History of Madison County, Illinois With biographical sketches, Part 121

Author: Brink, W.R. & Co
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Edwardsville, Ill. : W. R. Brink & co.
Number of Pages: 698

USA > Illinois > Madison County > History of Madison County, Illinois With biographical sketches > Part 121

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James Squire received a fair common-school education, which was aided by attendance at Shurtleff College. It is related that when attending school taught by Miss Corbett, hejand his brother Frank encountered a panther in their pathway. Quite terrified, they hurried home, telling the

story to their parents, who thought it incredible ; but the following day parties dispatched the monster, and established the correctness of the boys' story. During the war James Squire enlisted in the service of the United States in the 144th Regiment Illinois Volunteers. He has been quite uniformly engaged in farming and teaching. In both pur- suits he has been successful. He was married to Mattie Braden, March 25, 1874, by whom he has two children living, Vinnie Grace and Mattie Pearl, and one dead, James William. His wife died May 14, 1882. She was a daugh- ter of Isaac Braden, one of the pioneers of Nameoki town- ship.

Politically he is an earnest, outspoken Democrat; is a member of the Democratic Central Committee ; was elected supervisor from Godfrey township in 1877, and has been an- nually re-elected ever since. When it is considered that this is a Republican stronghold ( Garfield's majority being 66), his election can only be accounted for on the ground of personal popularity. He is a member of both the Masonic and Odd Fellow's orders ; has been a justice of the peace, and was deputy sheriff under R. W. Crawford ; has taught thirteen years, and is at present principal of the Godfrey school.

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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.

WILLIAM LINDLEY

WAS born in Lincolnshire, England, May 10th, 1810. His father, George Lindley, was a mason by trade, and brought up his family in the ways of industry. At the age of nineteen years William came to America, landing at first, in New York City. Thence he went to Lowell, Massachu- setts, where he engaged his services in print works. In 1839 he made his way westward, and with his savings entered land near Carlinville, Macoupin county. Breaking prairie, however, and waiting for returns until a farm could be made was too slow for him, hence he went to St. Louis, Missouri, where he engaged in the dairy business. Here it was he met Mary C. Straw, now his surviving widow. Engaged in sell- ing milk from house to house he had for a patron a family named Paterson, formerly of Quincy, and who had brought with them as one of the family Mary, to whom he was married November 22d, 1842. She was born in Ger- many near the river Rhine, and came with her people to America, in 1823. Her family located first in Hamilton, Butler county, Ohio; froin thence she went with a sister to

Quincy, Illinois, and then to St. Louis Together they con- tinued the dairy business successfully until 1851 when they moved to Madison county, Illinois, where Mrs. Lindley yet lives. There were born to them in all eight children, seven of whom yet live. By name they are Sarah, Mary C., George, William E Horace, John A., and Samnel S. All are straightforward, honest and energetic citizens Dur- ing his life Mr. Lindley was an earnest Republican and im- pressed that political doctrine indelibly upon his sons. He was a member of the Episcopal Church. Active and ener- getic, honest and frank, ever ready to help a friend or do a kindness, he succeeded well in life. He died March 2d, 1869. His widow, a woman of more than ordinary business qualities, survives him and has continued farming with great success. She has cleared a hundred and twenty acres of land since her husband's death, and bought an additional farm in Jersey county. She relates her only transac- tion whereby she made money without work as being the sale of gold when it was worth two hundred per cent. at a bank in Alton.

VENICE.

