USA > Illinois > Macon County > History of Macon County, Illinois, from its organization to 1876 > Part 3
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23
29
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
little girl of Nathan Vestal's died, and was buried on the hill near Emily Hayes' residence. As there was no lumber in the country, a coffin was made by splitting slabs out of trees and hewing them into shape. The nearest settlement to the Shugarts', at that time, was the residence of a man named Laughery, ten miles down Salt Creek, in what is now Logan county.
" Another settlement was made in what was called Fork Prairie, in the vicinity of the present town of Marion, in 1831 and '32, the first settlers being Thomas R. Davis, James Morris, John Morris, Benjamin Lisenby, Alexander Dale, Josian Harp, Charles McCord and Hugh Davenport.
" The first settlement about Clinton was made by Joseph (or Josiah) Clion, in 1830. He erected a cabin on what is now known as the Paschal Mills farm, about one mile west of Clinton."
There were also early settlements made in what was then this county, but which now forms a part of Moultrie, as early as 1829 and '30.
It is worthy of remark that the first who came here, as a general thing, commenced their improvements in the timber. But few, for a great many years, thought it advisable to attempt farming in the prairie. They at first were not satisfied that crops could be successfully cultivated there. It was almost the unanimous opin- ion that the large prairies never would be in a state of cultivation, but useful only for grazing purposes. Another obstacle was in the way for a good many years, and that was, there were no plows suitable for breaking the prairie land. The sod was very much tougher then than it was in after years when the stock had pastured the prairies and killed out the grass to some extent. It would be astonishing to many of our present residents to see the immense crops of prairie grass that in early days grew upon their present fields. It grew in places to the height of from six to twelve feet, and was " almost as thick," some of the old settlers say, "as the hair on a dog's back." It was these immense crops of grass that furnished the fuel for the terrible fires that swept over the prairies during the fall season of the year, and were so often productive of loss of life and property. And then, again, there was so much of the prairie land that was considered too wet to be ever suitable for cultivation. Thousands of acres that now constitute some of the best farms, in the highest state of cultivation, and possessing the
30
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
very richest of soil, were condemned as swamp lands. The fact is that there is much of the land of Macon county that is now con- sidered high and dry, or at least sufficiently so for all practical farming purposes, that was so wet that during a greater portion of the year it was absolutely dangerous to ride over it on horseback, for fear of miring. There was another drawback in the settlement of the prairies, and that was the great labor and cost of fencing. It is a well authenticated fact that the northern portion of Illinois might have been under a general state of improvement a great many years sooner than it was, but for the difficulty and great expense of fencing the farms. The Supreme Court of this State, at an early day, entertaining the idea generally prevailing, that our immense prairies would always remain commons, and used only for pastur- ing purposes, reversed the common law idea prevailing almost uni- versally, in consequence of which every man was compelled to fence his entire farm so as to keep his neighbor's stock out, in order to protect his crop. It would have been much less expensive for each man to have protected himself against his own stock, than to have protected himself against the stock of the entire neighborhood. This decision of the Supreme Court, requiring stock to be fenced out instead of in, has been the most expensive decision to the people of Illinois of any other, perhaps, ever made. It has cost the farmers of Macon county, who entered their land of the government, more to build these fences and keep them in repair, by far, than the land cost, and all the necessary implements of husbandry. Our prairies would have been in a splendid state of cultivation long before they were, but for the inability of the people to build the necessary fences to protect their crops from destruction by the few cattle that were permitted to run at large and feed on the commons or speculator's land. One-tenth of the land that might have been in cultivation but for the expense of fencing, would have produced more than suffi- cient corn to have fattened all the hogs running at large merely for the sake of the fall masts. Another thing retarded the early settle- ment of the county to some extent, which was the fact of specu- lators and capitalists from the east coming into the county and buying up large tracts of the best and most available lands, and holding them for an advance in price occasioned by the development and improvement of the surrounding lands. Every person who came into the county to make it his home was welcomed. He was
