Morgan County, Illinois - The whole text, 1878 (part 9 of 21)

The schools were always " pay schools," that is, each patron paid a certain amount per scholar, for the quarter. This pay almost always consisted in the common currency of pioneer times - coonskins and beeswax. Peltry of various kinds was also used, for money was not to be had. These articles the master could use to pay his board, when he occupied one place, or could exchange for other necessaries of life.

About 1833, Joseph Duncan, then a member of the General Assembly, introduced into that body a bill for the establishment and promotion of a system of common schools. The bill passed that body, and became a law. It, however, was like many other excellent measures, in advance of its time, and by the next legislature repealed. Nothing more was done until 1837, when at the session of 1836-7, Judge William Thomas, who has in various ways done so much for the State, drew up a bill, presented it before the Assembly, and succeeded in having it passed. This bill was the foundation of the present common school system of Illinois. It was most admirable in its provisions for the schools, and with various amendments and alterations, is yet in force. Some time previous to its passage, the National Congress had passed an act dividing among the States a large fund, known as the Suffrage Act Fund. By its provisions Illinois had received as her share, over six hundred thousand dollars. The majority of the legislators wanted this fund to use in furthering the great Internal Improvement System, then just culminating in the financial crash of 1837. The Judge, however, succeeded in securing half the fund for the benefit of the schools. The exact amount secured was $335,592.32. By this stroke of policy on the part of the Judge, this large sum of money was secured for the cause of education, and laid the basis of the generous support now given the schools.

Congress, in its division of the Northwest Territory, had made provision for the sale of every sixteenth section of land, the proceeds to be applied to a fund for the promotion and maintenance of popular education. Morgan County contains in its present limits, sixteen of these sections, or over ten thousand acres of land. Judge Thomas was appointed Commissioner by the County Court, to sell these lands. He discharged his duty with his usual faithfulness, and a large increase was thereby made to the school fund.

The old log school houses, upon the passage of this law, soon began to give way to more comfortable frame structures, which in some instances are now replaced by brick structures, filled with every modern convenience. The advance of civilization ; the improvement of the country ; the educated tastes of the people, and the demand for a more advanced and better class of instruction have brought about a higher grade of teaching, and a consequent demand for advanced and excellent teachers. Time will undoubtedly show a still higher grade, and it is hoped it will soon be that the profession, so fraught with the interests of all, will not be made simply a stepping stone to other and more lucrative callings.

The day of subscription schools did not entirely cease in all cases until about 1853. That year the school superintendent came upon the field, and his work soon manifested itself. Longer terms were secured, and in a few cases graded schools established. The Illinois College, the Female Academy, and othe similar institutions, were doing a good work and each one molding the public mind to a higher course of instruction. Among the private schools of the county, started in early days, none deserve more mention than the one known as " Ebenezer Church and School." It was started about four miles north of town, about 1832, by Rev. Peter Akers, D.D., now an old minister in retired life in Jacksonville. Some of its teachers were, Rev. John M. Piper, in the Autumn of 1835 or 1836 ; Rev. John Clark, who had been a missionary at Green

Bay, Wisconsin, brought to be educated there, George Copway, John Johnson, and Peter Marksman, three Indian boys, who afterward became of great benefit to their fellow men in the frontier. Others that he brought from his mission were, Samuel Spates, David Weatherford, and Allen Huddleson. Some of these are yet living and doing good service in their various fields of labor.

Dr. Akers, so long identified with the interests of Morgan County, was born on the first day of September, 1790, in Campbell County, State of "Virginia, at the house of his parents, John and Agnes Akers, three miles southeast of the court house. He was about seven years old when he was sent to a common school. When sixteen years old, a school of little children was taught by him. He next went to different institutions of learning, both in Virginia, North Carolina, etc., where he both taught classes and was taught a full course of English, Latin, and Greek languages. His graduation ticket of A.M., was given him in Transylvania University, Kentucky. He was also president, for some time, of a State Institution in Mount Sterling, Kentucky. He studied law with Major W. P. Fleming, in Flemingsburg, Kentucky. And in March, 1817, he obtained license to plead in all the courts of that State ; and being received into partnership with Major Fleming, he entered into an extensive practice for four years ; and meanwhile edited and published a political Whig paper, called The Star.- Having married in 1818, and his wife being taken sick unto death, in the early part of 1821, he received an abiding conviction of his need of religion. And his wife having departed in great peace, when he found peace in believing, he was most deeply convinced that it was his duty to quit the practice of law, and preach the balance of his days. Therefore he joined the itinerant bod}- of the M. E. Church, in 1821, and having filled the various appointments assigned him, and having married his second wife, he was, at his request, transferred to Illinois Conference in 1832.

Jacksonville became the chief place of his subsequent abode ; but having bought a place about four miles north of Jacksonville, in 1832, he had there a church and school house built, called Ebenezer, where he instituted a Manual-Labor school, in which, by him and others, were taught the various branches of English literature, and also the Latin and Greek languages. He was also three times made president of McKendree College in Lebanon, Illinois. In this institution he served in all, about eight years. He also filled other appointments, stations, presiding-elder districts, etc., in Illinois, for many years, then went, labored and preached eight years in Minnesota ; returned to Jacksonville, Illinois, and preached six years on two districts ; was then superannuated ; since which this is the seventh year. This year, 1878, is also the forty-sixth since he first came to Jacksonville, where he yet lives in his eighty-eighth year. He has preached in most of the United States, while filling different appointments. In 1833, September, he was sent by Conference to " McKendree Seminary" which, by the next legislature, he and the trustees, got to be chartered as a " College ;" to which he was again sent by Conference, in October, 1834.

Other schools in different localities were founded as the population increased and as towns were started. The colleges and superior advantages offered in the county seat, soon took precedence over all others, and finally drew all to them. Each town now supports its graded school only, while Jacksonville offers to all advanced education equal to any city in the Union.

The statistics of the county schools heretofore given, show fully their standing and efficacy. Before giving them we will, however, notice the work of each superintendent and the advance made by each.

In 1853, Mr. W. Catlin (since deceased), the first county superintendent, was elected to the office. The schools were paid partly by subscription and partly from the public funds, and but few of the teachers "boarded 'round."

Mr. Catlin was succeeded by that well-known educator, Newton Bateman. The examination of teachers now became more rigid, and marked improvement in every way was manifested. Mr. Bateman being elected to the State Superintendency, Mr. Thomas Springer, now an attorney in Jacksonville, succeeded him. Improvement in all things still went on during his term of office. He was followed by Mr. S. M. Martin, and he by the present incumbent, Mr. Henry Higgins, elected in 1873, and re-elected in 1877.

The last log school house disappeared in the Summer of 1876, giving place to a frame one of more and better proportions, and filled with better furniture and apparatus.

In the Summer of 1874, the first Institute was held in the county. Prior to this time an association was formed among the most prominent teachers, and Mr. Higgins chosen its president. From an average monthly attendance of fifteen or twenty, the number has increased to more than double either number. The Institutes are held every year, lasting from three to six weeks, and are unusually well attended. An association at Waverley ineets monthly, having the same object in view - the promotion and advancement of the teachers, and their profession.

The following statistics, taken from the records in the office of the County Superintendent, show fully the present condition of the common schools of Morgan County, and are in striking contrast to any preserved from the records of forty years ago. For the year ending September 30, 1877, there were reported 3,063 male, and 3,441 female - 7,044 persons of school age. There were also reported 15 brick school houses, and 97 frame - 112 in all. 86 male, and 84 female - 170 - teachers, whose average length of schools were 7.8 months. The average monthly wages paid to male teachers was $61.00; to female, $43.25; the total amount expended for school purposes was $97,990.76.

\ This city very deservedly bears the name of the " Athens of the West." As its history progresses, the reader will observe the spirit which characterized many of its earliest inhabitants. The founding of a college was one of the first things to engross their attention, and from the number the city now sustains, this interest has never waned. Jacksonville is most pleasantly situated, and contains at present about twelve thousand inhabitants.

When the law establishing the County of Morgan was passed - January 31, 1823. - not an inhabitant dwelt on the future city's site. Owing to the fact that at that time but few families lived within the bounds of the new county - then including Scott and Cass Counties - the legislature thought best to provide, that the county seat should be temporary only, leaving to some future legislature to fix a permanent seat of justice. This temporary county seat was located at a place called " Olmstead's Mounds," near where Mr. Adam Allison now lives, and here, in an old cabin on Mr. Swinerton's farm, the first county courts were held. But one year elapsed ere the people evinced a desire for a permanent county seat, and on January 6, 1825, John Howard, Abraham Pickett, and John T. Lusk, of Madison County, were appointed Commissioners to locate the permanent seat of justice for the new county. They were required to meet at Mr. James Deaton's on the first Monday in March following, and after being duly sworn were to proceed to select a site for the county seat as " near as possible to the center of the territory as practicable, having a due regard to the present and future population." In this law it was also provided that if said county seat should be located upon land belonging to any private citizen, the owner or owners of the same should donate to the county twenty acres, to be laid out in lots and sold, the proceeds of which should be applied to the building of a court house and jail for the county.

