Settlers of Jasper County, IL &

their Dates of Settlement

There are two parts to this article: the first part reports on the First Annual Meeting of the Old Settlers and gives a quick history of Jasper and the second part is a list of the "Old Timers" who settled Jasper County. I will present the Old Timers List first - however this doesn't appear to be a complete list since none of my family is mentioned (AGAIN!) and I know for a fact that my ggg-gf Ellis Hicks bought land in Jasper county in 1851 and is listed in the 1855 state census there. I suspect this list is just of those folks who were still alive (which Ellis was not) and who decided to join the "Old Settlers" group. This was from microfilm and hard to read, so make sure to verify any information for yourself. Here's the list:

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OLD TIMERS

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Newton Press, October 26, 1887

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List of settlers and date of settlement from 1830 to 1840:

Names	Year	Age
A.S. Harris	1837	72
B.W. Harris	1837	54
Robt. B. Smith	1839	74
H.H. Mitchell	1839	54
John Schackmann	1839	58
H. Vanderhoof	1839	71
Jehu Whitehurst	1838	68 (or 63?)
Wm. Kilgore	1838	52
Joseph Kinsel	1839
C.L. McComas	1838
Mart Stockwell	1837	61
Wm. Leamon	1838	70
John Henry	1837
John Cummins	1838	80
A.S. Jourdan	1833	54
Joseph Jourdan
Wm. Jourdan
John A. May	1839	63

List of settlers and date of settlement from 1840 to 1850:

Names	Year	Age
J.S. Jones	1850
S.B. Matheny	1845	57
P.S. Needham	1847	73
J.W. Needham	1847	45
John M. Parrent	1840	47
Josiah Andrews	1841	68
Wm. Kibler	1847	55
J.E. Gorrell	1848	43
X. Michel	1848	57
Jonathon Lenox	1841	82
James Chapman	1842	77
T.J. Lenox	1841	38
John Chapman	1840	64
F.M. Ross	1846	41
Lewis McKinley	1840
Jonathan Cowger	1845	80
N.C. (or O?) Whitehurst	1845	45
P.R. Henry	1846	46
A.P. Brodrick	1849	63
A.J. Batman	1849	57
J.F. Cummins	1840 (or 1849)	47
J.E. Wishard	1841	59
George Dowell	1849	70
Ed Goble	1840	57
Wm. L. Phillips from Richland Co	18_6
Wesley Martin	1840	67
Thom. Hunt	1849	49
Wm. M. Jones	1849	71
Jesse Grove	1849	50
B. Foote	1850	58
Isaac Kibler	1846	44
C.E. Garwood	1845	42

List of settlers and date of settlement from 1850 to 1860:

Names	Year	Age
Fred Deming	1852	77
S.S. Garn_er	1856	51
James Leamon	1852	63
J.C. Vauters	1852	62
J.S. Lanter	1853	57
James Corbin	1855	42
H. Riley	1852	66
D. Harrah	1852
Jeremiah Adams	1851	44
John Burnsides	1858	76
James L. Crews	1852	61
Joseph Frichtl	1850	65
Dan P. Smith	1850	65
Neil Fisher	1855	69
Thomas Graham	1855	69
Wm. A. Daugherty	1856	60
Peter Jackson	1851	46
N.C. Matheny	1850	37
G.W. Matheny	1858	30
J.C. Matheny	1860	27
R.M. Carter	1851	48
Fuller Nigh	1855	56
C.M. Wakefield	1856	66
Wm. C. Junior	1855	67
Abraham Ridlen	1852	63
J.P. Seeley	1851	37
Wm. Dillman	1851	36
C.M. Roberts	1852	35
I.M. Shup	1854	59
J.M. Needham	1860	27
B.W. McDaniel	1860	57
A. Bartley	1854	62
Thos. T. Heady	1851	61
O.H. Wheeler	1853	80
Eli Devore	1857	61
T. H. Smith	1852	35
N.W. Tate	1852	44
H. Overholzer	1858	54
Clent Prather	1856	35
Wm. Tate	1851
A.J. Koontz	1853	56
John Eagleton	1857	30
Elwood Patterson	1846	45
P.R. Lewis	1850	48
A.G. Birt	1850	47

Here's the article that went with the list:

PIONEERS IN COUNCIL

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First Annual Meeting of the Old Settlers

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Weather Spoils an Interesting Gathering of Early Timers

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The first annual meeting of the Old Settlers of Jasper county was held at the fair grounds on last Thursday, Oct. 20. The president, James L. Crews, called the meeting to order. A call of the roll showed James Leamon, of Granville, Mart Stockwell, of North Muddy, Wm. Junior, of Grove, P.S. Needham, of Smallwood, and John M. Love, of Wade township, vice president, present. The report of the committee on constitution and by-laws was read by James Leamon and on motion received and adopted. It was ordered that a roster of Old Settlers present be made, divided into three periods viz: 1. Those who lived in Jasper County between the years 1830 and 1840. 2. From 1840 to 1850. 3. From 1850 to 1860.

Officers were elected for the ensuing year as follows:

• President: James L. Crews
• Vice Presidents: Thomas K. Miller, Willow Hill
• James Leamon, Granville
• Joseph Picquet, Ste. Marie
• Thomas Gibson, Fox
• P.S. Needham, Smallwood
• John Chestnut, South Muddy
• Mart Stockwell, North Muddy
• Wm. Junior, Grove
• James Cummins, Crooked Creek
• John M. Love, Wade
• Secretary: Henry Vanderhoof

Addresses were delivered by Henry Vanderhoof, A.P. Broderick, P.R. Henry, C.E. Garwood and B.F. Harrah.

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JASPER COUNTY

What is known as Jasper county originally belonged to Crawford. Palestine, now in a state of decay, was then the county seat. It is located on the Wabash river, thirty miles east of this city on the I. & I. S. railroad. The Illinois legislature in 1830-31 passed an act creating Jasper County. Nathan Moss, William Magill and Asahel Heath were named in the act as commissioners to locate the county seat. Their report was either lost or else they never made one and in December 1834 another act was passed by the legislature to carve out Jasper County, an election ordered and the first officers elected as follows:

Lewis W. Jourdan, sheriff; Richard Watson, coroner; W.M. Richards, George Mattingly and F.W. H. Claycomb, commissioners.

The name of the county and its seat of justice were in honor of two Revolutionary war heroes, Sergeants Jasper and Newton. The early settlements were principally on the river and creeks, the prairies at that time not being considered good for farming (which in those days was done principally with gun, rod and a pack of dogs). Benjamin Shook was probably the first settler in the county, locating near the North Fork up in the northeast part of the county in 1822. James Jourdan and wife, parents of Andrew S., Joseph and William, moved to the county, near Newton in 1826. Wm. Lewis near Evermon Mound in Willow Will township the same year, and Job Catt, grandfather of Hon. Geo. W. Fithian in 1827, near Ste. Marie. Uncle John Catt, now approaching old age, a son of Job Catt before mentioned, relates to the writer of "The Jasper County History," to be found at page 386, this incident which occurred as late as 1837:

"A report came that a lot of Indians that were camping out on Big Muddy, near the county line, were dancing around their camp-fires with their war-paint on (which meant destruction to the pale faces). The settlers called a council of their wise and brave men, and appointed Lewis W. Jourdan, Job Catt and two or three others, to slip out to the Indian camp and see if the reports were true; but before starting out Mr. Catt had his family bury all their cooking utensils kettles and all heavy valuables, and be prepared to flee the country on their return. But only think of their surprise, when they arrived in sight of the Indian camping ground, and peeping the brush, to find that the Indians had pulled up stakes and moved out West."

Newton was platted in 1831, but did not amount to much until many years afterward. Its first inhabitants were noted chiefly for their marksmanship, wrestling and fighting qualities and the amount of bad liquor they could swallow. Slow progress was made in the growth of the town and county until in 1876 the first railroad, the P.D.& E., I.& I.S. and C.&O., the two former passing through Newton. The first officers were:

• Lewis W. Jourdan, sheriff, 1835 to 1840
• John Barns, county and circuit clerk, 1835 to 1838
• Timothy Garwood, county treasurer 1835 to 1838
• Wm. Bridges, surveyor, 1842 to 1851. He was also county judge from 1849 to 1853.
• Lawrence Hallenback was superintendent of schools from 1838 to 1846.
• Lewis Watson, coroner in 1834 and 1835.

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