USA > Illinois > Winnebago County > Rockford > History of Rockford and Winnebago County, Illinois, from the first settlement in 1834 to the civil war > Part 20
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202
HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
from east to west. The northern half of the state was sparsely settled, and comprised one congressional district. At the first election in this county William L. May, the Democratic candi- date for congress, received seventy-three votes, and John T. Stuart, forty-four votes ; a majority for May of twenty-nine votes. Mr. May was elected and served two years. His home was at Springfield.
Previous to 1840 the senatorial district of which Winnebago formed a part, included the entire Rock river valley, as well as a large tract below the mouth of Rock river. This vast area, extending from Dubuque almost to St. Louis, was entitled to one senator and two representatives in the legislature. The first election in Winnebago county for representatives resulted as follows: John Turner, seventy-four votes; Charles R. Ben- nett, seventy-three; Elijah Charles, thirty-four; James Craig, forty ; L. H. Bowen, eight. James Craig and Elijah Charles were elected.
Under an early statute, presidential elections in Illinois were held on the first Monday in November. At the presidential election in 1836, only one hundred and fifty-eight votes were polled. This was an increase over the August election of thirty- eight votes. The Harrison electors received seventy votes, and the Van Buren electors, eighty-eight; a Democratic majority of eighteen.
In 1837 Harvey W. Bundy was elected recorder, to succeed Daniel H. Whitney, of Belvidere, who had become a resident of the new county of Boone. Herman B. Potter was elected county commissioner to succeed Simon P. Doty, of Belvidere. Charles I. Horsman was elected probate justice of the peace. Milton Kilburn had served as judge of probate the preceding year, under appointment. Nathaniel Loomis was chosen clerk of the commissioners' court; Robert J. Cross was elected county treasurer.
At the general August election in 1838, John T. Stuart, of Springfield, was the Whig candidate for member of congress. His Democratic opponent was Stephen A. Douglas, who was also of Springfield. Mr. Stuart received a majority of ninety- three in Winnebago county, and was elected. Mr. Stuart was perhaps the first prominent man to recognize the genius of Abraham Lincoln, and by the loan of books he had encouraged him to study law. Mr. Lincoln, after his admission to the bar in 1837, became the law partner of his benefactor. When Mr.
203
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN OF 1840.
Stuart began to receive political honors, he necessarily gave less attention to his profession. Thus the conduct of the busi- ness largely devolved upon Mr. Lincoln.
Winnebago county forged so rapidly to the front that in 1838 it was conceded one of the representatives in the general assembly, and Germanicus Kent was elected. Hon. James Craig was re-elected. Isaac N. Cunningham was elected sheriff of the county ; Cyrus C. Jenks, coroner; Don Alonzo Spaulding, surveyor; Elijah H. Brown, commissioner.
In 1839 William E. Dunbar was elected recorder ; and John Emerson, surveyor.
The presidential campaign of 1840 was one of the most excit- ing in American political history. The hero of Tippecanoe was the idol of his party, and no leader ever received a more enthu- siastic support. Winnebago county had now become a Whig stronghold, and the party waged an aggressive campaign against the Loco-Focos, as the Democrats were then called. April 11th the Whigs held a convention at Rockford, and nom- inated a full county ticket. Among the local leaders of this party were Selden M. Church, Jacob Miller, H. B. Potter, G. A. Sanford, Isaac N. Cunningham. Democratic principles were championed by Jason Marsh, Daniel S. Haight, Heury Thurs- ton, P. Knappen, J. C. Goodhue, H. W. Loomis, C. I. Horsman. Boone county had been organized from the eastern portion of Winnebago, and the western two ranges had been transferred to Stephenson. In the August elections the Whigs polled six hundred and thirty-seven votes, and the Democrats, two hun- dred and eighty-five. The total vote was nine hundred and twenty-two, with a Whig majority of three hundred and fifty- two. Thomas Drummond, of Jo Daviess, and Hiram Thornton, of Mercer, both Whigs, carried the county by good majorities for representative, and were elected. I. N. Cunningham was elected sheriff; Alonzo Platt, coroner; and Ezra S. Cable, com- missioner.
