The Early History of Edwardsville and Leclaire
Madison County ILGenWeb Coordinator - Beverly Bauser
EDWARDSVILLE NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS | LECLAIRE NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS
Edwardsville, the seat of justice for
Madison County, was settled by Thomas Kirkpatrick in 1805. He
immigrated from South Carolina, and built his cabin on a militia
claim of one hundred acres on Cahokia Creek, originally granted
to Pierre Lejoy. This claim covered the northwest part of the
present town of Edwardsville. When Indian troubles began,
preceding the War of 1812-14, a block house was construction for
the protection of several families which had settled in the
vicinity. This structure was known as Thomas Kirkpatrick’s Fort,
and was an important link in the chain of military stations
which guarded the Illinois frontier. The block house stood to
the north of the old court house, about 300 yards from the banks
of Cahokia Creek. It is said to have been built by a military
company, of which John G. Lofton was Captain, William Jones
First Lieutenant, and Daniel G. Moore Second Lieutenant.
The county of Madison was organized in 1812, and the
Kirkpatrick farm was selected as the best location for the seat
of justice. At the house of Thomas Kirkpatrick, on April 5,
1813, the court of common pleas for Madison County held its
first session. At this term of court, Kirkpatrick obtained
license to keep a public house. The first merchant in
Edwardsville was Abraham Prickett, and the second was Benjamin
Stephenson. Their stores were opened in 1815 or 1816. John T.
Lusk was the proprietor of the first hotel.
In 1816, a
town was surveyed and platted by Kirkpatrick, and called
Edwardsville in honor of Ninian Edwards, then the Territorial
Governor of Illinois. In a few years Edwardsville attained a
population of several hundred. Governor Edwards made it his
residence, and a bank was established. The town became the seat
of the U. S. Land Office, and enterprising and talented men
flocked to the town to push their schemes for gaining wealth.
The first mention of a government for the town was on
February 23, 1819, when an act was passed by the State
Legislature appointing Benjamin Stephenson, Joseph Bowers,
Robert Latham, John Todd, Joseph Conway, Abraham Prickett and
Theophilus W. Smith as Board of Trustees. On May 3, 1819, an
election was held at which Abraham Prickett, James Watts, John
Todd, Robert Pogue, William Holland, Palemon H. Winchester, and
William L. May were chosen Trustees. At this election, Josias
Randle, Abraham Prickett, and Paris Mason acted as judges, and
John Y. Sawyer and Stephen Dewey as clerks.
In 1819,
Benjamin Stephenson, Ninian Edwards, Theophilus W. Smith, John
Todd, and others, petitioned the Board of Trustees that a tract
of land owned by them, adjoining the town and which they had
laid off into lots, should be annexed to and made a part of the
town of Edwardsville.
In 1819, Edwardsville was described
as a flourishing town with sixty or seventy houses, a court
house, jail, public bank, printing office, and a U. S. Land
Office with Colonel Stephenson as “receiver.” There was also a
society of Methodists.
EARLY CITIZENS OF EDWARDSVILLE
Benjamin
Stephenson, a Virginia by birth, came to Illinois in 1809. He
was elected delegate to congress from the Territory of Illinois
in 1814, and when the land office was established at
Edwardsville, he was made the first receiver. He was an admirer
of Andrew Jackson, and he was strongly pro-slavery. He was quiet
and agreeable. He died at Edwardsville in about 1824.
Dr.
Joseph Bowers was one of the early physicians of Edwardsville.
He also engaged in farming. He moved to Carlinville. Dr. John
Todd was also a prominent doctor in Edwardsville. He came from
Kentucky, and was the brother of Robert Todd, who was the father
of the wives of Abraham Lincoln and Ninian Edwards. He resided
in Edwardsville on Main Street. Dr. Bowers built a log house in
Edwardsville, to which Dr. Todd added a frame addition.
Joseph Conway came to Illinois from Kentucky and settled at
Kaskaskia in 1812, practicing law. During the War of 1812-14, he
was in the contractor’s department on the frontier. He then
moved to Edwardsville and filled the office of Circuit Clerk. He
was elected member of the State Senate in 1824, representing
Madison County until 1833. He then moved north and was killed by
a fall from the upper to the lower deck of a steamboat.
James, Paris, and Hail Mason were natives of New Hampshire.
