USA > Illinois > Grundy County > History of Grundy County, Illinois > Part 40
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The happy commingling of grove and plain marked by numberless streams, made this township a favorite resort of game. The buffalo had left this region before the advent of the settler, but the high prairie bore abundant evidence of his former pres- ence here. Here and there, all over the plain were found skeletons of this animal lying where the hunter's missile had over- taken him or, if Indian tradition is to be believed, where a heavy snow had impris- oned and starved him. There are found in frequent numbers upon the prairie, rings of especially thrifty grass which are explained upon various theories. The Indians repre- sented that in a certain winter long ago, a great fall of snow found the buffaloes scat- tered about on the prairie. These animals, unwilling to venture out into the untracked deep, kept up an incessant tramp in a lim- ited cirele until starvation and death ended the march. Whatever truth there may be
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HISTORY OF GRUNDY COUNTY.
in this tradition, it may be said that the position of many of these skeletons favor it very strongly. Deer were found here in great abundance, and to the skillful hunter fell an easy prey. During the wet season when water was to be found in abundance upon the open country, the deer were found here. Getting on the windward side of the animal the hunter found ample shelter in the long grass to approach within easy shot. In the dry hot season the deer frequented the groves. Then the hunter, proceeding against the wind, followed up or down the conrse of one of the water-courses along which the groves were located. The deer are troubled by a fly at this time of year which attracts so much of their attention that they are easily approached from the proper side. The animal stands feeding for a few minutes until, driven to fury by the insect, it suddenly drops close to the ground to elude its tormentor. Then sud- denly rising again it feeds a short time and again as suddenly sinks to the ground. This action gives the hunter peculiar advantages which were never thrown away upon the pioneers. Wild turkeys, wolves, wild bees, and the smaller game that still throng the timber, not only supplied the table and fur- nished rare sport to the hunter, but often proved a valuable source from which to eke out the meager income derived from the farm crops. One farmer sold wild turkeys and deer-skins enongh in Chicago to buy his wife a good winter cloak, at a time when his crops had proved an utter failure.
After the first few years the pioneer had time to plan for something more perma- nent than present necessities, and the
school-house with its molding influences became an institution in every community. In Goodfarm the first school-house was erected in 1850, on the east half of the northeast quarter of section IS. It was built by subscription, some giving lumber, others giving work, and six persons giving one dollar each. The lumber was drawn from Horse Creek in Will County, and with the six dollars was bought all that the country and the labor did not furnish. Elvira Lewis was the first teacher here. About 1856 a second school-house was built near the German cemetery, and the first session of school tanght by Philip Gauzert.
The first church organization was of the Free Will Baptist denomination. This soci- ety was formed at the cabin of David Glea- son, February 5, 1850, with David Glea- son, Elnathan Lewis, and their wives, Ad- dison Gleason and Lavinia Brown as mem- bers. The church held its meetings in the school-house until about 1868, when the or- ganization was finally abandoned. The Methodist Episcopal church has an appoint- ment here now.
About 1859, the Lutheran church was organized and erected a parsonage on sec- tion 27, to which was subsequently added the present church building. Salein Evan- gelical church was organized about 1857, with Buckhardt and Hoag, Pfeiffer and Hoffman as leading members. In 1877 they built a new place of worship on sec- tion 22, at a cost of about $2,400.
The " Church of God," is a recent organ- ization which has a place of worship on the northern line of the township.
CHAPTER XXII .*
HIGHLAND TOWNSHIP-TOPOGRAPHICAL CHARACTERISTICS-PRAIRIE BANDITS-LAWLESS LAW-SETTLEMENT OF THE TOWNSHIP-THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.
H IGHILAND Township, occupying the southwestern corner of the county, is what its name implies, high land-the highest, perhaps, in the " little kingdom of Grundy." The general slope of the sur- face, similar to most of the southern part of the county, is to the northeast. Johnny Run and Murray Sluice cross the township diagonally in nearly parallel directions, passing out of the township near the north- east corner. The Waupecan crosses the northwest corner and the Mazon the south- east, in the same general direction. The general elevation of the land makes it in this respect, especially in the southern part, among the most desirable for farming pur- poses. Along the streams, the land is of a decidedly rolling and almost broken char- aeter. With the exception of several thou- sand aeres belonging to Wm. Senlly, an Irish Lord, the farms are generally small, and the acreage of the township better divided np than elsewhere in the county.
