USA > Illinois > DeKalb County > Past and present of DeKalb County, Illinois, Volume I > Part 23
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DeKalb furnished 223 men for the Rebellion. They were mainly attached to the 13th. 420, 52d and 58th Illinois regiments.
The first newspaper was establshed in DeKalb in 1859.
In 18%-t. the Honorable J. F. Glidden received his first patent on his celebrated barb wire. entered into partnership with Col. I. L. Ellwood. com- menced the manufacture of Glidden wire, which article has become a household word in all civil- ized lands. They first commenced to manufacture in a little frame building which stood where the Holmes livery stable now is. Mr. Glidden re- mained in business only two years, selling out to I. L. Ellwood, who in 1879 built the old Superior shops. The business was carried on here for sev- eral years, when it was finally moved into two immense factories, one fronting on Fourth and the other on Tenth street. Mr. Ellwood retained a controlling interest in these institutions until 1898. when they were bought by the American Steel & Wire company, and now form one of the plants of that powerful trust.
In 1874, Jacob Ilaish commenced making his celebrated barb wire in a little building where his lumber yard now is. Mr. Haish and his friends claim that he was the first in the field of inven- tion and for years a suit between Haish and the barb wire combine was carried on until it reached the Supreme court and a decision was given in favor of the Washburn & Moen Manufacturing company. His institution has continually grown until it has become one of the large barb wire factories of the country. The building of these two factories and the growing of the barb wire institution have proved a great boon to the city of DeKalb.
In 1891, the DeKalb County Fence company began in a small way to make woven wire on the north side of the railroad track. They enlarged their quarters in 1894 and have kept enlarging until at present their plant covers thirty-one acres of ground. They now occupy the Abram Ellwood factory and have in their employ more than three hundred men. Their product is shipped through the United States and many foreign countries and they cannot supply the demand. E. F. Shella- berger is president of the DeKalb County Fence company.
The Electric Light and Power company was started in 1893 by S. E. Bradt and John Glidden. They are working under twenty year franchise.
In 1891 the Wells Shoe factory was established in DeKalb and has been continually growing and at present employs four hundred hands and has a capacity of three thousand pairs of shoes daily. This has proved to be one of the strong manu- facturing industries of the county.
The Barb City Manufacturing company was in- stituted in 1895. A portion of the plant they occupy was originally built by Ed. Beers, who manufactured plows in 1824. The company man- ufactures many kinds of farming implements and at present is very prosperous, giving employment to several hundred men.
DeKalb has generously given large bonuses to manufacturing companies and at present has grown so as to have a population of nine thousand people. The last achievement in this line was the locating of the Piano Manufacturing company. which employs three hundred hands.
The building of the Normal has been one of the things that has made DeKalb famous. It was
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located largely through the efforts of Col. I. L. Ellwood and through the generosity of Joseph Glidden.
Hiram Ellwood was one of the first citizens of DeKalb to be honored by a county office and was elected in 1859 and again in 1861. Before this time the county officers received but a small sal- ary and there was not much contest as to who should hold the position. In 1864 I. V. Randall was elected a member of the Legislature. In 1868 Hon. C. W. Marsh was elected representative and served several terms.
Daniel D. IIunt was elected representative in 1886, served two terms at representative and in 1890 was elected state senator. After his retire- ment to his farm he became a heavy stockholder in the New Era Publishing Co., publishers of the New Era readers and other school text books.
S. O. Vaughn was a man who held local office for nearly a half century. He was a Mason of the thirty-third degree, a P. M. of the the Blue lodge, H. P. of the chapter, E. C. of the Sycamore com- mandery and I. commander-in-chief of the con- sistory and grand H. P. of the general grand chapter of Illinois. Except General Dustin was the only grand presiding officer of any of the grand bodies of the state of Illinois elected from our county. In 1867 the Freeport consistory absorbed the DeKalb consistory, as the buildings were not large enough and the territory too small to sustain a Masonic body of such proportions as the con- sistories of the county have become.
In 1884 the political meeting was held under the auspices of the Democratic party at DeKalb and attracted about 30,000 people. At one time there were thirty-three bands playing on Main street. The orators were Henry Watterson, Gen. John M. Palmer and ex-Governor McDonald of Indiana. Fourteen cattle were roasted at what is now Nor- mal Park, and other edibles were sent in by Dem- ocratie organizations throughout the country and distributed free. One thing that will be remem- hered about this day is the stormy weather. It began to rain in the morning and continued through the day.
