USA > Illinois > Winnebago County > Rockford > History of Rockford and Winnebago County, Illinois, from the first settlement in 1834 to the civil war > Part 19
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This failure, however, stimulated further effort. The pro- moters of the scheme became more audacious than before. Not only was it decided to make Rock river navigable to the mouth of the Pecatonica; it was now also proposed to seek the aid of the government in the construction of a ship canal which should connect Lake Michigan with Mississippi river. January 1 and 2, 1846, a ship canal convention was held in Rockford. Delegates were present from northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. Martin P. Sweet, of Freeport, said this section needed a railroad to the cast, and free navigation to the south, so that the people could have a choice of markets. He believed the government should aid in constructing such a waterway. A committee was
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LATER CONVENTIONS.
appointed to draft resolutions expressing the sense of the con- vention.
On Friday, January 2d, the committee presented its resolu- tions, which were unanimously adopted. It was declared that in the judgment of the convention, the project of connecting the great lakes with the Mississippi river was purely national in its character; that the cheapest and best mode of effecting this communication was by means of slack-water navigation of Rock river, and by a properly constructed canal connecting it with Lake Michigan; and that the completion of this work in connecting the Atlantic ports on the east with the Gulf of Mexico on the south would form a strong bond which would unite more firmly the north and the south for mutual defense. A committee was appointed to draft a memorial to the proper authorities for the survey of the route, and to present a memo- rial to congress, praying for the construction of a ship canal. Martin P. Sweet was made chairman. The members of the committee from this county were Jason Marsh, John A. Holland and James M. Wight. A committee of fivefrom each county was also chosen to obtain an expression of public sentiment con- cerning the project. The members of the committee from Win- bago were C. I. Horsman, S. M. Church, William Hulin, Robert J. Cross, Alonzo Hall.
Ship-canals, however, are not constructed by resolution, and the usual results followed. In the winter of 1865-66 the subject was revived, and February 22d a convention was held at Rockford. Letters were read from General Stephen A. Hurlbut, of Belvidere, Hon. John F. Farnsworth, and others. Another con- vention was held at Beloit March 15th. But better railroad facili- ties had by that time indefinitely delayed, if not forever defeated the construction of an inter-state waterway. Had it not been for the advent of the railroad, theimproved navigation of Rock river would in time have been recognized as a public necessity. In the autumn of 1899 the subject was again considered by the citizens of Rockford and those residing along the course of the river ; but up to February, 1900, no definite results had been accomplished.
The improvement of navigation facilities was not the only means by which the settlers sought relief from imperfect trans- portation. Chicago was the nearest grain market. The only communication with that city was by stage and wagon. In
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HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
the spring and autumn months, when the deep soil of the prai- ries was saturated with water, the journeys were slow and tedious. A farmer who had drawn a load of produce to Chicago often received a discouraging margin of profit. A charter had been obtained in 1836 for a railroad between Chicago and Galena. The county, however, was thinly populated, and the people were too poor to makesubscriptions. Moreover, eastern capitalists had little confidence in the future of Illinois. The state was burdened with debt; and many of the people openly advocated repudiation. This uncertainty about a railroad continued more than ten years. Meanwhile the citizens were considering other plans. In 1844 preliminary surveys were made for a plank road from Chicago to Rockford.
A committee of citizens residing on the proposed route was held at Elgin September 20, 1844. This committee had been chosen to collect facts relating to plank roads, and to furnish estimates of cost. J. Young Scammon, of Chicago, and Jason Marsh were members of this committee. Edward B. Talcott, an experienced engineer, was sent by the committee to Canada to examine the plauk roads there in use, and to ascertain their cost and manner of construction. On the 19th of November the committee submitted its report, also a detailed statement prepared by Mr. Talcott. He estimated the cost of the road at three hundred and twelve thousand seven hundred and thirty-one dollars and twenty-nine cents. Public meetings were held along the line.
January 21, 1845, the Chicago and Rock River Plank Road Company was incorporated by special act. Thecommissioners appointed to receive subscriptions in Belvidere and Rockford were Alexander Neely, Lyman Downs, Joel Walker, Daniel Howell, C. I. Horsman and Jason Marsh. Among the commis- sioners from Chicago was Walter L. Newberry, who became the founder of the magnificent Newberry reference library in Chi- cago. The corporation was given absolute right of way, with power to institute condemnation proceedings when necessary for the purchase of land. The demand for plank roads became general throughout the state; and in February, 1849, an act was passed for the construction of plank roads under a general law.
