Chebanse Township (part 2 of 2)

Rev. Charles Gonant, pastor of SS. Mary and Joseph Church, Chebanse, was born January 25, 1836, in the province of Lorraine, France. He prepared for the ministry in the city of Nancy, when, at the age of twenty-two, he went to Dublin and spent six months in his studies at the All Hallows College, and then left the country of his birth and came to America in 1858, landing in Alton, and after due time was ordained by the first bishop of Alton (Bishop Juncker) in the same year. He was in Springfield for some three months in 1858, after which time he had charge of congregations in Decatur, Assumption and Litchfield. After leaving Litchfield. in 1871, he returned to France to attend affairs incident to the death of his father, and then returned to this country in 1872. After his return home he became the assistant of Father O'Neill, of Chicago, and faithfully and well performed the duty assigned him for the six months following. He then removed to Chebanse in 1872, where he has held charge and resided ever since. He has charge, also, of the Clifton parish, consisting of 150 families, and the parish of Chebanse, containing 100. When Father Gonant came here, the church edifice was but a mere shell, but through his energy and good management he soon completed the building, containing ample grounds, also the parsonage adjoining. The church is the neatest in the town, and great credit is due him for its early completion. He is also president of the Father Mathew Temperance Society, which numbers fifty-seven members, and has been the means of doing a great deal to advance the temperance cause in this place.

John F. Grosse, deceased, was born in Prussia, Germany, January 18, 1838, and emigrated to America in 1856, and located in Bloom, Cook county, Illinois, and worked at farm work until the breaking out of the war of the rebellion, when he enlisted in the 36th 111. Inf., and served his adopted country faithfully until his health failed him. He was discharged from his command for disability, and returned to Illinois and settled in the town of Waltham, La Salle county, where he engaged in farming, and continued at it until his brother Henry moved to Chebanse, Iroquois county, Illinois, to engage in mercantile life, where he resided until his death. He was a pensioner for many years before his death, on account of disability from sickness, contracted while engaged in the defense of his adopted country. He married in Ottawa, Illinois, September 4, 1864, Miss

Anna Rabenstein, who was born November 2, 1841, in Sachsen Weimar, Germany, and emigrated to America in 1863, and resided with her father and brothers in Ottawa, Illinois, until she was married. She settled with her husband in Chebanse, and the two worked together in the mercantile business about nine years. By this united effort and economy they accumulated a sufficiency of this world's goods to keep the children comfortably. They had born to them several children, only two of whom survive : Alfred Charles, who was born May 19, 1866, at Chebanse ; and Yictoria, born September 27, 1870, at Chebanse. John F. Grosse suffered a long and lingering illness of .about two years, contracted in the army, and after seeking health in Texas, died October 23, 1874, at Chebanse, of consumption. At the day of his death he was thirty-six years, nine months and five

Old Settlers' Reunion

In November, 1878, the old settlers of Chebanse had a reunion, which was held in DeVeling's Hall. About two hundred persons sat down to a good dinner, and many happy greetings took place. The Chebanse Cornet Band furnished the music, and quite a number of old settlers made speeches. Memories of old times were revived, and it was a very enjoyable occasion. An Old Settlers' Association was organized, with Luther Gnbtail, president, and Joseph Haigh, secretary.

The second annual reunion took place in September, 1879. It was held in Chapman's Grove in the day time, and in DeVeling's Hall in the evening. The following poem was read by Joseph Haigh, Esq., at the first meeting, and was received with hearty applause:

By Joseph Haigh

Milk's Grove is the northwestern town in the county, and is bounded on the north by Kankakee county, on the east by Chebanse, on the south by Ashkum, and on the west by Ford county. Its legal description is town 29, range 10 east, and the north third of town 28, range 10 east of the third principal meridian, embracing territory equal to a congressional township. Its name was derived from the small grove of about 300 acres in sections 23 and 26 of town 29, and which was one of those singular, lone bodies of timber, away from others, not upon any running water, which put the theories of those who explain the phenomena of timber growths to a severe test. There is at this grove a small lake, and these circumstances made it an available place for early cattle operations. Col. William Howard, of Owasco, Cayuga county, New York, entered sometime late in the forties 80 acres in each of sections 23 and 26, as a place of shelter for his herd. At that time the grove was known as " Hickory Grove." Col. Howard, though its first purchaser, never lived here. He was engaged in that line of business known in those days as that of drover, buying up and driving to market whatever would go on the hoof, but generally, of course, cattle and sheep. He knew by a look the points of a good animal or a good boy. He thought he had found in the lad a good specimen when he took Lemuel Milk as a partner, and the subsequent history of the boy shows that Col. Howard's judgment was quite accurate. For several years they were partners, and during that time Milk ranged over New York and Ohio, buying any thing which he "saw money in." Some sheep which were purchased by Mr. Howard in Ohio were driven here, and Mr. Rutledge H. Enos, now of Kankakee, came here as the representative of Col. Howard, remaining here for several years. The grove then naturally came . to be called Enos' Grove. Sheep was the principal line of husbandry, at first. The ewes were brought here, and for some years were let upon shares to those who would take charge of them, the renter giving two pounds of wool per head per annum, and making good all losses, making a very fair arrangement for both parties. The principal care of sheep in those days, when range was boundless, was to protect them from wolves and from the various diseases which they were liable to. Against the former, constant watching by day was necessary. They call it herding now; but in those days boys had to. "watch sheep." By night they were shut in high rail-pens, ten or twelve rails high, made so that a wolf could not get through it. Sheep cared for in this way were comparatively safe, until the coming of a " higher civilization ' ' brought the inevitable dog.

In 1850 Col. Howard proposed to Mr. Milk to buy out half of his interest at the Grove. It is a sufficient commentary on the two men who had for some years been in business together, and showing the mutual estimation each had for the other, that Col. Howard advised the young man to go west where he would have a field equal at least to his energy and peculiar abilities, and that Mr. Milk bought the half interest in the land and stock here without seeing it, entirely on the representation of Mr. Howard. Seldom did a mutual confidence rest on a better foundation. Mr. Milk gave $3,750 for the half interest, and at the same time Howard transferred to his son a half of his remaining interest. Land had been added to the original purchase, so that, at the time of Col. Howard's death, 1,320 acres comprised the Grove Farm.

In the spring of 1851 Milk came here solitary and alone, and across lots. He came 'by the usual method of travel in those days (for in 1851 Chicago had no railroad), to Joliet ; thence to Dr. Todd's, this side of "Wilmington. The old stage route ran then from Joliet, via Wilmington, Bourbonnais, Middleport, thence to North Fork and Danville. He picked his way along the river to J. B. Hawkins', where was the old lime-stone post-office, an advanced outpost of civilization. Thence on a bright Sunday morning in April, with the soil thoroughly soaked with the continued rains of that season, Mr. Milk struck out into the unknown wild, with a horse to ride and a boy to guide, - both of which were loaned him by Mr. Hawkins, - through the barrens to find Pilot Grove, the home then of Morey F. Frink, but which had previously been owned by Mr. Hawkins. His horse sank under him in the quicksands, and his heart began to sink in him, as, drawing nearer the place of his earthly possessions, he came into such an unearthly country. He had to dismount and pull his horse out of the sands. Our traveler, however, worked his passage like the boy driving on the canal, until he reached solid land and Pilot Grove. Arriving, finally, at the residence of Mr. Enos, he of course made a careful inspection of the possessions and flocks and herds which he had purchased on the faith of Col. Howard's representations, and was thoroughly satisfied with his investments. The grove and lake were about what he had expected : but the beauty of the hill and valley landscape off to the north and west, the grand stretch of plain off to the south, for miles, the miles of gently rolling prairie, extending east to the Iroquois, twelve miles away, just growing green under the warm April showers, were beyond the power of immediate comprehension.