The men from the township who have held the position of supervisor were Thomas M. Hopkins, .Joseph F. Glidden, Alonzo Converse, Lo Huntley, Marcus White, E. P. Young, Hiram Ellwood, Silas
Tappan, Il. Thompson, Lewis McEwen, D. D. Hunt, V. A. Glidden. Those who have held that position from the city as assistant supervisors were W. Hallen, Silas Tappan, L. Morse, S. O. Vanghan, E. B. Gilbert, W. C. Tappan, Harvey Thompson, William A. Miller L. M. MeEwen, William H. Record, J. S. Russell, A. W. Fisk, B. White, H. B. Gurler, J. J. Johnson.
MAYFIELD.
The township of Mayfield, while not the first one permanently settled in our county, is ante- dated by but few townships, notably Squaw Grove, Somonauk, Kingston, Sycamore and perhaps Shab- bona. The early history of this township is full of interest, and while the last of the first settlers who located here previous to 1837 have passed away, still it was from the lips of these hardy pio- neers who did so much for the prosperity of their descendants and gave those who follow them a rich legacy of good deeds and sterling attributes of character, we have many interesting anecdotes. The settlements in Mayfield were made in the woods and along the streams, and the first settler was without doubt Ira Douglas. Others came in the same year, namely: John Tower, John Thom, Morris and Erasmus D. Walrod, Robert Graham, Samuel Gilbert, James McCollum and Hon. Henry Madden. These settlers found that Mayfield had been occupied by the Indians previous to their coming but at that time no Indians were residing permanently in the township. The village of Col- tonville in DeKalb township, immediately south of the Mayfield line, was the permanent residence of the Indians and when the settlers came they found in the neighborhood one hundred Indians residing in the grove near the present Adee farm. Near the south line of the township was buried the old Indian chief, Capas. Capas had been slain in an encounter with the Indians and his remains were buried in a stockade covered with timber. He was found in a sitting posture with pipe, arms and everything necessary for life on the happy hunting ground. Sometime in the early '40s his remains, with the bullet that caused his death, were taken by Dr. Richards of the old St. Charles Medical School. Along the banks of the Kish- waukee many implements used by the Indians in warfare and domestic life have been found and
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thinly scattered over the prairie the plowman found arrow and spear heads. About thirty years ago Wallace Bacon found on the farm now owned by John Dick a large arrow head firmly imbedded in a large bone. Later research and knowledge leads us to believe that it was the bone of a buffalo. Near the Mayfield town hall the writer in 1812 picked up a portion of an elk's horn, which tells us definitely of the fauna of the earlier days. Mayfield in the days of her early settle- ment was covered by about five thousand acres of timber. The remainder was gently undulating. unbroken prairie, tinted during the spring, suin- mer and early autumn with the various shades of the wild flower. In the carly springtime it was covered with yellow buttercups ; then came the lady slippers : later it was flecked with the deep scarlet prairie lily. In summer it was a purple sea of wild flox ; then came the prairie flowers of autumn, vellow and sombre.
After the organization of the township it was called Liberty, but owing to its exuberance of wild flowers in the spring her first supervisor, Mulford Nickerson, following the suggestion of his daughter, Eunice, who was a teacher of the carlier days, named the township Mayfield. The early settlers of Mayfieldl were at Pleasant Hill, Brush Point and on the south side of the town near Col- tonville. The early settlers found an abundance of game and during the winter season were never without sufficient food. The winter of 1810 had destroyed the buffalo and elk, so that it was a great exception if any of these animals were seen cast of the Mississippi river after that time. Deer was found in great abundance. John Mullen, the pioneer of the town. said that one morning during the winter of the early '40s he killed seven deer before breakfast, and as late as November 4, 1856, ITouton Graham appeared at the old Brush Point schoolhouse and with his rifle on his shoulder to cast his vote for "Buck," as he called Buchanan, said he would kill a buck before supper. which boast he successfully carried out. A quarter of a century ago there were no game laws in force and quail and prairie chicken were trapped during the winter season by the thousands. When the snow was deep and the winter severe the wild fow] would frequent barnyards and grain stacks. for during those early years the hum of the thresher was heard all winter. Prairie wolves were heard
every night and hunger often drove them to the haunts of man for food. In the autumn the wild fowl covered every pond and stream and in those times the tiller's spade had not destroyed their marshy hiding places, and on the farm now owned by William Wike, two of the pioneers in the fall of 1865 hid in some willow bushes and without changing position killed enough water fowl to fill a bushel basket. Wild pigeons at this season came in such numbers that in their southward flight they would keep up their continuous procession for days and were so thick that they would darken the sun. Pigeon potpie was very common at this time, for the person who could point a gun heav- enward was sure of a game dinner. The sand hill crane was a gamy fowl and of delicious flavor. but they flew at great heights and when on the ground were hard to approach and the aspiring hunter after shooting one was a mighty Nimrod.
