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m 


Lulu  Leonard 
Author  of  the 

HISTORY 

of 

UNION  COUNTY 


Dies  at  105 


Tilman  Maims  died  at  the  home  of  his  son,  Andrew,  in  Anna 
pring  and  was  nearly  106  years  old.  Tilman  was  24  years  old 
when  Lincoln  and  Douglas  held  their  famous  debate  in  Jonesboro 
and  he  served  in  the  Union  Army  during  the  Civil  War. 

This  picture  was  taken  by  a  Gazette-Democrat  photographer 
on  his   105th  birthday. 


CHAPTER  t 
BEFORE  IT  WAS  A  COUNTY 

There  is  much  conjecture  among  archeologists  as  to  who  the 
first  inhabitants  of  Union  County  were.  It  is  reasonable  to  believe 
that  a  civilization  existed  here  long  before  history  keeps  a  record  of 
the  first  white  settlers. 

The  rolling  country  and  the  spur  of  the  Ozark  Mountains  in 
the  northern  and  western  parts  of  the  country  were  covered  by  a 
dense  forest  full  of  wild  game  which  flourished  because  of  the 
plentiful  water  supply  from  springs.  The  watershed  along  the  north- 
ern boundary  of  the  county  protects  it  from  the  storms  from  the 
north  in  winter  and  allows  a  longer  growing  season  than  would  be 
possible  if  the  land  were  not  so  protected. 

It  is  doubtful  that  Joliet  and  Marquette  set  foot  on  the  soil  of 
Union  County,  but  in  the  spring  of  1673  they  did  pass  down  the 
Mississippi  River,  which  bounds  the  county  on  the  west.  At  that 
time  a  French  mission  and  trading  post  was  established  at  Kaskaskia 
and  five  years  later  at  Cahokia  but  it  is  doubtful  that  any  of  the 
French  traders,  hunters  or  trappers  ever  ventured  as  far  away  from 
these  settlements  as  Union  County.  The  nearest  settlement  en  the 
Ohio  River  was  Fort  Massac,  established  in  1711.  For  a  number  of 
years  this  settlement  was  known  as  Fort  Massacre  because  the 
Indians  so  ruthlessly  massacred  the  white  people  who  settled  there. 

Some  of  the  earliest  settlers  fled  into  Union  County  from  these 
attacks  of  the  Indians. 

Little  immigration  came  into  Illinois  before  1812  because  of 
the  Indians  and  the  inability  of  the  settlers  to  gain  legal  title  to 
land  upon  which  they  located.  As  a  result  of  the  treaty  ending  the 
war  between  England  and  France,  signed  February  10,  1763,  the 
territory  had  become  English.  After  the  United  States  wars  organ- 
ized the  old  French  settlers  encountered  difficulty  when  they  tried, 
under  American  law,  to  have  their  titles  ratified.  In  1791,  Congress 
enacted  a  law  providing  that  Americans  who  had  occupied  their 
lands  before  1783  should  have  their  titles  confirmed.  Each  person 
was  allowed  title  to  from  four  hundred  to  eighteen  hundred  acres 
of  land.  After  that  date,  land  was  granted  in  tracts  of  not  less 
than  four  thousand   acres. 

Peace  treaties  with  the  Indians  and  transfer  of  titles  of  their  *  a?  , 
land  to  the  United  States  government  and  the  end  of  the  War  of 
1812  with  Great  Britain  opened  wide  the  Illinois  doors  for  settle- 
ment. In  1810,  the  white  population  of  Illinois  was  12,282  and  in 
1820  was  55,162.  Land  was  sold  to  settlers  at  the  rate  of  one  dollar 
and  twenty-five  cents  per  acre.  The  original  counties  existing  in 
Illinois  when  it  came  under  the  rule  of  the  governor  of  Virginia, 
who  appointed  a  governor  of  Illinois  territory,  were 
Randolph   and    St.    Clair   counties.     These   counties    surrounded    the 


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•lements  of  Ka-ka-kia  and   Cahokia.    September   14th,   1812,   Gov- 
BOr  Edwards  created   by  proclamation   Madison,  Johnson   and   Gal- 
latin  counties.     In   anticipation   of  statehood,   the   legislature   created 
iklin  and  Union  counties.    Between   1812  and   1817, 
Edwards,    White,   Monroe,   Pope,  Jackson,   Bond   and   Crawford   coun- 
-e  created,   making   fifteen    counties   in   all.     There   were   two 
:.t  to  the  Legislature  from  the  northern  counties  and  two 
m    the    southern.     John    G rammer    represented    the    southernmost 
tour.' 

In  1803  the  first  white  settlement  was  made  in  Union  County. 
It  c  <»f  two  families,   Abram  Hunsaker's  and   George   Wolf's. 

In  1805,  David  Green  came  with  his  little  family  and  built  his  little 
cabin  in  the  Mississippi  bottom  about  one-half  mile  north  of  what 
known  as  Big  Barn.  He  was  a  river  navigator  from  Virginia  and 
came  upon  the  spot  where  he  settled  his  family  in  some  of  his  early 
trips.  It  was  a  long  time  before  he  knew  the  Hunsakers  and  Wolfs 
wore  his  nearest  neighbors.  Jacob  Lingle  settled  west  of  Cobden  in 
1 807  and  George  Evans  and  John  Bradshaw  on  Bradshaw  Creek. 
In  1808  John  McGinnis  settled  near  Mt.  Pleasant.  In  1809  John 
Stokes.  William  Gwinn  and  Thomas  Standard  came  to  live 
in  what  has  long  been  known  as  the  Stokes  settlement.  Rob- 
•  Hargrave  and  Jessie  Echols,  who  was  later  appointed  to  fix  the 
of  justice  in  Union  County,  came  the  same  year.  In  1812, 
Thomas  D.  Patterson,  Phillip  Shaver,  Adam  Clapp  and  Edward 
Vancil  settled.  The  arrivals  in  1814  were  John  Lawrence,  John 
Harriston,  John  Whittaker,  A.  Cokenowen,  Giles  Parmelia,  Samuel 
Butcher,  Robert  W.  Crafton,  Jacob  Wolf,  Michael  Lindbaugh,  Alex- 
ander Boren,  Hosea  Boren,  Richard  McBride,  Thomas  Green,  Eman- 
uel Penroa,  George  Hunsaker,  George  Smiley,  David  Kimmel,  John 
Whitaker,  David  Cother,  David  Brown,  Alexander  Brown,  Alexander 
Boggs,  David  F.  Coleman,  Benjamin  Menees  and  Jacob  Littleton. 
These  settlers  came  from  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas  and  a  few 
from  Pennsylvania.  They  came  down  the  Ohio,  some  crossing  the 
river  at  Shawneetown  and  some  coming  via  Fort  Massac. 

The  record  of  "marks  and  brands,"  opened  immediately  after 
the  county  was  organized,  shows  the  following  men  lived  in  Union 
County  and  registered  a  "brand"  for  his  domestic  animals,  Jacob 
Wolf,  George  Wolf,  Edmund  Vancil,  William  Dodd,  Samuel  Hun- 
saker, Michael  Lindbaugh,  David  Brown,  William  Thornton,  Joseph 
Hunsaker,  William  Pyle,  William  Grammer,  Rice  Sams,  Abram 
Hunsaker,  Thomas  Sams,  Benjamin  Menees,  John  Mcintosh,  George 
Hunsaker,  James  Brown,  Jeremiah  Brown,  John  Weigle,  Christopher 
Sansin,  Isaac  Vancil,  R.  W.  Crafton,  John  Cruse,  James  Jackson, 
George  Smiley,  Joseph  Palmer,  George  James,  Robert  Hargrave, 
John  Hargrave,  John  Hunsaker,  John  Whitaker,  Johnson  Somers, 
Charles  Dougherty,  Joel  Boggess,  Jones  Vancil,  Emanuel  Penrod, 
John    Stoke-,    Samuel   Penrod,   Cliff   Hazlewood   and   John   Kimmel. 

Those  who  had  entered  land  that  lies  within  the  county  up  to 
and    including    ISIS    were    John    Yost,    Wilkinson    Goodwin,    George 


Hunsaker,  William  Thornton,  John  Hunsaker,  John  Miller,  George 
Lawrence,  Henry  Clutts,  Christian  Miller,  James  Mesa-m,  John  Har- 
riston,  John  Kimmell,  John  Frick,  Edmond  Holeman,  Adam  Clapp, 
George  Devolt,  Michael  Dillon,  John  Grammer,  Benjamin  Menees, 
Michael  Holhauser,  John  Hartline,  Anthony  Lingle,  John  Whitaker, 
Phillip  Shaver,  Phillip  Paulus,  William  Worthington,  John  Bradshaw, 
John  Saunders,  John  R.  McFarland,  John  Tyler,  Joseph  Waller, 
Joseph  Walker,  A.  Cokenower,  Andrew  Irwin,  Giles  Parmelia,  Sam- 
uel Butcher,  Samuel  Penrod,  Robert  W.  Crafton,  Edward  Vancil, 
John  Gregory,  Jaboc  Lingle,  Israel  Thompson,  Adam  Cauble,  Jacob 
Rendleman,  Jacob  Weigle,  George  Wolf,  Michael  Lindbaugh,  Johna- 
than  Haskey,  Joseph  Barber,  Last  Cape,  John  Cape,  Isaac  Biggs, 
Alexander  Biggs,  the  Meisenheimers,  John  Eddleman,  Thomas  Mc- 
intosh, Cornelius  Anderson,  David  Lence,  Benedict  Mull,  Peter 
Casper,  John  Worten,  Anthony  Lingle,  David  Crise,  William  Mor- 
rison, Jacob  Hileman,  David  Miller,  A.  Cruse,  Abraham  Brown,  John 
Knupp,  Andrew  Smith,  David  Meisenheimer,  Joseph  Smith,  Thomas 
H.  Harris,  Richard  McBride,  S.  Lewis,  Thomas  Green,  Benjamin  J. 
Harris,  Jacob  Trees,  Joseph  Palmer,  Thomas  Green,  David  Kimmel, 
Alexander  P.  Field,  Anthony  Morgan,  James  Ellis,  Joseph  McEl- 
haney,  Abner  Field,  Thomas  Deen,  Rice  Sams,  Daniel  Spence,  Wil- 
liam Craigle,  George  Cripe,  Isaac  Cornell,  Nicholas  Wilson,  Henry 
Bechtle,  Thomas  Bechtle,  Thomas  Lanes,  John  Uri,  Stephen  Dona- 
hue, Jacob  Littleton  and  S.  W.  Smith. 

From  the  best  estimation  obtainable  it  is  believed  that  the 
population  of  Union  County  when  Illinois  became  a  state  was  1800, 
one  third  of  them  freeholders.  Most  of  them  were  from  Kentucky 
and  Tennessee  or  from  Pennsylvania  south  along  the  eastern  coast 
states  since  the  Ohio  and  Cache  Rivers  were  the  lanes  of  travel  at 
that  time. 


—3— 


CHAPTER   II 

HOW    THE    EARLY    SETTLERS    LIVED. 
ORGANIZATION   OF   UNION   COUNTY. 

These   early   settlers   of   Union   County   lived   a   rugged,   difficult 
life.     Thej    earned    then    livelihoods    hunting,    trapping    and    fishing, 
v  grew  what  lew   items  of  food  they  ate  and  depended  on  wild 
.,    which    was    plentiful,    for    meat.     The    county    was    a    dense 
forest,   so   thick   that   the   hunter   carried   an    axe    to   blaze   his   path 
when  he  went  away  from  the  small  clearing  surrounding  his  log  cabin, 
ground   their  corn   by   hand   to   make  meal  for  corn   pone   and 
Johnny  cake  and  their  main  diet  was  "hog  and  hominy."    They  gi 
and  wool  and  spun   the  thread  which   was  woven   into  cloth 
ling   and    clothing.     Much    of    the    men's    clothing    was    made    of 
.-kins  from  the  wild  animals  the  hunters  killed. 

The  men  wore  long  hunting  shirts  and  moccasins  and  leathi  r 
or  buckskin  breeches  and  the  women  linsey  dresses  and  petticoats 
and  home-made  shoes.    Ordinarily  the  people  went  barefoot. 

Fort  Massac  was  the  nearest  trading  post  where  supplies  could 
be  obtained.  These  came  from  New  Orleans  or  Pennsylvania,  trans- 
ported on  a  barge  tied  with  ropes  and  pulled  up  the  river  by  men 
walking   along   the   river   banks. 

An  account  is  given  of  the  difficulty  encountered  in  making 
suitable  garments  for  John  Grammer  to  wear  to  the  legislature 
when  he  represented  Johnson  County  (which  then  included  what  is 
now  Union  County)  in  1812.  The  neighbors  and  friends  gathered 
nuts  which  were  taken  to  Fort  Massac  and  exchanged  for  a  few 
yards  of  "blue  drilling,"  which  with  careful  cutting  and  measuring 
was  only  enough  to  make  a  long  hunting  shirt  and  a  pair  of  high 
"leggins." 

John  Grammer  was  the  first  person  from  this  county  to  b<- 
ted  to  public  office.  He  was  uneducated  but  was  said  to  be  very 
shrewd.  He  invariably  voted  "no"  if  he  did  not  fully  understand 
the  question  before  the  house.  He  coined  words  at  random  with 
which  to  express  himself  in  his  lusty  speeches.  He  was  popular 
enough  to  be  re-elected  each  term  of  the  legislature  and  served 
his  last  term  as  a  senator  in  1834. 

The  only  social  events  of  the  times  were  weddings,  dances, 
quilting  parties,  singing  schools  and  "meetins."  Everyone  took  part 
in  the  wedding  celebration.  The  men  would  meet  at  the  home  of 
the  groom  and  the  women  at  the  home  of  the  bride.  Then  the  men 
would  go  in  a  group  to  the  home  of  the  bride  where  the  wedding 
would  take  place.  As  soon  as  the  guests  assembled  for  the  wedding 
a  bottle  race  would  ensue.  After  dinner  the  dancing  began  and 
would  continue  until  early  the  next  morning.  At  ten  o'clock  at 
night  the  bride's  friends  would  steal  her  away  and  put  her  to  bed 
in  the  "loft"  of  the  house,  then  the  groom's  friends  would  do  the 
same  for  him,  while  the  dancing  and   fun   making   continued   down- 

—4— 


stairs.  The  merry  making  would  frequently  continue  for  several 
days  in  both  the  home  of  the  groom  and  the  bride  and  often  In 
the  new  home  of  the  bride  and  groom  which  the  friends  and  neigh- 
bors had   usually  helped   to   build. 

The  first  marriage  in  the  county  records  was  John  Murray  and 
Elizabeth  Latham,  by  John  Grammer,  February  26,  1818.  On  April 
7th,  1818,  John  Weldon,  Esq.,  certified  he  married  James  Latham 
and  Margaret  Edwards  on  March  2nd.  Joseph  Painter  and  Elizabeth 
Brown  were  married  April  26,  1818,  by  George  Hunsaker.  Other 
early  marriages  were  Samuel  Morgan  and  Rebecca  Casey,  Francis 
Parker  and  Catharine  Clapp,  Allen  Crawl  and  Catherine  Vancil, 
John  Rupe  and  Lydia  Brown,  Eli  Littleton  and  Ede  Hughes,  David 
Callahan  and  Elizabeth  Roberts,  Isaac  Finley  and  Polly  Hargrave, 
William  McDonald  and  Mary  McLane,  Henry  Johnston  and  Nancy 
Atherton,  John  Russell  and  Percy  Huston,  Daniel  Ritter  and  Eliza- 
beth Isenogle,  Peter  Sifford  and  Leyah  Mull,  Jacob  Hunsaker  and 
Elizabeth  Brown,  A.  H.  Brown  and  Sarah  Mathes,  William  Ridge 
and  Esther  Penrod,  Abraham  Hunsaker  and  Polly  Price,  George 
Dougherty  and  Rachean  Hunsaker,  John  Biggs  and  Sarah  Cope, 
William  Clapp  and  Phoebe  Witherton,  George  Lemen  and  Sarah 
Lesley,  John  Price  and  Nancy  Vancil,  John  Leslie  and  Catharine 
Nigel,  Peter  Wolf  and  Margaret  James,  Messiah  O'Brien  and  Char- 
lotte Hotchkiss,  Daniel  T.  Coleman  and  Lucy  Craft,  and  Samuel 
Dillon    and    Margaret   Lingle. 

As  children  grew  up  the  boys  were  taught  to  use  bows  and 
arrows  and  shoot  game  and  the  girls  were  taught  to  cook,  spin  and 
sew. 

The  first  school  was  taught  by  an  unknown  Irishman  at  Dog- 
tooth Bend.  Later  Winsted  Davie  established  a  school  two  mile? 
south  of  what  is  now  Jonesboro.  The  teachers  were  paid  by  sub- 
scriptions from  the  parents  of  the  pupils.  Reading,  writing,  spelling 
and  numbers  were  the  subjects  taught. 

In  1812  what  is  now  Union,  Pulaski,  Alexander  and  part  of 
Johnson  counties,  was  known  as  Jonesborough  township.  A  town 
hall  and  court  house  were  erected  at  Elvira,  a  spot  one  mile  east 
and  seven  miles  north  of  what  is  now  Mt.  Pleasant.  This  served 
as  the  town  hall  for  several  years.  After  Illinois  became  a  state  in 
1818,  John  Grammer  donated  a  plot  of  ground  upon  which  to  build 
pr-blic  buildings.  This  ground  was  located  in  what  became  Jones- 
boro, the  county  seat  of  Union  County. 

Jessie  Echols,  George  Wolf  and  Thomas  Cox  were  appointed 
commissioners  by  the  legislature  to  fix  the  boundaries  of  Union 
County.  The  present  boundary  line  was  established  by  them  Feb- 
ruary 25,  1818,  but  a  provisioned  boundary  included  Pulaski  and 
Alexander  counties  in  Union  County  until  such  time  as  they  became 
counties. 

In  the  act  of  the  legislature  creating  Union  County,  it  was  also 
provided  that  the  home  of  Jacob  Hunsaker,  Jr.,  was  to  be  used  as 

—6— 


a  seat  of  justice  until  such  time  as  a  permanent  location  was  estab- 
lished  and   a   court  house   erected. 

Jessie  Echols,  John  Grammer,  George  Hunsaker,  Abner  Keith 
and  Rice  Sams  were  elected  county  commissioners  and  they  met  at 
the  Hunsaker  home  in  accordance  with  the  ruling  of  the  legislature. 
Abner  Field  was  made  clerk  of  the  court  and  Joseph  Palmer  was 
the  first  sheriff.  George  Hunsaker,  William  Pyle,  John  C.  Smith, 
Eke  Sams,  Abner  Keith,  Jessie  Echols  and  John  Bradshaw  were 
pointed  justices  of  the  peace  by  the  governor  of  Illinois  and 
Robert  Twidy  was  the  first  constable. 

The  first  official  act  of  the  commissioners'  court  was  to  declare 
the  road  from  Penrod's  Ferry  to  Elvira  and  from  Elvira  to  Jackson 
county,  public  roads. 

The  oldest  public  industry  in  the  county  is  road  building  and 
Henry  Laymer,  Ephriam  Voce,  William  Pyle,  David  Arnold  and 
George  Hunsaker  were  appointed  road  overseers  and  viewers. 

The   first   county   order   of   two   dollars   was   written   to    Samuel 

Penrod  for  bounty  for  a  wolf  scalp.    Two  people   were   licensed   to 

open  taverns  in  their  homes  and  the  price  of  liquor  was  regulated. 

Whiskey  was  12  ^c  per  half  pint,  rum  50c;  brandy   50c;  breakfast, 

dinner,    and   supper    25c    each;    bed    I2V2C,   horse    to    stand    at   hay 

and  corn  all  night,   37 %c. 

V       Two    ferries    were    licensed    and    taxes    were    levied    on    horses, 
— • — ■& 

negroes,  ferries,  cattle,  hogs,  sheep,  wagons  and  wheeled  carriages. 
In  1812  taxes  of  Y2  per  cent  were  levied  on  town  lots,  -carriages 
for  conveyance  of  persons,  distiller's  stock  in  trade,  horses,  cattle, 
grist  and  saw  mills  and  in   1821  on  watches  and  clocks. 

The  first  criminal  case  on  record  was  that  of  the  United  States 
vs.  John  Thomas.  Since  there  was  no  jail  the  prisoner  was  boarded 
with  Robin  Hargrave,  who  was  allowed  seventy  dollars  for  keeping 
him  sixty-two  days.  Joseph  Palmer,  the  sheriff,  was  paid  thii-ty 
dollars  for  his  services  in  apprehending  the  culprit  and  bringing 
him  to  trial.  The  jury  deliberated  its  verdict  on  a  log  near  the 
Hunsaker  home. 

It  seems  that  the  poor  have  been  with  us  always  because  dur- 
ing the  first  year  of  the  existence  of  Union  County,  the  court 
bound  out  an  indigent  child. 

Thus  in  1818  a  county  government  was  set  up  and  began  to 
function  in  Union  County  and  the  county  began  to  grow  in  industry 
and  population. 


—6— 


CHAPTER  III. 
GROWTH  OF  POPULATION  AND  INDUSTRY 

The  reason  Union  County  and  Southern  Illinois  enjoyed  a 
greater  growth  in  population  than  the  central  and  northern  parts 
of  Illinois  during  the  years  1818  to  1820  was  the  mildness  of  the 
climate.  In  1816,  the  weather  was  unusually  cold  so  tha*t  crops 
failed  all  over  Illinois  and  Indiana  but  because  this  part  of  the 
state  is  protected  from  the  storm  of  the  plains  by  a  spur  of  the 
Ozark  Mountains  extending  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Ohio  Rivers 
through  the  noi-thern  parts  of  Union,  Johnson,  Pope  and  Hardin 
counties,  crops  were  abundant.  The  people  living  north  of  this 
range  of  hills  came  here  to  buy  food  as  the  ancients  went  into  the 
valley  of  the  Nile  in  Egypt  on  several  occasions.  For  this  reason 
the  country  has  long  been  known  as  "Egypt"  and  also  for  this 
reason  many  of  the  people  who  came  to  buy  food  liked  the  country 
and  stayed  and  others  returned  later  with  their  families  and  friends. 
This  not  only  increased  the  population  of  Union  County,  but  stimu- 
lated the  settlers  to  produce  more  than  enough  foodstuff  to  meet 
their  own  needs.  Population  was  increased  as  much  in  two  years 
at  that  time  as  it  was  during  the  whole  decade  following.  The  rate 
of  increase  was  gradual  after  that  until  the  building  of  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad.  The  number  of  inhabitants  increased  from  1800 
in  1818  to  2,362  in  1820  and  3,239  in  1830. 

Since  the  only  modes  of  travel  were  by  water  or  by  horse  or 
ox,  the  industries  of  road  building  and  ferry  transportation  grew. 
Nine  ferries  paid  a  tax  to  the  county  government  for  the  privilege 
to  operate,  Harris  on  the  Big  Muddy,  and  Harris,  Hays,  Green, 
Pernod,  Smiley,  Ellis,  Smith,  and  Ruppel  on  the  Mississippi. 

When  Jonesboro  was  established  as  the  county  seat,  roads  were 
built  from  that  town  to  each  of  the  above  ferry  landings.  Bridges 
were  built  across  creeks  at  public  expense.  The  job  was  let  to  the 
contractor  making  the  lowest  bid  for  it.  The  two  earliest  bridges 
were  the  one  across  Bradshaw  Creek  which  was  completed  for  fifty 
dollars  and  the  one  across  Clear  Creek  which  cost  one  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars.  No  description  of  the  type  of  bridge  constructed  was 
given  in  the  county  records. 

Roads  were  also  built  from  Jonesboro  to  Vienna,  Jonesboro  to 
America,  Jonesboro  to  Cape  Girardeau,  Jonesboro  to  Brownsville  in 
Jackson  County  and  from  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Muddy  River  to 
Golconda.  As  agriculture  and  population  increased,  mill  seats  were 
established  and  as  these  came  into  being,  the  roads  were  made  to 
go  past  the  mills  enroute  to  their  destinations.  An  "overseer"  and 
"viewer"  was  appointed  over  various  sections  of  the  road  and  the 
people  living  within  four  or  five  miles  on  each  side  of  the  roads 
were  required  to  work  on  their  construction  and  maintainance.  This 
work  must  have  been  done  without  pay  since  the  county  records  do 
not  show  where  any  payments  were  made  for  this  type  of  work  in 

—7— 


thfl  early  days  of  the  county.  Then  as  now  the  "overseers"  and 
"viewers"  were  changed  with  a  change  of  county  administration. 
The  following  names  appeared  in  the  county  records  as  holding 
this  office,  David  Arnold,  William  Pyle,  Ephriam  Noel,  George  Hun- 
saker,  Henry  Lamer,  Benjamin  Meneese,  William  Alexander,  John 
Hunsaker,  Allen  McKenzie,  Nathan  Turpin,  Will  Waford,  Alexandei 
boggs,  Aaron  Thornton,  Owen  Evans,  Joseph  Palmer,  Moses  David- 
son, and  John  Stokes.  Under  the  new  administration,  the  "over- 
seers" and  "viewers"  were  changed  to  John  Mcintosh,  Jacob  Snider, 
Jacob  Lingle,  Johnson  Sumner,  George  Evans,  Henry  Lamer,  John 
Elmo,  Aaron  Howard,  Robert  H.  Loyd,  William  Barton,  Harry  Bar- 
ringer,  James  Abernathie,  Christopher  Houser,  Edmund  Vancil,  John 
Lingle,  Abner  Keith,  William  Shelton,  Benjamin  Meneese,  Benjamin 
Hall,  Ephriam  Noll,  James  Elmo,  William  G  rammer,  Rich  McBride 
and  Francis  Murphy. 

Jacob  Rantleman,  William  Thornton  and  George  Hunsaker  be- 
came the  new  commissioners  in  1819  and  with  them  appeared  many 
new  names  in  the  records.  Abner  Field,  Jr.,  was  made  clerk  cf  the 
court  and   Benjamin  Meneese  was  made  treasurer. 

It  seems  that  then  as  well  as  now  there  were  officials  who 
could  not  resist  the  temptation  of  making  personal  use  of  public 
money  entrusted  to  them.  The  first  sheriff  was  found  to  be  short 
in  the  amount  of  money  he  turned  over  to  the  new  officials  and 
afer  several  postponements  of  a  hearing  before  the  commission's 
court,  he  was  allowed  to  settle  the  matter  out  of  court  for  a  part 
of  the  amount  of  money  that  was  missing. 

Public  as  well  as  private  buildings  were  constructed  at  this 
time.  A  court  house  was  built  by  Thomas  Cox  for  forty  dollars, 
and  a  jail  by  Jacob  Wolf  for  twenty  dollars.  Two  years  later, 
1820,  Nathaniel  Davis  built  a  new  court  house  for  six  hundred 
dollars  and  a  new  jail  for  three  hundred  seventy-nine  dollars.  The 
number  of  dwellings  necessarily  increased  to  house  the  growing 
population. 

At  this  time  practically  all  manufacturing  was  done  in  the 
individual  homes  by  the  women,  mainly  who  are  seldom  mentioned 
in  public  records.  Supplies  were  bought  at  Fort  Massac  and  paid 
for  with  nuts,  honey,  and  skins  of  animals.  At  this  time  the  nearest 
cording  mill  was  in  Jackson,  Missouri,  seven  days  journey  from 
Jonesboro,  and  salt  was  obtained  from  the  Saline  salt  mines  in 
Saline  County,  a  distance  requiring  a  ten  day  journey.  The  mills 
which  had  been  built  to  grind  the  corn  and  wheat  were  operated 
by  a  horse  turning  the  wheel  and  by  1820  by  water  turning  the 
wheel.  Three  such  mills  had  been  established  in  Union  County  but 
many  hand  mills  were  still  in  use  in  the  homes.  The  early  mill 
owners  were   Jacob   Rantleman,   John   Whittaker   and   Henry   Clutts. 

Distilling  ranked  as  one  of  the  leading  industries  of  the  times 
and  licenses  were  granted  to  many  people  who  lived  along  the 
newly  constructed   roads   to   operate   taverns   to   accommodate   trav- 

—8— 


elers.  A  tavern  in  those  days  was  usually  in  a  private  home  where 
a  wayfarer  might  stop  and  procure  drink,  food  and  lodging  for 
himself  and  hay  and  shelter  for  his  horse.  The  price  of  these  ser- 
vices was  regulated  by  the  county  board  as  has  been  mentioned 
before.  Each  tavern  keeper  paid  a  two  dollar  license  fee  and  filed 
a  $100  bond.  Later  these  amounts  were  increased  to  six  dollars  and 
three  hundred  dollars.  William  Shelton,  Robert  Lloyd,  Isaac  Wil- 
liams, Sam  Putchez,  Squire  Bone,  John  Meneese,  Jacob  Hybarger, 
George  Smiley,  John  Thornton,  Henry  Lamer,  David  Hunsaker  and 
Frederick  Barringer  were  all  licensed  to  keep  taverns  during  the 
first  two  years  after  the  county  was  established. 

Within  the  next  ten  years  industries  and  business  expanded 
beyond  the  stage  of  the  home  manufacturing  and  bartering  between 
neighbors  and  an  occasional  trip  to  a  trading  center,  salt  mine,  etc. 

The  men  who  served  as  constables,  appointed  by  the  governor 
between  1818  and  1820  were  John  Meneese,  William  Shelton, 
Samuel  Betcher,  Sam  Hunsaker,  Willie  Sams,  Samuel  Sprouse,  Isaac 
Williams,  Jessie  Doolen,  Sam  Hunsaker,  Levi  T.  Holland,  Alfred  N. 
Dilliard,  Squire  Bone  and  William  Thornton. 

Judges  and  clerks  of  elections  appointed  by  the  county  board 
were  John  S.  Hacker,  William  Echols,  Levi  Holland,  Francis  Parker, 
Alfred  N.  Dilliard,  John  Bradshaw,  Hugh  Craig,  Thomas  C.  Patter- 
son, Benjamin  Meneese,  William  Barton  and  Owen  Evans. 

In  1820  new  commissioners,  Francis  Parker,  Daniel  T.  Coleman 
and  Robert  Hargrave  were  elected. 


CHAPTER  IV 

INDUSTRY   AND   BUSINESS    LEAVE   THE    CONFINES 
OF  THE   HOME 

In  1820,  Mrs.  Nancy  Willard,  a  widow  whose  husband  had  died 
in  Capo  Girardeau,  brought  her  four  children,  Elijah,  Willis,  Anna 
and  William  to  Jonesboro  to  live.  She  was  the  mother  of  two  of 
oar  earliest  business  men  and  the  mother  of  the  woman  for  whom 
the   city   of  Anna   is  named. 

Elijah  was  old  enough  to  go  to  work  in  one  of  the  new  stores 

which  had  been  established  and  within  a  few  years  was  able  to  buy 

.re  from  his  employer.    He  and  Sam  Reed  were  given  a  liquor 

license  in   1826.    Later  he  was  associated  with  his  brother,  Willis,  in 

the  store. 

Nimrod  Ferguson,  Willard,  Winsted  Davie  and  Charles  Rixleben 
were  the  earliest  merchants  establishing  themselves  in  Jonesboro. 
They  bought  produce  from  the  farmers  and  took  it  to  New  Orleans 
where  they  traded  their  wares  for  sugar,  coffee  and  other  necessities 
which  were  brought  back  to  Jonesboro  and  sold  to  the  people.  This 
type  of  trading  stimulated  the  residents  to  produce  more  salable 
materials  in  order  to  exchange  them  for  comfox-ts  of  life.  Dry  goods 
came    from    Philadelphia. 

Elijah  Willard  seems  to  have  been  the  leader  in  this  type  of 
trading  because  Willard's  Landing,  where  the  bulk  of  the  local 
trading  was  done,  was  named  for  him. 

The  Willard's  erected  a  group  of  store  buildings  and  accumu- 
lated  much   farming   land.     More   will   be   said    of   them   later. 

Road  building  still  continued  with  names  of  new  men  appearing 
<m  the  court  records  with  each  change  of  administration.  About 
1821  compensation  was  given  to  the  commissioners,  sometimes  as 
much  as  ten  dollars  per  year,  so  they  no  longer  served  gratis.  Two 
or  three  more  mill  seats  were  condemned  and  roads  built  past  them. 
Several  churches  were  erected  during  the  1820  decade  and  roads 
laid   out  to   run   past   them. 

People  no  longer  lived  independently  of  each  other  but  de- 
pended  on  what  they  sold  to  pay  for  what  necessities  of  life  they 
bought.  It  is  not  strange  that  this  change  took  place  since  over  two 
hundred  new  households  were  set  up  to  increase  the  population  and 
business  of  the  community  as  well  as  the  increase  made  by  immi- 
gration, r— -^— — — — -^ 

The  following  marriages  were  recorded  between  1820  and  1830: 
Joseps  Hess  to  Mary  Hartline,  James  S.  Smith  to  Harriet  Weaver, 
James  Sutzer  to  Elizabeth  Hileman,  Alfred  N.  Dilliard  to  Nerma 
Greer,  George  Davold  to  Rebecca  Goodwin,  John  Thompson  to  Anna 
Landrith,  John  Landrith  to  Mary  Thompson,  Milo  Farring  to  Martha 
Barker,  Mitty  Davidson  to  Margaret  Mumy,  Martin  Vancfl  to  Cath- 
erine Lyerle,  Philip  Hargrave  to  Nancy  Hacky,  Benjamin  Robertson 
to   Elizabeth   Snider,   Nicholas   Keith   to   Elizabeth   Thornton,   James 

—10— 


Crowe  to  Kiziah  Cornelius,  Abner  Field  to  Mena  James,  Thomas 
Landrith  to  Elizabeth  Sumner,  Samuel  McKey  to  Elizabeth  Lingle, 
William  Vancil  to  Zilphy  Dodd,  Lemand  Lipe  to  Catharine  Davis, 
Janothan  Lyerly  to  Maryan  Byrns,  Christian  Hileman  to  Nancy 
Davis,  Frederick  Barringer  to  Anny  Dillo,  John  Miller  to  Susannah 
Davis,  Jacob  Yount  to  Talbitha  McDaniel,  Milliam  Welch  to  Mar- 
garet Cochran,  William  Tripp  to  Cerithy  Willis,  Sampson  Porth  to 
Lucinda  Palmerly,  Nathan  Walder  to  Nancy  Collins,  Daniel  Barringer 
to  Elizabeth  Treece,  Abraham  Miller  to  Nancy  Maury,  Zachariaht 
Lyerle  to  Sally  Snider,  Jacob  Cruse  to  Elizabeth  Sitzer,  David  Hile- 
man to  Sally  Miller,  Jacob  Lipe  to  Rosena  Davis,  Charles  Daugherty 
to  Elizabeth  Stone,  Allen  Boyd  to  Louisa  Mcintosh,  William  Morgan 
to  Charity  Smith,  Cornelius  Smith  to  Fanny  Beggs,  Christian  Craig- 
ton  to  Christian  Miller,  James  N.  Reynolds  to  Sarah  Hannahs,  John 
Langley  to  Patrina  Delaney,  James  Martin  to  Rachel  Grammer, 
Renson  Lamer  to  Esther  Penrod,  Joseph  Ferguson  to  Nancy  Brown, 
Isaac  Brown  to  Cynthy  Davis,  Solomon  Dillow  to  Susan  Barringer, 
Mecajah  Littleton  to  Katherine  Wolf,  Peter  Clutts  to  Anna  Shor- 
man,  Robert  Duncan  to  Elizabeth  Suttles,  Elijah  Shepherd  to  Eliza- 
beth Irwin,  Winsted  Davie  to  Anna  Willard,  Richard  Sumner  to 
Nancy  McDaniel,  Joel  McHerring  to  Nancy  Lycester,  Aaron  Henry  to 
Katherine  Hysenogle,  John  Stokes  to  Mary  Anderson,  Boston  Lentz 
to  Sophie  Lentz,  Joshia  Hazelwood  to  Harriet  Standard,  John  Hun- 
saker  to  Fanny  Linbaugh,  Thomas  Mcintosh  to  Rebecca  McRaye, 
Jo  hnWholshouser  to  Sophia  Ettleman,  Isaac  Sheppard  to  Mary 
Lambert,  David  Gore  to  Polly  Garner,  Drury  Conally  to  Amelia 
Persons,  Peter  Lentz,  Jr.,  to  Mary  Lingle,  Jacob  Dillow  to  Barbara 
Miller,  Charles  Hunsaker  to  Rebecca  McClure,  Alexander  Trees  to 
Catharine  Hartline,  David  Brown  to  Mary  McClure,  Bazzel  B.  Craig 
to  Huldah  Bradshaw,  Jacoz  Lentz  to  Barbara  Clutts,  James  Leffler 
to  Elizabeth  Martin,  William  Lamer  to  Mary  Waller,  Lewis  Durham 
to  Elizabeth  Miller,  William  Cook  to  Lydia  Busely,  Peter  Hysenogle 
to  Catherine  Cotner,  Thomas  Hughes  to  Unice  Erise,  Alexander 
Douglas  to  Mary  Hinkle,  William  Echols  to  Sophia  Weaver,  Jacob 
Rentleman  to  Rachel  Hartline,  Peter  Miller,  Jr.,  to  Katharine  Whols- 
houser,  James  D.  Anderson  to  Polly  Miller,  Ephriam  Noel  to  Elijah 
Staten,  Mark  Rutherford  to  Risky  McDaniel,  Finnis  McGinnis  to 
Rachel  Evans,  Levi  Townsend  to  Edna  Bizzel,  William  Crise  to 
Nancy  Barringer,  Benjamin  Worthington  to  Nancy  Lawrence,  Jacob 
Meisenheimer  to  Mary  Newman,  John  Anyan  to  Phoebe  Worthington. 
John  Lawrence  to  Sally  Durham,  Abraham  Keller  to  Polly  Beggs, 
John  Humphreys  to  Mary  Kelso,  Jacob  Verble  to  Katherine  Brown. 
Jacob  Pitcocks  to  Rhoda  Young,  Jacob  Karraker  to  Phoebe  Verble, 
Jeremiah  Collins  to  Margaret  Edwards,  Samuel  King  to  Susannah 
Montgomery,  Peter  Hagler  to  Francis  Keith,  Thomas  Thornton  to 
Sarah  Carter,  Robert  Willis  to  Mary  Cochran,  Collens  Murphy  to 
Aggy  Whitson. 

Young  D.  Dunner  to  Elizabeth  Standard,  James  Willis  to  Mary 

—11— 


Tripp,  George  W.  McDaniel  to  June  McRavens,  Benjamin   Vancil  to 

Katharine  Landrith,  Joseph  Ettleman  to  Susannah  Hess,  Peter  Port- 

s   to   Dorcas   Keith,   Hugh   V.    Patterson   to    Mary   Penrod,    Peter 

uel  Ja-ckard  to  Rhody  Duncan,  John  Cochran  to  Deanna  Lissen- 
berry,  Willibie  Gales  to  Nancy  Pittsford,  George  McGehee  to  Char- 
lotte Vancil,  Jonas  G.  Lock  to  Mary  Bradshaw,  John  Tripp  to 
Susannah  Peterson,  Jacob  Davis  to  Elizabeth  Brown,  Lenard  Strin- 
ger to  Polly  Cole,  Jackson  Echols  to  Sally  Fowler,  John  Cauble  to 
Eliza  Lyerle,  John  Butcher  to  Huldah  Morgan,  Christopher  Lyerle 
to  Barbara  House,  Isham  Tinner  to  Elizabeth  Riburn,  Willis  Stan- 
dard to  Nicy  Hale,  Frederick  Mowery  to  Sally  Davis,  Nicholas  Tripp 
to  Mary  Delaney,  John  Vancil  to  Elizabeth  G rammer,  Wilson  Lyerle 
to  Susannah  Zimmerman,  William  Murphy  to  William  Loid,  Joel 
Barker  to  Belinda  Lewis,  Caleb  Bryant  to  Peggy  Dillow,  William 
Corgan  to  Mary  Palmerly,  Edward  Vancil  to  Sarah  Penrod,  Martin 
Green  to  Harriet  Bennett,  A.  R.  Benson  to  Prissy  Miles,  S.  Moorke- 
viol  to  E.  Grammer,  Robert  Graham  to  Jane  Hazelwood,  Peter  Cauble 
to  Polly  Link,  John  Dillow  to  Elizabeth  Verble,  Jacob  Davis  to 
Nancy  Sittsmir,  Hiram  Hunsaker  to  Permelia  Roberson,  Benjamin 
Walker  to  Elizabeth  Wilson,  Thomas  McElwyn  to  Leah  Tomlinson, 
James  Beggs  to  Lorsee  Barber,  David  Night  to  Maryann  Durall, 
Presley  Taylor  to  Martha  Durall,  Adam  Hileman  to  Leah  Rhinehart, 
John  Grammer  to  Elizabeth  Barker,  James  King  Cochran  to  Dorcas 
Goodman,  Owen  Hughes  to  Barbara  Snider,  and  Jacob  Clutts  to 
Delila  Keith. 

By  1824  a  tanyard,  a  "hatter's  shop,"  a  "medicarl  shop"  and  a 
jewelry  shop  had  been  established  in  Jonesboro.  Taxes  were  col- 
lected on  the  stock  in  trade  of  the  above  and  also  on  horses,  cows, 
sheep,  hops,  grist  and  saw  mills,  watches,  clocks,  ferries,  wagons, 
town   lots,   distilleries  and   pleasure   conveyances. 

Following  Francis  Parker,  David  Coleman  and  Robert  Har- 
e-rave in  the  commissioners  court  were  Robert  Hargrave  and  Jessie 
Echols,  in  1B22,  Sam  Hunsaker  and  Jessie  Echols,  in  1825,  Sam 
Hunsaker,  Jessie  Echols  and  George  Brown,  in  1824,  Sam  Hun- 
saker, George  Brown  and  B.  W.  Brooks,  in  1825,  George  Brown, 
Jessie  Echols  and  John  Price. 

Abner  Field  served  as  clerk  of  both  the  county  and  circuit 
courts  at  a  salary  of  $30.00  per  year  for  each  office  in  1821  and 
1822.  Winsted  Davie  became  clerk  March  5,  1823  and  held  that 
office  for  several  years.  He  had  first  served  the  county  as  compiler 
of  the  poll  books.  George  Hunsaker  served  as  sheriff  in  1820  for 
the  salary  of  $50.50  which  also  paid  him  for  the  stationery  he  used. 
In  1821  and  1822  he  was  paid  seven  and  one-half  percent  of 
?  1174.57,  the  revenue  collected  by  the  county  for  both  years. 
Charles  Dunn,  who  served  as  probate  judge  at  that  time,  was  paid 
fifty    dollars   per   year. 

The  county  commissioners  regulated  the  rates  a  ferry  could 
charge   for   its   services   as   follows:    a   wagon    and    team,    $3.00;    a 

—12— 


r 


wheeled  carriage  with  one  or  two  horses,  $1.50;  a  man  and  horse, 
75c;  each  footman,  25c;  each  head  of  live  cattle,  20c;  a  lead  horse, 
25c;  a  head  of  hogs  or  sheep,  10c;  a  pack  horse,  50c. 

September  4,  1820,  the  commissioner's  court  authorized  Charles 
Dunn,  the  probate  judge,  to  select  a  seal  for  the  county  to  use.  He 
chose  one  which  looks  very  much  like  our  present  fifty-cent  piece 
with  the  American  eagle  with  wings  spread  in  flight  and  around 
the  edge  of  the  seal  was  written  "County  Commissioner's  Court  of 
Union  County."  This  seal  is  found  on  all  legal  documents  until  the 
seal  which  is  now  used  was  adopted  several  years  later. 

The  town  of  Jonesboro  was  incorporated  by  the  state  legisla- 
ture along  with  Covington,  America,  Kaskaskia  and  Vienna  in  1820. 


—13— 


CHAPTER  V 
PROFESSIONAL  PEOPLE   APPEAR   IN   THE   COUNTY 

As  population  increased  in  Union  County  a  few  people  who 
•    in   professions   came   along   with   the   settlers. 

If  these  people  were  measured  by  the  standards  of  education 
with  which  professional  people  are  today  measured  they  could  not 
I  as  such  for  in  those  days  there  was  no  training  for  the 
ministry,  teaching,  medicine  and  the  law  in  special  schools.  A 
ter  became  a  minister  because  he  "got  religion"  and  while  he 
conducted  meetings  he  earned  his  livelihood  by  farming  or  other 
work.  Our  first  settler,  George  Wolf,  was  a  Dunkard  preacher, 
and  later  there  were  many  other  religious  groups  developed  in  the 
county.  It  is  interesting  to  note  all  the  way  thru  the  records  of 
Union  County  that  there  has  always  ben  a  well  rounded  group  of 
people  made  up  of  all  types  of  people  of  native  white  origin. 

Preparation  for  teaching  consisted  of  a  two  or  three  term 
course  in  a  "subscription  school"  where  the  rudiment  of  arithmetic, 
reading,  writing  and  spelling  were  taught.  This  two  or  three  term 
course  did  not  follow  eight  or  twelve  years  of  previous  schooling 
but  was  the  complete  extent  of  the  teacher's  training.  A  man 
named  Griffin  was  the  first  teacher  in  Union  County.  He  was  fol- 
lowed by  Winsted  Davie  who  had  gone  to  school  before  he  came 
to  Union  County.  Willis  Willard  who  had  had  a  little  schooling  in 
Vermont  before   coming   here   followed   him. 

Doctors  become  doctors  by  reading  medicine  and  practicing 
under  an  established  physician  and  lawyers  became  lawyers  by  read- 
ing law  books  and  "putting  out  their  shingles."  There  were  no 
bar  examinations  or  state  medical   board  examinations. 

In  fact,  most  of  the  people  of  the  times  were  unlearned  and 
superstitious  and  clung  to  the  idea  that  a  sick  child  had  been  "witch- 
ed" and  his  treatment  consisted  of  various  methods  used  to  break  the 
"spell"  the  witch  had  cast  over  the  child  by  refusing  to  lend  anything 
to  persons  believed  to  be  a  witch  or  by  hanging  a  bottle  of  urine  in 
the  chimney.  The  early  doctors  borrowed  some  of  their  medical 
practice  from  the  practice  of  witchcraft,  such  as  the  brewing  of 
teas  from  certain  herbs  but  the  doctors  did  not  use  the  rituals 
practiced  by  the  early  "medicine  men." 

The  earliest  doctor  in  the  county  was  Benjamin  W.  Brooks 
who  had  been  educated  in  the  east  and  traveled  extensively  before 
settling-  here.  His  name  appears  on  the  county  records  as  a  doctor 
being  paid  by  the  county  for  caring  for  paupers,  as  a  surveyor, 
laying  out  roads,  as  a  county  commissioner  and  later  as  a  member 
of  the  legislature.  He  must  have  been  a  man  of  rare  ability  for 
he  was  active  in  these  many  pursuits  until  his  death  in  1845.  He 
is  one  of  the  few  individuals  who  kept  a  record  of  the  events  of 
the  period  other  than  the  records  kept  by  the  county  court. 

There  were  more  men  "practicing  law"  in  this  early  period 
—14— 


of  Union  County  than  those  in  other  professions.  Most  of  the  early 
commissioners,  clerks  of  the  court,  constables  and  justices  of  the 
peace  practiced  law  in  a  small  way. 

Among  our  earliest  lawyers  were  John  Reynolds,  who  later 
became  Governor  of  the  State,  Daniel  P.  Cook,  presiding  judge  of 
the  first  probate  court  and  James  Evans,  Esq.  These  early  lawyers 
were  licensed  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois.  Other  names  ap- 
pearing as  lawyers  during  this  period  were  Richard  M.  Younur, 
David  T.  Maddox,  Charles  Dunn,  Thomas  Reynolds,  Thomas  C. 
Browne,  David  J.  Baker  and  Walter  B.   Scott. 

At  that  time  there  were  no  women  in  professions.  The  women 
who  married  became  the  housekeepers  and  heads  of  their  own  little 
home  industries  which  consisted  of  planting,  growing,  harvesting, 
spinning,  and  weaving  flax  and  cotton  and  of  grinding  corn  for 
meal.  The  work  of  the  woman  was  endless  because  she  was  not 
able  to  buy  many  of  the  necessities  of  life,  all  were  wrought  by  the 
sweat  of  her  brow.  The  spinsters  who  did  not  marry  and  become 
heads  of  households  became  members  of  a  brother's  or  sister's  house- 
hold. Only  a  very  poor  person  "hired  out"  to  earn  a  home  for 
herself  and  in  most  of  these  instances,  she  was  treated  as  a  member 
of  the  family  by  whom  she  was  employed.  The  earliest  business  in 
which  women  were  found  were  millinery  and  needlecraft.  Several 
years  later  a  few  were  educated  enough  to  become  teachers  but 
in  the  earliest  part  of  our  history,  women  were  not  sent  to  the 
subscription  schools  because  it  was  not  necessary  for  them  to  know 
how  to  read  and  write.  Still,  with  all  this  lack  of  opportunity  and 
education  for  women,  many  of  them  became  outstanding  in  the 
community  for  the  wise  way  in  which  they  conducted  their  house- 
holds and  guided  their  families. 


—15— 


CHAPTER    VI 
LAND    ENTERED    BY    1835 

Although    Union    County   was   not   divided   into    precincts   as 
they  now  stand,  the  present  political  divisions  will  be  used  in  this 
;,ter   in   order   to   locate    our   early   settlers   more    clearly    in    the 
nindi  of  the  reader. 

The  present  Jonesboro  precinct  was  the  most  populous  settle- 
ment in  our  early  history.  Here  land  was  entered  by  Israel  Thomp- 
son, 130.68  acres;  Adam  Cauble,  124.52  acres;  Jacob  Rendleman, 
400  acres;  Edward  Vancil,  160  acres;  John  Crowell,  31.62  acres; 
John  Vancil,  69.50  acres;  Wm.  Hughes,  80  acres;  Jacob  Weigh,  80 
acres;  George  Wolf,  720  acres;  Jacob  Hunsaker,  240  acres;  Jacob 
Wolf,'  320  acres;  Michael  Linbaugh,  160  acres;  Jonathan  Husky,  80 
acres';  William  Grammer.  160  acres;  John  Grammer,  240  acres; 
Henry  Culph,  80  acres;  Jacob  Trees,  80.63  acres;  Henry  Cruse,  80 
acres;  Joseph  Palmer,  80  acres;  Emmanuel  Penrod,  160  acres;  Geo. 
Hunsaker,  160  acres;  George  Smiley,  40  acres;  Russell  E.  Heacock, 
160  acres;  Thomas  Green,  160  acres;  David  Kimmel,  480  acres; 
Alexander  P.  Field,  80  acres;  Robert  Hargrave,  160  acres;  Isaac 
Tinsley,  80  acres;  David  Anindel,  280  acres;  John  Whitaker,  160 
acres;  Jacob  Butcher,  160  acres;  John  Weigle,  80  acres;  Wilkerson 
Goodwin,  120.63  acres;  and  John  Waggoner,  40  acres;  Anthony  Mor- 
gan, 80  acres;  John  Hargrave,  160  acres;  William  Hunsaker,  40 
acres;  James  Ellis,  160  acres;  David  Cotner,  160  acres;  David 
Brown,  304.66  acres;  Joseph  Taylor,  80  acres;  J.  Taylor  and  the 
legal  heirs  of  J.  Hughes,  160  acres.  This  means  that  these  people 
obtained  this  land  from  the  government  by  right  of  settlement  upon 
it  and  the  payment  of  a  small  fee  of  fifty  cents  to  less  than  two 
dollars  per  acre.  By  1835  John  Grammer  had  donated  part  of  his 
land  to  the  city  of  Jonesboro  and  other  land  had  also  changed 
hands  by  right  of  purchase  but  the  above  describes  the  original  set- 
tlement of  the  precinct. 

The  settlement  of  what  are  now  Anna  Precincts  was  next  in 
size  to  Jonesboro.  Here  the  following  men  had  entered  land  as 
follows:  Peter  Casper,  344.58  acres;  John  Wooten,  160  acres;  Con- 
rad Sitter,  160  acres;  Anthony  Lingle,  200  acres;  Henry  Barringer, 
80  acres;  David  Crise,  160  acres;  Jacob  Hunsaker,  160  acres;  Wil- 
liam Morrison,  340  acres;  Robert  Crafton,  91.22  acres;  Joseph 
Mcllhaney,  182.46  acres;  John  Winces,  160  acres;  Winsted  Davie, 
80  acres;  Abner  Field,  Jr.,  160  acres;  John  Thornton,  80  acres; 
Thomas  Sams,  80  acres;  Rice  Sams,  80  acres;  John  Grammer,  160 
acres;  Jacob  Hunsaker,  Jr.,  184.53  acres;  John  Mcintosh,  80  acres; 
Daniel  Spence,  80  acres;  David  Brown,  160  acres;  John  Weigle,  160 
acres;  William  Craigle,  320  acres;  David  Miller,  160  acres;  Leonard 
Knupp,  80  acres;  George  Cripe,  80  acres;  Isaac  Cornell,  160  acres; 

.Miller,    100   acres;  John   Brown,   160   acres;   Nicholas   Wilson, 
—16— 


162.46  acres;   Henry  Bechtle,   200   acres;   George   Plott,    80   acres; 
JLennard  Lipe,   40  acres. 

Cobden  Precincts  were  settled  by  Cornelius  Anderson,  180.34 
acres;  C.  B.  R.  Smith,  40  acres;  Aaron  Trees,  40  acres;  Samuel 
Hartland,  40  acres;  Johnson  Summers,  93.57  acres;  John  Vancil,  40 
acres;  Duvall  Lence,  240  acres;  John  Lingle,  160  acres;  John  Lence, 
160  acres;  John  Lence,  Jr.,  160  acres;  Pete  Lence,  80  acres;  John 
Harris,  158.55  acres;  John  Lingle,  184.11  acres;  Benedict  Mull, 
£6.01  acres;  George  Hartline,  93  acres;  John  R.  McFarland,  162.88 
acres;  Matthias  Zimmerman,  41.84  acres;  Samuel  Penrod,  80  acres; 
Thomas  Farrill,  80  acres;  John  Vancil,  Sr.,  80  acres;  Joseph  Miller, 
bU  acres;  Edmund  Vancil,  240  acres  and  Isaac  Vancil,  320  acres. 

