After the building of the plank road came the building of the Illinois Central
railroad which was to completely change the state of Illinois as well as Union
County,
In September, 1850, Stephen A. Douglas and Sidney A. Breese,
Senators from Illinois, championed a bill in Congress providing for a grant of
public land to the State of Illinois to aid in the construction of the Central
Railroad. A controversy arose in the Illinois state legislature as to whether
the land should be granted by the state to a privately financed company or
whether the state should again attempt the enterprise of building the railroad.
Everyone remembered the failure of the plan for a state enterprise ir. 1837
which had created a $17,000,000 debt, so after much discussion the decision was
made to allow a private company to undertake the job.
According to
Carlton J. Corliss' "Story of Transportation Progress in Illinois," the charter
and 2,595,000 acres of laud granted by the Illinois legislature to a group of
promoters composed of outstanding business leaders of New York and New England.
The land was to be every other section of land along the right-of-way which had
not already been sold to the early settlers In case such land had been sold
another section was substituted. The new company included David A. Neal, Boston
shipowner and president of the Eastern Railroad of Massachusetts; Robert
Schuyler, probably the foremost railway man in his day and president of the New
York and New Haven Railroad; Franklin Haven, head of the largest banking house
in New England; John F. A. Sanford, noted fur trader and Indian agent; Jonathan
Sturges, prominent New York coffee importer; Morris Ketchum, pioneer locomotive
manufacturer; Gouverneur Morris, pioneer railway promoter; George Griswold,
merchantman and importer; Thomas W. Ludlow, American agent of the Dutch banking
house of Crommelin; William H. Aspinwall, president of the Panama Railroad and
founder of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, and Robert Rantoul, Massachusetts
statesman and successor to Daniel Webster in the United States Senate.
The charter granted to these people gave them the authority to build and operate
a railroad 705 miles long but made the following provisions:
1. That the
railroad should be completed within a period of six years.
2. That the
railway lands should not be offered for sale until the Federal government had
disposed of all of its lands within a distance of six miles of the railroad at
double the former price.
3. That the railway company would pay into the
state treasury 7 cents out of every dollar received for the transportation of
passengers, freight, express and mails.
4. That the railroad would
transport United States troops and property at one-half of the standard
passenger and freight rates.
5. That the railroad would transport the
United States mail at 20 percent less than the standard rates.
The story
is told that there was much difference of opinion in Union County regarding the
railroad. There were many whothought the scheme would fail and placed their
faith in future prosperity for the county on the plank road and water
transportation and there were those who were forward looking enough to plan
their own enterprise so that they could take advantage of the opportunities the
new mode of transportation would afford. At a meeting of the board of trustees
of Jonesboro, it was decided that since Jonesboro was the only town in Union
County that the railroad could pass thru, it would not be necessary to comply
with the request of the company to make a survey of the route thru the town and
donate their findings to the railroad company. Such a surveycost fifty dollars.
Winstead Davie, a grocer and merchant seemed to think that the request was
important so he had a survey made at his expense but rather than having it made
thru Jonesboro, he had it made thru some of his farmland a mile east of
Jonesboro. Later when the Jonesboro trustees decided that it was necessary to
comply with the company's request in order to have the road laid thru their
town, the Illinois Central had already accepted the survey presented to them by
Mr. Davie.
As a result the railroad was laid one mile east of Jonesboro,
which at that time was one of three towns along the line to have a population of
more than one hundred inhabitants. These towns were Bourbannais on the Kankakee
River, with 1,710 inhabitants, Urbana in Champaign County with 210 inhabitants
and Jonesboro with 584 inhabitants.
The building of the Illinois Central
Railroad was responsible for the large increase in population between 1850 and
1860 for two reasons. First, the railroad company advertised in newspapers,
magazines and their own pamphlets circulated from Maine thru Georgia, Kentucky
and Tennessee giving descriptions of the attractive land sites available in
Illinois, praising the fertility of the soil and the climate and second, it
advertised for workers in all the large eastern cities and Europe to come to
Illinois and help build the railroad. It gave preference to men with families in
order to get them to remain after they came. The railroad sold its land at $2.50
per acre, but asked only 50 cents down and allowed the rest to be paid over a
period of seven years which enabled people to buy larger tracts of land. Union
County's first settlers from other parts of the country than the south made
their appearance during this period.