James Mason purchased Kirkpatrick’s interest in the original
town of Edwardsville. He left Edwardsville in 1833 and founded
the town of Grafton in Jersey County. Paris Mason carried on in
the milling business. Hail Mason was an early justice of the
peace, and then moved to Scarritt’s Prairie (now Godfrey).
Abraham Prickett was a pioneer merchant in Edwardsville who
came to Madison County in 1808. He opened a store in
Edwardsville and was postmaster for a number of years. He was a
delegate from Madison County to the convention which assembled
at Kaskaskia in July 1818, and framed the first constitution of
Illinois. His son, George W. Prickett, was said to have been the
first white child born in Edwardsville.
Isaac Prickett
came to Edwardsville in 1818 and engaged in the mercantile
business, in partnership with his brother Abraham. He later
established a store on his own, which carried on for many years
in the brick building on Main Street. He was postmaster, public
administrator, quartermaster-general of the militia, and
inspector of the Illinois penitentiary in Alton. From 1838 to
1842 he filled the office of receiver of public money for the
land office. He died in 1844.
Theophilus W. Smith was a
lawyer and politician. In 1822 he was elected a member of the
State Senate, and in 1825 he was made a judge of the Supreme
Court. He sat on the bench until 1842. He was strongly
pro-slavery, and established the Illinois Republican at
Edwardsville, in the interest of the slavery movement.
In
1805 John T. Lusk came to Madison County and settled in
Edwardsville. In 1809 he married Lucretia, daughter of Charles
Gillham. He was a Ranger during the War of 1812-14. While the
men were absent, the women sought refuge in the fort, and Mr.
Lusk’s wife was appointed their Captain. She was an excellent
rifle shot and had plenty of spirit and bravery. Lusk erected a
story and a half tall building of heavy logs, with three rooms
on the ground floor, where he opened the first hotel in
Edwardsville. He served as Deputy Circuit Clerk under Hail
Mason, and afterward filled of the office of County Clerk,
Recorder, and Postmaster. He died December 22, 1857.
Joshua Atwater, one of the first school teachers, became a
citizen of Madison County in 1817. He was a founder of the
“Charitable Society” in the Territory of Illinois, which was
formed March 1, 1809. Its members made quarterly contributions
for the relief of the oppressed and afflicted, of all ranks and
colors, with discrimination or prejudice. Although a poor man,
his name appeared at the head of the list for the highest amount
given. He began the mercantile business in Edwardsville in 1820,
which he carried on until 1837.
James D. Henry worked in
Edwardsville as a shoemaker. He showed evidence of a brutal and
passionate nature, but achieved distinction in the Black Hawk
War and became the nominee of the “People’s Party.” While living
in Ohio in 1816, he had a fight in the shop he was working and
whipped three or four of his fellow shoemakers. He left town in
haste. He journeyed down the Ohio and up the Mississippi River
in a keel boat, landing at the mouth of the Wood River. He came
to Edwardsville in 1822, and attended a night school taught by
William Barrett, where he learned arithmetic. Henry fancied that
a negro named Jarret, who belonged to Joseph Conway, had
insulted him. Henry drug the negro from the stable of Rowland P.
Allen, stripped him of all his clothing except his trousers, and
fastened him to the end of the horse rack in the street. He had
procured five hickory switches, and laying a sword and pistol on
a block within three feet, with a dagger in one hand and whip in
the other he began to lash the poor man unmercifully. When the
negro begged for mercy, Henry would draw the keen edge of his
bowie knife over the negro’s naked abdomen and threaten him with
instant death unless he submitted quietly. At this time, court
was in session and a hundred men were in town looking on,
including the Sheriff and other officers of the law – but none
dared to interfere. When he had used up his second or third
whip, the wife of Rowland P. Allen heard the negro’s cries and
ran to his rescue. She took a carving knife from her kitchen and
cut the rope by which the negro was bound. Henry stood still
with astonishment, suspending his blow in the air. She led the
negro away as Henry stated that a woman might tie his hands, but
no man would oppose him. This is the dark side of Henry’s
character. Henry was ambitious and possessed an intense longing
for military fame. As a boy, Judge Joseph Gillespie was
accustomed to spending hours in Henry’s shop, reading to Henry
while he worked. In 1826 Henry moved to Springfield and was
elected sheriff. The Black Hawk War gave him the opportunity for
which he longed. His genius for military affairs soon gained him
distinction, and he became known as the ablest and most
successful General of the war. He died among strangers at New
Orleans on March 4, 1834.
