USA > Illinois > Ford County > History of Ford County, Illinois : from its earliest settlement to 1908, Vol. I > Part 3
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HISTORY.
Illinois was originally a part of Florida. In 1543 it became a Spanish colony. Northern Illinois was included in the territory granted in 1620 to the Plymouth Company by King James, and was therefore claimed by Great Britain. In 1673 the Mississippi river was discovered by Marquette and Jol-
iet. In the same year they ascended the Illinois river; and in 1679 Robert Cavalier De La Salle made further discoveries, descending the Kankakee to its mouth. Kaskaskia and Cahokia, the oldest towns on the Mississippi river, were settled by the French in 1682. Illinois at this time contained but few white inhabitants. In 1699 it became a part of Louisiana, and so remained
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
until 1763, when it was ceded to England. The white population now num- bered about three thousand, mostly French, the principal settlements being at Kaskaskia, Cahokia, Peoria, Prairie Du Rocher, Prairie Du Pont and Fort Chartres. In 1778 Kaskaskia, Cahokia and other settlements were captured by four companies of Virginians, under Colonel Clarke, and in October of the same year an act was passed by the Virginia legislature, establishing the "County of Illinois," which embraced all of Virginia northwest of Ohio. In 1784 it was ceded by Virginia to the United States, and in 1787 congress passed an ordinance for the government of all territory northwest of the Ohio river, Arthur St. Clair being appointed the first governor. In 1803 Indiana, inehuid- ing Illinois and Wisconsin, was erected into a separate territory, and six years later, the present state of Illinois became a territory by itself. In 1812 it passed from the first to the second grade of territorial government, and sent a delegate to congress. The right of suffrage was at this time extended to the people, without regard to property qualifications. On the 3d of December, 1818, Illinois was admitted into the Union as a sovereign and independent state. One section of land in each township was at once donated for school use, and two townships in the state for the use of a seminary. Since that time, the growth of Illinois has been astonishingly rapid, and it now ranks the fourth state in the Union in wealth, population and importance. The num- ber of its white inhabitants in 1800 was only about 3,000. In 1810 the number had increased to 12, 282; in 1820 to 57,000; in 1830 to 157,000; in 1840 to 476,000; in 1850 to 851,470; in 1860 to 1.711,951; in 1865 to 2,141,510; in 1870 to 2,539,891; and in 1880 to 3,077,871. Chicago, its largest city, con- tains a population of over 2,000,000. The foreign population of Illinois is largely composed of Germans, Irish, Welsh, Scotch, French, Swiss, Swedes, Danes and Poles. Of the American born, the north part of the state is set- tled principally from New York and New England, the central from Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia, and the southern from Kentucky, Tennessee and the Carolinas.
Internal Improvements-The works of art compare favorably with those of the older states. It has not been a century since Illinois was admitted into the Union, yet the number and value of her internal improvements already completed are immense. Many thousands of miles of railroad lines are in successful operation and more are in the process of construction. The number and character of the splendid edifices which have been erected for courthouses, humane institutions, seminaries of learning and churches, and the other public works which adorn the state, bespeak at once the enterprise, intelligence and moral worth of the people.
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
Polities-Illinois is at present a republican state. The northern part is almost exclusively controlled by the dominant party, while the central is gen- erally democratic, and the extreme southern-familiarly known as Egypt-is about equally divided between the two parties.
EXPLANATION OF GOVERNMENT SURVEYS.
All the surveys of Illinois are made from three established lines, known as the second, third and fourth principal meridians. The second principal meridian runs due north from the month of the Little Blue river in Indiana. The third principal meridian, dne north from the month of the Ohio river. The fourth principal meridian starts at the mouth of the Illinois river, follows up the stream to a point opposite Beardstown, and runs thence due north.
Townships lying west of the third principal meridian and the Illinois river number north and south from a base-line which runs due west from Beardstown. All the other townships number north and south from a base- line which runs through the center of St. Clair county.
Ranges number from the fourth principal meridian west to the Mississippi river and east to the third principal meridian and the Illinois river, and from the third principal meridian west to the Illinois and Mississippi rivers.
