History of Fountain County, together with historic notes on the Wabash Valley

1004 Pages·1881·61.5 MB·English

by  H. W. Beckwith

HISTORY
FOUNTAIN COUNTY
>
rOOETlIER"WITH
HISTORIC NOTES ON THE WABASH VALLEY,
ILEANED FROir EARLY AUTHORS, OLD MAPS AXD MANUSORTPTS,
PRIVATE AND OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE, AND OTHEt; '
AUTHENTIC, 'J'HOUGH, FOR THE MOST PART.
OUT-OF-THE-WAY SOURCES.
Ev II. W. BECiKWITII,
WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS.
CHICAGO:
HILL AND N. IDDI^GS, PUBLISHERS.
1881.
COPTBIGOT,ISSl,
ByII.W.BECKWITII AND SON.
PREFACE.
1117143
In presenting tinsHistorytotliepublic the editors iiiid ]iublislicrs
liave had in view the ])reservation of certain valuable historical
tacts and infoi-mationwhich without concentrated effort would not
havebeenobtained,butwith thepassingawayoftheold pioneers,
the failure ofmemory, and the loss ofpublic records and private
diaries, would soon have been lost. This locality being compara-
tively new, we flatter ourselves that, witli the zeal and industry
displayed by our general and local historians, we have succeeded
in rescuing fnnn the fading years almost every scrap of history
worthyof—preservation. Doubtless thework is,in some respects,
imperfect; wech)not presentitasamodel literaryeffoit, but, in
that which goes to make up avaluable book ofreference for the
present reader and the future historian,weassureourpatronsthat
neither moneynor time has been spared in theaccomplishmentof
thework. Perliaps some errorswill befound. With treacherous
memories, ^jersonal, political and sectarian prejudices and prefer-
encestocontendagainst,itwouldbealmostamiracleifnomistakes
weremade. Wehopethat even these defectswhich maybefound
to exist maybe made availablein so far as theymayprovoke dis-
cussion and call attention tocori-ections and additions necessaryto
perfect history.
The "HistoryoftheWabash Valley"—necessarily the founda-
tionforthehistoryofthis jiartofthecountry, byJI.W. lieckwith,
of Danville-has already received the licarly endorsenient of the
press, of the historical societies oftlu; northwestern states, and ot
the most accurate historians in tlie country. Mr. Beckwith hasin
his possession perhaps the most extensive private library ofrare
historical works bearingontheterritoryunderconsideration in the
world, and from them he iias drawn as occasion demanded.
The general county history, written byJudgeT. F. Davidson,
will be found byouri-eaderstobeinabold, fearless style, dealing
infactsassomanycauses, and pursuing effectsto the end witliout
turningtotherightorleft toaccommodate the opinions or prefer-
ences offriend,partyorsect.
The township histories, by Messrs. Peacock, Coen, Carnahan,
Hyde, Turner, Kicker and Conversewill befound full ofvaluable
recollections,which,butfortheirpatient research, must soonhave
been lost forever, but which are now happily preserved for all
ages tocome. These gentlemen have placed upon these counties
and the adjacent countryamarkwhichwill notbeobliterated, but
which will grow brighter and broader as the years go by.
The biographical department contains the names and private
sketches of nearly every person of importance iii each township.
Afewpersons, whose sketcheswe should be pleased to have pre-
sented, for various reasons refused or delayed furnishing us with
the desired information, and in this matter only we feel that our
work is incomplete. However, in most of such cases we have
obtained, in regard to the most important persons, some items,
and have woven them into the county or township sketches, so
that, as we believe, we cannot be accused of either partiality or
prejudice.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
PART
I.
— CHAPTER I.
phy ThedrainageoftheLakesandtheMississippi,andtheIndianand
enchnamesbywhichtheywereseverallycalled 11
DrainageoftheIllinois andWabaCsHhA—PTThEeiRrtIIr.ibutarystreams—TheSportages
connectingthedrainagetotheAtlanticwiththatoftheGulf 17
TheancientMaumceValley—GeolCogHiAcaPlTfEeaRturIeIsI.—TheportageoftheWabash
andtheKankakee 21
CHAPTER IV.
