James Bishop

As printed in 1874

James Bishop was born in Fauquier County, Virginia, April 3, 1806. The Bishops, from whom he was descended, came to the American colonies from England with William Penn. They were members of the Society of Friends.

In the fall of 1809 the Bishop family moved to that part of the territory of Ohio, which is now called Clark County. During the war of 1812, a part of General Shelby's army camped near where the Bishops lived. All of the boys and young men above the age of fifteen were taken into the army. Only a few children and women and Revolutionary soldiers were left to protect the neighborhood. When the war broke out, many persons were suspicious and fearful of the Indians and mistrusted them. A council of the Indians was called, to which the whites were invited, but many were afraid to attend. Tecumseh, the great chief, contemptuously called those who were afraid, " big babies," and the name clung to them for many years. Tecumseh was a remarkably fine-looking man, a splendid chief, and was possessed of a great deal of natural dignity. He had a lively sense of honor and the whites had great confidence in his word. Some of the Indians favored the whites and were spies for them. Among these were Logan, Captain John, and another whose name Mr. Bishop does not recall. But some of the whites were afraid that these Indians were not really acting in good faith, so the latter determined to show their good faith by bringing in some scalps of their enemies. They went out on an expedition for this purpose, but unluckily were themselves surprised and captured. But when captured, they pretended friendship to the opposite party, and were allowed the use of their weapons. When the three captive Indians found a favorable opportunity, they each shot down one of their captors, and grasped their knives and rushed upon three others. They succeeded in killing their captors, but Logan was so badly injured that after his return he died of his wounds. Just before his death he burst out laughing, and, when asked the reason, said he remembered the ught and laughed to see Captain John ride that big Indian.

James Bishop went to school in Ohio. There he assisted in Ijarring out the schoolmaster on Christmas days, as this was the common practice. At one time they barred out the schoolmaster and, after a long and severe contest, baptized him in a spring. The schoolmaster afterwards brought suit and recovered ten dollars apiece from four of the boys, who took a prominent part in this transaction. At one time they had a schoolmaster named Peleg Whitridge, who rather got the start of them. He climbed on the roof, covered the chimney and smoked out the scholars. After that they provided themselves with poles to push off the obstruction, when the schoolmaster covered the chimney.

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Mr. Bishop has often had wolf hunts. At one time he ran down a wolf and tried to capture it alive as it held down its head so piteously; but when he tried to take hold of it the treacherous animal sprang at him and attempted to bite. Mr. -Bishop killed it 'ith his stirrup, and never again felt merciful towards a wolf. The fountains of his sympathy ran completely dry. He had great difficulty in protecting his little pigs from the wolves. The latter would come up and steal the pigs, even though the pen was fairly against the house.

One morning, when about to rise, he heard an ominous squeal, and he knew what it meant. He ran out without wa'ing to dress, and saw a vicious wolf dragging ofi" one of his darlingpigs by the ear. He priced himself on his speed as a foot-racer, and he went after that wolf across the field, through the cornstalks and over a fence. When the wolf came to the second fence, it saw that Mr. Bishop, scantily dressed as he was, traveled rather too swiftly, and it dropped the pig, which Mr. Bishop carried home in triumph. When the race was ended Mr. Bishop noticed for the first time that the rough cornstalks had bruised the cuticle on his leii's so much that the blood was streaminom'lean county. 559 doll; but his joy at the recovery of the pig was so great that he cared little for bruises. The settlers all over the country were annoyed very much by this same troublesome wolf, and were anxious to catch him. Joshua Hale had a large dog, called over, big enough to pick up a wolf and run off with it. Joshua was always bragging of his dog, and said if only Rover could get hold of that wolf, it would be the last of him. The settlers allurnecl out on horseback to hunt the troublesome wolf, and finally cornered him in a fence and sent one of their number for Joshua Hale and Rover. The dog came up on the opposite side; the settlers let out the wolf and Hale said: "Seek him. Rover !" and it would be supposed that Rover killed that wolf in fine style. Iothing of the kind; the big dog put his tail between his legs and ran for home mth the little wolf after him, and the disappointed settlers after them both; the big dog ran into the house and upset the baby's cradle, but the wolf ran past the door into the brush and escaped. Then those settlers were "wrath," and were going to kill the dog then and there; but Joshua Hale turned towards them, and his eyes were filled with tears as he puckered up his mouth and said: "Boys, Rover never saw a wolf before. Now, 'spoke you was in an Injin country and had never seen an Injin before, and should suddenly see an Injin coming at you for the first time, wouldn't you run to a place of safety, wher you know'd you'd be safe ?" It was impossible to resist such a j)lea, and the hunters agreed that under such circumstances they would "run to a place of safety, wher they know'd they'd be safe."

