History of Coles County - Pleasant Grove Township
  
HISTORY OF COLES COUNTY.
PLEASANT GROVE TOWNSHIP.


This township is the middle one in the southern tier of townships in the county. It is a little irregular in shape, being bounded on the east by the Embarrass River, which follows a southern course, slightly inclining westward. The township is eleven sections long and four wide. This will give it forty- four sections, or 28,160 acres. As a part of the eastern sections are, however, in Hutton Township, there is probably not that amount of land by two thousand acres. The land is, in the main, excellent for farming purposes. It originally was nearly all covered with a dense growth of good timber, hence the township is among the earliest settled in the county. The only prairie of any size is one known by the very unclassical name of “Goose-Nest Prairie.” It was probably a fine looking piece of country to the eyes of the first white man who saw it; but whether he gave it that name from finding a goose’s nest there, or from its fancied resemblance to that repository of goose eggs, or whether he had been a classic student in his day, and had read of the fabled goose which laid a golden egg every day, and made it so valuable, is a matter of some difference of opinion. Some say the primeval white man here looked upon the scene spread out before him and exclaimed, “This is the very goose nest.” Others affirm he found a goose’s nest here, and hence the name. If any of our readers care to pursue the subject to its end, and settle the point, we refer them to several old residents in the “Goose Nest” whom they can examine, and with whom they can argue the point. Which of the three origins is correct matters but little now one thing is certain, that name, so illustrative of the disposition of frontier life, will always stay.
The timber originally found in this township, much of which yet remains, is composed of all varieties indigenous to this part of Illinois. The most valuable is now nearly all gone, that remaining consisting of a more common kind, and used chiefly for fire-wood and fencing. As much of this abounds, but little, if any, coal is used in the township.
No streams of water traverse this part of the county, save a few small tributaries of the Embarrass and Muddy Creek. The largest is the little Indian Creek, which rises in Section 36, in La Fayette Township, and flows southeasterly almost entirely through Pleasant Grove. It has one small affluent, rising in Section 3, Neither the main creek nor its branch is of a size to be of any practical use, save drainage. Two little creeks flow southward through the western part of the township, affording, like the Little Indian, a partial drainage to that part of country. The principal one is known as Big Muddy, from the character of its waters. Near it was an early settlement in this part of Coles County. The main surface of Pleasant Grove Township is somewhat undulating in appearance. There is not much wet land to be found in its borders. A few swamps are here and there to be seen, but these admit of easy drainage, and will, in time, all be brought under cultivation.
On Section 23, in this township, exists a natural curiosity. On a spot of ground, covering about one-half acre in extent, are ten springs, each sending forth a stream of remarkably cold water, highly impregnated with different medicinal qualities. What is strange, is that no two springs are alike in the quality of water they emit. One spring will be highly impregnated with carbonate of soda, while near it will be another impregnated with iron, another with chloride of sodium, and so, on—as many different waters as there are springs. As all are medicinal in their qualities, many persons resort here for the cure of various diseases which these waters are supposed to benefit. Indeed, many are bettered by coming here, and it is the intention to fit up a place, so that accommodations can be furnished those desiring to come. The springs are now owned by Dr. Halbrook, who keeps, temporarily, many patients in his house, near the springs. The place evidences being a favorite resort of the Indians, as a great abundance of relics of these aboriginal inhabitants are found here.

EARLY SETTLEMENTS.
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“ Then, looking eastward o’er the plain,
I saw a slowly-moving train
Of objects coming, far away.
Like schooners floating on the bay.

“ Their whitened sails were neatly spread,
And slowly on their course they sped,
As, westward still they kept their way,
Toward the setting orb of day.”

The picture presented by Mr. George Balch of the coming of the emigant, in the above lines, is vividly true of the arrival of the first settlers to Central Illinois. No railways then existed in the great West. Indeed, they were only known in the East, and were more dreaded in England, where they began, than liked. They were then in crude infancy, and were not thought of in the West. Hence, the picture of their “whitened sails neatly spread,“ as the wagons of the pioneers came Westward, is not in the least overdrawn. They came chiefly from the South—from Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama— as the sequel shows in the mention of each one.
Emigrants coming from these various Southern localities, at that day, generally converged at a point on the Ohio River, at or below Louisville. From there they came north, through Western Indiana, to Vincennes, the oldest settlement on the Wabash. From this place, sometimes they came directly west to their various localities, or went on north to Terre Haute, and from that place went to their chosen homes. Sometimes, however, they went on down the “beautiful river,” on flatboats, to old Shawneetown, where they disembarked, reloaded their goods and themselves into their wagons, and came north to Carmi or Mount Carmel; from either of which places they could find routes northward. While on the way, they encamped wherever night overtook them, generally making some grove of trees and stream of water their halting-places. Mr. Balch in his poem, from which two verses are already quoted, further describes their mode of camp-life. We subjoin it, as better descriptive of that scene than anything we have found:

“ Four hundred miles behind them lay
Their native land, so far away
Their childhood’s home, their place of birth,
Their father’s and their mother’s hearth.

“ Before them stretched the boundless West,
In all its native grandeur dressed;
Where, fresh from the Almighty’s hand,
There lay a second Promised Land

“ But now the sun, adown the west,
In crimson clouds was robed for rest
While in the east, with hidden sheen,
The Goddess of the Night was seen,

“ Too modest to unveil her light
Until her lord had passed from sight.
The weary day being almost spent,
The pilgrims halt and pitch their tent.

“ Beside a limpid, babbling rill,
With shady groves along the hill
Where savage bands, in other days,
Had seen their sparkling camp-fire blaze

“ And round it danced in savage glee
Like beasts, as wild, like birds, as free.
But as they now far west had fled.
The pilgrims had no foes to dread.

“ Their jaded steeds were loosed, at will
To crop the herbage from the hill
Their sparkling camp-fire’s cheerful light
Kept back the gathering shades of night,

“ Which drew their sable curtains round
The pilgrims’ lonely camping-ground.
While cheerful chats and cheering song
Soon whiled a pleasant hour along

“ In which their meal had been prepared.
And by each one was gladly shared.
Then, ere the pioneers retire.
They gather round their cheerful fire,

“ And talk of scenes. in other years.
Of rising hopes and boding fears,
Of childhood’s happy hours, now fled.
Of once loved friends, who now are dead,

“ Of kindred dear, they left behind
When starting west, new homes to find.
In fancy saw the schoolhouse still,
As once it crowned their college hill,

“ While in its shady groves they strayed.
And ‘hide-and-seek’ in fancy played;
Or gathered round their grape-vine swing
And heard their comrades’ voices ring.

“ Those comrades too, had left their plays—
Forever gone their childhood days—
And now, with trusty sword and shield,
Like them were on life’s battle-field.

“ Some talked of ‘mother’s ’ earnest prayer;
Some of ‘father’s ’anxious care:
These, too, they feared they ne’er would meet
This side the ‘city’s golden street.’