In obedience to this law, the three persons appointed located the county seat in the center of a quarter section of land composed of the east half of the northeast quarter of section twenty, and the west half of the northwest quarter of section twenty-one, in township fifteen, north of the base line, and in range ten west of the third principal meridian.

The day this county seat was located the land belonged to the government of the United States, but the next day, at nine o'clock in the morning, the government sold it at private sale at one dollar and a quarter per acre, to Thomas Arnett and Isaac Dial, two citizens residing near the place - Arnett purchasing the tract in section twenty, and Dial the tract in section twenty-one. Arnett and Dial resolved, in connection with the county, to lay out a town upon this land, and by an agreement between these owners and the County Commissioners' Court, a line was drawn from east to west, through the center of the quarter section, and Arnett and Dial conveyed, by deeds to the county, each twenty acres immediately on the north side of that line. This donation by those proprietors contained forty acres, being double the quantity required by the law to be given to the county. On the 10th of March, 1825, those proprietors, for themselves, and the county court for the county, laid out a town on eighty acres of land, in a square form, in the center of the one hundred and sixty acre tract, the county owning the north half and the proprietors the south half, and after much research and deliberation in selecting a name, they called the town Jacksonville, after General Andrew Jackson, he being the great man of that day.

Previous to that time there had been a public road laid out from Springfield, the then recently located county seat of Sangamon County, to the town of Naples, on the Illinois River, in Morgan County. This road, by way of eminence and distinction, was called the State road. This State road passed east and west on the top of the ridge of land directly over the spot selected for the county seat. The surveyor who laid out the town (Mr. Johnston Shelton) began the survey by laying out a central square of land, containing something more than five acres, directly in the center of the one hundred and sixty acre tract, the State road running through the center of the square. Upon this State road he located a street, sixty feet wide, intending it to run due east and west across the one hundred and sixty acres, and on the north line of the land belonging to the proprietors ; thus locating one-half of the square and one -half of the width of the street on the land of the private owners, and the other half on the land of the county. This street was called State street.

A street was then laid out running north and south through the center of the land and the central square, of the same width, and was called Main street. Taking these two streets as base lines, the town was laid out into square blocks, of one hundred and eighty feet nine inches on each side, which blocks were divided into three lots, each of equal size. All other streets, except those two, were made forty feet wide, and the alleys twenty-five feet, all running at right angles with each other.

The county offices and all county business were removed from the temporary county seat at Olmstead's Mound, in the Summer of 1825, and the first Circuit Court was held at Jacksonville in September of that year.

When the Commissioners located the seat of justice, they found on the site one cabin occupied by a hatter named Alexander Cox, who made caps of furs for the settlers. This cabin stood near the fountain in the Public Square, and was a comfortable, though primitive affair. Almost contemporary with the laying out of the town, this cabin was purchased by Mr. Thomas Carson, also a hatter by trade, who emigrated hither from Sangamon County. He was a native of Virginia. From the Old Dominion he removed to Kentucky, then the western terminus of almost all emigrants. From this State he brought his wife to the new State of Illinois, then a comparative wilderness, and, following in the steps of the greater part of emigrants from Kentucky to the Prairie State, came to the Sangamo country. By some means he was induced to locate in the new County of Morgan, and as been stated, purchased Mr. Cox's cabin. He soon after removed it just south of East State Street, fronting the Public Square. Placing the cabin a little in the rear of the corner, he erected to the front a large hewed log dwelling, in which he opened a tavern. The sash for the windows of this house were carried by Mrs. Carson from Jersey Prairie on horseback. As the county was incorDorated in a municipal capacity, he was required to procure a license In all licenses to keep public houses, or ferries, at that date the rates of charges were established. By the destruction of the court house and its records in the Autumn of 1827, all such records were destroyed, and we have no means of determining such charges save by those prescribed after that ev^nt. It is probably correct to suppose that the prices allowed for entertainment did not change much in that short interval, and we can very safely assume that Mr. Carson received for rum, brandy, gin, and wine twenty-five cents per half pint ; for whisky, half that sum for the same quantity ; for a meal of victuals or keeping a horse over night, twenty -five cents; for lodging twelve and one-half cents, and for feeding a horse six and one-fourth cents. Mr. Huram Reeve and some others think that Mr. David Tefft opened a tavern in a small building sixteen feet square, erected by him on the east side of the Square previous to the opening of Mr. Carson's. Mrs. Carson stated to Mr. J. R. Bailey that her husband procured his license first, and was the first tavern-keeper in the town. This opinion was confirmed by Mr. Dennis Rockwell, the first county clerk, and is probably correct.

The tavern of Mr. Carson was removed to East Morgan Street to give place for the erection of the Congregational church, which was afterward known as the " Union Hall." The old building is partly standing at this time.

The third hotel in the town was not built until 1828. It was situated on the east side of the Square, and was probably the first frame building erected in Jacksonville. This building was rented to Mr. George M. Richards, who obtained his license to keep a public house February 15, 1828. It is the first license recorded now on record. Those of Mr. Carson and Mr. Tefft being destroyed by the burning of the old cour^ house in 1827. Mr. Richards' rate of charges are worth preserving, and were as follows :

Mr. Carson remained in Jacksonville during his lifetime, and was always an excellent citizen, doing much toward the prosperity of the cit}T. He was also the first jailor, and in that official capacity held the keys of the old log structure, which, though uncouth in appearance, was as safe a repository for criminals as its more pretentious successors of to-day. Mrs. Carson was more widely known than any woman in the count}'. ''Mother" Carson, as she was called, was known in St. Louis, Springfield, and equally distant places. She followed the profession of midwife, and so extensive was her practice, and so remarkable her success, that she was often called to these and equally distant places in the practice of her profession. She seldom lost a patient, and it has been confidently asserted by many that she was present at the birth of fully three thousand children. She died while the courts were in session, and so respected was she by all, that, upon motion of Judge William Thomas, court adjourned to attend her funeral.

The laying out of the city, and its selection as the seat of justice, brought immediately a number of families thither. Dennis Rockwell, the first recorder, clerk of court, and the first post-master here, was without doubt among the first settlers.

Mr. Rockwell was a native of Vermont. He resided for some time at Edwardsville, Illinois, and when Morgan County was organized, he was appointed clerk of the Circuit and County Commissioner Court, and recorder, and, upon the location of the county seat at Jacksonville, post-master. In 1854, he removed to Chicago, where he' was engaged in the lumber business until 1867, when, his health failing, he returned to Jacksonville. He was one of the first directors of the Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, and, with Colonel Geo. M. Chambers, superintended tli3 erection of that building. He was also one of the trustees of the Institution for the Blind. For a time he held a position as cashier in the Branch of the State Bank, located in Jacksonville. He donated to the Episcopal church, of which he was a member, the block of ground on which that church now stands, and gave largely toward the erection of the house and support of the minister. After his return from Chicago, in 1867, his health failed him and he died shortly thereafter.

The first store in the county was opened soon after the town was laid out, by Hacket & Fairfield. Before opening this store in town, they peddled through the settlements, exchanging goods for furs, beeswax, and honey, the only money found in the settlements at that time. Town property, for the first three or four years of the growth of the town, was very low. A lot on the southwest corner of the square, now occupied by the dry goods store of Metcalf & Fell, was offered to Mr. Dennis Rockwell for a cow and calf, worth at that time ten dollars, and Mr. Rockwell sold at one time eight acres of land, just north and west of the square, now in the heart of the city, for eighty dollars - to be .paid in blacksmithing.

The first improvements on the west side of the square were a row of small frame houses. In one of these houses the first barber shop was opened, by a colored man named Ball, and in one of these buildings Colonel John J. Hardin held his office.

General Hardin, one of the most prominent men in Morgan County, was born in Frankfort, Kentucky, on the sixth day of June, 1810. He came to this part of Illinois at an early day, and at once entered actively into the practice of his profession - the law. He was a member of different legislative bodies, and held other and various offices of trust. He was elected a general of militia, and, on the breaking out of the Mexican war, was the 'first one in the county to enlist. He was immecliaately chosen captain of a company raised there. After leaving for the seat of war, he was chosen colonel of a regiment ; and, while gallantly leading his men at the battle of Buena Vista, on the 23d of February, 1847, received a death wound. In July, his body was brought home, and deposited in the old cemetery. His funeral was one of the largest ever held in the city. Many State officers, and others prominent in life, came to pay their respects to the memory of one so well known and revered.