31
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
assisted in every possible way to induce him to become a resident. But the speculator, who brought nothing into the county, and did nothing whatever to develop the growth of the country by building or improvements of any kind, was not held in very high esteem by the residents generally. He bought his lands and paid the small annual assessments thereon, and waited for other people's labor and money to enhance the value of his investments. It should be men- tioned, however, in this connection, that Philo Hale, who owned as much if not more land in Macon county than any one else, was an exception to the rule just stated. He owned large bodies of land in the county, but he came here and made this his home. He was one of the people. He induced others to come, and did all in his power to advance the material prosperity of the county. He pub- lished in the eastern papers flaming accounts of our rolling prairies, rich soil, etc., etc. The people of the county were often astonished at reading in the newspapers published in the eastern States, glow- ing accounts of large and enthusiastic mass meetings, at which Judge so and so presided, and Captain so and so acted as secretary, when and where resolutions were passed endorsing this or that local improvement, and expressing the gratitude of the people for the rapid progress in the construction of a railroad from Chicago to St. Louis or Chicago to New Orleans, or Vincennes to Nauvoo! Of course the meetings and the resolutions passed only existed in the mind of Mr. Hale, and, of course, the result to be accomplished was commendable, whether some of the means he resorted to were justifiable or not. Had he lived to old age, Mr. H. would have been instrumental in aiding immensely in the material advancement and improvement of the county .*
Another obstacle was also in the way of the rapid advancement of the country, and that was, the lack of markets for the produce raised, which continued until railroad facilities were offered by the opening of the great Western Railroad (now T., W. & W. R. R.), and the Illinois Central-the former in 1852, and the latter in 1854. The hogs and cattle sold had to be driven overland to St. Louis, Chicago and other markets. There was no sale, of course, for
*NOTE .- He died about 1836, and was buried on the " Hale farm," in Mt. Zion township. His grave is said to be unmarked and neglected, although at the time of his death he owned thousands of acres of land in this county which has since become valuable!
32
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
corn-or comparatively none-and wheat, when hauled to Spring- field, but very seldom realized over thirty-three cents per bushel, so that there was no impetus given to the raising of grain of any sort, except for home consumption. But upon the con- struction of the railroads above mentioned, dividing the county into four quarters, a new era commenced in the history of Macon county. The fact is, that the day that the first train of cars ran into Decatur, is the day from which the material advancement of Macon county dates. That was the beginning of our improve- ments; that was the beginning of our settlement proper; that was the beginning of our agricultural development. It was the com- mencement of our manufacturing institutions; it was the com- mencement of the city of Decatur. According to the United States census for 1850, the entire population of Macon county at that time was but 3,998. From 1850 to 1870-a period of twenty years-the population had increased to 26,481. In 1830, the year after the organization of the county, our population was but 1, 122, so that the increase in population for the twenty years preceding the construction of our two leading railroads was but 2,876, and for the twenty years following was 22,483. In 1850 but a small portion of our prairies were in cultivation, but now they are a solid mass of farms, and many of them are in a splendid state of cultivation. There were in cultivation during the year 1876, 258,315 acres of land. But it must be remembered that this vast body of land now in cultivation, does not produce as much by one- half as it is capable of under a judicious and systematic treatment, such as we find in some of the older states.
