Category Archives: Communities

Pawnee

Posted on April 22, 2013 by editor

Pawnee Township saw some of Sangamon County’s earliest European settlers, with Justus Henkle apparently being the first in 1818. He was followed by a number of other settlers from St. Clair County. The new families encountered the indigenous Kickapoo and … Continue reading →

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Curran

Posted on April 21, 2013 by editor

Curran was founded in the 1830s and laid out in the 1850s, when a store and post office also were established. However, the community wasn’t formally incorporated until 2005, when area residents decided to seek aid to build a sewer … Continue reading →

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Pleasant Plains

Posted on April 21, 2013 by editor

The first Europeans settled near what is now Pleasant Plains about 1819, and a “Mr. Spillars” was operating a horse-powered grist mill by almost the same time. From the 1830s to the 1850s, a stagecoach line connected Springfield to Beardstown, and … Continue reading →

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Divernon

Posted on April 19, 2013 by editor

According to Divernon: Its Place in Time, a centennial history written by David Brady in 2000, the village of Divernon began as one of four depots on a Litchfield-to-Springfield railroad formally known as the St. Louis & Chicago Railway Co. Informally, … Continue reading →

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Leland Grove

Posted on April 17, 2013 by editor

The city of Leland Grove was formed in response to a plague of potholes. Subdivision development took off in the area, on the southwest side of the city of Springfield, after World War II. But it wasn’t an easy sell. … Continue reading →

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Grandview

Posted on April 17, 2013 by editor

Founded: Like Jerome and Southern View, the village of Grandview, which lies along North Grand Avenue east of Wheeler Avenue, was formed in 1939 so the village could obtain water from the city of Springfield. The incorporation initiative began with … Continue reading →

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Southern View

Posted on April 17, 2013 by editor

Like Grandview and Jerome, the village of Southern View, which abuts Springfield’s south side, was formed so the village could obtain water from the city of Springfield. Founded: Southern View residents voted 117 to 30 in 1939 to incorporate in … Continue reading →

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Jerome

Posted on April 17, 2013 by editor

Like Grandview and Southern View, the village of Jerome, which is nearly surrounded by Springfield on the city’s south and west sides, was incorporated in 1939 so the village could obtain water from the city of Springfield. Founded and named: … Continue reading →

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Rochester

Posted on April 12, 2013 by editor

Prior to European settlement, Rochester Township was one of the most heavily wooded sections of Sangamon County, and as a result, became one of the earliest areas to be settled. The first permanent European resident was probably James McCoy, who … Continue reading →

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Sherman

Posted on April 12, 2013 by editor

James Sayles built a home on the current site of Sherman in 1819. However, the village wasn’t platted until 1858, after construction of the Springfield-to-Bloomington section of the Chicago & Alton Railroad, and it wasn’t incorporated as a village until … Continue reading →

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