Source: https://hamptonil.org/info.php
Timestamp: 2020-06-03 23:09:06
Document Index: 114671534

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 2', 'art 3', 'art 4', 'art 5', 'art 6']

The Village of Hampton is a municipality incorporated and organized under the laws of the State of Illinois for the purpose of providing its residents with the following services:
Heritage Interpretive Center
Offices: The Village of Hampton has certain functional subdivisions which are shown on Table 1 attached hereto. The approximate amount of the operating budget of the Village of Hampton is $_____. The Village offices are located at:
Hampton,IL 61256
Any person requesting records of the Village of Hampton may make such a request either in person, orally or in writing at the Village Clerk's office located at 520 First Avenue, PO Box 77. Such request should be made to Ms. Michelle Reyes, FOIA Officer at such address. Another method would be by mailing, faxing or emailing a written request to Ms. Michelle Reyes specifying in particular the records requested to be disclosed and copied. All written requests should be addressed to the FOIA Officer at the address of the Clerk's office. If you desire that any records be certified, you must indicate that in your request and specify which records must be certified.
Additional pages, black and white, letter or legal, actual cost to $0.15
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6 - Written Notes
Several histories and numerous articles have been published on our Historical Society's website detailing the arrival of the founders in 1828 through the centennial celebrations in 1938. The Village, first named McNeal's Landing, then Milan and finally, Hampton, was founded by two young men who arrived by river to harvest the dense forests of hardwood trees. Hampton became a regular steamboat stop. The sawmills that sprang up provided fuel, raw material for household items and building materials for the pioneers heading west using the Hampton ferry to get across the river to new territories.
Hampton boasted many firsts: A ferry that would take wagons, livestock and families to the Iowa side after stopping at the first large, mercantile store (now the Brettun & Black Museum). The Brettun & Black store had the first elevator in the Midwest. By 1852, the first doctor and pharmacy had located near the waterfront.
West-bound pioneers had no place to purchase provisions or replace household items after leaving DeKalb or between Galena and Hampton. In Hampton, pioneers could visit a barber (who probably also did duty as the Village Dentist), saloon, blacksmith and wagon repair shops, pottery and barrel makers before continuing on their journey. The only place to shop was, the Brettun & Black store, where travelers, steamboat crews, miners and their families could find seeds, provisions, plows, fabric, tools, dishes, barrels of salt pork and whiskey were offered. After harvesting their crops, farmers would return via ferry and have their grains ground to flour or corn meal at one of Hampton's grist mills. Many of the grinding stones are yet to be found here.
The railroad arrived in the late 1850's. A legal settlement of a dispute with the railroad provided the funds for the classic Village Hall, currently in use on First Avenue. The riverboat traffic tapered off as the railroad began to flourish as coal mines began operations above the town on the bluffs. For a short time, the river road was on the route of the stage coaches running between Rock Island and Galena.
Hampton was a prime location for "clammers" to camp on the beach and harvest millions of the native mussels in the hope of finding Mississippi Pearls. The clam meat was sold to area farmers to fatten their hogs. Westward bound pioneers also purchased barrels of salted pork to supplement their food supplies until harvest. Boats stopping at the Brettun & Black store took supplies down river to union soldiers.
Hampton's Civil War ratio of soldiers to citizens was the highest in the country. Hampton volunteers served in every branch of the service in subsequent conflicts. Patriotism is still a prominent characteristic of the Hampton community, which built and maintains two veteran's memorials.
The soldier's monument next to Village Hall was built on the site of the first log cabin and birthplace of the first non-native child born in Rock Island County. The GAR memorial, located in Hampton Cemetery, was refurbished and a list of veteran's names was encased in a podium there.
Steamboats, railroads, stagecoaches and "hard roads" brought pioneers and settlers to the Hampton area. The scenic beauty, convenient location and small community friendliness have made Hampton a very desirable place to stay.
Hampton's Historical Society is very active and always welcomes inquiries and new members. The Society also runs the only museum on the QCA Bike Path at Brettun & Black's Mercantile Store Museum.