Fillmore, Illinois

In the sonthwest part settled the Amish of some twenty-five families, who were preceded here by M. Yoter, Miller and others in 1864. They much resemble the society of Friends in plainness of attire, integrity and almost total exemption from pauperism. The name is derived from that of the founder of the society who, in the German States of Europe, saw fit to secede from the Menonites, of whom much has been heard lately, with regard to:the emigration of large numbers of them from Russia to the West. The proposed marriages are publicly announced, and a marriage outside ot the Society is "tolerable and not to be endured." They dress plainly, partly to avoid the frivolities of fashion, and partly that there may be no notable distinction between the rich and the poor. They have no churches or meeting houses but meet at each others dwellings, as the spirit moves them. The clothing of the men is often confined with hooks and eyes, but the notion that thsy wear no buttons is erroneous. The heads of the women are lawavs covered with a neat white cap and over the neck and shoulders

Passage source: History of Douglas County, Illinois, published 1876.

Bourbon has a two-story brick school house, which was built about 1S57, and is therefore, probably, the first brick built in the county. There is also a neat Baptist Church lately erected by the influence and means of citizens yet remaining. The place, however, has about lost the character of a village, there being at present neither a store or post office, the nearest being at Chesterville on 'the I. M.

Passage source: History of Douglas County, Illinois, published 1876.

Railway, which is a small station about one- half mile south of the ancient site of Fillmore. Fillmore had been laid out by H. Russel in 184S, on section 35, 15, 7, and the firm of Bales & Trowbridge, afterwards Bales, Osborn & Co., controlled the trade of a large area; but the business of this house was removed to Areola, and Fillmore is among the things that were. Mr. Bales was Associate Justice of the county in 1861, and Supervisor of the township in 1S72. Bagdad is a point on the Okaw three miles west of Areola.

Passage source: History of Douglas County, Illinois, published 1876.

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