EDWARDSVILLE IN 1833
In
1833 Edwardsville had a population of 350 people. The principal
mercantile business was carried on by Joshua Atwater and Andrew
R. Skidmore, under the firm name of A. R. Skidmore & Co. Atwater
retired in 1837, and Skidmore left for Alton in 1838, where he
failed in business in 1841 and left for California, where he
died. Isaac Prickett still carried on his store on Main Street,
and Daniel Mecker also had a store. From 1831 to 1836, John
Hogan was a merchant in Edwardsville. Hogan then moved to Alton,
and in 1836 was elected a member of the State Legislature. John
Adams was also in the mercantile business in 1833, in connection
with his castor oil factory and wool carding machine. He then
sold his store and was elected Sheriff.
The physicians
in Edwardsville in 1833 were Dr. B. F. Edwards and Dr. Peter W.
Randle. Edwards made Edwardsville his home in 1827. He bought
Dr. Todd’s house. He kept four or five horses, and frequently
rode one hundred miles in twenty-four hours. For months in the
sick season, he only slept about four hours a day. Dr. Randle
began practice in 1833. He studied under Dr. Edwards, and was an
able and popular physician. From Edwardsville to went to Alton
and then California. He became the President of the Eclectic
Medical College, founded at San Francisco.
The most
prominent attorney in Edwardsville in 1833 was James Semple. He
moved to Alton, and represented Illinois in the U. S. Senate
from 1843 to 1847. Jesse B. Thomas Jr. was also an attorney at
Edwardsville, in partnership with David Prickett. John S.
Greathouse was another attorney, as was Seth T. Sawyer.
In 1833 there were two churches – a frame structure used by the
Methodist, and the Baptist Church, which was later used by the
fire company as an engine house.
Subsequent Growth
For
some years Edwardsville showed little signs of improvement.
Alton kept up a constant agitation with the view of becoming the
seat of justice. This uncertainty was removed by a provision in
the State constitution of 1848, inserted chiefly by the efforts
of Edward M. West of Edwardsville, which made it a great
difficulty to secure the division of a county, or the removal of
a county seat. Substantial improvements began then to be made.
The population in 1847 was about seven hundred, and by 1860 had
grown to two thousand.
Edward M. West came to Illinois
with his father, Tilghman H. West, when four years old. In 1834
he learned the mercantile business at Alton with Godfrey, Gilman
& Co. In 1858 he went into the banking business in Edwardsville.
Among other men who carried on in the mercantile business were
Alfred J. Lusk, Orren Meeker, Frederick T. Krafft, William Peel,
Edward S. Brown, William Gillham, and Julius L. Barnsback.
THE LAND OFFICE
The Land Office in Edwardsville was
an important institution and brought many visitors to town. On
the first Monday of October, 1820, the President of the U. S.
made a proclamation of public sales of land in the Edwardsville
district, 38 townships, and fractional townships. The sales of
land for two weeks in the following January amounted to $26,500.
Advertisement was made in the newspapers of the banks whose
bills would be received at the land office. In 1820, these banks
were the Bank of the United States, Bank of Illinois at
Shawneetown, Bank of Edwardsville, and more.
EARLY
EDWARDSVILLE BANKS
The Bank of Edwardsville
The Bank
of Edwardsville was incorporated January 9, 1818. The bank was
chartered to continue until the first day of January 1838. The
management of its affairs was placed in the hands of a board of
nine directors. The cashier in 1819 was Benjamin J. Seward, who
was succeeded by R. T. McKenney. The establishment of the bank
had a favorable influence on the prosperity of Edwardsville, but
like all the other banking enterprises of that time, the
institution failed.
The Bank of West & Prickett
This
bank was located on Purcell Street, and was established on
January 1, 1868. It had a Hall’s burglar-proof safe, with time
lock.
Farmers’ Exchange and Loan Company
This bank was
chartered on March 21, 1867, but did not opened for business
until October 1869. It was located on Main Street. On April 20,
1881, it assumed the name of J. A. Prickett & Sons. It contained
a Hall’s burglar-proof safe with time lock.
EARLY
EDWARDSVILLE HOTELS
The first hotel in Edwardsville was
built by John T. Lusk on Main Street. It was a long, log
building, and had three large rooms fronting the street. After
Lusk closed the hotel, the center of these rooms was used for
the post office. One end was rented to Mrs. Howard who kept a
pie and cake shop, and in the other end was a saloon.
