USA > Illinois > Fulton County > Fairview > History of Fairview Township and the village of Fairview : 139th anniversary, 1836-1975 > Part 4
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There was another hotel in the Village known as the Greenwell Hotel which was lo- cated where Robert Wilson now lives. Jesse Greenwell also operated a livery stable which was just east of the hotel. Records show that Jesse H. Greenwell bought these lots (5 and 6) from Travers and wife on April 30, 188311 It is assumed that, soon thereafter, he opened the hotel and livery stable. At one time he carried the mail from the depot to the post office. The opinion of some of his relatives is that his operations were closed around 1910. When this property came into the hands of Robert Wilson, he removed the back part of the hotel, and he used the livery stable as a sale barn from 1938 to 1948. By that time Wilson had built a new sale barn farther west on Carter street, and the old livery stable was torn down.
While Fairview Township prospered eco- nomically during the last half of the Nine-
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teenth Century, it did not neglect the social and fraternal aspects of life. It was during this period that most of the lodges, clubs, and social organizations had their beginning. One notable organization, The Vigliant So- ciety, had its beginning in the early days of the Village, and continued to function in some measure during the remainder of the Century. Bands of robbers roamed through the new western country, and at times would appear in Fairview Township especially to steal horses. In order to protect their property a meeting of the citizens of Fairview and vicin- ity was held in the Fairview Academy on December 3, 1849, for the purpose of devis- ing ways and means to combat this form of robbery. A resolution was adopted to form an association to be called the Fairview Vig- ilance Society. On Saturday, December 8, 1849, a constitution and by-laws was adopted, and the following persons were elected to of- fice: Darius Gilmore, President; David M. Wyckoff, Vice-president; and J.V.D. Gaddis, Secretary. While horses were afterward sto- len in this section of the country, there never was one stolen from a member of this So- ciety! The regard in which this organization was held can be noted from this item in the Saturday Leaf, March 2, 1878, Vol. III, No. 8: " 'Robbery in town' was the sentence on everybody's lips on Thursday morning, caused by the forcible entrance of burglars into the store of J.E. Bower, Esq. They opened the fireproof safe, and took therefrom about $140 in cash, also, out of the store about $30 worth of jewelry and other articles. The Vigilance Society immediately instituted measures for the recovery of the property and the detec- tion of the burglars. If they do not succed in ferreting out this iniquity, it will be the first time they have failed." No evidence was found to indicate whether the Society was success- ful or not. The Society celebrated its semi- centennial on the first Tuesday in December 1899 with a banquet held in the rooms of the Fairview Masonic Lodge.2
The first meeting of the Fairview Lodge, No. 350, A.F. and A.M. was held under a dis- pensation of the Grand Lodge in the Taylor Building which is now occupied by Van Liew's Radio and TV Shop. A charter was issued on October 3, 1860, with twenty names inscribed on the charter roll. The first officers were Thomas Shreves, W.M .; Joseph Saunders,
S.W .; David Shreves, J.W .; and C.W. Martin, Secretary. In 1862 the Lodge was moved to the Wilson Building two doors east of the present location. The present building was erected by the Masonic Building Association, and was dedicated on October 6, 1910.3
The Fairview Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star, No. 99 was instituted on November 25, 1886, by I.W. Ross as Deputy of the Grand Patron in the Masonic Hall. The charter was granted October 6, 1887, with twenty-five names inscribed thereon. The first officers elected were: Mary C. Swegle, W.M .; A. D. Wilson, W.P .; Angeline Bennett, A.M .; and Thomas H. Travers, Treasurer. The regular meeting date was set for the Tuesday on or before the full moon of each month, which remained in effect until May 13, 1917. The first meetings were held in the Wilson Building until 1910 when the new Masonic Building was erected.4
Fairview Rebekah Lodge No. 243 was in- stituted February 9, 1889, by dispensation of Grand Master Humphrey who appointed Past Grand Dr. S.B. Beer instituting officer. There were forty names inscribed on the roll as charter members with George Mitchell as Noble Grand. The first meetings were held in the Taylor Building which was the meeting place of the I.O.O.F. After a time the Lodge moved to the Davis Building where the present post office is located. Since 1898 the Lodge has met in its present home which was built by the I.O.O.F. On February 20, 1909, the Lodge celebrated its twentieth anniversary at which time there were 111 members.5
Although the I.O.OF. Lodge disbanded a- round 1942, it was very active up to World War I. Fairview I.O.O.F. Lodge was organ- ized June 13, 1884, with twenty-three charter members who received the degrees at Ellis- ville on a previous date. Upon organizing the following officers were elected: Foster G. Smith, N.G .; E.E. Hull, V.G .; I.L. Beatty, Secretary; and George W. Mitchell, Treas- urer. The first candidate to be initiated into the Lodge was S.C. Carr. The Lodge occupied various rented halls in Fairview until June 11, 1898, when they moved into their new building. Dennis Stone, Noble Grand, presided at the dedication of the building on June 23, 1898.6
There were various other clubs and soci- eties which functioned for a period of time
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such as Debating and Literary Clubs, Band and Orchestra Groups, Granges, Woodmen Lodge, and a Free Silver Club. The Fairview Bee of April 2, 1896, reports that a Free Silver Club was organized at the Town Hall and within a week had seventy-three mem- bers. No doubt there are other clubs which should be added to the list, for this was truly a period for organizing to get projects moving.
