The History of Livingston County, Illinois : containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., Part 98

Author:
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Chicago : W. Le Baron
Number of Pages: 884

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THADDEUS S. LITTLE, farmer and carpenter ; P. O. Dwight. Republican ; German Reform. Hlas 160 acres on See. 6. valued at $35 per aere ; he was born in Adams Co., Penn., April 1, 1829, and came to Franklin Co. in 1838, and to Liv- ingston Co., Ill .. in 1864. Mr. L. has never been married. He worked at his trade until he came onto his farm ; he has improved it, and now has a good farm and well located ; Mr. L. is a good citizen, a kind neighbor and an honest man; his great grandfather was born in Alsace, Ger- man- France ; his German name was Kline ; he came to this country very early ; his grandfather was born here, and was one of the brave men of the Revolution, and left a proud record for his children.

JAMES ED. MORRIS, farmer ; P. O., Dwight. Republican ; Baptist. Has 161 aeres of land on Sec. 6, valued at $40 per acre ; he was born in Westbury, Wilts Co., England, June 21, 1815, and came to Canada in 1831, and to this place in 1858. He married Charlotte Carey, Aug. 22, 1843; she died June 17, 1852; they had four children-William, Enes Susan and Enoch. For his present wife, he

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married Mary Carey, in La Salle Co., Oct. 13, 1854 ; she was born Aug. 1, 1834 ; they have eight children living-Emma, Lydia A., James E., Seth, John E., Sarah, Hannah and Benjamin. Mr. M. has been here almost from the first, and improved his farm from the raw prairie ; he has grown up with the country, and kept pace with its improvements ; he has a good farm, and is a good farmer ; he has a large family of children growing up to habits of industry and usefulness ; he is a man universally esteemed.

ARNOLD McMILLEN, farmer ; P. O. Dwight. Independent. Has 160 acres of land on Sec. 36 ; he was born in Fayette Co., Pennsylvania, Jan. 26, 1839, and came to Bureau Co. in 1865, and to this place in 1870. He married Susan Walker, in 1864; she was born in Fayette Co., Pennsylvania, in 1841; they have six children-Ida B., Frank, Carrie, Thomas, David A. and Jesse R. Mr. McM. is one of the thorough men and farmers in the town ; has a fine. well-improved farm and knows how to work it; he is one of the leading men ; has held different offices in town, and is now, and has been for a long time, a very competent Highway Commis- sioner ; he has an industrious family of children. and desires to give them a good, practical education.

SOREN OLSON, farmer ; P.O. Dwight. Republican ; Latter Day Saints. Has 160 acres of land on Sec. 22, valued at $45 per

acre; he was born in Norway, Dee. 18, ; and assisted in laying out the town ; in

1835, and came to La Salle Co. in 1836, and to this place in 1867. He married Sophia Danielson Dec. 9, 1858; she was born in Norway, June 25, 1841; they have six children living-Charles, Thomas, Sarah Ann, Nephi, Sophia and Jacob. Mr. Olson is one of a very few who have built a fine residence; a nice barn, and otherwise made substantial improvements ; his farm is one of the best, and he is one of the best and most advanced farmers in town ; his reputation is among the best as a reliable man and a very useful citizen.

CHARLES H.RAYMOND, Jr., farmer; P. O. Sullivan Center. Republican. Has 160 acres of land on Sec. 27, valued at $40 per acre; he was born in Kendall Co. April 29. 1849, and came to this place in 1874. He married Mary E. Goodale, Oct. 15, 1871; she was born in 1851;

they have two children-Arthur, born July 6, 1872; Everett, born Oct. 7, 1874. Mr. R. is a young man of promise ; came here and bought an old farm, one of the very best in the town, and is making very valuable improvements, and by his energy and advanced ideas of farming is destined not only to shine as a farmer. but to improve as a man.

AUGUSTUS ROBINSON, farmer ; P. O. Dwight. Independent ; Congrega- tional. Has 160 acres of land on Scc. 30 : he was born in La Salle Co., Oct. 24. 1840, and came to this place in 1866. He mar- ried Alice Hayward, Jan. 9, 1868; she was born Aug. 25, 1842; they have four children-William A., Mattie, Gertrude and Horace E. Mr. R.'s father (James Robinson ), of La Salle Co., came into that county from Ohio, in a very early day ; his son A. left the old homestead and came here when this was a raw prairie, and has made him a fine farm and pleasant home. He is the Treasurer of the township, and is one of the most reliable men ; he is a good farmer, a good neighbor, and is every- body's friend, and is thus deserving.