Ranges east of the third principal meridian and north of a line passing through the center of Kankakee county number from said meridian east to the state line. The other ranges number from the third principal meridian, cast to the eastern line of range eleven, and west from the second principal merid- ian to the same line.
Each township is six miles square, and is divided into sections, which num- ber from one to thirty-six; number one being in the northeast corner of the township. Each regular section contains six hundred and forty acres. Frac- tional townships are occasioned by inaccurate surveys. Fractional sections are due to the same cause, and are usually found on the north and west side of each township. Correction lines, running east and west, are established at distances of about thirty miles apart, for the purpose of preventing such errors as would naturally be occasioned by the curvature of the earth.
THE ECONOMIC RESOURCES OF ILLINOIS.
Of the varied economie resources of Illinois, only those which are of supreme importanee to the state as a whole, such as agriculture, mining, bank-
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
ing, transportation and manufacturing industries, will be briefly reviewed in this article.
Agriculture is one of the greatest industries of the state. The large yield of those crops for which the state is adapted make ample amends for what- ever deficiency there may be in the variety of products. In 1900, out of the total acreage of thirty-two million seven hundred and ninety-four thousand and seven hundred and twenty-eight acres in the state, twenty-seven million six hundred and ninety-nine thousand two hundred and nineteen acres were improved land. In the value of farm property, Illinois leads the list of states with a total value of two billion four million three hundred and sixteen thou- sand eight hundred and ninety seven dollars. In the value of farm products. Iowa takes the lead with an annual product of three hundred and sixty-five million four hundred and eleven thousand five hundred and twenty eight dol- lars in comparison with three hundred and forty-five million six hundred and forty-nine thousand six hundred and eleven dollars for Illinois. The improved acreage of the state in 1905 was divided among the various leading crops as follows : Wheat, one million four hundred and forty-seven thousand seven hundred and sixty-four acres; oats, three million two hundred and forty-two thousand seven hundred and sixty-two acres; corn, seven million seven hundred and forty-three thousand three hundred and sixty-one aeres; hay, two million five hundred and sixteen thousand seven hundred and ninety-three aeres; rye, eighty-seven thousand four hundred and thirty acres; barley, twenty-nine thou- sand six hundred and sixty-three acres. with four million two hundred and eighty-six thousand two hundred and ninety-six acres in pasture.
Although in acreage of cereals in 1900, Iowa ranked first with sixteen mil- lion nine hundred and thirty thousand and ninety-five acres, and Illinois second with sixteen million seven hundred and sixty-nine thousand and ten aeres, vet Illinois ranked first in the Union in value of all crops, the valuation being two hundred and twelve million two hundred and seventy-six thousand eight hun- dred and sixteen dollars, Iowa and Ohio following in order. In value of cer- eals, Illinois again led with a production valued at one hundred and sixty-four million seven hundred and eighty-four thousand four hundred and thirty seven dollars, Iowa and Ohio following as in the value of all crops. Among specific products, Illinois produced three hundred and ninety-eight million one hundred and forty-nine thousand one hundred and forty bushels of corn, enough to place her fifteen million beyond her nearest competitor in 1900. In the pro- duction of oats, the state was likewise twelve million bushels in advance of any other state, with a total production of one hundred and eighty million three
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
hundred and five thousand six hundred and thirty bushels. In 1900, Illinois produced sixty million six hundred and sixty-five thousand five hundred and twenty pounds of the ninety million nine hundred and forty-seven thousand three hundred and seventy pounds of broom corn produced in the entire United States. The number of tons of hay and forage crops, three million nine hundred and forty-eight thousand five hundred and sixty-three tons. placed Illi- nois in the sixth place, and in rye, the state ranked eighth. Two hundred and fifty-six thousand two hundred and thirteen acres were devoted to the growing of vegetables, which were produced to the value of ten million three hundred and forty-six thousand seven hundred and ninety-seven dollars. In the num- ber of apple trees, Illinois ranked third among the states, with a production of nine million one hundred and seventy-eight thousand one hundred and fifty bushels apples. These figures show the importance of agriculture in Illinois, and the high position which the state takes among the states of the Union in agricultural products.