Another influence also operated in retarding the rapid settlement of the county during its early history, and that was what was variously styled the "ague," "chills and fever," and " Illinois shakes." It was a terror to newcomers. In the fall season of the year, like Brady's bitters, everybody took it. It was no respecter of persons; everybody shook with it, and it was in everybody's system. They all looked pale and yellow, as though they were frost-bitten. It was not contageous, but was a kind of miasmi that floated around the atmosphere and was absorbed in the system. It kept on absorbing and accumulating from day to day, until the whole body corporate became charged with it as with electricity, and then the shock came; and the shock was a regular shake, with
33
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
a fixed beginning and an ending, coming on each day, or each alternate day, with a regularity that was surprising. And after the shake, then came the fever, and this "last estate was worse than the first." It was a burning hot fever, and one that lasted for hours. When you had the chill you couldn't get warm, and when you had the fever you couldn't get cool. It was awkward in this respect. It was, indeed. It would not stop, either, for any sort of contingency. Not even a wedding in the family would stop it. It was imperative and exacting. When the appointed hour came around, everything else had to be stopped to attend to its demands. It didn't have any Sundays or holidays. After the fever went down, you didn't still feel much better. You felt as though you had gone through some sort of a collision, and came out not killed, but badly demoralized. You felt weak, as though you had run too far after something, and then didn't catch it. You felt languid, stupid and sore, and was down in the mouth and heel and partially raveled out, so to speak. Your back was out of fix, and your appetite was in a worse fix than that. Your eyes had more white in them than usual, and altogether, you felt poor, disconsolate and sad. You didn't think much of yourself, and didn't believe other people did either. Your didn't care whether there was any school or not. You didn't think much of suicide, but at the same time you almost made up your mind that under certain circumstances it was justifiable. You imagined that even the dogs looked at you with a kind of self-complacency. You thought the sun had a kind of sickly shine about it. About this time you came to the conclu- sion that you would not take the whole State of Illinois as a gift, and picked up Hannah and the baby and your traps, and went back " yander " to Injeany, Ohio, or old Kaintuck.
The above is no picture of the imagination. It occurred in hun- dreds of cases. It put us in bad repute with our neighbors, and for that reason they refused to come and settle with us. Whole families would sometimes be sick at once, and not one member scarcely able to wait on the others. And when an emigrant hap- pened to stop in a neighborhood affected with this disease, he did not stay long.
Persons emigrating to the county usually selected their locations and commenced their improvements on government land, and waited until they were able to amass from the scanty resources -5
34
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
enough to purchase the forty or eighty acres-as the case might be -at the sales at the land office at Vandalia. In the earlier days the government price of land was fixed at $1.25 per acre. Amus- ing incidents are related in connection with the races that were sometimes made by different persons desiring to enter the same piece of land. It was not unfrequent that men who had about exhausted their means in reaching the country, and had labored hard and undergone all sorts of privations in securing a comfortable home and other necessary improvements, and had, perhaps, a few acres of ground in cultivation-when they had at last obtained, by the strictest economy, or perhaps borrowed enough money, to purchase from the government their little forty-acre home, found that some speculator had preceded them and entered their land. It is said, however, that in some instances the speculator did not retain the improvements; for, by some magical power or otherwise, in a remarkable short space of time almost, the identical improve- ments appeared at some other locality not far away, and having the same occupants.
The first piece of land ever entered in Macon county was the west half of the northeast quarter of section thirty-one, in town- ship sixteen north, range two east of the third principal meridian. on the ninth day of November, 1827, by Lewis B. Ward. This was owned by Mr. Ward until the fall of 1876, when it was sold to Bartley G. Henry. There were about eight hundred acres of land entered during that year, and there is now probably not an acre of land in the county belonging to the government.
1480992 CHAPTER III.
COUNTY OFFICERS.
At the time of the formation of the county, all county affairs were transacted by the County Commissioners' Court, which was composed of three men, who were usually selected with reference to their qualifications for the peculiar and responsible duties of the office. This court assumed jurisdiction upon almost all manner of subjects, except the exercise of judicial functions, and the record shows that, even in this respect, upon one occasion at least, the court assumed to fine a man for an indignity to that honorable body, which supposed indignity the court characterised as "flouting," whatever, that may mean.
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS' COURT.+
IS29-30-Benjamin Wilson, Elisha Freeman, James Miller, 1831-32-James Miller, I. C. Pugh, David Davis, 1833-34-Elisha Freeman, Hugh Bolls, Philip D. Williams. 1835-36-James A. Piatt, Wm. Muirhead, Benj. Wilson.
