Dakota Township

Dakota Township

The territory comprising the present township of Dakota consists of 11,378 acres, originally contained in Buckeye Township. When the latter was set apart in 1850, the polling place for voters residing in the southeastern portion of Buckeye was located at the Red Schoolhouse, near the present town of Buena Vista. The distance thereto was a source of infinite inconvenience and vexation of spirit to those deeming it an inestimable privilege to exercise the privileges of the elective franchise, and for many years was bridged with complainings and irregularity by the American citizens who subsequently became pioneer settlers in Dakota. These complainings and vexations of spirit, born of the inconvenience cited, finally culminated in efforts to create a new township, which were crowned with success through the labors of Silas Yount, R. Baird, B. Dornblazer and others, during the month of September, 1860.

Settlements had been made in that portion of Buckeye Township as early as 1836, many of which have already been mentioned in this work, and need not be recapitulated. There were some, however, who, during that and subsequent years, their names having been reserved for that purpose, are herein quoted. They include, among others, the family of Benson McElheney, who settled near Hickory Grrove ; Henry Bordner, Jacob Bordner, John Brown, Robin Mcgee, James McKee, Samuel Templeton, John Price, Peter Fair, Daniel Zimmerman, Robert Pierce et al., a portion of whom settled on Cedar Creek, the remainder distributing themselves through various portions of the original township.

Dakota is deservedly regarded as one of the finest farming sections in the county. Though of limited dimensions, nearly every foot of soil, which in point of quality is unsurpassed, is under cultivation. That the natural facilities for acquiring wealth through the farm are more than generous, is to be found in the fact that the husbandmen residents therein are, as a rule, in independent circumstances. The amount of timber is limited to one grove of measured dimensions, the balance of the township being rolling prairie. Cedar Creek courses the township from north to south, and the Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway from east to west, affording water-power and means of communication possessed by few townships in the county, and sources of profit to the inhabitants. Dakota, though one of the smallest of Stephenson County's seventeen townships, is also one of the more prosperous and attractive, commending its resources and producing results to the cultivator and shipper as substantial as they are comparatively unlimited, and certainly remunerative.

Dakota Village

that time, the site of Dakota was owned by Robinson Baird and Ludwig Stanton. The former sold his claim to Thomas J. Turner, who, in turn, sold to S. J. Davis, and to him, in conjunction with Ludwig Stanton, is due the honor of the surveying and platting of the present prosperous village. Robinson Baird, Chas. Butterfield and a man named Wohlford, owned houses located at different points on the one hundred acres which subsequently became the town, and these are said to have been the only improvements visible at this time. Soon after, an application was made to the Department to locate a post office in the village. This was (^ranted, and the present name adopted by the Postmaster General, at the suggestion of Robinson Baird and Benjamin Dornblazer. The improvements concluded during the earlier years of Dakota's existence were scarcely of a character to astonish the outside world, or enrich the operator, and the first substantial house erected in the town was due to the enterprise and ambition of Benjamin Dornblazer. In the year 1859, that gentleman and John Brown, appreciating the future importance of the place for shipping purposes, put up a warehouse adjoining the track of the road then laid, and in the fall of the same year a second warehouse was moved into the city, like the Trojan horse, ready complete, and located to the rear of that subsequently raised by Fisher & Schmeltzer.

In 1860, the town contained seven dwellings, occupied severally by Benjamin Dornblazer, Samuel Lapp, D. W. C. Holsople, Abner Hall, Robinson Baird, Daniel Keck and " Auntie " Dawson. Holsople carried on a blacksmithshop, Robert Neil a cabinet-shop, and Daniel Keck conducted the village store.

In that year, S. H. Fisher and S. D. Schmeltzer erected a warehouse, the third to be raised since the town was laid out, but three years previous ; the Methodist Church also went up, and improvements began to be generally made. These included the dwelling now occupied as a residence by John Brown, which was completed in 1860, and used as a hotel. George Muffley built a residence, as also did a Mrs. Ingraham ; Charles Mufiley completed a carpenter-shop and tap-room, emigrating from some distant point in a house of limited dimensions and comforts, protected from the elements by a car-roof, and was persuaded to cast anchor in the growing village and open for business. This latter failed to materialize with gratifying profit to the Ganymede, who enlisted in the army, and is reported as having been killed in one of the engagements in the Southwest.

The war coming on, improvements were suspended, and nothing of importance was accomplished. This uninteresting condition was prolonged until 1864, in which year a number of dwellings were added to the list of domiciles. In 1866, more of the same kind were erected, and between that year and 1870, the main part of the town was built up. In 1869, the town was incorporated as a village, and business increased in a proportionate ratio. This gratifying prosperity continued until 1873, when the panic palsied trade, improvements, and other features of advancement which had previously manifested a healthy growth. This calamity affected Dakota visibly and disastrously ; there was neither business nor money; the crops, though abundant, could not be profitably marketed, and these adverse circumstances produced their natural results, as already suggested. After five years of embarrassments and financial stringency, times became more easy, money was to be had, crops to be marketed, and the resources of the surrounding country, in process of a more generous development, to enrich the town.

The past two years have been years of prosperity to Dakota; the year 1880, a gratifying improvement over 1879, with a promise for the future cor- respondingly encouraging. In 1879, $169,315 was paid out in the village for grain, hogs and cattle. Five hundred and ninety-four car loads of grain and 125 car loads of cattle and hogs were shipped therefrom, and improvements of value and beauty added to those previously enumerated. The village has a population of over 200, is an important station on the road, the center of a rich agricultural country, and possessing all the requirements for a successful outcome.

The village was incorporated by a special act of the Legislature, approved during the session of 1869, and the first election under the provisions thereof held on Monday, April 5, of the same year, at which Silas Yount, W. R. Auman. J. D. Bennehoff acted as Judges ; F. B. Walker and A. T. Milliken, Clerks.

The act of incorporation was adopted by a vote of twenty-four to twelve, and the following officers have served at intervals since that date:

Rock Run Presbyterian Church. - The congregation was organized in 1855, and one year later the church edifice in Section 30, Rock Run Township, erected and occupied until the village of Dakota was built up, when the organization was changed to that point where, in 1870, the church now occupied was built, the old edifice in Section 30 being appropriated by the Reformed Presbyterians, of which the Rev. Dr. Harris is the Pastor.

The church at Dakota is of frame, 35x55, with a steeple eighty feet high, supplied with an organ, and was built at an expense of $3,000. It will afford a seating capacity for 300 worshipers.

The congregation consists of sixty members, and the following ministers have served : The Revs. John M. Linn, L. H. Mitchell and J. C. Irwin. Services are held every other Sabbath.

Methodist Church - Was organized soon after the village was laid out, under the auspices of the Rev. W. D. Atchison. In the summer of 1860, the congregation erected a commodious and handsome house of worship in the village of Dakota, at a cost of $2,000. In 1878, the steeple was completed, and other improvements added. It is of frame, 49x36, with a capacity for 300, and in every respect appropriate to the uses for which it was designed.

The present congregation numbers 100 members, and the value of church property, including a parsonage, represents about $4,000. The following is a list of ministers who have officiated : The Revs. W. D. Atchison, Barton H. Cartwright, John 0. Foster, ' Aaron Cross, James M. Condee, T. H. Haseltine and George H. Wells, the present incumbent.

Evangelical Lutheran Church. - Sometime during the year 1857, the Rev. Ephraim Miller began to preach in the schoolhouse at Dakota, and, on the 3d day of September, 1859, the following persons held a meeting and organized the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Dakota : Ephraim and Sarah Stotler, Samuel and Mary Lapp, Jacob and Helena Maurer, John and Catharine Wirth, James Ling and George Frantz. The Rev. Ephraim Miller was elected Pastor, Ephraim Stotler, Elder, and James Ling, Deacon.

In the fall of 1867, steps were taken to build a house of worship, which was completed and dedicated December 5, 1868, at a cost of $2,626.71, the same being paid when the edifice was delivered to the church authorities. At the date of its dedication, money was subscribed for the purchase of a bell, which was accordingly procured, the first bell introduced into the township.

The ministers who have served are the Revs. Ephraim Miller, A. A. Trimper, Solomon Ritz, Charles Anderson, Samuel Cook, John Slott, Charles Young, R. Lazarus, S. C. Seidel and J. A. Beidler, the present Pastor.

Schools. - The system of education in force elsewhere throughout the county is employed at Dakota. The present edifice was begun in 1855, and completed, with an addition costing $500, in 1867.

There are two departments, primary and grammar, requiring the services of two teachers, and furnishing the means of education to an average daily attendance of 125 pupils. The school is under the control of a Board of Directors, consisting of E. M. Shullenburger, J. Clingman and D. M. Holsopple, and require an annual appropriation of $1,000 for their support.