Next in importance to agriculture in the natural products of the state is coal. Only one state in the Union surpasses Illinois in value of coal pro- duced. All the coal that is found in this state is bituminous, differing in value at the mines from one dollar and thirty-seven cents per ton for lump coal to fifty-six cents per ton for pea coal. The total output of the state for 1904 was thirty-seven million seventy-seven thousand eight hundred and ninety-seven tons compared with fifteen million six hundred and sixty thousand six hundred and ninety-eight tons in 1891, an increase of nearly twenty-two million tons. or over one hundred and forty per cent. The number of mines in 1904 was nine hundred and thirty-two, an increase of fourteen since 1891, and the num- ber of hands employed in the mines had increased from thirty-two thousand nine hundred and fifty-one to forty-nine thousand three hundred and sixty- one. The total value of the coal at the mines was forty million seven hundred and seventy-four thousand two hundred and twenty-three dollars. In respect to the distribution of the industry over the state, Sangamon county led with a production of four million five hundred and sixteen thousand three hundred and fifty-eight tons, St. Clair county second with three million four hundred and eighteen thousand four hundred and seventy-nine tons and Vermilion county was third with a production of three million one hundred and fourteen thousand and sixty tons. It is a significant fact as showing the extent of the distribution of coal in the state, that out of the one hundred and two counties, fifty-four are coal producing.
No statement of the industrial activity of the state would be complete
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CITY HALL, GIBSON CITY
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
without something being said of the banking business. Banks are so essential to the business world of today, that the volume of their transactions are a fair indication of the business life of the state. During the last few years, Chi- vago has passed both Philadelphia and Boston in the amount of her clearing- house transactions, the amount of clearances for 1904 being eight billion eight hundred and eight million ninety-three thousand two hundred and sixty-eight dollars. The number of national banks in the state in 1904 was three hundred and twenty-four with a capitalization of forty-eight million eight hundred and eleven thousand dollars, and a surphis of twenty-two million two hundred and eighty-nine thousand dollars. The number of state banks for the same year was two hundred and eighty-five with a capital of thirty-eight million nine hun- dred and fifty thousand dollars and a surplus of twenty-five million six hun- dred and thirty thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven dollars. Of the two hundred and eighty-five state banks, one hundred and nineteen were oper- ating savings departments and thirty were exercising trust powers. The number of private banks in 1902 was six hundred and thirty-eight. capitalized at thirteen million twelve thousand one hundred and fifty-three dollars, and hay- ing a surplus of two million five hundred and fifty-seven thousand three hundred and two dollars. There were forty-three trust companies in 1904; of this number thirty were operating under the State Banking Act of 1887, three were organized under the Trust Company Aet of 1887. with a capital of five million seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars and a surplus of one million one hundred and eighteen thousand four hundred and four dollars, and ten were foreign corporations qualified as trust companies. This makes a grand total of one thousand two hundred and sixty banking institutions in the state with a capital of one hundred and six million five hundred and twenty-three thousand one hundred and fifty-three dollars, and a surplus of fifty-one mil- lion five hundred and ninety-five thousand five hundred and thirty-three dollars. These figures when compared with those of 1890 show what an enormous development has taken place in the banking business during the last fourteen years. In 1904, as stated above, there were three hundred and twenty-four national banks; in 1890 there were one hundred and seventy-seven. In 1904. there were two hundred and eighty-five state banks; in 1890 there were forty. In 1902 there were six hundred and thirty-eight private banks; in 1890 there were one hundred and sixty-four. In 1904 there were thirty-three trust com- panies ; in 1890 there were only seventeen. In 1890 there was a grand total of three hundred and eighty-eight banking institutions in the state with a capitalization of twenty-eight million two hundred and sixty-five thousand
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
three hundred and sixty-three dollars and a surplus of nine million seventy- three thousand four hundred and thirty-two dollars; in 1904 the number was one thousand two hundred and sixty, the capitalization one hundred and six million five hundred and twenty-three thousand one hundred and fifty-three dol- lars, and the surplus fifty-one million five hundred and ninety-five thousand five hundred and thirty-three dollars, an increase in each of these items of over two hundred and seventy-five per cent. Such increases show not only the increase of banking transactions, but also the great development of all kinds of business to the needs of which the banks respond.
