USA > Illinois > Stephenson County > History of Stephenson County, Illinois : a record of its settlement, organization, and three-quarters of a century of progress > Part 11
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"I looked in vain for the expected town. An unfinished Courthouse, no sign of a school house-no regular street-a few houses apparently dropped hap-hazard with paths or roads taking the shortest cut from place to place. Instead of a church spire to indicate the place of worship, a carpenter shop, where Moogk's drug store now stands, threw wide its hospitable doors; and the pews consisted of boards supported by kegs. There was no sign of either minister or congrega- tion, and a small boy announced: "Everybody has gone to a funeral and there isn't to be any church today."
That small boy is now Mr. Wilson Guiteau, of New York City, half brother to the honored president of our Woman's Club.
And this was Freeport! With a sudden sinking of the heart I realized the limitations of the new civilization and felt myself worlds apart from my school life in Troy and my social life in Rochester.
Without even being cheered by the sight of "Barr's Tavern," past which my brother drove to console me, I turned my back on Freeport, glad to take refuge in the farm which had, at least, no associates with society, and under the peaceful influence of the calm wide prairie the forlorn little town was forgotten.
Freeport had apparently failed me, but it happened that one of my girl friends from the east was living within walking distance from my father's farm. Indeed it was the enthusiastic letters of this friend, Cornelia Russell, which had influenced my father in the location of his farm. The day after my drive to Freeport, I started in search of my old friend. Following the foothpath across a wide pasture I came to the Pecatonica River, and across the water I discovered the log house among the trees. Standing upon the bank I called "Over! Over ! Over!" Presently from beneath the branches of a willow a boat shot out; in it was my old friend Cornelia, using the oars as skillfully as did Ellen in the Lady of the Lake. The delight of our meeting was mutual. It was with many mis- givings that I mustered courage to venture into her little boat, but Cornelia in- sisted that an upset was impossible as the thing was dug out of the round trunk of a big tree. Once seated in this primitive craft I thought it great fun, and we spent the morning rowing and floating up and down the muddy, crooked little ยท stream with its odd Indian name. Cornelia seemed to have lived on the water all summer long, her face was nut brown from exposure to sun and wind, her hair hung in curls down her back, her eyes were sparkling with life, health and joy. She was wholly in touch with nature. "You are a wood nymph," I announced, after calm scrutiny. "No, I am a fisher maiden," she replied, "for every after- noon I go up and down the stream setting my fish nets, and every morning I look for my catch." But all the same she had formed many a woodland intimacy among the wild animals. Half-tamed prairie wolves came to her door and a wild fawn always answered her call.
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We took a picnic lunch on shore, cooking fish out of Cornelia's net and roast- ing potatoes in the ashes. All the afternoon we lingered out of doors. The sense of primeval nature was indescribable, the silence so profound, it was as if we were under some spell of enchantment. "Is it always so? And do you never tire of it?" I asked Cornelia. "I never tire of it because nature is never twice the same but always lovely," she answered.
When I took the little footpath homeward through the pasture I felt that this had been a red letter day, indeed, and looking back through nearly sixty years it is still to me a red letter day.
The compartment store of today is the direct descendant of the general country store of early days, for Mr. Guiteau's stock contained a little of everything and the post office in addition. The post-master's duties were not arduous in a town of fifty inhabitants, with mails but three times a week. It was as the guest of Mr. and Mrs. Guiteau that I greatly changed my opinion of the resources of Freeport. I made the acquaintance of Mr. and Mrs. D. A. Knowlton, Mr. and Mrs. Orestes H. Wright-indeed, I think I met everyone in town.
1840-AMUSEMENTS. 1
The people in 1840 were not without their amusements. While different from the amusements of today, they were adapted and a part of the life of the tissue. Skating and sleighing were common forms of invigorating ex- ercise. Besides, there were quiltings, husking-bees, raisings and dances. Danc- ing was more general than it is today. The music was furnished by such old- time "fiddlers" as Daniel Wooten and "Professor" Clark. A man who under- stood his business "called" to dance. After the day's work was done, young people, and often times their elders, drove for miles over the snow to dance away till the morning hours. "There was sound of revelry by night' in the old log cabin home. It was not all privation and hard work in those days. The . pioneers earned the joy they had, and no people were ever more entitled to the relaxation of innocent pleasures.
