Peoria’s First Settlers
While the French and British occupied the land for several centuries, the first American settlers began farming in Peoria, IL in 1819. Soon the small village experienced a great economic and population boom. With an abundance of natural resources and access to the great water highway of the Illinois River, many early industries arose, including meat-packing plants, casting foundries, pottery factories, wholesale warehousing, distilleries, and earthmoving and farm machinery manufacturers.
In 1837, Judge John C. Flanagan built his American Federalist style home on Peoria’s east bluff. The Federalist style, which was popular from 1780 to the early 1840s, reflects ideas that were gaining favor during the founding of the United States and is more likely to have curved lines and decorative flourishes than before. The Pettengill-Morron House reflects the mid-Victorian architectural influences of the post-Civil War era. Built in 1868, thePeoria house is now a museum, portraying the life of the Morron family, the last owners of the house.
Today both houses are listed on the National Register for Historic Homes and are open to the public as museums, giving us glimpses into an almost forgotten world of horse-drawn carriages and homes without the modern conveniences of microwaves and televisions.
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