Mr. Colton, in his Forum, discouraged the construction of a plank road from Chicago to Rockford. He said eastern capi- tal could not be secured for such a doubtful enterprise; and
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FAILURE OF THE PLANK ROAD.
predicted that "sooner far could it be obtained for a railroad on the same ground, and we fully believe that one will be built before a plank one will be completed." Public sentiment showed that Mr. Colton was a prophet without honor in his own country; but time vindicated his claim to the gift of prophecy. No plank road was constructed, under the provis- ions of the charter. The thunder of the iron horse was heard in the distance; the day of the railroad was at hand.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
NEW ENGLAND UNITARIANISM .- FIRST CHURCH .- REV. A. H. CONANT.
A NUMBER of the early settlers from New England were Unitarians of the old school. An effort to organize this sentiment was made as early as 1841. The first meeting for this purpose was held February 3d. A subscription list of this date was found among the papers of the late Francis Burnap. It contained pledges amounting to one hundred and sixty dol- lars for the support of a Unitarian clergyman. At the same time a committee was appointed to promote this interest. An adjourned meeting was held on the 13th at the West side school- house, and an organization completed. Richard Montague, Isaac N. Cunningham, Francis Burnap, Ephraim Wyman and James M. Wight were elected trustees. A statute of 1835 con- cerning Religious Societies provided that immediately after an election of trustees, a certificate of the same should be filed for record with the recorder of the county. The filing of such rec- ord constituted the trustees a body corporate and politic. The trustees complied with this law. The Rock River Express of February 20th announced that Rev. Joseph Harrington would preach at the court house on the following Sunday.
There is no record of any progress during the next two years, and it may be concluded that there was only an occasional preaching service. Early in March, 1843, Rev. Joseph Har- rington, of Chicago, came to Rockford and preached every even- ing of one week on the distinctive doctrines of Unitarianism. The meetings were well attended, and a new interest awakened. On the following Sunday, March 9th, a church was organized, with the following covenant: "We whose names are subscribed, do unite ourselves together in Christian fellowship to partake of the Lord's supper, and to receive the spiritual benefit that may be derived from membership with Christ's visible church on earth. And may God grant his Spirit to help our manifold infirmities, and lead us in heart and in practice unto him who is the 'way, the truth and the life.'" This language is decidedly
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THE FIRST EDIFICE.
evangelical in spirit. It is Unitarianism as interpreted by Wil- liam Ellery Channing and James Freeman Clarke. It differs little from the progressive orthodoxy of today. The coustit- uent members of the church were: Joseph Harrington, Sarah F. Dennis, Isaac N. Cunningham, Nancy G. Cunningham, James Cunningham, Sarah M. Cunningham, Samuel Cunningham, Emily C. Cunningham, John Paul, R. B. Paul, W. D. Bradford, Catherine F. Goodhue, Ephraim Wyman, James M. Wight, John R. Kendall, Susan Goodrich.
In December, 1844, steps were taken to secure a place of worship. It was proposed to purchase the unfinished Univer- salist church, which had been abandoned. Several hundred dollars in subscriptions, conditional and otherwise, were raised, besides a sum for an organ. These subscription lists are still in existence. But the project was not successful. Another unsuc- cessful effort was made to build in 1846.
December 13, 1845, the Unitarian society was organized at the home of Ephraim Wyman. The trustees chosen were Ephraim Wyman, Thatcher Blake, and Richard Montague.
For a number of years little was done. The church had services whenever a traveling clergyman was available. This condition continued until 1849, when Rev. H. Snow volunteered to strengthen the waste places in this branch of Zion. The Unitarians were not sanguine, and at first Mr. Snow received little encouragement. But a new start was made. The church had hitherto held services in the court house; but now they felt the need of another place. The frame building which had been used by the First Baptist church was for sale. This old edifice may well be called a church cradle. It successively rocked the Baptists, Episcopalians, Unitarians and Presbyterians. It was an illustration of the common origin of all believers who belong to the true household of faith. At this time the Unitarians owned a lot on the northeast corner of Church and Elm streets. They had received two hundred and fifty dollars from the Amer- ican Unitarian Association, and with this they purchased the old Baptist building, which they removed upon their lot. For about a year Mr. Snow preached two Sundays in the month, and the other Sundays at Belvidere. Mr. Snow invited Rev. A. A. Livermore, who was then at Keene, New Hampshire, to act the generous Christian part by presenting a communion service to the church. The ladies of Mr. Keene's church complied with the request.
