DALE, Michael G., lawyer, was born in Lancaster, Pa., spent his childhood and youth
in the public schools of his native city, except one year in West Chester Academy, when he entered
Pennsylvania College at Gettysburg, graduating there in 1835. He then began the study of law and was
admitted to the bar in 1837; coming to Illinois the following year, he was retained in a suit at
Greenville, Bond County, which led to his employment in others, and finally to opening an office
there. In 1839 he was elected Probate Judge of Bond County, remaining in office fourteen years,
meanwhile being commissioned Major of the State Militia in 1844, and serving as member of a Military
Court at Alton in 1847; was also the Delegate from Bond County to the State Constitutional Convention
of 1847. In 1853 he resigned the office of County Judge in Bond County to accept that of Register of
the Land office at Edwardsville, where he continued to reside, filling the office of County Judge in
Madison County five or six terms, besides occupying some subordinate positions. Judge Dale married a
daughter of Hon. William L. D. Ewing. Died at Edwardsville, April 1, 1895.
DALLAS CITY, in Hancock and Henderson Counties, at the intersection of Atchison,
Topeka & Santa Fe and Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroads, 16 miles south of Burlington. It has
manufactories of lumber, buttons, carriages and wagons, and two weekly newspapers. Pop. (1890), 747;
(1900), 970; (1910), 1,288.
DANENHOWER, John Wilson, Arctic explorer, was born in Chicago, Sept. 30, 1849—the son
of W. W. Danenhower, a journalist. After passing through the schools of Chicago and Washington, he
graduated from the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1870, was successively commissioned as
Ensign, Master and Lieutenant, and served on expeditions in the North Pacific and in the Mediterranean.
In 1878 he joined the Arctic steamer Jeannette at Havre, France, as second in command under Lieut.
George W. De Long; proceeding to San Francisco in July, 1879, the steamer entered the Arctic Ocean by
way of Behring Straits. Here, having been caught in an ice-pack, the vessel was held twenty-two months,
Lieutenant Danenhower meanwhile being disabled most of the time by ophthalmia. The crew, as last
compelled to abandon the steamer, dragged their boats over the ice for ninety-five days until they
were able to launch them in open water, but were soon separated by a gale. The boat commanded by
Lieutenant Danenhower reached the Lena Delta, on the north coast of Siberia, where the crew were
rescued by natives, landing Sept. 17. 1881. After an ineffectual search on the delta for the crews of
the other two boats, Lieutenant Danenhower, with his crew, made the journey of 6,000 miles to Orenburg,
finally arriving in the United States in June, 1882. He has told the story of the expedition in "The
Narrative of the Jeannette," published in 1882. Died, at Annapolis, Md., April 20, 1887.
DANVERS, a village of McLean County, on the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St.
Louis Railway. The section is agricultural. The town has a bank and a newspaper. Population (1880),
460; (1890), 506; (1900), 607; (1910), 593.
DANVILLE, the county-seat of Vermilion County, on Vermilion River and on five
important lines of railroad; in rich coal-mining district and near large deposits of shale and
soapstone, which are utilized in manufacture of sewer-pipe, paving and fire-clay brick. The city has
car-shops and numerous factories, waterworks, electric lights, paved streets, several banks,
twenty-seven churches, five graded schools and one high school, and eight newspapers, two daily. A
Soldiers' Home is located three miles east of the city. Pop. (1900), 16,354; (1910), 27,871.
DANVILLE, OLNEY, & OHIO RIVER RAILROAD. (See Chicago & Ohio River Railroad.)
DANVILLE, URBANA, BLOOMINGTON & PEKIN RAILROAD. (See Peoria & Eastern Railroad.)
D'ARTAIGUIETTE, Pierre, a French commandant of Illinois from 1734 to 1736, having
been appointed by Bienville, then Governor of Louisiana. He was distinguished for gallantry and
courage. He defeated the Natchez Indians, but, in an unsuccessful expedition against the Chickasaws,
was wounded, captured and burned at the stake.
DAVENPORT, George, soldier, pioneer and trader, born in Lincolnshire, England, in
1783, came to this country in 1804, and soon aftej enlisted in the United States army, with the rank
of sergeant. He served gallantly on various expeditions in the West, where he obtained a knowledge of
the Indians which was afterward of great value to him. During the War of 1813 his regiment was sent
East, where he participated in the defense of Fort Erie and in other enterprises. In 1815, his term
of enlistment having expired and the war ended, he entered the service of the contract commissary. He
selected the site for Fort Armstrong and aided in planning and supervising its construction. He
cultivated friendly relations with the surrounding tribes, and, in 1818, built a double log house,
married, and engaged in business as a fur-trader, near the site of the present city of Rock Island.
He had the confidence and respect of the savages, was successful and his trading posts were soon
scattered through Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin. In 1823 he piloted the first steamboat through the
upper Mississippi, and, in 1825, was appointed the first postmaster at Rock Island, being the only
white civilian resident there. In 1826 he united his business with that of the American Fur Company,
in whose service he remained. Although he employed every effort to induce President Jackson to make a
payment to Black Hawk and his followers to induce them to emigrate across the Mississippi voluntarily,
when that Chief commenced hostilities, Mr. Davenport tendered his services to Governor Reynolds, by
whom he was commissioned Quartermaster-General with the rank of Colonel. Immigration increased rapidly
after the close of the Black Hawk War. In 1835 a company, of which he was a member, founded the town of
Davenport, opposite Rock Island, which was named in his honor. In 1837 and '42 he was largely
instrumental in negotiating treaties by which the Indians ceded their lands in Iowa to the United
States. In the latter year he gave up the business of fur-trading, having accumulated a fortune through
hard labor and scrupulous integrity, in the face often of grave perils. He had large business interests
in nearly every town in his vicinity, to all of which he gave more or less personal attention. On the
night of July 4, 1843, he was assassinated at his home by robbers. For a long time the crime was
shrouded in mystery, but its perpetrators were ultimately detected and brought to punishment.
DAVIS, David, jurist and United States Senator, was born in Cecil County, Md., March
5, 1815; pursued his academic studies at Kenyon College, Ohio, and studied law at Yale. He settled at
Bloomington, Ill., in 1836, and, after practicing law there until 1844, was elected to the lower house
of the Fourteenth General Assembly. After serving in the Constitutional Convention of 1847, he was
elected Judge of the Eighth Judicial Circuit under the new Constitution in 1848, being re-elected in
1855 and '61. He was a warm, personal friend of Abraham Lincoln, who, in 1862, placed him upon the
bench of the United States Supreme Court. He resigned his high judicial honors to become United States
Senator in 1877 as successor to Logan's first term. On Oct. 13, 1881, he was elected President pro tem.
of the Senate, serving in this capacity to the end of his term in 1885. He died at his home in
Bloomington, June 26, 1886.
DAVIS, George R., lawyer and Congressman, was born at Three Rivers, Mass., January
3, 1840; received a common school education, and a classical course at Williston Seminary, Easthampton,
Mass. From 1862 to 1865 he served in the Union army, first as Captain in the Eighth Massachusetts
Infantry, and later as Major in the Third Rhode Island Cavalry. After the war he removed to Chicago,
where he still resides. By profession he is a lawyer. He took a prominent part in the organization of
the Chicago militia, was elected Colonel of the First Regiment, I. N. G., and was for a time the senior
Colonel in the State service. In 1876 he was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for Congress, but was
elected in 1878, and re-elected in 1880 and 1882. From 1886 to 1890 he was Treasurer of Cook County.
He took an active and influential part in securing the location of the World's Columbian Exposition
at Chicago, and was Director-General of the Exposition from its inception to its close, by his
executive ability demonstrating the wisdom of his selection. Died Nov. 25, 1899.
DAVIS, Hasbrouck, soldier and journalist, was born at Worcester, Mass., April 23,
1827, being the son of John Davis, United States Senator and Governor of Massachusetts, known in his
lifetime as "Honest John Davis." The son came to Chicago in 1855 and commenced the practice of law;
in 1861 joined Colonel Voss in the organization of the Twelfth Illinois Cavalry, being elected
Lieutenant-Colonel and, on the retirement of Colonel Voss in 1863, succeeding to the colonelcy. In
March, 1865, he was brevetted Brigadier-General, remaining in active service until August, 1865, when
he resigned. After the war he was, for a time, editor of "The Chicago Evening Post," was City Attorney
of the City of Chicago from 1867 to '69, but later removed to Massachusetts Colonel Davis was drowned
at sea, Oct. 19, 1870, by the loss of the steamship Cambria, while on a voyage to Europe.
DAVIS, James M., early lawyer, was born in Barren County, Ky., Oct. 9, 1793, came
to Illinois in 1817, located in Bond County and is said to have taught the first school in that
county. He became a lawyer and a prominent leader of the Whig party, was elected to the Thirteenth
General Assembly (1842) from Bond County, and to the Twenty-first from Montgomery in 1858, having,
in the meantime, become a citizen of Hillsboro; was also a member of the State Constitutional
Convention of 1847. Mr. Davis was a man of striking personal appearance, being over six feet in height,
and of strong individuality. After the dissolution of the Whig party he identified himself with the
Democracy and was an intensely bitter opponent of the war policy of the Government. Died, at
Hillsboro, Sept. 17, 1866.
