Blue Island, Illinois

The first settlers were Patrick Fitzgerald, who built a small house south of the Forging Company's shops, in 1S5.;, or 1S53, since moved to Missouri ; James Ryan, who built near Fitzgerald, since deceased at Crown Point, Intl.; Patrick Shanahan who was a neighbor of Ryan's; John Cooper, now of Chicago, had a small house on Front Street, between Kensington Avenue and One Hundred and Sixteenth Street, and was the first to erect one of the principal buildings that was used for a boarding house for many years and is still extant. The station agent was F. Rexford, son of Norman Rexford, of Blue Island ; the name of the station was Calumet, and its location just south of the present Illinois Central Railroad depot of Kensington. But in the immediate vicinity of Kensington is an old settler who far antedates those mentioned, David Andrews, who came to Chicago in 1834, and occupied the same office with Wilson Brothers, of Chicago Journal fame ; lie was a civil engineer and surveyor, and after remaining in Chicago some lime settled upon the farm on the Indian Ridge, about half a mile northwest nf Wildwood,* i:i 1840. Mi. Andrews was horn in Sussex County, New Jersey, thence moving to Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, near Harrisburg. In 1835, he was in the United States Land - Office at Chicago, under James Whillock, and subsequently was in the Recorder's office. At the time he moved to his present farm his only near neighbors were Davit! I'erriani, at Wildwood, and Norman Rexford, at Blue Island, three miles away. Then prairie wolves, tleer aild prairie chickens abounded, and occasionally a lynx was seen, as were large timber wolves. Mr. Andrews married Caroline Ward in Crete, Will County, since deceased, in 1840, and brought his wife to the farm and built his homestead. The farm originally comprised three hundred and sixty acres, but now has only two hundred. Seven children were bom to Mr. Andrews, of whom live are now living: Mary E. Becker, Edwin Rutlvven, Charles M., Milo J. and Warren J. Mr. Andrews is still hale and st rong, despite his seventy-eight years of age. Upon the farm have been exhumed numl>ers of Indian- antiquities arrow heads, hammer heads, etc., and not long since an Indian skull was discovered.

Passage source: History of Cook County, Illinois. From the Earliest Period to the Present Time, published 1884.

JULIUS KEICHARDT. merchant taiior and dealer in gent*' furnishing good;, was born in Saxony, (Jermany, September S, 1S50. His parents with their family came the same year and settled at Blue Island. Cook Co., III., where he was raised and educated. He began in his present line of business at Kiverdale in 1S7S, where he yet owns some propeity. In the spring of lsSi he opened at Kensington, and is now erecting a store there. September 26. 1878. he married Miss Amelia Mctzncr, a native of Saxony, Germany. They have two children, Minnie and Clara. His wife has two children by a former marriage. Amelia and Henry. Mr. Reichaidl is a member of the K. & L. of 11., of Chicago.

Passage source: History of Cook County, Illinois. From the Earliest Period to the Present Time, published 1884.

The German Methodist Church, of which Rev. Frederick (leorge Wrede is pastor at present, meet in the Kensington school - house, until the church now being built on One Hundred and Thirteenth Street, near Indiana Avenue, is completed. Its estimated cost is Si, 300, and its size forty-eight feet by twenty-eight feet. The congregation average about twenty, the Sunday-school scholars about seventeen. This church belongs to the Blue Island district, and is under the pastorship of Rev. Mr. Weinrich.

Passage source: History of Cook County, Illinois. From the Earliest Period to the Present Time, published 1884.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Calumet Township - it names this place 77 more 77 times.