“ The little church, to them so dear,
Engaged their thoughts and claimed a tear
They prayed that God would bless the place
Where first they tasted of his grace.

“ They called to mind their pastor’s care,
His counsel wise, and faithful prayer
Rejoicing that they had a friend
Whose prayers for them would still ascend

“ To God, who, though enthroned on high.
Will hear the lowly when they cry.
And now to Him their thoughts are turned,
While in their hearts for Him they yearned:

“ For man is sure, when left alone,
To think of God, and heaven and home.
But darker grew the shades of night.
The evening star had passed from sight,

“ The Pleiades shone from on high
Like sparkling gems set in the sky:
While higher still Orion swung,
And sweeter evening’s anthems sung.

“ And there, around that lone camp-fire,
Before the pioneers retire,
They bow beneath the solemn grove
And chant to God these lines of love.

“ With heart and voice, and bended knee.
Our Father, God, we come to Thee;
No temple built by human skill,
No ritual made by human will,
Have we to bring.

“Our hearts shall be Thy temple home,
Where Thou shalt reign, and Thou alone;
And in these temples built for praise.
Our humble notes of song we raise.
Thy love to sing.

“We praise Thee for Thy constant care;
For grace, the ills of life to bear ;
For streugth to help us on our way.
And bread of life from day to day,
Which we partake.

“ And now, we give ourselves to Thee,
Oh, keep Thy trusting children free!
And guard us through the shades of night.
And wake us with the morning light.
For Jesus’ sake.

“Thus trusting on a Sovereign Lord,
They rose from otf the grassy sward,
And soon retired to peaceful rest.
With naught but love within each breast.

“Their jaded steeds rest on the hill.
Their tinkling bell is hushed and still,
And silence reigns throughout the earth,
Like that which reigned before its birth.“


Mr. Balch continues in this poem to note the rise in the morning of the pioneers ; their search for a home ; their success in finding one in a forest through which a stream courses its way, and the erection of their cabin-home. It is very strikingly portrayed, and speaks well for his native genius. Had he had the advantages of an education, he would take rank with many writers widely known. As it is, we understand he intends publishing a volume of his poems, in which the remainder of the poem we quote will appear. Its length precludes further quotation in our pages.
Just who was the first settler in Pleasant Grove—often called Pleasant Prairie—is now hard to determine. Mrs. Chowning states that her father, John Gordon, came to the Kickapoo settlement in 1826, and the next year, she thinks in the spring, he moved down to Pleasant Grove, where she is now living. There he found an unfinished log cabin, built by an old Baptist preacher, called “Daddy” Barham. This cabin Mr. Gordon completed and used as a residence. Others, however, differ from this statement. Some assert that the first settlement was made in this township in 1827, by Isaac Fancher and Buck Houchin, near the head of Muddy Point Creek. This is the generally accepted view, and is given as true by Capt. Adams in his Centennial Address. Still, others claim that Jack Price came here prior to Fancher or Houchin, and that to him belongs the honor. From a pretty close investigation of the subject we are inclined to the opinion given by Capt. Adams. The weight of testimony is in favor of Fancher and Houchin. Price must have followed them closely, however, and may have been with them.
It is likely that these persons are all that settled in this township that year. If they brought their families as Mr. Gordon did, there were four settlers and four pioneer homes in the township that fall.
The next year, Mr. Joseph Glenn, then a young man, visited this settlement. After satisfying himself as to its desirableness, he determined to locate. He informed Mr. George Balch afterward, that when he came here, there were five families in this settlement, and that he thought no others existed in the township. He says Dorcas Tulley, who lived near the south line of the county where John T. Jones now resides, was among the number. He also mentions Mr. Fancher. He named all of them, but the names have escaped Mr. Balch’s memory. Those that we have mentioned would make just this number, and are, probably, the families Mr, Glenn referred to. Mr. Glenn lived here until a short time since, when his death occurred. He was rather widely known, and was blessed with an excellent memory. It is to be regretted now that he did not write down for preservation his recollections of the days he first lived here, and the events passing at the time. He, like many another, did not realize their value, and thus much of the early history of this part of Illinois Mr. Glenn went to Lawrence County in the fall of 1829. He married Ellen Reynolds in 1830 or 1831, who was born in Illinois in 1808 or 1809, and is yet living. She is one of the oldest native-born citizens in this county. Mr. Glenn’s farm was long known as the “Glenn Place,” and was brought by its owner to a high state of cultivation.
In the spring of 1829, quite a number of settlers came. “Goose-Nest Prairie” was settled this spring by Rev. Daniel Barham (“Daddy” Barham, already referred to) and his sons John and Nathan, and Thomas Barker, who erected the first cabins there. If these were the first cabins built by the good minister, then the statement that he erected a cabin near the Gordon grave-yard in 1827, or before, is evidently an error by a year or two. As there is now no one left who lived through this time and is cognizant of it all, in all its details, it is extremely difficult to settle the point of the first settler. Rev. Barham was an efficient Baptist minister, and labored earnestly in his Master’s calling, and may have been here as early as Mrs. Chowning thinks; but, from the best testimony we are able to gather, it is two years later, i. e., in 1829. “The same spring that ‘Daddy’ Barham, his sons and Mr. Barker came,” says Capt. Adams, “Michael Taylor and son, Elijah, John and Patrick Gordon and Dow Goodman located in the ‘Goose Nest.’ “ This is further proof that Mrs. Chowning’s father came in 1829, instead of 1827.
The first settlement on Indian Creek was made this same year. At the head of this creek, was an old Indian camping-ground, evidencing use in many generations past. It was a convenient spot for pasturage and water, and, as such, was regarded favorably by the pioneers. It is in the north and northeast part of the township, and may be considered the third settlement in the town- ship. Its pioneers were Zeno Campbell, Gershom, William and Thomas Balch, who, as stated, located in 1829.
This same year, the Muddy Point settlement was augmented by the arrival of Joseph Glenn, Daniel Edson, Daniel Beals and his two sons, Oliver and Jesse, and William Dryden and Alfred Balch, who came to view the country. The next year, William Gammill and his sons Andrew and Samuel, and sons-in-law, A. Balch and Isaac Odell, also Abner Johnston, whose son is now President of the First National Bank at Charleston, came to Indian Creek and Muddy Point settlements. The year before, Jesse Fuller and his family came from Virginia and bought the farm now known as the “Sell” place. Mr. Fuller remained here until his death. Mr. Theron E. Balch located with his family this season, also. Mr. Balch became a very prominent man in his time. He was the first school-teacher in the township, was a firm friend of religion and was one of the best men in the pioneer days of the community. He arrived with his family in October, and settled in the timber, near the “Goose-Nest Prairie.” Here he built him a small pole cabin, and during this winter, it is thought, taught the pioneer school in the township, in a small pole cabin, in Muddy Point settlement, near where the Cumberland Presbyterian Church is now situated. He and his wife were strong Abolitionists, liberating their slaves in the South before they came, bringing some with them. Mr. Balch was one of the earliest adherents to that party, and is said to have been one of the first seven men to vote that ticket. Mrs. Balch is yet living in Wisconsin, eighty-six years of age, blind and deaf. She has been a most remarkable woman in her time. She lives with one of her daughters, and has with her one of her liberated woman slaves, who is almost as old as her mistress.
The reader will observe that quite a number of persons located in the first two years of the settlements here. As many of them belonged to the Cumber- land and Regular Presbyterian Churches, they united in August, 1830, and formed a Presbyterian Church under the care of the Old-School body—as it would be better known by that name—and began to hold services. As immigration was rapid during the next three or four years, however, a Cumberland Presbyterian Church was organized, and those professing that creed drew off from the other Church as soon as this opportunity afforded them a chance to join a church of their own choice. On the 19th of November following the organization of the Church at Indian Creek, the settlement in Pleasant Grove was joined by a colony of sixteen grown persons and eleven children from Bedford County, Tenn., about fifty miles south of the city of Nashville. They came, like their predecessors, in the old Virginia wagons, drawn by two and four horse teams, making the journey of 400 miles in a few months. Now it is made in a day and a night. They camped out on the way, and while in Indiana, about fifteen miles south of Vincennes, they were obliged to stop and bury one of their number, a child, a son of Isaac and Mary Odell. A number of years ago, George D. Prentice, the veteran Louisville editor and poet, stood, he records, at the grave of a little child in Arkansas, buried from an emigrant wagon. He embalmed the incident in verse, which is so touching, and which applies to the burial of Mr. and Mrs. Odell’s little child so well, that we reproduce a verse here:

“Not in the church-yard’s hallowed ground,
Where marble columns rise around,
By willow or by cypress shade,
Are thy poor little relicts laid.
Thou sleepest here, all, all alone,
No other grave is near thine own.
’Tis well, ’tis well; but oh, such fate
Seems very, very desolate.

****

But yet it matters not, poor child.
That thou must sleep in this lone wild
Each springtime, as it wanders past,
Its buds and blooms will round thee cast
The thick -leaved boughs and moonbeams pale.
Will o’er thee spread a solemn veil,
And softest dews and showers will lave
The blossoms on the infant’s grave.”

The colony mentioned, coming in the fall of 1830, were headed by William Gammill (already noticed), who knew something of the country, and, with Alfred M. Balch, was one of the projectors of the move. In addition to these two, there were Mr. Balch’s children—Ann Jane, who afterward became the wife of H. J. Reynolds, of Neoga; Nanny Caroline, who died in March, 1853 Rhoda E., who died at thirteen years of age, and whose memory her brother George B. has touchingly preserved in verse. George B. was then very young, and has lived all his life in the township, noting all its changes, and has recorded many of them in poetry. Another family (and we shall name each family of this colony) was J. J. and Martha Adams, and their one child, W. E. Adams, then eleven days old. On his arrival, Mr. Adams, like the others, hastily erected a pole cabin, into which he moved. Before he could properly inclose it, the winter set in exceedingly cold, and with great difficulty could they preserve themselves and their child from freezing. The covers of the wagon were taken off, hung inside the cabin walls, and with one device and another, aided by the huge fire kept constantly burning in the great chimney, they man- aged to live through the winter. Many of their neighbors were no better off. The next year, he and all the colonists raised a very good crop, putting it in with the old-fashioned barshare plows, remodeled and repaired their cabins, and by winter were prepared to stand the rigors of a Western winter. It will be recollected that the one before was made memorable by the “deep snow,” and the great freshet in the spring consequent upon the melting of the snow. It is fully noticed elsewhere, and need not be repeated here. It was the same over all the country, only of a greater depth in the northern part of the State. As a portrait and full sketch of Col. Adams’ life appear elsewhere in this volume, we will omit any further mention of his deeds here. They are all worthy a place in the annals of Coles County, and when the Colonel died a few months since, he left behind him a record worthy of imitation by all.
Isaac and Mary Odell, son-in-law and daughter of Mr. Gammill, were also of this company. It was their child that died in Indiana and was left sleeping on the roadside. Their next son, George W. Odell, was the first child born in Charleston, which town was laid out the next summer after the colony’s arrival. Col. Adams and A. M. Balch cut logs and built some of the first houses in that aspiring town. One of these may yet be seen on a hill in the western part of town, just east of where the Ashmore mill was burned. Of all the members of that colony who were men and women when they came, Mrs. Odell—“Aunt Polly“—is the only survivor.
The next family was Andrew and Jane Gammill and their three children, all of whom are living yet. One is Mrs. Caroline Shoemaker, of La Fayette Township, another Mrs. Adaline Hendricks, now in Missouri, and the third Mrs. Lucinda Whetstone, of Pomona, Kan. Mark and Matilda Baker with their two children, Joseph and Matilda, are the next family mentioned. Both the children are now dead. The father died in about two years after coming, from malarial diseases. His wife afterward married M. Tyra Hays, and gave fame to Pleasant Grove by giving existence to three boys at one birth, all of whom are yet living.
Andrew Clark and wife were also in this colony. They had no children when they came. Mr. Clark was afterward well known in Charleston in the hotels there, being one of the early landlords of the town. In this colony were two young men, Philip Odell and S. K. Gammill, who should be noticed here. The first named, Odell, died in Charleston, about 1835. In the early issues of newspapers there, his obituary was published, wherein some friend embalmed his memory in verse which we now recall, and which many of the old people will doubtless remember:

“Could I the sacred nine command.
Or inspiration guide my hand
In numbers sweet but sad, I’d tell
The virtues of our friend Odell.“


