Area connections to Abe Lincoln

Fairbury, Cropsey, and Pontiac all have several different connections to President Abraham Lincoln. One of these connections is the Strevell House at 401 W. Livingston Street in Pontiac.

Harvey Strevell was born in 1800 and was the son of Woolrick Strevell. Woolrick was a wagon master in Washington's army. Elizabeth Lewis was born in 1800 in Albany, New York. Elizabeth's mother was the niece of Colonel Lewis, a Revolutionary War officer. Harvey Strevell and Elizabeth Lewis married and had a family of six children.

One son of Harvey and Elizabeth Strevell was Jason Woolrick Strevell, born in 1832 in Albany. He worked as a farmhand in the summer, and by saving his earnings, he could attend school in winter. Jason went to work in Peckham and Tremaine's office after taking a course at Rensselaerville Academy in Albany County when he was 18. This company was one of the most prominent law firms in Albany. Jason Strevell studied law for five years and, in 1855, was admitted to the bar. Jason Strevell decided to go west and moved to Pontiac, Illinois, to start his law practice.

Pontiac clockmaker Z. H. Nettleton married Elizabeth Butler Kelley. Their first child was John H. Nettleton, born in 1849. Their second child, Charles Nettleton, was born in 1858. Mr. Nettleton built a small house at 401 W. Livingston Street in Pontiac with unique Carpenter Gothic architecture. Unfortunately, Z. H. Nettleton died in 1857 at the age of 36.

Jason W. Strevell met Mrs. Nettleton in Pontiac and married the young widow. John H. Nettleton kept his last name. Jason Strevell legally adopted Charles Nettleton, and his name was changed to Charles Nettleton Strevell. Jason Strevell had Mr. Nettleton's new house doubled in size but maintained the unique Carpenter Gothic architecture. Jason and Elizabeth Strevell had a daughter, Helen Louise Strevell, born in 1860 in Pontiac.

When Jason Strevell moved from New York to Pontiac, Illinois, in 1855, his brother, William H. Strevell, came with him and settled in Fairbury. William first married Mary Cannon. When she died, William married Emeline Patton. Both of William's wives were buried in Fairbury's Graceland Cemetery. In 1860, William Strevell was one of the five charter members of the Fairbury Livingston Lodge 290 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

Jason Strevell joined the Republican party and became active in Livingston County activities. During the winter of 1859-1860, the young men of Pontiac decided to have guest speakers speak to their group periodically. Jason Strevell arranged for Abraham Lincoln to be a guest speaker at their January 1860 meeting in Pontiac.

At the meeting, Jason Strevell asked Abraham Lincoln what the title of his speech was. Mr. Lincoln replied the title of his written speech was "The Wheel and the Axle." Although no exact copy of this speech exists today, the Wheel and Axle became one of Lincoln's standard stump speeches when he ran for President of the United States. Copies of the standard stump speech still exist today. The speech's main point was that the fundamental distinction between man and beast is man's continuing ability to change his mode of labor through new discoveries and inventions.

After Mr. Lincoln gave his speech, Jason Strevell invited him to his home to wait for the train to take him home. Many guests came to the Strevell house to meet and talk with Mr. Lincoln.

After the guests had left the house, only Mr. Strevell and Mr. Lincoln remained. Mr. Strevell asked Lincoln what his height was. Mr. Lincoln replied that he was six feet, four inches tall. Mr. Strevell had Lincoln stand in a doorway in the house, and he made a notch in the door case to mark his height. Mr. Strevell measured, and Mr. Lincoln was indeed six feet, four inches tall.

Another prominent young Republican in Livingston County in that era was A. J. Cropsey. He was one of the pioneer settlers south of Fairbury and the prime real estate developer when Fairbury was established in 1857. He became a Civil War hero and led the largest group of Fairbury soldiers to serve in the Civil War. Cropsey Township and the village of Cropsey are named after A. J. Cropsey.

The Illinois Republicans held their state convention in Decatur in May of 1860. Jason Strevell was the representative from Pontiac, and A. J. Cropsey was the representative from the Fairbury area. This event was the famous Wigwam Illinois Republican convention held in Decatur, Illinois. The term wigwam was borrowed from the Native American term for a temporary structure. The conference was held on May 9, 1860, involving 2,500 people. A tent 100 feet wide and 70 feet deep was procured from a local circus company to house the crowd. The Illinois Republicans adopted a resolution stating, "That Abraham Lincoln is the first choice of Illinois for the Presidency, and that our delegates be instructed to use all honorable means for his nomination at the Chicago convention, and to cast their votes as a unit for him." Less than a week later, the National Republican Convention opened in Chicago, and the Illinois Republicans kept their word and nominated Lincoln for President. Lincoln won the election and became our 16th President.

Jason Strevell was later elected to the Lower House of the Illinois legislature as a Republican from 1864-1868. Mr. Strevell then became a member of the Senate from 1868-1872. In 1871, he introduced a bill establishing a boy's reformatory at Pontiac. Today, this boy's reformatory is the Pontiac Correctional Center.

In 1879, Jason Strevell got the urge to go west again. The Strevell family moved from Pontiac to Miles City, Montana. Jason Strevell served one term as a district judge and was a member of the Montana constitutional convention. He died in 1903 at the age of 71 and was buried in Chicago.

The adopted son of Jason Strevell, Charles Nettleton Strevell, became a successful businessman in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was an avid collector of historical artifacts and donated his collection to a museum in 1939. Charles Strevell wrote several history books, including information he received from his father about Lincoln's visit to the Strevell house in early 1860.

The Strevell home at 401 West Livingston in Pontiac underwent a ten-year restoration to return it to its condition when Abraham Lincoln spent an afternoon and evening there in 1860. The Livingston County Historical Society completed this renovation in 2018, and the house is periodically open for public tours. The house was recently added to the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors to the home better appreciate some of the direct connections between our area and President Abraham Lincoln.

(Dale Maley's local history feature is sponsored each week by Dr. Charlene Aaron)