Mrs. Oscar Taylor's dscription of early social life of Freeport is a graphic account by one who was without a superior in the social life of the county for over fifty years :
The social center of the little colony was the really charming cottage built by Mr. John A. Clark. Here were to be found a piano and a library, with many of the refinements of an eastern home, and one would need to go far today to find three more elegant and interesting women than Mrs. Clark and her sisters, Mrs. Thompson Campbell and Mrs. Stephenson, for whose husband Stephenson County was named. Brilliant and witty women of the world were all three. At the close of my visit with the Guiteaus I spent several weeks with Mrs. Clark, and I remember one incident of that time which illustrates the crude and incon- gruous social conditions. A man known as Don Wooton, living at Ridott had the frame up and the floors laid for a house. Wishing to give a ball before the par- titions of the house were up, invitations were sent out far and near. Now Mr. Clark as an office-holder must keep his popularity, and therefore insisted that the ladies of the household must accept the invitation. "And mind you," he said,
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"no matter what turns up to amuse you, don't let the suspicion of laugh ap- pear." Major Howe, who was dignity itself, took all our party with the Guiteau family in his bob-sled. Preliminary to the dance we were invited into the kitchen of the old log house where supper was given us with utter absence of formality, our host informing us by way of apology, that his wife was "powerful weak" and had gone to rest-before the snow had melted Mrs. Wooton had gone to her final rest. After supper we repaired to the dancing hall and ranged our- selves on a bench across a corner of the room. The host himself furnished the music, twanging away upon an old fiddle, while the dance went on with great dash and spirit. Such gyrations, such double-shuffles, such pigeon-wings and variations in step as we witnessed that night might have rivalled a planta- tion dance in old Virginia. During a lull in the performance a young man with a pitcher and one tumbler circulated some beverage among the tired dancers. He approached our group and pouring some whiskey into the tumbler offered it to Mrs. Stephenson. Without surmising its contents she had taken the tumbler into her hands then she looked at the young man in bewilderment as to what to do next. Suddenly catching the amusement in Mrs. Clark's eyes, she burst into a contagious ripple of laughter, in which, in spite of ourselves we all joined.
The man gave an angry look and with some threatening murmur left us. Fearing some unpleasantness from the episode, Mr. Clark speedily withdrew with his party, but nothing came of this flurry to Mr. Clark's disadvantage as he was re-elected clerk of the circuit court.
It was in connection with the circuit court the following April that the first dinner party was given in Freeport. The annual session of the court was looked forward to as the festal week of the year. There were two resident lawyers in Freeport at that time. It was the custom of the day for lawyers in the various little towns to travel with the judge on his circuit and great preparations were made for enertaining the strangers. During court week Mr. Clark had at his home Mr. Thompson Campbell, ex-secretary of the state, said to be at that time, the most brilliant man in the west, with Thomas Drummond of Chicago, after- wards judge of the United States Court, while several other prominent men were entertained at other private houses. I had the good fortune to be one of the guests at a dinner given to the presiding judge, Hon. Daniel Stone, of Cin- cinnati, and the rest of the legal lights. The dinner was not served in the dozen courses of today. An enormous wild turkey was provided, a creature so large that it was sent for roasting to a neighbor having an old fashioned brick oven. The turkey made a fine appearance when placed before Mr. Clark for carving, but upon application of the knife its power of resistance became evident. Im- pervious and flexible, the joints baffled every effort of the carver, for only the surface of the turkey had been cooked. "Cut the thing into steaks and let it be broiled in the kitchen," suggested Mr. Campbell. While this suggestion was fol- lowed the interval of waiting was delightful. Judge Stone was at his best with ancedotes and stories. Mr. Campbell convulsed the company with brilliant wit and sparkling sallies while Mr. Drummond, courteous and grave, added dignity to the assembly. In due time the turkey steaks were brought in and proved a delicious variation to the ordinary fashion of serving turkey. The rest of the dinner gave proof of the ingenuity and skill with which our hostess utilized
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the extremely narrow resources of the market. As a social entertainment I doubt if a more successful dinner was ever given in Freeport. In freedom from formality, in the frank recognitions of limitations, in the utter absence of the critical spirit, there was then a zest and charm and freshness in social intercourse which seems to vanish with the development of conventionality. No one was homesick or wished to return to the old life of the East or to the trammels of fashion. Fashion was indeed forgotten, for each woman was her own milliner and dressmaker.