The presidential campaign overshadowed local issues. Mr. Thurston, in his Reminiscences, gives this interesting sketch of the stirring incidents of that year: "The sparseness of the pop- ulation, the limited amount accessible of the current literature of the day, to which some of the settlers had been accustomed ; the almost entire deprivation of the pleasures of social life among the older people, caused them to enter into a political or local contest with a vim which almost invariably became
204
HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
personal before it was decided. When the fight was ended, the passions cooled down, and 'sober second thought' had resumed its sway, it frequently happened that both parties joined in a general pow-wow and celebration. It was so in 1840. The Whigs of this locality imitated the tactics so successfully prac- ticed throughout the union. They had no cider, either hard or sweet, but they did possess in abundance all the paraphernalia used by the party in the populous parts of the country. They put up a log cabin in regular pioneer style, on the southeast corner of State and Madison streets, for political headquarters, profusely decorated with coon-skins and other regalia pertain- ing to the times ; imported speakers from Galena, Chicago and intervening points ; got up processions, and with Frank Parker blowing an E flat bugle, and China Parker a clarionet-neither of them having the slightest knowledge of music, and each blowing with might and main in a vain effort to drown out his companion-marched about the village wherever they could secure a following. The village drum was in possession of the Democrats, and consequently not available for Whig celebra- tions."
Jacob Miller was the most popular among the local Whig orators. He was familiar with the vernacular of the westerner, and drew his illustrations from their daily life. At the close of a harangue he would sometimes produce his fiddle and scrape the "Arkansas Traveler." The whole assembly joined in a gen- eral break-down, and the orator of the day was borne in triumph on the shoulders of his friends to the nearest bar.
The presidential election occurred in November. The Whigs cast seven hundred and sixty-eight votes in the county, and the Democrats, three hundred and twenty-one; total, one thousand and eighty-nine; Whig majority, four hundred and forty-seven. Abraham Lincoln was one of the five Whig candidates for pres- idential elector in Illinois. The facilities for communication were so meagre that the official vote of the state was not known in Rockford until late in December. A messenger from the cap- ital, with the official vote of the state, passed through Rockford ten days in advance of its publication in the Chicago papers, and communicated, it is said, the news to the prominent men of the Democratic party, in each village, for betting purposes. Illinois was one of the seven states that elected Van Buren electors. This vote may have been intentionally kept back by the Democratic officials at Springfield.
205
DEATH OF PRESIDENT HARRISON.
Through a technicality in an alleged non-compliance with the law, the legality of Mr. Cunningham's election to the office of sheriff in August was questioned ; and he again appealed to the voters at the November election, and received an emphatic endorsement.
The Rock River Express of December 4th published this advertisement in display type: "For Salt River, the steamboat Van Buren, only four years old, will leave on the 4th of March next, for Salt River. For freight or passage, apply to the White House. Hypocrites will be in attendance to amuse the passen- gers free of charge." The local campaign closed with a "Harri- son ball," at the Washington House, February 9, 1841. On the evening of March 3d the Democrats gave a Van Buren ball "in honor of the able and enlightened administration of Martin Van Buren."
April 4, 1841, just one month after his inauguration, Pres- ident Harrison suddenly died. The event filled the country with sorrow. At a meeting of the citizens held in Rockford on the 19th, a committee, which represented both political parties, was chosen to submit resolutions on the death of the president to a mass-meeting of the citizens. These resolutions were unan- mously adopted.
In the spring of 1841 a bitter local fight was made on the election of justices of the peace in Rockford precinct. The can- didates were Dr. Haskell, Peter H. Watson and John T. Shaler. Two justices were to be elected ; but to satisfy all aspirants, it was proposed to elect later a third justice for the precinct. The business did not require another justice, butit was thought such an arrangement would be politically convenient. The court, however, held that the election of Mr. Watson was illegal, and no third justice was ever elected in the precinct.
A congressional election was held in August, 1841, instead of the preceding year. The candidates were John T. Stuart and J. H. Ralston. Winnebago county cast four hundred and ninety-three votes for the former, and two hundred and twenty- three for the latter. Mr. Stuart was re-elected. William Hulin was elected county commissioner.