The first railroad was constructed
of wooden rails upon which were fastened thin strips of iron to provide a
running surface for the wheels. In the 1850's steel rails were introduced and
later replaced the wooden rails. The first locomotive operated on the Illinois
Central burned wood for fuel and its headlights burned whale and coal-oil. It
was equipped with two driving wheels and two small pilot wheels on each side,
and its most conspicuous feature was a balloon-shaped smokestack five or six
feet high. When fully loaded with wood and water it would take twelve of these
"Puffing Billies" to weigh as much as one modern locomotive.
Passenger
cars used on the Illinois roads in the 1850's would be curiosities today. They
were built almost entirely of wood, narrower and lighter than the average street
car of today. Most of them had four sets of wheels, two at each end. Few cars
were equipped with springs, and every bump of the rough unballasted track was
immediately transmitted to the passenger. Seats were hard, low-backed and
uncomfortable.
There were no vestibules on the early passenger cars, and
passengers could not walk from one car to another when the train was in motion.
The old link-and-pin coupling caused a great deal of slack between cars, adding
to the discomfort of the passengers. Sometimes these couplings failed and the
train broke apart with disastrous consequences. Cars were lighted by dim whale
and coal-oil lamps or flickering tallow candles and were heated in winter by
wood-burning stoves. Ventilation was poor and there were no screens. Sleeping
cars and dining cars were then unknown.
The road was completed from Cairo
to Sandoval November 22, 1853 and many people from all points of Southern
Illinois came to see the first passenger train pass thru this part of the
country.
There is a story told that a drouth had occurred that fall and
some of the farmers, believing that the newly laid rails drew the moisture out
of the air and carried it away, formed a mob which tried to burn a large section
of the track while it was yet under construction. It was with much difficulty
that these people were persuaded that this could not be true.
Following
the building of the railroad came more settlement of land and the laying out of
Anna, Dongola and Cobden.
The growth of land settlement following the building of the Illinois Central
Railroad came to an end in 1860 probably due to the Civil War.
However
between 1855 and 1860 Rich Precinct added Joseph Gaiser, 222.62 acres; Wm. Y.
Cochran, 80 acres; William Word, Jr., 26.87 acres; James K. Cochran, 26.87
acres; James W. Morrison, 120 acres; Jeremiah Hiller, 40 acres; Irvin C. Batson,
40 acres; William L. Church, 120 acres; Robert S. Hopkins, 120 acres; Marcus L.
Fly, 120 acres; Miles H. Mann, 40 acres; Wm. S. Clark, 40 acres; Joseph W.
Helme, 80 acres; Peter Norrix, 42.20 acres; George W. and John M. evens, 42.85
acres; Martha Hedges, 40 acres; Horan F. Whitaker, 158.44 acres; D. S, Davie and
N. G. Blaine, 238.44 acres; H. G. Piston and Charles Eginton, 159.08 acres;
Jacob Rendleman, 80 acres; William Martin, 360 acres; Nathaniel S. Sunderland,
183.36 acres; Reuben E. Morris, 80 acres; H. M. H. Taylor and Charles Eginton,
480 acres; John Evans, 80 acres; Joseph Batson, 80 acres; William Deming, 80
acres; Robert C. Armstrong, 40 acres; Alfred B. Peak, 40 acres; William Tripp,
40 acres; Isaac B. Lovelace, 80 acres; John D. Lamer, 40 acres; Daniel
McConnell, 40 acres; James R. Davis, 80 acres; Robert W. Ferril, 40 acres;
Joseph F. Ashley, 91.47 acres; William Neal, 40 acres; Margaret Robertson, 40
acres; Benjamin Vancil, 80 acres and Daniel Kimmel, 80 acres.
Lick Creek
was increased by Daniel S. Osbourne, 120 acres; Elijah Shepard, 40 acres;
Absolom Butler, 80 acres; Wm. McGinnis, 40 acres; Hiram N. Wood, 40 acres; John
A. Roberts, 220 acres; William Frick, 120 acres; Henry Sands, 40 acres; Andrew
Corzine, 40 acres; Brownville Wiggs, 40 acres; Matthew Stokes, 120 acres; and
William Woods, Jr., 40 acres.