In the very country itself one felt the buoyancy of youth. I shall never forget my own amazement at the careless prodigality with which nature lavished her flowers that springtime. Not only were the prairies aglow with colors, every road and pathway bordered with flowers, but the little town itself seemed like summer houses in the midst of a great garden. I have seen the banks of the creek by the Adams Street brewery purple with the lovely liatris, no longer to be found in this region, and the green swards aflame with the painted cup. Equally generous was mother nature in meeting material needs, for game was to be had for the seeking, venison in abundance, quail, wild turkey, prairie chicken, fish in the streams and duck in the marshes. This sense of abounding life and vigor was in the very air we breathed, our energy was unfailing, either in work or in pleasure; and no one considered trouble or recognized the possibility of failure.
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It was at this time that two enterprising young men opened a dancing school; this was short-lived, however, as those in the town inclined to dance considered themselves versed in the art. Mr. Bailey, the teacher, turned his energies to the manufacture of fanning-mills, resuming his lighter profession of an evening when dances were given and he was needed to call the changes in the quad- rilles. For years the music of all the dances in the county was furnished by Charlie Pratt. Charlie Pratt and his fiddle were inseparable, and supplied music as inspiring to young feet as does the Gibler orchestra today. Genial, kind- hearted old Charlie Pratt, with his gun and fiddle, was always a happy man, a favorite with the men, women and children-Peace to his ashes! I am afraid he rests in a nameless grave.
In those early years all new comers were welcomed with cordial friend- liness; but as young men outnumbered the maidens, the advent of each young girl was hailed with delight; in consequence every lassie had many a laddie.
In each man's anxiety to secure a wife before a rival stepped in, the tender question was often popped on the briefest acquaintance and with little ceremony. One young man was even rash enough to send a written offer of himself, his log house and his broad acres to two girls on the same day, in order to stake his claim, as it were, without delay. It happened that the two girls were intimate friends and confidents. As a result the over-anxious swain received on the same sheet of paper, replies from the two young ladies. The one demanding first love, the other demanding constancy. Undaunted the young man, knowing of a land in the east where maidens were plenty as strawberries in June, made the journey on foot to Chicago, by water to Buffalo and for all I know he walked to England; but he returned with a wife. Another young farmer was less easy to please. Like Ceolebs of old he started in search of a wife, but he had
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his ideals. He first called upon Miss Snow, then confided to a friend that she was agreeable but too black; the next proved fair but homely; the third was blonde and pretty but too stout. Sorrowing he turned homewards, but stopped in on the way at a house where he saw a young girl who pleased him, and straightway offering his hand he was accepted, two weeks later was married, living happily for many years after.
Before the period of settled ministers in Freeport the marriage ceremony was often arranged without much regard to convention, as when our leading physician tucked his sweetheart into a crockery crate well lined with straw, seated himself beside her and sped with her to Rockford where the nuptial knot was tied. One young couple had the good luck to secure a bishop to officiate at the farm house home of the bride. The lady, learning that Bishop Chase was to form Zion Parish in the year 1842, set her wedding day accordingly. Wedding guests assembled from Rockford and Freeport as well as from neighboring farms. The good Bishop, in his full white robes, began the service. When he came to the prayer and saw the company still standing he paused, then issued the command: "Kneel down, every one of you." And down on their knees dropped the astonished guests, some of whom seemed unaccustomed to the posi- tion. Having concluded the marriage the bishop proceeded to the next business in hand which happened to be a christening, for one of the guests was a young mamma who brought her infant to the wedding in order to seize that chance of having the baby christened by the bishop.
The social circle widened steadily, with many delightful additions. Mr. James Mitchell had married Miss Kate Clark, establishing a home which still con- tinues to be a center of hospitality. Pennsylvania had given us the Shaffer family, one of the daughters being Mrs. Jesse Snyder, the other marrying Dr. Sterns, and both so long prominent in church and social life; while later the brothers, Wilson and William, won distinction in the Civil War. From Cen- tral New York came the Clark Brothers, Silas and Warren, with their families; energetic young men they both were, adding to the prosperity of the town.