The lodge attained a high degree of prosperity, but, upon the morning of October 27, 1877, the building to which the lodge had removed in 1876 from Keek's building, was totally destroyed by fire, the craft losing everything except its lodge books, and suffering, in addition to the inconvenience occasioned by the fire itself, a pecuniary damage of $380. Rooms were at once fitted up in Artley's building, and possession taken thereof December 22, 1877, since in the southern tier of townships in the county, contains 22,069 acres of land, all of which is improved, being mostly of rolling prairie. The water facilities are generally good, the Pecatonica River and Yellow Creek flowing through the northern portion, with creeks and rivulets of less prominence and value coursing its remaining sections at different points. The Illinois Central passes through the township from north to south, the Western Union cutting across its northwestern corner.

The township is well supplied with schools and church buildings, but has no town within its limits, Freeport being the market for its citizens. An addition to Baileyville, a town in Ogle County abutting on Silver Creek Township, was once made with a view to the establishing of a village, but improvements were neither rapid nor extensive, and the Ogle County portion of the town finally neutralized the Silver Creek undertaking.

The first permanent settlement made in the present township was effected by Thomas Craine, who visited the county in August, 1835, and entered a quarter section of land in the southwest quarter of the township, where he built a cabin and housed his family, consisting of a wife and three children. In the fall of the same year, Augustus Bonner established himself in Section 34, near the mouth of the Yellow Creek, but was not a settler. He remained there until 1836, building a cabin during the winter, when he resigned his claim to its legitimate owner, Thomas Covel, and went West.

In the spring of 1836, Charles Walker, F. D. Bulkley and Hammond were enrolled among the pioneers, and in the fall Sidney Stebbins, Joel Baker, Loran Snow and the " Widow " Brown. Walker was employed by Mr. Craine to teach his children the limited rudiments of education, in those days accessible to purchase, paying therefor $75 a quarter. The tutor remained there for several months, familiarizing himself in the mean time, as the sequel proved, with the intricate knowledge of horse stealing, which he subsequently practiced until 1838, when he was captured and condemned to the penitentiary at Alton, whither he was taken. Some land was "broke up" in 1836, and a few improvements in the way of building completed.

The following year, though emigration to the State and county was more liberal than during the years preceding, Silver Creek failed to gain the quota its fertile soil and other attractions deserved. The settlers who had already put in an appearance entered claims in the eastern part of the township, the western portion being, as yet, uninhabited. This continued for many years, and it was not until about 1843, that lands in the latter sections were taken up, the early settlers therein being Dr. Michner, Thomas and Adam Nelson, Christian Bennett and son, John Flynn and others. But, to return to earlier dates : Seth Scott settled in the tow'nship in 1837, at a point east of Crane's Grove; Hiram Hill, also, on Yellow Creek : Maj. John Howe on the west side of the Grove, Maj. Howe soon after removing to Freeport; I. Forbes on the State road, on the extreme eastern part of Silver Creek. John Milburn, a man named Reed, employed by Thomas Craine, and some few others were included on the bills of mortality this year, which also furnished the first deaths in the

In the spring of 1838, John Walsh came in, as also did John and Thomas Warren, the latter settling northeast of the Grove. Isaac Scott, Samuel Liebshitz. Christian Strockey, with his sons Christian, Jr., and Frederick, Chauncey Stebbins and others, all making claims in the eastern side of the township, the new-comers being ignorant of or igaoring the fertile prairies to the west. In 1839, a large number of German emigrants made their advent and began the accretion of that wealth and influence now visible as the result of labor and thriftiness for which this nationality is known.

Among those who became residents of the township in 1839, were Jacob Hoebel, A. Gund, Valentine Stoskopf, Jacob Shoup, Jacob Bartell, D. E. and '"Jock" Pattee, with their families and others, including a man named Judkins with his associates, who were added to the colony. Shortly after the Pattees came, Mrs. " Jock " Pattee suicided by hanging, the tragedy occurring on Gallows Hill, in the eastern part of the township.

The first birth, an important event in the history of every township, was that of Jacob Thompson, a son of William and Lucinda Thompson, who came to the surface in the summer of 1838. The first marriage is recorded as having been solemnized two years later, February 11, 181:1, Frederick Baker and Miss A. Craine being the contracting parties. The ceremony was performed at the residence of Thomas Craine, father of the bride, Squire Fowler officiating. The attendance included a large proportion of settlers in the vicinity, and, after the twain were pronounced one, the guests participated in the festivities of the time, chief of which was dancing, Daniel Wooton, half-brother to Mrs. Baker, furnishing the music and calling the sets. Husband and wife still live, residing in the city of Freeport, in the enjoyment of a hale old age, surrounded by a large family of descendants who cheer the decline of their lives, and realize unto them the Biblical injunction to which all dutiful children give heed.

The township thenceforward began to settle up, and numerous accessions having since been made to the roster of its population. The west side of the township, which had theretofore failed to receive its just complement of inhabitants, has since become thickly settled, and the great resources latent within the territory have been profitably developed. The inhabitants are a prosperous, industrious, and proportionately independent class of people, to whom the Great West is indebted for the cultivated and progressive type of life to be found in that section.

one of the westerly of the southern tier of townships, contains 18,.273 acres of fertile land under cultivation, and a large section of timber, principally on Yellow Creek, which, with Plumb Branch and Lost Creek, Avaters the township and furnishes a fine power for miles, of great convenience to the farming community. The timber of the township is located on the north side of Yellow Creek, while south of this stream a greater part of the township is open prairie and an excellent quality of land. This township was originally of greater dimensions than at present, but was shorn of its territorial limits by the action of the Board of Supervisors. At the September term of the board, 1859, the township was subdivided, and the western portion organized into the township of Jefi'erson.

No little difficulty was experienced in procuring facts in connection with the early settlement of the township ; those who came prior to 1840, having long since rendered an account of their stewardship and gone hence, while from those who came in 1840, very little information could be obtained.

The first settlement in the township, however, all agree, was made during the year 1836, by William Kirkpatrick, who was subsequently identified with the company organized to lay out Freeport as the county seat. He was the original white settler in the present limits of Loran Township, establishing himself about Mill Grove, in Section 14. Here he erected a saw-mill, but the date of this evidence of enterprise is in dispute. Some contend that it did not go up until 1838, while others assert that it was in active operation a year earlier. This latter assumption is possibly correct, for it is averred in Freeport that during that year " houses of frame were erected by the company," of which William Kirkpatrick was an important factor, the material for which was fashioned at the mill of that party, located on Yellow Creek. While he was building this mill, it should be observed, Mr. K. had no house wherein to live, and was obliged to accept the rather equivocal accommodations to be found in a wagonbox inverted and thatched to protect its occupant from the rain. Soon after the grist-mill was completed and operated, competing for patronage with Van Valzah's mill at Cedarville. Settlers began to come into Loran slowly, and, while the majority of those who made their advent into this section continued their explorations further west, a limited number entered claims and began to prepare farms.

Among those who came in about this time, according to the memory of the proverbial oldest inhabitant now living, was Smith Giddings, John Shoemaker, who opened a farm in Section 19 ; Albert Curry, Sylvester Langdon, who took up a claim on Section 15, and some others, though the number of inhabitants could have been counted, it is said, within a circuit of twenty-five miles without the possession of an unlimited knowledge of mathematics. These new settlers had all the difficulties peculiar to new countries to contend with, in defiance of which, however, they have left their mark upon the history of the times, and created from an almost uninhabited and inaccessible wilderness, a domain of cultivation unsurpassed in Stephenson County.

The precedent established by Kirkpatrick and his succeeding colleagues was emulated by the Babb family' and others in 1840. This family consisted of Samuel, Solomon, Reuben and Isaac Babb; Mathias Ditzler came in the same year, but reached his claim in advance of the Babb family, and was followed by his brother Christian Ditzler, who settled here, also, during the year mentioned. George House came in about 1841, John Lamb soon after ; Warren and Anson Andrews in 1839 or 1840 ; they erected a mill in Section 3 ; Horace Post opened a farm near Andrews' mill ; a man named Slocum, Truman Lowell, Moses Grigsby, a man named Pointer, William Barklow and Thomas Foster, both of whom settled in Section 17 ; Joseph Rush, in the southwest corner of the township ; Samuel Shiveley, west of the mill ; John Apgar, east of the mill ; Henry Layer, etc. There were many others who came in, doubtless, between the date of Kirkpatrick's arrival and that of those who settled in Loran subsequently, but their names and the date of their arrival, not having been preserved, are lost to posteritv.

In 1848, settlers began to come more numerously than before that date. The township was generally prairie except Mill Grove and a " thicket in Section 21, and the opportunities for cultivation, thereby increased, were availed of quite rapidly. The wheat and corn of the inhabitants were mostly ground at

Mount Carroll and Cedarville ; the trading, however, wag done at Freeport, which was a postal town and contained four stores. The settlers at this time were mostly from New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio - sturdy, industrious, thriving men, who laid the foundation for the prosperity to be witnessed to-day in all sections of the township.