Saratoga added Moses Miller, 40 acres;
William Martin, 160 acres; John Murphy, 95.67 acres; John H. Williams, 40 acres;
John W. Jolly, 88.72 acres; George H. Maifield, 89.22 acres; John O. Flacket,
44.61 acres; Peter H. Casper, 40 acres; James R. Beck, and John C. Breckenridge,
280 acres; Perry Turner, 40 acres; Aaron Treece, 80 acres; William Pitchie, 40
acres; Jeremiah Johnson, 40 acres; James Tygett, 80 acres; Aztell Miller, 80
acres; Michael Dillow, 80 acres; William C. Rich, 40 acres; Allen Bainbridge, 40
acres; Matthias Clemens, 80 acres; Abner Cover, 40 acres; Daniel Karraker, 40
acres; James H. Wallace, 80 acres; James Maskoe and Charles McAlister, 116.02
acres; D. D. and Samuel Cover, 40 acres; George W. Simmerman, 40 acres; W. C.
SwafFord, 80 acres and George W. Wilson, 40 acres.
Stokes Precinct added
William Woods, Jr., 127.68 acres; Adam Apple, 40 acres; William Fuller, 80
acres; Calvin Fuller, 40 acres; George H. Warfield, 160 acres; William L.
Hammer, 80 acres; Nimrod C. E. Adams, 40 acres; William P. Strother, 143.34
acres and Syrian Davis, 80 acres.
Dongola added Isaiah B. Heglin, 549.46
acres; James B. Trull, 160 acres; William P. Strother, 240 acres; Simeon P.
Ives, 160 acres; Ninian E. Primm, 120 acres; Henry C. Poston, 40 acres; James A.
Penrod, 120 acres; Lard H. Ferguson, 40 acres; E. Morgan and Lewis Fowler, 320
acres; David Tompson, 40 acres; John H. Beggs, SO acres; Ebenezer Morgan, 80
acres; Reuben A. Corzine, 80 acres; William Martin, 300.82 acres; H. M. Stratton
and C. A. Tuttle, 181 acres; J. J. Pedicord and Lorder Burrows, 80 acres; Elias
Misenheimer, 40 acres; Paul Karraker, 80 acres; George W. Warfield, 200 acres;
William C. E. Beggs, 40 acres; Elid Barber, 120 acres; Caleb Keller, 40 acres;
William Gales, 40 acres; Cyrenius Wakefield, 280 acers; Thomas Smoot, 40 acres;
Andrew J. Shaffer, 40 acres; Jacob Albright, 80 acres; Jones McGinnis, 80 acres;
Charles Knupp, 40 acres; Syrian Davis, 160 acres; E. Morgan and Lewis Fowler,
160 acres; George Chrisman, 160 acres.
Anna added George Zimmerman, 40
acres; William Murphy, 81 acres; William Weaver, 40 acres; Winstead Davie, 120
acres; Lewis N. Ashley, 45.50 acres; Anson Babcock, 40 acres; Selise Mack, 40
acres; Benjamin Hammond, 40 acres; Abraham Brown, 40 acres and John Dougherty,
80 acres.
Jonesboro added C. McAlister and James Mackae, 400 acre;
Michael Holland, 40 acres; Peter Kessler, 40 acres; Adam Casper, 40 acres;
Savinian H. Vrain, 40 acres; Godfrey Stephens, 40 acres; John B. Cook, 40 acres;
Aaron Barringer, 80 acres; Ebeni Leavenworth, 200 acres; Henry Ritter, 80 acres;