S situated in the southwestern part of the county. It is irregularly shaped because of the river course which forms its western boundary. It is bounded on the north by Chouteau township, east by Nameoki, south by St. Clair county and west by the State of Missouri, from which it is separa- ted by the Mississippi river. Geograph- ically it embraces township 3 north, range 10 west. It is mostly low and level land, part of the great American bottom. Much of it is sandy, and is subject to overflow, against which citizens have tried in vain to protect it. Trending north and south at a short distance from the river bank is the American bottom levec, built for the protection of lands from overflow of the river. Its height varies from three to twenty feet. Separated from the main land, by a slough of the same name, is Cabaret (French tavern) Island, containing in all, about 1,042 acres of land. Much of this is overgrown with willow with here and there a sycamore, soft maple or other wood. The acre- age embraced in Venice township is nearly eleven sections, or 6,970 acres. There are within the limits, in all, over

fourteen miles of railroad track, divided quite equally be- tween the Chicago and Alton, the Indianapolis and St. Louis and Wabash, St. Louis and Pacific railroads, which run parallel, passing diagonally across the south-half of the township, which they leave on section 13.

Venice township was settled as early as 1804, but there are only meagre traditional accounts of such settlements. A few years afterward several families located here, among them George Cadwell, on section 13, and George Richard- son, on the same section. Robert McDow, John Atkins, Daniel Lockhart, and possibly others, were all here prior to the war of 1812. George Cadwell was a live, enterprising Yankee, who combined the practice of medicine with tilling the soil. In 1815 he was appointed by Ninian Edwards, Governor of Illinois, a justice of the peace. He brought with him a family of three daughters and a son. In 1818 he was elected a Senator to the First General Assembly of Illinois. Not altogether suited with this section of country he emigrated to Morgan county at an early day. George Richardson, a farmer, a friend of Cadwell's, lived near him and also went to Morgan county, where he was drowned in Santa creek, near Jacksonville, during a freshet. A dangh-

DORSEY BURIAL GROUND.

RES. FROM N. E.

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RESIDENCE & STOCK FARM OF WH C. FORMAN, SEC. 29. 1. 6. R & ( MACRO TP) MADISON. CO. ! LL.

FARM RESIDENCE OF T. N. HARRIS, SEC.33, T. 6, R. 9 ( FOSTERBURG TP.) MADISON, GO.ILL.

521

HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.

ter Nancy, was married to A-her Chase, an eastern man. This was, perhaps the first marriage in the township ; that of Moses Sved- to Mrs. Mary Wad lle, of date October 10, 1818, being the second. Robert MeDow, a Kentuckiar, was an enterprising, energetic man, and had a large family. He was the first to erect a horse- mill, which he did on section 24. Upon leaving the country to go north he disposed of his mill to Benjamin Merritt. John Atkins located on sec- tion 1, prior to the war of 1812. He and two sons were engaged in that war and were present at the treaty made at Portage des Sioux, a short distance above Alton, on the Missouri side of the Mississippi. A remarkable fact in con- nection with Atkins' family is that in order of birth they were : William, John, Jr., Charles, Everett and James, and in order of death exactly the reverse, James being the first to die, then Everett, Charles, John, Jr. and William, who lived to be seventy seven years of age. John Atkins was originally from Kentucky ; he and his sons were all large, able-bodied men, models among pioneers. Daniel Lockhart located on an elevated ridge, a short distance northwest of where now stands the Venice Elevator, on section 35. At present there are representatives of but one of these families living within the limits of Madison county,-that of John Atkins. The others are gone, and the records left of them are indeed meagre. A little later, perhaps in 1815, came a very eccentric pioneer, John Anthony, by name He was of the Pennsylvania Dutch stock. His was the first house built on the site of the old village of Venice, and was of hewed cotton-wood timber. Although it contained but one room, Anthony kept lodgers and served up meals to travelers. On a shelf was the bottle always charged with " aqua mirac- ulous." He kept a number of skiffs which he hired to parties desiring to cross the river, at a shilling a trip, passen- gers doing their own rowing. On section 25, a family named Blum. settled about the same time of Anthony's coming. They, too, were Pennsylvanians. In 1818, Abraham Sippy, a young married man, came from Pennsylvania to try his fortunes in the then "far west." Mr. Sippy's father came to this country a soldier under Lafayette. After the battle at Yorktown he deserted the ranks, determined to remain here instead of returning to France. His name was Joseph Trimeau, but upon determining to remain in America he took his mother's name of Sippy. He became the father of seventeen children. Many of their descendants are scattered throughout the west, and are energetic, thrifty citizens wherever found.