The other young man, S. K. Gammill, afterward beca\ne prominently known in the south part of the county. He married Elizabeth Dryden, who yet lives. Mr. Gammill died about twelve years ago, of cholera.
The majority of the persons coming in this little colony, were members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in their native State. They found no church of their own here, and the majority went into the Presbyterian Church at Indian Creek. They remained here, however, but a few years, when, being joined by more of their own profession, they formed a church at Muddy Point, and began services there.
The winter following—1830-31—was, as has been observed, one of great severity. The intense cold, the deep snow, the scanty provisions and poor accommodations made the pioneer’s life one of privation, and to those who had enjoyed the milder serenity of a more southern clime, it called for the strongest powers of fortitude and courage. The following spring, owing to the great snow, was very wet, and it was late before crops could be planted. The cabins were repaired, or new and better ones built, fields were cleared, and preparations to found that home they all desired went steadily on. They went to the Wabash Point timber for mail, where George M. Hanson had the year before obtained a post office, and where quite a number of families, chiefly Methodists in religion, were settled. Those of Pleasant Grove also came here to mill, for Slover’s Mill was about the only one in this part of the country. It was during this summer, it is thought, that C. Campbell opened a blacksmith shop in the township. His shop was near the residence of Zeno Campbell. He was a good workman, making excellent axes, Cary plows and various other implements, which could not have been obtained nearer than Paris, in Edgar County, or equally as distant places. It might be well to mention of Zeno Campbell that he was run for the Legislature on the Whig ticket, from this part of the county. He was an excellent man, but quiet and a little eccentric in his manner, refusing to go out and “stump” the field. This was very likely the cause of his defeat, as he was well respected wherever known. He gave the ground on which the Presbyterian Church was erected in 1832, and with his wife lived to the good old age of more than fourscore years. It will be remembered they came to Pleasant Grove in 1829.
The summer of 1831, brought with it a new influx of immigration. Those who stayed in this township were chiefly Presbyterian in religious views, while those who went to the Wabash Point settlement were largely Methodist. It was a kind of common understanding between the two settlements that persons coming to the new communities were to be mildly drawn to whichever settlement their religious sentiments favored. This they were always ready to do, ias all desired to keep up the home practices and felt easier and more content among their own church people. Among the emigrants of this season may be mentioned John and Michael Whetstone. John settled the farm where the mineral springs were found, supposed to have been known to the aboriginal inhabitants for ages. We have already described these springs and forbear any further mention of them. Other settlers were Hezekiah and Mary Balch and a son Walter W., who is yet living in the neighborhood. They were from Alabama, from the same community that had before sent out Theron E. Balch and his wife. With Hezekiah and his family came Dr. Emmett Balch, who is now at Buckley, Ill. John W. and Louisa Rodgers came with Dr. Balch from Alabama and settled with him here. Thomas and William Jeffries, two prominent men, with their families, came this same season from Kentucky.
The old storehouse, in the possession of Mr. Azariah Jeffries, has a history in itself which is well worth narrating. It is thus told by Mr. Jeffries: “The old storehouse is situated on Section 10, on land entered by Thomas Jeffries, the first Justice in this township. His children are Sallie Dieahl, James, John and Azariah. His house was built in September, 1852, for a store by T. A. Marshall and Milton True. Afterward, Mr. Marshall was elected to the State Senate, and afterward a colonel in the army. Mr. True was elected to the Legislature, and was a general in the army. Gideon Edwards, their clerk, was elected County Judge. When the two proprietors left the store, they sold to I. H. Johnston and Abram Highland, and the singular luck for office-holding seemed to fall upon them. Mr. Johnston was elected Sheriff and Mr. Highland County Treasurer. They sold the building to Clay Worthen and Jefferson Doren. Mr. Worthen was twice elected Circuit Clerk. The mantle failed to fall on the shoulders of Mr. Doren, it seems, as it is not recorded he succeeded in being elected, though twice he ran for County Treasurer. While they owned the building. Dr. C. H. Brunk, a prominent physician in Shelby County, had his office with them. They sold to W. L. Funckhouser and John Hackley. Mr. F. is the largest land-owner in the township, and Mr. H. was Postmaster some time. These men sold to John W. Crawford, who was Postmaster, and who, with Dr. T. A. Kemper, a prominent physician, who had his office in the storehouse, kept the building till he sold to the present owner, Azariah Jeffries. He has, as a consequence it seems, been elected School Trustee three years; Director, nine years; Commissioner, two years; member of Legislature, two years; a delegate to the Democratic Convention in Baltimore that nominated Horace Greeley; been Chairman of the County Democratic Convention, Foreman of grand jury, on the petit jury, and a variety of other minor offices.”
Verily, the house has a history and a fatality unequaled in the West.
Thomas and Hezekiah Balch were the first two Justices of the Peace elected in this part of the county. William Jeffries was the second County Sheriff, serving from 1834 to 1838. The first incumbent of this office was Ambrose Yocum. elected at the first election of the county in February, 1831. He died before the expiration of his term of office, and Mr. Jeffries was elected to the vacancy and to another term. The voting-place in February, 1831, was at the house of James Ashmore, situated where Parker Clark now lives, in La Fayette Township. Every one in the county entitled to a vote came here, and, as the county then included Douglas and Cumberland Counties, many of the voters came a considerable distance to discharge the duties of citizenship. When Pleasant Grove was made a precinct, the voting-place was fixed at Beni White’s house, in the south part of the precinct. It afterward was made at Tully’s still, now in Cumberland County. It then went to Thomas Jeffries, where it remained a few years, and was then taken to a log schoolhouse on Indian Point, near where the Presbtterian Church now is. The next move was not till after the organization of the township, when it was moved to the Balch Schoolhouse, where it stayed thirteen years. About two years ago, it was taken to the Nicholson Schoolhouse, where it will probably abide some time. The still house, mentioned as one of its abiding-places, might be more fully noticed. It was built by Dillard Tulley as a horse-mill in 1832, and was the first enterprise of the kind in this part -of the county. It was afterward converted into a still, and as such was a pioneer. In those days every one drank whisky; no wedding, no house-raising, no harvesting, no election, was carried on without plenty of that animating beverage being used. It was considered essential, and looked upon as one of the necessities of life. Maybe, to save carrying whisky to elections, was one reason why they were held here. Anyway, it was a place of popular resort, and was certain to call out all the voters; that was one consideration. When Cumberland County was set off from Coles, there was left a strip of land a mile or two wide, on the north, which has since been attached. In this strip the still was located. A very common way to get the whisky was to take a bushel of corn and a coffee-pot, and go to the still, exchange the corn for a gallon of whisky and bring it home in the coffee-pot. That was before the era of jugs. Capt. Adams says he was often sent to Tulley’s still in that way when a boy. He tells a story on himself, which is worth preserving here, as illustrative of the customs in the “good old days.” He says he was once sent with the bushel of corn and a new jug—they having just been introduced—for the customary gallon of whisky. He used a fresh cob for a cork in the jug, and, on his return, kept pulling out the cob and sucking the whisky it absorbed. By the time he reached home, he was, to use his own expression, “as full as a goose” His mother quickly noticed his condition, and, turning to her husband, remarked, emphatically: “There, Jefferson, that’s the last time that boy goes to the still” And it was the last time. Good men, one after another, saw the evil tendency of the habit, and, one after another, banished it from their tables, firesides and harvest-fields.
The same summer of 1831, Theron Balch established a Sunday school in his own cabin. He was aided by the first minister in this part of the county Rev. Isaac Bennett, who came here under the care of the Philadelphia Presbytery, to look after this field. He preached the first sermons heard in this part of Illinois, coming all the way from Philadelphia on horse-back. Further mention will be made of him in the chapter devoted to churches in this town- ship. The summer this pioneer Sunday school was established, Julia Balch, a daughter of Theron, taught a day school in the little pole cabin where her father had wielded the birch the winter before.
We have mentioned the fact of the settlers going to Slover’s Mill and to George M. Hanson’s post office, at the Wabash Point timber. This summer, however, they came to the county seat, just then established, for mail, and as Thomas Travis, one of the pioneers of this year, erected a horse-mill, they could get grinding nearer home. In addition to the one at the Wabash Point, they had gone, in some instances, to a mill where Greenup, in Cumberland County, is, on the Embarrass. The mill of Mr. Travis, and the blacksmith-shop of Mr. Campbell, brought commodities nearer their doors, and made many of the inconveniences heretofore experienced things of the past. Already a brighter day was coming.
The season of 1832 brought still more persons seeking homes in the West. Now they began to come in so rapidly that it is impossible to name all. We will, however, give the names of some, as far as we could gather them. It is not necessary to get all, nor to attempt to follow their fortunes. The story of one is the story of all. The biographical portion of this work shows more fully than we can hope to show the lives of many of the pioneers and their deeds in the land of their choice. Among those who came in 1832, we will mention James and Lyda Glenn, with two or three children. They came from Lawrence County, and both are long since dead. Another member of this family was William, an older brother than either the others. He was a great hunter in his time, a veritable Daniel Boone, as it were. There were, also, Daniel and Rachel Edson, with one or two children. They settled the farm where the widow Landers now lives. Then there were Wells Needham and his wife, and others of that company. All the old settlers will doubtless remember John Harvey, an old teacher of the old school. He was a great fiddler, and, in that capacity, was in constant demand for the old-time dances. He was, withal, a little superstitious, and believed in witches. Possibly he read the story of the witches so often he became imbued with their reality. His greatest delight was to hunt squirrels, and in this he became a veritable Nimrod. One of his oddities was a habit of pulling his nose when eating. It in some way seemed to assist him in swallowing his food.
The readers of these narratives will doubtless observe the absence of roads at this period in the history of the county or that of the townships. Until this year, there were no organized efforts in this direction. For several reasons, no roads, save bridle-paths, were to be seen in any place. The settlers were too much occupied in preparing their homes so they could live in comfort; in getting crops sown and gathered, so they might have something aside from wild meat and “johnny-cake” to eat, and in various enterprises, all necessary to their life here The roads were part of the economy of pioneer life that could be allowed to wait other developments.