At the time the Illinois Central Railroad was completed to Freeport, Loran Township was behind other townships in the county in its settlement and improvements. But with the completion of this enterprise came a tide of emigration which was generously distributed over Loran, adding to its population and developing new sources of wealth. One cause of this alleged failure on the part of settlers to remain permanently in Loran was the unhealthy surroundings ; fever and ague prevailed along the streams, while in the interior the inhabitants suffered with fevers of a pronounced and enervating type. As a consequence, until these maladies were to some extent dissipated, and their causes remedied, settlers were indisposed to venture their health and that of their families in this section. In time, though, they became incidents of days long gone, and to-day Loran is as entirely free from measures which produced the effects cited as any township in the county.

The first marriage of which any information could be obtained occurred in the fall of 1840, between Thomas French and Polly Kirkpatrick, and the wife of a man named James is reputed as the first death. But the first birth is not of record, as also the first fete, and many other important events, without which a history of every settlement is incomplete. Inquiry in these connections failed to elicit any testimony bearing on the subject, and to this latter fact is due the failure of their mention.

With regard to the first school taught in the township there is a conflict of opinion, one party maintaining it to have been at Kirkpatrick's as early as

1841, when Reuben Babb, William Kirkpatrick and Anson Andrews as Trustees, located a school in Section 2, near Babb's Church, where they employed a teacher by the name of Allison to superintend the education of their children.

No village of importance is to be found in Loran. Yellow Creek, in the northern portion of the township, contains a post office, blacksmith-shop, mill and two or three stores, but, as its importance in the future is contingent upon railroad facilities, the improvement contemplated with the advent of such an enterprise is reserved until the coming of the iron horse.

The township is well supplied with schools and churches, the inhabitants are an enterprising class, and Loran compares very favorably with other townships in point of industry, wealth and improvements.

liUTHER AXGLE, farmer, Sec. 27 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Stephenson "Co. in 18-47 ; his father, John B. Angle, came to this county in 1844 ; the subject of this sketch has always been a resident of the county, though a considerable portion of the time temporarily absent. During the civil war he was a soldier in Co. Gr, 46th I. V. I., participating with his command in all its engagements during his term -of service; honorably mustered out at the close of the war, he reached home in February, 1866 ; he was then three years in school at Mt. Morris, 111., and at Madison, Wis., devoting his time especially to the acquisition of a thorough knowledge of the branches most closely identified with his chosen profession, that of farming. Since leaving school has been engaged in farming; has 120 acres of land in Dakota Township, and his wife has 84 acres in Buckeye Township, inherited from her father's estate. Mr. A . is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and of the Republican party. He was married, in 1870, to Miss Sophia Clingman, daughter of Josiah Clingman : their children are Fred C, Harvey Jason and Mary Octava. Mr. Angle's family are -deserving of mention as among the earliest settlers in the county ; her parents, Josiah and Maria Clingman, came to Stephenson Co. in the spring of 1837, made their permanent home at the place of their first settlement, a mile north of Cedarville ; the father -died March 28, 1865, aged 57 years ; the mother, aged 71, is yet living in Cedarville; their children were George W., deceased ; Mary, now Mrs. Lutts, of Missouri ; Chester, deceased ; Eliza A., Thomas S., deceased; Jason, Wm. M., Edwin, deceased ; Sophia, -now Mrs. Luther Angle, and Ethel B. ; the son Thomas S., deceased, was a Corporal of Co. A, 46th I. V. I. ; wounded at the battle of Shiloh, April 6, 1862 ; he was sent two or three weeks afterward from the field hospital to the hospital at Quincy, 111., from there was brought home in July, and died in consequence of his wounds, on the 4th of August, 1862. As evidence of their patriotic devotion to the cause of the Union may be here mentioned the fact that, in the same company with Thomas S. were six others of the same name, a brother and five cousins.

A. M. ARTLEY, proprietor hotel, Dakota ; was born in Lycoming Co., Penn., Aug. 23, 1845 ; came to Stephenson Co., 111., with his father, Daniel Artley, and family, in 1856 ; had been engaged in farming, dealing in produce, etc., previously to his occupancy of the hotel, which has been under his proprietorship since March, 1879, and he still carries on some farming in connection with his other business; he keeps a comfortable, well-arranged and desirable hotel, owns some property in Dakota, attends carefully to his business, and is thoroughly respected by all who know him. During the civil war, he was for two years a soldier in Co. K, 46th I. V. I., participating in the battles of Ft. Blakely, Spanish Fort, etc., being mustered out with hia command at the close of the war, which ended these years of faithful service.

WILLIAM ASKEY, druggist, Dakota ; born in Center Co., Penn., May 1, 1837 ; came to Stephenson Co., 111., in 1849; he has an extensive and somewhat varied experience in professional and business pursuits ; for the years 1865-67 and 1872-73, he was connected as teacher with Cole's Commercial College, in Peoria ; in the interval between the dates above given, he was agent and operator on the Chicago & Alton Railroad ; in the spring of 1373, he engaged in his present business in Dakota ; has been located here since, and is thoroughly identified with the town, his business, property and home all being here. He was married in 1861, to Miss Elizabeth Brenizer, a native of Wooster, Ohio ; their children are Ella, Jennie, Mary and Bertha.

W. R. AUMAX, grain-dealer, Dakota ; born in Center Co., Penn., June 25, 1831; at the age of 8, came with his parents to Stephenson Co., 111., in 1839, locating first in Lancaster Township, between Freeport and Cedarville ; Mr. A. was -employed in farming up to 1865 ; for the last fifteen years has been engaged in the grain trade in Dakota ; has some property in the town ; has been Town Clerk for the last ten years ; has held other town and school offices, and is a good worker for the interests of his community. Politics, Republican. He was married, in 1855, to Miss Susan Lattig, daughter of George W. Lattig, an old and honored citizen of Lancaster Township ; their children are Howard, Horace, Elwin, Orrin and Perry, deceased.

D. B. BOBB, physician, Dakota; born iu Pennsylvania, June 1, 1837; came to Stephenson Co., 111., with his parents in 1845 ; studied his profession first with Dr. Hayes, then of Buena Vista, now of Freeport, afterward with Dr. Alexander Fisher, of Chicago ; graduated at Chicago Medical College, then Linn University, in 1864; before his graduation, had been in the practice for a year at " Bobtown," or New Pennsylvania, and, after graduating, practiced for some six months in the same place ; he was then located for two and a half years at " Graball," or Jamestown; he removed to Dakota in the spring of 1867, where he has since resided, and has built up a fine practice, his practice having extended over this territory before his removal here ; he has been in professional life in the same field for the past sixteen years. Religion, Methodist; politics, Republican. He was married in 1860, to Miss Arminda F. St. John ; they have two children living - Eugene Lafayette and Dwight ; three deceased - Byfbrd, Quincy and Pardie. Dr. B.'s father, David Bobb, still lives in Buckeye Township, is over 67 years old, a much-esteemed citizen, and has materially aided the march of improvement since the time (thirty-five years ago) when he came to the county ; the trip from Pennsylvania here was made in company with several families, comprising over forty persons in all, and the journey (made in wagons) occupied some six weeks' time. Mrs. Dr. B. is a daughter of Andrew St. John, who came here in 1836, and still lives in Buckeye Township at the advanced age of 72 years ; his father, Andrew St. John, was an early trader in the Cahokia region, near St. Louis, when all that country was under French control ; he removed here at a later date, and died in Buckeye Township, April 8, 1849, aged 103 years ; his father, also named Andrew St. John, a soldier of the Colonial period, fell in the war of the Revolution, while doing duty as a patriot under the command of La Fayette.

JOHN BBOWN, farmer, Dakota; born in Pennsylvania June 30.1811; the family moved to Belmont Co., Ohio, when he was quite young ; lived there until 1828, when they removed to Vermilion Co., 111. ; during their first summer in Vermilion Co., his father, John Brown, aged 62, was killed by a fall from a horse ; the family were left in rather straitened circumstances ; but, the boys working out by the month, and the whole ^>imily being industrious and economical, the little farm then in their possession was improved and yielded them a living; in the spring ot 1835, Mr. Brown came to Stephenson Co., there being then but one family resident in Freeport ; after making a claim here, building a house and establishing his mother in the dwelling, he went back to Vermilion, and remained there four years, after which he returned here for a permanent home ; lived some time near where Squire W. B. Mitchell now lives ; then lor a winter in Cornelius Furst's house, north of Ridott ; during that winter he built, about two miles southeasi of where he now lives, a house, 14J feet square ; moved into this house the following May ; in this house, to which some additions were subsequently made, he lived until 1867, when he removed to his present residence; in company with Col. Dornblaser, he built the first warehouse in Dakota ; completed and grain stored there before the track was laid to the warehouse ; for many years after coming to the county, he was engaged in breaking prairie in connection with farming; after the railroad came here, h^ was, for about a dozen years engaged in buying and selling grain, hogs, cattle, etc. (part of the time in company with George Bordner, of Freeport), for several years of the time doing more stock-buying than all the other dealers in the place ; for the past three years has devoted his attention exclusively to farming; he has 435 acres of land in Rock Run Township, 80 acres in Lancaster, 160 acres in Dakota and 25 acres in Ridott; during the Black Hawk war, he was a soldier in Capt. James Palmer's company, Col. Moore's regiment. He has been Supervisor of his township, and has held various school and township ofiices. Religion, Methodist ; politics. Republican. He was married, in 1833, to Mi.ss Mary A. Hickman, a worthy, intelligent and energetic lady ; she was a native of Brown Co., Ohio, removing with her parents to Vermillion Co., 111., when in her 16th year; her parents, Jacob and

