sangamon.illinoisgenweb.orgSangamon County ILGenWeb

Home Archive Research Resources Community Blog GenWeb arrow_drop_down ILGenWeb Project launch USGenWeb Project launch WorldGenWeb Project launch menu Archive Research Resources Community Blog Sangamon County is located in central Illinois. Its county seat, Springfield, has been the state capital since 1839. Sangamon County was established in 1821, from parts of Madison and Bond Counties, and covered a much larger area than the current boundaries. Read More expand_more Starting with Morgan County, in 1823, new counties were drawn out of the original borders of Sangamon County over the next couple decades. By 1847, the county had been drawn to the current form, though its original borders covered all or part of modern Morgan, Tazewell, McLean, Putnam, Cass, Menard, Christian, Logan, Marshall, Mason, Macon, and Woodford Counties. The county takes its name from the Sangamon River that flows through it, though the origin of the river's name is not known. Possibly named by Pottawatomie natives as Sain-guee-mon, translated as, "Where there is plenty to eat." Another possibility is by French explorers as San-Gamo, from the Benedictine monk "Saint Gamo." Show Less expand_less Some of the earliest settlers to what would become Sangamon County include Robert Pulliam, his hired men, and a sister to one of the men, Ms. Strickland, who arrived in the fall of 1817, and built a cabin on the east side of Sugar Creek. Read More expand_more This was the first known habitation built by anyone of European descent in what is now Sangamon County. In the spring of 1818, Robert Pulliam returned to his family in St. Clair County. William Drennan, his half-brother, Joseph Drennan, son-in-law, Joseph Dodds, along with George Cox, and all the able young men and boys from their families arrived next, in March of 1818, and built two cabins on the northwest side of Sugar Creek. By that winter they were joined by their families, who had been waiting near Wood River. Also, by that time, the cabin built by Robert Pulliam had been found empty and, so then, occupied by Zachariah Peter. Robert Pulliam returned, with his family, in the spring of 1819. Zachariah Peter then moved three miles north and built his cabin. Also, that spring, John Kelly built the first cabin in what would be the city of Springfield, at what is now the northwest corner of Second and Jefferson Streets. In April of 1821, Zachariah Peter, William Drennan, and Rivers Cormack were elected as the first commissioners of Sangamon County, at the cabin of John Kelly. Later that month, William Drennan and Zachariah Peter would mark the county seat with a stake near John Kelly's field, on the waters of Spring creek, to be known as Springfield. The next year, public land surveys would record the town plat as Calhoun, though many refused to recognize the name, and the City of Springfield was incorporated in 1832. Show Less expand_less Neighboring Counties • Logan County launch • Macon County launch • Christian County launch • Montgomery County launch • Macoupin County launch • Morgan County launch • Cass County launch • Menard County launch Sangamon County Query Board · Sangamon Family History & Genealogy Message Board launch Ancestry.com Please contact me if you have any questions, you need help finding a resource, or want to contribute information or resources to the site. - Michael King [email protected] mail_outline Sangamon County Coordinator ILGenWeb : : Archive · Research · Resources · Community · Blog : : home Site Updated on . Website © by Michael King, for ILGenWeb, with contributions from the community. Any copyrighted material used here is by permission, or under fair-use, for research purposes. ILGenWeb launch · USGenWeb launch · WorldGenWeb launch...