The season of 1832 is made memorable by the breaking-out of the Black Hawk war. The causes of this war, and its history in a general way, are fully given in the history of the Northwest, in this volume, and for this purpose we omit any mention save locally. Col. Adams, who seems to have always possessed a combative spirit, and was always foremost in defending the frontiers, raised a portion of a company, with which he repaired to Shelbyville, where the full number was obtained, and where they were properly enlisted. Col. Adams’ companions from Pleasant Grove were Obadiah Vincent and Harry Wilson, both of whom are yet living. They furnished their own horses, provisions and ammunition. From Shelbyville they went to Fort Dixon, on Rock River, thence to the Four Lakes, where Madison, Wis., now stands, and followed the retreating Indians till the capture of Black Hawk and the termination of the war. After their return home, they resumed their former avocations, and were never afterward called upon to assist in subduing the red men.
The fall of that year is made memorable by the brilliant meteoric shower. As that event is, however, fully described in the history of Mattoon Township^ and as it, like the “deep snow” and “sudden freeze,” occurred over all the country, one description applies to all.
Following on down through the coming years we can note no events out of the usual order of frontier life. Improvements were constantly going on new; homes were being built; more emigrants came yearly, until the country in 1827, when the first settlers came, was changed from a wilderness to one occu pied by many busy, happy homes, full of enterprise, and all realizing the hopes entertained when they came.
The financial crisis of 1840, incident on the failure of the grand system of internal improvements, effected all the residents of the State. True, no lines of roads had been projected through Pleasant Grove, but the proposed construction of two railroads in the county, the hopes excited by their building and their failure in common with all the rest, made times hard in every township in the county. The country was, however, full of resources, and in ten years’ time had provided for the payment of its enormous indebtedness, and was again on the road to prosperity. The citizens of Pleasant Grove had partaken of this general improvement in various ways. These were exemplified in better habitations, now built of brick and frame. Schoolhouses were getting plenty, school terms were longer, and were more efficient. Other denominations, such as the Methodists and Cumberland Presbyterians, were preparing to build houses of worship, and more of the luxuries of life were apparent. The era of log cabins, and their accompanying discomforts, was passing away.
A good story it told of two aspiring youthful Nimrods in this township, which is certainly worth a place in its annals. A certain farmer had a field of corn, where the grass had been allowed to grow after it was planted until a good growth had been gathered. Deer and all kinds of game abounded then in great numbers. The deer would come to this field at night, soon after the corn was cut, and eat the leaves from the stalks around the shocks. By this means they had destroyed a good deal of fodder. This the owner did not relish much but could see no way to help himself The two youthful hunters determined securing some of the deer, and secretly made arrangements therefor. Going into the field in question after dusk, they had not long to wait till they heard a rustling in the leaves, and waited with beating hearts the approach of the game. Soon a dark object came near enough and one of them raised his gun and fired. The object fell. “Now,” said the other, “ havn’t we done it?” “ We!” replied his comrade, contemptuously, “haven’t done it? ” By this time they had reached the object, which gave a pitiable bleat, and they found—a calf. “Now,” said the one who had fired the shot, “haven’t we done it?” “Yes,” said the other, “haven’t you done it?” To the boys’ credit, it must be said, they skinned the calf, took the hide to the owner, and paid him for the damage. They could have gone off and no one known who had killed the calf. But for “many a day they heard not the last of ” that calf story!
The young men learned to enjoy it with all the rest, and will, if they are living and see this description, enjoy a laugh over their exploit.
Of the remaining history of Pleasant Grove Township, little can be said. That of the churches and schools will appear in separate chapters, and will add to the value of these annals. On down through the Mexican war, in which Col. Adams and a few of her citizens took a part; through the era of the rebuilding of railroads, in 1854, 1855 and 1856, to the time the Grayville and Mattoon Road was begun and until it was completed, we find no incidents of consequence. The G. & M. Railroad brought a market near the township and affords an easy outlet for its products. There is, in the history of this township, the narrative of one family, who produced a man whose name and deeds will live while the world shall endure, which must not be omitted. We have reserved mention of them until this time, as we desired giving what could be gleaned concerning them in an unbroken account. We refer to the Lincoln family. They were from Kentucky, and traced their lineage to an ancient family on Atlantic Coast. The parents of the President, who lived during their declining years in this township, are the only ones of the name who dwelt in this county or even, we believe, in this State. Thomas Lincoln was, all his life, one of those easy, honest, commonplace men, who take life as they find it, and, as a consequence, generally find it a life of poverty. He left Kentucky, where he had in vain essayed to prosper, about the year 1816, and located on the north shore of the Ohio River, in Spencer County, Ind., where he and his son, then a lad of about eight years old, kept a ferry. He remained here a few years, when he removed to a farm which he purchased, a few miles north of the county seat, in Spencer County. Here Abraham’s mother died, and here, in a little country church-yard, unmarked by any stone, and shaded by a few straggling forest-trees, she is quietly sleeping. Two years after, his father married again. In 1830, the family removed from Spencer County to Macon County, Ill., settling about ten miles southwest of Decatur. Here Abe Lincoln, then just of age, aided the family in their start on the prairies, and here he split the rails, which, in after years, cut the important figure in politics almost akin to the log cabin and hard cider in Harrison’s day. The next spring, the young man went into life for himself, earning, it is said, his first money on a flatboat. The parents, left to themselves, made a poor living, and, a little over a year after, removed to the southwest part of Coles County, near the line between Paradise and Pleasant Grove, and essayed to begin life anew. They arrived here in the fall of 1831, having been in Macon County since the spring of 1830. They settled near Buck Grove, where they built a cabin, and remained a few months, probably till the following spring, when they moved to Goose-Nest Prairie, obtained some land, erected a cabin and settled down to life. Mr. Lincoln, though an excellent man, and a much-esteemed citizen, possessed no faculty whatever of preserving his money, when he made any, hence he always remained poor. He was easily contented, had few wants, and those of a primitive nature. He was a foe to intemperance, strictly honest, and, supposing others the same, often suffered pecuniary losses. He left the active management of his affairs gradually to his stepson, John Johnston, and, erecting himself a cabin on a knoll, on the western part of his land, passed his declining days in comparative ease, measured by his own estimate. He lived to see his son an excellent lawyer, and, when Abe was on his circuits, practicing law, he always came out to the old cabin to visit his parents. It was his custom, on such occasions, to load his buggy with provisions and take them with him. Thomas Lincoln lived on the farm until January 9, 1851, when he died, from an attack of fever. Abraham Lincoln had come to see him in response to his wish through a letter from Mr. A. H. Chap- man, and spent some time with him. He left word to send for him in case the disease assumed a malignant form. A severe attack soon followed his departure, proving fatal, and before Abe could be notified, his father was gone. In his early life, he joined the Baptists; afterward, the “Presbyterian-Baptists,” as they were called, and finally, owing to a disaffection in the church, the Christians, in whose communion he died. He had learned to read and write, after his marriage; but as far as any further education was concerned, he had none. He was noted for his peaceable qualities; for settling, arbitrarily, disputes among his neighbors, and was, in that respect, universally respected. While in the old cabin, where he lived and died, we were shown the family record, copied by Mr. Hall from a leaf of the family Bible. It is well worth recording, and we give it entire. It reads:
“Thomas Lincoln was born Jan. 6, 1778, and was married June 6, 1806, to Nancy Hanks, who was born Feb. 5, 1784.
“Sarah Lincoln, daughter of Thomas. and Nancy Lincoln was born Feb. 20, 1807.
“Abraham Lincoln, son of Thomas and Nancy Lincoln, was born Feb. 12, 1809.
“Sarah Bush, first married to Daniel Johnston and afterward second wife of Thomas Lincoln, was born Dec. 13, 1788.
“John D. Johnston, son of Daniel and Sarah Johnston, was born May 10, 1810, and married to Mary Barker Oct. 13, 1834, who was born July 22, 1816.”
When Mr. Lincoln died, the estate came into Mr. Johnston’s hands, who, not then realizing the value attached to many of the family records, allowed them to be carelessly carried off by idle curiosity-hunters and become lost. Mr. Lincoln now lies buried in the little Gordon church-yard, no monument marking his grave save “a hillock and bowlder.” Mr. George B. Balch has embalmed the spot in poetry, which we present our readers in preceding pages. After Abraham Lincoln was elected to the Presidency, he visited the grave of his father in company with A. H. Chapman and John Hall. It was on a rather cold day in February, just preceding his inauguration, and after viewing the spot, the party returned to Farmington, where a sumptuous dinner had been prepared for the distinguished man. When Mr. Lincoln returned to Charleston, he asked one of the younger members of the Hanks family to find out the probable cost of a tombstone for his father’s grave. During the conversation on the subject, Mr. Lincoln asked Mr. Chapman what he thought the expense would be. Mr. Chapman answered not less than $40, or more than $60, he thought. “Well,” said the President, “see what it will cost and let me know at Washington, and I will send you an inscription I want put on.” The war came on, and he could not attend to it. It has been erroneously supposed that he left money, and it was not appropriately used. This, Mr. Chapman says, is untrue, and that the only arrangement made was the one already given. Further proof is given in a letter from Mrs. Lincoln after her husband’s untimely death, wherein she refers to the thought often expressed by the President that as soon as his term of office expired, he would return here and see to the erection of the monument. As his estate is ample now to put such a monument as will perpetuate the memory of Thomas Lincoln, when properly presented before the heirs, they will no doubt attend to it. Another rumor is prevalent in the community where Thomas Lincoln died. It is supposed that when the President visited the grave at the time mentioned, he cut the letters “T. L.” on a walnut board and drove it into the ground at the head of the grave. This the writer of these pages endeavored to find, but could not. Mr. Chapman says he did not cut the letters and place the board at the grave as represented. He was with him all the time, and he says no such thing happened. The board in question was found by the writer to be the end of a fence rail, with the letters “T. E.” cut in it, and standing at the foot of the grave. Rumors of all kinds are easily started; but no one could be found who knew the board was there, or who knew the money was left. “Nathan had told Nathan’s son,” and that was all there was about it. After the death of Thomas Lincoln, “Grandmother Lincoln,” as she was always called, lived on the old farm or with her relatives in Charleston and Farmington. She was a kind, good woman, and died universally respected. She lies buried in the same church-yard with her husband, and like him has no stone to mark her resting place. During her life, she was allowed the benefits of the farm, which after her death passed into the hands of her son, John Johnston. Mr. John Hall purchased it from him and now resides there.

