USA > Illinois > McLean County > The good old times in McLean County, Illinois : containing two hundred and sixty-one sketches of old settlers, a complete historical sketch of the Black Hawk war and descriptions of all matters of interest relating to McLean County > Part 18
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Adam Guthrie has the feeling of an old settler, and takes pride in the growth and development of the country, and in the fact that he is identified with it. He takes pleasure in recalling the incidents of early life, and any little event awakens this feeling. IIe even takes satisfaction in having attended the first funeral in the old cemetery, that of Mrs. Pennington. He says she lived in the house now occupied by L. Matern, carriage maker, the same in which Mr. Hill printed the first newspaper published in Bloomington.
As to personal appearance, Adam Guthrie is well formed, and nearly six feet in height. His constitution is not very good. His features are strong and his nose a little Roman. He has never been much of a speculator, although he understands the value of property, and knows how to make the assessment.
DAVID Cox.
David Cox was born January 12, 1811, about four miles from Circleville, in Pickaway County, Ohio. His father's name was Benjamin Cox, and his mother's was Philena Dye. He thinks his mother was of Welch descent. He went to school in Ohio, but in this respect differed little from other boys of that time. Edu- cational advantages were not remarkably good. He was a very industrious boy, his father never allowed him to be idle, and the habit of industry became so fixed that it has remained in his old age. In 1825 his father came to McLean County and bought of John W. Dawson an improved claim with a log cabin, a barn and seventy acres under fence, for two hundred dollars. He re- turned to Ohio to bring out his family, but died within two or three weeks afterwards. But Mrs. Cox, the mother of David, brought out the family, which consisted of eight children, four
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sons, three daughters and one nephew, John Kimler. They left Ohio August 29, 1826, and arrived September 23. The sea- son was pleasant and the roads were good, until they came to the beech woods of Indiana. There they were troubled by mud, but when they came to the prairie they had a pleasant road once more. They saw only three houses between the Vermilion Salt Works (twelve miles this side of Danville) and Blooming Grove, then called Keg Grove. This is a distance of about seventy miles. They had no particular adventure or trouble, except that once their horses strayed away, and the Indians took them, and the animals were not recovered for some time. They came back poor from neglect and hard Indian fare. The family settled on the east side of Blooming Grove, where David Cox now lives. It is near the track of the Indianapolis, Bloomington & Western Railway.
The Cox family had a hard time during the winter of the deep snow, as all the settlers had, and pounded their corn, of course. Mrs. David Cox (then Miss Walker) says they parched corn and ground it in a coffee mill, and thought it good living.
David Cox was more of a worker than a hunter ; he says the deer always saw him first, and he preferred the certainty of the reward of toil to the uncertainty of finding game which could see him first. The falling of the meteors in 1833 was quite an era for the old settlers. The meteors came by millions, and made the night much lighter by their falling. It is said that James Rhodes thought the world was coming to an end, and arose and began reading his Bible.
Mr. Cox never lost much by prairie fires, being always care- ful to guard against them. The vegetation of the country has been changed by settling it up. The prairie grass has disap- peared, and the blue grass has taken its place. Mr. Cox tells of some peculiar vegetables, called the ramps, which formerly grew in the timber. They tasted like onions, and were liked by the cattle, but gave a bad flavor to the milk. They flavored everything they touched and were very disagreeable, but are now nowhere to be seen.
David Cox married, May 29, 1833, Miss Sophrona J. Walker, a very amiable and pleasant lady. Mrs. Cox is a good house-
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wife, and takes care of her household goods. She has coverlets which were woven before the Black Hawk war. She has in constant use the table, the stand, the cupboard and the chairs, which were made in the days of the early settlement. She is a very entertaining lady, as may he seen from the following, which she writes of the early settlement :
-" Only a few white families were settled in Blooming Grove when we came, but the Indians were plenty. The squaws called on us occasionally for the purpose of trading beads, bead baskets and trinkets of various kinds. I thought it very amusing to be visited by the red ladies of the forest. Though I was but a child I took particular notice of their language. They always wanted something to eat, and would sometimes call for husquel (corn) and for cookcush (meat). When we came here our family was in limited circumstances, and when I wanted a nice dress, something better than father felt able to buy, I would take my basket and hoe and hunt through the woods and dig ginseng, which was dried and sold. Our way of visiting was different from what it is at present. We thought it no trouble to walk seven or eight miles to go to a spinning party. The school- masters in the early days thought it necessary to be more severe in their punishments than at present. I remember well when I was going to school to Mr. H -. He left the school house during one noon, and when he returned he made the boys think he had been on the house-top watching their proceedings while they thought him absent, and he called them up one by one, and asked what they had done. He called up one boy and said : ' Henry, what have you done ?' The reply was : 'I took after one of the girls and tried to hug her, and chased her out in the rain.' He was severely whipped. Every boy had to draw his coat for each trifling offense. I wonder if Mr. H. ever thinks of it? My parents were very pious people, and tried to bring up their children in the fear and admonition of the Lord. They often had preaching at their house."