The earliest people who took possession of Highiland were some nameless ronghis, generally supposed to be connected with a elass of thieves and highwaymen, who were known as Prairie Bandits. This part of the State became infested with these des- peradoes abont 1836 or '7, and while they serupled at the commission of no form of
crime, they were especially annoying in their principal business of horse stealing. The principal scene of their operations was on the Fox River, but no locality in the northern part of the State, where good horses could be had for the stealing, was exempt from these marauders. Their plan was to take the lighter horses of this region to Indi- ana and sell them, making the return trip with heavy draft horses, which were dis- posed of in Iowa and Michigan for work in the pineries. For a time these depreda- tions were carried on with impunity. The population, scattered at considerable dis- tances apart, was principally confined to the edge of the timber, leaving the prairie a broad highway for these bandits to pass from one end to the other of the country nndiscovered. The early settlers did not submit to this state of affairs without some effort to bring these persons to justice and to recover their property, but singly, the pioneers proved but poor trappers of this game. The bandits were known to be des- perate characters and adepts in the use of weapons and in traveling the open prairie, and it often happened that when a party got close upon the thieves, discretion seemed the better part of valor, and the chase was given up. Their success emboldened these robbers, and the early stock and land bny- ers seldom traveled alone, and never un- armed.
* By J. H. Battle.
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HISTORY OF GRUNDY COUNTY.
A good horse caused many persons to be waylaid and killed, and a large amount of money in the possession of an unprotected traveler, almost inevitably brought him to grief. Burglary soon followed their suc- eess on the road. Farmers became more eautions and evaded these foot pads. In this case the cabin was entered and the money taken while the family were kept discreetly quiet by a threatening pistol. The open handed hospitality of a new country made the settlers an easy prey to those who laeked even the traditional respeet of the Bedouin freebooter. It was impossible to discriminate between the worthy stranger and the bandit of the prairie, and the stran- ger taken in was more likely to prove a robber than an angel in disguise. Civil authority seemed hopelessly incapable of remedying the evil. Occasionally a despera- do would be apprehended. Legal quibbles would follow and the raseal get free, or jus- tice be delayed until a jail delivery would set him loose to prey upon the publie again. This occurred with such monoto- nous regularity and unvarying success, that the scattered pioneers lost confidence in each other and anarchy seemed about to be nshered in. This general distrust gave rise to many unfounded rumors, and may have been "the origin of the general belief in regard to the first inhabitants of Higli- land. But these people were known to be rough, boisterous persons, who did nothing toward making a permanent home, and enough had been stolen in the county to raise suspicion.
Of course such a state of things could not long continue. Deep mutterings of vengeance, portentious of a storm of wrath, were heard, and vigilant societies came into
existence at several localities. One of these societies, formed in the northern part of the State, was captained by a man named Campbell. He was a Canadian, and a man of great energy and decision of character. The bandits were alarmed, and resolved to depose him. One Sunday afternoon, two men by the name of Driscoll, called at Campbell's gate and inquired of his daugh- ter for her father; Campbell came to the gate, when, without saying a word, the visitors shot him through the heart, and coolly rode off. The next day the people assembled en masse, took three of the Dris- colls, tried thiem by a jury of their own, found two of them guilty, gave them an hour to prepare for death and shot them. They then resolved to serve every thief they eaught, in the same way .* The effect of this summary reprisal was salutary in its effect. The gang that had infested this part of the State were struck with terror, and left for a less determined community, and this region was happily relieved of the ineubus which had rested heavily upon it. This was about 1836 or '7. Grundy Conn- ty, as an organization, was unknown, and the community but barely established, did not take an active part in these movements, though sympathizing with and profiting by them. But no communities found diffi- culty in organizing for its own defense when occasion demanded. Two fellows were suspected of horse-stealing, in the southern part of the county. They were observed to stay at their father's house at day time, and to be abroad at night, and occasionally to be gone for several weeks without any ostensible business. A com -- mittee advised them to leave and not re-
* History of La Salle County-Baldwin.
