USA > Illinois > Peoria County > Peoria > Peoria city and county, Illinois; a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Vol. I > Part 13
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The following officers were appointed for the county of St. Clair : John Hays, sheriff ; William Arundale, formerly of Peoria, recorder; John Hay, clerk of the court of common pleas, or county clerk : Enoch Moore, coroner; John Mes- singer, surveyor. Among the justices of the peace appointed were Antoine Des Champs, who lived at Peoria, and Nicholas Boilvin. The latter resided at Prai- rie du Chien. He was the father of Nicholas and William C. Boilvin, who became quite prominent in Peoria business circles.
Eventually, St. Clair county was divided into other counties. In 1812, Madi- son was organized, within the limits of which was Peoria and so remained until 1821, when it became part and parcel of the newly created county of Pike. Many conveyances of land in Peoria had been recorded in Madison county, at Edwardsville, which have been transcribed and now are included in the records of this county.
Pike county was organized in 1821 and for two years thereafter Peoria county was embraced within its boundaries and all records of conveyances of land were kept at its county seat. During this period the following persons were at the head of affairs of Pike county: Abram Buck, probate judge, from February 12. 1821, to June 11, 1821, when he resigned and was succeeded by Nicholas Hanson, who also resigned and was followed in the office February 15, 1823, by William Ross; April 2, 1821, Leonard Ross, John Shaw and William Ward were elected county commissioners, Bigelow C. Fenton, sheriff, and Dan- iel Whipple, coroner. At an election held August 5, 1822, James M. Seeley, David Dulton and Ossian MI. Ross were elected county commissioners, Leonard Ross, sheriff, and Daniel Whipple, coroner. During this period Abner Eads, John Shaw, Daniel Whipple, William Ross, Henry Tupper. Leonard Ross and William Ward were appointed justices of the peace for Pike county. For the same office Ebenezer Smith and Stephen Dewey were commissioned on May 26, 1821, Ossian M. Ross, November 29, 1821 ; John Bolter, August 29, 1821; Charles B. Rouse, January 22, 1822; Amos Barcroft, May 22, 1822.
Sangamon county was organized at the same session of the legislature as Pike and on January 28, 1823, the county of Fulton was formed, the boundaries of which were described as follows: "Beginning at the point where the fourth
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HISTORY OF PEORIA COUNTY
principal meridian intersects the Illinois river, thence up the middle of said river to where the line between ranges five and six east strikes the said river, thence north with said line between ranges five and six to the township line between townships 9 and 10 north, thence west with said line to the fourth principal meridian, thence south with said line to the place of beginning." It will be observed that within these boundaries the townships of Trivoli and Elmwood were embraced.
On the second Monday of April, 1823, an election was held and Joseph Moffatt, David W. Barnes and Thomas R. Corell were chosen as county com- missioners, Abner Eads, sheriff, and William Clark, coroner. Later, on August 2, 1824, James Gardner, James Barnes and David W. Barnes were elected county commissioners, Ossian MI. Ross, sheriff, and Joseph Moffatt, coroner, all of whom were in office until after the organization of Peoria county. At this point it is worthy of note that in the list of officials, both for Pike and Fulton coun- ties, Peoria county was well represented.
Abner Eads, who was elected the first sheriff for Fulton county, was a Peorian, and his chief opponent for the office was Ossian Ross, who had only been defeated in his ambition by one vote. Ross contested the election of Eads, setting up as his grounds of complaint that some of Eads supporters lived on the east side of the river and, consequently, were not residents of Fulton county and, further, it was contended that Eads was illiterate and could not write, therefore, incompetent to fulfill the duties of the office. The case was tried before Judge Reynolds, a brother of Governor John Reynolds, in a log cabin at Fort Clark, which served as an office for 'Squire John Hamlin, and Eads was declared elected and qualified to the office of sheriff.