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HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
Mr. Snow's health failed in the spring of 1850, and he was obliged to resign from his pastorate. He had been faithful in his efforts to lay an enduring foundation. Mr. Snow applied to the American Unitarian Association, and to Dr. Hosmer, an eminent divine and educator, to send a successor. Dr. Hosmer sent John M. Windsor, who had recently graduated from the Unitarian school at Meadville, Pennsylvania. Mr. Windsor devoted his entire attention to the Rockford church, and gave one sermon each Sunday. About this time the accession of Mr. and Mrs. Melancthon Starr inspired the congregation with new energy and courage.
The church enjoyed a fair degree of prosperity for several years. In 1853 it was proposed to build a more comfortable place of worship. A lot was purchased on the corner of Chest- nut and Church streets, and generous subscriptions were secured. Mr. Windsor was sent east to solicit contributions from the Unitarians of New York and Massachusetts. Mr. Windsor went to New York early in the spring of 1854 to collect the promised money, and never returned. Work was begun on the new church in the same spring. The plan of the edifice was that of the Episcopal church in Beloit, with some changes and better work- manship.
In the autumn of 1854, when the pulpit had become vacant, the society, through Mr. Starr, began correspondence with John Murray, who had just graduated from Meadville. This gentleman was engaged as a stated supply for six months from the first of October, with a view to a call to the pastorate if it should be mutually agreeable. Mr. Murray began his labors at the time stated. Mr. Crawford, the contractor, had agreed to have the new church ready for occupancy early in October. On the strength of this promise, the old church cradle had been previously sold to the Presbyterians, possession to be given December 1st. The church kept its promise, but the contractor did not; and the services were held in Dr. Haskell's schoolhouse for a time. Before the expiration of the six months Mr. Murray had accepted an invitation to remain a year. Upon the com- pletion of the church, the Rockford Amateurs gave a vocal and instrumental, concert in Warner's hall, to aid in its furnishing. About one hundred and fifty dollars were realized. A Unitarian church in Chicago sent two massive chandeliers, pulpit and gal- lery lamps, a pulpit sofa and a Bible. A melodeon had been previously purchased.
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NEW CHURCH DEDICATED.
The church was dedicated April 18, 1855. Friends came from Chicago, Geneva and Belvidere. Rev. Rush R. Shippen, of Chicago, preached the dedicatory sermon. On Sunday, May 6th, a Sunday-school was organized, with twenty-five scholars, with Rev. H. Snow as superintendent. On Sunday, July 1st, the Lord's supper was celebrated, after a long interval. In December a new declaration of faith and purpose and articles of organization were adopted.
Rev. John Murray's pastorate closed on the last Sunday in March, 1857. The pulpit was supplied by Rev. Addison Brown, Rev. W. W. King, and Rev. L. B. Watson. The latter two were Universalist clergymen of Chicago.
June 8, 1857, a call to the pastorate was sent to the Rev. Augustus H. Conant, of Geneva, Illinois. Mr. Conant, though highly esteemed in his parish, had given offense to some by his radical utterances against slavery. He therefore promptly accepted the call, at a salary of one thousand dollars, with cer- tain privileges of vacation for missionary work Sunday after- noons during a part of the year. Rev. Conant began his pastoral work July 12, 1857. The congregation then numbered about seventy. He purchased a home of Mr. Cosper, on the corner of Green and West streets, for three thousand and five hundred dollars. This residence is still the home of his daughter, Miss Coretta Conant, and his granddaughter, Miss Louise Conant, instructor in art and history of art at Rockford college.
Mr. Conant enjoyed an extended personal acquaintance among distinguished representatives of the Unitarian faith, and other cotemporaries. Among these were William Ellery Chan- ning, Theodore Parker, James Freeman Clarke, Horace Greeley, O. B. Frothingham, Margaret Fuller, Fred Douglas, and Robert Collyer. Among Rev. Conant's guests at his Rockford home were Ralph Waldo Emerson, Prof. Youmans, Bayard Taylor, Tom Corwin, John Pierpont, and T. Starr King. James Free- man Clarke, in his Autobiography, refers to Rev. Conant as a "saint and an apostle."