Anthony's ferry, operated by skiff's, after a few years time, proved unequal to the demands made upon it, whereupon Matthew Kerr, a merchant of St. Louis (and for whomKerr's Island was named), commenced a horse ferry, in 1826. The boas was named Brooklyn Since that time ferry-boats have run regularly to and from St. Louis. In 1842, Lieutenant Robert E. Lee, commander in-chief of the Confederate forces, during the war of the rebellion, built a dike running from Kerr's Island to the head of Bloody Island. This necessitated a change in the landing place of the " Brooklyn," and the company operating the ferry obtained $1,600 da- . mages from the United States Government. This $1,600 71

was devoted to the construction of a bridge connecting Kerr's Island with the main land. The national road-the great wagon route connecting the east with the west-termi- nated here, and across Kerr's Island, about a third of a mile north of the present elevator, was the principal street of Venice. The " National Way," as it was called, was a hundred feet wide. It soon became the centre of a large trade. Two hotels catered to the wants of travelers ; two livery stables supplied the trade with horses and vehicles; three general stores and two blacksmith shops completed the business industries. One of the stores, kept by Peter Smith, was the first brick building erected in the township. The flood of 1844 swept everything away except the brick store building, a livery stable, also of brick, and a part of one of the hotels. During the prevalence of the high waters, one of the blacksmiths, a German, in a fit of desperation, jumped from the bridge as it was being carried off and committed suicide. His was the first smithery in the township, erected in 1837. As soon as the waters receded the work of repairing commenced. A finer bridge soon spanned the slough, and business revived. Trade was represented by Peter Smith, James Morris and Charles Pearce, engaged in general merchandise. All went well with Venice until 1851, when high waters again swept her away. Much of the beautiful island was carried off, so that the former terminus of " National Way" was far out in the Mississippi. The bridge was not rebuilt. A solitary brick building remained on the once busy site of Venice .- that is now gone. The original town was named by Dr Cornelius Campbell, of St. Louis, a gentleman largely interested in the old ferry. At the time Venice was first attracting at- tention in 1837, a post-office was established on Cadwell's tract, section 13, called Six Mile. It was first kept by Joseph Squire; he was proprietor of a public house, called the " Western." This was the first established house, worthy the name, in the township. It was a large frame buikling, and, as a hotel, was quite popular with stockmen from above Alton, who made it their headquarters. Large numbers of hogs and some cattle were annually driven this way to St. Louis, following what was called the slough road from Alton.

The first burial ground was on Cad well's tract, and his son, Bach, was the first person interred therein. The exact date is impossible to obtain. It was, however, prior to 1820. The first land entries were by John Atkins, Septem- ber 14, 1814, north fraction 3, section 1, 43.8 acres; George Richardson, August 17, 1814, southeast fraction section 12, 36} acres; William Gillham, August 15, 1814, west side southeast } section 13, 78 acres, and John McDow, August 16, 1814, several acres in section 24. Prior to any of these entries there were numerous claims made. Some of them by heads of families, on account of actual settlement, others as militia claims, consequent upon service prior to 1790. Among the first, which comprised 400 acres each, within the limits of township 3 north, range 10 west, were claim 1,865, by Alexis Bryalte, in 1809, to whom it was confirmed; that of Nicholas Jarrot, situated on the banks of the Missi sippi, opposite Cabarat Island, and near the Kinder Station, and claim 637, by James Kinkead, lying within sections 25 and

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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.

