USA > Illinois > Stephenson County > The History of Stephenson County, Illinois : containing biographical sketches war record statistics portraits of early settlers history of the Northwest, history of Illinois, &c. > Part 67
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Its cost is stated to have been nearly $1,400, and services are held on alternate Sundays, the Rev. H. Wells, Pastor, officiating, dividing his labors between the congregations of Cedarville and Dakota.
The congregation is stated at about fifty families, and the value of the church property at $1,500.
The Presbyterian Church-Of Cedarville, was organized in 1872, with John Coates, Pascal and Mrs. Wright, Simon Yerger, John Thomas, Nancy and Elizabeth Boles, George Thompson and James Wilson as charter members.
Immediately upon the organization being perfected, the association pro- cured accommodation in the Methodist Church for worship, remaining there for two years, when a move was made to the Lutheran Church, which was occupied conjointly with the Lutherans for a similar period. In 1876, it was decided to erect a church for the sect, and the congregation labored so effectively that before the year closed the present handsome structure was completed, at a cost of $2,600, and taken possession of. The edifice is com- modious, built of frame, and by far the most attractive church, architecturally speaking, to be seen in the village.
The following Pastors have officiated since the society was founded : The Revs. A. March and E. Ross, 1872; C. Elliott, 1873, after which, and until 1875, transient ministers filled the pulpit; L. Mitchell, 1875; John Irwin, the present incumbent, 1879.
The communicants number fifteen, and the church property is valued at $2,500.
Evangelical Association .- This religious organization was established in Buckeye at an early day, where it has increased in numbers and influence in a remarkable degree. Prior to 1856, the class worshiped in the schoolhouse and at the residences of members, prominent among whom were the families of Benjamin Hess, Christine Auman, David Neidigh, Benjamin Levan, Robert Sedam, William Vore, Henry Mark, Jacob Sills and others. In 1856, the needs of the society for a house of worship influenced the appointment of a committee of arrangements and preparations to be made in that behalf. Lots were purchased in the southeastern part of town, of Sophia Otto and George Ilgen, contracts concluded for labor on the church proper, and the edifice erected of brick, during 1856. It is a handsome building 40x50, appropriately furnished, supplied with an organ, and cost, ready for occupation, $3,000.
The first services, it is believed, were conducted by the Rev. Levi Tobias, who remained in charge some years, and has been succeeded at intervals by the following Pastors : The Revs. Joseph Snell, H. Messner, A. Swartz, C. G. Kleinicht, David Kramer, and W. W. Shuler, the present incumbent.
The congregation numbers 150 members, and the church property is valued at $2,000.
Lutheran and Reform Church-Was organized by the Lutherans on the 11th of October, 1850, with fifteen members. Services were held by the Lutherans and German Reformed congregations, jointly, in the schoolhouse in Cedarville, until about 1852, when the present church edifice was contracted for. It was completed during the same year and occupied, but its formal dedi- cation was postponed until some years later.
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The church is of brick, 40x55, handsomely furnished throughout, supplied with an organ, and cost, when completed ready for occupancy, $3,000.
The following Lutheran Pastors have officiated since the church was first established : The Revs. G. J. Donmeyer, E. Miller, J. Stoll, A. B. Niddles- warth and B. F. Pugh. The congregation at present numbers thirty members.
Services are held alternately in the church by the German Reformed con- gregation, led by the Rev. Mr. Shimpf, of Orangeville.
Cedarville Cemetery Association-Was incorporated July 14, 1855, by M. Montelius, John H. Addams, Josiah Clingman, Peter Woodring and John Wilson, for the purpose of purchasing and caring for lands, etc., for the burial of the dead. The association at once organized by the election of Josiah Cling- man, President, with John H. Addams as Secretary and Treasurer. Three acres of ground were procured, which were surveyed, platted and divided into lots, intersected by avenues at regular intervals. The plat was approved and recorded by the Board of Supervisors at the meeting of that body, in March, 1859, and is now under a board of officers, of which Jackson Richart is Presi- dent, and John H. Addams, Secretary and Treasurer. The grounds are hand- somely laid out, ornamented with varieties of forest trees, shrubberies and flowers, and contain a number of elaborately finished monuments.
MANUFACTORIES.
Purifier Manufactory .- The invention of a middlings purifier, of superior excellence, is of recent date, and is due to the genius of Joseph P. Reel, a resi- dent of Cedarville, and head of the firm of Reel & Seyler. In 1877, these gentlemen erected a building on Main street, and, having perfected the patent, began to manufacture the machine, which is rapidly attaining an extensive demand both in America and Europe.
