A Short History of the Village of Spring Grove, Illinois-- Part 1: Early English Settlers, Fish and Fred

From the March 21, 2018, Hi-Liter newspaper by Sandra Landen Machaq.   She has written a lot of articles about local history for the paper, as well as has a book out about our neighboring village of Johnsburg.

Illinois was celebrating its 200th anniversary as a state in 2018, and our little village of Spring Grove has made its contributions to the state's growth, most notably with this fish hatchery and the first silo in the country, developed by local farmer Fred Hatch.

Spring Grove was not incorporated until 1902, some 84 years after Illinois became a state.  But the village's beginnings can be traced back 60 years before that.

Jonathan Imeson became the first settler here in 1830, when he made his home in a shanty for a year before he was joined by other English families with names like Wrays, Lawsons, Richardsons, Hoffmans, Fowles, Manns, Rices and Blivens.  Many of their descendants still live in the area.

The 1830s was when the last Indians were removed from the area.

They were soon followed by John Sanborn and Alfred and Merrells Stevens.  Alfred Stevens was the father of Burton Stevens, for whom Burton Township, where we live, is named.

We still have a road in the village named English Prairie after these early residents.  Spring Grove was also called  Bliven's Mill at first and we still have a Blivens Road.  The Richardsons are a huge agribusiness with what is reputed to be the biggest corn maze in the country and quite a fall celebration.

--CooterLocal