Merritt in Scott County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Old State Road Trail

Historic Marker

— History of Geneva 1832-1845 —

Old State Road Trail Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Emily Pursley, May 29, 2021

1. Old State Road Trail Marker

Inscription. In 1832 Elisha Kellogg purchased 160 acres of land just west of the present Morgan-Scott County line. He and his son-in-law, John Williams, laid out a town of 94 lots and named it Geneva. Geneva was located on the well-traveled State Road, from Springfield to Naples. The town lots began to sell, gradually, and then in early 1939, a group of members of the Church of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) came from Missouri, where they had been mistreated, and purchased 200 acres of land, half a mile east of Geneva. With the Geneva residents, Mormons and other nearby residents, Geneva became a busy small town, with a post office, a hotel, several stores, a distillery, a corn mill, and a blacksmith shop. Stephen A. Douglas even made a campaign speech in Geneva. The Mormons began to build the foundation for a tabernacle, but left off building it in 1841, when Joseph Smith, their prophet leader, called upon them to gather at Nauvoo. After the last Mormons left, in 1845, the town had diminished in population, and the lots were take off the tax rolls. In 1868, the last home in Geneva was torn down. Now the only remnants of this town

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can be seen at plowing time in the fertile farm fields.

Erected by Eagle Scout Service Project by Kevin Mudd, Troop 118, of Jacksonville, Illinois.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Religion & Religious Structures • Roads & Vehicles • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1832.

Location. 39° 42.754′ N, 90° 23.167′ W. Marker is in Merritt, Illinois, in Scott County. It is on Merritt Blacktop Road (Old Route 36), on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1358-1390 Merritt Blacktop Road, Winchester IL 62694, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Illinois River Valley.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 8 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Potawatomi Indians Trail of Death

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(approx. 6.1 miles away); Greene Vardiman Black (approx. 6.9 miles away); Winchester, Illinois (approx. 6.9 miles away); Stephen Arnold Douglas (approx. 6.9 miles away); Lincoln and the Kansas Nebraska Question (approx. 6.9 miles away); Potter's Field (approx. 7.1 miles away); Henry Irving (approx. 7.1 miles away); William C. Verry (approx. 7.1 miles away).

Credits. This page was last revised on February 4, 2023. It was originally submitted on January 22, 2023, by Emily Pursley of Pittsfield, Illinois. This page has been viewed 399 times since then and 34 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on January 22, 2023, by Emily Pursley of Pittsfield, Illinois. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.