The building cost $1,100 to finish, wherein the firm employ six hands, at a weekly compensation of $60 ; turn out one hundred machines annually, and do a business of $30,000 per year.
Mc Cammon's Carriage Factory .- This enterprise is of recent date, and was established by J. B. McCammon, April 1, 1880, in the premises formerly occupied by J. W. Henney & Co., who removed to Freeport, thus affording an opportunity for enterprise and industry to build up a large business. Mr. McCammon employs five hands, at a weekly cost of $35, and will do a business this year (1880) of $10,000. His manufacture includes every variety of buggy, spring and lumber wagons.
Carriage Factory of John Shaffer .- Established in 1859, in Cedarville. During the year 1875, Mr. Shaffer purchased the shop of J. W. Henney, and has constantly done a large and annually increasing business.
He now employs six hands, at a weekly expense of $53, and turns out a total of sixty vehicles per annum.
Cedarville Flour Mills-Among the oldest establishments of the kind in the county, owe their origin to Dr. Thomas Van Valzah, who put up a saw- mill near the site of the present building, in 1837. The affair was of the sim- plest pattern, and during the following year he increased his responsibilities by the addition of a grist-mill, supplied with one run of buhrs and a pair of " choppers." Dr. Van Valzah retained control until 1840, when he sold to David Neidigh, who, in turn, disposed of the property to Conrad Epley and John W. Shuey. These gentlemen held the title until 1844, when it became vested in J. H. Addams for a consideration of $4,400. In 1846, Mr. Addams rebuilt the mill, added two run of stone and otherwise improved the venture at
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HISTORY OF STEPHENSON COUNTY.
a cost of $4,000. These were operated until 1858, when the present mill sup- plied the place of its pioneer predecessor, under the direction of Mr. Addams, and still remains. The building is of frame, three stories high, 36x54, sup- plied with three run of stones, and cost, complete, $10,000. It has capacity of turning out 100 barrels of flour daily, and the investment represents a valuation of $15,000.
MISCELLANEOUS.
Cedarville Library .- As already stated, this library was established thirty- four years ago, when the village of Cedarville was known as Cedar Creek Mills, and when its patrons, if less numerous, were more choice in their selections than the reading public of to-day.
The association was organized early in the spring of 1846, and placed under a Board of Trustees, consisting of the following-named gentlemen : John H. Addams, A. B. Clingman, A. W. Lucas, Josiah Clingman and William Irvin. In May of that year, the purchase of books was commenced and the same placed on shelves in a room in the residence of John H. Addams, accessi- ble to all who desired to avail themselves of the privileges thus afforded, which are still continued on the spot of their origin. The collection is made up of standard works, including those of Gibbon, Macauley, Prescott, Hume, etc., history being the basis, and comparatively little of a character calculated to entertain without improving.
The library, which has been a source of infinite pleasure and instruction to the residents of Cedarville and vicinity, is still in active operation, with a large number of volumes waiting the requisition of patrons to contribute to their edification.
Independent Band of Cedarville-A musical association organized on the 8th of July, 1873, with the following members and officers: O. P. Crom- ley, O. P. Wright, Ashley Barber, John Wright, John W. Henney, J. B. McCammon, Charles Rockey, E. J. Benethum, Samuel Barber, John Oswald and W. M. Clingman ; George W. Barber, President ; A. W. Tem- pleton, Secretary, and Henry Richart, Treasurer.
These members furnish instrumental music on all occasions, when their services are required, and meet for practice on Monday and Thursday evenings.
The present officers are Henry Richart, President ; George W. Barber, Leader ; J. B. McCammon, Secretary, and W. M. Clingman, Treasurer.
The value of society property is stated at $406.
Post Office .- The first post office established in the village was located at Cedar Creek Mills, about 1841 or 1842, with George Reitzell as Postmaster. He was succeeded, it is thought, by William Irvin, who was followed by Robert Sedam, Jonathan Sills and Jackson Richart. The latter was appointed in 1856, and still serves the people.
BUCKEYE CENTER.
Buckeye Center is located three miles north of Cedarville and the seat of the town house, also an Evangelical Church, one of the oldest in the county, having been erected in 1849. The congregation was at one time quite exten- sive, but is to-day limited to thirty members. The Rev. J. D. Shuler occupies the pulpit every other Sunday, alternately with the Rev. Mr. Schaffe.