JAMES N. REEDER, farmer, etc .; P. O. Dwight. Republican ; Congregational- ist. Has farms on Secs. 8 and 7 ; he was born in Hamilton Co., Ohio, Sept. 18, 1808, and came to Tazewell Co., Ill., in 1830, and built the first frame house in Pekin; in 1832, he moved to Lacon, Marshall Co., where he built the first house 1834, he moved to La Salle Co. and bought a claim on the Vermilion River. and remained on it for two years, when he moved to Troy Grove, where he took up a farm and started a blacksmith shop, hang- ing the bellows between two trees, which made the shop ; in 1866, he sold out his place and bought where he now lives. He married M. A. Johnston Aug. S, 1830 ; she died May 9, 1859 ; they had seven children-David F., James H., Sa- rah M., John J., Newton A., J. W., and Ella. He married W. A. Johnston May 10, 1860; she died Dee. 2, 1866. He married for his present wife Mrs. Sarah Wheatley, April 4, 1867. Mr. R. is one of the early pioneers of the State as well as of the township ; there were but some fifteen families in the township when he came ; he has built some fifteen or twenty

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dwellings. some of them among the best in the township ; he has also improved thir- teen farms in the State; he has always been a pioneer, leading others into new territory, rather than following ; he could do the breaking, blacksmithing, making the cabinet work, and could build and fur- nish a house ; he has raised, educated and settled his large family of children in good homes and business. He is a Deacon of the Congregational Church, and is a very zeal- ous Christian man, and his influence for good is felt throughout the community. The son of his present wife married his daughter, so he is step-father and father- in-law.

JOSEPH REEDER, farmer ; P. O. Dwight. Republican ; Free Baptist. Has 120 aeres of land on Sec. 8, valued at $40 per acre ; he was born in Warren Co., Ohio, Oct. 30, 1810, and moved into Hamilton and Preble Cos., and remained there until 1829, when he came to Taze- well Co., near Pekin ; in 1835, he moved into La Salle Co. and improved a fine farm ; in 1840, he removed into Greene Co., Wis., while it was yet a Territory, and improved a farm and remained there until 1856, when he returned to La Salle Co., where he remained until 1875, when he came to this place and bought a very

fine farm and home. He married Margaret Lindley July 25, 1835, in Pekin ; she was born in Salem, Ind., in 1816, and died in November, 1855 ; they have four children living-Rebecca, Fanny, Laura, and Jose- phine. For his second wife he married Clarissa A. Harris, in 1859 ; she died in 1868. Albert Harris, son of Mrs. C. A. Harris, married a daughter of Mr. Reeder, so he is step-father and father-in-law by two marriages. In November, 1869, he married the widow of the late Dr. A. Gil- bert, of Homer, La Salle Co., for his present wife. His daughter, Josephine, married C. H. Gilbert, Esq. (son of Dr. Gilbert), so he is step-son and son-in-law. Mr. R. has seen very much of border pio- neer life, coming into the State among the very first; in 1832, he was in the Black Hawk war, and participated in one serious engagement ; his pioneer history would of itself make an interesting book ; he has a fine farm and a beautiful home ; has been a very successful farmer and a liberal sup- porter of benevolent institutions and insti- tutions of learning, and is just such a man as the world needs more of; he is perfectly happy , because he is perfectly contented ; he and his amiable wife are enjoying the fruits of their labor, surrounded by their children and friends.

OWEGO TOWNSHIP.

JOHN W. BENHAM, farmer and stoek raiser ; P. O. Pontiac; was born in Addison Co., Vt., Oct. 10, 1824 ; when about 6 years old, he came, with his par- ents, to Sangamon Co., Ill., where his parents still reside ; he lived there until June, 1848, returning to Vermont, where he remained until Oct., 1849; he then went to California, via the Isthmus, spend- ing about four months in Panama, and taking a Glasgow packet ; he was fifty-three days making the trip to San Francisco ; he spent two years in mining, with good success, and then returned to Vermont, whence he came again to Illinois, in 1852; in 1855, he went with a surveying party to Kansas, to survey the boundary line be-

tween that State and Nebraska. He was married March 31, 1856, to Mrs. Melissa E. Porter, daughter of Heman Converse, of Addison, Vt .; they have one daughter -Genora E. He settled in Livingston Co. in 1856, buying eighty acres of land, where he still resides ; he now owns 300 acres of land, valued at $15,000; he also owns business property and a dwelling in Pontiac, valued at $10,000. He served two terms as member of the Board of Su- pervisors and twelve years as Commissioner of Highways; he is a strictly temperate man, and has accumulated his wealth by a course of industry and economy.

