USA > Illinois > Carroll County > The history of Carroll county, Illinois, containing a history of the county-its cities, towns, etc., a biographical directory war record statistics, portraits of early settlers and prominent men history of the Northwest Illinois miscellaneous matters, etc > Part 31
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In pioneer life there are always incidents of peculiar interest, not only to the pioneers themselves, but which, if properly preserved, would be of interest to posterity, and it is a matter to be regretted that the formation of " Old Settlers' Associations " has been neglected in so many parts of the country. The presence of such associations in all the counties of our common country, with well kept records of the more important events, such as dates of arrivals, births, marriages, deaths, removals, nativity, etc., as any one can readily see, would be the direct means of preserving to the literature of the country the history of every community, that, to future generations, would be invaluable as a record of references and a ready method of settling important questions of controversy. As important as these associations are admitted to be, their formation has not yet become general, and there are many connties in the Western country whose early history is entirely lost because of such neglect and indifference. Such organizations would possess facts and figures that could not be had from any other source. Aside from their historic importance, they would serve as a means of keeping alive and further cementing old friendships and renew- ing among the members associations that were necessarily interrupted by the innovations of increasing population, cultivating social intercourse, creating a charitable fund for the benefit of such of their members as might become victims of misfortune or adversity.
Actuated by such motives as those above outlined, and in pursuance of a call published in the Carroll County newspapers in June, 1874, a large number of the old settlers met under the tent on the Carroll County Agri- cultural Fair Grounds, on the 2d day of September following, for the purpose of organizing an OLD SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION. D. W. Dame stated the object of the meeting. Luther H. Bowen was made temporary chairman, and John Irvine was chosen temporary secretary. The secretary read the names of over two hundred old settlers then living in the county, which he had collected from the best sources of information. The meeting then pro- ceeded to the election of permanent officers, resulting as follows:
President-Luther H. Bowen, of Savanna, by acclamation.
Secretary-Samuel Preston, of Mount Carroll, also by acclamation.
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
On motion of Dr. E. Woodruff, of Savanna, it was agreed that all per- sons who were residents of the county previous to 1850, should be recog- nized as old settlers and entitled to membership of the association. [This proposition was subsequently amended, and in the adoption of the consti- tution and by-laws, section two declared any one entitled to membership who had been a resident of the county twenty-one years.]
On motion of Mr. Monroe Bailey, it was
Resolved, That in order to make the association a progressive institution, that a residence of twenty-five years shall be held to constitute an Old Settler, and a member of this asso- ciation.
The following gentlemen-one from each township-were then elected vice presidents of the association.
Washington-S. S. Hodges.
Rock Creek-C. Hegerman.
Wysox-Byron Fletcher.
Freedom-David Tecter.
Elkhorn-Harry Smith.
Cherry Grove-J. G. Garner.
Salem-Duncan Mckay.
York-N. D. French.
Fair Haven-C. McMullen. Lima-A. Cheesman.
Nelson Fletcher, Monroe Bailey and Elias Woodruff were elected as an Executive Committee, and John Irvine, N. Fletcher and D. W. Dame were chosen to draft a constitution and by-laws for the government of the association.
The meeting then adjourned to meet again on the Fair Grounds on Thursday, October 8, 1874.
The meeting of Thursday, October 8, 1874, was a very large and pleasant one-the Old Settlers and their friends to the number of five hun- dred being present. The exercises of the day were commenced by a quartette of the Mount Carroll Glee Club singing a song composed for the occasion by Dr. George R. Moore, and set to music by Mr. James Irvine. as follows:
Sing, oh ! sing of the days when all was new, Ere the plowshare had vexed the sod ; When the hills and plains lay full in view, As they came from the hand of God. When the fruitful earth Gave a willing birth To a sea of nodding bloom.
As the rolling swell of the prairie green, Danced up to the wood in its summer sheen, Like a bride to a fairy groom. As we spoke with a trill, And worked with a will, And thought with a thrill, Of the homes we would build, In a land where all was new. What a happy trill, a resolute will, and a joyous thrill, In the homes we would build, For the sunlight to gild, In a land where all was new.