All houses were built of logs, with puncheon floors, wooden-hinged doors, and " stick " chimneys. The old log school-house, erected probaably early in 1826, was of this pattern. Judge William Thomas taught the first school therein. It was also used by the Methodists and Presbyterians as a house of worship, each denomination alternating with the other. It was in this pioneer structure that Dr. J. M. Sturtevant, so long and so intimately connected with the educational interests of Jacksonville, preached his first sermon in the county. This was in the Fall of 1829, when he and Theron Baldwin emigrated to Illinois, pledged with others to establish the institution with which he has been so long associated. Speaking of this journey, and the old school-house, the Doctor says:

" On our arrival at St. Louis, then a village not much more populous, nor half as beautiful as Jacksonville is to-day, we found no public conveyance to Jacksonville of any sort. The rivers were open and in good stage, but there was no regular navigation on the Illinois, and no boat was likely to go up. There was no stage to this place, and no mail, except one carried on horseback once a week from Springfield. I procured a carriage and driver for myself and wife and two ladies accompanying us, and left my friend, Mr. Baldwin, to devise the best plan he could for reaching our common destination. The route from St. Louis to this place was nearly the same then as the one now generally traveled. But it was a journey through a wilderness. Delhi, Jerseyville, Kane, Whitehall, and Manchester were not even in name. Alton could hardly be said to be. Carrollton was for the most part a cluster of log houses. It was a dreary journey, in mud and melting snow, through a region, much of which seemed incapable of settlement for a generation to come, on account of the scarcity of wood. The unfortunate detention of our vehicle in one of those mud-holes, which are one of the first marks of commencing civilization, compelled us, like Mr. Ellis, to pass Saturday night on the other side of Sandy Creek. The inconvenience to which we were subjecting the family, in the small cabin where we stopped, compelled us to resume our journey with the dawning day. It was on a bright Sabbath morning, on the fifteenth day of November, a little after sunrise, that we came in sight of Jacksonville. It was already called, in the ordinary speech of the people, a beautiful place. I had often heard it called so myself ; and beautiful it was, when the bright face of spring was again spread over it. though its beauty was God's work, and not man's It was at chat time little better than a group of log cabins. The prairie was in the somber brown of autumn, with scarce a tree or shrub to relieve the monotony. To the northwest, however, the view was shut in by an elevation, which a New Englander might almost recognize as a hill. It was crowned with a natural grove. Against the front of the grove was already projected an edifice of brick, which at that distance, and on such an elevation, made an appearance of considerable dignity and magnificence. The site on which it stood charmed every beholder. It was the south half of what is now our college buildings, then in the process of erection.

" We were most cordially welcomed at the humble but none the less hospitable dwelling of Mr. Ellis. He was still absent at the East, but his house was in charge of one whose heart was the abode of every noble and generous sentiment. God only knows what the cause of education and of religion in this State owes to her wisdom, energy, and cheerful self-denial.

"Our arrival was expected, and preaching was appointed. At the proper hour we repaired to the place of worship. What would our people say now if we were to invite them to assemble in such a place for public worship? It was a log school-house, some twenty feet square, with a floor of split logs, and seats, so far as there were any of the same, with holes bored in them, and sticks driven in for legs. The chimney was of the style and structure most approved for log cabins, built out of doors, of logs and sticks, and occupying near half of one side of the room. Such was its condition the first time I met the congregation in that place. Before the next Sabbath the chimney had either fallen down or been removed, in preparation for warming the house by a stove. For two or three Sabbaths we met there before this vast opening in one side was again closed up. Desk or pulpit there were none, and to supply seats for all who could get into this little church, rails were brought in and laid from seat to seat."

A stove was soon introduced into the church, and in this small cabin, serving as a house of worship and a house of instruction, regular meetings were maintained.

During the Summer of 1825 and 1826, building progressed rapidly in the new town. Mr. Carson's tavern was always full, and more than once the traveler was glad of a chance to shelter himself and enjoy the luxury of a bed on the puncheon floor, with his traveling cloak for a covering. Hospitality was a reigning virtue among the early pioneers of Illinois, and no one in search of a home on these western' prairies went unsheltered or hungry.

It was in the Autumn of 1826, that Judge William Thomas first came to Morgan County. As his journey here, and what he encountered on his arrival, are so fraught with interest, we will let him tell it in his own words, as he has given them in a letter to the Journal :

" On the 20th of Sept., 1826, 1 started from the office of Hon. Joseph R. Underwood, Bowling Green, Kentucky, for Peoria, Illinois, accompanied by Thomas A. Young, Esq., en route for Palmyra, Missouri. We traveled on horseback, and purposely selected a road by New Harmony, Indiana, then in possession of Mr. Owen, who was trying an experiment at the reorganization of society. His fame, and that of his society and system of government, had reached Kentucky through the newspapers, and we determined to spend sufficient time there to satisfy ourselves in regard to the condition and probable success of the experiment.

" We had been educated to believe that no society or organized community could succeed in this country, whose foundation had no reference to the Bible. Neither of us were professing Christians, but our reading of law books and sound history had created the opinion, that without the Bible no people could be qualified to organize or maintain institutions of freedom. Mr. Owen's system had been in what was called successful operation for several years, and in almost every part of the country per- sons were found who pointed to its success as evidences of the correctness of his theory, and of the errors of all other systems. We found the community on the wane, tending fast to demoralization and dissolution. We, however, found educated and intelligent men and women persisting in the notion that our system of government, and of religious worship, were all founded on erroneous views of the position which men were designed by their Creator to occupy, as well with reference to their God as to each other.

" Having spent about twenty-four hours in the village and being satisfied from what we saw and heard that the community could not be kept together, after the adhesive power of supplies sof food and raiment was exhausted, we resumed our journey. We passed through the counties of White, Edwards, Wayne, and Marion to Clinton. A few miles north of Carlyle, I found an old acquaintance who constrained me to stop and spend a few days in his log cabin. I spent several days in this place, resting myself and horse. Whilst here, I became satisfied, that Peoria was too far north and west, beyond the settlement of the country for the location of an attorney at law, and determined from information obtained from those who had passed through this part of the State, to make Jacksonville my place of residence. Whilst resting with my friend I visited Carlyle and found the fever and ague operating upon almost every person that I saw. Two gentlemen here, one of whom is still living, offered to give me a lot and build me an office if I would settle in the village. I respectfully declined the offer, and told my friend that I would not settle in such a sickly place for all the town. I passed from this place to Belleville to deliver some letters to Governor Edwards and obtain further information in regard to the country, and here I found the first corn bread and bacon that I had seen since crossing the Ohio river. After spending two nights and a day here, I came to Edwardsville to obtain the signature of Judge Lockwood to my law license, and here I fared sumptuously at a tavern kept by Mr. Hopkins, for it so happened that Judge Lockwood had just returned from Missouri with his lately married wife, and his friends had collected to a bridal dinner. I remained here until after dinner the next day, and then set out for Upper Alton, where I spent the night."

Honorable Samuel D. Lockwood, afterward for more than twenty years a resident of Jacksonville, was one of the most prominent men of Morgan County. In January, 1821, he was elected by the legislature attorney general of the State, which office he resigned in 1 822, having been nominated by Governor Coles for Secretary of the State and confirmed by the unanimous vote of the Senate. This office he resigned during the same or succeeding year, and accepted the position of Receiver of the Public Moneys at the land office at Edwards. In 1825 he was elected by the legislature, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, which office he held until after the election of judges under the constitution of 1847, when he resigned before his term expired. He was one of the trustees of the Illinois Central Railroad Company, when the road was first incorporated by the State. His death occurred in April, 1874.

"All the information obtained at Belleville, Edwardsville, and Alton corresponded with that previously obtained - that Morgan County was destined to be one of the richest and most populous counties in this State, and that Jacksonville was necessarily a desirable location. From Alton I came to Carrollton, taking breakfast at John Williams'. From Carrollton I came to Jacksonville, taking dinner at Judge Mark's, now Manchester, then called 'Burnt Haystacks.' I reached Jacksonville on the 12th of October, about eight o'clock at night. I put up at David Tefft's, who occupied a double frame one story building as a tavern on the east side of the square, where I remained about a week when, through the influence of Dr. Ero Chandler, I obtained boarding with Mr. Henry Robley, a farmer and blacksmith, over a mile east of the court house, and entirely out of town. From Carrollton to Edwardsville via Belleville, the country was beautiful, the land apparently rich, but thinly settled, with but few good houses or with improved farms. From Edwardsville to Alton the road passed over a wooden and broken country, thin land, and but few farms. From Alton to Carrollton after passing Piasa Creek, and getting on the prairie, the country was level, though sufficiently undulating for agricultural purposes. To Macoupin Creek and from there to Carrollton the road passes over a timbered and poor country, with but two or three small farms and one small brick house. Between Carrollton and Apple Creek the timber, undergrowth, and vegetation indicated deep, rich soil, equal to any that I had ever seen. At Carrollton I put up at a tavern kept by Mr. Harrison, south of the square, in a small story and a half building. I went to a grocery store to purchase some cigars, when I found twenty or thirty men, (whom, I was told, were called Macoupinites,) drinking, carousing, cursing, swearing, singing obscene songs and telling stories on each other. They were enjoying themselves to the fullest. One of them, who appeared to be sober and quiet, after asking me where I was from and where I was going, said, ' you are too smart looking to be in this crowd, and I advise you to leave before the boys notice you, they are a wild set.' I thanked him for his advice and returned to the tavern.

" This sober man I met some twenty years afterward at Springfield' as a member of the legislature, suffering under a violent attack of congestive fever, of which he died. I sent after and procured a doctor for him and wrote his will.

