ENGLAND, STEPHEN, born June 12, 1773, in Virginia. His parents moved to Bath county, Ky., when he was quite young. He was there married, about 1791, to Anna Harper, who was born Sept. 1, 1772, in Virginia. They had ten living children in Kentucky. The family moved, in March, 1813, to Madison county, Ohio, where they had two children. In the fall of 1818 the family moved to Madison county, Ill. The following winter Stephen England, with two of his sons-in-law, came up to the San-ga-ma country to explore it. The nearest habitation to where Springfield now stands, was on the south bank of the Sangamon river, near where the C. and A. R. R. now crosses. They found a man named William Higgins living in a cabin there, which he had built in Jan., 1819. See his name. They remained over night with Mr. Higgins, and crossed to the north side of the river, each selecting a spot on which to make a home. In order to prevent others who might come after from choosing the same ground, they cut a few logs, laid them across each other in three piles, and each man cut his initials on a tree near by, as evidence that the land was claimed. That was near what was soon after called Higgins' creek, but is now called Cantrall's creek. They returned to their families, and early in March, 1819, Stephen England, his son David, his sons-in-law, Andrew Cline and Wyatt Cantrall, returned to their claims for the purpose of commencing improvements. The night after their arrival snow fell about one foot deep, and the weather was colder than it had been at any time during the winter. They commenced work, and Mr. England and his son soon had their house up, roofed, and the door and chimney place cut out. The other two men had their materials on the ground. By that time the melting snow warned them that they must cross the river at once, or they might be delayed several weeks. They returned to their families, and attempted to move them, but the ground was so soft from melting snow that their teams were unequal to the task of drawing the wagons with their heavy loads, and they again left their families. The same men returned, accompanied by two of the daughters of Mr. England. They then completed their houses, cleared land, planted their crops, and returned to Madison county for their families, bringing them to their new homes about the first of June, 1819. Of Mr. England's twelve children then living--

FANNIE, born Oct. 2, 1792, in Bath county, Ky, married Levi Cantrall. See his name.

SALLIE, born Nov. 2, 1794, in Bath county, Ky., married Wyatt Cantrall. See his name.

LUCY, born Feb. 13, 1797, in Bath county, Ky., crossed the Sangamon river with her father, April, 1819, and she is thought to be the fifth white woman that ever crossed the river, and the first to cook a meal on the north side. She was married afterwards to John Cline. See his name.

ANNA, born August 30, 1798, in Kentucky, was married to Andrew Clino. They had four children. The parents and two of the children died in Sangamon county. Of the other two: STEPHEN married for his third wife, Dorothy Wigginton. They have children, and reside near Elkhart, Logan county. PERRY married, has one child, and resides in Wisconsin.

POLLY J., born April 29, 1800, in Kentucky, married Evans E. Brittin. See his name.

SITHA, born April, 1802, in Kentucky, was married April 2, 1823, to George W. Anderson. They have seven children. The parents and five of the children died in Sangamon county, Ill. Of the other two: ELIZABETH married Andrew Ralph, and resides in Fancy Creek township. ELIZA married Charles Boker. He died, and she lives in Cantrall.

