USA > Illinois > McDonough County > History of McDonough county, Illinois, its cities, towns and villages with early reminiscences, personal incidents and anecdotes and a complete business directory of the county > Part 13
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There are 4,439 acres of wood land, and 20,055 improved, and 2,762 unimproved land. The improved is assessed for 1876 at $432,623.
In churches and school houses the township will bear compari- son with any other.
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
Emmet has always been Democratie, generally voting the ticket straight. This year, 1876, by strong effort, the Republicans suc- ceeded in getting a small majority on their county ticket.
The following named gentlemen have served as members of the Board of Supervisors : Jonathan H. Baker, James M. Campbell, Charles Creel, William C. McLeod and Thomas Murray. Since 1859, William C. McLeod has served on the Board fourteen years, a longer time than any other person in the county save one. He certainly has made an efficient officer.
Sciota .- This township lies in range 7 north, 3 west, and is a. very fine body of land. With the exception of one-quarter sec- tion in the southwest corner, it is entirely prairie, and nearly all available for cultivation. The land is very fertile, and at this time there is scarcely a foot of soil, outside of public highways, but what is under fence, and all under cultivation, save the tim- ber land mentioned above and a little on the brakes of the ereeks.
The first settlement made in this township was in the year 1836 -Pressly Purdy, John Hainline, Benjamin Clark and V. M. Har- din being among the early settlers. The township made no special growth until about the time of the completion of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. There being so much prairie land within its boundaries, it seemed a perfect barrier to its settlement. Where was the timber to come from for fuel and fencing purposes, and what protection could be had from the cold blasts of winter ? The fuel and fencing question was effectually solved by the introduction of the railroad, and, from experience, it was found that one could live about as comfortable upon the open prairie as in the timber. It was not until about the year 1856 that much progress was made in settling upon the prairie ; previous to this the settlers all hugged the timber joining the township on the southwest. When John Logan settled upon sec- tion 16, in 1857, his friends thought he was crazy in going so far from the timber, and predicted he would never be troubled with neighbors-the nearest one then being about three miles away. Now there is not a quarter section in the whole township where there is not a dwelling house, and there are many very fine farms which are well cultivated by their happy owners.
The first marriage was that of Mr. V. M. Hardin and Miss Nancy Purdy. They were united by Rev. Jesse Chapman, a Baptist preacher then living in Macomb, on the sixteenth day of
135
HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
April, 1840, and on the twentieth of June, 1841, was born to them Mary E., the first child born in the township.
The first school house was built in 1846, and Louis Goddard taught the first school. There are now eight in the township, each enjoying a reasonable degree of prosperity.
Rev. Cyrus Haines preached the first sermon at the house of John Hainline, in the summer of 1839. Mr. Haines was of the Cumberland Presbyterian denomination.
There are two villages in the township-Good Hope and Sciota, the latter more generally known as Clarkesville-a name given it in honor of William B. Clarke, who established the point. For description of these villages the reader is referred to another chapter.
The township is mainly well watered, the Walnut Grove branch of Crooked creek and its tributaries passing through some ten or twelve sections, while the head waters of Spring creek is formed on section 29, and passes out on section 31.
The principal products are corn, wheat and oats. In corn the township outranks any other in the county, in 1875 having 13,712 acres. If we give 50 bushels as an average, it would be 685,600 as the yield.
Politically, Sciota has always been Democratic. The following are the names of those serving the township as members of the Board of Supervisors: William Heath, James M. Wallen, G. F. Green, J. W. Brewster, Benjamin Robinson, J. T. Painter, Eph- raim Dice, John W. Tipton and Evan Rodgers.
Lamoine .- Lamoine lies in township 4 north, range 4 west and is principally timber land. Its first settlement was in 1830, and the first house built on section 12, by David Fees. In the south- western part a settlement was founded, we believe, in the following year, on what is known as Round Prairie, near the Hancock and Schuyler county line. In this part of the township are some fine farms, the land being of a good quality. The Twidwells, Whit- tingtons, and Myers, were the first to settle on Round Prairie, while Thomas and Benjamin Powers and David Fees settled on the eastern part, joining Bethel.
The first birth was Sarah, daughter of David Fees, in the year 1830.
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IIISTORY OF M'DONOUGHI COUNTY.
It was several years after the settlement of the township, before death entered, Isaac Smith dying on Round Prairie in the year 1840, being the first one.
In the year 1832, at the house of Elijah Poole, the first gospel sermon was preached, by Old Father Bradley and Thomas Owens.