The counties of Schuyler, Adams, Hancock, Warren, Henry, Putnam and Knox were formed by an act of legislature, January 13, 1825, and on the same day and with the passage of the act herein mentioned, Peoria county was created, under the provision of an act entitled, "An Act to form a new county out of the country in the vicinity of Fort Clark," which provides as follows :
"Section I. Be it enacted by the people of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly, That all that tract of country within the following boundaries, to wit: Beginning where the line between towns II and 12 north intersects the Illinois river ; thence west with said line to the line between ranges 4 and 5 east ; thence south with said line to the line between towns 7 and 8; thence east to the line between ranges 5 and 6; thence south to the middle of the main channel of the Illinois river ; thence up said middle of the main channel to the place of beginning, shall constitute a county to be called Peoria."
Section 2 provided "That all that tract of country north of town 20, and west of the third principal meridian, formerly part of Sangamon county, be, and is hereby attached to said county of Peoria, for county purposes. Provided, how- ever, The citizens of the attached part of said county are not to be taxed for the erection of public buildings, or for the purchase of the quarter section herein- after mentioned.
"Section 3. Be it further enacted, That the county seat of said county of Peoria shall be established on the northeast quarter of section 9, town 8 north. range 8 east, and that the county commissioners of said county are hereby autli- orized to purchase said quarter section of land of the United States as provided for by the law of congress.
"Section 4. Be it further enacted, That on the first day of March next (1825), an election shall be held at the house of William Eads, at which time there shall be elected one sheriff, one coroner and three county commissioners for said county, which election shall, in all respects, be conducted agreeably to the provisions of the law now in force regulating elections. Provided, That the qualified voters present may select from among their number three competent electors to act as judges of said election who shall appoint two qualified voters to act as clerks.
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"Section 5. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the clerk of Sangamon county to give public notice in said Peoria county and the at- tached part, at least ten days previous to the election to be held on the first Monday in March next; and in case there should be no clerk, then the sheriff of said county shall give notice, as aforesaid, of the time and place of holding the election."
Section 6 provided, "That the county of Peoria should receive two hundred dollars out of the public treasury, as full compensation for their proportion of non-resident land tax, in the same way as the county of Pike might or could do under the act entitled An Act amending an act entitled an act providing for the valuation of lands and other property, and laying a tax thereon, approved February 15, 1821."
Section 7 provided, "That the said county of Peoria and the attached part of said county mentioned in section 2 (the portion detached from Sangamon -- Ed.) should vote with the county of Sangamon for representative and senator to the general assembly."
Section 8 declared, "That all that tract of country north of said Peoria county, and of the Illinois and Kankakee rivers, be, and the same is hereby attached to said county, for all county purposes. This did not include any of the newly formed counties of Knox, Henry, Warren or Mercer."
While Cook county and what is now the great and wonderful city of Chi- cago was embraced within the territory set off to Putnam county, yet for the next six years after the formation of Putnam, Cook county was attached to Peoria county for county purposes and all its county affairs were administered in Peoria.
Under the act creating the county of Peoria, provision was made for the election of officers and the first day of March, 1825, was designated as the time for holding said election. Another section of the act, however, required notice of the election to be given for the first Monday in March. This was a confusion of dates, and, as a result, the election did not take place until the 7th day of March, of the year mentioned, when Samuel Fulton was chosen for the office of sheriff ; William Phillips, coroner ; William Holland, Nathan Dillon and Joseph Smith, county commissioners.
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS' COURT
The officers chosen by the electors of the county duly qualified, so that juris- diction over public matters pertaining to the county vested in them and they at once took up the duties of their respective offices, and the next day after the election the commissioners' court was organized. Norman Hyde had been chosen clerk, at about the same time of the passage of the act creating the county. The following named persons were appointed and commissioned justices of the peace for the county at the time of its organization: Thomas Camlin, George Aslı, John Phillips, Stephen French, Nathan Dillon, Isaac Perkins, Jacob Wilson, Joseph Moffatt, Austin Crocker, John Kinzie.
The first duty devolving upon the commissioners' court was the purchase of land for a county seat and the securing of title thereto. Congress had passed an act providing that new counties might locate their seats of government upon public land subject to preemption and purchase, upon the same terms as individ- uals, and in pursuance thereof, the general assembly had designated, in section three, a tract of government land, upon which the county seat should be estab- lished. However, when the commissioners endeavored to follow out the require- ments of the law they met with unanticipated objections at the land office.