The Wiggins Hotel stood on the public square, east from the old
jail. It had an extensive and fashionable patronage, and many
distinguished men ate and slept within its walls. Its walls were
so badly cracked by an earthquake, that it was necessary to
abandon the building. It was purchased by Isaac Prickett, who
torn the building down and used the brick to build two small
houses on Main Street.
William H. Hopkins had a hotel in
“upper town.” It was a frame building, which stood opposite the
southeast corner of the public square near the residence of
Henry C. Gerke.
A second hotel was constructed by John T.
Lusk on the property later occupied by the Wabash Hotel. It was
a large frame building, which was destroyed by fire in 1839.
Meriam Patterson kept this hotel for a time. His successor was
Horatio G. Street, and he was followed by Cassius Hesket. While
Mr. Street was proprietor, in about 1830, it was renowned for
the excellence of its fare and the superior manner in which it
was conducted. The fashionable people of St. Louis patronized it
during the summer months, and on Sundays it was a frequent
resort of Alton citizens. During Hesket’s administration, the
old frame building burned down. Another structure was erected in
its place, and was considered a remarkably fine specimen of
architecture.
The St. James’ Hotel was erected in 1875 by Hugh Kirkpatrick,
and was located on Main Street, about one-half square from the
courthouse. Included grounds and furniture, it cost $20,000. It
was a fine brick structure, three stories high, with a basement.
It had the capacity of accommodating 75 guests, and had two
sample-rooms, a commodious office, and a dining room.
Other hotels included the Hoffman House, established by A.
Hoffman, was a brick hotel located on Main Street, fronting
Courthouse Square; Bernreuther House, kept by David Bernreuther;
the Broadway House, kept by Henry Daube; the Wabash Hotel, kept
by Mrs. Anna Swarz; the Union House, kept by Fritz Gubritz; and
the Railway House, kept by William Storig, and located at
Edwardsville Junction.
EARLY SCHOOLS IN EDWARDSVILLE
In the Spectator of 1820, Madame De Jerome announced she had
opened an academy of science in which French, geography,
history, drawing, and arithmetic were taught. She also taught
young ladies the art of embroidery and needle work. The school
was open every day during the week, except Saturday and Sunday,
from nine to twelve in the morning, and two to five in the
afternoon.
One of the early teachers in Edwardsville was
Joshua Atwater, who taught a couple of years previous to 1820,
when he then opened a store. Don Alonzo Spaulding, during six
months of 1819, taught school in Edwardsville. The first schools
were mostly “loud schools,” in which all pupils studied their
lessons aloud so that they could be heard at some distance away.
Early schools were usually taught by men, but a Miss Hastings
was hired to teach, and had no trouble in controlling the boys,
and maintained an excellent school. In 1829, John York Sawyer
taught school in a frame building, which stood on Main Street
adjoining the jail property. Sawyer taught until he became the
editor of the Spectator. He was succeeded by Thomas Atwater, a
brother to Joshua, and by an Englishman by the name of Scandrit.
Mrs. Stearns subsequently kept a school in the house which later
became the residence of Matthew Gillespie. Between 1830 and
1840, a school taught by John Barber was located three miles
south of town. Barber was a man of superior education and was an
excellent teacher.
The Edwardsville Female Academy was
established in May 1831, through the efforts of James Mason,
William P. McKee, Dr. B. F. Edwards, John Adams, and other
leading citizens. The tuition was from $2.50 to $3.50 per
quarter. The school was held in a frame building on Third
Street. Miss Alden came from the East to take charge of the
academy, but her connection with the school was severed by her
marriage to the Rev. Mr. Jenney, a Presbyterian minister of
Alton. The next principal was Miss Chapin, who became the wife
of the Rev. Mr. Hale, a Presbyterian clergyman of Springfield.
She was succeeded by Miss Loomis, daughter of a Baptist
minister. She married Cyrus Edwards. The school had a good
patronage, but the rapid changes in the faculty destroyed its
usefulness. The building was later used for a public school, but
was later moved to the corner of Third and Purcell Streets, and
was occupied by T. C. Clark as a grocery store.
A
Presbyterian minister named Young taught a parochial school for
some years. Samuel Allard taught school several years in the old
academy building. He afterward became a teacher in Shurtleff
College. In 1838, Mr. Gibson, a minister, taught school. He
drank whiskey, ate opium, and preached an occasional volunteer
sermon. Among subsequent teachers were Messrs. Dwight, Potter,
and Terry.