There is one village in the township-Colmar, on the C. B. & Q. R. R.
William S. Hendricks, a well known former citizen of the county, taught the first school on section 11, about the year 1839.
Lamoine is Democratic, and has elected to serve them in the County Board of Supervisors the following named gentlemen : John S. Holliday. John Twidwell, L. G. Reed, J. W. Hendricks, and William Robinson.
Mr. Reed has the honor of having served on the Board longer than any other person, serving fifteen years out of the twenty since the adoption of the township organization law. He has made an efficient officer, and served several terms as chairman of the Board. He was the agent of the county in superintending the work of building the new court house, and faithfully attended to his duties. Although a zealous politican, he enjoys the respect and esteem of both political friends and foes.
Tennessee .- This township was settled at an early day, Roswell Tyrrell building a house in which to live in the year 1830. We find it principally timber, there being given to the assessor as wood land in 1876, a total number of 10,293 acres. A good part of this is counted also as improved, for we find 15,204 acres marked as such. A good portion is excellent farming land, and there are a number of good farms.
The whole township is underlaid with stone coal of an excel- lent quality ; some of the best mines in the whole State are here found.
Crooked creek passes through the township, coming in on sec. 1, and passing out on sec. 18.
The greater part of Colchester lies in this township, and also the village of Tennessee. This takes from the gross amount of the value of their land.
Samuel A. Hunt taught the first school in the winter of 1833, in a log cabin on sec. 3.
137
HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
The first marriage was Benjamin Welch and Miss Pauline Kirk, who were united in the year 1834 by Rev. James King, a Meth- odist preacher.
Rev. Cyrus Haines, a Cumberland Presbyterian preacher, deliv- ered the first discourse, at the house of Joshua Hunt, sometime in the year 1834.
Stephen A. White, E. B. Hibbard, William Moore, Reson Hooton, Ralford McClure, John Myers, Rutherford McClure and II. L. Rapelje, have served with the Board of Supervisors.
Hire .- This township derived its name from George W. Hire. it first being called Rock Creek. It lies 6 north, 4 west, and was settled at an early day, a portion of Job's settlement reaching into it. Nathaniel Herron was probably the first settler, and Robert Seybold the next. Mr. Herron came out and built his cabin in the fall of 1827, when he returned for his family and moved in the spring of 1828. Like many other portions of this county, Hire was originally settled by the Kentuckians, with a very slight mixture from other States. Of those settling here at an early day, we recall to mind Major Hungate, John Hardesty, Jacob Clark, John Hunt, Vandever Banks, Evan Martin, and John Logan. Many of the early settlers attained some prom- inence in MeDonough county affairs. John Hardesty was County Commissioner for several years; John Logan was a noted Bap- tist preacher ; Vandever Banks was somewhat of a politician, running once for the Legislature, being beaten by throwing out of one of the poll books on account of some informality.
The Methodists were the first to proclaim the gospel, Rev. Nehe- miah Hurd preaching at the house of Vandever Banks, in the year 1836.
Captain Charles R. Hume, well and favorably known throughout the county, taught the first school in 1838, at the present residence of Isaac Oakman. Previous to this time the citizens of the town- ship were compelled to send their children to other more for- tunate settlements to obtain an education.
There is no record of any death previous to the year 1844, when George W., a son of Vandever and Leonore Banks, died on the fourth day of March.
ITire is principally prairie, with groves here and there. The soil is of good quality, and the farms are among the best in the county. Within the past ten years great improvements have been
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGHI COUNTY.
made ; the old log house has given place to the stylish modern residence ; straw barns to large wooden structures. Everything betokens change for the better.
This is a good stock country, and considerable attention is giv- en to this branch of industry.
By the assessments, and from personal enquiry, we learn there are 22,743 acres of improved land in the township, valued at $580,052. Of wood land there are 803 acres.
Hire has had to represent her in the Board of Supervisors the following named gentlemen : Ebenezer N. Hicks, R. Matteson Folls, Isaac Oakman, Jesse Martin, J. E. K. Carlisle, Samuel Lo- gan, William D. Welch, and Allen Stookey.
Blandinsville .- With the exception of Industry this is the old- est settled township in the county-William Job and two of his brothers-in-law coming here in 1827. A thriving settlement was soon gathered, and was called, in honor of William Job, " Job's settlement," and until the past few years it still continued to bear the name.
John Hardesty, Redmond Grigsby, Harrison Hungate, V. M. Hardin, Charles G. Hungate, William Hardesty, William D., James A., John S. and Thomas Mustain, Silas J. Grigsby and John Huston were among the first settlers. Many of these are yet living, and all have descendants here who are prominently identi- fied with the history of the township and of the county.