DAVID, born Nov. 25, 1804, in Bath county, Ky., was married Nov. 4, 1823, to Margaret Higgins. They had fourteen children, seven of each sex, all born in Sangamon county, Ill. LOUISA married Charles Turley, April 6, 1842. He was born Dec. 11, 1822, in Montgomery county, Ky. They have nine children: S. SANFORD married Jane McClelland. See name of McClelland. MAGGIE E. married R. C. Maxwell. They have two children, Charles and Louisa, and live near Lincoln, Logan county. AMANDA married John B. Taylor, of Williamsville, and resides there. DAVID married in Lincoln, and lives near there. SUSAN J. married Dr. McClelland of Williamsville, and resides there. JAMES P., MARSHALL, MEADE and INA M., live with their parents one and a half miles east of Williamsville, Sangamon county. EVELINE B. married James M. Mitts. See his name. JULIA A. married Thomas W. Lake. See his name. STEPHEN married Margaret Canterbury. They have three children, ASA, MARY and WILLIAM I., and live in Menard county. ROSE ANN married William Council. See his name. WILLIAM B. married Martha Hall. They had three children. LAURA married Jeremiah Casey, and resides in Menard county. HETTIE and WILLIAM live with their mother. William B. England enlisted in 1862 for three years, in Co. K, 115th Ill. Inf. He was killed Sept. 20, 1863, at the battle of Chickamauga, Tenn. His widow married Thomas Swearingen, who served three years as a captain in the Union army. They reside at Athens, Menard county, Ill. CAROLINE married Jacob Beck, who was born Nov. 22, 1829, in Ross county, Ohio. They have six children, MARIETTA, CHARLES F., DAVID E., IDA M., MAGGIE and FREDERICK, and live near Williamsville. MARGARET married Asa Canterbury. See his name. They have eight children, and reside near Gibson City, Ford county, Ill. MARY A. married Milam Holland, who died, and she married James W. Mott. See his name. David A. enlisted for three years, Aug. 9, 1862, in Co. K, 115th Ill. Vol. Inf., served until June 1, 1865, when he was bonorably discharged. He married Emma Mott. They have three children, HENRY W., ANNIE R. and LUCY, and live in Athens. JAMES M. and CHARLES F., twins. James M. married Mary A. Mott. He died, leaving a widow and one child, MARIA, in Athens. Charles F. married Rebecca Wood. They have six children, and reside in Illiopolis township. HENRY H. married Mary A. Price. They have three children, LURENA L., FLORA B. and WILLIAM B., and live near Cantrall. MILAM R. lives with his parents. David England remembers seeing Indians bury their dead by putting them in troughs and suspending them in trees, also building pens around them and leaving their bodies to decay. David England and his wife reside on the farm settled by his father in 1819, three miles west of Sherman.

ELIZABETH, born Nov. 12, 1805, in Kentucky, was married in Sangamon county, Jan. 24, 1822, to Hiram Wentworth. They died, leaving three children.

KEZIAH, born June 23, 1807, in Kentucky, was married in Sangamon county to Charles Smith. They had six children. The parents are dead, and the children live in California.

JOHN, born Jan. 15, 1811, in Bath county, Ky., was married in Sangamon county to Mary Smith. They had nine children. WILLIAM A. was married in 1868, to Olive Stanton, in Salem, Oregon. SARAH married William Trakes. ADELPHIA, born May 10, 1831, married Samuel Turley. They have eleven living children, and reside in Logan county. MATILDA A., born June 26, 1834, married W. H. Rankin. They have eight children, and live in Champaign county, Ill. ALBERT, born May 16, 1838. He served three years in the 2d Ill. Cav., and was honorably discharged. He is married, has four children, and resides in Monticello, Piatt county, Ill. MARY J. and MARION, twins, born March 15, 1840. Mary J. married A. Robinson, and live in Macon county, Ill. Marion married Catharine Grove, and live in Logan county. LUCY A., born July 23, 1842, married D. Thubert, and live in Macon county, Ill. ELIZABETH C., born Aug. 15, 1848, married Ezra McMasters. They reside in Elkhart, Logan county, Ill. JOHN C., born April 3, 1858, lives in Logan county. Mrs. Mary England died, and John England was married to Sarah Groves. They have one child, and reside at Mt. Pulaski. John England is a preacher in connection with the Christian church.

