EARLY SETTLERS

     The settlement in Salisbury township was made in 1820.  Among the early settlers were Solomon Miller, Marshal Duncan, Mrs. Abigail Coleman, William Yoakum, Fielding Harrison, William Kirkpatrick, Amos Batterton, Rev. John Antle, Christopher Mosteller, Job Ratcliff, Jacob Miller, James Fisher, John Duncan, Aaron Miller, Isaac Carlock, John Goodman, John Davis, Tobias Goodman, V. Crite, George Miller, and Clawson Lacy.

     SOLOMON MILLER, was born about 1796, in Adair county, Kentucky.  He was married there to Nancy A. Antle.  They moved to St. Clair county, Illinois, and from there to Sangamon county, arriving in the spring of 1820, at what is now Salisbury.  He died in 1858.

     MARSHAL DUNCAN was born in 1783, or 1784, in North Carolina.  He was brother to Rice and John.  He went, when young, with his parents to Cumberland county, Kentucky.  He left Kentucky with three children, and came to Sangamon county, Illinois; arrived in 1820 or I82I, in Salisbury township.  He was there married to Hannah Miller, a daughter of John Miller.  Died in 1858.

     MRS. ABIGAIL COLEMAN, whose maiden name was Robertson, was born in Surry county, North Carolina, and was married there to Theophilus Coleman, who was born in Virginia.  They had four children in North Carolina.  Mr. Coleman became a soldier in the war with England in 1812.  He never returned, and his family never knew his fate.  Mrs. Coleman, with her four children, moved, in 1815, to Cumberland county, Kentucky, and to Sangamon county, Illinois; arrived in the fall of 1820, on Richland creek, in what is now Salisbury township.

     WILLIAM YOAKUM was born in 1791, in Virginia, and when he was an infant his parents moved to Claiborne county, Tennessee, where his father died.  His mother moved her family about 1810, to Madison county, near Edwardsville, Illinois.  They moved next to Montgomery county, and then to Sangamon county, arriving June 10, 1819, at the north side of Richland creek, in what is now Salisbury township.  William Yoakum was married in 1821 to Sarah Simmons.

     FIELDING HARRISON was born about 1777, in Rockingham county, Virginia.  Anna Quinn was born about 1779, in Culpepper county, Virginia.  They were married in Culpepper, and made their home in Rockingham county, until they had one child.  They moved about 1805 to Christian county, Kentucky; from there moved to Sangamon county, Illinois, arriving November, 1822, at the north side of Richland creek, in what is now Salisbury township. Died in 1829 or '30

     AMOS BATTERTON was born May 3, 1772, in Loudon county, Virginia.  Nancy Guthrie was born about 1776, in North Carolina, and her parents moved, when she was a child, to Madison county, Kentucky.  They were there married and had one child, who was drowned in Kentucky river.  They moved to Adair county and then moved to Madison county, Illinois, in 1818, and from there to Rock creek, in what is now Menard county, in 1820, thence to what is now Salisbury township, Sangamon county, in the spring of 1822, and settled one and a quarter miles north

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west of where Salisbury now stands.  He died Aug. 4, 1835.

     REV. JOHN ANTLE was born Apr. 15, 1789, in Cumberland county, Ky.  Elizabeth Buchanan was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania.  Her parents moved to Lincoln county, Kentucky, when she was seven years old.  Her father died in that county, and she went to live with a married sister in Cumberland county.  John Antle and Elizabeth Buchanan were there married.  The family then moved to Morgan county, Illinois, in 1829, and from there to Sangamon county, arriving Jan. 9, 1830, in what is now Salisbury township.  Mrs. Elizabeth Antle died September, 1844, and John Antle died Aug. 30, 18(54; she in Menard county and he in Salisbury.
     Rev. John Antle preached to five churches, called Separate Baptists.  One each at Salisbury and McKinnie Settlement, in Sangamon county; Baker's Prairie and Sand Ridge, in Menard county, and one in Morgan county.  The only pay he received or expected was the hope of a reward in a better world.

     CHRISTOPHER MOSTELLER was born in Buncombe county, North Carolina; went to Butler county, Ohio, when a young man, and was there married to Phoebe Sackett.  They moved to Union county, Indiana; returned to Butler county, Ohio, and from there came to Sangamon county, Illinois, arriving in the spring of 1830, in what is now Salisbury township.  He died in 1834.

     JACOB MILLER came in 1820, and settled on section twenty.  Moved to Iowa in 1845, and afterwards died in 1852.

     JAMES FISHER settled on the farm now owned by widow Simmes and Mr. Hover Hess; went to Arkansas from here.

     AARON MILLER settled on the farm now owned by Mr. W. H. Rhodes.  Moved to Iowa and died there in 1858.

     ISAAC CARLOCK settled on farm now owned by the widow Marshall.  Moved to Iowa and died there in 1858.

     JOHN GOODMAN bought Carlock's place and died on the farm in 1843.

     JOHN DAVIS came in 1827, and died in the village of 1881.

     TOBIAS GOODMAN came and settled on the creek on the farm now owned by Mr. E. Walker.  Moved to Iowa and from thence to Oregon where he died.

     V. CRITE settled on the Rhodes farm and died there about 1851.

     GEORGE MILLER came about the same time with the rest of the family and died in 1880, died at Lincoln, Logan county, Illinois.