Dongola  Precincts  which  comprise  a  large  portion  of  the 
southeastern  corner  of  Union  County,  were  settled  by  Thomas  Sams, 
66.98  acres;  John  Davis,  95  acres;  Daniel  Hileman,  80  acres;  Moses 
Shelby,  49.24  acres;  Moses  Meisenheimer,  80  acres;  Peter  Cruse, 
2>7  acres;  David  Penrod,  80  acres;  Levi  Patterson,  160  acres;  Alex 
Beggs,  Jr.,  80  acres;  John  Borin,  160  acres;  Daniel  Carriker,  40 
acres;  Philip  Hinkle,  80  acres;  Henry  Bechtle,  80  acres;  John  Vine- 
yard, 160  acres;  Thomas  S.  Hughes,  80  acres;  Joseph  Barber,  80 
acres;  Lost  Cope,  160  acres,  John  Cope,  80  acres;  Joseph  Barbee, 
1C0  acres;  Isaac  Beggs,  160  acres;  Lewis  Penrod,  160  acres;  Jacob 
Peeler,  40  acres;  George  Hileman,  40  acres;  Alex  Beggs,  Jr.,  240 
acres;  Tobias  Meisenheimer,  120  acres;  A.  Meisenheimer,  40  acres; 
Alex  Brim,  160  acres;  John  Edelman,  340.18  acres;  Adam  Edelman, 
1D0.29  acres;  Hosea  Borin,  320  acres;  William  Crise,  80  acres; 
Thomas  Mcintosh,  160  acres;  Henry  Strickler,  40  acres;  Alexander 
Beggs,  125.98  acres;  Thomas  Lanes,  80  acres;  George  W.  Brown,  80 
acres;  Daniel  F.  Coleman,  160  acres;  John  Hunsaker,  160  acres; 
Isaac  Braggs,  364.87  acres;  George  Davis,  160  acres;  John  Uri,  160 
acres;  John  Yost,  206.89  acres;  Wilkinson  Goodwin,  160  acres;  John 
Hunsaker,  160  acres;  Samuel  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  Adam  Clapp,  320 
acres;  John  Miller,  Sr.,  160  acres;  Augustus  Post,  40  acres;  George 
Devolt,  80  acres;  Andrew  Shaffer,  40  acres;  Michael  Dillow,  80 
acres;  Wiley  I.  Davidson,  40  acres;  J.  Grammer  and  J.  Bradshaw, 
McLean,  80  acres;  Joseph  Crite,  40  acres;  George  Krite,  40  acres; 
80  acres;  Benjamin  Menees,  40  acres;  John  Dillow,  200  acres;  James 
John  Bradshaw,  80  acres;  John  Saunders,  80  acres  and  Michael 
Osman,  40  acres. 

Stokes  Precinct  north  of  Dongola  and  east  of  Anna  was 
settled  by  George  Evans,  160  acres;  John  Mowery,  80  acres;  Ben- 
jamin Menees,  80  acres;  William  Gwinn,  40  acres;  Ambrose  B. 
Rains;  George  Hileman,  40  acres;  William  Smith,  80  acres;  W. 
Davidson  and  T.  Throgmorton,  160  acres;  John  Stokes,  80  acres; 
George  Godwin,  80  acres;  Jonathan  Boswell,  40  acres;  Abner  Cox, 
160  acres;  Richard  McGinnis,  160  acres;  Caleb  Musgrave,  120  acres; 
Silas  Toler,  40  acres;  Isaac  Bizzel,  160  acres;  Isaiah  Patterson, 
95.36  acres;  William  Cove,  94.62  acres;  John  Davis,  95  acres;  Daniel 
Hileman,  80  acres  and  Moses  Shelby,  49.24  acres. 

—17— 


The  early  settlers  of  Saratoga  Precinct  were  William  Owen, 
120  acres  and  Thomas  Green,  60  acres. 

Lick  Creek  early  settlers  were  John  Smith,  80  acres;  Thomas 
D.  Patterson,  160  acres;  Wyatt  Anderson,  40  acres;  Zebedee  An- 
derson, 80  acres;  Hugh  Craig,  160  acres;  Heirs  of  John  Cox,  320.25 
;  Nathan  Musgrave,  80  acres;  John  Bradshaw,  160  acres;  Ben- 
jamin Menees,  160  acres;  George  Evans,  160  acres;  1818  Owen 
Evans,   160  acres,  and  Nathan  Musgrave,  80  acres. 

There  were  no  settlers  in  Rich  Precinct  before   1835. 

Many  people  settled  near  the  river,  the  only  means  of  long 
distance  transportation  at  that  time. 

Reynolds  Precinct,  the  southwest  corner  of  the  county,  was 
settled  by  McDaniel  Dorris,  160  acres;  Joseph  Smith,  724.38  acres; 
Daniel  Ellis,  80  acres;  Stephen  Donohoe,  160  acres;  David  Brown, 
80  acres;  Jacob  Littleton,  319.91  acres;  J.  Mcintosh,  80  acres; 
James  Brown,  Sr.,  160  acres;  L.  W.  and  J.  Smith,  480  acres;  Ben- 
jamin Harris,  308.90  acres;  Caleb  Casper,  160  acres;  Nicholas  Long- 
worth,  160  acres;  Benjamin  Brooks,  240  acres;  Willis  James,  40 
acres;  David  Miller,  127.94  acres;  Jacob  Hileman,  124  acres;  Jacob 
Trees,  206.48  acres  and  Hithaper  A.   Same,   80   acres. 

Meisenheimer  Precinct  was  settled  by  Quinton  Ellis,  80  acres; 
Cliff  Hazelwood,  160  acres;  Daniel  Knupp,  80  acres;  David  Meisen- 
heimer, 80  acres;  J.  J.  Meisenheimer,  80  acres;  Andrew  Smith,  80 
acres;  Samuel  Hunsaker,  160  acres;  John  Knupp,  80  acres;  Adam 
Eddleman,  160  acres;  Abraham  Brown,  120  acres;  Legal  Represen- 
tatives of  A.  Cruse,  160  acres  and  John  Smith,  40  acres. 

Mill  Creek  Precinct  was  settled  by  George  Hunsaker,  160 
acres;  Peter  Lence,  206.89  acres;  Peter  Cruse,  204.87  acres;  George 
Lawrence,  160  acres;  Jacob  Hunsaker,  160  acres;  Henry  Clutts,  202 
acres;  Christian  Miller,  202  acres;  James  Weaver,  160  acres;  Peter 
Albright,  80  acres;  John  Harriston,  80  acres;  John  Kimmel,  80 
acres;  John  Fink,  80  acres;  Edmund  Holleman,  80  .'acres;  Joel  M. 
D.  Herring,  80  acres;  Peter  Albright,  80  acres;  Christopher  Barn- 
hart,  40  acres;  John  Miller,  160  acres;  Michael  Holshouser,  160 
acres;  John  Hartline,  80  acres;  Anthony  Lingle,  160  acres;  Henry 
Clutts,  103.36  acres;  John  Whitaker,  160  acres;  John  Barger,  160 
acres;  Philip  Shaver,  160  acres;  Peter  Panless,  80  acres;  Philip 
Panless,  80  acres;  William  Worthington,  160  acres;  Moses  Cruse, 
160  acres;  John  Hoffner,  240  acres;  George  Medlin,  40  acres  and 
Adam  Goodman,  80  acres. 

Union  Precinct,  west  of  Jonesboro  along  the  Mississippi  River 
was  the  most  thickly  settled  district  along  the  river  but  the  majority 
of  the  entries  were  made  between  1825  and  1835  after  Willard's 
Landing  had  become  established.  Those  who  entered  land  here  were 
George  Smith,  166.04  acres;  George  James,  39.70  acres;  William 
James,  40  acres;  Franklin  M.  Bennett,  42.50  acres;  John  Dougherty, 
42.52  acres;  Mirian  E.  Whitaker,  165  acres;  James  M.  Abernathy, 
152.81  acres;  Thomas  H.  Harris,  40  acres;  Elijah  Willard,   1049.90 

—18— 


acres;  Lineas  B.  Sublett,  240  acres;  S.  M.  and  J.  Smith,  160  acres; 
William  Green,  40  acres;  Sarah  Robinson,  40  acres;  Richard  Mc- 
Bride,  160  acres;  John  Eaton,  40  acres;  L.  Lewis  and  J.  Hunsaker, 
160  acres;  Harrison  Ellis,  40  acres;  George  Kimmel,  40  acres;  Vin- 
cent Robertson,  80  acres;  Jonathan  Ellis,  80  acres;  Thomas  S.  Cox, 
40  acres;  Thomas  Green,  160  acres;  John  McBride,  80  acres;  Mat- 
son  Green,  120  acres;  James  Smith,  80  acres;  Charles  Conaway, 
80  acres;  William  M.  Mounts,  40  acres;  David  Green,  160  acres; 
Benjamin  J.  Harris,  969.21  acres;  William  Willard,  80  acres;  Ben- 
jamin Hall,  240  acres;  Mica j ah  Littleton,  80  acres;  William  Little- 
ton, 80  acres;  Joseph  Joy,  Sr.,  120  acres;  John  Price,  40  acres;  John 
Barker,  40  acres;  Caleb  and  D.  Trees,  80  acres;  John  Summers,  80 
acres;  Abraham  Summers,  80  acres;  William  Grammer,  80  acres; 
Abraham  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  John  Grammer,  Sr.,  40  acres;  John 
H.  Grammer,  40  acres;  Jacob  Rentleman,  320  acres;  Calvin  Price, 
180   acres  and  Augustus  Rixleben,    180   acres. 

Farther  up  the  river  Preston  Precinct  was  settled  by  Thomas 
H.  Harris,  1111.95  acres;  Jacob  Crafts,  307.90  acres;  Garland 
Laughlin,  20  acres;  John  Rorax,  120  acres;  John  Baltzell,  71.71 
acres;  Ninian  E.  Whitaker,  127.86  acres;  J.  Carp  and  T.  Craft, 
88.86  acres;  Joseph  Smith,  143.07  acres;  George  W.  G.  Henson,  160 
acres;  Benjamin  Walker,  206.77  acres;  Cyrus  S.  Freeman,  16.28 
acres;  John  Freeman,  80  acres;  William  Bittle,  40  acres;  Thomas 
Wright,  40  acres;  Henry  Lyerle,  80  acres;  Wm.  Shepard,  40  acres, 
and  George  Smith,  40  acres. 

Alto  Pass  Precinct  was  settled  by  Henry  Rendleman,  40 
acres;  Solomon  Penrod,  80  acres;  Robert  W.  Croft,  280  acres; 
Edward  Vancil,  160  acres;  Caleb  Hartline,  40  acres;  John  Gregory, 
160  acres;  Charles  Dougherty,  36.89  acres;  John  Price,  80  acres; 
Jacob  Lingle,  160  acres,  John  Vancil,  Sr.,  120  acres  and  Peter 
Dillow,   160  acres. 

207  of  these  entries  were  made  before  1820.  Many  of  these 
settlers  entered  more  land  after  1835  and  by  1835  some  of  the 
above  mentioned  farms  had  changed  ownership. 


—19— 


CHAPTER   VH 
CENSUS  OF  1835  AND  HAPPENINGS  BETWEEN   1830  AND  1845 

The  census  of  1835  showed  that  there  were  4447_  Peisons 
in  Union  County,  2,100  males  and  2,047  females.  Forty-seven  «i 
these  were  negroes  and  the  remainder  white.  There  was  only  one 
person  over  eighty  years  old.  There  were  five  shoemakers  and 
saddlers;  one  tailor,  William  Kaley;  two  wagon-makers,  George 
Knite  and  David  Masters;  two  carpenters,  one  named  John  Rinehart; 
one  cabinet-maker,  a  Mr.  Bond;  two  hatters,  one  of  whom  was- 
James  Hodge;  eleven  blacksmiths;  three  tan  yards,  one  south  of 
Jonesboro  owned  by  Jaccard  and  one  north  of  Jonesboro  owned  by 
Rendlemans;  twelve  distilleries;  two  threshing  machines,  one  cotton 
gin,  one  wool-carding  machine  owned  by  Jake  Frick;  ono  horse  and 
ox  mill;  18  horse  and  ox  grist  mill;  two  water  saw  mills  and  five 
water  grist  mills. 

In  1836  Willis  Willard  built  the  first  steam  saw  and  grist 
mill  in  the  county  and  in  1838  a  steam  flour  mill  was  added.  The 
Willard  family  also  built  some  of  the  first  frame  houses  in  the 
county  and  a  store  building  in  Jonesboro.  By  1835  several  stores 
were  doing  a  flourishing  business  in  Jonesboro.  Nimrod  Ferguson, 
Elijah  Willard,  Winsted  Davie  and  Charles  Rixleben  were  the  own- 
ers of  stores  during  this  period. 

It  is  evident  from  the  appearance  of  new  business  that  the 
community  was  growing  and  that  agriculture  was  increasing.  All 
the  industries  and  businesses  which  sprang  up  were  related  to  agri- 
culture and  were  a  source  of  supply  for  a  growing  population. 

In  the  courts  appear  many  new  names  during  the  decade 
following  1835.  Alexander  F.  Grant  and  Justin  Halin  were  presid- 
ing judges  in  the  Circuit  Court  and  John  Dougherty  was  prosecut- 
ing attorney.  In  1836  Jeptha  Hardin  presided  and  in  1837  Walter 
B.  Scates.  Wiley  Davidson  was  sheriff  and  Jacob  Grammer  was 
coroner  and  W.  Davies  was  still  clerk.  In  1840  Jacob  Davis  was 
sheriff  and  Judge  C.  Campbell  was  coroner.  In  1841  Willis  Allen 
was  prosecuting  attorney  and  another  attorney  was  named  Billings. 
At  this  term  of  court,  Sidney  S.  Condon  was  appointed  clerk.  In 
1842,  John  A.  McClernand  appeared  among  the  attorneys,  Thomas 
Hodge  was  sheriff,  S.  S.  Condon,  clerk  and  H.  F.  Walker,  coroner. 
W.  A.  Denning  was  prosecuting  attorney  in  1845.  In  1844,  David 
Hileman   was  probate  judge. 

During  this  period  Union  County  was  represented  in  state 
government  by  John  S.  Hacker,  Senator  and  Brazil  B.  Craig  repres- 
entative, 1834-36;  1836-38  John  Dougherty,  representative,  1838-40 
John  S.  Hacker,  senator  and  Jacob  Zimmerman,  representative; 
1^40-42,  John  Dougherty,  representative;  1842-44,  John  Dough- 
erty, senator  and   John   Cochran,   representative. 

Between  the  years  1827  and  1832  the  Black  Hawk  war  was 
waged.  Since  it  was  fought  in  the  northern  part  of  the  state,  Union 
County  was  not   affected   much   by  it  but   in    1832   an   independent 

—20— 


company  from  this  county  was  mustered  into  the  service  of  the 
state.  Following  is  a  roster  of  the  company:  Captain,  B.  B.  Craig; 
Fust  Lieutenant,  William  Craig;  Second  Lieutenant,  John  Newton; 
Sergeants,  Samuel  Morland,  Solomon  David,  Hezekiah  Hodges,  John 
Rendleman;  Corporals,  Joel  Barker,  Adam  Cauble,  Martin  Uri, 
Jeremiah  Irvine;  Privates,  Aaron  Barringer,  John  Barringer,  John 
Corgan,  Matthew  Cheser,  Daniel  Ellis,  William  Farmer,  Thomas 
Farmer,  Moses  Fisher,  Abraham  Goodin,  William  G.  Gavin,  Hiram 
Grammer,  William  Grammer,  Lot  W.  Hancock,  Daniel  P.  Hill,  Jack- 
son Hunsaker,  Peter  Lense,  John  Langley  Moses  Lively,  A.  W. 
Lingle,  John  Murphy,  P.  W.  McCall,  John  Morris,  Nimrod  Mcintosh, 
John  A.  Mackintosh,  Washington  McLean,  Elijah  McGraw,  John 
Penrod,  John  Parmer,  John  Quilman,  W.  H.  Rumsey,  Elijah 
Shepherd,  Daniel  Salmons,  Preston  I.  Staten,  John  Vincent  and  Jesse 
Wright. 

During  this  period  the  homes  of  the  farmers  in  the  "bottoms" 
were  destroyed  by  one  of  the  worst  floods  in  the  history  of  the 
county.  Many  homes  had  been  established  in  Union,  Preston  and 
Reynolds  precincts  because  the  river  afforded  the  only  type  of  loir^ 
distance  transportation  available  at  that  time  and  all  produce  had 
to  be  hauled  in  wagons  to  the  river  to  be  sold.  It  is  evident  that 
the  men  operating  trading  posts  on  the  river  such  as  Willard's  Land- 
ing, due  west  of  Jonesboro;  and  Harris'  Ferries  across  the  river 
in  the  northwest  corner  of  the  county  probably  did  more  business 
than  the  others  because  by  1835  Elijah  Willard  and  Thomas  Harris 
had  entered  more  land  than  any  other  men  in  Union  County.  How- 
ever all  this  land,  fertile  when  dry  enough  for  a  crop,  was  menaced 
by  floods.  The  early  settlers  were  fortunate  if  they  were  able  to 
harvest  a  crop  one  out  of  three  years.  The  spring  floods  usually 
destroyed  crops  planted  the  previous  fall  and  prevented  the  planting 
of  crops  in  the  spring.  In  1844  Dr.  Brooks  described  in  his  diary, 
the  worst  flood  that  had  been  known  since  the  settlement  of  this 
county  by  white  people.  Following  is  his  account:  "The  Mississippi 
commenced  rising  on  the  18th  of  May,  1844  and  continued  rising 
at  the  rate  of  two  feet  to  thirty  inches  in  twenty-four  hours  until 
the  first  of  June,  at  which  time  it  stood  within  eight  inches  of  the 
flood  line  of  1808.  By  the  10th  of  June  it  fell  five  or  six  feet,  and 
left  the  farms  in  the  bottom  all  free  of  water.  The  bottom  farms 
had  been  more  or  less  covered  with  water  except  that  of  Jacob 
Trees.  On  the  11th  of  June,  the  waters  commenced  to  rise  again, 
the  flood  coming  down  the  Missouri  and  Mississippi  rivers,  and  this 
time  it  rose  from  one  foot  to  eighteen  inches  in  tweney-foiir  hours. 
This  rise  steadily  continued  until  it  overflowed  the  bottom  land  in 
Union  County  from  eighteen  to  thirty  feet  deep.  This  was  the  depth 
of  the  water  on  the  road  to  Littleton's  old  ferry,  and  also  to  Wil- 
lard's landing.  Stocks,  crops,  houses  and  fences  were  carried 
away  in  the  raging  waters.  The  people  made  efforts  to  save  their 
stock,  and  called  to  their  aid  ferry  and  coal  boats  and  all  floating 
craft,  but  soon  they  found  they  could  only  hope  to  save  a  few  of 

—21— 


their  household  effects,  and  the  stock  was  left  to  its  fate  and  the 
iple  fiY<l  to  the  hills.  This  rise  continued  steadily  until  June  29, 
when  it  came  to  a  stand.  On  the  first  of  July  it  commenced  slowly 
to  recede.  This  was  higher  water  than  that  of  1808  by  ten  or 
twelve  feet.  It  was  higher  than  was  ever  known,  except  in  1785, 
which  Beck  says  in  his  history  was  the  highest  water  in  150  years. 
.Mr.  Cerre,  one  of  the  oldest  French  settlers  of  St.  Louis  said:  "The 
flood  was  higher  by  four  or  five  feet  in  1785  than  in  1844.  In  1844 
the  steamer  Indiana  transported  the  nuns  from  Kaskaskia  Convent 
to  St.  Louis.  The  boat  received  them  from  the  door  of  Pierre 
Menard's  residence,  the  water  in  front  of  the  house  being  fifteen 
feet  in  depth.  Two  hundred  people  went  from  Kaskaskia  on  the 
Indiana  and  about  300  found  shelter  at  Menard's,  while  yet  others 
were  sheltered  in  tents  on  the  bluffs.  The  loss  in  the  bottoms  was 
at  least  $1,000,000.  From  Alton  to  Cairo  there  were  288,000  acres 
of  land  overflowed.  In  Randolph  county  is  a  document  soliciting  a 
grant  of  lots  from  the  crown  of  France,  and  urging  as  a  reason  the 
great  flood  of  1724,  which  overflowed  the  village  and  destroyed  it. 
Great  overflows  occurred  in  1542,  1724,  and  1785,  and  in  1844.  The 
Mississippi  bottoms  are  now  very  clean,  as  everything  is  washed  off 
and  many  of  the  small  trees  are  killed. 


—22— 


r  CHAPTER  VIII 

VOTING   IN   UNION   COUNTY   BEFORE    1850 

Politics  has  been  one  of  the  most  interesting  subjects  for 
conversation  since  our  country  began.  Political  parties  developed 
as  controversial  matters  arose  in  the  country.  Our  first  great  con- 
troversy was  whether  or  not  we  should  remain  British  subjects  and 
pay  the  taxes  imposed  by  that  government  or  whether  we  should 
revolt  and  set  up  our  own  government.  Those  in  favor  of  re- 
maining British  subjects  were  called  Loyalists  or  Patriots  and  those 
in  favor  of  independence  were  Federalists.  As  long  as  George 
Washington  lived  (December,  1799)  the  Federalists  were  in  power 
but  before  his  death   a  controversial   question   had   arisen. 

Thomas  Jefferson,  who  had  been  a  Patriot  because  he  be- 
longed to  the  governing  family  in  Virginia,  but  who  took  active 
part  in  the  framing  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  of 
America  and  the  seeting  up  of  the  government  of  the  U.  S. 
differed  with  Washington  on  the  matter  of  the  limit  of  power 
of  the  federal  officials.  Washington  beleived  in  a  strong  central 
government  which  should  have  the  power  to  decide  all  matters 
of  government.  Jefferson  believed  that  the  central  government, 
the  president,  congress  and  the  supreme  court,  should  act  only 
on  matters  set  forth  by  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States. 
He  believed  that  all  matters  not  provided  for  by  the  Constitution 
should  be  settled  by  the  states  according  to  their  own  views.  How- 
ever history  shows  that  later,  Jefferson  went  beyond  his  principle, 
because  he  negotiated  the  Louisiana  Purchase  and  the  Constitution 
did  not  provide  for  the  purchase  of  new  territory  by  the  govern- 
ment. However  at  the  death  of  Washington,  Jefferson  became  the 
leader  of  the  party  in  power,  Republicans.  This  party  grew  so 
strong   that   it  was   practically   without   opposition    until    1828. 

At  the  time  of  the  first  elections  in  Union  County,  the 
candidates  were  not  elected  because  they  adhered  to  opposing 
party  principles  due  to  the  fact  they  were  all  Jeffersonians — or 
Republicans.  The  choice  was  made  on  the  basis  of  personal  likes 
and  dislikes  because  population  was  not  large  and  most  of  the 
settlers  had  heard  of  each  other  since  nearly  all  of  them  had 
travelled  over  the  same  roads  to  arrive  at  their  destination. 

Note:  The  writer  is  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  Ney.  Sessions  for 
the  record  of  the  1822  poll  books  which  will  be  used  as  typical 
of  the  whole  period  to  1850. 

The  poll  books  of  1822  show  that  the  names  of  the  candi- 
dates were  written  across  the  top  of  the  page  and  the  names  of 
the  voters  down  the  left  side  of  the  page  and  opposite  his  name 
and  under  the  name  of  the  candidates  was  written  the  voter's 
choice.  The  County  Board  of  Commissioners  appointed  election 
judges  and  clerks  for  the  elections  of  the  year  and  it  was  the 
duty  of  the  clerk  to  compile  the  poll  books  and  the  judges  to  see 
that  he  did  his  work  properly.  After  the  names  of  the  candidates 
were  written  across  the   tops  of  the  pages,  the  voters  were   heard 


as  they  arrived  at  the  polls.  The  voter  told  the  judge  of  the  elec- 
tion what  candidate  he  wished  to  vote  for  and  the  clerk  placed 
a  mark  opposite  the  voters  names  under  the  names  of  the  candi- 
date. Each  voter's  name  was  placed  on  a  new  line  and  a  record 
of  his  vote  was  opposite  his  name. 

In  1822  the  candidates  and  the  number  of  votes  cast  for 
each  Governor  of  Illinois  were  Thomas  C.  Brown  96,  James  B. 
Moore  9,  Joseph  Phillips  71,  and  Edward  Coles  75;  for  Lieutenant 
Governor,  John  G.  Lofton  22,  A.  F.  Hubbard  65,  James  A.  Pea- 
cock 26,  and  James  Lemons  33;  for  Congress,  John  McLean  101, 
and  Daniel  P.  Cook  157;  for  Senator,  John  Whitaker  81,  John 
Grammer  162,  R.  E.  Heacock  3,  and  Henry  L.  Wibb  0;  for  Repre- 
sentative, John  Mcintosh  138,  Alex  P.  Field  136,  James  P. 
Edwards  70,  William  Echols  107,  and  John  Hunsaker  31;  for 
Sherff  were  George  Hunsaker  220,  and  James  S.  Smith  13;  for 
Coroner,  Charles  Daugherty  60,  Jonathan  Lyerle  88,  Wesley  G. 
N'immo  63;  for  City  Commissioner,  Cliff  Hazelwood  111,  Samuel 
Hunsaker  135,  George  Brown  160,  Samuel  Butcher  97,  Jessie 
Echols  100,  and  for  delegate  to  the  national  convention,  William 
Barton   58. 

After  the  votes  were  recorded  in  the  poll  books  and  counted 
the  results  were  given  to  the  Clerk  of  the  Court  who  issued  a 
certified  statement  giving  the  names  of  the  two  leading  candidates 
for  each   office. 

All  of  the  freeholders,  that  is,  people  owning  land  were 
allowed  to  vote  at  that  time.  There  were  235  voters  in  the  1822 
election.  In  1850  all  free  men  were  allowed  to  vote  but  colored  men 
were  not  allowed  to  vote  until  after  the  Civil  War.  This  system 
of  voting  was  used  until  1850.  It  was  easy  to  see  that  a  man 
kept  his  promise  to  vote  for  a  certain  candidate  in  those 
days.  An  amusing  incident  is  related  about  a  voter  in 
Johnson  County  who  wished  to  vote  for  Lincoln,  which  shows  how 
the  judges  and  clerks  helped  elect  their  own  candidate.  It  is 
possible  that  no  such  corrupt  pratice  ever  existed  in  Union  County. 
It  seems  that  it  was  generally  known  that  a  certain  voter  was 
a  supporter  of  Abraham  Lincoln  and  the  judges  and  clerks  of 
the  election  were  opposed  to  Lincoln.  When  the  voter  came  to 
the  polls  to  cast  his  vote  the  judges  and  clerks  ignored  him  and 
he  was  forced  to  go  away  without  being  heard.  However  he 
met  an  influential  man  in  the  neighborhood  who  returned  to  the 
polls  with  him  and  insisted  that  his  vote  must  be  recorded 

As  the  population  grew  and  the  nunvoer  of  offices  and 
candidates  increased  this  system  of  voting  became  too  slow  to  be 
useful    and    the    system    was    changed    to    a    ballot    system. 

In  the  election  of  1822  all  candidates  were  Republicans. 
Jefferson  had  done  much  in  aiding  with  the  settlement  of  the 
Northwest  Territory  and  all  citizens  here  followed  his  leadership. 
He  had  established  the  new  method  of  surveying,  the  use  of 
townships,    base   lines,   prime   meridians   etc.    and   had    been    instru- 

—24— 


anental  in  the  government  provision  that  Section  16  of  «very 
township  should  be  given  by  the  government  to  the  township  for 
school  purposes.  He  had  also  propounded  the  theory  that  religion, 
morality  and  knowledge  were  necessary  for  good  government  and 
the   happiness   of   mankind. 

However,  shortly  before  1828,  Jackson  began  to  oppose 
the  Republicans  with  the  idea  that  caucuses  were  not  fair  in 
their  methods  of  selecting  a  president  and  that  office  seekers 
should  be  a  direct  choice  of  the  people.  Jackson,  who  was  a 
southerner  was  opposed  to  a  high  tariff  because  the  southerners 
exported  their  cotton  to  England  and  other  countries  had  to  buy 
.all  their  manufactured  goods  from  the  northern  states  or  pay  a 
high  duty  or  tariff  for  importing  them  from  other  countries. 
Jackson  also  opposed  the  establishment  of  a  national  bank,  so 
with  these  three  "planks"  he  established  the  platform  of  the 
new  "Democratic  Party"  which  has  stayed  in  existence  to  the 
present  time,  altho  some  "planks"  have  been  changed  in  the 
platform  from  time  to  time, 

Jackson  was  opposed  in  1836  by  a  new  party  which  called 
itself  the  Whigs.  The  Republican  party  had  died  and  Jackson's 
Democratic  party  had  been  in  full  power  until  the  question  of 
the  National  Bank  arose.  The  Whigs  favored  a  National  Bank 
and  blamed  Jackson  with  the  hard  times  that  had  followed  the 
era  of  speculation  which  Jackson  had  put  an  end  to  by  ordering 
-all  land  purchased  from  the  government  to  be  paid  for  in  gold 
or  silver,  thus  devaluating  the  currency  the  various  banks  in  the 
country  had  put  into  circulation  on  the  strength  of  the  fact  that 
they  held   federal   money   on   deposit  in  their   banks. 

In  1840  the  Whigs  were  victorious  but  did  not  stay  in  power 
long  because  they  would  not  express  themselves  in  the  campaign 
regarding  their  stand  on  the  annexation  of  Texas  while  Polk,  the 
Democrat's  candidate   openly   favored   the   annexation. 

The  next  controversial  issue  to  arise  was  slavery.  Two  new 
parties  appeared  drawing  members  from  both  the  Democratic  and 
the  Whig  parties.  The  "know-nothing  party"  was  so-called  because 
its  members  belong  to  secret  societies  which  opposed  allowing  any 
foreign  born  person  to  hold  public  office,  and  when  asked  about  their 
policies,  always  answered,  "we  don't  know". 

The  Democrats  were  still  intact  in  the  south  and  Southern 
Illinois,  since  this  area  was  settled  by  southerners,  but  in  the  north 
two  factions  of  Democrats  had  sprung  up;  the  Anti-Nebraska  and 
the  Douglas  Democrats.  The  Kansas-Nebraska  bill,  sponsored  by 
Stephen  A.  Douglas,  allowed  Kansas  and  Nebraska  to  decide  for 
themselves  whether  or  not  they  should  be  admitted  as  free  or 
slave  states  to  the  Union.  This  was  contrary  to  a  previous  pro- 
vision  that  this  territory  should   be   considered   slave   territory. 

Union  County  followed  the  rest  of  the  country  in  presi- 
dential campaigns  so  that  no  disrupting  issues  caused  much  con- 
troversy until  the  slave  question  arose. 

—25— 


CHAPTER    IX 

CHURCHES    OF    UNION    COUNTY    BEFORE    1850 
INVENTIONS    WHICH    CAUSED    CHANGES    IN    COUNTY 

The    Ordinance    of    1787   governing   the    Northwest    Territory 
proclaimed   that   there   should   be   freedom    of   religion    in   the    area, 
for  the  variety  of  churches  erected  by  the  early  set- 
<»f  Union   County. 

M  settlers  adhered  to  the  faith  they  had  had  in 
the  communities  they  left  and  since  the  settlers  came  in  little  groups 
as  a  rule,  each  gioup  later  erected  its  own  church.  Most  of  the 
early  religious  meetings  took  place  in  the  homes  of  the  members 
of  the  groups.  The  first  preacher  in  the  county  was  Father  Wolf, 
i  Dunkard,  mentioned  before  as  one  of  the  first  settlers.  He  held 
•igs  in  various  homes  but  no  Dunkard  church  was  ever  erected. 

The  Baptists  and  Lutherans  were  the  first  to  erect  churches. 
The  Baptists  organized  as  the  Clear  Creek  Baptists  and  built  their 
first  log  cabin  church  in  1821  where  the  Jonesboro  cemetery  now 
xi amis.  Leaders  of  the  church  were  Reverend  James  P.  Edwards, 
Jeremiah  Brown  and  John  Mcintosh.  In  1848  this  congregation 
erected  a  frame  building  for  their  church  south  of  the  Jonesboro 
square  and  placed  in  its  belfry  the  first  church  bell  to  be  heard  in 
Illinois  south  of  Kaskaskia  or  Shawneetown.  This  bell  was  donated 
deb  Frick.  A  Baptist  church  erected  near  Willard's  Landing 
was  washed  away  by  the  flood  of  1844  and  not  rebuilt. 

The  Evangelical  Lutherans  organized  in  1819  and  built  a  log 
church  in  1822  near  the  Jonesboro  square.  The  Lutherans  also 
built  a  church  north  of  what  is  now  Anna  which  was  known  as 
Union  or  <  asper  church.  Both  this  church  and  the  church  in  Jones- 
boro belonged  to  the  North  Carolina  Synod  and  Reverend  J.  H.  C. 
Shrenberg  was  the  first  missionary  sent  by  the  Synod  to  Illinois. 
His  health  failed  and  he  was  replaced  by  Daniel  Sherer  who  made 
his  home  in  Hillsboro,  Illinois,  and  came  to  these  churches  once 
every  three  months.  In  1847  the  Casper  Church  group  replaced 
their  log  building  with  a  frame  building  for  the  joint  use  of  the 
German  Reform  Church  and  the  Lutherans.  D.  F.  Rendleman,  Peter 
Pifford,  David  Miller,  Jr.,  and  Samuel  Dillow  formed  the  building 
committee  which  let  the  contract  to  Joshua  Roberts.  Near  this 
church  is  one  of  the  oldest  burial  grounds  of  the  county.  About 
I860  a  group  of  German  Lutherans  from  Austria  settled  two  miles 
south  of  Jonesboro  on  Dutch  Creek  and  erected  St.  Paul's  Evan- 
gelical Lutheran  Church.  Leaders  of  this  congregation  were  Joseph 
M<-ver,  Sr.,  and  Joseph  Kollener. 

The  Methodists  were  numerous  from  the  beginning  of  the 
settlement  of  the  county  but  they  did  not  build  a  church  until  1842. 
They  gathered  for  worship  in  the  homes  of  their  members  and 
once  each  year  held  a  "camp  ground"  meeting.     Their  first  church 

—26— 


"was  erected  south  of  the  Jonesboro  square  under  the  direction  of 
Reverend  Charles  Adkins,  a  circuit  preacher,  who  was  also  a 
carpenter. 

In  1S50  Camp  Ground  Church  was  erected  in  the  Stokes 
settlement  ~T3y~  a  group  of  Presbyterians,  namely,  George  Hileman 
and  wife,  John  Hileman  and  wife,  William  Standard  and  wife,  Daniel 
Standard  and  wife,  Woods  Hamilton  and  wife,  James  Lingle  and 
wife,  James  Alexander  and  Mr.  McAllen  and  wife.  The  first  graves 
in  the  burial  ground  joining  this  church  were  those  of  the  son  and 
daughter  of  George  Hileman  and  wife. 

During  the  following  half  century  many  more  churches  were 
erected.     These  will  be  mentioned   in  later  chapters. 

There  were  two  great  changes  occurring  between  1800  and 
L850  which  had  a  great  effect  on  the  development  of  the  whole 
world  and  Union  County  had  its  share  of  this  development.  These 
changes  were  the  invention  of  machinery  and  the  use  of  steam  to 
run  the  machinery.  Congress  passed  the  first  patent  act  in  1835 
and  a  patent  office  was  established  in  1836.  The  inventions  which 
revolutionized  industry  were  the  cotton  gin,  the  spinning  jenny, 
looms  for  weaving,  and  the  sewing  machine  which  all  affected  the 
manufacture  of  cloth  and  clothing.  In  1831  Cyrus  McCormick  of 
Virginia  patented  new  plows,  a  horse  power  reaper  and  later  an 
automatic  binder  which  changed  the  method  of  farming.  Planing 
mill  machines,  the  manufacture  of  brick  and  the  invention  of  the 
Bessemer  process  of  steel  manufacturing  revolutionized  building 
and  later  transportation.  Other  revolutionary  inventions  were 
"daguerreotype"  photography,  cookstoves,  vulcanized  rubber,  tele- 
graphy and  the  rotary  press. 

The  change  in  the  manufacture  of  steel  probably  effected 
Union  County  more  than  any  of  the  other  inventions  because  fol- 
lowing this  came  the  manufacture  of  rails,  the  locomotive,  and  the 
building  of  railroads.  The  steamboat  effected  river  transportation 
and  steam  was  soon  used  in  local  mills.  Since  large  amounts  of 
raw  materials  for  the  manufacture  of  cloth  and  shoes  were  not  pro- 
duced in  Union  County,  factories  manufacturing  these  products  did 
not  spring  up  here  and  since  the  land  was  rough  and  too  hilly  for 
the  use  of  the  newly  invented  farm  machinery,  Union  County  and 
southern  Illinois  fell  behind  northern  Illinois  in  the  production  of 
large  quantities  of  wheat,  corn  and  other  grains.  However  the 
manufactured  products  were  brought  to  Union  County  and  exchang- 
ed for  our  skins  and  agricultural  products  on  "floating  stores" 
which  came  down  the  Ohio  from  the  east.  All  the  agriculture  and 
trade  and  system  of  living  in  Union  County  before  1850  was  based 
on  its  trade  on  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio.  After  1830,  with  the 
coming  of  steamboats,  river  trade  flourished  and  boat  landings  be- 
came trade  centers.  Roads  were  built  from  all  parts  of  the  county 
to  the  boat  landings.  The  first  "gravel  road"  in  the  county  was 
from   Jonesboro   to   Willard's    Landing.      This   road   was    maintained 

—27— 


I  at  a  toll  gate  west  of  Jonesboro.     The  merchant? 

-:,oio  took  articles  produced  by  the  farmers  as  payment  for 

their    merchandise   and   traded    these    products   to    the    river   traders 

their  wares  to  stock  their  stores.     There  was  not  much  money 

i   in  those  days  but  rather  a  barter  system  was  prevalent.     This 

e    of    trading    flourished    until    after    1850    when    a    railroad    was 

built  thru   Union  County  which  completely  changed  the  character  of 

the  place. 

It  is  often  asked  why  southern  Illinois  was  settled  and  flour- 
ished long  before  northern  Illinois,  then  why  was  it  that  northern 
Illinois  became  more  wealthy  and  more  thickly  populated.  There 
are  two  very  good  reasons  for  the  early  settlement  of  southern 
Illinois,  first  its  navigable  waterways  and  second  the  fact  that  the 
Indians  were  driven  out  at  an  early  date.  Then  came  three  reasons 
why  northern  Illinois  began  to  develop  rapidly.  Canals  were  built 
in  New  York  and  the  Great  Lakes  which  made  navigable  lake  routes 
to  the  west;  Cyrus  McCormick  decided  to  establish  his  factory  for 
farm  machinery  in  Chicago,  or  rather  Fort  Dearborn  at  that  time, 
because  the  machinery  was  suitable  for  use  on  the  level  land  sur- 
rounding this  point  for  many  miles;  and  third,  a  wagon  road  or 
National  Trail  was  constructed  from  Cumberland,  Maryland,  thru 
Pennsylvania,  Ohio  and  Indiana,  to  Vandalia,  Illinois,  which  was 
then  the   state   capital. 

An  interesting  story  is  told  of  citizens  of  Fort  Dearborn 
(now  Chicago)  coming  to  Shawneetown  where  the  oldest  bank  in 
the  state  is  located  to  borrow  money  for  the  development  of  their 
community.  They  were  refused  because  the  bankers  did  not  feel 
that  this  community  would  ever  amount  to  anything  since  it  was 
so  far  away  from  Shawneetown. 

However,  during  the  period  between  1830  and  1850,  Union 
County  enjoyed  its  share  of  growth  in  population.  After  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  first  steam  flouring  mill  in  Union  County  in  1838, 
flour  soon  become  one  of  the  leading  exports  of  the  county  which 
necessitated  wheat  being  one  of  the  leading  products  produced  by 
the  farmer.  The  raising  of  livestock  early  became  a  profitable  in- 
dustry in  the  county.  The  livestock  market  was  establised  at  an 
early  date  in  St.  Louis. 


CHAPTER   X 

UNION   COUNTY'S    FIRST    NEWSPAPER 

The  first  newspaper  published  in  Union  County,  September 
19,  184a,.  was  called  the  Jonesboro  Gazette  and  Southern  Illinois 
Reflector.  The  Southern  Illinois  Reflector  part  of  the  name,  was 
to  indicate  that  news  in  the  paper  would  interest  not  only  Jones- 
boro but  all  of  Southern  Illinois.  The  oldest  available  copy  of  the 
paper  was  the  one  issued  October  10,   1849.. 

In  this  issue  of  the  paper  the  editor,  Rev.  H.  Edward  Hemp- 
sted  and  the  publishers  and  proprietors,  Thomas  J.  Fmley  and  John 
Evans  set  up  the  policy  of  the  paper.  It  was  to  have  a  "Literary 
Department"  including  "tales,  selected  and  original  to  occupy  the 
front  page.  "Interesting  incidents  connected  with  the  early  settle- 
ment of  Illinois"  were  to  be  found  in  the  columns  of  the  paper. 
The  "subject  of  Education,  a  hitherto  much  neglected  subject  was 
to  be  another  department.  "The  latest  Foreign  and  Domestic  news" 
written  was  to  be  of  interest  to  all  readers  who  were  "anxious  for 
the  overthrow  of  political  and  religious  despots."  The  affairs  of  Con- 
gress and  the  State  Legislature  were  to  be  given"  yet  not  at  any 
time  was  anything  to  be  admitted  to  the  columns  which  could  be 
made  to  look  favorable  to  any  man  or  set  of  men."  This  indicates 
that  the  paper  did  not  begin  as  a  partisan  paper.  There  was  also  to 
be  included  a  weekly  review  of  the  New  Orleans  and  St.  Louis  mar- 
kets and  a  Jonesboro  current  price  list. 

The  terms  of  the  paper  were  $2.00  for  one  year,  $2.50  if  not 
paid  within  six  months  and  $3.00  if  not  paid  within  a  year.  For  six 
copies  for  one  year,  $10.00;  for  twelve  copies,  $18.00,  and  for 
eighteen  copies,  $25.00.  No  paper  was  to  be  discontinued  unless 
at  the  option  of  the  publisher,  until  all  arrearages  were  paid.  The 
advertising  rates  were:  for  one  square  of  twelve  lines  or  less,  $1.00; 
for  each  additional  insertion  30c;  one  square  for  three  months, 
$4.00;  for  six  months,  $6.00;  twelve  months,  $9.00;  quarter  column 
for  one  year,  $15.00;  half  a  column  for  one  year  $20.00;  one  column 
for  one  year,  $35.00;  business  cards,  one  year,  $6.00. 

The  paper  had  four  pages  of  six  columns  each,  eight  full 
columns  of  which  were  advertisements.  Three  columns  on  the  front 
page  and  one  and  one-half  on  the  second  were  devoted  to  the  con- 
clusion of  a  continued  story  having  a  moral  lesson  teaching  mothers 
how  to  train  their  sons  to  grow  into  reliable  men.  It  depicted  the 
every  day  life  of  the  pioneer  boy.  Two  columns  of  the  paper,  one 
on  the  front  page,  were  filled  with  poetry.  One  poem  showing  the 
topics  of  the  day  was  a  parody  on  the  song  "Susanah"  called  "Cali- 
fornia," telling  of  a  Kentuckian  going  to  California  for  the  gold  rush 
and  finding  no  gold.  The  foreign  news  of  the  day  told  of  a  war 
being  waged  between  Hungary  and  Austria  allied  with  Russia.  The 
combat  was  handicapped  because  Austria  could  only  manufacture 
two  hundred  guns  per  day  but  another  item  said  that  England  had 
sent  them  50,000  percussion  lock  muskets.     There  was  a  two  column 

—29— 


article  by  the  editor  on  education  on  the  second  page.  He  advocated 
the  hiring  of  more  qualified  teachers  for  the  local  schools,  arguing 
that  a  teacher  who  did  not  know  his  three  "R's"  could  not  teach 
no  to  the  children.  He  said,  "A  man  has  no  business  attempting 
to  teach  youth  before  he  understands  the  grammer  of  nis  osvn  lan- 
guage." Teaching  at  that  time  had  not  achieved  a  universal  pro- 
:ial  standard,  not  even  a  low  standard. 

A  news  item  said  that  "The  female  department  of  the  Jones- 
boro  "Academy"  will  open  Monday  next  under  the  superintendance 
of  Miss  A.  E.  Brooks." 

In  the  advertising  section,  a  "Female  Seminary"  at  Cape  Gir- 
ardeau, Mo.,  was  advertised  for  students.  Their  were:  tuition 
in  the  ordinary  branches,  according  to  the  grade  of  study,  per  an- 
num, $6.00  to  $15.00;  needlework,  waxwork,  drawing  and  painting, 
each  (extra)  $5.00;  music  (on  the  piano)  per  session,  $20.00;  board- 
ing including  washing,  fuel,  lights,  etc,  $40.00.  There  were  two 
sessions  of  twenty-one  weeks  each  in  each  school  year.  The  school 
was  incorporated  by  the  Legislature  of  Missouri. 

Another  school,  "Western  Military  Institute"  at  Georgetown. 
Ky.,  also  advertised  for  male  students.  Six  military  officers,  two 
Colonels,  one  Major,  two  Captains,  and  one  Lieutenant,  all  educated 
at  West  Point  or  the  Virginia  Military  Institute,  and  five  other  in- 
structors, one  a  lawyer,  three  with  A.  M.  degrees  and  one  with  an  A. 
B.  degree  made  up  the  faculty.  The  school  was  established  in  1817 
and  two  hundred  thirty  cadets  from  fifteen  different  states  had  been 
enrolled  there.  Military  training  and  civil  engineering  were  taught 
there.  It  was  advertised  that  the  wage  a  graduate  engineer  could 
expect  to  make  was  seventy-five  dollars  per  month  and  it  was  stated 
that  one  graduate  was  receiving  $2500.00  per  year  as  "principal 
engineer"  for  a  railroad  company  building  a  railroad  in  Kentueky 
and  others  were  receiving  S2000,  $1500  and  $1200  in  other  parts 
of  the  United  States  as  "assistant  engineers." 

Other  interesting  advertisements  were  those  of  other  newspapers 
and  periodicals,  some  fashion  magazines  and  other  stories,  news  and 
religious  magazines.  A  St.  Louis  wholesale  merchant,  a  book  and 
job  printer  and  a  doctor  all  advertised  in  this  issue  of  the  paper. 

Local  ads  included  administrator's  notices,  land  for  sale,  a 
sheriff's  notice  that  a  slave  had  been  found  and  placed  in  jail  until 
claimed  by  the  owner,  the  professional  cards  of  Dr.  J.  V.  Brooks. 
Dr.  S.  S.  Condon,  Dr.  Parks  and  Dr.  Freeman,  and  attorneys,  Wm. 
A.  Hacker,  H.  Watson  Webb,  J.  Dougherty  and  C.  G.  Simmons; 
fioshly  butchered  beef  and  mutton  for  sale  by  James  Kerr  at  his 
home;  accomodations  at  the  Rising  Sun  Hotel  by  Wm.  Kaley;  tailor- 
ing by  Lingle  and  Bratton;  cabinet  making  by  C.  H.  Williford  and 
bootmaking  by  John  Evans. 

Many  other  businesses  had  been  established  by  this  time  but 
evidently  their  owners  had  not  seen  fit  to  advertise  their  wares   in 
the  new  paper.  Within  the  next  few  years  local  advertisers  increas- 
ed in  numbers:  Parks'  Drug  Store;  Elias  V.  Winget,  blacksmithing, 
' ' —30— 


plows  and  wagons;  Adam  Cruse,  blacksmithing,  plows  and  wagons; 
Dr.  David  Love;  D.  G.  Brooks,  attorney;  Robert  Brown,  butcher; 
James  Hodges,  dry  goods  and  groceries;  Cyrus  G.  Simmons,  insur- 
ance; W.  Willard,  100  kegs  of  nails  and  10000  pounds  of  iron;  many 
patent  medicine  ads;  W.  W.  Yyman,  furniture  store;  W.  Davie  and 
sons,  dry  goods  and  groceries;  Caleb  Frick,  dry  goods  and  grocer: 
A.  C.  Caldwell,  dealer  in  copper,  tin,  sheet  iron  and  stoves;  L.  Jay 
S.  Turrey,  attorney,  and  Leonard  Kerr,  attorney.  Local  markcis 
were  first  reported  by  W.  Willard  and  in  1851  by  J.  E.  Naill. 

In  1851  the  publishers  and  proprietors  of  the  "Gazette,"  were 
Thomas  J.  Finley  and  F.  A.  McKenzie,  and  in  1853,  John  Evans 
and  Co.  In  1851  the  title  of  the  paper  "Jonesborough  Gazette  and 
Southern  Illinois  Enterprise"  had  been  changed  to  "Jonesboro  Ga- 
zette." The  paper  was  described  as  a  weekly  paper  devoted  to  poli- 
tics, literature,  education,  foreign  and  domestic  news. 

Perrin,  who  published  a  history  of  Union  County  in  1883 
said  that  the  paper  was  a  democrat  paper  from  its  beginning  altho 
the  first  editor  stated  he  intended  to  have  a  non-partisan  paper  in  his 
editorial  setting  forth  the  policy  of  the  paper.  He  says  that  in 
1854,  H.  E.  Hempstead  bought  the  paper  and  sold  it  to  John  Grear 
in  1855  who  in  turn  sold  it  to  John  Dougherty,  then  Lieutenant 
Governor  of  Illinois.  Dougherty  and  his  publisher-,  A.  H.  Marschalk, 
-plit  when  Dougherty  took  an  anti-Douglas  stand  in  politics.  Mar- 
schalk_then  established  "The  Democrat"  and  moved  its  office  to  Anna. 
Dougherty  sold  the  "Gazette"  back  to  McKinney,  a  former  editor, 
who  sold  it  to  Evans  who  kept  it  until  he  enlisted  in  the  Civil  War. 
He  sold  it  to  William  Jones,  who  owned  it  when  it  was  ordered  sud- 
pressed,  however  this  order  was  lifted  as  soon  as  the  state  authori- 
ties learned  of  it  which  was  six  months  after  the  order  had  been 
j-iven.  Altho  this  paper  has  changed  hands  many  times,  it  is  still 
being  published,  as  the  "Jonesboro  Gazette"  until  recently  when  it 
beeame  the  "Gazette-Democrat." 


—31— 


CHAPTER    XI 

THE  MARKET  PRICE  OF  FOOD  IN   1849.     THE  MEXICAN  WAR. 
A    CHANGE    IN    THE    METHOD    OF    VOTING 

It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  prices  of  commodities  in 
1849  with  those  of  the  present  time.  Following  is  a  copy  of  Willis 
Willard's  weekly  market  list  published  in  the  Jonesboro  Gazette. 
It  gives  the  price  and  the  amount  for  sale  of  the  articles  used  in 
those  days.  Flour,  4  bbl.  at  $4.50,  2-100  lb  sacks  at  $2.25;  wheat 
40  bu.  at  62c;  corn  in  ear,  20  bu.  at  25c;  salt,  per  bu.  50c,  per 
Back  $2.00;  dry  apples,  50  bu.  at  62c;  green  apples,  20  bu.  at  25c; 
dry  peaches,  90  bu.  at  $1.00;  green,  25  bu.  at  30c;  Castor  beans, 
10  bu.  at  $1.25;  white  beans,  30  bu.  at  35c;  butter,  6  lbs.  at  8c; 
coffee,  sack,  8  lb.  at  9c;  9  lb.  at  10c;  sugar  (New  Orleans)  7  lbs. 
at  10c,  5  bbl.  at  7c  per  lb.;  Imperial  tea,  90  lb.  at  $1.00  per  lb.; 
nails,  6  lb  at  7c;  lead,  6  lb.  at  7Vi>c;  whiskey,  35  gal.  at  40c;  22*  ■ 
bbl.  at  25c  per  gal.;  molasses,  35  gal.  at  40c,  30  bbl.  at  35c  per  gal.; 
candle  molds,  11  at  15c  each,  12  at  18c  each;  salaratus,  9  lb.  10c; 
cordage,  manilla,  18  lb.  at  25c;  chickens,  100  doz.  at  25c  per  doz; 
eggs,  5  doz.  at  6c  per  doz.;  linseed  oil,  75  gal.  at  $1.00;  turpentine, 
87  gal.  at  $1.00;  white  lead,  200  kegs,  at  $2.25;  tallon,  6  lb.  at  8c; 
dry  hides,  6  at  8c;  green,  3  at  4c.  The  market  price  for  beef  cattle 
and  hogs  was  not  given  but  articles  the  store  wished  to  buy  to  sell 
to  traders  on  the  river  were  priced  as  follows:  feathers,  25c  per  lb.; 
ginseng,  20c  per  lb.;  beeswax,   18c  per  lb.;  flaxseed,   80c  per  lb. 

In  1846,  the  United  States  declared  that  a  state  of  war  exist- 
ed between  this  country  and  Mexico,  and  Illinois  was  called  upon 
for  thirty  companies  of  men.  Union  County  sent  its  quota,  most  of 
whom  were  placed  in  Company  F  of  the  2nd  Regiment.  The  en- 
listed men  were  allowed  to  elect  their  own  officers.  This  company 
took  part  in  the  Battle  of  Buena  Vista,  February  22nd,  1847,  which 
brought  about  the  close  of  the  war  and  victory  for  the  United  States. 