THE SCHOOLS.


As has been noticed, Theron E. Balch taught a school in a small pole cabin in the winter of 1829-30. Some place it the next winter; but the weight of opinion favors the time given. School was continued here with commendable regularity each winter, and sometimes in the summer. All were supported by subscription. Each patron subscribed as many pupils as he could send at $2.50 each per quarter—three months, and paid the tuition in various articles of barter, coonskins, beeswax, hides, honey, or whatever the dominie could exchange for board or clothing. As the different parts of the precinct settled, other schools were built, and as these settlements grew, better houses appeared. But little if any change occurred in the modes of instruction, length of term, and mode of paying the teacher until a revenue was derived from the State Treasury from the sale of school lands. Again, in 1844, 1845 and 1846, the revenue was farther augmented by the gradual adoption of free schools, i. e., supported by a general tax. These, in time, superseded the old subscription schools. Now. the law compels each district to conduct a school a certain number of months in the year to derive any benefit from the general fund. In addition to this, the Directors of each district may levy such a tax as they deem sufficient to carry on the school a month or two in excess of the time required by law. This gives in many districts, school from six to nine months in each year. The old log school with its puncheon floor, slab seats, paper window, long writing-desk, broad, open fire-place, cross teacher, Smiley’s Arithmetic, American Speller, and other primitive appliances, is now a thing of the past. Since 1860, better houses and higher grades of instruction are required, and a con- sequent advantage and advancement the result. Frame houses began to appeal in 1858, 1859 and 1860; and, in 1853, a brick one arose on the site of Farmington. It was, however, intended as a seminary, but after serving a while in that capacity, became a common schoolhouse, and finally a store.

CHURCHES.


