USA > Illinois > Peoria County > Peoria > Peoria city and county, Illinois; a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Vol. I > Part 18
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CHAPTER XVI
"OLD PEORIAS" HOME OF THE FRENCH AND INDIANS FOUNDED ABOUT 1763-IN 1778 TIIE NEW VILLAGE WAS ESTABLISHIED BY JEAN BAPTISTE MAILETT AND SINCE KNOWN AS FORT CLARK, THE PRESENT CITY OF PEORIA-THE VILLAGE DESTROYED IN 1812-DESCRIPTION OF EARLY INHABITANTS AND THEIR HOMES-SOME WHO LIVED IN OLD PEORIA-SETTLEMENT OF FRENCH CLAIMS TO TRACTS OF LAND.
At the time of the cession of the Illinois country by France to England ( 1763), there was a village composed of French and Indians, on the west bank of Lake Peoria, near the foot of Caroline street, which extended as far as "Birket's Hollow." Here a fort had been erected and the place was known as "Old Peoria's Fort and Village." When the fort was built is not definitely known. It was probably put up soon after the destruction of Fort Creve Coeur. In his "Pioneer History of Illinois" Governor Reynolds says :
"The Traders-their voyageurs, and others in their employment, occupied this post, more or less, ever since its first establishment. As it has been said, the Indian trade of that section of the country was better than at any other point. This made it to the interest of the traders to occupy the place.
"Peoria never, in ancient times, was as large a village as either Kaskaskia or Cahokia, but it is more ancient than either of them. La Salle, when he first saw the country, was charmed with the beauty of the place and established a fort there. He also knew the resources of the country arising from the Indian trade, which was another, and perhaps a greater, inducement to erect his grand depot here for the Indian trade thian for any other consideration.
"In the first settlement of the country, the missionaries settled at this point, and had their flocks of the young natives around them. Peoria can boast of a higher antiquity than any other town in Illinois, and about the same date with St. Josephs, Green Bay, Mackinaw and Detroit.
"The French cultivated some ground, more or less, at Peoria, for more than one hundred years past. They cultivated at the old village to some extent and at the new one since the year 1778, when it was commenced by Maillet. It will be seen by the report of the United States officers, sustained by positive proof, that one Antoine St. Francois had a family in Peoria in the year 1765, and cultivated a field of corn adjacent to the village.
"Other inhabitants also resided there at the same time and long before. It is true. most of the citizens were Indian traders and those living on the trade; but this trade required support by men and provisions which were both furnished, to some extent, by the settlers of Peoria.'
Peoria was in the early and strenuous days an important military and trading post, as shown by the famous treaty of Greenville. Under that treaty sixteen military or trading posts were ceded to the government, one of which was de- scribed as "one piece (land ) six miles square at Old Peoria's Fort and Village, near the south end of the Illinois lake, on the said Illinois river." Thus it will be seen that the village of Peoria was one of a chain of trading posts with a fort, extending from Detroit by way of Michilimackinac and Chicago, to the mouth of the Illinois river.
Of the remote history of Peoria and when it was first settled by white men
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there are some discrepancies among historians. It is said, however, that in the spring of 1712 a party of Frenchmen came from Fort St. Louis (Starved Rock) and established a trading post among the Indians at this place; but that is dis- puted. It is a fact, however, that for many years the only inhabitants of the primitive village of Peoria were the French and Indians; and the houses were built about one and a half miles above the lower end of Lake Peoria. Later, about 1778, one Jean Baptiste Maillet, formed a settlement about one and a half miles below the old village, which was known as Fort Clark. By 1797 the old village had been entirely deserted for the new.
