Hopewell township is located in Township 30 North, Range 2 West. The village of Hopewell (recently established in 1975) is located between Sparland and Chillicothe, on the top of the Illinois River bluffs. The entrance is marked with a sculpture of an Indian head. The sculptor, Peter Toth, carved the statue as a memorial to the Hopewell Indians who inhabited the region about 2,000 years ago.
The pioneer white settler, George WAGNER, arrived in the Township in the spring of 1830, and put up a cabin, the first in this locality. He sold it to Edward HARRIS, who lived here many years and died upon the farm now owned by Jerry FEAZLE.
The next old settlers were James HALL, William McNEILL and Newton REEDER, who came together in 1831, and made claims, where HALL still resides. McNEILL, a blacksmith, settled in the timber north-east of Lacon, and REEDER upon what is now the BROADDUS farm.
Lot and Joshua BULLMAN came here the same year and began their respective farms, and near them Jacob SMALLEY stuck his stakes.
In 1831 Elisha SWAN and Hanson L. DEMING put up a double log house at the foot of the hill, in what is now known as the BROADDUS field, where they embarked in the mercantile business, keeping such goods as the trade of the new country demanded. This was the frontier store of Columbia and vicinity.
Robert ANTRIM and Peter BARNHART came in 1832, and settled, the former on his well known place and the latter on what is now the HANCOCK farm. Lemuel RUSSELL made a claim in 1833. Joseph VanBUSKIRK and William BOYS came in 1832, and William HANCOCK in June 1836, buying BARNHART's claim.
Jeremiah EVANS and his son Silas EVANS came in 1834, and settled in the edge of the timber, on the south side of Sandy Creek. Jesse SAWYER and Caleb FORBES, with their families, came in 1831.
In 1833 the FREEMAN's came, likewise William WHITE and John BENSON.
The first marriage in the Township was that of Josiah W. MARTIN and Courtney FORBES, in 1832.
John BRUMSEY settled on Sandy in 1833, where his son Nathan still resides.
ANTRIM was an odd character, and for years partially insane, a disease which grew on him until he committed suicide by hanging himself. His first wife he married in Ohio, his second was Martha HARRIS, and the third Nancy, a sister of the famous "Si." BOWLES.
The first school was taught by Miss Caroline SMITH, in 1834.
The first camp meeting in Hopewell was held in the timber, between William STRAWN's and Lacon, in June 1843, when the Reeves gang did some stealing. Elder PHILLIPS presided. The attendance was large, considering the sparsely settled condition of the country.
Apple trees for the early orchards of this region were obtained first by John STRAWN, who went to Princes nursery, in the southern part of the State, in 1832. In 1833 WIER, STRAWN and others obtained some by going to Peoria for them in keel boats.
BARNHART brought seedling trees from Lawrenceburg, and planted them on his claim in 1832, which did well, some of the fruit being of a very fine quality.
There were other pioneers who lived for a while in Hopewell, but did not become permanent citizens. Among these were John SHANER, George EASTER, Robert and William WAUGHOB and Robert WAUGHOB, Jr., who came out as early as September, 1829. Some of them located near where Mr. RAMP's orchard is located, and other's made claims at the timber near the line, in Richland.
Extracted from Records of the Olden Time
1890 Map from
Plat Book of Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois, 1890
The following list of names transcribed from the 1890 map may not be complete. As always, we welcome corrections and additions.
ANTRIM, James
ANTRIM, R E
BALENSEIFER, Henry
BALENSEIFER, M
BANE, J B
BANE, Jesse B
BANE, John S
BARNEY, A, heirs of
BELFORD, Mary A
BENSON, J S
BILLSBACH, John
BILLSBACH, John, heirs of
BORNEY, A, heirs of
BOYS, A M
BOYS, Aur___ M
BOYS, Charles
BOYS, L
BOYS, Nellie
BOYS, W
BOYS, William H
BROADDUS, Irving
BROADDUS, Minerva A
BROADDUS, Rueben
BROADDUS, Ruth
BROWN, John
BRUMSEY, Nathan
BULLMAN, J St Clair
BULLMAN, Lott
BULLMAN, M C
BULLMAN, Theressa
C___NZ, Matilda
CANARRO, John
CARR, Nancy
CASEY, Charles W
COOK, E A
CURRAN, Courtney
DAHRYMPLE, Mary
DeLONG, A
DePUE, H J
DePUE, Stella A
FEAXEL, Jerry
FEAXEL, W W
FEAXEL, William H
FEAZEL, Jerry
FEAZEL, William H
FENZEL, Hiram
FISHER, Henry
FISHER, John M
FITZLER, Wimer
FORBES, C
FORBES, I M
FREEMAN, E
FREEMAN, Francis
FREEMAN, R
FREEMAN, Rosalia
FREEMAN, Samuel
FREEMAN, Sarah
FREEMAN, Sidney
GARATT, Belle V
GARETT, Belle V
GERMAN, W H
GERMAN, William H
GREEN, P H
HALL, Eva
HALL, J
HALL, J Q
HANCOCK, A R
HANCOCK, estate
HANCOCK, Ira
HANCOCK, J W
HANCOCK, Margaret
HANCOCK, W E
HANK, Anton
HELD, Conrad, Jr
HELD, Conrad, Sr
HELD, H M
HELD, Peter W
HOLLER, Peter
HOLMES, Samuel
JASON, Charles
JASON, Jason
JASON, Magdalena
JASON, Sophia
JOHNSON, John H
JONES, A W
KEEDY, J A
LANE, Hattie
LARSON, John
LAWS, N M
MARSH, Caroline T
MARSH, George
MARTIN, B, heirs of
MAUBACH, J P
MAURICE, John
McCUSKEY
MERDIAN, J J
MILLER, Scott
NORTON, John
NORTON, John, Mrs.
OVERMIRE, Adam
OWEN, E, heirs of
PARKER, Sarah
PHOENIX, H
PICHEREAU, A
RAMP, F
RAMP, Samuel
RAMSEY, Cass
RAMSEY, Emily
RAMSEY, T S
REMLEY, Henry
RICKEY, Walter
ROTH, Joseph F
RUSSELL, Lemuel
SAWYER, Enoch, heirs of
SCHLOSSER, John
SCHLOSSER, John, Mrs
SCHLOSSER, Wimer
SCHMIDT, Peter
SCHROETER, Ernst W
SCHULTZ, John, heirs
SEAMAN, Nyuppa
SHAW, T M
SHEFELBEIN, Herman
SIMPSON, Arch
SKELTON, Joel
SMITH, C B
SMITH, Hiram, heirs of
SMITH, Michael
SMITH, William
SNIDER, W
SPERRY, T
STADEL, A
STADEL, John
STEWART
STONER, J C
STONER, T W
STRAWN, A T
STRAWN, Enoch
STRAWN, Harriet I
STRAWN, William
SWANKEY, Henry
TAILOR, Andrew
THOMAS, D E
THOMPSON, Mary A
THOMPSON, R G
TOEMMES, Peter
TOMLINSON, F
TOWNSEND, J S
UL__, F
VERNAY, Mary
VERNAY, William T, heirs of
WARNER, Helen J
WASMER, B
WASMER, Benedict
WASMER, John
WIER, Frank R
WIER, Fred
WILSON, George
WISMAN, Martin
WRIGHT, A
WRIGHT, Alex
WUNDER, John
WUNDER, Paul
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