The contentions of the land office were that the quarter section chosen by the legislature was a fractional one and for that reason was not subject to entry. Another objection upon which much stress was laid was the existence of certain French claims. The third contention was that one James Latham, who set up an
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equity in the land by reason of a private entry, had interposed a counter-claim to the land. And it was not until nine years later that the county came into its own.
A concise history of the struggle of Peoria county for a seat of government is well worth relating and to further that end no better means can be adopted than to present here the minutes of the commissioners' court and other documents relating to a subject, which is still one of interest to many now living.
The county commissioners held a special term of their court on April 16, 1825, at which time Nathan Dillon, one of the members, was authorized to make application at the land office, in Springfield, for the right of preemption of the northeast quarter of section 9, town 8 north, range 8 east, which was designated in the act creating the county as the site for the county seat, for the purpose of establishing thereon the county seat of Peoria county, under the provision made and enacted by congress. Pursuant to instructions, Commissioner Dillon made application to the register of the land office for leave to enter the said quarter section of land and was refused, the reason being advanced that the tract was not subject to entry. Thereupon, a memorial was addressed to the president of the United States in relation thereto, by the board of commissioners. This the presi- clent referred to the land office, and on November 23, 1825, the register at Springfield was instructed by the commissioner as follows :
"Gentlemen: A memorial from the Comrs. for the county of Peoria and other citizens thereof stating 'that application had been made to your office to enter the N. E. quarter of Sect. 9, 8 N., 8 E., for the Seat of Justice for said County, and that entry had been refused because said quarter section was a frac- tional one,' was addressed to the President & lately referred to this office by him, with instructions to admit the entry if the objection stated is the only one to its admission. If there are others you will report the facts in relation to the case to this office. "I am, etc.,
"GEORGE GRAHAM."
It would appear by the foregoing that Peoria county had a friend at court and it was surmised at the time by those most interested that Hon. Daniel P. Cook, the only representative from Illinois then in congress, had used his good offices in her behalf. At any rate, the people were highly gratified by the prompt consideration of President Adams. This feeling is indicated by the fact that on the 6th day of March, 1826. the clerk of the county commissioners, acting under authority of that body, transmitted to John Quincy Adams, president of the United States, the thanks of the court for his prompt compliance with the prayer of their petition for leave to enter the fractional quarter section of land, on which to locate their county seat ; the president by the same token, was informed that his intervention in behalf of Peoria county had not produced the desired result. On the 8th day of March, 1826, the following was made a matter of record :
"Ordered that John Dixon be and he is hereby authorized in behalf of this court to make application officially to the Register and Receiver of the Land Office at Springfield for a written statement of the obstacles and objections (if any exist) which prevent the entry by the Commissioners of said County of the North East fractional quarter of Sec. 9, Township 8 North, Range 8 East of the fourth principal meridian, on which the Seat of Justice for Peoria County is located, pursuant to an act of Congress by Statute of this State. And as it is anticipated that some objections may arise on account of the exact quantity of land in said fractional quarter not being accurately known, he, the said John Dixon. is further authorized after procuring from the Land Officers aforesaid a statement of all the said objections, etc., to proceed to St. Louis and apply to the Surveyor General for a plat of the survey of the above mentioned quarter Section, and if no plat can be furnished without a re-survey, to contract with the Surveyor General for that purpose, at the expense of this county, for a speedy
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completion of said survey, and request a plat thereof to be immediately made out, properly authenticated and forwarded to the said Register and Receiver.
"And the said John Dixon is further authorized, if no objections are made, to enter the said fraction in behalf of and for said county of Peoria."
At a special term of the commissioners' court, held May 2, 1826, this entry was made and forms a part of the history of the county: "Ordered, that John Dixon be and he is hereby authorized to borrow on the credit of Peoria county one hundred and eighty-four dollars 621/2 cents, by him to be paid to the Receiver of the Land Office at Springfield, in payment of the N. E. fractional qr. Sec. No. 9, Town 8 North, Range 8 East of the fourth principal (meridian), and that he be authorized to issue orders on the Treasurer to such persons as shall loan the county the above money, at any interest not exceeding 25 per cent per annum until paid." Tradition has it that when the money by loan was not forthcoming, a number of the loyal citizens made up the desired amount out of their own pockets and helped solve one of the county seat problems.