JACOB PFAU, farmer; P. O. Odell, was born in Germany Sept. 27, 1829;

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came to this country in 1853, and settled in Ohio; he removed from there to Plano, Ill., and from there to Owego, where he now resides; he owns 200 acres of land, valued at $8,000. He was married to Miss Mary E. Myer ; she was born in Germany

March 11, 1833; they have had twelve children, viz .: John J., Anna E., Frederick William, Carrie J., Albert E., Mary A., Emma L., George H., Melissa E., Hattie B., Ernest S. and an infant.

PLEASANT RIDGE TOWNSHIP.

LOUIS HOLLOWAY, farmer ; P. O. Forrest ; was born in Hamilton Co., Ohio, May 17, 1838 ; his father died when Louis was a lad of but 9 years; in 1855, he moved to Illinois, and settled in La Salle Co., near Ottawa; here he engaged for several years at brick-laying and plastering. Jan. 8, 1862, he enlisted in an inde- pendent company of cavalry that was at- tached to the 53d I. V. I. ; he remained in the service until Feb. 19, 1863, when he was discharged on account of injuries re- ceived on the 25th of Sept., 1862 ; he par- ticipated with the regiment in the hard- fought battle of Pittsburg Landing, and

was present at the second attack on Corinth, Miss. In 1868, he came to Livingston Co., and purchased 80 acres of land; this he improved and still owns. He was married in 1858 to Miss Mary A. Brundage, a native of Pennsylvania ; has six children- Oscar A., Clarence M., Alice, Ida J., Harry and an infant son. Republican ; Advent- ist. Has held the office of Road Commis- sioner six years; that of School Director for the past ten years ; was elected Justice of the Peace in the Spring of 1876, and re- elected to the same office in the Spring of 1877. Now owns 120 acres of land, and is a very successful farmer.

DRAINAGE.

[This subject is of such importance to the citizens of Livingston County, that we insert a few extracts from articles written by H. W. S. Cleveland, Esq., landscape gardener, Chicago.]

Very few people whose interests are not directly connected with agriculture or its products have any realizing sense of the effect of a wet or dry season upon the aggregate wealth of the region in which it prevails. The continued rains of the past season, in retarding the labors of cultivation and diminishing the products of a single erop, may serve to open their eyes to the importance of the subject.

No one who has examined the subject will hesitate to give his assent to the proposition that a thorough system of underdrainage throughout the State would not only more than double its present productive power, but would give us at all seasons the inestimable benefit of firm and dry roads. A little reflection, however, will render it manifest that legislative action is essential before any extended system of road drainage can be inaugurated. In the vicinity of rivers, or in an uneven country where it is easy to find an outlet within a short distance of the land it is desired to drain, there may be little difficulty for individual proprietors in draining any portion of their farms, though even in such cases it is by no means uncommon that a por- tion of the lowest and wettest land, which must of necessity be first drained, may lie within the boundaries of another proprietor, who is unable or unwilling to ineur the expense of drainage, and thus renders it impossible for his more enterprising neighbor to do so. Of course the danger that such an obstacle may be encountered becomes greater in proportion to the size of the area. If a township or a county desires to inaugurate a system of drainage for the benefit of the residents within its borders, it may find its efforts defeated by the unwillingness of its next neighbors below. In short, it is as idle for a single town or county to attempt a thorough system of drainage without general co- operation as it would be for a single block in a city to undertake to manage its own sewerage. There is but one way in which it can be done. The State must be divided into drainage districts, the boundaries of which are fixed by the natural water-shed, without regard to county or township lines. Each district should then be placed in charge of competent engineers, who should be independent of town and county officers, and who should ascertain by actual survey the lines of lowest levels and prepare a design based upon these data, and showing the most effective and economical system by which the thorough drainage of the whole could be secured. The work of road drainage of such vast areas of level country as are comprised within the State of Illinois demands the exercise of too much scientific knowledge and engineering skill to be intrusted to the local commissioners of the different counties. It should be controlled and directed by a special department, the head of which should be a man possessing the highest available engineering talent. Wherever the nature of the ground rendered it possible, the pipes which drained the highways should constitute the mains into which the farm drains could be conducted, and they should, therefore, be of sufficient size te meet all possible demands of the kind. With proper underdrainage, the roads might every- where be kept in good condition at all seasons. The best mode of accomplishing this would doubtless be by means of a drain on each side of the road. But a single drain under the center would prevent the possibility of its ever becoming sufficiently muddy to cause serious obstruc- tion of travel. .

