Camp Creek Settlement #4

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Just months after William Pennington settled Pennington’s Point, William Osborne camped in the summer of 1828 along a creek on the border of Scotland and Industry townships. The area became known as Camp Creek, named for the creek itself. Osborne had migrated from Kentucky with the Pennington and Carter families. His daughter Rebecca, who married William Pennington in 1820 in Indiana, also came to McDonough County with her family.
The 1907 Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois – McDonough County described the area as having large timber along the creek, with hazel brush, crab apple, and plum trees covering the surrounding land. Today, this site is home to Camp Creek Cemetery.
William Osborne spent the remainder of his life in McDonough County and died on September 14, 1838, as the area began to develop. He left ten children; seven remained in the county as adults and married into other founding families, including the Russells, Joneses, Mayfields, and Cockerhams.

William Osborne was born one year to the date after the signing of the Declaration of Independence (4 Jul 1777) in Virginia, the son of Robert Osborne and Anne Howard. He married Kesiah or Keziah Smith in 1800 in Ashe, North Carolina and their first child, Reebecca, was born a year later.

Their children were:
• Rebecca Osborne Pennington, Mrs. William Pennington (1801-1874)
• Nancy Osborne Ashworth, Mrs. Chesley Ashworth (1801 – ?)
• Eli Osborne (1806 – 1866) married Martha Patsy Luttrell
• Larkin S. Osborne (1808-1881) married Delilah Belyeu
• Lydia Osborne Russell, (1813-1872) Mrs. Caswell Russell
• Ruth Osborne Goodspeed, (1815-1889) Mrs. Norman Goodspeed
• Matilda Osborne Cockerham Claybaugh, (1820-1896) Mrs. Andrew J Cockerham, #2 Mrs. John Claybaugh
• Elizabeth H. Osborne Jones, (1816-1860) Mrs. Morgan Jones
• John S. Osborne, (1828-1910) married Susanna Elizabeth Osborn
• Tabitha D. Osborne Mayfield (1830-1889) Mrs. James Henry Mayfield
• Mary Osborne, no known information available

No known photographs of William Osborne exist, but images of two of his sons, Larkin and John Osborne survive.

Pioneers of the Past is furnished by Julie L. Terstriep, of the McDonough County Genealogical Society, facebook.com/mcdcgs, https://www.mcdcgs.com/pioneers-of-the-past/

Larkin Osborne, (1808 – son of William and Keziah Osborne – “founder” of Camp Creek Settlement in McDonough County.
John S. Osborne (1828-1910), son of William and Keziah Osborne
Pioneers of the Past

Pennington Point Settlement #3

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The third settlement in McDonough County was established in 1828, when William Pennington erected a cabin in the southwest corner of what is now New Salem Township. William’s son, Perry Pennington, was the firstborn in the township in 1828.
The Pennington families played a major role in the county’s early settlement. Two years earlier, in 1826, Riggs Pennington and William Carter had founded Carter’s Settlement in what is now Industry Township.

Another early settler in Pennington’s Point was John Stewart Pennington (1784–1859), identified in early county histories as a cousin of William Pennington. John Stewart was the son of Richard Pennington and Hannah Boone—who was the sister of the famed frontiersman Daniel Boone.

Today, Pennington Point Cemetery in New Salem Township is considered one of the county’s most picturesque rural cemeteries. Nearly 20 members of the Pennington family are buried there, with others resting in Pennington, Standard, Wilhelm, and Industry cemeteries in Industry Township; Walker Cemetery in Sciota Township; and Oakwood Cemetery in Macomb.

Pioneers of the Past by Julie L. Terstriep, of the McDonough County Genealogical Society, facebook.com/mcdcgs, https://www.mcdcgs.com/pioneers-of-the-past/

 

Pioneers of the Past

William Jobe and Job’s Settlement #2

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At nearly the same time that Carter’s Settlement was taking shape in southeastern McDonough County, another small community was beginning to form near what is now Blandinsville. William Job(e), his brother-in-law John Vance, and Hugh Wilson were drawn to the area by its promise. Richard Dunn had camped there earlier, but by the time the 1830 Federal Census was taken, he had moved on and no longer appeared in the county.

In 1826, Job(e) and Vance chose land in Section 33 of Blandinsville Township, where they found reliable water, fertile soil, and nearby timber. There, they built their homes and began establishing permanent lives on the frontier. William Job(e) and his wife, Zilphry, arrived with four children and a newborn baby. By 1830, the census recorded Job(e)’s household at eight persons, while John Vance, living next door, counted seven in his own household.

The Job(e) family’s roots in McDonough County have endured. Descendants of William Job(e) still live in the area today, including Frank Jobe of Macomb and the late Don Jobe of Macomb, both third great-grandsons of the original settler.

 

Betheany Parthena Jobe Davis, daughter of Wm. Jobe.
Ephraim Perkins Jobe, son of William,(r)and his son. Ephraim was born in McDonough County.
McDonough County Illinois, Pioneers of the Past

The Carter Settlement #1

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PIONEERS OF THE PAST #1

CARTER SETTLEMENT – WILLIAM CARTER

On January 25, 1826, the Illinois Legislature recognized the formation of McDonough County, Illinois, from land previously a part of Pike County. As we celebrate the bicentennial of McDonough County this year, the McDonough County Genealogical Society would like to introduce you to some of the pioneers of our past.

Each week, we will share information and hopefully some pictures of those who came to this frontier to establish communities. Some of the columns will spotlight people, and a few will spotlight villages and towns you may not know existed.

We are open to suggestions for those you feel deserve recognition, and if you have any photos to share, we would love to hear from you. Please send them to Julie.Terstriep@gmail.com.

McDonough County, Illinois, was established from the War of 1812 Military Tract of lands. Soldiers were promised land for their service. Many collected their land warrant and turned around to sell them immediately, having no interest in moving from the East Coast to the frontier. Although Native Americans were the first settlers in this area, the first documented settlers were either William Carter and Riggs Pennington in the early 1820s in the southern part of the county, or Richard Dunn and William Job in the northwest part of the county.

This week, we will spotlight William Carter. Carter came to the area before 1826 and established a settlement in what would later become Section 26 of Industry Township [south and slightly east of Industry, ½ mile from Highway 67]. The settlers who followed Carter built a blockhouse or log fort near Carter’s home. The blockhouse was built to afford protection against the Native Americans, but later, soldiers in the Black Hawk War poked fun at the idea of building a blockhouse more than 200 miles from Indian country. After several years, Carter moved to Missouri.

Pioneers of the Past by Julie L. Terstriep, of the McDonough County Genealogical Society, facebook.com/mcdcgs, www.mcdcgs.com.

McDonough County Illinois, Pioneers of the Past