ORANGEVILLE

Welcome To Orangeville

Orangeville, the third settlement in size in Stephenson County, is located in the southern part of Oneco Township, on the banks of Richland Creek. It is situated on the Madison branch of the Illinois Central Railroad, about fifteen miles north of Freeport by railroad and fourteen by road.

The first settler on the site of Orangeville was John M. Curtis, who took up a claim on the spot where Orangeville now stands, and there located his farm. In 1845 John Bowers, to whom is due the credit of founding the village of Orangeville, came to Stephenson County. He first settled at Walnut Grove, in Rock Grove Township, where he remained for about a year. Then, seeking a more desirable place of habitation, he came a few miles west, and possessed himself of three hundred and twenty acres of land in Oneco Township, on the banks of Richland Creek. On this three hundred and twenty acres of ground a log cabin, and saw and grist mills had already been built and Mr. Bowers began to operate the mills soon after his arrival. A year’s residence on his new farm firmly convinced Mr. Bowers that the site was suitable for the founding of a village.