DAVIS, John A., soldier, was born in Crawford County, Pa., Oct. 25,1823; came to
Stephenson County, Ill., in boyhood and served as Representative in the General Assembly of 1857 and
'59; in September, 1861, enlisted as a private, was elected Captain and, on the organization of the
Forty-sixth Regiment Illinois Volunteers, at Camp Butler, was commissioned its Colonel. He participated
in the capture of Fort Donelson, and in the battle of Shiloh was desperately wounded by a shot through
the lungs, but recovered in time to join his regiment before the battle of Corinth, where, on Oct. 4,
1862, he fell mortally wounded, dying a few days after. On reviving a request from some of his
fellow-citizens a few days before his death, to accept a Humiliation for Congress in the Freeport
District, Colonel Davis patriotically replied: "I can serve my country better in following the torn
banner of my regiment in the battlefield."
DAVIS, Levi, lawyer and State Auditor, was born in Cecil County, Md., July 20, 1806;
graduated at Jefferson College, Pa., in 1828, and was admitted to the bar at Baltimore in 1830. The
following year he removed to Illinois, settling at Vandalia, then the capital. In 1835 Governor Duncan
appointed him Auditor of Public Accounts, to which office he was elected by the Legislature in 1837,
and again in 1838. In 1846 he took up his residence at Alton. He attained prominence at the bar and was,
for Beveral years, attorney for the Chicago & Alton and St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad
Companies, iu which he was also a Director. Died, at Alton, March 4, 1897.
DAVIS, Nathan Smith, M.D., LL.D., physician, educator and editor, was born in Chenango
County, N. Y., Jan. 9, 1817; took a classical and scientific course in Cazenovia Seminary; in 1837
graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, winning several prizes during his course; the
same year began practice at Binghamton; spent two years (1847-49) in New York City, when he removed to
Chicago to accept the chair of Physiology and General Pathology in Rush Medical College. In 1859 he
accepted a similar position in the Chicago Medical College (now the medical department of Northwestern
University), where he still remains. Dr. Davis had not only been a busy practitioner, but a voluminous
writer on general and special topics connected with his profession, having been editor at different
times of several medical periodicals, including "The Chicago Medical Journal," "The Medical Journal and
Examiner," and "The Journal of the American Medical Association." He was also prominent in State,
National and International Medical Congresses, and was one of the founders of the Northwestern
University, the Chicago Academy of Sciences, the Chicago Historical Society, the Illinois State
Microscopical Society and the Union College of Law, besides other scientific associations. Died June
16, 1904.
DAVIS, Oliver L., lawyer, was born in New York City, Dec. 20, 1819; after being in
the employ of the American Fur Company some seven years, came to Danville, Ill., in 1841 and commenced
studying law the next year; was elected to the lower branch of the Seventeenth and Twentieth General
Assemblies, first as a Democrat and next (1856) as a Republican; served on the Circuit Bench in 1861-66,
and again in 1873-79, being assigned in 1877 to the Appellate bench. Died, Jan. 12, 1892.
DAWSON, John, early legislator, was born in Virginia, in 1791; came to Illinois in
1827, settling in Sangamon County; served five terms in the lower house of the General Assembly
(1830, '34, '36, '38 and '46), during a part of the time being the colleague of Abraham Lincoln. He
was one of the celebrated "Long Nine" who represented Sangamon County at the time of the removal of
the State capital to Springfield; was also a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1847. Died,
Nov. 12, 1850.
DEAF AND DUMB, ILLINOIS INSTITUTION FOR EDUCATION OF, located at Jacksonville,
established by act of the Legislature, Feb. 23, 1839, and the oldest of the State charitable
institutions. Work was not begun until 1842, but one building was ready for partial occupancy in
1846 and was completed in 1849. (In 1871 this building, then known as the south wing, was declared
unsafe, and was razed and rebuilt.) The center building was completed in 1852 and the north wing in
1857. Other additions and new buildings have been added from time to time, such as new dining halls,
workshops, barns, bakery, refrigerator house, kitchens, a gymnasium, separate cottages for the sexes,
etc. At present (1895) the institution is probably the largest, as it is unquestionably one of the best
conducted, of its class in the world. The number of pupils in 1894 was 716. Among its employes are men
and women of ripe culture and experience, who have been connected with it for more than a quarter of a
century.
DEARBORN, Luther, lawyer and legislator, was born at Plymouth, N. H., March 24, 1820,
and educated in Plymouth schools and at New Hampton Academy; in youth removed to Dearborn County, Ind.,
where he taught school and served as deputy Circuit Clerk; then came to Mason County, Ill., and, in
1844, to Elgin. Here he was elected Sheriff and, at the expiration of his term, Circuit Clerk, later
engaging in the banking business, which proving disastrous in 1857, he returned to Mason County and
began the practice of law. He then spent some years in Minnesota, finally returning to Illinois a
second time, resumed practice at Havana, served one term in the State Senate (1876-80); in 1884 became
member of a law firm in Chicago, but retired in 1887 to accept the attorneyship of the Chicago & Alton
Railway, retaining this position until his death, which occurred suddenly at Springfield, April 5,
1889. For the last two years of his life Mr. Dearborn's residence was at Aurora.
DECATUR, the county-seat of Macon County; 39 miles east of Springfield and one mile
north of the Sangamon River—also an important railway center. Three coal shafts are operated outside
the city. It is a center for the grain trade, having five elevators. Extensive car and repair shops
are located there, and several important manufacturing industries flourish, among them three flouring
mills. Decatur has paved streets, water-works, electric street railways, and excellent public schools,
including one of the best and most noted high schools in the State. Two daily papers and one weekly
(labor) journal are published there. Pop. (1900), 20,754; (1910), 31,140.
DECATUR EDITORIAL CONVENTION. (See Anti-Nebraska Editorial Convention.)
DECATUR & EASTERN RAILWAY. (See Indiana, Decatur & Western Railway.)
DECATUR, MATTOON & SOUTHERN RAILROAD. (See Peoria, Decatur & Evansville Railway.)
DECATUR, SULLIVAN & MATTOON RAILROAD. (See Peoria, Decatur & Evansville Railway.)
DEEP SNOW, THE, an event occurring in the winter of 1830-31 and referred to by old
settlers of Illinois as constituting an epoch in State history. The late Dr. Julian M. Sturtevant,
President of Illinois College, in an address to the "Old Settlers" of Morgan County, a few years before
his death, gave the following account of it: "In the interval between Christmas, 1830, and January,
1831, snow fell all over Central Illinois to a depth of fully three feet on a level. Then came a rain
with weather so cold that it froze as it fell, forming a crust of ice over this three feet of snow,
nearly, if not quite, strong enough to bear a man, and finally over this crust there were a few inches
of snow. The clouds passed away and the wind came down upon us from the northwest with extraordinary
ferocity. For weeks-certainly not less than two weeks—the mercury in the thermometer tube was not, on
any one morning, higher than twelve degrees below zero. This snow-fall produced constant sleighing for
nine weeks." Other contemporaneous accounts say that this storm caused great suffering among both men
and beasts. The scattered settlers, unable to reach the mills or produce stores, were driven, in some
cases, to great extremity for supplies; mills were stopped by the freezing up of streams, while deer
and other game, sinking through the crust- of snow, were easily captured or perished for lack of food.
Birds and domestic fowls often suffered a like fate for want of sustenance or from the severity of the
cold.
DEERE, John, manufacturer, was born at Middlebury, Vt., Feb. 7, 1804; learned the
blacksmith trade, which he followed until 1838, when he came west, settling at Grand Detour, in Ogle
County; ten years later removed to Moline, and there founded the plow-works which bear his name and
of which he was President from 1868 until his death in 1886.—Charles H. (Deere), son
of the preceding, was born in Hancock, Addison County Vt., March 28, 1837; educated in the common
schools and at Iowa and Knox Academies, and Bell's Commercial College, Chicago; became assistant and
head bookkeeper, traveling and purchasing agent of the Deere Plow Company, and, on its incorporation,
Vice-President and General Manager, until his father's death, when he succeeded to the Presidency. He
was also founder of the Deere & Mansur Corn Planter "Works, President of the Moline Water Power
Company, besides being a Director in various other concerns and in the branch houses of Deere & Co.,
in Kansas City, Des Moines, Council Bluffs and San Francisco. Notwithstanding his immense business
interests, Mr. Deere found time for the discharge of public and patriotic duties, as shown by the fact
that he was for years a member and Chairman of the State Bureau of Labor Statistics; a Commissioner
from Illinois to the Vienna International Exposition of 1873; one of the State Commissioners of the
World's Columbian Exposition of 1893; a Presidential Elector for the State-at-large in 1888, and a
delegate to the National Republican Convention at St. Louis, in 1896. Died Oct. 29, 1907.
DEERING, William, manufacturer, was born at Paris, Oxford County, Maine, April 26,
1826, completed his education at the Readfield high school, in 1843, engaged actively in manufacturing,
and during his time has assisted in establishing several large, successful business enterprises,
including wholesale and commission dry-goods houses in Portland, Maine, Boston and New York. His
greatest work has been the building up of the Deering Manufacturing Company, a main feature of which,
for thirty years, has been the manufacture of Marsh harvesters and other agricultural implements and
appliances. This concern began operation in Chicago about 1870, at the present time (1899) occupying
eighty acres in the north part of the city and employing some 4,000 hands. It is said to turn out a
larger amount and greater variety of articles for the use of the agriculturist than any other
establishment in the country, receiving its raw material from many foreign countries, including the
Philippines, and distributing its products all over the globe. Mr. Deering continues to be President of
the Company and a principal factor in the management of its immense business. He is liberal,
public-spirited and benevolent, and his business career has been notable for the absence of
controversies with his employes. He has been, for a number of years, one of the Trustees of the
Northwestern University at Evanston, and, at the present time, is President of the Board.