Therainfall—Cultivationofthesoiltendstoequalizerainfall,andpreventthe
recurrenceofdrouthsandfloods 26
CHAPTERV.
Origin of—the prairies——Theirformer extent—Gradual encroachment of the
forest Prairie fires Aboriginalnamesoftheprairies, and the Indians
wholivedexclusivelyuponthem 29
EarlyFrenchdiscoveries—JaquesICCaHrAtPieTr^EaRs—ceVnId.sthe St.Lawrence in 1535——
"SamuelChamplainfoundsQuebecin1G08 In1642]Montrealisestablished
InfluenceofQuebecand—MontrealupontheNorthwestcontinuesuntilsubse-
quenttothewarof1812 SpanishdiscoveriesofthelowerMississippiin1525, 37
CHAPTERVII.
—
Jolietand Marquette'sVoyage Father Marquette'sJou—rnal,descriptiveofthe
journeyandthecountrythroughwhichtheytraveled Biographicalsketches
ofMarquetteandJoliet 43
CHAPTERVIII.
LaSalle'sVoyage—BiographicalsketchofLaSalle—SketchofFatherHennepin
andthemeritofhiswritings 54
CHAPTER IX.
LaSalle'sVoyagecontinued—HeerectsFortMiamis 63
CHAPTER X.
Theseveralriverscalled the Miamis—LaSalle'sroute downtheIllinois—The
KDca3nkPalkaeineesM—arTshheesI—llTihneoiFs-re"nFcohrtanCdrevIcncd.iTaunr"na—meTsheofwhtoheleKavanlklaekyeeofatnhde
greatrivertakenpossessionofinthenameoftheKingofFrance 73
TABLE OF COKTENTS.
CHAPTERXI.
DeatmaMhinsdos1fi6hs9is9Lsi,apcpotSiloalo—lneeys,CthdaeiibnlscitasraghotoytCesedremtep—tetlkieSn—megecnTotthnosdeeosaontrtaitbgtelihminepshtofGoautfhlceFforn—laoanTncmyheee,n—ueWnaeLdrsaetrtSeahrMlelnoenmsaCo.suostmIabhspesaroivnfniaylttl—hee,ed
Law'sschemeofinflationanditsconsequences 87
CHAPTERXII.
Surr—TeKnhadneekrMakaoefuemL,eouCeihsiaicnaadngaoWatobCratesheehk,,FrtaehnnedchOthhCeiron,ouwtmnhbeienrM1aa7un31dme—oeriEgaairnnldoyfWraotubhteaeisrshsbeyvdeewrsaaclyrinobafemdteh—se
Indianvillages 96
CHAPTERXIII.
Aboriogriignianl—inThahbeitKaanstksa—skiTahse,CsaehvoerkailasI,llTi—naomiasrtoraibse,sP—eoOrifatsheanndamSleetUchhniogiasm,isa,nsduibt-s
dRiivviesrio—nsTohfeitrhedecIllliinneoiasnCdonrfeemdoevraalcywestTwhaerdtroafditthieonMicsosnocuerriningttieIroquois105
CHAPTERXIV.
TheTttopmMhfhhoieeevearitaymraEhlienndmscgewFifhe—leresi—seathntTtCacwehr—thasyehsr—eTiddMohiIinTsaerahpnoyomeoqdsfiiuiar,optrtiriehbseoPersniu—iaerp—avnoeTntlrnkhTacyeehnot—sdyenhshidetraiTrtiwhaMnitedoraieanaIurndlwmdlediieentacoWehilnesidt,anahendeIdi—bnfEBadWncDinugeaadlshnbsttsaia—rheuss,achTnwtahii—denvtidehTOrhehtisfehnifuieceporuceFtr—rVsriiteToolhhnfrleiecaitihganyrentasaegrnnme—ed-dr-119
CHAPTERXV.