The settlers often had difficulty with prairie fires. At one time James Bishop and his brother Malon were obliged to get into a creek to escape from a fire that came rolling over the prairie. At another time he was driving some cattle across the prairie when a fire overtook him. He drove his horse directly through it, and came out safe, though somewhat burnt. His cattle tried to run away from the fire, but it swept over them and left them scattered and crazy, with their eyebrows and hair and the brushes of their tails burnt off". He collected them toofether, and none were lost.

The town of Leroy was laid out by Samuel Durley and Merritt Covel. They wished to lay it out at Buckles' Grove on land belonging to James Bishop, but Malon Bishop opposed it, and said he did not wish to live in a town, and it was finally located about half a mile from the grove.

A great many funny stories are told of James Bishop, and one of the best is a story relating to a vicious bull. While taking items for the sketches in this volume, the author was repeatedly asked if he had heard this famous story, and it was told w ith many variations. It seems that Mr. Bishop once purchased a fine bull and put it in his pasture. It was a very tame, inonensive animal; but some ill-disposed persons were accustomed to tease it, and it became vicious anddangerous, and Mr. Bishop's men were afraid to enter the pasture and bring up his cows. This made Mr. Bishop angry, and he protested that the animal was perfectly inoffensive. His men told him to try the animal himself, and he said: "come on." He walked into the pasture, while the men stood outside to see the fun. He walked up to the animal boldly and confidently, but, contrary to his expectations, when it saw him it elevated its tail, put down its head, uttered a below and started for him. He was too close to retreat, so he set up a below, which perfectly astonished the bull. It stopped, looked around, pawed the ground and appeared bewildered. At last, by a sudden frank movement. Bishop managed to get the animal by the tail, and it started to run. They went back and forth across the pasture, crosswise, lengthwise and cornerwise, while the men outside gave both parties encouraging words. The fierce animal at last became exhausted and gave up; and that is the story of Bishop and the bull.

James Bishop is a little less than the medium stature. His eyes are small, dark and expressive of fun. Humorous ideas come to him as naturally as his breath. He is slightly bent wdth age, but tough and hardy. He is lightly built, but very sinewy, and wonderfully quick. He seems at times careless and unconscious of danger, but whenever he gets into difficulty his resolution and his marvelously quick motions bring him safely out. He has accumulated a fortune by farming and buying and selling cattle, and is reputed the wealthiest man in Empire township.

James Bishop married Margaret Cannaday, March 9, 1837. He has had five children, all of whom are living. They are:

Caroline, born June 26, 1838, wife of Thomas Campbell, of Old Town timber.

m'lean county. 561

John Allen Bishop, born May 3, 1840, lives one half a mile west of his father's.

Emily, born August 30, 1843, is the widow of William Evans.

Rachel, wife of Xathaniel Beckman, was born May 23, 1846, and lives four miles southeast of her father's.

James Quitman Bishop is married and lives at home. He was born jS'november 24, 1848, the day when General Scott took the Oity of Mexico and made General Quitman the Governor thereof.

Thomas Jefferson Barnett.

T. J. Barnett was born January 22, 1818, in Bourbon County, Kentucky. His father's name was Moses Barnett, and his mother's name before her marriage was Catherine Ellis. His parents were of English and German descent.

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Mr. Barnett there worked as a farmer, at which he continued until 1852, when he v.ent into mercantile business. He has been a merchant ever since and has succeeded well.

