USA > Illinois > Woodford County > The Woodford County history > Part 4
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The brick-making has long been discon- tinued, though brick bats can still be plowed up at certain locations. Many small dwellings in this community sprang up, housing the early settlers who found em- ployment in the brick yards which gave the community the name of Bricktown.
There was a family cemetery started by the Imhoffs, on top of the hill just south of the main road, known yet as the Imhoff Cemetery. Many of the early residents and their descendants are interred in this cemetery.
Among the early residents of the Brick- town community were the following: George Braun, D. D. Kenyon, Tom Ball, Martha Braun and family, Griff Calvert, Huldah Moulton, Clarence Thurlon, Bill and Kate Motely, Sam Holman, Mike Wagner, Newt Lewis, Mr. Imhoff, Joe Staudmeyer, John Clark, Tom Brown, Jerry Walker, Geo. Phipps, Willie Walker, Tom Simpkins, Jeff Owens, Mrs. Baer- Eberhart, Ben Moulton, Jerry Moulton, Charles Gifford, Henry Weber, Ike Glover, John Hofstatter, Lou Black, Mr. Stevenson, and John Rediger.
Old Houses in Cazenovia Township
Although space does not permit a com- plete listing of old houses in rural Caze-
novia Township, we will mention some with fascinating histories.
In Section 4 is the house occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Russell Scott, owned by Mrs. Lillian Kohl, daughter of Mrs. Mary Black.
The house in Section 9 where Ralph Adami lives was once the home of Mareus Buckingham, farmer and auctioneer, a son of Judge William Buckingham. It is said that the Buckinghams at that time could drive from Judge Buckingham's home south of Washburn to the ferry which crossed the Illinois River to Chillicothe without leaving Buckingham land.
In Section 10, the home occupied by Mrs. Angie Seifert and owned by Ernest Seifert, her son, has in the northwest part of it the original home of James Freeman. This James Freeman laid out Freeman's Additions to Washburn.
In Section 17 is the old Kenyon home- stead. The house began as a log cabin which is incased by the present house, and is owned by Mrs. Joseph Hare, the former Wilma Kenyon.
In Section IS the original home of John Clark, who served as a road commissioner in early Cazenovia Township, is owned and occupied by Mrs. Herman Hofstatter.
In Section 20 the Isaac Moulton home is owned by a descendant, Mrs. Mae Moulton Duggins. The original one room log house has been incorporated into the present more spacious dwelling.
What is known as the Farnsworth house is the present home of the Vyrl Grone- walds. Built by Mrs. Mary E. Farnsworth who came to Cazenovia Township in 1844, it was sold in 1882 to Henry and Margaret Foster, whose great granddaughter, Mary Gronewald now owns it. During the time of the underground railway, abolitionists held their meetings here, in the only third- floor room in the community. A large chim- ney contained five separate flues to aceom- modate five fireplaces, two on the main floor, two on the second floor, and one in the basement. These have been closed up and a stoker-fired hot air system heats the house. There are twelve large rooms and two smaller ones in the house, and drink-
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Cazenovia Township
ing water is supplied from a spring fed well beneath it. This house is located in Section 21.
Also in Section 21, on the road which is an extension of Clark Street running west out of Lowpoint are two other pioneer houses. On the south is the Thomas Clark house where Clarks have always lived, now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. George E. Clark. To the north and farther west is the Henry Foster house, which looks very much as it did when it was first occupied by the Fosters. Robert Foster, a grandson lives there now.
The Jesse Hammers home in Section 32 is now owned by Roy Garber, who lives there. Mr. Hammers had a nursery of ten acres and kept a general assortment of trees and shrubbery. The grounds about the house were landscaped in formal beds.
The only home in Cazenovia Township without electricity or phone service is in Section 32. The house is at least 100 years old. Henry and Lawrence Dubois farm as their parents did, with horse-drawn ma- chinery. Their hay is mowed and stacked. Water for livestock is pumped by hand. A grove of young walnut trees, raised from seed, has been planted just south of the house. They are also proud owners of a Model B Ford.