Edwardsville contained two public schools in the early days,
including one for colored students. The question of building a
schoolhouse was suggested in the year 1859. A vote was taken for
and against the proposition of borrowing $9,000 to erect the
building. The vote was in favor of raising the money. A site was
chosen, but the sum voted was too small for its erection. The
plan was submitted to the people, who adopted it and authorized
a loan sufficient to cover the expenses. The schoolhouse
constructed was a brick structure, three stories high, with a
basement. Nine teachers were employed, besides the principal,
and it had an early attendance of between five and six hundred
students.
EARLY CHURCHES IN EDWARDSVILLE
The earliest church in
Edwardsville was a Presbyterian Church, formed March 17, 1819,
with fifteen members. In a few years the society became extinct.
It was revived by the Presbytery of Alton, in about 1828. The
Rev. James Ewing was pastor from 1845 until his death in 1848.
The congregation used the Baptist Church during this time. In
1856, the Episcopal Church was leased, with Rev. L. P. Bates as
pastor. He died in 1859.
The Methodist Episcopal Church
was organized December 1827. Members were: Richard Randle, Rev.
Washington C. Ballard, Elizabeth Ballard, Thornhill Ballard,
Mary Brooks, Rebecca Atwater, Joel Neff, Sarah Wright, Josias
Randle, Heiress Baker, Marilda Wilder, Samuel A. Walker, Mary
Ballard, Alexander Miller, Aletha Ballard, Agnes H. Ballard,
Elizabeth Gibson, Alworth Baker, Mary Adams, William Galligher,
William P. McKee, Sarah H. McKee, Hail Mason, Grace Mason,
Joshua Atwater, Ann M. Randle, William Miller, Katherine Miller,
Alexander White, Susannah Kendall, Julia Ann Atwater, Sarah
Cotter, Elizabeth Randle, Hosea Armstrong, Samuel McNeal, and
Roland Ballard. In 1830, it was decided to build a house of
worship, and James Mason gave the congregation a lot on which
was erected (in 1831) a plain frame building, 40x60ft. In 1854 a
brick building replaced the original.
The Baptist Church
was organized at the house of Dr. B. F. Edwards in 1828. Rev.
Mr. Bradley was pastor for some time. The first church building
erected by the congregation was later used as an engine-house.
St. Mary’s Catholic Church was organized in 1843, and a
frame church erected. Previous to this, Catholic services had
been held in Edwardsville at irregular intervals. The Rev. Mr.
Reiss was one of the early pastors. St. Boniface’s Church, a
congregation of Catholic Germans, was formed in 1867, and a
church building erected that year.
St. Andrew’s
Protestant Episcopal Church was organized in 1841. A commodious
frame church building was soon afterward erected, in which
services were held for a number of years.
The German
Methodists held religious services in Edwardsville as early as
1847, and in 1860 the congregation at Edwardsville was made a
separate charge.
INCORPORATION OF EDWARDSVILLE
On
Saturday, May 30, 1837, a meeting was held in Edwardsville at
the court house, at which a vote was taken on the question of
whether or not the town should become an incorporated place,
under the general law of 1831. James Wilson was chosen
president, and William T. Brown, clerk. Fifty-seven votes were
cast in favor of incorporation, and seven in the negative. On
February 10, 1853, the town was again incorporated by special
act of the Legislature, which provided that the corporate powers
and duties of Edwardsville shall be vested in five trustees, who
shall be elected on the first Monday in April of each year. This
organization existed until October 23, 1872, when it was
organized as a city under general law.
EARLY
MANUFACTURING IN EDWARDSVILLE
Kirkpatrick/Mason and
Randle Mills
The first manufacturing enterprise in
Edwardsville was the old water mill of Thomas Kirkpatrick. This
mill passed into the hands of Paris Mason, who carried it on for
some years until the floods in the Cahokia caused such damage
that its maintenance was no longer profitable. About the year
1818, Josias Randle, the first County Clerk of Madison County,
constructed an ox mill near his residence, which was carried on
after his death by Josiah Randle, and later by George D. and
John H. Randle. The Randles, along with their father-in-law,
Aaron Arnold, turned this ox mill into a steam mill about the
year 1832. This was the first steam mill in Edwardsville. The
mill was destroyed by fire soon after being placed in operation.