" A few days before I reached Carrollton, there had been a general or regimental muster, at which all the militia of the county were required to attend for purposes of drill or training, and this had brought together the Macoupinites and others of like character. Many of them remained in Carrollton during the night after the muster, and not being able or willing to procure quarters in houses, spent the night in drinking, carousing, singing, fighting and in mischief, they caught one man (Mike Dood,) cut off a part of one of his ears, and nailed it on the door of the blacksmith shop where it still remained. They shaved the mane and tail of Mr. Carroll's fine saddle horse, one of the best and finest looking horses that I ever saw ; they changed signs from house to house, removed gates, pulled down fences and removed buckets from wells.

" From the crossing of the W abash River all the way to Jacksonville there seemed to be prevailing an epidemic of sore eyes. Several families in Jacksonville, and especially that of my landlord, David Tefft's were severely afflicted. I did not know when I reached Jacksonville that I would find a single acquaintance in the county. I however soon heard of the family of Mr. Thomas Gallon, of North Prairie, with which I had been acquainted from my earliest recollections, who kept the post-office in the neighborhood of my father's home in Kentucky during the war of 1812. I also met with Rev. Reddick Horn, here, with whom I had had a passing acquaintance in Simpson County Kentucky, and as time passed, I found a number of families with which I had been acquainted.

I " Whatever may have been my' opinions of Jacksonville and the County of Morgan, or of the propriety of my making my home there, I had traveled about as far as my money and horse would carry me. I was, however, pleased with the country and location of the town, and consented to make my home here. The population of the town consisted of the families of Dennis Rockwell, Murray McConnell, Thomas Carson, John Massey, David Tefft, Samuel Elaine, George M. Richards, George Rearick, Joseph M. Fairfield, John Laughrey, John P. Tefft, Peter or John Savage, and with men without families, George Hackett, John Tansey and Benjamin Case, Samuel C. Richards, Moses Steward, Orson Cobb, Rice Dunbar, Joseph Coddington. McConnell, Carson, and David Tefft were the tavern keepers ; John Massey the log house builder ; Fairfield Rearick and Moses Atwood, then called a very u green Yankee," were merchants; Richards was deputy county surveyor; Elaine and Dunbar were carpenters ; Laughrey was a brickmaker and John P. Tefft brickmaker and plasterer; Mr. Handy, the 'Buckeye carpenter'; Rockwell was clerk of the two courts, recorder, postmaster and notary public ; McConnell, Turney, and Case were the attorneys at law ; John Savage was a carpenter ; Peter Savage followed breaking prairies arid teaming generally ; Cobb was a tailor ; Coddington was a widower without occupation, but was subsequently engaged in dealing in horses, and afterward became merchant; George Hackett had been a merchant and partner of Fairfield, but was then engaged in lead mines - prospecting for lead. Mr. Rockwell resided on East State street, beyond the limits of the town plat, in the only entirely finished and comfortable log cabin in town, on the lot now occupied by Nicholas Milburn. Several frame buildings and log cabins were being raised for the use of persons intending to occupy them. For a court house, the county had placed a frame building near, but north and west of the center of the square. The jail, built of sycamore logs, stood north of the square on the lot since occupied by the old brick jail. At the first election of sheriff, on the 3d Monday in November, 1823, William B. Green was elected ; at the second, August, 1824, Joseph M. Fairfield, who was best known by the name of the ' honest preacher,' was elected, and in August, 1826, Green was elected again. Failing to execute a bond in the time required by law, a second election was held in December, 1826, when Green was again elected. He was an uneducated, vicious back-woodsman, with no qualifications for that or any other office. Aaron Wilson was judge of the court of probates, and resided on the place afterward known as the Robb farm, now owned by Hon. Wm. Brown. Not being able to obtain other employment, out of which to pay for board, and being out of funds, I engaged to teach school for three months, upon the old plan of obtaining subscribers for scholars. A log building had been erected, and used for a school house, in the south part of town, having no floor, chimney, doors, windows or loft, which I was to occupy. In the month of November the house was finished, with an unjointed floor and loft, and sod and stick chimney, one window in the east and two in the north, with slabs for seats and wide plank for writing tables, and on the first Monday in December my school was opened in due form. About twenty-five scholars had been subscribed, with the understanding that each subscriber might send all the children that he could spare from service at home. I agreed to teach reading, writing, and the ground rules of arithmetic. I had scholars to learn A. B. C's, spelling, reading, writing, and arithmetic, and two only to study English grammar. I attended punctually every morning by seven o'clock, made a fire and had the room warm by the time the children arrived. Very soon I found that the Kentucky lawyer was giving general satisfaction, and the house was filled with children from the town and neighborhood, several families sending their children over two miles. I was to receive my pay in cash or produce, or pork, cattle or hogs at cash prices. I bargained with Mr. Bakley with whom I boarded to receive the pay from my subscribers for my board, and my three months school enabled me to pay for a year's board, beside furnishing money to pay postage and immediate expenses. My board cost me only one dollar a week, including washing, fuel, and lights. Mr. Bakley had t"syo log cabins, one was given up to Dr. Chandler and myself, and the other was occupied by his family. The winter was cold, with but little rain, but more snow than has been usual since. I often had as many as fifty children in the school, and scarce ever less than thirty. It required about ten hours any day to hear the routine of lessons and frequently twelve. In passing about, I frequently meet with men and women who learned the alphabet in my school.

"- The fever and ague had prevailed that fall in every neighborhood in the county, and especially on the river and margins of small streams. It had then been only about six and a half years since the first settlement in the county, and at the election in August previous, over one thousand votes had been taken, and a great majority of the inhabitants were from the South and West - the minority from the North and East, and old England. Places of residence were generally situated in the outskirts of timber adjoining the prairies, but few persons had consented to build as far as half a mile from timber, with few exceptions. These families resided in log cabins, covered with clapboards, chimneys made of sticks and mud, the floors of puncheon, fire-places of the same. The only brick yards that I noticed were near Jacksonville, one owned by Garrison W. Berry, on the land of Henry Robley, east of town, and one by John Laugh rey, north of town.

"During the winter of 1826-27 we had frequent visits from the Indians, who had an encampment for hunting purposes near Beardstown, then called ' Downing's Landing,' or Beard's Ferry.

" In November, 1826, I first saw the Illinois River. The state of the water was too low for the navigation of loaded flat boats. Grass had grown up from the bottom so thick and strong, that ferry boats could not be used without mowing the grass, and opening the way. Except in the channel, occupying a narrow space, I could not discover any current. A short time after I reached Jacksonville, I heard of the time of the sales of the personal property of Rev. Mr. Bird, who had died in the January previous. I went to that sale, expecting to meet some acquaintances from Kentucky. I met Mr. Thomas Gatten, and went home with him, and by him I was introduced to most of the settlers in that prairie. The log buildings and unfinished frames were at that day, as houses of worship, few and far between. I am confident that during the winter of 1826-7 there was not a comfortable meeting house in the county. Religious meetings were held in log and unplastered frames, school houses, and private dwellings. In warm weather, such meetings were often held in barns and under arbors in the woods. The first sermon that I ever heard in Jacksonville, was in the Pall of 1826, in the frame court house (subsequently burnt), preached by a Baptist minister, named Kenner, prepared for mothers, when the only female in attendance who had a child, was Mrs. Joseph Fairfield. During the winter of 1826-7, and previous, as well as subsequently to that time, the meetings of the Methodist Society were held at Mr. John Jourdan's. who was well known as Father Jourdan. He occupied a double log cabin, east of town, where now stands the building formerly called ' Berean College.' During the service the females occupied one room and the males the other, the beds being used for seats. During the winter, the society of Presbyterians, with the Rev. John Brich, their minister, met in the log school house occupied by me during the week, in the south side of the town. I acted as sexton, sweeping the house in the morning and buildingfires.

"Father Brich, as he was called, though a bachelor, was an educated Englishman, but like many others, was never able to make his learning avail him much as a public speaker, but he was a devoted Christian.

"Among the improvements in the county designed for public benefit and convenience, was the grist and saw mill at Exeter, owned by Enoch C. March ; a band horse mill for grinding corn, owned by Capt. John Wyatt ; also one owned by Mr. Reeder, and one tread wheel mill, owned by James Overton, Esq.; Mr. Allen had a grist and saw mill, on Apple ('reek, just above the crossing of the road from this place to Carrollton ; Thomas Prattan owned an ox, or tread mill, a short distance this side of the creek ; a grist and saw mill on Indian Creek, owned by William Harrison and James Dinwiddie ; a horse mill, owned by Mr. A. Hall, near the head of Indian Creek ; a saw mill, owned by Mr. James McGill, on the Mauvaisterre ; Mr. Abraham Johnson owned a cotton gin north of town.

