Grand Detour, Illinois (Grand Detour, Illinois)

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Grand Detour received its name from the great bend in the Rock River where Lee and Ogle County join together along the river. Indian lore has it that the Rock River turned back in its course, not wanting to leave the beautiful and artistic scenery of this area. rnThe earliest records of Grand Detour date back to the days at the beginning of the nineteenth century when fur traders and trappers traveled back and forth along the Rock River and connecting waterways. Many of these early travelers were of French nationality and some of their early settlements appeared in Ogle County.rnWhen Black Hawk and his tribe were driven back in the war of 1832, it ended all of the Indian hostilities in the Rock River valley and opened the area to early settlers. Leonard Andrus, who had been in the Illinois country as early as 1827, was intrigued by the possibilities of water power from the Rock River. He later organized a power company and built a mill race and had established a sawmill in Grand Detour. Returning to Royalton, Vermont for a visit with friends and relatives, he told of the beautiful location he had found, describing the Illinois country as a paradise, that Indian troubles had ceased and that men were needed badly out there to establish new settlements.rnMr. Andrus had said that there were a few boggy little towns, like Chicago, that would never amount to much but that Grand Detour was bound to become one of the wonder cities of the west. No doubt all of this talk influenced John Deere. The town of Royalton was then where stage routes had converged and where he had established his trade as a blacksmith. Mr. Deere had heard of the great tales of the fabulous west. Noting that he had little to show in profit for his long years of careful workmanship, he set out alone for Grand Detour, leaving his family in Vermont until he became established in the new country.rnArriving in Chicago in the fall of 1836, John Deere found there were many job opportunities but instead continued his journey by joining a little band of pioneers who had hired a wagon to take them from Chicago to Grand Detour. Mr. Deere after arriving in Grand Detour quickly found that the nearest blacksmith was some forty miles away, so there was ample work for him.rnJoining together, Leonard Andrus and John Deere established a plow factory and changed the one drawback to this areas vast prairies which would ultimately chang the course of progress. John Deere has probably been more closely identified with the history of Grand Detour, for it was through his perseverance and foresight that the history of farming in the middle- west was changed.rnBut there were other men who helped in the establishment of the village. Among them were Amos Bosworth, William Dane, Dennis Warren and Charles Throop. By 1842, the small village was becoming a business and trade center for the area. A cradle factory, cheese factory, a hotel, two blacksmith shops, a tin shop, two shoemakers, a cigar factory, broom factory, a wagon and buggy and carriage factory, grist and flour mills, a tailor, saw mill, printing press, wheelwright shop, the plow factory, three stores and the dry goods store which employed eleven clerks. At one time Grand Detour also had two ferries which were established to move people and equipment across the river at this point.rnBy late 1843, a railroad coming west had planned to go through Grand Detour. For some reason - and it is thought that the price of the land was held too high, the railroad opted instead to traverse through Dixon and was followed shortly afterward with another railroad. From this time on Grand Detour was not even a good location for the plow factory. Coal and all kinds of goods had to be brought overland and the goods to be shipped out of the village needed better transportation too. By 1848 John Deere ultimately decided to withdraw and move his operation to Moline. Mr. Andrus continued the operation in Grand Detour until his death in 1867. By 1869, the new owners of the plow factory moved the operation to Dixon.rnThe history of Grand Detour would have been very, so very different had it not been passed over by the railroad. However, nature has a great way of helping civilization and nature conspired to help Grand Detour in its struggle to survive. Through the years it has been a Mecca for artists and sculpturers who have been inspired by the region. Prominent among the early artists of the area were Holgar Jensen and John Nolfe.rnGrand Detour - a town rich in history and heritage continues today to bring travelers from throughout the United States to the Illinois country. Its beauty, peace and tranquillity are still present, just as Leonard Andrus so proudly boasted of some 160 years ago.