Certainly, in a state of nature, man could not have found in all this vast prairie region a more beautiful or alluring location than this, for five miles on every side of Hickory Grove. From the elevated position, two miles west of the grove, where the town-house now stands, as grand and extensive a view could be had as the human eye could well take in. Not a house could be seen at that time, save the one in which Mr. Enos resided. The nearest neighbor was eight miles away, - Mr. Frink, at Pilot Grove. With the first break of day the grand "boom " of the prairie fowls, which now has so nearly passed away that many of the residents in Illinois have never heard it, and in all probability never will, resounded in all directions. No writer was ever knowu to describe it^ and the present one does not propose to try it. It was not like any other sound or reverberation in nature or in civilization: a continued "boom," kept up for an hour or more, - musical without being melodious, and grand without being exciting.

Mr. Milk was more than pleased with the view and the prospect. Here was room for the display of all the energy and business activity of the most ambitious. He had an ambition, not for wealth, though wealth had come to him, but for business activity, for flocks and herds, which could grow fat on this boundless wealth which grew spontaneously on these hills and valleys, an ambition for extensive and large enterprises which should fully occupy his active mind and full physical powers. In both of these respects his ambition has been filled. He is one of the few really remarkable men of the state. The right man, the right place, and the right time met at Milk's Grove in 1851. Here were all the conditions for a full realization of all the hopes and anticipations any mortal could have. He was in his sphere, and grandly has he filled it. With the death of Col. Howard in 1853, Mr. Milk bought the interest of his son and widow. Howard had left a will which had bequeathed in three lines of writing all his real and personal property of every kind to his widow. The landed estate at the Grove then amounted to 1,320 acres. The land around here had then been withdrawn from market by the act which organized the Central railroad, but it was soon after thrown open for sale.

Wolves were the great pest of this time. Many were the incidents which the keepers of the flocks had with them. Lawrence Myron, who was then in the employ of Mr. Milk, was returning late one evening. Mistaking the scattering timber along Langham creek for the grove, he made for it just in time to be surrounded by a pack of hungry fellows, who would like to have made a supper of him if he had been willing. With nothing but a knife to defend himself with, he marched in single file, at double quick, with the point of the knife thrown out as a rear guard, and thought he was accomplishing as successful a retreat as did the ten thousand Greeks ; though Larry knew little of Greek, his rear-guard did duty nobly, and he escaped without a scratch.

For several years after Mr. Milk came here, sheep were the principal stock, but soon cattle became his largest interest. His landed interest grew with the rest. He purchased later a considerable tract of the county lands of Dr. Wilson, who had purchased of Mr. Tollman all that he owned in this part of the county. The grove supplied timber enough for fencing and fuel, and he soon had large fields of com growing. The owners of the distillery at Wilmington sent teams and men to husk his crop, paying him 25 cents per bushel for it on the stalk. Wool was a profitable crop for him. By the custom here, he received two pounds per head for rent of sheep. The price was usually from 30 to 40 cents per pound, and was marketed in Joliet.

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cattle, one thousand of which (averaging 1,100 pounds) he sold for $55 per head, which would indicate that in ten years he had prospered fairly. The years which followed were full of business activity, great deals in cattle and live stock followed each other, and, with prices constantly enhancing, these were sufficiently successful.

His practice has been to buy, instead of raise, cattle and feed them at three years old. The home farm at the grove has always been under his own management ; the others are rented. The houses and buildings on his farms are all good, better than we usually find on rented farms. His theory is that he can secure a better class of renters by liberal provisions for their wants, a result which he has certainly obtained. In 1870 he commenced a system of draining the flat lands lying south from the grove, and has followed it up very effectively. A main ditch was run into Langham creek, arid laterals from all directions lead into it. Few men have had a larger experience, and none have found the advantages coming from thorough and systematic ditching more encouraging.

His feeding has been carried on on the most extensive scale, - stallfeeding as many as 1,300 head of cattle in a single season, with thousands of hogs. The present winter he is feeding 5,000 sheep, intending to have them ready for. the spring market. To carry on this successfully, his farms are supplied with good sheds, and some of them with excellent barns.

He has about fifty farms, ranging in size from 80 acres to a section, not all of which, however, are in this township, and his especial pride is to have them kept neat in general appearance and clean in culture.

The general filling up of the township did not occur until quite recently. Its first settler was Mr. R. H. Enos, who had charge of the farm when it was first bought by Col. Howard, and continued in charge of it for some years after Mr. Milk became interested in it.

The township was set off as a separate town in 1872. There was from the first an aversion to serving as township officers, which has not yet been overcome, though the voters have been fortunate' in finding in Mr. B. W. Gilborne a man who was willing to sacrifice his own personal peace to attend to the affairs of the public.

At the first election, R. C. Munger was chosen supervisor; B. W. Gilborne, clerk ; Samuel Walker, assessor ; C. W. Sumner, collector ; and Ti. C. Munger, justice of the peace. The present officers are B. W. Gilborne, supervisor, assessor and justice of the peace ; C. W. Sumner, clerk ; arid F. M. Laughlin, collector.

Lemuel Milk, farmer, stock-raiser and general merchant, Chebanse, whose portrait appears in this work, was born in Ledgyard township, Cayuga county, New York, October 18, 1820. His father was born in Westport, Massachusetts, and his mother (formerly Miss Mary Hathaway) was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts. At the age of two years, Mr. Milk moved with his parents to the town of Fleming, Cayuga county, New York, where they lived in a log house for six years. After residing in said town for twenty-eight years, farming, raising and driving stock, he removed to this state and settled in what was formerly known as Hickory and Enos' Grove, but afterward changed to Milk's Grove township, its present name, it being called after himself. He bought a half interest of Col. William Howard in the said grove, which at that time contained 160 acres. After the death of Mr. Howard, he bought the undivided half of the heirs, which contained 1,320 acres. By steadily increasing his landed domain, he soon became the possessor of 9,000 acres in one body, but in 1875 he commenced selling off, reducing this immense tract to 6,000 acres. He has several other farms in this county, store property and lots in the village of Chebanse, over 1,000 acres in Kankakee county, as well as other property in Kankakee, Wilmington, Manteno and Chicago, and also 12,000 acres in one body in Indiana. Besides his half-dozen-stores-in-one in Chebanse, he raises great quantities of wheat, corn, oats, hay, flax, etc., all of which, not used by him, finds its way to the Chicago markets. Mr. Milk does not confine himself alone to farming and merchandising, but deals heavily in stock, having at the present writing (1880) some 200 horses, 500 head of cattle, 1,200 hogs, and 5,250 sheep. He is by all odds one of the most noted, as well as one of the most extensive farmers and stock-dealers in the state of Illinois, if not in the West. His Illinois land alone, if sold before the last financial crisis, would have brought him the magnificent sum of $500,000 and upward, - so much for grit, energy and thrift. He was married to Miss Jane A. Platt, June 1, 1854, she being a native of Butternut, Otsego county, New York, and was born May 20, 1831. They have been blessed with two children, both living : Jennie M. and Sherwood P. Mr. Milk never held public oifice, not being a chronic office-seeker, neither has he been a member of any denomination. In his early days he voted the democratic ticket, but in later years he cast his vote with the republican party. Although not in the army, he rendered his country valuable service in the way of contributions, etc., for the purpose of raising troops in the late war. Although he carries on mercantile business here, and heavy farming operations in Milk's Grove and surrounding country, his family reside in Kankakee city.

William Walsh, farmer, Chebanse, was born in the county of Dublin, Ireland, on January 12, 1834. His father was John, and his mother was Bridget (Lynch) Walsh. All the education Mr. Walsh received, was obtained in Ireland, and he was brought up on a farm. In 1855 he came to this country, making direct for this township, and working for Mr. Milk for two years - the first work performed after coming here. His next move was to Chebanse, working four years on the railroad. He then returned to the Grove and remained for four years, and then bought his present place of 160 acres of Mr. Milk. He was married in Chebanse, on May 2, 1860, to Miss Catharine Gallagher, who was born in the county of Dublin, Ireland, in 1836. They have six children : Charles, John, Mary H., William, Edward, and Robert; deceased, Emeline.