" I soon found two classes in society. Those from the North and East were called ' yankees,' and those from the South and West ' white people.' The political division was between the supporters of John Quincy Adams and General Andrew Jackson ; the yankees supporting Adams, and the white people, Jackson. Most of those who had voted for Mr. Clay supported Mr. Adams. The election of August, 1826, had been warmly contested between Governor Edwards and Mr. Sloe, for governor, and Daniel P. Cook and Joseph Duncan for Congress. Edwards and Duncan were elected by a small majority, though differing in politics. Duncan was one of the few public men who never had credit for what he was worth."

to Kentucky at an early day, where he died during the childhood of Joseph, his youngest son. At the age of sixteen, Joseph Duncan, received a commission in the army, where he remained until the close of the war of 1812. In 1818, he came to Jackson County, Illinois, where he was not long after chosen major of militia, a rank he retained till the close of the Black Hawk war. In 1823, he was chosen a member of the State Senate. While a member of that body, he introduced a bill before it, providing for the establishment of a system of common schools in the State. This bill was most admirable in its provisions, and, had it been retained and acted upon, would have hastened the day of popular education. It was, unfortunately, repealed by the next Assembly, and the schools allowed to go on in their old way, till Judge William Thomas succeeded in passing the bill, referred to in the history of the schools elsewhere in this volume. In 1826, he was elected to the United States Senate, from the State at large, and continually elected until 1834. In August of that year, he was elected governor, holding the office one term. Governor Duncan held at different times other offices of trust and honor, and was one of the ablest men in Illinois. He was a Presbyterian, liberal in his views, earnest in his work, and steadfast in his convictions. He died at his home in Jacksonville, January 15, 1844.

" In the Fall of 1826 we had a mail from St. Louis, via Alton and Carrollton, once in two weeks, and also a like mail from Springfield ; so arranged as to give a weekly mail.

"In the Summer of 1826 a young man named Carson, had been employed to teach school in the court house, but not meeting with such encouragement as he thought would pay, he abandoned his employers and left the neighborhood.

" In the Spring of 1827 I attended all the courts in the first Illinois circuit, Sangamon, Peoria, Fulton, Schuyler, Adams, Pike, and Calhoun. I rode a filley, and John Purney a young stallion, loaned to us by Mr. Joseph Klien, for the purpose of having them broke to the saddle. This was my first appearance at the courts. I had no right to expect to make more than traveling expenses. In Greene and Sangamon I paid my tavern bills by assisting the clerks, by making up their records. In Peoria I was appointed State's attorney, the attorney general not being in attendance, and here I made and collected ten silver dollars, for fees, allowed for the convictions upon indictments for affrays - besides, the clerk paid my tavern bill for making up the records. In Fulton, John Turney was appointed to assist the attorney general, but I made five dollars for attending to an appeal case. In Schuyler, Mr. Pugh was appointed to represent the attorney general. We found but ten families living at Rushville, the county seat, Hart Fellows, clerk of the two courts, probate judge and post master, and Mr. Terry Braden, recorder. At Lewiston the judge and attorneys were entertained by Judge Phelps, who refused to receive pay. At Rushville they were entertained by the clerk and recorder, without charge, though Ave paid a farmer named White for keeping our horses. I made nothing at Rushville. At Atlas, in Pike County, we met the attorney general. Here the judge and bar were entertained sumptuously by Captain Leonard Ross, one of nature's noblemen, and by Nathan Morrison, who not only refused compensation, but expressed regret that he could not entertain us longer. At Gilead, in Calhoun County, there was one small tavern house with a granery in one room, but the judge and attorneys obtained entertainment in private houses where we had small bills to pay. Here I was employed to defend a doctor, a poor man, in poor health, indicted for murder. The evidence showed the prosecution to have originated in ignorance and malice, and the verdict of the jury was ' not guilty ' for this the doctor paid me ten dollars, all that he was able to pay. I had no idea of ever seeing him again, as he seemed to be in the last stages of consumption, but some time afterward I met him in the legislature ; he recognized me, but I did not him.

" In July, 1827. Governor Edwards received information on which he relied and acted, that the Indians in the northwest, led by the Winnebagos, intended to make war upon our settlers and miners in the vicinity of Galena. He therefore authorized Colonel Thomas H. Neely, of Springfield, to accept of the services of any number of mounted volunteers, not exceeding six hundred, who would equip themselves and find their own subsistence and continue in service thirty days, unless sooner discharged. Upon this call upward of three hundred volunteers were obtained in the Counties of Sangamon and Morgan, among whom I was one. When the volunteers from Morgan reached Peoria. the place of rendezvous, I was appointed quartermaster sergeant. I accompanied the regiment to White Oak Springs, some ten or twelve miles from Galena, where I remained several days, when the colonel being satisfied that the further service of the regiment was not required, ordered the return home. While the regiment remained I purchased and had delivered the provisions required for returning home. I had sold my horse, saddle, and bridle, intending to return home by the river. The morning on which the regiment left for home, I was taken with the flux so as to be unable to travel. I got quarters in a grocery tavern, kept by aman named Knabb, on the road from Gartist's Grove to Galena, and within one hundred yards of White Oak Springs. I sent to Galena for medicine to cure the flux. The doctor sent me a prescription with what he supposed would afford relief, but it failed after three or four days' trial. I became worse and believe I should have died but for an accident. I say accident. I did not then think of anything providential. Isaac Plasters, a volunteer from Morgan County, who had made my acquaintance on the campaign, instead of returning home with the regiment, remained to earn some money by working a month or two in the mines. Passing by the house where I was confined, and hearing that there was a sick soldier up stairs, made his way to my room in the roof of the log cabin. Seeing my situation he agreed to stay with and nurse me. I had eaten nothing for two days, except a little poor soup. Plasters had me removed to a room on the first floor. In the afternoon he saw Doctor Hill passing on the road, and called him in to see me. The doctor was a gentleman, a good physician, and though worn down in the service, because flux was prevailing to an alarming extent in that neighborhood, he gave me some medicine, took a short nap and left, promising to return the next day and to continue his visits daily until I recovered. Plasters, with his rifle, killed birds every day and fed me on soup. I began to mend as soon the medicines, supplied by Doctor Hill, operated. Plasters remained with me, and the doc- tor called daily, for ten days, during which time the disease was entirely checked, and I became able to travel to Galena, and obtain passage on a boat to Quincy. I paid the doctor a small bill for his services, but Plasters refused to receive pay.

" At Galena, I found an old Kentucky acquaintance by the name of Rountree, proposing to take deck passage with a mess on a steamboat for St. Louis. As cabin passage could not be procured, I joined the mess. The boat towed two lead boats, on which the deck passengers had to ride, furnishing their own supplies. We laid in our provisions, and with loose plank furnished by the boat, made ourselves comfortable quarters, much more so than had any cabin passengers. We fared sumptuously on the trip down. On this boat, Black Hawk and Keokuk, with some eight or ten other leading Indians, passed down to Flint Hill, now Burlington. I left the boat at Quincy, where I purchased a horse, saddle, and bridle for forty dollars. From Quincy I went down to Atlas - then there was no settlement between Quincy and Illinois River, nor any road on which I could travel. I rested one day at Atlas. The next day I came to Exeter, where I was taken sick again ; took a large dose of calomel, and had to remain two days before proceeding farther. I finally reached home, very much worsted in flesh and strength, but without disease. In a few days the fall terms of the courts commenced. I was able to ride and attend court in Greene, where I spent a week at a good hotel, kept by Mr. Reno. I was scarcely able to attend to business in court, but for assisting Gen. Tuvney, I made enough to pay my tavern bill ; but my health improved, I gained strength, and by the next week I was able to attend to business in Morgan. I next attended the court in Springfield, and then all the other courts in the circuit. On this circuit we found but little business in any of the counties - parties, jurymen, and witnesses were reported in all the counties after Peoria, as being absent bear and deer hunting - a business that was then profitable, as well as necessary to the sustenance of families during the winter. In December, 1827, I attended the Supreme Court at Vandalia, where I had a case dismissed because the appellant had not filed a copy of the bond within the time required by law.

" Mr. Rockwell being agent for the owners of several hundred tracts of military land, employed me to pay the taxes, for which he paid my traveling expenses, and provided for my board at the house of W. H. Brown, Esq.

" During my absence at Vandalia on this trip, the court house on the public square was burned. It might have taken fire by accident, but I have always believed, and so did Mr. McConnell, that it was set on fire by Greene, the sheriff. By this fire I lost a small box of clothing and my Bible, the only book I brought from Kentucky. The office of circuit and county clerk was kept in a small up-stairs room. All the books and papers of the office were burned, except the deed book, which Mr. Rockwell had taken to his dwelling to record some deeds in the night time.

"The Circuit Court was held in Jacksonville, in November, 1826, John T. Sawyer, circuit judge, presiding. There was about forty cases on the docket', all told. The attorneys present were James Tracy, attorney general of the State, and Alfred W. Crawley, of Carrollton ; Thomas A. Neale, James M. Strode, and Jonathan H. Pugh, of Springfield ; John

Reynolds, of Kahokia ; William H. Brown, Benjamin Mills, and George Farqueir, of Vandalia; Murray McOonnell, John Turney, Benjamin Case, and myself, of Jacksonville - of whom Mr. Cavarly and myself are the only survivors, this 12th of October, 1874; he eighty-one years old, and I near seventy-two. Court was continued one week, and the next week was held in Springfield.

