The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1867-01-01
Il Z MIN rs O Il N & i -
OF THE
Early Days of Evansville.
Judge III. w. Foster, President Of The
Board of Trade.

Board Of Trade:
DEAR SIR-According to your re-
quest, ] give you some Of my remem-
brances of. the early time Of Evans
vile.
came here for the purpose of at
tending Court in June, 1919. This
place had been selected and laid off as
a town. 1t was considered as the
most eligible site for commercial
city of any on'the Ohio River below
Louisville This was my opinion,
formed from representation of many
persons, and from inspection of the
map; and my object in coming was to
see and Judge You remember, at
that period, there was almost an
epidemic prevailing among the
people of the West TO make towns,
under the expectation that they
would soon be great pommetciag
cities in which expectation the
founders were generally 5disappoint-
ed. Money, such as it was-7the
banks of the western States,
founded on nothing-was very plenty,
which gave an opportunity for short
period, for wild speculation | found
the place full OF people, emigrahSs
from almost every place inf the Union,
= and frUm Europe; there had been an
exoduslduring that year and fa sthree.
years previously from the east, greater
than for the same number of years
before, and for many years afterwards;
like myself, they were locking for a
place. to settle. -
There might have been hereothen
an hundred houses. mostly log cabins.
with a very spare sprinkling of frame
houses. q Mr.. Alfred o. Warmers
brother to the late Alanson Warner,
kept the principal hotel: it was a
small frame building, standing near
the present residence of Mr.. /. Link,
on Locust Street, with a small 'log
cabin for bar-room, on a part Of the
4 ground which Mr.. Links mansion
now covers. | remember the hotel
was full to oyerflQwipg; there was
hardly room to eat,l drink or sleep.
The Judge of the. circuit was RaBal :
iel OF the members of the bar, there
was William Prince, then residing in
Princeton, one OF. the first American
emigrants to Vincennes; man
of strong mind. In any peril
Gus enterprise, requiring courage,
hardihood and endurance, none could
surpass him. He was often employed
by General Harrison to settle Indian
difficulties, was at the battle. of Tip
pecanoe, and died during the term or
which he was elected member otsGon-
gress from this district. David Hart,
one of the proprietors of this town,
an excellent lawyer, and one of the
purest and best men ever knew, was
another. These are now deceased. In
this class, attending that Court. was our
fellow citizen, the venerable Judge
John Law. He had not at that time.
attained bodilythose magnificent pro-
portions whichanow give men such. a.
-dignifed bearing; on the contrary,
he was slim and lithe-in fact, a
handsome and gay young man. Gen
eral r. NJ. Evans, and Mr. JamesalVsa
jones' the founders and proprietors
of this town. men of enterprise
and. public spirit, are among thosefI
remember as being present on that
occasion Their remains now lie
buried in Evansville, .reai'at
The Court was convened in small
log cabin, situate, Il believe1 some
~wherepon the public square. AT the
next term it was held, / think, in
u
ling Situate on Main Street, corner of
the Bank-lot alley and Main Street:
this was afterwards occupied for
wholesale grocery blythe late Asa Be-
meTlt.
At the Fall term of 1919, lots sold,
at very high prices. In 1902, and
'23, there was considerable immigra-
ton to this place, and many improve
ments made. We recall to mind, with
melancholy pleasure, the society here
at that period, for hardly member.
of it IS now here-s0me have left
much the greatest proportion, proba-
: bly,, are in the world Of spirits. We
remember ball held in the aforesaid
warehouse-we have attended many.
but we have meyer attepdod any in
which there was more enjoyment and
more intelligence ans, beauty slLs5 ~.
After this, In consequence OF, The
generate faalurs0 of the banks land
other causes, came on a decline Of
H our prosperity. aAeWholeoked upon.
this place from, 1923 to 1892, would
have beRe1d' a melancholy scene
houses 'dilapidatedo-grass and gypsum
weeds growing in the streets people
moving listlessly and sluggIshly about,
most of them desir0us, but 4haEdly able
to get away
In 1882, our first house for religious
worship was built: Eitqs She church on
Second Street, of which, the Rev. W.
McCarer is pastor. The lot ON which
it was built had been purchased nearly
as early as 1922 orn1823, principally
through the pious zeal and influence
of the Rev. Mr.. Banks, then Of Hen
derson, KY, but before and afterwards
Of Louisville, where he died, much
lamented. The funds to build it,
.r.o,.c. :col D.. u,