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A few days following the vote upon the question of the removal of the county seat, the Commissioners proceeded to the Land Office in Chicago to make arrangements for securing title to land for the county buildings. The southeast quarter of Section twenty-one was purchased with two hundred dollars borrowed from Elmsley Sunderlin, and John A. Mills and George Gage employed to subdivide it into lots and blocks. The records of the May Term of Court show that Burleigh Hunt was allowed eight dollars for three days with team taking the Commissioners on the trip to the Land Office. Plans and specifications for county buildings were asked for and arrangements made for selling the newly surveyed lots. The first public sale took place May 26, 1841. To encourage building, liberal concessions were offered. To the person erecting a structure worth $200, one-fourth the price of the lot was deducted; a $500 building would secure a lot for one-half the scheduled price; and one costing $1000 secured a seventy-five per cent reduction. Payments were to be, one-fourth cash, the balance in six, twelve and eighteen months. There was a large attendance and many lots were disposed of.
The start toward building a metropolis was naturally a slow one. When the vote was taken in April there was a single store at Little Fort, kept by Thomas Jenkins, in a building on the north bank of the river, below the bluff; also a diminutive saw-mill and four or five log houses. Threatened litigation over the county seat and a well defined fear that it would be returned to Libertyville, caused hesitation on the part of prospective investors. Even as late as August 19, 1842, sixteen months after the vote was taken, there were but eighty-five persons to be found at Little Fort by the census-taker, and January 1, 1844, almost three years after the settlement of the question, the population had barely reached 150. The Little Fort post-office was established in August, 1841, the mail being brought by private conveyance from Otsego, on the Chicago and Milwaukee stage route, in the York House neighborhood.
It was not an easy task to build a city where Waukegan now stands. The site comprised a dense forest. To bridge the ravines involved considerable expense. Most of the people were poor, andmoney was very scarce. At first all passengers and freight had to be taken off from passing vessels on lighters, but a pier was constructed in the early summer of 1841.
While vessels would stop at this point to receive and discharge cargoes it was not until 1845 that steamboats touched regularly at the pier. In 1844 the arrival of steamboats and other lake craft numbered 151, discharging nearly a million feet of lumber, 250 tons of merchandise and furniture, 758 barrels of salt, 650 barrels of flour, 145 barels of pork and beef, and upwards of three tons of castings, and taking on 66,ooo bushels of wheat, 200 bushels of oats, 200 pounds of furs, 8000 pounds of hides and 15 barrels of pork. About 1300 cords of wood were sold to steamboats during the season. That year the growth of population was more rapid.
In 1845 the arrivals numbered 191 the receipts doubling in quantity, and the wood sold to steamboats increasing, but the exports were not materially larger than the previous year. Wool to the amount of 337 pounds was exported, indicating that sheep were being kept in the county even in that early day. In 1846 Little Fort was made a Port of Delivery and a deputy was appointed. The arrivals of lake craft reached 349, and lumber was received to the amount of 3,105,525 feet. Other imports embraced 11 tons of machinery. 53 wagons and 342 barrels of apples. The exports were 181,022 bushels of wheat, 7757 bushels of oats, 1856 bushels of corn, 1000 bushels of barley, 749 bushels of flax seed, 196 bushels of beans, 6000 pounds of butter, and about 20 tons of merchandise. In 1847 the arrivals of lake craft increased to 459; in 1848, to 666; in 1850 to 1095; in 1852 to 1247. Exports and imports assumed larger proportions, and the three piers on the lake front were busy places. That the county was prospering during this period is evidenced by the fact that carriages were among the receipts. Apples to the extent of 1192 barrels were brought in during 1848. There is also evidence that all were not total abstainers from intoxicants, as more than 400 barrels of whiskey were unloaded. The grain shipments grew to about 500,000 bushels by 1852 and the wool shipped out aggregated 44,149 pounds. For a number of years, and even after the coming of the railroad in 1855, the lake shipments continued very large. Waukegan was made a Port of Entry in 1851. In 1855 nearly seven million feet of lumber was received.