There were two major disasters in the Village of Fairview which caused the loss of one life and much property. On the morning of February 25, 1896, Fairview's most dis - astrous fire occurred when the entire block north of the Park burned to the ground. The fire started in the upper floor of the Opera House and quickly spread to the lower floor occupied by Pfeiffer and Gilmore's Implement Store. Whipped by a strong north wind the fire spread to the adjoining building on the west housing the J.F. Sosey Jewelry Store, and on to the northwest corner where the T.C. Stephen's Grocery and Bakery became en- gulfed in flames. On the second story of Stephan's Grocery were the offices of the Fairview Bee, The Fairview Fire Insurance Company, and H.M.B. Wilson. The contents of the latter two offices were saved, but the Fairview Bee suffered a heavy loss of mater- ial and equipment. In the meantime the fire spread to the south side of the block burning the home, barn, and office of Dr. S.B. Ben- nett, and the office of P.V. Hoagland, Police
Magistrate. As the Park was on the south side and the wind was blowing from the north, the east and west sides of the block were in most danger from flying sparks. The fire spread so rapidly that the entire block was burned with- in a period of two hours. Although there had been a meeting in the Opera Houe the pre- vious night, the direct cause of the fire was undetermined.
The second major disaster occurred on Saturday evening, June 24, 1899, at about 8:15 p.m. when the boiler at Berger's Mill exploded fatally injuring the engineer, Frank Stevenson, and generally wrecking the lower story of the mill. Debris was scattered as far as 250 to 300 yards, some falling in front of the Greenwell Hotel. Mr. and Mrs. Berger, who were sitting in the yard at the time, re- ceived some cuts and broken bones, but were fortunate in not receiving more serious in- jury. In the days following, many citizens came to the aid of Berger, both in rebuilding and finances. In the Fulton County Ledger of October 1899, Berger had notice stating that the mill had been repaired and was ready to resume flour and feed grinding. The latter part of 1909 the Farmington Power and Light Company took over the electric lighting of the Village, followed in 1913 by the Central Illinois Light Company. In 1913 the mill was sold and dismantled, and rebuilt into a barn on the Howard Vollmar farm.
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Part III - The Automobile and Mechanization While the Twentieth Century is known as the age of mechanization the era of economic expansion did not end and the age of mech- anization begin at a specific date; rather, there is an overlapping of the two periods in which the characteristics of each period are functioning. So it was with Fairview Township where the economic expansion continued well into the Twentieth Century, even though the automobile and mechanization were beginning to bring about changes which would affect the lives and activities of the inhabitants as time moved forward. Improvement and moderni- zation to make life less burdensome became more and more apparent as the Township moved toward an affluent society.
The Fairview Telephone Company was in- corporated as a mutual company in December 1900. At one time there were seventeen dif- ferent lines coming into the Fairview Central, each with its own organization. In the early days of the telephone much of the line work was done by the local subscribers who kept the line in repair along his own property. Some of the early records indicate the com- pany owned the telephones, but soon required the subscriber to furnish his own telephone and keep it in repair! Later, most telephone companies took over the upkeep of the lines rather than leaving the repair to the individual subscriber. During 1960 Mid-Century Tele- phone Cooperative purchased the telephone rights of the Fairview Central Telephone Company and twelve other lines of the area. On January 1, 1961, the dial system was inaugurated by Mid-Century. Later, direct dialing and individual party lines were added to give the Fairview Community a modern up to date telephone communcation system.
