USA > Illinois > Greene County > Past and present of Greene County, Illinois > Part 15
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
Rev. J. G. Rankin became pastor and con- tinued until 1861, and through his efforts, and under his administration, the academy (now used as a chapel) was erected and put in operation, and a parsonage was purchased. In 1864 Rev. S. H. Hyde became the pastor and continued as such for fifteen years. During Mr. Hyde's pastorate the present sightly brick edifice for worship was con- structed at a cost of $11,000, and unencum- bered by debt, was dedicated on the 18th of March, 1868. The year following the dedication a great religious interest was man- ifest in the congregation, followed by a won- derful revival of the work of grace. Pas- tor Hyde called to his assistance Rev. Dr. G. S. King, of Jerseyville, and Rev. W. L. Tar- bet. of Virden, who labored with him in the preaching of the Word, and as the imme- diate fruit of their endeavors forty-three persons made profession of faith and united with the church at one communion. In 1879 Mr. Hyde gave up his pastorate here and removed to Carthage, in this state.
He was succeeded by Rev. W. L. Tarbet, of Virden, Illinois, who served as pastor four years. He was a talented and forceful preacher, and under his administration the church enjoyed prosperity. spiritually and otherwise. Mr. Tarbet is now located in Morgan county in charge of a church. He is occasionally called to the scenes of his la- hors in Carrollton to officiate at funerals or weddings among his former parishioners.
Mr. Tarbet was succeeded by Rev. W. M. Campbell, who served as pastor with good acceptance for a period of six years. Ile was followed by Rev. George D. Mc- Culloch, a strong, carnest preacher, under whose ministrations the church was strength- ened, and whose pastorate terminated at the
end of three years, much to the regret of the church and congregation.
Rev. W. P. Hasken took charge, follow- ing Mr. McCulloch, and continued his pas- toral duties with good effect for a period of four years, when he was succeeded by Rev. Thomas B. Greenlee. Mr. Greenlee was an earnest, enthusiastic speaker and an excellent pastor, and the cordial relations that exist- ed between pastor and people, not only of the Presbyterian church and congregation but citizens of Carrollton generally, were only severed at the end of a three years pastorate because of the condition of the pastor's health, which necessitated his seeking a more northern latitude, which he did.
Mr. Greenlee was suceeded by W. Bry- son Smith, of St. Louis, who remained for two years, when he surrendered his charge and accepted a charge elsewhere.
The pastor in charge at present is Rev. Robert L. Evans. Mr. Evans' family con- sists of a wife and three children. some of them born in China, where he and his wife spent seven years in the missionary field. Mr. Evans is an able, pleasing speaker and an untiring worker among the members of his congregation outside of his pulpit duties. The cordial relations thus established be- tween pastor and people is an augury of good things for the Presbyterian church in Car- rollton in the future.
The present officers of the church are: Elders, George W. Davis, John L. Eldred, A. H. Fullerton, A. E. Wilson, Ed. D. Clark and E. 1. Eldred. Deacons. Isham Linder. J. Y. Dick, F. P. Kergher. Oscar Combrink. Charles E. Clark and Robert Simpson. Sunday school-George W. Da- vis, superintendent: E. D. Clark, assistant superintendent : J. Y. Dick, librarian ; Charles
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
11. Eldred, secretary and treasurer; Miss Bonnie Keigher, assistant secretary; Miss Lucie Miner, chorister; Miss Elsie Mc- Farland, organist ; teachers, .A. E. Wilson, E. D. Clark, Rev. R. L. Evans, C. E. Dun- can, Mrs. E. D. Clark, Mrs. J. L. Eldred. Mrs. A. E. Wilson, Mrs. Isham Linder, Miss Mariah Burruss, Miss Tippie Combrink and Miss Ada Roodhouse. The school at pres- ent has go scholars.
BAPTIST CHURCH.
The Baptist church of Carrollton was or- ganized .April 28. 1827, at the house of Jus- tin Rider. Those who signed the agree- nient for organization were Sears Crane ( then a Baptist minister) and wife, Abram Bowman and wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Rider and Miss Phebe Harris. According to the records the first pastor of the church was Rev. Elijah Dodson, who continued two or three years. Rev. . Alvin Bailey was pastor from 1834 to 1840, and again in 1853 to 1855. Among the other early pastors we may mention Revs. Jacob Bowers ( 1841). W. 11. Briggs ( 1843). Porter Clay ( brother of Henry Clay ). J. N. Tolman, Justus Bulk- ley and W. F. Boyakin ( the only one of the list now living, who resides at Blue Ridge, Kansas, still vigorous in intellect, in the 94th year of his age). It is not known where the church met for worship during the first few years of its existence, but it is recorded that in May. 1834, the first meeting was held in the new house of worship. This was a frame building on the same street east of the pres- ent site.
