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Rachel GASTON, in Stevenson township; Cynthia MERCER, in Raccoon township; and Samuel Allen HUFF, in Kansas.

The early surveyors of this part of the state were called "rangers," and to these Samuel HUFF belonged. His daughter, Cynthia, remembers when there were only two houses in Salem, those of Mark TULLY and Rufus RICKER. She heard the famous Lorenzo DOW preach at Salem in 1828, and remembers his text, an account of which may be found in the chapter on Raccoon township, published in this volume.

Mr. HUFF subsequently removed to a place south-west of Salem, where he died. SHERWOOD and McKinney were among the early settlers of Walnut Hill prairie. They came from North Carolina, but of their later movements nothing is definitely known. In 1822 James CHANCE, a native of Tennessee, came to this county with a large family, and settled in Salem, where he opened a blacksmith shop.

Several years later he removed to another part of the county, and in 1835 took up his residence in Fredonia prairie, where in 1863 he died. Some of his children are still residing in the county; others are living in Texas.

William NICHOLS, of Tennessee, settled in this county prior to 1823, and in 1826 removed to Missouri. William PURSLEY was the first settler within the limits of the present township of Tonti. His arrival here dates back to 1822, and his death occurred shortly afterwards. His widow, whose maiden name was Lydia Little, survived him many years.

It was she that rescued the intrepid frontiersman, Thomas HIGGINS, from the Indians, within sight of Fort Hill, near Greenville, Illinois, after he had been deserted by his comrades. This heroic act has given to her name a historic luster that will ever remain bright in the early annals of this country. She was a medium-sized woman, and, in dauntless bravery, a true pioneer. Her skill in the use of the rifle was equal to that of any man, and her cool courage never failed her even in the most dangerous situations. She was the mother of nine children, all of whom are dead. Sever of her grandchildren, however, still live in the county. About twenty years ago, she went to Texas, and soon afterwards died.

Cornelius DUNHAM was the first settler in what is now Meacham township. He came with his family from New York, as early as 1823, and made improvements on section thirteen. In 1886 he went to Iowa, and his family to Wisconsin. William TULLY, a native of Virginia, came from Tennessee to this county prior to 1825, and became a resident of Salem. About the year 1835, he removed to another part of the county, and seven years later went to Texas, where he died. In 1824 David FULTON, of Tennessee, came to the county. He had a family of eight children, four boys and four girls. In 1877 he died, at the advanced age of 94 years. Letitia DUNCAN, whose husband was in the war of 1812, and died in a hospital after the battle of New Orleans, came at an early day, with her family of ten children, to Tennessee Prairie, in this county. In 1834 she removed to another part of the county, where, in 1846, she died. Only one of her children now resides in the county. John W. NICHOLS, born in Smith county, Tennessee, emigrated to Illinois in 1823, and settled in the same year, on the site of the present town of Kinmundy, in this county, where he divided his time between farming and hunting. His nearest neighbors then lived five miles distant. Leaving there in 1827, he went to Wisconsin, where he married Mary Bean, and the next year returned to this county. In 1829 he removed to Fayette county, but in 1836 became resident of Salem. The next year he located permanently to Meacham township, where he now resides his age being 77 years and that of his wife 72.

Robert NICHOLS settled in the county as early as 1823, and improved a farm, some distance from Salem, and lived on it till he died in 1836.

William MARSHALL came to the county about 1823, and established his home north-east of Salem. He afterwards purchased the improvement of William NICHOLS, where he lived several years. He was one of the first teachers in the county, having taught school here in the winter of 1825; was a man of mirthful disposition, and accustomed to attend all the parties of the surrounding settlements. He was a good fiddler, and would play all night for the merry gatherings:

While the music loud and louder grew,
The dancers quick and quicker flew.

He was Justice of the peace, and united in the bonds of wedlock many of the rustics youths of that early day. He at one time represented the county in the State Legislature, and was also the first large family and died in Carrigan township.

John EDDINGTON was one of the early prominent men of the county. He was a man of fair education, and filled the office of County Commissioner. He settled on a farm in Tonti township in the year 1823, and lived there till he died.

James CHANCE came to the county in 1823, and cleared up a farm a short distance south of where the Baptist church now stands, in Carrigan township. He was Sheriff of the county from 1850 to 1853 and from 1855 to 1858, and during these two terms of office resided in Salem. He was a man of excellent reputation and a very worthy citizen. His family was large, and his widow, who was a daughter of Robert NICHOLS, has survived him since Jan, 5, 1866, when his death occurred.

Jeremiah GILMORE settled in the county during the yeas 1824, and improved a good farm, where he lived till he died.

In 1824, John CUNNINGHAM, a native of Todd county, Kentucky, came with his parents to Illinois, and settled on a farm in the edge of Walnut Hill Prairie, near the county line, their farm lying in Marion Co., and their residence being in Jefferson Co. The family consisted of nine children, of whom four still survive; three daughters and one son; the latter being now a highly esteemed citizen and a prominent merchant of Salem. His father's name was Matthew. The latter removed from Walnut Hill to a farm in Romine Prairie, and in May, 1878, died at the residence of his daughter in Salem, aged 84 years, Mrs. Sarah CUNNINGHAM, mother of John, died of cholera in 1834.

John BUNDY came from North Carolina to this state in an early day, and settled at first in Jefferson county, and afterwards removed to this county. He had a family of eight children, the oldest of whom, Isaac, born in 1828, has been a minister of the gospel for twenty years.

Reuben CHANCE was born in Randolph county, in the year 1805, and in 1825 became a citizen of this county. He reared a family of ten children, six of whom still survive. His son, S. S. CHANCE, is the present County Clerk of Marion county; another son, J. O. CHANCE, is Clerk of the Supreme court at Mt. Vernon; and a third, David D., is a resident of Macon county, Ills. Reuben CHANCE died in Sept., 1880 at his residence, seven miles south-east of Salem, where he had lived thirty-five years. Mrs. Catherine CHANCE, his wife died at the old homestead in April, 1877. Mr. CHANCE and family were among the best and most respected citizens of the county.

Henry HOWELL emigrated from Tennessee to Illinois in 1826, and settled on a farm in this county, where he continued to reside till the time of his death. He reared a large family, some of whom