In 1842 Judge Thomas Ford was elected governor by the Democrats. That party in Winnebago county nominated the following ticket: Senator for Winnebago and Ogle counties, James Mitchell; for representative, John A. Brown, editor of the Rockford Pilot; sheriff, John Paul; commissioner, Spencer
206
HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
Post; coroner, Nathaniel Loomis. The Whigs nominated Spooner Ruggles for senator; George W. Lee, reprsentative; G. A. Sanford, sheriff; Isaac M. Johnson, commissioner; Har- vey Gregory, coroner. Mr. Lee withdrew, and Darius Adams, of Pecatonica, was substituted. The official vote of the county for senator, representative and sheriff was as follows : Ruggles, four hundred and sixty-nine ; Mitchell, four hundred and ninety ; Adams, five hundred and forty; Brown, three hundred and seventy-six; Sanford, five hundred and fifty-nine; Paul, one hundred and twelve. Spooner Ruggles, Darius Adams, Spencer Post, G. A. Sanford and Nathaniel Loomis were elected to the respective offices.
By the act of March 1, 1843, the state was divided into seven congressional districts. The first election under this apportionment was held on the first Monday in August of the same year. Under this apportionment, Winnebago and Han- cock counties were in the sixth district. Hancock county was the seat of the Mormon settlement, under the leadership of Joseph Smith. The Mormons generally voted the Democratic ticket; and with their support, Joseph Hogue, of Galena, was elected member of congress. His Whig opponent was Cyrus Walker, of McDonough county. At the county election Ezra S. Cable was elected commissioner; William Hulin, recorder; S. M. Church, clerk; Bela Shaw, probate justice; Ephraim Wyman, treasurer; Volney A. Marsh, school commissioner; Duncan Ferguson, surveyor.
The presidential election of 1844 was scarcely less exciting than that of four years previous. The Whigs carried the county for Henry Clay, the idol of the party. The Whig ticket received five hundred and forty-six votes; the Democratic, three hundred and sixty-eight; a majority of one hundred and seventy-eight for Mr. Clay. In August Mr. Hogue was re-elected member of con- gress, over Martin P. Sweet, of Freeport. The Rockford Forum of August 14th denounced the apportionment act, which placed the Mormon stronghold in this district, and thus legislated it into the Democratic ranks. Anson S. Miller was elected mem- ber of the legislature; Anson Barnum, sheriff; Artemas Hitch- cock, coroner.
In 1846 Thomas J. Turner, of Freeport, Democrat, was elected member of congress over James Knox, of Knox county. Wait Talcott received two hundred and twenty-six votes as the candidate of the Liberty party. Anson S. Miller, of Winnebago,
207
COLONEL EDWARD D. BAKER.
was elected state senator as a Whig; Robert J. Cross, repre- sentative ; Hiram R. Maynard, sheriff ; and Artemas Hitchcock, . coroner.
After the Mormons removed from Hancock county the dis- trict again became Whig, and in 1848 the party elected Edward D. Baker, of Galena, member of congress. Colonel Baker was born in London, England, February 24, 1811. He came to the United States at the age of five years, with his father, who died in Philadelphia. The son removed to Springfield, Illinois. He arose rapidly to distinction, and in 1844 he was elected a mem- ber of congress. He served his adopted country with signal ability in the Mexican war; and upon his return to Illinois he settled at Galena. After serving one term in congress, he set- tled in San Francisco, California, in 1852. Colonel Baker was a brilliant orator. His speech on the death of Senator Broder- ick, of California, who fell in a duel with Judge Terry, in 1859, is one of the masterpieces of American oratory. For an hour the homage of tears was paid to Baker's genius and to Broderick's memory. His closing words are remarkable for their noble pathos: "The last word must be spoken, and the imperious mandate of death must be fulfilled. Thus, O brave heart! we lay thee to thy rest. Thus, surrounded by tens of thousands, we leave thee to thy equal grave. As in life no other voice among us so rang its trumpet blast upon the ears of freemen, so in death its echoes will reverberate amidst our mountains and our valleys until truth and valor cease to appeal to the human heart. Good friend! true hero! hail and farewell !"
Colonel Baker was subsequently elected United States sen- ator from Oregon. His debate with Breckinridge in the senate in 1861 attracted national attention. "In the history of the senate," says Mr. Blaine, "no more thrilling speech was ever delivered. The striking appearance of the speaker, in the uni- form of a soldier, his superb voice, his graceful manner, all united to give to the occasion an extraordinary interest and attraction." Colonel Baker left his seat in the senate and entered military service. He was killed while commanding a brigade at the battle of Ball's Bluff, October 21, 1861.
In 1850, Thompson Campbell, of Galena, was elected mem- ber of congress. At the same time Richard S. Molony, of Belvi- dere, was elected to represent the adjoining eastern district, which then included Chicago.