Gaily sing of the days when all was new, When the wood heard the echoing swell Of the shining ax of builders true, As the pride of the forest fell.
301
HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
When the log heap grew To a cabin new ; And that cabin all our own. While the dimpling smile of a bright-eyed wife,
Smoothed down all the cares and sorrows of life,
And we made it a happy home- With its rough puncheon floor, And its low latchless door, And the mud chimneys roar;
In the homes we had built, In a land where all was new.
Oh, the puncheon floor, and the welcome door, and the chimney's roar, In the homes we had built, And with happiness filled, In a land where all was new.
Sadly sing of the days when all was new, When He bid us pass under the rod ;
When our loved and lost lay dead to view-
Their souls on the bosom of God. When the angel of death, With his parching breath, Strode in silence round our homes ;
Took the father's pride with his sunlit hair;
Bewedded the bride to her own despair;
Filled our ears with a mother's moans, As we whispered low, Of the pale-faced foe, And the terrible blow, To the homes we had built, In a land where all was new. Let us whisper low, of the dreaded foe, and the fearful blow, To the homes we had built, That a shadow had chilled, In a land where all was new.
Proudly sing of the days when all was new,
When our trials and troubles had flown;
When the shadowy angel fled from view,
And the blessings of God rained down; When the seeded mould Brought a thousand fold, Of the richest golden grain.
And the harvest song in a gushing thrill,
Was a Pean to God-to man good will ;
Rolling on over hill and plain. Then our eyes caught sight, By a Heavenly light, Of a future so bright, For the homes we had built, In a land where all was new. Oh! the happy sight, by prophetic light of a future bright, For the homes we had built, That the future would gild, In a land where all was new.
The acting president, Norman D. French, followed in some very appropriate remarks, although he said he was no speaker, from the fact of his opportunities for obtaining an education being very limited, and that he would rather undertake to make a new farm than to make a speech. None of the people had come there, he continued, to make long speeches, but to brighten up old memories. In the early days of Carroll County, settlers who lived within twenty miles of each other were called neighbors. In 1832, when he came to the northern part of the state from Vermont, he crossed Rock River at Dixon's Ferry, kept by Mr. Dixon. Proceeding
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
northwardly, he found a few settlers at Elkhorn Grove, and two or three at Cherry Grove. In 1833, he hired out as a farm hand. In the Fall of that year, and in 1834, he helped to survey the county into townships. At one time in 1833 he became lost in a fog, and after two days' wanderings he found himself in Savanna. He made the claim on which he then lived in 1835; broke up a part of the land in 1836; built a cabin in 1837, but raised no crop until 1838, and had raised a crop every year since. Mr. French gave this as the origin of the term "Suckers" as applied to Illinoisans .*
" In those days it was customary for people living in the south part of the state to take their teams and some milch cows, in the Spring of the year, and go up to the lead mines near Galena, work at mining during the Summer, sell ont their stock and trapping in the Fall, and return home by following down the rivers. The sucker fish of the Mississippi and its tributaries go up stream in the Spring to deposit their spawn, but always return down stream on the approach of the Fall and Winter months. Hence the name of ' Sucker ' State."
Mr. Preston being called upon said, he would not attempt to make a speech, but would read a poem he had prepared for the occasion, entitled :
AN OLD SETTLER'S HOMILY.
The second of September In this proud "Sucker " State ; Let all of us remember, That we convened to make A gath'ring of " Old Settlers," From city, towns, and plains ; From hills, and valleys fertile, That Carroll County claims.
To form a social festive, As each successive year, Shall draw from those can best give Bounteous stores to cheer. And now at this first meeting, (We'll not detain you long;) We offer you this greeting, A new and simple song.
Ho! pioneers of freedom, Who broke the prairie sod; With who! haw Bright! gee Tom !- Strange sounds, to those who trod In stealth, their pathway seeking For game; or warriors blood From some poor scalp a reeking ;- The former was their food.