Cemeteries
There are seven cemeteries in Cazenovia Township. Since 1963, these have received an annual compensation to be used for maintenance purposes.
Baptist Cemetery. This cemetery extends south and east from the corner of Main and Church streets, lying in Section 1 within the corporate limits of Washburn. Records are not available to determine when this cemetery was plotted or who was first laid to rest there. A small burial grounds cast of what is now 215 N. Main seems to have been the nucleus around which the larger cemetery developed. Rec- ords show that in 1893 the Baptist Church. which occupied the northwest corner, was sold to the Lutherans, who razed it in 1922
and the land then became a part of this cemetery. Some of the older markers bear the names of Owen. Parker. Phillips, Sei- fert, and Sweet.
Lutheran Cemetery. The acre of land in Section 2 that forms the Lutheran Ceme- tery was a gift in 1865 from Bennett Shafer, a farmer who owned the land from Wash- burn west to Section 3.
From 1870 to 1885, burials in this eeme- tery were made in a row along the north and west part. regardless of family or rela- tionship. In this row are Heinrich, Cordes. Seims, Brandt, Hinck, Doeseher, Hinck. and Hinck. At the west line are Schultz, Kirste, Renken, and Ording. After 1885, the cemetery seems to have been divided into more private family plots.
Catholic Cemetery. In April ISSO, Bennett Shafer gave the land for the Catholic Cemetery. His own burial grounds lay in the northeast corner, next to the Lutheran Cemetery, so the land given was an acre, less this Shafer family burial grounds. The oldest markers in this cemetery are those for the graves of Elizabeth Shafer, 1883 and Frances Shafer, 1SS4, who were the daughter and the wife of Bennett Shafer. He died in 1903. Other old markers bear the names of Adami, Beschorner, and Pelz.
A row of native cedars marks the di- vision line between this cemetery and the Lutheran Cemetery to the east.
Buckingham Cemetery. Records of the Buckingham Cemetery Association are kept in a russet-colored, leather-bound vol- ume over ninety years old. The association was organized on August 15. 1876 at Caze- novia. The first trustees were Isaac Boys, P. A. Coen, and Wm. E. Rice. Wm. O. Hammers, as Justice of the Peace, signed the certificate filed in the office of the Secretary of State the following Feb. 1, 1877. The deed shows that Sarah J. Buek- ingham and Orpha E. Buckingham con- veyed three acres of land, also a strip of land two rods wide for a road, to be used for cemetery purposes and no other, to the Buckingham Cemetery Association, on Dec. 5. 1876. This land lies in Section 9.
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Woodford County History
The last recorded meeting was held Jan. 12, 1966, with George T. Clark, president and J. Harrison Buckingham, secretary- treasurer pro tem.
Buckingham, Braun, Boon, Clark, Fos- ter, and Pelz are some of the names found on stones in this cemetery.
Imhoff Cemetery. Mrs. Mary Imhoff, who had been a Wagner, came in 1832 from Germany. In 1834 she married John Im- hoff, also from Germany. They lived in Ohio until 1851, when they moved to a farm in Section 18, Cazenovia Township. Of eleven children, two had died in in- fancy, and four more were to die in their twenties. John Imhoff died in Oct. 1852, leaving his widow with a family of nine children.
Records at the court-house in Eureka state that one-fourth acre of land was taken from the farm and donated by Mrs. Mary Imhoff as a cemetery. It seems to be rather a family burial plot. There are Wagners buried there, and other names recorded are Imhoff, Owen, Phipps, Kenyon, and Lewis.
Interested people cleared off the brush and built a fence around this small ceme- tery some years ago, with donations from relatives and friends to help defray ex- penses. With the help of the township it is mowed and kept in good condition.