DE KALB, a city in De Kalb County, 58 miles west of Chicago. Of late years it has
grown rapidly, largely because of the introduction of new industrial enterprises. It contains a large
wire drawing plant, barbed wire factories, foundry, agricultural implement works, machine shop, shoe
factory and several minor manufacturing establishments. It has banks, three newspapers, electric street
railway, eight miles of paved streets, nine churches and three graded schools. It is the site of the
Northern State Normal School, located in 1895. Population (1880), 1,598; (1890), 2,579; (1900), 5,904;
(1910), 8,102.
DE KALB COUNTY, originally a portion of La Salle County, and later of Kane, was
organized in 1837, and named for Baron De Kalb, the Revolutionary patriot. Its area is 650 square miles
and population (in 1910), 33,457. The land is elevated and well drained, lying between Fox and Rock
Rivers. Prior to 1835 the land belonged to the Pottawatomie Indians, who maintained several villages
and their own tribal government. No sooner had the aborigines been removed than white settlers appeared
in large numbers, and, in September, 1835, a convocation was held on the banks of the Kishwaukee, to
adopt a temporary form of government. The public lands in the county were sold at auction in Chicago
in 1843. Sycamore (originally called Orange) is the county-seat, and, in 1890, had a population of
2,987. Brick buildings were first erected at Sycamore by J. S. Waterman and the brothers Mayo. In
1854, H. A. Hough established the first newspaper, "The Republican Sentinel." Other prosperous towns
are De Kalb (population, 2,579), Cortland, Malta and Somonauk. The surface is generally rolling, upland
prairie, with numerous groves and wooded tracts along the principal streams. Various lines of railroad
traverse the county, which embraces one of the wealthiest rural districts in the State.
DE KALB & GREAT WESTERN RAILROAD. (See Chicago Great Western Railway.)
DELAVAN, a thriving city in Tazewell County, on the line of the Chicago & Alton
Railroad, at the point of its intersection with the Peoria and Pekin Division of the Illinois Central
Railway, 34 miles west-southwest of Bloomington and 24 miles south of Peoria. Grain is extensively
grown in the adjacent territory, and much shipped from Delavan. The place supports two banks, tile
and brick factory, creamery, and two weekly papers. It also has five churches and a graded school. Pop.
(1900), 1,304; (1910), 1,175.
DEMENT, Henry Dodge, ex-Secretary of State, was born at Galena, Ill., in 1840—the
son of Colonel John Dement, an early and prominent citizen of the State, who held the office of State
Treasurer and was a member of the Constitutional Conventions of 1847 and 1870. Colonel Dement having
removed to Dixon about 1845, the subject of this sketch was educated there and at Mount Morris. Having
enlisted in the Thirteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry in 1861, he was elected a Second Lieutenant and
soon promoted to First Lieutenant—also received from Governor Yates a complimentary commission as
Captain for gallantry at Arkansas Post and at Chickasaw Bayou, where the commander of his regiment,
Col. J. B. Wyman, was killed. Later he served with General Curtis in Mississippi and in the Fifteenth
Army Corps in the siege of Vicksburg. After leaving the army he engaged in the manufacturing business
for some years at Dixon. Captain Dement entered the State Legislature by election as Representative
from Lee County in 1872, was re-elected in 1874 and, in 1876, was promoted to the Senate, serving in
the Thirtieth and Thirty-first General Assemblies. In 1880 he was chosen Secretary of State, and
re-elected in 1884, serving eight years. The last public position held by Captain Dement was that of
Warden of the State Penitentiary at Joliet, to which he was appointed in 1891, serving two years. His
present home is at Oak Park, Cook County.
DEMENT, John, was born in Sumner County, Tenn., in April, 1804. When 13 years old he
accompanied his parents to Illinois, settling in Franklin County, of which he was elected Sheriff in
1826, and which he represented in the Genei'al Assemblies of 1828 and '30. He served with distinction
during the Black Hawk War, having previously had experience in two Indian campaigns. In 1831 he was
elected State Treasurer by the Legislature, but, in 1836, resigned this office to represent Fayette
County in the General Assembly and aid in the fight against the removal of the capital to Springfield.
His efforts failing of success, he removed to the northern part of the State, finally locating at
Dixon, where he became extensively engaged in manufacturing. In 1837 President Van Buren appointed him
Receiver of Public Moneys, but he was removed by President Harrison in 1841; was reappointed by Polk in
1845, only to be again removed by Taylor in 1849 and reappointed by Pierce in 1853. He held the office
from that date until it was abolished. He was a Democratic Presidential Elector in 1844; served in
three Constitutional Conventions (1847, '62, and '70), being Temporary President of the two bodies last
named. He was the father of Hon. Denry D. Dement, Secretary of State of Illinois from 1884 to 1888. He
died at his home at Dixon, Jan. 16, 1883.
DENT, Thomas, lawyer, was born in Putnam County, Ill., Nov. 14, 1831; in his youth
was employed in the Clerk's office of Putnam County, meanwhile studying law; was admitted to the bar in
1854, and, in 1856, opened an office in Chicago; is still in practice and has served as President,
both of the Chicago Law Institute and the State Bar Association.
DES PLAINES, a village of Cook County, at the intersection of the Chicago &
Northwestern and the Wisconsin Central Railroads, 17 miles northwest from Chicago; is a dairying
region. Population (1890), 986; (1900), 1,666; (1910), 2,348.
DES PLAINES RIVER, a branch of the Illinois River, which rises in Racine County, Wis.,
and, after passing through Kenosha County, in that State, and Lake County, Ill., running nearly parallel
to the west shore of Lake Michigan through Cook County, finally unites with the Kankakee, about 13 miles
southwest of Joliet, by its confluence with the latter forming the Illinois River. Its length is about
150 miles. The Chicago Drainage Canal is constructed in the valley of the Des Plaines for a considerable
portion of the distance between Chicago and Joliet.
DEWEY, (Dr.) Richard S., physician, alienist, was born at Forestville, N. Y., Dec. 6,
1845; after receiving his primary education took a two years' course in the literary and a three years'
course in the medical department of the Michigan University at Ann Arbor, graduating from the latter
in 1869. He then began practice as House Physician and Surgeon in the City Hospital at Brooklyn, N.
Y., remaining for a year, after which he visited Europe inspecting hospitals and sanitary methods,
meanwhile spending six months in the Prussian military service as Surgeon during the Franco-Prussian
War. After the close of the war he took a brief course in the University of Berlin, when, returning to
the United States, he was employed for seven years as Assistant Physician in the Northern Hospital
for the Insane at Elgin. In 1879 he was appointed Medical Superintendent of the Eastern Hospital for
the Insane at Kankakee, remaining until the accession of John P. Altgeld to the Governorship in 1893.
Dr. Dewey's reputation as a specialist in the treatment of the insane has stood among the highest of
his class.
DE WITT COUNTY, situated in the central portion of the State; has an area of 440
square miles and a population (1910) of 18,906. The land was originally owned by the Kickapoos and
Pottawatomies, and not until 1820 did the first permanent white settlers occupy this region. The first
to come were Felix Jones, Prettyman Marvel, William Cottrell, Samuel Glenn, and the families of Scott,
Lundy and Coaps. Previously, however, the first cabin had been built on the site of the present Farmer
City by Nathan Clearwater. Zion Shugest erected the earliest grist-mill and Burrell Post the first
saw-mill in the county. Kentuckians and Tennesseeans were the first immigrants, but not until the
advent of settlers from Ohio did permanent improvements begin to be made. In 1835 a school house and
Presbyterian church were built at Waynesville. The county was organized in 1839, and—with its capital
(Clinton)—was named after one of New York's most distinguished Governors. It lies within the great
"corn belt," and is well watered by Salt Creek and its branches. Most of the surface is rolling prairie,
interspersed with woodland. Several lines of railway (among them the Illinois Central) cross the
county. Clinton had a population of 2,598 in 1890, and Farmer City, 1,367. Both are railroad centers
and have considerable trade.
DE WOLF, Calvin, pioneer and philanthropist, was born in Luzerne County, Pa., Feb.
18, 1815; taken early in life to Vermont, and, at 19 years of age, commenced teaching at Orwell, in
that State; spent one year at a manual labor school in Ashtabula County, Ohio, and, in 1837, came to
Chicago, and soon after began teaching in Will County, still later engaging in the same vocation in
Chicago. In 1839 he commenced the study of law with Messrs. Spring & Goodrich and, in 1843, was admitted
to practice. In 1854 he was elected a Justice of the Peace, retaining the position for a quarter of a
century, winning for himself the reputation of a sagacious and incorruptible public officer. Mr. De
Wolf was an original abolitionist and hrs home is said to have been one of the stations on the
"underground railroad" in the days of slavery. Died Nov. 28, '99.
