Township 36, Range 2, constitutes the town of Meriden. It is bounded on the
north by the north line of the county, and is a prairie region, surrounded by
prairie on all sides except a small grove on Sees. 5 and 6, called Four-Mile
Grove. A few families pitched their tents around the little oasis in the middle
of the wide prairie, in the year 1836, and these were all the early settlers.
John Haight settled on Webster's farm near Peru, first, and came to Meriden in
1836.
David Peck, from Albany County, N. Y., settled on Sec. 6, in 1836; sold to
Cunningham.
Lyman Alger, from the same place, in 1836; sold to McIntyre.
O. W. Bryant came from Maine to Peru, in 1837, and to Meriden in 1842.
Benjamin Furman came from Tioga County, Pa.; settled on S. 6, in 1838.
George Wilkinson, from the same place, settled on the same Section at the same
time.
Benjamin Birdsall came from New York, in 1839.
E. E. Wicks settled on S. 18, in 1848.
David Holden settled on the same Section in 1849.
Ira Bailey came in 1848.
John Rose, from Scotland, James Cunningham, Hiram Cristler, John Weisner, Thomas
Eager and a few others constituted the pioneer force that commenced the task of
transforming the wild prairie town into productive farms and the quiet pleasant
abode of a numerous, wealthy and prosperous people — a task that with the aid of
succeeding emigrants has been most successfully accomplished.
Extracted from 1877 History of La Salle County Illinois, pages 481-482.
| Lee | DeKalb | Kane |
| Bureau |
 |
Kendall |
| Putnam | Grundy | |
| Marshall | Woodford | Livingston |