Augustus Hammond Conant was born October 16, 1811, at Brandon, Vermont. When a young man he left his nativestate and settled as a farmer on the Des Plaines river, in Cook county, Illinois. His parents were members of the Baptist church, and he was baptized into that fellowship before he came to Illinois. One day he entered the store of the Clarke Brothers, in Chicago, where he saw a copy of the Western Messenger. He became
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HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
interested in the paper, and he was given several copies to take home. These Clarkes owned a book-store in Chicago, and were brothers of James Freeman Clarke, who was then the editor of , the Messenger. Upon reading these papers, Mr. Conant resolved to consecrate his life to the ministry. Mr. Conant kept a jour- nal of his daily life as a pioneer farmer from January 1, 1836, to the latter part of May, 1840. It presents in brief a vivid picture of life on the frontier, as lived by an ambitious young man who was obliged to make his own way in the world, and at the same time prepare himself for the ministry. Brief quota- tions will tell the story. Under date of September 28, 1836, and later, he writes: "Worked at shoemaking ; made a coffin for H. Dougherty ; plastered my house; dressed pig and calves torn by wolves; dug a well; killed a badger; killed a wolf ; corn half destroyed by blackbirds; set out shade trees ; read Cow- per; took up a bee-tree to hive for honey; hunted a deer ; snow a foot deep; attended a Christmas party."
Mr. Conant returned east May 25, 1840, and began study at the Cambridge divinity school, under Prof. Henry Ware, Jr. After finishing his course Mr. Conant began his ministry in 1841 at Geneva, Illinois, where he preached sixteen years. A pamphlet entitled Fifty Years of Unitarian Life, gives a pleasant picture of Mr. Conant's pastoral life at Geneva. The pamphlet is a record of the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Unitarian church at Geneva. His journal kept during this time is a reve- lation of the man and of his time. Under date of January 7, 1842, and later, he writes: "Read Neander; made a chair; worked on a sermon; drew straw; Read Neander; horse died ; mended a pump; read Bushnell; read the Methodist discipline ; helped my wife to wash; worked on a sermon; made benches for the school; finished sermon; made soap."
The church at Rockford prospered under Mr. Conant's min- istry for a time. He was a man of high ideals and noble enthu- siasms, and was filled with the missionary spirit. Rev. Robert Collyer said of him: "He was as quick to leap to the appeal of a crippled cobbler, and as strong to save him, as if the Master had come out of heaven to bid him do it, and had told him he should have for his deed an endless renown, and the praises of all the choirs of heaven." But there came a serious declension in the financial and numerical strength of the church. In July, 1861, the reliable income of the society had fallen to four hun- dred dollars a year, and six months' salary was due the pastor.
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MR. CONANT AN ARMY CHAPLAIN .- HIS DEATH.
Some of the former members had removed from the city, and others had been overtaken with financial reverses. Under these circumstances, Mr. Conant tendered his resignation to take effect the first Sunday in July, 1861.
The civil war had now begun, and Mr. Conant enlisted in his country's service immediately after his resignation. He went to the front as a chaplain in the Nineteenth Illinois volun- teer infantry. Among the privates of this regiment was Thomas G. Lawler. Mr. Conant had some controversy while in camp at Elizabethtown, Kentucky, with Dwight L. Moody, who had been sent out by the Young Men's Christian Associatian of Chicago. At Nashville, February 8, 1863, Mr. Conant passed from earth to "bathe his weary soul in seas of heavenly rest." His death was due to exposure and over-exertion at the battle of Murfreesborough. Hisdeath was universally lamented. He was one of those rare souls whom every one loved, and who had never incurred an unkind feeling from any one. At his death a soldier in the ranks paid him this tribute: "The brave and noble chaplain, who never turned aside for bullet or shell, but where balls flew thick and fast sought out the wounded and ministered to their wants, is dead. Never while I live can I forget him as I saw him on the field, with his red flag suspended on a ramrod, marching fearlessly to the relief of the suffering; appearing to the wounded like a ministering angel. When we said, 'Chaplain, you must rest or you will die,' he always replied, 'I cannot rest, boys, while you suffer; if I die, I will die helping you.'" His remains were buried at Geneva, and Rev. Robert Collyer, then of Chicago, preached the funeral discourse. Dr. Collyer subsequently wrote a biography of Mr. Conant, with the title, A Man in Earnest. Mrs. Conant died March 20, 1898, in her eightieth year. Her remains were taken to Geneva for interment.