During the early part of 1910 a few local citizens made an effort to bring a spur of the Illinois Central Electric Interurban into Fairview. The interurban road was started by Canton and was mainly owned and controlled by the capital of that City. The interested people in Fairview were told that in return for the purchase of $40,000 of the first mort- gage bonds of the road, the line would be ex- tended into Fairview. The bonds were pur- chased, and in the fall of 1910 the first car came into Fairview. Originally, the line ran from Canton to St. David, but eventually was extended to reach Farmington and Lewistown.2
The Fairview spur connected with the line at Norris, and generally followed the Norris road into Fairview coming down Carter Street and ending on the west side of the present post office building. There were four cars daily into Fairview, and extra cars were available for special events. The Interurban furnished a good means of transportation and was used extensively in the beginning, but by 1920 the automobile was becoming a popular means of transportation, and by 1924 or 1925 had forced the discontinuance of the railway into Fairview.
On August 24, 1912, a meeting was held in the Fairview Town Hall for the purpose of organizing a farmer's elevator in Fairview. A motion was made that an organization be formed for the purpose of buying and selling of grains, seeds, lumber, and farm supplies, and that an elevator of not less than 20,000 bushel capacity be constructed. In 1913 The Fairview Farmers' Elevator Company was incorporated as a common stock company with capital stock of $6,050 subscribed by seventy- three farmers of the area.
W.H. White was the first manager and dur- ing his tenure of two and one-half years the Company made rapid growth expanding the business to include more services for the farmers. White was followed by Ross Pittman who served as manager until January 6, 1917, when he was succeeded by W.R. Wilcoxen who served until his death in 1942. During the twenty-five years while Wilcoxen was man- ager, the Company made its largest growth, particularly in the seed and grain business. In the beginning the Company handled IHC farm implements, but after a few years changed to the John Deere Company which they continued to represent until 1972. The Company has had three fires since its begin- ning. In 1936 the mill burned with an estimated loss of $20,800; in the 1940's a small fire in the seed house caused an estimated damage of $8,000; and in 1962 the elevator burned with a loss of $27,500. While these fires represented losses, the Company not only replaced the fa- cilities destroyed, but replaced them with larger and more improved facilities. In 1917 the total assets were $8,300 and by 1974 had increased to $456,000. Also the Elevator ca- pacity has increased from the original capa- city of 20,000 bushels to 316,000 bushels, and the Company is handling between 750,000-
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800,000 bushels of grain with a total volume of three million dollars in business transactions.
In the past few years there has been a noticeable change in the seed industry when the grass, clover, and small seeds declined to a low of $60,000 gross volume annually, but by 1974 the seed business had rallied to an annual gross volume of $100,000. Likewise, the amount of corn and bean sales has in- creased in volume even though the acreage has decreased due to land being taken out of cultivation as a result of strip mining. Rapid gains in all sales were made during the 1973- 1974 fiscal year with a most significant in- crease in the sale of Lawn and Garden Trac- tors when over thirty machines were sold.
Other managers of the Company following Wilcoxen were A.E. Bentley, Clarence Wor- rell, Allen Elliott, Clark Worrell, Kermit Vollmar, Dean Downing, and on November 18, 1974 Don Gordon assumed the manager- ship.
Recent increases in business necessitated that improvements be made in the facilities to accomodate the expanding business. Ac- cordingly, the following improvements have been made: (1) the addition of a 100,000 bushel grain storage capacity by the construc- tion of two 50,000 bushel bins; (2) the instal- lation of a 120 foot grain leg which carries grain from the dumping pit into the two 50,000 bushel storage bins; and (3) the building of a single 127,000 bushel storage bin. Soon after this construction one of the two 50,000 bushel bins was toppled by a heavy wind. The bin was replaced immediately. In addition to the above added facilities the Board adopted a policy of storing grain for local farmers and issuing Grain Receipts, if the farmer so de- sired, in lieu of buying and selling on a daily cash basis. This policy is another step in the Company's effort to continue to provide the farmer of this area with increased and more modern services.
The officers in charge for the fiscal year 1974-1975 are Don Gordon, Manager; Carl Hartstirn, President; Wayne Mahr, Vice- president; Howard Vohland, Secretary; and Gerald McMahon, Treasurer.1
On July 1, 1915, The Fairview Banking Company received a charter from the State of Illinois and its name was changed to "Fair- view State Banking Company". The charter authorized the bank to operate for fifty years,
and to have a capitalization of $50,000. The first officers were Thomas H. Travers, Pres- ident; John W. Gaddis, Vice-president and Cashier; Oscar L. Wilson, Assistant Cashier; and Peter H. Schleich, Bookkeeper.