Lowpoint Cemetery
The Methodist Episcopal Church was built in 1851, dedicated by Presiding Elder Rev. Mr. Cummins. A very pretty little cemetery, handsomely adorned with shrub- bery and evergreens was laid out next to the church. The land was bought in 1845 from James Boys for $1.00 to be used as a place of worship and burial ground for- ever. The first burial in the cemetery was in the summer of 1851. Two brothers by the name of Pogue had gone to the timber for a load of wood, and while absent ate some red plums, took cholera, and died before they could get home. Both were buried in the same grave, but there is no standing stone in the cemetery for these
two. The oldest standing stone is dated 1853 and the last burial was in 1937. There are several Civil War veterans buried here, reportedly brought back by horse drawn hearse during that war.
The cemetery was maintained by the church until about 1910, when the church and cemetery both fell into disrepair. The church was formally closed about 1920 and the assets transferred to the Washburn Methodist Church. The books and records of the cemetery have disappeared. From the time of the closing of the church until 1963, no one took the responsibility of maintaining the cemetery. It grew to weeds for a number of years, with several differ- ent people occasionally going in to mow the head high weeds and set up the stones. In May 1963, a group formed the Lowpoint Cemetery Association and with financial help from Cazenovia Township have main- tained it through 1968.
Black Partridge Cemetery. This is located on Section 31, on the Metamora-Cazenovia Township line. Nearly an acre in size, it is all that remains of Black Partridge, which was first an Indian settlement, then a post office, and finally a church. The land at one time belonged to Peter Schneider and Henry Christ.
Names to be found are those of Iles- selein, Wagner, Kendricks, Radalmuller, Stauffer, Truckenmiller, Bohlander, Attig, Waffer, Kenyon, Kamm, and Trump.
All of these cemeteries are organized and are governed by boards of trustees.
Originally Named Uniontown, Then Mantua, Now Washburn
Long ago, the State Road from Spring- field to Chicago went through what was some day to be a town; at that time it was called "Half Moon Prairie". In 1832, Wil- liam Maxwell had ambitious visions and saw the likely possibility of a village be- ing established in Half Moon Prairie. HIe bought land somewhere along the county line in the now eastern part of Washburn, built an inn and entertainment house for travelers on the State Road, and also kept fresh horses for the stage coach.
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Cazenovia Township
Since this State Road was the most di- rect and best route from Springfield to Chi- cago, 137 years ago, Mr. Maxwell probably did a good business with his investment. He laid out a town to be called "Auburn" but the time was not yet ripe. So it was that even though the builders of the State Road were unaware of it, they were at the same time laying the first corner stone of the settlement that was, 20 years later, to become Washburn.
William Maxwell's father-in-law, Henry D. Palmer, was a county line property owner. In IS46 Mr. Palmer donated some land that a school house might be built and the families living on either side of the county line road saw to it that the school house was built. Thus a second firm and enduring foundation stone was ad- joined to the first; and because this little settlement had sprung up on the line ad- joining Marshall and Woodford counties, they called it Uniontown.
The laying of the third corner stone can perhaps be attributed to Peleg Sweet who came here in 1847. In Jacksonville, Illinois he became acquainted with a Christian minister and the men became good friends. Through this minister, Peleg worked out a trade by which he could come to Caze- novia Township, Woodford County. It must have been a worthwhile trade, ho- cause once here, he bought 800 acres of land along Parkside Drive.
lle divided this land into SO-acre sec- tions and put one of his ten children on each section, with the exception of the youngest, who in due time fell heir to the home place which Peleg built. The houses erected by the children of Sweet were all similar in construction, and since they were strung out from east to west, this strip bo- came known as "Stringtown." Previous to this time, there were only three houses in the northwest quarter of Section One.
The final step came in 1851. Hiram Echols acquired the necessary land and laid out the original town. This comprised 12 blocks, eight of them in Woodford County and four of them in Marshall.
At the suggestion of Alonson Howard.
the town was named Washburn. Joe Parker was the first to build a house in the newly- named town. A second house, a log cabin, was built by Printer Burgess Smith. Dr. Thomas was the first to buy a lot and some time later he built a drug store on it. This was a two-story building with a Masonic lodge room on the second floor. This was later removed to Jefferson Street and used by M. S. Fulton as a store. Today it stands as a residence on West Magnolia Street.