The  following  men  were  enlisted  from  Union  County:  Cap- 
tain, John  S.  Hacker;  First  Lieutenant,  Sidney  S.  Condon;  Second 
Lieutenants,  John  Roberts  and  John  Master;  Third  Lieutenants, 
Alphonso  Grammer;  Sergeants,  John  C.  Hunsaker,  Alex  J.  Nimmo, 
Abram  Hargrave  and  John  Grammer;  Corporals,  Adam  Creese, 
Wright  C.  Pender,  Henderson  Brown,  Abram  Cover;  Musicians,  Jacob 
Greer  and  George  H.  Lemley;  Privates,  Talbot  Brown,  John  Bevins. 
John  Brown,  Charles  Barringer,  John  Z.  Burgess,  Peter  Cripps,  Peter 
H.  Casper,  Elijah  Coffman,  Scipio  A.  B.  Davie,  John  Davis,  Daniel 
Dougherty,  Simeon  Fisher,  Charles  A.  Finley,  James  Fike,  Jessie 
Gray,  Franklin  Georgus,  James  Grammer,  Henry  Flaugh,  William 
X.  Hamby,  William  Henry,  Samuel  Hess,  Benjamin  F.  Hayward, 
Henry  C.  Hacker,  Fielding  A.  Jones,  Silas  Jones,  John  Kerr,  Fred- 
erick King,  Adam  Lingle,  Philip  Lewis,  John  Lingle,  Daniel  W. 
I.yerle,  Andrew  J.  Lemons,  Daniel  Lingle,  Chesterfield  Langley,  John 
Ifenees,  Harrison  McCoy,  Jefferson  Menees,  William  Miller,  John  H. 
Millikin,    John    Moland,    Samuel    Martin,    Washington    L.    Mcintosh, 

—32— 


John  McGinnis,  James  M.  Phelan,  Samuel  Parker,  Garrett  Resink, 
John  W.  Regan,  Franklin  Sprey,  Amalphus  W.  Simonds,  James  A. 
Springs,  Azel  Thornton,  Reuben  Vick  and  James  Walker.  Charles 
A.  P'inley  in  the  quartermaster's  department,  Henry  C.  Hacker, 
pital  steward  and  Pitas  Martin,  surgeon  were  also  in  the  service. 

Flex  G.  Anderson,  Alexander  Davie  and  Joseph  Ledgerwood 
■were  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Buena  Vista  and  died  in  hospitals 
after  the  war. 

February  12,  1849,  the  Illinois  Legislature  passed  a  law  re- 
vising the  method  of  voting  in  Illinois,  establishing  the  use  of  ballots 
and  ballot  boxes. 

The  law  stated  that  a  general  election  should  be  held  on 
Tuesday  next  after  the  first  Monday  in  the  November  preceding  the 
■expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  each  president  of  the  United 
States.  The  general  election  for  governor,  lieutenant  governor, 
secretary  of  state,  auditor  of  public  accounts,  state  treasurer,  rep- 
resentatives to  Congress,  Senators  and  representatives  to  the  gen- 
-eral  assembly  and  county  officers,  was  to  be  held  biennially,  Tues- 
day next  after  the  first  Monday  in  November,  except  for  such  offices 
as  were  directed  to  be  chosen  other  than  biennially,  namely  the- 
governor  and  other  officers  who  served  for  terms  of  four  years  each 
instead  of  two  years. 

There  was  provisions  made  for  the  election  of  two  supreme 
judges,  one  from  the  first  district  to  be  elected  the  first  Monday 
in  June,  1852  and  a  successor  every  nine  years  thereafter,  the 
second  from  the  second  district  to  be  elected  the  first  Monday  in 
June,  1855,  and  a  successor  each  nine  years  thereafter.  The  judges 
then  in  office  were  to  hold  their  positions  until  the  times  set  for  the 
next  elections. 

Circuit  judges  were  to  be  elected  in  each  circuit  the  first 
Monday  in  June   1855  and  every  six  years  thereafter. 

It  was  provided  that  if  a  vacancy  should  occur  in  the  judge- 
ship of  the  supreme  court,  or  circuit  court  within  one  year  before 
a  scheduled  election,  the  governor  of  Hlinois  should  appoint  a  judge 
to  fill  the  vacancy  until  the  time  of  the  regularly  scheduled  election. 
In  case  the  office  of  supreme  court  clerk  should  become  vacant,  the 
supreme  judge  should  appoint  a  clerk  to  fill  the  vacancy  until  the 
term  of  a  scheduled  election,  and  the  circuit  judge  should  do  like- 
wise in  case  of  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  circuit  court  clerk.  The 
governor  of  the  state  was  to  make  appointments  to  fill  vacancies  in 
the  office  of  states  attorney,  state  auditor  of  public  accounts,  state 
treasurer  or  secretary  of  state. 

The  privilege  of  voting  was  given  to  all  white  men  above 
the  age  of  21  who  had  resided  in  the  state  for  one  year. 

The  method  of  voting  was  changed  to  a  ballot  system.  Blank 
ballots  with  no  writing  or  identifying  marks  were  to  be  used  by 
voters  who  wrote  the  names  of  the  candidates  of  their  choice,  fold- 
ed the  ballots  and  gave  it  to  one  of  the  election  judges  who  placed 
it  in  the  ballot  box  without  unfolding  it. 

—33— 


After  the  voting  was  completed,  the  clerk  counted  the  number 
of  names  of  voters  on  the  poll  book  who  had  voted  and  the  judges 
counted  the  number  of  ballots  in  the  box.  If  more  ballots  were  in 
the  box  than  there  were  names  of  voters,  a  public  drawing  was  held 
where  the  judges  drew  out  the  number  of  surplus  ballots  and  de- 
stroyed them.  In  counting  the  votes,  if  two  ballots  were  found 
folded  together,  both  were  destroyed  because  this  appeared  as  evi- 
dence that  someone  was  attempting  to  cast  more  than  one  vote. 

The  clerks  and  judges  were  allowed  to  adjourn  until  the  next 
day  after  the  votes  were  cast  to  count  the  votes.  They  were  required 
to  hand  the  results  of  their  count  to  the  county  clerk  within  four 
days  after  the  election  and  the  county  clerk  was  required  to  publish 
the  returns. 

The  ballots  were  returned  to  the  ballot  box  which  was  then 
3ocked  and  one  election  judge  kept  the  key  and  another  the  box 
until  the  next  election  if  there  was  no  contest. 

This  law  repealed  all  previous  laws  that  had  been  passed; 
in  regard  to  elections. 


—34— 


CHAPTER    XII 

LAND  ENTERED  IN  UNION  COUNTY  BETWEEN   1835  AND 

1850 

Between  1835  and  1850  many  newcomers  settled  in  Union 
County  and  many  of  the  earlier  settlers  expanded  their  holdings 
In  many  instances  the  second  generation  of  the  first  settlers  bought 
government  land  near  that  on  which  their  parents  had  already 
settled. 

Rich  Precinct  which  had  had  no  settlers  before  1835  now 
had  a  few.  In  1836  George  Rich  for  whom  the  precinct  was  named 
and  whose  house  was  the  voting  place,  entered  120  acres;  later,  be- 
fore 1850  the  following  entries  were  made:  Wm.  H.  Latham,  448.88 
acres;  Wm.  Grammer,  121.62  acres;  James  K.  Cochran,  343.27  acres; 
Simm  P.  Hiller,  80  acres;  Tilford  Brooks,  280  acres,  and  Wm.  B. 
Elmore,  280  acres. 

In  Lick  Creek  Precinct  the  following  settlements  were  enter- 
ed between  1835  and  1850:  John  M.  Cochran,  320  acres;  George  E. 
Stokes,  160  acres;  Wm.  A.  Roberts,  200  acres;  Larkin  S.  Brooks, 
40  acres;  Elijah  Brooks,  200  acres;  Uriah  Anderson,  120  acres; 
Wiggs  and  Ashley,  120  acres;  Nancy  Boswell,  40  acres;  Nathan 
Boswell,  120  acres;  Lazarus  Wiggs,  80  acres;  Jefferson  Anderson,  40 
acres;  Hiram  Penoyer,  40  acres;  John  Anderson,  40  acres;  George 
A..  Goddard,  200  acres;  Jeremiah  White,  40  acres;  Stephen  Howard, 
40  acres;  Permele  Anderson,  40  acres;  Thomas  Boswell,  40.78  acres; 
Martin  Walts,  40  acres;  Jacob  Trees,  40  acres;  Stephen  Howard,  40 
acres;  Rollins  Henderson,  40  acres;  Arthur  Allen,  160  acres;  Little- 
berry  Allen,  40  acres;  and  Henry  Hileman,  280  acres. 

The  following  settlements  were  added  in  Saratoga  Precinct: 
Calvin  A.  Goodman,  4©  acres;  Jessie  and  John  M.  Owens,  43.72 
acres;  John  Bevans,  226.98  acres;  J.  W.  Owens,  40  acres;  Alexander 
M.  Jenkins,  40  acres;  Solomon  Henry  Sitter,  232.78  acres;  John 
Skelton,  40  acres;  Wiggs  and  Ashley,  40  acres;  William  Miller,  120 
acres;  Benjamin  F.  Preston,  40  acres;  Wm.  H.  Reed,  248  acres; 
Urias  Martin,  46.14  acres;  Conrad  Sitter,  92.29  acres;  Hezia  Martin, 
44  acres;  Preston  Anderson,  44  acres;  Thomas  Shearer,  160  acres; 
Tobias  Verble,  44.61  acres;  Lewis  Bryant,  40  acres;  John 
Worsham,  40  acres;  William  Miller,  80  acres;  Henry  C. 
Hileman,  40  acres;  John  Lemley,  80  acres;  Frederick  John- 
son, 80  acres;  Henry  Kolpe,  40  acres;  Samuel  Clutts,  40  acres; 
Matthias  Caraker,  40  acres;  Jacob  Caraker,  40  acres;  Thomas  Lingle, 
40  acres;  George  Lemley,  40  acres;  John  Jumpers,  40  acres;  Thomas 
Stokes,  40  acres;  Christian  Lookingbee*  40  acres;  Jacob  Trees,  80 
acres;  William  Miller,  40  acres;  Jacob  W.  Haire,  80  acres;  James 
Kelley,  40  acres;  Jacob  Lence,  40  acres;  Jonathan  Rich,  40  acres; 
Michael  Dillow,  40  acres;  David  Lence,  40  acres;  Martin  Mull,  40 
acres;  Henry  Lingle,  250.93  acres;  Daniel  Mull,  80  acres;  George 
Hartland,  40  acres;  David  Lingle,  80  acres;  Jacob  Burlman,  40 
acres;  Joseph  Kestler,  40  acres;  John  J.  Lingle,  86.78  acres;  Caleb 

—35— 


Hartline,  136.29  acres;  Henry  Mull,  48.15  acres;  Alex  W.  Lingle,  80 
acres;  David  Lentz,  80  acres;  Paul  Lingle,  40  acres;  David  Green,  40 
acres,  and  Thomas  Rich,  40  acres. 

Stokes  Precinct  added  George  Hileman  with  285.06  acres; 
John  Hileman,  80  acres;  Daniel  Beets,  45.05  acres;  John  H.  Wil- 
liams, 45.05  acres;  John  Penninger,  90.43  acres;  Edna  Stokes,  120 
acres;  George  E.  Stokes,  80  acres;  Thomas  Stokes,  40  acres;  Zilpha 
*■  a,  40  acres;  Needham  Wiggs,  200  acres;  John  Stokes,  40  acres; 
James  Williams,  37  acres;  Caleb  Musgrave,  40  acres;  Arthur  Allen, 
80  acres;  William  Standard,  80  acres;  Thomas  Standard,  80  acres; 
Joel  M.  Huffman,  206.78  acres;  James  S.  Miller,  80  acres;  Daniel 
Gore,  80  acres;  Mary  Gore,  80  acres;  John  McLane,  40  acres;  Mor- 
?an  Bryant,  120  acres;  Calvin  Bridges,  40  acres;  Abner  Cox,  120 
acres;  Henrietta  A.  Williams,  40  acres;  James  Bishop,  120  acres; 
Doctor  H.  Toler,  40  acres;  Jones  Stokes,  Sr.,  240  acres;  John  Mc- 
Ginnis,  240  acres;  Stephen  Toler,  40  acres;  Thomas  C.  Bozier,  80 
acres;  James  I.  Toler,  40  acres;  Jessie  Toler,  520  acres;  Jacob  Sivia, 
40  acres;  John  Quinn,  40  acres;  John  Hinkle,  40  acres;  William 
Wiggs,  40  acres;  William  Penninger,  165.37  acres;  Priscilla  Frogg, 
45.37  acres;  Green  B.  Harrison,  40  acres;  Robert  Throgmorton, 
75  acres;  Jacob  Verble,  44.55  acres;  John  Verble,  40  acres; 
George  Davis,  80  acres;  Jacob  Peler,  40  acres;  Clarissa  Bishop,  80 
acres;  Meredith  Spence,  252.98  acres;  Sylvester  Adams,  86.78  acres; 
Barnett  Weaver,  40  acres;  Joshua  Patterson,  40  acres;  Wilson 
Arnold,  40  acres;  Jessie  N.  Miles,  80  acres;  Joshua  Peterson,  40 
acres;  William  S.  Davis,  87.68  acres;  Sylvester  Adams,  233.10  acres; 
Nancy  A.  Davis,  86.78  acres:  Joseph  Davis,  40  acres;  Francis  Brown, 
40  acres;  Charles  Smith,  40  acres,  and  James  H.  Rankin,   40   acres. 

The  new  landowners  of  Dongola  Precinct  were  John  Davis, 
50.13  acres;  Henry  Verble,  49.04  acres;  James  Lingal,  98.09  acres; 
Alex  S.  Penninger,  80  acres;  Daniel  Hileman,  40  acres;  William 
Penninerer,  47.50  acres;  John  Verble,  56.82  acres;  George  W.  Otrich, 
107.25  acres;  Spence  Laws,  105.25  acres;  Paul  Hofner.  40  acres; 
Caleb  Linger,  40  acres;  Henry  Kellar,  40  acres;  John  Corzine,  80 
acres;  Martin  Hoffner,  48.54  acres;  Thomas  Allen,  49.24  acres; 
Charles  Lence,  49.27  acres;  Lewis  Misenheimer,  80  acres;  John 
Allen,  80  acres;  Terna  Misenheimer,  40  acres;  Daniel  Lingle,  120 
acres;  Mose  Misenheimer,  160  acres;  Henry  Misenheimer,  80  acres; 
Silas  Jones,  160  acres;  Absolom  Keller,  120  acres;  Francis  Brown, 
120  acres;  James  A.  Penrod,  40  acres;  Daniel  W.  Jones,  40  acres; 
Thomas  Gore,  40  acres;  Morton  Cai'ter,  40  acres;  Daniel  Penrod,  40 
acres;  John  Fink,  80  acres;  Winstead  Davie,  124.90  acres;  Reuben 
H.  Corzine,  80  acres;  George  Davalt,  120  acres;  David  Penrod,  40 
acres;  Robert  Baggs,  80  acres;  Young  D.  Garner,  80  acres;  Eli  Coss, 
40  acres;  Elias  Misenheimer,  80  acres;  Rachel  Karraker,  40  acres; 
Eli  Corzine,  80  acres;  Daniel  Karraker,  80  acres;  Henry  Hinkel,  Jr., 
80  acres;  Sarah  Hinkle,  40  acres;  William  Hinkle,  80  acres;  George 
Corzine,  50.41  acres;  Charles  Lentz,  100.91  acres;  Henry  Barringei, 
80   acres;   David   Ernest,   40   acres;   John   Trexler,    80    acres;   Philip 

— 3G— 


Hinkle,  40  acres  Abner  Keller,  40  acres;  Elkono  Keller,   160  acres; 
Nancy  Karraker,   80  acres;  John  J.   Carter,   80   acres;  James   Cress, 
40   acres;   David   Beggs,    120   acres;   Stephen   T.    Barton,    200    acres; 
John  Beggs,  80  acres;  David  Peler,  40  acres;  Jacob  Peeler,  40  acres; 
Henry  Sticker,   80  acres;  Willoughby   Gales,   80   acres;   Thomas   Mc- 
intosh,  80  acres;  Alexander  Beggs,    120   acres;   Alley   D.   Boren,   40 
acres;    A.    Misenheimer,    80    acres;    Tobias    Misenheimer,    40    acres; 
Hosea   Mcintosh,   40   acres;   John   Mcintosh,    80    acres;   John    C.    Al- 
bright, 120  acres;  Monroe  G.  W.  Lingle,  80  acres;  John  Hoffner,  160 
acres;  Bazil  Boren,  160  acres;  John  Knup,  80  acres;  Henry  Sowers, 
SO    acres;    James    Noel,    34.92    acres;    Elizabeth    Noel,    34.92    acres; 
Daniel   Trees,    40    acres;    Charles    Littlejohn,    40    acres;    Harmon    F. 
Whitacre,   40   acres;   John   J.    Denning,    97.03    acres;   Thomas   Brew- 
ster, 40  acres;  Debar  Deming,  40  acres;  Hezekiah  C.  Hardin,  124.23 
acres;  Napoleon  B.  Walker,   120  acres;  Young  J.  Vancil,   40  acres; 
James   Warren,    40   acres;   William   Hagler,    40    acres;   John   Hagler, 
40  acres;  William  J.  Biggs,  40  acres;  Timothy  Anderson,   40   acres; 
Alfred   Anderson,    44.90    acres;   Anslem    Guthrie,    340    acres;    Henry 
Hope,  80  acres;  Sampson  Keith,  40  acres;  John  O.  Daniel,  120  acres; 
Hezikiah  C.   Hodge,   80   acres;  John   Lockard,    120   acres;   Robert   C. 
Armstrong,  40  acres;  Joseph  Battson,  80  acres;  Daniel  Barringer,  40 
acres;  Jacob  Linsley,  40  acres;  John  D.  Fly,  80  acres;  William  Oaks, 
80    acres;   Anna   Roberts,    40    acres;    Larkin    F.    Brooks,    240    acres; 
Henry   C.    Stout,    200    acres;   Evan   Roberts,    40    acres;    Jefferson    T. 
Denning,   80   acres;  James   C.   Swinford,    160   acres;   Henry   Casper, 
160      acres;      James      Guthrie,       80      acres;      Jacob       Simmerman, 
400     acres;     Phtilip      Clutts,      120      acres,      William      Brocker,      80 
acres;       Evasmus       Hardin,       80       acres;       Charles       Hagler,       80 
acres;  James  Ferril,  40  acres;  Ignatius  O'Daniel,  40  acres;  Thomas 
Ferril,    84.77    acres;    William    Griffin,    44.77    acres;    Rebecca    Scott, 
44.90  acres;  Daniel   Ireland,    89.80   acres;   Reuben   A.   Morris,   44.90 
acres;  Jacob  Chitts,  80  acres;  James  L.  Wallace,  80  acres;  John  Fer« 
rill,    211.92    acres;    Singleton    P.    Tweedy,    45.96    acres;    William    L. 
Lamer,  45.97  acres;  Ary  McGraw,  40  acres;  William  Neal,  40  acres; 
Alfred  Vancil,  40  acres;  Peter  Sifford,  240  acres;  M.   S.  Allen,   40 
acres;  John  Lence,  Jr.,  500  acres;  William  Rich,  80  acres;  Solomon 
Lence,   120   acres;  Nancy   Lence,   40   acres;  Joseph   West,   80   acres; 
George  Snyder,  40  acres;  Henry  Barrington,  80  acres  Peter  Rymer, 
160  acres;  George  Sevar,  40  acres;  Wiley  Davidson,  40  acres;  Adam 
Clapp,  Jr.,   40   acres;  John   Dillow,    160   acres;   Anthony   George,   40 
acres;  Silas  Corzine,  40   acres;  Frederick  Barringer,   80   acres;  Ed- 
ward  Mowery,   40   acres;   Pete   Barringer,   Jr.,    40   acres;   Alexander 
H.  Corzine,  80  acres;  George  P.  Sheffola,  40  acres;  Washington  Mc- 
Lane,  40  acres;  Samuel  Seals,  40  acres;  Henry  W.  Otrich,  80  acres; 
Joseph   Rinehart,   80   acres;   John   File,    40    acres;   Aaron   Barringer, 
40  acres;  John  Peeler,  120  acres;  Simon  Albright,  40  acres;  George 
Devolt,   40   acres;   Andrew   Shaffer,    40    acres;    George    Mowery,    80 
acres  and  Jacob  Dillow,  Jr.,  40  acres. 

Cobden   Precinct   increased   its   occupied   area   by   the   settle- 
—37— 


ment  of  Alexander  Smith  who  occupied  40  acres;  Moses  Trees,  80 
acres;  Aaron  Trees,  120  acres;  William  Russell,  40  acres;  Peter 
Luce,'4u  acres;  Mathiaa  Caraker,  40  acres;  Jacob  Caraker,  80  acres; 
Jacob  W.  Haire,  40  acres;  David  Dillow,  40  acres;  Abraham  Cover, 

>  res;  Caleb  S.  Sitter,  120  acres;  Boston  Lentz,  75.83  acres; 
Paul  Hofner,  40  acres;  Andrew  Lence,  40  acres;  Peter  Lence,  172.96 
acres;  Calvin  Armstrong,  40  acres,  Jefferson  Menard,  160  acres; 
Solomon  Sitter,  34.53  acres;  Conrad  Sitter,  103.60  acres;  John  Bar- 
ringer,  80  acres;  Daniel  Barringer,  40  acres;  John  Beaseley,  40 
acres;  Jacob  Clem,   30.89   acres;  Isaac   Trees,   40   acres;   Eli   Beaver, 

;  David  Miller,  28.31  acres;  Paul  Lingle,  27.82  acres;  Charles 
Lingle,  107.52  acres;  Stephen  Casper,  40  acres;  John  Shuesnig,  40 
s;  Eli  Beaver,  80  acres;  Isaac  Hartline,  66.01  acres;  Benedict 
Mull,  46.50  acres;  John  Lingle,  160  acres;  Henry  Ferril,  40  acres; 
John  D.  Lamer,  200  acres;  Henry  Randleman,  200  acres;  Samuel 
Mackey,  40  acres;  Mary  Renthman,  40  acres;  James  Holloway,  40 
acres;  James  B.  Coulter,  40  acres;  Thomas  Cox,  80  acres;  Frank 
W.  Coulter,  40  acres;  David  Masters,  80  acres;  Jacob  Rendleman, 
160  acres;  Christopher  Houser,  160  acres;  George  Smith,  80  acres; 
Perry  Hauser,  160  acres;  Nicholas  Hunsaker,  90  acres;  Andrew 
Smith,  Jr.,  40  acres;  Adam  Smith,  80  acres;  David  Smith,  80  acres; 
Moses  Fite,  40  acres;  Edmund  Vancil,  40  acres;  Catherine  Landrith, 
bO  acres;  Joseph  Hickman,  40  acres;  George  Bean,  101.62  acres; 
George  Simpson,  34  acres;  and  Henry  Lyerle,  Jr.,   97.75   acres. 

The  expansion  of  Anna  Precincts  was  made  by  Henry  Casper, 
45.66  acres;  Charles  Miller,  45.66  acres;  Stephen  Casper,  45.66 
acras;  James  Trees,  45.66  acres;  Conrad  Sitter,  200  acres;  Charles 
Barringer,  160  acres;  John  Frogge,  120  acres;  Henry  Trees,  80 
acres;  Alex  J.  Nijtnmo,  J.20  acres;  Charles  M.  Northern,  40  acres; 
John  Barringer"  80  acres;  John  Williams,  120  acres;  James  Fike, 
200  acres;  Peter  Simmerman,  160  acres;  Luther  Armstrong,  40 
acres;  Henry  Barringer,  40  acres;  Benjamin  Evans,  40  acres;  Ran- 
som Beaseley,  40  acres;  David  Armstrong,  80  acres;  John  Boss,  160 
acres;  William  Murphy,  40  acres;  John  Ballard,  40  acres;  Arthur 
Frogge,  80  acres;  Urias  Martin,  40  acres;  I.  and  Wm.  Bizzel,  80 
acres;  Wesley  Nimmo,  40  acres;  Mary  Mills,  80  acres;  Basil  B.  Craig, 
80  acres;  William  J.  B.  Hanners,  40  acres;  Robert  Hamilton,  160 
acres;  Isaac  Bizzel,  40  acres;  William  C.  Millis,  160  acres;  Walter 
Bearhope,  40  acres;  Joseph  M.  Spence,  200  acres;  Calvin  W.  Ses- 
sions, 80  acres;  Peter  Barringer,  80  acres;  William  H.  Mills,  40 
acres;  James  A.  Nash,  40  acres;  Thomas  Hodges,  80  acres;  Samuel 
T.  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  William  Henry,  160  acres;  Aaron  Barringer, 
40  acres;  Richard  W.  Sessions,  80  acres;  Herman  Bailey,  40  acres; 
George  Davis,  40  acres;  David  Spence,  40  acres;  Emanuel  Davis, 
40  acres;  John  M.  McElhaney,  120  acres;  Martin  Brown,  40  acres; 
Joseph  Martin,  160  acres;  James  West,  40  acres;  Samuel  Martin, 
160  acres;  David  Davis,  280  acres;  Solomon  Davis,  80  acres;  Silas 
Hess,  40  acres;  Caleb  Frick,  40  acres;  Luther  Armstrong,  4D  acres; 
John   Williams,   40   acres;   Cerenthy   Barringer,    40    acres;    Catharine 

— SS— 


Williams,  40  acres;  Timothy  Goddard,  80  acres;  Curtis  Stonecipher, 
80  acres;  Henry  Barringer,  40  acres;  Preston  Anderson,  40  acres; 
Samuel  M.  Goddard,  80  acres;  Willis  Willard,  40  acres;  Benjamin 
Eaves,  160  acres;  Richard  Henson,  40  acres;  Daniel  Barringer,  120 
acres;  Talbert  Sainer,  40  acres;  Christian  Hileman,  120  acres;  Win- 
stead  Davie,  80  acres;  Jacob  Hunsaker,  Jr.,  160  acres;  James  Ellis, 
40  acres;  Caleb  Casper,  40  acres;  Alison  and  Daniel  Cover,  40  acres; 
Charles  Trees,  165.50  acres;  Peter  Casper,  40  acres;  Alexander 
Trees,  45.50  acres;  W.  Willard  and  J.  Rinehart,  181.62  acres;  James 
A.  Grover,  49.59  acres;  John  Rinehart,  45.59  acres;  Peter  Cruse, 
40  acres;  Levi  Craven,  120  acres;  Jacob  Hileman,  40  acres;  Mary 
Campbell,  80  acres;  Abraham  Miller,  120  acres;  Solomon  Davis,  40 
acres;  Wiley  Davis,  40  acres;  Joseph  M.  Spence,  120  acres;  John  E. 
Ranee,  40  acres;  Nathan  Sames,  80  acres;  Samuel  T.  Hunsaker,  40 
acres;  John  Hess,  40  acres;  Jane  Hess,  40  acres;  Tolbert  Sames,  40 
acres;  Abraham  F.  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  John  Rinehart,  80  acres; 
Elias  V.  Winget,  200  acres;  James  B.  Powell,  40  acres;  Jonathan 
Woolsey,  40  acres;  James  A.  Smith,  80  acres;  Washington  McLane, 
40  acres;  Edward  B.  Ohusted,  40  acres;  Wesley  G.  Nimmo,  40  acres; 
Alexander  Frick,  40  acres;  Michael  Craver,  240  acres;  Tobias  Verbal, 
80  acres;  David  Craver,  40  acres;  Joseph  Hess,  80  acres;  James  B. 
Powell,  80  acres;  Leonard  Knup,  80  acres;  Benjamin  W.  Brooks,  160 
acres;  Isaac  J.  Lyerley,  80  acres;  R.  V.  Marshall,  160  acres;  Thomas 
James,  80  acres;  Wiley  J.  Vinson,  80  acres;  Edmund  Davis,  40  acres; 
Benjamin  L.  Corzine,  40  acres;  George  Brown,  240  acres;  James  J. 
Hunsaker,  120  acres;  James  I.  Alexander,  80  acres;  Marion  C.  Port- 
haven,  40  acres;  Syrian  Davis,  80  acres;  Martin  M.  Brown,  80 
acres;  and   Wilson   Corzine,    120   acres. 

Jonesboro  Precinct  added  Jacob  Miller,  40  acres;  William 
Rymer,  40  acres;  Peter  Albright,  80  acres;  John  Fink,  40  acres; 
Elizabeth  Davidson,  80  acres;  Morgan  Davidson,  80  acres;  William 
Penrod,  35  acres;  Peter  Caubb,  80  acres;  Jacob  Rhodes,  80  acres; 
John  Crowell,  40  acres;  John  N.  Rhodes,  40  acres;  George  Bean, 
40  acres;  John  Dougherty,  160  acres;  William  C.  Whitlock,  73.74 
acres;  John  Hartline,  40  acres;  James  Ellis,  160  acres;  Drake  H. 
Huddman,  40  acres;  John  Reynolds,  40  acres;  Robert  W.  Waggoner, 
66.94  acres;  Charles  Crowell,  40  acres;  James  Morgan,  80  acres; 
William  Louis,  40  acres;  George  Kimmel,  80  acres;  Kenneth  Har- 
grave,  282.04  acres;  Hiram  Tripp,  40  acres;  Elijah  McGraw,  40 
acres;  Crawford  Trees,  40  acres;  Christian  Fromm,  40  acres;  John 
Parmer,  40  acres;  David  Amundel,  40  acres;  William  Goodbody,  40 
acres;  Nicholas  Tripp,  80  acres;  George  Foggart,  80  acres;  John 
Cruse,  40  acres;  Andrew  Deardorf,  40  acres;  Caleb  Frick,  40  acres; 
John  J.  Grammer,  40  acres;  William  Tripp,  40  acres;  Aaron  Gram- 
mer,  40  acres;  Sarah  A.  Sugar,  40  acres;  Willis  Willard,  40  acres; 
Jacob  Trees,  40  acres;  Lafayette  Damron,  40  acres;  Robert  Har- 
grave,  200  acres;  John  C.  Sherro,  80  acres;  Philip  Cruse,  40  acres; 
Thomas  Whitaker,  40  acres;  James  Morgan,  160  acres;  Levi  White, 
80  acres;  John  Conkey,  80  acres;  Levi  Lewis,  80  acres;  Joel  Barker, 

—39— 


40  acres;  Jesse  Barker,  40  acres;  James  H.  Whitlock,  36.81  acres; 
Nancy  Goodwin,  40  acres;  Andrew  Eaves,  40  acres;  Jonathan  Eaves, 
40  acres;  Nicholas  Hunsaker,  80  acres;  George  Greer,  40  acres ; 
Benjamin  Vancil,  66.81  acres;  Daniel  Kimmel,  80  acres;  Jacob  Frick, 
40  acres;  William  Millis,  40  acres;  John  Wadkins,  26.81  acres;  David 
Meadow,  26.81  acres;  Andrew  Braswell,  26.94  acres;  Francis  H. 
Brown,  26.94  acres;  Laird  H.  Furguson,  40  acres;  Mary  Delves,  40 
acres;  Richard  Brotton,   40  acres;  and   Charles   Brown,   24.56   acres. 

In  Misenheimer  Precinct  additional  settlements  were  made  by- 
John  M.  Hileman,  40  acres;  Henry  Lence,  40  acres;  John  Light, 
40  acres;  Alfred  Misenheimer,  80  acres;  Edward  Dunn,  40  acres; 
Peter  Dillow,  40  acres;  Jacob  Dillow,  80  acres;  William  L.  Batner, 
40  acres;  Willey  Stripler,  40  acres;  Jacob  Miller,  40  acres;  Jacob 
Psizer,  40  acres;  Christian  Rinehart,  40  acres;  Joshua  Allen,  80 
acres;' John  Phitzer,  40  acres;  Noah  Mowery,  80  acres;  Miles  Mow- 
try,  80  acres;  Lewis  Vick,  40  acres;  John  Pool,  120  acres;  John 
Mowery,  Jr.  80  acres;  John  Blown,  40  acres;  Isaac  Brown,  Jr.,  40 
acres;  George  H.  Brown,  80  acres;  Alexander  Douglas,  120  acres; 
Barbara  Mitchell,  40acres;  Oscar  P.  Montgomery,  40  acres;  John 
Smith,  40  acres;  John  Brown,  40  acres;  James  M.  Phelan,  40  acres; 
Christopher  Keller,  40  acres;  Samuel  A.  James,  40  acres;  Jacob 
Brown,  40  acres;  Christopher  W.  Teller,  40  acres;  Peter  Cruse,  Sr., 
80  acres;  Levi  Caster,  80  acres;  John  Knupp,  40  acres;  John  Weaver, 
40  acres;  George  Smith,  40  acres;  Jane  Montgomery,  40  acres;  Jacob 
J.  Misenheimer,  200  acres;  David  Misenheimer,  80  acres;  Bradford 
Brown.  40  acres;  William  C.  Nimmo,  38.50  acres;  Jonathan  Woolsey, 
38.50  acres. 

Mill  Creek  Precinct  added  Peter  Cruse,  Jr.,  80  acres;  Nath- 
aniel W.  Manville,  200  acres  and  William  Huston,  40  acres. 

Alto  Precinct  was  increased  by  settlements  made  by  Philip 
Cripps,  37.40  acres;  Peter  Cripps,  152.04  acres;  Thomas  Craft,  40 
acres;  Anderson  Brown,  40  acres;  David  Smith,  40  acres;  Isaac 
Miller,  160  acres;  Thomas  James,  80.16  acres;  Wilson  James,  80 
acres;  John  Dougherty,  236.44  acres;  Simon  B.  Sublett,  406.34  acres; 
William  James,  204.80  acres;  Allen  W.  Kimmel,  42.40  acres;  Jacob 
Rhoades,  42.40  acres;  Parish  G.  Abernathy,  42.10  acres;  William 
Shurley,  42.10  acres;  Franklin  M.  Bennett,  80  acres;  William  Green, 
240  acres;  Andrew  Deardorff,  40  acres;  Robert  H.  Bennett,  160 
acres;  Enoch  H.  James,  49.61  acres  on  Island  26;  Jeremiah  Hutch- 
inson, 40  acres;  Allen  W.  Kimmel,  42.40  acres;  William  C.  Whit- 
lock, 120  acres;  Levi  Lefler,  40  acres;  Martin  Green,  80  acres;  John 
Eaton,   120  acres;  Jacob  Rhodes;  John  Tweedy,  40   acres. 

Union  Precinct  added  John  Smith,  29,75  acres;  Mary  Smith. 
29.75  acres;  Henry  Sherald,  64.75  acres;  Samuel  Vancil,  324.25 
acres;  Daniel  Sammons,  74.25  acres;  John  Warralle,  40  acres;  Joseph 
Kimmel,  40  acres;  Jacob  Bennett,  40  acres;  William  D.  Craier,  80 
acres;  Charles  Conway,  80  acres;  Joseph  Joy,  Jr.,  80  acres;  Elijah 
Willard,  360  acres;  Willis  Willard,  40  acres;  George  Kimmel,  80 
acres;   William   Lewis,    80    acres;    Charles    C.    Gatewood,    40    acres; 

—40— 


Jessie  Barker,  40  acres;  Daniel  Kimmel,  80  acres;  Hugh  Penrod,  80 
acres;  David  Kimmel,  80  acres;  Jacob  G rammer,  40  acres;  John 
Grammer,  40  acres;  Joel  Barker,  40  acres;  Andrew  J.  Dickinson,  80 
acres;  Ransom  Ledbetter,  40  acres  and  Winstead  Davie,  80  acres. 

Reynolds  Precinct  grew  more  than  any  other  river  section 
during  the  period  between  1835  and  1850.  Entries  added  here  were 
Jessie  Barker,  80  acres;  William  Ballard,  40  acres;  Jacob  Trees, 
83.i:4  acres;  Hithiper  A.  James,  80  acres;  Josiah  Goodman,  40  acres; 
David  Trees,  41.02  acres;  Jonathan  Eaves,  41.02  acres;  Young  E. 
Brown,  41.08  acres;  Josiah  Goodman,  40  acres;  Jacob  Rinehart, 
acres;  Young  E.  Brown,  41.20  acres;  Isaac  Frick,  82.80  acres;  James 
M.  Phelan,  169.62  acres;  Peter  Lingle,  80  acres;  Robert  S.  Reynolds, 
119.97  acres;  Christian  Hileman,  80  acres;  Adam  Hileman,  40  acres; 
John  Yost,  80.32acres;  John  Dougherty,  160  acres;  Samuel  Vancil, 
89.47  acres,  on  Island  21;  Jacob  Littleton,  197.16  acres;  Jonathan 
Madden,  23.58  acres  on  Island  21;  Francis  H.  Brown,  40  acres;  Brad- 
ford Brown,  40  acres;  Jeremiah  Brown,  117  acres;  Jacob  Brown,  36 
acres;  Lard  H.  Ferguson,  80  acres;  Washington  Brown,  40  acres; 
John  G.  Wilkins,  127.75  acres;  James  Brown,  Sr.,  37.34  acres; 
Jeremiah  and  James  Brown,  35.84  acres;  Daniel  Kimmel,  318  acres; 
Caleb  Casper,  80  acres;  John  C.  Shore,  80  acres;  Robert  S.  Rey- 
nolds, 160  acres;  Benjamin  W.  Brooks,  363.19  acres;  Elijah  Willard, 
40acres;  Adam  Hileman,  40  acres;  James  N.  Brooks,  36  acres;  John 
M.  Johnson,  98.84  acres;  John  Masel,  126.58  acres;  George  W. 
Green,  155.05  acres  on  Island  24;  John  M.  Lacy,  160  acres  on  Island 
24;  P.  Whitney  and  S.  Randall,  36.63  acres  on  Island  24;  Thomas 
and  William  Johnson  on  Island  24;  William  Carter  and  S.  H.  Poe, 
47  acres  on  Island  24;  Calvin  J.  Price,  240  acres;  George  Kimmel. 
68.64  acres;  Thomas  James,  105.30  acres;  Wiley  J.  Sames,  40  acres; 
Adam  Hileman,  160  acres;  Allen  W.  Kimmel,  54.62  acres;  Thomas 
Hamilton,  157.17  acres;  Ralph  Thornton,  120  acres;  John  W.  Rorax. 
293.97  acres;  Samuel  Ballard,  170.48  acres;  John  Baltzell,  181.71 
acres;  John  A.  Woodry,  40  acres;  Jacob  N.  Nealey,  66.25  acres  on 
Island  25  and  Enoch  H.  James,  97.99  acres. 

Preston  Township  added  Elijah  Willard,  492.20  acres;  William 
Aldridge,  188.12  acres;  Lewis  Dowd,  40  acres;  George  W.  Henson, 
80  acres;  Jacob  Schwartz,  71.46  acres;  David  Lively,  40  acres;  Wil- 
liam Noel,  40  acres;  Adam  Cauble,  186.37  acres;  Henry  S.  Osborn, 
80  acres;  James  Cox,  80  acres;  John  Rorex,  160  acres;  Hiram  Free- 
man, 40  acres;  Delila  Cauble,  40  acres;  James  Y.  Johnson,  120  acres; 
Benedict  Johnson,  40  acres;  William  Harris,  40  acres;  George  Smith, 
40  acres;  Abraham  Williams,  80  acres;  Elizabeth  Johnson,  40  acres; 
Nicholas  P.  Tripp,  40  acres;  John  Tweedy,  40  acres;  William  G. 
Tweedy,  80  acres;  James  W.  Tweedy,  40  acres;  Henry  Sherrell,  40 
acres;  Samuel  Ballance,  120  acres;  Pearl  P.  McClintock,  240  acres; 
William  C.  Whitlock,  160  acres  and  Charles  M.  Willard,  40  acres; 
John  Freeman,  240  acres;  Esther  H.  Osborn,  80  acres. 

It  is  evident  that  Anna,  Dongola  and  Reynolds  precinct*  en- 
joyed the  largest  growth  during  this  period.     This  is  probably  due  to 

—41— 


the  fact  that  the  bottom  land  in  Union  and  Preston  had  previously 
been  occupied  and  the  rolling  country  away  from  the  river  was  be- 
ing cleared  first  because  these  fields  were  more  tillable  after  they 
were  cleared  than  the  hill  lands.  The  bulk  of  the  population  was 
in  the  western  part  of  the  county  because  river  transportation  was 
the  most  important  during  that  period. 

The  next  decade   1850   to   1860   completely   changes  life  in 
Union  county. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

1850-1860  A  PERIOD  OF  TRANSITION 
THE   PLANK   ROAD 

From  1850  to  1860  is  a  transition  period  in  Union  County 
because  new  methods  of  transportation  were  introduced  which  caus- 
ed first,  another  large  increase  in  population;  second,  immigration 
from  New  England  and  the  Northeastern  states  instead  of  entirely 
from  the  south  (Kentucky  and  Tennessee  and  the  southeastern 
states)  as  it  had  been  before  this  period;  third,  the  introduction  of 
more  scientific  methods  of  agriculture;  fourth,  the  growth  of  new 
types  of  crops;  fifth,  more  sale  of  more  products  because  of  increas- 
ed shipping  facilities,  and  sixsh,  establishments  of  new  towns. 

The  new  methods  of  transportation  introduced  were  the 
Plank  Road  and  the   Illinois  Central  Railroad. 

Instead  of  the  rugged  pioneer  we  first  saw  in  Union  County 
who  came  with  his  family  in  a  covered  wagon  in  which  he  lived 
until  he  could  cut  enough  trees  to  build  a  log  cabin  and  plant  the 
cleared  space  with  seeds  which  would  yield  something  for  his  fam- 
ily to  eat,  making  his  family  practically  self-sustaining,  we  see  in 
1850  a  well  developed  little  community  with  homes,  stores,  mills, 
churches,  and  schools,  in  the  center  of  a  farming  neighborhood 
located  near  a  river  where  the  settlers  and  traders  exchanged  their 
pro  ducts  for  the  articles  necessary  for  the  comforts  of  life,  manu- 
factured in  the  east  and  shipped  by  boat  to  the  landings  here.  In- 
stead of  the  handmill  originally  used  for  grinding  grain  into  meal 
or  flour,  horse  and  steam  roller  mills  had  been  established.  Now 
the  farmer  took  his  grain  to  the  mill  to  be  ground  and  paid  for  the 
work  either  by  cash  or  by  giving  the  miller  enough  grain  to  pay 
for  his  services.  Now,  instead  of  spinning  and  weaving  the  flax, 
wool  or  cotton  into  material  at  home,  wool,  cotton  and  flax  were 
sold  to  the  river  traders  who  took  it  back  east  to  be  made  into  ma- 
terial and  repaid  the  farmer  with  new  material.  Boots  and  shoes 
were  still  made  locally  as  a  rule  but  by  cobblers  who  had  established 
small  business  of  their  own,  buying  their  leather  from  the  tanneries 
and  selling  their  finished  product  to  the  people.  Before  this,  the 
pioneer  father  had  been  the  cobbler  in  the  home  and  frequently, 
the  mother  had  done  the  work.  While  most  of  the  people  still  lived 
in  log  houses,  saw  mills  had  been  established  and  many  houses  had 
been  built  of  sawed  lumber.  The  most  pretentious  home  in  Jones- 
boro  at  that  time  belonged  to  the  Willards  and  is  standing  today, 
at  present  used  by  Mrs.  Moore  for  a  hotel.  It  is  located  in  the 
northwest  corner  of  the  Jonesboro  square  but  faces  the  street  run- 
ning parallel  to  the  square. 

August  9,  1850,  William  Tripp,  St.,  who  immigrated  into 
Illinois  August  1,  1811,  and  settled  three  miles  northeast  of  old 
Elvira  but  who  then  lived  two  miles  west  of  Jonesboro,  came  into 
court  and   requested   that   it  be   put   in   writing   in  the   Records   of 

—43— 


Union    County   that   he    was   the    first   man    who    began    building   in 
Jonesboro  after  the  town  was  laid  out  in  March,   1818.     He  wished 
ed  that  he  had  lived  to  see  the  county  change  from   a 
dense  wilderness  into  a  fine  farming  community. 

Business  had  changed  from  the  small  exchanges  made  by 
neighbors  or  from  the  trips  to  Fort  Mas?ac  and  the  Saline  Salt 
ks  for  supplies  to  the  purchase  price  from  stores  whose 
owners  bought  their  wares  from  the  farmer  and  from  the  traders 
on  the  rivers.  Some  of  these  storekeepers  bought  products  from  the 
farmers  and  took  them  down  the  river  themselves  to  New  Orleans 
.vhere  they  exchanged  them  for  wares  to  sell  in  their  stores. 

By  1850,  Philip  Kroh  had  made  a  trip  east  and  had  brought 
back  the  first  matches  ever  seen   in   Union   County. 

As  has  been  mentioned  before,  a  newspaper  had  been  estab- 
lished and  was  available  to  all  families  who  wished  to  buy  it. 

Churches  had  been  established  and  private  schools  had  been 
taught  since  1820.  By  1850,  one  had  been  taught  in  the  building  on 
the  square  known  as  Lincoln  Inn,  which  recently  burned,  and  another 
in  a  building  which  stood  across  from  the  present  court  house. 

Forty-nine  road  districts  had  been  established  and  one  laid 
out  in  1850  completed  fifty  road  districts  in  the  county.  They  were 
named  Littleton's  Ferry,  Ridge  Number  Two,  Ridge  Number  Two 
and  One-half,  Reed  Ferry,  Sublett,  Freeman,  T.  C.  Jones,  Cauble, 
Vancil,  Houser,  Parmley,  Ridge  Number  Eleven,  Gregory,  RendTe- 
man,  Ashburn,  Davie,  Crise,  Arundell,  Misenheimer,  Brown,  Walcker, 
Paine,  Barringer,  Dillow,  Ferril,  Lence,  Brockroad,  Roberds,  Wilder- 
ness, Owen,  Roberts,  Evans,  Hileman,  Pollard,  Hoffner,  Brady,  Fer- 
guson, Eddleman,  Hogan,  Cowiker,  Earnest,  Patterson,  Beggs,  Abra- 
ham Miller  and  Jonesborough,  Armstrong,  Tripp,  Dughill,  Campbell 
and  Davis.  The  roads  were  usually  named  for  the  person  who  cir- 
culated the  petition  requesting  the  road  or  for  the  community  it 
served.  Many  of  these  roads  were  hardly  more  than  trails  over 
which  one  could  ride  horseback  comfortably  and  many  could  be  used 
for  wagon  travel.  There  was  no  machinery  in  those  days  to  use  in 
grading  or  leveling  ground  so  the  roads  were  as  level  or  as  hilly 
as  the  country  they  traversed  and  as  muddy  or  dry  as  the  weather 
permitted. 

In  the  Mississippi  Bottoms,  due  to  the  swamps  and  overflow, 
the  roads  were  frequently  muddy  and  since  it  was  necessary  to  travel 
over  this  part  of  the  country  in  order  to  take  products  to  the  river 
to  be  sold  or  bring  back  the  articles  bought  outside  Union  County 
and  shipped  in  by  boat,  the  mud  caused  great  delay  in  transportation 
and  some  losses.  A  group  of  men,  interested  in  transporting  pro- 
ducts across  this  part  of  the  county,  decided  to  build  a  road  over 
which  they  could  lay  logs  split  in  the  middle  with  the  flat  surface 
up.  Such  a  road  was  built  from  the  east  bank  of  Clear  Creek  near 
Dughill  to  Willard's  Landing  on  the  Mississippi  River  with  all  places 
planked  where  mud  interfered  with  travel.  The  road  became  known 
as  the  Plank  Road. 

—44— 


The  county  donated  the  right-of-way  and  a  group  of  men, 
Henry  Dishon,  Willis  Willard,  Caleb  Frick,  William  Green,  John  E. 
Naill,  Lorenzo  P.  Wilcox  and  Sidney  S.  Condon  furnished  the  money 
necessary  to  buy  materials  and  employ  labor  for  the  construction  of 
the  road  and  a  toll  gate  with  a  house  for  the  gatekeeper  to  live  in. 
The  gatekeeper  was  not  paid  wages  but  was  charged  no  rent.  He 
was  required  to  collect  a  fee  from  every  person  who  passed  thru 
the  gate.  This  fee  was  used  by  the  above  men  to  maintain  the  road 
and  the  part  not  needed  was  divided  among  them  for  their  share  of 
the  proceeds  of  the  business.  The  road,  four  miles  and  seventy-eight 
and  one-half  chains  long  was  to  belong  to  this  group  of  men  for 
thirty  years  according  to  their  contract  with  the  county,  provided 
they  should  keep  it  at  all  times  passable  by  any  type  of  vehicle  or 
coveyance. 

In  April,  1851,  Samuel  Hunsaker,  John  S.  Hacker  and  Joshua 
Roberts  were  appointed  inspectors  of  the  Jonesboro  Plank  Road 
Company  by  the  county  board  to  see  that  the  company  kept  its  con- 
tract with  the  county. 

This  road  was  a  great  improvement  at  the  time  it  was  built 
but  within  a  few  years  a  new  type  of  road  was  to  be  built  which 
would  surpass  any  type  of  transportation  yet  available  to  Union 
County,  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad. 


-45  — 


/ 


CHAPTER   XIV 
LAND  ENTERED  IN  UNION  COUNTY  BETWEEN  1850  AND  1855 

Rich  Precinct,  which  had  been  sparsely  settled  enjoyed  its  first 
real  growth  after  1850..  The  following  land  entries  were  made  dur- 
ing the  period  1850  to  1855:  John  P.  Elmore,  80  acres;  Daniel  Davie, 
40.50  acres;  Lewis  N.  Ashley,  360  acres;  Simon  P.  Hiller,  80  acres; 
Abel  Baker,  40  acres;  Jonathan  Clark,  40  acres;  Francis  Ashley,  40 
acres;  Elijah  L.  Hopkins,  40  acres;  Allen  Brackenbridge,  80  acres; 
Finas  F.  McGinnis,  160  acres;  Alanson  Courtney,  320  acres;  John 
D.  Shoemaker,  80  acres;  David  Trees,  480  acres;  George  French, 
320  acres;  John  Cochran,  160  acres;  Daniel  Osborne,  40  acres; 
William  B.  Elmore,  280  acres;  Levi  Dillow,  144.61  acres;  William  P. 
Owen,  127.97  acres;  Jessie  Owen,  122.85  acres;  Sarah  Bays,  40 
acres;  Felix  A.  Goodman,  199.34  acres;  Jeremiah  Hiller,  120  acres; 
Axum  D.  Farmer,  38.28  acres;  Thomas  Daniels,  321.94  acres;  Alan- 
son  Courtney,  80  acres;  Winstead  Davie,  53.75  acres;  Solomon  Sit- 
ter, 40  acres;  Lewis  P.  Holland,  96.82  acres;  Henry  Thetford,  31.80 
acres;  William  Whitton,  40  acres;  Green  Berry  West,  40  acres; 
Lemard  Sides,  27.76  acres;  Cornelius  Anderson,  44.90  acres;  Perry 
Roberts,  40  acres;  Joseph  Batson,  80  acres;  John  Roberts,  80  acres; 
John  Lockard,  120  acres;  John  D.  Fly,  40  acres;  Joshua  Thompson, 
40  acres;  Lewis  Ashley,  80  acres;  A.  B.  Walker,  and  C.  Hagler, 
40  acres;  Lewis  P.  Limer,  40  acres;  Townsend  F.  Larkin,  40  acres; 
Wm.  Nesbit,  40  acres;  Joshua  Thompson,  40  acres;  Alfred  B.  Peaks. 
120  acres;  Henry  Mull,  40  acres;  Charles  M.  Willard,  80  acres;  Joe! 
Zimmerman,  40  acres;  John  O.  Daniel,  160  acres;  Allen  Bainbridge, 
40  acres;  Charles  Hagler,  80  acres;  Isaac  Hartline,  45.73  acres; 
Thomas  Hartline,  45.73  acres;  George  W.  Robertson,  40  acres;  John 
Fox,  40  acres  and  Levi  Vancil,   80  acres. 

Lick  Creek  Precinct  was  increased  by  Absolom  W.  Coleman, 
160  acres;  Jones  Stokes,  40  acres;  John  A.  Roberts,  120  acres; 
Lorenzo  P.  Wilcox,  40  acres;  Wilkinson  Barringer,  40  acres;  John 
M.  Cochran,  40  acres;  Thomas  M.  Hines,  40  acres;  Mikola  McGinnis, 
40  acres;  Lewis  Ashley,  40  acres;  Andrew  Lilley,  240  acres;  Sarah 
Bays,  40  acres;  William  Robaids,  40  acres;  Jacob  Stonesipher,  320 
acres;  Silas  P.  Cochran,  200  acres;  William  Anderson,  160  acres; 
John  Davis,  40  acres;  Andrew  J.  White,  40  acres;  William  T.  Stokes, 
4D  acres;  Littleberry  Butts,  80  acres;  James  Butts,  120  acres;  John 
H.  Grammar,  40  acres;  Jessie  Roberts,  40  acres;  Robert  Harris,  80 
acres;  Bird  Wall,  40  acres;  Tobias  Wiggs,  280  acres;  Israel  W.  Davis, 
40  acres;  George  T.  McGinnis,  158.23  acres;  James  Bruff,  40  acres; 
Alexander  L.  Penninger,  120  acres;  Browning  Wiggs,  120  acres; 
Wesley  Grear,  120  acres;  Jessie  Miles,  40  acres;  Wm.  N.  Corbitt,  40 
acres;  Levi  Lewis,  80  acres;  William  Murphy,  160  acres;  Thomas  R. 
Johnson,  40  acres;  Robert  Harris,  40  acres;  Joseph  Boswell,  40 
acres;  John  Allen,  120  acres;  Joshua  P.  Jenkins,  40  acres;  William 
Morrow,  40  acres;  Thomas  Boswell,  80  acres;  Abraham  Halterman, 
160  acres;  Alexander  Thorne,  80  acres;  John  Davis,  80  acres;  Caleb 


Musgraves,  40  acres;  Berry  Green,  40  acres;  and  Wesley  Grear,   80 
acres. 

The  additions  in  Saratoga  Precinct  were  Sarah  Bays,  40 
acres;  Elijah  Brocks,  40  acres;  David  Miller,  160  acres;  Nathaniel 
G.  Miller,  40  acres;  Hams  M.  Ridenhower,  40  acres;  Win.  Cole,  40 
acres;  Bird  Wall,  42.18  acres;  Stephen  Garrett,  84.38  acres;  William 
Thornton,  42.19  acres;  John  M.  Jenkins,  171.68  acres;  Harvey  Arm- 
strong, 43.01  acres;  Abraham  W.  Menees,  40  acres;  Thomas  Ales,  40 
acres;  Abraham  Willenas,  40  acres;  John  S.  Plater,  40  acres;  Jacob 
M.  Randell,  40  acres;  John  Murphy,  160  acres;  John  H.  Beggs,  80 
acres;  Wm.  R.  Davis,  40  acres;  Thisfield  Davis,  40  acres;  John  Bar- 
ringer,  40  acres;  Abraham  Hotteman,  80  acres;  John  Hotteman,  120 
acres;  David  Culp,  40  acres;  William  Turner,  40  acres;  David 
Treese,  40  acres;  Lewis  W.  Ashley,  80  acres;  Rankin  S.  Butler,  40 
acres;  John  M.  Rich,  120  acres;  John  Fox,  80  acres;  Isaac  Hartline, 
80  acres;  Lard  H.  Ferguson,  111.20  acres;  Catherine  Lige,  40  acres; 
and  Charles  M.  Willard,  160  acres. 