Mr. and Mrs. Cox have had six children, of whom five are living. They are :
Mrs. Martha M. Rhodes, wife of Aaron Rhodes.
William Marcus Cox, born August 9, 1836, lives two miles south of his father's.
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Mrs. Mary Ellen Sweeney, wife of Dennis Sweeney, lives in Bloomington.
Leander Melville Cox was born April 18, 1841, and at pres- ent lives in Bloomington.
Mrs. Huldah M. Deems, wife of George Deems, lives with her father.
Cora Ellis Cox, born February 17, 1854, died in infancy.
Mr. Cox is a man rather less than the medium height, weighs one hundred and thirty-five pounds, is always busy, too busy to ever weigh much. IIe is always on the move, and is quite noted for his ceaseless activity. He is a pleasant and somewhat humorous man, very kind to everyone, and quite noted among the old settlers. His neighbors are always glad to see him, but they never catch him idle. Mr. Cox has been very temperate in his habits, and never was intoxicated in his life, though he lived in times when it was the custom to use ardent spirits. He has never used tobacco nor made use of profane language. He is a very hardy old settler, and can bear a great deal. In 1854 or '55 he was on board of a railroad train which was snowed up near Mt. Pulaski. The snow came so thick and fast that many peo- ple were lost while at home feeding their stock, and it was so deep that they could not travel with teams. Mr. Cox walked through that snow from near Mt. Pulaski to Funk's Grove, a distance of thirty miles. Mr. Cox was an Old Line Whig and afterwards a Republican; nevertheless, he voted for Jackson, who was certainly the most powerful political man in the United States.
WILLIAM MCCULLOUGH.
William McCullough, son of Peter and Levina Mccullough, was born September 11, 1812, in Flemingsburg, Kentucky. Pe- ter Mccullough was a noted character. He was a man of re- markable shrewdness. The MeCullough family came in the year 1826 to what is now McLean County, Illinois, and settled at Dry Grove. Here Peter Mccullough kept for a while a house of entertainment. A queer incident is related of him which shows his disposition and character. At one time a stranger stopped with old Peter and used some profane language without any oc- casion. Old Peter paid no attention for some time, but at last
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he said : "Stranger, I generally do what little swearing is neces- sary on these premises !" At another time, some years later, while Peter McCullough was in Bloomington, some merchants insisted on selling him some fine clothes. This happened while the bankrupt law was in force, and while so many men were taking advantage of it to pay their debts. These merchants had themselves been through bankruptcy, and when they asked old Peter to buy some fine clothes he refused, saying that, if he did so, people would think him a miserable bankrupt.
In early life William McCullough worked on a farm. He was a boy of remarkable spirit, and his great resolution was plainly seen even in his youth. In 1882 he enlisted as a private soldier in the company commanded by Merrit Covel, and went to the Black Hawk war. There he was distinguished for his great personal courage. He was so unfortunate as to lose his gun, but made good the deficiency by snatching a gun from the hands of an Indian on the ground of Stillman's Run. This af- fair is a matter of great notoriety ; but to one unacquainted with the matter it seems almost incredible. But it is certainly true that Mccullough took a gun from a hostile Indian on the field of Stillman's Run. The gun, however, was not a very good one, as it exploded in his hands after the close of the Black Hawk war, while he was firing on parade.
In December, 1833, William McCullough was married to Miss Mary Williams. They had been in their youth schoolmates and were taught by Milton H. Williams, the father of Mrs. Mc- Cullough.
In 1840 William McCullongh lost his right arm in a thresh- ing machine. After it was torn off, the stump was amputated. When the amputation of the arm was about to be made, McCul- lough was asked whom he wished to hold it, and he chose Osborn Barnard. During the operation Mccullough sat quietly smoking, but he thought he saw Mr. Barnard tremble a little, and cautioned the latter to be careful and steady. This incident is given by Mr. Barnard himself.