Mr, Barnett drove stock to Chicago, when that city was simply a trading post of French and Indians. He has also driven stock to Wisconsin. He was in Chicago when the Indians were paid off, and there saw great quantities of hard, money. The Indians seemed to be very careless with their money, and one of them carried around a pail-full as indifferently as if it were molasses. Mr. Barnett found quite a number of coins in the sand. The Indians Avere many of them intoxicated, as they usually are, when they can obtain " fire water." One of the party, with whom Mr. Barnett was walking, placed a barrel over an intoxicated squaw, who was sitting in the sand. She appreciated the favor and said " good chemokoman" (good whiteman). She wanted to enjoy her goodnatos (whisky) in peace. Mr. Barnett went out onFox River and broke prairie for the emigrants as they came in. There lie saw many Indians, and his opinion of them was not favorable. He did not feel the charm of romance coming over him, as he o-azed upon the "children of the forest;" on the contrary, he considered them a " dirty, nasty set," who never invested money in boot-blacking or toilet soap. They are incorrigibly- lazy, but can hunt and fish and have some very pretty ponies. But that which provoked Mr. Barnett most particularly was the disposi- ' tion of the Indians to steal. When Mr. Barnett went up to Fox Kiver, the party, in whose company he traveled, crossed the Illinois River on a ferry-boat. When a part of their teams were across, the remainder stood unprotected on the southern bank waiting for the return of the boat. While the teams were standing ounprotected, the Indians came up and took out of the wagons a lot of bacon and provisions, before the eyes of the angry drivers on the opposite bank. The redskins ran off with their plunder, and it was of no use to chase them. He remembers one other provoking incident. "While he was ploughing on Fox River, some Indians came to him, riding their ponies on the keen run, and whooping with their loudest voices. They frightened his oxen out of the furrow, and this so angered him that he hit one of them on the bare back with his oxwhip, with such force that it brought the blood, and they left him. Mr. Barnett often dsited the Indians and saw their curious performances. Their wigwams were thick on Fox River, after the Indians had left the other parts of the State. He saw one tribe (the Kickapoos, he thinks) bury a corpse and go through the ceremony of whipping a ball in various directions. This was called whipping the devil away. Mr. Barnett sometimes ran races with the Indians, but was unfortunately beaten. This, however, was not the cause of his aversion to the redskins.

Mr. Barnett remembers clearly the first deer he ever killed, as most hunters do. He borrowed a gun of his uncle and walked five miles to get it. His uncle directed him to shoot the deer just behind the shoulders. While hunting through the woods a large, fine buck jumped up and stood within fifty or sixty steps in front of him. He carefully took a rest on a large log, took aim behind the shoulder and fired. The deer went tearing through the brush with the blood flowing on both sides. After running a short distance it fell, and the voutliful hunter took out his

M'LEAN COUiS'TY. 563 butcher-knife to bleed it, when he saw that the bullet had cut the deer's throat, passing through both veins. In taking aim he had been affected with the " buck ague," but his wild aim was better than the one he intended. He never again had the " buck ague." Mr. Barnett has had great sport in chasing wolves and huntingturkeys. He chased one wolf twenty miles. He hunted deer with a horse, sharp shod, upon the ice, after the sudden change, which occurred in December, 1836. When the deer sprang upon the ice, their feet slipped from under them and stretched out in all directions.

]\Mr. Barnett took some observations concerning the price of land, and says that before the land came into market the claims would frequently sell for more than the land would bring after it was pre-empted.

Mr. Barnett appreciates a joke, and particularly enjoys one on James Bishop. He says that Mr. Bishop Avas occasionally a little absent minded. The latter once attended a dance and neglected to remove the enormous spurs, which he had worn while drivingcattle, and they created much merriment as he went hopping over the floor. He says that Mr. Bishop was afflicted with a slight impediment in his speech, and that he once met a stranger, similarly affected, who was riding on a load of corn. Mr. Bishop wished to buy cattle, and, in their conversation, each thought himself mimicked by the other and they came to blows !

Mr. Barnett is rather above the average stature and somewhat slim. His countenance is rather pale, but is full of intelligence. His features are prominent, and his general appearance is that of a successful merchant. He has the reputation of being a most excellent man of business, and seems to understand it thoroughly. He is a man, who prefers not to interfere in the affairs of his neighbors, thinking his own business sufficient to occupy his attention. In politics he was an " old line" Whig, and afterwards a Repul)lican, and has always taken a lively interest in such matters, though he has never held an office or been a seeker for one.

Mr. Barnett married, February 18, 1845, Miss Emeline Gibbs. This lady is a graduate from Oberlin College. They have had six children, live of whom are living. They are:

Alice, wife of Jolin S. Young, born August 19, 1846, lives at Leroy.

Emma, wife of Denton Young, born July 1, 1848, lives at Leroy.

As printed in The good old times in McLean County, Illinois / containing two hundred and sixty-one sketches of old settlers, a complete historical sketch of the Black Hawk War and ... all matters of interest relate (1874). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.