Sarah Hickman, continued to reside in Vermillion Co. until their death. Jane Brown, mother of the subject of this sketch, died in 1854, aged about 05 years. jMr. and Mrs. Brown's children are Clark J., Sarah J., Mary A. (Mrs. P. B. Walker;, Martha E., John H., Angeline V. (Mrs. H. Milligan), James C, Vincent D., Allen H., Florence V. and Caroline (died at the age of four).

liE VI CAMDY, farmer, Sec. 1 ; P. 0. Rock Grove ; born in Center Co., Penn., Dec. 20, 1812; removed to Stephenson Co., 111., in 1864; has a farm of 120 acres at his home location, with 10 acres of timber-land in Rock Grove Township ; his farm is under good cultivation, and his home surroundings decidedly pleasant. His religious preferences are with the German Reformed Church ; his political affiliations, with the Democratic party. He was married in March, 1837, to Miss Catharine Emrich, a native of the same neighborhood in Center Co., Penn. ; their children are Ann Maria, now Mrs. George Long, of Rock Grove ; Sarah, now Mrs. Uriah Swartz, of Rock Grove, and John A.

J. ClilNGMAN, farmer, Sec. 23; P. 0. Dakota; the subject of this sketch, a son of Josiah Clingman, deceased, was born in Stephenson Co., Oct. 27, 1843; has been a continuous resident of the county, except during the civil war, when he was, for nearly three years, a soldier; enlisted in July, 1861, in Co. A, 11th I. V. I. ; was taken prisoner at Ft. Donelson, and for eight months was in rebel prisons, at Macon, Richmond, Montgomery and other points within the Confederacy; when exchanged, he rejoined his regiment, and did service there until he was promoted to First Lieutenant in the 55th U. S. I. ; finally resigned on account of disability ; since the war he has been engaged in farming; his farm comprises 160 acres. He is a member of the Republican party; is School Director in his district. In 1865, he married Miss Mary E. Smith, a native of Pennsylvania, but resident in Stephenson Co. since an early age ; their children are Elfrida, Jennie and Robert.

HARRIISON DIE9IER, farmer, Sec. 27 ; P. O. Dakota ; born in Northampton Co., Penn., Oct. 18, 1828 ; came to Stephenson Co., 111., with his parents, in 1847 ; has devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits, except two years (from the fall of 1854 to the fall of 1856), during which time he was engaged in mercantile business in Cedarville ; he was the first supervisor for his township, after Dakota Township was detached from Buckeye, for seventeen or eighteen years a School Director, and has hald other local offices. He is a worthy member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, an 1 of the Republican party ; has a magnificent home farm of 280 acres, besides 12 acres of timber-land, in Ridott Township ; all his possessions are the result of his own exertions, aided by the happy selection of a good location. He was married Nov. 6, 1852, to Miss Ann R. Etmyre ; she was born in Washington Co., Md., April 2, 1836 ; came to Ogle Co., HP., with her parents, in 1838 ; her father and mother thereafter resided in Ogle Co. ; her father, Henry Etmyre, died in 1842 ; her mother, Sarah Etmyre, died in February, 1861. Mr. D.'s parents, Michael and Susan Diemer, were permanently in Stephenson Co. from 1847 ; his mother died in 1853, aged 54 ; his father lived in Cedarville the last eighteen or twenty years of his life ; he died there March 29, 1878, aged 73 years, having been for over forty years a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. and Mrs. Diemer have lived in their present location since 1856, have planned and executed the improvements on the firm, and the large, conveniently arranged and shade-embowered house, with its tasteful profusion of luxuriant flowers, shows, in all its appointments, a cultivated taste and careful hands ; they have two children - Luther M. and Walter W.

JACOB DIJB!I$, farmer, Sec. 3 ; P. 0. Rock Grove ; born in Germany Jan. 29, 1848 ; in 1852, his parents, Jacob and Henrietta Dubs, emigrated to America with their family ; the mother died on the journey, and the father, with his two sons, Rudolph and Jacob, settled in Stephenson Co. in the year above named ; the father died Feb. 28, 1877, aged nearly Q6 years ; the brother, Rudolph, of Cleveland, Ohio, is a Bishop of the Evangelical Church, and travels over much of the United States in the interests of the church. Jacob, whose name heads this sketch, has devoted his attention chiefly to agricultural pursuits ; his farm embraces 85 acres of land, well improved, nicely situated and under good cultivation. Religion, Evangelical Church.

WILLIAM E. ILGEN, farmer, Sec. 35 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Center (afterward called Clinton) Co., Penn., Aug. 27, 1822; in 1842, he came to Stephenson Co., 111., with his father, George Ilgen ; worked on the farm with his father for eight years after coming here, but since his marriage has been farming for himself; has a farm of 80 acres. Is a member of the Lutheran Church ; was a Democrat until the breaking-out of the civil war ; since then he has been a Republican. In 1850, he married Miss Elizabeth A. Kaley ; she was born in Union Co., Penn., Jan. 15, 1832; their children are Mary, Barbara Ann, Elizabeth (deceased), Sarah, Robert, Martin Luther, Normanda, George Emanuel (deceased), John Kassinas, Martha Ellen, William Grant (deceased), Americus Lincoln, Oscar Franklin, Caroline and Daniel Webster. Mrs. Ilgen came to Stephenson Co. in 1849, with her parents, Solomon and Elizabeth Kaley ; her father died in 1866, aged 68 years ; her mo' her, aged 80, is yet living near Buena Vista. The subject of this sketch has seen most of the growth of this locality of Illinois; made the first track from his father's house to Cedarville during the deej. snow of 1842, when the grist-mills at Cedarville were inaccessible, the corn was dried in the stove, ground in the coffee-mill, and in this tedious method the meal was prepared ; their wheat for the market had for a long time to be hauled to Chicago. 120 miles, by wagon, and sold for 35 cents a bushel. Contrasts between then and now are vividly present in the minds of the old settlers.

JOHN KBYDER, retired farmer ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Center Co., Penn., Jan. 16, 1797 ; resided there until 1847, when he removed to Stephenson Co., 111. ; bought and improved large tracts of land, which he afterward apportioned among his children, so that they are all comfortably provided for ; rei ired from active work some thirty years ago, and, so far as bodily infirmities now permit his attending to business, his attention is given to managing his property and financial investments ; he is invariably spoken of as a kind-hearted, useful man, ever ready to assist those who need help. Religion, Lutheran ; politics, Democratic. He was married, in 1820, to Miss Susannah Keene, of Center Co., Penn. ; she died in 1863 ; they had eight children, six of whom are now living - William, David, Jacob, Andrew J., Sarah J. (now Mrs. Martin S. Lapp) and Joseph ; two deceased - Henry H. and Samuel M. The second son above named, David Kryder, with whom the father makes his home, was born in Center Co., Penn., Feb. 28, 1823, and came to Stephenson Co., 111., with his parents, in 1847. Is a member of the Reformed Church, and of the Ddmocratic party. Was married, in 1846, to Miss Sarah Smull, who was born in Center Co., Penn., Feb. 1, 1822 ; their only child, Samuel J., died in 1864.

M ARTIX S. LAPP, farmer. Sec. 35 ; P. O. Dakota ; born near Black Rock Ferry, Bertie Co., Upper Canada, Dec. 26, 1826 ; in 1841, came to Ogle Co., 111.; thence, after a year's residence, came to Stephenson Co. in 1842 ; has a fine 80-acre farm, with a good residence and other boildings. His religious preferences are with the German Baptist Church; his politics, Democratic, He was married, in 1849,'to Miss Sarah J. Kryder, daughter of John Kryder, an old and honored citizen of Dakota Township ; Their children are William Henry, Abram C., Lydia Ann (now Mrs. W. H. Miller), Mary Elizabeth fnow Mrs. George W. Lilley), John Samuel, Susannah (deceased), Sarah Jane (deceased), Saloma Agnes, Jacob D., Hattie Viola, Isaac Edward and Maudie May.