However, this beautiful prairie was not free from the primal curse. The beneficent sun, which kindles into being so many forms of life. fails not to engender venom and death from the slime of the pestilential swamp and marsh and many were the ague and fever stricken victims of early days. On the prairie and along the streams the rattlesnake rang out his sharp warning, which no man would dare to contemn. Roderick Carnes, while breaking a piece of prairie sod about sixty years ago, in finishing his field dis- patched about twenty-five rattlers. James Robert Graham and David Tower, settlers who came to Mayfield in 1836 and 1838, respectively, have told that rattle snakes were as common in their boy- hood as garter snakes of today.
Before Mayfield was known as a township Dr. Henry Madden, of Brush Point, had been elected first representative of this district to the legisla- ture, which was during the time the portion now De Kalb county was a part of Kane and the meas- ure of setting apart the territory now De Kalb was presented and passed through his efforts. Dr. Madden was a great reader, a man well educated for those times, and seems to have been well known throughout northern Illinois. He served his county and his locality in many different posi- tions. TIe later moved to Malta, dying there in 1867. The town was kept in a broil for many years by claim jumpers, but when the claim wars were settled by the perfection of their titles
MAYFIELD PIONEERS.
THE NEW VORRI PUBLIERFARY;
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through purchase from the government and the claims of the rival point for the seat of justice had been disposed of, the settlers of the town moved on the even tenor of their way with per- fect quiet. The old settlers gradually acquired the comforts of life, the outlying territory became settled and the township increased in wealth and population.
The first religious service in Mayfield was held in the log cabin of Ira Douglas some time about the year 1837, and for years afterward until the Pleasant schoolhouse was built in the early '40s. In 1844 the Wesleyan Methodist church separated from the Methodist Episcopal and a society of that denomination was organized. For a time it had its class meetings and religious services in pri- vate residences until the building of the Brush Point schoolhouse, when their services were held there until 1862, when the Wesleyan Methodist church was erected. One of the foundation prin- ciples of this church was opposition to slavery and in the earlier days previous to the war this re- ligious organization was the strongest in this township and it was the members of this religious organization was the strongest in this township and it was the members of this religious organiza- tion that conducted the workings of the under- ground railway. Those who were now known to have been active in assisting slaves to Canada and freedom were Joshua Townsend and his sons. Ste- phen and Charles ; Mulford Nickerson and his son, William A. Niekerson; Peter, John and Ira Nich- ols. At the time these men were active in this work they were regarded by many as lawbreakers, but in the line of all that has happened we are proud of the fact that these men had the cour- age of their convictions and did so much for the freedom of humanity. William A. Nickerson, who still lives in Grand Traverse county, Michigan, at the age of ninety-seven years, was one of the foremost citizens of Mayfield. He represented his town several years as supervisor, was prominent in county affairs generally, and for years a local preacher. The Townsends came into Mayfield in 1840 with the exception of Charles, who came in 1837. Joshua Townsend was a man beyond middle life when he came here, but his son Stephen was a very active and public-spirited man. one of the foremost organizers of the freesoil and afterward one of the republican party of this county. He
was a man of more than average intelligence, genial and pleasant and was a man of almost boy- ish enthusiasm. Very few men have exerted a larger influence over the community in which he lived than Stephen Townsend. The Nichols moved to Mayfield in 1837, John Nichols having moved here two years previous. They were activo in the organization of the Wesleyan church, were prominent in underground railroad circles and contributed a great deal to the social and religious life of the community. In the early '40s among the many that came to Mayfield were the Smith brothers, Spafford and Curtis. Spafford became a wealthy landholder, later retired from active business and lived in Sycamore until the time of his death. Curtis Smith served the town and county faithfully, was supervisor for many years and in the early days was a prominent leader in whig politics. He afterward became allied with the republican party and was active in its coun- cils. He was a ready debater, a man very well read and of great intelligence. Harrison Maekey came to Mayfield in 1839, was a successful finan- cier and died on the farm he bought from Uncle Sam, at an advanced age. Joseph Collier came in 1835 and first settled in Kingston. He after- ward took up a claim in Mayfield and was living there at the time of his death in 1837. Mr. Col- lier had been a captain of militia in the state of Ohio and he. with Stephen Moury, of Coltonville, was elected justice of the peace when this county was still a part of La Salle. He was one of the first of the early settlers who died in De Kalb county.