But pardon this digression ; We thought it would not harm, To mingle savage custom, With how we made a farm, But all those days are ended, The whoop! and words profane ; With crack of whip, both blended, The sluggish ox to pain.
* Another version is given thus: In very early times, when emigrants from Virginia and Kentucky, to Missouri, were crossing the lower end of the state-going through "Egypt"-water was sometimes scarce, and the only means of obtaining it in certain localities was by sucking it up from craw-fish holes through hollow weeds or reeds. Whether this be true, the writer sayeth not.
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY
With some it was a query- (Had they the spurious leaven)- To drive an ox, and carry Their souls up into heaven .- Now to " Old Settlers " cabin, We give a passing word ; For since we've got to blabbing ; The truth it must be heard.
The style wasn't counted much on ; Just so there was a door To get upon the puncheon, Which oft composed the floor.
A fire-place was important, And put at the end ; The chimmey oft reluctant, To hold the fiery fiend.
To guard against combustion, Of all our meagre stores ; We followed Southern custom, And built them out of doors. Those crackling fires were cheerful ;- Me-thinks I hear them yet; Though oft the flames looked fearful, But comfortable ;- " You bet!"
And mother Garner's hoe cake, To eat we did not tire; ('Twas on a board so well baked, Set up before the fire) When finished off with pastry,- The pies, when made of mince,
T'make " taters," apply tasty, The mixture wasn't quince.
1
The cost of children's schooling, Was burdened on the sire; For such was then the ruling Of legislation ; dire! The school house was some hovel, Forsaken by its lord ; The teacher ruled with ferrule, And went around to board.
Boast not, ye modern critics, That you've a better dawn ; Without you learned cosmetics, Our Presidents have grown. And now, my song is ending, Let all this gathered throng, In turn, their voices blending; To roll this ball along.
In the afternoon, Mr. Fletcher, chairman of the committee on consti- tution and by-laws, presented the committee's report, which, after an . amendment to section two, making the annual fee twenty-five cents, instead of fifty cents, was adopted.
Constitution .- We, the undersigned citizens of Carroll County and State of Illinois, feeling and knowing that many of our early settlers have passed away, and with them much valuable information has been lost ; and now wishing to preserve as much as possible the early incidents attending the first settlement of Carroll County, by gathering together her pioneer fathers, forming them into an association, cementing and renewing old friendships, bringing to light and recording old, and in many cases almost forgotten, reminiscences, thereby perpetuating and giving to our children
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
and the world a true and reliable history of the first settlement of Carroll County, in the great State of Illinois, therefore, resolved:
SECTION 1. That we, the old settlers of Carroll County, do, this day, form ourselves into a permanent organization, under the name and style of the OLD SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION OF CARROLL COUNTY, to exist as long as any of its members shall be permitted to exist.
SEC. 2 provides that any one who has been a resident of the county twenty-one years prior to October 8, 1874, can become a member upon the payment of twenty-five cents.
SEC. 3 provides that the association shall meet annually.
SEC. 4 and 5 relates to the elections of officers.
SEC. 6 defines the duties of the president and vice president, and section 7 of the secretary; section 8 of the treasurer, and section 9 of the executive committee.
After the adoption of the constitution and by-laws, the following old settlers appended their names, and the year of their settlement in the county.
1829-Mason C. Taylor. [Mr. Taylor, at this writing, Dec. 28, 1877, is the oldest surviving pioneer settler.]
1833-Norman D. French.
1835-William Carroll, L. H. Bowen, D. L. Bowen.
1836 -- George Holmes, Harry G. Smith, Samuel Preston, John Orr. 1837-William Dysen, David Masters, Elias Woodruff, John Painter, John A. Robinson, Peter Bashaw, Lydia E. Bashaw.
1838-C. W. Tomlinson, Munroe Bailey, Sumner Downing, J. C. Christian, M. Z. Landon, William Bashaw, Uriah Green.