James Vance, son of John Vance, was the first child born here. He was born on section 29, in the year 1830.
Elder John Logan, the old pioneer preacher, who probably preached as many discourses for as little money as any other man, and who toiled long for the Master, delivered the first discourse in 1829 or 1830, in the barn of John Hardesty. The first church was built about the year 1832 as a Union Church, and was occu- pied by the Baptist and Christian denominations in common.
Blandinsville township is principally prairie, though having in it considerable timber, given in to the assessors at 5,166 acres. The land is of good quality, and in it are some of the best farms, the finest residences, and most substantial outbuildings found in the county. As a stock producing township it ranks number one. In number of head of cattle it is next to Macomb, and in quality it is probably ahead. Here is the home of Rigdon Huston, Esq., one of the
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
heaviest stock dealers in the county. His herd of fine cattle has borne away from the fairs of the State many blue ribbons. John Huston also devotes a great deal of labor to this branch of indus- try.
Among the many excellent farmers and business men of the township who have spent time and money in building up its in- dustries are Rigdon, Thomas B., Preston and John Huston, IIon. Humphrey Horrabin, William Blackhurst, O. M. Lisk, George G. Blandin, William II. Grigsby and Thomas M. Gilfrey.
The village of Blandinsville is in this township, and much of its history is identified with it. A sketch of the place is found else- where.
This is one of the strong Democratic townships. It has had to represent her in the Board of Supervisors Wilham W. Moss, Hiram Williams, Victor M. Hardin, James A. Munstain, Rigdon Huston, W. W. Gillihan and Silas J. Grigsby.
.
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
CHAPTER XIV.
GEOLOGICAL.
We make no apology for copying bodily from the report of Hon. A. H. Worthen, State Geologist, his remarks with reference to the geology of this county. To scholars this chapter will be especially valuable.
The geological formations appearing at the surface in this county comprise the Quaternary, including the loess and drift ; the lower portions of the coal measure, including the three lowest seams of coal ; and the St. Louis and Keokuk divisions of the Lower Carboniferous limestones.
The entire area of this county, except the valleys of the streams, is covered with beds of Quaternary age, ranging from thirty to a hundred feet or more in thickness, and presenting the same general features that have been given as characteristics of this formation in the reports on the adjoining counties. Good natural exposures of these are but rarely found here, and the ob- server is compelled to rely mainly on such information as can be ob- tained from the well diggers, or others engaged in surface excava- tions, as to their thickness and general character. In the railroad cut on the north bank of Crooked creek, just below Colmar, the following section of Quaternary beds was seen :
Soil. 1 to 2 feet.
Ash colored marley clay (loess)
8 to 10
Sand and gravel, partially stratified. 15 to 20 5 Reddish-brown clay .
This exposure is considerably below the general level of the prairie, and the beds seem to have been subjected to some shifting process since its original deposition, giving to it the general char- acteristics of "modified drift." In the shafts of Colchester the drift clays generally range from thirty-five to forty feet in thick-
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IIISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
ness, and consists of buff or brown clays, with gravel and bould- ers, passing downward at some points into blue clays, or "hard pan." Boulders of metamorphic rocks, of various kinds, and of all sizes up to a diameter of two or three feet, are scattered in considerable numbers in all the gulches and streams that cut through the drift beds, and are most abundant in the lower part of the drift deposits. No indication of the presence of an ancient soil underneath either the loess or drift was seen at any of the points visited in this county ; nor did we learn that it had been observed by any one else. The wells are seldom sunk to the bot- tom of the drift, and hence afford no indications of what may un- derlie the boulder clays. At Bushnell a boring for coal passed through 112 feet of these Quaternary deposits before reaching the bed rocks, in the following order :
No. 1 soil. 2 feet
No. 2 yellow clay. 12 -
No. 3 sand. . 2 .
No. 4 blue boulder clay. .61 .
No. 5 blue and yellow sand. .35 **
112
This is probably twice as much as the average thickness of the deposits in this county-the drill having evidently penetrated an old valley, where from sixty to seventy feet of Coal Measure strata had been removed by erosion, and the valley thus formed subsequently filled with the transported material. The average thickness of the drift deposits probably does not exceed fifty feet.