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HISTORY OF STEPHENSON COUNTY.
BUENA VISTA.
Buena Vista, a town of about 125 inhabitants, is located on Richland Creek, in the extreme western portion of the township, eleven miles from Free- port, and three miles from the line dividing Illinois and Wisconsin. The town was platted September 19, 1852, out of 40 acres of land contributed by Philip Reitzell, Marcus Montelius acting as surveyor. At that time, the . county was but imperfectly settled, and lots in Buena Vista were not in general demand. Along in 1856, lots became marketable commodities, and were sold to William H. Hoff, Lewis Coppersmith, Thomas Strahorn and others. From that date, the rush of purchasers has never been " boom- ing, " and Buena Vista remains to-day an inland county town without much to attract or discourage the visitor or speculator.
The school facilities are ample, but there is no church in the village, the residents attending service at the Bellevue Church, one and a-half miles east of the town.
Whitehall Mills-Grist and saw, were erected as early as 1839 or 1840, by Philip Reitzell, though the saw-mill had been built by Ezra Gillett. Mr. R. died in 1852, when Buena Vista was laid out, and his sons succeeded to the management of the mill business. They operated the business until 1869, when the mill property was sold under foreclosure proceedings to the North- western Life Insurance Company, for $22,000. In 1870, Jacob Schatczell and Jacob Rumel purchased the investment and sold it in turn to Samuel Wagner, who sold to Jerry Wohlfort, the present owner, for about $18,000.
The mill is of frame, three stories high, 50x66, with three run of buhrs and capacity for 100 barrels of flour per day. When Schatczell & Rumel took possession, they tore down the old saw-mill and rebuilt the same at some distance north of the grist-mill. The mill is furnished with an upright saw, with rip and other saws, enabling the present owners to turn out a large quantity of building material annually.
Both mills are moved by water-power obtained from Richland Creek.
WADDAMS TOWNSHIP,
one of the northern townships of Stephenson County, was first surveyed, according to information derived from the proverbial oldest inhabitants, by William Hamilton, son of the noted Federalist who met his death at the hands of Aaron Burr. This was early in the thirties. Subsequently, the land sur- veyed by Hamilton was subdivided into sections, and, after the county was set apart, Levi Robey, Erastus Torrey and Robert Foster laid it off into townships and christened the territory included in "Waddams." It was named for William Waddams, one of the earliest settlers in this portion of the State, is six miles square and contains a large area of cultivated acres. The land is prairie and rolling, highly fertile, and watered by the Pecatonica and numerous creeks and rivulets.
On the 21st of November, 1834, William Robey, accompanied by his fam- ily, which consisted of a wife, Levi Robey and wife, John Robey, William W. Robey, Thomas L. Robey, Francis A. Robey, Elizabeth and Mary Robey, came into Illinois from Portsmouth, Ohio, and settled at Brewster's Ferry, near the present town of Winslow. On St. Valentine's Day, 1835, Levi Robey and wife removed to the present town of Waddams, locating at a point on the bank
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HISTORY OF STEPHENSON COUNTY.
of the Pecatonica half a mile northeast of his present residence. The town- ship was then a " howling " wilderness, inhabited by Indians and wild beasts, with no other white person in the vicinity. Mr. Robey was the first to settle in the township. His neighbors consisted of the balance of the family left at Brewster's Ferry; John Dixon, who kept a ferry thirty-five miles distant, on Rock River; a man named Kent, living near the present city of Rockford; Will- . iam Waddams, seven miles west, and a man named Mack, who had married a squaw and was " keeping house " near the mouth of the river.
Mr. Robey entered claim to a quarter-section of land at the point above designated, and built a log hut, wherein he resided for many years after the tide of emigration had set in and contributed additions to the population.
Later in the spring of the same year, Nelson Wait, brother-in-law of Mr. Robey, joined the latter, took up ground and began its clearing; and during 1835 the number of inhabitants was further increased by the arrival of Hub- bard Graves and wife, Charles Gappen, Abija Watson, John and Thomas Baker and William Willis, who distributed themselves over the township and made the beginning of what to-day is one of the most productive and profitably cultivated sections in the county. In those days, the same privations which settlers elsewhere were subjected to were the portion of pioneers in Waddams. Their mail and supplies were procured at Galena, and to obtain meal, grits or flour, compelled a journey to the mill at Wolf Creek, consuming two, and oftener three, days. But the fertility of the soil and the industry and enterprise of the inhabitants supplied many comforts the absence of these qualities would have rendered it impossible to obtain, and the long winter nights were thereby rendered more enjoyable than frequently falls to the lot of early settlers to ex- perience. With the return of spring, out-door work was resumed, and the en- deavor made to increase the acreage of cultivation for future benefits.