The  additions  in  Stokes  Precinct  were  George  W.  Simmer- 
man,  85.05  acres;  John  F.  Sivey,  240  acres;  Wm.  Murphy,  80  acres; 
Berry  Green,  120  acres;  Alfred  Stokes,  80  acres;  John  M.  Toler, 
520  acres;  Morgan  Stokes,  140  acres;  William  Corbit,  40  acres;  Cal- 
vin M.  Beard,  240  acres;  Wm.  M.  Corbitt,  40  acres;  Mary  Stokes, 
40  acres;  Miles  Pender,  80  acres;  Wm.  D.  Toler,  40  acres;  Ethelred 
Benson,  40  acres;  John  Pickerel,  120  acres;  Piety  W.  Cox,  40  acres; 
Silas  Toler,  40  acres;  Hugh  A.  Gurley,  40  acres;  Joseph  M.  Spence, 
40  acres;  Josiah  P.  Gore,  40  acres;  John  Jones,  47.31  acres;  Charles 
Robertson,  48.03  acres;  John  C.  Rothbrook,  48.03  acres;  William 
Ballard,  40  acres;  and  Daniel  Lingle,  Jr.,  40  acres. 

Dongola  added  George  Davis,  50.14  acres;  Caleb  Lingle,  40 
acres;  John  Allen,  40  acres;  Henry  Keller,  48.54  acres;  Absolem 
Keller,  40  acres;  Columbus  Adams,  40  acres;  Archibald  Beggs,  120 
acres;  Abraham  P.  Buford,  40  acres;  James  R.  Bartin,  40  acres; 
Caleb  Lentz,  40  acres;  Abraham  Misenheimer,  40  acres;  Wilson  Wil- 
kerson,  50.50  acres;  John  S.  Corzine,  40  acres;  Jacob  Kestler,  40 
acres;  Elkano  Elkins,  80  acres;  Philip  Hinkle,  80  acres;  Monroe  G. 
W.  Lingle,  40  acres;  and  Christopher  Lyerly,  40  acres. 

Cobden  added  Daniel  M.  McConnell,  40  acres;  Joshua  Thomp- 
son, 40  acres;  Butler  Treece,  40  acres;  Elizabeth  Clutts,  40  acres; 
George  W.  Burton,  160  acres;  William  Ingram,  45.19  acres;  William 
Lamer,  80  acres;  James  P.  Craig,  280  acres;  John  O'Neill,  275.80 
acres;  Henry  Casey,  40  acres;  David  Vaught,  40  acres;  James  M. 
Tweedy,  80  acres;  Abram  F.  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  William  D.  Parker, 
40  acres;  and  Paul  Lingle,  40  acres. 

Jonesboro  was  increased  by  Nathan  Sams,  33.10  acres;  John 
Walker,  40  acres;  Charles  Corzine,  40  acres;  W.  R.  Corzine,  120 
acres;  G.  H.  W.  Lippard,  40  acres;  William  A.  Lippard,  40  acres; 
Michael  Brady,  120  acres;  Charles  Lence,  40  acres;  Noah  Corzine,  40 
icres;  Alfred  Holshouser,  40  acres;  Peter  Lence,  40  acres;  John 
Keeley,  40  acres;  Lewis  N.  Ashley,  80  acres;  Wilson  Wilkerson,  40 

—47— 


acres;  Thomas  Rendleman,  71.73  acres;  Robert  W.  Waggoner,  40 
acres;  Azel  Thornton,  34.25  acres;  Nathaniel  G.  Miller,  40  acres; 
Charles  King,  40  acres;  Sarah  A.  Seegar,  80  acres;  Isaac  N.  Al- 
bright, 40  acres;  John  C.  Shore,  40  acres;  Francis  H.  Brown,  80 
acres;  and  Paul  Frick,  24.50  acres. 

In  Anna  the  newcomers  were  John  W.  Watkins,  80  acres; 
Isaac  Treese,  40  acres;  Jonas  G.  Mangold,  40  acres;  John  Medlin,  40 
acres;  Noah  H.  Simmerman,  40  acres;  Wm.  Eaves,  80  acres;  Richard 
Henson,  80  acres;  Wesley  Goddard,  40  acres;  Christian  Hileman,  80 
acres;  John  B.  Jones,  80  acres;  John  M.  Spence,  40  acres;  James 
Hammons,  40  acres;  Joseph  Spence,  120  acres;  Zephemia  West,  40 
acres;  Porter  Wolcott,  40  acres;  Preston  Anderson,  40  acres;  George 
Davis,  40  acres;  Alexander  Frick,  80  acres;  Jacob  Kanup,  40  acres; 
John  B.  Miller,  40  acres;  Perry  Roberts,  40  acres;  George  Corzine. 
80  acres;  James  R.  Corzine,  40  acres;  John  Brown,  40  acres;  Isaac 
Brown,  40  acres;  Spencer  Laws,  39.86  acres;  John  R.  Corzine,  43 
acres;  John  Alms,  40.16  acres;  Edmond  Davis,  199.17;  Edward  Lipe, 
39.17  acres  and  Wm.  S.  Satin,  37.39  acres. 

Misenheimer  Precinct  added  John  Fluck,  320  acres;  Hiram  J. 
Walker,  40  acres;  Alexander  Misenheimer,  80  acres;  Syrian  and 
Edmund  Davis,  470.30  acres;  Jacob  Casper,  40  acres;  Moses  A.  Good- 
man, 40  acres;  John  Nidermeyer,  40  acres;  James  Lively,  348  acres ; 
John  N.  Misenheimer,  120  acres;  Peter  Hileman,  80  acres;  John  L. 
Hale,  40  acres;  John  M.  Hileman,  40  acres;  David  Burton,  320 
acres;  Noah  Mowery,  80  acres;  John  Mowery,  80  acres;  Thomas 
Durham,  80  acres;  Hurd  Poole,  40  acres  and  Moses  Hutson,  80  acres. 

Alto  Precinct  added  Robert  T.  Shipley,  40  acres;  Michael  G. 
Smith,  80  acres;  Parrish  G.  Abernathie,  80  acres;  John  T.  E.  Gore, 
40  acres;  John  Hoefle,  193.36  acres;  John  Stone,  120  acres;  Joseph- 
Lamer,  40  acres;  Henry  Rendleman,  40  acres;  George  H.  Lemley. 
40  acres;  Christopher  Houser,  80  acres;  Philip  Lewis,  40  acres; 
Joseph  Miller,  120  acres;  William  Sides,  40.86  acres;  Alexander 
Miller,  40  acres;  Caleb  Lyerly,  120  acres;  John  Cauble,  40  acres; 
Nicholas  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  Jumatta  Wright,  80  acres;  William 
Gregory,  40  acres;  Robert  Brown,  40  acres. 

Union  Precinct  added  John  Parmley,  120  acres:  Andrew  J. 
Lemmons,  72.50  acres;  and  John  Cauble,  40  acres. 

Reynolds  Precinct  added  Augustus  L.  Springs,  80  acres;  John 
Parmley,  40  acres;  Preston  Baston,  40  acres;  and  Willard  Gain,  320 


acres. 


Preston  Precinct  added  Farland  Laughlin,  80  acres;  John 
Wright,  80  acres;  John  Cauble,  160  acres;  James  M.  Goodbread, 
27.04  acres;  and  Matthew  Wright,  80  acres. 

It  is  noticeable  that  during  this  period  there  was  very  little 
expansion  in  the  precincts  near  the  river  and  the  two  precincts  Rich 
and  Lick  Creek  had  the  largest  growth  in  the  county. 


CHAPTER  XV 
THE    ILLINOIS   CENTRAL   RAILROAD 

After  the  building  of  the  plank  road  came  the  building  of 
the  Illinois  Central  railroad  which  was  to  completely  change  the 
state  of  Illinois  as  well  as  Union  County, 

In  September,  1850,  Stephen  A.  Douglas  and  Sidney  A. 
Breese,  Senators  from  Illinois,  championed  a  bill  in  Congress  pro- 
viding for  a  grant  of  public  land  to  the  State  of  Illinois  to  aid  in 
the  construction  of  the  Central  Railroad.  A  controversary  arose  in 
the  Illinois  state  legislature  as  to  whether  the  land  should  be  granted 
by  the  state  to  a  privately  financed  company  or  whether  the  state 
should  again  attempt  the  enterprise  of  building  the  railroad.  Every- 
one remembered  the  failure  of  the  plan  for  a  state  enterprise  ir. 
1837  which  had  created  a  $17,000,000  debt,  so  after  much  discussion 
the  decision  was  made  to  allow  a  private  company  to  undertake  the 
job. 

According  to  Carlton  J.  Corliss'  "Story  of  Transportation 
Progress  in  Illinois,"  the  charter  and  2,595,000  acres  of  laud 
granted  by  the  Illinois  legislature  to  a  group  of  promoters  com- 
posed of  outstanding  business  leaders  of  New  York  and  New  Eng- 
land. The  land  was  to  be  every  other  section  of  land  along  the 
right-of-way  which  had  not  already  been  sold  to  the  early  settlers 
In  case  such  land  had  been  sold  another  section  was  substituted. 
The  new  company  included  David  A.  Neal,  Boston  shipowner  and 
president  of  the  Eastern  Railroad  of  Massachusetts;  Robert  Schuyler, 
probably  the  foremost  railway  man  in  his  day  and  president  of  the 
New  York  and  New  Haven  Railroad;  Franklin  Haven,  head  of  the 
largest  banking  house  in  New  England;  John  F.  A.  Sanford,  noted 
fur  trader  and  Indian  agent;  Jonathan  Sturges,  prominent  New  York 
coffee  importer;  Morris  Ketchum,  pioneer  locomotive  manufacturer; 
Gouverneur  Morris,  pioneer  railway  promoter;  George  Griswold.  mer- 
chantman and  importer;  Thomas  W.  Ludlow,  American  agent  of  the 
Dutch  banking  house  of  Crommelin;  William  H.  Aspinwall,  president 
of  the  Panama  Railroad  and  founder  of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship 
Company,  and  Robert  Rantoul,  Massachusetts  statesman  and  suc- 
cessor to  Daniel  Webster  in  the  United  States  Senate. 

The  charter  granted  to  these  people  gave  them  the  authority 
to  build  and  operate  a  railroad  705  miles  long  but  made  the  fol- 
lowing provisions: 

1.  That  the  railroad  should  be  completed  within  a  period 
of  six  years. 

2.  That  the  railway  lands  should  not  be  offered  fGr  sale 
until  the  Federal  government  had  disposed  of  all  of  its  lands  within 
a  distance  of  six  miles  of  the  railroad  at  double  the   former  price. 

3.  That  the  railway  company  would  pay  into  the  state 
treasury  7  cents  out  of  every  dollar  received  for  the  transportation 
of  passengers,  freight,  express  and  mails. 

4.  That   the   railroad   would   transport   United   States   troops 

—49^ 


and  property  at  one-half  of  the  standard  passenger  and  freight  rates. 

5.  That  the  railroad  would  transport  the  United  States  mail 
at  20  percent  less  than  the  standard  rates. 

The  story  is  told  that  there  was  much  difference  of  opinion 
in  Union  County  regarding  the  railroad.  There  were  many  who- 
thought  the  scheme  would  fail  and  placed  their  faith  in  future 
prosperity  for  the  county  on  the  plank  road  and  water  transporta- 
tion and  there  were  those  who  were  forward  looking  enough  to  plan 
their  o\vn  enterprise  so  that  they  could  take  advantage  of  the  oppor- 
tunities the  new  mode  of  transportation  would  afford.  At  a  meeting 
of  the  board  of  trustees  of  Jonesboro,  it  was  decided  that  since 
Jonesboro  was  the  only  town  in  Union  County  that  the  railroad 
could  pass  thru,  it  would  not  be  necessary  to  comply  with  the  re- 
quest of  the  company  to  make  a  survey  of  the  route  thru  the  town 
and  donate  their  findings  to  the  railroad  company.  Such  a  survey- 
cost  fifty  dollars.  Winstead  Davie,  a  grocer  and  merchant  seemed 
to  think  that  the  request  was  important  so  he  had  a  survey  made 
at  his  expense  but  rather  than  having  it  made  thru  Jonesboro,  he 
had  it  made  thru  some  of  his  farmland  a  mile  east  of  Jonesboro. 
Later  when  the  Jonesboro  trustees  decided  that  it  was  necessary 
to  comply  with  the  company's  request  in  order  to  have  the  road 
laid  thru  their  town,  the  Illinois  Central  had  already  accepted  the 
survey  presented  to  them  by  Mr.  Davie. 

As  a  result  the  railroad  was  laid  one  mile  east  of  Jones- 
boro, which  at  that  time  was  one  of  three  towns  along  the  line  to 
have  a  population  of  more  than  one  hundred  inhabitants.  These 
towns  were  Bourbannais  on  the  Kankakee  River,  with  1,710  inhabit- 
ants, Urbana  in  Champaign  County  with  210  inhabitants  and  Jones- 
boro with  584  inhabitants. 

The  building  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  was  responsible 
for  the  large  increase  in  population  between  1850  and  1860  for 
two  reasons.  First,  the  railroad  company  advertised  in  newspapers, 
magazines  and  their  own  pamphlets  circulated  from  Maine  thru 
Georgia,  Kentucky  and  Tennessee  giving  descriptions  of  the  attrac- 
tive land  sites  available  in  Illinois,  praising  the  fertility  of  the  soil 
and  the  climate  and  second,  it  advertised  for  workers  in  all  the 
large  eastern  cities  and  Europe  to  come  to  Illinois  and  help  build 
the  railroad.  It  gave  preference  to  men  with  families  in  order  to  get 
them  to  remain  after  they  came.  The  railroad  sold  its  land  at  $2.50 
per  acre,  but  asked  only  50  cents  down  and  allowed  the  rest  to  be 
paid  over  a  period  of  seven  years  which  enabled  people  to  buy 
larger  tracts  of  land.  Union  County's  first  settlers  from  other  parts 
of  the  country  than  the  south  made  their  appearance  during  this 
period. 

The  first  railroad  was  constructed  of  wooden  rails  upon  which 
were  fastened  thin  strips  of  iron  to  provide  a  running  surface  for 
the  wheels.  In  the  1850's  steel  rails  were  introduced  and  later  re- 
placed the  wooden  rails.  The  first  locomotive  operated  on  the  Illi- 
nois Central  burned  wood  for  fuel  and  its  headlights  burned  whale 

—50— 


and  coal-ofl.  It  was  equipped  with  two  driving1  wheels  and  two  small 
pilot  wheels  on  each  side,  and  its  most  conspicious  feature  was  a 
balloon-shaped  smokestack  five  or  six  feet  high.  When  fuliy  loaded 
with  wood  and  water  it  would  take  twelve  of  these  "Puffing  Billies" 
to  weigh  as  much  as  one  modern  locomotive. 

Passenger  cars  used  on  the  Illinois  roads  in  the  1850's  would 
be  curiosities  today.  They  were  built  almost  entirely  of  wood,  nar- 
rower and  lighter  than  the  average  street  car  of  today.  Most  of 
them  had  four  sets  of  wheels,  two  at  each  end.  Few  cars  were 
equipped  with  springs,  and  every  bump  of  the  rough  unballasted 
track  was  immediately  transmitted  to  the  passenger.  Seats  were 
hard,  low-backed  and  uncomfortable. 

There  were  no  vestibules  on  the  early  passenger  cars,  and 
passengers  could  not  walk  from  one  car  to  another  when  the  train 
was  in  motion.  The  old  link-and-pin  coupling  caused  a  great  deal  of 
slack  between  cars,  adding  to  the  discomfort  of  the  passengers. 
Sometimes  these  couplings  failed  and  the  train  broke  apart  with 
disastrous  consequences.  Cars  were  lighted  by  dim  whale  and  coal- 
oil  lamps  or  flickering  tallow  candles  and  were  heated  in  winter  by 
wood-burning  stoves.  Ventilation  was  poor  and  there  were  no 
screens.     Sleeping  cars  and  dining  cars  were  then  unknown. 

The  road  was  completed  from  Cairo  to  Sandoval  November 
22,  1853  and  many  people  from  all  points  of  Southern  Illinois  came 
to  see  the  first  passenger  train  pass  thru  this  part  of  the  country. 

There  is  a  story  told  that  a  drouth  had  occurred  that  fall  and 
some  of  the  farmers,  believing  that  the  newly  laid  rails  drew  the 
moisture  out  of  the  air  and  carried  it  away,  formed  a  mob  which 
tried  to  burn  a  large  section  of  the  track  while  it  was  yet  under 
construction.  It  was  with  much  difficulty  that  these  people  were 
persuaded  that  this  could  not  be  true. 

Following  the  building  of  the  railroad  came  more  settlement 
of  land  and  the  laying  out  of  Anna,  Dongola  and  Cob  den. 


—51—  ^  tf 


CHAPTER  XVf 
LAND  ENTRIES  BETWEEN   1855  AND   1861? 

The  growth  of  laud  settlement  following  the  building  of  the 
Illinois  Central  Railroad  came  to  an  end  in  I860  probably  due  to 
the  Civil  War. 

However  between  1855  and  1860  Rich  Precinct  added  Joseph 
Gaiser,  222.62  acres;  Wm.  Y.  Cochran,  80  acres;  William  Word,  Jr.. 
26.87  acres;  James  K.  Cochran,  26.87  acres;  James  W.  Morrison, 
120  acres;  Jeremiah  Hiller,  40  acres;  Irvin  C.  Batson,  40  acres;  Wil- 
liam L.  Church,  120  acres;  Robert  S.  Hopkins,  120  acres;  Marcus  L. 
Fly,  120  acres;  Miles  H.  Mann,  40  acres;  Wm.  S.  Clark,  40  acres; 
Joseph  W.  Helme,  80  acres;  Peter  Norrix,  42.20  acres;  George  W. 
and  John  M.  0 evens,  42.85  acres;  Martha  Hedges,  40  acres;  Horan 
F.  Whitaker,  158.44  acres;  D.  S,  Davie  and  N.  G.  Blaine,  238.44 
acres;  H.  G.  Piston  and  Charles  Eginton,  159.08  acres;  Jacob  Rendle- 
man,  80  acres;  William  Martin,  360  acres;  Nathaniel  S.  Sunderland, 
183.36  acres;  Reuben  E.  Morris,  80  acres;  H.  M.  H.  Taylor  and 
Charles  Eginton,  480  acres;  John  Evans,  80  acres;  Joseph  Batson, 
80  acres;  William  Deming,  80  acres;  Robert  C.  Armstrong,  40  acres; 
Alfred  B.  Peak,  40  acres;  William  Tripp,  40  acres;  Isaac  B.  Love- 
lace, 80  acres;  John  D.  Lamer,  40  acres;  Daniel  McConnell,  40  acres; 
James  R.  Davis,  80  acres;  Robert  W.  Ferril,  40  acres;  Joseph  F. 
Ashley,  91.47  acres;  William  Neal,  40  acres;  Margaret  Robertson,  40* 
acres;  Benjamin  Vancil,  80  acres  and  Daniel  Kfmniel,  80  acres. 

Lick  Creek  was  increased  by  Daniel  S.  Osbourne,  120  acres; 
Elijah  Shepard,  40  acres;  Absolom  Butler,  80  acres;  Wm.  McGinnis, 
40  acres;  Hiram  N.  Wood,  40  acres;  John  A.  Roberts,  220  acres; 
William  Frick,  120  acres;  Henry  Sands,  40  acres;  Andrew  Corzine, 
40  acres;  Brownville  Wiggs,  40  acres;  Matthew  Stokes,  120  acres; 
and  William  Woods,  Jr.,  40  acres. 

Saratoga  added  Moses  Miller,  40  acres;  William  Martin,  160 
acres;  John  Murphy,  95.67  acres;  John  H.  Williams,  40  acres;  John 
W.  Jolly,  88.72  acres;  George  H.  Maifield,  89.22  acres;  John  O. 
Flacket,  44.61  acres;  Peter  H.  Casper,  40  acres;  James  R.  Beck,  and 
John  C.  Breckenridge,  280  acres;  Perry  Turner,  40  acres;  Aaron 
Treece,  80  acres;  William  Pitchie,  40  acres;  Jeremiah  Johnson,  40 
acres;  James  Tygett,  80  acres;  Aztell  Miller,  80  acres;  Michael  Dil- 
low,  80  acres;  William  C.  Rich,  40  acres;  Allen  Bainbridge,  40  acres; 
Matthias  Clemens,  80  acres;  Abner  Cover,  40  acres;  Daniel  Kar- 
raker,  40  acres;  James  H.  Wallace,  80  acres;  James  Maskoe  and 
Charles  McAlister,  116.02  acres;  D.  D.  and  Samuel  Cover,  40  acres; 
George  W.  Simmerman,  40  acres;  W.  C.  SwafFord,  80  acres  and 
George  W.  Wilson,  40  acres. 

Stokes  Precinct  added  William  Woods,  Jr.,  127.68  acres; 
Adam  Apple,  40  acres;  William  Fuller,  80  acres;  Calvin  Fuller,  40 
acres;  George  H.  Warfield,  160  acres;  William  L.  Hammer,  80  acres; 
Ximrod  C.  E.  Adams,  40  acres;  William  P.  Strother,  143.34  acres 
and  Syrian  Davis,  80  acres. 

—52— 


Dongola  added  Isaiah  B.  Heglin,  549.46  acres;  James  B.  Trull, 
160  acres;  William  P.  Strother,  240  acres;  Simeon  P.  Ives,  160  acres; 
Ninian  E.  Primm,  120  acres;  Henry  C.  Poston,  40  acres;  James  A. 
Penrod,  120  acres;  Lard  H.  Ferguson,  40  acres;  E.  Morgan  and 
Lewis  Fowler,  320  acres;  David  Tompson,  40  acres;  John  H.  Beggs, 
SO  acres;  Ebenezer  Morgan,  80  acres;  Reuben  A.  Corzine,  80  acres; 
William  Martin,  300.82  acres;  H.  M.  Stratton  and  C.  A.  Tuttle,  181 
acres;  J.  J.  Pedicord  and  Lorder  Burrows,  80  acres;  Elias  Misen- 
heimer,  40  acres;  Paul  Karraker,  80  acres;  George  W.  Warfield,  200 
acres;  William  C.  E.  Beggs,  40  acres;  Elid  Barber,  120  acres;  Caleb 
Keller,  40  acres;  William  Gales,  40  acres;  Cyrenius  Wakefield,  280 
acers;  Thomas  Smoot,  40  acres;  Andrew  J.  Shaffer,  40  acres;  Jacob 
Albright,  80  acres;  Jones  McGinnis,  80  acres;  Charles  Knupp,  40 
acres;  Syrian  Davis,  160  acres;  E.  Morgan  and  Lewis  Fowler,  160 
acres;  George  Chrisman,   160   acres. 

Anna  added  George  Zimmerman,  40  acres;  William  Murphy, 
81  acres;  William  Weaver,  40  acres;  Winstead  Davie,  120  acres; 
Lewis  N.  Ashley,  45.50  acres;  Anson  Babcock,  40  acres;  Selise  Mack, 
40  acres;  Benjamin  Hammond,  40  acres;  Abraham  Brown,  40  acres 
and  John  Dougherty,  80  acres. 

Jonesboro  added  C.  McAlister  and  James  Mackae,  400  acre; 
Michael  Holland,  40  acres;  Peter  Kessler,  40  acres;  Adam  Casper, 
40  acres;  Savinian  H.  Vrain,  40  acres;  Godfrey  Stephens,  40  acres; 
John  B.  Cook,  40  acres;  Aaron  Barringer,  80  acres;  Ebeni  Leaven- 
worth, 200  acres;  Henry  Ritter,  80  acres;  Edmund  Davis,  40  acres; 
Richard  Vannostrand,  251.52  acres;  James  M.  Cox,  80  acres;  Hugh 
Penrod,  34.25  acres;  Butler  Trull,  40  acres;  Caleb  Hartline,  40 
acres;  Charles  Crowell,  200  acres;  William  Lewis,  40  acres;  Aztell 
Miller,  120  acres;  Harris  M.  Ridenhower,  280  acres;  Elijah  McGrow, 
80  acres;  Jonathan  Grenleaf,  80  acres;  Albert  Clark,  160  acres; 
James  Morgan,  40  acres;  John  Tripp,  40  acres;  John  Dougherty, 
80  acres;  James  D.  B.  Salter,  160  acres;  George  Smith,  40  acres; 
John  Chester,  80  acres;  John  Walker,  40  acres;  Reuben  Weaver,  40 
acres;  Susannah  Frick,  59.28  acres;  Archilles  Cadwalader,  101.48 
acres;  Nathan  R.  Chester,  26.18  acres  and  Stanford  A.  Lasater,  320 
acres. 

Cobden  added  Elizabeth  Clutts,  40  acres;  Joseph  Miller,  48.85 
acres;  William  Martin,  120  acres;  James  T.  G.  Holmes,  40  acres; 
Peter  Zimmerman,  44.31  acres;  Charles  Eginton,  880.24  acres; 
Charles  Corgan,  40  acres;  Augustus  C.  Lamer,  44.87  acres;  Daniel 
Williams,  40  acres;  William  H.  Latham,  280  acres;  Jacob  Rendleman, 
40  acres;  Thomas  H.  Hall,  40  acres;  John  Messamore,  40  acres; 
Abner  Keith,  40  acres;  Elizabeth  Ferrell,  80  acres;  James  Mackae 
and  C.  McAlister,  760  acres;  Ewing  C  McKinney,  40  acres,  and  John 
Dougherty,  80  acres. 

Alto  was  increased  by  Thomas  Fleming,  40  acres;  Ephriam 
Durall,  40  acres;  William  Oberts,  40  acres;  Alfred  Gregory,  77 
acres;  Ben  L.  Wiley  and  Paul  Frick,  80  acres;  Charles  Eginton,  680 
acres;   John    Bittle,    80    acres;    William    Martin,    600    acres;    Martin 

—53— 


Rendleman,  40  acres;  William  Penrod,  40  acres;  John  Smith,  64.50 
acres;  Edwin  Phillips,  321.96  acres;  Michael  Cunningham,  320  acres; 
James  Abernathie,  163.52  acres;  Jonas  Walker,  80  acres;  John 
Stearns,  80  acres;  Christopher  Lawrent,  120  acres;  Adam  Smith,  55 
acres;  Michael  M.  Mackerley,  40  acres;  Herny  Lyerly,  360  acres; 
John  T.  Ellis,  119.42  acres;  William  Gregory,  40  acres;  George  C. 
Gibson,  40  acres;  Corna  Hicks,  250  acres;  William  Baltzell,  71  acres; 
David  S.  Buman,  160  acres;  William  Jones,  280  acres;  Ellis  Phillips, 
280  acres;  Anton  Janicke,  200  acres  and  Adam  Hofle,  320  acres. 

Mill  Creek  added  Cyrenius  Wakefield,  362.27  acres;  Alonzo  B. 
Smith,  40  acres;  Edward  Cochran,  200  acres  and  Jacob  Cauble,  40 
acres. 

Misenheimer  added  Israel  F.  Posey,  40  acres;  Charles  Brown, 
40  acres;  Freak  Ulin,  200  acres;  Harrison  O.  Hassey,  240  acres; 
William  A.  Latham,  320  acres;  John  W.  Grieb,  40  acres;  John 
Bryson,  80  acres;  Nathaniel  Eudy,  120  acres;  Kenneth  Hargrave,  40 
acres;  William  Campbell,  40  acres;  John  Light,  40  acres  and  Peter 
Dillow,  40  acres. 

Reynolds  added  George  W.  Kimmel,  80  acres;  Henry  G.  Pas- 
ton,  81.83  acres;  Jacob  Schrader,  33.66  acres;  Joseph  Baker,  14.23 
acres;  Jacob  Phitzer,  40  acres;  Nathan  Melvin,  260  acres,  and  David 
C.  Wallace,  124.13  acres. 

Union  was  increased  by  Montgomery  Hunsaker,  40  acres; 
William  and  David  Douglas,  160  acres;  John  B.  Simoneaux,  240 
acres;  Lewis  Verlin,  240  acres;  Harris  Phillip,  280  acres,  and  Wil- 
liam A.  Lewis,  40  acres. 

Preston  was  increased  by  Peter  Penrod,  80  acres;  Christian 
Lyerly,  120  acres;  George  Hazelwood,  80  acres;  Charles  S.  Gibson, 
40  acres;  Samuel  Clutter,  320  acres;  James  Douglas,  80  acres;  Ben 
Wiley  and  Paul  Frick,  640  acres;  Benjamin  Walker,  80  acres;  James 
M.  Wright,  160  acres  and  George  W.  Frogge,  80  acres. 

By  1860,  154,475.25  acres  of  land  had  been  settled  in  Union 
County.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  after  the  railroad  came 
through  several  large  tracts  of  land  were  entered.  Between  1855 
and  1860,  27  men  entered  tracts  of  land  of  more  than  240  acres 
each  and  from  1850  to  1855,  there  were  sixteen  such  entries.  Before 
1835  only  two  men  had  entered  farms  of  over  240  acres  and  be- 
tween 1835  and  1850,  twenty  such  entries  were  made.  The  largest 
single  entries  were  made  after  1855. 


—54— 


CHAPTER   XVII 
THE    BEGINNING   OF   ANNA,    ILLINOIS 

Anna,  like  so  many  other  towns  along  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad,  grew  to  be  a  large  and  prosperous  town  in  a  few  years. 
In  1853  the  line  of  the  Illinois  Central  roadbed  was  located  and  it 
was  the  same  year  that  Winstead  Davie  who  then  owned  most  of 
the  land  which  is  now  Anna  and  Colonel  Lewis  W.  Ashley,  division 
engineer,  who  had  come  into  possession  of  a  portion  of  this  same 
tract,  determined  to  lay  out  a  town  at  this  point.  The  proper 
surveys  were  made  by  Francis  H.  Brown,  the  county  surveyor,  and 
lots  were  laid  out  on  both  sides  of  Main  street  and  the  railroad. 
Mr.  Davie  decided  to  name  the  town  in  honor  of  his  wife,  Anna, 
and  under  this  name  the  plat  was  entered  upon  the  county  records, 
March  3,  1854.  The  railroad  company  had  established  a  station  here 
for  the  convenience  of  the  laborers  and  thus  a  nucleus  for  the  pres- 
ent city  was  formed.  However,  the  Illinois  Central  called  the  station 
"Jonesboro   Station"  until   1873. 

In  the  spring  of  1853,  there  were  only  four  buildings  on  the 
site  of  the  town  of  Anna  as  first  incorporated,  including  a  mile 
square,  the  east  half  of  section  19  and  the  west  half  of  section  20. 
One  log  house,  the  home  of  Basil  Craig  was  located  on  the  hill  near 
the  end  of  what  is  now  East  Chestnut  street,  a  house  on  Main  street 
occupied  by  Levi  Craver  and  a  log  store  on  the  back  of  Lot  132, 
kept  by  Charles  Pardee.  Mr.  Pardee  built  another  building  in  the 
fall  of  1853  so  that  he  could  keep  boarders.  Mr.  Pardee  ran  the 
first  hack  between  Anna  and  Jonesboro.  In  the  fall  and  winter 
of  1853,  Bennett  and  Scott  started  a  store  on  Lot  81  which  was 
later  owned  by  Oliver  Alden.  The  fourth  original  building  in  Anna 
was  a  log  house  on  Lot  143. 

During  1854  W.  W.  Bennett  built  the  brick  and  frame  home 
known  as  the  Lufkin  place  on  Main  street,  S.  E.  Scott  built  a  frame 
house  on  Lot  5,  C.  C.  Leonard  on  Lot  14,  Isaac  Spence  on  Lot  72, 
Dr.  McVern  on  Lot  56;  Dr.  Love  on  Lot  124,  D.  L.  Phillips  built 
the  Europeon  Hotel  on  Lot  105  and  Winstead  Davie  built  his 
"Column  Store,"  a  large  two-story  frame  building  on  Lot  82.  In 
all,  about  nineteen  buildings  were  erected  that  year  including  the 
first  school  house  in  Anna  on  Lot  45. 

In  1855,  the  city  progressed  rapidly  in  population  and  build- 
ings, the  principal  structures  consisting  of  several  comfortable 
dwellings,  storehouses  and  the  Roman  Catholic  church.  Col.  Ashley, 
E.  H.  Finch,  A.  D.  Finch,  C.  M.  Wiilard,  Walter  Willard,  D.  L. 
Phillips  and  John  Stiner  were  among  those  building  homes.  John 
Stiner  built  the  first  brick  house  in  Anna  on  Lot  34  on  South  street. 

Most  of  the  people  obtained  their  water  supply  from  cisterns, 
but  in  1856  the  town  authorities  authorized  the  digging  of  a  public 
well  on  Washington  street  and  in  1860  another  well  at  the  pottery 
of  C.  and  W.  Kirkpatrick  added  to  the  public  supply  of  water. 

At  the  incorporation  of  the  town  in  1855,  D.  L.  Phillips 
—55— 


secured  the  establishment  of  a  post  office  in  Anna  and  was  appoint- 
ed the  first  postmaster. 

July  19,  1855  an  election  was  held  in  which  26  votes  were 
cast  in  unanimous  favor  for  the  incorporation  of  the  town,  and  on 
July   28,   trustees   were   elected   as   follows: 

"At  an  election  held  in  the  town  of  Anna,  County  of  Union. 
State  of  Illinois,  on  Saturday,  July  28,  1855,  agreeably  to  public 
notice  given,  for  the  purpose  of  electing  five  Trustees  for  said  town, 
the  following  persons  having  received  a  majority  of  all  the  votes 
cast,  are  declared  duly  elected  Trustees  for  the  one  year  next  en- 
suing from  the  date  of  their  election,  or  until  their  successors  are 
elected:  David  L.  Phillips,  C.  C.  Leonard,  W.  W.  Bennett,  W.  N. 
Hamby,  and  John  Cochran."  The  document  was  attested  by  J.  L. 
Spence,  Clerk  and  C.   C.   Leonard,  Judge. 

Ordinance  number  one  passed  by  this  group  August  10,  1855 
prohibited  the  "sale,  barter,  exchange  or  giving  away  of  any  spirit- 
uous or  malt  liquors  or  wine  in  any  quantity  less  than  one  barrel, 
unless  for  medicinal  purposes  ordered  by  a  physician." 

The  second  ordinance  established  the  limits  of  the  town  as 
extending  "one-half  mile  from  the  northeast  corner  of  Lot  14  each 
way."  On  September  6,  1858  these  lines  were  extended  by  ordin- 
ance as  "containing  the  east  half  of  section  19  and  the  west  half 
of  section  20  in  Township  12  of  Range  1  west  of  the  Third  Principal 
Meridian.  On  September  8,  1869  the  boundary  was  extended  to 
include  the  south  half  of  section  17  and  the  east  half  of  section  20. 
and  the  north  half  of  section  29  and  all  of  the  noi'thwest  quarter  of 
section  19,  not  included  in  the  legally  established  boundaries  of  the 
city  of  Jonesboro,  all  in  Township  12. 

A  third  ordinance  called  for  the  taking  of  the  census  and 
D.  L.  Phillips,  B.  L.  Wiley  and  J.  M.  Ingraham  were  appointed 
census  takers.  The  census  was  taken  during  August,  1855,  the  first 
official  enumeration  of  the  inhabitant  of  the  city  of  Anna,  showed 
the  following  heads  of  families  with  the  number  of  individuals  be- 
longing to  each:  M.  C.  Massey,  4;  John  Halpin,  4;  M.  Thorp,  5;  W. 
W.  Bennett,  10;  Mrs.  Bay,  4;  S.  E.  Scott,  3;  William  Melton,  12; 
J.  E.  Ingram,  4;  R.  Stubblefield,  4;  B.  F.  Mangold,  3;  C.  Henderson. 
2;  Mrs.  Blackstone,  4;  J.  Humpter,  4;  E.  C.  Green,  5;  Zadoc  Elms, 
3;  C.  C.  Leonard,  7;  M.  Freeman,  5;  G.  B.  Harrison,  8;  T.  Brown,  4; 
Mrs.  Davis,  4 ;  J.  C.  Hacker,  5;  W.  N.  Hamby,  8;  D.  Love,  6;  James 
Musgrave,  12;  A.  S.  Jones,  2;  I.  L.  Spence,  5;  A.  S.  Barnum,  4; 
Thomas  Green,  7;  J.  Tripp,  6;  James  I.  Toler,  7;  John  L.  Cochran, 
9;  James  Faulkner,  9;  J.  B.  Jones,  8;  John  Kerr,  6;  D.  L.  Phillips, 
(hotel)  25;  A.  Bartlett,  7;  Mrs.  Henderson,  6.  The  total  popula- 
tion of  the  town  was  251. 

The  first  society  to  hold  meetings  in  Anna  was  the  Egyptian 
Chapter,  No.  45,  of  Royal  Arch  Masons,  October  5,  1858.  The  Anna 
Lodge  of  A.  F.  &  A.  Masons,  No.  520,  was  instituted  October  1, 
1867  and  the  Hiawatha  Lodge,  No.  291,  I.  O.  O.  F.  was  established 
by  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Illinois,  October  11,   1860. 

—56— 


The  Anna  Literary  Society  and  Lyceum  was  established  in 
1860. 

The  early  churches  established  in  Anna  after  its  incorporation 
were  the  Roman  Catholic,  1855;  the  Baptist,  1859;  the  Reformed 
Congregational,  1859;  the  Methodist  Episcopal,  1856;  the  First 
Presbyterian,  1866;  the  Episcopal  in  1880;  and  the  Campbellites  or 
Christians  in   1869. 


—57— 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE    BEGINNING    OF    DONGOLA,    COBDEN,    SARATOGA,    LICK 

CREEK,    MT.    PLEASANT    AND    PRESTON 

Dongola  was  laid  out  and  the  plat  recorded  May  23,  1857. 
It  occupied  the  north  part  of  Section  25  and  the  south  part  of  Sec- 
tion 24,  Township  13,  Range  1  West.  It  was  located  about  nine 
miles  south  of  the  town  of  Anna. 

The  people  living  near  Dongola  had  patronized  the  horse  mill 
built  by  Youst  Coke  and  the  water  mill  built  by  David  Penrod  on 
Cypress  Creek.  In  1852,  Col.  Bainbridge  had  built  the  first  steam 
mill  and  this  mill  and  a  small  store  keeping  notions,  mainly  whiskey 
for  the  Illinois  Central  workmen  were  the  only  two  businesses  in 
uongola  before  it  was  laid  out  as  a  town. 

Ebeni  Leavenworth,  an  engineer  who  worked  on  the  construc- 
tion of  the  Illinois  Central  owned  most  of  the  town  and  was  re- 
sponsible for  its  origin  and  original  development.  He  built  the  first 
residence  and  the  first  store  building.  The  first  store  was  kept  by 
Edmund  Davis  who  had  a  $3,000  stock  of  merchandise  in  1860  and 
the  second  store,  by  Abraham  Misenheimer  who  carried  a  $5,000 
Btock  in  1860. 

Mr.  Leavenworth  also  owned  and  operated  the  Novelty  Works, 
which  manufactured  wagon  hubs,  spokes,  furniture,  feed  boxes, 
wooden  bowls,  plows,  wagons  and  other  wooden  articles.  This  busi- 
ness was  assessed  in  1860  under  the  name  of  Leavenworth  and 
Reese  for  $1,500. 

After  much  effort,  Mr.  Leavenworth  induced  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral to  stop  trains  at  Dongola  so  that  it  became  a  shipping  center  for 
farmers  in  that  area. 

The  village  was  incorporated  in  1871  and  the  members  of  the 
first  board  of  trustees  were  L.  T.  Bonacina,  J.  R.  Peeler,  Henry 
Harmes,  W.  R.  Milans  and  John  Holshouser.  Solomon  Lombard 
was  appointed  clerk. 

The  first  school  in  the  village  was  a  frame  building  near  the 
Novelty  Works  and  in  1873  a  large  frame  building  which  would 
house  200  pupils  was  erected. 

The  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  was  organized  in  Dongola 
in  1865  and  another  church  was  built  by  the  Methodists,  Cumber- 
land Presbyterians,  and  Lutherans  who  took  turns  using  it.  The 
Baptists  erected  a  frame  building  for  their  church. 

Dongola  Lodge,  No.  581,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.  was  chartered 
October  6,  1868  with  J.  H.  Dodson,  Master.  Dongola  Lodge,  No. 
343,  I.  O.  O.  F.  began  January  31,  1867  under  the  leadership  of  E. 
Leavenworth. 

Cobden,  originally  known  as  South  Pass  was  laid  out  in  1857 
and  upon  the  completion  of  the  Illinois  Central  was  made  a  station. 
The  land  was  then  owned  by  Benjamin  L.  Wiley,  whose  wife  was 
Emily,  the  daughter  of  Winstead  and  Anna  Davie.  The  town  was 
located  on  Section  30  of  Township  11,  Range  1  West,  on  the  west 

—58— 


side  of  the  railroad.  The  original  plat  was  recorded  May  28,  1857, 
but  afterward  other  additions  were  made:  Buck's  addition  west  of 
the  original  plat;  Hartline  addition,  south  of  Buck's;  Frick's  addition 
east  of  Hartline's  and  on  the  east  side  of  the  railroad;  and  Clemens 
addition,  east  of  Wiley's. 

Cobden  was  brought  into  existence  by  a  real  estate  com- 
pany whose  office  was  in  Anna.  Isaac  N.  Phillips  located  here  Feb- 
ruary 1,  1858,  as  the  agent  of  L.  W.  Ashley,  Benjamin  L.  Wiley 
and  J.  L.  Phillips.  He  occupied  a  log  cabin  just  back  of  what  be- 
came known  later  as  the  Phillips  House. 

In  the  summer  of  1860,  Richard  Cobden,  one  of  the  owners 
of  the  Illinois  Central  and  an  Englishman,  made  a  tour  of  the  rail- 
rord  and  stopped  at  South  Pass  and,  because  he  liked  the  climate, 
stayed  a  few  days  to  picnic  and  hunt.  The  town  was  then  named 
Cobden  in  his  honor  and  the  railroad  station  was  called   Cobden. 

The  settlers  who  came  to  this  part  of  the  county,  before 
1S50,  like  the  others  in  the  county  were  originally  from  North 
Carolina.  However  among  the  settlers  who  came  after  the  building 
of  the  railroad  were  manj  New  Englanders,  attracted  by  the  suit- 
ability of  this  part  of  the  country  for  growing  orchards. 

In  May,  1858,  Amus  Bulin  and  Moses  Land  moved  into  Cob- 
den and  later  in  the  summer  Col.  Bainbridge  came  and  bought  the 
Bell  farm  on  Bell  Hill  east  of  Cobden.  Henry  Ede  lived  in  a  house 
built  in  the  Buck  Addition  and  Jerry  Ingraham,  foreman  of  the  re- 
pair shop  of  the  railroad  lived  next  to  his  shop.  Thomas  Baker  built 
a  house  which  was  occupied  by  Isaac  Phillips  and  later  became 
known  as  the  Roth  Hotel. 

The  first  store,  kept  by  William  Henry  Harrison  Brown  was 
opened  early  in  1859.  He  sold  out  to  Adam  Buck  because  he  had 
been  indicted  by  the  grand  jury  for  selling  a  deck  of  playing  cards. 
The  second  store  was  opened  by  John  Davis  and  the  next  by  Frick 
and  Lamer.  Mathias  Clemens  came  during  the  time  of  the  con- 
struction of  the  railroad  and  ran  a  boarding  house  for  the  workers. 
LeBar  and  Davie  built  a  mill  about  1860. 

The  first  school  built  in  the  town  was  a  brick  building  cost- 
ing $10,000.     This  was  one  of  the  first  brick  schools  in  the  county. 

Cobden  was  incorporated  as  a  village  April  15,  1859.  The 
first  board  of  trustees  were  I.  N.  Phillips,  John  Buck,  Henry  Frick, 
David  Green,  Mathias  Clemens,  Dr.  F.  A.  Ross  and  John  Pierce. 

The  Presbyterian,  the  Congregational,  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
and  the  Catholic  were  the  first  churches  established  in  Cobden.  The 
Masons  and  Odd  Fellows  organized  Cobden  Lodge  No.  466,  A.  F. 
and  A.  M.,  October  3,  1861  and  Relief  Lodge,  No.  452,  I.  O.  O.  F. 
October  10,   1871. 

By  1860  four  other  villages  which  were  never  incorporated 
had  been  established:  Saratoga,  Lick  Creek,  Mt.  Pleasant  and  Preston. 

Lick  Creek  had  a  postoffice  and  store  and  five  or  six  dwell- 
ings. Mangum  and  Gourley  were  the  first  storekeepers  and  Gourley 
was  the  first  postmaster.  The  first  school  was  built  near  A.  J.  Man- 
gum's  home. 

—59— 


Mt.  Pleasant  village  was  laid  out  in  1858  by  Caleb  Musgrave 
and  Abner  Cox.  A  few  lots  were  sold  but  the  town  did  not  grow 
much.  The  plat  was  recorded  April  9,  1858.  There  were  a  church, 
a  store,  a  postoffice,  a  saw  mill  and  a  few  residences  there  in  the 
beginning.  The  first  store  was  kept  by  Thomas  Boswell  on  his  farm 
before  the  town  was  laid  out.  A  man  named  Black  opened  the  first 
store  in  Mt.  Pleasant  and  sold  it  to  Leavenworth  and  Little  who  sold 
to  John  Stokes,  Mr.  Stokes  built  a  two  story  brick  building  for  the 
business. 

The  village  of  Saratoga  was  laid  out  by  Dr.  Penryer,  No- 
vember €,  1841,  on  the  northeast  quarter  of  Section  1,  Township 
12,  Range  1  West.  A  mineral  spring  was  the  cause  of  the  location 
of  the  town  here.  Dr.  Penryer  thought  the  place  could  be  made  into 
a  health  resort.  A  boarding  house  was  built  near  the  spring  which 
entertained  summer  guests  for  several  years  but  the  business  grad- 
ually died.  This  was  owned  by  Caleb  Cooper.  Elijah  Beardsley 
owned  a  saw  and  grist  mill  and  A.  W.  Simmons  and  William  Reed 
opened  stores. 

The  old  village  of  Preston  was  laid  out  as  a  town  October 
27,  1842,  by  John  Garner  and  for  a  time  was  a  shipping  point  but 
the  Mississippi  gradually  moved  in  on  the  town  and  finally  covered 
the  spot  where  it  oace  stood. 

There  were  many  country  stores  scattered  through  the  county 
and  several  mills,  but  the  leading  business  centers  by  1860  were 
Jonesboro,  Anna,  Cobden  and  Dongola. 


—60— 


CHAPTER    XIX 
PERSONAL  TAXES    IN    1860 

By  1860  Union  County  was  entering  a  new  epoch  in  its 
history.  However  little  development  took  place  in  this  period  until 
alter  the  Civil  War  was  completed. 

In  1860,  instead  of  having  only  one  means  of  communicat- 
ing with  distant  points — the  river  boat,  Union  County  had  overnight 
access  to  Chicago  and  Memphis  and  New  Orleans  could  be  reached 
in  forty-eight  hours  by  mail.  Since  this  widened  the  market  for 
the  farmer's  products,  large  developments  in  agriculture  took  place. 
Since  the  railroads  burned  wood  for  fuel,  and  used  wooden  ties  and 
rails,  work  in  timber  became  a  leading  industry  in  the  county. 

With  the  widening  of  opportunity,  the  people  were  able  to 
achieve  a  higher  standard  of  living,  to  have  better  furniture,  better 
clothing  and  better  houses.  Stores  carried  larger  stocks  of  mer- 
chandise and  more  cash  savings  were  accumulated  by  the   citizens. 

It  is  significant  that  while  Jonesboro  and  Anna  were  the 
centers  of  business,  many  country  stores  carried  a  fairly  adequate 
stock  of  merchandise.  This  was  probably  due  to  the  face  that 
roads  were  difficult  to  travel  in  bad  weather  so  that  the  people  in 
each  locality  made  their  purchases  as  near  their  homes  as  possible. 

The  merchants  who  paid  a  tax  on  their  stock  of  goods  were 
William  Kinnison,  I.  M.  Randall,  Joel  Ragsdale,  L.  Hauser,  N.  C. 
Meker,  Adam  Buck,  J.  N.  Albright,  A.  B.  Agnew,  Robert  Biick, 
J.  P.  Bohanan,  J.  M.  Brisbin,  D.  D.  Cover,  E.  Cover,  S.  B.  Carut'i, 
A.  N.  Dougherty,  F.  M.  Davidson,  Winstead  Davie,  Frick  and  Lamer, 
Frick  and  Glasscock,  Moses  Goodman,  J.  Howitz,  Moses  Hutson, 
R.  Johnson,  Charles  Clutts,  G.  A.  Kirchner,  Gore  &  Co.,  McElhaney 
and  Bro.,  E.  McKeeby,  G.  W.  Mumaugh,  Marks  &  Dodds,  John  E. 
Naill,  James  I.  Provo,  B.  W.  Sitter,  Edward  Terpenitz,  Silas  C. 
Toler,  Thomas  Watkins,  C.  H.  Williford,  J.  H.  Williams,  Willard 
&  Co.,  John  E.  Winn,  Williams  &  Co.,  Adam  Cruse,  David  Green, 
John  MacConnell,  S.  P.  Whittaker,  L.  Misenheimer  &  Co.,  Moses 
Fisher,  S.  E.  Davis,  A.  Aden,  Buck  Welch,  G.  W.  Frogge,  E.  Mac- 
Kinder  and  Marschalk  &  Cruse. 

Of  these  merchants,  nine  carried  a  stock  of  less  than  one 
hundred  dollars,  five  between  two  and  three,  five  between  three  and 
four,  one  between  four  and  five,  four  between  five  and  six,  two 
between  six  and  seven,  five  between  one  and  two  thousand  dollars, 
two  between  two  and  three  thousand,  one  between  four  and  five, 
one  between  five  and  six,  one  between  six  and  seven,  one  ten  thou- 
sand dollar  stock  and  one  twelve  thousand.  There  were  thirty- 
three  stores  with  a  stock  of  less  than  one  thousand  dollars  ard 
twenty  over  one  thousand. 

In  1860  horses,  cattle,  mules  and  asses,  sheep,  hogs,  wagons 
and  carriages,  clocks  and  watches,  pianos,  merchandise,  manufac- 
tured goods,  moneys  and  credits,  stocks  and  bonds,  and  unenumerat- 
ed   properties   were    assessed.      The    acreage    under    cultivation    was 

—61— 


also  recorded.  These  assessments  reveal  that  the  county  was  de- 
cidedly an  agricultural  county  with  2848  horses,  valued  at  $134,- 
G45;  7987  cattle  valued  at  $71,968;  334  mules  and  asses,  $19,433 ; 
5406  sheep,  $5448;  16,694  hogs,  $18,773;.  having  a  total  value  of 
$250,287.  This  stock  was  mortgaged  for  $15,047,  which  means  that 
Bis  percent  of  the  livestock  was  under  mortgage. 

Other  assessments  included  1127  carriages  and  wagons  valued 
at  $29,897;  1239  clocks  and  watches,  $9169;  ten  pianos,  $1635; 
merchandise,  $78,802;  manufactured  articles,  $3,390;  moneys  and 
credits,  $140,339;  stocks  and  bonds,  $11,000;  unenumerated  prop- 
erty,  $98,951. 

19,704  acres  of  land  were  producing  wheat,  22,207  acres- 
producing  corn  and  39S7  acres  other  products,  making  a  total  of 
45,898  acres  or  less  than  one-fifth  of  the  total  area  of  the  county 
in  cultivation. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  more  cash  was  assessed  than 
any  other  item,  horses  coming  second.  Apparently  only  $15,047  of 
this  cash  had  been  loaned  with  mortgages  for  security  and  only  two 
persons  in  the  county  had  anything  invested  in  stocks  and  bonds, 
Willis  Willard,  $10,000  and  Charles  M.  Willard,  $1,000.  The  Wheat 
Growers  Bank,  the  only  bank  in  the  county,  was  listed  as  having 
$5G02   in   cash. 

Pianos  were  owned  by  E.  Harwood,  Willis  Willard,  Charles 
M.  Willard,  John  Daugherty  (then  Lieutenant  Governor  of  the  State 
of  Illinois),  John  Humphrey,  E.  McKinder,  P.  Baxter,  J.  L.  Freeze 
?.nd  Allen  Bainbridge. 

J.  N.  Albright,  M.  Krentz,  Adam  Miller  &  Co.,  Amos  WT.  Bar- 
num,  Paul  Frick,  Jacob  Green,  Goodall  &  Co.,  Finch  and  Shick, 
Ignatius  Brooks  and  Daniel  L.  Nusbaum  were  assessed  for  manu- 
factured articles.  Most  of  the  manufacturers  owned  saw  and  grist 
mills.     Finch  and  Shick  owned  what  is  now  the  Anna  Stone   Co. 

There  were  2149  taxpayers. 

There  were  thirty-two  persons  in  the  county  who  had  more 
than  $1,000  cash  in  addition  to  their  real  estate  and  other  personal 
property. 

By  1860  Union  County  was  divided  on  the  question  of 
slavery.  Jonesboro  had  been  the  site  of  one  of  the  famous  Lincoln 
and  Douglas  debates  and  John  Daugherty  who  owned  the  Jonesboro 
Gazette  and  his  editor  Marschalk  had  broken  their  partnership  and 
Marschalk  had  started  the  Democrat  in  Anna  because  of  their  dif- 
ference in  view  regarding  slavery.  In  1824  when  the  question  of 
slavery  had  been  submitted  to  the  people  of  Illinois  for  a  vote 
regarding  the  Illinois  stand  on  the  question,  Union  County  was 
evenly  divided.  However  there  were  few  colored  people  in  the 
county. 