For three decades, Illinois has led in miles of railroad. With abundant supplies of bituminous coal throughout the state, mining, manufacturing and railroads have developed together. There were in 1904 in Illinois eleven thou- sand six hundred and thirty-six miles of main line and enough more in branches, second, industrial and yard tracks to make the total mileage twenty thousand and sixty-five. In 1900 there were nineteen and sixty-five hundredths for every one hundred square miles of territory. The only states approaching Illinois in amount of mileage are Pennsylvania and Texas, Pennsylvania having slightly more miles per one hundred square miles and Texas but one- seventh as mueh per one hundred square miles. The number of employes of the railroads in Illinois in 1904 were one hundred and fifteen thousand four hundred and seven, to whom wages to the sum of seventy-two million seventy- eight thousand three hundred and ninety-seven dollars were paid. The number of passengers carried in Illinois was fifty-three million five hundred and forty-seven thousand two hundred and ninety, and the number of passengers carried one mile was one billion seven hundred and fifty-four million nine hun- dred and nine thousand, three hundred and twenty-six. The number of tons of freight carried was one hundred and twenty-three million five hundred and eighty-four thousand and seventy-eight, a total of twelve billion five hundred and seventy-eight million two hundred and seventeen thousand two hundred and eighty-six ton-miles. From the passenger service thirty-eight million eight hundred and forty-five thousand five hundred and twenty-two dollars was derived and from the freight service eighty-eight million four hundred and six thousand five hundred and forty-two dollars earnings were received, the total earnings and income for the railroads in Illinois for the year 1904 being one hundred and forty-one million four hundred and fifty-four thousand, four hun- dred and fifty-nine dollars. In 1890, fourteen years earlier, although there was nearly the same amount of main track in Illinois, only twenty-four million nine hundred and ten thousand eight hundred and twenty passengers were
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
carried, over seventeen million less than in 1901. The number of passengers carried one mile has increased nearly one hundred per cent in the short inter- val of ten years. The tons of freight had increased from forty-eight million in round numbers to eighty-eight million during the same period. The total income had inereased from seventy-three million to one hundred and eight mil- lion dollars. These figures show that railroad building is pretty well advanced in Illinois, that new construction is proceeding slowly, as it should, but that greater use is being made of existing facilities.
It is in manufactures that the great expansion of the state's energies is now taking place. This accounts in some degree for the unusual increase in the urban population of the state. The high rank of Illinois as a mannfac- turing state as stated in the census of 1900 is due primarily to its transporta- tion facilities. The communication with the east afforded by Lake Michigan has made Chicago the great distributing center for eastern products to all points in the middle west, while the Mississippi affords communication with the entire Mississippi valley. The importance of railroads has already been touched upon. As a result of these facilities and because of her great natural resources, Illinois is only surpassed by New York and Pennsylvania in the value of her manufactured products, according to the census of 1900, being one billion two hundred and fifty-nine million seven hundred and thirty thou- sand one Inindred and sixty-eight dollars; an increase of over three hundred per cent sinee 1880. In the amount of capital invested in manufactures, Illi- nois ranks fourth among the states, with an investment of seven hundred and seventy-six million eight hundred and twenty-eight thousand five hundred and ninety-eight dollars in contrast with one hundred and forty million six hundred and fifty-two thousand and sixty-six dollars invested in manufactures in 1880. In the number of wage-earners dependent upon manufacturers, Illinois ranks fourth with a total of three hundred and ninety-five thousand one hundred and ten wage-earners, to whom one hundred and ninety-one million five hundred and ten thousand nine hundred and sixty-two dollars was paid in wages. The cost of materials used was seven hundred and thirty-nine million seven hundred and fifty-four thousand, four hundred and fourteen. The per capita production of manufactured goods for the state exceeded two hundred and fifty dollars in 1900.