Coal Measures .- All the uplands in the county are underlaid by the Coal Measures except a limited area on Crooked creek, in the southwestern corner of the county, embracing nearly the whole of township 4 north, range 4 west, (Lamoine) and the south-western portion of township 5 north, range 4 west, (Tennessee). The beds composing the lower portions of the Coal Measures, as they are developed in this county, give the following sections :
No. 1. Sandstone and sandy shales, partly ferruginous 20 to 30 fee t
No. 2. Band of calcareous shale, with lenticular masses of dark blue limestone, containing Cardiomorpha Missouriensis. 2 to 3 +
No. 3. Coal No. 3.
2 to 3 .
No. 4. Sandy shale and soft sandstone.
35 to 40 ..
No. 5. Bluish clay shale, filled with fossil ferns.
13 to 2
No. 6. Coal No. 2
2 to 212 2 ..
No. 7. Bituminous fire clay
No. 8. Gray clay shale.
6
No. 9. Septaria limestone. 3
No. 10.
Variegated shales. purple, yellow and blue. 18 to 20 ..
No. 11. Sandstone passing locally into shale .. 10 to 15 ..
No. 12. Coal No. 1, sometimes replaced with slate or blue shale .. 1 to 3
No. 13. Fire clay, sometimes replaced by sandy shale. 2 to 3 ..
No. 14. Quartzose sandstone, conglomerate. 5 to 20
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGHI COUNTY.
These beds have a maximum thickness of about 150 feet, and consequently a boring anywhere in the county, carried down to a depth of two hundred feet from the surface, would pass entirely through the coal measures, and determine the amount of coal that could be found at that point. No coal seam is worked at the present time, except No. 2, or the Colchester coal; and it seemed to us quite probable that neither 1 nor 3 is developed in the county so as to be of any value to the industrial interests of its people. In the vicinity of Colchester the limestone and calcare- ous shale usually found above coal No. 3 out-crops in the brakes of the ravines west of the town, but no indications of the presence of coal was seen. The concretionary or lenticular masses of dark blue limestone were found quite abundant here, and they afforded Cardiomorpha, Missouriensis in great numbers, associated with Discina nitida, Productus muricatus, P. Prattenianus, Pleuroto- maria sphaerulata, Aviculopecten rectalaterarea, two or three spe- cies of small Goniatites, fossil wood, and the spine of a fish Listra- canchus hystrix. We also obtained from one of these limestone concretions, associated with the fossil wood above mentioned, a fossil fruit, shaped somewhat like an elongated pecan nut, the re- lations of which have not yet been determined. These limestone concretions have been found in Fulton and Schuyler counties overlaying coal No. 3, and affording most of the species of fossil shells obtained from it here; so that there seems scarcely a doubt but that it here represents the horizon of that coal. It is quite probable that in the eastern, and especially in the southeastern portion of the county, coal No. 3 may be found sufficiently devel- oped to be worked to advantage. The shale and sandstone above this coal, No. 1 of the foregoing section, we only saw in the vicin- ity of Colchester, where about ten feet in thickness of sandy, ferruginous shales overlay the limestone concretion above men- tioned. No. 4 of the foregoing section is well exposed on the ravines leading into the east fork of Crooked Creek, west of Col- chester, but it is everywhere a sandy shale, with some thin lay- ers of sandstone, but affords no material of any economical value. The calcareous shale associated with the limestone in No. 2 of the above section is, at some points near Colchester, quite full of small fossil shells, among which the Spirifer plano-convexus was the most abundant, associated with S. lineatus, Chonetes meso- loba, Productus muricatus, Pleurotomaria, Grayvillensis, a small Macrocheilus, and fragments of a Nautilus.