1830-31-Elisha Freeman, James Miller, I. C. Pugh.
1832-33-James Miller, I. C. Pugh, David Davis. 1834-35-James A. Piatt, Wm. Muirhead, Benj. Wilson.
1836-37-James A. Piatt, Wm. Muirhead, Benj. Wilson.
+Established under act of March 22, 1819.
36
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
1837-38-James A. Piatt, Wm. Muirhead, Josiah Clifton.
1838-39-Wm. Muirhead, James A. Piatt, Abram Chapin.
1839-40 -* Elisha Freeman, 3 yrs 1840-41-Elisha Freeman, *Benj. Wilson, 2 yrs., Benj. Wilson, John Rucker. *Hiram Chapin, 1 yr.
1841-42-Elisha Freeman, John Rucker, Abraham H. Keller. 1843-44-John Rucker, Leonard Ashton, Andrew W. Smith.
1845-46-Andrew W. Smith, James D. Tait, Elisha Freeman.
1842-43-John Rucker, Abraham H. Keller, Leonard Ashton.
1844-45-John Rucker, Andrew W. Smith, James D. Tait.
1846-47-Elisha Freeman, Samuel Rea, James D. Campbell.
1848-49-Elisha Freeman, Samuel Rea,
1847-48-Elisha Freeman, Samuel Rea, James D. Campbell. James D. Campbell.
It will be noticed that there are but two members of the above court remaining in Macon county, viz: James D. Tait and Samuel Rea. The others are either dead or have ceased to be residents.
By an act of the Legislature, approved February 12, 1849, the County Commissioners' Court was abolished, and the COUNTY COURT established, This act provided for the election of a county judge and two additional justices of the peace, whose duty it should be " to sit with the county judge as members of the court, for the transaction of all county business." The County Court was in existence from 1850 to 1860. The following constituted our County Court during that period :
COUNTY COURT.
1850-51-William Prather, County Judge. Jacob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice.
*These Commissioners were allotted to the respective terms opposite their names by the County Clerk, under an act approved March Ist, 1837. Under this act the term of service of the County Commissioners was fixed at three years, one to be elected each year.
*
37
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
1851-52-William Prather, County Judge. Jacob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice.
1852-53-William Prather, County Judge. Jacob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice.
1853-54-William Prather, County Judge. Jacob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice. 1854-55-William Prather, County Judge. Jacob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice.
1855-56-William Prather, County Judge. Jocob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice.
1856-57-John Rickets, County Jndge. Jacob Hostetler, Associate Justice. John Rucker, Associate Justice.
1857-58-John Rickets, County Judge. Jacob Spangler, Associate Justice. M. G. Camron, Associate Justice. 1858-59-John Rickets, County Judge. Jacob Spangler, Associate Justice. M. G. Camron, Associate Justice. 1869-70-John Rickets County Judge. Jacob Spangler, Associate Justice. M. G. Camron, Associate Justice.
There are but three members of the old County Court now living, viz: Judge John Rickets, and Associate Justices Jacob Spangler and M. G. Camron.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS .*
1860.
Hickory Point, J. Y. Braden. Oakly, G. W. Forest.
Austin, James Parker. Long Creek, John Rucker.
NOTE .- On the 17th of February, 1851, an act was passed authorizing coun- ties to adopt the system of "Township Organization " therein prescribed, upon the petition and vote of citizens of the county. At the September
38
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
Maroa, William Crawford. Friends Creek, D. K. Wilson, Decatur, H. B. Durfee. Niantic, J. H. Hughes. S. Wneatland, I. S. Boardman.
Whitmore, Jas. Lichtenberger. Harristown, Abraham Eyman. Decatur, John W. Koehler, ast. Mt. Zion, W. C. Meyers.