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HISTORY OF GRUNDY COUNTY.
turn, but disregarding this warning they were visited and severely whipped, and the father ordered to move out of the neighbor- hood, which was a short distance south of the present line of the county. Other or- ganizations were known as "Claim Asso- eiations," which did not have so good a reason for their existenee. These were combinations by settlers to resist the en- croaehments of speenlators, though their power was exerted against any interloper or new-comer. Certain lands were bonght and located near other seetions, which the settler intended, as he got the means, to take up. A new-comer was informed that certain seetions were open to him, and that others had been assigned to those already on the grounds. The new-comer some- times saw fit to disregard this intimation, made his own choice and began his im- provements. In one such ease a large pile of rails, which had been prepared at a eon- siderable expense of time and labor, and drawn to the place where the fence was to be built, was found entirely burned, and a few days later, the wagon left loaded with rails, was found consumed with its load. Such incidents were not frequent, but oe- eurred here and there, and served to illus- trate the tendency of very good citizens when the established restraints of society are somewhat relaxed.
A more recent exhibition of the ernde ad- ministration of justice occurred about 1867, in an adjoining township. Two men were paying attentions to a woman; one was afterward found shot dead, lying in the road near his team. Suspicion was directed toward the rival of the dead man, and he subsequently acknowledged to the grand jury that he had hired his brother to shoot
the unfortunate vietim for fifty dollars.
The murderer was apprehended and brought to trial, but the witness before the grand jury took refuge behind the plea that his evidence would eriminate himself, and the prisoner was discharged, thongh there was no doubt entertained of his guilt. The two conspirators returned to their homes and condneted themselves in sneh a way as to inflame the general feeling against them, until the publie sentiment crystallized into a " vigilance committee" and an order to leave the country. The one who did the shooting fled, but his brother gave himself to the sheriff for protection. On the fol- lowing day some two or three hundred men assembled at Morris, forced the jail, and hung the man to a tree on the south side of the river.
The first permanent settlement was made in Highland by James Martin in 1845 or'6. He came from Indiana and located his land in the southeast corner of the township. Hle was soon followed by his brothers-in-law, John and William Scott, who settled near him. But little more is known of these persons, as they stayed only a short time here. James Funk was the third settler, and William Pierce came soon afterward, taking up land in the northern corner. About 1851 Alvin and Cushman Small, John Empie, and a Mr. Kline came into the northeastern seetion of the township. In this year also came Paddy Lamb, an Irishman, from New York. He made a elaim on section 17, and returned to his home in the East. In 1855 he came back and settled. While at his old home, his projeet of turning farmer in Illinois was freely disenssed among his associates and fellow countrymen, and quite a number
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HISTORY OF GRUNDY COUNTY.
were induced to emigrate to this township. A family by the name of Wier, in Vienna Township, had an extensive acquaintance with their countrymen, and it was largely through their influence that the settlenient of Highland took its exclusive character. Jolın Weldon, a resident of Vienna, also was an influential factor in the Highland settlement. New-comers were referred to him for advice as to choosing lands, and he soon became known to the Highland people as "Daddy Weldon," a title of respect which still clings to him. With such a be- ginning, the tendency was to build up a community which was almost exclusively Irish. The settlement was a comparatively late onc, there being but fifteen votes in 1856. Of these it is said fourteen were cast against, and only one for, Buchanan for Pres- ident. Paddy Lamb was the single-handed
champion of the successful candidate, and it is said, his was the first Irish or Democratic vote cast in the township. It may be said that the first case of " bulldozing" occurred in the township on this occasion. The ma- jority desired to make the ballot unani- mons, and indulged in a good deal of good- natured effort to convert Lamb to the opposition, but he would have none of it, and still glories in the firmness of his con- victions.
There is neither village nor post-office in the township. A somewhat pretentious but considerably neglected town-house marks the "center," and a Catholic place of wor- ship, in the northwest corner of section 4, attracts the devout of this township. The latter building was erected in 1868, at a cost of about $2,400.
PART II.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
MORRIS CITY AND TOWNSHIP.