WILLIAM McELHINEY, farmer, Sec. 11; P. O. Rock Grove; born in Center Co. Penn., Dec. 26, 1820 ; his parents, with the family, left Pennsylvania in November, 1829, and came West, getting into Illinois some little time before Christmas of that year ; first settled in Edgar Co., lived there fur several years, removing to Stephenson Co., in June, 1837 ; Mr. McE's, parents, John B. and Mary McElhiney, were well known as among the earliest settlers in their locality; the father died in 1872, aged about 81 years ; the mother, 89 years of age, is yet living, making her home with her son William, the subject of this sketch; Mr. McElhiney's hfe-vocation has been, as is at present, that of farming ; his farm embraces 80 acres ; has been School Director in his District, but has no desire for office-holding. Politics, Democratic.

WILrLIAM McEIiHIlXEY, farmer. Sec. 36; P. 0. Dakota; born in Stephenson Co., Nov. 5, 1839 ; is a son of James McElhiney, an old settler and wellknown citizen, now a resident in Rock Run Township. The subject of this sketch was, during the civil war, a soldier in Co. B, 46th I. V. I.; was engaged in the battles of Ft. Donelson, Pittsburg Landing, etc. ; was honorably discharged after the battle of Shiloh, on account of disability, contracted in the line of his duty as a soldier ; since the war, has been engaged in farming; has 80 acres of land, and his wife owns 150 acres both tracts located in Dakota Township. He is a member of the United Presbyterian Church, and of the Republican party. He was married in 1864 to Miss Mary S. Templeton, a native of New Berlin, Union Co., Penn. ; their children are - Arthur T., Alberto ildwin, Ralph Alexander, Guy Willie and Pearley James Aiken ; since their marriage they have lived eight years, 1867 to 1875, at Cleveland, Bradley Co., Tenn., returning here in 1875. Mrs. McElhiney is a daughter of Samuel and Mary Templeton, who were quite early settlers in Stephenson Co. ; their children were - James A., Alexander, of Cleveland, Tenn. ; David H., deceased ; Walker and Mary S., Mrs. William McElhiney; David H., deceased, was a soldier in Co. D, 93d I. V. I. ; he died of disease, in the fall of 1862, at the residence of his brother Alexander, who then lived in Dakota Township.

KEYES S. MARJLIIV, physician, Dakota; born in Lebanon Co., Penn., Dec. 25, 1833 ; lived most of his early life in Schuylkill Co. ; studied his profession and attended lectures in Philadelphia, graduating at the Pennsylvania Medical College in 1854, at the age of 21 ; after being some little time in practice at Tuscarora, Penn., he came West and located at Rock Grove, Stephenson Co., 111., in 1856 ; after about a year there, went to Iowa, and. when the war broke out, entered the service as Assistant Surgeon of the 20th Iowa V. I., and was in the service of the medical department for nearly five years, having there a wide range of service and of practice ; was the greater portion of the time on detached service with diiferent commands ; while with Gen. Fremont, was the First Surgeon of McClurg's command ; at a later date attended Batteries B, D and E, Mo. Artillery and a battery of heavy artillery, at Ft. Brown, and the last year of service was with the 37th I. V. I.. After the war was over, located in Dakota, and has a generous share of practice in his field of professional labor. His wife, Mrs. Caroline Wolf, nee Bordner, is a daughter of Jacob Bordner, an old settler and wellknown citizen of Stephenson Co. ; they have two children - Joan Alice and Francis Gurney.

ROBERT F. MITCHEIili, farmer. Sec. 11 ; P. 0. Dakota; born in Pennsylvania, in the part of Center Co. that is now Clinton Co., June 11, 1824 ; came to Stephenson Co., 111., in 1842; lived first at Buena Vista for six months, and then moved to the Miller farm, near Freeport, where he lived until 1864, when he moved to his present location. He was married May 28, 1843, to Miss Zero Ohcks, also a native of Pennsylvania ; their children are Permila, Reuben R., Joseph Q., Charles E., George W. and James M. Mr. Mitchell's farm embraces 120 acres, well located, in good condition and nicely improved. He is a member of the Republican party ; has held township offices, and is thoroughly respected by all who know him. Aided by a worthy wife, good children, and intelligent industry, he is in quite comfortable circumstances ; worth several dollars "less than nothing" when he came to the county, his example is worth noting, in illustration of what may be done by one who is willing to industriously sue his powers for good purposes.

SAMUEL R. MOYER, teacher. Sec. 10 ; P. 0. Fountain Creek ; born in Stephenson Co. Sept. 12, 1854; his parents, George and Mary Caroline Moyer, were old settlers here, coming here from Pennsylvania about 1851; both died some eighteen or nineteen years ago, the father aged about 38 years, the mother about 36 years ; the subject of this sketch, after some preliminary study in the common schools, attended school, first at Naperville, 111. ; was one year there ; afterward attended at Valparaiso, Ind. ; was in attendance there for a year; closed his school attendance in 1876 ; had been teaching in alternation with attending school, before this time, and, since that date, has been enga.2;ed in the schools of the county ; has been teaching, at least a portion of the time, every year since 1874.

ROBERT NELSON, farmer. Sec. 27 ; P. O. Dakota; bora in the north part of Ireland Jan. 8, 1829 ; emii^rated to America, and settled in Stephenson Co., 111., in 1844, in company with his parents, John and Mary Nelson; his father died in 1877 ; his mother is y t living ; he has been chiefly engaged in farming ; for about three years, from 1857 to 1860, he was traveling, principally in Kansas and Missouri ; he has 160 acres of land in Dakota Township ; in company with his brother, has 20 acres of timber-land in Richland, and besides this, he has a considerable quantity of land in Kansas ; has held school offices for many years. Religion, Presbyterian ; politics, Democrat. He was married in 1861, to Miss EUzabeth Wilson, who is a native of the same locality in Ireland that he is from. Their children living are Andrew, John, James, William, Samuel, Thomas, Robert, Sarah Ann and Mary Eliza ; one other child, Robert, deceased.

SAMUEL OTTO, farmer, Sec. 36; P. 0. Dakota; born in Pennsylvania in the year 1824 ; came with his parents to Ohio, in 1838, and from there, seven years later, to Stephensoo Co., 111., in November, 1845. His father, Daniel Otto, was killed by a railroad accident, June 25, 1860 ; his mother, Mary M. Otto, died in 1862. In 1848, he married Miss Ann Catharine Ilgen, also a native of Pennsylvania, and the daughter of Greorge and Maria Ilgen ; their children are - William H. (deceas d), George D., Mary C. (deceased), Benjamin Franklin (deceased), and John D. Mr. Otto's farm embraces 96 acres, in a very fine location. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church ; has b^en School Director and Constable for almost eighteen years ; being here so early he has seen many changes in the country since his coming; he assisted in the survey of Cedarville when that town was laid out, and has seen most of the rise", growth and progress of his own town of Dakota.

S. P. ROTE, merchant; Dakota; born in Clinton Co., Penn., Sept. 4, 1837 ; came to Stephenson Co. in 1855 ; in the fall of 1857, he went to Green Co., Wis., and was there five years, though part of this time, at intervals, was in Stephenson Co. ; most of these years he worked at the carpenter trade ; returning here, he afterward bought a farm in the northeast part of Lancaster Township, and gave his attention to farming from the fall of 1867 to the fall of 1872 ; he then engaged in well-drilling and setting up pumps, which business he pursued until the fall of 1878 ; since that time he has been engaged in mercantile pursuits ; his landed possessions embrace 136 acres in Lancaster, Ridott and Hock Run Townships, and he has, besides, some considerable property in Dakota. Religion, Methodist; politics, Republican. He was married in the spring of 1867, to Miss Rebecca J. Brown, daughter of William Brown, an old, well-knuwa and much esteemed citizen of Lancaster Township, who settled here about 1845. Mr. and Mrs. Rote have an only son, a bright-eyed boy, named Willie.

B. SCHMELTZER, retired, Dakota; born in Lycoming Co., Penn., March 13, 1828 ; when 3 years of age, removed with his parents to Center Co., which was thereafter his home until his removal to Illinois ; about 1850, he made a trip of a year's duration through Illinois and Iowa; removed to Stephenson Co., III., in 1866 ; was for a long time largely engaged in stock-buying, etc., and for several years also engaged in mercantile business in Dakota ; his working habits, the result of long years of continuous activity, cause him to still keep moving in the management of his farms, etc., although he has retired from active business ; he has 60 acres in his home farm, and 80 acres in another location, all, however, in Dakota Township ; both farms are in excellent condition, and show the results of careful tillage. In poUtics, he is Democratic. In 1855, he was married to Miss Mary Hoy, also a native of Pennsylvania.

J. D. SCHMELTZER, grain dealer, Dakota; born in Center Co., Penn., March 4, 1823; removed to Stephenson Co., 111., in January, 1854, having been with his family in Muscatine Co., Iowa, for a few months preceding this ; has been engaged in grain-buying for the la.st twenty years ; before this was in mercantile business in Rock Grove ; was also Postmaster of that place, holding his appointment to the position from

President Pierce ; his property and business interests are in Dakota, and he takes a lively interest in promotino; the welfare of the place. Politics, Democratic. In 1852, he married Miss Anna M. Mingle, also a native of Center Co., Penn. ; their children are Thomas, George (deceased), Henry. John and Alice.

