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American Aerial County History Series • Informative •Historical • Pictorial • Review of *^as L I B RA R.Y OF THE U N I VERSITY OF ILL1 NOIi 917. 73 Am2>i V.14- } .' " terfcal Survey THE AMERICAN AERIAL COUNTY HISTORY SERIES, No. 14 Z/nU is Menard County, Illinois An Up-To-Date Historical Narrative with County Map and Many Unique Aerial Photographs of Cities, Towns, Villages and Farmsteads By JOHN DRURY Author Historic Midwest Houses, Midwest Heritage, etc., and member of American Association for State and Local History 1955 PUBLISHED BY THE LOREE COMPANY 3094 Milwaukee Avenue Chicago 18, Illinois PRICE $25.00 COPYRIGHT 1955 BY THE LOREE CO. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN U.S.A The American Aerial County History Series, No. 14 Already published for Illinois: Macon County Fulton County Champnign County Vermillion County Tazewell County Pike County MeOonough County Logan County De Witt County Cass County Brown County Mason County Piatt County Menard County Printed in offset lithography by The Loree Company, Chicago, Illinois, 1955 II Ill Acknowledgments This is the fourteenth of a series of new-style county histories which will include all of the 102 counties of Illinois and, ultimately, all of the 3,103 counties in the United States. The project, special- izing in aerial photographs of cities, towns, villages and farmsteads and with brief historical narratives added, is known as The American Aerial County History Series. In the preparation of this work on ienard County, Illinois, the author and publisher hereby acknowledge their gratitude, for advice and assistance generously given them, to ;ir. Joseph C. holf and Irs. Ellen Chase of the Newberry Library, Chicago; toilr. Herbert H. Hewitt, Mrs. Roberta Sutton and Miss Ivinifred Baum, all of the Chicago Public Library, Chicago; and to various librarians, public officials, busi- ness executives and private citizens of the city of Petersburg and the county of Menard, Illinois. The author also wishes to express special acknowledgment to his wife, Marion .Neville Drury, for re- search, editorial and proof-reading assistance. Grateful appreciation is also shown here to officials of the Bureau of Public Roads of the U. S. Department of Commerce and to of- ficials of the Department of Public Works ? Planning of the State of Illinois (in particular to those in charge of that department's Bureau of Research and Planning in the Highway Department), for permission to use the Menard County maps included in this book. Sources used by the author in preparing this volume were: Pio- neers of Menard and Mason Counties, Illinois, by T. G. Onstot (pub- lished by T. G. Onstot, Forest City, Illinois, 1902, printed by J. V». Franks & Sons, Peoria, Illinois); Inventory of the County Archives of Illinois, No. 65, Menard County (Illinois Historical Records Survey, Chicago, 1941); Illinois: A Descriptive and Historical Guide, The American Guide Series (A. C. McClurg & Company, Chicago, 1939); County and City Data Book, iq$ 2 (United States Bureau of the Census, Washing- ton, 1952); The Editor and Publisher Market Guide for 2954 * tDe Edi- tor and Publisher Company, New York, 1954); and The Rand McNally com- mercial Atlas for 2954 (Rand McNally Company, Chicago, 1954). Ill IV TABLE OF CONTENTS MAP OF MENARD COUNTY VI STORY OF MENARD COUNTY 1 CITY OF PETERSBURG 12 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 1 (Sweetwater, Croft) 14 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 2 (Fancy Prairie, Culver) 18 ROAD DISTRICT NO 3 (Greenview. Curtis) 20 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 4 (Athens, Tice) 24 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 5 (Oakford, Atter berry) 28 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 6 (Petersburg, New Salem, Hill Top) . 30 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 7 (Tallula) 34 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 8 (Petersburg) 36 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 9 38 ROAD DISTRI CT NO. 10 (Hubly) 40 ROADDISTRICTNO.il 42 ROAD DISTRI CT NO. 12 (Tallula 44 ROAD DISTRICT NO. 13 (Athens) 46 it mil * m O <£> U O z o:< =! VI Story of Menard County, Illinois ^,ne of America' s two most famous historical restorations is lo- cated in Menard County, Illinois. This is New Salem State Fark, popu- larly known as "Ihe Lincoln "Village." As with America's other renowned restoration, Colonial t'tilliamsburg in Virginia, the state park in central Illinois attracts thousands of tourists each year from all parts of the United States and from practically every country in the world at large. For here, in this primitive Menard County community, one can see the frontier American village in which Abraham Lincoln began his nublic career and from which he went out to become one of this nation's greatest Presidents and a world hero of the first rank, here are the kind of rude log cabins, faithfully and authentically restored, in