USA > Illinois > Macoupin County > History of Macoupin County, Illinois > Part 67
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The first mill was built by E. C. Vancil, who resides at present in the north part of the township. It was run by horse-power. There was a large cog-wheel which ran above the horses' heads; it ran in what was called a trundle-head, with an iron spindle, to which the burrs were attached. The mill ground slowly, but surely, as the team went round.
The facilities for milling in the township progressed but slowly, and at present there is not a mill within its limits. The mills patronized by the farmers are at the village of Palmyra, and Waverly in Morgan county.
The first Physician was Dr. George Sims, who came in 1829. E. C. Vancil practiced to some extent. They were Thompsonians in their mode of treatment. Dr. Palmer arrived at a later period. He was an Allopath. The diseases were mostly chills and bilious fever. At present we have three doctors, and all belong to the allopathic school of medicine.
The first Justice of the Peace was Lewis Solomon, Sr. He was elected when Macoupin formed a part of Greene county. After that county was or- ganized, he was elected for this county, and certified the poll book for the first election held in the county in 1829.
Blooded-stock, first introduced by Judge Solomon, jr. They were the By field-breed of hogs. The first cattle fed in the township, was by Judge Solomon. The short-horn Durham were introduced about 1850.
First Blacksmith shop was managed by a Mr. Stratton, about the year 1829. It was on the property of Lewis Solomon, Sr.
Post-offices .- One in the town of Palmyra, T. W. Chiles, post-master ; the other at Vancil's Point, at the residence of Judge Solomon. He has been post-master for twenty years. It was established about 1859. Fifty years have made a wonderful change in this township; it then was thinly settled, but now it is highly improved. We copy the following from the as- sessor's report of 1879 :
Number of acres of improved lands 20,691, value $120,265; acres unim- proved lands 2,140, value $4,377 ; total value of lands $124,642. Horses 673, value 89,371; cattle 1,386, value $10,726; mules 90, value $1,529; sheep 936, value 8814; hogs 1,581, value $1,353; carriages and wagons 210, value 81,965 ; 178 watches and clocks, 90 sewing machines, 3 pianos, 21 organs. Total value of personal property, 843,899.
Below we give the names of those who held offices since the township organization.
Supervisors .*- J. B. Vancil, elected in 1871, and by re-election, served until 1878; George W. Bullock, elected 1878; James Nevins, elected 1879.
Town Clerks .- J. F. Nifong, elected in 1871 ; W. C. Martin, elected in 1872, and re-elected in 1873 and 1874; R. Bramley, elected in 1875, and by re-election, held the office up to 1879.
Assessors .- H. Witt, elected in 1871; H. Hart, elected in 1872; J. D. Shane, elected in 1873, and re-elected in 1874; C. G. Simonds, elected in 1875, and re-elected in 1876 and 1877; J. D. Shane, elected in 1878; G. W. Stewart, elected in 1879.
Collectors .- J. D. Shane, elected in 1871, and re-elected in 1872; H. Hart, elected in 1873, and re-elected in 1874 and 1875; J. D. Shane, * Not represented in 1874.
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STOCK FARM & RESIDENCE OF M. T. ALFORD , SEC. 30, NORTH PALMYRA TP .. MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILL
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ESTABLISHED OCT. 1878. 24 MILES N.E. OF PALMYRA, MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILL.
RESIDENCE OF J. C. KING, SECTION 33, PALMYRA TP., MACOPIN CO., ILL.
CAPACITY FOR MAKING 8000 TILES PER DAY
THE TILE FACTORY OF R. TUCKER,
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HISTORY OF MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
elected in 1876'; F. M. Solomon, elected in 1877 ; A. J. Crum, elected in 1878; W. C. Crum, elected in 1879.
The following are the Justices of the Peace, since township organization : John Scott and J. F. Chiles, elected in 1871 ; G. W. Bullock and T. W. Chiles. elected in 1873, and re-elected in 1877.
Constables since Township organization : D. P. Berry and J. C. Miller,
elected in 1871; D. M. Berry and C. W. Price, elected in 1873; J. H. Sitton, elected in 1876 ; J. W. Turner and W. A. Braden, elected in 1877.