Edmund Davis, 40 acres; Richard Vannostrand, 251.52 acres; James M. Cox, 80
acres; Hugh Penrod, 34.25 acres; Butler Trull, 40 acres; Caleb Hartline, 40
acres; Charles Crowell, 200 acres; William Lewis, 40 acres; Aztell Miller, 120
acres; Harris M. Ridenhower, 280 acres; Elijah McGrow, 80 acres; Jonathan
Grenleaf, 80 acres; Albert Clark, 160 acres; James Morgan, 40 acres; John Tripp,
40 acres; John Dougherty, 80 acres; James D. B. Salter, 160 acres; George Smith,
40 acres; John Chester, 80 acres; John Walker, 40 acres; Reuben Weaver, 40
acres; Susannah Frick, 59.28 acres; Archilles Cadwalader, 101.48 acres; Nathan
R. Chester, 26.18 acres and Stanford A. Lasater, 320 acres.
Cobden added
Elizabeth Clutts, 40 acres; Joseph Miller, 48.85 acres; William Martin, 120
acres; James T. G. Holmes, 40 acres; Peter Zimmerman, 44.31 acres; Charles
Eginton, 880.24 acres; Charles Corgan, 40 acres; Augustus C. Lamer, 44.87 acres;
Daniel Williams, 40 acres; William H. Latham, 280 acres; Jacob Rendleman, 40
acres; Thomas H. Hall, 40 acres; John Messamore, 40 acres; Abner Keith, 40
acres; Elizabeth Ferrell, 80 acres; James Mackae and C. McAlister, 760 acres;
Ewing C McKinney, 40 acres, and John Dougherty, 80 acres.
Alto was
increased by Thomas Fleming, 40 acres; Ephriam Durall, 40 acres; William Oberts,
40 acres; Alfred Gregory, 77 acres; Ben L. Wiley and Paul Frick, 80 acres;
Charles Eginton, 680 acres; John Bittle, 80 acres; William Martin, 600 acres;
Martin Rendleman, 40 acres; William Penrod, 40 acres; John Smith, 64.50 acres;
Edwin Phillips, 321.96 acres; Michael Cunningham, 320 acres; James Abernathie,
163.52 acres; Jonas Walker, 80 acres; John Stearns, 80 acres; Christopher
Lawrent, 120 acres; Adam Smith, 55 acres; Michael M. Mackerley, 40 acres; Herny
Lyerly, 360 acres; John T. Ellis, 119.42 acres; William Gregory, 40 acres;
George C. Gibson, 40 acres; Corna Hicks, 250 acres; William Baltzell, 71 acres;
David S. Buman, 160 acres; William Jones, 280 acres; Ellis Phillips, 280 acres;
Anton Janicke, 200 acres and Adam Hofle, 320 acres.
Mill Creek added
Cyrenius Wakefield, 362.27 acres; Alonzo B. Smith, 40 acres; Edward Cochran, 200
acres and Jacob Cauble, 40 acres.
Misenheimer added Israel F. Posey, 40
acres; Charles Brown, 40 acres; Freak Ulin, 200 acres; Harrison O. Hassey, 240
acres; William A. Latham, 320 acres; John W. Grieb, 40 acres; John Bryson, 80
acres; Nathaniel Eudy, 120 acres; Kenneth Hargrave, 40 acres; William Campbell,
40 acres; John Light, 40 acres and Peter Dillow, 40 acres.
Reynolds added
George W. Kimmel, 80 acres; Henry G. Paston, 81.83 acres; Jacob Schrader, 33.66
acres; Joseph Baker, 14.23 acres; Jacob Phitzer, 40 acres; Nathan Melvin, 260
acres, and David C. Wallace, 124.13 acres.
Union was increased by
Montgomery Hunsaker, 40 acres; William and David Douglas, 160 acres; John B.
Simoneaux, 240 acres; Lewis Verlin, 240 acres; Harris Phillip, 280 acres, and
William A. Lewis, 40 acres.
Preston was increased by Peter Penrod, 80
acres; Christian Lyerly, 120 acres; George Hazelwood, 80 acres; Charles S.
Gibson, 40 acres; Samuel Clutter, 320 acres; James Douglas, 80 acres; Ben Wiley
and Paul Frick, 640 acres; Benjamin Walker, 80 acres; James M. Wright, 160 acres
and George W. Frogge, 80 acres.
By 1860, 154,475.25 acres of land had
been settled in Union County. It is interesting to note that after the railroad
came through several large tracts of land were entered. Between 1855 and 1860,
27 men entered tracts of land of more than 240 acres each and from 1850 to 1855,
there were sixteen such entries. Before 1835 only two men had entered farms of
over 240 acres and between 1835 and 1850, twenty such entries were made. The
largest single entries were made after 1855.
