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1832 - The Beginning In 1832, William Maxwell bought land somewhere along the county line in the present eastern part of Washburn. He built an inn and entertainment house for travelers on the State Road which passed through the area. He also kept four horses for the stagecoach. Jefferson Street, Washburn, IL - early 1900's 1847 to 1850The first school house was built in Washburn in 1846 on land donated by
Henry D. Palmer, William Maxwell's father-on-law and the community began. It
was called Uniontown because it had sprung up on the Marshall-Woodford county
line. 1851-1860In 1851, Hiram Echols laid out the original town of Washburn. It comprised
12 blocks, 8 in Woodford county and 4 in Marshall county. The lots were 50 x
150 feet and were all quickly sold. The highest sold for $15 and the lowest
sold for $3. The first house was built by Joe Parker in the new town. It
stood at 503 W. State Street. Printer Burgess Smith built the second home (a
log cabin) at 411 W. Woodford Street. Dr. Thomas bought the first lot in
Washburn. He later erected a Two-story building with a Masonic lodge room
above and a drug store below. The post office was established in 1854 in Dr. Thomas' office. The first
postmaster was William Maxwell. In 1858, August Iunker built a mill "under the hill" across the street from the Baptist church and John L. Black operated the Union Hotel that stood across the street from the Baptist church. 1860 to 1870The Methodist church was built in 1863 and the Christian church was built
in 1866. . In Washburn's early history, Benjamin Monroe operated a saloon at
705 N. Main Street and Clay Little had a grocery store at 605 N. Main Street.
Johnathan Haines was the clerk. In a lean-to on the south side of the Little
store building, George C. Butler had a tin shop. Mr. Butler's family lived in
the rear of the tin shop. 1870 To 1880By 1870, Washburn had a population of 272. The same year the tracks to the
Chicago and Alton Railroad were laid beyond Old Snag Creek and several blocks
east of the original town. By 1871 Washburn's business district moved to
Jefferson Street next to the C&A Depot. One reason was that in 1871,
Frank N. Ireland established the Washburn bank on Jefferson Street. After
that, new buildings were erected or "old" buildings were moved from
the original town to Jefferson street. Henry Sangbush moved his harness shop
from the west to the east side and bult a front addition to it. Dr. Thomas
moved his building and it was used as a store by M.S. Fulton. Another hotel,
operated by Mr. and Mrs. John Carrithers was moved to 106 E. Chestnut Street.
1880 to 1890By 1880 the population of Washburn had increased to 450 residents. The only water supply for fire fighting in the downtown area was a cistern belonging to the Christian Haase Store. B.L. Bruce, the editor of the Washburn News (a small weekly paper), tried to publicize the need for a town well. A town well was finally dug in 1887. In 1887 Washburn had its "great fire". Two south blocks of the business district burned and had to be rebuilt. 1890 to 1900By 1890, Washburn had a population of 598 people. "The Washburn
Leader" newspaper was established by Charles Rowley in 1890. In 1891
there were two hotels in Washburn: the Wilson Hotel at 214 N. Jefferson and
the Woodford Hotel at 137 S. Jefferson. The Woodford Hotel was originally
known at the Alexander House. It was built by Tom Alexander, who lived at 507
W. Magnolia Street. It had been managed by Alexander, A.S. Fishburn, Leslie
Hayden and finally Mr. and Mrs. Squire Tribbey.
Photos
from postcards furnished by Scott Timmerman. Information gathered by Nancy Piper and Illinois Trails at http://www.piperspages.com/Woodford/#Villages |
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Lowpoint-Washburn
School District #21 |
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Last modified February 7, 2001
For suggestions and updates, please email Amy Lorengo at lorengo@washburn.k12.il.us