupidest folly rational men ever engaged in, was openly urged by many of the leading men north and south of the "Brough road," as it was generally called. IIon. Sidney Breese, a long resident of Carlisle, on the line of the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad, publicly deelared for that doctrine, " that it was to the interest of the State to encourage that policy

275

HISTORY OF CLARK COUNTY.

that would build the most roads through the State; that the north and south roads (alluded to in Wait's letter) shoukl first be allowed to get into successful operation, when the Cen- tral line should then be chartered, as the merits of that line would insure the building of the road on that line at once, giving to middle Illinois three roads instead of one, as the chartering of the Central line first would be a death-blow to the other two, at least for many years to come." Mr. Wait replied im- mediately, saying it was the first instance he had ever known where the merits of a rail- road had been urged as a reason why it should not meet with merited encouragement, and after more than $100,000 had been ex- pended on the "Brough road." Further work was therefore suspended.

Clark had taken an active interest in the road. At the November election, 1854, a proposition for the county to subscribe $25,- 000 to the capital stock of the company, was submitted to the people and carried by five hundred majority.

In February, 1865, the rebellion nearing its close, the people along the "Central Line," or "Brough " survey, again renewed their petition to the Illinois Legislature for negotia- tion of their right to build their railroad on their own long-cherished route.

Mr. Williamson Plant, of Greenville, who has been secretary of the road from its incep- tion, and is still in this position, furnishes the following facts of the history of the road:

On the 10th of February, 1865, a liberal charter was granted for building the present St. Louis, Vandalia & Terre Haute Railroad.

The line was designated in the charter as " commencing on the left bank of the Missis- sippi, opposite St. Louis, running thence east- ward through Greenville, the county seat of Bond County, and through Vandalia by the most eligible route, to a point on the River Wabash." The persons named as incorpo-

rators were Henry Wing, S. W. Little, John S. Dewey, Andrew Mills, Solomon Kepfli, Garrett Crownover, Curtis Blakeman, Wm. S. Smith, Charles Hoile, Win. S. Wait, John B. Hunter, Williamson Plant, Andrew G. Henry, J. F. Alexander, Nathaniel M. McCurdy, August H. Deickman, Ebeneze Capps, Fred- erick Remann, Mathias Fehren, Michael Lynch, Thos. L. Vest, J. F. Waschefort, Sam'l W. Quinn, Chauncey Rose and J. H. Morgan.

The counties along the line took an active interest, generally, in the road, and Clark was not behind her sister counties in aid to the enterprise, but came forward with liberal sub- scriptions.

The first meeting of the board of incorpo- rators met at Vandalia on the 14th day of No- vember, 1865, for the purpose of organizing and electing a board of nine directors, with the following result: John Schofield and Charles Duncan, Clark County; Samuel Quinn, Cumberland County; J. P. M. Howard and S. W. Little, Effingham; C. Floyd Jones and F. Reemaer, Fayette; Wm. S. Smith and Williamson Plant, Bond County. At the first meeting of the Board of Directors, held at Effiingham on the 22d day of November, 1865, for the purpose of electing the first officers of the company, J. P. M. Howard was elected president, and Williamson Plant secretary.

Through the influence of E. C. Rice, who was Chief Engineer of the " Brough " survey, and had made estimates for the work under the same, Gen. E. F. Winslow, a gentleman of great energy and considerable railroad experience, after various propositions being made to build part of the line, or parts of the road, contracted, August 22, 1866, to build the entire line from the "west bank of the Wabash to the east end of the dyke at I linois town." The contract was finally ratified at a meeting of the board of directors, held at Vandalia November 14, 1866. An addi-

276

HISTORY OF CLARK COUNTY.

tional agreement was entered into November 28, 1866, and made part of the original con- tract.

The first shock received by the railroad company in the outset, was the lamented death of its earnest leader and judicious friend, Hon. W. S. Wait, July 12, 1865, there- by depriving it of his mature judgment and wise counsel in carrying out and making the contract about to be entered into for building of the road under the charter so recently obtained from the Legislature.

In 1867, first mortgage bonds were put on the " property, rights, franchises, leases and estate, etc., of the company to the amount of $1,900,000." When the property was leased, in February, 1868, a second mortgage was put on the same to the amount of $2,6 0,000, each mortgage bearing ? per cent interest, payable semi-annually. For the purpose of further equipment of the road, preferred stock has been issued to the amount of $1,544,700, bearing ? per cent interest.

The issue of $2,000,000 has been authorized. This stock will take precedence over the com- mon stock of the company in receiving divi- dends, and as the interest on the preferred stock may accumulate before any payment thereof, the prospect for dividends on common stock is remote.

By mutual understanding between the con- tractors and the company, E. C. Rice was en- gaged as Chief Engineer, January 18, 1867, and he commenced the first survey on the west end of the line in March, and the grad- ing was begun as soon as the line was fixed at the west end in April following. At the same meeting a code of by-laws was adopted, and Greenville was designated as the general office of the company.

At the annual election held in January, 1867, J. P. M. Iloward was re-elected presi- dont, Williamson Plant, secretary, and W. S. Smith, treasurer. April 3, 1866, Mr. Howard

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Crawford and Clark counties, Illinois, Part 34

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