The  people  who  had  come  before  the  railroad  had  not  been 
wealthy.  Most  of  them  had  settled  less  than  eighty  acres  of  land 
at  a  cost  of  $1.25  per  acre  and  few  had  more  than  the  wagon  in 
which  they  had  come  with  a  horse,  cow,  sheep  and  pig  and  a  few 
personal  belongings. 

— C2— 


The  WillaTds  who  had  become  the  wealthiest  family  in  the 
■county  had  arrived  with  little  more  than  their  bare  hands,  a  meager 
•education  and  much  foresight.  The  persons  running  ferries  were 
the  first  to  accumulate  more  wealth  than  two  or  three  hundred 
dollars.  Then  business  men  prospered  next  but  no  great  amount 
of  speculation  in  land,  etc.  took  place  until  after  the  established 
fact  that  the  railroad  would  be  built. 

The  pioneers  lived  a  rugged  life  and  accumulation  of  per- 
sonal belongings  was  gained  only  through  hard  work  and  persever- 
ance. 

The  land  was  always  poor  because  it  was  thought  by  the 
earliest  settlers  that  they  would  be  able  to  stay  only  two  or  three 
years  and  move  on  because  the  fertility  of  the  soil  would  be  de- 
pleted by  that  time  but  they  found  that  by  a  system  of  crop  rota- 
tion they  could  make  the  soil  continue  to  produce.  For  this  reason 
we  see  Union  County  develop  into  a  predominantly  agricultural 
area.  However,  because  the  soil  was  and  is  not  the  highest  type  of 
soil  in  the  state,  after  the  more  fertile  regions  were  accessible  on 
account  of  railroads,  the  county  has  not  grown  in  population  as 
several  other  agricultural  counties  have,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it 
hegSLa  its  growth  early. 


—63— 


CHAPTER  XX 

UNION    COUNTY    IN    THE    CIVIL    WAR 

Union  County  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  of  the  Civil 
War  gave  about  3000  men  to  the  Union  Army.  This  county  at  all 
times  filled  their  quotas  by  using  enlisted  men  and  not  resorting 
to  drafting  soldiers.  This  county  sent  five  hundred  more  men  than 
the   average  county. 

This  is  a  remarkable  record  for  the  county  since  it  was 
definitely  shown  in  the  poll  of  1824  that  one  half  of  the  vote3 
were  for  slavery.  There  is  evidence  however  that  there  were  many 
southern  sympathizers  in  the  county  which  is  not  at  all  strange 
since  the  settlers  in  the  county  before  1850  were  entirely  of  south- 
ern extraction.  However  it  was  not  the  wealthy  cotton  planter 
but  the  poor  man  who  came  to  southern  Illinois  to  make  his  home. 
In  looking  over  the  entries  it  is  evident  that  the  average  settler 
came  with  seldom  over  $100  in  his  pocket  and  settled  less  than  one 
hundred  acres  of  land.  A  study  of  the  population  shows  that  there 
were  comparatively  few  colored  people  ever  came  to  the  county. 

When  it  is  considered  that  the  population  of  Union  County 
in  1860  was  11,181,  there  could  not  have  been  many  more  men  in 
the  county  available  for  service.  About  three-fifths  of  the  3000 
soldiers  or  180O  of  them  were  killed  in  action  or  died  in  hospitals 
or  prison  camps.  This  means  that  Union  County  lost  between  one- 
sixth  and  one-seventh  of  its  total  population  during  the  Civil  War. 
This,  of  course,  was  no  greater  loss  than  that  of  other  counties. 
It  was  at  this  time  that  women  appeared  in  business  and  profes- 
sions, largely  teaching  and  millinery. 

The  records  show  that  Union  County  in  addition  to  the  full 
One  Hundred  and  Ninth  Regiment  furnished  Captain  Mack's  com- 
pany as  well  as  a  number  of  men  to  the  Eighteenth  Regiment,  one 
company,  Captain  Reese,  to  the  Thirty-first  Regiment.  A  portion 
of  the  Sixtieth  Regiment  was  enlisted  here.  This  regiment  rendez- 
voused in  this  county  and  filled  its  vacancies  with  Union  County 
men.  The  county  also  furnished  a  large  number  of  men  to  the 
Sixth  Calvary,  in  addition  to  Captain  Warren  Stewart's  Company. 
Many  Union  County  men  were  enlisted  in  the  Thirty-first  Infantry 
which  was  organized  at  Cairo  under  John  A.  Logan. 

The  battle  which  was  nearest  to  Union  County  was  the 
battle  of  Belmont,  Mo.  Many  of  our  citizens  were  inspired  with 
patriotism  and  rushed  to  the  defense  of  their  homes  when  battle 
came  within  hearing  distance  of  the  residents  of  Union  County.  Fol- 
lowing is  an  account  of  the  part  of  the  Thirty-first  Regiment  played 
in  the  war. 

With  less  than  two  month's  drill,  the  Regiment  took  part  in 
the  battle  of  Belmont,  Mo.,  November  7,  1861,  cutting  its  way  into 
the  enemy's  camp,  and  with  equal  valor,  but  less  hazard,  cutting 
its  way  out  again.     On  the   7th   of  February,    1862,   the   Regiment 

—64— 


was  at  Fort  Henry,  Tenn.,  and  after  emerging  from  the  muddy 
environments  of  that  stronghold,  it  traversed  the  hills  of  Fort  Donel- 
son,  and  there,  amid  whiter  snows,  on  the  15th  of  the  same  month, 
it  lost  260  men  killed  and  wounded — the  Regiment  having  per- 
formed, in  this  engagement  the  difficult  evolution  of  a  change  of 
front  to  rear  on  tenth  company  in  the  heat  of  the  battle,  among 
tangled  brush  and  on  uneven  ground.  From  Donelson,  the  Regi- 
ment was  transported  by  steamer  to  Shiloh,  Tenn.,  and  thence  it 
moved  towards  Corinth,  Miss.,  with  the  main  body  of  the  army, 
and  reached  that  place  only  to  find  it  evacuated  by  the  enemy. 
From  Corinth,  the  31st  marched  to  Jackson,  Tenn.,  and  the  summer 
of  1362  was  spent  in  guarding  railroads,  skirmishing  in  the  country 
of  the  Forked  Deer  River,  and  scouting  in  the  direction  of  Memphis, 
to  Brownsville  and  beyond.  Ordered  to  the  support  of  General 
Ro^ecrans,  at  Corinth,  the  Regiment  reached  that  place  in  time  to 
follow  the  retreating  foe  to  Ripley,  Miss.,  where  the  men  fed  on 
fresh  pork,  without  salt,  or  crackers,  or  coffee.  On  this  expedition 
it  was  engaged  in  the  skirmishes  of  Chewalla  and  Tuscumbia,  end- 
ing the  6th  of  October,  1862.  The  Regiment  was  with  Grant  in  the 
first  campaign  against  Vicksburg,  sometimes  called  the  Yokona 
expedition,  and  passed  through  Holly  Springs  to  Coldwater,  at 
which  place  the  men,  destitute  of  rations  in  consequence  of  the 
capture  and  destruction  of  supplies  at  Holly  Springs  by  the  enemy, 
showed  their  characteristic  adaptability  by  carrying  out  at  once 
the  suggestion  of  Logan  to  convert  the  timber  into  ashes,  and  by 
means  of  the  ashes,  the  corn  of  the  surrounding  country  into 
hominy. 

Upon  the  termination  of  this  campaign  the  regiment,  with 
Ce  army  under  Grant,  was  transferred  to  a  new  field,  that  of  the 
operations  which  finally  resulted  in  the  downfall  of  Vicksburg.  On 
the  15th  of  January,  1863,  it  set  out  for  Lagrange,  Tenn.,  and 
thence  went  to  Memphis,  by  way  of  Colliersville.  Leaving  Memphis 
March  10,  1863,  it  embarked  for  Lake  Providence,  La.;  and  after 
assisting  in  the  attempts  to  open  a  route  by  water  to  a  point  be- 
low Vicksburg,  in  moved,  upon  the  abandonment  of  these  attempts 
to  Milliken's  Bend,  and  thence  to  Wanesborough.  Having  crossed 
the  Mississippi  below  Grand  Gulf,  April  30,  1863,  the  next  day  the 
Regiment,  without  waiting  for  rations,  though  hungry  and  weary 
enough,  hurried  forward  to  the  support  of  the  comrades  then  en- 
gaged in  battle  at  Thompson's  Hill,  near  Port  Gibson,  and  quickly 
forming  on  McClenand's  left,  under  the  eyes  of  Generals  Grant 
and  Logan,  it  moved  up  the  right  wing  of  the  enemy  at  the  charge 
step,  routing  him  completely,  and  helping  to  secure  a  speedy  victory. 
Governor  Yates,  in  civilian  garb  of  swallow-tail  coat  and  high  shirt 
collar,  and  overflowing  with  enthusiasm  and  patriotism,  witnessed 
this  charge.  After  crossing  the  Bayou  Pierre,  the  31st  again  met 
and  dispersed  their  foes  at  Ingram  Heights,  May  3,  1863,  and  push- 
ed on  to  Raymond  where  on  the  12th  the  Regiment  hunted  from  its 

—65— 


front  the  fragments  of  a  brigade  which  the  enemy  had  thrown 
against  the  advance  of  Grant.  Moving  onward  in  almost  ceaseless 
march,  it  took  part  in  the  battle  of  Jackson,  Miss.,  May  14,  1863, 
and  thence  at  midnight,  on  the  15th,  through  drenching  rain,  it 
marched  toward  Vicksburg,  to  meet  the  enemy  anew.  About  ten 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  16th  the  men  spread  their  catridges 
to  dry  in  the  sun,  in  an  old  field  about  five  miles  from  Champion 
Hills,  from  which  latter  point  was  soon  heard  the  sound  of  battle. 
The  men  hastily  gathered  up  their  ammunition  and  seized  their 
muskets,  and  the  Regiment  followed  the  head  of  the  column  at 
double-quick  effecting  a  formation  with  its  brigade  on  the  right  of 
our  embattled  line  where  it  rested  for  a  moment,  the  men  lj 
on  their  faces  while  the  hostile  shells  whistled  and  shrieked  and 
exploded  above  them.  At  the  command  "Attention,"  the  line  stood 
erect,  with  bayonets  fixed;  the  Brigade  Commander,  General  John 
E.  Smith,  gave  the  word;  McPherson  said  with  a  smile,  "give  in 
Jessie!"  and  Logan  shouted:  "remember  the  blood  of  your  mammies! 
give  'em  hell!"  and  then  the  brigade  sprang  forward,  broke  and 
routed  the  two  column  formation  over  which  waved  the  Confederate 
flag,  capturing  the  opposing  battery,  turned  its  guns  upon  the  re- 
treating enemy,  and  took  as  many  prisoners  as  there  were  men  in 
the  charging  brigade.  In  this  encounter  there  was  crossing  of 
bayonets  and  fighting  hand  to  hand.  Sergeant  Wick  of  Co.  B  used 
his  bayonet  upon  his  foe  and  Sergeant  Hendrickson  of  Company  C, 
clubbed  his  musket  in  a  duel  with  one  of  the  men  in  gray. 

From  this  point  the  Regiment,  with  the  main  army,  followed 
the  retreating  enemy  to  his  entrenched  lines  at  Vicksburg,  where 
it  took  part  in  the  bloody  assaults  of  the  19th  and  22nd  of  May; 
its  gallant  Lieut.  Colonel  Reece,  meeting  death  by  the  explosion  of 
a  hand  grenade  while  planting  the  Regimental  Colors  upon  the 
rampants.  Here  the  flag  received  153  bullets  and  the  staff  was  shot 
asunder  in  four  places. 

During  the  siege  the  Regiment  took  a  prominent  part  in  the 
operations  against  Fort  Hill;  and  when  the  Fort  was  blown  up:  on 
the  25th  of  June,  by  the  explosion  of  a  mine  beneath  it,  there  came 
a  time  that  tested  the  stuff  the  men  were  made  of.  Hero  is  the 
night,  in  that  crater  remembered  as  the  "slaughter  pen"  the  soldiers 
fighting  by  reliefs,  and  within  an  armslength  of  the  enemy — some 
had  their  muskets  snatched  from  their  hands — under  a  shower  of 
grenades  and  of  shells  lighted  by  port-holes,  while  the  voices  of 
Pearson,  Goddard,  Morningham  and  others  rising  at  times  above 
the  terrific  din  of  combat,  cheered  on  their  men — were  deeds  of 
valor   performed   which   would   adorn    the   heroic    page. 

On  the  morning  of  July  4,   1863,  the  place   of  honor  having 
been    assigned    to    the    Brigade,    the    Thirty-first    Regiment    marched 
proudly  across  the  rents  and  chasms  of  Fort  Sill  into  Vicksburg. 
UNION    COUNTY    IN    THE    CIVIL   WAR 

Having  made  the  expedition  to  Monroe,  La.,  under  General 
Stephenson,    the    Regiment   went    into    camp    at    Black    River,    Miss., 

—66— 


the  scene  of  Lawler's  splendid  victory,  and  here,  on  the  5th  of 
January,  1864,  three-fourths  of  the  men  again  enlisted  in  the  ser- 
vice. That  night  the  men,  formed  in  line,  with  lighted  candles  held 
in  the  shanks  of  their  bayonets,  marched  to  the  quarters  of  General 
Force,  commanding  the  Brigade,  who  appeared  before  his  tent  and 
catching  the  splendor  from  the  candles  full  in  his  face,  cried  out 
with  enthusiasm,  "Three  cheers  for  the  31st!"  But  the  "boys"  were 
not  going  to  cheer  for  themselves  and  there  were  no  others  present 
to  do  it,  so  they  stood  in  their  ranks  silent  and  with  military  air, 
and  cheered  not  nor  stirred;  whereupon  the  General  shouted,  "Cheer 
yourselves  boys,  hip!  hip!"  and  then  the   cheers  were  given   with   a 

.  followed  by  a  "tiger"  for  the  Union,  and  three  groans  for  the 
Confederacy. 

The  Regiment  was  with  General  Sherman  in  the  campaign 
against  Meridian,  Miss.,  after  which  the  re-enlisted  men,  the 
"veterans",  took  their  furloughs,  starting  for  home  the  19th  of 
March,  1864.  Having  returned  to  the  front,  by  way  of  Cairo,  the 
Regiment  camped  from  the  6th  to  the  15th  of  May  at  Clinton, 
on  the  Tennessee  River,  and  thence  marching  by  way  of  Rome, 
Georgia,  sometimes  collecting,  herding  and  driving  beef  cattle,  and 
sometimes  skirmishing  with  the  enemy,  it  joined  Sherman's  army 
at  Ackworth  Station.  It  was  in  the  skirmish  at  Big  Shanty,  and 
at  Brush  Mountain,  the  assault  upon  Kenesan  on  June  27,  1864; 
j?-eo  in  the  battles  around  Atlanta  on  the  21st,  22nd,  and  28th  of 
July,    of   which   that   on   the    22nd    was   the    most   terrible,    the    men 

tins:  sometimes  on  one  side  of  the  earthworks,  sometimes  on 
the  cher.  The  Regiment  was  also  engaged  in  the  battles  of  Love- 
joy  Station  and  Jonesborough,  and  was  with  Sherman  in  the  mock 
pursuit  of  Hood  upon  his  invasion  of  Tennessee.  Retracing  their 
steps,  the  Regiment  reached  Atlanta  on  the  13th  of  November  and 
the  15th  it  there  began  with  Sherman  the  triumphant  march  to  the 
sea,  and  on  it  marched  with  that  magnificent  army,  cutting  roads 
through  tangled  forests,  bridging  streams  for  the  passage  of  troops, 
tearing  up  railroad  tracks,  twisting  the  rails  "as  crooked  as  ram's 
horns,"  discovering  and  devouring  sweet  potatoes  and  other  pro- 
vender surging  over  the  country  from  Atlanta  to  the  sea,  "shouting 
the  battle-cry  of  freedom,"  and  proceeding  by  way  of  Millen,  it 
arrived  on  the  10th  day  of  December,  1864.  at  Savannah.  Here  the 
regiment  went  into  camp  on  the  rice  plantation  of  Dr.  Owen,  where 
the  rice  was  consumed  for  food,  the  husks  being  beaten  off  by 
means  of  wooden  mortars  and  pestles  appropriated  from  the  slave 
quarters  nearby.  One  of  the  incidents  of  the  day  was  the  en- 
countering of  a  battery  mounted  on  a  flat  car,  pushed  along  the 
railroad   by   a  locomotive. 

On  the  4th  of  January,  1865,  the  31st  bade  farewell  to  Sa- 
vannah, and  shipped  on  the  steamer  Harvest  Moon,  and  after  the 
novel  experience  and  sights  of  a  sea  voyage,  disembarked  at 
Beaufort,  S.  C,  where  it  remained  enjoying  the  luxury  of  fresh 
oysters    at    low    prices    until    the    13th.      To    this    succeeded    some 


skirmishing  of  Fort  Pocotaligo — "Poke-'em-till-they-go'7,  as  the  men 
called  it  which  was  evacuated  by  the  enemy.  On  the  30th  of  Janu- 
ary the  march  began  thru  the  Carolinas,  by  way  of  Salkahatchie, 
Orangeburg — which  was  captured,  after  some  fighting  by  the  Regi- 
ment's skirmishings — Columbia — scourged  by  destroying  flames — 
Wirsborough,  Cherau,  Fayetteville,  captured  by  foragers — and 
Bentonville — scenes  of  the  last  great  struggle  of  Johnston's  army, 
and  the  Regiment  came  out  of  the  swamps,  out  of  the  pine  forests, 
"out  of  the  wilderness,"  the  men  ragged,  dirty,  and  many  of  them 
barefooted,  to  Goldborough,  N.  C,  where  it  arrived  the  24th  of 
h,  1865,  and  when  letters  from  home  and  news  from  the  world 
were  received.  These  and  the  prospects  of  the  nearing  of  the  end 
were  cheering  and  refreshing  to  the  men  who  for  54  days  had  been 
without  communication  with  home  or  the  world,  and  were  weary 
with  long  marching  and  fighting. 

On  the  14th  of  April,  1865,  the  Regiment  was  with  the  army 
at  Raleigh,  N.  C.  Signs  of  the  ruin  of  the  Confederacy  and  the 
dispersion  of  its  armed  forces  were  apparent  on  every  hand.  Soon 
came  the  surrender  of  Johnson's  army,  the  only  force  which  could 
oppose  the  onward  march  of  the  Union  troops  to  Richmond,  and 
*he  Regiment  formed  a  part  of  the  host  to  which  that  army  sur- 
rendered. 

On  the  9th  of  May  the  Regiment  was  at  Richmond,  on  the 
19th  at  Alexandria;  and  on  the  24th  of  May,  with  faded  and 
tattered  uniforms,  but  with  martial  step  and  bearing  in  column  of 
company,  eyes  front,  it  marched  through  the  principal  avenues  of 
the  capital,  in  that  grand  review  of  the  returning  armies  in  presence 
of  the  great  leaders,  civil  and  military,  of  the  Republic,  the  most 
magnificent  and  imposing  spectacle  ever  witnessed  by  the  city  of 
Washington.     The  end  had  been  attained! 

Soon  afterwards  the  Regiment  moved  to  Louisville,  Ky., 
arriving  at  that  place  on  the  11th  of  June,  when  it  was  assigned 
to  provost-guard  duty.  On  the  19th  of  July,  1865,  it  was  mustered 
out  of  the  service,  by  Lieut.  Aug.  P.  Noyes,  A.  C.  M.,  3rd  Div.  17 
Corps.  It  was  then  moved  to  Springfield,  111.,  where  it  arrived  on 
the  23rd  of  July,  1865;  and  there  on  the  31st  of  the  same  month, 
the  men  received  their  final  discharge  and  separted  for  their  homes 
— those   who  were   left  of  them. 

At  the  time  of  the  discharge  there  were  present  25  officers, 
and  677  enlisted  men.  When  first  organized,  the  Regiment  num- 
bered 1,100  men.  It  had  recruited  700.  The  casualties,  including 
men  discharged  before  final  musterout,  amounted  to  1,128.  In  the 
course  of  its  existence  the  Regiment  had  been  commanded  by  four 
Colonels,  and  had  had  five  Lieut.  Colonels  and  six  Majors.  Of  the 
25  officers  discharged  at  the  final  muster-out,  all  save  the  chaplain 
had  risen  from  the  ranks. 

In  the  campaigns  of  Sherman  this  Regiment  had  marched 
2,076  miles.  This  part  of  its  history  is  included  in  that  of  the 
Brigade  to  which   it  belonged — the   1st   Brigade,    3rd   Division,    17th 

—68— 


Corps,  Army  of  Tennessee.  The  Regiment  marched  2000  miles 
under  Grant  and  on  expeditions  other  than  those  of  Sherman.  It 
served  in  the  hostile  states  of  Louisiana,  Georgia,  Alabama,  North 
Carolina,  South  Carolina  and  Virginia.  Before  January  1,  1863  the 
history  of  the  Regiment  is  comprised  in  that  of  the  1st  Brigade, 
2nd   Division,   Reserve   Army   of   Tennessee. 

Always  efficiently  commanded,  and  evincing  soldierly  quali- 
ties in  its  first  battle,  the  Regiment  became  in  the  days  of  its 
veteran  existence  one  of  the  best  drilled  in  the  service.  It  was 
while  encamped  at  Black  River,  Miss.,  after  the  Vicksburg  cam- 
paigns, that  the  regiment  under  the  skillful  management  of  Lieut- 
Colonel  Pearson,  attained  that  high  degree  of  discipline  and  pro- 
ficiency in  drill  for  which  it  became  known,  and  toward  which  it 
had  been  directed  under  Logan  and  White  in  the  earlier  days  of  the 
war.  The  latter  fell  at  Donelson  and  deserved  the  title  "the  brave.-t 
of  the  brave." 

Col.  Pearson  had  been  in  service  under  General  Prentiss 
before  the  organization  of  this  Regiment,  and  early  showed  an 
aptitude  for  tactics  and  drill  which  made  him  a  favorite  with  the 
field  and  staff,  while  his  soldierly  qualities  displayed  at  Henry  and 
Donelson  endeared  him  to  the  rank  and  file.  Hen>;  he  rapidly  rose 
from  the  ranks,  being  promoted  to  Commissary  Sergeant  March  1, 
1SG2;  to  Adjutant,  May  16,  1862;  to  Major  February  4,  1863,  by  the 
unanimous  vote  of  the  officers;  to  Lieut.  Colonel  July  1,  1863,  and 
to  Colonel  September  26,  1864.  On  the  13th  of  March,  1865,  he 
was  breveted  Brigadier  General  of  Volunteers,  for  gallantry  during 
the  war. 

Many  of  the  soldiers  and  officers  of  the  Regiment  deserve 
special  mention  and  lasting  remembrance,  but  the  space  alloted  for- 
bids a  more  extended  account.  To  some  of  the  men  were  awarded 
medals  for  gallantry;  among  them  Sergeant  George  C.  White  of 
Company  C,  who,  severely  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Atlanta,  July 
22,  1864,  resolutely  and  persistently  refused  to  be  carried  to  the 
rear. 

The  fighting  qualities  of  this  Regiment  were  displayed  in 
14  battles  and  25  skirmishes  of  various  degrees  of  importance.  It 
witnessed  the  surrender  of  Buckner  and  the  garrison  at  Donelson, 
the  capitulation  of  Pemberton  and  his  army  at  Vicksburg,  the 
humiliation  of  Johnson  and  his  force  at  Bentonville,  and  their  final 
surrender  near  Raleigh.  And  a  brilliant  gem  in  its  crown  of  glory 
is  the  fact  of  its  organization  as  a  "veteran"  Regiment,  at  a  time 
when  the  Union  cause  stood  so  much  in  need  of  trained  and  tried 
soldiers  to  complete  the  overthrow  of  armed  rebellion  and  to 
establish  upon  the  ruins  of  anarchy  and  slavery  a  "government  of 
the  people,  by  the  people  and  for  the  people." 


-69- 


CHAPTER  XXr 

LAND    ENTRIES    FROM    1SS0   TO    1320 

After  the  Civil  War  was  completed,  the  settlement  of  new 
.and  continued  in  Union  County  until  1920  when  the  last  tract  of 
land  belonging  to  the  government  was  bought  by  Mr.  Daisy. 

Rich  Precinct  added  John  Davie,  26.46  acres;  John  J.  Dem- 
26.46  acres;  Jacob  Bradshaw,  26.46  acres;  Wm.  J.  Stout, 
71  acres;  Lorenzo  D.  Stout,  60.72  acres;  Henry  C.  Stout,  20.72 
aeres;  George  W.  Owen,  20,72  acres;  R.  E.  Henderson,  40  acres; 
William  J.  Shepard,  40  acres;  William  Terry,  200  acres;  Pleasant 
Henley,  40  acres;  Fannie  Saddler,  40  acres;  James  N.  Sanders, 
129.36  acres;  Jefferson  Pvendleman,  47  acres;  Wm.  V.  Sanders,  47.06" 
teres;  Jasper  W.  Damrcn,  40  acres;  Marcus  L.  Fly,  40  acres;  James 
E.  Hiller,  40  acres;  Jasper  N.  Damrcm,  120  acres;  James  Watson, 
27. "2  acres;  John  D.  Watson,  27.92  acres;  John  W.  Killer,  129.68 
acres;  John  D.  Watson,  27.92  acres;  Lewis  P.  Holland,  30  acres; 
William  Rhodes,  71.29  acres;  Wm.  H.  Dodge,  40.40  acres;  Daniel 
Matloek,  40.40  acres;  Orvil  W.  Bargs,  40.40  acre;;  Lucy  L.  Fuller, 
40  acres;  David  Bargs,  40  acres;  John  Watson,  49  acres;  Solomon 
Sitter,  SO  acres;  Robert  Elmore,  40  acres;  Frank  M.  Agnew,  80 
;::res;  Jessie  Watson,  40  acres;  Enoch  Hack,  40  acres;  Irvin  C. 
Eatson,  40  acres;  Franklin  Roach,  40  acres;  Henry  Culp,  40  acres; 
Abel  Baker.  40  acres:  Daniel  S.  Davie,  40  acre?;  P.obert  S.  Hopkins, 
40  acres:  T.  J.  McBride,  80  acres;  Jessie  G.  Lindsay,  40  acres: 
Jacob  G.  Hunsaker,  40  acres;  William  Hudson,  120  acres;  Jasper 
W.  Damron,  40  acres;  Pleasant  Henley,  80  acres;  David  Fries.  40 
acres;  Elisha  and  Zach  Hughes,  40  acres;  Charles  P.  Coleman,  40 
acres;  W7illiam  W.  Inscore,  80  acres;  Benjamin  F.  Green,  80  acres; 
John  L.  Coleman,  40  acres;  Richard  Gist,  40  acres;  John  Carter, 
40  acres;  John  Gist,  40  acres;  Marion  C.  Coleman,  80  acres;  Ab- 
solom  WT.  Coleman,  40  acres;  Lawrence  D.  Coleman,  40  acres; 
George  Johnson,  40  acres;  Elizabeth  Smith,  40.40  acres  Susan 
Vancil,  41.20  acres;  WnTam  Sladden,  42.21  acres;  Lavina  WT.  Hen- 
derson, 80  acres;  James  O.  Hale,  40  acres;  Christ  Landis,  40  acres; 
John  Randall,  120  acres;  John  Freeze,  40  acres;  Wm.  A.  Harris, 
40  acres;  E.  D.  Turner,  40  acres;  Pleasant  P.  Peeler,  80  acres; 
William  Rendleman,  174.39  acres;  Joshua  Thompson,  31.36  acres; 
Mary  Robinson,  40  acres;  Charles  D.  Bush,  40  acres;  Daniel  Sifford, 
40  acres;  Richard  W.  Lisk,  40  acres;  David  Gow,  240  acres;  Henry 
E.  Clarke,  40  acres;  Wlliam  H.  Kerr,  40  acres;  Peter  A.  Stout,  40 
acres  and  Larkin  F.  Brooks,  40  acres. 

Additional  lands  entered  in  Lick  Creek  Precinct  were:  Gail 
Herson,  40  acres;  Marion  C.  Coleman,  40  acres;  Joseph  Lingle,  40 
acres;  William  Hudson,  40  acres;  John  S.  Jones,  120  acres;  George 
H.  Jones,  40  acres;  Elizabeth  Trees,  40  acres;  William  A.  Johnson, 
40  acres;  Matthew  Brooks,  40  acres;  Lewis  Jones,  40  acres;  Marshall 
Jones,  40  acres;  Pleasant  Henley,  40  acres;  L.  D.  Coleman,  40  acres; 
Edwin  Wiggs,  40  acres;  Wm.  T.  Hood,  40  acres;  James  H.  Kirby,  40 
acres;   Andrew   J.    Gourley,    40    acres;    Hiram    N.    Hood,    80    acres; 

—70— 


Thomas  A..  Hogg,  40  acres;  George  T.  McGinnis,  40  acres;  Thoma 
Gourley,   40  acres;  William  Roberts,   77.38  acres;  John   H.   Bosweli, 
77.91   acres;   James   H.    Gallegly,    38.69    acres;    Andrew    L.    Giu.^ 
■39.23  acres;  Wra.   H.   Corbitt,   39.24  acres;  Francis  F.    ! 
acres;    Isaac    W.    Davis,    40    acres;    Austin    A.    O'Neill,    120    a  a 
Powell  Toler,   40   acres;  Hezekiah   O'Naal,   4^   acres;  James   Co. 
40   acres;  James   A.   Brown,   41.72   acres.;    Solomon    H.    Sitter,    41.73 
acres;   John   S.    Grugett,    83.56    acres;    F.    E.    Scarsdale,    120    acres; 
Thomas   J.   Jolly,    40    acres;   Henry   Plater,    40    acres;    Lexander    W. 
Ximmo,   40  acres;  W.  J.   Rudick,   40   acres;   Eva   McLane,   40   acres; 
Wdliam   C.   Brasel,   40   acres;   Winstead   Davie,    120   acres;   Harrison 
Elkins,   40  acres;  Sylvester  Hileman,   40   acres;  David   W.   McGinnis, 
40  acres;  John  H.  Bosweli,   280  acres;  James  F.  Dick,  80  acres  and 
Jam os  Miller,  40  acres, 

Saratoga  Precinct  added  William  B.  Todd,  40  acres;  John 
Hunter,  40  acres;  R.  M.  Dawson,  40  acres;  James  D.  Brooks,  87.49 
acres;  Susan  Mannenger,  43.74  acres;  Marion  J.  Sitter,  44.96  acres; 
John  Highland,  44.96  acres;  Franklin  W.  Carothers,  40  acres;  Jessie 
R.  Brown,  SO  acres;  Henry  C.  George,  240  acres;  James  B.  Hall, 
40  acres;  Esan  Griffith,  40  acres;  Wm.  N.  Corlis,  40  acres;  Elizabeth 
M.  Todd,  40  acres;  John  W.  Williams,  40  acres;  James  B.  Wall,  40 
acres;  Ben  Vancil,  40  acres;  Peter  Williams,  40  acres;  John  N. 
Penninger,  160  acres;  Williams  Murphy,  200  acres  and  Lafayette 
Murphy,  40  acres;  George  Clutts,  40  acres;  Peter  Norrix,  80  acres; 
Frederick  Baker,  40  acres;  D.  M.  Sisk,  40  acres;  William  J.  Harkley, 
40  acres;  William  J.  Stout,  40  acres;  John  Randall,  40  acres;  Joseph 
Lingle,  40  acres;  Elijah  Beckwith  and  John  C.  Fuller,  40  acres; 
Florence  K.  Baker,  40  acres;  Andrew  Duckshied,  40  acres;  John 
Stephens,  40  acres;  J.  W.  Hambleton,  40  acres;  Rhoda  A.  Reward, 
40  acres;  J.  B.  Coulter,  40  acres;  Garrett  H.  Baker  and  Wm.  Chase, 
45.54  acres;  Henry  Ede,  45.54  acres;  Garrett  H.  Baker,  45.54  acres; 
I.  N.  Phillips,  45.85  acres;  Eliza  B.  Finley,  45.85  acres;  Lewis  N. 
Ashley,  Ben  L.  Wiley  and  David  L.  Phillips,  40  acres;  Matthias 
Clemens,  40  acres;  Christian  Nordling,  40  acres;  Joseph  Metz,  40 
acres;  Alexander,  Johnston,  40  acres;  John  M.  Rich,  40  acres; 
Samuel  C.  Walker,  40  acres;  Thomas  H.  Bean,  40  acres;  Wm.  J. 
Jones,  40  acres;  Susannah  Barringer,  40  acres;  Daisy  and  Gertrude 
Buck,  40  acres;  Joseph  Bigler,  35.84  acres;  Adam  Buck,  35.84 
acres;  Charles  Howenstein,  35.83  acres;  Ephriam  M.  PowelJ,  40 
acres;  George  W.  Williams,  40  acres;  Joseph  Williams,  40  acres  and 
Richard  H.  Davis,  40  acres. 

Stokes  Precinct  was  increased  by  John  Emerson,  40  acres; 
Iva  Green,  40  acres;  Henry  M.  Halterman,  40  acres;  John  Earn- 
hadrt,  40  acres;  Henry  G.  W.  S.  Cline,  40  acres;  J.  F.  Halterman, 
40  acres;  James  P.  Wiggs,  40  acres;  Richard  T.  Wiggs,  40  acres; 
M'les  M.  Arnhart,  40  acres;  William  D.  Toler,  80  acres;  John  B. 
Stokes,  40  acres;  George  A.  Stout,  40  acres;  Samuel  O.  Stout,  40 
acres;  Samuel  O.  Slocet,  120  acres;  William  Homes,  40  acres;  Henry 

—71  — 


Mangold,  40  acres;  John  C.  Mackey,  40  acres;  George  Penmnger, 
336  11  acres;  Charles  Sommers,  40  acres;  David  Davis,  165.37 
acres;  John  W.  Speck,  80  acres;  Edmond  H.  Hileman,  40  acres; 
James  C.  Lingle,  40  acres;  William  T.  Boswell,  40  acres;  Polly  Ann 
Conder  40  acres;  William  Stodder,  40  acres;  Henry  Mangold,  49 
acres-  James  W.  Woodward,  80  acres;  John  Ballard,  40  acres; 
Jonathan  Boswell,  89.79  acres;  James  Mclntire,  80  acres;  Wilhelm 
Kazemann,  80  acres;  Elizabeth  Newton,  80  acres;  James  T.  Mackey, 
40  acres;  Elizabeth  Newton,  40  acres;  Francis  M.  Henard,  40  acres; 
D.  M.  Jones,  40  acres;  James  W.  Clifford,  93.34  acres;  James  T. 
Hughes,  SO  acres;  John  G.  Sherwood,  80  acres;  James  F.  Hood,  40 
acres;  John  H.  Pool,  40  acres;  James  A.  Penrod,  40  acres;  James 
Ballard,  48.79  acres;  Nathan  Karraker,  88.79  acres;  Adaline  Pen- 
rod,  4s'.79  acres;  Joseph  Conder,  49.74  acres;  William  and  Een  A. 
Conder,  49.74  acres;  William  Hinkle,  49.74  acres;  William  George 
Davis,  49.74  acres;  John  Smoot,  40  acres;  Thomas  Smith,  40  acre?; 
Adam  F.  Hoffner,  80  acres;  John  Ballard,  40  acres;  and  George  W. 
Sheffer,   40   acres. 

Dongola  added  Peter  Veruie,  56.82  acres;  Henry  W.  Otrich, 
G6.S6  acres!  William  T.  Smoot,  40  acres;  James  H.  Kelley,  40  acres; 
James  A.  Penrod,  40  acres;  Lucinda  Keller,  80  acres;  Michael  D. 
Clifford,  40  acres;  Daniel  Keller,  40  acres;  Riley  Daywalt,  40  acres; 
Meredith  Keller  40  acres;  Joseph  M.  Clifford,  80  acres;  John  P. 
Daywalt,  40  acres;  Robertson  C.  Corzine,  40  acres;  James  T. 
Hughes,' 40  acres;  John  Clifford,  40  acres;  J.  K.  Adams,  40  acres; 
Sylvester  A  iams,  160  acres;  Levi  Penrod,  200  acres;  Josiah  E. 
Brown,  40  acres;  Daniel  C.  Boggs,  40  acres;  James  A.  Penrod,  80 
acres;  Barbara  Penrod,  280  acres;  David  Penrod,  80  acres;  G.  D. 
Corzine,  40  acres;  Mary  Ann  Lence,  49.16  acres;  Peter  Lence, 
49.16  acres;  Mon-roe  Dillow,  89.50  acres;  Jacob  C.  Dillow,  49.50 
acres;  Frederick  Schluter,  129.50  acres;  Simeon  D.  Corzine,  45.50 
acres;  Samuel  B.  Poor,  120  acres;  S.  A.  D.  Rogers,  40  acres;  John 
C.  Keller,  40  acres;  Jacob  Douglas,  40  acres;  Henry  Meisenheimer, 
80  acres;  Stephen  T.  Baston,  160  acres;  Thomas  E.  Carlock,  40 
acres;  James  A.  Karraker,  40  acres;  Jacob  Beggs,  120  acres;  John 
F.  Beggs,  40  acres;  Jacob  Peeler,  40  acres;  James  W.  Hogan,  80 
acres;  Mo^es  O.  Felker,  40  acres;  Henry  Hess,  40  acres;  John  R. 
Casper,  40  acres;  Daniel  F.  Beggs,  80  acres;  Thomas  Misenheimer, 
40  acres;  Sarah  C.  Wilhelm,  40  acres;  Robert  Harris,  80  acres; 
Thomas  Smoot,  40  acres;  Jacob  Graham,  40  acres;  William  Gifford, 
and  Benjamin  Ladd,  131.03  acres;  Joseph  Minnie,  50.62  acres;  Lewis 
Misenheimer  50.51  acres;  Adde  Aden,  130.51  acres;  R.  H.  Kinkead, 
50.62  acres;  Henry  C.  George,  50.62  acres;  Edward  Cohl,  80  acres; 
Andrew  T.  Mulcahy,  40  acres;  Rebecca  A.  Patrick,  40  acres;  William 
W.  Sheffer,  40  acres;  Rufus  M.  Lingle,  40  acres;  W.  E.  Simpson, 
40  acres;  John  H.  Taylor,  40  acres;  William  Hinkle,  40  acres; 
Miles  E.  Kestler,  40  acres;  Caroline  Aden,  40  acres;  Rufus  Monroe. 
40  acres;  Elizabeth  Sherfley,  40  acres;  Levi  Mcintosh,  80  acres; 
George  Eller,  40  acres;  Giles  C.  Casper,  40  acres;  Jacob  D.  Benton, 

—72— 


40  acres;  Peter  Lence,  40  acres;  Robert  Dickson,  Jr.,  40  acres; 
Joseph  Schlegel,  40  acres;  Anthony  Peeler,  40  acres;  Maurice  B. 
Lawrence,  40  acres;  Samuel  Lence,  40  acres;  William  S.  Hammers, 
40  acres;  Julia  A.  Littel,  40  acres;  Jessie  Peeler,  40  acres;  Susan 
Davalt,  40  acres;  N.  G.  Miller,  40  acres  and  John  Peeler,  40  acres. 
Anna  precinct  added  Robert  Chatham,  40  acres;  James  M. 
Williams,  40  acres;  Wm.  W.  Kirkpatrick,  40  acres;  Jacob  Hileman, 
80  acres;  Edward  Ryan,  40  acres;  Andrew  Eaves,  80  acres;  Joshua 
Thompson,  40  acres;  Edward  Robinson,  40  acres;  Tilman  Manus, 
40  acres;  Peter  F.  Williams,  80  acres;  J.  H.  Goddard,  40  acres; 
Lucinda  M.  Finley,  40  acres;  Sarah  A.  Underwood,  40  acres;  Joseph 
Wood,  40  acres;  David  A.  Parker,  80  acres;  John  L.  Freeze,  40 
acres;  John  Corzine,  41.75  acres;  William  F.  Otrich,  41.75  acres; 
Benjamin  J.  Keith,  83.25  acres;  Martin  V.  Brown,  40  acres;  Thomas 
Dale,    40    acres;    Adam    Verble,    40    acres,    and    James    Whalen,    80 


acres. 


Cobden  was  increased  by  Joshua  Thompson,  28.27  acres; 
Augusti  Bailston.  28.77  acres;  Thomas  L.  Bailey,  57.40  acres;  George 
C.  Hanford,  28.70  acres;  Young  J.  Vancil,  28.70  acres;  William  Har- 
per and  Ulrich  Esyinger,  40  acres;  William  Trickier,  40  acres; 
Frederick  Schelker,  40  acres;  Rebecca  O'Donnel,  40  acres;  Daniel 
Sullivan,  40  acres;  Francis  M.  Smith,  25.37  acres;  V.  M.  Foley, 
145.01  acres;  Sylvanuss  J.  Morris,  47.82  acres;  James  T.  Wallace, 
28.90  acres;  J.  P.  Hodges,  44.23  acres;  Joel  Nance,  44.23  acres; 
John  Parmley,  40  acres;  John  Lamkins,  40  acres;  Claude  Perrie, 
Jean  Boyce,  Charles  Banerd  and  Andrew  Thomas,  120  acres;  Albert 
J.  Hanford  and  Joseph  Carpenter,  40  acres;  John  P.  Reese,  40  acres; 
Charles  W.  Pelton,  40  acres;  John  Lockard,  40  acres;  Alonzo  DuBois, 
40  acres;  Matthew  Stokes,  40  acres;  Sanford  and  Mary  Topping,  40 
acres;  Napoleon  B.  Walker,  40  acres;  William  C.  Rich,  40  acres; 
H.  W.  McKile  and  James  W.  Sweitzer,  40  acres;  Lewis  P.  Holland, 
40  acres;  Lazarus  B.  Andrey,  40  acres;  R.  B.  Thompson,  80  acres; 
John  T.  Calvert,  40  acres;  Samuel  Kasht,  40  acres;  Alfred  H. 
Brooks,  40  acres;  John  Davie,  40  acres;  Thomas  L.  Bailey,  40  acres; 
Ephriam  Kimmel,  40  acres;  Peter  Clutts,  40  acres;  John  Ferrill,  40 
acres;  John  Clutts,  40  acres;  Marian  Murphy,  40  acres;  Edward  C. 
Lawrence,  40  acres;  Judy  Hopkins,  40  acres;  David  L.  Davie,  40 
acres;  Philander  Bird,  40  acres;  Persis  Holcomb,  40  acres;  William 
L.  Wilkinson,  40  acres;  George  Snyder,  40  acres;  Spencer  Sammons 
40  acres;  Silas  Sifford,  40  acres;  John  Buck,  40  acres;  Daniel 
Sifford,  40  acres;  Richard  W.  Lisk,  40  acres;  David  Gore,  240  acres; 
Henry  E.  Clark,  40  acres;  William  H.  Kerr,  40  acres;  Peter  Clutts, 
40  acres;  Cynthia  A.  Stout,  40  acres;  Larkin  F.  Brooks,  40  acres; 
William  L.  Lence,  40  acres;  Josiah  J.  Morefield,  40  acres;  John  H. 
Barringer,  40  acres,  John  Buck,  120  acres;  Anton  Blessing,  30.90 
acres;  Anton  Smukowski,  30.89  acres;  Nathaniel  Green,  118.69 
acres;  Sherod  Wiggs  and  John  C.  Hill,  40  acres;  James  C.  Hill,  40 
acres;  Peter  Bechta,  40  acres;  John  Kerr,  40  acres;  Samuel  M. 
Brown,  46.50  acres;  Franz  Petsch,  204.93  acres;  Cornelius  Anderson, 

—73— 


40  acres;  Susan  S.  Launer,  80  acres;  Elias  Dilday,  40  acres;  John  S. 
and  Susan  S.  Launer,  40  acres;  John  and  Adam  Buck,  40  acres; 
u.orge  Walker,  100  acres;  Edwin  N.  Blanchard,  20  acres;  Benjamin 
F.  Ross,  40  acres;  Elize  A.  Brown,  40  acres;  William  A.  Kirby,  40 
acres;  Edward  Daniel,   80  acres  and  John  Limbert,   40  acres. 

Additions    to    Alto    Precinct    were    Jacob    F.    Blessing,    42.93 
acres;    Willis    Lamer,    47.24    acres;    Alexander    Smith,    42.93    acres; 
William    R.    Martin,    44.31    acres;    Anna    Corgell,    40    acres;    David 
Smith,   40   acres;   Philip   Zimmerman,    40    acres;   Charles   M.    Corgell, 
40   acres;   Benjamin   F.    Holmes,    40    acres;    Elias   Dilday,    40    acres; 
Simon  P.  Casey,  40  acres;  James  C,  Mary  W.,  and  Nettie  H.  Hawk- 
ins,   40    acres;*  Cyrus    Herald,    135.44    acres;    Alfred    Klutts,    49.19 
acres;    Thomas    M.    Sturgian,    45.06    acres;    William    Martin,    45.06 
acres;   Moses   Emery,   40    acres;   Robert   M.   Jennings,    176.48    acres; 
Daniel    Bellow,    41.50    acres;    James    A.    Batson,    41.49    acres;    John 
Buck,  41.49  acres;  James  M.  Gulley,  34.09  acres;  Zachariah  Lyerle.. 
34.09  acres;  Frankie  Dodge,  34.09  acres;  Joseph  E.  Frost,  40  acres ; 
James  M.  Partel,  40  acres;  William  Butcher,  40  acres;  John  Starnes. 
40    acres;   Joseph   Minton,    40    acres;    Benjamin    F.    Scott,    40    acres; 
Mark   Aldridge,    40   acres;   John   M.   Robinson,    40    acres;   Charles   F. 
Walker,   40   acres;   Napoleon    B.    Collins,    40    acres;    Wm.    R.    Purtle, 
40  acres;  Walter  K.  Underwood,  40  acres;  Jessie  Mayfield,  40  acres; 
Moses  Laning,  80  acres;  Wm.  R.   Lee,   40  acres;   George   H.   Staton. 
40    acres;    Henry   C.    Freeman,    40    acres;    Wm.    R.    Abernathie,    40 
acres;   Joshua   Lewis,    40    acres;   Michael    McDamott,    40    acres;   Joel 
Manning.    120   acres;  Isaac   S.   Plott  and   John    C.   Fuller,    40    acres; 
Walter  R.  Underwood,  40  acres;  Jacob  R.  Rhodes,  34.18  acres;  Ann 
W.  Smith,   80  acres;  William  Stadden,   80  acres;  Harris  Rendleman, 
80  acres;  A.  J.  Miller,  80  acres;  Mary  Underwood,  40  acres;  Henvy 
Rendleman,  40  acres;  James  Corbitt,   40   acres;  Geo.  W.  James,   40 
acres;  G.   W.  James,   40   acres;   Wm.   Lilley,   40   acres;   James   Simp- 
son,  40  acres;  Mary  M.   Houser,   40   acres;  Jessie   Glasco,   40   acres; 
Rebecca    C.    Gregory,    40    acres;    George    W.    Abernathie,    40    acres; 
Emma  Hillyer,  40  acres;  Roland  W.  Purdue,   40   acres;  David   B.   F. 
Myers,    40    acres;    David    S.    Rendleman,    40    acres;    William    Balch 
Todd,  440  acres;  George  H.  Vancil  and  William  B.  Todd,  80  acres; 
William  F.  Bittle,  40  acres;  Lewis  F.  Bittle,  40  acres;  John  J.   Mc- 
Roberts,   60   acres;   George   F.   Myers,   40   acres;   Andrew   Smith,    80 
acres;    Herman    E.    Schnenyd,     80    acres;    Benjamin     Ogle    Taylor, 
2147.95  acres;  Zachariah  Lyerley,   120   acres;   Louisa   Dobschutz,   80 
acres;  Adam  Smith,   40   acres;  Henry  A.   Fite,   80   acres;  James   H. 
Esher,  40  acres;  Wm.  H.  Green,  320  acres;  Jackson  Carter,  80  acres: 
Jacob  Rendleman,  80  acres;  Frank  A.   Grisert,   40   acres;  Jessie   G. 
and  Isadore  L.  Lindsey,  43.18  acres;  Thomas  A.  E.   Holcomb,   43.18 
acres;    Cornelius   King,    80    acres;   John    Cauble,    40    acres;    Charles 
Bridgeman,  40  acres;  Mortimer  Hunsaker,  80  acres;  Perry  D.  Riley, 
120  acres;  Janitta  Green,  40  acres  and  William  H.  Finch,  40  acres. 


—74— 


LAND   ENTRIES   FROM    1860  TO    1920 

Jonesboro  is  increased  by  Henry  A.  Reixel,  31.73  acres; 
William  W.  Kirkpatrick,  96.37  acres;  Cornwall  Kirkpatrick,  32.91 
acres;  Eliza  Dobschets,  72.91  acres;  James  Y.  Carenip,  32.91  acres; 
John  Cassel,  40  acres;  Sylvia  Austin,  40  acres;  Cyrus  S.  Freeman, 
40  acres;  Adam  Buck  and  John  S.  Buck,  40  acres;  Edwin  Saddler, 
40  acres;  John  W.  Whitans,  62.76  acres;  Mary  T.  Kelley,  31.37 
acres;  James  A.  Vance,  40  acres;  James  Costigan,  299.03  acres; 
Jacob  R.  Rhodes,  75  acres;  Henry  Sherrill,  40  acres;  John  Lyerle, 
200  acres;  Ephriam  F.  McLafferty,  40  acres;  Francis  Klein,  40 
acres;  Andrew  Lyerly,  80  acres;  William  S.  Brown,  40  acres;  Wil- 
liam Postlewait,  80  acres;  James  E.  Brown,  40  acres;  Henry 
Nicholas,  40  acres;  Charles  Daugherty,  40  acres;  Harrison  Saddler, 
40  acres;  Peter  Casper,  40  acres;  William  Winn,  40  acres;  William 
Stadden,  40  acres;  George  W.  Lyerle,  33.50  acres;  Lafayette  Rich, 
SO  acres;  Dennis  Batson,  40  acres;  James  W.  Batson,  40  acres; 
Zachariah  H.  Corzine,  80  acres;  Ezekiel  Pitts,  40  acres;  Jacob  Veil.  . 
40  acres;  Jessie  Ware  and  Lafayette  Rich,  40  acres;  James  Morgan, 
SO  acres;  Jessie  Ware,  40  acres;  Samuel  Dodds,  40  acres;  Herman 
L.  Frick,  40  acres;  Anson  B.  Codding,  40  acres;  John  Brown,  40 
acres;  John  Winchester,  80  acres;  Kate  Kratzinger,  150.43  acres; 
Martin  V.  Ussery,  80  acres;  John  R.  Cover,  120  acres;  Narcissa 
Roberts,  80  acres;  James  R.  Reynolds,  40  acres;  F.  W.  Pott,  160 
acvres;  Sameul  H.  Tripp,  40  acres;  Isaac  L.  Axley,  80  acres;  Zelpha 
Alice  Aikman,  40  acres;  Isaac  W.  Albright,  40  acres;  Mary  E. 
Barber,  40  acres;  J.  B.  Barber,  40  acres;  Charles  W.  Olsen,  40 
acres;  Mrs.  Mary  A.  Walter,  80  acres;  Charles  W.  Olson,  40  acres; 
Moses  Lingle,  40  acres;  Soren  C.  Jenson,  40  acres;  Michael  Corrils 
and  Hay  Schmits,  40  acres;  David  and  Hiram  Myers,  40  acres; 
Joseph  Duschl,  36.94  acres;  Paul  Frick,  80  acres  and  Winstead 
Davie,   40   acres. 

Mill  Creek  added  Solomon  Dillow,  40  acres;  Jacob  Barnhart, 
80  acres;  Michael  Heilig,  51.68  acres;  Joseph  Rymer,  51.68  acres; 
Solomon  Miller,  51.27  acres;  John  M.  Miller,  51.27  acres;  Amanda 
Hams,  51.27  acres;  Horace  F.  Chrisenberry,  40  acres;  Robert  Mays, 
40  acres;  Stephen  Smitty,  40  acres;  Richie  J.  Brown,  40  acres;  John 
A.  Dillow,  40  acres;  Sidney  Cruse,  40  acres;  George  H.  Rimer,  40 
acres;  Anthony  Peeler,  80  acres;  Daniel  K.  Holshouser,  40  acres; 
and  Alfred  Cauble,  40  acres. 

Misenheimer  Precinct  added  Elijah  W.  Anderson,  SO  acres; 
Martin  V.  Eaves,  80  acres;  Adolphus  A.  Fulenwider,  40  acres; 
Izetta  M.  Fulenwider,  80  acres;  George  W.  Brown,  40  acres;  Fred 
Seegar,  320  acres;  Michael  Hehenberger,  40  acres;  James  M.  Good- 
man, 40  acres;  Jacob  Webber.  40  acres;  John  Kamm,  40  acres; 
Johan  Meyer,  40  acres;  Wm.  H.  Goodman,  40  acres;  Peter  Weaver, 
40  acres;  John  M.  Grieb,  80  acres;  John  Becker,  40  acres;  Alfred 
Misenheimer,  120  acres;  The  Silica  Co.  of  Chicago,  440  acres;  John 
Scott  Hileman,  40  acres;  William  R.  Hileman,  40  acres;  John  Light, 
40  acres;  Henry  Dillow,   40   acres;  John   N.   Misenheimer,   40   acres; 

—75— 


Paul  Dillow,  40  acres;  Peter  Dillow,  80  acres;  Joseph  Dillow,  40 
acres;  Henry  Rimer,  40  acres;  Charles  Dillow,  40  acres;  M.  W. 
Clutts,  80  acres;  Elijah  Miller,  40  acres;  Wiley  Dillow,  80  acres; 
William  R.  Hileman,  40  acres;  George  Mowery,  40  acres;  Elijah 
Mowery,  40  acres;  Jeff  Lingle,  40  acres;  Samuel  Hargrave,  40  acres; 
Joseph  Simpson,  40  acres;  Jacob  H.  Poole,  160  acres;  Herman 
Schmidtke.  40  acres;  Eliza  Bell,  80  acres;  Joshua  C.  Vick,  40  acres; 
end   Rudolph   Kesserman,   603   acres. 

