Pawnee Sesquicintential Recognition

PAWNEE SESQUICENTENNIAL RECOGNITION -- (Extensions of Remarks - February 10, 2004)

SPEECH OF
HON. JOHN SHIMKUS
OF ILLINOIS
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2004

Mr. SHIMKUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay special tribute to the Village of Pawnee, Illinois, as they celebrate their sesquicentennial. Established in 1854, the people of Pawnee have prospered while giving so much to this great nation.

In the middle of the 19th century, the Village of Pawnee started as a settlement at the bottom of a hill next to a creek in central Illinois. In the past, the small town boasted its own coalmine and railroad. Pawnee's earliest inhabitants were farmers, coalminers, common folk, and businessmen. Today, because of its outstanding school system, churches, and low crime rate, the town has blossomed into a village of 2,800 residents.

I am proud to represent the great people of the Village of Pawnee and to share in this special occasion with them. I thank them for all they give to this great nation and I wish them many successes in the years to come. Congratulations!

For those today who don't know enough about Pawnee, Illinois I have included this brief history of the town by Skip Minder:

"Justus Henkle and his family were the first Pawnee area settlers, arriving in the middle of March, 1818. They were followed by other early settlers, many of who settled at the bottom of a hill next to a creek, thus assuring a water supply.

The small settlement became known as the Horse Creek Settlement. In 1854, it petitioned the U.S. Post Office Department for a post office. The Post Office Department did not like the Horse Creek Settlement name and arbitrarily changed it to Pawnee, and so it has been from that time forward.

The Village of Pawnee was incorporated on November 9, 1891, and was and is still governed by a Village President and six Village Trustees.

In its early days the town boasted its own coalmine, the Horse Creek Coal Company, which later became the Peabody Coal Company Mine #5, and its own railroad known as the Pawnee Railroad. That railroad was the forerunner of the current Chicago and Illinois Midland Railroad (C&IM).

One of Pawnee's inhabitants was a man named Edward A. Baxter (1847-1934). At age 14, he enlisted in Indiana as a Union soldier during the Civil War along with six of his brothers. They became known as the "seven fighting Baxter brothers". All survived the war.

In 1865, young soldier, Ed Baxter, stood in the honor guard at the head of Abraham Lincoln's casket during funeral services for Lincoln in Indianapolis, Indiana. Lincoln's body was then transported to Springfield, Illinois for burial. Later, Baxter came to Pawnee in the summer of 1870 and remained until his death in 1934.

Another prominent citizen was Harry Howland Mason (1873-1946). He was the publisher of the Pawnee Herald newspaper until he was elected to the U.S. Congress in 1934 as Representative for the 21st Congressional District.

Pawnee's earliest inhabitants were farmers, and later farmers and coal miners, common folk, and businessmen. Today it has blossomed into a village of 2,800 residents. Rather than growth in its business and agricultural areas, growth is attributed to its outstanding school system, churches, and low crime rate. Many residents choose to reside in Pawnee and commute to their employment in other communities.

In June of this year it will celebrate its sesquicentennial, 150 years of being. It looks forward to at least 150 more years!"