These years were filled with activity. . building boom was on and in 1852 Jesse Hammers built the first store for his brother. He was succeeded by Americus Pogue, who was succeeded by Cushing and Jenkins about 1853.
The post office was established in 1854 in Dr. Thomas' office. The first postmaster was the William Maxwell who figured so much in the early history of the town.
A brief survey shows that by 1855 Wash- burn had one store, one church ( Baptist ), one minister, and one doctor. Eggs were selling at 3e per dozen, butter was from 5ยข to IOe per pound, and corn sold for I5e per bushel.
A shoe shop was opened in 1856 and a second store building was built by a Mr. Ackey. J. G. Haines ran a harness shop and in 1857, A. M. Harper opened a shop. The next year August lunker built a mill and John L. Black, the grandfather of Glen W. Black, was operating the Union Hotel.
In 1864 the Bliss Sisters opened their millinery store. Three years later, August Iunker built a steam flour mill.
The town later had another hotel, oper- ated by Mr. and Mrs. John Carrithers. It is now the Harry Snyder home.
Benjamin Monroe operated a saloon, and Clay Little conducted a grocery store. with Jonathan Haines as the clerk. Mr. Haines later built the residence now oc- cupied by Elmer E. Winkler.
In a loan-to on the south side of the Little store building, George C. Butler con- ducted a tin shop, while the family had living quarters in the rear. Between 1861- 1867 Phillip Drennen and Charles McCul- loch, the great uncle of Mrs. C. E. Spang-
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Woodford County History
ler, erected a grocery store. Later, A. S. Fishburn and son, Edward P. Fishburn, managed the store. This building is now the Ilarper Apartments.
Some may recall when those living in early Washburn forded the creek on Wal- nut Street to drive over to the cast side. A foot bridge accommodated pedestrians. When "Old Snag" went on a rampage, as it does now during a spring cloud burst, a bridge on Stringtown Road was used. When the wooden bridge, with walk along- side, was built across Snag Creek at Wal- nut, the "Stringtown" bridge went into de- cline, and the road was closed.
Eighteen hundred and seventy was a great year for the town. The population had climbed to 272 ambitious and happy citizens, who saw only a prosperous, glow- ing, and growing future for their little town. The really momentous event of the year was the laying of the Chicago & Alton Railroad tracks. These, alas, were laid he- yond Old Snag and several blocks east of the original town, but no one complained. Everyone was so thrilled with the prospect of having trains through Washburn, that they began to move near the tracks.
By 1871 Washburn's business center was on Jefferson Street right next door to the C. & A. Depot. Frank N. Ireland estab- lished the Washburn bank in the Fulton building. And from that time on new buildings were erected or "old" buildings moved from the original town to booming Jefferson Street. Henry Sangbush moved his harness shop from the west to the "east side" and built a front addition to it.
The town was incorporated in IS71, erasing all that was left to remind anyone of Uniontown. The first board of directors was elected that year: George C. Butler, F. Bennecke, S. W. McCullough, Samuel Patrick, Henry Sangbush, and J. G. Haines. The board elected S. W. McCullough as president, M. S. Fulton as clerk, G. N. Ireland as treasurer, R. H. Richard as con- stable, and William Cotton as street com- missioner.
In 1873, Robert C. McCulloch laid out
the McCulloch Addition. He was a farmer and also engaged in tile manufacturing just outside the northeast village limits. He retired and built a home in McCulloch's addition.
In IS79, B. L. Bruce was doing all he could to further the digging of a town well. Bruce called to attention the dire need of a town pump. The only water sup- ply available for fire fighting in the down town area was a cistern belonging to the Christian Haase store. It was a good cisteri., but the amount of water would have been inadequate if a really good blaze got started.
Washburn was growing. In the ten years from IS70 to 1880 its population had al- most doubled. The 272 inhabitants had in- creased to 450.