After the removal of the county seat to Little Fort the first public building authorized was a county jail, erected by Burleigh Hunt in 1842. It stood in Block 23 of the Original Town of Little Fort, diagonally across the street and south-west from the present jail and Court House, and fronted on Utica street.
In September, 1843, Benjamin P. Cohoon, of Racine, contracted to build a Court House at Little Fort for the sum of $3800. The building was to be 40X60 feet, with brick or stone foundation, and to be completed by October 1, 1844. The contractor was to take unsold lots in payment, should the Commissioners so desire. Delays occurred, and it was not until 1845 that the building was ready for occupancy. Prior to its occupation, by special agreement, a seven room brick basement was constructed, the contractor being given a six years' lease of this addition as compensation. During one winter at least this basement was used as a grain warehouse, being filled with wheat. In 1849 the commissioners paid $325 to have this lease cancelled, after which these lower rooms were used as a Sheriff's residence and county jail. In 1853 a small brick building, intended to be as near fire-proof as possible, was erected for the county and circuit clerks, a little southward from the Court House and north of the county jail and Sheriff's residence of the present time, and was used for nearly 25 years.
At the time of its erection the Little Fort Court House was declared to be the best building of the kind in Illinois. It was well constructed, symmetrical in appearance and, until outgrown by the increase of population and the accumulation of valuable records, served its purpose admirably. For many years it was the rallying point of the community. Public meetings of every conceivable character were held in the court-room. One day, in the autumn of 1875, while some tinners were engaged in repairing the metal dome, the roof took fire and the structure burned. The fire fighting facilities of the city were not then as complete as they are at the present time, and the fire was not put out. Perhaps it might have been had the firemen not shared the feelings of some of the lookers-on that Lake County needed a larger and more modern building.
Following the destruction of the old Court House William Sherman drew up a petition for the removal of the county seat to the geographical center of the county, which would be at about the point where the townships of Avon, Warren, Libertyville and Fremont come together. The project met with considerable favor and the petition secured sufficient signers to have brought it to a vote had it been formally presented to the authorities. A movement in favor of Libertyville was also begun, but the projects conflicted and both moves were abandoned. In 1877 the present Court House was erected, at a cost of about $40,000. It was constructed honestly and economically, but is being rapidly outgrown and will need to be enlarged before many years have passed.
The first Circuit Court ever held in Little Fort convened in the second story of a structure below the bluff. There being no secure place nearer, prisoners awaiting trial were taken to the jail in McHenry Village. Most of the early stores and shops fronted on Sheridan Road, or State Street, as it was then called, and a considerable part of the houses were below the bluff.
The first newspaper to be published in the county was the "Little Fort Porcupine and Democratic Banner." N. W. Fuller was its publisher and A. B. Wynkoop its editor and proprietor. Its initial number was issued March 4, 1845. This paper was all that might be inferred from its name. The cut of a hedge-hog surmounted its pages, and its quills projected in all directions. It did not mince matters in the least but scored the local Democratic leaders severely, even while professing to be their party organ. Public officials were criticised without stint.