26, two miles above Venice. Among claims confirmed to persons founded on act of Congress, granting a donation of one hundred acres of land to each militia man enrolled and doing duty in Illinois on the 1st day of August, 1790, within the district of Kaskaskia, were, in this township :- Claim 1,258, Francis Campeau, confirmed in 1809 to Joh Rice Jones, survey lies in sections 1 and 12; claim 485, Pierre Clement, confirmed to John Briggs, on the bank of the Mississippi, in section 36, extreme southern point of township. Adjoining claim 1258, were claims of nine other parties, by name : Pierre Martin, Jr., J. B. Raplais, Jacque Mulott, Louis Harmond, Joseph Poirer, Dennis Lavertue, Philip de Boeuf, James Lamarch and Constant Longtemps. In addition to these, bearing date January 4, 1813, among claims granted by the governors of the northwest and Indiana territories, in pursuance of Act of the 3d of March, 1791 (other than those which were reported in the affirmed list of the late board of commissioners for the di trict of Ka-kaskia), and which, in the opinion of the present com- missioners, ought to be confirmed is claim 548, original claimant, Jean Baptiste Becket ; confirmed by Governor Harrison to Etienne Pencenueau This covers a part of the town plat of Venice. Evidences are not wanting, particularly in sections 1 and 12, to prove that some of these claimants or their representatives were the first settlers of this town- ship The French had correct ideas of how to settle a vast empire when they followed the Mississippi in the very heart of the continent, but were unable through paucity of num- bers, and through their plan of living in stockaded hamlets or villages, to accomplish their purpose. The first preaching was by Revs. Chance and Jones, two Baptist mi-ssonaries, who preached at the house of Mr. Cadwell as early as 1812. George Cadwell was the first justice of the peace, appointed in 1815, by Governor Edwards. A Mr. Hart was the first constable. The "Little Jim " was the first steamboat to ply between Kerr's Island and St. Louis.

TOWN OF VENICE.

A straggling village was commenced on the island op- posite the present village soon after the running of the ferry- boat Brooklyn, and in 184[ the name of Venice was given the place by Dr. Cornelius Campbell, who, in conjunction with Charles F. Stamps, laid out the town. It was made a matter of record November 22d, 1841. Its progress and reverses have already been presented up to its complete an- nihilation in 1851. For years thereafter its growth was slow. June 24th, 1873, an election was held to determine whether the town should be incorporated. It resulted in seventy-nine votes for and one against incorporation. Prior to this a public meeting was held June 6th, 1873, to con- si.ler the propriety of an iucorporation under the General Laws of the State. A petition was drawn up, and thirty- seven residents signed it. The act of incorporation was consummated June 28, 1873, and Henry Robinson, Joseph Froehly, Theodore Selb, Francis McCambridge, William Roberts and John Kaseberg were elected members of the first board of trustees July 22d, 1873. Henry Robinson

was chosen president, and Thomas W. Kinder secretary. At present the members are: Henry Robinson, J. Froehly, Theodore Selb, Fred Kohl, Frank McCambridge. Henry Robinson, president, and C. S. Youree, clerk. Several of the first elected members have served continually since. Under the management of the Board improvements of a valuable character in the way of grading and macadamizing have been set on foot and successfully prosecuted. The Methodist Episcopal church building was erected in 1870, at a cost of $1,500. Seating capacity, 300. Catholic church, built 1881-'2, is an attractive house of public wor- ship. Venice has long been proud of her graded school. The building occupies a pleasant site, half a mile from the principal business street of the village, and is a handsome two story brick edifice, well adapted to its uses. It was erected in 1868. The Venice Elevator was erected in 1871 by a stock company. Messrs. R. P. Tansey and John J. Mitchell were the prime movers, as they have since heen the earnest ab-ttors of the enterprise. At first its capacity was 300,000 bushels grain. During the year 1881 this was doubled, so that the present capacity is 600,000 bushels. During the year 1881 over 3,000,000 bushels wheat were handled here. Its accessibility to both rail and river will commend it to shippers, so that a prosperous future awaits it.