Business was booming, but in ISS7 Washburn had its "great fire." The two south blocks of the business district burned. In spite of Editor Bruce's cam- paign for more water reservoirs for fire fighting purposes, there was still not enough to control the fire. A town well had been dug and water from the well was used during this fire.
At the beginning of the "Gay Nineties," Washburn's population had increased to 598. The Washburn Leader was estab- lished in IS90 by Charles Rowley. In IS9I there were two hotels in Washburn-the Wilson Hotel and the hotel owned and operated by Mr. and Mrs. Squire Tribbey, earlier known as the Alexander House, and as the Woodford Hotel.
Tom Alexander, who lived in what is now the Sherman house, built the first hotel where the Fitschen hardware store now is, and operated it for a number of years as the Alexander House. Following in the management of the hotel were A. S. Fishburn, Leslie Hayden, and others.
There were four trains daily on the C. & A .; Moschel & Tweddale were dealers in groceries, wall paper, jewelry, silver- ware, and fine shoes; B. W. Taylor was a dealer in livestock; Christian Haase was engaged in the grocery and dry goods
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Cazenovia Township
business; P. A. Sommers was a contractor and builder; Jonathan G. Ilaines dealt in staple and fancy groceries.
George P. Gill was an attorney-at-law and notary public; M. S. Fulton dealt in drugs, medicines, paints, oils, toilet articles, etc .; Jacob Fuiks was a dealer in dry goods, millinery, clothing, boots, shoes and groc- eries; Ilenry Sangbush, a manufacturer and dealer in harness, collars and saddles; Sharp & Tweddale, hardware merchants; M. L. Buckingham, auctioneer; and Thos. Il. Bratt, jeweler.
Dr. James Tweddale was the leading physician and surgeon; Thomas Nevins was the C. & A. agent; August Sangbush was a manufacturer of boots and shoes; Lesch. Fitschen and Co., contractors and builders; the Misses Bliss operated a dress- making and millinery establishment; P. S. Stephens conducted a general blacksmith shop; Benjamin Aicher was a coal dealer; C. B. Johnson was owner of the Washburn elevator: Taylor and MeWhinney were dealers in poultry and fresh and salted meats; Wm. G. Pritchard was proprietor of a restaurant: S. J. Black was a breeder of pure bred swine.
Owens and Carrithers were proprietors of the Upper Meat Market; Dr. W. A. Gray was advertising painless dentistry: Ferdi- nand Klinger was manufacturing and deal- ing in harness, saddles, whips, etc .; Lee Van Dusen, was the "fashionable barber"; Dr. B. N. Watt was enjoying a splendid practice as physician and surgeon; Fred Ehringer was dealing in furniture; J. II. Patterson conducted a livery and feed stable: F. N. Ireland was at the head of the Washburn Bank.
Pioneer settlers of that section of Wash- burn lying east of the tracks were George and Minnie Gill Furrow, who in IS91 built a home "out on the prairie" where now are located over half of Washburn's citi- zens. Nellie Furrow Carter was the first chill born on the east side, and the attend- ing physician was Dr. N. V. Maloney. This first home is now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Gary McCully. "Pistol" being the
nickname of Mr. Furrow when a young man, gave to the settlement which grew rapidly after once getting a start, the name "Pistolville," and the name still clings to it today.
Al. C. and Jennie Butler Blackmon built the second home in the addition early in IS92. The Blackmons built a number of other residences in the cast side, and its rapid growth from that time has made of it one of the town's lovely residential sec- tions. Many recall the time when the Carl Dibel home, later the F. N. Ireland home and now the C. L. Jury apartments, was "way out in the country from Washburn." Other of the earlier homes are the Robert DeTrempe home, built by Peter Stevens and the Mrs. Pauline Tjaden home built by Mr. and Mrs. John M. Black, and known as the "Crystal Palace."
