David B. Sears came from Lima, Livingston county, New York, and his mother from Covington, Ky. He came to the
village of Camden Mills, now known as Milan, but refused to make his home there because of the numerous saloons
and the absence of churches. Prominent men of Camden Mills wanted David B. to settle in Milan, but he declined
the invitation. He went to Moline and purchased more than 500 acres there in August, 1836. There were only three
families living there at that time, and the coming of the Sears family marked the fourth.
The David B. Sears made the trip to Moline by prairie schooner from Shawnee Town, White County, Ill., and his
wife and children later came by a boat on the Mississippi River. Mr. Sears formed a partnership with Spencer White
and John W. Spencer of Rock Island, then known as Stephenson, to erect a dam from the eastern end of the Island
of Rock Island, now identified as the Rock Island Arsenal, to the Iowa side, for a flour and saw mill. The dam
was built in 1840. Mr. Sears bought out the shares of his partners in the enterprise and he constructed a saw mill
and flour mill.
Upon settling in Moline, he opened a general store. In 1842 he was appointed postmaster of the first post office
which was in his general store where religious services also were held. Rev. A. B. Hitchcock delivered the sermons
at the services. The principal business of Mr. Sears was packing pork and shipping produce down the river to Memphis,
Tenn., New Orleans, La, and other southern points.
Mr. Sears was married twice, being united in marriage to Melinda Stokes, and later to Delilah Caldwell. He had
seven children by his first marriage and six by his second.
The entire article from which this excerpt was taken can be found in the December
31, 1925 issue of the Rock Island Argus where the story of David B. Sears is told by his oldest son, David
Sears.
