Riddle Hill, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Riddle Hill is an unincorporated rural community located in Curran Township
and Woodside Township
, Sangamon County
, Illinois
. It is a crossroads located adjacent to where Old Jacksonville Road crosses Little Spring Creek, 6.5 miles west of Springfield, Illinois
.
and the state capital of Springfield. Starting as early as the 1830's, travelers used the place where this road forded the creek as a campground, and the community grew from there.
On the night of September 28-29, 1838, participants in the 850-member Potawatomi Trail of Death
encamped here on their forced march from Indiana to a portion of the unorganized western territory of the United States that would later be organized as Kansas Territory
. A roadside historical marker has been erected on or near the site of their campground. The camping place is identified as 'McCoy's Mill', apparently recalling the name of a gristmill
on Little Spring Creek at the ford.
On July 4, 1861, the 21st Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment
, en route to service in the American Civil War
, camped here for its first night in the field since mustering into federal service in Springfield. The new regiment's fledgling colonel, Ulysses S. Grant
, issued his first written orders here. A historical marker in the yard of the New Salem Methodist Church commemorates the site of a now-vanished tree that marked the campsite.
Curran Township, Sangamon County, Illinois
Curran Township is located in Sangamon County, Illinois. The population was 1,285 at the 2000 census.- External links :***...
and Woodside Township
Woodside Township, Sangamon County, Illinois
Woodside Township is located in Sangamon County, Illinois. The population was 12,729 at the 2000 census.- External links :***...
, Sangamon County
Sangamon County, Illinois
Sangamon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 197,465, which is an increase of 4.5% from 188,951 in 2000...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. It is a crossroads located adjacent to where Old Jacksonville Road crosses Little Spring Creek, 6.5 miles west of Springfield, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
.
History
Old Jacksonville Road is one of the oldest roads in central Illinois; it is a traditional route between Jacksonville, IllinoisJacksonville, Illinois
Jacksonville is a city in Morgan County, Illinois, United States. The population was 18,940 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Morgan County....
and the state capital of Springfield. Starting as early as the 1830's, travelers used the place where this road forded the creek as a campground, and the community grew from there.
On the night of September 28-29, 1838, participants in the 850-member Potawatomi Trail of Death
Potawatomi Trail of Death
The Potawatomi Trail of Death was the forced removal by United States forces from September 4 to November 4, 1838, of 859 members of the Potawatomi nation from Twin Lakes near Plymouth, Indiana, to the location of present-day Osawatomie, Kansas, a distance of . Typhoid fever and the stress of the...
encamped here on their forced march from Indiana to a portion of the unorganized western territory of the United States that would later be organized as Kansas Territory
Kansas Territory
The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Kansas....
. A roadside historical marker has been erected on or near the site of their campground. The camping place is identified as 'McCoy's Mill', apparently recalling the name of a gristmill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
on Little Spring Creek at the ford.
On July 4, 1861, the 21st Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment
21st Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 21st Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was a militia infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:...
, en route to service in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, camped here for its first night in the field since mustering into federal service in Springfield. The new regiment's fledgling colonel, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, issued his first written orders here. A historical marker in the yard of the New Salem Methodist Church commemorates the site of a now-vanished tree that marked the campsite.