Joseph Wadleigh, farmer, Herscher, Kankakee county, is one of the heaviest land-owners in the township. He was born in New York, June 2, 1817. When quite young his parents moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, living there a number of years, then moving to Oxford, Butler county, Ohio. His parents having gone to their last resting place, Mr. Wadleigh, in the summer of 1847, crossed the plains to Oregon, in a train of forty wagons, under command of Capt. Hawes, their conveyance being of the most primitive character. Oxen drew them to their destination, the trip taking some five months' time. Being a tinsmith, he opened the first establishment of that kind in that locality, and remained one year. In 1848 he got the gold fever, - it being epidemic. He left Portland, Oregon, in a sail-vessel, reaching California in October. He located at Suters Fort (now Sacramento City) and went into the tinsmithing business. He made the surveyor's chain that was used in laying out the city. He mined but a day and a half, his trade being worth upward of $100 a day, an ordinary milk-pan selling for an ounce of gold. One year thereafter, he returned via Panama and New York, to his home in Oxford, Ohio, and in 1859 moved to Kankakee, and the next spring to this township. He was married in Hamilton, Ohio, July 27, 1851, to Miss M. J. Morey, who was born in Somerville, Butler county, Ohio, December 12, 1829. They have seven children: Romeo F., Theodore S., Josephine, William M., Robert W., Henry L., and Sheridan J. He has been school-treasurer since 1866. His farm consists of 1,600 acres, with good house, out-buildings, etc. He rents two tenant houses, also land to smaller owners adjoining. His first house was a double one, one end being occupied by himself and family, and the adjoining room used as a barn. A great change has been wrought during the past twenty years.

Theodore Wheeler is one of the leading farmers and stock-raisers of this township. He has a magnificent farm of 320 acres ; a fine residence, large granaries, out-houses, etc., and a fine orchard containing 1,500 bearing trees, from which he gathers a crop of 1,500 to 2,(»00 bushels yearly, and makes some twenty barrels of cider. His farm lies on the sectional line dividing Milk's Grove from Chebanse township. He raises nearly everything a farm produces, his principal crop being corn, which he feeds to his stock, he dealing extensively in horses, cattle, sheep and hogs. He was born on the Mohawk river, state of New York, on September 27, 1830. He was raised on a farm, and lived at the place of his birth till 1853. Coming west he worked three years in Edgar county, Illinois ; then returned east, and June 26, 1859, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Andrews, who was born May 19, 1844, in the birthplace of her husband. In the fall of 1860 they came to Illinois, stopping two years in Salina township, Kankakee county, and in the spring of 1863 moved to his present residence. When he located the county was mostly a wild, uncultivated waste, not a house to be found for some fifteen miles to the south, and on the west it took nearly a half day's journey to reach the house of a neighbor. He has never craved office, but has held the position of school director "for some time. He has two children : Willard A. and Elma.

William S. Wood, farmer, Clifton, is a native of Orkney Isles, Scotland, and his wife was Miss Margaret Russell, and was born and raised twenty miles from Edinburgh, Scotland. Mr. Wood came to the United States in the month of July, 1852, stopping a year and a half in the state of New York, then moved to Bloomington and other points in this state, and finally brought up at Milk's Grove township, this county, in 1868, settling down on his present homestead. His residence being on an eminence sufficiently .high to give him a magnificent view of the lowlands, he can, on a clear day, see for a distance of fifteen or twenty miles. By dint of industry and economy, Mr. Wood has secured himself and family a comfortable home. They have two children : Isabella and Arthur ; two deceased : Ada and Caroline.

Richard Duckworth, farmer, Chebanse, is a well-known and prominent resident of this township. He was born in New Hartford, Oneida county, New York, April 14, 1834. His parents were George and Mary (Nuttall) Duckworth, both natives of Lancashire, England. His father, who is still living, was born in 1796, and his mother in 1806. Mr. Duckworth was two years of age when his parents removed to Lisbon, La Salle (now Kendall) county, in 1836, and remained with them till twenty-two years of age, then went to work on his own farm in Grundy county, and moved on his farm in Milk's Grove in 1868, where he still resides. He has a beautiful place, handsome residence, good barns, finely laid out yard, dotted with evergreens, etc., and has 240 acres. He enlisted September 18, 1861, in- Co. K, 8th 111. Cav., commanded by John F. Farnsworth. It was organized in St. Charles, Kane county, and joined the army of the Potomac under Gen. McClellan. He served three years, and was under fire 106 times, without receiving a wound. Some of the principal battles he was engaged in were : Williamsburgh. Baltimore Crossroads, Fair Oaks, Richmond, Turkey Creek, Malvern Hill, Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, Falling Waters, and all the engagements his regiment participated in, and never missed a day's service while it was in active operation. He lost two horses, one being shot from under him. He was married April 11, 1869, to Miss Susan Daller, who was born in Norway September 19, 1843. They have three children: Elon J. F., William A. and Austin W., - the last two being twins. Mr. Duckworth is a Congregationalist and his wife a Lutheran.

Reuben C. Munger, farmer Chebanse, deserves mention in our pages. He was born in Delaware county, New York, September 15, 1836. He came with his parents to this state, and settled in the town of Roscoe, in 1842. His father (the Rev. Obadiah W. Munger) was a Methodist minister, and brought his sons up to farming, he generally being the possessor of one. In 1843 they moved to Boone county, remaining one year ; then to Kendall county, and leaving there in 1848, moved to a farm of 200 acres that his father purchased further south, living there till 1869. Mr. Munger moved to this township in January, 1869, and has rented and resided on the same place for fifteen years. He has a quarter section of his own, but that not being large enough to suit his ideas of farming, he lets the same, and rents the extensive and beautiful place where he now resides. He was married December 30, 1858, to Miss Lydia A. Jacobs, who was born March 22, 1837. They have been blessed with two children: William W., born November 25, 1859, and Catharine A., March 22, 1862. He was supervisor for the first two years of the organization of the township, and is now treasurer of the board of road commissioners, and is also school trustee. He was the first justice of the peace for one year. He has been a member in good standing of the Masonic fraternity for sixteen years, and a strict member of the Methodist church for twenty-seven years, and is a Good Templar, as are also his family.

B. W. Gilborne, farmer, Cabery, Ford county, was born in Ireland, on November 1, 1825. Living there till fourteen years of age, he came to America all alone, in 1840. He resided in Montgomery county, New York, some ten years, working on a farm and teaching school. In 1850 he went to Schoharie county, New York, living there till 1864, when he enlisted in Co. F, 13th N. Y. heavy artillery, the next year being transferred to Co. A, and after the fall of Richmond, was consolidated with the 7th heavy artillery. He was in the siege service, fighting at Petersburg and Richmond. He, with four others, had charge of the mail-boat Fawn for a short time, on the Dismal Swamp Canal, leading from Elizabeth river via the Great Bridge, Pungo Landing, and Corn Jack. He was on provostguard and police duty at Norfolk and Portsmouth, and was finally discharged on August 24, 1865. He then returned home, arid in 1867 he moved west, stopping at Rogers, Ford county, and two years thereafter, moved to the town of Chebanse, now Milk's Grove township. He was the first town clerk, serving two terms ; has been assessor for five years, justice of the peace for three years, commissioner of highways for two years, and supervisor one year, all of which he still continues to hold. He is also farmer and schoolteacher. In fact he has been father and grandfather of the township for the past five years, he having attended to about all the business that has been transacted. He was married on July 25, 1852, to Miss Lodoizker Minard, who was born on January 30, 1830. They have four children: Mary E., now wife of Levi C. Latham ; William H., Alice and John ; James D. and Charles, deceased. He has 40 acres which he farms during the summer, and teaches school in the winter, which occupation he has followed for the past thirty years.