Adams Castor Oil Mill
The castor oil mill of John Adams
was carried on successfully for several years. It was
established in 1825. That year he made 500 gallons of oil, which
sold at $2.50 a gallon. The next year the product had increased
to 800 gallons, with the price falling to $1.50. In 1827, 1,000
gallons were made, and sold at $1.25 a gallon; and in 1828, 1800
gallons, with the price of $1.00 a gallon. In 1829, 500 gallons
were made, and in 1830 the production rose to 10,000 gallons.
One bushel of castor bean yielded about 7 quarters and a half
pint of oil. Before starting his oil mill, Mr. Adams had erected
a fulling mill on the Cahokia, which was placed in operation in
1823.
Edwardsville Steam Mill
The Edwardsville Steam
Mill Company was organized in 1839. J. C. Dugger was President
of the company. Later the stock came into the possession of
George W. Phillips, who operated it for a number of years.
Edwardsville Mill and Elevator
This industry was
established by the Kehlor Brothers in the spring of 1879 on Main
Street, about three blocks north of the old courthouse. The mill
was a brick building, four stories high with a basement. The
machinery consisted of the latest roller process, 33 pairs of
rolls and 3 burrs, with a capacity of manufacturing 600 barrels
of flour in twenty-four hours. The product was shipped to
different parts of the U. S. and Europe. The elevator, 60 feet
in height, had the capacity of elevating 10,000 bushels of wheat
daily, and storing 110,000 bushels. A detached warehouse,
100x104 in size, was capable of storing 7,000 barrels of flour.
The engine room was constructed of brick, using a
Harriss-Corliss engine, 300-horsepower.
Oak Hill
Refining Company
This factory was located on the on the farm
of C. M. Schwarz, about a half mile from the city limits. Mr.
Schwarz grew his own sugar cane and was manufactured into syrup.
In 1880, a partnership was formed with Belcher, under the name
of Belcher & Schwarz. They manufactured cane into sugar. The
season of 1880 was a disastrous one, and no attempt was made to
make sugar, other than in an experimental way, although 6,000
gallons of syrup were manufactured. In 1881, the firm organized
a stock company under the name of “The Oak Hill Refining Company
of Edwardsville.” The directors were: George C. W. Belcher, C.
F. Miller, Dundas, C. M. Schwarz, B. R. Burroughs, and F. K.
Gillespie. George C. W. Belcher served as President, B. R.
Burroughs, Vice-President, and C. M. Schwarz as Secretary and
Treasurer. As of 1882, the company was still in growth and
struggling.
Springer & Brothers Carriage Manufactory
This carriage factory was located on the north side of Vandalia
Street, one block south of the public square. It was established
by H. J. Springer in the spring of 1870, and occupied a brick
building two stories high, 30x65 feet. A two-story frame
building was attached and was used for a painting and trimming
room. The factory machinery was driven by a four-horsepower
steam engine and manufactured about fifty carriages per year.
Connected with the same building was the firm of Gillespie &
Springer, engaged in the manufacture of patent thill couplings.
Gessert’s Custom Flour Mill
This business was established
by George Gessert in the fall of 1877, and commenced operating
the following January. The mill was a frame building, located on
Second Street near Union Street, two stories high. It contained
two run of burrs, and had a capacity of grinding thirty-five
barrels of flour daily. The machinery was driven by a
thirty-horsepower engine.
Desmond Carriage, Wagon and
Machine Shop
This business was located on the corner of
Vandalia and St. Louis Streets. It was built in the spring of
1874 by Michael Desmond. The building was a frame, two-story
building, where they repaired machinery and general work.
Another building connected with the stop for the purpose of
doing the woodwork was 40x30 feet.
Dippold Cooper Shop
This business was owned by Martin Dippold, and was located on
the southwest side of the railroad, on St. Louis Street, near
the Wabash, St. Louis, & Peoria Depot. There was a branch shop
located in lower town. This business furnished Edwardsville
flour mills with barrels to ship their flour. Thirty-eight men
were employed, and 80,000 barrels were manufactured annually.
Weber & Son Wagon and Carriage Manufactory
This business
was established in the spring of 1873, and was located on
Vandalia Street, two blocks southeast of the courthouse. The
elder of the firm had been engaged in the business in
Edwardsville since 1854. The building was a frame, 50x80 feet,
two stories high. A one-story frame attachment was used for
storing woodwork, lumber, etc.