In April. 1852. under the pastorate of W. F. Boyakin. it was decided to erect a building of brick and stone, 66x42, with
basement, to cost, including lot. Sieex. The building committee consisted of David Pier- son, Thomas Hobson, John Headrick. 1. W. Caverly and %. A. Morrow. The build- ing was erected on the present site, on a lot purchased for the purpose, the south side of which the committee subsequently sold to Lyman F. Wheeler for $501. The old build- ing was sold to P. M. Brown for $410. The new church was dedicated January 6, 1856. Rev. D. P. French, then pastor at Jerseyville, preached the dedicatory sermon.
The pastors since that time have been in order as follows: Revs. E. J. Palmer ( sup- ply). Alvin Bailey, Justus Bulkley, N. Kinne, James M. Stiffler (supply). W. D. Clark ( two pastorates ), B. F. Parshall, II. A. Guild, J. C. Bonham, J. E. Roberts, John W. Primm, J. J. Reader, Robert J. Church, and .A. J. Young, the present incumbent. During the pastorate of Rev. Church the church building was remodeled and an an- nex built on the north side, the floor in the audience room inclined, memorial windows substituted, etc., at a cost of about $6,000.
The present church officers are: Ed. Miner, clerk ; Ed. Smith, treasurer ; Mrs. E. L. Davis, assistant treasurer ; trustees. J. M. Widdowson, D. D. Pierson, .A. M. Gallup, J. C. Bowman and J. J. Cul- well: chorister, Mrs. H. H. Montgomery ; assistant chorister, Mrs. C. C. Crow ; organ- ist, Luie Scruby: ushers, Ed. Rumrill, Fred Vertreese and Robert Smith; finance committee, J. C. Bowman, Mrs. 11. C. Ken- ney, Mrs. E. D. Davis, Miss Minnie Gelte and Fred Vertreese. Sunday school; F.d. Miner. superintendent : Frel Vertreese, assistant superintendent : Bessie Powell. sec- retary: Jennie Stone, treasurer; l.the Reed. organist : Orlean Clark, assistant organist
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
The Christian church of Carrollton was organized in 1832 under the ministry of Elder W. B. Stone. The congregation in its infancy enjoyed the ministrations of El- ders Stone, Hewitt, Osborn, Elly, Challen, Graham and others, and for a while pros- pered, numbering at one time about one hun- dred and twenty members. But death, re- movals and other causes reduced the mem- bership, and in the early part of 1841 the church ceased to exist. However, in De- cember of that year, under the labors of El- ders Stone. John J. Jones and D. P. Hen- derson, a re-organization was effected with about twenty-eight members. D. W. Ken- nett was elected elder, and W. R. Montague and J. H. Marmon deacons. Since then the church has had a regular ministry a greater part of the time. Among the several pas- tors we note Elders E. V. Rice, E. L. Craig, John Harris, John McPherson, T. W. Dun- keson, J. A. Berry, William M. Groves and C. H. Bass.
Louis Hensler is superintendent of the Sunday school. The plain but neat church building of this congregation was erected in 1857, but is kept in good repair, and its interior is inviting, clean, home-like and comfortable. The bell which first sum- moned worshipers to this church forty-eight years ago, and which is yet doing service where it began, was secured as a gift from a St. Louis firm. Field, Beardsley & Co., by the late W. P. Marmon. A letter still pre- served, addressed to Mr. Marmon and bear- ing the date. April 30, 1857, reads: "This day we ship a "Bell" to your address per steamer "New St. Paul," to be landed at Columbiana * *
* Please accept the "Bell" on behalf of the church with which
you are connected, hoping that its solemn peals may cause many wayward ones to hesi- tate in their course, turn and enter the doors of the sanctuary, which may prove to be to them the gate of Heaven."
TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
From some time prior to 1871 the Epis- copal congregation of Carrollton held serv- ices in the court house. During the winter of 1870-71 the subject of providing some more suitable place of worship was dis- cussed, and in April. 1871, the matter took definite form at a meeting of the leading members of the congregation. At that meet- ing the sum of $1,500 was guaranteed, and Judge C. D. Hodges gave notice that he would donate a lot on which to build. The committee appointed to solicit subscriptions met with such encouragement that it was determined to erect a much better building than was first intended. This building, which was a frame structure, was dedicated on March 10, 1872, and for fourteen years the society continued to worship there, but on the night of August 19. 1886, it was de- stroyed by fire. The following spring the rector, Rev. G. W. Van Winkle, drew the plans for another edifice on the site of the burned building, and the contract was let at once for a more substantial and modern house of worship, which was dedicated Oc- tober 2, 1887. This building cost something over $4,000, is built of brick, of gothic style, and has an audience room seating two hun- dred and twenty people, with a small chapel at the cast end, the whole edifice being a very pretty piece of church architecture.
The committee that had charge of erect- ing the building was composed of Dr. J. T. Crow, Ornan Pierson, G. Wiemer, .1. Q. Kennett and C. H. Hodges.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY
The Mission Trinity church, the name given to the organization, belongs to the dio- cese of Springfield, of which the Right Rev. George F. Seymour is bishop. The guild of Trinity church consists of eight chapters. A branch of the Woman's Auxiliary is or- ganized. Daughters of the King and Min- istering Children's League are also organ- ized.
ST. JOHN'S CATHOLIC CHURCH.
This church was built in 1862 by the few Catholics then living in Carrollton and vicin- ity. The parish dates from 1860, being at- tended by visiting priests from Alton and Jerseyville, until a resident pastor, Father Klein, took charge in 1863. Among the original members were Cornelius Carmody, Michael Carmody, Thomas Carmody, An- drew Sheedy. Andrew Witteshek, Joseph Stohr, Matthew Markham, James Mahoney, Thomas Scott. James Dunsworth, Thomas Lunneen and John McMahon. Lots were bought with a fund raised by subscription among the members, and on these the front part of the present building was erected at a cost of thirteen thousand dollars. In 1882 an addition in the rear in the form of a cross wing was added at a cost of eight thousand dollars. The seating capacity of the build- ing now is five hundred and fifty. Since its organization the congregation has enjoyed a steady increase in membership, especially through the immigration of German and Irish families. In one year ( 1871) fifty German families settled in Carrollton and near proximity. It is now the largest con- gregation in Greene county, its membership numbering from eight hundred to nine hundred. In 1870 a comfortable parsonage, adjoining the church edifice on the north.
was erected at a cost of three Wordsach oli- lars.
The parochial school connected with the church was established in 1877. near the be- ginning of the pastorate of Father Squer, The school is in charge of the Dominican Sisters, for whom a dwelling was erected. adjoining the church on the south, in 1881. Ninety pupils are now enrolled in the school.
Among the rectors who have adining tered to the parish in years past are Fathers Klein, Macken, Reconvrenr. Sauer and Ho ven. Rev. Fr. J. J. Driscoll is the rector now in charge. The present trustees of the church are Father Driscoll, Frank MeDon ough and Albert Geers.
The new parochial school building recent- ly completed by the parish at a cost of over eight thousand dollars is one of the conspic- nous improvements in the city. It is lo- cated on South Main street, on lots adjoin ing the church edifice on the cast.
The building is 40x50 feet in size. the stories and basement, surmounted by dormer windows and slate roof. The stone founda- tion is 24 inches thick, and the walls of the building are of the best grade of AAlton pay- ing brick, making a finish similar to the pub- lic library. The walls are 18 inches thick.
Front and rear entrances to the main floor lead into a corridor, eight feet wide. running through the building. On this door there are three class rooms, 24x32. 44\28 and 16x24. respectively ; also a cloak rown These rooms are admirably lighted to bin plate glass windows
The second floor is in one room, full sie of the building. This will be used - An audience room for school exhibitions aml entertainments.
The basement has a cement floor vind we'll be used as a play room in stormy weather
.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
The church building is heated by steam, and pipes will be laid so that the same boiler will furnish heat for the school building. Elec- tric lights will be put in.
The building was completed about Janu- ary I, 1905. J. L. McCarty, of St. Louis was the architect; W. P. Dunn, of Carlinville, erected the building; William Koughan of this city did the stone work; Otto Lauter- bach, the plastering, and William Foster, of Springfield, the slating.
The entire undertaking, from its earliest inception, has been under the direction of Rev. Father J. J. Driscoll, pastor of St. John's church, and both he and the members of his congregation are to be congratulated upon the success and thoroughness of the work.
LODGES.