Reynolds  Precinct  added  Henry  Rymer  heirs,  80  acres;  Wil- 
liam W.  Cummins,  40  acres;  E.  Abernathie  and  A.  T.  Sams,  200 
acres;  Joseph  Baker,  14.13  acres;  Coswell  Brimm,  40  acres;  Levi 
A.  Dillard,  120  acres;  William  Humphrey,  40  acres;  Walter  Jones, 
K0  acres;  Alfred  Misenheimer,  40  acres;  J.  L.  Misenheimer,  80 
acres;  Wm.  R.  Reynolds,  80  acres;  William  J.  Harrison,  40  acres; 
John  T.  G.  Linn,  79.70  acres;  Cornelius  Perry,  40  acres;  Reid 
Green,  120  acres;  John  C.  KelJey,  80  acres;  Samuel  H.  Frost,  40 
acres;  Henry  A.  Fite,  40  acres;  Jessie  E.  Lentz,  40  acres;  Nath- 
aniel G.  Miller,  40  acres;  Giles  M.  Misenheimer,  41.20  acres;  Michael 
Canes,  41.20  acres;  Jacob  T.  Misenheimer,  200  acres;  Joseph  A. 
Fulenwider,  80  acres;  Jacob  M.  Hileman,  80  acres;  Jacob  E.  Brady, 
40  acres;  Henry  Rendleman,  40  acres;  Charles  Dillow  120  acres; 
W instead  Davie,  40  acres;  Kenneth  Hargrave,  162.04  acres;  Jessie 
Ware,  120  acres;  Lydia  E.  Sanders,  40  acres;  Jessie  Lentz,  120 
acres;  and  Alfred  Lence,  William  H.  Walker,  George  W.  Day, 
Fhiletas  E.  Hileman,  Tilman  M.  McNeeley,  George  J.  Andrews,  John 
D.  Wilson,  Charles  Walker,  David  Kimmel  and  Jacob  Brady,  40 
acres. 

Union  Precinct  was  increased  by  A.  J.  Parmley,  40  acres; 
Andrew  J.  Lyerle,  40  acres;  John  L.  Shirley,  120  acres;  Charles 
C.  Smith,  80  acres;  Frank  Petsch,  40  acres;  Harvey  A.  DuBois,  80 
acres;  David  W.  Karraker,  80  acres;  Daniel  W.  Brown,  80  acres; 
Andrew  J.  Daisy,  480  acres  (in  1920);  Wm.  H.  Green,  80  acres; 
Wm.  C.  Rich,  80  acres;  Francis  Lingle,  32.50  acres;  Andrew  J. 
Lemmons,  32.50  acres;  Adam  Lyerle,  32.50  acres;  and  Benjamin 
Ogle  Taylor,  34.75  acres. 

Preston  added  James  McCann,  38.68  acres;  George  W. 
Smith,  43.95  acres;  Charles  E.  Anderson,  120  acres  and  William 
Wright,   40   acres. 

George  W.  Fithian  entered  8346.97  acres  in  1904  in  the 
hill-lands  of  the  county. 

Between  the  row  of  hills  running  north  and  south  in  the 
western  part  of  the  county  and  the  river  was  a  number  of  small 
lakes  and  much  swamp  land.  In  1857  part  of  this  land  was  sold 
for  from  5c  to  $1.00  per  acre,  for  $278.00.  In  1867  the  remaining 
swampland  in  the  county  was  sold  for  $11,770.71,  making  a  total  of 
$12,048.71  for  about  30,000  acres  of  land.  Most  of  this  land  was 
around  Clear  Creek  and  what  was  once  known  as  the  lake  sections 
in  Reynolds,  Union  and  Preston  Precincts.  About  1000  acres  of 
swampland  was  located  in  Stokes  and  Dongola  Precincts.     This  part 

—76— 


was  purchased  by  H.  Williams  of  Cairo,  Morgan  Stokes,  Isaac  Davis 
and  James  Miles. 

The  rest  of  the  land  along  the  river  was  sold  to  H.  Williams, 
Cairo,  111.;  Jacob  McClure,  Jonesboro;  Caleb  Trees,  Union  County; 
John  Daugherty,  Jonesboro;  James  Luse,  St,  Louis,  Mo.;  James 
Chadwick,  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  George  Kimmel,  Union  County;  G.  W. 
Morgan,  Union  County;  C.  Hileman,  Union  County;  W.  C.  Pender, 
Jonesboro;  I.  W.  McClure,  Alexander  County;  John  Baltzell,  Union 
County;  Sarah  J.  Hampton,  Union  County;  J.  E.  Null,  Jonesboro; 
A.  L.  Spring  and  brother,  Preston,  111.;  John  Stearns,  Jonesboro; 
W.  H.  Norris,  Union  County;  Robert  Sublett,  Union  County;  B. 
DeWitt,  Union  County;  T.  C.  James,  Union  County;  Davie  and 
Sublett,  Union  County;  William  Green,  Union  County;  Isaac  Miller, 
Union  County;  P.  D.  Kelley,  Illinois;  M.  Hunsaker,  Jonesboro;  G. 
WT.  Lemly,  Union  County;  R.  B.  Merriman,  Jonesboro;  W.  C.  Pen- 
der, Union  County;  James  Evans,  Union  County;  Sarah  E.  Mc- 
Kinney,  Union  County;  Jessie  Ware,  Union  County;  and  Hugh  An- 
drews, Silas  Hess,  Charles  Barringer,  J.  H.  Samson,  W.  C.  Rich,  M. 
M.  Goodman  and  Caleb  M.  Lyerly,  all  of  Union  County. 

These  lakes  and  swamp  lands  were  used  for  hunting,  trapping 
and  fishing  grounds  for  many  years.  A  later  chapter  will  show  how 
the  lakes  and  swamps  were  drained  to  make  the  land  available  for 
agriculture. 


—77— 


CHAPTER    XXIf 
THE    GROWTH    OF    POPULATION    AFTER    1860 

According  to  the  United  States  Census  Reports,  Union  Coun- 
ty had  a  population  of  11,145  in  1860,  16,370  in  1870,  17,830  in 
1880,  21,549  in  1890,  22,610  in  1900,  21,856  in  1910,  20,249  in 
1920  and  19,883  in  1930.  It  will  be  interesting  to  see  what  the  re- 
sults of  the  present  census  will  be  since  two  large  new  industries 
have    been    established   here    since    1930. 

These  figures  indicate  that  the  population  increased  steadily 
until  1900  since  which  time  it  has  gradually  decreased.  In  the  first 
ten  years  of  this  century  it  decreased  as  much  as  it  had  grown  the 
the   preceding  ten   years. 

Many  factors  caused  this  change  in  population.  After  the 
building  of  the  Illinois  Central  railroad  the  government  was  not 
the  only  agency  promoting  land  settlement  because,  since  the  rail- 
road had  been  granted  large  tracts  of  land  by  the  government, 
the  railroads  also  maintained  land  offices  and  paid  horticulturists  to 
study  the  soil  and  help  the  settlers  decide  what  crops  would  be  the 
most  profitable  and  the  most  suitable  for  the  soil.  These  horti- 
culturists were  probably  the  forerunners  of  our  farm  bureaus  of 
today  that  have  developed.  Settlers  from  many  parts  of  the  United 
States  were  attracted  by  the  reports  of  their  horticulturists. 

Another  reason  for  the  increase  in  the  population  was  the 
availability  of  markets  by  means  of  more  rapid  transportation. 
Transportation  facilities  have  been  related  to  the  growth  in  agricul- 
ture and  also  in  the  more  recent  developments  in  manufacturing. 

The  St.  Louis  and  Cairo  Railroad  was  built  through  the 
county  passing  through  Jonesboro.  When  the  city  of  Jonesboro  was 
asked  to  aid  in  the  development,  it  responded  by  buying  bonds 
amounting  to  $100,000  but  later  cancelled  $57,000  worth  of  the 
bonds  because  the  road  was  not  completed  at  the  agreed  time.  It 
seems  that  the  person,  or  president  of  the  company  who  sold  the 
rails  to  the  railroad  died  and  because  his  estate  was  tied  up  by 
litigation,  the   rails  were  not  delivered   at  the   agreed   time. 

The  building  of  the  two  railroads,  the  Illinois  Central  and 
the  St.  Louis  to  Cairo  roads  furnished  not  only  work  for  the  per- 
sons constructing  the  roads  but  also  subsidiary  industries  appeared. 

At  first  almost  all  the  farmers  sold  most  of  their  surplus 
lumber  they  acquired  from  clearing  their  fields  to  the  railroads  for 
making  ties,  rails  and  also  for  stove  wood  because  for  many  years 
the  trains  were  heated  and  driven  by  wood  for  fuel. 

Several  years  after  the  first  line  of  the  Illinois  Central 
was  built  through  Union  County,  the  "Mud  Line"  of  this  company 
was  built  through  the   county  passing  thru   Wolf   Lake   and   Ware. 

Until  the  1920's  the  railroads  provided  most  of  the  means  of 
transportation  in  the  county.  Then  as  hard  roads  began  to  be  com- 
pleted all  over  the  state,  truck  lines  developed. 

Union  county  has  not  been  affected  much  by  the  introduc- 
tion of  air  transportation. 

—78— 


It  is  interesting  to  study  population  figures  in  the  census 
showing  that  population  decreased  in  the  rural  areas  and  increased 
in  the  towns  after  1900  when  population  began  to  decline.  Accord- 
ing to  the  census  report  Alto  Pass  Precinct  decreased  from  1 
in  1910  to  1304  in  1920  and  1298  in  1930,  Alio.  Pass  village  de- 
creased from  551  in  1910  to  500  in  1920  and  435  in  1930.  A: 
Precinct  increased  from  5,979  in  1910  to  5,986  in  1920  and  6,561  in 
1930.  The  city  of  Anna  increased  from  2,809  in  1910  to  3,019 
in  1920  and  3,436  in  1930.  Balcom  Precinct  deceased  from  523 
in  1920  to  514  in  1930.  Cobden  Precinct  decreased  from  3,200  in 
1910  to  2,560  in  1920  and  increased  to  2,712  in  1930.  The  village 
of  Cobden  had  9S8  population  in  1910,  944  in  1920  and  1036  in 
1930.  Dongola  Precinct  decreased  from  2,545  in  1910  to  2,106  in 
1920  and  1,910  in  1930.  The  village  of  Dongola  decreased  from 
702  in  1910  to  600  in  1920  and  635  in  1930.  Jonesboro  Precinct 
decreased  from  2,561  in  1910  to  2,278  in  1920  and  increased  to 
2,356  in  1930.  The  village  of  Jonesboro  decreased  from  1,169  in 
1910  to  1,090  in  1920  and  increased  to  1,241  in  1920.  Lick  Creek 
Precinct  decreased  from  797  in  1910  to  694  in  1920  and  514  in 
1930.  Mill  Creek  Precinct  decreased  from  627  in  1910  to  583  in 
1820  and  508  in  1930.  The  village  of  Mill  Creek  decreased  from 
221  in  1910  to  209  in  1920  and  173  in  1930.  Meisenheimer  de- 
creased from  403  in  1910  to  353  in  1920  and  296  in  1930.  Preston 
increased  from  341  in  1910  to  352  in  1920  and  375  in  1930.  Rey- 
nolds Precinct  increased  from  601  in  1910  to  678  in  1920  and  de- 
creased to  503  in  1930.  Rich  Precinct  was  decreased  from  591  in 
1910  to  414  in  1920  and  292  in  1930.  Saratoga  Precinct  de- 
creased from  902  in  1910  to  749  in  1920  and  657  in  1930.  Stokes 
Precinct  decreased  from  896  in  1910  to  748  in  1920  and  512  in 
1930.  Union  Precinct  increased  from  911  in  1910  to  941  in  1920 
and  decreased  to   875  in   1930. 

The  city  of  Anna  had  the  largest  increased  in  population 
and  Rich  Precinct  had  the  largest  decrease  in  population. 

As  time  went  on  the  mode  of  living  of  the  people  became 
less  and  less  difficult.  Houses  were  more  comfortable,  furniture  fur- 
nishings of  the  home  grew  from  the  bare  necessities  to  the  comforts 
and  beauty  of  many  of  our  present  homes. 

One  thing  that  made  life  easier  for  the  farmer  was  the 
establishment   of  rural   free   delivery. 

Mr.  "Dick"  Grear  who  is  still  living  was  our  first  mail 
carrier.  He  be°:an  his  work  in  1900  for  $365  per  year.  He  says 
that  he  could  live  comfortably  on  that  amount  of  money  in  those 
rHvs  because  it  cost  him  very  little  to  feed  his  horse  and  maintain 
his  carriage.  At  the  time  he  became  the  carrier  of  route  on  there 
were  onlv  1200  rural  mail  routes  established  in  the  United  States. 
At  that  time  he  was  allowed  also  to  deliver  groceries  and  other 
packages  to  the  farmer  as  well  as  the  mail. 

As  time  went  on  life  became  more  comfortable  in  this  county 
with  the  introduction  of  modern  conveniences,  electricity,  water- 
works, paving,  etc. 

—79— 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
THE  HISTORY   OF   AGRICULTURE 

When  Union  County  was  first  settled  the  ground  was  covered 
with  a  heavy  forest.  Gradually  the  settlers  cleared  the  more  level 
acres  and  began  to  till  the  soil.  Agriculture  had  not  developed  far 
until  after  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  was  built. 

The  fact  that  Union  County  is  situated  just  south  of  the 
only  true  mountain  range  in  Illinois,  the  spur  crossing  the  state 
from  the  Ozark  Mountains  and  traceable  to  Kentucky,  makes  it 
more  suitable  for  agriculture  than  counties  north  of  here.  This 
range  of  hills  of  mountains  protects  it  from  the  severest  part  of 
the  "blizzards  that  visit  every  portion  of  the  west  each  winter  and 
gives  warmth  to  the  soil  that  enables  fruit,  potatoes  and  garden 
vegetables  to  be  grown  early  in  the  year. 

A  few  facts  gathered  from  various  scientific  sources  will 
further  describe  and  classify  the  soil  and  agricultural  resources  of 
Union  County.  This  county  belongs  to  the  southern  or  fruit  and 
vegetable  area  of  Illinois.  In  1930,  forty-eight  and  six-tenths  of  its 
population  lived  on  farms.  In  1930,  seventy-seven  and  eight-tenths 
percent  of  the  area  of  this  county  was  farm  land  with  farms  one 
hundred  fourteen  and  five-tenth  acres  per  farm  and  one  thousand 
seven  hundred  and  fifty-two  farms  in  county.  In  1935  these  figures 
had  changed  to  eighty  and  seven-tenths  percent  of  the  land  area 
in  farms  with  one  thousand  nine  hundred  eighty-three  farms  averag- 
ing one  hundred  five  acres  per  farm. 
The  following  table  shows: 
Total  acres  in  County  357,920. 

1934  acres     1929   acres     1924   acres     1919   acres 
Total   land   in   farms   ....208,184  200,672  206,741  21 7,765 

Crop   land   total   108,386  105,293  111,283 

Crop   land    harvested..  82,610  68,374  84,384 

Pasture   land   total 52,895  44,321  43,948 

Pasture  land  plowable   17,141  20,826  26,320 

Pasture    land,    woods..   18,165  16,390  10,171 

Pasture   land,   other....  17,589  7,105  7,457 

Woodland,   not   past'd    28,850  28,896  28,954 

Other    land    on    farms   10,053  22,162  22,556 

Farming  is  the  leading  industry  of  the  county  in  spite  of  the 
poor  soil.  In  grading  the  most  productive  soil,  type  No.  1  and  the 
poorest  type  No.  10,  Union  County  soil  grades,  type  No.  6,  16%; 
type  No.  7,  4%;  type  No.  8,  20.77%;  type  No.  10,  56.6%;  and 
the  type  containing  water  and  gravel  pits  2.7%.  A  study  of  the 
soil  showed  that  308,862  tons  of  limestone  are  needed  to  correct 
the  original  acidity  of  this  area.  Limestone  depletion  was  not  cal- 
culated. Between  1923  and  1934,  58,071  tons  were  applied.  In 
1953,   250,791  tons  were  still  needed. 

It  is  estimated  that  there  are  122,880  acres  or  47.6  %  of 
the  soil  which  suffers  from  destructive  erosion;  67,200  acres  or 
26.1%    from  serious  erosion;   10,240  acres   or   4.0%    from   fiarm" 

—80— 


erosion;  57,600  acres  or  22.2%   from  negligible  erosion. 

The  term  destructive  erosion  means  that  the  land  is  suited 
only  to  timber.  This  group  includes  the  rough,  broken  hilly  land 
with  slopes  of  such  a  nature  that  the  land  is  not  well  adapted  for 
cultivation  or  pasture.  These  slopes  would  produce  but  little  pas- 
ture and  if  the  land  were  cultivated  would  erode  badly  even  with 
the  best  of  care. 

The  term  serious  erosion  means  that  this  type  of  land  is 
suitable  for  special  types  of  agriculture.  This  group  includes  the 
rolling  hilly  land  which  is  well  adapted  for  pasture,  orchard  and 
some  vegetable  crops  but  which  has  slopes  too  steep  to  permit  con- 
tinued cultivation,  except  in  some  instances  where  terracing  might 
permit  some  cultivatiotn. 

The  term  harmful  erosion  includes  the  undulating  or  rolling 
crop  land  which  under  conditions  of  average  good  farming  is  sub- 
ject to  harmful  sheet  washing  or  gulleying,  destroying  the  natural 
fertility  of  the  soil.  Erosion  in  this  group  can  be  controlled  well 
enough  by  special  rotation  or  terraces  to  permi;  a  more  or  less 
permanent  type  of  agriculture. 

The  term  negligible  erosion  includes  the  land  which  is  gently 
undulating  or  level  which  does  not  erode  under  conditions  of  aver- 
-age  good  farming.  Some  types  in  this  group  may  show  some  ero- 
sion or  continued  cultivation  with  poor  rotation. 

The  above  facts  show  that  only  26.4%  of  the  land  in  Union 
County  is  suitable  for  general  farming  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  in 
1934,  80.7%  of  the  land  was  used  for  this  purpose  and  in  1929 
77.8  9c    of  the  area  was  farmland. 

There  are  no  statistics  available  to  show  how  much  the  land 
has  depreciated  since  its  early  settlement  and  cultivation  buc  it  is 
significant  that  an  early  historian  said  that  our  earliest  settlers  look- 
ed over  the  land  and  decided  that  the  soil  was  so  thin  they  would 
be  able  to  stay  only  one  or  two  seasons  then  move  on  to  more 
fertile  soil.  These  settlers  found,  however,  that  by  crop  rotation 
the  soil  was  restored  to  its  original  fertility. 

After  the  building  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  land 
agents  and  horticulturists  experimented  to  find  the  type  of  crop  best 
suited  to  the  type  of  soil  in  the  county.  It  was  soon  determined 
that  strawberries,  blackberries,  and  raspberries  and  apples,  peaches 
and  pears  were  the  best  crops  to  raise.  Vegetables  such  as  beans, 
tomatoes,  peas,  cucumbers,  etc.,  were  found  suitable  and  melons, 
especially  cantaloupes  were  especially  adapted.  The  horticulturists 
went  further  in  their  experiments  to  learn  which  type  of  apple, 
peach,  etc.  afforded  the  best  crop. 

Statistics  of  1870  show  that  there  were  then  75,832  acres  of 
improved  land;  83,606  acres  of  woodland  and  5,300  acres  of  other 
land  in  the  county.  The  total  value  of  farmland  was  $3,333,201 
and  of  farm  implements  and  machinery  was  5183,457.  The  total 
amount  of  farm  wages  paid  that  year  including  value  of  board  was 
$133,472. 

—81— 


There  were  1,986  farms  in  the  county,  3  under  three  acres; 
237  over  3  and  under  10  acres;  494  over  10  and  under  20  acres; 
804  over  20  and  under  50  acres;  318  over  50  and  under  100  acres; 
and   130  over  100  and  under  500  acres. 

The  1870  census  shows  that  in  Union  County  there  were 
7,778  acres  of  improved  land  in  Anna  precinct;  9,938  in  Casper; 
11,731  in  Dongola;  9,719  in  Rich;  7,466  in  Ridge;  11,995  in  Stokes 
an   5,170   in   Union. 

The  values  of  farms  and  farm  implements  in  1870  was 
$407,303  in  Anna  Precinct;  $558,200  in  Casper  Precinct;  $723,460 
in  Dongola  Precinct;  $457,920  in  Rich  Precinct;  $408,928  in  Ridge 
Precinct;  $327,042  in  Stokes  Precinct,  and  $123,381  in  Union  Pre- 
cinct.. From  these  figures  it  seems  that  Dongola  Precinct  had  the 
most  valuable  farms  and  Union  the  least. 

Live  stock  was  valued  at  $68,719  in  Anna  Precinct; 
$80,015  in  Casper  Precinct;  $92,004  in  Dongola  Precinct;  $81,005 
in  Rich  Precinct;  $56,732  in  Ridge  Precinct;  $84,063  in  Stokes  Pre- 
cinct, and  $80,340  in  Union  Precinct. 

The  value  on  all  productions  in  Union  County  in  1870  was 
$116,425  in  Anna  Precinct;  $215,080  in  Casper  Precinct;  $158,618 
in  Dongola  Precinct;  $223,911  in  Rich  Precinct;  133,040  in  Ridge 
Precinct;  $168,000  in  Stokes  Precinct;  and  $100,505  in  Union  Pre- 
cinct. It  is  interesting  to  note  that  while  Rich  Precinct  was  settled 
later  than  any  other  section  of  the  county,  the  value  of  its  products 
surpassed  all  other  parts  of  the  county.  It  was  during  the  period 
of  1875  to  1910  that  the  Rich  family  accumulated  the  wealth  that 
made  them  at  one  time  one  of  the  wealthiest  families  in  the  county. 
Much  lumber  was  sold  from  this  section  of  the  county. 

Of  the  164,738  acres  of  farmland  in  Union  County  in  1870, 
75,832  acres  was  improved,  83,606  acres  was  woodland  and  5,300 
acres  was  unimproved.  These  figures  do  not  include  the  land  which 
still  belonged  to  the  government. 

The  farms  had  a  total  cash  value  of  $3,383,201,  with  $183,- 
457  worth  of  farm  implements  and  machinery.  Total  farm  labor 
wages  paid  in  1870  was  $133,472  including  value  of  board. 

There  were  1,986  farms,  3  under  3  acres;  237  over  3  and 
under  10;  494  over  10  and  under  20;  804  over  20  and  under  50; 
318  over  50  and  under  100,  and  130  over  100  and  under  500  acres. 
The  average  size  of  farms  was  100  acres. 

In  1880  the  picture  had  changed  a  little.  There  were  1673 
farms,  19  under  10  acres  of  which  12  were  cultivated  by  the  owner, 
two  rented  for  a  fixed  money  rental  and  five  used  by  share  croppers. 
Of  the  40  farms  of  over  10  acres  and  less  than  40,  22  were  culti- 
vated by  the  owner,  two  by  renters  and  16  by  share  croppers.  Of 
the  528  farms  of  over  20  acres  and  less  than  50,  370  were  cultivat- 
ed by  the  owner,  23  by  renters  and  155  by  share  croppers.  Of  the 
487  of  over  50  acres  and  less  than  100  acres,  370  were  cultivated 
by  the  owners,  12  by  renters  and  105  by  share  croppers.  Of  the 
680  farms  over  100  acres  and  less  than   500,  446  were  cultivated 

—82— 


by  the  owners,  seven  by  renters,  and  113  by  share  croppers.  Of 
the  eight  farms  of  over  500  acres  and  less  than  1000  acres,  six 
were  cultivated  by  the  owner  and  two  by  share  croppers  and  of 
the  five  over  1000  acres,  three  were  cultivated  by  owners  and  two 
by  share  croppers. 

By  1919  when  all  the  land  had  been  settled  the  picture  of 
farming  changed  somewhat.  In  1919,  217,765  acres  were  farmland; 
in  1924,  206,741  acres  were  farmland;  in  1929,  200,672  acres  were 
farmland,  and  in  1934,  208,184  acres  were  farmland.  In  1924, 
111,283  acres  of  the  land  was  cropland,  of  which  84,384  was  har- 
vested leaving  26,899  acres  idle.  In  1929  of  the  105,283  acres  of 
cropland,  68,374  was  harvested  leaving  36,919  acres  idle,  and  in 
1934,  of  the  108,386  acres  of  cropland,  82,610  acres  were  harvested, 
leaving  26,776  acres  idle.  It  has  always  been  necessary  to  rotate 
crops  and  leave  part  of  the  crop  land  idle  each  year  to  build  up 
the  fertility  of  the  soil. 

43,948  acres  of  land  was  in  pasture  in  1924,  68,374  in  1929 
and  82,610  in  1934.  In  1924,  26,320  acres  of  the  43,948  was  plow- 
able,  10,171  acres  was  woodland  and  7,457  acres  was  ordinary  pas- 
tureland.  That  same  year  there  was  28,954  acres  of  woodland 
and  22,556  acres  of  other  land  not  suitable  for  pasture  or  cultiva- 
tion. 

In  1929,  of  the  68,  374  acres  of  pasture  land,  20,826  was 
plowable,  16,390  was  woodland,  and  7,105  acres,  ordinary  pasture- 
land  and  22,162  acres  of  other  land  which  was  neither  usable  for 
pasture  nor  cultivation. 

In  1934  of  the  52,895  acres  of  pastureland,  17,141  acres  were 
plowable,  10,141  were  woodland  and  17,589  acres  ordinary  pasture- 
land.  There  was  also  28,850  acres  of  woodland  and  18,053  of 
other  land  not  suitable  for  pasture   nor  cultivation. 

Of  the  208,184  acres  of  farms  in  Union  County  in  1930, 
58.2%  were  cultivated  by  the  owner,  3.5  %  by  a  paid  manager, 
3.7%  by  a  renter  and  34.6%  by  a  share  cropper.  On  22%  of  the 
farms  the  renter  or  share  cropper  was  related  to  the  owner.  The 
average  value  of  a  Union  County  farm  in  1930  was  $5,063:  $3,308 
land  value,  $1,755  value  of  buildings  and  $1,000  value  of  dwelling. 
These  values  are  higher  than  those  in  the  surrounding  counties  with 
the  exception  of  Jackson  and  Alexander  counties. 

In  1930,  35.1%  of  the  farmland  in  Union  County  was  mort- 
gaged. The  average  debt  was  $1,693  or  about  one-fourth  the  value 
of  the  farm.  The  mortgages  averaged  $15  per  acre.  An  average 
interest  rate  of  6.9%  was  paid  and  an  average  of  75  cents  per  acre 
tax  was  paid  in  1929. 

In  1930  there  were  1,222  farmers  owning  automobiles,  286 
owning   motor  trucks  and   337   owning  tractors. 

In  1929,  14.2%  of  the  land  in  Union  County  produced  corn, 
4.8%  produced  winter  wheat,  1.3%  produced  spring  grains,  12.3% 
produced  hay,  and  13.1%  produced  other  crops.  29.6%  of  the 
farmland  was  pastureland  and  24.7%   was  idle,  fallow  or  failed  to 

—83— 


produce.     The  percentage  of  failure  was  higher  than  usual  in   19291 
because  of  weather  conditions. 

The  following  table  shows: 
Ten-Year  Average   Crop  Yields    (1924-1933)    and   Crop  Yield   Index 

Corn,  bushel,  per  acre  30.0 

Oats,   bushel,   per  acre   25.6 

Winter  Wheat,  bushel,  per  acre  15.2 

Spring  Wheat,  bushel,  per  acre   15.0 

Barley,  bushel,  per  acre  29.0 

Rye,  bushel,  per  acre  10.9- 

Soybeans,  bushel,  per  acre  12.4 

Tane  hay,  bushel,  per  acre  1.18 

*  Crop  yield  index  87.0% 

The  crop  yield  index  means  that  Union  County  produced 
IS^e    less  than  the-  average  crop  yield  for  the   State  of  Illinois. 

The  following  table  shows:  Percentage  of  Farms  of  Specified 
Types  in  Union  County  in  1929: 

General  41.4;  Cash  Grain  5.3;  Crop  Specialty  3.1;  Fruit  12.3? 
Truck  11.0;  Dairy  7.1;  Animal  Specialty  3.7;  Poultry  .7;  Self- 
sufficing  11.5;  part  time  3.4;  others  .5. 

Between  the  years  1924  and  1934  there  was  an  acreage  of 
25,160  acres  of  corn  raised  in  Union  County;  7,678  acres  of  winter 
wheat;  2  acres  of  spring  wheat;  15  acres  of  barley;  2400  acres  of 
oats;  23,770  acres  of  tame  hay;  454  acres  of  soybeans;  1,184  of 
alfalfa  and  735  acres  of  sweet  clover  seeded. 

During  the  same  period  there  was  an  average  of  10,137 
cattle  on  the  farms  of  Union  County;  4,969  milk  cows;  15,715  hogs; 
1,601  sheep  and  6,173  mules.  Livestock  production  in  the  County 
in  1929  were:  gallons  of  milk,  1,903,898  with  117,838  gallons  sold, 
2,258  gallons  of  cream  sold,  and  414,513  pounds  of  cream  sold  as 
butterfat.  The  total  value  of  dairy  products  sold  was  $213,188. 
Poultry  products  were  160,113  chickens  raised  and  76,028  sold; 
482,399  dozens  of  eggs  produced  and  303,271  dozens  of  eggs  sold. 
Chickens  and  eggs  produced  were  valued  at  $266,365,  and  $150,300 
worth  of  them  were  sold.  32,859  baby  chicks  were  bought  from 
hatcheries  in  1929.  7,274  pounds  of  wool  and  7,860  pounds  of 
honey  were  produced  the  same  year. 

Commodity  prices  in  1934  were:  apples,  per  bushel,  $1.33; 
barley,  66^c  per  bushel;  beef  cattle,  $5.10  per  100  pounds;  butter- 
fat,  22a/£c  per  pound;  chickens,  ll^c  per  pound;  red  clover  seed, 
$8.57  per  bushel;  corn,  58c  per  bushel;  eggs,  17.1c  per  dozen;  hay, 
$11.58  per  ton;  hogs,  $4.38  per  100  pounds;  horses,  $86.30  per  head; 
lambs,  $6.66  per  100  pounds;  milk  cows,  $35,17  per  head;  oats, 
39c  per  bushel;  potatoes,  $1.00  per  bushel;  rye,  65c  per  bushel; 
sheep,  $2.88  per  100  pounds;  soybeans,  $1.00  per  bushel;  veal  calves, 
$5.46  per  100  pounds;  wheat,  85c  per  bushel,  and  wool,  21c  per 
pound. 

The  ten  year  crop  yield  average  for  1924-1933  in  Union 
County  was   30   bushels   of   corn   per   acre;    25.6    bushels   per   acre; 

—84— 


15.2  bushels  of  winter  wheat  per  acre;  15  bushels  of  spring  wheat 
per  acre;  29  bushels  of  barley  per  acre;  10.9  bushels  of  rye  per 
acre;  12.4  bushels  of  soybeans  per  acre,  and  1.13  tons  of  hay  peF 
acre. 

The  following  statistics  compiled  by  the  State  Board  of  Agri- 
culture show  the  following  facts  to  have  been  true  in  this  county  in 
1880:  19,941  acres  in  the  county  produced  698,256  bushels  of  corn? 
26,081  acres  produced  287,999  bushels  of  wheat;  102  acres  pro- 
duced 643  bushels  of  spring  wheat;  4,056  acres  produced  51,927 
bushels  of  oats;  1,825  acres  produced  1,214  tons  of  Timothy  hay;. 
4,046  acres  produced  5,265  tons  of  clover  hay;  3,800  acres  produced 
149,591  bushels  of  apples;  543  acres  produced  48,690  bushels  of 
peaches;  142  acres  produced  3,904  bushels  of  pears;  2,573  acres  of 
other  fruits  and  berries  produced  $56,040  worth  of  products. 

At  that  time  there  were  4,164  acres  in  the  county  in  pasture, 
31,865  acres  in  woodland  and  3,216  acres  uncultivated.  There  were 
475  acres  in  cities  and  towns. 

In  1880  there  were  661  fat  sheep  sold  for  $342;  182  killed 
by  dogs  and  9,643  pounds  of  wool  sold.  There  were  1,899  cows  in 
the  county  and  42,169  pounds  of  butter  were  sold;  1100  gallons  of 
cream  and  5,125  gallons  of  milk  were  sold.  951  fat  "attie  were 
sold  and  2,721  fat  hogs  sold.     2,187  hogs  died  of  the  cholera  that 

year. 

Fruit  growing,  while  it  comprizes  only  12.3 'c  of  the  farm- 
ing in  the  county  is  one  of  its  leading  industries.  Union  County 
leads  the  state  in  the  production  of  peaches  saving  312,000  peach 
trees  in  1938  compared  to  307,000  in  Marion  and  Jefferson  counties- 
combined.  Illinois  ranks  as  one  of  the  leading  fruit  states  in  the 
United  States. 

The  first  shipment  of  peaches  from  this  county  to  the  north- 
ern markets  were  so  superior  that  they  attracted  great  attention, 
both  to  the  fruit  and  to  the  section  where  they  were  produced.  As 
a  natural  consequence,  the  hill  lands  of  Union  County  rapidly  rose 
in  public  estimation  and  price.  Men  of  experience  and  men  of  in- 
experience came  here  and  engaged  in  the  raising  of  fruit.  Horti- 
cultural societies  were  formed,  the  mails  brought  newspapers  and 
agricultural  periodicals,  and  the  greatest  interest  was  manifested 
in  the  new  enterprise.  The  small  and  poor  seedling  apples  were 
quickly  superceded  by  the  improved  kinds  and  every  department  of 
fruit  culture   made   rapid   progress. 

In  185S,  the  shipments  of  fruit  to  Chicago  began  to  assume 
importance.  The  earliest  fruit  grower  on  the  Cobden  range  was 
George  Snyder  who  came  there  in  1857.  He  purchased  land  one 
mile  north  of  the  Cobden  station  and  planted  apple,  pear  and  peach 
trees  as  soon  as  he  had  cleared  away  the  forest.  Allen  Bainbridge,. 
who  lived  on  Bell  Hill  was  another  prominent  fruit  grower  from 
1850  to  i860.  E.  N.  Clark  and  G.  H.  Baker  came  in  1858  to  estab- 
lish fruit  farms.  Benjamin  Vancil  started  the  first  nursery  for 
supplying  trees   of  improved   variety   and   later  James   Bell,   A.    M. 

—85— 


Lawner,  J.  A.  Carpenter  &  Co.  also  had  nurseries. 

In  1866  it  became  necessary  to  run  special  trains  daily  to 
carry  the  fruit  to  Chicago  from  this  section.  About  that  time  and 
later  George  Snyder,  J.  J.  Keith,  Jacob  Rendleman  and  H.  C.  Free- 
man were  leading  fruit  growers. 

In  1860  the  first  strawberries  were  shipped  to  Chicago.  By 
1867  the  strawberry  crop  demanded  a  fast  train  each  day  to  get  the 
berries  to  the  market  early  the  next  morning  in  Chicago.  Leading 
strawberry  growers  in  the  early  day  of  the  strawberry  in  Union 
County  were  Parker  Earle,  A.  D.  Finch,  E.  Babcock,  J.  W.  Fuller, 
S.  D.  Casper,  Caleb  Miller,  D.  H.  Rendleman,  J.  G.  Page,  S.  Martin 
and  F.  A.  Childs.  Parker  Earle  later  moved  to  Crystal  Springs, 
Miss.,  where  he  established  a  vegetable  area  similar  to  that  of  Union 

County. 

Parker  Earle  invented  the  first  refrigeration  for  shipping  ber- 
ries. It  consisted  of  a  large  crate  with  a  compartment  for  ice 
around  the  boxes  of  berries.  By  1880  the  refrigerator  car  had  been 
developed.  By  1883  cooling  houses  were  built  at  shipping  points. 
The  cooling  house  in  Anna  was  built  by  P.  Earle  and  Sons  and  the 
one  in  Cobden  by  the  Refrigerator  and  Shipping  Company. 

Early  in  the  history  of  fruit  growing  "The  Cobden  Fruit 
Grower's  Association,"  also  known  as  "The  People's  Line"  was  or- 
ganized to  facilitate  the  cheap  transportation  and  delivery  of  fruit. 
Members  of  this  organization  were  given  the  same  rate  for  one  case 
or  bushel  of  fruit  that  was  charged  for  a  carload.  Parker  Earle, 
Col.  Peebles,  James  Bell  and  a  Mr.  Spaulding  organized  this  ship- 
per's association  which  was  one  of  the  first  organized  in  the  United 
States.  The  same  organization  exists  today  (1940).  It  was  a  co- 
operative shipping  association. 

Tomatoes  were  first  raised  in  the  county  by  David  Gow  at 
Cobden  in  1858.  Later  Willis  Lamer,  E.  N.  Clark,  J.  T.  Whelpley, 
J.  Metz,  Green  and  Venerable,  A.  R.  Buckingham  and  A.  H.  Chap- 
man became  large  tomato  growers. 

Horace  Eastman  began  the  production  of  watermelons  and 
cantaloupes  in  1870.  I.  C.  Piersol,  E.  G.  Robinson,  J.  A.  Noyes,  Asa 
Harmon  and  J.  B.  Miller  became  the  leading  melon  farmers  at  Anna 
and  G.  H.  Baker  at  Cobden. 

Rhubarb,  asparagus,  spinach  and  sweet  potatoes  soon  took 
their  places  as  important  products  shipped  from  Union  County.  Amos 
Poole,  M.  A.  Benham,  A.  Buck  and  E.  Leming  and  Co.  began  the 
asparagus  raising  and  A.  Poole  was  the  first  rhubarb   shipper. 

Union  County  is  also  a  large  producer  of  truck  farming  pro- 
ducts, although  only  119c  of  our  farmers  are  engaged  in  this  type 
of  farming. 


—86— 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
THE    DRAINAGE    DISTRICT.      THE    FARM    BUREAU 

As  the  use  of  land  increased  in  Union  County  and  good  land 
became  less  and  less  available,  new  methods  of  providing  for  more 
and  better  crops  were  improvised.  In  the  "Bottoms"  three  drainage 
districts  were  organized  to  reclaim  the  land  that  was  swampy  and 
to  drain  the  numerous  small  lakes  which  existed  there. 

The  first  attempt  which  was  made  to  organized  the  citizens 
of  this  area  to  carry  out  the  above  project  failed  and  was  super- 
ceded by  another  organization.  The  second  time  the  project  was 
orgnized,  1913  to  1916,  the  plans  were  carried  through. 

Three  drainage  districts  were  established,  Preston,  Clear 
Creek  and  Miller  Pond.  Directors  of  each  district  were  elected  by 
the  land  owner.  Each  land  owner  had  so  many  votes  per  forty 
acres  so  that  a  man  owning  400  acres  was  allowed  ten  times  as 
many  votes  as  a  man  owning  40  acres.  Preston  district  which  com- 
prised 8,806.18  acres  of  land  elected  Mr.  Tom  Rixleben,  Mr.  Will 
J.  Rendleman  and  Mr.  Harry  Verble,  directors.  Clear  Creek  com- 
prising 17,313  acres,  elected  Mr.  Dan  Davie,  Mr.  James  Reynolds 
and  Mr.  Russell  Corlis,  directors,  and  Mill  Pond  which  comprised 
4200  acres  elected  Mr.  Ed  Karraker,  Mr.  Henry  Sifford  and  Mr. 
John  Lingle  directors.  The  citizens  then  petitioned  the  court  to 
recognize  these  men  as  duly  authorized  commissioners  to  represent 
the  land  owners  of  their  respective  districts  in  all  business  trans- 
actions. 

Part  of  the  minutes  of  the  meeting  petitioning  the  court  were 
as  follows:  "The  lands  aforementioned,  lying  within  the  boundaries 
and  comprising  the  territory  hereinafter  mentioned  and  described, 
are  exceedingly  fertile  and  productive  in  character  and  thereby  are 
well  adapted  to  all  purposes  of  agriculture  which  can  be  employed 
and  utilized  in  this  latitude  and  locality,  nevertheless,  they  are  of 
the  character  and  description  known  as  'bottom'  lands,  are  of  gen- 
erally low  elevation  and  be  adjacent  to  the  Big  Muddy  and  Missis- 
sippi Rivers,  in  consequence  of  which  they,  to  a  large  extent,  are 
subject  to  overflow  and  inundation  from  said  streams  in  time  of 
flood,  by  reason  of  which  their  tillage  in  their  natural  unprotected 
state  is  rendered  precarious  and  cannot  be  undertaken  and  present- 
ed with  safety  or  assurances  of  ability  to  mature  and  garner  crops 
grown  therein.  Moreover,  a  large  portion  of  said  lands  are  swampy, 
covered  by  small  lakes  and  ponds  in  which  the  surplus  water  from 
floods  and  surface  water  from  rains  and  melting  snow  and  ice  col- 
lects and  remains  standing  and  stagnant  during  the  greater  or  less 
portion  of  every  year,  whereby  is  produced  noxious  weeds  and  rank 
vegetation,  which  in  decaying,  causes  vile  and  noxious  vapors,  mos- 
quitos  and  other  poisonous  and  disease  bearing  insects  also  breed 
and  thrive  because  of  stagnant  and  noxious  vegetation.  By  reason 
of  all  which  the  lands  require  a  combined  system  of  drainage  and 
protection    from    overflow,    which,    as    the    petitioners    believe    and 

—87— 


.allege,    can    be    accomplished    within   the    limits    of    reasonabh    cost 
and  expenses. 

After  the  districts  were  set  up,  taxes  of  approximately 
twenty-two  dollars  per  acre  were  levied  to  carry  on  the  project. 
This  money  was  to  be  paid  in  partial  payments  ever  a  period  of 
several  years. 

An  engineer  was  then  employed  to  survey  the  territory  and 
make  plans  for  ditches  and  levees.  Then  the  work  was  completed. 
By  this  means  approximately  30,000  acres  of  land  was  reclaimed 
for  use  in  agriculture. 

The  bonds  have  been  retired  and  the  project  has  been  suc- 
cessful in  a  way  but  the  ditches  have  not  been  maintained  as  was 
originally  planned  and  in  many  places  they  have  been  filled  by  soil 
erosion  and  growth  of  brush  until  now  there  is  need  for  another 
project  in     oil  reclamation. 

The  Federal  government  made  an  appropriation  in  1934  of 
$300,000  fur  the  repair  of  the  back  levee  along  the  Mississippi  in 
Preston  and  Clear  Creek  Districts  but  so  far  the  directors  hava  not 
petitioned  the  government  for  the  use  of  the  money  and  if  this  is 
not  done  within  a  definite  period  the  money  will  revert  to  the 
treasury. 

Some  of  the  farmers  were  forced  to  sell  their  land  in  order 
to  meet  the  cost  of  the  drainage  project  but  in  most  instances  this 
was  due  to  the  fact  that  the  land  was  heavily  encumbered  before 
the  assessment  for  drainage  was  made. 

Three  destructive  floods  occurred,  1922,  1925,  and  1927, 
which  broke  the  levee  and  did  much  damage  to  the  land.  Much  sipe 
water  soaks  through  under  the  levee  when  the  river  is  high  which 
still  prevents  the  use  of  some  of  the  land. 

The  present  commissioners  of  the  district  are:  Preston,  Mr. 
Tom  Eixleben,  Mr.  W.  J.  Rendleman  and  Mr.  Ralph  M.  Springs; 
Clear  Creek:  Mr.  Dan  Davie,  Mr.  James  Reynolds,  and  Mr.  Russell 
Corlis.  Mr.  John  Lingle  is  the  secretary  of  these  two  districts.  The 
commissioners  of  Miller  Pond  district  are  Mr.  Edwin  Lingle,  Mr. 
Ed  Karraker  and  Mr.  A.  M.  Wilson  and  Mr.  Perl  Zwahlen  is  secre- 
tary. 

In  1917  the  Farm  Bureau  was  organized  to  help  the  farmer 
take  advantage  of  the  benefits  in  education  and  other  constructive 
projects  carried  on  by  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture 
through  the  University  of  Illinois.  Part  of  the  expenses  of  the 
bureau  was  to  be  paid  by  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and  the 
remainder  the  fees  collected  for  membership  in  the  county.  Exten- 
sion work  was  put  into  the  county  with  the  understanding  that  a 
farm  adviser  would  be  appointed. 

The  first  meeting  of  a  temporary  organization  was  held 
October  19,  1917.  It  was  known  as  the  Union  County  Improvement 
Association  and  the  officers  elected  were:  Charles  Ware,  president; 
Claude  Rich,  vice-president;  L.  G.  Richardson,  secretary  and  Rooney 
Dillow,  treasurer. 

—88— 


The  first  meeting  of  the  permanent  and  present  organization 
was  held  March  1,  1918.  This  organization  became  known  as  the 
.Farm  Bureau  of  Union  County.  The  officers  elected  were:  A.  A. 
Fasig,  president;  Claude  Rich,  vice-president;  L.  G.  Richardson, 
secretary;  and  Clyde  Harris,  treasurer;  with  C.  F.  Keist,  E.  B. 
Walton,  0.  J.  Penninger,  L.  L.  Casper  and  W.  W.  Davie  serving 
on  the  executive  committee. 

The  present  board  is  made  up  of  Ernest  Vincent,  president; 
Ralph  Williams,  vice-president;  Charles  Eddleman,  secretary  and 
treasurer,  and  Ray  Guthrie,  Ed  Wiggs,  N.  M.  Gurley,  T.  D.  Dillow, 
Ernest  Newbold,  0.  H.  Clutts,  Mark  Otrich,  Elbert  Miller,  D.  L. 
Miller  and  Ike  Knight  serving  as  directors. 

The  first  farm  adviser,  Mr.  C.  E.  Durst  came  to  Union  County 
early  in  1920.  In  June,  1920,  he  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Doerschuk, 
who  remained  until  February  15,  1923.  Mr.  E.  A.  Bierbaum,  the 
present  adviser  worked  with  Mr.  Doerschuk  as  assistant  adviser  in 
1921.  Mr.  Foote  became  adviser  in  February,  1923  and  was  fol- 
lowed by  Mr.  Fager  in  April,  1925.  He  was  followed  by  Mr.  Brock, 
June  4,  1927  and  in  1929  Mr.  Bierbaum  returned,  this  time  as  ad- 
viser and  has  remained  since  that  time. 

The  Parm  Bureau  was  primarily  organized  as  a  farm  organ- 
ization to  sponsor  agriculture  extension  work  in  the  county  but  since 
the  time  of  organization  it  has  taken  under  its  super?'  rion  other 
Activities.  The  Farm  Bureau  now  acts  as  liason  betw**_i  the  acti- 
vities of  the  Illinois  Agricultural  Association.  From  year  to  year 
new  activities  have  developed  in  this  organization  and  have  become 
available  to  the  local  unit.  Under  the  educational  activities  of  the 
I.  A.  A.  comes  the  Information  and  Publicity  Department,  which 
keeps  the  membership  informed  by  means  of  I.  A.  A.  records  and 
news  releases.  This  was  established  in  1919.  Next  comes  the  Cor- 
porate Secretary  who  is  responsible  for  the  corporate  records  of  the 
I.  A.  A.  and  affiliates.  Under  the  Corporate  Secretary  comes  the 
Department  of  Safety,  established  in  1935  to  encourage  farm,  home 
and  highway  safety,  and  the  Department  of  Soil  Improvement,  estab- 
lished in  1937  to  encourage  and  develop  soil  building,  and  the  De- 
partment of  Office  Management  which  supervises  300   employees. 

The  third  department  of  the  I.  A.  A.  is  the  Treasury  which 
is  responsible  for  the  funds  of  the  I.  A.  A.  and  nine  affiliates. 
Within  the  department  is  the  Assistant  Treasurer  whose  respon- 
sibility is  to  supervise  all  investments  for  the  I.  A.  A.  and  affiliates, 
•established  in  1935.  Next  comes  the  comptroller,  which  supervises 
budgets  and  accounting  for  the  I.  A.  A.  and  affiliates.  This  was 
established  in  1927  when  the  organization  had  developed  into  a  large 
corporation. 

The  fifth  department  is  that  of  Field  Secretary  Mch  main- 
tains organization  relations  with  farm  bureaus  and  affJ.  -  es.  Within 
this  department  are  the  department  of  organization,  e.tcblished  in 
1919  to  assist  with  membership  acquisition  and  maintenance;  the  de- 
partment of  young  people's  activities,  established  in  1936  to  develop 

—89— 


future  leadership;  the  department  of  grain  marketing,  established  in-. 
1920  to  develop  cooperative  grain  marketing;  the  department  of  pro- 
duce of  cream  marketing,  established  in  1921  to  develop  crop  pro- 
duce and  cream  marketing;  the  department  of  livestock  marketing 
established  in  1920  to  develop  cooperative  livestock  marketing;  the 
department  of  fruit  and  vegetable  marketing,  established  in  1921 
to  develop  cooperative  fruit  and  vegetable  marketing;  the  depart- 
ment of  milk  marketing,  established  in  1920  to  develop  cooperative 
milk  marketing. 

The  sixth  department  of  the  I.  A.  A.  is  the  Field  Service 
established  in  1937  to  assist  county  Farm  Bureaus  with  special  pro- 
jects. Next  comes  the  Department  of  General  Counsel  established 
in  1921  as  legal  adviser.  Under  the  Department  of  General  Coun- 
sel comes  the  Legal  Department,  established  in  1919  to  give  legal" 
service  to  the  organization  and  its  affiliates,  and  the  Transportation 
Department,  established  in  1919,  which  oversees  transportation  and 
utility  matters. 

The  Taxation  and  Statistics  Department,  established  in  1921, 
handles  tax  problems  and  economic  studies. 

Organizations  which  have  become  corporations  growing  out 
of  I.  A.  A.  activities  are  the  Illinois  Agricultural  Service  Company, 
which  provides  management  service  for  affiliated  companies  respon- 
sible to  the  respective  boards  of  directors  including:  (1)  The  Illinois 
Farm  Supply  Company,  established  in  1927,  which  serves  138  farnt 
cooperatives  and  paid  dividends  of  $1,418,800  in  1938;  (2)  the  Illi- 
nois Farm  Bureau  Service  Association,  established  in  1924,  which 
serves  87  county  Farm  Bureaus  and  paid  dividends  of  §62,000  in 
1938;  (3)  the  Illinois  Agricultural  Auditing  Association,  established' 
in  1924  which  provided  470  audits  at  cost  for  353  cooperatives  in 
1938;  (4)  the  Illinois  Grain  Corporation,  established  in  1930,  a 
statewide  marketing  cooperative  for  local  elevators;  (5)  the  Illinois 
Producer's  Creameries  established  in  1930,  having  nine  member 
creameries  which  produced  7,000,000  pounds  of  butter  in  1938;  (6) 
the  Illinois  Livestock  Marketing  Association,  a  statewide  agency  for 
cooperative  livestock  marketing,  established  in  1931;  (7)  the  Coun- 
try Life  Insurance  Company  established  in  1928  which  is  a  company 
having  83,000  policies  with  a  value  of  $133,000,000  in  force;  (8) 
the  Illinois  Agricultural  Holding  Company  which  holds  all  capital1 
stock  of  the  Country  Life  Insurance  Company;  (9)  the  Illinois 
Agricultural  Mutual  Insurance  Company  which  has  80,000  policies 
of  auto  employer's  liability,  accident  and  4-H  Calf  Club;  (10)  the 
Farmer's  Mutual  Reinsurance  Company  which  has  in  force  $231,- 
000,000  worth  of  fire,  wind  and  hail  insurance  policies. 

A  second  affiliated  organization  is  the  Illinois  Fruit  Growers 
Exchange  established  in  1921.  Through  this  fruits  and  vegetables 
were  marketed  in  18  states  and  Canada  during  1938.  Another 
agency  is  the  Illinois  Milk  Producer's  Association  with  23  members 
doing  cooperative  marketing  of  $3,700,600  worth  of  milk  annually. 

Through  the  Farm   Bureau  all  the  above  services   are   avail- 
—90— 


able  to  its  members. 

The  Farm  Bureau  also  works  with  the  Farm  Security  Ad- 
ministration, the  Soil  Conservation  Administration  and  the  Farm 
Credit  Association,  three  departments  of  the  Federal  government 
i  which  loans  or  grants  money  to  the  farmer.  The  farm  security 
administration  will  be  discussed  in  a  later  chapter  on  Relief  in 
Union  County. 

Soil  Conservation  is  a  large  program  in  this  county.  It  is 
organized  under  the  Conservation  and  Domestic  Allotment  Act 
passed  by  the  Federal  government  in  1936  and  revised  in  1938.  Its 
purpose  is  (1)  to  conserve  the  natural  resources  of  the  soil,  (2) 
control  production,  and  (3)  help  the  farmer  obtain  his  fair  share  of 
the  national  income. 

The  first  program  of  this  type  was  established  in  1933  and 
was  known  as  the  corn-hog-wheat  program  and  its  purpose  was  to 
pay  the  farmer's  benefits  for  reducing  hog  and  corn  production  to 
get  rid  of  surpluses,  to  stabilize  the  market  and  to  increase  the 
price.  This  program  was  declared  unconstitutional  by  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States.  The  committee  which  supervised  the 
corn-hog-wheat  program  were  Charles  Eddleman,  Odie  Bridgeman, 
John  Orr,  J.  R.  Montgomery,  Guy  Johnson  and  Fred  Dillow. 

The  first  committee  administering  the  soil  conservation  pro- 
gram was  J.  R.  Montgomery,  chairman,  Dan  Davie,  vice-chairman 
.  and  secretary,  and  L.  L.  Flamm.  The  present  committee  is  Dan 
Davie,  chairman,  L.  L.  Flamm,  vice-chairman,  P.  D.  Dillow  and 
Elaine  Rushing,  secretary,  treasurer  and  office  manager.  This  com- 
mittee distributes  the  allotments  paid  by  the  Federal  government 
'  to  the  farmers  for  conforming  to  the  program  of  soil  conservation. 