DEXTER, Wirt, lawyer, born at Dexter, Mich., Oct. 25, 1831; was educated in the schools
of his native State and at Cazenovia Seminary, N. Y. He was descended from a family of lawyers, his
grandfather, Samuel Dexter, having been Secretary of War, and afterwards Secretary of the Treasury, in
the cabinet of the elder Adams. Coming to Chicago at the beginning of his professional career, Mr.
Dexter gave considerable attention at first to his father's extensive lumber trade. He was a zealous
and eloquent supporter of the Government during the Civil War, and was an active member of the Relief
and Aid Society after the fire of 1871. His entire professional life was spent in Chicago, for several
years before his death being in the service of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company as
its general solicitor and member of the executive committee of the Board of Directors. Died in Chicago,
May 20, 1890.
DICKEY, Hugh Thompson, jurist, was born in New York City, May 30, 1811; graduated
from Columbia College, read law and was admitted to the bar. He visited Chicago in 1836, and four years
later settled there, becoming one of its most influential citizens. Upon the organization of the
County Court of Cook County in 1845, Mr. Dickey was appointed its Judge. In September, 1848, he was
elected Judge of the Seventh Judicial Circuit, practically without partisan opposition, serving until
the expiration of his term in 1853. He was prominently identified with several important commercial
enterprises, was one of the founders of the Chicago Library Association, and one of the first Trustees
of the Illinois General Hospital of the Lakes, now Mercy Hospital. In 1885 he left Chicago to take up
his residence in his native city, New York, where he died, June 2, 1892.
DICKEY, Theophilus Lyle, lawyer and jurist, was born in Bourbon County, Ky., Nov. 12,
1812, the grandson of a Revolutionary soldier, graduated at the Miami (Ohio) University, and removed to
Illinois in 1834, settling at Macomb, McDonough County, where he was admitted to the. bar in 1835. In
1836 he moved to Rushville, where he resided three years, a part of the time editing a Whig newspaper.
Later he became a resident of Ottawa, and, at the opening of the Mexican War, organized a company of
volunteers, of which he was chosen Captain. In 1861 he raised a regiment of cavalry which was mustered
into service as the Fourth Illinois Cavalry, and of which he was commissioned Colonel, taking an active
part in Grant's campaigns in the West. In 1865 he resigned his commission and resumed the practice of
his profession at Ottawa. In 1866 he was an unsuccessful candidate for Congressman for the
State-at-large in opposition to John A. Logan, and, in 1868, was tendered and accepted the position of
Assistant Attorney-General of the United States, resigning after eighteen months' service. In 1873 he
removed to Chicago, and, in 1874, was made Corporation Counsel. In December, 1875, he was elected to
the Supreme Court, vice W. K. McAllister, deceased; was re-elected in 1879, and died at Atlantic City,
July 22, 1885.
DISCIPLES OF CHRIST, THE, known also as the Christian Church and as "Campbellites,"
having been founded by Alexander Campbell. Many members settled in Illinois in the early 30's, and, in
the central portion of the State, the denomination soon began to flourish greatly. Any one was admitted
to membership who made what is termed a scriptural confession of faith and was baptized by immersion.
Alexander Campbell was an eloquent preacher and a man of much native ability, as well as a born
conversationalist. The sect has steadily grown in numbers and influence in the State. The United States
Census of 1890 showed 641 churches in the State, with 368 ministers and an aggregate membership of
61,587, having 550 Sunday schools, with 50,000 pupils in attendance. The value of the real property,
which included 552 church edifices (with a seating capacity of 155,000) and 30 parsonages, was
$1,167,675. The denomination supports Eureka College, with an attendance of between 400 and 500
students, while its assets are valued at $150,000. Total membership in the United States, estimated
at 750,000.
DIXON, an incorporated city, the county-seat of Lee County. It lies on both sides of
Rock River and is the point of intersection of the Illinois Central and the Chicago & Northwestern
Railroads; is 98 miles west of Chicago. Rock River furnishes abundant water power and the manufacturing
interests of the city are very extensive, including large plow works, wire-cloth factory, wagon
factory; also has electric light and power plant, three shoe factories, planing mills, and a condensed
milk factory. There are two National and one State bank, eleven churches, a hospital, and three
newspapers. In schools the city particularly excels, having several graded (grammar) schools and two
colleges. The Chautauqua Assembly holds its meeting here annually. Population (1900), 7,917; (1910),
7,216.
DIXON, John, pioneer—the first white settler in Lee County, Ill., was born at Rye,
Westchester County, N. Y., Oct. 9, 1784; at 21 removed to New York City, where he was in business some
fifteen years. In 1820 he set out with his family for the West, traveling by land to Pittsburg, and
thence by flat-boat to Shawneetown. Having disembarked his horses and goods here, he pushed out towards
the northwest, passing the vicinity of Springfield, and finally locating on Fancy Creek, some nine
miles north of the present site of that city. Here he remained some five years, in that time serving
as foreman of the first Sangamon County Grand Jury. The new county of Peoria having been established in
1825, he was offered and accepted the appointment of Circuit Clerk, removing to Fort Clark, as Peoria
was then called. Later he became contractor for carrying the mail on the newly established route
between Peoria and Galena. Compelled to provide means of crossing Rock River, he induced a French and
Indian half-breed, named Ogee, to take charge of a ferry at a point afterwards known as Ogee's Ferry.
The tide of travel to the lead-mine region caused both the mail-route and the ferry to prove profitable,
and, as the half-breed ferryman could not endure prosperity, Mr. Dixon was forced to buy him out,
removing his family to this point in April, 1830. Here he established friendly relations with the
Indians, and, during the Black Hawk War, two years later, was enabled to render valuable service to
the State. His station was for many years one of the most important points in Northern Illinois, and
among the men of national reputation who were entertained at different times at his home: may be named
Gen. Zachary Taylor, Albert Sidney Johnston, Gen. Winfield Scott, Jefferson Davis, Col. Robert Anderson,
Abraham Lincoln, Col. E. D. Baker and many more. He bought the land where Dixon now stands in 1835 and
laid off the town; in 1838 was elected by the Legislature a member of the Board of Public Works, and,
in 1840, secured the removal of the land office from Galena to Dixon. Colonel Dixon was a delegate from
Lee County to the Republican State Convention at Bloomington, in May, 1856, and, although then
considerably over 70 years of age, spoke from the same stand with Abraham Lincoln, his presence
producing much enthusiasm. His death occurred, July 6, 1876.
DOANE, John Wesley, merchant and banker, was born at Thompson, Windham County, Conn.,
March 23, 1833; was educated in the common schools, and, at 22 years of age, came to Chicago and opened
a small grocery store which, by 1870, had become one of the most extensive concerns of its kind in the
Northwest. It was swept out of existence by the fire of 1871, but was re-established and, in 1872,
transferred to other parties, although Mr. Doane continued to conduct an importing business in many
lines of goods used in the grocery trade. Having become interested in the Merchants' Loan & Trust
Company, he was elected its President and continued to act in that capacity. He was also a stockholder
and a Director of the Pullman Palace Car Company, the Allen Paper Car Wheel Company and the Illinois
Central Railroad, and was a leading promoter of the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893—being one of
those who guaranteed the $5,000,000 raised by citizens of Chicago to assure the success of the
enterprise. Died March 23, 1901.
DOLTON STATION, a village of Cook County, on the Chicago & Eastern Illinois, the
Chicago & Western Indiana, and the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railroads, 16 miles south
of Chicago; has a carriage factory, a weekly paper, churches and a graded school. Population (1880),
448; (1890), 1,110; (1900), 1,229; (1910), 1,869.
DONGOLA, a village in Union County, on the Illinois Central Railroad, 27 miles north
of Cairo. Pop. (1890), 733; (1900), 681; (1910), 702.
DOOLITTLE, James Rood, United States Senator, was born in Hampton, Washington County,
N. Y., Jan 3, 1815; educated at Middlebury and Geneva (now Hobart) Colleges, admitted to the bar in 1837
and practiced at Rochester and Warsaw, N. Y.; was elected District Attorney ot Wyoming County, N. Y.,
in 1845, and, in 1851 removed to Wisconsin; two years later was elected Circuit Judge, but resigned
in 1856, and the following year was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the United States Senate,
being re-elected as a Republican in 1863. Retiring from public life in 1869, he afterwards resided
chiefly at Racine, Wis., though practicing in the courts of Chicago. He was President of the National
Union Convention at Philadelphia in 1866, and of the National Democratic Convention of 1872 in
Baltimore, which endorsed Horace Greeley for President. Died, at Edgewood, R. I., July 27,1897.
DORE, John Clark, first Superintendent of Chicago City Schools, was born at Ossipee,
N. H., March 22, 1822; began teaching at 17 years of age and graduated at Dartmouth College in 1847;
then taught several years and, in 1854, was offered and accepted the position of Superintendent of
City Schools of Chicago, but resigned two years later. Afterwards engaging in business, he served as
Vice-President and President of the Board of Trade, President of the Commercial Insurance Company and
of the State Savings Institution; was a member of the State Senate, 1868-72, and has been identified
with various benevolent organizations of the city of Chicago. Died in Boston, Mass., Dec, 14, 1900.