Incidental mention has been made throughout the preceding pages of churches and schools in Pleasant Grove Township, reserving a more extended notice of these subjects in a separate chapter. The first church in this part of the county was built on the Little Indian Creek in 1832. Two years before, on August 30, 1830, the Presbyterian Church of Pleasant Prairie, so say the records, was organized by the Rev. B. F. Spillman, connected with, and under the care of, the General Assembly. The organization was effected with fourteen members. They were Thomas Mayes, Agnes Mayes, Theron Balch, Ann Boyd, Thomas McCracken, Nancy McCracken, James Ashmore, Cassandra Ashmore, Rachel Ashmore, Margaret Ashmore, William Wayne, Mary Wayne, James Logan and Elizabeth Logan. Of these persons none are now living. They met for organization at the house of Theron Balch, it is supposed, or, if the pole cabin schoolhouse was erected, there. Whether Mr. Spillman remained long preaching here, is not known. Probably not, as it is thought he was over this part of Illinois looking after scattering members of the Presbyterian congregations, and organizing them into churches. Hence, he would be here but a little. Their earliest minister was Rev. Isaac Bennett, a rather eccentric character, who, it will be observed, is noticed elsewhere in this work. He was here some three or four years. This church was the first Presbyterian Church established in the county, and was, for a number of years, the only place of worship in the township. The Church records show no additions until the next summer. On July 24, 1831, fourteen more members are received, eleven on certificate, and three on profession. These are the members of the colony whose history is given on previous pages. They came the fall after the organization of the Church, but, being principally members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, waited a while hoping to found a church of their own. As the settlement was young, however, they gave up such plans for awhile, and joined with the Indian Point Church.
The next summer —1832—on June 1, the members met and agreed to donate so many days of work each, in building a church. It was to be of logs. 24x30 feet in size. The original list of subscriptions show from two to twelve days’ labor subscribed by each one, while Mr. Barnett subscribed twenty-six spikes, and William Wayne thirty bushels of lime. In all, eighty days were subscribed, and, that fall, the church was raised and covered. It could be used only in the warm weather, as no floor or windows were yet made. The flooring was afterward sawn out by a whip-saw, an exceedingly long and tiresome process, while the siding and roof were made from slabs split out with a maul and wedges, and dressed with a frow. The church, made in this manner, was considered quite an affair, for the times, and, considering the appliances at hand, and the labor necessary to build a frame house in that manner, it is certainly creditable. It had two doors in front, between which the pulpit was placed. The latter was one of those high, old-fashioned, box-like affairs, behind which the minister was pretty effectually screened. It is said that, when Mr. Bennett sat down in it, the top of his head only was visible to the congregation. The seats in this church were made by placing long slabs on trestles. They were without backs, and placed rather closely together. If any one became sleepy then, as now, and wanted to lean his head forward on the seat in front, he had a poor chance, surely. May be they did not get sleepy then, as they do now; the room was always well ventilated, and the sermon more of a rarity than now. The church remained in its unfinished condition about two years. The one who subscribed the lime failed to produce it, and, as Rev. John McDonald, now the Pastor, possessed energy in worldly matters, as well as in spiritual, he, with the aid of Mr. Nicholson, yet living in the neighborhood, prepared to remedy the deficiency, and make the house comfortable in cold as well as in warm weather. Rev. McDonald found a lime-rock in the Indian Creek, and it was determined to use it to plaster the church. Logs were hauled by the members and piled around and on it, and, being set on fire, burned it to a pulverized condition. By the aid of sand, also found here, Mr. McDonald and his parishioners made an excellent plaster, and, having put split lath on the inner side of the house, the worthy minister plastered the church with his own hands. As the weather was cold at the time, he took up the floor of the church, made a bed of sand in the center of the inclosure, and therein kept a great fire burning until the plastering was thoroughly dried.
In 1834, the congregation employed Rev. James H. Shields, of Indiana, one-half his time. He, however, sent them word, afterward, that he could not attend. The congregation was growing very well at this date, the main losses being those who left to unite with other churches of their own particular creed, which they could not find when they came first to the country. Rev. Bennett remained here, at different times, several years. He had been in the county when it was first settled; had made three trips on horse-back between Philadelphia and his charges in the West, and had seen the infant congregations expand into self-supporting charges. His old, faithful horse passed its declining days in this part of the State, dying at last in Lawrence County, where, out of respect to its master and its own good service, it was given a decent interment by some young men.
In examining old records of the Church, and, indeed, of all churches of that date, we find many phases of human life exemplified. Then the church assumed more of the functions of a court than now, and tried persons who committed acts unworthy their profession. The records of Indian Point Church show that a certain member was found “guilty of making cheese on the Sabbath Day,” and was suspended. Others are, at times, “admonished.” The church grew all the while, and, where any took offense at such proceedings, they were at liberty to withdraw.
This part of the West was too remote in the wilderness to note the transactions of important events when they transpired. It took several weeks for the news to reach the inland settlement of Illinois at that day. Hence, when the dismemberment of the great Presbyterian Church occurred, we find no note is taken of it in Pleasant Prairie until a year or two after it had occurred. On August 9, 1839, the members of the Pleasant Prairie Church met to consider that question, and after a discussion and explanation of the division, a ballot was taken to decide to which of the two great bodies—technically called Old and New School—they should annex themselves. They seemed to be pretty evenly divided, as a majority of 3 votes was cast to remain with the “Old School.” The dissenters to this view numbered thirty-one, and drawing off formed a new Church, and from this date down to the re-union in 1871, we find two congregations. They were so amicably situated that by an outsider, however, the difference could not have been detected. Both congregations used the same house, though each employed their own Pastor and managed their own affairs. The old Church was left with twenty-five members, whose first minister was Rev. John McDonald, who had come from Ohio to the north part of the State, and who had attended the first meeting of a Presbyterian Presbytery in Illinois, at the house of Rev. Stephen Bliss, in Wabash County. When he came to Pleasant Prairie, he lived in a split-log or pole cabin, near the church, that had heretofore been used for a schoolhouse. He lived in this until he could erect a house for himself and his family, into which they moved when it was completed. He died about twelve years ago. The family still reside on the old homestead. He remained in charge of the Church until his health failed, even then preaching occasionally. He was succeeded by the Rev. Joseph Adams, who came from Philadelphia, and remained about two years. He, in turn, by Rev. R. A. Mitchell, who lived in Charleston; he, by Rev. Elliott; he, by James W. Allison; he, by A. Kemper, of Mattoon; he, by Nathaniel Williams; he, by Ellis Howell, under whose ministry the re-union occurred; he, by Robert Ash; he, by George W. Davis, and he, by the present Pastor, R. G. Ross.
The New-School branch first employed Rev. John C. Campbell. His successors were C. H. Palmer, Joseph Wilson, who remained here a number of years, and E. Kingsbury. When the congregation re-united with the other and original one, they came under the care of the minister there.
The old church, built by contribution of labor, spikes and lime, and plastered by Rev. McDonald, remained in use until 1852, when the Old-School branch built the house standing just back of the present church. This, like its predecessor, was used by both congregations until 1857, when the New-School branch built a neat frame church in the village of Farmington. They were assisted in the effort by the Methodists in that vicinity, who were allowed to use the house in consequence. This was done till 1866, when they completed their own church. The Old-School congregation used the church built in 1852 till 1866, when, becoming too small and worn out, it was replaced by the present one; dedicated when Rev. Howell was Pastor.
On the 14th of October. 1871, the Mattoon Presbytery united the two Churches as one congregation again, employing one minister, still keeping both houses of worship, holding services alternately in each.
As has been incidentally mentioned, the Cumberland Presbyterians and the Methodists began organizing Churches about the year 1850 or 1852—possibly, earlier. The strongest Methodist community was in Mattoon Township, then Paradise Precinct, at the head of the Wabash Point timber. Its history will be found in the history of that settlement, and there, it will be observed, it antedates the Indian Creek Presbyterian Church a year or two in point of organization. The denomination began holding meetings in Pleasant Prairie early in the life of that settlement. They united with the Cumberland Presbyterians in the west side of the township in erecting a house of worship, about 1852 or 1853, and -with them occupied it, alternately, until 1866, the centennial year of American Methodism, when they completed their present house of worship, situated near the southwestern part of the township. It was dedicated April 29, 1866, when Rev. J. H. Aldrich was Pastor. The dedicatory sermon was preached by Rev. Dr. Phillips. The Church is known as the Muddy Point M. E. Church, from its location in the vicinity of that stream, and can trace its origin to the time the original Methodist Church at Wabash Point divided into three congregations, to suit the members, who were too widely scattered to attend there, and organized churches in their own neighborhoods. Almost cotemporary with the organization of the Muddy Point Church, one was formed in the “Goose-Nest Prairie.” They, like all other infantile congregations, held meetings at first in each other’s cabins. When the brick schoolhouse was built in Farmington, in 1853, they, with the Presbyterians, occupied that. Then, when this latter denomination built their church in the village, the Methodists aided them, and were, in consequence, allowed the use of their house of worship. This arrangement was continued until they built their own church, in 1866. They have a good congregation at present.
The Cumberland Presbyterians organized their first Church at Muddy Point in 1833. It is known as the Good Prospect Church, and was organized by Rev. Isaac Hill. They met in dwellings and schoolhouses, at first, continuing the practice till 1864, when they completed their present house of worship. For several years prior to this time, they occupied a large schoolhouse, which answered every purpose. Their principal pastors have been Revs. Isaac Hill, Daniel Campbell, James Ashmore and J. W. Woods. The latter is now living in Mattoon. The membership is now about eighty; the Sunday school of about the same number.
The second church of this denomination is the outgrowth of a great revival, occurring in 1837. Those who are now living and attended that revival will, doubtless, remember the powerful sermon preached by Rev. Mitchell, of Charleston, then expecting to go to China as a missionary. As the result of this revival, a large accession accrued to the Church; and, in 1843, the second congregation, known as Pleasant Grove Church, was organized by Rev. J. W. Woods. Their first meetings were held in the houses of William Gammill (who will be remembered as one of the early members in the Indian Point Presbyterian Church) and John Whetstone, and in a schoolhouse in the neighborhood. The principal members were those named and the families of Alfred Alexander, Michael Whetstone and C. J. Dexter. Their pastors have been Revs. Woods, Isaac Hill, James Ashmore and others. The membership is now about seventy, and the attendance at Sunday school about the same. Their house of worship was erected in 1856, and was used, occasionally, by the Methodists, who assisted in its erection. These two Churches and the Methodist Church are all in this part of the township. They evince a people religious in feeling.

