Chester-Kaskaskia, Illinois
County: Randolph
Location: 1: In rest area SE side of IL 150, about 2
miles NE of Chester 2: In rest area SE side of IL 3, 2 miles south of
Ellis Grove 3: In Chester Park, toll gate to Mississippi River
bridge, MI 51 near IL 3
Erected: 07/01/1967 Erected by:
Division of Highways and The Illinois State Historical Society
Shadrach Bond, first Governor of Illinois (1818-1822), is buried in
Evergreen Cemetry in Chester. The first recorded settler in the area
was John McFerron who purchased land in 1817 but Samuel Smith, who
settled here in 1830, is considered the founder of Chester. Formerly
known as Smith's Landing, the community was renamed after Chester,
England. The town was a river port for the export of such local
products as castor oil, flour, and meat during the mid-nineteenth
century. It became the county seat in 1848 and was incorporated as a
city in 1855. Kaskaskia, founded in 1703 as a Jesuit mission, became
a prominent French village. During the French and Indian War
(1754-1763) between France and Briatain, Fort Kaskaskia was erected
on the bluffs near the settlement. By the Treaty of Paris in 1763,
Kaskaskia came under British control. On July 4, 1778 George Rogers
Clark captured Kaskaskia settlement and the area became part of
Virginia. Kaskaskia served as Illinois Territorial Capitol
(1809-1818) and as the first state capitol (1818-1820). When the
capitol was moved to Vandalia, Kaskaskia declined in importance.
Mississippi floods from 1844 to 1910 gradually destroyed the old
settlement, and the area is now Fort Kaskaskia State Park. Sites of
interest include the Garrison Hill Cemetery containing a monument to
the pioneers; the home of Pierre Menard, first Lieutenant Governor,
which is preserved as a State Memorial; and the Kaskaskia State
Memorial on Kaskaskia Island containing the 'Liberty Bell of the
West.'
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