In the fall of 1840 Mr. Mccullough was elected sheriff of McLean County, and held this office for three successive terms. He was then elected Circuit Clerk of the county, and held this office for four successive terms. He was an exceedingly popular man, and had the warmest of friends.
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In August, 1861, Mr. McCullough entered the army and was commissioned lieutenant colonel of the Fourth Illinois Cavalry. With only one arm and a defective eye, he nevertheless, per- formed his duty fearlessly and efficiently. He was at Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, at Shiloh, and at Corinth. On the fifth of December, 1862, Colonel McCullough was killed in the engage- ment with the rebels near Coffeeville, Mississippi. His body was brought home and buried in the Bloomington Cemetery. When the news of the death of Colonel McCullough reached Bloom- ington, the bar of MeLean County held a meeting and passed resolutions to his memory, as he continued to hold his office of clerk of the Circuit Court. The following is taken from the report of this meeting :
" William McCullough entered the military service of the United States in August, 1861, and was immediately commis- sioned lieutenant colonel of the Fourth Illinois Cavalry. From that time he gave his whole heart to the cause of his country, and put all his energy to the suppression of the foulest rebellion that ever disgraced the pages of history. He was present with his regiment at the operation which resulted in the capture of Fort Henry, and in the taking of Fort Donelson he rendered such efficient and valuable service that he attracted the attention of his commanding officer (the lamented General Wallace) whose official report acknowledges and commends his gallant conduct. He was also in the battle of Shiloh and in all the movements of the army that led to the evacuation of Corinth by the rebels un- der General Beauregard, and from that time until his death he was always present where danger was to be met, or laurels won, and was ever a brave, faithful, energetic and accomplished sol- dier.
"In consideration of the service he has rendered the country, and inasmuch as he was long officially connected with this Court, the members of this bar in perpetuation of his memory, pray that this paper together with the following resolutions be spread upon the records of this Court :
" Resolved, That we, the members of this bar, have heard with the deepest regret of the death of Lieutenant Colonel Wil- liam McCullough, the clerk of this Court, who fell in battle, bravely contending for the liberty and laws of his country, against a causeless and most wicked rebellion.
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" Resolved, That in the death of Lieutenant Colonel McCul- lough, we feel that we have lost a warm-hearted, faithful friend, but our greatest regret is that the Government has lost a brave, accomplished and patriotic soldier, and liberty a valiant cham- pion.
" Resolved, That we take this solemn occasion to renew, with a firmer purpose, our unalterable attachment to the Constitution and laws of the country, and to again pledge to the Govern- ment our unswerving support and warmest sympathy in all its efforts to suppress this infernal rebellion.
"Resolved, That the clerk of this Court, furnish to the family of Lieutenant Colonel Mccullough a copy of these resolutions.
" Colonel Gridley then addressed the meeting, referring to his long acquaintance and intimacy with the deceased, touching upon many tender incidents of his life, demonstrating the kind and social feelings, the sterling integrity and true bravery of the man. That he was not ambitious, yet always by the choice of the people filling important positions of trust. He spoke elo- quently and feelingly of the great cause of our country to which Colonel McCullough had so unhesitatingly given up his life.
" His Honor, Judge Scott, also spoke to the same effect, tes- tifying from his long and intimate acquaintance, to his goodness and nobleness of heart, and of the kindness he had received, both from him and his family, when, some years ago, he made his home with them, and of the many endearing reminiscences that crowded upon his mind in this sad hour of bereavement.
" Hon. Leonard Swett commencing by saying : 'At a time like this silence seems most eloquent,' referred to our many brave and good citizens that had before fallen by the hands of this terrible rebellion. He spoke particularly and at some length of the history of Colonel McCullough in connection with this war, of his bravery and noble bearing upon the battle-field and of the loss this community and the country have sustained in his death, and that 'those gaps that death makes are not easily filled.' He spoke most feelingly and tenderly of the family of the deceased, of his bearing to them the sad message of death.
" The meeting was further addressed most eloquently and ap- propriately by Messrs. W. H. Hanna, Jesse Bishop, David Brier J. H. Wickizer, R. E. Williams, James Ewing and M. W
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Strayer, all giving some pleasant incidents of kindness which they had received at the hands of the deceased, and all bearing testimony to the uniform urbanity, sociability, kindness, gener- osity, fidelity and integrity of Colonel Mccullough in all the walks of social and public life.
" Upon motion, the preamble and resolutions were then unan- imously adopted.