ThePottawatomies—OriginallyfromthenorthandeastofLakeHuron-Their
Tmtmhihiegeeirnrac—teviOisoclonlcusautg—phebsyya—nwadaApyoetraotpfsietoaMnwcaeaocrfwkdiitt-nhheTahtwcehoieturoUnntgtihraetymeecodsfoSu—ttnahtteOrerysMiiwgaeaifnstmetirosoftfhateLlhoaewnkagenratoMmhfieec1h8PWi1oag2tbat—naa,wsCahaetndo—de-
theu:lands TheirexodusfromtheWabash,theKankakeeandWabash... 137
CHAPTERXVI.
TheWiWKniiascbc1kao7an1sps2hoio—n—s,IaiDnnnwdes1lo6Mlu7aet0srhcs—eoruonTtfhLeWtnihisresrcrepoesrnciaesdipiertiniaeob—noauonTtfdhteShinaerogrCitdanehtashetworrlnuBiccatIyflialoiitnnnhoei1ars6ts1——2t;hMeOinogsnritaehFtgeoeeMxoatfRouimvDteeerhe-,e
t—HarroJnio.it'n^—oNnTe—aerclTuhymesdieerhstcrioonuyntatrhyeboIbdlelytin—woeiesTnhaenytdh,ePwiIialtnlhikneostihshaewasnW,dinaWnnaedbbaaogcsochueps—y,ThtheaetiitrraccrkoeusFnetomrr-yt
blancetotheSacandFoxIndians 153
CHAPTERXVII.
ThestASehrhteeatlwAsenuumebeenGdsltuaseiad—z—ned,aTnhMdDeaeiulrdarmiwveivaelerlneaasgnoe—udstWoObanryibgtaithnsheaehlBl—IyirgoTeqahuaseontidsDoe—fLliattTwhthlaeeeryeAMslilwa—emagirMhsaa,ondnytehteMwhoeoSumtAn.etmnMaeairronifysc'abs—n,y
—theIroquois TheircountryonWhiteRiver,Indiana,andeastwarddefined
They,withtheShawnees,sentwestoftheMississippi 170
CHAPTERXVIII.
The Indians—Theirimplements,utensils,fortifications,mounds,mannersand
customs 180
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAFl'ERXIX.
stonepeiamnpsl—emeIlnltussturasteidonbsyotfhvearInidoiuLsinksibnedfsoroeftshteoynecaimmeplienmceonnttsa,ctanwdithsutghgeesEtuiroon-s
astotheirprobableuses 195
CHAPTERXX.
—
ThetpwheaearrNafonorcretthh—weefVsuatrl—utreaTdohefethbeuFfotf'ru.irmleotrr;aadtebhue;inridtarsnaincmgepeo,orftthaweinilcrdenatuonmiCbmaeanrlass,daanadudwaftienral-fdoiwslapi-n208
CHAPTERXXI.
— —
Thewarfortheempire EnghshclaimstotheNorthwest DeedsfromtheIro-
quoistoalargepartofthecountry 224
CHAPTERXXII.
Pontiac'swartor—ecoverthecountry fromthe.English—P—ontiac'sconfederacy
fallstopieces ThecountryturnedovertotheEnglish Pontiac'sdeath..".^234
CHAPTER XXIII.
Gen.cGtuoCerlnneav.srokCy'KlsoaafrsckkoEa—nnsqgkulHieiiasssth—mbaoTofnahutestschreasitu"prtItrhleelmnimedneomoriuosti"ohrf—oofVfTithnhhioeesenVRmneeaervrsmocil—hluitCoitanoopnttRah.irevyeHIrlewl—lainmroOi—rssg—uSarnkpHierzteiacstehcsiaopona-f
ofthenorthwestterritoryintoIllinoiscountyofVirginia 21.5
HISTORY OF FOUNTAIN COUNTY.