" I attended this court in company with all the attorneys in attendance in Morgan, except McGonnell and Cox. Here 1 met with General James Andrews, probate judge, William S. Hamilton, and Thomas Moffitt, of Springfield ; David Prickett, of Edwardsville ; and John B. Bogardus, of Peoria ; of whom Mr. Moffitt is the only survivor. I was the guest of Mr. Wale during the week, with whom I was acquainted in Kentucky, and here I met with Mr. Carlton B. Gatton, a Kentucky acquaintance, by whom I was introduced to the family of Mr. P. P. Enos, receiver of the public moneys at the land office in Springfield. During the week a Mr. Vannay was hung in Springfield, for the murder of his wife. This was the first and last case of execution that I have ever seen."

" Dennis Rockwell, circuit clerk and county clerk ; Mrs. Kellogg ; John Handy, carpenter ; Mr. Bunnell, carpenter ; Samuel Titus, teamster, firsc colored man ; Murray McConnell, lawyer ; Matthew Stacy, saddler and harnessmaker ; George Rearick, merchant : Joseph Fairfield, merchant ; Abram Vance, merchant ; Nathan Gest, merchant ; Thomas Carson, hatter and tavern keeper ; George Nicely, hatter ; Mr. Robinson, school teacher ; Verin Daniels, gunsmith ; S. H. Henderson, grocer ; John P. Wilkinson, merchant; Rice Dunbar, carpenter; Thomas Church, farmer ; John Buckingham, brick mason and plasterer ; Ero Chandler, physician ; Doctor Allen, old practice ; Bazzil Gillett, doctor and merchant; Ranson Cordell, coonstable ; Mr. Shull, tavern keeper; Win. S. Jordan, farmer ; Mr. Robley, farmer and brickmakei ; Mr. McClurg, tanner and currier ; E. T. Miller, carpenter ; George Graves, cabinet maker; John Savage, carpenter; Edward Durant, carpenter; James Martin Eads, blacksmith ; John Eads, jr., blacksmith ; John Eads, sr., blacksmith ; Simeon McCullough, tailor ; Levi Church, tailor ; John Laughery, laborer; David Tefft, carpenter; Joseph Coddington, merchant ; Enoch C. March, miller and merchant ; William L. May, representative in the legislature ; Josiah Gorham, jr., carpenter ; Samuel Rixford, no employment ; John Henry, cabinet maker ; Doctor Taylor, merchant and post-master ; James Parkinson, wood-cording machine ; William Thomas, lawyer ; Jacob Barton, farmer ; James Blair, dry goods clerk ; James Leeper dry goods clerk ; Joseph Robinson, dry goods clerk; James Buckingham, plasterer ; Daniel Busey, saddler and harness maker ; Thomas, jr., brick mason ; James Carson, cabinet workman ; John Carson, brickmaker ; Mr. Ellis, Presbyterian preacher; Aquilla Hutchins, farmer ; George Richards, surveyor ; Emanuel Metc^lf, chair maker ; Garrison W. Berry, brickmaker ; McHenry Johnson, blacksmith; Mr. Grimsly, blacksmith ; Nelson Johnson, dry goods clerk ; Enos Hobbs, mail carrier ; William Conn, Thomas Arnett, Phillip Haines, Darius Ingalls, Mrs. Palmer, Mrs. Joiner, Mrs. Buckingham, Mrs. George Rearick,

The Judge's article gives an accurate description of the little town ' when he first saw it, and of its life during the fall and winter following. The opening of the season of 1827 brought fresh arrivals to the growing place, and new cabins were built, old ones improved, a store or two opened, a shop of the pioneer style erected, and the town of Jacksonville had become a reality, and had a name in the East, where it was known as a promising Western town. The Rev. John Ellis and his wife made this their home in 1828. He was a Presbyterian minister, and was laboring in this part of the West, in the interest of his church. Seeing the necessity of an educational institution in the Prairie State, and being a man of considerable zeal and energy, he determined to found a college in one of its growing towns, and selected Jacksonville as the place. He was aided in his efforts by Mr. William Posey, and other influential citizens of the town, and by Judge Samuel Lock wood, then residing at £*d wards ville. A band of young men just entering the ministry in the East, had agreed, before their graduation, that they would make some portion of the Northwest territory their future field of labor, and that they would, as soon as possible, I'ound an institution of learning therein. They were induced to co-operate with Mr. Ellis and others, in the founding of Illinois College. In a short time a location had been secured, some money had been raised, and by the Autumn of 1829, the buildings were so far completed that Dr. J. M. Sturtevant, one of the band of youngmen before mentioned, and who was selected as a teacher in the school, began his work there, and the foundation of the present Illinois College, the oldest and one of the largest educational institutions in the State, was firmly laid.

This college was established for the education of young men alone. Mrs. Ellis, who had ably seconded her husband in his labors, and .who earnestly desired an institution for the equal education of young women, opened a school in her house for this purpose. In September, 1830, a meeting of several prominent gentlemen was held at the house of J. P. Wilkinson, Esq., for the purpose of discussing the propriety of founding a female academy. The meeting led to good results. Dr. Ero Chandler donated a lot of ground, a small brick dwelling was soon erected, and in 1833 the Jacksonville Female Academy was formally opened, with Miss Sarah Cracker as principal. The founding of these two institutions established the future prosperity of the new Western town. They brought to it an excellent class of citizens, who in coming years saw I unequalled provision for the education of their Children. Provision for the free education of the youth had not yet been fully made by the State of Illinois. The people were generous in this regard, and were always ready to be taxed for the education of their children. What the public fund lacked 'was made up by private subscription, and every winter a school or schools were regularly maintained in Jacksonville. This plan of sustaining the public schools was continued until the adoption of the present school system.

The religious life of the village, always aided by education, had been carefully fostered all these years. In the little log school-house, regular religious services were held until larger and better accommodations could be secured. In 1822, in " Father " Jourdan's house, standing a little in the rear of the old Berean College building, a Methodist class was organized, and for three years before the town of Jacksonville was contemplated, religious services had been held regularly. The old log schoolhouse was afterward used by these worshipers, alternating with the Presbyterians. That little band of godly people grew, as time went on, until now there are several large congregations of this denomination in and abont Jacksonville. Four years after the organization of the class in " Father " Jourdan's house, the Rev. John Brich gathered together what few Presbyterians there were in the little town, and in the barn of Mr. John Leeper, organized a church, the outgrowth of which are the three large Presbyterian congregations in the city. Other denominations were not slow to occupy the field. The Baptists, Congregationalists, Portuguese, Presbyterians, German and African Churches, Catholics and Christians each established congregations, and each are well sustained.

The city, from its earliest commencement, has always been an educational center. Many persons come here for no other purpose than to enjoy its educational facilities. It is largely owing to this fact that but few manufacturing industries are established, and that the trade of the city is chiefly confined to its own citizens, and to its own immediate vicinity. The first stores in the place were built of buckeye or sycamore logs, in \vhich a motley assortment of goods were kept. These pioneer stores were small affairs, often without a window, chimney, or wooden floors. The interior of these stores was sometimes lined with gorgeously figured calico, intended by the proprietors to give the room a more tasteful appearance. Buckeye logs, under the influence of warm spring rains, produce sprouts with remarkable ease ; these latter were often an annoyance to the storekeepers, as it was not uncommon for them to find them growing through his calico lining, or winding about among the. various articles on his shelves-J Enterprising industry could not long brook such inconveniences, and frame buildings speedily took the places of their more primitive predecessors, which, if not converted into, sheds or barns, made good fire-wood.

At the time of the building of the Illinois College, all that tract of land lying between that institution and the public square, was in its primitive condition, or cultivated as a farm. Where now are the finest residences, the most beautiful yards, and the best shaded streets, was then open prairie, or used for farm purposes. What changes time produces? Then all buildings in town were small, almost entirely built of frame logs, the former being pointed out to the traveler as the home of elegance and wealth. The business of the time was proportionate to the residences. No large stores graced the public square, or stood as monuments of the industry of the owners, in other streets. The houses of that day are succeeded now by more elegant affairs, though no more homelike than their predecessors. Their owners have grown with the town, and can look over the scenes of their labors with feelings of pride at the results obtained, and know that the passing years have been those of care and toil, though sweetened by the thoughts of the rest and comfort sure to follow.