JOHN S. SMITH, grain, stock and lumber dealer, Dakota ; born in Franklin Co., Penn., April 4, 1808 ; removed to Ohio in 1840, and from there, after a four-years' residence, came to Stephenson Co., 111., in the fall of 1844 ; was employed in agricultural pursuits until about 1868 or 1869, when he retired from farming; was not, thereafter, in active business, until some four years ago, when he engaged in the lumber trade, which he has since carried on in connection with occasional dealing in grain, stock, etc. ; has 330 acres of land in Lancaster and Ridott Townships, beside some town property, etc. ; has held school offices. Is a member of the Lutheran Church, and is politically affiliated with the Democratic party. He was married in 1835 to Miss Catharine Frazier, a native of Somerset Co., Penn.; their chiildren are James (deceased), William, Lizzie, Orlando, John, Franklin, Annie and Ellen (deceased).

MICHAEL D. STACK, retired, Dakota ; born in Ireland, in 1809 ; emigrated to America in 1847 ; after a brief stay in Montreal, Canada, he came into Vermont, where he remained about two years, and then removed to Ohio ; lived in that State four years ; from Ohio he removed to Indiana, in which State he resided four years, removing to Stephenson Co., 111., in 1857; was employed in railroading from 1847 to 1857, and worked on track repairs on the railroad here for several years after the completion of the road ; has not been in any active business since 1865 ; he is the present President of the Board of Village Trustees, and held the same position during two previous terms, in 1855 and 1856 ; was also Street Commissioner for two years ; has six lots and a house in Dakota, and is comfortably circumstanced. Religion, Catholic; politics, Democrat. In 1843, he married Miss Mary Denaan, also a native of Ireland ; she died in 1863 ; his children are John, Margaret, Robert Michael and Ellen Mary.

JAMES A. TEMPIiETON, farmer, Sec. 25 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Union Co., Penn., July 2, 1828 ; came to Stephenson Co. in 1849, with his parents, Samuel P. and Mary Templeton, known by a large number of people in the county ; his parents were beloved for many estimable qualities, by all their acquaintances ; his mother died in 1858 ; his father in April, 1879 ; Mr. T. has been chiefly engaged in farming, though for six years engaged at the same time in mercantile business in Dakota ; he was for several years Supervisor for his township ; has held various township and school offices, and is, in all good enterprises, one of the leading men of his community. Religion, United Presbyterian ; politics. Republican. His farm embraces 165 acres in Dakota and Rock Run Townships. He was married, Dec. 26, 1854, to Miss Jennie W. Curran, a native of Juniata Co., Penn.; their children, living, are Mary J., Annie E. J., Laura Luella, Samuel H., Oscar J., Lizzie J. and Walker W.; those deceased are Willie, Harvey, and one who died in infancy.

WAL.KER TEMPIiETON, farmer, Sec. 36 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Union Co., Penn., Feb. 14, 1839 ; with his parents, Samuel and Mary Templeton, came to Stephenson Co., 111., in the spring of 1849 ; during the civil war, he was a non-commissioned officer of Co. D, 93d I. V. I., of the 15th Army Corps ; most of the time he was one of the sergeants of the color-guard, and consequently saw the liveliest portion of the battles through which the flag of his regiment was carried in the numerous engagements in which it bore a gallant part ; among these conflicts may be mentioned Champion Hill, siege of Vicksburg, Altoona Pass, Missionary Ridge, etc., etc.; he was discharged, at the close of the war, at Louisville, Ky., and has since been engaged in farming ; has 120 acres of land in Dakota Township and 20 acres of timber land in Ridott Township. Is a member of the United Presbyterian Church ; politically, is affiUated with the Republican party. In 1872, he married Miss Elizabeth Bragg, a native of England ; in her childhood she came to America with her parents ; her parents, Wm. M. and Margaret Bragg, first settled in Iowa, and afterward removed to Kansas, where they now reside. Mr. and Mrs. Templeton have one child, William S.

R. M. TEJLFEB, railroad agent, Dakota ; born in Hamilton, Scotland, Jan. 9, 1850 ; in the same year the family emigrated to America, and settled in Racine, Wis., where his parents still continue to reside ; Mr. Telfer has been chiefly employed in railroad business ; for the last fifteen years has been in the employ of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul R. R. Co. ; four years of that time he was in Racine, Wis., four years in Savannah, and for the last seven years, as railroad and express agent and telegraph operator at his present location. Politics, Republican. He was married in 1870 to Miss Flora Wallace, who was born in Muscatine Co., Iowa, Sept. 22, 1851, but has, for the most of her life, been a resident of lelinois ; their children are Jennie, Belle, Fred and Flora. Mr. Telfer's parents are David and Mary Telfer, of Racine, Wis. ; his grandparents, Archibald and Jennie Telfer, also came to Racine in 1850 ; they afterward removed to Elkhorn, Wis., and died there at a good old age ; Mrs. Telfer's father, Alexander Wallace, came to this country, from his native place in Scotland, at an early period in the history of the West ; was chiefly engaged as a practical river-man, in steamboat enterprises on the Mississippi River, until nearly the time of his death, which occurred in 1852. His wife, Sarah Wallace (now Mrs. Needer, by a second marriage), is yet living in Clinton, Iowa.

GEOR<]}E WALKER, retired farmer; P. 0. Dakota; born in Center (afterward Clinton) Co., Penn., April 17, 1809 ; removed to Stephensun Co., 111., in 1849 ; the trip from Pennsylvania here was made by wagon, five weeks being occupied in the journey, reaching here on the 24th of October, of the year above named ; his vocation has been farming since 1836 ; this was varied by official business, etc., but his active spirit has made for him a constantly busy life ; he was Auditor of Clinton Co., Penn., for a term, and another term. Commissioner of the same county, and has held various local offices since his residence here ; he has quite an extended military experience, having been, under the militia system of Pennsylvania, five years a Lieutenant, seven years a Captain, and seven years a Lieut. Colonel ; the last three years of the time was an aid to Gov. Francis R. Shunk, of Pennsylvania ; his property here embraces 180 acres of land, a block in the east part of Dakota, four lots in his residence property, etc. Religion, Lutheran ; politics. Democratic. He was married in 1836 to Miss Mary Gamble, also a native of what is now Clinton Co., Penn. ; their children are James W., Franklin B., Mary C, John S., Nancy E., Amanda J., Emma (deceased) and George V.

F. B. WAIiKER, farmer. Sec. 34 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Pennsylvania in 1840 ; came to Stephenson Co. with his father, Col. George Walker, in 1849 ; has been continually engaged in farming enterprises, and pushes his business forward to intelligent success ; is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and of the Republican party ; is now, and has been for the past six years, a member of the County Board of Supervisors, and is highly spoken of throughout his township. He was married Nov. 15, 1871, to Miss Martha Brown, daughter of John Brown, of Dakota; their children are Saidie Edna (deceased), Harry A. and Iva V.

O. D. WEAVER, farmer, Sec. 35 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Cumberland Co., Penn., Oct. 16, 1825 ; came to Stephenson Co., 111., in the fall of 1845 ; the three previous years, 1842 to 1845, he had lived in Ohio ; in 1852, he went to California; was engaged in mining there for three years ; returning here in 1855, when the railroad was built here, he completed the portion of it from Davis to the section west of Dakota, under the direction of the company ; was employed in railroading until 1858 or 1859, since which time he has been chiefly engaged in farming, his farm comprising 80 acres ; has been Collector of his township. Commissioner of Highways, etc. Religion, Methodist Episcopal; politics, Republican. He was married, in 1846, to Miss Henrietta Ilgen ; their children are Sultan Armenium, Gustavus Adolphus, Myrrah P., George I., Onesimus Daniel, Henrietta Prudence, Laura Eldora and Lila Minerva. The family is quite noted for musical ability, and for range of voice, culture and ability of execution with different musical instruments, is seldom equaled. The subject of this sketch is the only one living out of all his father's family, which consisted of eight children, viz., Theophilus J., Elizabeth, Titicum D., Onesimus D., Catharine, Asaph J., Charlotte A. and

Michael. The father of this family, Michael Weaver, was born April 10, 1796 ; died -of cholera in New Orleans in September, 1832 ; his wife, whose maiden name was Charlotte Krill, was born Feb. 27, 1802, and died June 15, 1831. A generation farther back, the parents were Philip Weaver and Elizabeth Weaver ; her maiden name was Elizabeth Hyde ; she was a daughter of Abram Hyde, and was born in 1762 ; was married to Philip Weaver in 1785. Mrs. Henrietta Weaver is a daughter of George Ilgen, who laid out the town of Cedarville ; he died July 12, 1864 ; his father, William Emanuel Ilgen, came to America during the Revolutionary war, and finally became a Lutheran minister in Pennsylvania, and was much beloved by all his people.