Territorialorganization 1
Earlysettlements ;)
BoardofJustices 32
BoardofCommissioners 4()
Countyofficers 43
Elections 4G
Courts 5S
Publicbuildingrs 65
Schools 70
Population,resources,etc 71
Militaryrecord 75
Earlysettlers 80
TroyTownship ' 85
Covington 90
Mills,postotfices,etc 100
Thepress 101
Removalofthecountyseat 104
Incorporation 105
Srhool. 110
Churches • Ill
I-odges 115
Biograpliical 118
LopanTownship 170
Attica 173
Transportation 178
Manufactoriesandhotels 180
Water-works 161
Schools 182
Churches 183
Societies 186
Newspapers ISO
Biographical 100
10 TABLE OF CONTENTS.
RichlandTownship 213
Firstsettlers 214
Fires,etc 222
Churches 225
Biographical 232
VanBurenTownship 28')
Earlysettlement 28G
Progress 290
Presentstatus 291
Schools 294
Churches 295
Biographical 209
ShawneeTownship 340
Settlementsandorganization 341
RobRoy 342
Portland 343
Mills,schoolsandteachers 345
Churches 347
Societies 354
Biographical 355
WabashTownship 379
Churches 383
Biographical 385
MillCreekTownship 393
Religion 394
Biographical 397
FultonTownship 421
Churches 424
Biographical 420
DaviSschTooowlnsship , 443482
Mormons 445
Religious 446
Towns 447
Biographical 448
JacksonTownship 4G1
Jacksonville 405
Organizations 4G7
Biographical 408
CainTownship 472
Churches 477
Schools 480
Societies 481
Biographical 483
Good-bye 493
THE WABASH VALLEY.
CIIAFrER
I.
TOPOGRAPHY.
TnE reader will have a better understanding of the manner in
which the territory, herein treated of, was discovered and subse-
quently occupied, ifreference is made, in the outset,to some ofits
moreimportanttopographicalfeatures.
Indeed,itwouldbeanunsatisfactorytasktotrytofollowtheroutes
ofearlytravel,or toundertake to pursue the devious wanderings of
the aboriginal tribes,or trace the advance ofcivilized societyinto a
country,withoutsomepreliminaryknowledgeofitstopography.
Looking upon amap ofXorth America,it is observed that west-
ward of the Alleghany Mountains the waters are di\ided into two
great masses; the one, composed of waters flowing into the great
northern lakes,is,bytheriverSt.Lawrence,carried intotheAtlantic
Ocean; the other,collected byamultitudeofstreamsspreadoutlike
avastnetoverthesurfixceofmorethantwentystatesand several ter-
ritories,isgathered atlastintotheMississippi Piiver,and thence dis-
chargedintotheGulfofMexico.
AsitwasbytheSt.LawrenceEiver,and thegreatlakesconnected
with it,that the Northwest Territorywas di.-;covered, and for many
yearsitstrademainlycarriedon,amoreminutenoticeofthisremark-
ablewatercommunicationwillnot beoutofplace. JaccjuesCarticr,
aFrench navigator,havingsailed fromSt.Malo,entered,onthe10th
ofAugust.1535,theGulf,whielihehadexploredtheyearbefore,and
namedittheSt.Lawrence,inmemoryoftheholymartyrwiiosefeast
iscelebrated on that day. This namewas subsequently extended to
the river. Previous to this it was called the Iliver of Canada,the
name given bytheLidiansto thewhole country.* Thedrainage of
theSt.Lawrenceand the lakes e.xtends through14 degreesoflongi-
tude,and covers adistance of overtwothousand miles. Ascending
FatherCharlevoix' "Historyand General DescriptionofNew France;" Dr.
John0.Shea'stranslation; vol.1,pp.37,115.