1839 .- Nelson Fletcher, J. II. Deeds, C. C. Shoemaker, L. F. Easter- brooks, Byron Fletcher, Elijah Bailey, Mrs. P. French, Ansel Bailey, B. S. Day, A. T. Esterbrooks, John O'Neal, Felix O'Neal, A. Spencer, O. D. O'Neal, John Kinney, A. G. Easterbrooks, J. B. Johnson, Henry Hunter, John Fish.
1840 .- John H. Hawes, Charles Pulford, Amos Shoemaker, Fisher Allison, J. F. Allison, Stephen Kneale, T. Johnson, Duncan Mckay, A. H. Healy, Heman Edgerly.
1841-G. W. Dwinnell, W. A. J. Pierce, J. S. O'Neal, Jesse Van Buskirk, Elnathan Jacobs.
1842-M. R. Davis.
1843-George Cole, David Becker, William Finlayson, Joseph Graham, John A. Mellendy, E. H. Phillip, D. F. Holmes, William Petty, E. T. E. Becker, L. E. Galusha, P. R. Kenyon, James Petty, Mrs. M. Kenyon, Jos. Welty, Thomas Lambert, Alexis Bristol, Thomas C. Pyle.
1844 .- John Irvine, H. L. Atherton, Ithiel Goodell, W. C. Jacobs, Lucius Donglass, M. Patterson, E. C. Lamb, H. L. Downing, W. F. Ather- ton, Justus Bailey, Marcus Atherton, Morgan Price, Alonzo Taylor.
1845-John L. Hostetter, Samnel Mitchell, Henry Teachut, Philander Seymour, Daniel Teeter, Seymour Downs, Samuel Puffenbarger, T. T. Jacobs, Charles Atherton, John Grove, Peter Shrader.
1846-William H. Hawk, Thomas Moffett, R. M. A. Hawk, William B. Ray, J. Sheldon, Frank Trail, Nicholas Hart, Hugh Howell, Nancy Howell, W. A. Shoemaker.
1847-Cornelius Hegeman, John Hegeman, James Hallett, R. J. Tomkins, John A. Smith.
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
1848-James H. Iden, J. A. Smith, Peter Shrader, H. M. Ferrin, J. A. Garr.
1849-W. O). Phillips, John Cole, M. F. Mellendy, Michael Markley, James Beatie, George Hays, Robert Graham, Emmanuel Hepler, W. O. Phillips.
1850-N. S. French, A. M. French, John Lambert, Willard Wieks, I. J. Pettit, John N. Keech, John Campbell.
1851-A. H. Lichty, Henry Routh, G. P. Sutton, Samuel Stake- miller, Andrew Hershey, Jolin C. Rinedollar, Daniel R. Frazer.
1852-Nicholas Stabler, Joseph Deitrich.
1853-Volney Armour, Charles Atherton, R. G. Bailey, William H. Long, Henry Ashway, Joseph Cushman, B. Cushman, B. L. Patch, Francis Craig, Emanuel Stover, Henry H. Gordon.
1854-J. C. Durham, D. W. Dame, Mrs. D. W. Dame, Luther De Wolf, William F. Loup, Thomas MeGee, Charles W. Dame.
1855-Miles L. Smith, George W. Howland, Allen McClure, William Sprecker.
1856 -- E. C. Sinclair, L. L. Stewart.
1857-E. O. Eymer, Richard Dame, G. M. Eacker.
1867 -- Simon Greenleaf.
The second annual meeting of the association was held on the fair grounds, Thursday, September 23, 1875, and was very largely attended. The meeting was called to order by Mr. L. H. Bowen, the president, in a few very appropriate remarks, among which he referred to the arrival of himself and wife at Savanna, in an ox-wagon, his horses having "gave out" about two miles before he reached the site of his future home and business operations. The forenoon of the day was mostly passed in greeting, hand- shakings, renewing old acquaintances, and reviving old memories.
