Collison, Illinois

In 1828 Absalom Collison came to the settlement on the Middle Fork. He stopped with the Jnvinalls for a while. They were all from Ohio, and Mr. Collison was a single man at the time, and needed a home. He did not content himself with that kind of a home long - he concluded to have one of his own. He paid his respects to Mary Chenoweth, who accepted his offer for better or worse, and they were married in 1829. This, we presume, was the first marriage in that neighborhood. Miss Chenoweth had come to the neighborhood in the same year with her father's family. They went to the farm that they occupied so long, immediately. Here they remained and brought up their family, and here Mr. Collison died in 1853. The widow still survives at an advanced age, living on the same farm that she began her married life upon " full fifty years ago."

Passage source: History of Vermilion County, Together with Historic Notes on the Northwest, Gleaned from Early Authors, Old Maps and Manuscripts, Private and Official Correspondence, and Other Authentic, Though, for the Most Part, Out-of-the-way Sources, published 1879.

We have yet to notice the Methodists in this township. They are among the strongest here, and their origin in this country dates hack to the earliest pioneer days of the white settlements in this part of the country. The Morrison's and Juvinalls were Methodists. Their early settlement here has already been noticed. Meeting was regularly held at the residence of Mr. Morrison till he went away to Wisconsin. This was for some years after the first settlements. The earliest minister recollected is the Rev. McKain, who was here in the earliest times. Meetings were sometimes held at the residence of the Juvinalls. After the school-houses began to be built, meeting was held in them. The Pilot chapel organization met in the Collison school-house till the building of the church. Pilot chapel was built in the early part of the year and dedicated in June, 1871. The Rev. David Brewer was the pastor at the time of building. This is a well-built, attractive country church, and has a flourishing society with a good membership. The preacher in charge, at present, is the Rev. Eli Helmick. His career has already been dwelt upon at length in these pages, and will simplj' mention here that he is one of the old wheel-horses of Methodism in this country. He came in here as early as 1830. He traveled all over this country, at that time and subsequently, and preached in almost every settlement in early times. In 1830 he traveled with " Old Freeman Smalley," whom the old settlers will recollect as one of the most remarkable pioneers of early times. The author of these lines met the old man, in late years, on the frontier, where, at an extreme old age, he still made his way to the school-houses wherever Baptist congregations gathered to worship. But he is gone ! His comrade lingers on the shores of time, but will soon join the innumerable hosts of pioneers, where nearly all the old settlers have already gone.

Passage source: History of Vermilion County, Together with Historic Notes on the Northwest, Gleaned from Early Authors, Old Maps and Manuscripts, Private and Official Correspondence, and Other Authentic, Though, for the Most Part, Out-of-the-way Sources, published 1879.

Eli Helmick, who continued in the office a number of years. As before remarked, the people of Pilot are not given to a great deal of changing of officers. Mr. J. E. Vinson was justice of the peace for twenty years, and the present supervisor, Mr. Keeslar, is serving his ninth term. At the election held on the 1st of April, 1879, the following officers were chosen : Charles W. Keeslar, supervisor ; L. Tillotson, town clerk ; J. C. Tevebaugh, assessor ; T. C. Smoot, collector ; John Z. Selsor, commissioner of highways ; J. A. Knight, constable, and F. A. Collison, pound-master. The latter i-esigned and C. O. Ball was appointed to fill the vacancy.

Passage source: History of Vermilion County, Together with Historic Notes on the Northwest, Gleaned from Early Authors, Old Maps and Manuscripts, Private and Official Correspondence, and Other Authentic, Though, for the Most Part, Out-of-the-way Sources, published 1879.

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 Pilot Township - it names this place 1 more 1 time.