PERRY A. ARMSTRONG, Morris. The publishers have requested us to write a sketch of our life-a diffientt and delicate thing to do. We are like the boy who said he was not used to having his teeth pulled and was afraid it would hurt. We have written many obituaries (not our own), but have never written a biog- raphy and are afraid it will hurt. But we promised to do it, and therefore make the effort. As all things must have a beginning and should have an ending, we shall endeavor to begin with the beginning whether we suc- ceed in ending or not. We meet with difficulty, however, at the start, because we were born at a tender age, a long time ago, and a long ways off. We had no scratch-back and pencil to make memoranda, and were too much engaged in admiring the wonderful things of this won- derful world to give special attention to our birth, henee, we are remitted to the family tra- dition for the date, place and surrounding cir- cumstances of our birth. Relying upon that family tradition-and what well-regulated fam- ily would be without a tradition, as they are a very handy thing in a family. We were born on the ides of April, 1823, at the homestead of Joseph and Elsie Armstrong, on the East Fork of Licking, in McCain Township, Licking Co., Ohio. Julius Caesar we believe was born on the same day, A. C., 98. The difference be- tween us was but 1921 years. He became
famous from the expression " Et tu, Brute." whilst we have our fame yet to win, hence we have something to do. Our advent to this mundane sphere was not hailed with demon- strations of delight as we have been informed. (Personally, as we said before, we have no dis- tinct recollections on the subject, because we were only a boy when they were looking for a girl.) They made two more efforts-two more boys. It was too discouraging-they quit. We are told that we came to this world with an empty stomach, wry face and crabbed' dis- position. To the first count we plead guilty; and admit that we have labored assiduously to fill that self-same empty stomach with indiffer- ent success, lo! these fifty-nine years. To the second count, we enter a special plea of con- fession and avoidance, admitting that it is true, but allege that they pinched us. We always make a wry face when pinched. To the third count, we would enter a plea of not guilty were we not afraid they will eall our wife as a wit- ness against us. If they should do that, we are a gone coon, so we have concluded to enter a plea of guilty, and throw ourself on the mercy of the court. Before coming to this conclusion, we tried to remember whether we had not been called a little angel or cherub some time in our life, but failed, and consoled ourself with the reflection that the good die young, or, in other words, angels are short-lived
4
BIOGRAPHICAL:
and ephemeral and we're glad that we never tried to be one. We are told that thumb-suck- ing was our special delight. No wonder we never got on in the world; this early habit stuck to us like a brother, and has kept us poor all our life. We have also been informed that we took our gruel and catnip like an old soldier at the business, and were intimately acquainted with wind colic, and have been windy ever since, that we were an adept at that other youthful accomplishment-drooling. That our hair was white, eyes hazel and face green look- ing. The former stuck to us till in our teens, and " tow-head " was our pet name; the latter com- menced to sprout when about twenty, and has sprouted ever since. Our complexion was fair, but for a multitude of freckles, which grew into speckles like unto a turkey's egg. The Seventh Son, common report said we were the doctor; Dame Nature had endowed us with the healing art by the " laying on of hands." We always thought Common Report was a common liar, so we took no stock in the doctor theory, but others did, and came from far and near for the removal of warts, wens and other excres- ences which rumor said would flee at our ap- proach. We approached, but they didn't flee; they stayed. The days of miracles had passed, and we declined to revive them; hence we worked no miracles. We attended school at a proper age and earned many laurels as a good fighter-few as a good scholar.
In 1831, our mother and brother determined to go West. This was before Greeley's advice, " Young man, go West," was made public. One brother had already gone West, another had crossed the "silent river," leaving seven still at the old homestead. We could not make up our mind to be left like poor Joe all alone, so we concluded to "move on" with the rest of the family. In arriving at this decision, we were not aided by a desire to rival Buffalo Bill in slaying buffalo, or Donald McKay as an In- dian-killer, as we had not then read their ex-
ploits. Strange as it is true, we had never read a dime novel and were entirely free of sentimen- talism. "The household gods" being stowed to the best advantage in the capacious wagon- box of a prairie schooner, with four horses for motor-power, we folded our tent, and "like the Arab, silently stole away," following the Star of Empire westward ho! What between mud and mire, rain, hail and sleet, our four weeks' journey overland were tedious, yet we enjoyed it well, from the fact that our cousin, who was a few months our junior, accompanied us, and we took solid pleasure in trouncing him several times per day just for fun. Occasionally, however, he turned the tables, and trounced us. This was less agreeable. We reached our land of promise-Sand Prairie, near Lacon, Ill., April 28, 1831. Stopping the first night with a pa- ternal uncle, Gen. John Strawn, we got into a bit of an argument ere we had been there fif-
teen minutes. A controversy arose between our new-found cousin Enoch and myself as to which was the best wrestler. Although 9 P. M., and quite dark, we proceeded at once to try conclusions, which resulted in a fight, and we were banished early the following morning to the shanty on our brother's claim on the prairie. A good fighter was not then appreciated.