CHAPTER XL.
LEWIS KENT : THE ONLY SLAVE IN THE COUNTY.
T "HE Northwest Territory bad been consecrated to freedom
by the Ordinance of 1787. This principle was reaffirmed by the first constitution of Illinois. When the state had become a member of the union, however, and was thus given control over its own internal affairs, a desperate effort was made to introduce slavery. This effort was partially successful, and the famous "Black Laws" gave the commonwealth an odious rep- utation at one time.
Only one man ever lived in Winnebago county as a slave. His name was Lewis Kent, although he was more familiarly known as Lewis Lemon. In 1829, when Germanicus Kent was a citizen of Alabama, he purchased of Orrin Lemon a colored boy named Lewis. He was born in North Carolina, and had been taken by his master to Alabama. He was about seventeen years old at the time he was sold to Mr. Kent for four hundred and fifty dollars in cash. When Mr. Kent decided to remove north, he proposed to sell Lewis; but the colored man preferred his old master. Mr. Kent made an agreement with Lewis when they arrived at St. Louis. It was in substance that Lewis should pay him for his freedom at the expiration of six years and seven months, the sum of eight hundred dollars, with ten per cent. interest. Lewis obtained his freedom, however, in four years and four months. On the 6th of September, 1839, Mr. Kent executed and placed in the hands of Lewis a deed of manumis- sion. At a session of the county commissioners' court held in March, 1842, Mr. Kent filed for record the instrument which officially proclaimed Lewis Kent a free man. The transcript of this document, which is on file in the county clerk's office, is the only evidence in Rockford of the existence of slavery, and that one of its victims here found freedom and a home. The follow- ing is the text of this document :
Be it remembered that at the present term, March, A. D. 1842, of the county of Winnebago, state of Illinois, Lewis Lemon, a free man of color, presented the evidence of his being
209
DEED OF MANUMISSION.
a free man by the following writing of Germanicus Kent, of said county, which being duly acknowledged by him, is ordered to be filed and entered on record :
To all to whom these presents shall come, GREETING : That whereas the undersigned, Germanicus Kent, of Rockford, Illi- nois, did in the year A. D. 1829, being then a resident of the state of Alabama, purchase of Orrin D. Lemon, since deceased, a colored boy named Lewis, then about seventeen years of age, as a slave for life ; and whereas, upon the removal of the under- signed, from said state of Alabama, to said state of Illinois ; now this is to certify that said Lewis by my removing him to said state of Illinois, and his residence there ever since, did become free and emancipated from all services due to me as a slave, and that he is, and by right ought to be, free forever hereafter. And this is to further certify that said Lewis was born a slave of said Orrin D. Lemon, then residing in Wake county (N. C.) from whence he removed to Madison county, Alabama, where I purchased said Lewis of him. The said Lewis is aged about twenty-seven years ; in person he is five feet, eight inches high, well built, rather stout, and weighs about one hun- dred and seventy pounds; his features are good, dark yellow complexion, open and frank countenance, mouth prominent and large lips.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal at Rockford, Illinois, this sixth day of September, A. D. 1839.
[SEAL.]
GERMANICUS KENT.
In presence of W. E. Dunbar and William Hulin.
State of Illinois, Winnebago county, ss : This day before me, Selden M. Church, clerk of the county commissioners' court of the said county, came Germanicus Kent, known to me to be the real person described, and who executed the within instrument of writing, and acknowledged that heexecuted the same for the uses and purposes therein expressed.
Given under my hand and private seal (there being no offi- cial seal provided) at Rockford, this 11th day of March, A. D.
1842.
[SEAL.]
SELDEN M. CHURCH,
Clerk County Commissioners' Court Winnebago Co.
After his manumission Lewis obtained some land, and earned his livelihood by the cultivation of garden produce. He died in September, 1877. His funeral was attended by members of the Old Settlers' Society.
CHAPTER XLI.
THE POLISH CLAIMS .- DELAY IN OBTAINING LAND PATENTS.
EVENTS of local interest occasionally have their historic background in national and even international affairs. A notable instance was the celebrated Polish claims made in 1836 to a portion of the territory which now comprises the townships of Rockford and Rockton. It is one of the most interesting chapters in the history of Winnebago county. Local histories have briefly referred to the incident, but no complete statement of the affair has previously been written.