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It is obvious that such a system as I have suggested involves the necessity of legislative action, and the enactment of laws adapted to the special requirements of its execution. In fact, an amendment of the Constitution is necessary before the first steps can be taken toward its accomplishment by the General Assembly.

I propose now to set forth, in as few words as possible, some of the essential facts in regard to the practice of drainage, which every man should bear in mind who undertakes it. Open ditches may be, and often are, necessary auxiliaries to a system of underdrainage, and especially in a very level country, where, in many cases, the final outlet may be at a great distance from the field or farm which is to be underdrained, or where the accumulated water-shed of a large area is too large to be contained in tiles.

When it is found necessary to construct them, they should always be made with sloping sides, and the most natural slope is the one which is most likely to be permanent and this is found to be at an angle of about thirty-four degrees with the horizon.

Tiles must be large enough to carry off all the water which may come suddenly in a storm or by the melting of snow, so that there may be no surface washing. The main must be large enough for any possible demand ; and in determining its size, the possibility of future extension should always be borne in mind. .

The capacity of pipes, however. increases in the ratio of the squares of their diameters. A two- inch pipe carries four inches of water, but a four-inch pipe carries sixteen inches, or just four times instead of twice as much as a two-inch. In draining extensive marshes or swamps, it may be necessary to use tile of very large dimensions ; but in the ordinary sloughs which are found on the prairie farms, a four or six inch pipe will suffice for the main, and nothing whatever is gained by using tiles of a larger size than is necessary, while the cost is very much greater. A good deal of misapprehension prevails on this subject, owing to the disappointment of those who had first used pipe that was too small, and were then ready to go to the opposite extreme.

A letter now lies before me from a zealous advocate of drainage, who says that "large tiles are the best, for they are not so apt to fill up, and then they take the water off so much faster. The larger the body of water in the tile, the cleaner it will keep it."

There are fallacies in this argument of which the writer will become convinced by further ex- perience, for his knowledge of tile draining has been gained within a year. His last statement is doubtless correct, but the body of water cannot be increased by the use of larger tile, and its liabil- ity to deposit silt is increased just in proportion as it becomes shallow in the pipe. Moreover, if it deposits silt or sand at all, it is only a question of time when the pipe shall become choked, and the largest pipe will be insufficient to withstand a constant influx for any great length of time. If. at any season, the amount of water is larger than the pipes can carry off, it is obvious that they are not large enough ; but when there is no sign of an overflow, and the first rush of water speedily subsides after a hard rain, there can be no object in using larger pipe.

" The size of the mains should be sufficient to convey, with such fall as is attainable, the greatest quantity of water that may ever be expected to reach them. Beyond this, an increase of size is rather a disadvantage than otherwise, because a small flow of water runs with more velocity when compressed into a narrow channel than when broadly spread, and so has more power to force its way and carry before it obstructing substances."-French's Farm Drainage, page 192.

Exact form and even surface are of far greater importance than is usually supposed to pre- vent friction and facilitate the flow of water. The tiles should be straight, even, smooth and hard burnt. The latter point, and the importance of having them made of good material can- not be too strongly urged, because farmers are liable to be tempted to buy tiles on account of their low price, which prove a ruinous investment, crumbling and falling to pieces after a little time, and rendering the whole outlay useless.

I have witnessed so much vexation and annoyance from this cause that I can hardly find words to express my sense of the importance of making sure that only the best of clay is used and that the tiles are thoroughly burnt.

Drains are liable to fail from other causes. Unless the outlet is carefully guarded, it is always in danger of injury from the treading of cattle and the pranks of boys ; and on this account the outlets should be limited to the smallest possible number, and in every case should

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DRAINAGE

be protected by a strong and durable inclosure of plank or stone, and a net-work of wire, to prevent the entrance of mice, moles, frogs, snakes and other vermin, which are sure to seek a harbor in them if left open.