Commissioners of Highways .- 1871, J. I. Hollingsworth, M. T. Alford, Martin Sims; 1872, D. N. Solomon ; 1873, A. S. Nevins, George W. Kep- linger ; 1874, John W. Wrightsman; 1875, William H. King; 1876, J. I. Hollingsworth ; 1877, Robert Horton ; 1878, John N. Pinkerton ; 1879, J. W. Wrightsman.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
THOMAS R. HARRIS
Is a native of Fluvanna county, Virginia, and was born May 8th, 1804. His ancestors had been residents of the Old Dominion from an early period of its history. His father was John Harris, and his mother Delilah Shores. Mr. Harris was the third of a family of seven chil- dren. His father died when he was about nine years old, and his mother, in the year 1816, moved to Bourbon county, Kentucky. He attended school some little time, mostly at North Middletown, in Bourbon county, but most of his education he acquired by his own efforts. When fifteen he became an apprentice to the tanning business in Montgomery county, Kentucky, and followed that occupation for many years. Leaving Kentucky in 1828 he settled at Palmyra, Mo. In 1829 he married Mrs. Elizabeth Forman (whose maiden name was Fry), and then embarked in the tanning business near the town of Palmyra, on his own account. In 1834 he removed to Illinois, and settled in Morgan county just across the line from North Palmyra township. He followed the tanning business in that location till 1850, and then moved to North Palmyra township, and engaged in farming. He had entered land in North Palmyra township soon after coming to Illinois, and be- came the owner of about 600 acres in sections 2 and 11. He began to im- prove these lands while living in Morgan county, and after coming to Ma- coupin county, carried on farming quite extensively. His first wife died in 1866. In July, 1868, he married Mrs. Margaret Hutchinson, born in Jeffer- son county, Indiana, October 24th, 1820, and came to Sangamon county, Illinois, when seven years old. Her maiden name was Westfall. Her first husband died of the cholera at Waverly, in 1851. He was a local preacher in the Methodist church, ran a carding machine at Waverly, and was a good business man.
Mr. Harris has had six children ; John L., Sydney T., Virginia F., who married Edward O. Clark, of Carlinville ; Milton F., William J., and Mary E., wife of Milton Rohrer. Of the sons, John is in Iowa, William in Ne- braska, and Sydney farming in North Palmyra township. John, William, and Milton were soldiers in the Union army during the war of the rebellion. John enlisted in the 14th Illinois, under Gen. Palmer, and served three years. William enlisted in the 32d Illinois regiment, under Col. Logan, and served till the close of the war. Milton was a soldier in the same regiment He took part in the fiercely contested battle of Shiloh, which was begun on the 6th of April, 1862. On the first day of the fight, while under a heavy fire he was shot through the left lung, and died at the hospital at Mound City on the first of May, 1862. Mrs. Harris has three children by her first marriage : David B. Hutchinson, of Waverly ; Melinda J., wife of F. Cole, of the same place, and Samuel H. Hutchinson. Mr. Harris was first a whig in politics, and cast his first vote for Henry Clay for president, in 1824, for whom, like all true Kentuckians, he had a great admiration, and whom he
heard deliver one of his great speeches at Paris, Kentucky. He voted for Clay three times for president. He has been a republican since the organization of that party.
M. T. ALFORD.
THIS gentleman, a view of whose farm and residence appears on another page, is a native of Sevier county, Tennessee, where he was born May 22, 1828. His ancestors were from North Carolina. His father was Charles Alford, and his mother's maiden name was Mary Tipton. Mr. Alford was the fifth of a family of seven children. His birth-place was on Little Pigeon river, in Sevier county, and when about a year old, his father moved to Roane county, Tennessee. He settled two miles from the town of Philadel- phia, in what is known as the Sweetwater valley, where he was raised. He had very poor advantages in the way of obtaining an education. His father was the owner of considerable land, but kept his children at work, instead of sending them to school. Mr. Alford attended school only a few months, and the most of the instruction he received was imparted by his father, who was a man of considerable knowledge and information. He was brought up to habits of industry, and has always known what it was to work. He remained at home until his marriage, which occurred in May, 1849, to Rebecca Edwards, who was born and raised in Roane county, Tennessee. He removed to Illinois the next year after his marriage, (1850) and settled in North Palmyra township. He rented land until February 3d, 1861, at which time he purchased sixty acres, in Scottville township, where he lived until March, 1865, when he moved to the place where he now lives, in section 30, North Palmyra township. He owns 280 acres, three eighties of which lie in section 19, twenty in section 30, and twenty in section 29. He has been one of the substantial farmers of Palmyra town- ship. His first wife died in June, 1869. His second marriage occurred November, 1869, to Susan M. Sercy, who was born in Spencer county, Kentucky, and was the daughter of Fieldon H. Sercy. He has nine child- ren-William, Charles, Robert, Benjamin, Caleb, Sarah, Martha, Rosa and Bertha. The last five are by his second wife. William went to Kansas in the spring of 1879, where he is now engaged in farming. Charles is farming in Scottville township. Mr. Alford was raised an old line whig, and cast his first vote for president for Scott, in 1852. Afterwards he became a democrat. Mr. Alford is a man who stands well in his community, and is one whose name deserves a place in this work. His father came to Scott- ville township in 1850 and died there in 1858. His mother died there a year or two after.