SCHOOLS.

     The first school house was of logs and erected in 1823, on the place now owned by Mr. Batterton.  Cassell Harrison was the first teacher; John F. Harrison was the next teacher.  There are now three school houses in the township, valued at $4,000.

RELIGIOUS.

     Rev. James Sims has the honor of being the first to proclaim the gospel in this township.  The exact date is unknown, but it was as early as 1822.  Rev. John Antle was probably the next.  The first church building was erected by the Baptists, in the village.  There is now one church building in the township, represented by three denominations, Methodist Episcopal, United Baptists and Christians.

MILLS.

     William Kirkpatrick built a horse mill on his place in 1821, which was the first mill of any description in the township.  Robert Fielding and Reuben Harrison built a water-mill, for sawing lumber, on Richland creek, about a mile and a quarter from the village, at a very early date, which was of great convenience to the settlers.  In 1833, Milas Goodman, John Sackett, and a man by the name of Holmes, built a saw and grist-mill on the creek, about a mile east of the village.  After undergoing several changes in ownership, it is now owned and run by John Miller.  The grist-mill has one run of burrs.  In the winter of 1839, Thomas Kirkpatrick built a water-mill on Richland creek, half a mile south of the village, and sawed lumber.  He abandoned it about five years after.

ORGANIC.

     The township was organized in 1861, at the time the county adopted the township organization law.  It was first given the name of Sackett in honor of one of the leading citizens of the county, but subsequently changed to that of Salisbury, from the village of the same name.

VILLAGE OF SALISBURY

     The village of Salisbury was originally owned by Solomon Miller, who had it surveyed and platted Jan. 9, 1832.  Previous to this time a settlement had been formd here, and as it was several miles to any other village, it was thought a good place in which to build one up.
     A public sale of town lots was held shortly after it was laid out, which resulted in the dis-

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posal of a lair number, and a free fight by some who had indulged a little too freely in the spirits provided on the occasion.

     Simeon Clark erected a building for a dwelling and store in the spring of 1832, and here  sold the first merchandise in the place.

     George Davis, in 1825, started a blacksmith shop about three-fourths of a mile from the present village, and was the first in the township  to engage in blacksmithing.  In the fall of 1932, he removed his shop inside the village as well as in the township.

     Henry Davis, a brother of George, commenced the manufacture and repair of wagons in 1832, and was the first of that occupation in the village.

     Mathew Morehead came to the village in 1833, and opened a cabinet shop, the first here.  At this time nearly all the furniture used by the settles was made by hand, and according to order.  The modern style of running a furniture store was then unknown.  Henry Shepherd was the second cabinet maker in the place.

POST OFFICE.

     A village without its post office is like the play of Hamlet, with the part of Hamlet omitted.  On petition of a large number of the citizens living in the vicinity of the village, the postoffice department established was the first postmaster.  Among those McMurphy, Marion Duncan, Jason Miller, G. W. Miller, George Brahm and Thomas Yoakman, the latter being the present incumbent.

EDUCATIONAL

     The villagers early set about the erection of a school house, which was built the first year after the platting of the village.  The building was of logs, and served the purpose for several years.  The second building was of brick.  It was used until it became too small to meet the wants of the district, when it was torn down and a larger one erected of like material.  The building has two rooms, and has been graded since 1868.

RELIGIOUS

     There is now but one church building in the village, and three organizations - United Baptist, Methodist Episcopal, and Christian.
     The Baptists organized a congregation in the fall of 1831, composed of the following named members:  Solomon Miller and wife, Catharine Davis, Mollie Miller, Sallie Duncan, George Miller, Henry Miller, James Miller, Elizabeth Miller, and Polly Miller.  In 1835, the congregation erected a house of worship, in which they continued to worship for many years.  They now meet in the Christian Church building, holding services.
     A class of Methodists was organized in 1837, by Rev. Mr. Knoll, since which time they have continued to meet with more or less frequency.  Salisbury is now in Athens circuit, and preaching services are held here once a month.  A class meeting is held each Sunday.  Rev. Kennett is the present pastor.  The congregation worships in the Christian Church building.

BUSINESS OF SALISBURY.

     Salisbury is represented in business as follows:  General merchandise, T. S. Duncan, J. Keltner, D. Stevenson, blacksmith, J. K. McMurphy, John Stroh; carpenter, S. T. Duncan; physicians, J. B. Wescott, A. F. Purvines.

BIOGRAPHIES:

GEO. W. BAILEY

WILLIAM BATTERTON

JOSEPH S. CANTRALL

FRANCIS M. DUNCAN

MARION M. DUNCAN

BALTHUS FAITH

GEORGE GILLEN

WILLIAM H. GORDEN

JOHN HALE

MARSDEN HOPWOOD

WILLIAM HOPWOOD

WILLIAM F. IRWIN

JOHN M. KELTNER

FRANK MAYER

JOHN A. MILLER

JOHANNA MULCAHY

NELSON OLSON

CONRAD PFOFFENBACH

ELISHA PRIMM

A. F. PURVINES

WILLILAM H. RHODES

FREDERICK W. SHAFERF

GEORGE SHARP

ENOCH WALKER

JAMES H. WELLS

GEORGE H. YOAKUM

PHILO BEERS