which the Saviour of His Country lived, studied law, worked as a store clerk, served as postmaster and told humorous tales to his fellow villagers. It was .in this humble Midwest village he was saddened by the early death of his sweetheart, Ann flutledge, and it was in this village he was first elected to the Illinois state legislature. If New Salem State Park, marking the end of the great Lincoln Rational Memorial Highway through Indiana and Illinois, is the prin- cipal sight of Menard County, it, is not the only one. For just two riles north of the log cabin village lies the county's seat of jus- tice, Petersburg, an old Sangamon Fiiver town that was surveyed by Abraham Lincoln. In c etersburg, too, stands the boyhood home of the late American poet and author, Fdgar Lee Masters, who besides his classic Spoon River Anthology , wrote an outstanding biography of the Great Emancipator, published in 1931 and entitled Lincoln the Man. Aside from its many and important Lincoln associations, however, Menard County is of interest as one of the leading agricultural coun- ties of the vast Grain Belt in central Illinois. In 1950 more than 39 per cent of its total employed persons were engaged in agriculture, while only S.2percent were engaged in manufacturing. The value of all of its farm products (crops, livestock, poultry and dairy products) sold in 1949 was $9,754,(X)0. The county's seat of justice, Petersburg, is located twenty miles northwest of Springfield, capital of Illinois. Indian Occupation Before Menard County was formed, before any white settlements at all were made in the region it afterwards embraced, the locality was occupied by a number of villages of the Xickapoo tribe of Indians. , i.ost of these Indians fished along the Sangamon River or hunted on the prairies in the countryside beyond the river. After the signing of the Treaty of tidwardsville in 1819, however, the i»ickapoos gradu- ally left the area that afterwards became Menard County. They moved westward beyond the Mississippi hiver, as they agreed to do when they signed the treaty. First Settlers hith the Indians leaving the region, there came the earliest white settlers of future Menard County. Believed to have been the first to arrive here was John Clary, who staked out a claim in April, 1819, and who founded a settlement later called Clary's Grove. Some years afterwards, a group of young roustabouts of this settlement, known as the Clary Grove Boys, descended on .New Salem village and were about to gang up on young Abe Lincoln in a fisticuff battle; one in which their husky champion, Jack Armstrong, was losing to Lincoln. But when Lincoln offered to fight any one of them single handed, they backed away, and that marked the end of the encounter. Thereafter, the Clary Grove Boys and Lincoln became good friends. After staking out his claim near the present village of Tallula, John Clary built a log cabin and laid out a small farm. But he re- mained here only a few years, selling out to Ihomas Catkins, who later sold the tract to George Spears. In the meantime, the Clarys moved to what later became Sandridge Township, and there established the settlement of Clary's Grove. At a later time, after Menard County was organized, John Clary was elected one of the county's earliest com- missioners. Most of those who afterwards, settled in and around Clary's Grove were from southern states. Among the earliest families here were the Armstrongs, Greenes, Potters, McHenrys, Pratts and Kirbys. By this time another settlement had been established in what later became Sugar Grove Township (so-named because the Indians made sugar there) and the first to arrive here was James Latham, afterwards a judge. He was later joined by James Boyer and James Meadows, brothers-in-law, and by the Blaine family. Then came tfilliam Engle, who was to become one of the founding fathers of Menard County. !Vew Salem Platted hhen Sangamon County was created in 1821, it included the region that now is Menard County. Thus, Clary's Grove and Sugar Grove were in Sangamon County when they were first settled. So, also, was New Salem when it was platted in 1828 by James Rutledge, and John Cameron. The first-named was the father of Ann Rutledge, who became the object of Abe Lincoln's attentions after his arrival in hew Salem in 1831. It was about 1825 that James Rutledge and John Cameron came to the Sangamon River site where later was built New Salem. Here, they constructed a crude and primitive grist mill and soon it was being patronized by farmers from all parts of the countryside. Then Rut- ledge and Cameron decided to lay out a town at the site of their mill. A surveyor, Reuben Harrison, platted the town in 182S, and the first lot was sold on January 4, 1829. In addition to Rutledge and Cameron, other early settlers of New Salem were Jonathan Dunn, also a miller; Henry Onstot, cooper; Edmund Greer, justice of the peace, Mentor Graham, school teacher; John H.
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