William Hipkie, farmer, Herscher, Kankakee county, was born in Bergenhusem, Germany, on March 4, 1841. He remained in the old country till the age of fourteen, then coming to America he went direct to Wisconsin, and lived there four years ; then to Illinois in 1861, residing in Lisbon, Kendall county, some nine years ; then to this township, buying his present farm of 160 acres, which is beautifully located on rising ground, in the heart of an extensive prairie country, and commanding a fine view of the surrounding scenery. He was married November 12, 1871, to Miss Mary J. Duckworth, who was born in Lisbon, Kendall county, February 5/1845. Her father, the venerable George Duckworth, is still living at the ad- vanced age of eighty -three years, and residing a portion of the time with her. Mr. Hipkie has held the office of trustee and school director for three years each. He has accumulated his worldly possessions by hard work and perseverance. He has one child, George F., born on March 2, 1873.

J. 0. Dunkelberger, farmer, Herscher, Kankakee county, was born in Perry county, Pennsylvania. September 10, 1825. He was raised in Pennsylvania, living there till forty-two years old. On February 20, 1867, he moved his family to Illinois, settling in Livingston county for eight years, and in 1875 came to this county, locating in Milk's Grove township, section 16, having 240 acres. It is all well hedged ; has a tine young orchard, and is under good cultivation. He was married March 24, 1853, to Miss Sarah Bear, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and she was born November 22, 1832, in Perry county, Pennsylvania. They have eight children : William H., Elmira, Charles H., Edward L., Daniel M., James, John O. and Jeremiah C. ; and Franklin, deceased. Mr. Dunkelberger has been school director for three years, and is a member of the Lutheran denomination.

F. B. White, farmer, Kempton, Ford county, was born in the state of New York, August 1, 1842. He was raised on a farm till 1862, when he enlisted August 13, in Co. K, 125th N. Y. Vols., Col. Willard commanding. His battle was at Harper's Ferry, where 11,000 soldiers were engaged, and all taken prisoners, being completely hemmed in. They were paroled on the day after, and some 9,000 sent to Chicago; were exchanged, and returned to the field. He participated in ten other battles : Gettysburg, Wilderness, Mine Run, Spottsylvania Court-house, Bristol Station, Cedar Mountain, Stony Creek, Manassas Gap and Swamp Wood. He received a severe wound at Spottsylvania Court-house by the explosion of a shell, - an ounce ball entering his right shoulder; also a bayonet lunge in his left leg. On April 1, 1865, he received his discharge and returned home. In 1876 he went to Morris, Grundy county, and in 1877 came to this township, - his present homestead falling into his possession. He has 611 acres, with good house and out-buildings. He was married, March 14, 1877, to Miss Elizabeth Stone, who was born September 20, 1843. She has five children bearing the name of her first husband, Mr. John Capen : Hattie M., Charles S., Mary E., Carrie A. and Herbert N.

Iroquois township is in the central portion of the county, and embraces the entire congressional township known as T. 27, R. 13 W. of the 2d principal meridian. The Iroquois river runs across its northeastern part for six or seven miles, and Spring creek passes across its western half from near its southwestern corner, in a northeasterly direction to its junction with the Iroquois, on section 15. So large a portion of the township was originally timber (probably one-third of its area) that all the 'requirements for early settlement were found here. The surface is gently rolling, very little of it being so flat as not to be capable of thorough drainage by the ordinary methods of open ditches or tiles. The eastern half of the township is decidedly sandy, and is easily worked, and capable of producing magnificent crops. Coal has recently been discovered near by the river, on or near section 14; but the general depression in the coal-mining business has prevented the development of what may in the near future be an important interest. The township is wholly within the artesian district ; and many of the wells, which have an average depth of about 100 feet, flow fine streams, and one on the premises of Mrs. Harroun runs a stream strong enough to drive an overshot waterwheel, for churning. Corn has always been the staple crop, but considerable flax is raised, the absence of any market for the straw being the only serious drawback. Dairying is increasing in importance, and the growing of winter wheat has received a strong impetus, owing to the fine crops of the two years last past. Few of the farmers have engaged much in cattle-feeding, or in raising fancy stock or sheep. On nearly every farm is seen a small patch of sorghum growing, and several small mills find steady employment during the fall in working up the product. The fine flowing wells make dairying an object with many of the farmers, and Holstein cattle are becoming favorites with those who desire a cross which will be superior for milk. The water from these flowing wells is run through the milk-house and cools the milk quickly, keeping it at the uniform temperature at which the cream rises most perfectly, and in the winter prevents freezing, except on some rare occasions of very severe weather.

The hedges are generally in good condition, the buildings good and neat. Few of the farms have been overrun by noxious weeds, and the highways present a condition of perfect grading, which few townships in this prairie country can surpass. Opinions vary considerably as to the real value to the town of the road-grader, which is owned by the town ; but the better opinion is, that at least three times as much earth is moved by the machine as would be done by the same number of teams with scrapers, though it often fails to deposit the earth where it is most needed, and the road-bed is left too narrow.

The earliest inhabitants migrated from Ohio and Indiana largely. Latterly many came from the counties north and west of here, and the French settlement in the northern part of the county has spread into this township. Yery little of the land is held by non-residents, and small farms are the rule.

Eaely Settlements And Incidents

The date of the first settlements (which were upon Spring creek) was in April, 1835. In the opinion of "William Flesher, to whom the writer is under many obligations, and who seems to be a man well calculated to retain an excellent remembrance of facts, the first entries of land were made in June, 18887 by John Flesher and Levi Thompson. They entered a half-section each in sections 28 and 29, under the impression that they were getting the timber land, which, in fact, was in sections 20 and 21, upon which they already had claims. They had selected the right numbers and would have entered the land in the latter sections, but parties at the land office deceived them by telling them that the timber was in the other sections. They afterward entered a portion of the timber land. Mr. Thompson, who lives at Gilrnan, thinks his father settled here on section 20, where Mr. Calkin lives, in 1832. He has always understood that his parents were driven away from here by the Indians in 1832 or 1833. A very careful sifting of all the evidence at his disposal satisfies the writer that the date fixed by Mr. Thompson is too early by at least two or three years. The Thompson family had lived near Milford before coming here, and there participated in the fright and flight which came from a scare in regard to approaching hostile Indians. The Indians did not come but the pioneers did run. At the time this settlement was made the Indians had removed, but there were a few lingering around their village, which was near the mouth of Spring creek, near the farm so long owned and occupied by H. A. Butzow, Esq., county clerk. These Indians came occasionally to the white man's house for something to eat, but never molested any one. Mr. John Wilson, who did not come to this township to live until three years later, relates that in his absence from his cabin on one of his frequent business trips some Indians came to his cabin to get salt to season their venison. Wilson, coming home in the night, had not been noticed by these wanderers, and they returned to get salt late at night, and were so frightened (the fright was largely mutual) at finding the cabin occu- pied, that they ran " like white-heads." They were afterward made to understand that they were welcome to his house, and during the entire winter supplied him with venison and fish for his table. These are believed to be the only Indian incidents here after the settlement by whites in this township. The next one who came here was Jedediah Darby, who settled just at the west line of the township, near the residence of Mr. Kirby. He and his wife both died and were buried there. This must have been in 1835. Owen Darby came the same spring and took the claim where Flesher's burying-ground is, and sold it to John Flesher. Lemuel Flesher, a cousin of John's, took a claim on section 21, which he afterward sold to John, and went to section 30, where Mrs. Harroun now resides, and built a cabin. He afterward owned the place where Kirby lives, and put out the orchard from which Mrs. Kirby now supplies the Oilman market with apples. After selling that he took up and improved the place opposite the Washington school-house, which he sold to Brelsford, and took the place where Davis lives, which he sold to Keene and went farther up stream.