N. Matson, long since deceased, who had been one of the pioneers of Prince- ton, the capital of Bureau county, published a small volume of history in 1882, which he entitled "The Pioneers of Illinois." In the preface to this work Mr. Matson tells his readers that he had visited descendants of French pioneers, then living in the "American Bottom," and had heard them relate the stories of their forebears. As these persons were of the third and fourth generation a repetition of their narrations can only be given in the way of tradition, especially that part pertinent to the village of Peoria and its people. Mr: Matson says:
"According to the statement of Antoine Des Champs, Thomas Forsyth and others, who had long been residents of Peoria previous to its destruction in 1812, we infer that the town contained a large population. It formed a connecting link between the settlements on the Mississippi and Canada, and being situated in the midst of an Indian country caused it to be a fine place for the fur trade. The town was built along the beach of the lake, and to each house was attached an outlet for a garden, which extended back on the prairie. The houses were all constructed of wood, one story high, with porches on two sides, and located in a garden surrounded with fruits and flowers. Some of the dwellings were built of hewed timbers set upright, and the space between the posts filled in with stones and mortar, while others were built of hewed logs notched together after the style of a pioneer's cabin. The floors were laid with puncheons and the chimney built with sticks and mud.
"When Colonel Clark took possession of Illinois in 1778 he sent three soldiers, accompanied by two Frenchmen, in a canoe to Peoria to notify the people that they were no longer under British rule, but citizens of the United States. Among these soldiers was a man named Nicholas Smith, a resident of Bourbon county, Kentucky, and whose son, Joseph Smith, was among the first American settlers of Peoria. Through this channel we have an account of Peoria as it appeared a century ago, and it agrees well with other traditional accounts.
"Mr. Smith said Peoria at the time of his visit was a large town, built along the beach of the lake, with narrow, unpaved streets, and houses constructed of wood. Back of the town were gardens, stockyards, barns, etc., and among these was a wine press, with a large cellar or underground vault for storing wine. There was a church with a large wooden cross raised above the roof, and with gilt lettering over the door. There was an unoccupied fort on the bank of the lake and close by it a windmill for grinding grain. The town contained six stores, or places of trade, all of which were well filled with goods for the Indian market. The inhabitants consisted of French, half-breeds and Indians, not one of whom could understand or speak English.
"Among the inhabitants of Peoria were merchants or traders who made annual trips to Canada in canoes, carrying thither pelts and furs and loaded back with goods for the Indian market. They were blacksmiths, wagon makers, carpenters, shoemakers, etc., and most of the implements used in farming were of home manufacture. Although isolated from the civilized world, and surrounded by savages, their standard of morality was high; theft, robbery or murder were seldom heard of. They were a gay, happy people, having many social parties, wine suppers, balls and public festivals. They lived in harmony with the Indians, who were their neighbors and friends, adopting in part their customs, and in trade with them accumulated most of their wealth.
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"The dress of both men and women was very plain, made of coarse material, and the style of their wardrobe was partly European and partly Indian. The men seldom wore a hat, cap or coat, their heads being covered with a cotton handker- chief. folded on the crown like a nightcap, or an Arabian turban. Instead of a coat they wore a loose blanket garment called capote, with a cap of the same material hanging down at the back of the neck, which could be drawn over the lead as a protection from rain or cold. The women wore loose dresses, made mostly of coarse material, with their heads covered with a hood or blanket, and their long hair hanging down their back like an Indian squaw. But these women were noted for sprightliness in conversation,, with grace and elegance of manners, and notwithstanding the plainness of their dress many of them were not lacking in personal charm.
Under the treaty of 1783 between Great Britain and the United States, the French became citizens of the United States, and when the war of 1812 broke out the French inhabitants of Peoria were suspected of giving aid to the British, by furnishing arms and ammunition to the hostile Indians. Especially was this the case with the leading man in the village, Jean Baptiste Maillet, who was captain of militia and posed as the friend of the government and as such had been rewarded. He had been openly charged with stealing cattle and turning them over to the Indians and Captain Craig had been sent to Peoria, in the autumn of 1812, to investigate the matter. There being no roads between the southern part of the territory and Peoria, Captain Craig with his command ascended the river in small row boats and on the 5th day of November reached Peoria. Upon his arrival, so he reported to Governor Edwards, he was told the Indians had all left the village, but this was not true, as his sentinels on the boats had seen Indians passing through the town with candles and heard their canoes crossing the river all through the night. On the following night, one of their boats dragged its anchor and drifted ashore and so, the report continuies, in the morning the boat was fired on, as the Captain thought, by ten or more Indians. He then gave battle, but the Indians at once took to their heels and escaped. This convinced Captain Craig that the French were in league with the Indians and guilty of treason and he took all of them prisoners, after having located them all in one house. How many there were he does not state in his report. He then finished his work by setting fire to the buildings and practically destroying the town.