The early log stores speedily gave way to frame buildings, which in their time became too small and insecure, and were replaced by more substantial brick structures. . The first of these was erected in 1828, by J. P. Wilkinson, Esq., and occupied the lot of ground where is now the store of Geo.W. Van Zant. Another was built on the south side of the square, and one on the north, by Cornelius Hook, Esq., and in 1831 or '32, the present bank building of M. P. Ayers & Co. Like its population, the business of Jacksonville was growing. New and more substantial stores were appearing about the public square, while in the residence portion, better dwellings were being erected. Streets were accurately defined ; pavements took the place of mud sidewalks ; fences were built before the door-yards, and a finer and more elegant life was becoming manifest. By the United States census of 1830, the town contained 446 inhabitants ; and the next year Jacksonville was incorporated as a town. - The system of government was so well managed that it continued in use until 1867, long after the population had grown to the proportions which fully warranted a city government. The growth of the city received a severe check by the ravages of cholera in 1833, which carried off a great many of the inhabitants. This was a serious blow to the prosperity of the city, from which it had scarcely rallied, when the financial crash of 1837 gave it another serious blow, from which it took years of time to recover. The census of 1840 showed a population of 1,900, which indicated that, despite the drawbacks mentioned, the growth of the city was gradually progressing. The building of the Morgan and Sangamon Railroad in 18-/.8, at its completion to Jacksonville, two years after, gave a fresh impulse to the growth and business of the city, and from that time its prosperity has been unabated. The old railroad, with its insufficient equipment, was the beginning of a grand system of railroads now traversing the State in every direction. At first the depot was in the public square, but soon after the road was extended to the capital of the State ; and though the stages could sometimes out-travel the small train of cars used to carry passengers and freight, yet its ingress and egress to and from the growing town, gave it an air of activity seldom seen at that day. In 1847, the old, worn-out road passed into the hands of a company of men who were determined to rebuild and equip it in a manner insuring success. Those who had so strenuously urged the building of the track through the principal streets of the city, and had succeeded in their efforts, saw, as others foretold, the impropriety of cars of railroads passing through the center of the city, and were with all citizens well satisfied when the company removed the track from State Street to its present location. In a short time this railroad, under the new management, was in running order, and the business of the city received anew an impulse which it has never relaxed. Ten years after, part of the Jacksonville and St. Louis Railroad was constructed, which in time was completed ; became part of the Chicago and Alton Railroad, and gives to Jacksonville direct communication with the principal cities in the West. Two other railroads have since been built, which, like their predecessors, give to the city abundant means for transportation to every part of the country. The operation of the Morgan and Sangamon Railroad during its continuance, and its reconstruction in 1847, brought a corresponding increase of business and population to the town. In 1850, the inhabitants numbered 2,745; in 1860, the number was 5,528, and in 1870, 9,365. Should the same ratio of increase prevail during the decade following the last enumeration, the populatio'n in 1880 will be nearly 20,000.

Until the building of the present system of water-works, the city was without an adequate supply of this most necessary article. Aside from the burning of the Illinois College, but few disastrous conflagrations occurred. The citizens were generally prompt in rendering aid wherever a fire happened, and thus saved their homes from destruction. It became evident, however, that a better system of protection should be secured. The General Assembly, in 1835, passed an act entitled " An act for the incorporation of fire companies,'1 which was approved February 12th of that year. Under the provisions of this act, the first fire company in the city was formed on the 23d of April, 1840. The names of its members show that its numbers were composed of some of the best citizens of the place. The buildings were generally of wood, mostly of a small size, and but few disastrous fires occurred. Their equipment consisted of a double-decked hand-engine. It was a very heavy "machine," and required quite a number of hands to work it. The same engine, with some improvements, is still used when occasions require. In addition to the old " Union " engine, the company had several hundred feet of hose, buckets, ladders, axes, and other necessary equipments. As the list of members comprising this company will be of interest to the readers of these pages, it is here inserted :

The earliest facilities of Jacksonville were quite meager compared with those of to-day. When the town was created, and a few families had established themselves therein, a post office was of necessity required, for people loved to write then as well as now, and were only deterred in the number of letters by the rates of postage and the facilities for transmission. The postage on a letter was twenty-five cents, and generally paid by the receiver. Money was a scarcer article then than now. The United States Government did not receive " coon skins " or " beeswax " in payment for postage, and it was not an uncommon affair for a letter to lie several months in the office before the person to whom it was addressed could raise the required twenty-five cents. When the express companies came into existence, they began to carry lecters for a less rate than the United States Mails, which department lowered the price of postage gradually until it reached ten cents per letter. This was thought to be a great reduction by the people, and the number of letters began to increase very rapidly. Jacksonville received, at first, a mail from St. Louis, brought by stages once in two weeks. Another route was established from Springfield west through Jacksonville to Meredosia, and thence on to Quincy. By the alternation of these mails, a weekly budget of letters and papers was received in the town, and the people thought themselves well provided for in this way.

The post office in town was kept in various stores, shops, or offices, removed from time to time, as a change in administration and postmasters occurred. As time passed on, a semi-weekly mail was secured, then a tri-weekly, and, finally, by the time the first railroad was built, a daily mail had been firmly established. The number of daily mails increased as facilities for transportation were furnished, until now there are more than a dozen daily mails received and forwarded. During the twelve months, ending March 31, 1878, the. number of mails received daily, was fifteen, the same number being dispatched. Number of letters mailed during same time, 510,000, and the number received was 540,000. The receipts from the sales of stamps and envelopes was $16,000; number of money orders issued being 4,940, amounting to $45,000 ; number of - money orders paid 7,890, amounting to $65,000. The number of letters registered was 875, and the number of registered letters received was

1,160 ; number of large packages in transit, 1,440. The present postmaster is David M. Simmons, Esq., who has held the position for several years.

We have thus far traced the city through its successive stages of development. We will leave this portion of the narrative, and note the history of its business enterprises, its societies, churches, schools, improvements, city government, its newspapers, and other portions of its history that may come under various topics connected therewith.

Business Interests

Banks - The banking .house of M. P. Ayers & Co. is the oldest in the city, and indeed the oldest in this part of the State. The firm is composed of M. P. Ayers, W. S. Hook, and A. E. Ayers. The first named of these established the bank in 1852, taking as its New York correspondent the American Exchange Bank of that city, and continues to correspond with the same bank.

The Central Illinois Banking and Savings Association was established in January, 1867, as a stock association, under the above name, with L. W. Brown as president, H. C. Wiswall vice-president, and L. L. Adams cashier. In 1874, Mr. Adams resigned, and Mr. W. E. Veitch, who had been associated with the bank many years, was elected to the vacancy. This banking hou»e was originally established in 1856, by Elliott and Brown. After a time it was changed to Brown's bank, the late William Brown being sole proprietor. It was again changed to W. & E. W. Brown, and then to its present name and condition. Its capital is now $100,000. Mr. L. W. Brown is still president ; Mr. Wiswall having resigned, Mr. A. C. Wadsworth is now vice-president, and Mr. Veitch cashier. The savings department is separate from the regular banking department, both of which are exceedingly vyell managed.

The First National Bank was founded in August, 1864. It has a capital of 8100,000, and a surplus of $150,000. Mr. Edward Scott is president, and F. G. Farrell cashier.

The Jacksonville National Bank was established in 1870, in a room just east of the present quarters. Its capital is $200,000, and surplus $40,000. Mr. O. D. Fitzsimmons is president, and Mr. B. F. Beesley cashier.

Hockenhull, King & Elliott's Bank was established in January, 1866, by Robert Hockenhull, Reynolds King, and Edward R. Elliott. The bank is still continued by its original founders, and is considered one of the soundest in the city.

The Jacksonville Benefit Building Association, was incorporated under the State law, and began business October 2, 1872, with about one hundred shares, since increased to over eight hundred. The incorporators were Horace Chapin, Robert Mason, A. W. Cadman, S. D. Lindsay, Frank Stewart, Ebenezer Mason, Charles H. Williamson, and W. F. Goheen. Each share is valued at one hundred dollars, payable in installments of twenty-five cents per week. When a sufficient amount accumulates it is immediately sold to the highest bidder, who repays the loan he secures, in weekly installments. This money is again re-loaned, and it is this weekly interest upon interest from which the profits of the association are derived. It enables a person of limited means to place his money where it will bring him a large percentage, and to secure a home, where otherwise he would be unable to do so. The present officials are : Wm. Guy, president : Wm. Mason, treasurer ; Edward P. Kirby, attorney ; S. Tefft Walker, secretary. The association meets in Temperance Hall, every Monday evening.

Building and Loan Associations, or Co-operative Banks, as they are often appropriately called, had their origin in Scotland, where a few friends formed themselves into a society for the purpose of building them homes. The plan they adopted worked so admirably that it was not long before other friends used the same means for the same ends, and were equally successful. From this beginning there sprang up such societies all over England and Scotland, and in time they became so popular, and were handling so much money, that Parliament made laws regulating such associations the same as other corporations of a banking nature.

From England the transition to the United States of so easily and plainly understood a scheme, enabling the industrious working classes to procure homes, and aiding the person of moderate income to invest profitably their small savings, was not long in being made.

Philadelphia, the " City of Homes," was the landing place of this, her future benefactor, and to this fact she owes the appellation, " City of Homes." Philadelphia has about one hundred and fifty active Building Associations, probably more than any other city in the United States ; and they are rapidly spreading over the Western States. Peoria, Quincy, Bloomington, and Springfield, each have one or more, and in Peoria and Quincy they are becoming very popular.

A Building and Loan Association is composed entirely of one class of stock-holders, and its assets or property is represented by stock. Its original capital is derived from the weekly installments or dues paid on account of each share of stock, by means of which the association is enabled to work out the ultimate value of one hundred dollars per share in a given number of years, and these profits are obtained from loaning the accumulated weekly installments of dues and profits to such of the stockholders as may, under the rules, wish to borrow.