Anna, like so many other towns along the Illinois Central
Railroad, grew to be a large and prosperous town in a few years. In 1853 the
line of the Illinois Central roadbed was located and it was the same year that
Winstead Davie who then owned most of the land which is now Anna and Colonel
Lewis W. Ashley, division engineer, who had come into possession of a portion of
this same tract, determined to lay out a town at this point. The proper surveys
were made by Francis H. Brown, the county surveyor, and lots were laid out on
both sides of Main street and the railroad. Mr. Davie decided to name the town
in honor of his wife, Anna, and under this name the plat was entered upon the
county records, March 3, 1854. The railroad company had established a station
here for the convenience of the laborers and thus a nucleus for the present city
was formed. However, the Illinois Central called the station "Jonesboro Station"
until 1873.
In the spring of 1853, there were only four buildings on the
site of the town of Anna as first incorporated, including a mile square, the
east half of section 19 and the west half of section 20. One log house, the home
of Basil Craig was located on the hill near the end of what is now East Chestnut
street, a house on Main street occupied by Levi Craver and a log store on the
back of Lot 132, kept by Charles Pardee. Mr. Pardee built another building in
the fall of 1853 so that he could keep boarders. Mr. Pardee ran the first hack
between Anna and Jonesboro. In the fall and winter of 1853, Bennett and Scott
started a store on Lot 81 which was later owned by Oliver Alden. The fourth
original building in Anna was a log house on Lot 143.
During 1854 W. W.
Bennett built the brick and frame home known as the Lufkin place on Main street,
S. E. Scott built a frame house on Lot 5, C. C. Leonard on Lot 14, Isaac Spence
on Lot 72, Dr. McVern on Lot 56; Dr. Love on Lot 124, D. L. Phillips built the
European Hotel on Lot 105 and Winstead Davie built his "Column Store," a large
two-story frame building on Lot 82. In all, about nineteen buildings were
erected that year including the first school house in Anna on Lot 45.
In
1855, the city progressed rapidly in population and buildings, the principal
structures consisting of several comfortable dwellings, storehouses and the
Roman Catholic church. Col. Ashley, E. H. Finch, A. D. Finch, C. M. Wiilard,
Walter Willard, D. L. Phillips and John Stiner were among those building homes.
John Stiner built the first brick house in Anna on Lot 34 on South street.
Most of the people obtained their water supply from cisterns, but in 1856
the town authorities authorized the digging of a public well on Washington
street and in 1860 another well at the pottery of C. and W. Kirkpatrick added to
the public supply of water.
At the incorporation of the town in 1855, D.
L. Phillips secured the establishment of a post office in Anna and was appointed
the first postmaster.
July 19, 1855 an election was held in which 26
votes were cast in unanimous favor for the incorporation of the town, and on
July 28, trustees were elected as follows:
"At an election held in the
town of Anna, County of Union. State of Illinois, on Saturday, July 28, 1855,
agreeably to public notice given, for the purpose of electing five Trustees for
said town, the following persons having received a majority of all the votes
cast, are declared duly elected Trustees for the one year next ensuing from the
date of their election, or until their successors are elected: David L.
Phillips, C. C. Leonard, W. W. Bennett, W. N. Hamby, and John Cochran." The
document was attested by J. L. Spence, Clerk and C. C. Leonard, Judge.
Ordinance number one passed by this group August 10, 1855 prohibited the "sale,
barter, exchange or giving away of any spirituous or malt liquors or wine in any
quantity less than one barrel, unless for medicinal purposes ordered by a
physician."
The second ordinance established the limits of the town as
extending "one-half mile from the northeast corner of Lot 14 each way." On
September 6, 1858 these lines were extended by ordinance as "containing the east
half of section 19 and the west half of section 20 in Township 12 of Range 1
west of the Third Principal Meridian. On September 8, 1869 the boundary was
extended to include the south half of section 17 and the east half of section
20, and the north half of section 29 and all of the northwest quarter of section
19, not included in the legally established boundaries of the city of Jonesboro,
all in Township 12.
A third ordinance called for the taking of the census
and D. L. Phillips, B. L. Wiley and J. M. Ingraham were appointed census takers.