After Mr. Conant's resignation, services were maintained with some regularity ; but the church gradually declined. Fred May Holland began pastoral labors January 4, 1863. Differ- ences arose. The conservative element became dissatisfied with the pastor on account of his radical or "Parkerite" tendencies. Mr. Holland was succeeded by William G. Nowell, who was ordained April 14, 1864. Mr. Nowell left the church in June, 1865. The last pastor was Rev. D. M. Reed, a very scholarly gentleman. Mr. Reed wished some recognition of his denomination in the name of the church. In accordance with his request, the name
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HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
was changed to the United Unitarian and Universalist church. The name, however, in legal matters was simply Unitarian. The church was subsequently sold, and in 1890 the proceeds were divided pro rata among the original subscribers, Thelate Melancthon Starr was known to have contributed four thousand dollars. Many of the members of the church united with the Church of the Christian Union, and others became identified with the Second Congregational church. The old church was last used as a furniture warehouse.
The history of American Unitarianism has been unique. Its birthplace was Boston, and the time about 1812. It was a natural reaction from the stern Calvinistic theology. Thegolden age of American letters was cotemporary with the rise of Uni- tarianism. Its influence in literature is attested by the names of Channing, Margaret Fuller, Alcott, Dwight, Elizabeth Pea- body and Emerson. In criticism are the names of Whipple, Ripley, Ticknor and Lowell. In history are Palfrey, Bancroft, Prescott and Motley. In statesmanship and oratory are the elder and the younger Adams, Daniel Webster, Edward Everett, Charles Sumner, and George William Curtis. In poetry there are Bryant, Lowell, Longfellow and Holmes. Notwithstanding this remarkable list of men and women of genius, the Unitarian church has always been weak in numbers. In Chicago there are only three churches, while there are more than one hundred of the Methodist faith. The Unitarian church has been a leavening rather than an original constructive force. It has not been too intellectual, but it has been too exclusively intellectual. The final test of a religious faith or creed is its inherent spiritual energy. The dynamic force of religion is devotion to a Person. Perchance the contribution of Unitarianism to religious history is in its illustration of the truth that the purest religion is not merely a system of ethics, however noble; but an enthusiasm, a passion. Many Unitarian leaders have realized this truth, although the rank and file of the laity have not done so. In integrity and high character, the Unitarian church of Rockford was a worthy representative of Unitarianism; but it shared the fate of many of its sister churches.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
EARLY ELECTIONS .- POLITICAL REMINISCENCES.
U NDER the first constitution of Illinois, the commissioners, sheriff and coroner were the only constitutional county officers. The latter two were elected every two years. The other county officers were created by statute. They were filled by appointment made either by the county commissioners' court or by the governor. Previous to 1835 a recorder for each county was appointed by the governor; and a surveyor was chosen by the commissioners' court. The statute of 1835 made these officers elective on the first Monday in August of that year, and every fourth year thereafter. Previous to 1837 county treasurers and clerks of the commissioners' courts were appointed by said courts. An act approved February 7th of that year made these offices elective on the first Monday in the following August, on a corresponding day in 1839, and in every fourth year thereafter. Up to 1837 a judge of probate was appointed for each county by the legislature. An act of March 4th made this office elective, with the title of probate justice of the peace, on the first Monday in August of that year, on a corresponding date in 1839, and in every fourth year thereafter. Under an act approved February 27, 1845, the tenure of office of probate justice of the peace, recorder, clerk of the county commissioners' court, surveyor and treasurer was reduced to two years. This law took effect on the first Monday in August, 1847. Under the constitution of 1848 the term of office of the county and circuit clerks was extended to four years.
August 1, 1836, occurred the first general election in Win- nebago county. The choice of county officers was given in a preceding chapter. On that day there were also elected a mem- ber of congress and two representatives in the statelegislature. Under the apportionment of 1831 the state was divided into three congressional districts. In 1836 the third district, which included Winnebago county, extended from the Wisconsin bound- ary to a line below Springfield, and entirely across the state
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