In 1836, Lydia Wait removed from Ohio to Waddams with her family, consisting of Asa, Maria and Fidelia, and settled on the northern part of Wad- dams. This venturesome lady has long since paid the tribute of mortality ; but her son, Asa, still lives at the old homestead. Thomas Hawkins, John Boy- ington, N. Phillips, John Lobdell, Pells Manny, Lewis Grigsby, Barney Stow- ell, a man named Velie and Nicholas Marcellus came about that time also. In fact, Waddams began to be thickly settled from 1835. New-comers were wel- comed ; the advantages offered in a productive soil and hospitable climate attracted a generous patronage, composed of men of substantial character, ready to encounter difficulties, and to avail themselves of opportunities. Among those who came during 1836 was John Dennison, who emigrated from Wisconsin. He made claim to 1,000 acres, on which the present town of New Pennsylvania is in part located.
From this date on, Waddams was more rapidly settled than previously, and the country thoroughly cultivated.
The first birth was William A. Robey, son of " Uncle " Levi Robey, the oldest living settler in the county, who was born September 21, 1836.
NEW PENNSYLVANIA.
The only town of importance in Waddams, as already stated, owes its origin to John Dennison, a Wisconsin agriculturist, who made claim to one thousand acres on the east bank of the Pecatonica River, for town purposes. He came to the county in the spring of 1836, and erected a saw-mill above the grove, which he operated in conjunction with John Vanzant, and which was until recent years a landmark of early days. In 1837, Dennison & Vanzant laid off the
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HISTORY OF STEPHENSON COUNTY.
tract into town lots, the latter acting as surveyor, and made other improvements as a means of attracting purchasers. In the spring of 1838, Robert McConnell purchased the title of D. & V., and named the prospective town " McCon- nell's Grove," since when it has been known under that title, "Bobtown," and finally, New Pennsylvania. A storehouse was put up the same year, by McConnell, stocked with goods from Galena, and maintained as a trading depot long after the promise of New Pennsylvania becoming a city had gone glimmering. The tract was finally sold to the Illinois Central Railroad Com- pany, and, after that corporation had exhausted the supply of timber available for fuel and building purposes, it was disposed of to John Kennedy. He sold lots and tracts to purchasers, including John Ault, Lewis G. Reed, Charles Webster, George Buck and others, who came to the country about the year 1855, when emigration was quite general to the West.
To-day, the town of New Pennsylvania has a population of about 150 resi- dents, a comfortable hotel, two wagon and blacksmith shops, two stores, a harness-shop, and mail facilities three times a week with Freeport. It is a thriving town for its size, with all the religious and educational facilities peculiar to a location remote from railroad travel.
The schoolhouse located on the road to Cedarville, and near the Lutheran Church, was first erected in 1849, and through thirty years' exposure to the elements, has " held its own," with the promise of usefulness, for decades yet unborn.
The first teachers' employed in the vicinity were Fayette Goddard and Adeline Hulburt, who taught an average daily attendance of seventy scholars for many years. Since those times the district has been twice divided, once in 1868 and again. in 1871, and at present the daily attendance averages about fifty pupils of both sexes.
One teacher is employed, and the annual expense of operating the school is about $350, raised by taxation.
Lutheran Church .- The only church in the village was organized Octo- ber 19, 1850, with nineteen members, and the Rev. G. J. Donmeyer, Pastor. At first the schoolhouse was used as a place of worship, but in 1869, the present edifice was erected. It is of brick, 30x45, ornamented with a steeple, and cost $2,200.
The present congregation numbers fifty members, and the following Pastors have officiated : Revs. G. J. Donmeyer, J. Stoll, J. K. Bloom and G. J. Don- meyer, recalled, and at present the incumbent.
Three miles west of New Pennsylvania is a Lutheran congregation, also organized by Mr. Donmeyer, in 1851, with thirteen members. Twenty years later, the association built the church now in use, for $1,800, and has since occupied it.
The Rev. J. W. Fritch is the Pastor now officiating.
WINSLOW TOWNSHIP.