The Methodists held religions services in the Partridge schoolhouse, Pleasant Hill schoolhouse and the Vandeburg schoolhouse for many years, but in 1860, under the leadership of Rev.
Webster, who was pastor of the Kingston circuit, which then included the Methodist appointments in Mayfield and Kingston, two churches were built. One known as the Pleasant Hill church on the Kingston side of the base line on land now owned by Charles Nichols, section 35, Kingston. Another known as Bethel church was built on the north side of section 1, Mayfield. When Rev. Webster announced his first service on the site of what later became Bethel church, he stated that he would preach on the devil's pre-emp- tion on a certain Sunday. On the day appointed
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PAST AND PRESENT OF DE KALB COUNTY.
hundreds of people came to hear the sermon and he announced to them that he would build a church on this spot. He was a man of great energy, doing considerable of the work himself. His son after- ward became a candidate for United States senator and is at present contemplating entering the race in opposition to A. J. Hopkins. The Vandeburg schoolhouse was for years one of the points of the township, where many public meetings were held, the Methodist, Adventist and Baptist de- nominations having services there at different times, and it was the scene of the old Durgeon singing schools, which were held there in the win- ter of 1854, people attending from miles around. Some men and women approaching the three score and ten of life state how they walked five or six miles weekly to attend these singing schools. The Brush Point schoolhouse was until 1860 the election precinet of Mayfield. Political meetings were held here in the early days. The whigs, free- soilers and democrats had political meetings there until 1818. In 1856 a great republican rally was held there. hundreds attending from Sycamore. De Kalb and other places. In 1860 the township elections were held at Partridge schoolhouse and that was the scene of political meetings and elec- tions from 1860 until 18:1. when Mayfield built the present town hall. The Wesleyan society men- tioned previously has since been converted into a Congregational organization, and at present a min- ister of that denomination holds regular services there. In 1864 or 1865 a sectarian spirit ran high and religious dissensions were the order of the day. An Adventist preacher-Harry McCullock, and Charles Sherwood, of the Christian faith, held a debate which lasted for a period of a week. As is usual, both sides of the contest thought their'speak- ers were victorious. For years these denominations held services in the Wesleyan church, and as is the case with union churches generally. a collision came and the Adventist and Christian denomina- tions built what was known as Christian chapel a mile west of the present Wesleyan church. In about 1828 the two denominations, Adventist and Christian, no longer continned their services and the church was moved away and is now used as a farm building. The denominational bitterness engendered at this time was injurious to the re- ligious and social life of Mayfieldl. If we were to disenss the matter with members of the various
denominations we would hear three sides of the question. Whatever the merits of the case might have been it is safe to say that on the whole the results were injurious. Some families embittered by religious dissensions moved away from the town and so far as we are able to observe the spirit of Christian fellowship was never so strong after these days of rancorons religious dissension.
It has been stated that the first school in May- field was taught by Lney Stewart in Hodge's house, known later as the Carlisle place, about a mile south of the Ira Douglas farm on the Pleasant Hill road. Others state that the first school was taught by Fanny Clark, in the log cabin located on the farm afterward owned by Mason MeClelland.
