Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-02-21
NOVEL USE OF SPOONS
Souvenir Variety Sold to Build a.
Public Road.
PROJECT OF ILLINOIS WOMAN.

+ Federation Of Women's Clubs In Kane
County, Ill, Took Up Her Suggestion
and Conceived Plan Of Preserving
Historic Features Of Highways.
The most novel means to build pub
lie highway in Illinois has been taken
by the Kane County Federation Of
Women's Clubs, says an Aurora fIll)
correspondent Of the Chicago Inter
Ocean. Recently not less than 1000
silver spoons, valued at So each, have
been sold to improve and to preserve
certain historic features Of the road
way lying along the Fox river from
Aurora as far north as Elgin and Car
pentersville. 81
The Kane county women have been
working on this project for over a year,
but IT has only been within the last
few weeks that they hit on the novel
plan of raising the money with which
to carry out their plans, which are in
tended to benefit the whole people
The work Of preserving landmarks
and identifying lands abuthng on the
roadways was commenced in the fall
OF 1905, when they interested the farm
ers to the extent Of inducing them to
keep their weeds cut down. Then the
women engaged a landscape man and
drove him over the route, the result Of
which was that he drew up an elabo-
rate plan calculated to establish and
maintain one of the most attractive
driveways in the state.
After this came the project of rails
Ing the money. Rich men, automobile
owners, drivers Of blooded stock, were
appealed to, but subscriptions came
few and far between. During the most
of the last summer there was nothing
done that led the women workers to
hope for the consummation Of the
project.
Then one Of the Aurora women
preached the project. She suggested
that the fund be started by selling sill
yer spoons Of special design.
Then the women workers got their
heads together in working out de-
sign. At the start it was determined
that a leading feature in the design
should be a good likeness of old Chief
ShabboEa, who thousands of times had
passed over the trail now marked by
the roadway sought to be improved
The name Of Shabbona is an honored
one in Illinois. To the white settler Of
pioneer days Shabbona was friend in
deed. History recites that he saved
settlements from massacre and in
many other ways so endeared himself
to the white people that they revere
his memory unto this day. They named
a town for him and erected fine mon
ument at his grave.
Shabbona's likeness has been made
to appear in the bowl of the spoon, and
the artist has done some clever work
on other portions Of the souvenir. The
stem is made to represent one. Of the
dominating woods Of the Fox val
ley; on the spreading end of the stem
there is a pretty view of the valley,
and at the tip is the crouching form
Of q fox, emblematic Of the historic
river and valley, along and through
which the roadway courses.
A New York silversmith was given
the task of producing the spoons. At
first only 500 were ordered, but this
order was soon doubled, for the spoons
began selling like the traditional hot
cakes. Where at first it was next to
impossible to stir up any interest in
the project, people in all of the. towns,
including Aurora, Batavia, Galena, st.
Charles and Elgin, began buying
spoons for themselves and for presents
The local clubs of all of the towns
kept the matter humming, and by this
time, could old Shabbona come back
from the happy hunting grounds,
where he has been sleeping for forty
eight winters, he would find that his
/ likeness in white metal has been car
ried to almost every state in the I'm
lon, where spoons have been sent by
remem bering friends.
Enclosed in each box with a spoon is
q bit Of history, which reads:
'Shabbona, the Indian chief whose
picture adorns the bowl Of the Fox
River valley souvenir spoons. was
probably the most conspicuous Indian
among the many who made their
homes in the beautiful Fox River val
ley before the advent of the white
man. He was born In Canada about
1850 of the Ottawa tribe He married
the daughter of Pottawatomie chief, 4
and, according to the custom Of the
4 Indians to adopt the tribe OF the wife,
he became q Pottawato tonne. He was
known as the whites mans friend
and saved many from massacre, par
ticularly during the Black Hawk war
In 1882. He died at Seneca, ILL.,, July
Is, 1859, and Is buried in Evergreen
cemetery, Morris, Ill, where monu-
ment was erected to his memory. ' 81
The success that has attended this
novel venture in road building Is high
" gratifying not only to the women
workers who originated the scheme,
) but to thousands os people Of Illinois
who love its historic traditions and
who glory in the romantic character
Of its river scenery.