In value of manufactured goods in specific industries, Illinois ranks first among the states in the manufacture of agricultural implements, bicycles and trieyeles, steam railroad cars, glucose, distilled liquors, and watches, and in the products of its slaughtering and meat packing establishments. It ranks
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
second in the manufacture of factory furniture, men's clothing, soaps, and in printing and publishing, both in books and in job work. Forty-one and one- half per cent of all the agricultural implements of the country are manufactured in the ninety-four plants of Illinois, employing twenty-two thousand three hundred and ninety-four men. The importance of the slaughtering and meat packing industry is well known. There are sixty-four plants in the state, employing twenty-seven thousand eight hundred and sixty-one men and turning out products to the value of two hundred eighty-seven million nine hundred twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-seven dollars. It is this industry in addition to many of lesser importance, which has made Chicago the second manufacturing city in the world.
In the production of iron and steel, Illinois ranks third, Pennsylvania and Ohio taking the lead. There are twenty-six plants in Illinois, having a capital of forty-three million three hundred fifty-six thousand two hundred thirty-nine dollars, employing sixteen thousand six hundred forty-two men, paying in wages nine million six hundred forty thousand seven hundred sixteen dollars, and turning out a product valued at sixty million, three hundred three thousand one hundred forty-four dollars. Besides these larger industries, there are numerous carriage and wagon factories, ship-building establishments, locomotive works, papermills, flourmills, canning factories, clothing factories, malt liquor estab- lishments, which turned out products to the value of nineteen million seven hundred thirty-three thousand eight hundred twenty-one dollars in 1900, distilleries. manufactories for chemicals, finished leather, and numerous other products whose total annual value exceeds one million dollars.
Because of its significance, the printing and publishing industry deserves separate attention. In the state there are one thousand seven hundred fifty-five regular publications, having an aggregate cirenlation per issue of ten million four hundred twenty-nine thousand three hundred and sixty-eight, and an average circulation per issue of six thousand seven hundred thirty-seven.
From the above brief statistics and comparisons, it is seen that Illinois with fifty-six thousand square miles of territory and almost five million inhabitants is a state with truly imperial resources. Her immense coal fields widely dis- tributed, producing thirty-seven million tons each year; her twenty-thousand miles of railroad, making a network of iron over the state; her rail and water communication with the east and the whole Mississippi valley affording unrivaled means of transportation; her more than twelve hundred banking institutions, possessing a grand total of one hundred and fifty million dollars capital and surplus ; her twenty-seven million aeres of improved land producing an annual
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HISTORY OF FORD COUNTY
product valued at three hundred forty-five million dollars; her thirty-eight thousand manufacturing establishments, using materials valued at three-quarters of a billion dollars and turning out a product valued at one and one-quarter billion dollars; all these resources combine to give Illinois a proud position among the sisterhood or states.
FORD COUNTY.
Within a short time after the organization of Illinois territory. two counties St. Clair and Randolph, were formed. These two counties have been gradually subdivided until now there are one hundred and two counties within the boundaries of this state. Ford was the last county organized. To show whence we came as a county, the following letter is inserted :
Springfield, February 11, 1881.
Merton Dunlap, Esq., County Clerk, Ford County, Paxton, Ill. :
Dear Sir-Your communication of the 8th inst. at hand, and in response thereto, have to say that the following named counties comprised the state of Illinois in the year 1818, to-wit :
St. Clair, organized April 28, 1809. Randolph, organized April 28, 1809. Madison, organized September 14, 1812. Gallatin, organized September 14, 1812. Johnson, organized September 14, 1812. Edwards, organized November 28, 1814.
White, organized December 9, 1815. Jackson, organized January 10, 1816. Pope, organized April 1, 1816. Monroe, organized June 1, 1816. Crawford, organized December 31, 1816. Bond, organized January 4, 1817. Union, organized January 2, 1818. Washington, organized January 2, 1818. Franklin, organized January 2, 1818.
Vermilion county was organized by an act of the general assembly, approved January 18, 1826, and embraced all that tract of country within the following bounds, to-wit: Beginning on the state line between Illinois and Indiana, at the northeast corner of Edgar county; thence west with the line dividing townships 16 and 17, to the southwest corner of township 17 north, range 10, east of third
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