John Flesher, on the other hand, continued to reside on the place he made, and his children still live on the same place, and entertain their friends under the same hospitable roof which he erected in 1837. It was a magnificent house for the times. It was 22x28, with rived clap-board roof. The floor was sawed at Webster's mill, near Milford. The upper-floor joists are 22 feet long, and were all (eleven of them) split out of one log, and hewed so accurately that it is almost impossible to detect any irregularity in them. Mr. Flesher came in one of those old-fashioned Pennsylvania wagons, now entirely gone out of date, and brought some cattle with him. There were many evidences of recent Indian occupation here when he came. The poles which had answered them for tents were still standing, and down at their camp were graves of a peculiar nature, - that is, they were peculiarly marked. There were slabs at the head and foot, and they seemed roofed over with pickets. These remained undisturbed until the fire burned up the wood. They were never desecrated by the relic fiend. There was no mill at this time nearer than Denmark, near Danville, but there was a corn-cracker at Milford. It was a several days' job to go to mill, for besides the distance, it often occurred that one had to wait his turn for several days. Levi Thompson, who was the first comer, made his home on section 20, where Mr. Calkin now resides. He had come from Indiana in 1832. Mr. Thompson died here about 1846. They had nine sons, all of whom grew up to manhood but one, four of them going into the army and giving their aid, and two their lives, to their country. James died at Yicksburg. He was a most estimable young man, and had already served nearly three years in the 20th reg. William served four years, and is now in Alabama. Levi served in the 113th, and now resides with his mother in Gilman. Newton, who also saw service in the army, died in Michigan. About 1850 Mrs. Thompson married Mr. Harwood, and lived for awhile on the farm Mrs. Harroun now lives on. She now, at the age of seventy-five, resides at Gilman, where some of her children live with her, still strong and hearty after having borne the hardships of pioneer life.

John Johnson came in 1836, and made his cabin on the place where Mr. Peters lives. He only remained two years, and then moved farther up stream. He devoted his time principally to bee-hunting. He was a Scotchman. He died there. Wm. Huckins came from Springfield, Ohio, in the spring of 1837, and bought land of Flesher on section 21, just east of where the latter resided. He built a house which still stands, near where the Gravellots reside. They had a large family of children. The farm was purchased by the Gravellot brothers when they came here from France, in 1854. There were six brothers and a sister in this family. The change, coming from the champagne country of France to the howling wilderness, for howling it was then, is strongly impressed on their minds, but they never got sick of the country. A nephew who came with them could not stand it, and returned to carry the news to France. Julius, John and Hipered live here still. All are unmarried. The latter served in the 76th reg. during the war. The other brothers went to Kansas. The sister died here. Her husband, Mr. Chappaux, started in 1859 to go to Oregon, but was never heard from after he reached Utah. It is supposed he suifered death at Mountain Meadows. An only daughter lives here with her uncles.

A queer old character by the name of William McCutcheon, whose name is still known here only as having been given to the slough which winds down through to the creek, came here from Milford in 1837, and took up a claim on S.W. J of section 30, where A. D. Harroun lives. He was an uneasy mortal, never satisfied with his lot or his prospects. Whenever it rained he would complain of being drowned out, and if it clid not rain he thought everything was going to burn up. He had no claims to beauty. It is said that the first time Hi. Vennum met him in the road he gave him his hat, remarking as he did so that he believed he (McCutcheon) was entitled to it by the law of the road. It was the first time Hiram had ever met a homelier man than himself. He had a large family of girls, and the boys thought, as he lived out on the prairie all alone, and had the range of ten counties, that he owned all the land he could see. In 1844 it rained all the time, and the slough which bears his honored name was " booming " from early spring till fall, much as some of the later residents remember that it did in 1869. The old man got disgusted, and traded his land to J. F. Wright for a lot of dry goods, and dressed his girls all out gorgeously and started for Missouri in a covered wagon.

The first school was taught by Jacob O'Feather,who was from Indiana, and who settled on section 25 of Douglas township, in 1836, in a house which stood on section 30, probably about 1838. The school was maintained by subscription, and pupils came from four miles away. They used " Elementary Spelling Book," " English Reader," and whatever book the pupil chanced to have. Mr. Prentiss taught a term in a cabin on the Cavena place, and Miss Mary Peck taught a term in a cabin which stood near where the burying-ground now is. The first district schoolhouse was built near where the bridge crosses the creek, on section 19, about 1845. David Gardner, a mason by trade, afterward a merchant at Middleport, now a capitalist at Chicago, taught the school. Elijah Barton, the Harwoods, the Lawheads, the Fletcher children and the Huckins children, were among those who attended. William Scott, Dan Wright and Alfred Fletcher, also taught school here early.

The first post-office in town was kept by Levi Thompson, at his house on Spring creek. It was established in 1838, and was called Pink-a-Mink, the Indian name of the river. Mr. Wentworth, in his address at the old settlers' reunion, speaks of having the Plato postoffice established in 1838. It is supposed that he had confounded the names, and that it is this office which he referred to, as it is certain that the Plato office was not established until two years after that date. This office lasted but a few years.

Dr. Fowler, of Bunkum, was the first to practice medicine here, and Dr. Harwood, of Middleport, was the next. Dr. J. H. Kester was the first to locate in the town. He improved the place where Mr. Mitchell lives, and remained here until 1864, when he sold and went to the western part of the state. Dr. Cunningham was engaged in practice here before the all-pervading quinine was in vogue. He understood human nature better than he did medicine, and he was sharp enough to practice accordingly. J. R. Smith located a land warrant on one quarter of section 31, and carried on a blacksmith shop there. Frederick Harwood came from Indiana in 1843, and took up land where Mrs. Harroun now lives, on section 30. He died in 1878 at the age of sixty-nine. He was a worthy and exemplary man, and a good neighbor. Mrs. Harwood is still living. They had five boys and two girls, most of whom reside in the county.

worked on public works in various places, came over from Indiana about 1840, to spy out the land and see if he could not get a piece of land which he could own. He seems to have been, in his younger days at, least, much given to placing great confidence in what those, whom he thought his friends, told him. "When looking for land, some one told him that the finest land in this whole country was along White Woman's creek (Langham creek), and that the delay of a single day might deprive him of it, for Cassady (then famous as a land speculator at Danville) was going to enter the whole batch of it right off. All that was necessary in those days to make land "go off like hot cakes," was to circulate a report that Cassady or Dr. Fithian was after it. Away went Maurice to Danville on the wings of the wind, or as near as he could to that style, and entered the first quarter he could get hold of. After this was secured, and Maurice was happy over his possessions, the registrar entered into a friendly conversation with him : " Maurice," said he, "you've made a poor selection ; the land, it is true, is of very superior quality; but the wolves, man, - the wolves are that bad that no man, most especially an Irishman, can stand it for a single night. They'd tear the tender members of your family, - the childer', man ; and it's more than an even chance if they would not even devour the old ones, to say nothing of the snakes that are in it." Maurice was seeking a country, it is true, but it was not exactly that kind of a neghborhood that he wanted. He determined to abandon his purchase, and started back to Indiana, at a good lope, wishing at every step that Cassady had the land. In 1844 he came to where he now resides, and bought of Lemuel Flesher. The wolves and snakes could hardly have been worse on " White Woman's creek " than they were here at first. He had to keep his door bolted after dark to keep the children in and the wolves out.

Alfred Fletcher came here with his father in 1849 and bought a farm in section 30. He taught school for a while, for $20 per month and board. He " boarded round," as the term was, and was always sure to make the longest stay where the girls were plentiest and prettiest. He was the first clerk of the township and has frequently performed the duties of the various offices.

L. D. Northrup laid out the town of Point Pleasant in 1836, on the east side of Spring creek, about eighty rods from the Iroquois river. It was a great time for laying out towns, and there were not many men who had a river front, who did not have at least a town plat in anticipation. This place was also a candidate for the countyseat. James Smith, who was a noted surveyor of that day on the upper Spring creek, did the surveying. There was an Indian burying-

The next settlement which was made, in point of time, and the first in point of prospective importance, was that at Plato, by what was known as the Plato company. This company was composed of a number of business men, who purchased the land now owned and occupied by John Wilson, in 1835 or 1836, and laid out a town with all the customary expectations and paraphernalia of that day. The plat which was taken east to make the lots sell was beautifully done. The broad, deep-blue river, with snorting steamboats trying to find room to tie up at its wharves, would remind one of the Danube instead of the Iroquois. The plat was on the south and west of the river. It was the expectation of the proprietors to secure the location of the county-seat here, and was freely advertised in New York and Boston as "one of the handsomest locations for a city in the world," as indeed it was. A sale of lots was made, and some of the lots sold for more than those did in Chicago. It was the " head of navigation " on the Iroquois river, and the prospective capital of a rich and fertile country. The notes which were given for the lots were by their terms to become due when the steam-mill in contemplation was completed. The failure to secure the county-seat made it undesirable to go on with work on the mill, and it was never completed.