The leading feature of the afternoon's exercises was the reading of a poem entitled "The Pioneers," by Andrew Downing, Esq., editor of the Boone County (Iowa) Republican, who was the first male child born in Mount Carroll Township, and the son of Heman Downing and wife, who were among the early settlers of the county, locating here in 1837. This poem is so descriptive of the scenes and incidents of pioneer life, that we trans- mit it to these pages for preservation to the people who will come in the by-and-by to occupy the homes that pioneer hands fashioned out of forests and prairie plains:
THE PIONEERS.
BY ANDREW DOWNING.
Westward, over the emerald plains
In early Autumn, before the rains
Of the Equinox had swollen the rills
Till they kiss'd the feet of the neighboring hills,
Onward they journeyed, side by side-
Sturdy husband, and loving bride. Ever before them the narrow road
Only its dark, gray outlines showed.
There in the tall, rank grass it lay,
Wending ever its tortuous way.
Over the prairie lands, level and wide,
Down by the shimmering lakelet's side,
Up the long hillside, rocky and steep,
Down through the valleys, broad and deep, Under the forest-trees' shady arch- This is the track of their toilsome march;
.
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
This is the path their footsteps press'd, Out of the East-land into the West, Journeying onward, day by day, To a land that was hundreds of miles away.
He was a genuine son of the soil,
Horny-handed and used to toil;
Broad his shoulders, and brown his face;
Strength, and vigor, and manly grace Marked his movements; his dress was rough, And made of the strongest homespun stuff,
Woven from threads that his mother spun,
From the carded fleece, for her favorite son ;
Fashioned from cloth that his sister wove,
In the far-off home of his youth and love.
This was the very suit he wore
Only a few short weeks before,
When the woman who walks by his side,
Took his hand and became his bride.
She was a farmer's girl, buxom and fair,
Willing his home and his fortune to share;
Wise, and modest, and patient, and good,
Strong in the strength of her womanhood:
Ready to follow him anywhere,
And help him the burden of life to bear.
Thus they travel together in quest
Of a happy home in the distant West.
All their dower and earthly hoard
Safe in a big, red wagon was stored, Under a canvas, broad and white- This their shelter by day and night.
Drawing a wagon, perchance, was a yoke
Of sleepy oxen-a team well broke
To "Gee! " or " Haw!" when the master spoke,
To " Back !" or "G'long!" and always know
Enough to halt at the sound of " Whoa!"
And this is the way the settlers went
Through hamlet, and town, and settlement.
One bright morning at last they came
Full in sight of their little "claim "-
Fertile acres as ever lay Out of doors, in the light of day ;
And the bright spot seemed to the woman's eyes A very vision of paradise.
There, by the edge of the dense, dark wood,
Was the litttle cabin, homely and rude,
Built by the husband's ready hands,
And overlooking the pleasant lands. .
Safe in the welcome haven at last,
The " prairie schooner " her anchor cast- Lay at her moorings just before
The little log cabin's open door;
While, freed from the yoke, the cattle pass
To their ev'ning feast in the tender grass; And the household goods, a meagre store, Lie scattered about on the puncheon floor ;
Water, anon, from the spring is brought, And an armful of seasoned fuel sought Wherewith to kindle a blazing fire, And the yellow flames rise high, and higher
In the chimney's throat, and the black pot swings On the long, dark crane, and the tea-kettle sings Its cheery song. And the bright young wife Begins the work of her frontier life; Spreads the board for her plain repast,
And when the darkness shuts in at last, Weary and drowsy, repairs to her rest- The queen of a home in the glorious West!
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
Brightly the morn of the morrow broke In the rosy East, and the twain awoke, And gazed without on the new, strange land -- Bright and beautiful, broad and grand ! And the wide expanse of the flow'r-gem'd sod Seemed fair as the garden where Adam trod, When he and Eve, the primal pair, Went into the apple-business there. Clear, in the forest near by, they heard Song of sparrow and brown mocking bird ; Chirp of robin, and twitter of wren, And a boisterous bob-o-link, now and then, Caroling, chorusing, going it strong, And flooding the air with a torrent of song. They breathed the sweet odors wafted up From many a blossom's honey cup; Saw that the sky was cloudless and blue, Saw that the silver, scintillant dew Had strung its rosary, bead by bead, On grass-blade, floweret, bush and weed, Brighter than diamonds. But, listen! these Were only something to cheer and please- Were only the blessings, goodly and fair, That came just ahead of trouble and care. Winter was hurrying on apacc;
Work was needed all over the place- Work was needed to make their home Snug and warm, ere the storms should come.