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HISTORY OF MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
Mobiles
AMONG the old residents of the northern part of the county, the name of Thomas W. Chiles of Palmyra, is especially worthy of mention in this work. For upwards of thirty years he has been in the mercantile business at Palmyra, and is a gentleman who has maintained the highest respect of the community as an honorable business man and a worthy private citizen. The family from which he is descended is of English origin, and settled at an early period in Orange county, Virginia. His grandfather, James Chiles, lived and died near Orange court-house. He was a man of patriotic spirit, and enlisted in the regular Continental army, and served during the Revolution- ary war. John G. Chiles, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Orange county, Virginia, in the year 1790. He grew up to manhood in his native' county, and, when a young man and still unmarried, enlisted for service in the war of 1812. Returning to the Old Dominion about the year 1816 he married Elizabeth S. Wales. She was born in Fluvanna county, and her ancestors had been residents of Virginia from a period dating back to its early colonial history. On her mother's side she was connected with the Smithson family. For a couple of years after his marriage John G. Chiles lived in Virginia, and one child, a daughter, was born in that state. About the year 1818 he moved to Smith county, in Middle Tennessee, and Thomas W. Chiles was the next child born after the family left Virginia. There were ten children in all, equally divided between sons and daughters. The second child and the oldest son was the subject of this biography. His birth occurred on the 24th of January, 1819. When he was three or four years old his father moved with the family from Smith county, Tennessee, to Todd county, Kentucky, where they lived till 1833, and then emigrated to Illinois, arriving at their place of settlement in what is now called South Palmyra township, about the 1st of December. His father was in such cir- cumstances as did not permit his embarking very extensively in agriculture. He was engaged in farming in a limited way in South Palmyra township till 1850, and then removed to Bear creek, where he died on the 10th of May, 1853. Mr. Chiles' mother lived till the 6th of October, 1876.
When he first came to Macoupin county Mr. Chiles was about fifteen
years of age. Like most men raised in a new country his opportunities for securing an education were limited. The subscription schools in the neigh- borhood of his home in Kentucky he had attended three terms, and after coming to Illinois went to school three months. The country was thinly settled. The pioneer inhabitants had their minds mostly bent on clearing the forest and making homes, and the luxuries and many of the conveniences of life were unknown. The educational advantages which the boys of that generation enjoyed were accordingly of the commonest description, and at most afforded a meagre foundation upon which the youth, ambitious of further knowledge, could, by patient study nights and at odd moments, rear the structure of a more thorough education. During his boyhood he assisted his father on the farm. His marriage took place on the 22d of November, 1840. His wife was formerly Miss Clarissa A. Shaw. She was born at Cummington, Hampshire county, Massachusetts (the birth-place of the poet, William Cullen Bryant), March 31st, 1821. Her father, Oakes Shaw, was a native of Massachusetts; emigrated to Illinois in 1836, and settled at the old town of Cummington, a short distance east of the present town of Palmyra, which was named by him in honor of his Massachusetts home. He was the first post-master at Cummington. After his marriage Mr. Chiles rented land and began farming on his own account. He was obliged to begin life on a very modest basis. He had no means of his own, and an energetic industry and prudent economy were not matters of choice but of necessity. By October, 1848, at which date he quit farming, he had man- aged to accumulate a little money, and embarked in the mercantile business at Cummington, in partnership with James Matthews. There had been a store previously in existence at Cummington, but at the date at which Mr. Chiles entered into business it was closed, and he and his partner had com- mand of the whole field without a rival. They carried a stock of goods sufficient in those days to meet all demands, and made a successful business venture. In the spring of 1850 Mr. Chiles purchased Matthews' interest, and subsequently sold a half interest in the business to his brother-in-law, F. E. Shaw. In 1855 he became the owner of the whole store, and afterwards carried on
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men raised in a new country his opportunities ft " limited. The subscription schools in the neige entucky he had attended three terms, sod sito: · - chool three months. The country was ttin'y bitants had their minds mostly bent on clearing t' and the luxuries and many of the convenirlitt he educational advantages which the boys of the reordingly of the commonest description, and : foundation upon which the youth, ambities by patient study nights and at odd moments, nes .rough education. During his boyhood he siisel lis marriage took place on the 22d of Norenfe. tuerly Miss Clarissa A. Shaw. She was born county, Massachusetts (the birth-place of the ut), March 31st, 1821. Her father, Oakes Ster, tts; emigrated to Illinois in 1836, and sectied igton, a short distance east of the present tora ned by him in honor of his Massachusetts book. at Cummington. After his marriage Mr. Chile rming on his own account. He was obliged x: basis. He had no means of his own, sod sa dent economy were not matters of choice but f 18, at which date he quit farming, he had nxo- money, and embarked in the mercantile bosines hip with James Matthews. There had best e at Cummington, but at the date at which Me it was closed, and he and his partner had co- hout a rival. They carried a stock of goos eet all demands, and made a successful busines 150 Mr. Chiles purchased Matthews' interest, zsl st in the business to his brother-in-law, F. E.Shar. er of the whole store, and afterwards carried
RESIDENCE & JOHN H . LANDRITH.