In 1820 many claims to title in the land in and about Peoria were set up by these same French settlers and their representatives. At that time Edward Coles was register of the United States land office at Edwardsville, and he was deputized to take proof of these claims. In November of that year he submitted a report to the secretary of the treasury, part of which is here quoted, as it gives, in a measure, a description of the village which was the forerunner of the present thriving and growing city of Peoria :
"The old village of Peoria was situated on the northwest shore of Lake Peoria, about one mile and a half above the lower extremity of the lake. This village had been inhabited by the French previous to the recollection of any of the present generation. About the year 1778 or 1779, the first house was built in what was then called LaVille de Maillet, afterwards the new village of Peoria, and of late the place has been known by the name of Fort Clark, situated about one mile and a half below the old village, immediately at the lower point or outlet of Lake Peoria, the situation being preferred on account of the water being better and its being thought more healthy. The inhabitants gradually deserted the old village, and by the year 1796 or 1797 had entirely abandoned it and removed to the new village.
"The inhabitants of Peoria consisted generally of Indian traders, hunters, and voyageurs, and had formed a link of connection between the French residing on the waters of the great lakes and the Mississippi river. From that happy faculty of adapting themselves to their situation and associates for which the French are so remarkable, the inhabitants of Peoria lived generally in harmony
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with their savage neighbors. It would seem, however, that about the year 1781 they were induced to abandon the village from apprehension of Indian hostilities ; but soon after the peace of 1783 they again returned, and continued to reside there until the autumn of 1812, when they were forcibly removed from it and the place destroyed by Captain Craig of the Illinois militia, on the ground, as it is said, that he and his company of militia were fired on in the night, while at anchor in their boats, before the village, by Indians, with whom the inhabitants were suspected by Craig to be too intimate and friendly.
"The inhabitants of Peoria, it would appear from all I can learn, settled there without any grant or permission from the authority of any government; that the only title they had to their lands was derived from possession, and the only value attached to it grew out of the improvements placed upon it. That each person took to himself such portion of unoccupied land as he wished to occupy and cultivate, and made it his own by incorporating his labor with it, but as soon as he abandoned it his title was understood to cease, with his possession and improvements, and it reverted to its natural state, and was liable again to be improved and possessed by any who should think proper. This, together with the itinerant character of the inhabitants, will account for the number of persons who will frequently be found, from the testimony contained in the report, to have occupied the same lot, many of whoni, it will be seen, present conflicting claims. "As is usual in French villages, the possessions in Peoria consisted generally of village lots, on which they erected their buildings and made their gardens, and of outlots or fields, in which they cultivated grain, etc. The village lots con- tained, in general, about one-half of an arpen of land; the outlots or fields were of various sizes, depending on the industry or means of the owner to cultivate more or less land.
"As neither the old nor new village of Peoria was ever formally laid out or had defined limits assigned them, it is impossible to have of them an accurate map. I have not been able to ascertain with precision on what par- ticular quarter sections of the military survey these claims are situated."
SOME WHO LIVED IN OLD PEORI.1
Congress passed an act on the 3d day of March, 1791, in which was a provi- sion that four hundred acres of land be given to each of those persons who in the year 1783 were heads of families at Vincennes or in the Illinois country, and who since then had removed from one place to another within the district, and also to such as had removed out of the limits of the territory specified, upon condition of their returning and occupying said lands within five years. The further provision was made that when lands had been actually improved and cultivated within the limits mentioned, under grants presumed to be valid, issued by any commandant or court claiming authority in the premises, the governor was empowered to confirm said grants to such persons, their heirs or assigns, or such parts thereof deemed reasonable, not to exceed four hundred acres to any one person ; also, "That the governor be authorized to make a grant of land. not exceeding one hundred acres, to each person who hath not obtained any grant of land from the United States, and who on the first day of August, 1790, was enrolled in the militia at Vincennes or in the Illinois Country, and has done militia duty." These provisions resulted unsatisfactorily, however, and congress passed an act on March 26, 1804, establishing land offices at Vincennes and Kas- kaskia. Michael Jones was appointed register at the latter settlement, and Elijah Backus, receiver, who were vested with authority to receive proof of all claims, coming under the acts mentioned, and adjudicate them. This commission made several reports and continued in existence until 1815. when it was terminated.