—91— 


CHAPTER  XXV 

THE  CITY  MARKETS  OF  COBDEN  AND  ANNA 
THE  HORSE  AND  MULE  MARKET 

As  agriculture  developed  and  as  new  modes  of  transportation, 
became  available,  the  shipper's  association  and  various  civic  and. 
farmer  groups  became  interested  in  developing  new  modes  of  mar- 
keting produce. 

As  long  as  only  rail  and  water  transportation  was  available 
for  shipping,  produce  was  sent  to  distributing  centers  such  as  Chi- 
cago, Memphis,  New  Orleans,  etc.  Brokers  had  headquarters  in 
these  centers  and  bought  most  of  the  produce  which  came  in  to 
sell  to  th<™  retailers  in  various  parts  of  the  country.  The  farmer 
paid  for  the  packing  and  shipping  of  the  produce  to  these  centers 
and  frequently  when  there  was  a  market  break  the  additional  loss 
of  these  handling  charges  served  a  hardship  on  the   farmer. 

With  the  advent  of  hard  roads  and  trucks  the  picture  of 
marketing  changed. 

In  Anna,  in  1934,  a  Municipal  Market  was  constructed  where- 
the  farmers  could  bring  their  produce  to  be  sold  directly  to  brokers 
or  other  buyers.  This  project  was  the  result  of  efforts  of  the  Union 
County  Farm  Bureau  to  provide  a  place  for  cooperative  marketing. 
The  Anna  Chamber  of  Commerce  became  interested  and  donated 
$2,000  toward  the  construction  of  the  market.  The  City  of  Anna 
donated  $500,  and  $17,500  was  obtained  from  the  Civil  Works  Ad- 
ministration, making  a  total  of  $19,800.  The  $2500  provided  most 
of  the  material  used  and  the  C.  W.  A.  allowance  provided  for  the 
labor  and  part  of  the  material. 

The  following  is  a  report  of  the  committee  in  charge  of  the 
building  of  the  market: 

"At  a  cost  of  approximately  $20,000,  Anna  constructed  for 
the  farmers  of  Southern  Illinois,  a  market  place  that  is  second  to 
none.  The  facilities  offer  to  the  producer  an  excellent  and  orderly 
method  of  disposing  of  his  fruits  or  vegetables  in   season. 

"The  market  fills  a  long  needed  facility,"  says  Mr.  J.  L. 
Fuller,  one  of  the  older  and  more  experienced  fruit  growers  of  the' 
community,  "a  facility  that  offers  direct  selling  with  car  loading 
and  truck  loading  platforms  and  a  fruit  and  vegetable  shipping: 
association  which  makes  the  way  of  disposing  of  products  varied 
and  many  enough  to  suit  the  most  particular  seller  or  buyer." 

With  $3,500  for  materials  and  a  substantially  larger  amount 
for  labor  in  construction  the  community  offers  ideal  surroundings 
for  fair  dealings  between  buyer  and  seller. 

Early  in  the  development  of  the  project  a  small  committee 
of  Farm  Brr  au  members  met  with  their  Farm  Adviser  and  worked 
out  skeletc*  :ed  plans  for  the  project  but  due  to  lack  of  ready 
capital,  w*^  lot  able  to  have  the  project  put  under  way  with  farm- 
er owned  c„A-tal.  When  the  C.  W.  A.  developed,  the  project  merit- 

—92— 


ed  consideration  by  that  administration  and  with  funds  from  that 
source,  later  funds  furnished  by  the  Anna  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
the  project  was  completed  and  made  ready  for  operation  May  15, 
1934. 

Under  the  able  management  of  Mr.  Woodward,  who  had 
twelve  years  of  experience  in  similar  market  facilities  at  Benton 
Harbor,  Michigan,  the  project  has  proceeded  with  surprising  success. 

The  actual  operation  of  the  market  is  under  the  direction  of 
a  market  commission  consisting  of  Mr.  J.  L.  Fuller,  Mr.  P.  M.  West 
and  Mr.  R.  L.  Shannon. 

The  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  seeing  the  advantage  of  such 
facilities  to  the  growers  of  the  territory  spent  some  $8,000  in  im- 
proving their  car  loading  facilities  adjacent  to  the  market. 

In  short,  the  market  offers  ideal  opportunity  to  all  fruit  and 
vegetable  growers  of  Southern  Illinois  to  dispose  of  produce  on  an 
F.  0.  B.  basis. 

The  market  employs  a  market  master  and  checker.  The  local 
farmer  is  charged  10c  per  load  for  what  he  sells  in  the  market. 
If  a  man  comes  from  another  state  to  sell  his  produce  he  is  charged 
one  dollar  per  load. 

Several  brokers  and  buyers  pay  $50.00  per  year  for  stalls 
where  they  operate  their  business  and  day  buyers  pay  $1.00  per  day 
for  the  use  of  the  market  facilities. 

In  cooperation  with  the  market,  the  City  of  Anna  passed  an 
ordinance  prohibiting  house  to  house  peddling  so  that  all  produce 
can  be  sold  thru  the  regular  market  channels. 

The  project  has  been  self-supporting  and  a  small  surplus  has 
been  accumulated. 

The  Cobden  market,  called  the  People's  Fruit  and  Vegetable 
Shipper's  Association  was  built  by  the  shippers  of  Cobden  and 
donations  solicited  from  other  residents. 

This  market  was  built  at  a  cost  of  $10,000  in  1935.  It  is 
maintained  for  approximately  $150  per  year.  It  serves  the  same 
purpose  that  the   Anna  market  serves. 

Mr.  Melvin  Caraker  is  manager  of  the  People's  Fruit  and 
Vegetable  Shipper's  Association  and  Mr.  Frank  A.  Rendleman  is 
manager  of  the  market.  They  work  together  at  the  market  Fees 
are  charged  if  the  market  sells  produce  for  the  farmer  but  any  farm- 
er is  allowed  to  sell  his  own  produce  there  free  of  charge. 

These  markets  in  strawberry  and  peach  marketing  seasons 
are  interesting  spectacles.  Almost  any  market  day  through  the  sum- 
mer finds  them  busy  but  these  two  seasons  find  them  especially  so. 
Both  towns  are  over-run  with  trucks  at  these  times  which  bear 
license  plates  from  practically  every  state  in  the  United  States. 

Another  interesting  market  in  Union  County  is  the  W.  H. 
Bishop  Horse  and  Mule  Auction.  This  market  is  not  the  result  of 
the  expansion  of  horse  and  mule  raising  in  the  county  but  it  could 
well    be    the    cause    of    the    development    of   the    industry    especially 

—93— 


since  so  much  of  the  Union  County  land  is  more  adapted  to  pasture 
than  to  crop  raising. 

The  Bishop  Auction  is  rather,  the  result  of  the  long  exper- 
_snce  Mr.  W.  H.  Bishop  has  had  in  the  marketing  of  horses  and 
mules.  He  felt  that  such  an  enterprise  would  be  a  paying  business 
so  he  invested  his  own  capital  of  several  thousand  dollars  in  the 
equipment  to  run  this  market.  He  began  in  1933  with  one  barn 
where  he  carried  on  a  retail  business  in  horses  and  mules.  By  1939 
he  had  added  two  retail  barns  and  the  large  building  housing  the 
horse  and  mule  auction,  the  office  and  lunch  room.  This  building 
is  air  conditioned,   modern   and  convenient  in  every  respect. 

This  is  the  largest  industry  in  Union  County  owned  and 
operated  by  one  individual. 

Every  Tuesday  buyers  from  all  parts  of  the  country  assemble 
to  bid  on  the  horses  and  mules  led  into  the  auction  ring.  Animals 
are  brought  from  all  parts  of  the  country  to  be  sold  here.  There 
is  established  fees  for  the  selling  of  each  animal  and  regular  fees 
are  charged  for  keeping  animals  to  be  sold. 

Assisting  Mr.  Bishop  in  his  business  are  his  brothers,  John 
and  Noble  Bishop,  his  sister,  Mrs.  Mamie  Biggs  and  his  nephew, 
Luther  Davis,  Jr.     Mr.  Harry  C.  Kearney  is  the  auctioneer. 


—94— 


f  CHAPTER  XXVI 

THE  FORESTS  OF  UNION  COUNTY 
THE  REFORESTATION  PROGRAM 

Like  all  other  parts  of  the  United  States  when  dense  forests 
prevailed  when  the  white  man  settled,  our  trees  were  cut  and 
Stumps  pulled  out  so  that  we  are  no  longer  a  heavily  wooded  area. 

In  the  beginning  the  trees  were  cut  and  small  spaces  clear- 
ed to  build  homes  and  make  available  enough  land  to  grow  the  crops 
necessary  for  family  life.  As  population  increased  more  land  was 
cleared.     Rail  fences  were  built  and  later  plank  roads.  ' 

With  the  coming  of  the  railroad  the  timber  industry  grew 
for  two  reasons,  first  the  railroad  provided  a  means  of  shipping 
the  logs  away  and  second  the  trains  burned  wood  for  fuel  and  used 
wooden  ties  and  rails,  that  is  a  wooden  rail  with  a  piece  of  steel 
nailed  to  it,  for  a  number  of  years.  Large  tracts  of  forest  land 
were  bought  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  this  demand. 

For  many  years  the  packages  in  which  our  produce  -wafB 
shipped  away  were  made  of  native  wood  but  now  we  have  onjy  twe 
package  manufacturers  operating. 

During  the  1920's  timber  sold  at  a  high  market  price  so  that 
during  that  time  much  timber  was  cut.  At  one  time  as  many  as 
as  thirty- two  saw  mills  operated  in  the  county. 

In  1929  the  price  of  lumber  was  reduced  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  timber  industry  has  been  greatly  reduced. 

It  is  the  one  large  industry  in  the  country  which  employed 
nearly  500  people  in  the  1920's  which  now  employs  less  than  100 
people. 

Aside  from  the  people  regularly  employed  in  the  various  oc- 
cupations connected  with  timber,  most  farmers  spent  their  winters 
cleaning  woodlands  and  selling  logs  and  cord  wood.  As  soon  as 
crops  were  gathered  the  hired  men  were  put  to  work  cutting  wood 
and  the  farmer  had  an  income  from  his  wood  of  from  fifty  to  five 
hundred  or  more  dollars.  Since  this  form  of  occupation  has  prac- 
tically disappeared  in  the  county,  many  farmers  do  not  employ  labor 
during  the  winter  months. 

While  our  early  homes  were  built  of  native  wood  and  saw 
mills  sold  their  products  straight  to  the  consumer  in  early  days, 
that  type  of  industry  has  disappeared.  We  now  have  our  lumber 
companies  which  are  jobbers.  They  buy  the  finished  product  from 
the  manufacturer  and  sell  to  the  builder.  The  same  change  has 
taken  place  in  the  fruit  package  industry.  All  but  two  of  our 
fruit  package  dealers  are  now  jobbers,  buying  their  packages  from 
manufacturers  and  selling  to  the  farmer.  More  paper  packages 
than  were  formerly  used  are  now  in  use. 

In  order  to  prevent  the  promiscuous  misuse  of  the  forests  and 
to  conserve  the  young  trees  and  to  preserve  forests  in  general  the 
federal  government  purchased  land  and  established  forest  preserves. 

The  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  gives  the  fol- 
—95— 


lowing  information  regarding  the  work  of  the  United  States  Forest 

Service : 

"Forest  depletion,  which  went  on  in  the  United  States  prac- 
tically unchecked  for  more  than  one  hundred  years  received  its  first 
real  curb  at  the  turn  of  the  twentieth  century. 

"The  need  for  a  conservation  policy  had  been  felt  for  a  long 
time,  but  it  was  not  until  increasing  demands  of  a  rapidly  expanding 
civilization  sharply  accelerated  the  rate  of  forest  use — and  misuse — 
and  emphasized  this  need  tremendously  that  public  opinion  called 
for  Federal  action  to  halt  the  destruction  of  the  forest  resources. 

"It  was  apparent  that  things  were  happening  to  the  forests. 
They  were  being  logged  without  thought  of  future  timber  require- 
ments; uncontrolled  fires  and  excessive  cutting  were  destroying  the 
remaining  timber,  preventing  natural  reproduction  of  trees,  and 
stripping  important  watersheds  of  their  protective  covering.  In  short, 
it  was  clear  that  the  public  itself,  through  its  Federal  Government 
should  take  steps  toward  the  proper  management  of  areas  of  great- 
est influence  upon  public  welfare  and  exert  every  effort  toward  ex- 
tension of  sound  principles  to  forest  management   and  use. 

"At  this  time  also,  it  was  evident  that  a  great  advance  had 
been  made  in  the  development  of  scientific  forestry.  Public  spirited 
citizens  wished  to  apply  this  new  knowledge  in  order  to  restore  and 
maintain  the  usefulness  of  the  country's  forest  lands. 

"During  the  15  years,  beginning  with  1890,  the  trend  toward 
public  forestry  moved  swiftly,  culminating  in  1905  with  the  creation 
sf  the  United  States  Forest  Service  in  the  Department  of  Agri- 
zulture.  The  forest  reserves,  as  national  forests  were  then  called — . 
areas  withdrawn  from  the  remaining  timbered  regions  of  the  west- 
ern public  domain — were  placed  under  the  management  of  the 
Forest  Service. 

"The  Secretary  of  Agriculture  at  that  time  commissioned  the 
Forest  Service  so  to  manage  these  Federal  properties  that  they  would 
provide  the  greatest  good  to  the  greatest  number  of  people  'in  the 
long  run.'  This  cardinal  principle  has  been  steadily  adhered  to  in 
the;r  administration  through  the  years. 

"Forestry,  as  applied  by  the  Forest  Service,  is  concerned 
with  the  perpetuation  and  development  of  forests  that  they  may 
continue  their  many  benefits  to  mankind — furnishing  wood  and  other 
products  for  man's  use;  preventing  erosion  of  soil  and  regulating 
stream  flow  and  water  supply  for  irrigation;  for  power,  for  domestic 
use,  and  for  control  of  floods;  harboring  wildlife;  providing  abund- 
ant opportunity  for  outdoor  recreation.  All  these  contribute  to 
to  what  is  perhaps  most  important  of  all — steady,  gainful  employ- 
ment for  a  sizeable  portion  of  the  country's  population,  resulting 
in  stabalized  communities. 

"Instead  of  being  handled  under  scientific  methods  as  a  crop, 
timber  is  often  'mined.'  When  forestry  is  practiced  in  timberland 
management,  the  mature  trees  are  used  as  'earned  interest,'  while 

—96— 


younger  growing  trees  are  left  intact  as  the  'capital  stock.'  The 
economic  and  soil-protective  values  represented  by  a  forest  in  a 
healthy  growing  condition   are  thus   permanently   maintained. 

Since  1905  the  area  of  the  national  forest  system  has  more 
than  doubled  and  has  been  exfended  to  the  Lake  States,  and  the 
East  and  South.  Equally  important  to  placing  this  increased  area 
under  intensive  protection  and  administration,  is  the  work  of  the 
Forest  Service  in  cooperation  with  States  and  private  timberland 
owners  in  the  operations  of  forestry,  range  management,  and  wood 
utilization;  and  the  provision  of  employment  on  a  large  scale  in 
times  of  economic  depression. 

"There  still  remains  a  vast  amount  of  forestry  work  to  be 
done  in  addition  to  managing  the  National  forests  already  establish- 
ed. Recent  studies  indicate  that  more  than  200,000,000  acres  of 
timberland  are  so  depleted,  or  so  located,  or  of  such  value  for 
public  service  that  private  management  reasonably  cannot  be  ex- 
pected to  meet  tha  requirement  of  public  interest  therein,  at  least 
not  without  undue  subsidy.  Public  acquisition  and  management  of 
these  lands,  therefore,  appears  to  be  the  most  feasable  course.  A 
fair  share  of  this  job  for  the  Federal  Government,  considering  the 
financial  ability  of  the  states,  appears  to  be  a  little  more  than  half 
of  the  entire  job. 

"Moreover,  it  becomes  increasingly  clear  that  Federal  aid 
to  State  and  private  forest  owners,  and  perhaps  some  degree  of 
regulation,  are  needed  to  meet  adequately,  the  interest  of  the  na- 
tion as  a  whole  in  the  management  of  other  forest  lands  as  well. 

"Throughout  the  forest  areas  there  is  a  large  task  of  making 
the  forests  contribute  more  fully  to  the  solution  of  the  problem  of 
rural  poverty  and  to  the  development  and  maintainance  of  a  satisfy- 
ing rural  culture.  Integration  of  forest  work  with  part-time  farming 
to  provide  an  adequate  livelihood  for  people  living  on  the  small 
farms  of  the  forest  regions  is  an  example  of  this  type  of  adjust- 
ment. 

"In  summary,  the  work  of  the  Forest  Service  is  directed 
toward  determining  and  apply  measures  for  making  our  woodlands 
and  related  wild  lands  contribute  in  fullest  degree  to  the  lives  of 
our  people  and  to  the  solution  of  various  national  problems." 


—97— 


CHAPTER  XXVII 
THE    SHAWNEE    PURCHASE— THE    C.    C.    C.    CAMP 

The  Shawnee  Purchase  which  now  includes  what  was  former- 
ly known  as  the  Illini  and  Shawnee  Purchases  was  forest  land  dut- 
chased  under  the  Clark  McNary  Act  which  provides  for  the  purchaser 
of  lands  for  watershed  protection  primarily  and  for  the  preservation 
of  natural  and  timber  resources.  The  land  was  also  purchased  in 
1933  for  the  purpose  of  making  use  of  the  recreational  possibilities, 
wild  life  and  timber  possibilities.  It  includes  most  of  the  hill  land 
in  Jackson,  Union,  Alexander,  Massac,  Hardin,  Pope,  Johnson  and 
Saline  counties.     It  comprises  a  total  of  about  794,900  acres. 

In  Union  County  the  Shawnee  Purchase  includes  the  high 
hills  in  the  north  and  west  parts  of  the  county. 

In  acquisition  of  large  blocks  of  timberland  small  acreage 
which  is  suitable  for  cultivation  or  timberland  is  often  acquired. 
This  causes  the  government  to  accumulate  a  problem  of  providing 
for  the  former  tenants  of  such  land.  In  most  instances  the  tenant 
is  glad  to  sell  to  the  government  so  he  may  move  nearer  to  a  hard 
road  or  a  town.  However,  about  twenty  tenants  have  remained  on 
the  land  in  Union  county. 

These  people  come  under  the  rehabilitation  program  of  the 
Department  of  Agriculture.  They  are  given  tenure  permits  and 
where  the  land  is  good  enough  pay  an  annual  rental  of  one  to  three 
dollars  and  fifty  cents.  Rent  of  the  buildings  amounts  to  about  ten 
dollars  per  year  and  all  buildings  remaining  on  the  land  are  repaired 
and  put  into  a  usable  condition.  If  persons  are  attempting  to  re- 
main on  land  which  is  too  poor  for  cultivation,  they  are  encouraged 
to  move  to  a  better  location.  If  the  land  is  too  poor  to  yield 
a  livelihood  the  tenants  are  assisted  by  the  government  until  they 
have  moved  to  better  ground.  The  tenants  are  required  to  work 
under  a  crop  rotation  plan. 

As  soon  as  the  land  became  the  property  of  the  government, 
foresters  examined  the  timber  marking  trees  suitable  for  timber 
now,  and  planting  new  trees  of  short  leaf  pine,  tulip  poplar  and 
black   walnut. 

The  shortest  rotation  timber  crop  production  is  black  locust 
fence  posts  which  requires  a  growing  period  of  seven  or  eight  years. 
Next  comes  pulpwood  and  next  soft  timber  which  requires  thirty 
or  thirty-five  years  to  mature. 

As  soon  as  the  trees  are  inspected  and  the  amount  of  salable 
timber  ascertained,  a  sale  is  advertised  and  individuals  make  pur- 
chases of  this  timber.  The  one  who  purchases  it  is  required  to  use 
a  method  of  selective  logging,  that  is,  he  is  allowed  only  to  cut 
trees  that  are  marked  and  they  must  be  felled  in  such  a  way  that 
younger  trees  around  them  are   protected. 

Since  government  land  is  not  taxable,  it  has  been  agreed 
that  the  county  shall  receive  25  percent  of  all  revenues  derived 
from  the  sale  of  materials  produced  on  forest  preserves  which  are 

—98— 


.given  to  the  state  to  be  distributed  to  the  county. 

The  Forest  Service  also  maintains  a  fire  protection  program. 
Approximately  thirty  or  forty  guards  are  employed  part  time  espec- 
ially during  the  fire  season  of  September  to  November  and  Febru- 
ary to  April  fifteenth.  Towermen  are  employed  during  all  seasons 
to  man  the  towers  which  overlook  the  forest  area.  A  central  dis- 
patcher is  kept  on  duty  to  relay  messages  from  the  tower  men  to 
.fire  fighters. 

The  reforestation  program  is  supposed  to  eventually  restore 
the  land  to  a  point  where  the  timber  industry  can  be  revived  and 
continued. 

Natural  resources  in  this  area  are  also  protected  and  leases 
are  made  to  prospectors  for  oil,  silica,  fluorspur  and  other  minerals, 
also  for  gravel  deposits. 

The  land  was  purchased  under  the  emergency  relief  pro- 
gram and  for  this  reason,  fourteen  Civilian  Conservation  Corps 
Camps  were  established  in  the  area  in  order  to  give  employment 
to  a  large  number  of  young  men  and  also  to  utilize  the  available 
labor  in  carying  on  the  reforestation  program. 

There  were  three  types  of  camps  in  the  area,  soil  conserva- 
tion, forest  service  and  state  forest  preserve.  The  state  and  federal 
government  cooperated  in  their  program. 

Each  camp  had  a  quota  of  200  men  with  a  supervisory  force 
of  eight  men.  The  supervisory  force  was  composed  of  a  camp 
superintendent,  a  forester,  three  foremen,  a  chief  mechanic,  an  en- 
gineer and  a  truck  trail  locater. 

Five  rangers,  members  of  the  permanent  forest  service  set- 
up were  asigned  to  each  camp.  There  was  also  a  military  force  in 
each  camp  for  the  purpose  of  maintaining  order.  This  consisted  of 
two  officers  from  the  regular  army  or  the  reserves. 

These  C.  C.  C.  Camps  provided  labor  for  soil  erosion  projects, 
for  fire  fighting  and  for  road  and  other  construction  projects  in  the 
forest  preserve. 

Three  large  recreation  facilities  were  developed,  Giant  City, 
Camp  Dixon  Springs  and  a  picnic  ground  near  Robbs,  Illinois. 

After  the  C.  C.  C.  Camps  were  diminished,  the  W.  P.  A. 
completed  the  work  that  had  been  started.  There  are  now  only 
five  camps  in  the  whole  Shawnee  Purchase  area  and  only  one  of 
these  is  in  Union  County. 

One  development  carried  on  by  the  C.  C.  C.  Camp  in  co- 
operation with  the  state  forest  preserve  was  the  building  of  a 
nursery  where  young  trees  are  grown.  These  trees  have  been  used 
by  various  programs  in  the  state,  such  as  highway  landscaping,  re- 
forestation of  forest  areas,  and  sale  to  private  concerns. 

One  of  the  largest  projects  attempted  by  this  program  is  the 
Crab  Orchard  Lake  Project  in  Williamson  County,  Union  County's 
neighbor.  This  project  is  planned  as  a  flood  control  measure  and 
-will   affect   Union    County    inasmuch    as    the    northern    part    of   the 

—99— 


county  is  a  watershed  and  some  of  our  creeks  which  overflow  each 
spring  causing  much  damage  to  our  crops  will  be  protected  by  the 
large  reservoir. 

The  permanent  improvements  made  by  the  C.  C.  C.  labor  in 
Union  County  are  landscaped  areas  in  the  Stale  Forest  Preserve, 
the  building  of  the  forest  service  headquarters  in  what  was  former- 
ly the  Jonesboro  fairground  and  the  Lodge  and  picnic  grounds  at 
Giant  City  which  is  partly  in  Union  County.  The  roads  of  these 
spots  were  also  built  by  C.  C  C.  labor. 


-  100— 


CHAPTER    XXVIII 
MANUFACTURING   AFTER    THE    CIVIL   WAR 

Manufacturing  in  Union  County  had  been  moved  from  the 
homes  to  small  individually  owned  concerns  by  the  time  the  Civil 
War  was  over.  During  the  following  forty  years  an  even  greater 
change  took  place.  Building  was  one  of  the  leading  industries  so 
that  saw  mills,  brick  kilns,  etc.,  came  into  being. 

By  this  time  flour  was  manufactured  by  steam  and  roller 
mills  and  lime  was  manufactured  from  our  large  limestone  deposits. 
To  take  care  of  the  barrelling  of  lime  and  flour,  a  cooperage  plant 
was  in  operation. 

In  1856  David  Davie  and  Daniel  Goodman  were  operating  the 
largest  and  most  extensive  mills  in  this  part  of  the  state,  The  Flora 
Temple  mills.  This  mill  changed  hands  several  times  during  the 
ensuing  years.  Other  mills  were  in  operation  during  this  period 
which  manufactured  less  than   100   barrels   of  flour  per  day. 

In  1856,  Jessie  Lentz  and  James  DeWitt  built  an  extensive 
wagon,  plow  and  repair  shop  in  Anna  where  they  manufactured  and 
repaired  wagons,  plows  and  farm  implements.  Later  on  the  Wil- 
loughby-Seger  wagon  and  repair  shop  was  in  business,  also  the 
Stokes  Company.  Since  horses  were  used  for  farm  work  these 
were  among  the  leading  businesses  of  the  county  .  In  1879,  J.  W. 
Dandridge  started  a  saddle  and  harness  factory  here.  These  busi- 
nesses were  of  great  importance  in  the  community  until  the  decade 
following  1910  when  motor  driven  vehicles  replaced  the  older  types 
of  conveyances,  etc. 

R.  B.  Stinson  carried  on  an  extensive  barrel  factory  near 
the  railroad  into  Anna  where  he  employed  30  men  and  manufactured 
50,000  barrels  per  year  and  other  packages  for  shipping  fruit  and 
vegetables.  Later  names  connected  with  box  factories  were  F.  P. 
Anderson  and  James  Wood.  At  present  three  such  factories  are 
operating  in  the  county,  the  Randall  L.  Lawrence  Box  Factory  in 
Cobden;  the  H.  A.  DuBois  Box  Mill  in  Cobden,  and  the  Fruit  Grow- 
ers Package  Company  in  Jonesboro. 

The  firm  of  Finch  and  Shick  manufactured  lime  for  com- 
mercial purposes  manufacturing  as  much  as  300  barrels  per  day. 
In  1879  Hunsaker  and  Richardson,  Edwards  and  Carmack  and  J.  E. 
Lufkin  all  had  lime  kilns. 

*^n  In  1859,  the  Kirkpatrick  Brothers  had  a  pottery  where  they 
manufactured  all  kinds  of  stoneware,  tiles,  vases,  pottery  and  fire 
brick.  There  has  never  been  a  pottery  in  Union  County  since  the 
death  of  W.  Kirkpatrick  who  was  an  artist  in  this  line  of  work.  No 
person  sufficiently  skilled  in  this  art  to  carry  on  the  work  has  come 
to  the  locality  since  that  pottery  has  gone  out  of  existence. 

M.  M.  Henderson  and  Son  began  a  cotton  gin  in  1866  but 
there  was  not  sufficient  need  for  this  plant  to  enable  it  to  stay  in 
business  so  it  was  later  changed  to  a  planing  mill. 

—101— 


From  1S65  to  1875,  F.  A.  Childs  and  Bro.  had  a  drain  tile 
factory   in   operation. 

Unlike  today  with  our  large  packing  house  centers,  the  local 
supply  of  meat  was  killed  and  cured  within  the  community.  Since 
the  Anna  State  Hospital  was  located  in  Union  County,  the  demand 
for  meat  was  large  and  the  largest  dealer  in  this  industry  was  M.  V. 
Ussery.  During  the  year  July  1881  to  July  1882,  he  slaughtered 
642  beeves,  156  sheep  and  56  hogs  and  purchased  150  dressed  hogs 
which  he  resold.  He  sold  32,000  pounds  of  hides  from  these  animals. 
While  the  same  general  industries,  namely  agriculture  and  its 
subsidiary  enterprises  still  exist  since  1900,  many  changes  in  manu- 
facturing have  come  into  being. 

With  the  use  of  more  machinery  and  less  hand  work  in 
manufacturing,  most  of  these  industries  have  become  concentrated 
into  industrial  centers  and  finished  products  shipped  into  Union 
County  to  be  sold. 

The  Green  Brick  Yard  was  probably  the  last  industry  of  its 
kind  in  the  community  and  it  was  discontinued  because  they  could 
not  manufacture  their  products  cheaply  enough  to  compete  with 
larger  manufacturers. 

As  mentioned  before,  manufacturers  of  fruit  packages  have 
become  jobbers  or  retailers  buying  their  stock  from  manufacturers 
in  other  centers. 

Packing  companies  have  moved  to  larger  places  and  meat  is 
distributed  to  local   dealers  by  these  large  companies. 

Clothing  is  bought  in  industrial  centers  by  our  retail  mer- 
chants and  the  same   is  true  of  manufactured  foods. 

The  1900  tax  lists  show  that  139  persons  were  taxed  as  manu- 
facturers of  various  products.  Of  these  only  five,  the  Defiance  Box 
Co.,  W.  P.  Messier  &  Co.,  Bruchhauser  Bros.,  T.  A.  Carlile,  and  the 
St.  Louis  Stone  and  Lime  Co.,  valued  their  machinery  at  over  $1,000. 
Modern  manufacturing  has  shown  another  change  also,  that 
of  individual  ownership  to  ownership  by  corporations  or  companies. 
The  1939  tax  list  shows  that  the  small  manufacturer  has 
completely  disappeared  in  the  county  and  only  six  manufactures 
whose  personal  property  is  assessed  at  from  $2,000  to  $35,500.  These 
are  the  Anna  Quarries,  the  Fruit  Growers  Package  Company  of 
Jonesboro,  The  Fruit  Growers  Package  Co.  of  Anna,  the  Interna- 
tional Shoe  Company,  the  Phoenix  Flour  Mills  and  the  Atlas  Powder 
Company. 

The  Anna  Quarries  has  grown  to  large  proportions  since  the 
beginning  of  the  better  road  program  in  Illinois.  It  manufactures 
crushed  rock,  lime  and  building  stone  made  from  a  very  high  grade 
of  limestone  of  which  there  is  a  large  deposit  where  the  plant  is 
located. 

While  there  were  several  mills  in  the  county  in  the  past, 
the  only  one  remaining  is  the  Phoenix  Flour  Mills.  It  is  interesting 
to  consider  that  much  flour  and  feed  is  shipped  into  Union  County 

—102— 


for  consumption  from  mills  as  far  away  as  Minneapolis  and  Kansas 
City. 

The  Atlas  Powder  Company  is  located  in  the  northwest  part 
of  the  county  near  Wolf  Lake.  It  is  located  in  this  spot  because 
of  its  isolation  rather  than  any  other  reason.  It  manufactures  ex- 
plosives used  mainly  in  mining  and  all  materials  used  in  its  products 
are  shipped  into  the  plant  to  be  mixed.  None  are  produced  locally. 
Most  of  the  people  of  the  village  of  Wolf  Lake  earn  a  livelihood  at 
this  plant  and  its  employees  are  probably  the  highest  paid  people 
in  the  county  due  to  the  hazards  of  the  work  and  the  skill  neces- 
sary to  produce  the  powder,  etc. 

The  International  Shoe  Company  is  located  in  Anna,  Illinois. 
It  was  placed  here  when  the  community  raised  funds  to  provide  a 
building  for  the  company.  Five  hundred  people  are  employed  here 
and  few  of  them  work  less  than  eleven  months  each  year.  The 
salaries  are  in  keeping  with  those  of  other  such  industries  but  it  can 
be  generally  stated  that  each  of  the  five  hundred  empolyees  earns  a 
living  wage  which  is  in  keeping  with  the  general  standard  of  living 
of  the  county.  During  1940  an  addition  to  the  factory  is  to  be  com- 
pleted which  will  employ  an  additional    150   persons. 

During  the  World  War  period  kaolin  was  taken  from  tho  Mt. 
Glen  area  in  large  quantities  and  shipped  to  users  in  other  parts  cf 
the  country.  Since  that  time  a  small  amount  of  clay  has  been  ship- 
ped away  but  now  plans  are  complete  for  a  kaolin  mill  which  will 
refine  the  clay  which  will  in  turn  be  sold  to  manufacturers  of  rubber 
tires,  pottery,  stoneware,  whitewash,  high  grade  tile,  paper  filling 
and  coating,  linoleum,  oil  cloth,  paint  of  all  kinds,  cement,  fire 
bricks,  foundries,  steel  manufacturing,  asbestos,  enameling,  and  other 
clay  products.  Large  deposits  of  the  highest  grade  of  kaolin  clay 
are  available  in  this  area  and  the  company  expects  to  install  a 
$75,000  plant  which  will  employ  about  fifty  people. 

In  1939  the  Vulcan  Heel  Co.  put  a  factory  in  Anna  which 
employs  an  average  of  seventy-five  persons  annually  in  much  the 
same  manner  the  International  Shoe  Company  employs  its  help. 

There  are  still  natural  resources  in  the  county  which  are  not 
in  use  such  as  silica,  fluorspar,  possibly  oil  and  many  building 
materials. 


—  1  (!.'{  — 


CHAPTER  XXIX 
THE   HISTORY  OF  EDUCATION   IN   UNION   COUNTY 

The  early  development  of  schools  has  been  discussed  in  a 
previous    chapter. 

There  is  no  record  available  in  Union  County  showing  just 
when  public  schools  became  prevalent  in  the  County.  The  "Jones- 
boro  Gazette"  published  an  article  advocating  improving  public 
schools  in  1850  but  it  is  definitely  known  that  private  schools  and 
subscription  schools  were  in  existence  even  after  1900. 

In  1866,  53  teacher's  certificates  were  recorded  in  the  County 
records.  They  were  for  Sarilda  Houser,  D.  E.  Gallegly,  Mary  A. 
Anderson,  William  G.  Riser,  Elizabeth  F.  Sams,  John  A.  Treese, 
Solomon  R.  Turney,  John  Mowery,  Amanda  McElfresh,  William  C. 
Lence,  Samantha  Rich,  Francis  Marion  Reed,  James  P.  Baggott, 
W.  C.  Moreland,  Thomas  W.  Ferril,  Thomas  J.  Plater,  Luella  Barlow, 
Olive  Love,  L.  T.  Linnell,  E.  Caveness,  John  W.  Tracy,  Hezekiah  A. 
Jones,  W.  S.  Day,  P.  S.  Vancil,  Albert  C.  Rossiter,  Thomas  L. 
Bailey,  Wilson  Brown,  Kate  King,  Lafayette  Corgan,  Edward  Lipe, 
Benjamin  Babcock,  O.  P.  Hill,  Came  Mitchell,  Maggie  E.  Doyle, 
W.  P.  Jones,  John  H.  Horine,  Augusta  E.  Swain,  Eva  Kratzinger, 
C.  W.  Collins,  Ellen  E.  Dodson,  John  S.  Millikin,  Maggie  Clark, 
Laura  Walker,  John  F.  Little,  P.  M.  Hagler,  George  B.  Boomer, 
James  B.  Roberts,  Lecher  Lott,  George  Barringer,  Elijah  Miller,  R. 
T.  Rines,  E.  P.  Harris  and  Joseph  A.  Coker. 

These  people  were  listed  as  being  natives  of  almost  all  parts 
of  the  United  States  so  that  the  school  children  of  Union  County 
were  getting  a  varied  type  of  culture. 

The  earliest  annual  school  report  available,  that  of  the  school 
year  1886  and  1887  showed  that  6645  children  in  the  county  be- 
tween the  ages  of  six  and  twenty-one,  5492  were  enrolled  in  public 
schools.  There  were  70  ungraded  schools  and  8  graded  schools  at 
that  time  and  131  teachers.  There  were  two  brick  school  building, 
65  frame  buildings  and  10  log  buildings  in  use  that  year  for  school 
houses.  Twelve  were  built  during  the  year.  The  average  wage  of 
the  male  teachers  was  $48  per  month  and  that  of  female  teachers 
was  $31  per  month. 

Taxes  amounting  to  $22,896.39  were  levied  for  school  pur- 
poses and  school  property  was  valued  at  $61,780.00  with  $365  in- 
vested in  libraries  and  $15.99  in  school  apparatus. 

The  school  district  treasurers  that  year  were  W.  S.  Gallegly, 
Lick  Creek;  J.  H.  Boswell,  Mt.  Pleasant;  W.  W.  Karraker,  Dongola; 
A.  J.  Miller,  Cobden;  M.  V.  Eaves,  Anna;  Jasper  A.  Dillow,  Don- 
gola; Napoleon  B.  Collins,  Alto  Pass;  Fred  W.  Metzger.  Jonesboro; 
Levi  A.  Dillow,  Springville;  Calvin  A.  Smith,  Cobden;  Arthur  A. 
Brown,  Jonesboro;  O.  P.  Baggott,  Jonesboro;  and  John  Wilkins, 
Grand  Tower. 

In  1900,  of  7801  people  between  the  ages  of  six  and  twenty- 
one,  5512  were  enrolled  in  the  public  schools.  At  that  time  the 
length  of  he  school  year  had  been  extended  to  six  months  or  more 
and  there  was  only  one  school  in  the  County  which  was  in  session 

—104— 


for  a  shorter  period  of  time.  There  were  67  ungraded  schools  and 
10  graded  schools  in  the  county.  There  were  three  high  schools 
established  by  that  time.  Four  of  the  school  buildings  were  brick, 
seventy-three  were  frame  and  one  was  log.  Only  one  new  building 
was  erected  during  that  year. 

There  were  two  private  schools,  Union  Academy  and  the 
parochial  school  in  Cobden  having  92  pupils  and  five  teachers  in 
the  county  in   1900. 

In  the  public  schools  there  were  112  teachers,  the  highest 
salaried  man  being  paid  $100  per  month.  The  lowest  salaried  man 
was  paid  $25,  the  highest  salaried  woman,  $40  per  month  and  the 
lowest  salaried  woman  $20  per  month. 

Teachers  who  had  graduated  from  the  Southern  Illinois 
Normal  University  were  Daniel  B.  Fager,  Joseph  Gray,  Mattie  O. 
Alexander,  Henry  W.  Karraker  and  Maggie  Bryden.  Teachers  who 
were  teaching  but  still  attending  the  Normal  were  W.  A.  Wall, 
Taylor  Dodd  and  Thomas  J.  Anderson.  The  other  teachers  had 
not  attended  college  but  had  obtained  their  certificate  by  examina- 
tion. 

The  tax  levy  for  school  purposes  in  1900  was  $35,277.25  as 
compared  with  $22,896.39  in  1866.  The  value  of  school  property 
had  increased  to  $80,080  with  $931.80  invested  in  libraries  and 
$"4374  in  apparatus.     The  fonded  indebtedness  was  $11,790. 

There  were  three  four  year  high  schools  in  the  county,  one 
supervised  by  Anson  L.  Bliss,  an  eight  month  school,  where  the 
teachers  were  paid  an  average  wage  of  $40.83  per  month  and  the 
cost  of  maintaining  the  school  was  $19.62  per  pupil;  one  by  John 
W.  Jenkins,  a  seven  month  school  where  the  teachers  were  paid  an 
average  of  $62.50  per  month  and  the  cost  for  maintaining  the 
'school  was  $19.89  per  pupil!  and  a  third  taught  by  William  L.  Toler, 
a  seven  month  school  where  the  per  capita  cost  per  pupil  was  $34.91 
per  year. 

In  1937  the  total  number  of  pupils  enrolled  in  public  schools 
-was  4,349,  a  decrease  since  1900  which  is  in  the  same  proportion  as 
the  decrease  in  population.  915  of  these  pupils  were  enrolled  in 
Tiigh  schools.  There  were  about  131  teachers  in  the  county  as  com- 
pared with  112  in  1900  and  all  but  seven  had  training  above  a  four 
year  high  school.  Thirty-one  had  bachelor  degrees  and  two  had 
•masters  degrees.  The  salaries  ranged  between  $400  and  $1400  per 
year  with  one  exception  which  was  a  salary  between  $2200  to  $2400 
per  year  in  elementary  schools  and  in  high  schools  only  one  teacher 
•was  paid  less  than  $1000  and  the  others  all  received  between  $1000 
^ind  $1600  per  year  except  one  who  received  between  $2700  and 
$3000  per  year.  This  made  an  average  annual  salary  in  the  county 
•of  $997.42  or  more  than  $100  per  month. 

$195,499  in  taxes  were  levied  for  school  purposes  in  1936. 
The  districts  owned  school  property  valued  at  $593,800  with  $104,- 
245  worth  of  library  equipment  and  school  apparatus.  The  bonded 
indebtedness  of  all  the  districts  was  $152,000. 

In  1937  there  was  only  one  private  school  in  the  county, 
the   parochial    school   in    Gobden    which    had    38    pupils    and    three 

—105 — 


teachers. 

There  were  78  schools  in  Union  County  in  1937  and  no  new 
ones  were   erected. 

The  enrollment  of  pupils-   in  high  schools  has  increased   over 

40  per  cent  during  the  last  ten  years  and  the  number  of  tuition 
pupils  in  high  school  during  that  period  has  increased  over  80 
per  cent. 

Over  the  rural  schools  is  a  county  superintendent  of  schools 
who  is  elected  by  a  vote  of  te  people.  At  present  Russell  D.  Rendle- 
man  holds  the  position.  He  coordinates  the  work  of  the  schools  in 
the  county  and  is  quite  active  in  state   organizations. 

During  the  past  year  the  health  program  which  he  sponsors 
had  made  rapid  strides  in  progress.  Medical  and  dental  examinations 
have  been  provided  for  all  pupils  and  if  defects  are  found,  the  pupil 
is  advised  to  go  to  his  personal  physician  or  dentist.  The  work 
was  accomplished  through  the  cooperation  of  the  County  Medical 
Society,  all  dentists  in  the  county,  approximately  twenty-five  volun- 
teer workers,  the  National  Youth  Administration,  the  Anna  City 
School  Nurse,  nurses  from  near-by  counties,  the  County  Superin- 
tendent of  Schools  and  the  County  School  Nurse. 

3765  children  were  examined  and  2021  were  found  to  have 
defects.  Of  these  defects  1505  were  throat  defects,  302  gland  de- 
fects, 2S0  trachoma  suspects,  131  nose  defects,  80  nutrition  defects, 
79  nose  defects,  71  athlete  foot,  65  skin  defects,  57  posture  defects, 

41  thyroid  defects,  38  lung  defects,  29  orthopedic  defects,  22  ner- 
vous defects  and  mental  defects  and  18  scalp  defects. 

A  comprehensive  health  program  is  planned  for  1940  and 
1941. 


—  10ft— 


CHAPTER    XXX 

HISTORY    OF    PUBLIC    ASSITANCE    IN    UNION    COUNTY 

BEFORE    1830 

Since  the  earliest  organization  of  the  state  in  1818,  provision 
•was  made  for  the  care  of  the  poor.  There  were  only  nine  instances 
■of  public  relief  recorded  in  Jonesborough  Township  during  the  first 
ten  years  after  1818.  Public  assistance  in  Union  County  up  to  1870 
fell  into  two  types:  outdoor  relief,  relief  given  to  the  family  or  per- 
son in  his  own  home;  or  boarding  home  care,  relief  given  in  the 
form  of  cash  payment  to  some  other  person  for  caring  for  the  needy 
person.  The  latter  type  of  care  was  known  as  "bidding  off" 
paupers.  It  was  advertised  throughout  the  county  that  a  pauper 
would  be  "bid  off"  at  the  court  house  door  and  the  person  making 
the  lowest  bid  was  allowed  to  keep  the  needy  person  in  his  home 
for  periods  of  from  three  months  to  a  year.  At  the  end  of  the 
agreed  period  the  pauper  was  again  "bid  off."  The  amount  paid 
to  the  person  for  keeping  such  poor  persons  ranged  from  seventy- 
five  to  one  hundred  fifty  dollars  per  year.  Outdoor  relief  included 
medical  care,  nursing  care,  burial  expenses,  food  and  clothing  for 
the  person  or  family  in  need  in  his  own  home.  The  amounts  allowed 
for  this  type  of  care  varied  from  small  amounts  given  at  irregular 
intervals  to  amounts  given  quarterly  or  even  annually  for  care. 

Children  were  usually  "bound  out"  rather  than  "bid  off." 
These  procedures  differed  in  that  the  person  to  whom  the  chiid  was 
bound  was  expected  to  provide  for  the  child  until  it  reached  ma- 
turity and  he  was  not  paid  by  the  county  for  the  care  of  the  child. 
In  some  cases,  relatives  were  ordered  to  support  the  needy  person  by 
the  court.  In  case  of  the  death  of  a  needy  person  his  personal 
property  was  sold  to  meet  his  burial  and  other  expenses. 

Each  year,  overseers  of  the  poor  were  appointed.  It  was  not 
until  1876  after  the  old  poor  law  was  revised  that  definite  rules 
regulating  procedures  to  be  followed  by  the  overseers  were  set  up 
by  the  County  Board  of  Commissioners.  After  1870  and  until  1913 
outdoor  relief  including  medical  care,  clothing,  food,  nursing  and 
burial  expenses,  indoor  relief  or  county  farm  care,  and  institution 
care  provided  by  the  state  were  the  methods  used  to  provide  for  the 
poor  in  the  county. 

One  overseer's  annual  report,  typical  of  other  such  reports 
■during  the  one  hundred  years  preceding  1930,  records  24  cases  re- 
ceiving assistance.  One  to  seven  orders  were  given  in  each  case, 
the  orders  averaging  three  dollars  each,  varying  in  amount  from 
one  to  nine  dollars.  No  record  was  kept  as  to  how  many  members 
there  were  in  each  family  receiving  help. 

THE  COUNTY  FARM 

In  1869,  three  men  were  appointed  to  select  a  suitable  site 
for  a  "county  poor  house."  A  two  hundred  acre  tract  of  land  about 
the  central  part  of  the  county  was  selected  80  acres  of  which  was 

—107— 


sold   before    1900    and    80    acres   remained    in    use    as   the    "county 
farm"   until   1939  when  the   farm  was  discontinued   by  the   county 

and  the  land  sold. 

Before  this  "county  poor  farm"  was  established,  poor  per- 
sons had  been  "bid  off"  as  mentioned  before  and  later,  groups  of 
them  had  been  "bid  off"  to  one  person  for  care.  The  county  farm 
cared  for  the  group  of  needy  persons  who  had  heretofore  been 
"bid  off"  to  one  person  and  individual  cases  were  still  cared  for  in 
their  homes  or  on  their  farms  with  special  permission  of  the  super- 
intendent of  the  poor  farm. 

At  first  the  agent  in  charge  of  the  county  farm  paid  rent  of 
three  hundred  dollars  per  year  for  the  use  of  the  farm  and  was  given 
a  per  capita  payment  for  each,  person  sent  to  him  for  care  and 
later  the  agent,  or  superintendent,  was  paid  a  salary  and  the  pro- 
ceeds derived  from  the  farm  products  were  used  by  the  county  for 
maintenance  of  the  farm  and  care  of  the  inmates.  Additional  grants 
were  made  by  the   County  Board  when  necessary. 

A  system  of  record  keeping  for  the  farm  was  established  and 
the  book  originally  used  for  this  purpose  is  still  available.  Parts 
of  it  have  been  destroyed  and  the  accuracy  of  what  remains  depend- 
ed upon  the  ability  of  the  superintendent  to  make  accurate  entries. 
A  few  of  the  superintendents  could  not  write  welT  enough  to  keep 
a  record.  After  the  name  of  each  person  in  the  record,  space  was 
provided  for  the  age,  sex,  color,  occupation,  civil  condition,  birth- 
place, parentage,  residence,  health  habits,  date  of  admission,  prop- 
erty, authority  for  admission,  supposed  cause  of  pauperism  and  date 
of  discharge. 

It  was  interesting  to  note  that  between  1875  and  1900  sev- 
eral  names  of  county  officials  appeared  on  the  record  as  having 
entered  for  short  periods  of  time  and  under  the  heading  "health 
habits"  were  written  such  notations  as  "chills  and  fever,"  "sore 
throat,"  epilepsy,"  etc.  This  indicates  that  the  county  farm  was 
used  as  an  infirmary  or  hospital  as  well  as  a  place  for  paupers  to 
live. 

From  1875  to  1930  there  was  an  average  of  approximately 
twenty  inmates  on  the  county  farm.  Usually  about  one  hundred" 
people  were  admitted  annually.  Each  quarterly  report  showed  from 
one  to  five  deaths  as  the  reasons  for  dicharge  of  the  case.  A  few 
illegitimate  child  births  were  cared  for  during  this  period.  One 
quarterly  report  showed  that  eleven  inmates  under  ten  years  of 
age,  three  between  ten  and  twenty,  eighteen  between  twenty  and 
thirty  and  fifteen  over  thirty  were   admitted. 

The  annual  expense  for  maintenance  of  the  "county  farm"" 
and  care  of  the  poor  persons  there  was  $2,000  in  1900,  $1,400  in 
1910,  $3,700  in  1920,  $1,250  in  1925,  and  $1,100  in  1930. 

The  County  Farm  was  disbanded  and  sold  in  1939  because 
the  per  capita  cost  of  caring  for  the  few  inmates  there  was  so  much 
higher  than  the  average  cost  of  relief  cases  in  the  county. 

—108— 


MEDICAL  CARE  FOR  POOR 

Before  1874  many  items  recorded  in  the  County  Record 
showed  that  medical  care  was  given  to  the  poor  by  many  doctors 
who  were  paid  for  the  individual  cases  they  attended.  In  1874  this 
procedure  was  changed  by  order  of  the  County  Board.  Bids  were 
taken  for  the  care  of  the  poor  and  the  lowest  bidder  became  the 
"county  doctor."  Some  years  the  physician  was  paid  on  a  per  call 
basis  and  some  years  the  agreement  for  payment  was  made  on  an 
annual  wage  basis.  Many  items  recorded  since  1874  showed  that 
physicians  other  than  the  "county  doctor"  were  paid  for  their  ser- 
vices in  caring  for  the  poor  persons.  In  addition  to  the  care  of  the 
sick  the  "county  doctor"  was  directed  by  the  County  Board  to 
recommend  to  the  agent  in  charge  of  the  county  farm,  the  discharge 
of  all  persons  sheltered  there  whom  he  deemed  physically  able  to 
support  themselves.  "* 

It  is  difficult  to  make  any  estimate  of  the  amount  of  per 
capita  relief  which  was  given  in  individual  cases  because  grocery 
orders  were  recorded  according  to  the  total  amount  owed  to  a  par- 
ticular grocer  for  "furnishing  paupers"  and  clothing  orders  were 
recorded  in  the  same  manner.  Itemized  statements  of  doctors  were 
paid..  It  would  also  be  difficult  to  estimate  how  many  cases  were 
given  assistance,  however,  using  the  overseer's  report  quoted  above 
as  typical  of  the  amount  per  order  given  and  using  the  figure 
$3000  as  the  amount  of  outdoor  relief  given  in  1930,  a  fair  estimate 
may  be  that  there  were  between  six  hundred  fifty  and  seven 
hundred  people  receiving  aid  during  the  year  1930.  Again  as- 
suming that  the  number  of  case  may  be  computed  on  this  basis, 
the  number  of  cases  cared  for  in  1920  was  double  the  number  cared 
for  in  1930. 

All  relief  with  the  exception  of  aid  to  mothers  and  relief 
for  the  blind  was  administered  by  the  County  Board  or  their  ap- 
pointed agents  or  overseers  in  accordance  with  the  law  passed  in 
1874  known  as  "An  Act  to  revise  the  law  in  relation  to  paupers, 
approved  March  23,  1874." 
AID  TO  THE  BLIND 

In  1903  the  state  of  Illinois  passed  a  law  providing  relief 
or  pensions  to  all  blind  persons  in  the  state.  These  pensions  were 
to  be  paid  by  the  counties.  The  law  provided  that  all  persons  over 
18  years  of  age  declared  to  be  blind  should  receive  a  benefit  of 
$250  per  year  payable  quarterly  upon  warrants  properly  drawn  upon 
the  treasurer  of  the  county  where  such  blind  person  resides.  Those 
eligible  for  the  benefits  of  this  law  are  blind  persons  who  are  not 
charges  of  institutions,  or  who  do  not  have  an  income  of  more  than 
$250  per  year,  who  have  resided  in  the  state  for  ten  consecutive- 
years  and  in  the  county  for  three  years  immediately  preceeding  the 
date  of  applying  for  the  benefit. 

The  blind  person  may  make  application  in  the  office  of  the 
county  clerk  who  will  send  him  to  the  medical  examiner  appointed 
by  the   County  Board.     The  medical  officer  will  send  his  report  to* 

—109— 


the  County  Board  who  then  allow  the  benefit  or  reject  the  applica- 
tion as  the  case  may  be. 

This  act  was  amended  in  1935  to  allow  a  pension  of  $365 
per  year  and  to  allow  the  blind  person  and  spouse  to  have  an  income 
of  $1000  per  year  or  less.  If  the  applicant  has  more  than  a  $1000 
income  he  is  not  eligible  for  the  benefit. 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  relief  to  the  blind  was  allowed  in 
Illinois  as  early  as  1903,  there  was  none  allowed  in  Union  County 
until  after  July  1,  1915. 

In  1915,  six  persons  applied  for  pensions  and  six  were  allow- 
ed pensions.  In  1916,  30  applied  and  25  were  pensioned;  in  1917, 
six  applied  and  four  were  pensioned;  in  1918,  eight  applied  and 
seven  were  pensioned;  in  1919,  four  applied  and  one  was  pensioned; 
in  1920,  four  applied  and  three  were  pensioned;  in  1921,  three  ap- 
plied and  three  were  pensioned,  in  1922  three  applied  and  three 
were  pensioned;  in  1923,  six  applied  and  five  were  pensioned;  in 
1924,  six  applied  and  three  were  pensioned;  in  1925,  three  applied 
and  two  were  pensioned;  in  1926,  eight  applied  and  five  were  pen- 
sioned; in  1927,  nine  applied  and  five  were  pensioned;  in  1928, 
12  applied  and  eight  were  pensioned;  in  1929,  11  applied  and  three 
were  pensioned;  in  1930,  14  applied  and  seven  were  pensioned;  in 
1931,  25  applied  and  14  were  pensioned;  in  1932,  no  applications 
were  taken;  15  applied  between  the  years  1933  and  1937,  and  of 
these,  four  were  allowed  in  1936,  10  in  1937  and  one  in  1938; 
in  1939,  21  applications  were  made  and  21  pensions  allowed. 