Inevitably a gradual transformation was taking place in the simple infor- mality of social life. We dropped the friendly custom of speaking to a stranger without waiting for an introduction. Innovations of fashion had crept in, as the more ambitious women sent to Rockford for bonnets or to Chicago for patterns ; until finally came the advent of the milliners and dressmakers. Inevitably, too, the accent of sectarianism was heard in the religious fold. It was not enough that we were Christians, we must be Presbyterians, Baptists, or Methodists as well. unless we happened to be Catholics or Episcopalians. Father Brewster, a man of sweet and saintly spirit, with Mr. Wright and Mr. Knowlton, fanned the fires of Presbyterianism, as Elder Schofield faithfully cleared the channel for the Baptist stream. Mrs. Russell and Father Wilcoxon cultivated the field of Methodism, entertaining with unwearied zeal the elders and exhorters who builded up its faith. Father Kavanaugh raised the Catholic standard, and the German Lutherans were forming the neucleus of St. John's Church. It was the Presbyterians who first reared their own place of worship, the brick church of 1849, which stood for many years on the present site of the Y. M. C. A.
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building. These years also gave us two weekly papers, the Prairie Democrat and the Freeport Journal.
FIRST CIRCUIT COURT.
August 29, 1839, saw the first session of the Circuit Court convened in Stephenson County. Hon. Daniel Stone, of the 6th Judicial Circuit was the judge. As there were no local attorneys at that day, the lawyers were imported. They came mostly from Galena and Mr. Hoag, Thompson Campbell, and prob- ably E. B. Washburne. Others, no doubt, were present who followed the Circuit as was the custom in those days. Hubbard Graves was sheriff and John A. Clark was clerk. John C. Robey and Wm. H. Hollenbeck were qualified and appointed deputies. Previously a Grand Jury was impanelled. It consisted of John Howe, Luther F. Hall, Samuel F. Dodds, Levi Wilcoxen, Joseph Lobdell, Pells Manny, A. B. Watson, Mason Dimmick, Levi R. Hull, Robert Barber, Newcomb Kinney, Johnathan Corey, Phillip Fowler, Thomas Crain, Loring Snow, Elldridge Farwell, Giles Pierce, D. W. C. Mallory, Job. S. Watson, J. K. Blackamore, Thompson Wilcoxen, Edward Marsh and Alpheus Goddard.
The Petit Jury consisted of : Frederick D. Bulkley, John Goddard, John Va- nepps, Rodney Montague, Mason Dimmick, J. H. Barber, James Hart, Bartholo- meu Fletcher, Samuel Nelson, James Canfil, Thomas Earley and Joseph Green.
The first case that came up was one of Asa B. Ames vs. Jacob Stroder, on appeal. The case was dismissed and plaintiff mulcted of costs. August 27, John O'Connor and Jackson Buskirk were indicted for the prevailing crime of horse stealing. As they were unable to employ the counsel, the court appointed Thompson Campbell and John C. Kimball to defend the accused. In this case, however, a change of venue was taken to Jo Daviess County, and the case was tried there. Hiram Walker was also tried and convicted of horse stealing. He was sent to prison at Alton for a term of four years. Another case was that of the State vs. Robert Campton for riot. There being no other business, the court adjourned on the same day it convened. On April 7th and September 7th the court was in session again for two days in April and three in September, with the same officials.
COURTS, LAWS, ETC.
A man who had stolen a horse in Winnebago County was arrested and brought to trial in Freeport. The indictment was defective and on plea of his counsel, it was apparent that the criminal would have to be released by the court. The court evaded this, however, by adjourning court till next day. At once a man was sent on horseback to Rockford to procure a new indictment, and take the man there for trial. He arrived at Rockford at midnight and fording the river, came near losing his life at the hands of a body of "Regulators" out after horse thieves. He finally aroused a justice of the peace and securing a new indictment, again forded the Rock River and made his way back to Freeport in time to be present at the opening of court next morning. When court opened, the prisoner was discharged but immediately re-arrested on the new warrant and taken to Rockford where he was tried and convicted.
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Court proceedings in the early times were different from the present system. A case of Mike Walsh is a good illustration. Mike was brought before Justice Red on a complaint of assault and battery. A jury was duly summoned and the case was fully tried. When the case was ready to go to the jury, Mike started a little procedure that was not on the program, and a kind of jury "fixing," different from that indulged in today. Just as the jury was ready to retire, Mike came in with a tin pail of whiskey and a cup. Addressing the jury, he said, "Gentlemen, I expect you will hang the little Irishman, but we will have a drink together first." After the drinks had been passed around, the jury retired. They were not out long before Mike appeared with more whiskey and tried to get into the jury room to give the jury further "dustructions." This almost provoked a fight with the constable which was forestalled by the appearance of the jury, which rendered a verdict of "not guilty," and divided the costs between the parties. The money was thus paid to the justice who in turn paid it to the witnesses and others till it was all gone.