The family did not take to sandy land worth a continental, so in July of that year stakes were again pulled, and we migrated north to La Salle County, and located some seven miles southwest of Ottawa. Here we took the ague, or the ague took us, and shook us lively like for six consecutive weeks, despite of all the bone- set and wanghoo teas we could swallow. Qui- nine was a luxury not to be had, if, indeed, it had yet been discovered. On the day we had our first shake, we ate heartily of mutton and worty squash-our last meal of that kind of fodder. We acquired a distaste, yea, horror, for them, and have never eaten sheep or squash since. The darned ague shook itself weak, and finally abandoned our poor, emaciated anat-
5
MORRIS CITY AND TOWNSHIP.
omy, and has given us a wide berth ever since. True, it has come round occasionally to let us know it still lived, but has never tackled us in real earnest. There was no salt to be had in that vicinity that fall, hence the prospect for meat was like the boy's ground hog. We had to have salt or no meat. Chicago, 100 miles away, was the nearest point where it coukl be obtained. We had no correspondents there from whom to order it by telegraph or tele- phone, nor had either of them been invented: We had no railroad, canal or stage line, nor freighter's line, and lastly, we had no roads but Indian trails. Salt must be had and we deter- mined to have it. So. taking an older brother, William E. (or he taking ns), we yoked up two yoke of oxen and hitched them to a sled on which was placed the schooner-shaped wagon box, with old Watch, the faithful dog for com- pany and guard, we started for Chicago De- cember 23, 1831, and reached there in four days. We were much surprised at Chicago. Instead of being a respectable village, there were but two white families there (Kinzie and Miller). The soldiers had been ordered from Fort Dearborn, so the place seemed deserted. We got our salt and returned home to rejoice the hearts of all our neighbors, all of whom were, like us, without salt, and must have it. After all this, one of our neighbors, with whom some of our older brothers had difficulty about claims ou the Government land, had our mother arrested for selling salt without license. But as no law could be found in the statute " agin it," she was honorably discharged. Having procured salt, the wild hogs-with which the river bottom was well supplied-had to sulfer. flow these hogs came there, and in such large quantities, it would be ditlicult to tell, but we found them there and were glad of the lind. Sod corn we had by purchase of a small lield of it from T. J. Covell, for whom Covell Creek was named. Too small to use the ax or maul to advantage. to us was assigned
the pounding of corn in a wooden mortar during the winter of 1831-32. The finest of the "mash" was sieved through the sieve and made into corn-dodgers. The rest was boiled for hominy or samp. Thus we fared sumptuously on hog and hominy. For " Sab- baday " we ground a little wheat (of which we had a two-bushel bagful) in a coffee-mill, and bolted it through a jaconet cape of our mother's, and made "slapjacks." They were bully. In May, 1832, the Sac and Fox Indians got on a rampage, and did some indiscriminate scalping of women and children. not far distant from our home, hence we emigrated to a fort in Putnam County, and remained until the Indi- ans were tamed. We did not volunteer to as- sist in their taming. We let our okler brothers, Wash and Bill, take our place in that gentle amusement. In the winter of 1832-33, we attended, as we believe, the first school for " pale-faced " children ever opened in La Salle County. The teacher was a Miss Farnam from away down East. This school was taught in a log schoolhouse, 14×16 feet, some four miles southwest of Ottawa, which we believe was the first schoolhouse built in La Salle County. In the summer of 1830, we tried to sell goods at Hidalgo, on the Wanpecan, near the road cross- ing, three miles southwest of Morris. Hidalgo was then the leading village of the county. It boasted a saw-mill, blacksmith-shop and dry goods store, all belonging to G. W. Armstrong. But the Waupecan went dry more than half the year, hence the mill proved a failure, and Hidalgo was deserted. In that winter, we were at school in Ohio. In 1838, we clerked for George W., and tried to keep his books at Utica, Ill., where he had a contract on the canal, and in the winter of 1838-39 we attended school four miles southwest of Utica, and had to cross the Illinois and Big Vermillion Rivers to get there. Gen. William H. L. Wallace, who fell at Shiloh, was our classmate at this okl log schoolhouse on the blutf. This was the best
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