The checkered career of Poland furnishes the historic back- ground. The reader of history will recall the Polish rebellion of 1830-31. Previous to that time her territory had been partitioned between Russia and other powers. The impulse to this uprising of 1830 was given by the French, and was begun by a number of students, who proposed to seize the Grand Duke Constantine in the vicinity of Warsaw. The city and the troops enlisted in the movement, under the command of General Chlo- picki, a veteran of the wars of Napoleon. Upon the suppression of this uprising in the following year, the leaders were sent into exile. They naturally sought refuge in this country.
The forlorn condition of these exiles enlisted the sympathy of the American people, and congress rendered them some assistance. An act was approved June 30, 1834, which granted to these Polish exiles, two hundred and thirty-five in number, who had been transported to this country by the order of the emperor of Austria, thirty-six sections of land. These sections were to be selected by them, under the direction of the secretary of the treasury, in any three adjacent townships of the public lands, surveyed or unsurveyed, in the state of Illinois or the territory of Michigan. After this land had been surveyed, it became the duty of the secretary of the treasury to divide the thirty-six sections into equal parts, and to distribute them by lot among the exiles. They were to reside upon and cultivate these lands for ten years, and at the expiration of this time they were to obtain their patents upon the payment of the min- imum price per acre.
211
COUNT CHLOPICKI.
The exiles arrived in America in 1835, and their committee, at the head of whom was Count Chlopicki, arrived in Rockford in the autumn of the following year. The Count was an elderly gentleman, well informed, and apparently an excellent judge of land. Upon his arrival in the Rock river valley, he selected townships forty-four and forty-six, range one east. These are Rockford and Rockton. The intervening township of Owen was not taken, and thus was violated one of the provisions of the grant, which stipulated that the land should be selected in three adjacent townships.
Much of this land was already in possession of American citizens when the Count arrived upon thescene. They had only a squatter's title, inasmuch as there was then no pre-emption law that would apply in this case, and the government had not placed the land upon the market. The settlers had enclosed their farms and made such improvements as they were able. Moreover, the several Indian "floats" in these townships might have precedence over the claims of settlers or exiles. But these facts did not disturb the plans of the doughty Count. He dis- regarded the squatter rights of the settlers, and made a formal selection of their land, and reported his choice to the secretary of the treasury.
While in this section Count Chlopicki had been a guest of Ger- manicus Kent. That gentleman explained the situation to his visitor, and the latter declared that the settlers should not be disturbed. He thus set their fears at rest in a measure. But these assurances were not entirely satisfactory, and after the Count's departure a sum of money was raised and Mr. Kent was sent to Washington to make further inquiry. The anxiety of the settlers was increased by the fact, as already stated, that they held no titles to the land upon which they had settled. Upon Mr. Kent's arrival in Washington, he found that his apprehensions were well founded. The Count had not kept his word; he had chosen the very townships he had promised Mr. Kent he would not select. Mr. Kent went directly to the land office and made his complaint before the commissioner; but he was told that every settler in the county was a trespasser, and that hehad no legal right to a foot of the land which he had so unceremoniously taken. It is said facts are stubborn things. Mr. Kent and the settlers knew that the commissioner was cor- rect, but they did not become alarmed. Perhaps they thought that in union there was strength. The secretary of the treasury
212
HISTORY OF ROCKFORD AND WINNEBAGO COUNTY.
did not, however, order the subdivision of the lands, because their selection by the Polish agent was not in compliance with the law, and thus the matter rested for some years.
The selection of these lands by the Polish agent, while squatter's possession was held by the settlers, complicated the whole question of titles. The settlers had certain rights in equity, but inasmuch as no pre-emption law was then in force that would bear upon the case, the government did not at that time formally recognize their claims. In view of this fact, it is not a matter of surprise that the Polish count, in his desire to select good lands for his exiled countrymen, should disregard claims that the government did not recognize. Moreover, this section of the Rock river valley had been framed in the prodi- gality of nature. Its soil was good, its atmosphere invigorat- ing, its scenery a perpetual delight. The possession of such land always promotes domestic happiness and commercial strength.
The lands in this vicinity belonged at that time to the Galena land district, and with the exception of Rockford and Rockton, were opened to sale and entry in the autumn of 1839. These townships, which included the thirty-six sections in con- troversy, were withheld from sale for nearly eight years after they had been surveyed.
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