" Also upon motion, W. H. Hanna, Esq., was appointed a committee on behalf of the bar to present these resolutions to the Court and to ask that they be spread upon the records of the same.
W. P. BOYD, President.
JESSE BIRCH, Sceretary."
William McCullough had eight children, four of whom grew to manhood and womanhood. They are :
Mrs. Nannie L. Orme, widow of General William W. Orme, who, during the rebellion, entered the United States service as colonel of the Ninety-fourth Illinois Infantry, and was after- wards made a general. He died September 13, 1866, of sickness contracted while in the army.
Mrs. Fannie M. Orme, wife of Frank D. Orme, lives in Washington, D. C.
William A. Mccullough, died September 2, 1869. He was, during the war, a soldier in the Fifth Illinois Cavalry.
Howard M. Mccullough died July 1, 1871. He was, during the war, a soldier in the Ninety-fourth Illinois Infantry.
Colonel Mccullough was of medium height, was very pleas- ant and polite in his manners and warm-hearted and generous in his disposition. His hair in his younger days was dark, afterwards gray, and his eyes were black and expressive. He was one of the most bold and fearless of men, and it may be doubted whether he ever had the feeling of fear or really knew what it was. He was frank and outspoken in his manner and a warm friend. He wasone of the most popular men in McLean County, for he had those bold and generous qualities which men and women admire.
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DR. ISAAC BAKER.
Dr. Isaac Baker was born September 13, 1783, in Fairfield County, Connecticut. The ancestry of Dr. Baker was Puritan and is traced to the settlement of the Plymouth colony. He was educated at an early day for a physician and studied seven years.
He married in Ohio in the fall of 1803, Susannah M. Dodge. In 1810 or '11 the Baker family moved to Marietta, Ohio. During the war of 1812 he lived at the block house at Marietta, and it was his duty for a part of the time to watch from a tree top for Indians, while the men were at work in the field. He learned surveying in Ohio and became quite skillful in the use of the instruments. He was also an architect and superintended the construction of many buildings. "In 1820 he went from Ohio to New York to aid his brother-in-law in the erection of steam works for a factory, and from there he went to Bath, in Maine, where he built the first steam mill ever erected in that State."
On the eleventh of July, 1827, he came to what is now McLean County, Illinois. The journey was made in wet weather over muddy roads and corduroy tracks through the swamps. He settled first at Harley's Grove and there built a house. But after some calculation he concluded that it would never be sufficiently settled to support a school to educate his children and he sold his claim, having lived on it only a few months. He next settled in the southwestern part of Funk's Grove, where he remained two years and sold out to a man named Rankin and bought a claim a little south of William Orendorff's at Blooming Grove. When the land came into market, he entered his claim of one hundred and sixty acres.
In the spring of 1831 Mr. James Allin came to Isaac Baker and said : " Come, get your chain and compass and let's lay out a town." Then Allin and Baker and William Orendorff laid out the town upon land which James Allin had given to be used for that purpose. Mr. Allin was very enthusiastic about the future of Bloomington and took out a map to convince the gen- tlemen of the favorable situation of the place. He put a hazel- switch across it and said it was on the direct route from Chicago to St. Louis and that it was between Columbus, Ohio, and Flint Bluffs (now Burlington), Iowa, and he was very positive that it
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would be a great city in the future. The town was finally located and called Bloomington. Isaac Baker surveyed the lots and laid them out. It had been decided before this that the place should be a county seat.
When the first Board of Commissioners of McLean County met, Isaac Baker was chosen clerk of the County Commissioners Court, which position he held for fifteen years. He was after- wards postmaster of Bloomington and heid this office for some years, and "his old residence still stands on South Centre street, hard by which was the old post-office and which then marked the commercial center of the city." Dr. Baker helped in build- ing the first house put up in Bloomington, after it was laid out.
While Dr. Baker was county clerk, some incidents occurred, which show how difficult it was sometimes to procure money. A young man, who wished to get married, made application for a license, but had no money to pay the fee. After some discus- sion Dr. Baker gave him a license, and the man promised to pay the fee in maple sugar in the following spring. It was a sweet transaction for all concerned. Another young man, who expe- rienced the same difficulty, promised to pay for his license in wolf-scalps.
Dr. Baker was a liberal-minded man and would not allow anything like persecution or ostracism, if he could help it. At one time, a Mormon preacher wished to deliver a sermon, but the people refused to listen and seemed disposed to use violence. But Dr. Baker took the Mormon home and kindly cared for him and entertained him in the best of style, shod his horse, gave him money and sent him on his way rejoicing.
