My Genealogy Hound

DIXON, HENRY JEFFERSON, farmer and stock raiser, Sec. 4, P.O. Rockbridge, although not among the earliest pioneers of Greene County, is worthy of more than a passing notice. He was born in McLean County, East Tennessee, on the 1st day of October, 1623, the second child of Solomon and Sarah Dixon; he passed the days of his youth on the old farm homestead, where he acquired that knowledge of agriculture that led to successful results, when he subsequently became an Illinois farmer; he was but seven years of age when the family removed to this State; on the 20th of December, 1829, this overland route to the West was made in what is familiarly called a prairie schooner, or covered wagon; on their settlement, near what is now Fayette, on farm property, where a log cabin, composed of round logs, was soon in process of erection and completion; not long after the family settlement, the deep snow ushered in a monotonous winter for the newcomers; this event, well remembered by many who have grown to an advanced age, of the pioneers of Greene County, caused much suffering and hardships; the snow accumulating to a depth of from three to five feet, caused many wild animals to perish, causing a scarcity of game in subsequent years; the old folks have long since been gathered to their fathers, after an eventful life in Southern Illinois. Jefferson, from whom this narrative is obtained, grew up amid pioneer associations, and received his preliminary education in a log school-house, with a fireplace as large as a modern bedroom, and the hard beaten earth answered the place of flooring; in 1848, he was married to Miss Margaret Allen, a daughter of Benjamin Allen, one of the first pioneers within the borders of Greene County. He now turned his attention to blacksmithing and wagon making, continuing in this vocation for a period of twenty-five years, thereby gaining his first start in life; his first purchase of farm property was made in 1849, and consisted of 20 acres; since this date he has added materially to his possessions, and now owns 100 acres in this township of valuable land; of the marriage above referred to six children were born, four of whom are living: Sarah J., who married Isaac Hardin; Clark, Albert and Benjamin F.; John H. and infant child, deceased.