Mayfield furnished two soldiers for the war with Mexico-one George Dennis, who still lives in lowa. The name of the other we have been unable to ascertain. In the breaking out of the rebellion, Mayfield furnished troops regularly at each call and during the war furnished one hun- dred and three mnen. It raised over twelve thou- >and dollars in bounties for the soldiers. Those who died in the service of their country were J. P. Young. W. H. Decker. G. G. Farwell, J. Pat- terson. Turner Wing. Alonzo Houghton, William Stevenson, Joseph Piper. Samuel Piper. Edward Howe. Elias Gobel, Marvin Dennis and William Kerr. About twenty others were seriously wounded and some crippled for life. Thus of the one hun- dred and three men furnished more than a third were killed or disabled.
In the early days of the pioneers of Mayfield prairie fires were common. Beginning in the town- ship of South Grove they would generally sweep over the prairie, much of which was uninhabit- able. On one occasion while Mr. J. H. Dick, a pioneer of the carly '10s, was lying ill and un- conscious with typhoid fever, being attended alone at night by his wife, a prairie fire broke out, which threatened to destroy their home. This being sometime after midnight we can easily realize the terror felt by the lone woman in the care of her sick husband. A catastrophe was only evaded by the prompt assistance of the neighbors, who. knowing of her helpless condition, responded and thus saved their lives and property.
The Walrods settled in Mayfield at an early day and Erasmus Walrod was elected sheriff and
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was afterward a prominent citizen of Sycamore. James Sivwright, Sr., came to Mayfield in 1842, took up his land from the government, served his township for years as supervisor, was prominent in county and religious affairs, and at the time of his death was serving as coroner of De Kalb county.
In 1887 the Great Western was built through the township of Mayfield and the village of Clare subsequently sprung up. While of no great pro- portions the village does a large shipping busi- ness and is a great convenience to the farmers of that locality. Three years ago the C. T. & M. passed through Mayfield and the station known as Wilkinson was established. In 1856 a settle- ment of Pennsylvania Germans was established in the north part of the town. They purchased homes and afterward became thrifty farmers. Among the number were M. Ault, William Younkin, Wil- liam Remala, J. K. and William Gross and the Rotes. As soon as the prairie became settled and people began to realize that the prairie land was much better than timber land for general farming purposes and after the timber was cut off many Swedish families settled in the timber belt of Mayfield, at first buying little patches, building homes, clearing the land and adding continually to their holdings until they have become pros- perous citizens. Among the number of Swedish- Americans in Mayfield who have become prosper- ous and useful citizens are Frank Gronberg, John Johnson, Frank Peterson and John Israelson. The supervisors of Mayfield were: Mulford Nickerson. 1850; Willis Lott, 1851: James Sivwright, 1852: Agrippa Dow, 1853-54: James Parker, 1855; Henry Madden, 1856: W. A. Nickerson, 1857-58: A. B. Crippen, 1859-60 ; James Sivwright, 1861-62 : T. Wynkoop, 1863-64; Curtis Smith, 1865-72; E. P. Safford, 1873-46; Nelson Sivwright, 1877-79; Nelson Sivwright, 1881; E. P. Satford, 1882; H. O. Whittemore, 1883-84: Nelson Sivwright, 1885: II. O. Whittemore, 1886: Oscar Smult. 1886-89 ; James Sivwright, 1890-94 ; Edwin Town- send. 1895-1901: F. S. Ault, 1901-05: George Diek. 1906-06.
KINGSTON.
Kingston, one of the first settled townships in the county, was the home of a considerable por-
tion of the tribe of Pottawattomie Indians until 1835. Here they had erected their wigwams in the timberland along the Kishwaukee, and obtain- ing fish from this stream and game from the fields and forests, the meat question was easily settled. The fertile land bordering the Kishwau- kee was made by the squaws into most productive corn fields and in the contentment of their bar- barous customs they existed in this township until the command came from the United States govern- ment for them to move west. The land they va- cated was quickly usurped by the white people who had come from the cast in search of a desirable location for future homes. They found their way to this beautiful piece of natural woodland by fol- lowing a' trail which a detachment of General Scott's army had made when it crossed the north- ern part of the country during Black Hawk's war. The road for many years was known as "Scott's trail," and it now is called the "State road." This detachment of Scott's army camped over night near the northern boundary of Kingston, and while there some of their number died. They were buried under a burr oak tree just north of the county limits not far from the Davis church.
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