DOUGHERTY, John, lawyer and Lieutenant-Governor, was born at Marietta, Ohio, May 6,
1806; brought by his parents, in 1808, to Cape Girardeau, Mo., where they remained until after the
disastrous earthquakes in that region in 1811-12, when, his father having died, his mother removed to
Jonesboro, Ill. Here he finally read law with Col. A. P. Field, afterwards Secretary of State, being
admitted to the bar in 1831 and early attaining prominence as a successful criminal lawyer. He soon
became a recognized political leader, was elected as a member of the House to the Eighth General
Assembly (1832) and re-elected in 1834, '36 and '40, and again in 1856, and to the Senate in 1842,
serving in the latter body until the adoption of the Constitution of 1848. Originally a Democrat, he
was, in 1858, the Administration (Buchanan) candidate for State Treasurer, as opposed to the Douglas
wing of the party, but, in 1861, became a strong supporter of Abraham Lincoln. He served as Presidential
Elector on the Republican ticket in 1864 and in 1872 (the former year for the State-at-large), in 1868
was elected Lieutenant-Governor and, in 1877, to a seat on the criminal bench, serving until June,
1879. Died, at Jonesboro, Sept. 7, 1879.
DOUGLAS, John M., lawyer and Railway President, was born at Plattsburg, Clinton
County, N. Y., August 22, 1819; read law three years in his native city, then came west and settled at
Galena, Ill., where he was admitted to the bar in 1841 and began practice. In 1856 he removed to
Chicago, and, the following year, became one of the solicitors of the Illinois Central Railroad, with
which he had been associated as an attorney at Galena. Between 1861 and 1876 he was a Director of the
Company over twelve years; from 1865 to 1871 its President, and again for eighteen months in 1875-76,
when he retired permanently. Mr. Douglas' contemporaries speak of him as a lawyer of great ability, as
well as a capable executive officer. Died, in Chicago, March 25, 1891.
DOUGLAS, Stephen Arnold, statesman, was born at Brandon, Vt., April 23, 1813. In
consequence of the death of his father in infancy, his early educational advantages were limited. When
fifteen he applied himself to the cabinetmaker's trade, and, in 1830, accompanied his mother and
step-father to Ontario County, N. Y. In 1832 he began the study of law, but started for the West in
1833. He taught school at Winchester, Ill., reading law at night and practicing before a Justice of the
Peace on Saturdays. He was soon admitted to the bar and took a deep interest in politics. In 1835 he
was elected Prosecuting Attorney for Morgan County, but a few months later resigned this office to
enter the lower house of the Legislature, to which he was elected in 1836. In 1838 he was a candidate
for Congress, but was defeated by John T. Stuart, his Whig opponent; was appointed Secretary of State
in December, 1840, and, in February, 1841, elected Judge of the Supreme Court. He was elected to
Congress in 1842, '44 and '46, and, in the latter year, was chosen United States Senator, taking his
seat March 4, 1847, and being re-elected in 1853 and '59. His last canvass was rendered memorable
through his joint debate, in 1858, before the people of the State with Abraham Lincoln, whom he
defeated before the Legislature. He was a candidate for the presidential nomination before the
Democratic National Conventions of 1852 and '56. In 1860, after having failed of a nomination for the
Presidency at Charleston, S. C, through the operation of the "two thirds rule," he received the
nomination from the adjourned convention held at Baltimore six weeks later—though not until the
delegates from nearly all the Southern States had withdrawn, the seceding delegates afterwards
nominating John C. Breckenridge. Although defeated for the Presidency by Lincoln, his old-time
antagonist, Douglas yielded a cordial support to the incoming administration in its attitude toward
the seceded States, occupying a place of honor beside Mr. Lincoln on the portico of the capitol
during the inauguration ceremonies. As politician, orator and statesman, Douglas had few superiors.
Quick in perception, facile in expedients, ready in resources, earnest and fearless in utterance, he
was a born "leader of men." His shortness of stature, considered in relation to his extraordinary
mental acumen, gained for him the sobriquet of the "Little Giant." He died in Chicago, June 3, 1861.
DOUGLAS COUNTY, lying a little east of the center of the State, embracing an area of
410 square miles and having a population (1910) of 19,591. The earliest land entry was made by
Harrison Gill, of Kentucky, whose patent was signed by Andrew Jackson. Another early settler was John
A. Richman, a West Virginian, who erected one of the first frame houses in the county in 1829. The
Embarras and Kaskaskia Rivers flow through the county, which is also crossed by the Wabash and
Illinois Central Railways. Douglas County was organized in 1859 (being set off from Coles) and named in
honor of Stephen A. Douglas, then United States Senator from Illinois. After a sharp struggle Tuscola
was made the county-seat. It has been visited fry several disastrous conflagrations, but is a thriving
town, credited, in 1890, with a population of 1,897. Other important towns are Areola (population,
1,733), and Camargo, which was originally known as New Salem.
DOWNERS GROVE, village, Du Page County, on C. B. & Q. R. R., 21 miles south-southwest
from Chicago, incorporated 1873; has water-works, electric lights, furniture factory, good schools,
bank and a newspaper. Pop. (1900), 2,103; (1910), 2,601.
DOWNING, Finis Ewing, ex-Congressman and lawyer, was born at Virginia, Ill., August
24, 1846; reared on a farm and educated in the public and private schools of his native town; from
1865 was engaged in mercantile pursuits until 1880, when he was elected Clerk of the Circuit Court
of Cass County, serving three successive terms; read la.w and was admitted to the bar in December,
1887. In August, 1891, he became interested in "The Virginia Enquirer" (a Democratic paper), which he
has since conducted; was elected Secretary of the State Senate in 1893, and, in 1894, was returned as
elected to the Fifty-fourth Congress from the Sixteenth District by a plurality of forty votes over
Gen. John I. Rinaker, the Republican nominee. A contest and recount of the ballots resulted, however,
in awarding the seat to General Rinaker. In 1896 Mr. Downing was the nominee of his party for Secretary
of State, but was defeated with the rest of his ticket.
DRAKE, Francis Marion, soldier and Governor, was born at Rushville, Schuyler County,
Ill., Dec. 30, 1830; early taken to Drakesville, Iowa, which his father founded; entered mercantile
life at 10 years of age; crossed the plains to California in 1852, had experience in Indian warfare
and, in 1859, established himself in business at Unionville, Iowa; served through the Civil War,
becoming Lieutenant-Colonel and retiring in 1865 with the rank of Brigadier-General by brevet. He
re-entered mercantile life after the war, was admitted to the bar in 1866, subsequently engaged in
railroad building and, in 1881, contribbuted the bulk of the funds for founding Drake University; was
elected Governor of Iowa in 1895, serving until Jan., 1898. Died Nov. 20, 1903.
DRAPER, Andrew Sloan, LL.D., lawyer and educator, was born in Otsego County, N. Y.,
June 21, 1848—being a descendant, in the eighth generation, from the "Puritan," James Draper, who
settled in Boston in 1647. In 1855 Mr. Draper's parents settled in Albany, N. Y., where he attended
school, winning a scholarship in the Albany Academy in 1863, and graduating from that institution in
1866. During the next four years he was employed in teaching, part of the time as an instructor at his
alma mater; but, in 1871, graduated from the Union College Law Department, when he began practice. The
rank he attained in the profession was indicated by his appointment by President Arthur, in 1884, one
of the Judges of the Alabama Claims Commission, upon which he served until the conclusion of its labors
in 1886. He had previously served in the New York State Senate (1880) and, in 1884, was a delegate to
the Republican National Convention, also serving as Chairman of the Republican State Central Committee
the same year. After his return from Europe in 1886, he served as State Superintendent of Public
Instruction of New York until 1892, and, in 1889, and again in 1890, was President of the National
Association of School Superintendents. Soon after retiring from the State Superintendency in New York,
he was chosen Superintendent of Public Schools for the city of Cleveland, Ohio, remaining in that
position until 1894, when he was elected President of the University of Illinois at Champaign, where
he now is. His administration has been characterized by enterprise and sagacity, and has tended to
promote the popularity and prosperity of the institution.
DRESSER, Charles, clergyman, was born at Pomfret, Conn., Feb. 24, 1800; graduated
from Brown University in 1823, went to Virginia, where he studied theology and was ordained a minister
of the Protestant Episcopal Church. In 1838 he removed to Springfield, and became rector of St. Paul's
Episcopal Church there, retiring in 1858. On Nov. 4, 1842, Mr. Dresser performed the ceremony uniting
Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd in marriage. He died, March 25, 1865.
DRUMMOND, Thomas, jurist, was born at Bristol Mills, Lincoln County, Maine, Oct. 16,
1809. After graduating from Bowdoin College, in 1830, he studied law at Philadelphia, where he was
admitted to the bar in 1833. He settled at Galena, Ill., in 1835, and was a member of the General
Assembly in 1840-41. In 1850 he was appointed United States District Judge for the District of Illinois
as successor to Judge Nathaniel Pope, and four years later removed to Chicago. Upon the division of the
State into two judicial districts, in 1855, he was assigned to the Northern. In 1869 he was elevated to
the bench of the United States Circuit Court, and presided over the Seventh Circuit, which at that time
included the States of Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. In 1884—at the age of 75—he resigned, living
in retirement until his death, which occurred at Wheaton, Ill., May 15, 1890.