The story of this county-seat strife is interesting. The Plato company believed that they had the best chance, and that the inducements they offered would be sufficient to secure it, but a little accident interfered to spoil their plans. Lieut.-Gov. John Moore, of McLean county, Gen. Whitesides, and Capt. Covel, of Bloomington, were the commissioners to select a county-seat. They were to meet here on the ground in May, 1837. The two former came, but Covel's sickness prevented his attendance. The members of the company were on hand and made their proposition. Moore and Whitesides thought favorably of it, and had Covel been present would have accepted the offer made, - that of donating fifty lots in consideration of the location of the county-seat; but they adjourned the matter for a few weeks. At their second meeting all commissioners were present, but the proprietors were absent. The financial storm which was sweeping over the country was seriously threatening every branch of trade. These men were engaged in business, and though they were notified to be present, each had so much on his hands to take care of his* own business affairs that he would not give his time to it. Mr. Flesher nearly killed two horses riding to get them to attend the meeting of the commission. Their offer was made, and the Middleport party knew what it was, and they made an offer of 100 lots. This the commissioners thought veiy liberal, and Gov. Moore said for the commission that the Plato company would have to do better. The members of the company failing to put in an appearance, the commission, after remaining three days, went on and closed with the offer of the Middleport citizens, and Plato " went back." About 1840 a post-office was established and John Wilson appointed postmaster, - a position he still holds. The land in this township had been opened for sale, but was afterward withdrawn from market to permit the selection of " state lands." These lands were donated by the general government to the state, under the act of September, 1841, donating the proceeds of the sale of lands, and a large amount of lands to the several states, and the law permitted a selection to be made of the choicest lands. Selections were made all the way from the Kankakee river to Middleport, except around Plato. John Wilson had one eye on this land and the other on the surveyors, and prevailed on them not to touch what he wanted. The price was fjxed On these "state lands," ranging from $3 to $8 per acre, the price to decrease each year fifty cents per acre on all the lands except those valued at $3, until they should reach $3 and $4. The last were sold in 1858.

When Mr. John Wilson came here, about 1836 or 1837, there were six settlements in the county : Milford, Bunkum, Middleport, Upper Spring Creek, around about Onarga and Del Rey, Lower Spring Creek and Ash Grove. Mills and markets were from forty to 100 miles away. The settlers were honest, frugal and hospitable ; none were rich, but no one left a cabin hungry. Any one within twenty miles was a neighbor. The advent into this new country of a man of the experience and education of Mr. Wilson was a great aid to the development of the country and society. He was well and thoroughly versed in all land matters, and was a teacher of much more than ordinary ability. The lack of schools was keenly felt by many of the pioneers, and Mr. Wilson's reputation preceded him to the new country. His acquirements were discussed, and his feats recounted. He was soon called on by citizens who lived along the upper Spring creek to teach their school. Mr. Jonas Smith, who represented the citizens then, said they would give him $30 per month and board for himself and horse. They built a house capable of seating sixty scholars, and so great was the rush of those coining in from all over the county, that the seats were full all winter. The parties who got up the school and guaranteed his pay made a good speculation out of it, for there were so many scholars that the tuition of their own children was free.

who was then appointed postmaster, has continued in that office ever since, through all the changes of administration. He is the oldest postmaster in the country west of the Allegheny mountains, there being a few in the eastern states who have seen longer service. The office was served at first by the stage route from Joliet to Danville. The offices south of this were Middleport, Milford, North Fork and Denmark. Two-horse coaches made the trip once a week. After the railroad was built the office was served from Kankakee for awhile, now from Clifton twice a week. One of the first schools taught here was by Mrs. David Pierce before her marriage in 1845. It was in the neat little cabin standing near by the old house, having an old-fashioned stickand-mud chimney, a brick hearth and one small window of four lights of glass. The door was swung on wooden hinges, and a stout leather latch-string invited those hungry for education to walk in. Split logs were used for benches, and pins driven into the wall of the house served for support for the desks, ranged around on three sides of the room. They paid Miss Webster $6 per month and board for teaching. Of course she " boarded around."

Joseph P. Starit came here and settled on the prairie twentj^-five years ago, on section 22, that is, if hiding from wolves out on a prairie could be called settling. He has run a threshing machine for thirtyseven years. When he "learned the trade," in 1840, the machine known as the "ground hog" was in general use. It delivered the grain, chaff and straw all in a heap, and you could rake the straw off as when threshing with a flail, and the grain was scooped into a railpen, where it was considered safe until it could be " cleaned up." Next in order came the traveling machine, as it was called, which was moved around from shock to shock, leaving the straw on the field. The first " separators " that came around did not have the straw-carriers attached. It was th.ought to be a great invention. He has had considerable experience of " going through the mill " in his time. A refractory tumbling-rod once took off the tout ensemble of his wearing apparel, and gave him a taste of what " evolution " meant.

Henry A. Butzow came here soon after, and undertook to make a farm at the mouth of Spring creek. He was early called on to perform the duties of the various township offices, all of which he performed with such neatness, and in such an accurate, business-like manner, that he was selected as the candidate of the farmers' party for county clerk in 1873. He was elected by a large majority, and has justified the judgment of his friends in making a most acceptable and popular clerk. He was reflected in 1877. The earliest religious meetings in this portion of the township were held by Elder Boon, of the Christian denomination, in 1843 or 1844. The Methodists commenced holding meetings here about 1848, and have continued holding meetings at the school-houses nearly all the time since. A class was formed here, and at present the regular preaching is at the Sturtevant school-house.

East Of The Kiver

The east side of the river was settled from about 1839, by Samuel Lyman, Thomas Yates, with his father, Atis, Alexander Sword, James M. Moore, the last of whom settled here in 1850. When Mr. Yates first came here the principal articles of trade, and which, in the absence of gold and silver, were used as currency, were deer skins, honey and tallow. Mr. Yates never had less than a barrel or two of honey stowed away against a time of need, and down on Spring creek the story was current that " Yates boys had cakes of tallow to sit on instead of stools, made large enough "so they could trundle them up to the table to sit on."

The Illinois Central railroad company took considerable of the land in this township. By the terms of the act of congress under which the road was built the company was entitled to each alternate section of land for six miles on either side of its line, and where any lands which would have belonged to them under such act had been previously taken, they were entitled to select from lands, within a range of fifteen miles, as much as had been thus taken.