The Venice Branch Union Stock Yards were established in 1874. They have a capacity for handling ten thousand head of hogs and five thousand head of cattle. W. A. Ramsay, Manager ; J. J. Fletcher, Superintendent. In the matter of mills Venice has been unfortunate. Bell Bros., of Indianapolis, Indiana, erected an extensive saw-mill on the banks of the Mississippi, on the original town site of Venice, in 1877. It had a capacity for awing from eighteen to twenty thousand feet of lumber per diem, and gave em- ployment to twenty-five men. In 1882 it was moved to Memphis. The Venice Flouring Mills were built by Glenn Bros. in 1871, at a cost of $22,000. They were afterward doubled in capacity, and $23,000 were expended in addi- tional machinery and building. They had five run of burrs, and were capable of turning out four hundred barrels of flour daily. Keohler Bros. were the proprietors. On the 13th of March, 1882, they were entirely destroyed by fire.

GENERAL BUSINESS.

Dry Goods' Merchants .- Henry Robinson & Co., Henry Rittmann.

Druggists .- C. S. Youree, Hermaun Wilfemeyer.

Grocers .- Fred Kohl, Joseph Froehly, Henry Robinson & Co.

Blacksmiths .- F. Kaseberg, Joseph Froehly.

Carpenters .- Burrel Ogletree, B. V. Merritt, T. L. Con- ner, E. Mott.

Stores and Tinware .- J. H. Puckhaber.

Shoemaker .- F. Brewer.

Hotel .- William H. Sippy, " Union House "

Physicians -W. H. Grayson, C. S. Youree. Postmaster .- James B. Pinckard.

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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.

SOCIETIES.

Venice Lodge A. F. & A. M. No. 621, was instituted Sep- tember 8, 1868, by David Ryan. Charter members-Preston Bishop, W. Master; G. N. Keener, Senior Warden ; R. J. Brown, Junior Warden; Eli W. Pettengill, Secretary ; Calvin Kinder, Treasurer ; Jeptha Smith, Senior Deacon; Ben- jamin Woods, Tyler; Emil Reif, Junior Deacon; T. J. Irish, S. T. Beale. Present Officers-Fred Kohl, W. M .; J. S. Sippy, S. W .; Henry Robinson, J. W .; H. W. Miller, Sec. ; Henry Rittmann, Treas .; T. P McFee, S. D .; William T. Black, J. D. ; John Braden, Tyler.

Aurora Lodge, Knights of Honor No. 325, instituted July 11, 1876, by members of the Seymour Lodge, K. of II., St. Louis, Mo., with fourteen charter members: C.S Youree, John F. Richardson, Fritz Reiske, Seaborn Miller, Burrell Ogletree, John Ohrist, Preston Bishop, William Weyh, Alonzo Towsey, John Ballet, Frederick Ibig, D. S. Fries, D. Fennell and I. G. Wright. This Lodge has sustained eight deaths : John Ohrist, Fritz Ibig, H. Linkerman, H. C. Moss ( murdered ), August Breathuhn, Peter Marks, S. G. Williams and E. Hall. Present Officers-J. T. Rich- ardson, P. D. and Rep. ; B. Ogletree, D .; Charles Spann, V. D ; William Weyh, R. ; R. J. Brown, Chaplain. The Lodge is in a flourishing condition, having an active mem- bership of forty-seven.

Oak Lodge, K. of H., No. 1520, was organized March 22d, 1879, by John T. Richardson, D. G. D, with fourteen charter members. Present Officers-Walter Bain, P. D. and Rep .; Henry W. Miller, Dictator ; D. K. Talley, V. D .; F. P. McFee, A. V. D ; Wm. T. Black, R .; Jas. B.

Pinckard, F. R. ; Dr. AV. H. Grayson, Treas. and Med. Ex. Its present membership is sixty-seven.