BIRKSHIRE HOAGS
SCHOOL No.7.
CHESTNUT GROVE. RESIDENCE OF A . P. LANDRITH .
DANBERRY
BIRDS-EYE-VIEW OF THE STOCK FARM OF A. P. LANDRITH, SEC.20. NORTH PALMYRA TP. MACOUPIN CO., ILL. ( CONTAINING 410 ACRES. )
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RESIDENCE OF JUDGE LEWIS SOLOMON, SEC. 4. NORTH PALMYRA TP, MACOUPIN CO., ILL
FARM CONTAINING 797 ACRES SEAT OF VANCILS POINT. POST OFFICE )
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SOLOMON & MARTIN
RESIDENCE OF D. N. SOLOMON, PALMYRA
STORE OF SOLOMON AND MARTIN, PALMYRA, MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILL.
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HISTORY OF MACOUPIN COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
the business individually. The store was moved in 1862 from the old town of Cummington to the new town of Palmyra, which had been started in 1855. Cummington was unable to keep pace with her younger and more vigorous rival : the old town died out, and Mr. Chiles has since carried on the business at Palmyra. He has endeavored to conduct business on a fair and liberal basis, and has had his full share of the large trade which centers at the town of Palmyra. He has also, to a limited extent, been engaged in farming. The six of his eleven children who are living are as follows: John T. Chiles, a partner in the store ; Cornelia, the wife of John F. Rice ; Fordyce E., who is farming in North Palmyra township; Clara E., who married Elias Tungate ; Thomas W., a farmer of South Palmyra township ; and James W., who is also a partner in the store. The oldest son now liv- ing, John F., served three years in Co. F, 122d Illinois regiment, com- manded by Gen. Rinaker. This regiment was largely composed of soldiers from Macoupin county, and its history is well known to many of our citi- zens. The regiment served in Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and other parts of the South. He was in the various movements and engagements in which the regiment took part, including the battles of Parker's Cross Roads, Tupelo, and the siege and storming of Fort Blakeley, the last important con- test of the war. Fordyce E., was also a soldier in the Union army during the war of the Rebellion. He enlisted in the 14th Illinois regiment in 1864, and served till the close of the war. Arthur H., the oldest son, moved to Kansas, where he engaged in farming, and died.
As far as his political sentiments are concerned, Mr. Chiles began life as a member of the old line whig party, as was also his father. Like nearly all residents of Kentucky, his father was a strong supporter and admirer of Henry Clay, and voted for him each of the three times he was a candidate for President. Mr. Chiles was not old enough to vote for President till 1840, at the time of one of the most exciting, interesting and enthusiastic campaigns this country has ever witnessed, and which is still spoken of by old men as the " log cabin and hard cider" campaign. The popular en- thusiasm swept Harrison, the whig candidate, into the presidential chair, and to this result Mr. Chiles contributed by his vote. He was a whig until that once great party had outlived its day and sank into a state of decay and dissolution. When the agitation began regarding the question of admitting Kansas and Nebraska into the Union as free, or slave, states he had no hesi- tation in arraying himself on the side of the advocates of freedom, and in opposition to the encroachments of the slave power. Although born in a slave state he had imbibed the spirit of freedom in the air of the great, free state of Illinois, and while he was willing to let slavery alone, as it constitu- tionally and legally existed in the Southern states, yet he was opposed to giving up one additional foot of our territory to the dominion of this blighting curse. He was one of the early republicans of the county. In 1856, the first time that this conflict was distinctly marked in a presidential contest, Palmyra precinct gave an unusually large republican vote in comparison with the rest of the county, and Mr. Chiles was one of those who supported Fremont, and aided the new party in making such an appearance of strength. He was a member of the state convention, in 1860, to select delegates to the Chicago convention which nominated Abraham Lincoln for President, and has since been closely identified with the republican party of Macoupin county.
