This 1880 publication is a must for anyone interested in the full historical coverage of this region. Volume 1 begins with the Mound Builder Indians and continues through the history of each township in Pike County.

An historic treasure, this volume provides the story of the sturdy pioneers of Pike County who inhabited the Military Tract, a section of bounty land set aside by an act of Congress as payment to volunteer soldiers of the War of 1812. These counties, among the first settled in Illinois, were located in the western part of the state between the Illinois and Mississippi...

Volume 2 of this valuable publication provides detailed portraits of Pike County's prominent citizens and gives focus as to how they worked to establish a blueprint for a respectable society. The history of townships continues along with information on the evolution of the press, the organization of this region's county courts and judicial system, and a digest of the common state laws.

This detailed picture of this region as it was in 1880 includes information on marriage licenses, agricultural and educational statistics, property value, and data on wages. Maps, charts, tables, and...