History of Springfield, Illinois, its attractions as a home and advantages for business, manufacturing, etc. Pub. under the auspices of the Springfield board of trade, by J. C. Power.

36 SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOTS, AND
order will be two hundred and twenty- The principal office of this company is
five miles long, from Shawneetown, on at Springfield, and the officers are: S. H.
the Ohio, to Beardstown, on the Illinois Melvin, of Springfield, President; WilRiver. liam Fuller, of Clinton, Vice-President;
This line of road opens up to Spring- John Warner, of Clinton, Treasurer; and
field the finest body of timber land in Henry Crosley, of Clinton, Secretary.
the Western States. Forty miles of it,
in the southeastern part of the State,
runs through a dense forest of several
species of the oak, hickory, sweet gum, Was organized under the general railblack walnut, and other varieties of tim- road law of the State, August 4, 1870,
ber suitable for the manufacture of agri- with a capital stock of $800,000.
cultural implements,cabinet furniture,etc. The object of this organization is to
An idea of its importance to Spring- secure to Springfield a competing line to
field may be formed, from the fact that St. Louis, and also to furnish another
the Springfield and Illinois Southeastern through route from St. Louis to Chicago
Railway Company have contracts already via Gilman. It runs almost in a straight
for supplying plow manufacturers in Mo- line from Springfield to Litchfield, Montline with timber from these forests. gomery county, thence to St. Louis. Its
The officers of the company are: Thos. entire route is east of and eight miles
S. Ridgway, of Shawneetown, President; shorter from Springfield to St. Loui sthan
Charles A. Beecher, of Fairfield, Vice- by the route of the Chicago, Alton and
President; George N. Black, of Spring- St. Louis road. This read will be put
field, Secretary; E. C. Dawes, Treasurer; under contract this summer, and will, no
Orland Smith, of Springfield, General doubt, be completed during the present
Superintendent; Geo. W. Norris, Super- year. The officers of the company are:
intendent Southern Division; John Fog- S. H. Melvin. of Springfield, President;
gitt, General Freight Agent; Louis B. Robert McWilliams, of Litchfield, Vice
Smith, Auditor. Springfield is the head- President; George N. Black, of Springquarters of the company. field, Treasurer; P. B. Updike, of LitchTHE GILMAN, CLINTON AND SPRINGFIELD field, Secretary.
RAILROAD COMPANY THE SPRINGFIELD AND NORTHWESTERN
Was incorporated by an act of the RAILROAD COMPANY
General Assembly, March 4, 1867. An
organization was effected at Clinton, Was incorporated in'1869. It is to
connect Springfield and Rock Island, by
April 21, 1869. Grading was commenced connect Springfield and Rock Island, by
near Clinton, July 4th, 1870, and from the way of Galesburg. Sept. 15, 1870,
that time until the close of the working fifty miles-from Springfield to Lewisseason, from fifteen to eighteen hundred ton-was put under contract, to be gramen were employed along the line. Track ded, ironed and furnished with rolling
laying was commenced at Gilman, Feb. stock. It will be completed from Hava19, 1871, and it is expected that the en- na to Petersburg by the 1st of July, and
tire line, 110 miles in length, will be from Petersburg to Springfield by the
completed and running by the 4th of close of 1871
July. This will open up some of the The officers of the company are: W.
finest agricultural country in the State- C. Green, of Tallula, President; L. W.
which has not heretofore been reached Ross, of Lewiston, Vice-President; John
by railroads-and furnish a new route to Williams, of Springfield, Treasurer; and
Chicago, almost or quite as short as that Edward Lanning, of Petersburg, Sec'y.
by the Chicago and St. Louis railroad.