The Ferry War

Dixoir's Ferry which connects the shores of Iroquois with those of Martinton, at Plato, has been the cause of a long, a bitter and an engrossing contest in the field, on the water and in the courts, which finally resulted in the issuing of the following license : " To William Dixon, issued for five years from the date hereof, July 25, 1879. Rates of toll established by the board of supervisors : For double team, 15 cents ; same, both ways on the same day, 20 cents ; horse and rider, 10 cents; footman, 5 cents; cattle and horses, 3 cents; hogs and sheep, 2 cents. H. A. Butzow, clerk. Fee, $6, paid." The ferry had been established twenty years before, but as at that time there was no one to run it, and no business to do, it was unused. The other ferry, half a mile down stream, was in use, but all those who lived east of the river in Iroquois and along the line of Martinton had to pass over the land of John Wilson to reach the ferry. This was considered trespass by Mr. Wilson, but as he had permitted it almost twenty years.it bid fair to become a road by limitation. To prevent this Mr. Wilson fenced up the road, and Stock, the rival ferryman, undertook to tear down the fence. This brought on an encounter between Stock and the picketguard which Wilson had thrown out, which did not exactly prove fatal, but led to a law-suit, Stock claiming that the road through Wilson's woods had been used twenty years, and that hence he had a right to reduce the fence which Wilson had erected across it to kindling wood. A three-days law-suit followed. The three towns of Iroquois, Martinton and Danforth were interested. Eighty witnesses were called, and Wilson carried the day. Then an appeal followed, of course, and the Stock party took a new twist on Wilson's reserved ferry rights by proceeding to prove that the road which led along the town line to his ferry from the east was never legally laid out, it having been laid a forty instead of a sixty-foot road, and twenty years had not yet made it legal. This took the Wilson party between wind and water. They had got their ferry rights maintained by the aid of the law, and had shut up the road which led away from his ferry, and now the Stock party, aided and abetted by the Martinton officials, had shut up the only road leading to it. At the same time a legal road was opened half a mile north of the old one, which run directly to Stock's fern*. Then business had to begin anew. A petition was circulated to lay out the town-line road again, but the commissioners of highways were very slow to act, and an appeal was taken to the supervisors. About this time straw was put under a bridge which was supposed to have been intended by the Stock party to ignite the bridge and render travel to Dixon's impossible. Both ferries are in full operation, not doing business enough, of course, to support one, but neither will be suppressed. It has been captured and recaptured almost as many times as Harper's Ferry since the time of old John Brown.

One of the most distressing, and from all its surroundings one of the most singular crimes ever known in the history of this county, was the murder of Mrs. Malousen by her husband, in May, 1872. Joseph Malousen was a worthy and respected man. Nobody would have deemed him capable of committing such a shocking crime, but that his mental organization was somewhat deficient seems certain from the result. He was a member of the Roman Catholic church, and married, against the rules of his church, a woman who had been previously married, but who had long been separated from her husband, but had not been legally divorced. His priest reproved him sharply for his marriage and told him that he could not recognize him, and the church could not while living in such an unauthorized state. This preyed on his mind so that he was almost beside himself, and when returning from Watseka on foot with his wife, whom he really loved, in the evening, he sat down and talked with her on the bank of the creek a while. He then pushed her in and jumped in and held her down under the water till life waa extinct. He then took off her skirt and left it in a field a short distance away, and put the hand-basket which she was carrying under a bridge some distance away, and secreted himself. Of course the murdered woman was soon found, and the neighbors commenced the search for him with a rope, and it is believed his life would have been of little value had he been found. A -week later he gave himself up to the sheriff, saying that he could not bear the terrible feelings any longer. He confessed his crime and was sentenced to the penitentiary for fourteen years. His behavior there was such that he has already worked out.

The only railroad in the township is the Toledo, Peoria & Warsaw, which was built in 1858 and 1859, and runs along the southern boundary line. A company was formed and surveys were made in 1872 for building the La Fayette, La Salle & Clinton railroad. By its survey it was to cross the river at or near Plato, and run through the northeastern corner of this township. The building was about to be commenced, the bonds having been placed with Jay Cooke & Co., for sale, when the failure of that house, and the consequent panic in financial affairs, put a stop to this, as it did to all other railroad enterprises. There is some prospect that this road will be built.

W. F. Higgle was first clerk ; A. B. Thompson, assessor ; and William Flesher and Isaac Riggle, justices of the peace. The present officers are : S. N. Calkin, supervisor, now in his sixth term ; J. B. Eno, clerk, now in his seventh year ; A. Flesher, assessor ; J. B. Eno, collector ; Robert Goodman and C. H. Martin, justices of the peace. In 1863 a special vote taken for or against township organization,- resulted 45 for, to 1 against. In 1867 there were 72 for, to 6 against. A vote was taken May 14, 1867, for or against annexing to Kankakee county all of town 29, ranges 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 west, and 10 and 11 east, which then belonged to Iroquois county. It resulted unanimously against annexation. The township has usually been democratic politically, and latterly very close when party lines have been drawn. The records of town meeting show a remarkable number of tie votes. Before township organization this was a part of Jefferson precinct, and voting was done at Mr. Jefferson's house.

No person in Iroquois county has been more thoroughly and continuously alive to all the interests of the county, from almost its earliest settlement, than John Wilson, of Plato. He was born in county Down, Ireland, in 1813, and four years later came to Baltimore, Mary- land, with his father, who had been for some years county officer, a position answering in part to the office of sheriff before its duties had been clipped by what is known as township organization, but having a certain jurisdiction in several counties. For twelve years, while Mr. Wilson carried on mercantile business in Baltimore, John was in school. On the removal to Ohio of the elder Wilson, John remained and taught school at Fredericksburg, meanwhile qualifying himself to teach civil engineering, draughting, penmanship, commercial education, etc. In June, 1835, he arrived at Danville, with as good a practical education as any man in the thriving settlement, and for two years served as clerk in the land office, under Judge McRoberts, teaching a commercial class each winter in the branches which he had prepared himself to teach. He also taught commercial classes in Chicago, La Fayette, and several in Urbana. It was while he was at Danville that he formed an intimate friendship for Mr. Lincoln, which, notwithstanding their opposite political views and party associations, continued till the death of the martyr president. When the Plato Company was formed, - a company which had a considerable landed interest here, - he came here to reside as the agent of the company. In 1830 he taught, not the first, but probably the second, school on Spring creek, and which was the forerunner of the Grand Prairie Seminary, now flourishing near where he taught. So much had the fame of the schoolmaster spread that the building which had been put up for the school, holding sixty pupils, would not accommodate the applicants. Soon after this he quitted the employ of the Plato Company, and assisted James Smith, county surveyor. He improved two farms on the Iroquois river, which he sold, and afterward became owner of the Plato Company's property, and has added to it until he has now 1,100 acres of land, of unsurpassed fertility and beauty. He was county surveyor for four years, and prepared and published one of the most complete and accurate county maps ever issued in a new county, and which is still considered authority. He was appointed the first postmaster at Plato, in 1840 or 1841, and has held the position uninterruptedly for thirty-nine years. He is believed to be the oldest postmaster in the country. He was appointed in 1846 one of the commissioners of the Kankakee and Iroquois river slack-water improvement. He perfected the survey of the rivers, and made estimates on the work, commencing at the upper end of the rivers. He was overruled by the other commissioners, who decided to commence at Wilmington. They put in one dam and lock there, which was washed away by the next spring freshet. He was appointed on the second commission in 1861, but the war then progressing prevented any work being accomplished.

He prepared maps of Yermilion, Champaign and Kankakee counties, and was engaged for some time making surveys for the Illinois Central railroad, and platting their lands. He married, in 1839, Samautha Butler, who died in 1843, leaving one child, now Mrs. Reynolds, who lives in Michigan. He was married in 1845, at Urban a, to Amy E. Carson, who is still living. He is the father of eight children, all living : John J. and Robert Bruce, who are married, live near by ; Thomas F. at Ashkum ; Isabella Dixon lives at the ferry ; Joseph F., Alfred and Pauline at home. He carries on his large farm, which is well stocked, feeding cattle in large numbers. Politically, he has always been a democrat, and in religious belief is a spiritualist in sentiment

Enoch H. Long, farmer, Watseka, was born in Hawkins county, east Tennessee, in 1826. He removed to Indiana in 1842, and to Ash Grove ten years later. His great-grandfather served Shelby, and received three balls at the battle of King's Mountain, which he carried in his hip until his death. His grandfather died in Tennessee during the late war. He was a cousin of John C. Calhoun, the famous leader of South Carolina political views. Mr. Long married, July 1, 1855, Almira Sturtevant, and has seven children : Sarah L., William C., James A., Thomas L., George, Laura J. and Lucy May. He has lived a number of years in Iroquois township, where he has a good farm, with excellent buildings. He has been for years a devoted friend of the church, and his influence has been in favor of good society and good government.