;;;
12 HISTOKIC KOTES OF THE NORTHWEST.
thisriver,we beholditflankedwithboldcrags and sloping hillsides
its current besetwith rapids and studded with a thousand islands
combiningsceneryofmarvelousbeautyandgrandeur. Sevenhundred
and fiftymiles above its mouth,the channel deepens and the'shores
recedeintoanexpanseofwaterknownasLakeOntario.*
Passingwestwardon Lake Ontario one hundredandeightymiles
asecondriverisreached. Afewmiles aboveits entryintothelake,
the river is thrown over a ledge ofrock intoayawningchasm,one
hundredandfiftyfeetbelow; and,amidthedeafeningnoiseandclouds
ofvaporescapingfromtheagitated waters is seen the great Fallsof
Niagara. At Buflalo,twenty-two miles abovethefalls,theshoresof
jSTiagaraRiverrecede andasecondgreat inland seaisformed,having
an average breadth of40 miles and a length o—f240 miles. Thisis
Lake Erie. The namehasbeenvariouslyspelt, Earie,Herie, Erige
andErike. Ithasalsoborn the name of Conti.f Father Hennepin
says: "TheHuronscallitLakeErige,orErike,thatistosay,theLake
oftheCat,andtheinhabitantsofCanada have softened the word to
Erie;"'vide"ANewDiscoveryofaVastCountryinAmerica,"p.77
Londonedition,1698.
Hennepin'sderivationissubstantiallyfollowedb}'themoreaccurate
andaccomplishedhistorian,FatherCharlevoix, whoatalaterperiod,
in1721,inwritingofthis lakeusesthefollowingwords: "Thename
itbearsisthatofanIndiannationoftheHuronlanguage,whichwas
formerlysettledonitsbanksandwhohavebeenentirelydestroyedby
theIroquois. Erieinthatlanguagesignifiescat,andinsomeaccounts
thisnationiscalledthecatnation." Headds: "Some modern maps
havegivenLake Erie thename ofConti, butwith nobettersuccess
thanthenames ofConde,Tracyand Orleanswhich have been given
toLakesHuron,SuperiorandMichigan.":}:
AttheupperendofLake Erie,tothesouthward,isMaumeeBay,
ofwhichmorehereafter; tothenorthwardtheshoresofthelakeagain
*Ontariohasbeenfavoredwithseveralnamesbyearlyauthorsandmapmakers.
Champlain'smap,1033,laysitdownasLacSt.Loais. ThemapprefixedtoColden's
"HistoryoftheFiveNations"designatesitasCata-ra-qui,orOntarioLake. The
wordisHuron-Iroquois,andisderived,intheirlanguage,fromOntra,alake,andio,
bDe'aAuvtaifuuglo,urt,heAucgoumsptou16n,d16w03o,rdtomteheanMiinnigstaer:bePaaurtiisfuDlocluamkeen;tsv,idveol.Le9t,tpe.r1o6.f DBuaBrooins
tL"haNiHseolwnatkVaeonyw,aagisnemshoitssotwNgooerrnktehraaAnlmldyeordniecstaih,ge"naavtcoelcd.omb1,pyaptn.hye2i1en9ag.rlmyAanFpdr,eFncarclohlnstweriinttaeLcra,sk,tehweaFnsroagnmiteveenbnayct;wohiviticidhne
honorofthegreatCountFrontenac,Governor-GeneralofCanada.
tNarrativeofFatherZenobiaMembre,whoaccompaniedSieurLaSalleinthe
voyage westward on this lakein 1679;vide"Discovery and Exploration ofthe
dMAeimsnes'risiscmsaiap,pp",i,vr"oelf.beyr1,reDpdr..t2o1J7io,nhanalpsGro.emvSiahoepuas,prneopft.iex9,0e.dde;sBiLagonrnaodtueosnLaietdHaiostnio"tnaL,na'k1s7e0"3E.Vroiey,CaagoderwsOakltsdowereNgoCoro.tl"h-
tJournalofaVoyagetoNorthAmerica,vol.2,p.3; LondonEdition,1761.