CHARLEIS WILSON, farmer, Sec. 27 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in the North of Ireland, in the year 1825 ; when he was only a year old, his parents emigrated to America, and settled in Washington Co., Penn.; in 1852, he came to Stephenson Co., 111.; has a neat farm of 160 acres, well located and under good cultivation. In 1853, he was married to Miss Mary Wilson, a native of the same neighborhood in Ireland ; they have four children - Jane (now Mrs. Thomas Crow), Annie, Andrew and Moses.

JOHX WINTERS, farmer. Sec. 26 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Center Co., Penn., March 11, 1839 ; when he was 6 years of age, his parents removed with their family to Ohio, and, in 1857, came from there to Stephenson Co., Ill , and settled in Lancaster Township; his father, Abram Winters, died in 1868; his mother, Sarah Winters (sister of Robert and Thomas Bell), died in 1866. He was married, in 1870, to Miss Mary Wright, daughter of Paschal and Jane Wright (both deceased), who came here from Pennsylvania about 1840, settled in Harlem Township, and lived there until their death ; they have two children - Jennie Winters and Bessie Winters. Mr. W. has a farm of 120 acres in Dakota Township, and 6 acres in Ridott Township; he has held township offices. Is a Republican ; is not connected with any church, though his wife is a member of the Presbyterian.

JOHN WIRTH, farmer, Sec. 34 ; P. 0. Dakota ; born in Wittenberg, Germany, Sept. 5, 1826 ; emigrated to America in 1852 ; lived for two years in New York, removing to Stephenson Co.,Ill.,in April, 1854; with characteristic industry and thrift, has acquired quite a handsome property ; has 200 .cres of land in Dakota Township, besides 30 acres of timber land in Buckeye and Lancaster Townships. Is a member of the Lutheran Church, and of the Democratic party. His wife's maiden name was Catharine Haist ; she was born in Erie Co., N. Y. ; their children are John Jacob, Mary Helena, George Adam, Willie Andrew (deceased), Eva Louisa, Henry Tobias, Annie Julia and Catharine Rosena.

SOLOMON WISE, farmer. Sec. 1 ; P. 0. Rock Grove; born in Union Co., Penn., August 5, 1832 ; lived there until he was about 21 years of age, coming to Stephenson Co., 111., in the winter of 1853; has pursued the vocation of farming as his constant business ; has a good farm of 80 acres. His politics. Republican. He was married in 1860, to Miss Mary Alexander; she was born in Big Valley, Penn., March 29, 1833 ; they have four children living - Sarah, Harrison, Percival and Catharine ; three children deceased - Jane, James, and one who died in infancy.

J. R, YOLNGr, merchant, Dakota ; the subject of this sketch, who is a son of Capt. William Young, an old settler and well-known citizen of the county, was born in Stephenson Co., Dec. 24, 1849, and, except the two years 1873 and 1874, which were spent in Iowa, has been a constant resident of the county ; has been engaged in mercantile pursuits since 1873; before that time was employed in farming; has a wellstocked, tastefully arranged and prosperous store ; has been Postmaster of Dakota ever since his coming to the place, in 1875, and is well identified with the best interests of his town. Politics, Republican. He was married in December, 1873, to Miss Olive Rodearmel, daughter of Henry Rodearmel, of Freeport ; Mr. and Mrs. Young have three children - Harry, Anna and Edna.

DANIEL ZIUMERMAN, farmer. Sec. 26; P. 0. Dakota; born in Lycoming Co., Penn., Jan. 27, 1819; removed to Stephenson Co., 111., in the fall of

1846 ; has a fine farm of 200 acres, under good cultivation, with neat, roomy and convenient buildings, etc. Has held school offices in his township. Is a member of the Reformed Church. In politics, is Democratic. He was married, in 1843, to Miss Harriet Phifley, a native of Wittenberg, Germany; she was born Jan. 24, 1821 ; came to America when 11 years of age; died Aug. 24, 1874 ; the children are Christiana, now Mrs. L. H. Weaver, of Montgomery Co., Iowa; Daniel M. ; John F., of Montgomery Co., Iowa; Catharine Elizabeth, now Mrs. Wilson T. Walker, and William Emanuel.

Source changes here: from History of Stephenson County, Illinois : a Record of Its Settlement, Organization, and Three-quarters of a Century of Progress, by Fulwider, Addison L, published 1910; 2,854 words in this source stream.

Dakota Township

Dakota Township is the smallest in the county, comprising, like the townships of Erin and Jefferson, an area of only eighteen square miles. However, in that limited space, the township includes some of the best farming land in the county, some of the thriftiest and most prosperous appearing farm houses, and, withal, some of the prettiest and most picturesque stretches of landscape that the county can boast of. x

There is no large stream. Cedar Creek, which has its source in Rock Grove Township, just across the town line, flows through the whole length of Dakota Township, from north to south, being fed on its way by a multitude of small rills and brooklets, most of them dry at certain seasons of the year, which flow down from the springs on the hillsides to join the larger current.

One railroad enters the township, the C., M. & St. P. R. R., which cuts across the southeastern corner of the oblong, and touches Dakota village, the only village of Dakota Township.

The early history of Dakota Township is closely identified with that of its western neighbor, Buckeye Township, of which it was formerly a part. In 1860, the division was made, and the eleven thousand, three hundred and seventy-eight acres of Dakota were set aside as they are today. Various causes have been assigned to account for the break. The probable and generally accepted reason is that the continued petitions and complaints of a company of farmers living near the present site of Dakota, finally secured the desired division. These gentlemen were all good citizens and desirous of exercising their right of franchise, but when a trip to the polling place entailed a drive across country of twelve or fifteen miles of bad road, they were put to great inconvenience. The polling place was then located at the old red schoolhouse near the present village of Buena Vista. It seems now that a more illogical and less central position could hardly have been selected, for not only were the farmers in the eastern part of Buckeye township quite isolated from the politics of the section, but the village of Cedarville and the settlement which marked the site of the future village of Dakota were altogether out of range. The town house of Buckeye has since been moved east and south to a more central location at Buckeye Center, but all this occurred later. At the time of which we have been speaking, Silas Yount, Robinson Baird, B. Dornblazer, and a few others carried on their campaign for a separate township throughout ten years of strenuous endeavor. In 1860 they were rewarded with success, and in September of that year, the present township of Dakota was established.

As the early history of Dakota is altogether coincident with that of Buckeye, it has been treated elsewhere under that head. The first settlements in Dakota came about the year 1836. Among the early settlers of the portion of Buckeye which subsequently became Dakota were Benson McElhiney, who set- tied near Hickory Grove, Henry Bordner, Jacob Bordner, John Brown, Robin McGee, James McKee, Samuel Templeton, John Price, Peter Fair, Daniel Zimmerman, Robert Pierce, John B. Angle, and others. Some of them, the great majority, established themselves along the banks of Cedar Creek, others ventured farther out into the township, and took up claims in the northern and eastern sections. In 1857, the Western Union Railroad came through the township, and with this advent the early history of Dakota is closed.

Dakota

Dakota, or Dakotah, as it is sometimes called, was founded in 1857, when the Western Union Railroad, now the C., M. & St. P. R. R. first laid its rails through Stephenson county. When the railroad decided to touch the southern portion of Dakota Township, several of the public spirited farmers decided to try to found a village in the southeastern corner, and obtain a post office there. The land on which Dakota village was built was then owned by Robinson Baird and Ludwig Stanton. Mr. Baird sold out his claim to Thomas J. Turner, who, in turn, disposed of his interest to S. J. Davis. To Messrs. Davis and Stanton belongs the credit of laying out and platting the village of Dakota. One hundred acres were appropriated for the town, and three farm houses were located at different points on the stretch when the platting was completed. These three houses were the only visible signs of life in the village, for the postoffice had not yet come. The railroad company built their station, which they chose to mis-call "Dakotah" and "Dakotah" it has ever since remained. When the C., M. & St. P. R. R. came into possession of the Western Union lines, the title was not changed, although the post-office has always been "Dakota."

The growth of the village during the earlier years of its existence was slow and unpromising. Soon after the coming of the railroad, a petition was presented to the post-office department to locate a post-office at Dakota. Robinson Baird and Benjamin Dornblazer were the men instrumental in securing this improvement. Their petition was immediately granted and the present name of "Dakota" affixed to the settlement. The village did not appear promising, and very little inducements were offered to the prospective settler, until Benjamin Dornblazer built his mansion, the first substantial house of the village. In the next year, which was 1859, Messrs. Dornblazer and Brown built the first warehouse located in the village. Others were subsequently erected by Fisher and Schmeltzer, and one was moved into the village already built and needing only the foundations to complete it. By 1860 the village contained seven dwellings and three stores, the houses being owned by Benjamin Dornblazer, Samuel Lapp, D. W. C. Holsapple, Abner Hall, Robinson Baird, Daniel Keck, and Mrs. Dawson. The three stores were a blacksmith shop, conducted by Mr. Holsapple, a cabinet shop owned by one Robert Neil, and the general store of the village, the proprietor of which was Daniel Keck.