Local Branch No. 18, Order Iron Hall, was organized July 28th, 1881, with twelve charter members: Jas. B. Pinckard, C. J. ; Walter Bain, P. C. J .; H. W. Muller, Acct .; W. H. Grayson, Treas. ; J. T. Richardson, A.lj. Its object is similar to the K. of IL., offering insurance. Members are paid such insurance during life.

The population of the town of Venice, according to the census of 1880, was 613. Its future is bright with promise. Its railroad facilities are constantly being increased. Its manufactories just commencing to attract attention, will make Venice in time a large suburb of St. Louis.

The town of Ne sport was laid off by I. W. Blackman, of St. Louis, Mo, and plat recorded April 27, 1858. It is situated on Survey 604, Claim 637, or, more properly, Sec- tion 26. It has never attracted any particular attention, and consists of a few dwelling-houses only. On Section 24 is the station of Kinder, near which, on S. E } Sect. 13, is a neat church building, now occupied by the German Lutherans as church and school-house. It was erected at first as a school building by special legislation, obtained through the effort, of Calvin Kinder and others. For a time it was used as intended, for school purposes and church without regard to sect, but passed from such control into the hands of the present management. It is a brick building, two stories high. Since the inauguration of town- ship organization in 1876, Theodore Selb has uninterruptedly represented this township in the county Board of Super- visors The population of the township in 1880 was 1120.

OLIVE.

O named iu honor of the Olive family, who were early settlers, comprises all of town six, range six. It is bounded on the north by Maconpin county, on the east by New Douglas, on the south by Al- hambra, and on the west by Omph-Ghent township. It is drained by Silver creek and its tributaries, flowing principally through the eastern and central part. Along this stream a considerable quan- tity of timber is found. The soil of the township is good and in a fair state of cultivation.

The first settlers were Abram Carlock, John Herrington,

James Street, James Keown, Thomas Kimmett, Samuel Voyles, David Hendershott, and Samuel MeKittrick, who settled here in 1819, and prior to that date. Abram Car- lock was the first. He located on section 34 in 1817, where he lived a few years and then left. His cabiu stood near a spring, on the north and west sides of Silver creek, near the bank and also near the south township line. IIe made a small clearing east of the cabin. An old settler says that in 1833 saplings as large as a man's arm had grown on his improvement.

The next settler was John Herrington, Jr. He built quite a large cabin in the west edge of the township, section 7, in 1817. It had no opening for light, except the door.

524

HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS.

This was made out of heavy puncheons and swung like double barn doors, the upper part bring left open for light in pleasant weather. When securely closed, this cabin was inaccessible. Herrington's latch-string seldom hung on the outside. In 1819 he sold out to Samuel McKittrick, who entered one of the first tracts iu the township, August 18, 1819, 45 acres, in section 6. The same day, James Street entered 80 acres in section 36. Mr. McKittrick planted an orchard on the Herrington place in 1819 or '20, and a tree that he set out has attained to a circumference of eight feet eight inches, and is in bearing at this writing. In 1827 Ephraim Best, a native of North Carolina, purchased this place, where he continued to reside until his death in 1876 His widow still survives him, aged seventy-eight, and lives on the old place. They raiscd a family of ten children, six now living. He acquired a good property here. In the early settlement of the county, he was Constable for several years. For a long period of time, the Methodists held their meetings at his residence. Among the early preachers were Ballard, Renfro, and Collins. Mrs. Best says when they settled on this place, the first house on the road to Edwards- ville was that of Francis Roach, and the next was on the Barnett place

James Street located on section 36 as early as 1818. He was one of the first land-holders in the township, as above stated. He made a small improvement here, but his prin- cipal business was that of making powder and combs- two articles that found a ready market among the pioneers. After the country began to settle up, he sold out and left.

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History of Madison County, Illinois With biographical sketches, Part 121

Author: Brink, W.R. & Co Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Edwardsville, Ill. : W. R. Brink & co. Number of Pages: 698

Author: Brink, W.R. & Co
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Edwardsville, Ill. : W. R. Brink & co.
Number of Pages: 698