When President Franklin D. Roosevelt de- clared the national bank moratorium in 1933, The Fairview State Banking Company like all banks throughout the land was closed. In 1934, however, after a waiver of deposits in the sum of $146,141.10 and a 100% assessment on the shareholders, the bank was reopened. By the year 1946 all the waived deposits were repaid in full, and the bank has continued to grow until at the present time the total assets are ten times greater than they were when the bank reopened in 1934.
The bank has had several frightening ex- periences in that on two occasions, in 1951 and 1957, the quiet and tranquil operations of the bank were interrupted by armed rob- bers. In May of 1964 the bank was burglar- ized. Not only were large amounts of currency stolen, but safety boxes were looted of their contents. It was at this time that many of the bank's depositors demonstrated their faith and confidence in the institution and manage- ment by rushing to the bank and offering to it their available cash so business could con- tinue without interruption.
After fifty years of operation under its original charter the State of Illinois in June of 1965 granted a perpetual extension to the bank's charter. Also, at that time the charter was amended to authorize the payment of a 100% capital stock dividend so that at the pre- sent time the capital of the bank consists of capital stock in the sum of $200,000. At the present time the bank has a declared surplus of $150,000 and undivided profits and re- serves in excess of $100,000. The deposits of the bank exceed $5,000,000.
The present Board of Directors is Ralph Abbadusky, Harold W. Omer, Reynold Conlon, Carl J. Hartstirn, Ralph Wilcoxen, and Wal- ter J. Sebo. The officers of the bank are Ralph A. Abbadusky, President; Reynold Conlon, Vice-president; Harold W. Omer, Cashier; Barbara E. Sheckler, Assistant Cashier; Judith A. Francis and Diana L. Timmons, Bookkeeper-Tellers; and Cynthia L. Over- cash, Bookkeeper.2
The Fairview State Banking Company and its predecessor has served and served well its
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community and surrounding area for eighty- nine years. For seventy-nine of those years the business has been transacted in the same building. In 1964 the building was remodelled and new equipment was installed, and the bank and its management is looking forward to many more years of faithful service.
After a long experience with a bucket bri- gade as a means of fighting a fire, the citizens of Fairview and community demanded a better means of fire control. The Roy Miller Post No. 644 started the ball rolling by heading a drive for funds with a donation of $100. Churches, lodges, and all other organizations of Fairview and vicinity contributed to the fund, as well as business establishments and private citizens. After assurance that suf- ficient funds would be forthcoming, a com- mittee was appointed to purchase a fire truck. The committee consisted of Lexico Trunko, from the Legion, and Guy Davis and Harry Rose of the Town Council. On January 20, 1922, the committee purchased a Reo chassis equipped with four forty gallon copper nickel plated tanks, 300 feet of hose, ladders, and other essential accessories at a cost of $3,775.00.1
On March 22, 1922, just three days before the truck arrived, a Volunteer Fire Depart- ment of twenty members was organized. The officers of the organization were Guy Davis, Marshall; Harry Rose, Sec .- Treas .; Guy Al- cott, Assistant Marshall; Charles Stout, Lieu- tenant; and Leslie Stroman, Captain. By 1923 the truck was paid for with enough money left to install a tower and siren. The Reo truck was replaced in 1936 with a new Ford pumper which was also purchased by donations and solicitations. The Ford truck is still in use as a tanker, and was given to the newly formed Fire District for consideration of $1.00.
In a Volunteer Fire Department the princi- pal responsibility lies with the marshall. Fairview has been fortunate to have a series of marshalls who made important contribu- tions to the growth and development of the department. Following Guy Davis as marshall were C.S. Voorhees, J.C. McCombs, Harry Shellcrosslee, Floyd Miller, De Lost West, Lowell White, Carl Hartstirn, Jacob Lind- strom, Joe Tiezzi, Ora Keefauver, Evert Hagaman, and Dayle Matthias who is the pre- sent marshall.