1860 was the golden year of Dakota's history. In that year a large number of new buildings were erected : Fisher and Schmeltzer's warehouse, the third which had been raised in the history of the village, the new Methodist church, the village hotel, after occupied by John Brown as a residence. Two new houses were built and used as residences by one George Muffley and Mrs. Ingraham. Soon after Charles Muffley came to settle in Dakota, and opened the first taproom of the village, which he ran in connection with a carpenter shop. The venture did not seem to prosper, for Mr. Muffley abandoned it and enlisted as a volunteer at the time of the war, and is reported as never having returned from the combat.

The Civil War suddenly thwarted the growth of the village and everything was at a standstill for a number of years. Nothing in the way of progress was accomplished for four years, and then the town took a new start and erected four new residences. Then began Dakota's one and only "boom." Between 1866 and 1870 the main part of the village was built and only a limited number of additions have been made since that time. In 1869 the settlement was incorporated as a village, by a special act of the Legislature, approved during the session of 1869, and the first election under the provisions thereof was held on Monday, April 5, of the same year. Silas Yount, W. R. Auman, and J. D Bennehoff acted as judges and F. B. Walker and A. T. Milliken as clerks. The. The following officers were elected at the first town election:

From 1869 to 1873, the town grew amazingly - the "boom" had not yet subsided. Then came a frost - a killing frost - in the shape of the panic of 1873, which withered up all trade, advancement and improvement. Everything was at a standstill, and Dakota's "boom" was over. The financial stringency which affected the whole country so disastrously was felt for five years, and Dakota never fully recovered from the effects. No market could be found for the crops, and the resources of the surrounding country, abundant though they were, were valueless for they could not be disposed of. When the panic loosed its clutch, the prospects for the growth of Dakota as a financial center, however vague they might have been, were effectually crushed.

Within the years of recovering from war and panic, Dakota began to gradually settle down into the customary type of country village which is familiar to everyone. There has never been anything in the least "dead" about Dakota. Business has never for a moment stagnated, but, on the contrary, has kept up a gratifying and prosperous increase, quite different from most of the villages of Stephenson and surrounding counties. But the history of the village has been a disappointment for it has never grown to the proportions fondly planned for it by its early founders. The population at present numbers about five hundred inhabitants. There are several stores, a large grain elevator owned by the H. A. Hillmer Company of Freeport, a high school known as the Dakota Interior Academy of northern Illinois, three churches, and a number of lodges and fraternal organizations.

Interior Academy. The Interior Academy of Northern Illinois, formerly known as the Northern Illinois College, was founded in Dakota in 1881, under the leadership of the Rev. Frank C. Wetzel, pastor of the Reformed church of Dakota. Rev. Wetzel conducted the work for six years and then left it to devote his entire time to the ministry. The academy has since been presided over by Professor W. W. Chandler, Rev. H. L. Beam, Rev. H. C. Blosser, Rev. H. L. Beam, Rev. P. C. Beyers, Rev. C. K. Staudt, Professor Nevin Wilson, Rev. W. D. Marburger, now of Orangeville, and Rev. G. W. Kerstetter, the present incumbent.

The academy, though small, is really an institution of unusual excellence for so small a settlement, and many of its graduates have made names for themselves. The list of alumni, published annually, show a large number of business men in Freeport and Chicago, and a number of boys and girls at college. The course of the school is remarkably complete, the musical department being especially noteworthy. Seven instructors are employed on the faculty, the present roll being: Dean, Rev. G. W. Kerstetter; languages, Miss Alma B. Conrad; mathematics and science, Mr. C. M. Finnell; commercial course, Mr. F. L. Bennehoff, Jr. ; instrumental music, Mr. Gail P. Echard ; vocal and piano, Miss Rosa E. Vollrath; violin, Mr. Edwin R. Rotzler.

Within the past year a number of improvements have been made and the equipment of the school has been materially added to. The Academy buildings, which consist of a college building and boys' dormitory, are pleasantly located in a four acre plat of ground, shaded by a grove of maple trees. The original college building is a substantial frame structure, 40x70 feet, containing an auditorium and four recitation rooms. The trustees and faculty aim at constant improvement and raising of the school standard. A monthly journal, called the Interior Standard, is published by the faculty and students in the interest of the school. A special outfit of physical apparatus has been added this year enabling the students to perform all the experiments required in an ordinary high school course in physics. Athletics and all manly sports are encouraged, special emphasis is laid on public speaking and debate, and in every respect the standard of the institution is being raised. The course of study embraces five years of work, including a preparatory year and four years of the- regular course. Forty-one students were enrolled in the school last year, nearly half of them in the music department.

Lodges. Dakota supports four large and flourishing fraternal organizations, and several smaller societies and lodges. The I. O. O. F. have had a lodge in Dakota for many years, and the Modern Woodmen of America, Mystic Workers of America, and Royal Neighbors have been established within the last twenty or thirty years.

Dakota Lodge, No. 566, I. 0. 0. F. The Odd Fellows Lodge was established by Deputy Grand Master W.J. Fink on the 22nd of February, 1875, with eight charter members and the following officers: Noble Grand, Ezra Durling; vice grand, J. W. Gladfelter; treasurer, E. Yount; secretary, J. D. Schmeltzer.

For a time after the founding of the lodge, meetings were held in Keek's Building. In 1876, a separate hall was built for the accomodation of the society. On the morning of October 27, 1877, this new building, which the lodge had occupied for only a short time, was totally destroyed by fire, and everything except the lodge books of the society were consumed in the conflagration. The loss occasioned was not very great, amounting to a pecuniary damage of only $380, but the havoc wrought and the inconvenience occasioned by the destruction of paraphernalia and appurtenances was tremendous. No attempt was made

The Dakota lodge is in a prosperous condition, with a large membership. The officers for the current year are : Noble Grand, Roy Blunt ; secretary, W. C. Smith; financial secretary, Ralph McElhiney; treasurer, J. W. Smith.

Golden Rule Camp No. 137, M. W. A. The camp of the Modern Woodmen of America was established in Dakota October, 1884, and is today in flourishing condition. A. J. Foster is secretary of the organization.

The Rebekahs, in connection with the I. O. O. F., the Royal Neighbors, and the Mystic Workers, are also large factors in the social life of the community.

Methodist Church. The Methodist worshipers of Dakota began to meet and hold services very soon after the village was founded, but no congregation was formally organized until the summer of 1860. At that time plans were made for the building of a church edifice, which was thereupon begun and duly finished in the fall of the same year. The original cost of the building, which is a frame structure, 49x36, was $2,000, but that amount was increased by various improvements and additions which were subsequently made. In 1878, a steeple was added, and a number of internal and external improvements and changes were made. This fall the fiftieth anniversary, of the building of the church will be observed by the congregation, and plans for a celebration are being made. Several years ago the church and parsonage were entirely remodelled, the latter structure having been built in 1875.

The Dakota Methodist church is in the same charge with the Cedarville church, the Rev. B. C. Holloway officiating as minister of the gospel in both places. The church property of the charge, all told, is valued at $8,000, including a $3,000 church at Dakota, one of similar value at Cedarville, and a $2,000 parsonage. The congregations are both very large, that at Dakota numbering one hundred and twenty-five members, with a Sunday school of one hundred and fifteen, while the Cedarville church has a membership of one hundred and ten, and a Union Sunday school, conducted in connection with the other churches of the village.

Reformed Church. The Reformed church is of recent organization, dating back to 1 88 1, when it was organized by the Rev. Frank C. Wetzel, as first pastor. Previous to last year, the congregation has had no permanent place of worship, but held their services in the Evangelical Lutheran church. Last year, 1909, the Lutheran church was purchased from that congregation for the sum of $1,500. The church was at the same time repaired inside and out at a cost of $300.

The Dakota church, which is on the same circuit with the Rock Grove church, has a membership of forty and a Sunday school of forty-two, while the latter church has a membership of fourteen and a Sunday school of twenty. The Interior Academy of Northern Illinois is conducted by the pastors of the Reformed church, Rev. G. W. Kerstetter being the present official. The academy property, including the parsonage, which is used as a boys' dormitory during the school year, is valued at $10,000.

Rock Run Presbyterian Church. The Presbyterian church of Dakota, known as the Rock Run Presbyterian church, because it was first established in section 30 of that township, was organized in 1855. In 1856 the church edifice in Rock Run, long since abandoned, was built. In 1870, when the "boom" of Dakota was in progress, the Rock Run congregation decided to remove to Dakota, and built their church there in the same year. The church structure, which is the finest in the village, cost $3,000- is of frame 35x55, with a steeple eighty feet in height, affords a seating capacity for 300 worshippers, and is provided with an excellent organ.

The congregation consist of about one hundred members, the Minister at Cedarville officiating as pastor. The Rev. John M. Linn was the first pastor of the Dakota church, and the pulpit has since been occupied by a large number of pastors, with their parsonage at Cedarville.