At the time of the organization of the county, James Latham, who had set up a counter-claim to the tract of land set off by the legislature as the site for the county seat, was in possession of a house on the land, and this, in a measure, was made use of as a basis for his contention. On the 12th day of July, 1826. the commissioners' court caused to be entered of record the following:
"Ordered that Isaac Perkins, William Woodson and Henry Thomas be summoned by the sheriff to be and appear at the next regular term of this court. on the first day of said term, to assess the damage, if any incurred, by James Latham, in consequence of being deprived of his claim to the land on which the county seat of Peoria is located, the improvement of which was purchased previous to the location of the said county seat." Soon after this entry Latham died, leaving to his heirs the prosecution of his claim.
At a regular term of the commissioners' court, held December 5, 1826, a change in the personnel of the court appears. The sitting members at this time were Nathan Dillon, William Holland and John Hamlin. Under their direc- tion, at this term, an entry in the records was made as follows :
"That William S. Hamilton be authorized to act as counsel on behalf of this court for the purpose of obtaining the title to the land on which the county seat of Peoria county is located, with full power for said purpose, except that of commencing suit at law. Also that the clerk of this court inform said Hamil- ton that compensation will be allowed only in event of their obtaining said title." It is rather remarkable, but true, that the William S. Hamilton referred to, was a son of Alexander Hamilton, who figured so largely in the colonial and early history of the United States. William S. Hamilton was a brilliant lawyer and his name appears more than once in these pages.
On January 26, 1827, Commissioner Graham of the land office at Wash- ington addressed the following letter to Colonel William McKee, surveyor gen- eral at St. Louis :
"Sir :- The act of congress passed on the 3d of March, 1823, confirming certain claims to lots in the village of Peoria, in the State of Illinois (the French claims-Ed.), declares that it shall be 'the duty of the Surveyor of Public Lands of the U. S. for that District to cause a survey to be made of the several lots, and to designate on a plat thereof, the lot confirmed and set apart to each claimant, and forward the same to the Secy. of the Treasury.' As the plat above required to be made has not been received, and a Mr. James Latham, having entered the N. E. fr. 14 9, 8 N. 8 E. of the 4th P. M. under a 'Vincennes pre-emption,' I will thank you to inform me if the survey of the village has been made, and if it has, to furnish me with a copy of the survey, exhibiting the con- nection between it & the adjacent public surveys. I am, etc.,
"GEO. GRAHAM.
"P. S .- It is presumed that the Regr. at Edwardsville who acted as commr. for
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the settlement of these claims furnished Gen. Rector with a copy of his report on the subject ; if he did you can obtain a copy from the Regr. Office at that place."
An election was held August 4, 1828, when a new commissioners' court was made up by the selection of George Sharp, Isaac Egman, and Francis Thomas who, in their official capacity, addressed a memorial to Elias Kent Kane and John McLean, senators from Illinois, and Joseph Duncan, the successor of Daniel P. Cook in congress, in which was set forth in detail the problem of the county seat title, and a request that they use their influence with the president, to induce him to permit the entry of the land to be made in the name of the county, and if that was not feasible, to put forth every effort to have passed by congress a special act to afford the relief desired.
On the 28th of January, 1830, Senator Kane received the following letter from Commissioner Graham of the land office at Washington :
"Sir :- I return the letter of Messrs. Hyde & Stillman enclosed in your let- ter of the 26th inst.
"Upon examination it appears that in 1825 the commissioners for the county of Peoria made application to the Land Officers at Springfield to enter the N. E. frac. 1/4 of S. 9 T. 8 R. 8 E. under the provisions of the act of the 26th of May, 1824, granting pre-emption to certain counties for their Seats of Justice (Land Laws, page 869) which, being refused by these officers on the ground of the tract being a fractional quarter section, they memorialized the President on the subject. and, under his instructions at that time, had they entered and paid for the land, there would have been no difficulty in the case, but they having failed to make such a payment, that tract was entered in November, 1826, by James Latham under a pre-emption certificate, granted by the Register at Vincennes under the 2d section of the act of the 11th of May, 1820 ( Land Laws p. 778), and payment in full made to the Receiver and regularly entered in the returns of those officers to this office. The letter of the Register to this office that cov- ered this entry by Latham also enclosed a protest against it by William S. Hamil- ton as attorney of the County Commissioners.