South Macon, W. D. Hamilton. Blue Mound, J. C. Armstrong.
1861.
Decatur, H. B. Durfee. Friends Creek, D. K. Wilson. Maroa, W. F. Crawford. Hickory Point, J. Y. Braden, Niantic, J. H. Hughes. Oakley, G. W. Forest. Long Creek, J. C. Rucker.
Decatur, John W. Koehler, ast. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett. Mt. Zion, W. C. Meyers. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. Harristown, J. H. Pickrell. South Macon, L. M. Clement. Whitmore, Henry Rhodes. Austin, J. S. Parker. IS62.
Harristown, J. B. Hanks. Whitmore, Jas. Lichtenberger. Long Creek, J. C. Rucker. Niantic, J. A. Pritchett. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. South Macon, A. H. Martin. Decatur, H. B. Durfee.
Hickory Point, J. Y. Braden. Maroa, W. F. Crawford. Mt. Zion, B. W. Davidson. Friends Creek, Comely Lukens.
Blue Mound, F. A. Brown.
Austin, A. Emery.
Decatur, John W. Koehler. Oakley, Laban Chambers.
term, 1859, of the County Court, a vote of the county was authorized to be submitted to the legal voters at the November election ensuing. The propo- sition to go into township organization was carried, and at the December term following of the County Court, William Cantrill, David Garver and James Dingman, were appointed as commissioners to divide the county into town- ships, which they did, and reported to the court their action on the 14th of January, 1860. At that time the county was divided into fourteen townships, as follows: (1) Friends Creek (2) Maroa, (3) Montgomery (afterwards changed to Austin), (4) Bull Point (afterwards changed to Hickory, and then to Hickory Point), (5) Decatur, (6) Long Creek, (7) Whitmore, (8) Oakley, (9) Harris (afterwards changed to Harristown, (10) Wilson (afterwards changed to Mt. Zion), (11) South Wheatland, (12) South Macon, (13) Madison (afterwards changed to Blue Mound), (14) Niantic. Illini, Milam, and Pleasant View have been since formed of parts of other townships.
39
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
1863.
Harristown, M. G. Camron. Whitmore, John Gill.
Long Creek, John S. Kizer. Niantic, J. W. Corbett. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. South Macon, W. W. Dean. Decatur, B. F. Dillehunt.
Hickory Point, J. Y. Braden. Maroa, W. F. Crawford. Mt. Zion, B. W. Davidson. Friends Creek, Andrew Dickey.
Blue Mound, F. A. Brown.
Decatur, H. B. Durfee. Austin, J. S. Parker.
Oakley, H. McCoy.
Hickory Point, J. Y. Braden, Whitmore, Charles Wooster. Niantic, J. W. Corbett. Decatur, J. E. Roberts. Maroa, W. F. Crawford. South Macon, Frank Babcock. Mt. Zion, John Scott. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett.
1864. Illini, J. H. Pickrell. Austin, J. S. Parker. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. Decatur, David Morgan.
Oakley, H. McCoy. Friends Creek, Comely Lukens.t Long Creek, John W. Tyler. Harristown, M. G. Camron.
1865.
Hickory Point, J. Y. Braden. Whitmore, Joshua Green. Niantic, J. W. Corbett. Decatur, W. O. Jones. Maroa, Anderson Franklin. S. Macon, Frank Babcock. Mt. Zion, Jehu Scott. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett.
Illini, John S. Childs. Austin, J. S. Parker. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. Decatur, David Morgan. Oakley, O. J. Doyle.
Friends Creek, D. K. Wilson. Long Creek, John W. Tyler. Harristown, M. G. Camron. 1 866.
H. Point, W. F. Montgomery. Whitmore, Joshua Green. Niantic, J. W. Corbett. Decatur, H. B. Durfee. Maroa, John Crocker. South Macon, N. Failing. Mt. Zion, John A. Henry. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett.
