Smithboro

Smithboro. Now Boarding for Henderson Station. Where the Illinois Central Railroad saw land it didn't need, Henry Hedrick Smith saw opportunity. , In the mid 1800s, Smith, an ambitious outspoken entrepreneur, bought 800 acres of Bond County prairie from Illinois Central. When the St. Louis, Vandalia and Terre Haute Railroad built a new line across Illinois in the late 1860s, Smith granted the railroad right-of-way in exchange for a terminal on his property., Henderson Station was born., Smithborough: Population 600, As the St. Louis, Vandalia and Terre Haute line ran its first passenger cars across Illinois in 1870, Smith planned a village. The following year found him selling lots and recruiting businesses for Smithborough., Ten years later, Smith negotiated passage of a second railroad through Smithborough. In 1881, the Jacksonville, Northwestern and Southeastern line carried passengers north to Jacksonville, Ill., and south to Centralia, Ill., By the early 1900s, the village was home to a creamery, coal mine, bank, factory, restaurants, general stores, churches, schools, and about 600 residents. The homes, streets and rails you see around you grew from the vision of Smithboro founder Henry Hedrick Smith., "In looking back to the wild prairies, as I found them thirty six years ago and comparing them with the cultivated fields, meadows and orchards, and the thriving villages, railroads, telegraphs, coal mines, churches and school-houses which we see to-day, I am glad to know that I have aided and done my share in bringing about these wonderful changes, and do not believe the county is any worse for my having settled within its borders.", -Henry Hedrick Smith, 1891, (photo captions:), ·In 1910, Smithboro's Main Street supported an undertaker's parlor, two hardware stores, a lumber yard, grocery, and a mine door factory. Area residents followed the National Road to Smithboro for worship, school, shopping, and socializing. , ·Bond County residents traveled the National Road for miles to catch a train in Smithborough, where they could ride the rails in all directions, courtesy Henry Hedrick Smith. The abbreviated spelling of Smithboro appeared in the 1890s. Photo circa 1910. , ·The Smithborough Prospect and Mining Company sunk the town's first coal mine in 1884. The mine operated sporadically until 1910. "We encountered many difficulties and discouragements," Henry Smith said of the mine, which was prone to flooding. , ·Henry Smith marked water from the Smithboro coal mine as American Carlsbad Mineral Waters. Patrons could soak in a mineral water spa at the Smithboro Waterworks and Bath House, or sip American Carlsbad Mineral Waters from bottles served aboard Pennsylvania Railroad dining cars. Crews razed the building in 1940 to construct the US 40 overpass. , ·Joseph Dinwiddie owned and operated Dinwiddle Steel Company, a Smithboro factory that produced automatic mine doors. In 1921 a fire destroyed most of the businesses on Main Street's west side, including Dinwiddle Steel Company., (aside:), A Road of Dirt, Rock, And Dreams, In 1806, President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation to provide federal funding for a National Road. Surveyed from Cumberland, Md., to the Mississippi River, the National Road was a highway for pioneers eager to settle the West., Today, as US 40, the National Road in Illinois spans 164 miles. From Indiana to East St. Louis, you can still see how the ambitions and accomplishments of early Illinois immigrants shaped our communities. You'll find their influence in our art and architecture, our industry and agriculture, and in our way of life. Enjoy your time on the Road.