"In consequence of the belief entertained at this office that that fractional Section included the lots which had been confirmed to certain individuals at Peoria by the act of the 3d of March, 1823 (the French claims-Ed.), and that therefore it could not be legally granted to either the County Commissioners or Mr. Latham, the Register was informed in January, 1827, that this office, not being in possession of a survey of those confirmed lots, could not decide upon the rights of the respective parties until it was ascertained that there was no interference between those lots and that quarter section. A survey has not yet been forwarded to this office of the confirmed Peoria Claims, and until one is received the Case will have to be suspended."
On the next day Senator Kane addressed to Stephen Stillman, of Peoria, the following letter :
"Dear Sir :- I have delayed to (answer?) you until I could hear in answer to the application of your County Commissioners something satisfactory. I have waited, however, only to be informed of the embarrassments which surround the subject. I send all the papers received from the Comr. of Gen. Land Office, which gives as full a view of the matter as can be obtained. Present me respect- fully to the Commissioners with the assurance that it will at all times give me pleasure to attend to their requests whether made in an official or individual character.
"With great respect, your obt. st.,
"S. STILLMAN, EsQ."
"E. K. KANE.
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On the 3d of March, 1830, the county commissioners' court made the fol- lowing order :
"Ordered that Stephen Stillman be and he is hereby appointed a Special Agent on the part of the county of Peoria for the purpose of obtaining for the use of the county the right of soil to the North East fractional quarter of Section No. 9, in Town Eight North and Range Eight East-with full power to act for the county in the Name & in behalf of County Commissioners, and that he be particularly instructed & required to use his utmost exertions and all necessary means to procure if possible the title to said quarter Section, as it is considered of the utmost importance that it should be obtained immediately.
"The Commissioners on the part of the county do hereby agree to accept any part of said quarter Section (be the same more or less) that may remain after deducting that which is appropriated by the law of Congress for Peoria Claims in lieu of a full quarter allowed by law to each new county.
"The County Commissioners recommend that a special act of Congress be passed, granting to the county of Peoria the remaining part of the fractional quarter section after deducting the Peoria Claims. as aforesaid, let there be more or less."
On the 5th day of February, 1831, Elijah Hayward, Commissioner of the Land Office, addressed the following letter to Senator Kane:
"Sir : In reply to your inquiry respecting the entry of the village of Peoria, I beg leave to refer you to the letters to you from this office of the 28th of Janu- ary & 5th of May, 1830, and to state that as the Commissioners of the county of Peoria did not enter the fractional quarter, at the time they might have done so, under the instructions to the Land Officers, and as there now exist conflicting claims under different laws, to the same land, no entry of it by the County Com- missioners will be authorized without special legislative provisions on the sub- ject. With great respect, Sir."
On the 7th day of March, following. the county commissioners' court, which then consisted of John Hamlin, George Sharp and Stephen French, made the fol- lowing order :
"Ordered that Abner Eads be and he is hereby authorized to make a tender of money to the Register & Receiver of the Land Office at Springfield, sufficient to purchase, at the rate of one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre, the frac- tional quarter section on which the County Seat is now located, being the N. E. of S. 9, T. 8 N. R. 8 E. in behalf and in the name of the County Commissioners of Peoria county, for the use of said county, and obtain from said Land Office a certificate of entry that a patent may be speedily obtained if possible. Said Eads is authorized to assure the Register & Receiver of the Land Office, that the Com. of Peoria county for said county are willing to accept that part of the fractional quarter section before named which may remain after deducting what- ever portion may be set apart by the act of Congress granting Peoria Claims to the Old French settlers as surveyed by Wm. L. Hamilton in 1823. And said Eads is hereby authorized to call on the Treasurer for all specie or U. S. paper said Treasurer may have on hand and borrow the balance or a sufficient sum to purchase said fractional qr. Section."
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