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
No. 5 of the above section forms the roof of the Colchester coal, and is a true clay shale at the bottom, and locally quite bitumin- ous, becoming sandy higher up, and gradually passes into the sandy shales of No. 4. It contains ironstone concretions similar to those at Mazon creek and Murphysboro, though usually not so perfectly formed, and they contain fossil ferns of the same species found at those localities. The shales also are filled with beautiful ferns, in a remarkably fine state of preservation; and this locality may be reckoned as one among the best in the State for collecting these beautiful relics of an ancient vegetable world. Two speci- mens of fossil insects and two or three species of shells have been found associated with the fossil ferns at this locality. The follow- ing list comprises all the species of fossil plants that have been identified at Colchester to the present time : Neuropteris hirsnta, N. tenuifolia, N. rarinervis, Alethopteris aquilina, Callipteris Sul- livantii, Pecopteris squamosa, P. villosa, P. unita, P. plumosa, P. chærophylloides, Sphenopteris irregularis, S. trifoliata, Hymeno- phyllites alatus, H. Spinosus, II. splendens, H. Gutbierianus, H. thallyformis, Cordaites borassifolia, C. angustifolia, Spenophyllum Schlotheimii, S. emarginatum, S. cornutum, Annularia longifolia, A. sphenophylloides, Asterophyllites equisetiformus, Calamites ramosus, C. approximatus, C. undulatus, Selaginites uncinnatus, S. carifolius, Lepidodendron diplotegioides, L. simplex, L. obova- tum, L. gracile, Ulodendron majus, U. ellipticum, Lepidophloios obcordatum, Lepidostrobus princeps, Lepidophyllum auriculatum, Sigillaria monostigma, Stigmaria ficoides, S. umbonata, Pinnularia capillacea, Caulopteris obtecta, C acantophora, Carpolithes multi- striatus. . Owing to the thinness of the coal, the roof shales are removed in driving the entries to the mines, thus affording a fine opportunity for collecting the many beautiful fossil plants that they contain. The thickness of the coal at this locality varies from twenty-four to thirty inches, and at the level of the prairie it lies from seventy-five to ninety feet below the surface. On all the branches west of Colchester the coal out-crops, and is worked by tunneling into the hillsides. The city of Quincy, as well as most of the small towns along the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroad south of Bushnell, have for many years derived their supplies of coal mainly from the Colchester mines.
In the vicinity of Macomb the Colchester coal seam has not yet been found of sufficient thickness to be worked. About a mile and a half southwest of the town a thin coal out-crops above the
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
sandstone quarries of Mr. Stewart, which I am inclined to regard as the Colchester seam, though it is here only about one foot in thickness. This may, however, be an out-crop of the lower seam number one, but from the appearance of the sandstone I believe it to be number two, thinned out here to about one-half its usual thickness.
In the vicinity of Colchester a very good sandstone is found below the coal, and from ten to fifteen feet in thickness. It is number eleven of the foregoing section. This I believe to be the equivalent of the sandstone at Stewart's, and the old McLean quarries near Macomb. A section of the beds exposed in the vicinity of these quarries show the following succession of strata : Thin coal.
1 foot.
Shaly clay.
2 feet.
Thin-bedded sandstone. 1 to 6 6
Massive sandstone.
10 to 12 «
Bituminous shale (coal No. 1).
4 .
Carbonate of iron
Fire clay
1. .
Bituminons slate or shale.
Shale
5 4
The horizon of coal No. 1 is here occupied by Bituminous shales and a six inch band of carbonate of iron. In the vicinity of Col- chester, at most of the out-crops we examined, the same horizon was represented by dark blue shades (No. 12 of the section previ- ously given) containing nodules of iron ore inclosing crystals of zinc blende. On the southwest quarter of section 24, town 5 north, rangs 4 west, (Tennessee) the following beds were found exposed in connection with coal No. 1 :
Shaly sandstone. 4 feet.
Coal No. 1. .. 2 4
Fire clay-not exposed.
Shaly sandstone.
St. Louis limestone. 6
16 +
Although we did not find this lower coal developed atany of the exposures examined in the vicinity of Colchester, yet it was found by Mr. Horrocks at his tile and fire-brick kiln, not more than a mile from the town, and was struck in one of the pits sunk for fire- clay. It was found to be about a foot in thickness only, and was associated with an excellent fire-clay, and was here about forty- five feet below coal No. 2. Below Horrock's brick and tile kilns on the same stream a band of ferruginous sandstone, or rather a sandy iron ore, was found, about six inches in thickness, filled
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HISTORY OF M'DONOUGH COUNTY.
with fossil shells, among which a large Discina was the most abundant, associated with Hemipronites crenistria, Athyris sub- tilita, Spirifer opimus, S. Kentuckensis, and some other undeter- mined species. This was no doubt a local deposit, and probably represents the band of iron ore occurring in Schuyler and Fulton counties, associated with coal No. 1. This band of iron ore oc- curs just at the junction of beds numbered 13 and 14 of the gen- eral section of the coal-bearing strata, on a preceding page.
On section 24, town 5 north, range 4 west [Tennessee], south- west quarter of the section, a coal seam was opened as early as 1853, when we first visited this county, on land then owned by Mr. Lowry. The coal was from eighteen inches to two feet in thickness, overlaid by a few feet of shaly sandstone. Below the bed of coal there was about sixteen feet of sandstone exposed, and a short distance up the creek the concretionary limestone is exposed, underlying the sandstone. This I have no doubt is the lower coal (No. 1), and it will no doubt be found at many points in the county ranging from one to three feet in thickness.
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