In 1948 the Fairview Fire Protection Dis-
trict was formed by a referendum vote. The district consists of sixty-two sections inclu- ding the Villages of Ellisville, Rapatee, and Fairview. The district is governed by a Board of three trustees who act by the authority of the Statutes of the State of Illinois. The Board of Trustees is Ralph Deushane, President; Jacob Lindstrom, Secretary-Treasurer; and Berwyn Phipps. The Fairview Fire Protection District is a class "A" district with three fire stations: Ellisville and Rapatee with one truck and ten firemen each; and Fairview with twenty firemen, two trucks, two tankers, and an emergency van equipped with oxygen and first aid supplies.2
The Fairview Post Office changed from a fourth class to a Presidential Class during the time Mrs. Nellie T. Lindstrom served as postmistress. Mrs. Lindstrom, daughter of former postmaster Jacob Zabriskie, was appointed on August 6, 1913, and served until 1934. Mrs. Lindstrom, accompanied by a dri- ver, often went out on the route and delivered mail. On May 22, 1934, Earl Grimm was ap- pointed postmaster, and the office was moved diagonally across the street to the building next to the Fairview State Bank. On February 28, 1955, Merle Miller was appointed acting postmaster and he received his permanent appointment on April 12, 1956, and served until his death in June 1974. Norma Van Liew was named Officer in Charge, and served until November 23, 1974 when Robert D. Kinzer was appointed postmaster. In 1962 the pre- sent building was constructed and dedication ceremonies were held on September 1, 1962.
The rural route was established on Septem- ber 15, 1903, with John Miller as rural car- rier. He was succeeded by William I. Miller who served in that capacity until 1933. He often used two teams of horses in delivering the mail, exchanging one team for the other half-way through his route. In later years, during the summer, he occasionally used a motorcycle for his deliveries. Miller had one patron who always kept her box padlocked. Later carriers were George Tharp, Galen Mitchell, and Max Martin who was carrier from March 20, 1948 to April 16, 1974 when he was transferred to the Maquon route. While Martin was carrier, he carried the original mail bag which had been used since the inau- guration of rural service to the Fairview area. In the reorganization of the rural routes in this
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area, Ben Sherman, Ellisville carrier, as- sumed the Fairview route in addition to his original route.
At present the employees of the Fairview Post Office are Robert D. Kinzer, Postmaster; Norma Van Liew and Sally Dunblazier, Clerks; Ben Sherman, Rural Carrier; and Warren Van Liew, Substitute Carrier.1
After the Fairview Bee ceased publication the next papers to be published in Fairview were the Fairview Eagle and the Fairview Dispatch. Residents seem to remember little or nothing about these two papers. From the advertising files of the J. F. Belue Company, a furniture and undertaking establishment, there is factual evidence that the Fairview Eagle did operate from January 12, 1912, through July 4, 1912. It was a weekly paper edited by Roy Lounes. The above file book belonged to the late William C. Wilson, one of the later owners of the J.F. Belue Company. The late Dale Ray had in his possession a copy of the Fairview Dispatch. The editor was George S. Flint, and the subscription price was $1.00 per year. From this paper and the records of the J.F. Belue Company it is known that the paper was issued weekly from May 7, 1915 to at least June 17, 1915.
The last paper to be published in Fairview was the Fairview Graphic. Actually the paper was published by the London Times, but was entered through the Fairview Post Office. The Graphic, a weekly paper, was published by W. W. Vose from November 16, 1933, to the time of his death July 3, 1937. At that time his son, Dee Kay Vose, assumed the editorship and continued to publish the Graphic until Novem- ber 1, 1945, when he sold the paper to Lionel D. Eyman. During WW II Vose and the citi- zens of Fairview cooperated to send the Graphic to the men and women in the Armed Services. Individuals in Fairview took turns in writing a news letter each week telling the happenings in the community. This news letter was published by Vose as well as let- ters written home by the ones in Service. Vose reported in one issue of the Graphic that 117 copies of the paper were being mailed that week. Eyman published the Graphic in Avon until some time in 1951 when the paper was discontinued.
Two businesses, which thrived on the skilled craftmanship of the owners in the earlier days, have succumed to the mechanized mass
scale production of big business. One business was the John Spiss Metal and Tin Shop which opened in 1856. Later the two sons, Fred and Henry, worked with their father under the firm name of J. Spiss and Sons. Upon his retirement the sons operated the business un- til Fred bought the interest of his brother and continued the business as the Fred Spiss Store. About 1938 poor health caused him to sell his hardware and stove stock to other merchants in town, but no one continued the tin and metal work. Thus ended a trade which had existed in the same building for some eighty years.
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