Carrollton lodge, No. 50, A. F. & A. M., was organized under charter February 21, 1848, under name of Fletcher lodge, with Henry Duesenberry, Edward A. D'Arcy, David M. Woodson, Isaac Darneille, R. S. Hollenbeck, E. VanHorne, D. B. Stith and Dr. J. B. Samuel, charter members. The first officers were: J. B. Samuel, W. M .; E. A. D'Arcy, S. W .; and David M. Wood- son, J. W. Shortly after its institution its name was changed to Carrollton lodge. The present officers are : J. M. Widdowson, W. M .: T. J. Raffety, S. W .; Robert E. Rum- rill. J. W .: F. . \. Lender, S. D .; B. W. Greer. J. D. ; Clyde Linder, secretary ; W. L. Armstrong, treasurer. The lodge is in a flourishing condition, having over one hun- dred and twenty-five members.
MODERN WOODMEN.
The present officers of the camp are:
Clyde Fair, consul; Charles Ram- sey, advisor ; D. E. Fox, banker, and A. J. Sharon, clerk. The managers are: C. A. Taylor, George Keiper and T. M. Williams. It has a membership of two hundred and forty.
INDEPENDENT ORDER OF ODD FELLOWS.
Carrollton lodge, No. 342, I. O. O. F., was instituted January 31, 1867. The first officers were: J. J. Paris, N. G .; W. S. Tandy, V. G .; J. M. Russell, R. S .; T. G. Jeffries, treasurer ; G. W. Rumrill, recorder. The present officers are: George Keiper, N. G .; M. E. McMahan, V. G .; D. E. Fox, sec- retary, and D. E. Doolittle, treasurer ; trus- tees, J. WV. Beatty, Otto Lauterbach, Charles A. Taylor, S. A. Black and Chester K. Gil- lespie.
WATER WORKS.
In December, 1889, was begun a system to supply the city with water. The city council having made arrangements for funds with which to prosecute the work, and de- cided upon a deep well system, a contract was let to Mr. Gray, of Chicago, to sink the well on the property purchased by the city for the purpose west of the Q. C. & St. L. depot. The work on the well was begun on the 27th of December and completed in May of the next year at a cost of $3.045. This well giving promise of an abundance of water, the city council called a special meeting to be held June 12, 1890, at which time it was decided by a vote of 272 to 75 to issue bonds to the amount of $20,000 for the construc- tion of a water works system. The contract was let to George Cadogan Morgan, of Chi- cago, for $19.463, and the system was com-
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
pleted and turned over to the city on January I of the next year. The system inchided the well, a powerful pumping engine, a reser- voir containing 58,000 gallons of water, a duplex pumping engine with a capacity of a million gallons of water in twenty-four hours, a water tower one hundred and sixteen feet 'in height, including the tank thirty-six feet high and holding twenty-eight thousand gal- lons, between four and five miles of water inains and forty-five hydrants.
It soon became apparent that a mistake had been made in the construction of the bore of the well, in that it was not cased its entire depth, the lack of which permitted sand to enter and interfere with the working of the deep well pump. It was decided to remedy this by boring a second well and casing it the entire depth, or at least to the St. Peter sandstone. 1,237 feet. By this means two ob- jects were accomplished : nothing but the pure water from the St. Peter sandstone would flow into the well, and the sand was shut out. The cost of the second well was $3,800.
The tower pressure of the system is about fifty-two pounds to the square inch, while a direct pressure of one hundred and fifty to one hundred and sixty pounds to the square inch can be expected.
While the water supply from these two wells was adequate to supply the demands for sprinkling and fire extinguishing pur- poses, the fact that it was highly charged with sulphur rendered it distasteful to many for drinking and culinary purposes, which fact led to expressions of regret that the city did not go to the Dodgson Springs for the water supply, as was advocated by some at the time the contract for sinking the deep wells was let. Many of the users of the water refused to renew their contracts for
supply and the city council began casting about for a further solution bi the water problem. To this end, on the 5th day of June, 1900, the council visited The Dodgson Springs in a body and at its meer- ing a week later passed a resolution in fa- vor of buying the spring's and putting Si8. 000 into the improvement. On August 16 an agreement was reached between the coun- cil and David Dodgson, the latter agreeing to sell the springs and five acres of ground adjoining for $500. The fact that the city was in debt to almost the five per cent limit threatened to be an insurmountable barrier. But the last preceding legislature had pro- vided for this very emergency, and passed a law authorizing the issuing of water cer- tificates to be paid out of the revenues of the system.