ADELPHIA, born May 15, 1813, in Ohio, was married in Sangamon county to Joseph I. Smith. They had three children. FRANCIS M. enlisted in 1861 for three years, in Co. C, 21st Ill. Inf., served full time, and was honorably discharged. He married Mary Young, and resides at Fort Madison, Iowa. ENOCH B. enlisted July, 1862, for three years, in Co. K, 106th Ill. Inf., served until the close of the rebellion, and was honorably discharged July, 1865. He married Louisa Stone. They have two children, and reside in Fremont county, Iowa. JULIA A. married James Rayburn. They have eight children, and live at Irish Grove, Menard county. Joseph I. Smith died Jan. 1, 1851, and his widow was married Dec. 20, 1855, to William B. Goodpasture. They have one child, JESSE F. Mr. Goodpasture was born in Overton county, Tenn.; came to Jacksonville, Ill., in 1829. The present Mrs. Goodpasture is his third wife. Two of his sons by a former marriage were soldiers in Co. K, 106th Ill. Inf. One of them lost his life in defense of his country in the Autumn of 1864. Mr. and Mrs. Goodpasture reside near Auburn.

JESSE, born Feb. 10, 1815, in Bath county, Ky., was married in Sangamon county, Ill., Dec. 31, 1833, to Mahala Smith. They have five children living; three died in infancy. AMERICA, born Oct. 16, 1834, was married March 10, 1853, to Isaac J. Sherman. They have three children, MARY J., MARTHA A. and MAHALA A., who live with their parents on Fancy Prairie. MARY, born May 4, 1837, was married March 20, 1856, to Cyrus B. Sherman. They have seven children, AMERICA E., MIRANDA J., WILLIAM H., EMELINE, IDA M., MARY A. and NOLA E., and live at Middletown, Ill. MIRANDA, born July 6, 1839, was married March 29, 1860, to William F. West. They had two living children, FRANK H. and IDA B., who live with their mother. Mr. West died March 30, 1863, and his widow married Absalom Miller, April 11, 1870. They have three living children, JOHN J., EDWARD and MYRA, and reside near Maryville, Nodoway county, Mo. PAREN, born May 20, 1841, was married Feb. 14, 1861, to Nancy M. Whittier, and reside near Lincoln, Neb. PERRY J., born Feb. 5, 1849, was married to Callie Hall, Oct. 10, 1872. They have two children, ARTHUR J. and ETHEL P., and live near Fancy Prairie, Menard county, Ill. Jesse England and wife reside near Fancy Prairie postoffice, Menard county, Ill.

Stephen England died Sept. 26, 1823, of a cancer in one of his ankles. He preached the gospel as long as he could stand, and delivered his last sermon sitting. His widow died June 1, 1841, both near where they settled in 1819, in what is now Fancy Creek township. Stephen England was a Baptist minister in Kentucky, and when he brought his family to the new settlement, the people having planted their crops, wished to have religious services, so Mr. England announced that he would preach at his own house late in June or early in July, 1819. Everybody in the entire settlement came. Two women walked five miles through the grass, which was almost as high as their heads. The husband of one of them walked and carried their babe. That was the first sermon ever preached north of the Sangamon river in this county, and probably in Central Illinois. Mr. England organized a church May 15, 1820, at his own house. There were eight members besides himself. The names of the persons constituting the church were Stephen England and Anna, his wife; Jechoniah Langston and Nancy, his wife; Levi Cantrall and Fannie, his wife; Mrs. Adelphia Wood, Mrs. Sarah Cantrall, the wife of Wyatt Cantrall, Mrs. Lucy Scott (daughter of Mr. England), afterwards Mrs. Cline. That was the first church organized in Sangamon county, and the organization has never been broken. It is now known as Antioch Christian church, and composed at present of about ninety members. It is occupying its third house of worship, which is a handsome wooden edifice situated within the limits of Cantrall, a town recently laid out. Elder Stephen England was pastor of the church until his death, in 1823. His son David united with the church about one year after his father's death. He was first elected deacon, then elder, and has continued in that office to the present time. Elder Stephen England solemnized the marriage of Philo Beers and Martha Stillman, Nov. 2, 1820, which was the first marriage in Sangamon county. See Philo Beers. This event occurred one and a half miles southwest of Williamsville. A couple came to Mr. England from Fort Clark, now Peoria, to avoid the trouble of going to Edwardsville for license. It was lawful to advertise their intentions for ten days, and then marry without license. That couple were married in the latter way.