In IS92 Clifford C. Ireland formed a stock company and built the Columbian Hall, one of the finest theaters of the time in central Illinois. For many years Wash- burn audiences filled the house to capacity with some of the best stock companies on the theatrical stages as entertainers. The new show house was dedicated with dra- matic productions by local talent, and some of the finest talent was brought here by Lyceum Lecturers and Entertainers.
A. B. Mason was a proprietor of the Washburn Novelty store and M. L. Harper was advertising as the only store in Wood- ford County selling goods on a strictly cash basis. In 1893 the Washburn bank robbery caused great excitement.
A survey of the town in IS95 and 1896 shows Thomas G. Wells and Company occupying the "Old Corner Store" where E. P. Fishburn and Miss Sadie Bliss were kept busy from morning 'til night attend- ing rapidly growing trade. Guy Hickman opened a meat market, with Charles Iliff as the meat cutter. E. E. "Slip" DeBolt was the town's "artistic" photographer. and Peter Stephens, John Immel and the Ham- mer and Anvil were doing well. Jake De- Bolt, Fred and John Tribbey and Billy Berg were competitors in the tonsorial
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Woodford County Ilistory
business. Daniel Eikelbarner's sorghum mill was grinding out "sweetness dear to the heart of every child" and Isaac Helfel- finger was doing the community's ditching.
The old grist mill built by August Iunker was purchased by Ulrich Schmidt and was being repaired to "running order" after long idleness. John Klinger was engaged in the butcher business, and Henry Aicher was offering to the public a well selected stock of jewelry. Uncle Sam and Aunt Media Wilson were serving the best in food at Wilson House; Mrs. Ira Burnham was displaying the latest in ladies hats and Miss Abbie Heighway was proprietress of a dressmaking shop.
Henry Gill was constantly employed as carpenter and painter; Robert Peachey was in his fifteenth year as stock buyer and shipper; S. B. Holman was advertising his array of ripe fruits, nuts and candies as "a conglomerated mass of mixed up messes and a world of bargains". Mr. C. E. Ver- ney, dentist of Lacon, was making weekly trips to Washburn; Benjamin Butler, his sons, Benj. Jr. and Frank, and O. Ehringer were the brick masons of the town. J. M. Black and Company were agents for the celebrated Crown Piano and Organs and James R. Watson was police magistrate. Henry Hinck, Sr., Jesse R. Weaver, and Alfred Lewis were effectively and speedily digging wells in the vicinity.
S. C. Van Horne looked after the inter- ests of the C. & A. Railroad. John Brandt was operating a confectionery. George Furrow was busy hauling coal to all parts of town. Dr. C. H. Anthony, veterinary surgeon, of Washington, called every Thursday at L. J. Patterson's livery stable. The Societies of the town were A.F.&A.M., I.O.O.F., M.W. of A., G.A.R., W.R.C., Alumni, Chautauqua Circle, W.C.T.U. and A.P.A.
In 1899 the Council of Scholars, of which John R. Tweddale was a member, met in the Columbian Hall to debate, hold mock trials, and discuss current topics.
At the dawn of the 20th century Wash- burn's population had increased to 703.
In 1902 Oscar Shepard started the tele-
phone exchange. There had been a few private phones before 1902, but this was the beginning of the Washburn circuit. A perpetual franchise was granted the com- pany by the Village of Washburn.
Rural Free Delivery in the United States was started on Oct. 1, 1896 with three routes in West Virginia. The first rural carrier here was Tom McKee, who started April 3, 1903. He was succeeded by George Furrow, who carried the mail for 30 years. Frank Gill started as a carrier in March 1906 and continued his service until April 30, 1933, a period of 27 years. On June 3, 1933, Frank's route was taken over by Ray Gardner who transferred here from Wash- ington, Illinois. Guy C. Little passed away Aug. 23, 1928, having served 28 years as carrier. D. L. Moore began his work Feb. 9, 1940. Ray Gardner died on Oct. I, 1953 and his route passed to John Danhof, pres- ent carrier. D. L. Moore transferred to Varna as rural mail carrier, the Washburn routes becoming consolidated.
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