The first Methodist conference was held in Bloomington in 1836, and in this Dr. Baker took great interest.
In 1853 or '54 he moved to Leroy, where he lived until the time of his death, which occurred April 28, 1872.
He was married three times and his domestic life was always very happy. He married, the second time, Mrs. Ruth Green- man, the widow of John Greenman, and the third time, Mrs. Nancy Miller, a widow. By his first marriage he had eleven children. They are: Seth, Elliot, William, John, Susannah, Charles, Sidney D., Mary Ann, Solomon D., Hiram and Albert. By his second marriage he had two children: Laura W. and Julia A. Baker.
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The following description of Dr. Baker was written at the time of his death by one of his intimate friends, and was pub- lished in the Bloomington Pantagraph :
Dr. Baker was of medium height, and rather corpulent. Sidney Baker, Esq., of Leroy, is a very good type of what his father was in the days of his prime. Dr. Baker was a quiet, un- pretending man, and the honesty and uprightness of his charac- ter was never called in question. Such was the general confi- dence the people reposed in him while in office that he was consulted as an oracle, and his opinions taken for law. He was a man of literary taste and very extensive reading and informa- tion. Scarcely any subject within the range of human investi- gation but had to some extent come under the knowledge and observation of Dr. Baker. He was communicative and interest- ing in conversation, and always impressed you with the sincerity of his opinions. He was a friend of peace and a lover of con- cord, and passed through his long life without having any trou- ble with his fellow-men; and in addition to this he healed up the difficulties of others and poured oil on the troubled waters wherever he went. He was benignant and kind to everybody, but especially to the poor. The fatherless, the widow or the needy were never turned empty away from Dr. Baker's door. He believed in immortality and eternal life, and lived and died in hope through Christ of a brighter and more beautiful world beyond the grave. Thus after a long and eventful life of four score and nine years, the wheels of' his mortal life stood still, and Dr. Baker passed over and now lives beyond the river. Peace to his memory here, and glory and immortality here- after.
GEORGE HINSHAW, JR.
George Hinshaw, Jr., was born December 26, 1820, on a farmi two miles from the town of Monroe, the county seat of Overton County, Tennessee. He came from old English Quaker stock, his ancestors having emigrated from England to Ireland at an early day and from there to America. The majority of his rel- atives are still Quakers, though Mr. Hinshaw does not belong to that honored sect.
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His father's name was George Hinshaw, and his mother's maiden name was Susannah Johnson. Mr. Hinshaw, sr., the father of George Hinshaw of whom we are writing, came to Blooming Grove, McLean County, Illinois, in July, 1827. Hle had visited Illinois during the year previous, in company with Stephen Webb (now living at Twin Grove), and had made a claim of some land on the Kankakee River not far from Joliet. But when the family moved to Illinois the country was very wet, and it was impossible to go up to the Kankakee. More than that, some difficulty had occurred between the whites at the mining country near Galena and the Winnebago Indians, and the settlers feared an Indian war in the northern part of the State. All of these considerations determined Mr. Hinshaw not to go up on the Kankakee. The weather during their journey was terrible, and they were seven weeks in traveling. It rained very hard and the whole face of the country seemed covered with water. They crossed the Sangamon River at Newcom's Ford, this side of Urbana, on a raft, which they were obliged to build. They were delayed there one week. When they came to Cheney's Creek, they had great difficulty in crossing, and stopped to camp, and there a great hurricane came near blowing their horses and wagon away. Mr. Hinshaw, sr., bought a claim of twenty acres with a cabin and growing crop, in the south side of Blooming Grove, and there he built a house. He gave a wagon and yoke of oxen, worth in all about fifty dollars, for his claim. Money was then scarce. The price of a good cow was only five dollars. When he settled in Blooming Grove the gov- ernment had surveyed the land, and shortly afterwards it was brought into market, and he bought two hundred and twenty acres for $1.25 per acre. This was all the money he had and he was thought to be rich ! At that time the Kickapoo and Potta- wotamie Indians were plenty, and both tribes lived together in friendship. But they moved West about the time of the Black Hawk war. The Indians were always ready to trade, and ex- changed buckskin and moccasins for pork, flour, tobacco, &c., &c. Mr. Hinshaw thinks these savages very polite people. When they make a visit, only one talks at a time, and in this respect they differ somewhat from the ladies of a sewing circle or a mite society. But these barbarians resemble the ladies in one respect,
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