The census was taken during August, 1855, the first official enumeration of the
inhabitant of the city of Anna, showed the following heads of families with the
number of individuals belonging to each: M. C. Massey, 4; John Halpin, 4; M.
Thorp, 5; W. W. Bennett, 10; Mrs. Bay, 4; S. E. Scott, 3; William Melton, 12; J.
E. Ingram, 4; R. Stubblefield, 4; B. F. Mangold, 3; C. Henderson. 2; Mrs.
Blackstone, 4; J. Humpter, 4; E. C. Green, 5; Zadoc Elms, 3; C. C. Leonard, 7;
M. Freeman, 5; G. B. Harrison, 8; T. Brown, 4; Mrs. Davis, 4; J. C. Hacker, 5;
W. N. Hamby, 8; D. Love, 6; James Musgrave, 12; A. S. Jones, 2; I. L. Spence, 5;
A. S. Barnum, 4; Thomas Green, 7; J. Tripp, 6; James I. Toler, 7; John L.
Cochran, 9; James Faulkner, 9; J. B. Jones, 8; John Kerr, 6; D. L. Phillips,
(hotel) 25; A. Bartlett, 7; Mrs. Henderson, 6. The total population of the town
was 251.
The first society to hold meetings in Anna was the Egyptian
Chapter, No. 45, of Royal Arch Masons, October 5, 1858. The Anna Lodge of A. F.
& A. Masons, No. 520, was instituted October 1, 1867 and the Hiawatha Lodge, No.
291, I. O. O. F. was established by the Grand Lodge of Illinois, October 11,
1860.
The Anna Literary Society and Lyceum was established in 1860.
The early churches established in Anna after its incorporation were the
Roman Catholic, 1855; the Baptist, 1859; the Reformed Congregational, 1859; the
Methodist Episcopal, 1856; the First Presbyterian, 1866; the Episcopal in 1880;
and the Campbellites or Christians in 1869.
Dongola
was laid out and the plat recorded May 23, 1857. It occupied the north part of
Section 25 and the south part of Section 24, Township 13, Range 1 West. It was
located about nine miles south of the town of Anna.
The people living
near Dongola had patronized the horse mill built by Youst Coke and the water
mill built by David Penrod on Cypress Creek. In 1852, Col. Bainbridge had built
the first steam mill and this mill and a small store keeping notions, mainly
whiskey for the Illinois Central workmen were the only two businesses in Dongola
before it was laid out as a town.
Ebeni Leavenworth, an engineer who
worked on the construction of the Illinois Central owned most of the town and
was responsible for its origin and original development. He built the first
residence and the first store building. The first store was kept by Edmund Davis
who had a $3,000 stock of merchandise in 1860 and the second store, by Abraham
Misenheimer who carried a $5,000 stock in 1860.
Mr. Leavenworth also
owned and operated the Novelty Works, which manufactured wagon hubs, spokes,
furniture, feed boxes, wooden bowls, plows, wagons and other wooden articles.
This business was assessed in 1860 under the name of Leavenworth and Reese for
$1,500.
After much effort, Mr. Leavenworth induced the Illinois Central
to stop trains at Dongola so that it became a shipping center for farmers in
that area.
The village was incorporated in 1871 and the members of the
first board of trustees were L. T. Bonacina, J. R. Peeler, Henry Harmes, W. R.
Milans and John Holshouser. Solomon Lombard was appointed clerk.
The
first school in the village was a frame building near the Novelty Works and in
1873 a large frame building which would house 200 pupils was erected.
The
Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized in Dongola in 1865 and another church
was built by the Methodists, Cumberland Presbyterians, and Lutherans who took
turns using it. The Baptists erected a frame building for their church.
Dongola Lodge, No. 581, A. F. and A. M. was chartered October 6, 1868 with J. H.
Dodson, Master. Dongola Lodge, No. 343, I. O. O. F. began January 31, 1867 under
the leadership of E. Leavenworth.