From  the  year  1933  to  1937  the  medical  examiner  interpreted 
She  law  to  mean  only  totally  blind  people  were  eligible  for  a  pen- 
sion and  since  then  the  law  has  been  interpreted  that  those  indus- 
trially blind,  that  are  not  able  to  work  on  account  of  sight  defects 
were  eligible  for  a  pension. 

Of  these  applicants  8  men  were  between  the  ages  of  21  and 
30;  22  were  between  30  and  40;  15  between  40  and  50;  35  between 
50  and  60;  39  between  60  and  70;  39  between  70  and  80;  22  be- 
tween 80  and  90  and  seven  of  unkown  ages.  82  of  these  applicants 
were  over  65  years  of  age. 
AID  TO  MOTHERS  AND  CHILDREN 

An  act  to  provide  for  the  partial  support  of  mothers  and 
for  the  probationary  visitation,  care  and  supervision  of  the  family 
for  whose  benefit  support  was  provided  was  passed  by  the  state 
legislature  June  30,  1930  and  in  force  July  1,  1913.  In  September, 
1913  the  first  "mother's  pension"  was  allowed  in  Union  County. 

The  law  provides  that  "a  woman  whose  husband  is  dead  and 
who  was  a  resident  of  the  state  at  the  time  of  his  death,  or  whose 
husband  has  become  permanently  incapacitated  for  work  by  reason 
of  physical  or  mental  infirmity  and  became  so  incapacitated  while  a 
resident  of  the  state,  or  whose  husband  being  the  father  of  her 
child  or  children  under  sixteen  years  of  age  has  abandoned  her  and 
said  child  or  children  and  neglects  or  refuses  to  maintain  or  provide 
for  them,  and  who  has  fled  from  this  state  or  secrets  himself  so  that 
he  cannot  be  apprehended  and  prosecuted  for  wife  and  child  aban- 

—110— 


donment,  may  file  application  for  relief  under  this  act.  The  mother 
must  have  resided  in  the  county  for  three  years  before  the  applica- 
tion is  made. 

The  probation  officer  is  then  to  make  an  investigation  into 
the  needs  of  the  mother  and  recommend  to  the  County  Judge  that 
the  pension  be  granted  or  refused.  Then  the  Judge  in  a  court  hear- 
ing renders  his  decision  concerning  the  granting  of  the  pension. 

This  county  have  given  amounts  ranging  from  two  to  three 
dollars  per  child  and  at  the  present  time  gives  three  dollars  per 
child.  In  many  instances  the  mother  is  permitted  to  work  away 
from  her  home  in  order  to  help  provide  for  her  family.  Orders 
are  called  for  monthly  by  the  mothers.  In  1938,  sixty-six  mothers 
were  receiving  aid  under  this  act  including  one  hundred  twenty 
children. 

In  larger  counties  this  act  is  administered  in  a  much  different 
manner.  Larger  amounts  are  allowed  to  the  mother  according  to  her 
need  and  few  mothers  with  children  under  14  are  permitted  to  work 
away  from  home.  In  most  cases  in  those  counties  the  allowance  is 
adequate  for  the  needs  of  the  family.  In  Union  County,  several 
cases  have  been  given  relief  by  the  County  Relief  Agency  because 
the  aid  to  mothers  was  inadequate  to  meet  their  needs. 

The  history  of  public  assistance  in  Union  County  up  to  1939 
may  best  be  summarized  by  the  following  figures: 

1868  For  Care  of  paupers  $      934.14 

1869  Care  of  paupers  1,654.96 

1871     Care  of  paupers  1,414.67 

1881  For  care  of  paupers  1,346.61 

For  paupers  in  state  institutions 138.25     $     1,484.86 

1882  For  care   of  paupers  1,604.92 

For  paupers  in  state  institutions  219.71  1,824.63 

1883  For  care   of  paupers  1,525.22 

For  paupers  in  institutions  149.16  1,674.38 

1884  For  care  of  paupers  2,968.73 

For  paupers  in  institutions  330.42  3,299.15 

1886     For  care  of  paupers  1,500.00 

For  paupers  in  institutions  600.00  2,100.00 

1890     For  care  of  paupers  1,500.00 

For  paupers  in  institutions  600.00  2,100.08 

1900     For  paupers  outside  county  farm 300.00 

For  poor  farm  and  expenses  2,000.00 

For  paupers  in  institutions  300.00  2,000.00 

1910     For  paupers  in  institutions  1,650.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  550.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm 1,375.00 

For  expense  of  county  farm  400.00 

Salary  of  Supt.  of  county  farm  450.00  4,425.0$ 

1920     For  paupers  in  institutions  500.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  1,800.00 

For  maintaining  county  farm 700.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  6,000.00  9,050.00 

— Ill — 


1922     For  paupers  at  institutions  500.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  500.00 

For  maintaining-  county  farm  1,000.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  5,000.00 

M.  D.'s  fees  for  insane  inquisitions  _  100.00 

For  relief  of  blind  4,950.00          13,050.00 

1924     For  paupers  in  institutions  500.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  500.00 

For  maintaining  county  farm  750.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  5,000.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  insane  inquisitions 150.00 

For  relief  of  blind  8,000.00 

For  physicians  examining-  blind  25.00 

For  mother's  pension  fund  1,500.00          16,425.00 

1926     For  paupers  in  institutions  500.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm 500.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  5,000.00 

For  maintaining  county  farm  750.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  insane  inquisitions  150.00 

For  relief  of  blind  8,000.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  examining  blind  25.00  14,925.00 

1528     For  county  farm  salaries  600.00 

For  paupers  in  institutions  700.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  500.00 

For  maintaining  county  farm  3,000.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  insane  inquisitions  150.00 

For  relief  of  blind  _  9,000.00 

For  mother's  pension  fund  3,500.00          17,950.00 

1930     For  paupers  in  institutions  600.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  500.00 

For  maintaining  county  farm  600.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  3,000.00 

M.  D.  fees  £or  insane  inquisitions  200.00 

For  relief  of  blind  _  7,500.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  examining  blind  50.00 

For  mother's  pension  fund  2,000.00          14,450.00 

1932     For  paupers  in  institutions  600.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm 500.00 

For  maintaining  county  farm 1,000.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  3,000.00 

For  relief  of  blind  18,000.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  examining  blind  50.00          23,150.00 

1984     For  paupers  in  institutions 200.00 

For  paupers  at  county  farm  _  500.00 

For  paupers  outside  county  farm  4,500.00 

For  relief  of  blind  18,200.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  examining  blind  50.00 

For  mother's  pension  fund  5,000.00         27,050.00 

1936     For  salary  of  supt.  of  county  farm  _  600.00 

For  care  of  paupers  outside  co.  farm  6,500.00 
—112— 


For  maintenance  of  county  farm  1,200.00 

M.  D.  fees  for  insane  inquisitions 200.00 

For  relief  of  blind  13,500.00 

For  expense  of  old  age  security  board         200.00 

For  mother's  pension  4,000.00 

State  and  Federal  funds  for  relief  ...151,794.52 

Work  projects  31,626.96       209,621.38 

1938     For  care  of  poor  and  indigent  persons  30,000.00 

For  maintenance  of  county  farm 1,000.00 

For  relief  of  blind 15,000.00 

State  and  Federal  relief  funds  70,386.37 

Old  age  assistance  118,084.60 

W.  P.  A.  labor   (adm.  excluded) 420,000.00     *629,470.37 

*   This  total  does  not  include  farm  relief  given  by  the  U.   S.   De- 
partment of  Agriculture. 


►113- 


CHAPTER  XXXir 
PUBLIC  ASSISTANCE   AFTER   1930 

In  1930  only  $14,450  was  spent  in  Union  County  for  public- 
assistance  and  of  this  amount  $7500  was  for  blind  pensions  and 
$2000  for  mother's  pensions.  There  were  five  methods  then  used 
for  caring  for  the  poor:  care  at  the  county  farm,  outdoor  relief 
administered  by  the  county  commissioners  through  overseers  of  the 
poor  in  each  precinct,  relief  for  the  blind,  aid  to  mothers  and  care 
in  a  state  institution. 

The  population  of  Union  County  had  increased  from  18,100 
persons  in  1880  to  20,?.49  in  1920  and  decreased  to  19*883  in  1930. 
The  total  cost  of  relief  had  increased  from  $1484.16  in  1880  to 
<;<>,000  in  1920  and  to  $14,450  in  1930.  The  increase  which  took 
place  between  1920  and  1930  was  due  to  the  increase  in  the  num- 
ber of  blind  pensions  allowed.  The  increase  from  1880  to  1920  was 
either  because  there  was  more  assistance  needed  or  more  needs  were 

cared  for. 

A  County  Commissioner  who-  was  in  office  in  1930  gave  the 
following  informatiotn.  "We  always  helped  our  paupers  who  came  to 
us  for  help.  Most  of  the  able  bodied  people  could  support  themselves. 
A  few  had  to  have  an  order  or  two  during  the  winter.  We  always 
helped  the  old,  the  sick,  the  children  and  widows-.  The  average 
order  was  two  dollars  per  week  for  a  family  because  most  of  them 
were  able  to  get  what  they  needed  from  friends  or  the  farmers  they 
worked  for.  These  grocery  orders  were  issued  for  staple  foods  only. 
The  poor  did  not  fool  us  any  because  we  knew  all  of  them. 
Clothing  and  books  were  provided  for  poor  children  in  school  and 
medical  care  for  the  sick.  Very  little  assistance  was  given  through 
the  summer  months  because  it  was  not  needed.  We  thought  we  met 
the  needs  adequately  and  there  did  not  seem  to  be  any  complaint 
about  the  assistance  given. '* 

The  school  teachers  played  an  important  role  in  the  care  of 
the  poor  at  that  time.  They  reported  children  who  needed  clothing 
and  books  and  often  food. 

Aside  from  the  above  types  of  assistance  given  by  public 
agencies  in  1930,  there  was  a  private  agency  known  as  the  Associat- 
ed Charities  which  gave  a  small  amount  of  assistance.  The  secBetary 
of  this  organization,  Mr.  Thomas  Rixleben  of  Jonesboro,  gives  the 
following  account  of  it.  "The  Associated  Charities  was  organized 
in  1910  by  three  churches  in  Jonesboro,  Illinois,  the  Baptist,  Meth- 
odist and  Lutheran  churches.  A  Thanksgiving  service  was  held  in 
each  church  in  rotation.  A  voluntary  offering  was  taken  amounting 
to  about  twenty  dollars  per  year  which  was  given  to  the  Associated 
Charities.  The  merchants  of  the  town  added  about  thirty  dollars  to 
the  collection  and  all  the  citizens  who  wished  donated  used  clothing 
and  shoes  which  were  given  to  the  poor.  The  needs  of  the  poor 
were  few  because  neigbors  and  relatives  contributed  to  those  in 
need  without  being  asked  to  do  so." 

At  this  time  it  was  customary  for  farmers  and  landlords  who 
—114— 


!had  tenants  on  their  farms  to  supply  this  tenant  with  a  house,  a  pig 
-or  two,  the  use  of  a  cow  and  all -'the  fresh  vegetables  and  fruit  ha 
wished  to  can.  If  sickness  or  any  circumstance  occurred  which 
■caused  the  tenants  to  need  more  money  than  their  usual  thirty  dol- 
3ars  a   month   salary,   the   landlord   either   provi  Seal   care   or 

''stood  behind"  the  credit  of  the  person  in  need.  In  the  summer, 
".lie  poor  who  did  not  live  on  farms  were  usually  told  through  their 
grocers  or  friends  that  certain  farmers  would  allow  them  to  pick 
the  fruit  and  vegetables  too  ripe  to  be  shipped  to  market  yet  in  ex- 
cellent condition  for  canning  or  eating.  It  was  only  unusually  lazy 
people  who  did  not  avail  themselves  of  these  opportunities,  and  thes? 
people  were  so  criticized  by  their  neighbors  that  many  people  ac- 
cepted the  gifts  to  avoid  having  a  reputation  of  being  lazy.  Thrifty 
housewives  usually  saw  that  their  poor  neighbors,  relatives  and 
friends  had  enough  cans  for  their  fruit  and  vegetables  and  enough 
second  hand  clothes  to  be  presentable. 

These  opinions  of  the  people  in  charge  of  giving  aid  to  the 
poor  in  1930  have  been  quoted  in  full  in  order  to  show  that  drastic 
-contrast  that  has  taken  place  during  the  last  ten  years  when  our 
public  assitance  has  increased  from  $14,450  in  1930  to  $629,470.37 
in  1938  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  a  large  factory  employing  500 
people  was  opened  up  during  that  period.  This  $629,470.37  does  not 
include  large  amounts  of  money  that  have  been  loaned  to  the  farm- 
ers and  home-builders,  it  represents  only  the  amount  of  money  that 
was  give  outright  to  the  people  of  the  county  who  said  they  were 
unable  to  earn  a  livelihood  for  themselves  and  would  have  to  be 
supported  by  the  government. 

One  drastic  change  that  has  taken  place  since  1930  is  the 
fact  that  the  citizens  who  do  not  need  help  have  taken  the  attitude 
that  the  government  should  help  the  poor  and  the  individual  citizen 
need  no  longer  give  the  attention  he  formerly  gave  to  his  tenant, 
his  neighbor  or  his  poor  relative.  A  second  drastic  change  that  has 
take  place  is  that  the  poor  person  no  longer  feels  that  he  is  being 
helped  but  demands  support  as  a  civil  right.  Most  recipients  of 
W.  P.  A.  jobs  do  not  consider  this  a  form  of  relief  and  demand 
that  their  political  friends  use  their  influence  to  obtain  this  type  of 
job  for  them. 

There  is  not  room  here  to  enumerate  instances  where  citizens 
who  consider  themselves  honorable  have  abused  the  privilege  of  be- 
ing aided  by  the  government  by  demanding  help  when  they  might 
be  able  to  devise  ways  to  help  themselves.  This  is  not  true  alone 
of  Union  Coupnty  but  of  most  of  the  counties  in  the  whole  United 
States.  Since  the  appropriation  for  this  assistance  comes  from  the 
federal  and  state  governments  mainly,  all  needs  are  estimated  at  a 
maximum  rather  than  minimum  extent  so  that  by  the  time  all  esti- 
mates are  totalled  it  makes  a  tremendous  amount  of  money  neces- 
sary to  meet  the  estimated  needs  and  after  the  money  is  appro- 
priated it  seems  that  few  places  make  an  effort  to  use  as  small  an 
amount  of  money  as  possible  and  let  the  surplus  revert  to  the 
treasury   of  the   county,   state    or   federal   government.      When    one 

—115— 


stops  to  consider  that  Union  County  has  only  4500  taxpayers  and 
over  $600,000  was  given  away  in  the  county  and  also  considers  that 
this  is  happening  all  over  the  country,  then  one  realizes  that  better 
programs  for  administering  public  assistance  must  be  used  in  the 
future. 

THE  ILLINOIS   EMERGENCY   RELIEF  COMMISSIONS 
ADMINISTRATION   IN   UNION   COUNTY 

By  the  end  of  1933,  representatives  of  the  Illinois  Emergency 
Relief  Commission,  which  had  been  appointed  by  the  governor  to 
help  with  the  growing  relief  problem  in  the  state,  had  made  con- 
tacts with  the  chairman  of  the  county  board  of  commissioners,  Mr. 
Clem  C.  Baggott,  and  appointments  were  made  of  an  Emergency  Re- 
lief Committee  for  Union  County.  Mr.  R.  Wilkins,  Alto  Pass;  Mr. 
Ed  Karraker,  Jonesboro;  Mr.  Claude  Rich,  Cobden;  Dr.  C.  R.  Walser, 
Anna;  Harvey  Hinkle,  Dongola,  and  Ed  Hargrave,  Anna,  were  ap- 
pointed to  serve  with  Mr.  Clem  Baggott  as  chairman.  Later  Mr. 
Baggott  and  Dr.  Walser  resigned  and  the  final  committee  which 
nerved  was  made  up  of  Ed.  L.  Karraker,  Jonesboro;  T.  P.  Sifford, 
Anna;  R.  S.  Diilow,  Dongola;  Claude  W.  Rich,  Cobden;  Dan  R. 
Davie,  Ware;  Ed  S.  Hargrave,  Anna,  and  Roy  Wilkins,  Alto   Pass. 

Since  there  had  been  no  unusual  requests  for  aid  in  the 
county  at  the  time,  the  chairman  of  the  committee  and  the  county 
clerk  sent  letters  to  the  principals  of  city  schools  and  to  teachers  of 
country  schools  asking  for  a  list  of  names  of  needy  persons  in  the 
school  districts.  From  these  lists  the  first  allocations  of  money  was 
computed.  Later  as  the  availability  of  money  became  publicized 
requests  became  numerous. 

In  February,  1934  the  representatives  of  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  told 
the  local  members  that  in  order  to  continue  to  receive  money  in 
Union  County  an  administrator  of  certain  qualifications  should  be 
appointed.  Since  the  board  knew  of  no  one  in  the  county  who  could 
meet  the  requirements  set  up  by  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  they  accepted  the 
suggestion  of  the  commission  and  appointed  Mrs.  Bertha  Mont- 
gomery who  describes  herself  as  the  "bitter  pill  the  committee  had 
to  swallow  in  order  to  obtain  funds  from  the  commission." 

Under  Mrs.  Montgomery's  supervision  the  office  was  organized 
which  at  one  time  employed  32  workers  to  investigate  cases  and 
otherwise  administer  relief  in  Union  County.  Requests  for  relief 
increased  and  eventually  this  office  was  taking  care  of  most  of  the 
mother's  aid  cases  and  blind  pension  cases.  Work  relief  in  the 
county  was  first  organized  in  this  office  which  was  later  to  be  taken 
over  by  the  Civil  Works  Administration  of  the  federal  government 
and  later  by  the  Works  Program  Administration. 

In  1936  the  legislature  took  the  power  of  administration  of 
relief  away  from  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  because  there  had  been  too  much 
friction  between  the  administrators  and  many  of  the  county  boards. 
This  was  due  mainly  to  the  scarcity  of  available  administrators  who 
had  the  requisite  training  and  background  and  those  who  had  to 
be  used  were  learning  their  jobs  themselves  instead   of  being  able 

—116— 


to  teach  the  boards  and  their  employees  what  needed  to  be  done. 

As  a  result  of  this  act  the  relief  was  turned  back  to  the 
county  board  and  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  acted  only  as  a  certification  agefit 
to  approve  of  the  applicants  for  the  Works  Progress  Administra- 
tion, the  Public  Works  Administration,  the  Rural  Resettlement  Ad- 
ministration, the  Civilian  Conservation  Corps,  the  National  Youth 
Administration  and  other  related  services.  The  I.  E.  R.  C.  also 
provides  the  funds  for  the  counties  to  distribute  and  since  1938  has 
had  the  power  to  supervise  the  administration  of  these  funds.  A 
third  duty  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  retains  is  the  distribution  of  surplus  foods 
in  the  counties.  Surplus  foods  are  supposed  to  be  foods  and  pro- 
ducts bought  in  areas  where  there  is  a  surplus  supply  and  distributed 
by  the  government,  thus  keeping  the  surplus   off  the   market. 

All  but  one  of  the  members  of  the  local  I.  E.  R.  C.  committee 
expressed  themselves  as  believing  they  should  have  used  their  own 
ideas  of  limiting  the  amount  of  money  spent  in  Union  County  rather 
than  listening  to  the  representatives  of  the  commission  who  con- 
tinually pointed  out  that  this  county  might  as  well  get  all  the  money 
they  could  since  the  other  counties  were  doing  the  same  thing 

In  contrast  to  their  opinion  in  the  opinion  of  economists  who 
study  the  problem  at  large  and  in  measuring  the  standard  of  living 
Union  County  find  that  it  is  lower  than  most  counties  in  Illinois. 
Therefore  it  was  their  constant  advice  to  give  more  assistance 
to  make  the  standard  of  living  comparable  to  other  counties. 

THE  COUNTY  RELIEF  ADMINISTRATION 

In  1936,  in  accordance  with  the  amendement  passed  by  the 
legislature,  the  administration  of  relief  passed  from  the  hands  of 
the  I.  E.  R.  C.  to  the  County  Board  of  Commissioners.  Mrs.  Clyde 
Treece  was  appointed  administrator  and  she  was  given  four  assist- 
ants. 

Under  this  administration  only  direct  relief  was  cared  for 
in  this  office.  All  able  bodied  men  or  heads  of  families  were  referred 
to  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  for  certification  for  one  of  the  federal  programs, 
W.  P.  A.,  N.  Y.  A.  or  C.  C  C.  In  spite  of  the  fact  that  these 
programs  and  the  new  Old  Age  Assistance  Administration  took  care 
of  approximtely  70  per  cent  of  the  cases  given  assistance  in  the 
county,  this  office  spent  $4,028.80  in  June,  1938  in  comparison  to 
$6,612.75  which  included  all  relief  work  and  old  age  assistance  and 
other  cases  in  June,  1936. 

Due  to  the  fact  that  the  cost  of  relief  was  increasing  all  over 
the  state  at  a  tremendous  rate  of  speed,  the  legislature  again 
amended  the  law  providing  aid  to  the  needy  in  1937,  giving  the 
I.  E.  R.  C.  the  right  to  supervise  the  county  offices  beginning  July, 
1938  to  the  extent  that  the  county  officers  provide  the  state  office 
with  complete  records  of  each  case  and  offices  not  complying  with 
the  standards  set  by  the  I.  E.  R.  C.  were  to  have  funds  withdrawn 
from  the  county  until  such  time  as  the  rules  were  carried  out. 

In  1939,  Miss  Edith  Hess  was  made  the  administrator  and 
has  carried  on  the  work  of  the  office  since  that  time. 

—117— 


THE  OLD  AGE  ASSISTANCE  ADMINISTRATION 

According  to  a  law  passed  in  1935  providing  for  old  age 
assistance  to  be  given  to  all  needy  persons  65  years  of  age  or  over, 
County  Judge  E.  S.  Alden  appointed  a  board  to  supervise  the 
administration  of  pensions  in  Union  County.  This  board  made  up  of 
Mr.  J.  D.  R.  Brown,  Mrs.  Kate  Coffman  and  Mr.  Nathan  T.  Lawr- 
ence appointed  Mrs.  Nettie  Glasscock  administrator. 

By  April  of  1939,  1217  applications  had  been  made  for  assist- 
ance. 743  of  these  had  been  accepted  and  67  were  pending  investi- 
gation.    The  others  had  been  rejected,  withdrawn  or  died. 

The  office  had  two  employees  and  a  stenographer  loaned  by 
the  National  Youth  Administration  until  the  State  Administration 
began  a  review  of  cases.  In  July,  1938,  the  employees  became 
civil  service  employees  and  the  Old  Age  Assistance  Administration 
was  changed  for  the  supervision  of  the  board  to  that  of  the  State 
Department  of  Public  Welfare.  When  the  review  of  cases  was  begun 
additional  helpers  were  employed  in  the  office. 

All  persons  who  are  over  65  years  of  age  not  having  an 
income  of  $40  per  months  (this  was  increased  from  $30  during  the 
extra  session  of  the  legislature  in  1940)  or  not  having  children  able 
to  support  them  are  eligible  for  assistance.  This  assistance  is  given 
on  the  basis  of  need,  that  is  if  the  aged  person  has  a  place  to  live, 
rent  is  excluded  from  his  grant,  etc.  In  April,  1940,  there  were 
758  persons  receiving  old  age  assistance  in  Union  County. 
THE  NATIONAL  YOUTH  ADMINISTRATION 

The  National  Youth  Administration  has  two  separate  pro- 
grams in  Union  County,  the  student  aid  program  and  the  projects 
under  the  supervision  of  the  County  N.  Y.  A.  Superintendent  Cleatus 
Smith. 

The  former  program  is  supervised  by  the  principals  of  the 
high  schools  in  the  county  and  provides  aid  to  needy  students.  In 
this  county  the  need  for  aid  is  determined  by  an  investigation 
made  by  the  local  relief  office  at  the  request  of  the  principal  who 
has  received  the  application.  One  high  school  superintendent  stated 
that  more  children  from  the  poorer  areas  of  the  county  have  been 
able  to  obtain  a  high  school  education  since  this  program  has  been 
in  effect.  The  pupils  receiving  this  aid  do  not  have  to  belong  to 
relief  families. 

The  latter  program  includes  three  projects,  a  book-binding 
project  sponsored  by  the  County  Superintendent,  a  picnic  ground 
project  sponsored  by  the  Home  and  Garden  Club  of  Alto  Pass;  and 
a  desk  reconditioning  project  sponsored  by  the  public  schools  of 
Cobden,  Illinois.  In  earn  project  the  sponsor  furnishes  the  material 
for  the  work  and  provides  the  space  where  the  work  is  to  be  done 
and  labor  is  furnished  by  the  National  Youth  Administration. 

The  N.  Y.  A.  program  probably  has  a  larger  turnover  of 
workers  than  any  other  in  the  county  because  the  workex'S  are  un- 
married persons  between  16  and  24  years  of  age.  Many  of  these 
people  are  able  to  obtain  private  employment  because  they  have 
pained   a   little   experience   and   because   the   N.   Y.   A.   is   constantly 

—118— 


ftii  the  outlook  for  jobs  for  its  clients  who  come  from  relief  fa. : 

THE   CIVILIAN   CONSERVATION   CORPS 

The  work  of  the  C.   C.   C.   Camps  has  been   di: 
under  the  National  Forest  Service  Program. 

The  C.  C.  C.  Camps  employ  youths  between   th<  of  16 

and  24  who  are  not  in  school  nor  gainfully   employed.      1 
do  not  have  to  come  from  relief  families. 

THE  ANNA  STATE  HOSPITAL  FOR  THE   INSANE 

The   mentally   ill   patients   of   Union    County    and    tw 
other  southern   Illinois   counties   are   eared    for    in    the    Aj 

Hospital  for  the  Insane. 

This  institution  was  established   by   a   vote   of   the    I 
in  1869,  the  board  of  commissions  appointed  consisting  ol 
ant  Governor  John  Dougherty  of  Jonesboro;  Benjamin   L. 
Jackson   County;  Dr.   G.   L.   Owens,   of   Marion;   II.   W.   Hall    i 
Leansboro,  and  D.  R.  Kingsbury  of  Centralis.     These  commissioners 
selected  the  present  site  of  the  institution  and  a  large  buildi:. 
erected.      Since  that  time   the   number  of  building  iicaUy 

increased  until  the  hospital  has  grown  from  a  capacity  of  150  to  one 
of  nearly  300  patients  with  all  necessary  hospital  facilities  and  farm 
equipment  for  the  almost  500  acres  of  land.  Originally  water  was 
obtained  from  cisterns  and  a  spring,  but  now  a  large  dam  has  been 
constructed  below  Jonesboro  making  a  lake  from  which  v.  : 
pumped  to  a  large  reservoir  north  of  Anna  for  the  use  of  the 
hospital. 

The  institution  gives  employment  to   over  300   people. 

One  of  the  recent  additions  to  the  institution  is  a  diagnostic 
center  where  patients  are  received  for  observation  and  diagnosis 
which  facilitates  the  patient's  stay  in  the  hospital.  Many  are  re- 
turned to  their  homes  from  this  part  of  the  institution  shortly  alter 
their  admission.  The  custom  is  rapidly  growing  among  county 
judges  to  send  patients  is  as  guests  for  observation  and  commit 
them  after  it  has  been  recommended  by  the  diagnostician.  This  cuts 
down  the  expense  of  inquisitions  of  persons  who  would  be  discharged 
without  psychosis. 

The  first  managing  officer  was  Dr.  Dewey  of  the  Elgin  State 
Hospital  who  stayed  about  two  months  and  was  succeeded  by  Dr. 
Barnes  who  remained  five  years.  Most  superintendents  since  have 
remained  from  4  to   8   years. 

The  County  sends  its  feeble-minded  to  Lincoln  State  School 
and  Colony  and  some  few  may  get  as  far  away  as  the  Dixon  State 
Hospital;  its  blind,  its  deaf  and  dumb  to  the  Jacksonville  Sc 
for  those  purposes  and  its  tubercular  patients  to  Springfield.  There 
are  inadequate  facilties  in  Illinois  for  the  care  of  the  tubercular 
patient. 

THE  TRACHOMA   CLINIC 

One  of  the  five  trachoma  clinics  belonging  to  tLe  Bouthcm 
district  of  Illinois  is  located  in  Jonesboro.  This  is  a  cooperative 
agency  supervised  by  the   Society  for  the  Prevention   of  Blindness, 

—119— 


staffed  by  the  Department  of  Public   Welfare   of  the   State   of  Illi- 
nois and  all  olher  help  furnished  by  the  W.  P.  A. 

The  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Blindness  made  a  survey 
of  the  needs  of  the  trachoma  areas  in  the  state  in  1934.  They  were 
aided  by  the  Department  of  Public  Health  which  gave  the  services 
of  one  nurse  and  funds  for  the  expense  of  the  survey. 

All  eye  cases  needing  treatment  in  this  area  had  been  sent 
to  the  Illinois  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary  in  Chicago  before  this  time. 
Railroad  and  bus  fares  were  expensive  so  as  a  result  of  the  survey 
made  in  1934,  area  clinics  were  established.  The  first  year  the 
clinics  were  paid  for  by  the  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Blindness 
and  the  Illinois  State  Department  of  Public  Health.  In  1935  the 
legislature  made  an  appropriation  to  the  Department  of  Public  Wel- 
fare to  carry  on  the  work  for  one  year  then  the  present  set-up  was 
arranged. 

At  present,  the  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Blindness  fur- 
nishes a  nurse  who  supervises  the  work  of  the  clinic  and  the  area  it 
serves.  The  Department  of  Public  Welfare  furnishes  one  nurse  and 
a  doctor  for  each  clinic.  The  W.  P.  A.  furnishes  all  other  help: 
nurses  aids  who  assist  the  nurse  in  the  clinic  and  make  home  calls  to 
follow  up  the  cases  treated  in  the  clinic  or  to  urge  new  cases  which 
have  been  reported  to  come  to  the  clinic  for  treatment;  field  work- 
ers, men  who  are  trained  to  do  the  same  as  the  nurses  aids  in  the 
homes;  a  clerk  to  arrange  schedules  and  appointments  and  give  in- 
formation on  days  when  the  regular  clinic  staff  is  not  present; 
and  janitors  and  laundress. 

The  clinic  cares  for  eye  cases  only  and  gives  treatment  only 
to  trachoma  cases  but  in  case  an  examination  discloses  another  type 
of  eye  defect,  the  case  is  referred  to  a  local  physician  for  care. 
If  the  persons  examined  is  dependent,  the  case  is  sent  to  the  Eye 
and  Ear  Infirmary  in  Chicago. 

The  clinic  is  open  three  times  a  week  for  examinations  and 
treatment.  The  doctor  is  present  every  Thursday  and  every  other 
Saturday  he  cares  for  surgical  cases.  Anesthetics  for  operations  are 
paid  for  by  the  relief  agency  for  the  individual  patient. 

From  June,  1934  to  April,  1939,  533  positive  trachoma  cases 
and  380  suspected  cases  had  been  treated  in  the  clinic.  Many  others 
have  been  examined.  The  average  monthly  case  load  is  200  cases. 
The  load  is  heavier  in  summer,  sometimes  reaching  300  cases  be- 
cause dust  causes  flare  ups  in  old  cases. 


—120— 


CHAPTER    XXXHi 
ROAD  BUILDING  IN  UNION  COUNTY 

Road  building-  is  the  oldest  type  of  public  work  ia  Union 
County.  In  the  beginning  trails  were  blazed  by  hunters  axes  and 
later  came  wagon  trails.  All  the  men  in  a  vicinity  worked  together 
gratis  on  a  road  leading  to  trading  posts  and  other  sources  of  supply. 
Later  as  more  roads  were  needed  a  small  wage  was  paid  the 
men  who  worked  on  the  road  and  later  men  worked  out  their  poll 
taxes  on  the  roads. 

Plank  roads  came  into  use  about  1850.  This  road  is  discussed 
in  a  previous  chapter.  Following  this  dirt  roads  were  used.  These 
roads  were  graded  and  made  wide  enough  for  conveyances  to  pass 
each  other.  Later  came  gravel  roads  and  finally  paved  roads. 

The  first  gravel  roads  were  made  and  maintained  by  a  toll 
collected  from  each  conveyance  which  traveled  over  them.  Toll 
gates  were  located  between  Jonesboro  and  Ware  on  that  gravel  road 
and  one  south  of  Anna  on  another  road. 

The  County  Highway  Department  began  the  building  and 
maintenance  of  roads  about  1915.  State  Aid  roads  began  in  1915. 
These  were  established  through  a  resolution  by  the  County  Board 
of  Commissioners  designating  certain  roads  to  be  added  to  the  State 
Aid  system  because  there  was  more  traffic  on  these  roads  than 
others.  When  the  location  of  a  road  was  designated  by  the  County 
Board,  the  plan  of  the  road  was  sent  to  the  State  Department  of 
Public  Works  and  Buildings  thru  its  district  office  at  Carbondale 
for  approval.  When  the  state  accepted  responsibility  for  granting 
state  aid  to  these  roads,  the  county  was  required  to  pay  one-half  the 
cost  of  maintaining  the  road.  Two  roads,  one  two  miles  east  from 
Dongola  and  one  one  mile  east  from  Cobden  were  laid  out  under 
this  plan  and  the  rest  of  the  roads  were  maintained  by  county  funds. 
In  1927  the  motor  fuel  tax  law  was  enacted  which  allowed 
the  county  one  cent  of  each  three  collected.  Since  then  the  county 
has  had  approximately  $18,000  per  year  from  this  fund  to  construct 
and  maintain  roads  which  are  designed  to  meet  the  state  highway 
qualifications.  Money  can  be  spent  by  counties  either  for  contracts 
or  for  day  labor  work  disbursed  through  the  road  commissioners. 

Up  until  1936  much  work  was  done  through  contracts.  Since 
1936  the  county  has  done  its  own  construction  work.  The  county 
has  spent  much  of  its  money  for  equipment  which  it  rents  to  the 
state  highway  department  at  a  rate  which  practically  pays  for  the 
original  purchase  price  and  upkeep  of  the  machinery.  The  mach- 
inery is  then  available  after  being  used  by  the  state  for  use  on  the 
county  roads. 

The  road  districts  have  their  own  machinery  for  work  within 
the  district. 

Union  County  now  has  eighteen  miles  of  road  Built  with 
motor  fuel  tax  funds. 

A  year  ago  it  was  decided  by  the  government  that  federal 
aid  road  constructed  by  the  government  and  turned  back  to  the 
county   for   maintenance    could    be    maintained    by    motor    fuel    tax 

—121— 


fttnds.  Within  the  last  year  eight  miles  of  road  have  been  com- 
pleted and  peven  more  miles  are  planned  and  right-of-way  condem- 
nations are  being  held  in  court  to  carry  out  this  plan. 

There  are  six  hundred  miles  of  ordinary  public  roads  in  Union 
County,  one  hundred  twenty-seven  miles  of  state  aid  road  and  fifty- 
six  miles  of  concrete  roads.  Four  miles  of  black-top  road  is  being 
built  out  of  state  reforestation  funds  connecting  Cobden  with  the 
Black  Diamond  Trail.     This  is  a  scenic  view  road. 

The    concrete    roads   were    built   and   are    maintained   by    the 

state. 

In  1940  the  county  road  commissioners  were  Mr.  Landis,  Mr. 
Mcintosh,  Mr.  Thornton,  Mr.  Casper,  Mr.  Stegle,  Mr.  Barringer, 
Mr.  Norton,  Mr.  Lingle,  Mr.  Bauer,  Mr.  Orr  and  Mr.  Rendleman. 
There  are  eleven  districts  in  the  county.  Mr.  Loren  Hinkle  is  county 
Superintendent  of  Highways.  Each  commissioner  hires  a  clerk  and 
a  laborer.  The  rest  of  the  work  is  done  by  W.  P.  A.  and  relief 
labor. 

The  county  owns  $20,000  worth  of  machiney  and  if  this 
machinery  were  not  used  as  it  is  by  the  state,  the  county  income 
from  motor  fuel  tax  would  not  be  sufficient  to  maintain  the  county 
roads.     This  income  would  not  much  more  than  keep  up  the  bridges. 

Two  W.  P.  A.  gravel  pits  are  in  operation  in  the  county.  One 
novamlite  pit  is  in  operation  near  Alto  Pass,  but  this  gravel  is  used 
in  Jackson  county.  The  gravel  from  the  W.  P  A.  pits  is  loaded  into 
county  owned  equipment  and  hauled  to  all  the  road  districts.  Each 
district  pays  fifty-four  cents  per  yard  loading  cost. 

Few  counties  keep  a  Highway  Commissioners  reports  but  Mr. 
Hinkle  has  compiled  a  very  complete  reports  which  shows  just  how 
much  money  has  been  spent  and  how  much  work  has  been  completed 
in  each  road  district  each  month  and  how  much  money  is  available 
to  complete  the  work  of  the  districts  during  the  year. 

A  tax  levy  is  made  the  first  of  each  September  to  obtain 
money  to  be  expended  for  construction  of  roads  and  bridges,  the 
maintainance  of  roads  and  bridges,  road  drag  funds,  purchase  of 
machinery,  repairs  for  machinery,  oiling  of  roads,  prevention  and 
extripation  of  weeds,  buildings,  administration  and  contingencies. 

All  tax  warrants  are  listed  in  the  report  so  that  each  district 
knows  just  where  it  is  with  reference  to  the  budget  all  during  the 
year.  A  record  of  all  bank  receipts  and  balances  is  kept,  tax  money 
and  private  work  pay,  etc.,  is  listed.  Also  anticipation  warrants  are 
listed  to  be  counted  against  future  income  so  that  the  county  knows 
just  how  much  is  available  at  all  times  for  road  work. 

During  the  last  twenty-five  years  the  towns  of  Union  County 
have  improved  their  streets.  Few  streets  in  any  of  the  towns  are 
without  gravel  and  many  are  paved. 

Most  of  the  towns  have  also  put  in  water  systems. 


—122- 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 
PERSONAL  TAXES  IN  UNION  COUNTY  AND  CONCLUSION 

The  study  of  personal  taxes  reveals  a  number  of  things,  the 
prosperity  of  the  county,  the  standard  of  living,  the  percent  of 
people  well-to-do  or  poor,  the  types  and  number  of  businesses,  etc- 

Since  1860  personal  taxes  have  increased.  In  1860  when  the 
population  was  11,145  there  were  2149  persons  paid  personal  taxes 
which  indicates  that  all  these  people  had  furniture,  livestock,  stock 
in  trade,  etc.,  amounting  to  more  than  fifty  dollars.  In  1900,  when 
Union  County  reached  it  peak,  22,610  in  population,  3,296  people 
paid  personal  taxes.  In  1939  when  population  was  19,883,  there 
were  4,539  people  paid  personal  taxes.  This  indicates  that  there 
has  been  a  raising  of  the  standard  of  living  for  almost  one-fourth  of 
the  taxpayers. 

Significant  also  is  the  change  in  the  amount  of  personal  prop- 
erty the  well-to-do  class  pays.  In  1900,  eleven  individuals  paid 
taxes  on  between  $10,000  and  $20,000  worth  of  personal  property 
and  three  paid  on  $20,000  or  more.  In  1939  only  one  individual 
listed  personal  property  exceeding  $10,000.  Corporations  such  as 
the  Central  Illinois  Public  Service  Corporation,  the  Bell  Telephone 
Company,  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  and  several  chain 
grocery  stores  and  oil  companies  and  other  companies  paid  taxes 
on  over  $10,000  worth  of  personal  property. 

Since  it  is  a  well  known  fact  that  more  than  one  individual 
has  more  than  $10,000  worth  of  personal  property  which  may  or 
may  not  be  taxable,  it  would  be  inaccurate  to  leave  the  impression 
that  individual  wealth  has  decreased  as  much  as  the  comparison  in 
taxes  between  1900  and  1939  indicates.  Since  the  assessor  is  only 
able  to  list  what  he  sees  if  the  taxpayer  does  not  choose  to  tell  him 
what  he  owns,  many  things  may  be  missed  in  compiling  tax  lists,  and 
since  taxes  have  increased,  people  are  more  inclined  to  conceal 
their  wealth  than  they  were  in  the  past.  The  county  assessor  made 
the  statement  that  if  an  accurate  assessment  could  be  made,  the  rate 
of  taxation  would  be  about  one-fourth  the  amount  that  is  now 
levied. 

In  listing  personal  taxes  for  businesses,  in  1900  seventy-six 
business  houses  listed  personal  property  of  over  $1,000  and  six 
manufacturers  had  over  $1,000  worth  of  personal  property.  The 
largest  manufacturer  listed  property  worth  $5,459. 

This  practice  does  not  exist  in  Union  County  alone. 

In  1939  four  manufacturers  listed  personal  property  of  over 
$8,000  and  one  company  paid  taxes  on  $35,505.  Fifty-six  places  of 
business  listed  over  $1,000  worth  of  personal  property  and  there 
were  almost  three  times  as  many  businesses  listed  in  1939  as  in 
1900.  It  is  possible  for  many  businesses  to  operate  now  on  a  small 
amount  of  stock  because  of  the  availability  of  new  stock  to  replenish 
what  is  sold  almost  over  night. 

A  discussion  of  farm  taxes  was  given  in  the  chapter  on  the 
history  of  agriculture. 

—123— 


Types  of  businesses  have  changed  to  meet  the  times.  Instead 
of  the-  old  general  merchandise  stores  there  are  specialized  stores, 
ready-to-wear,  groceries,  notions,  etc.  The  harness  and  wagon  manu- 
facturers have  been  replaced  by  garages,  automobile  and  farm  im- 
plement sales  companies.  The  sale  of  gasoline  is  one  of  the  most 
numerous  of  businesses  in  the  county. 

In  conclusion,  let  it  be  said  that  Union  county,  altho  handi- 
capped by  rather  poor  soil,  has  arisen  above  its  handicaps  and  has 
hare  of  business  and  comforts.  While  there  are  no  extremely 
wealthy  people  in  the  county  there  are  many  people  who  live  well. 
Our  poor  people  are  fewer  than  in  our  neighboring  counties,  Alex- 
ander, Pulaski,  Jackson,  Williamson  and  Johnson.  The  county  has 
produced  its  share  of  brilliant  people  who  have  made  names  for 
themselves  in  the  fields  of  business,  politics  and  education. 

Union  County  is  above  all,  a  consistent  county.  When  a 
leader  is  chosen  he  is  backed  for  long  periods  of  time.  This  is 
indicated  by  the  long  tenure  of  office  enjoyed  by  Monroe  C.  Craw- 
ford, who  was  county  judge  for  thirty-two  years.  Judge  Crawford 
was  a  very  fine  type  of  man  which  indicates  that  Union  County 
stands  behind  officials  of  high  calibre.  In  going  over  the  county 
records,  it  is  found  that  most  of  our  officials  served  for  long  period* 
Of  time. 

Most  of  the  pastors  in  the  county  serve  their  churches  for  a 
number  of  years  and  there  is  not  a  radical  amount  of  change  among 
teachers.  Many  of  our  business  houses  belong  to  people  whose  fath- 
ers and' grandfathers  were  in  the  same  business  before  them. 

On  the  whole  our  citizens  are  law  abiding.  We  do  not  have 
any  more  arrests  in  proportion  to  our  population  than  other  counties 
have. 

On  the  whole  we  are  an  average  county  considering  the  fact 
that  we  excel  in  some  things  and  do  not  do  so  well  in  others.  Most 
salesmen  visiting  the  county  express  themselves  as  finding  Union 
County  the  best  business  county  in  this  end  of  the  state.  Our 
county  was  born  of  courage  and  hardship.  It  grew  on  the  fearless 
spirit  of  the  pioneer  and  has  become  what  it  is  today. 


^124— 


I       LEE  IMPLEMENT  CO. 

ALLIS  CHALMERS 

I     SALES  AND  SERVICE  FARM  EQUIPMENT 

State   Truck   Testing    Machine 

Operating  Since   1911   in  Union  County 

Phone  260  128-129  W.  Davie  St. 

ANNA,  ILLINOIS 


y 


WILLY'S  Eccr  Store 

I  SCHOOL  SUPPLIES 

New  and  Used  School  Books 

Operating  Since  1890  in  Union  County 

Telephone  145  317  S.  Main  St. 


i   THE  RITZ  THEATRE 

I  COBDEN,   ILLINOIS 

1  The  Best  In  Moving  Picture  Entertainment. 

Your  patronage  will  be  appreciated. 
"In  the  Heart  of  Union  County" 


I ! 


BLUE  WILLOW  CAFE 

"Located  in   the   Heart  of   Dongola" 
Always  Ready  to  Serve  both  Young  and  Old 
THE  BEST  IN   FOODS— FOUNTAIN   SERVICE 
*  KENNETH  CORZINE,   Manager 


TUTHILL  OIL  CO. 

IN  THE  HEART  OF  ANNA 

BARNSDALL  PRODUCTS 

Quaker  Stale  and  Pennzoil 


' 


Telephone  350 


Norris  &  Son 


- 


FURNITURE  &  FUNERAL  SERVICE 

Linoleum  —  Rugs  —  Radios 
Hotpoint  Refrigerators  —  Wall  Paper 

Established  1898  Jonesboro,  Illinois 

•^»      -^^      •^^fe^— ^9^.^  .-^^fe,     ♦  -..^^fe>c^fts..<j!fcj^.  r  ♦ 


I 


For    the    Best    and    Latest    in    Movie    Entertainment 
We    Invite    You    To   Attend    the 

RODGERS  THEATRE 


•  •  • 

WE  APPRECIATE  YOUR  PATRONAGE 

•  •     • 

Serving  the  Public  Since   1923 

•  •     • 

H.   L.   HENDERSON,  Resident  Manager 


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COLLEEN  BEAUTY  SERVICE 

Cobden,  111. — Across  from  the  Hardware  Store 
EXPERTLY  EXPERIENCED  IN   HAIR  DRESSING 
Permanents   a   Specialty — At   lowest   popular    price 
When   you  need   a  facial,   permanent,   manicure   or 

or  wave  set  think  of  us. 
Colleen  Stewart  Phone  23 


CARTER   MOTOR   SALES 

CHRYSLER   &    PLYMOUTH    SALES    &    SERVICE 

•  •     • 

DAY  AND  NIGHT  WRECKER  SERVICE 

•  •     • 

Phone  298  and  162  Anna,  111. 


KAUFMAN 

NEWSTAND  and  CONFECTIONERY 

Cobden,  111.  Operating  Since   1916    A 

Subscriptions  taken  for  newpapers  and  magazines. 


CINDERELLA 
NITE  CLUB 

Wolf  Lake,  Illinois 

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For  your  best  enjoy- 
ment. 

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Square    Dancing    Every 
Friday    Night 

Wolf  Lake,  Illinois 
On  Route  3 


WILSON'S 
CASH  STORE 

A.   M.   Wilson   and 
A.    T.    Wilson 

Groceries   and   Meats 

Men's  &  Boy's  Shoes 

"Quality    Merchandise'' 

is  our  motto. 

Wolf  Lake,  Illinois 


fe-^3^^4^  -^A 


PIONEERS    .    .    . 

made  lasting  progress  by  choosing  the  course  that 
would  stand  the  test  of  time. 

We  are  satisfying  our  customers  by  choosing  for 
them  only  quality  goods,  at  prices  in  keeping  with 
quality  we  sell. 

DAVIS  CLOTHING  CC. 

EMERY  DAVIS 
114   East   Davie   St.  Anna,    111. 


iTs.  spires  I 


GROCERIES         DRY  GOODS 
MEATS  SHOES 

•  •    • 

We  Feed  and  Clothe  the  Entire 
Family. 

•  •    • 

114  W.Davie  Anna 


■j 


* 


Made  Right  Priced  Right 

UNION  FEEDS 


ANNA  FLOUR  &  FEED  CO. 

MANUFACTURERS 


JOHN  D.  STROEHLEIN 

HARDWARE 
Hardware  and  Implements 

Operating  Since  1928  Cobden,   III. 


te^:J2!SSgS 


Union  County  Oil  Co. 

Your  Friendly  Distributor 

Products 

WHOLESALE  and  RETAIL 

Phone  142  Cobden,  111. 

Everett  Randall,  Mgr. 


n 


Demand  | 

|  BIG  BOY  AND  BUTTERNUT  BREAD  | 

NONE  BETTER 

LEWIS  BROS.  BAKERIES 

I 

1  Invites  you  to  attend.     We  have  the  best  in  modern     M 

A  theatre  equipment  and  the  latest  in  motion  pictures     i 

I  at    all    times.      For    your    best    enjoyment    visit    our 

O  theatre. 

|  Dongola,    III. 


RIXLEBEN'S  PHARMACY     j 

DRUGS  —  SCHOOL  BOOKS  —  SUPPLIES 


Jonesboro,    111. 


The  Producers  Dairy 


"Health  With  Perfect  Safety" 

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FINE  DAIRY  FOODS 
Pasteurized 

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Phone  77  Anna,  111. 


E.  P.  OWEN 


DRUGGIST 


•     •     o 


101  N.  Main  St.  Telephone  119 


^&-&SJ?*  ♦ 


•  •    • 

Capital  $50,000.00 

•  •     • 
$    I.  O.  Karraker  President 

Thos.   Rixleben   Vice-President    ■ 

I    Ed  L.  Karraker  Cashier    1 

Ida  Sensmeier  Asst.  Cashier    ; 


a: 


Flag  Pole  In  Anna 


Last   year  the   Anna   Chamber   of   Commerce   and   the    Amer- 
ican Legion  put  up  a  flag  pole  on  the  Illinois  Central  park. 


This  picture  shows  the  initial  flag  raising  ceremonies. 


LINCOLN 

^  ^Ul^  fy  Ben  H- Smith 

^0ut  °f^eWest  he  came 
|    Awkward  in  phrase, 

#  Bringing  a  speech  To  flame 

fC     Worlds  in  those  days. 


Lived 

patient  and  u/iSe 


eknew. 
th  tough 


k 


wvjo4.of  a  ye!  low  earth  ^ 
^       gCv     \J#?ame  endurgp    n_ 
^^f^>J\[P^a^ty<>u  knowC%is  Worth 

_.  a  western  sc 
Nations  may  fall 
He,  since  he  i  s  with  Gogs^/lT'  ]  i  J§( 

isofusdii.   M-^4 


We  bring  you  U  % 

Verse  that  is  wet  upith  tears      /9 
Where  all  r^pjesVeep. 


Ben  H.  Smith  of  Jonesboro,  has  been  recognized  nationally 
for  his  fine  poetry.  Above  is  his  poem  on  Abraham  Lincoln  that 
has  been  published  throughout  the  United  States. 


He   contributes   a   regular   weekly   column    to    The    Gazette- 
Democrat. 


International   Shoe   Factory 


Leading  industry  in  Union  County  is  the  International  Shoe 
Factory  in  Anna.  It  has  been  in  operation  here  for  the  past  10 
years. 


Hale-Willard  Hospital 


Formerly  a  private   institution   when   this   picture   v. 
The    Hale-Willard    hospital    is   now   operated    by   the    City   of 


Z  %       Hi— TIBIIII    WBE.Jit),.J.AIWL...nSMK^SME^SWI 


Dr.  H.  B.  Shafer    4  4   Dr.  Jas.  F.  Wahl    A 

—DENTIST—  Optometrist 


Anna 


4     Dr.  H.  Phillips      $  ♦     Dr.  Roy  Keith      {j 

Physician    &    Surgeon     |     4  — DOCTOR — 

Anna  Anna 


. 


-dB*.       -- «*-       "gMSi  IHTSBMIBl    '-*«►-        1 


Dr.  Don  Stewart  g  1     Dr.   Berry  Rife     L 
—DOCTOR—  a  —DOCTOR— 

4  Anna  1   J  Anna 

|    Dr.  E.  V.  Hale  |  f  Dr.  C.  R.  Walser  " 

—DOCTOR—  |  I  —DENTIST— 

1  -  t  1 


Anna  Y  Anna 

^  ^^  b_|M  ^J    I  __  ;;  ^    j| 

Dr.  O.  E.  Johnson  11      J.  C.  Kincaid 

1  i 


DENTIST—  I        The    Chiropractor 


Anna  f{   j|  Anna 

Dr.  H.  O.  Taylor 

Medical    Doctor 
Anna 


THE  JOINER  FURNITURE  STORE 

Established    For   Over   20   Years 


Invite3  you  to  come  into  our  large  shew  room,  and 
y  see  our  wonderful  display  of  furniture. 

a 

y.     We   have   furniture    to   fit   every   need   at   prices    to    y 
make   it   more   appealing. 


A  "For  the  Best  In   Furniture  See   Us"  j, 


North  Main  St.  Anna,  Illinois 


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WILKINS'   GARAGE 

Your  CHEVROLET  Dealer 

Telephone   5S-R2  Cobden,    Illinois 

I  ■ 

ft     Would   you  like  to  trade  your  old   car  for  a   later    A 

model?      If  so  see  us  and   save  money.      We   have 


J .  cars    to    please    any    buyer. 


Phoettis:  Fleur  Mills,  Iziq. 

A  Manufacturer*    of 

FLOUR,  MEAL  AND  FEEDS 

Distributors    of    the    celebrated    Purina    Feeds 
Dealers   in 
HAY,  OATS  AND  STRAW 
y  A    Full    Line    of    Field    Seed 

We    have    installed    a    Clipper    Seed    Cleaner.       Bring    us    your 
Seeds    for    cleaning. 


W.  H.  BISHOP  HORSE  &  MULE 
AUCTION 


SAVE 

with  SAFETY  at 


GEO    E   PARKS  HoUJl  DRUGGIST 

206-8  S.MAIN  ST.    ANNA, ILL.    PHONE  122 


93BSS9SSBG30!S?V95» 


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