The general topography and character of the soil of the prairies is so much alike, that for the greater portion of the farms in Illinois the rules for drainage are identical. Almost every farm is intersected more or less by low, wet tracts, known as sloughs, the intervening uplands being generally only gentle elevations, and rarely obtaining the dignity of hills. The sub-soil is generally clay, which is not unfrequently compressed into " hard-pan." which is nearly imper- vious to water, but speedily becomes ameliorated by drainage, which necessarily causes alternate distention and shrinkage, and after a time works a complete change in its character. The sloughs, except during the heats of Summer, are impassable beds of mire, and are incapable of cultivation ; but when drained, become at once the richest portion of the farm.

It is in the sloughs, of course, that the main drains must be laid, beginning at the outlet, or lowest point, and working upward, preserving always the longest possible stretches of straight. lines, and making angles, or curves, only where it is absolutely necessary.

And it is of the utmost importance that these mains should, from the outset, be large enough to carry all the water that may be brought to them by side drains or by future extension.

Comparatively few farmers have yet extended their lines of tiles beyond the sloughs and wet grounds which demand immediate attention. They follow the course of the slough from the outlet to the head, or to the highest point within their own bounds, laying a four, six or eight- inch tile for a main, and then connecting any outlying pools or wet places with it by a lateral or smaller size. The day is not distant, however, when the beneficial effect of drainage of uplands will be as universally acknowledged as that of the sloughs has already become.

The effect of drains in ameliorating the soil and preserving an equal degree of moisture, by means of the ventilation they afford, is but imperfectly comprehended by the mass of farmers, who think only of the necessity of removing standing water. They think it unnecessary to provide artificial means for removing the water when it is not seen to stand upon the surface ; but in reality, it (in the great majority of cases) is held in the soil to such an extent as to be greatly injurious to the growing erops. If drain tile are laid at intervals of forty or fifty feet, the effect will be that the water from heavy rains will speedily pass off, and the soil, instead of remaining soggy and dead, will become friable and easy to cultivate ; and as the water runs off, its place is supplied by air, which keeps it light and porous, and in times of drought imparts to it the moisture with which, even in the driest times, it is laden, and thus prevents it ever becoming baked in clods, as clay land is sure to do if undrained. The most obstinate clays are so affected by drainage that they crack and crumble. and become annually more loose and friable.

The distance at which drains should be laid from each other depends greatly upon the nature of the soil. In a porous soil, the deeper the drain is laid the farther it will draw ; but clay soils cannot be thoroughly drained unless the drains are within twenty or thirty feet of each other, however deep they may be laid ; and in any case. the further the water has to pass through soil to reach the drain. the longer it will be in doing it.

Probably few farms in Illinois would now pay for laying drains on the uplands at less dis- tances than one hundred feet : yet I venture the prediction that no man who tries the experiment of laying them at that distance, in the ordinary soil of the prairies, will rest satisfied till he has introduced another midway between every two of those that were first laid.

In regard to the depth of drains, three feet is the least that should ever be admitted, and no man who has tried three and a half or four fect will ever stop at less without a feeling of self-reproach. But in some cases, the depth must necessarily be governed by the amount of fall. The first point to ascertain is the lowest point at which an outlet can be secured without risk of back-water by the rising of the stream or pond into which it empties ; for it is obvious that the grade of all the drains must be dependent on this, and the folly of attempting to arrange any portion till this is established is plain.

A fall of three inches in one hundred feet, or half an inch to a rod, will suffice for perfect drainage : but in all cases of slight fall, it is of vital importance that the drains be straight and

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smooth. It is desirable to preserve as even a grade as possible, and it is of essential importance that no hollows should ever occur where the water would stand if not pushed on by that which follows; for in every such instance it will flow out of the joints instead of in, and will speedily become choked by silt, which is sure to be deposited in such places. The mains should be from three to six inches lower than the laterals, so that the latter may never have the water set back by standing water in the main.

All writers agree that it is best to have as few ontlets as possible. "Every where else the work is protected by the earth above it, but at the outlet it is exposed to the action of frost, the treading of cattle, the mischiefs of boys, and the entry of reptiles, as well as the accumulation of deposits brought down by the drains themselves." Iron pipes set in masonry, with swing gates, are the proper finish for important outlets, and it is obviously desirable that they should be as few in number as possible.

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The History of Livingston County, Illinois : containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., Part 98

Author: Publication date: 1878 Publisher: Chicago : W. Le Baron Number of Pages: 884

Author:
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Chicago : W. Le Baron
Number of Pages: 884