FARMINGTON.


This village, the only one in the township, is situated on Section 16. It was laid out April 25, 1852, by Thomas Lytle, a surveyor, for John J. Adams, owner of the land on which it is situated. A post office had existed for some time before this in this community, known as Campbell Post Office, as it was started by Frank Campbell, the first Postmaster here. The office at Farmington is yet known by that name. The village received its name from Mrs. Adams, who named it for Farmington, Tenn. There being one post office of that name in the State, when the village started, the Post Office Department refused to change the office name to correspond, hence it is yet known as Campbell’s Post Office. Soon after the village was platted, Leander Burlingame built a house and store and opened a stock of goods. About the same time. Dr. Halbrooks and Samuel A. Reel erected a store and began business. Which of these two stores was first is hard to determine. It is probable they were erected at the same time and opened within a few days of each other. The post office was soon after moved into the village, a blacksmith named Gr. F. Biddle came, and the life of the village assumed tangibility. The next year the residents in this community, desirous of better educational advantages, erected a very good and substantial brick schoolhouse, intending it for seminary purposes. It was named Farmington Seminary, and, for a time, a very creditable school was maintained here. It also served as a place of public worship for the Methodists, who were numerous in this part of the township. It answered the double purpose of school and church until 1857, when the Presbyterians erected, with the aid of the Methodists, a neat frame house of worship in the western part of town, and public religious services were thereafter held there. The advent of the free schools brought a better system of education, and the Seminary was abandoned, the building turned over to the school authorities of the township, and common school held therein. After the village grew so that the building became too small, it was sold, changed into a store, and the present two-roomed house erected.
The foregoing narrative shows the earliest attempts to found a church in the village: As early as 1835, the Methodist ministers were in this part of the county, organizing classes and laying the foundations for churches. Rev. McKee was one of the earliest remembered. Rev. Ryan, another early circuit-rider, organized a class of ten or twelve members in Goose-Nest Prairie, at George Rogers’ house, not long after the settlement was made. They used each other’s cabins at first, then the log schoolhouses, next the brick seminary, then the Presbyterian Church they assisted in building, which they occupied until they completed their own house of worship in 1866. It is a comfortable, neat frame church and accommodates a good congregation. The history of the Presbyterian Church in the village need not be repeated here, as it is sufficiently given in the sketch of the churches in the township history. The Pastor of both charges—practically one congregation—resides in the village, preaching alternately in each church.
The village is yet small, containing, perhaps, one hundred inhabitants. The flouring-mill of Adams & Freeman, erected in 1866, by Harris & Crow, does a very fair business. It has only a local trade; but it is constant and self-supporting. They can readily find a market for all they can grind above the wants of their customers.
The post office, Larna, is kept by Mr. George B, Balch, who aided the railroad in this section, and who makes a stopping-place at his house for the trains. It is a very convenient place for the neighborhood, and should be maintained, and a depot erected. Another stopping-place is made a few miles north, on the farm of Mr. Miller, from whom the place takes its name. No depot, office or platform is made here, however.
We have now given in outline the history of Pleasant Grove Township. Its details would fill a volume. There would, however, be much repetition, which we have found difficult to avoid, and which we trust we have accomplished. The biographies of many of her citizens given elsewhere in these pages show much of the history which this volume perpetuates, and in away it only can be perpetuated. Had a similar work been published in the counties wherein we were raised, who would not prize it?
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