Full fifty years ago, Lyman Brewster, a wealthy landowner, who had emi- grated from Vermont to Tennessee, where he acquired a competency, turned his face North, and halted not until he reached the settlement then making at Peru, on the Illinois River. How long he tarried here, is not of record ; but, in the spring of 1833, he continued his prospecting tour, finally reaching the present site of Winslow, in Winslow Township, where he entered a claim, erected a
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HISTORY OF STEPHENSON COUNTY.
comfortable house, cleared 80 acres of ground, and established "Brewster's Ferry," the first ferry in the county, and for many years the only one accessi- ble to emigrants in crossing the Pecatonica River. Mr. Brewster was the first white man who ever made a claim in Winslow Township, and after a brief stay, by which time others had followed in his venturesome footsteps, he rented the ferry and adjoining property to William Robey, and returned to Peru, where he died.
Winslow Township is in the extreme northwest corner of the county, and, though one of the smallest, it will compare favorably with other townships in the amount of improved lands and quality of cultivation.
On the west side of the Pecatonica River, which crosses the eastern portion of the township, the country is gently rolling, being made up of prairies and barrens, with but few wooded tracts. East of that stream, however, beautiful hardwood groves break the monotony of the prairie landscape at intervals, fur- nishing abundant fuel, fencing and building materials. The prairies are fertile and the soil generally of a rich, black loam, with inexhaustible productive powers for agricultural purposes. The climate is healthful, the grain-growing region furnishes large returns to the farmer, fruits are successfully grown, and the blue grass, which is said to have been imported into Stephenson County by George Trotter, of Buckeye Township, thrives luxuriantly, affording rich graz- ing fields and supplies of hay for the winter season.
Among those who made their adventurous way into the township the same year that witnessed the advent of Mr. Brewster, were' Joe Abenos and A. C. Ransom, the latter going back East for his family, after surveying the outlook, and returning the following spring. Abenos assisted Mr. Brewster in the management of the ferry, while Ransom settled in Section 36, a mile and a half southeast of the village of Winslow, where he entered a claim and laid off the town of Ransomburg. But the town did not prosper as was anticipated, Winslow appropriating the new-comers because of its more favorable site, and Ransomburg in time was utilized for farming purposes, Robert Pilson now residing and farming within its original metes and bounds.
George Payne came to the county and settled at Brewster's Ferry in 1834, as also did George W. Lott, who erected a shanty in the present village of Winslow, and Harvey and Jerry Webster.
The advance thus made by the brave pioneers, and the struggle they encoun- tered in contending for the permanent establishment of the cause of civilization in this uninhabited wilderness, was not without results in paving the way for the rise and progress of this portion of the county through the influence of the immigration that succeeded their coming.
The year 1835 witnessed the arrival of a comparatively large number of settlers, mostly from the Eastern States. James and W. Henry Eells, made claims and established themselves-W. H. now resides in Section 35; Alvah Denton came in the fall and opened a farm in Section 25, removing subsequently to Section 26. Lemuel W. Streator reached the county and purchased the Brewster property, which included the ferry and 640 acres of land, paying the heirs of Brewster, who had died in the meantime, $4,000 therefor. Mr. Streator married Miss Mary Stewart, subsequently, and became one of the wealthy men of those primitive days. During the same year, George W. Lott, with the Webster brothers, commenced the building of a saw-mill in the future village across the creek, the former contracting to complete the mill in con- sideration of the brothers preparing the dam. While thus occupied, Hector P.
1
Thomas Hunh
RIDOTT.
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HISTORY OF STEPHENSON COUNTY.
Kneeland made his appearance and aided in the work. The mill was finished during the fall, and the builders took possession, owning one-quarter each.
The winter passed without the happening of any event which was deemed worthy of preservation for the future generation, the hardships, toils, trials, per- secutions and suffering incident to pioneer life experienced elsewhere, being duplicated in Winslow, with the same circumstances, pleasures and triumphs to fend their advance and mitigate the severity of their attacks. Joseph R. Berry settled in the town during 1835, as did others who have left no marks behind to guide investigations as to the date of their coming, or other particulars in that behalf. The spring brought with it a return of previous vicissitudes, labors and vexations of spirit, also the encouragement that tempers similar afflictions. During 1836, Stewart & McDowell (new arrivals) opened a store in Ransom- burg, procuring their stock from Galena. They remained there for several years, and then removed to Oneco, establishing themselves on the place where Lewis Gibler subsequently resided, now owned by Judge Hinds.
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