The grants of land were separated by the register into four classes-ancient grants ; donations to heads of families ; donations on account of improvements ; donations to militia men. The records of the land office do not show, however,
EARLY PEORIA MANSION, LIBERTY STREET BETWEEN JEFFERSON AND MADISON STREETS
Note the firewall gables
S. E. CORNER OF . ADAMS AND.FULTON . STREETS.AS IT-APPEARED.IN . 1844 .
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DRVCERTE
NJ.
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that any claims were filed by Peorians under ancient grants from the French or English proprietors, but a number were made under the classification herein noted. and the following claims were recommended for confirmation :
"Pierre Troge, in the right of his wife Charlotte, who was the daughter and heir-at-law of Antoine St. Francois, was reported as entitled to four hundred acres on account of improvements and cultivation, and four hundred on account of St. Francois, the ancestor having been the head of a family at Peoria in 1783. It was proved by Louis Pilette, an ancient inhabitant of Cahokia, that St. Francois was the head of a family at Peoria and that he cultivated the land, having a small field in which he sowed corn in the year 1765; and that he remained there sev- eral years thereafter; also that Pierre Troge married his daughter. This little item of evidence lets the light in upon the life of "Old Peoria" at the time when the sovereignty of the country was transferred from France to Great Britain. The fact that St. Francois remained after that period raises the presumption, at least, that he became a British subject ; and the fact of his heir having been granted land by the government of the United States affords almost conclusive evidence that he had become a citizen of Virginia or of the United States at or after the time of the Revolution. Of his wife's name or parentage we have no information. Nor do we know anything of Pierre Troge, except that he married the daughter. The name of Louis Pilmette is closely and inseparably connected with the history of Peoria. It also appears from the report of Edward Coles that this same Charlotte Troge, nee St. Francois, laid claim to a lot containing two arpens, situated two miles above Fort Clark, near "Old Fort Peoria." We therefore discover in this one instance the name of five persons who lived at "Old Peoria," namely: Antoine St. Francois and his wife, his daughter Char- lotte. her husband Pierre Troge, and Louis Pilette.
"That Louis Pilette was a good and loyal citizen is shown by the fact that he received a donation of one hundred acres of land from the government upon Governor Harrison's confirmation, on account of military services.
"The claims of a large majority of the inhabitants had been sold before being proved. principally to Nicholas Jarrott, Isaac Darneille, William Russell and William Arundel, in whose names the proofs were made. These purchasers will be disregarded and the names of the original claimants given as the donees.
"To Louis Bihore there was confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements and four hundred acres on account of his having been the head of the family at Peoria in 1783. That Bihore was a very early inhabitant of Peoria is shown by the fact of his having been a witness on behalf of some of the oldest claims.
"To Jean Baptiste Sheonberger, alias St. Jean, were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements near the "Old Fort" of Peoria. No other claim having been made on his behalf, it is to be presumed he was neither the head of a family nor a militiaman within the terms of the law.
"To Louis Chattlereau were confirmed one hundred acres as a militia man, four hundred as head of a family at Peoria in 1783, and four hundred on account of cultivating about forty acres of land and improving the same by building a house, a horse mill, etc., thereon.
"To Pierre Verbois, alias Blondereau, were confirmed at Peoria one hundred acres as a militia man. No other information obtainable.
"To Pierre Lavassieur (dit Chamberlain) were confirmed one hundred acres as a militia man. This man was also a claimant before Edward Coles for a lot containing two arpens in the "Old Village" and of another lot containing twelve arpens near the same.
"To John B. Chevy were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improve- ments and four hundred acres as head of a family. It was proved by Louis La- perche. Louis Boisman and Louis Bihore that Chevy was an inhabitant of Peoria, that he was the head of a family and cultivated ground, planting it in corn, as early as the year 1779.
