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The pioneer settlement of
Springfield began when John Kelley, his wife Mary, their five
children, and John’s brother, Elisha, arrived in the area in the
spring of 1819. The next year, they built the first cabin at
what is now the northwest corner of Second and Jefferson Streets in
1820. Other pioneers from North Carolina, Virginia, and Kentucky
followed, taking advantage of the area’s fertile soil and trading
opportunities.
In 1821, Zachariah Peter, William Drennan and Rivers Cormack drove a stake in the ground at a point in
the prairie near John Kelly’s field and
Springfield was officially born. A trail traveling past John
Kelly’s cabin brought supplies to the settlement from the
Illinois
River and soon became
Springfield's first street, called Jefferson. The town was
first named Calhoun after Senator John C. Calhoun of South Carolina.
In the same
year, a man named Elijah Iles opened the first store on Jefferson
Street, purchasing goods from
St. Louis,
Missouri and having them
brought to Springfield. School was first taught in a log building
during the winter of 1821-22. Located on a hill on the north
side of Washington Street, between what is now Pasfield and Lewis
Streets, Andrew Orr was the town’s first teacher.
Like most pioneer settlements, it took
no time at all for taverns to spring up, the first of which was opened
by Elijah Slater in 1822, where travelers were provided with food,
drink and a place to stay. Two more taverns quickly followed. In
1830 the Methodists built the first church in the burgeoning community
and the Presbyterians opened a new brick church just one month later.
In 1832, Senator John C. Calhoun, for whom
the settlement was named, fell from public favor and the town’s name
was changed to
Springfield. The town was officially incorporated on April
2, 1832 and by by 1835,
Springfield had grown enough that the Board of Trustees saw the
need for law enforcement and a constable was appointed.
In 1837, due in large part to the
political maneuverings of a young politician named
Abraham
Lincoln;
the state capital was moved from Vandalia to
Springfield. On April 15, 1837,
Lincoln moved to
Springfield from nearby New Salem and began practicing law with
John T. Stuart, a prominent
Springfield attorney.
Before
Lincoln
moved to
Springfield,
the young man had tried his hand at a number of endeavors, including
clerking at Denton Offutt’s store in New Salem, becoming a postmaster, a
surveyor, and a law student, before running for the state legislature in a
losing campaign. In 1834, he was elected to the legislature on his
second try. It was during this term in office that he influenced the
placement of the State Capital in
Springfield.
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Route
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