DUBOIS, Jesse Kilgore, State Auditor, was born Jan. 14, 1811, in Lawrence County,
Ill., near Vincennes, Ind., where his father, Capt. Toussaint Dubois, had settled about 1780. The
latter was a native of Canada, of French descent, and, after settling in the Northwest Territory, had
been a personal friend of General Harrison, under whom he served in the Indian wars, including the
battle of Tippecanoe. The son received a partial collegiate education at Bloomington, Ind., but, at
24 years of age (1834), was elected to the General Assembly, serving in the same House with Abraham
Lincoln, and being re-elected in 1836, '38, and '42. In 1841 he was appointed by President Harrison
Register of the Land Office at Palestine, Ill., but soon resigned, giving his attention to mercantile
pursuits until 1849, when he was appointed Receiver of Public Moneys at Palestine, but was removed by
Pierce in 1853. He was a Delegate to the first Republican State Convention, at Bloomington, in 1856,
and, on the recommendation of Mr. Lincoln, was nominated for Auditor of Public Accounts, renominated
in 1860, and elected both times. In 1864 he was a candidate for the nomination of his party for
Governor, but was defeated by General Oglesby, serving, however, on the National Executive Committee
of that year, and as a delegate to the National Convention of 1868. Died, at his home near Springfield,
Nov. 22, 1876. —Fred T. (Dubois), son of the preceding, was born in Crawford County,
Ill., May 29, 1851; received a common-school and classical education, graduating from Yale College in
1872; was Secretary of the Illinois Railway and "Warehouse Commission in 1875-76; went to Idaho
Territory and engaged in business in 1880, was appointed United States Marshal there in 1882, serving
until 1886; elected as a Republican Delegate to the Fiftieth and Fifty-first Congresses, and, on the
admission of Idaho as a State (1890), became one of the first United States Senators, his term extending
to 1897. He was Chairman of the Idaho delegation in the National Republican Convention at Minneapolis
in 1892, and was a member of the National Republican Convention at St. Louis in 1896, but seceded from
that body with Senator Teller of Colorado, and has sirfbe cooperated with the Populists and Free Silver
Democrats.
DUCAT, Arthur Charles, soldier and civil engineer, was born in Dublin, Ireland, Feb.
24, 1830, received a liberal education and became a civil engineer. He settled in Chicago in 1851, and
six years later was made Secretary and Chief Surveyor of the Board of Underwriters of that city. While
acting in this capacity, he virtually revised the schedule system of rating fire-risks. In 1861 he
raised a company of 300 engineers, sappers and miners, but neither the State nor Federal authorities
would accept it. Thereupon he enlisted as a private in the Twelfth Illinois Volunteers, but his ability
earned him rapid promotion. He rose through the grades of Captain, Major and Lieutenant-Colonel, to that
of Colonel, and was brevetted Brigadier-General in February, 1864. Compelled by sickness to leave the
army, General Ducat returned to Chicago, re-entering the insurance field and finally, after holding
various responsible positions, engaging in general business in that line. In 1875 he was entrusted with
the task of reorganizing the State militia, which he performed with signal success. Died, at Downers
Grove, Ill., Jan. 29, 1896.
DUELS AND ANTI-DUELING LAWS. Although a majority of the population of Illinois, in
Territorial days, came from Southern States where the duel was widely regarded as the proper mode for
settling "difficulties" of a personal character, it is a curious fact that so few "affairs of honor"
(so-called) should have occurred on Illinois soil. The first "affair" of this sort of which either
history or tradition has handed down any account, is said to have occurred between an English and a
French officer at the time of the surrender of Fort Chartres to the British in 1765, and in connection
with that event. The officers are said to have fought with small swords one Sunday morning near the
Fort, when one of them was killed, but the name of neither the victor nor the vanquished has come down
to the present time. Gov. John Reynolds, who is the authority for the story in his "Pioneer History of
Illinois," claimed to have received it in his boyhood from an aged Frenchman who represented that he
had seen the combat. An affair of less doubtful authenticity has come down to us in the history of the
Territorial period, and, although it was at first bloodless, it finally ended in a tragedy. This was
the Jones-Bond affair, which originated at Kaskaskia in 1808. Rice Jones was the son of John Rice
Jones, the first English-speaking lawyer in the "Illinois Country." The younger Jones is described as
an exceptionally brilliant young man who, having studied law, located at Kaskaskia in 1806. Two years
later he became a candidate for Representative from Randolph County in the Legislature of Indiana
Territory, of which Illinois was a part. In the course of the canvass which resulted in Jones' election,
he became involved in a quarrel with Shadrach Bond, who was then a member of the Territorial Council
from the same county, and afterwards became Delegate in Congress from Illinois and the first Governor
of the State. Bond challenged Jones and the meeting took place on an island in the Mississippi between
Kaskaskia and St. Genevieve. Bond's second was a Dr. James Dunlap of Kaskaskia, who appears also to
have been a bitter enemy of Jones. The discharge of a pistol in the hand of Jones after the combatants
had taken their places preliminary to the order to "fire," raised the question whether it was accidental
or to be regarded as Jones' fire. Dunlap maintained the latter, but Bond accepted the explanation of
his adversary that the discharge was accidental, and the generosity which he displayed led to
explanations that averted a final exchange of shots. The feud thus started between Jones and Dunlap
grew until it involved a large part of the community. On Dec. 7, 1808, Dunlap shot down Jones in cold
blood and without warning in the streets of Kaskaskia, killing him instantly. The murderer fled to
Texas and was never heard of about Kaskaskia afterwards. This incident furnishes the basis of the
most graphic chapter in Mrs. Catherwood's story of "Old Kaskaskia." Prompted by this tragical affair,
no doubt, the Governor and Territorial Judges, in 1810, framed a stringent law for the suppression of
dueling, in which, in case of a fatal result, all parties connected with the affair, as principals or
seconds, were held to be guilty of murder. Governor Reynolds furnishes the record of a duel between
Thomas Rector, the member of a noted family of that name at Kaskaskia, and one Joshua Barton, supposed
to have occurred sometime during the War of 1812, though no exact dates are given. This affair took
place on the favorite dueling ground known as "Bloody Island," opposite St. Louis, so often resorted
to at a later day, by devotees of "the code" in Missouri. Reynolds says that "Barton fell in the
conflict." The next affair of which history makes mention grew out of a drunken carousel at Belleville,
in February, 1819, which ended in a duel between two men named Alonzo Stuart and William Bennett, and
the killing of Stuart by Bennett. The managers of the affair for the principals are said to have agreed
that the guns should be loaded with blank cartridges, and Stuart was let into the secret but Bennett was
not. When the order to fire came, Bennett's gun proved to have been loaded with ball. Stuart fell
mortally wounded, expiring almost immediately. One report says that the duel was intended as a sham,
and was so understood by Bennett, who was horrified by the result. He and his two seconds were arrested
for murder, but Bennett broke jail and fled to Arkansas. The seconds were tried, Daniel P. Cook
conducting the prosecution and Thomas H. Benton defending, the trial resulting in their acquittal. Two
years later, Bennett was apprehended by some sort of artifice, put on his trial, convicted and
executed—Judge John Reynolds (afterwards Governor) presiding and pronouncing sentence. In a footnote
to "The Edwards Papers," edited by the late E. B. Washburne, and printed under the auspices of the
Chicago Historical Society, a few years ago, Mr. Washburne relates an incident occurring in Galena
about 1838, while "The Northwestern Gazette and Galena Advertiser" was under the charge of Sylvester
M. Bartlett, who was afterwards one of the founders of "The Quincy Whig." The story, as told by
Mr. Washburne, is as follows: "David G. Bates (a Galena business man and captain of a packet plying
between St. Louis and Galena) wrote a short communication for the paper reflecting on the character
of John Turney, a prominent lawyer who had been a member of the House of Representatives in 1828-30,
from the District composed of Pike, Adams, Fulton, Schuyler, Peoria and Jo Daviess Counties. Turney
demanded the name of the author and Bartlett gave up the name of Bates. Turney refused to take any
notice of Bates and then challenged Bartlett to a duel, which was promptly accepted by Bartlett. The
second of Turney was the Hon. Joseph P. Hoge, afterward a member of Congress from the Galena District.
Bartlett's second was William A. Warren, now of Bellevue, Iowa." (Warren was a prominent Union officer
during the Civil War.) "The parties went out to the ground selected for the duel, in what was then
Wisconsin Territory, seven miles north of Galena, and, after one ineffectual fire, the matter was
compromised. Subsequently, Bartlett removed to Quincy, and was for a long time connected with the
publication of "The Quincy Whig." During the session of the Twelfth General Assembly (1841), A. R.