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"To Jean B. Jourdain, who lived at Peoria, were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements made upon and the cultivation of a farm on Maillet's river (probably the Kickapoo) where he had a house and planted corn as early as 1783.
"To Jean B. Amlin, who lived at Peoria from 1779 to 1799, were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements by cultivating land and planting it in corn, also four hundred acres as head of a family in 1783, and one hundred as a militia man.
"To Francois Arcoit were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements and four hundred acres as the head of a family at Peoria in 1783. It was proved by Baptiste Pelitier, Pierre Verbois and Jean B. Parent that Arcoit was the head of a family at Peoria in 1783; that he made improvements near the village : that he had a house and cultivated ground by planting corn in 1782, but had to leave on account of the Indians.
"To Louis Brunette were confirmed four hundred acres as head of a family at Peoria in 1783, which was proved by Jaque Ducharme and Francois Vailett ; also that he continued to reside there for some time thereafter.
"To Jean B. Parent were confirmed four hundred acres as head of a family and four hundred on account of his improvements. It was proved by Jean B. Pointstable ( Point de Saible ), Jaque Ducharme, Louis Bihore and Pierre Valois that before and after the year 1783 Parent was the head of a family at Peoria, that he had a house built and cultivated land near the "Old Fort" in the year 1780, and that he had a farm and raised crops.
"To Antoine Grandbois were confirmed one hundred acres as a militia man, which had been confirmed by Governor St. Clair. The location of this grant is not given, but it is known that Grandbois was a resident of Peoria.
"To Francis Babo (Babeau) were confirmed at Peoria, one hundred acres as a militia man.
"To Augustus Roque were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements made near Peoria, and four hundred acres as the head of a family at Peoria in 1783.
To Francois Bouche ( Boucher ) were confirmed four hundred acres on account of improvements about one league from Peoria (Old Fort), four hun- dred acres as head of a family at Peoria in 1783, and one hundred acres as a militia man.
To Etiene Bernard were confirmed four hundred acres as the head of a family at Peoria in 1783. and on account of improvements four hundred acres near the River Coteneau ( Kickapoo), within three miles of Peoria.
To William Arundel were confirmed on account of improvements three hundred acres near Peoria, he having already had a military bounty under the fourth class, also as head of a family at Peoria in 1783 three hundred acres, he having received a militia right confirmed by the governor.
William Arundel was a man of fine education. He was born in Ireland, had lived in Canada and some time prior to 1783, came to Peoria with his family and became a trader, or merchant. Some time thereafter he removed to Cahokia, where he kept a general stock of merchandise and at the organization of the ter- ritory was appointed recorder of St. Clair county. He was the first secretary of the first lodge of Masons, which was organized at Kaskaskia, June 3, 1806, and at an extremely old age died at Kaskaskia, in 1816.
Jean Baptiste Point de Sable (often called Pointstable ) was another person of note whose history makes a part of this and Cook county. As the head of a family his claim for four hundred acres was confirmed and also for another four hundred acres on account of improvements. Pointstable, as he was called, most likely for the sake of brevity, was a negro, but as the Indians designated all races other than Indians as "white," this man became noted as the first white settler in Chicago. As to the exact date of his arrival in Chicago there is no evidence, but it was prior to his residence in Peoria, which commenced about 1782. The
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most authentic account is in part quoted here, as taken from Mrs. John H. Kin- zie's (of Chicago) "Waubun :"
"Jean Baptiste Point-an-Sable, a native of San Domingo, about the year 1796 found his way to this remote region and commenced life among the Indians. There is usually a strong affection between these two races (negro and Indian), and Jean Baptiste imposed upon his new friends by making them believe that he had been a great chief among the whites. Perhaps he was disgusted by not being elected for a similar dignity by the Pottawottomies, for he quitted this vicinity and finally terminated his days at Peoria, under the roof of his friend Glamorgan, another San Domingo negro, who had obtained large Spanish grants in St. Louis and its environs, and who at one time was in the enjoyment of an extended landed estate."
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