The first issue of the paper states that sixty-two buildings have been erected in Little Fort during the past season and that the village has 452 inhabitants, three commodious public houses, seven stores, two blacksmith shops, one tin and sheet iron factory, two shoe shops, three tailor shops, one chair and cabinet factory, one watchmaker, one gunsmith, two wheelwrights, one plow factory, three warehouses, one pier and a second being constructed, and two brick yards. Mention is made of mail routes from Little Fort to Belvidere and from Libertyville to Burlington, Wisconsin. An appeal is made to farmers to assist in building a bridge across the Des Plaines at Saugatuck on the promise that Frink and Walker's stages will come to Little Fort. The local market quotes winter wheat at 65@70c per bushel; spring wheat at 50@60c; oats, 25@30c; potatoes, 25@30c; butter, 12 1/2c a pound; pork at $10@$12 per barrel; flour at $4.25@$4.50 per barrel; and wood at $1.25@$1.50 per cord. In the advertising columns appear the professional cards of H. W. Blodgett, Isaac Hopkinson, J. H. Trader, Charles Gardner, Abr'm. R. Dodge, E. W. Evans and E. W. Hoyt, lawyers; David Cory and W. Butterfield, physicians; and Arthur Patterson, conveyancer. Also display advertisements of Robert Douglas, draper and tailor: Daniel Brewster, saddler and harness maker; J. M. Howard, druggist; D. O. Dickinson & Co., merchants; Chauncey Kidder and Norman Brown, blacksmiths; B. McCanna, gunsmith; Brown & Wynkoop, produce buyers; The Exchange Hotel, managed by Chas. Hall and Hugh Tiernan; and The American Hotel, run by E. B. Johnson. Two weeks later the advertisement of Isaac R. Lyon, dealer in general merchandise, appears. Of these early advertisers Daniel Brewster alone remains in active business. The large and successful mercantile business established by Mr. Lyon has continued through the years, his son and grandsons now conducting it.
In its issue of April 30, 1845, the paper states that there is not a post-office or post-road east of the Des Plaines River between Little Fort and Chicago, and that a tract from five to nine miles wide, and thickly populated, is without mail facilities. Little Fort at this time had a tri-weekly mail, but before the year closed, secured a daily service direct from Chicago. Often a half dozen wagons and coaches were required to accommodate passengers. In certain conditions of the roads and weather the stages drove along the beach a greater part of the way to Chicago.
The fact is mentioned a little later that there are seven places where liquor is sold by "the small" and two wholesale places, but no church. During 1845 a great temperance agitation swept over the country. A Temperance Mass Meeting was held at Libertyville, October 9, M. P. Hoyt acting as chairman and H. W. Blodgett as secretary. There was much interest awakened and the influence of this and subsequent meetings was long felt in the county.
The Porcupine violently opposed the proposition to change the name of the county seat from Little Fort to Waukegan. After a two years' course the publication was discontinued.
In 1847 the County Commissioners purchased 190 acres of land near Libertyville for use as a County Poor Farm. The price paid was $2025.00. There was much criticism of the action of the officials in the making of this purchase and of their subsequent management of the institution. The expenses were larger than had been anticipated, and in 1851 the people voted to go back to a former system and require each township to care for its own unfortunates. This done, the Commissioners sold a portion of the farm. In due time public sentiment re-acted, the county system was again adopted, land was added to the forty acres retraining unsold, and larger buildings erected. In recent years an infirmary for the insane poor has been constructed. For nearly thirty years this charitable institution has been under the management of Charles Appley, who leads the list in length of service in this line of work in Illinois.
The highways of the county were often almost impassable in the early days, especially those between the Des Plaines River and Lake Michigan. In 1848 a company was organized and secured authority to construct a plank road from Waukegan to McHenry, and the following year work was rapidly pushed. A steam mill was brought from Michigan by Alva T. Trowbridge and the work of sawing out the plank and stringers proceeded with. The work of grading was expensive, but in time the road was completed nearly to Hainesville, with a few stretches across bad places between that place and Forksville. Toll gates were established at Tiernan's, near the west city limits of Waukegan, at the river road, at Gage's Corners, and at Hainesville. Expenses for constructing and maintaining the road exceeded estimates, while the receipts for tolls fell below expectations. The stockholders received two dividends only and after a few years abandoned the enterprise. The plank, as they became loosened, were utilized by farmers along the route, who purchased them at a low price for use in the construction of outhouses. This highway was of great benefit to Waukegan during the years in which it was maintained. A partial failure of crops and the building of a railroad, across the southwestern corner of the county, materially lessened the teaming from McHenry and Boone Counties, which had for years found their best wheat market at Waukegan, and was undoubtedly the cause of the failure of the plank road project.
