Pages 41-45

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Among the early settlers who came to Fulton county in the old pioneer times there were none who did more to develop all the avenues of prosperity and to exert an influence for the good of society than Judge Stephen Phelps and his son-in-law, William Proctor. They came from the state of New York and stopped for

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a year or two in Sangamon county, and then moved to Fulton county, settling in Lewistown in 1825. Chapman’s History of Fulton County says they came in 1827, but it is an error. I have in my possession a record of the fact that cannot be gainsaid. It is the journal book kept by Norman and Ira Scovill when they ran the ferry over the Illinois river at Havana for my father in 1825 and 1826. It was the only ferry on that river between Peoria and Beardstown, and all the earlier pioneers in Fulton county came over the river at Havana. The Scovills kept the ferry on shares, paying my father one-half of all sums collected on ferriage. They kept a very accurate journal, with full particulars of all parties ferried, giving dates, names, articles ferried, etc. So it is that by referring to this ancient journal I can tell the exact date and year when many of the old settlers came to the county. I will copy a few items from this journal to show the reader how it was kept:

1825.

Feb. 18. Judge Phelps, ferriage of 2 horses, and wagon, and 2 footmen…………….. $ 0.75

Feb. 23. Judge Phelps, 2 wagons, 4 horses, 2 cows and 1 footman………........……... 1.37½

July 27. William Proctor, horses, wagon and footman……………………….......……. 2.62½

This shows beyond controversy, I think, when Judge Phelps and Mr. Proctor landed in Fulton county. Then I find these items for the same year, 1825: "Feb.5, Elijah Putman, ferriage, $2.00;" "July 7, William Walters, ferriage, $2.00;" "July 22, Reden Putman, $2.00;" "July 26, Jacob Ellis, $2.00;" "July 26, Levi Ellis, $2.50." And so the record goes on during 1825 and 1826. It would seem to be a thoroughly reliable—perhaps the only correct record of the dates on which so many famed pioneers came to Fulton county.

When Judge Phelps and his family first came to Lewistown they lived in a log house north of the present M. E. church and west of T. F. Stafford’s store and residence. The log house was

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built by John Jewell. They lived there some six or eight months and then moved (in 1825) to the lots now occupied by the Phelps-Proctor store and Mrs. Mary Phelps’ residence. When Judge Phelps bought that property there had been erected on it a two-story hewed log house by John Wolcott, who sold the place to him. Judge Phelps added a log kitchen and had the whole building lathed and plastered, and it was the first lathed and plastered house in Lewistown. Judge Phelps also bought a lot opposite on the west side of Main street and there built a hewed log house about 18x20 feet for a store house; but two or three years later they built a frame addition to their store, and then gave the log store-room exclusively for a camping place for the Indians who came long distances to trade with them. Sometimes the Indians came forty or fifty miles with their pack horses laden with deer skins and furs, and they often would remain three or four days to do their trading with the Phelpses, who had opened up the first store in Fulton county. They were very fair and honorable in all their dealings with the Indians and whites, and their trade increased rapidly.

Judge Phelps had five sons and one daughter who were single when they came to Lewistown, his oldest daughter having married William Proctor. The names of his sons were Alexis, Myron, Sumner, William and Charles.

Judge Stephen Phelps was a man about five feet ten inches high, portly built, with light complexion, and weighed about 200 pounds. His son William at fifty years of age resembled his father very much. The judge had at some period of his life received an injury to his back which hindered him very materially in walking, and was obliged, as long as I knew him, to walk quite slowly and with a cane. But aside from that he had excellent health. He was kind and courteous and sometimes inclined to be a little mirthful. His wife was a tall, slender lady of dark complexion, weighing about 120 pounds, and a better or kinder-hearted lady I do not believe ever lived upon the face of the earth. She was good and kind to all, and everybody loved and honored her. I have often heard it said that a poor man’s

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child or an Indian papoose never went from Judge Phelps’ door with a hungry stomach as long as his wife lived.

The Phelpses owed a good deal of their success in their Indian trade to the kind and friendly treatment the Indians received at the hands of Judge Phelps and his wife. There were trading posts at Peoria, but the Indians would come from the vicinity of that place all the way to Lewistown to trade their skins and furs to the Phelpses, for they had confidence in them, and was afraid to trust the Peoria traders. The Phelpses erected a press for the purpose of compressing their pelts and skins into small packages, for more convenient shipment to St. Louis. This machine was something after the fashion of a cotton press, but instead of using screws, wooden wedges were employed to compress the pelts. The compressed package would be about 2x3 feet in size and would weight from 100 to 150 pounds.

The judge’s youngest son, Charles, was near my own age, and as boys were rather scarce at that time, we were a great deal together. We both had our shotguns and were both very fond of hunting and fishing; and when Saturday came around and there was no school, we would strike out for a hunt, both of us being about ten years of age. When Judge Phelps came to Lewistown he brought with him a Dearborn carriage and a large brown horse which they called "Prince." The judge was fond of driving, and would often take Charles and myself in his Dearborn and drive us to where we would find good hunting and fishing. One of our favorite resorts was the spot where Spudaway creek empties into Spoon river. There we would always find plenty of fish and game. The judge was also fond of hunting, and would take his gun when he went out, and would often shoot at game while sitting in his carriage as he dove through the woods. His horse was very gentle and would not scare at the firing of the gun. In those times there were a great many pigeons in the county, and the judge delighted very much in killing them. One morning when I was at the judge’s house he had just come in from a hunt with his horse and Dearborn, and had brought home fourteen pigeons and told Charles and me that he had killed all of those pigeons with a rifle ball and at one shot, and he wanted us boys to guess how he had done it. After we had made a good many

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guesses, and had finally given up the riddle, he then told us how the remarkable feat was accomplished.

There are some other things that I would like to mention in regard to the Phelps and Proctor families, but will continue the story in my next letter. I will also give the readers a week in which to guess how Judge Phelps killed fourteen pigeons with one shot of a rifle ball. In my next I will explain the miracle.

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