This
county
was
named
in
honor
of
Thomas H.
Benton, a Missouri senator. The surface of the county may he
described
by saying,
that
it is one grand continuous prairie, being an extension
of the grand Illinois prairie. The soil is exceedingly fertile. Many
parts were originally very wet but a system of drainage has been
adopted which will ultimately result in bringing nearly all the surface
into cultivation.
Pine creek is the only stream worthy of mention. It
runs southerly, and empties its waters into the Wabash river.
The
northern
portion
of
the
county
is
watered
by tributaries of the
Iroquois river. Stock
raising is one of the principal industries of the
county.
The
county
is
excellently
adapted
to
grazing,
and
some of the
finest droves of cattle produced in the west are annually shipped from
this county to the eastern markets.
Oxford,
formerly
the
county
seat,
is
situated
in the
southeastern part of the county, and on a high prominence overlooking
the surrounding country. Although not a very large town, it is rapidly
developing, and will soon become an important commercial center. Its
schools are well provided with suitable buildings and efficient
teachers, and are in a state of prosperity. The schools of the county,
for the most part, are equal to the average. Oxford has good railroad
outlets, being situated on the LaFayette, Muncie and Bloomington
railroad, and is within two miles of the junction of this road with the
C. L & 0. Railroad, for Chicago and Cincinnati.
Fowler,
the
present
county
seat,
was
first
laid out
in February, 1872 by Moses Fowler and Adams Earl, Esqrs., of LaFayette.
Originally covering a plat one-half mile square, it has since been
increased to one mile square. It is situated exactly in the center of
the county, and on the Cincinnati, LaFayette and Chicago railroad, or
what is popularly called the Kankakee Route. The county seat was
removed from Oxford and located here in 1874, after a bitter legal
litigation with the former place.
The
first
court
was
held
in
December,
1874, in the
new and elegant court house, mainly built by private means and
enterprise. The town is improving rapidly, and already possesses a
number of prominent business firms, a bank doing a thriving business, a
fine hotel a newspaper office, a large and commodious graded school
building, and two church edifices.
Earl
Park,
located
northwest
of
Fowler,
on
the same
road, is another fast growing town. This town was laid out by Adams
Earl and A. D. Raub, Esqrs., and bids fair to take rank with the
foremost towns of this section of the State The streets are beautifully
hid out and graded; they are eighty feet wide, and have a row of line
shade trees bordering on each side and through the center, a feature
rarely met with in the west, and which will ultimately render these
streets beautiful and pleasant beyond description.
Benton
County
is
divided
into
11
Civil
Townships as
follows:
Bolivar,
Center, Gilboa, Grant, Hickory Grove, Oak Grove,
Parish Grove, Pine, Richland, Union and York.
Benton
County was organized February 18, 1840.Fowler has not always
been the County Seat. May of 1843 that a County Seat was selected and
called Milroy in honor of one of the first commissioners, but Indiana
already had a town of that name, so the County Seat was renamed Oxford
which was first settled in 1847 by H. T. Howard. In 1871, the town of
Fowler was laid out and on March 20, 1873, the Courthouse at Oxford was
condemned, precipitating a battle between the two towns.
On
July 10,
1874, the County Seat was moved to Fowler, which has held the
distinction ever since.
Adjacent
counties
Newton County
(north)
Jasper County
(northeast)
White County (east)
Tippecanoe County
(southeast)
Warren County (south)
Vermilion County,
Illinois (southwest)
Iroquois County,
Illinois (west)
