Tag Archives: Long Nine

Ebenezer Capps (1828 pioneers)

Ebenezer Capps (1797-1877), a native of London, England, operated a grocery on Jefferson Street west of First Street in 1828 Springfield, according to John Todd Stuart’s later recollections. (Capps’ store is listed as No. 12 on the reconstructed map of … Continue reading

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Archer Herndon (1828 pioneers)

Archer G. Herndon Sr. (1795-1867) was one of the “Long Nine,” including Abraham Lincoln, who are credited with persuading the Illinois legislature to move the state capital from Vandalia to Springfield in 1837. Archer Herndon also was the father of William … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Early residents, Hotels & taverns, Illinois capital, Lincoln, Abraham, Local government, Maps, Politics, Prominent figures, State government | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Dawson

The village of Dawson is near an old Native American trail that ran from Clear Lake to Buffalo Hart. The village itself was incorporated in 1883, two years after the Wabash Coal & Mining Co. opened a mine shaft in the … Continue reading

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Springfield, origin of

Whether or not Elisha Kelley was the first resident of the area that later became Springfield, the “Kelley cabins,” occupied by Elisha, John and Henry Kelley and others, were the heart of early Springfield. Even though their settlement was tiny, nowhere … Continue reading

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