Manufactures. - For the size of the city, Jacksonville has but few factories. The oldest one in operation is that of Jos. Capps & Sons, who operate a woolen mill, situated in the north part of the city. Mr. Jos.

Capps came to this county from Kentucky. In his native State he had learned the trade of a wool carder, and in 1838 established a small factory, where he carried on his trade in Jacksonville. In 1855, he erected the present woolen mills, now operated by his sons. They employ about seventy-five hands, keep five traveling men, and manufacture from one to three thousand yards per day. A foundry and machine shop has been in operation in the northeastern part of the city for a number of years. The old buildings were torn down in the Fall of '77, and a new and more commodious one erected on the spot. New machinery is being placed in it. The foundry is owned and operated by Akers & Russel. This foundry was opened in 1859, by Ellis, Shields & Dangerfield, who, after conducting the business for some years, disposed of it to Dangerfield & Co. It was afterward sold to Mr. Dangerfield, who carried on the business alone for a while, and then disposed of it to Mr. John Fidler, who, after carrying on the business for several years, sold it to the present firm, who have erected a large brick building on the ground formerly occupied by the old building. They have added new machinery and made numerous improvements. They are now making stationary steam engines, and elevator machinery. The foundry is at the junction of the railroads.

The woolen mill and the foundry are the two largest enterprises of their kind in the city. There are three brick -yards, two or three grain elevators, four flouring mills, several small factories of various domestic articles, and a large number of shops of all kinds. The chief business interests of the city of Jacksonville is trade with its own inhabitants and with the people of the immediate surrounding country. The city is an educational center, and as such is the best in the State, yet it has abundant room for large manufactories, and did its citizens devote more attention to such institutions, its business interests would be largely augmented. Its lines of transportation are abundant for all shipping facilities required. Its easy access to the Mississippi River and to large cities, both East and West, render it as important a center for manufacturing purposes, as it is for educational facilities.

The Water Works

Prior to the building of the present water works, the inhabitants of the city were greatly inconvenienced by being deprived of an adequate supply of water. In case of fire the only dependence was cisterns or wells, and in times of drought these were a poor reliance. These facts showed the people plainly the necessity of having an improved system of water works. In 1868 Mr. James O. King secured the services of a Mr. Fowler, of Philadelphia, to draw him plans for water works, and make a survey of the ground. The plans furnished by Mr. Fowler called for an appropriation of $174,000. Mr. King took the plans, and securing a petition signed by numerous citizens, presented both plans and petition to the city council, who appropriated $150,000 for the purpose asked. Here the matter rested for three or four years, being delayed for want of action by succeeding councils. About 1872 an ordinance was passed for the building of water works on a plan submitted by Mr. Chesbrough of Chicago ; $150,000 were appropriated and their construction soon after begun. The impounding reservoir was constructed in Pullam's ravine, about two miles south of the city. The capacity of this reservoir, or as it is now known, Morgan Lake, is abundant for all practical purposes. The pumping works were built seven-eighths of a mile north of the lake. From there the water is forced to the distributing reservoir, built on College hill, a mile and an eighth west of the city. This reservoir is eighty-six feet above the level of the public square, and one hundred and thirty-four above the pumping works ; its capacity is two and a half million gallons. The pumping capacity is 880 gallons per minute. At the present time every facility is afforded to prevent extensive conflagrations throughout the business parts of the city, as well as on the principal streets. In case of fire all that is needed is the attachment of hose to the hydrants, as the force of the water is sufficient to throw a stream to a height of eighty feet. The present superintendent is Mr. E. Wolcott, who has held that position for a number of years, and has taken an active part in its success from its commencement.

The Gas Works

The Jacksonville Gas Light and Coke Company, was organized in 1856, with Marshall P. Ayers, president ; Judge Wm. Thomas, secretary; Joseph O. King, superintendent ; and Edward J. King, collector. It is now in successful operation, there being more than three hundred gas posts in use in the city.

The Street Railway

The charter for the incorporation of this company, was obtained about 1866, and its construction soon after began. M. C. Goltra, Ralph Reynolds, James H. Lurton, and. others, were the principal movers in this enterprise. The first line was built from the public square to the terminus on South Main Street. It was afterward extended from the public square to the railway junction, passing on East State Street. The third and last extension was made westward from the public square on West State Street beyond the city limits.

Municipal History

Prior to the year 1840, Jacksonville was governed under the general village law of the State. This law authorized the citizens of any town to annually elect a board of trustees, who assumed and controlled all the interests of the town, and who constituted its municipal assembly. The growth of the town had by this year demanded a better form of government, and influential citizens assuming control of the matter, through their representative in the General Assembly, succeeded in getting a special act passed by that body, incorporating the town. The act, passed Feb. 3, 1840, came in force April 6th, and provided that the trustees then in office, Matthew Stacy, John Hurst, R. T. McNeeley, William Branson, and E. T. Miller, should constitute a board of trustees, to remain in office and discharge the duties pertaining thereto, until the first Monday in April, 1840, when an election for trustees should be held, and annually thereafter on that day. The act also declared that the corporative limits of the town should be one mile square, and farther provided for other matters pertaining to the town.

twenty-seven years - until 1867. By that date the growth of Jacksonville had been such as to demand a still better system of government. The population was about eight thousand, and the formation of a city government was agitated. Meeting with sufficient encouragement from the citizens, a few prominent persons presented the matter to the General Assembly, which body, on Feb. 15, 1867, passed an act incorporating the city of Jacksonville. This act denned its boundaries, its general powers ; provided for the election of officers, and defined their duties ; provided for the revenue of the city, for assessments, for opening streets and alleys, for public improvements, for the collection of taxes, for a fire department, for graded schools, and for miscellaneous matters. On March 29, 1869, this act and one passed in Feb., 1849, relating to incorpo felted towns and cities, were amended. Under the amended charter, with a few alterations made by the legislature, as the improvement and growth of the city demand, Jacksonville is still governed.

The original city charter divided the city into four wards, known as first, second, third, and fourth, and provided also that the city council could, at its discretion, create additional wards, as the city might require. The municipal government of the city, by article second of the act, was to consist of a city council, to be composed of a mayor and one alderman from each ward. The other officers of the corporation to be "a city clerk, a city marshal, a city treasurer, a city attorney, a city collector and assessor, a a city street commissioner, and a city surveyor."

These officers have been elected annually since the establishment of the city government, and with the exception that since 1869 two aldermen are elected in each ward, remain the same. A police department is now in force, having been established several years. The fire department was established Jan. 13, 1873, and the board of education by the original charter of 1867.

The municipal history of Jacksonville would be incomplete without a list of its officers. As the town received its first charter from the legislature on Feb. 3, 1840, the list commences from that date, as they appear on the records in possession of the city council. Until the city charter was obtained, the following were the trustees :

The next year the city government came in force. The officers of the City of Jacksonville, as they appear on the records in the clerk's office, from that date until now, are as follows :

The Police Department, under the present system, was organized in 1867, when the city charter was adopted. The force consists of the city marshal, who is chief, and five policemen. The marshal is the only one elected by the people, the others being appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council. One of the policemen is also keeper of the calaboose, or city prison. The headquarters of the force is at the city prison.

The Fire Department

Is composed of volunteer companies ; the chief and his assistant being the only persons receiving pay. The department was created by an ordinance passed in 1867, and within thirty days from its passage, they were equipped and ready for duty. There are three hose companies, one engine and hose company, and one hook and ladder company. The force consists of fifteen members to each hose company, twenty members to the hook and ladder company, and thirty-five members to the engine and hose company. The engine is used only in cases where fires occur away from the water-mains, and where fires are confined to high buildings.

The Fire Department is most efficient in its work, being supplied with all the modern improvements. Mainly through the efforts of Mr. George Hayden - the Chairman of the Fire Department Committee of the City Council - is due the fact that Jacksonville has one of the b.est equipped fire departments in central Illinois. Captain William Harrison is the present chief.

Diamond G-rove Cemetery, was purchased by the city of Jacksonville in 1866. It is located about southwest of the square. The site chosen is a beautiful one, and contains about forty acres. Its rolling ground is plea-ing, and is interspersed with a natural growth of trees and shrubs, making its landscape beaut}' unsurpassed, for the purpose designed. It is a picturesque retreat, well adapted as a sacred spot for the reception of the departed, where monuments to their memory are preserved and tenderly cared for. Many monuments have been erected, and other improvements made, which add beauty to, and adorn the grounds, making it one of the most beautiful cemeteries in this part of the State.

Jacksonville Cemetery contains about thirty acres, and lies one mile northeast of the public square. This is the oldest cemetery used by the city, and is a beautiful place ; being nicely shaded by large forest trees. The grounds are beautifully laid out, and are adorned with evergreens and flowers. Many of those who, during their lives, held high positions in this community and elsewhere, lie buried here. In this cemetery lies the remains of the great " war governor," Hon. Richard Yates. Of late years the " Diamond Grove " cemetery has been used more than this one.