Dodge, a Democratic Representative from Peoria County, feeling himself aggrieved by some reflections
indulged by Gen. John J. Hardin (then a Whig Representative from Morgan County) upon the Democratic
party in connection with the partisan reorganization of the Supreme Court, threatened to "call out"
Hardin. The affair was referred to W. L. D. Ewing and W. A. Richardson for Dodge, and J. J. Brown and
E. B. Webb for Hardin, with the result that it was amicably adjusted "honorably to both parties." It
was during the same session that John A. McClernand, then a young and fiery member from Gallatin
County — who had, two years before, been appointed Secretary of State by Governor Carlin, but had been
debarred from taking the office by an adverse decision of the Supreme Court — indulged in a violent
attack upon the Whig members of the Court based upon allegations afterwards shown to have been furnished
by Theophilus W. Smith, a Democratic member of the same court. Smith having joined his associates in a
card denying the truth of the charges, McClernand responded with the publication of the cards of persons
tracing the allegations directly to Smith himself. This brought a note from Smith which McClernand
construed into a challenge and answered with a prompt acceptance. Attorney-General Lamborn, having
got wind of the affair, lodged a complaint with a Springfield Justice of the Peace, which resulted in
placing the pugnacious jurist under bonds to keep the peace, when he took his departure for Chicago,
and the "affair" ended. An incident of greater historical interest than all the others yet mentioned,
was the affair in which James Shields and Abraham Lincoln—the former the State Auditor and the latter
at that time a young attorney at Springfield—were concerned. A communication in doggerel verse had
appeared in "The Springfield Journal" ridiculing the Auditor. Shields made demand upon the editor (Mr.
Simeon Francis) for the name of the author, and, in accordance with previous understanding, the name
of Lincoln was given. (Evidence, later coming to light, showed that the real authors were Miss Mary
Todd—who, a few months later, became Mrs. Lincoln—and Miss Julia Jayne, afterwards the wife of Senator
Trumbull.) Shields, through John D. Whiteside, a former State Treasurer, demanded a retraction of the
offensive matter—the demand being presented to Lincoln at Tremont, in Tazewell County, where Lincoln
was attending court. Without attempting to follow the affair through all its complicated details—Shields
having assumed that Lincoln was the author without further investigation, and Lincoln refusing to make
any explanation unless the first demand was withdrawn—Lincoln named Dr. E. H. Merriman as his second
and accepted Shield's challenge, naming cavalry broadswords as the weapons and the Missouri shore,
within three miles of the city of Alton, as the place. The principals, with their "friends," met at
the appointed time and place (Sept. 22, 1842, opposite the city of Alton); but, in the meantime, mutual
friends, having been apprised of what was going on, also appeared on the ground and brought about
explanations which averted an actual conflict. Those especially instrumental in bringing about this
result were Gen. John J. Hardin of Jacksonville, and Dr. R. W. English of Greene County, while John
D. Whiteside, W. L. D. Ewing and Dr. T. M. Hope acted as representatives of Shields, and Dr. E. H.
Merriman, Dr. A. T. Bledsoe and William Butler for Lincoln. Out of this affair, within the next few
days, followed challenges from Shields to Butler and Whiteside to Merriman; but, although these were
accepted, yet owing to some objection on the part of the challenging party to the conditions named by
the party challenged, thereby resulting in delay, no meeting actually took place. Another affair which
bore important results without ending in a tragedy, occurred during the session of the Constitutional
Convention in 1847. The parties to it were O. C. Pratt and Thompson Campbell — both Delegates from Jo
Daviess County, and both Democrats. Some sparring between them over the question of suffrage for
naturalized foreigners resulted in an invitation from Pratt to Campbell to meet him at the Planters'
House in St. Louis, with an intimation that this was for the purpose of arranging the preliminaries
of a duel. Both parties were on hand before the appointed time, but their arrest by the St. Louis
authorities and putting them under heavy bonds to keep the peace, gave them an excuse for returning
to their convention duties without coming to actual hostilities—if they had such intention. This was
promptly followed by the adoption in Convention of the provision of the Constitution of 1848,
disqualifying any person engaged in a dueling affair, either as principal or second, from holding any
office of honor or profit in the State. The last and principal affair of this kind of historic
significance, in which a citizen of Illinois was engaged, though not on Illinois soil, was that in
which Congressman William H. Bissell, afterwards Governor of Illinois, and Jefferson Davis were
concerned in February, 1850. During the debate on the "Compromise Measures" of that year, Congressman
Seddon of Virginia went out of his way to indulge in implied reflections upon the courage of Northern
soldiers as displayed on the battlefield of Buena Vista, and to claim for the Mississippi regiment
commanded by Davis the credit of saving the day. Replying to these claims Colonel Bissell took occasion
to correct the Virginia Congressman's statements, and especially to vindicate the good name of the
Illinois and Kentucky troops. In doing so he declared that, at the critical moment alluded to by Seddon,
when the Indiana regiment gave way, Davis's regiment was not within a mile and a half of the scene of
action. This was construed by Davis as a reflection upon his troops, and led to a challenge which was
promptly accepted by Bissell, who named the soldier's weapon (the common army musket), loaded with ball
and buckshot, with forty paces as the distance, with liberty to advance up to ten—otherwise leaving the
preliminaries to be settled by his friends. The evidence manifested by Bissell that he was not to be
intimidated, but was prepared to face death itself to vindicate his own honor and that of his comrades
in the field, was a surprise to the Southern leaders, and they soon found a way for Davis to withdraw
his challenge on condition that Bissell should add to his letter of acceptance a clause awarding credit
to the Mississippi regiment for what they actually did, but without disavowing or retracting a single
word he had uttered in his speech. In the meantime, it is said that President Taylor, who was the
father-in-law of Davis, having been apprised of what was on foot, had taken precautions to prevent a
meeting by instituting legal proceedings the night before it was to take place, though this was rendered
unnecessary by the act of Davis himself. Thus, Colonel Bissell's position was virtually (though
indirectly) justified by his enemies. It is true, he was violently assailed by his political opponents
for alleged violation of the inhibition in the State Constitution against dueling, especially when he
came to take the oath of office as Governor of Illinois, seven years later; but his course in "turning
the tables" against his fire-eating opponents aroused the enthusiasm of the North, while his friends
maintained that the act having been performed beyond the jurisdiction, of the State, he was technically
not guilty of any violation of the laws. While the provision in the Constitution of 1848, against
dueling, was not re-incorporated in that of 1870, the laws on the subject are very stringent. Besides
imposing a penalty of not less than one nor more than five years' imprisonment, or a fine not exceeding
$3,000, upon any one who, as principal or second, participates in a duel with a deadly weapon, whether
such duel proves fatal or not, or who sends, carries or accepts a challenge: the law also provides that
any one convicted of such offense shall be disqualified for holding any office of profit, trust or
emolument, either civil or military, under the Constitution or laws of this State. Any person leaving
the State to send or receive a challenge is subject to the same penalties as if the offense had been
committed within the State; and any person who may inflict upon his antagonist a fatal wound, as the
result of an engagement made in this State to fight a duel beyond its jurisdiction—when the person so
wounded dies within this State—is held to be guilty of murder and subject to punishment for the same.
The publishing of any person as a coward, or the applying to him of opprobrious or abusive language,
for refusing to accept a challenge, is declared to be a crime punishable by fine or imprisonment.
DUFF, Andrew D., lawyer and Judge, was born of a family of pioneer settlers in Bond
County, Ill., Jan. 24, 1820; was educated in the country schools, and, from 1842 to 1847, spent his
time in teaching and as a farmer. The latter year he removed to Benton, Franklin County, where he
began reading law, but suspended his studies to enlist in the Mexican War, serving as a private; in
1849 was elected County Judge of Franklin County, and, in the following year, was admitted to the bar.
In 1861 he was elected Judge for the Twenty-sixth Circuit and reelected in 1867, serving until 1873.
He also served as a Delegate in the State Constitutional Convention of 1862 from the district composed
of Franklin and Jackson Counties, and, being a zealous Democrat, was one of the leaders in calling the
mass meeting held at Peoria, in August, 1864, to protest against the policy of the Government in the
prosecution of the war. About the close of his last term upon the bench (1873), he removed to
Carbondale, where he continued to reside. In his later years he became an Independent in politics,
acting for a time in cooperation with the friends of temperance. In 1885 he was appointed by joint
resolution of the Legislature on a commission to revise the revenue code of the State. Died, at Tucson,
Ariz., June 25, 1889.
DUNCAN, Joseph, Congressman and Governor, was born at Paris, Ky., Feb. 22, 1794;
emigrated to Illinois in 1818, having previously served with distinction in the "War of 1812, and been
presented with a sword, by vote of Congress, for gallant conduct in the defense of Fort Stephenson.
He was commissioned Major-General of Illinois militia in 1823 and elected State Senator from Jackson
County in 1824. He served in the lower house of Congress from 1827 to 1834, when he resigned his seat
to occupy the gubernatorial chair, to which he was elected the latter year. He was the author of the
first free-school law, adopted in 1825. His executive policy was conservative and consistent, and his
administration successful. He erected the first frame building at Jacksonville, in 1834, and was a
liberal friend of Illinois College at that place. In his personal character he was kindly, genial and
unassuming, although fearless in the expression of his convictions. He was the Whig candidate for
Governor in 1842, when he met with his first political defeat. Died, at Jacksonville, Jan. 15, 1844,
mourned by men of all parties.
DUNCAN, Thomas, soldier, was born in Kaskaskia, Ill., April 14, 1809; served as a
private in the Illinois mounted volunteers during the Black Hawk War of 1832; also as First Lieutenant
of cavalry in the regular army in the Mexican War (1846), and as Major and Lieutenant-Colonel during
the War of the Rebellion, still later doing duty upon the frontier keeping the Indians in check. He
was retired from active service in 1873, and died in Washington, Jan. 7, 1887.
