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(Jives Early Morgan Park History]' -(Continued from page 1)f _defenders, struggling together, produced quite a melee.The call came for three month’s enlistments. In the Wilcox family were five sons. The two youngest enlisted. Returning at the end of this term they told the story of the re-enlistment. Their company stood in line. The sign of re-enlistment was a step forward—one after another took the step, many hesitated. But finally all but one had taken the decisive step and wrhen finally he came forward, wild cheering rent the air. They returned to their company—one only of the two came back. The war went on, the two oldest sons enlisted, leaving the brother incapacitated for military service by deafness, to care for the farm and the aging mother. One of these never returned and the other spent ten months in Andersonville. Anything in the past which explains the present is historically interesting. This account of the Wilcox boys explains the name of the local G. A. R. post—the Wilcox post. Of the seven Morgan boys several enlisted and all returned. James Betts, the only son of the family, gave his life to the cause. Erastus A. Barnard marched with Sherman to the sea.Several of the returning soldiers came home on the Panhandle which was completed in 1865 just before the close of the Civil War. This road ran an accommodation train, stopping near its crossing with the Rock Island, at 95th St. and at Upton, the name of the Morgan home place. Commutation tickets were sold and it became possible to go to Chicago and back the same day for a day’s shopping, visiting, or business, without the long tedious ride with horses. Around the! crossing of the Rock Island and the Panhandle, or called in common parlance, “The Crossing,” grew the nucleus of a settlement; composed of the telegraph operator, station master, freight handlers, section hands, and a few others not railroad men as, a black-smith, carpenter, mason, etc.In the early 60’s three new school houses were built which affected the North Blue Island school by taking part of the pupils. One on the site of the Mount Greenwood school; one down on the Plank Road where now is a school at the corner of Tilth and Western Ave.; a third, near where the Washington Heights substation of the Chicago postoffice now stands. The North Blue Island school was still the meeting place on Sundays. For some years services had been held here onalternate Sundays by a Methodist circuit rider. In I860 a revival came. For many evenings in the summer under the leadership of our pastorBrother Close, meetings were held, farmers came after their days work two at least, from six or seven miles away. In the small school room dimly illuminated by candles, brought for that purpose, the interest was intense.These meetings resulted in the formation of the North Blue Island Methodist Church. This church never had a resident pastor during its independent existence. Most of the preachers were Evanston students. They came down near the end of the week staying over Sunday with one of their parishioners, frequently calling onothers. Thus entering into real pastoral relations with their charge. The circuit, as I remember it, was NorthBlue Island, Lane’s Island and Black Oak. They preached in the morning
Newspaper Details
Morgan Park Suburban Star
Morgan Park, Illinois, US
Thu, Jul 03, 1924
Page 8
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
USA 06 Jul 2023
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