Cobden, originally known as South Pass
was laid out in 1857 and upon the completion of the Illinois Central was made a
station. The land was then owned by Benjamin L. Wiley, whose wife was Emily, the
daughter of Winstead and Anna Davie. The town was located on Section 30 of
Township 11, Range 1 West, on the west side of the railroad. The original plat
was recorded May 28, 1857, but afterward other additions were made: Buck's
addition west of the original plat; Hartline addition, south of Buck's; Frick's
addition east of Hartline's and on the east side of the railroad; and Clemens
addition, east of Wiley's.
Cobden was brought into existence by a real
estate company whose office was in Anna. Isaac N. Phillips located here February
1, 1858, as the agent of L. W. Ashley, Benjamin L. Wiley and J. L. Phillips. He
occupied a log cabin just back of what became known later as the Phillips House.
In the summer of 1860, Richard Cobden, one of the owners of the Illinois
Central and an Englishman, made a tour of the railroad and stopped at South Pass
and, because he liked the climate, stayed a few days to picnic and hunt. The
town was then named Cobden in his honor and the railroad station was called
Cobden.
The settlers who came to this part of the county, before 1850,
like the others in the county were originally from North Carolina. However among
the settlers who came after the building of the railroad were many New
Englanders, attracted by the suitability of this part of the country for growing
orchards.
In May, 1858, Amos Bulin and Moses Land moved into Cobden and
later in the summer Col. Bainbridge came and bought the Bell farm on Bell Hill
east of Cobden. Henry Ede lived in a house built in the Buck Addition and Jerry
Ingraham, foreman of the repair shop of the railroad lived next to his shop.
Thomas Baker built a house which was occupied by Isaac Phillips and later became
known as the Roth Hotel.
The first store, kept by William Henry Harrison
Brown was opened early in 1859. He sold out to Adam Buck because he had been
indicted by the grand jury for selling a deck of playing cards. The second store
was opened by John Davis and the next by Frick and Lamer. Mathias Clemens came
during the time of the construction of the railroad and ran a boarding house for
the workers. LeBar and Davie built a mill about 1860.
The first school
built in the town was a brick building costing $10,000. This was one of the
first brick schools in the county.
Cobden was incorporated as a village
April 15, 1859. The first board of trustees were I. N. Phillips, John Buck,
Henry Frick, David Green, Mathias Clemens, Dr. F. A. Ross and John Pierce.
The Presbyterian, the Congregational, the Methodist Episcopal and the
Catholic were the first churches established in Cobden. The Masons and Odd
Fellows organized Cobden Lodge No. 466, A. F. and A. M., October 3, 1861 and
Relief Lodge, No. 452, I. O. O. F. October 10, 1871.
By 1860 four other
villages which were never incorporated had been established: Saratoga, Lick
Creek, Mt. Pleasant and Preston.
Lick Creek had a postoffice and store
and five or six dwellings. Mangum and Gourley were the first storekeepers and
Gourley was the first postmaster. The first school was built near A. J. Mangum's
home.
Mt. Pleasant village was laid out in 1858 by Caleb Musgrave and
Abner Cox. A few lots were sold but the town did not grow much. The plat was
recorded April 9, 1858. There were a church, a store, a postoffice, a saw mill
and a few residences there in the beginning. The first store was kept by Thomas
Boswell on his farm before the town was laid out. A man named Black opened the
first store in Mt. Pleasant and sold it to Leavenworth and Little who sold to
John Stokes, Mr. Stokes built a two story brick building for the business.
The village of Saratoga was laid out by Dr. Penryer, November 6, 1841, on
the northeast quarter of Section 1, Township 12, Range 1 West. A mineral spring
was the cause of the location of the town here. Dr. Penryer thought the place
could be made into a health resort. A boarding house was built near the spring
which entertained summer guests for several years but the business gradually
died. This was owned by Caleb Cooper. Elijah Beardsley owned a saw and grist
mill and A. W. Simmons and William Reed opened stores.
The old village of
Preston was laid out as a town October 27, 1842, by John Garner and for a time
was a shipping point but the Mississippi gradually moved in on the town and
finally covered the spot where it once stood.
There were many country
stores scattered through the county and several mills, but the leading business
centers by 1860 were Jonesboro, Anna, Cobden and Dongola.
Contributed 11 Sep 2017 by Norma Hass, extracted from History of Union County, by Lulu Leonard, published in 1941.
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