Claim jumping was a common crime in the early days. Worden P. Fletcher, known as "Pony" Fletcher, was one of the guilty claim-jumpers. He came to the county in 1830 and that year was arrested and brought to trial before Justice Richard Hunt, at the corner of Galena and Van Buren Streets. At the close of the trial, the justice decided "Pony" guilty and meted out to him rather stringent punishment. Fletcher objected to the severity of the sentence, pleading that claim- jumping was just a common crime and a nominal offense. He was an eccentric character and, not having too much respect for the law, decided to take the affair into his own hands and at once made an attempt to escape without having com- plied with the conditions of the court. But in this he made a bad guess. The, au- dience, which was composed of men who had no love for claim-jumpers, at once took a hand, became a self-appointed posse comitatus, and the guilty man was restrained from taking sudden leave. Enraged at his plight and seeing escape shut off, Fletcher seized his gun and fired at the justice. The aim of the pris- oner was bad, luckily, and no injury was done except the vest of the justice was ruined. Fletcher was pounced upon and disarmed and session of court was resumed. Finally he gave bail to appear later. Among those present at the time were Frederick Baker, Isaac Stoneman, Allen Wiley and others. Fletcher then opened a farm in Rock Run township where he later married a daughter of the Widow Swanson, and became a good citizen. The case against him was dropped.
At the Old Settlers' Meeting at Cedarville, 1875, Mr. D. A. Knowlton, Sr., of Freeport, told the following story which indicates one way of collecting a bad bill. He said: "You know that I was always called a sharp collector. One day, a man named Charlie Hall came into my store with an order for goods, but he wanted more goods than the order called for. I said, 'Charley, I cannot trust you ; and "no" is a word I can always say in business matters.' 'But,' pleaded Hall, 'let me have them, Mr. Knowlton, and I will pay you next week.' I then made the following bargain with him: 'If you do not pay me the balance as per agreement, I shall have the privilege of kicking you every time I see you till the debt is paid.' For several weeks the countenance of Hall did not grace my store ; but after a while he appeared and walking into my store, I said: "Charles,
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I would like to see you a moment outside,' and when out I gave him a very vio- lent kick. Hall turned around and said, 'Knowlton, what is that for?' 'Accord- ing to agreement,' said I. The sequel to the case was that in a few days Hall brought in a load of corn to me, in payment of the debt which I received and placed to his credit. I afterwards learned that he was trusted for the corn by a farmer in order to avoid any further indorsements of my contract. It is un- necessary to add that the farmer was never paid for the corn. He endeavored to wash two hands with one and washed the farmer's."
PRAIRIE FIRES.
Prairie fires are to be added to the list of pests of the early day. In speaking of them Mrs. Oscar Taylor says :
"Country life had also its excitements and nature her dangers as well as repose, as I was soon to discover. During the Autumn, particularly, prairie fires menaced the pioneers, and children were taught to be always on the lookout for smoke along the horizon. One afternoon the smaller boys gave the startling alarm of smoke to the south of us, and the wind was sending the fire in our direc- tion. House and barns and stacks, the produce of the whole year, would be swept away before nightfall unless we could break the onward rush of the flames. The whole force of the farm, men, women and children, were set to work under my father's direction. We must fight fire with fire and suround the farm buildings with a belt of burned grass thus robbing the hungry enemy of fuel in that direc- tion. To burn that strip of grass for fifteen feet in width and nearly half a mile in length, and to keep this fire from spreading beyond control, taxed skill and energy to the utmost. But we fought our battle; and with torn garments, burned hands and blackened face we watched the defeat of the enemy. It was a fear- fully magnificent sight, that great line of flames rushing with speed of wild horses, roaring, cracking, breathing great volumes of blackened smoke. Onward it came until it reached the line of defense; the savage flames flung themselves forward and then with one frantic upward flash the fire died instantly, utterly quenched along the blackened belt. But on either side of our premises the flames pursued their way until again deprived of fuel by: the state road cutting its pathway. This fire was spoken of for years after as the great fire of '39."
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