Star Flour Mill
The
Star Flour Mill was founded by Jacob Dunstedter. It was erected
in the summer of 1866 at a cost of $15,000, on Second Street,
near the railroad. It was a frame building, three stories high
with a basement, with 54 feet frontage, and was constructed in
the shape of an L. It had four run of stone, with a capacity of
making 125 barrels in twenty-four hours. This was purely a
merchant mill, and shipped its flour both to the East and West.
Starmer's Madison County Marble Works (shown in photo)
The
marble works was established by G. J. Starmer in the spring of
1880, and was located on Main Street, opposite the courthouse.
The building was a small frame, one story, with a workshop in
the rear of the salesroom.
Enterprise Marble Works
This business was located at the corner of St. Louis and
Vandalia Streets, and was established by Edward F. Koch.
Begemann Cigar Manufactory
This business was
established by F. Begemann in 1867, and was located on Main
Street, east of the square. It manufactured 250,000 cigars
annually. All goods were handmade and sold at various points in
the state.
Harles Soda Factory
This soda factory was
established by Frank Harles in the spring of 1871, and was
located on Main Street, one block south of the courthouse
square. The factory manufactured three to four thousand boxes of
soda-water per annum. Mr. Harles also supplied the city with
ice.
Wolf Brothers’ Coal Mine
This mine was located
about one-half mile southeast of Courthouse Square. It was sunk
by the firm in the summer of 1879, with a capital investment of
$20,000. Its depth was 217 feet to the surface of some of the
finest quality coal found in this part of the state. Seven
thousand bushels of coal were raised daily, when running at full
capacity, and required 150 men to operate it.
St. Louis
and Edwardsville Coal Company
This mine was located on
section 10, on the city branch of the Wabash, St. Louis, and
Pacific Railroad. The shaft was sunk by Tunstell & Holmes in
1868 or 1869. About ten years later, it was purchased by John A.
Prickett, and leased by the above company in the fall of 1881
for 20 years. The depth of the shaft was 125 feet. When fully
worked, it mined 2,800 bushels of coal daily.
Schramek
Coal Mine
This mine was opened by Frank Schramek in the
spring of 1879, and was located on the Wabash, St. Louis, and
Pacific Railway on Union Street. Its depth was 65 feet. In the
busy season, twenty-five men were employed, mining 200,000
bushels of coal within the year. The main shipment of coal was
to St. Louis.
Ritter - Smidt Coal Mine
This mine,
owned by Mrs. Smidt, was located near the Wabash, St. Louis and
Pacific Depot. It was opened by Henry Ritter about 1857, and
came into the possession of Mrs. Smidt in 1877. The depth of the
mine was 96 feet, with five to six hundred bushels of coal
produced per day.
Hellrung’s Brick Yard
This industry,
established about 1850 by D. Brown, passed into the hands of
Louis Klinger in 1860, and was purchased by Hellrungs in 1867.
It was located about a quarter of a mile northeast from the
public square. It had but one kiln, and annually turned out
about 170,000 bricks.
R. B. Evans & Co. Elevator
This
elevator was located on the south side of the railroad track,
above the Wabash depot. In was built in the fall of 1876, and
was a frame building, 20x40 feet, with a machine room attached.
It had the capacity of elevating 5,000 bushels of corn per day.
Naeher Machine Shop
This business was established by
Edward Naeher in 1871. In 1873, a foundry was run in connection
with the shop, but was found to be unprofitable and was
abandoned. In 1878, a sawmill was attached, but it was moved to
the country a short time later. The building was located on
Second Street, a little south and east of the Star Flouring
Mill. The business conducted in general repair work.
Sherman Elevator
This elevator was established by M. B.
Sherman, and was located on the Edwardsville Mill Switch,
southwest of the big flour mill. It was build in the spring of
1875, and had a capacity of shelling and elevating 2,500 bushels
of corn daily.
Bardelmeier Brick Yard
This company
was established in 1876 by William Bardelmeier, and was located
in Wheeler’s Addition, about one-fourth mile east of Courthouse
Square. Two kilns were kept in operation, which manufactured
about 300,000 bricks yearly.
Hettergott Brick Yard
In
the same local as the Bardelmeier Brick Yard was the Jacob
Hettergott Brick Yard. This business had one kiln, and went into
operation in the spring of 1881.
Crocker’s Vegetable
Gardens
This company was established by C. W. Crocker in the
spring of 1864 and was located in Upper Edwardsville. The
property consisted of eight acres, with four hot-houses. All
kinds of plants and vegetables were cultivated, shipping to
Chicago, St. Louis, Decatur, Litchfield, and other towns.