Illini, J. S. Childs. Austin, C. F. Emery. S. Wheatland, Jno. Montgomery. Decatur, W. A. Barnes. Oakley, O. J. Doyle. Friends Creek, William Daves. Long Creek, John W. Tyler. Harristown, M. G. Camron.
+Resigned.
40
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
1867.
Decatur, H. B. Durfee. Whitmore, Jas. Lichtenberger. South Macon, R. Gray. Niantic, A. W. Pritchett. South Macon, N. Failing.
Mt. Zion, J. A. Henry. Illini, J. S. Childs. Harristown, M. G. Camron.
Decatur, W. A. Barnes. Friends Creek, Wm. Daves. Austin, C. F. Emery. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. Long Creek, J. S. Kizer. Oakley, E. Rhodes. H. Point, W. F. Montgomery. 1868.
Decatur, H. B. Durfee. Whitmore, J. G. Harnesberger. South Macon, Joel T. Walker. Niantic, Sheldon Parks. South Macon, John Lyon. Mt. Zion. J. A. Henry. Illini. J. C. Tucker. Harristown, M. G. Camron.
Decatur, James Milliken. Whitmore, J. G. Harnesberger. Macon, Joel T. Walker. Niantic, Shaw Pease. Maroa, John T. Lyon. Mt. Zion, R. M. Foster. Illini, J. J. Bachelder. Harristown, M. G. Camron.
Decatur, M. Forstmeyer.
Friends Cr'k, Payne & Swantes. Austin, Robert T. Morris. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. Long Creek, Samuel Gillispie. Oakley, Reed Spencer.
Hickory Point, A. McBride. Pleasant View, D. Powles.
1870. Decatur, M. Forstmeyer.
Decatur, Reuben Betzer. Whitmore, Jas. Lichtenberger.
Macon, J. T. Walker. Niantic, Thomas Acom. Maroa, John T. Lyon. Mt. Zion, R. M. Foster.
Friends Creek, F. Swantes .* Austin, Peter Bennett. Blue Mound, R. H. Hill.
Wheatland, I. S. Boardman.
Long Creek, J. Benson Myers.
*Resigned, and T. H. Barr appointed.
Decatur, M. Forstmeyer. Friends Creek, S. Payne. Austin, T. B. Campbell. Blue Mound, W. T. Moffett. S. Wheatland, I. S. Boardman. / Long Creek, Joseph Spangler. Oakley, E. Rhodes. Hickory Point, H. S. Mannon. 1869.
41
HISTORY OF MACON COUNTY.
Illini, J. J. Bachelder. Hasristown, M. G. Camron. Pleasant View, D. D. Powles.
Milam, G. A. Bartlett. Mt. Zion, William Davis. Decatur, M. Forstmeyer. Whitmore, Joshua Green. Maroa, Samuel Lowe. Long Creek, J. B. Myers. Pleasant View, D. D. Powles. Illini, J. C. Tucker. South Macon, J. T. Walker.
Harristown, M. G. Camron. Whitmore, Joshua Green. Decatur, H. Hummell. Hickory Point, A. McBride. Mt. Zion, G. A. Smith. Long Creek, A. T. Davis. Austin, D. Patterson. S. Wheatland, Hiram Ward. Pleasant View, John Hatfield.
Oakley, Reed Spencer. Hickory Point, A. McBride. Milam, J. B. Gleason.t 1871.
Harristown, M. G. Camron. Austin, C. F. Emery. Decatur, Joseph Mills. Blue Mound, R. H. Hill. Friends Creek, John Marsh. Hickory Point, A. McBride. Oakley, E. Rhodes. S. Wheatland, Hiram Ward. Niantic, S. Parks.
1872.
South Macon, N. Failing. Niantic, John Gordy.
Decatur, Jacob Spangler. Maroa, Jason Rogers. Oakley, Read Spencer. Niantic, S. Parks. Illini, J. C. Tucker.
Milam, G. A. Bartlett.
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.