Maurice Kirby, farmer, Crescent City, came to America in 1829, when he was twenty years of age, having been born in Ireland in 1809. For a number of years after coming to this country he was employed on various public works throughout the country, having been engaged on the "Wabash and Erie canal, and other works of a similar nature, in the states of New York, Virginia, Ohio and Indiana. In 1840 he bought the 200-acre farm on which he now resides in this township, it at that time being wild land, but did not move on it until 1850, previously marrying Miss Caroline Griffin, the same year, in Parke county, Indiana. Their family consists of four children, two boys and two girls: Mary Francis, born in 1850; Caroline, born in 1856 ; John, born in 1860 ; and James, born in 1865. During the early years of their residence here they had to endure numerous trials and hardships, but he is now enjoying the fruits of his industry.

Tobias Danner, farmer, Crescent City, was born in Ohio in 1814. His grandparents were from Germany, and his parents were born in Virginia. They came to Indiana in 1830. He came to this county in 1852, and lived three miles southeast of Watseka. In 1864 he came to his present residence to live. In 1837 he married, and from that union six children were born: Robert is married and lives near Watseka; John B. is married and lives near his father; Samuel O. also lives near; Mrs. Charlotta Harwood lives in Crescent, and Catherine E. died at the age of twenty-four. He was married a second time, in 1871, to Rachel Tarbott, who has two daughters and one son. Mr. Danner has been a constant member of the Methodist church for thirty-seven years.

George Fidler, farmer, Plato, was born in Ross county, Ohio, in 1823. At the age of four years he came with his parents to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and married Harriet Parker in 1848. A few years after they came to this county and settled near where he now lives, on section 4. He has a farm of 320 acres, and 20 acres of timber land. They are the parents of ten children, six of whom survive : David A. is married and lives near by, has five children ; Rebecca Jane Miller, who lives a mile from her father, has two children ; Mary P. Miller has one ; William, Owen and Curtis live at home. Melissa died at three months ; Susan Mildred at sixteen months ; Albert when eight years of age, and Johnnie at the age of seven. Mr. Fidler has never held office of any kind except that for several years he has served his district as school director.

J. B. Eno, teacher, Crescent City, was born in Hartford county, Connecticut, November 26, 1825. Determining to devote his life to teaching, after attending the academy at his native place some years, he attended Suifield Literary Institute, then under the charge of S. Dryden Phelps, the " poet teacher." Graduating at the State Normal, at New Britain, he has, with very little intermission, continued to teach until this time, commencing in 1839. He taught nine years in Connecticut and three years in western New York. He was married, in 1855, to Miss Holcomb, and removed to Illinois with the Connecticut colony, which settled in the western part of this county in 1856, since which time he has resided in this county, teaching in "Watseka, Chatsworth, and in nearly every town in this vicinity, holding the position of deputy superintendent of schools for some years. In 1863 he was the candidate of his party for superintendent. His wife died in 1864, leaving two daughters: Carrie and Cora. In 1866 he married Miss Alida Pardy, who has three children : Mary, Kittie and Jerrie. He is believed to be the oldest teacher in this part of the state, having devoted thirty-four years of his life to that work. Coming here at a time when education was in its infancy, he has done much to strengthen the educational interests of the county. Mr. Eno has long been a member of the Congregational church, and has been devoted to the interests of that church and society at Crescent City. Politically he has always been a democrat, and has frequently been called on to perform the duties of township office. He is the present clerk, collector and treasurer of Iroquois township.

S. Newell Calkin, farmer, Crescent City, was born in Du Page township, Will county, his education being in the work on the farm and in the common schools. At the opening of the rebellion he enlisted in Barker's dragoons, which soon after saw service in the army of the Potomac, acting for some time as McClellan's body-guard. In December, 1863, the regiment to which it became attached reenlisted as veterans and was sent to the department of the Gulf. They participated in the disastrous Red River campaign and then marched back again. It was probably one of the companies of this regiment about which the story is told with a good show of truth, that returning in such a dilapidated condition so far as their nether garments were concerned, a stylish officer, on being invited to partake of a dinner by some ladies who desired to show hospitality, was obliged to decline on account of the unpresentable appearance he would make should he dismount. His father removed to this township about this time. Mr. Calkin, at the expiration of his term of service, married Miss Adelaide George, March, 1865, and came here to reside where he now lives, on section 17. He has six children : Samuel, Gertie, Henry, Jacob, Mary and Hannah. For six years past he has been the supervisor of Iroquois township and has given evidence of very good qualifications for the important position. In the fall of 1879 he received the unanimous nomination of the independent greenback party for the office of county treasurer.

Samuel Loveridge, farmer, Watseka, was born in England in 1835. Receiving a good education, and having a decided aptitude for clerical work, he applied for a clerkship in the commissary department of Her Majesty's service during the Crimean war, and received the appointment, serving twenty-one months, and until the close of hostilities, most of the time at Scutari, in Asiatic Turkey. On returning to England he sailed for America, and traveled extensively to find such a place as he wanted. He traveled all over the southern Atlantic states looking for a place to engage in the business of producing pitch. During a portion of the war he was engaged as clerk in the quartermaster's department at Louisville, Kentucky. In 1864 he married Miss Eliza Scrymgeour, of Jeifersonville, Indiana. They have two children : Maggie and Jessie. He came to this township to live in 1865, and resides on section 35. He has served as assessor of the township, and for several years past has been an elder of the Presby terian church at Watseka.

S. G. Staples, grain dealer, Crescent City, was born in Canton, St. Lawrence county, New York, in 1824. His parents were Quakers from Rutland county, Yermont, where many of the family still reside. The originators of the family in America came from the north of Ireland to Massachusetts, one going from thence to Vermont. Levi Staples moved early to the Wyoming valley, where he was killed at the time of the massacre, but his wife escaping, took her young child and rode on a mule all the way back to Connecticut. Mr. Staples, at the age of thirteen, being thrown on his own resources, went to Lewis county and worked on a farm. At nineteen he went to Taberg to learn the trade of turner and cabinet-maker. He attended school awhile at Delta, and afterward went to Whitestown, Oneida county, where the then famous Beriah Green was preaching " abolition sentiments" of a decidedly radical nature. Few who listened to him failed to drink in the effects of his cogent reasoning, or to be moved by his terrible invective. Young Staples was no exception. He continued in school, teaching a portion of each year to acquire the means to meet his expenses. He then followed his trade for a few years, and was carrying on a shop on the farm of Jesse Williams, the originator of the cheese-factory system, at the time he built the first factory. The machinery for the mammoth cheese, which was exhibited all over the country, was made in his shop. He was married to Miss Barber, of Lee, Oneida county, New York, and removed to Oneida, Knox county, Illinois, in 1856, where for seven years he carried on an extensive and prosperous grain and broomcorn trade. He returned to Whitestown to engage in the lumber trade in 1864, and then came to Crescent city in 1869, and built the elevator here, continuing in the general grain trade nntil recently, and is now engaged in the flax-seed trade. Of his three children, Wilbur A. is married and lives in Middleport ; Nettie E. and Emma B. are at home with their parents. Mr. Staples' political views were early in life molded into radical anti-slavery shape. He has for some] years been a justice of the peace.

Alexander Swords, farmer, Watseka, was born in Perthshire, Scotland, in 1815. After receiving a good classic and scientific education he devoted his life to engineering. He served as coalgreave of the Town Hill Colliery for seven years. On leaving he was given a public dinner, and the silver snuff-box presented him on that occasion bears the date of 1842. He was then employed by Mr. A. Allison, of Edinburgh, to prospect for minerals, with a view to erecting large iron works. The six blast-furnaces erected by the Ockley Iron Works, in the county Fife, were the result of the investigations he then made. After the erection of the works lie engaged in railroading, which was just then coming into importance in that country, in Ayrshire and Lanarkshire, and some of the magnificent works of railroad engineering and building on the Edinburgh & Northern railroad still attest his skill. He served very efficiently as county officer in Clackmannanshire for eighteen months. He then concluded to come to America, and on August 5, 1855, landed in New York, and before the end of the month had located his land, five miles southeast of Chebanse. In 1869 he came to live on section 3 of Iroquois township, where he still resides. He was educated a Presbyterian, and holds strongly to that faith. In 1876 he received a sunstroke, from which he has not entirely recovered.