EDWARDSVILLE FIRE DEPARTMENT
Fire Company No. 1 was
organized February 7, 1874, and consisted of hose, hook and
ladder, and engine departments. The first officers of the hose
company were Fred Sochlke, Captain, and Joseph Hentz, Assistant.
The hook and ladder company included officers Arnold Schultz,
Captain, and Albert V. D. Broeck, Assistant. All members
belonged to the engine department, with William Friday as First
Chief and Charles Silze, Assistant. This fire company was well
uniformed and performed their duty well.
EDWARDSVILLE
PUBLIC LIBRARY
The Edwardsville Public Library was organized
in the spring of 1879, and consisted of twelve lady members and
300 volumes of books. By 1882, the membership increased to 100,
with 900 volumes. A fee of $2 per year was required to become a
member.
NEWSPAPERS OF EDWARDSVILLE
There were
three early newspaper in Edwardsville – Edwardsville Republican,
Edwardsville Intelligencer, and the Edwardsville Democrat.
THE HISTORY OF LECLAIRE
Leclaire, now a part of Edwardsville,
was named in honor of the pioneer French profit-sharer, Edme
Jean Leclair. It was founded by Nelson Olsen Nelson of St. Louis
in 1890. Nelson was born in Lillesand, Norway, September 11,
1844, and came to American in 1846. His family came with seventy
neighbors, who established a colony for farming at St. Joseph,
Missouri. Nelson located in St. Louis in 1872 and went into
business. He was deeply interested in practical philanthropy,
and established institutions and enterprises to help the poor,
sick, or unfortunate. In 1890, it was Nelson’s desire to move
his plumbing fixture factories away from larger cities like St.
Louis. Progressive citizens of Edwardsville gave Nelson $20,000
to locate his factory near Edwardsville. Nelson bought 150 acres
immediately, just to the south of town. In June 1890, Nelson and
about 400 people boarded the train in St. Louis, and arrived in
the future Leclaire to plan their future homes and workplace.
Edwardsville Mayor Glass gave a speech of welcome. Work soon
began on the shops and homes.
The industrial portion of
the town, which in 1912 numbered about 650 people, had about
fifteen one-story buildings which were modern, surrounded by
beautiful lawns and flower beds. Nelson’s industrial shops
included brass work, nickel and silver fittings, plumbers’
woodwork, planing mill, and architectural marble and machinery.
Nelson stressed the importance of education, and founded the
Leclaire school for employees and their children. He believed
that “the hand, the heart, and head must be education together.”
The residential portion of Leclaire was beautiful
throughout. It had a hedge, thirty feet high, to separate homes
from the factories. There was a large common, covered with grass
for outdoor sports such as baseball and football, and there was
a large assembly hall for lectures, dances, and indoor
entertainment. This was also used as a schoolhouse. A special
playground was well equipped for the children. All of this was
free to use by residents of Leclaire, with the only stipulation
made was that no admission fee or charge of any kind was made.
Leclaire had the same water, telephone, and mail service as
Edwardsville, but a separate electric system and fire
department.
Nelson died in October 1922, at the age of
78. He is buried in the Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis,
Missouri. Leclaire was annexed into the city of Edwardsville in
1934.
Nelson’s business was sold to Wagner Electric
Corporation in the late 1940s, which eventually closed in 1957.
The site remained vacant until the Southern Illinois University
Foundation purchased the property in 1964, and then sold the
facilities to the university in 1972. The campus was used by the
university for classes, offices, and storage for nearly 20
years. The property was then deeded to Lewis and Clark Community
College in 1999.
Today, the Leclaire National Historic
District encompasses a 23-block area, with approximately 415
single-family homes, which were built in the styles of Queen
Anne, Craftsman, Colonial Revival, and Bungalow.
Leclaire
Park is one of Edwardsville’s oldest and most beautiful parks,
consisting of a little over 5 acres. The lake in the park served
a dual purpose of providing water for Nelson’s factories and was
a recreational lake for residents and visitors. A pavilion was
constructed for band concerts, and a boat house held skiffs
built in the Leclaire factories. The lake was stocked, and many
fished from its shores or from skiffs. In the winter, ice
skating was enjoyed on the Leclaire lake. In the late 1940s, it
was determined the water was not clean enough for swimming, and
the city banned swimming.