In 1845 a town plat was laid out on the shore of Lake Michigan about at the southern boundaries of the present government reservation of Fort Sheridan. It was known as St. John's. A saw mill and warehouse were erected and a pier was extended into the lake a thousand feet or more. Quite a population gathered at the place, but some contest arising regarding land titles progress ceased. Another town was speedily projected south of and adjoining St. John's, which took the name of Port Clinton. Jacob C. Bloom and Andrew and William Steele were the leading spirits, and made an ambitious start toward the building of a town that they felt certain would be a close rival of Little Fort, if not of Milwaukee and Chicago. A steam saw mill did a large business, and the United States government erected and for several years maintained a lighthouse. From the pier large quantities of wood and lumber were shipped. In a single year about 200,000 feet of oak plank, for road building was dispatched to Chicago, beside great quantities of wood, wagon material and two hundred tons of 'ships knees." A warehouse was erected and a considerable quantity of grain handled. A brick yard was started by Anton C. Hesing, afterward prominent as a Chicago journalist and politician. Other enterprises were launched and for a time did a prosperous business. A company was incorporated with a view to building a plank road westward, and considerable work done in grading and bridge building on the proposed line, but as other plank roads were proving unprofitable the project was abandoned.
Still another project for a town was started in the early 'Fifties, on the lake front about a mile and one-half south of Port Clinton, in a southeasterly direction from the present railroad station of Highland Park. It was known as Stowell's Pier and did quite a business in shipping wood and lumber. Each of these ambitious towns ran a brief career and was practically deserted before their absorption by Highland Park and Highwood. Stowell's Pier was about opposite the point where the beautiful "Ravine Drive" of recent years terminates. The sudden death of Andrew Steele, the leading merchant at Port Clinton, occurred, August 1, 1854, from cholera. His wife died the same day, and others in the neighborhood shortly afterward. All through the county the disease was prevalent and numerous deaths occurred.
At one time ship building was undertaken in Waukegan. A schooner was built, launched and named the "James McKay" in honor of one of its owners, then a prominent man in city and county affairs. Captain Hanson Minskey sailed her for a time. After a few years service a larger schooner drifted or was driven against her in the harbor at Buffalo, and she went to the bottom. For several years a considerable business was done in getting out ships knees, both at Waukegan and Port Clinton. These were bought by eastern ship builders, most of the consignments being to New York and Baltimore.
The news of the discovery of gold in California tempted a very large number of Lake County citizens to cross the continent during 1849 and 1850. Of these a few returned with considerable wealth. Others came back poorer than when they went away. A number remained upon the Pacific slope, part of them because they liked the country and climate and others because of poverty or pride. Of those who lost their lives enroute or after reaching the gold fields the names of Otis Hinckley, Jonathan Buck, Steward Butterfield, John Cruver, Alonzo, George and Wallis Sunderlin, Harrison Prickett, Jacob Miller, Asa Kittredge, Richard Goodbody, Jonathan Rice, Howard Houghton, Tillman Slocum and George A. Hibbard are recalled. The three Sunderlins, all young men and sons of Timothy Sunderlin, and Mr. Prickett, a brother-in-law, were drowned by the overturning of a small boat while crossing the Sacramento River. Mr. Kittredge was lost at sea, the vessel upon which he was making the trip having burned off the coast of Lower California. The late J. Harvey Miltimore, who accompanied them, was one of the few who reached shore in safety.
Mr. and Mrs. Hiram W. Rice were among the gold hunters who had a most trying experience. Severe storms drove their vessel from its course, greatly delaying them. Later they were becalmed and still further delayed. Provisions ran so low that starvation seemed imminent. The crew mutinied and threatened violence. Matters became so desperate that it was decided that some one must be killed and their flesh eaten in order that the lives of the others might be prolonged or saved. Lots were drawn and to Mrs. Rice fell the fatal ballot. Fortunately before the threat was carried out land was discovered and in a few hours provisions were obtained and a tragedy terrible to contemplate was averted.
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