DUNDEE, a town on Fox River, in Kane County, 5 miles (by rail) north of Elgin and
47 miles west-northwest of Chicago. It has two distinct corporations—East and West Dundee—but is
progressive and united in action. Dairy farming is the principal industry of the adjacent region, and
the town has two large milk-condensing plants, a cheese factory, etc. It has good water power and there
are flour and saw-mills, besides brick and tile-works, an.extensive nursery, two banks, six churches, a
handsome high school building, a public library and two weekly papers. Pop. (1890), 2,023; (1900),
2,765; (1910), 2,785.
DUNHAM, John High, banker and Board of Trade operator, was born in Seneca County,
N. Y., 1817; came to Chicago in 1844, engaged in the wholesale grocery trade, and, a few years later,
took a prominent part in solving the question of a water supply for the city; was elected to the
Twentieth General Assembly (1856) and the next year assisted in organizing the Merchants' Loan & Trust
Company, of which he became the first President, retiring five years later and reengaging in the
mercantile business. While Hon. Hugh McCullough was Secretary of the Treasury, he was appointed
National Bank Examiner for Illinois, serving until 1866. He was a member of the Chicago Historical
Society, the Academy of Sciences, and an early member of the Board of Trade. Died, April 28, 1893,
leaving a large estate.
DUNHAM, Ransom W., merchant and Congressman, was born at Savoy, Mass., March 21,
1838; after graduating from the High School at Springfield, Mass., in 1855, was connected with the
Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company until August, 1860. In 1857 he removed from Springfield
to Chicago, and at the termination of his connection with the Insurance Company, embarked in the grain
and provision commission business in that city, and, in 1882, was President of the Chicago Board of
Trade. From 1883 to 1889 he represented the First Illinois District in Congress, after the expiration
of his last term devoting his attention to his large private business. His death took place suddenly
at Springfield, Mass., August 19, 1896.
DUNLAP, George Lincoln, civil engineer and Railway Superintendent, was born at
Brunswick, Maine, in 1828; studied mathematics and engineering at Gorham Academy, and, after several
years' experience on the Boston & Maine and the New York & Erie Railways, came west in 1855 and
accepted a position as assistant engineer on what is now the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad, finally
becoming its General Superintendent, and, in fourteen years of his connection with that road, vastly
extending its lines. Between 1872 and '79 he was connected with the Montreal & Quebec Railway, but the
latter year returned to Illinois and was actively connected with the extension of the Wabash system
until his retirement a few years ago. Died May 12, 1904.
DUNLAP, Henry M., horticulturist and legislator, was born in Cook County, Ill., Nov.
14, 1853—the son of M. L. Dunlap (the well-known "Rural"), who became a prominent horticulturist in
Champaign County and was one of the founders of the State Agricultural Society. The family having
located at Savoy, Champaign County, about 1857, the younger Dunlap was educated in the University of
Illinois, graduating in the scientific department in 1875. Following in the footsteps of his father,
he engaged extensively in fruit-growing, and has served in the* office of both President and Secretary
of the State Horticultural Society, besides local offices. In 1892 he was elected as a Republican to
the State Senate for the Thirtieth District, was re-elected in 1896, and has been prominent in State
legislation.
DUNLAP, Mathias Lane, horticulturist, was born at Cherry Valley, N. Y., Sept. 14,
1814; coming to La Salle County, Ill., in 1835, he taught school the following winter; then secured a
clerkship in Chicago, and later became bookkeeper for a firm of contractors on the Illinois & Michigan
Canal, remaining two years. Having entered a body of Government land in the western part of Cook
County, he turned his attention to farming, giving a portion of his time to surveying. In 1845 he
became interested in horticulture and, in a few years, built up one of the most extensive nurseries
in the West. In 1854 he was chosen a Representative in the Nineteenth General Assembly from Cook
County, and, at the following session, presided over the caucus which resulted in the nomination and
final election of Lyman Trumbull to the United States Senate for the first time. Politically an
anti-slavery Democrat, he espoused the cause of freedom in the Territories, while his house was one
of the depots of the "underground railroad." In 1855 he purchased a half-section of land near
Champaign, whither he removed, two years later, for the prosecution of his nursery business. He was
an active member, for many years, of the State Agricultural Society and an earnest supporter of the
scheme for the establishment of an "Industrial University," which finally took form in the University
of Illinois at Champaign. From 1853 to his death he was the agricultural correspondent, first of "The
Chicago Democratic Press," and later of "The Tribune," writing over the nom de plume of "Rural." Died,
Feb. 14, 1875.
DU PAGE COUNTY, organized in 1839, named for a river which flows through it. It
adjoins Cook County on the west and contains 340 square miles. In 1910 its population was 33,432. The
county-seat was originally at Naperville, which was platted in 1842 and named in honor of Capt. Joseph
Naper, who settled upon the site in 1831. In 1869 the county government was removed to Wheaton, the
location of Wheaton College, where it yet remains. Besides Captain Naper, early settlers of prominence
were Bailey Hobson (the pioneer in the township of Lisle), and Pierce Downer (in Downer's Grove). The
chief towns are Wheaton (population, 1,622), Naperville (2,216), Hinsdale (1,584), Downer's Grove
(960), and Roselle (450). Hinsdale and Roselle are largely populated by persons doing business in
Chicago.
DU QUOIN, a city and railway junction in Perry County, 76 miles north of Cairo; has
a foundry, machine shops, planing-mill, flour mills, sarfc works, ice factory, soda-water factory,
creamery, coal mines, graded school, public library and four newspapers. Population (1890), 4,052;
(1900), 4,353; (1910), 5,454.
DURBOROW, Allan Cathcart, ex-Congressman, was born in Philadelphia, Nov. 20, 1857.
When five years old he accompanied his parents to Williamsport, Ind., where he received his early
education. He entered the preparatory department of Wabash College in 1872, and graduated from the
University of Indiana, at Bloomington, in 1877. After two years' residence in Indianapolis, he removed
to Chicago, where he engaged in business. Always active in local politics, he was elected by the
Democrats in 1890, and again in 1892, Representative in Congress from the Second District, retiring
with the close of the Fifty-third Congress. In his later years he was Treasurer of the Chicago
Air-Line Express Company. Died Mar. 10, 1908.
DUSTIN, (Gen.) Daniel, soldier, was born in Topsham, Orange County, Vt., Oct. 5,
1820; received a common-school and academic education, graduating in medicine at Dartmouth College
in 1846. After practicing three years at Corinth, Vt., he went to California in 1850 and engaged in
mining, but three years later resumed the practice of his profession while conducting a mercantile
business. He was subsequently chosen to the California Legislature from Nevada County, but coming to
Illinois in 1858, he engaged in the drug business at Sycamore, De Kalb County, in connection with J.
E. Elwood. On the breaking out of the war in 1861, he sold out his drug business and assisted in
raising the Eighth Regiment Illinois Cavalry, and was commissioned Captain of Company L. The regiment
was assigned to the Army of the Potomac, and, in January, 1862, he was promoted to the position of
Major, afterwards taking part in the battle of Manassas, and the great "seven days' fight" before
Richmond. In September, 1862, the One Hundred and Fifth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was
mustered in at Dixon, and Major Dustin was commissioned its Colonel, soon after joining the Army of
the Cumberland. After the Atlanta campaign he was assigned to the command of a brigade in the Third
Division of the Twelfth Army Corps, remaining in this position to the close of the war, meanwhile
having been brevetted Brigadier-General for bravery displayed on the battle-field at Averysboro, N. C.
He was mustered out at Washington, June 7, 1865, and took part in the grand review of the armies in
that city which marked the close of the war. Returning to his home in De Kalb County, he was elected
County Clerk in the following November, remaining in office four years. Subsequently he was chosen
Circuit Clerk and ex-officio Recorder, and was twice thereafter re-elected—in 1884 and 1888. On the
organization of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Home at Quincy, in 1885, he was appointed by Governor
Oglesby one of the Trustees, retaining the position until his death. In May, 1890, he was appointed
by President Harrison Assistant United States Treasurer at Chicago, but died in office while on a visit
with his daughter at Carthage, Mo., March 30,1892. General Dustin was a Mason of high degree, and,
in 1872, was chosen Right Eminent Commander of the Grand Commandery of the State.
DWIGHT, a prosperous city in Livingston County, 74 miles, by rail, south-southwest
of Chicago, 52 miles northeast of Bloomington, and 22 miles east of Streator; has two banks, three
weekly papers, six churches, five large warehouses, two electric light plants, complete water-works
system, and four hotels. The city is the center of a rich farming and stock-raising district. Dwight
has attained celebrity as the location of the first of "Keeley Institutes," founded for the cure of
the drink and morphine habit. Population (1900), 2,015; (1910), 2,156. These figures do not include
the floating population, which is augmented by patients who receive treatment at the "Keeley
Institute."
DYER, Charles Yolney, M.D., pioneer physician, was born at Clarendon, Vt., June 12,
1808; graduated in medicine at Middlebury College, in 1830; began practice at Newark, N/J., in 1831,
and in Chicago in 1835. He was an uncompromising opponent of slavery and an avowed supporter of the
"underground railroad," and, in 1848, received the support of the Free-Soil party of Illinois for
Governor. Dr. Dyer was also one of the original incorporators of the North Chicago Street Railway
Company, and his name was prominently identified with many local benevolent enterprises. Died, in
Lake View (then a suburb of Chicago), April 24, 1878.
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