Greene-Madison County IL Archives History - Letters .....Bell Letters From Greene County, Illinois July 18, 1832 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/il/ilfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Paula Snyder paulas1218@aol.com February 18, 2008, 12:33 pm Bell Letters from Greene County, Illinois Tennessee State Library and Archives Nashville, Tennessee From John Allen, brother of Elizabeth Allen Bell: Greene County, Illinois, July 18th A.D. 1832 I have no good excuse to render for so long neglecting to write to you, but must plead guilty of great remissness in that particular, since I received your last favor, which was if I recollect right, brot by David Pinkerton, I have often almost determined to write immediately, but have not done so until now. The cause was, perhaps, that I discovered from your last letter that you had not received the two last letters which I had written, which is very much to be regretted, not on account of them containing any valuable information, or that they would have served as a report to sassiate the appetite of the literati of the day, but that if they had been received by you It would have served to extenuate the charge to which I now plead guilty. For me, in the limits of a letter, to attempt to communicate to you my cogitations on the signs of the times, together with a detailed account of what has transpired in and around about me relative to morals, politics and religion would be vain. On the Northern frontier of our state there is an exterminating war raging between the Whites and the Sac [Sauks or Sacs] Indians, the cause and progress of which you have seen no doubt in the public papers of the day; when and how it will terminate I know not. The militia in this and the adjoining counties with but very few exceptions within one year past, either by themselves or by a substitute have performed a tour of duty. In the South we see a part of the people ripe for civil war, on the North Eastern border of our Country is raging a most terrific pestilence, which is not much less frightfull, then Nullification. All the harm that the Colera can possibly do is to sweep its thousand off the earth, and to cause those that may escape destruction from it to view it as a Scourge sent by God for sin, and to cause them to live more humble, prayerful and obedient to their Creator – it will not effect our civil institutions in the least, but the former, if attempted to be enforced, will lead to the destruction of thousands and a total annihilation of our happy form of Government, which would give general and sincere joy to every rotten Dynasty in the world. The Senate of the U.S. has sunk down into a faction. There is but little harmony in the H.R. Truth and virtue in a great degree has left the people and gone to Heaven. There they came from. All Europe is in a bubble, everything portends some dire calamity, as if some invisible hand was about mustering a force to purge the earth of sin. The whole earth and its fullness is Gods and he will establish his claim and drive out the usurper. If the Bible is true these things must come to pass for He has said, They shall know that I am the Lord, yes if we refuse to recognize him through his mercies as such we will be compelled to own him by his vengeance. In addition to the troubles above recited, we are threatened with a scarcity of grain. There certainly will not be more make in the county then there will be wanted fro bread, every year heretofore we had a great surplus. Corn cannot be had for 75 cents per Bushel. There is not much more Wheat made then will be sown this season. Last year wheat could not be sown in due time in consequence of the wetness of the season, and before it got good root the winter set in intensely hard, which happened one month earlier then common, and froze the tender stalk to such a degree that it died. Some farmers sowed so late last fall that the grain did not germinate until this Spring, and where is so happened thee is a tolerable crop. There has been a seveare or long drought, which set in the last of May and continues in places up to the present time. I and my family are all well, and all of your acquaintances which are here, excepting my father [Thomas Allen] whose health is very bad, and I fear it never will be much better. He has been afflicted nearly five yeares with the Dropsy consequently when a malady of that description has been for considerable length of time seated in the system of a person of his age it may be pronounced incurable. There has been organized here lately a Seceder Church by a Mr. James C. Bruce, a Missionary of that order from the state of Ohio, who, a little time, I believe 10 days, before the organization of the Church, married Uncle Zechariahs second Daughter, Margaret, by his second wife. I can not say that he is a man of very considerable talent, or that he will be instrumentally in the conversion of many sinners, for he has all the prejudices peculiar to the sect, as strong as any other man. I and my wife have not joined them, but he has made clean work with the balance of your acquaintances. The Pinkerton family, particular before his marriage revered him as a saint. I.F. Pinkerton and wife, all his sisters, Uncle Zechariahs 2nd son, and Francis Bells eldest son are members of the Church. Brother Bill and Uncle Zech, Elders, Francis Bell purser. Judge James Martin is very anxious for the spread of the Seceders, but he Gaines no proselytes to his faith, and in part I think their number is all told. I shall now conclude, by requesting you to give my love to all enquiring friends and for them to read this letter as if it was diverted to them. John Allen Sally Allen To: James McCutchon & wife Additional Comments: Brothers Thomas and Zechariah Allen emigrated to Greene County, IL with families and friends in about 1819. Descendants of Thomas Allen 1 Thomas Allen b: Abt. 1766 in North Carolina d: 07 Sep 1832 in Greene County, Illinois . +Margaret (Margery) Bryan b: Abt. 1768 in Rowan County, NC d: 29 Nov 1846 in Whitehall, Greene County, Illinois m: 26 May 1789 in Rowan County, NC ...... 2 Elizabeth Allen b: 14 Feb 1790 in Rowan County, North Carolina d: 15 Aug 1835 in Greene County, Illinois .......... +Francis Bell b: 23 Nov 1782 in Guilford County, North Carolina d: 21 Jun 1866 in Menard County, Illinois m: 06 Jan 1809 in Davidson County, Tennessee ...... 2 John Allen b: 17 Dec 1791 in Rowan County, North Carolina d: 16 Feb 1841 in Greene County, Illinois .......... +Sarah Bell b: Abt. 1792 in Davidson County, Tennessee d: 03 Mar 1848 in Greene County, Illinois m: 06 Jun 1815 in Davidson County, TN ...... 2 William David Allen b: 15 Jul 1793 in North Carolina .......... +Unknown Pinkerton ...... 2 Thomas Allen b: 09 Nov 1795 in North Carolina d: Abt. 1853 in Lawrence County, Missouri .......... +Elizabeth DOUGHERTY b: in Virginia m: 13 Sep 1813 ...... 2 Samuel Allen b: 09 Feb 1798 in Davidson County, Tennessee d: in Missouri ...... 2 Nathan Allen b: 30 Mar 1799 in Davidson County, Tennessee ...... 2 Sarah Allen b: 23 Sep 1804 in Davidson County, Tennessee d: in California .......... +Elam Brown d: in California ...... 2 Josiah Allen b: Abt. 1806 in Davidson County, Tennessee d: Bef. 1857 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/il/greene/history/letters/belllett11ms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/ilfiles/ File size: 7.7 Kb