User:Kranar drogin/Ogle County/Buffalo Grove, Illinois (Ogle County)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Buffalo Grove (Nanusha) | |
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| St. Marion | |
| Unincorporated | |
 Sign along Milledgeville Road.
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| Country | United States |
| State | Illinois |
| County | Ogle |
| Area | 0 sq mi (0 km²) |
| - land | 0 sq mi (0 km²) |
| Center | |
| - coordinates | Coordinates: |
| - elevation | 846 ft (257.9 m) |
| Population | Unknown (2000) |
| Founded | 1830 |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| - summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 61064 |
| Area code | 815 |
  Location of Buffalo Grove within Illinois
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 Location of Illinois in the United States
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Buffalo Grove is an unincorporated community in the Ogle County township of Buffalo, Illinois, USA, that was the first settlement in all of Ogle County. Buffalo used to be a bustling frontier town that brought many of Ogle County's first people to it, but with the creation of the Illinois Central Railroad, most of the residents and businesses left to move to Polo. Today this once hub of business is no larger than a few dozen homes.
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[edit] History
During the early part of the 1800s, many settlers from the east coast of the United States travelled to Galena for the newly founded lead mines.[1] Many of the trails would pass through what would later be Ogle County, coming from Dixon's Ferry (orginally called Ogee's Ferry).[1] A man by the name of John Ankeny marked the Ankeny's Trail from Dixon's Ferry to Galena in 1829, and while doing so he marked some trees as his claim.[1] In the spring of 1830, the first settler of Ogle County, Isaac Chambers, built the first cabin located near the Galena Trail. Issac was going to build and manage an inn, or tavern so people would have a place to rest on their way to Galena.[1] When John returned, a controversy arose over to who owned the land. Isaac prevailed, and John moved down the trail some to open an opposing tavern.[1]
By the spring of the following year, Oliver W. Kellogg arrived at Buffalo Grove, and he bought from Issac his claim and improvements. Another settler came by the name of Samuel Reed, planted fourteen acres of corn in 1831, and by 1832 he also included wheat on what was the first farm in Ogle County.[1]
Later that spring though, the Black Hawk War began with the first armed confrontation with the Battle of Stillman's Run. The Sauk were victorious during this confrontation with Col. Isaiah Stillman's militia. Dispatches were quickly sent to all the settlers, ordering them to the military headquarters near Dixon's Ferry. Buffalo Grove's settlers first wen to Dixon's Ferry, then moved on to Peoria where they remained until September.[1] While the settlers were away, a group of men returned to their homes to look after some of the stock that remained in the settlement. When the men returned to Buffalo Grove, they found the body of William Durley in the road near the woods. This was called the Buffalo Grove massacre, and William was buried where he had been killed and a marker errected over his grave.[1]
The settlement continued to grow over the next coming years, including the establishment of the Buffalo Grove Post Office in February 12, 1833[2][3], while other sources say in 1835.[1] The area got its first merchant, Colonel John D. Stevenson, when he arrived from Louisiana to set up his store in 1834. The following year the town was platted and called St. Marion, but when the post office was established it was called Buffalo Grove with the name of the settlement being officially changed in 1839 by the residents.[1] In 1836, the first area sawmill was built on Buffalo Creek, and some traces of it can be seen still today.[1]
When construction on the Illinois Central Railroad began in 1852, the village population had grown to nearly 1,000 residents. This was a huge change from 1835 when 15 families lived in the vicinity of Buffalo Grove. In that same year, a steam sawmill was built in order to furnish railroad ties for the railroad construction.[1]
Following the construction of the new Illinois Central Railroad, the new town of Polo was constructed along the tracks in March, 1853.[4] Almost all of the residents from Buffalo Grove moved their homes and businesses to this new town in order to take better advantage of the railroad.[1] The Buffalo Grove Post Office was even moved from Buffalo Grove in the dead of night in January, 1855 to avoid trouble, and the office was open the next morning ready for business.[3] One notable resident was the naturalist John Burroughs, who taught in Buffalo Grove from 1856-1857 before moving back East to marry "the girl I left behind me".[5][6] Today, Buffalo Grove no longer remains as a village, instead having about a dozen homes in its area.
[edit] History of the Name
Indians who originally lived on the lands called the grove, which would later become Buffalo Grove, "Nanusha" (Na-noo-sha), which in their language means Buffalo.[1] When white settlers came to the lands they found no buffalo, but plenty of buffalo bones.[1] Early history shows that in the winter of 1778, a heavy winter snow descended on the Mississippi Valley. Through the warming of the weather, the snow crusted and the buffalo were not able to get to their food source, and many starved to death.[1]
[edit] Reed Cemetery
Buffalo Grove only has one cemetery. This is the Reed cemetery located west of the unincorporated village. The cemetery recieved its its name from Samuel Reed Sr. who died suddenly on August 17, 1833. Samuel was the first to be buried in the new cemetery, and so the cemetery was named after him.[7]
[edit] Buffalo Grove Church
In the fall of 1843, Elder Alexander Conlee established the Buffalo Grove Church. Originally the church met at the Doty School, which was built to serve a dual purpose of both school and church as set up by the residents who live near-by.[8]
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p History of Buffalo Grove Retrieved on August 01, 2007
- ^ Post Offices in northern Illinois, 1837 Retrieved on August 05, 2007
- ^ a b Polo Post Office Retrieved on August 05, 2007
- ^ Founding of Polo Retrieved on August 05, 2007
- ^ John Burroughs in Buffalo Grove Retrieved on August 04, 2007
- ^ Our Friend John Burroughs / Barrus, Clara Retrieved on August 04, 2007
- ^ History and Reminiscences Vol. II Retrieved on August 05, 2007
- ^ Church and Family History Research Assistance for Ogle County, Illinois Retrieved on August 05, 2007
[edit] External links
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Category:Ogle County, Illinois Category:Unincorporated communities in Illinois