.An ordinance providing for such an issue was passed by the council, and on October 12th the proposition of a Chicago broker- age firm-John Nuveen & Co .- to take the bonds and certificates, bearing six per cent interest, at par was accepted, and bonds to the amount of $6,000 and $13,000 in water certificates were issued. On November 8th of this year the contract for constructing the water works improvement was let to Charles .A. Stookey, of Belleville, for $18.580. It was hoped to get the work completed before cold weather, but some legal complications with reference to the bonds and certificates arising, an injunction stopped the work and the construction was delayed until May. 1001, when the injunction case was decided in favor of the city, and Mr. Stookey re- sumed work July Ist and on October 16 the city council received the water works exten- sion and tendered a vote of thanks to the con- tractor for the promptness and excellence of his work.
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
The Dodgson Springs, the source of Car- rollton's water supply, are located almost four miles in a direct line northwest of the city. These springs, the water from which bubbles forth at the foot of a steep wooded hill and swells a modest rivulet to the proportions of a respectable creek, have been in existence no one knows what length of time, but the earliest settlers drank of their waters and told of their unceasing flow. These springs are now enclosed within a reservoir seventy feet at its longest point and thirty-five feet wide. Its four irregular sides consist of a concrete wall fifteen inches thick and ten feet high; the bed of the reservoir is covered with broken rock. The water in it is con- trolled by an overflow and remains at a depth of two and a half feet. The high walls were not designed to hold the water in but to keep the floods from the creek out; so that the supply is always pure.
For supplying this water to the city two complete outfits of pumping machinery are provided, so that in case of accident or breakage it will only be necessary to start the other pump. The larger of the two pumps is a Dean compound duplex, operat- ed by steam and having a capacity of pump- ing six hundred thousand gallons from the reservoir at the springs to the standpipe in Carrollton every twenty-four hours. The other pumping outfit consists of a Smith- Vaile pump operated by an Olds gasoline engine of twenty-five horse power, and has just one-half the capacity of the other.
The pipeline which conveys the water from the springs reservoir to the city con- sists of nineteen thousand eight hundred feet of six-inch iron pipe laid four feet under ground and a connection is made with the original city mains at the old pumping sta- tion. The large reservoir at the old station
will be kept full of water to be used in case of emergency. Carrollton is justly proud of her water works system. In fact she is the only town in the state of Illinois that has a water supply coming direct from natural springs, and also the only town in the state that has succeeded in making such improve- ments under the new law, which provides that they may be paid for out of the revenues of the system.
CARROLLTON STEAM HEATING PLANT.
In cost and up-to-dateness the heating plant completed last fall by the Carrollton Heat, Light and Power Company, heads the list of improvements for the year. Nearly three months of continuous and ardent la- bor has been put on it, and it is believed to be as good a heating system as may be found in any of the larger cities. Many serious obstacles were encountered, but were over- come by persistent effort. The work of ex- cavating was done by the local company, and the pipes were laid by the American District Steam Company, of Lockport, New York, which has been putting in these heating plants for over twenty-five years and spare no expense to give the best system possible. R. F. Furbish, a civil engineer in the employ of the company, has superintended the work.
The line of mains runs from the power plant, up the alley between North and South Main streets, to the public square, a distance of about a third of a mile, and then makes a complete circuit of the square near the side- walk, thus giving a better circulation of the steam. Total length of the mains is about three thousand seven hundred fect.
The steam is conveyed through wrought iron pipes, wound with asbestos paper bound on with copper wire. The pipe thus covered
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PAST AND PRESENT OF GREENE COUNTY.
T- encased m a tin-lined, circular, wood cas- systems, regel is that of the electric light ing, made two inches larger inside than the plant. tron pipe, thus giving a dead air space which is the best non-conductor of heat. The wood CARROLLTON NOTSERIES. casing is made of four-inch staves, tongued and grooved together, the whole spirally wound with galvanized steel wire embedded 'into the wood, and then covered over with pitch and sawdust. These casings are so joined as to be water tight. Underdrainage, consisting of tile covered with gravel, is pro- vided throughout to more thoroughly pre- serve the pipe line. The mains are carefully laid to grade so as to properly drain the pipes of condensation. For this purpose the trench started at the power house ten feet deep and ranged up to about four feet.
At certain distances in the line expansion joints are placed to take care of the expan- sion of the iron pipe, which takes place when steam is on the line.
.As to the life of the casings, it is not known how long they will last. At one place where mains were taken up to be replaced by larger ones after thirteen years they were found practically as good as new. . At Dan- ville, this state. 1.000 feet were taken up after seven years, and the wood was sound, the tin bright and the iron pipe could not be distin- guished from new.
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