Stables and sheds to shelter the stock-
Though little their wealth in herd or flock. And so the settler labored away, Made long ricks of the prairie hay, Hauled huge logs for the winter fire, Toiled with an energy naught could tire; And his good wife, though often alone, Never was heard to murmur or moan, Or sigh for a brighter, happier lot, Or a fairer home than the log-built cot. Their nearest neighbor was miles away, And seldom a stranger chanced to stray To the cabin door, who might require Rest, and shelter, and food, and fire ; But if he came-Ah! who can doubt ?- He found the latch-string always out, And a welcome within from the youthful pair, And old-time hospitality there. Even the red-skins prowling around Only kindness and friendship found.
Swiftly the Autumn with woods aflame With red leaves went, and the Winter came. Seldom the wife and her husband heard From friends in the far-off East a word. Thus the long, cold Winter was passed, And the cheerful Spring returned at last; The song-birds caroled on bush and bough, And the man went forth with team and plow ; Traced dark lines in the prairie mould, For the Summer to print in letters of gold; And, up with the sun, in the glorious morn, He scattered the wheat, and planted the corn. And the harvest came, though the yield was small, And the bearded wheat was garnered all, And the corn grew ripe and was gathered in, And safely sheltered in crib and bin. The settler thrives, and his cattle increase, His wealth grows larger in flock and fleece, In spite of the lost cow gone astray,
-
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HISTORY OF CARROLL COUNTY.
And the hungry wolves that sometimes prey Upon the sheep. And other men come And build their cabins, and make their homes. High from their chimneys the smoke-wreaths rise, Blue, to blend with the blue of the skies, In sight of the little log-cabin ; but still, It was miles and miles to the nearest mill ; And the doctor lives so far away That the patient got well, the old folks say,
Before he could come, with his powder and pills, And his saddle-bags-from over the hills.
Other years in their coming brought Growth and wealth as the settlers wrought- Blessings and comforts, and babies came, Each year adding another name Of daughter or son, to the family roll. The boys were rugged in body and soul, Honest and true; and the fair young girls Were precious and pure as a cluster of pearls. Fingers taper and white as wax, Eyes as blue as the bloom of the flax, Or brown, or hazel, or black as jet- Bright as the brightest you ever have met. School-houses rose, and the settlers saw The reign of social order and law;
Churches were built, and sermon, and psalm, And organ peal, broke the Sabbath calm ; Lawyers came, also, and politics, And demagogues, with their dirty tricks, Worming and twisting, and turning their coats, To gull the people and catch their votes. By-and-by comes that all-conquering force, Steam, and the neigh of the iron horse, Waking the echoes wherever he goes, And making the wilderness bloom like the rose. Some of the men of that olden time Listen to-day to my idle rhyme; Some of the women who found their " sphere "
In life as the wife of the Pioneer, Have met with their old-time neighbors here.
Blessings be showered on them ever and aye, As swiftly the days and the years hurry by ; Honor and fortune their footsteps attend, And comfort and peace, till their pilgrimage end. These are the toilers who moulded a state! These are the heroes who triumphed o'er fate ! These are the soldiers who laughed at defeat ! This is the army that would not retreat! These are the crusaders, sturdy and strong, Worthy of places in story and song! These the " Old Settlers" who came to the West! Your fathers and mothers: Oh, give them the best Of all the good gifts it's yours to bestow, In the fair garden state where the broad rivers flow, And cherish and honor, in all coming years, Every name on the roll of the brave Pioneers !
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