He has long been post-master at Palmyra, and has made an able, efficient and popular public officer. He was first post-master at the old town of Cummington, in 1848, under the democratic administration of James K. Polk, though he was a well-known whig. With the exception of seven years (from 1854 to 1861), he has had charge of the office ever since. He was elected justice of the peace in April, 1872, and has since filled that position, although the township is strongly democratic. He was one of the charter members of the Odd Fellows' lodge at Palmyra, and has taken a warm and fraternal interest in the successful working of that order. He is known as an able business man and a good citizen, and for high, personal character, and undoubted honesty and integrity, no one stands higher in the community. Since 1840 he and his wife have been members of the Cum- berland Presbyterian church. For a long number of years he has been ruling elder of the church at Palmyra. He has been interested in Sunday- schools, and several times acted as superintendent of the union school at Palmyra. He has also been one of the most active promoters of the tem- perance cause about Palmyra, and has done all in his power to keep the town free from the evils of intemperance. By his diligence in enforcing the penalty against violators of the temperance laws, he has done as much, perhaps, as any other man to give Palmyra the enviable reputation it pos-
sesses as a model temperance town. His influence has ever been on the side of religion, morality and virtue; and few citizens of the county have led lives of greater usefulness or credit.
LEWIS SOLOMON.
JUDGE SOLOMON, one of the oldest settlers of Macoupin county, and a man who has been intimately identified with the history of this part of the state, was born in Muhlenburgh county, Kentucky, April 1, 1812. The family from whom he is descended is of Welsh and English origin. On their emigration to America his masters settled in Maryland and North Carolina. They were living in North Carolina at a date previous to the Revolutionary war, in which his grandfather, Lewis Solomon, took part. He was one of that daring band under the gallant Marion, which did such good service in the campaigns in South Carolina, striking terror into the hearts of the British invaders. While the family were living in North Carolina, a party of Tories came to the house during the latter part of the war to capture some articles for the use of the British army. Judge Solomon's grandmother was a woman of remarkable bravery and determination of character, but prudent- ly submitted to the confiscation of various household stores. When the Tories, however, seized some yarn on which she set a high value, her anger and indignation got the better of her prudence, and seizing the poker she drove the Tories triumphantly from the house.
The father of the subject of this sketch, Lewis Solomon, was born in Frank- lin county, North Carolina, in 1780, about three years before the .close of the war of the Revolution. He was raised in the same county, and married Sarah Bowden, daughter of John Bowden, a well-to-do and prom- inent citizen of Franklin county. This marriage occurred about the year 1798. In 1811 he moved from North Carolina to Logan county, Kentucky, where he lived one year, and in 1821 moved to Muhlenburgh county, where the family resided as long as they lived in that state. The six oldest children were born in North Carolina, and Judge Solomon, the seventh child, was the first born after the removal to Kentucky. Their home in Muhlenburgh county was in a rough and poor district of country. Judge Solomon for a few months attended a subscription school kept by a man named Shelton, and this was the only schooling he received in Kentucky. In 1825 the family came to Illinois. In that day facilities for travel were very limited. A one-horse cart was hired for the journey for ten dollars, and in this vehicle all their goods were placed. With the exception of the mother and the three youngest children, who had places in the cart, the members of the family (twelve in all) walked. The journey was tedious and wearisome. On reaching this state a settlement was made in Morgan county, near Jack- sonville. His father had lost all his means by the breaking of the Common- wealth Bank of Kentucky, and on coming to Illinois had no money with which to enter or purchase land. The winter of 1825-6 was spent in a small log cabin, part of the floor of which was composed of mother earth. In the spring of 1826, they moved to the head of Sandy, five miles from Jackson- ville, and raised a crop, cultivating the ground with a shaft plow with a wooden mold-board, and similar primitive agricultural appliances. In the spring of 1827 the family came to Macoupin county, and settled in Palmyra township, three miles north of Palmyra. Judge Solomon's father lived there engaged in farming till his death in August, 1849. His mother died the preceding February.
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