Bishop Hill, Illinois, Utopia on the Prairie. The Eric Janson, aka Erik Jansson Story.

Like the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock and the Quakers who followed William Penn to Pennsylvania, the Jansonists were a group of Protestants who fled oppression seeking religious freedom on the shores of America. Eric [Erik] Jannson (1780-1850) was known as the Wheat Flour Messiah. He had a debilitating illness cured by a miracle that reshaped the rest of his life. He began preaching about our relationship with the Lord, not filtered by the state religion. 

Erik Jansson. Image, 1850.

Erik Jansson married Anna Larsson on October 29, 1815. Their seven children; Erik (1818-Deceased), Anders (1821-1822), Johanna (1822-1894), Peter (1824-1824), Gustaf (1828-Deceased), Jonas (1831-Deceased), and Christina (1835-1836).

Jansson preached to his followers in Sweden about what he considered to be the abominations of the Lutheran Church and emphasized the doctrine that the faithful were without sin. As Jansson's ideas became more radical, he began to lose support from many of his sympathizers and was forced to leave Sweden amid growing persecution. Jansson had previously sent Olof Olsson, a trusted follower, as an emissary to the United States to find a suitable location where the Janssonists could set up a utopian community centered on their religious beliefs. According to Jansson, this community would become the "New Jerusalem," and their beliefs would soon spread worldwide. They sent a scout ahead to purchase property in the western wilderness of Illinois.

The Colony Church was built in 1848. The sanctuary is on the second floor. Designed to reflect the doctrinal ideas of Erik Jansson.

Janssonist Criticisms of the Lutheran Church

Jansson believed the mainstream Lutheran Church had become too comfortable with the world, losing its spiritual fervor and focus on personal salvation. He saw the clergy as more concerned with status and material wealth than true spiritual guidance. Jansson condemned what he felt was excessive emphasis on rituals and sacraments within Lutheranism. Jansson argued these practices did not guarantee salvation and could lead to a false sense of security, detracting from a personal relationship with God. Jansson strongly opposed the Swedish Lutheran Church's close connection to the state. He believed this compromised its spiritual integrity and led to a dilution of true Christian doctrine. Jansson and his followers held a strict literal interpretation of the Bible. They rejected what they saw as attempts by the established church to explain away or reinterpret certain passages to align with societal changes. Janssonists practiced a form of religious communalism, where property and resources were shared. This contrasted with the more traditional Lutheran emphasis on individual faith and family structures.

After being jailed for his beliefs, he fled Sweden with more than 1400 followers to their new home in western Illinois. These people sold everything they owned, some families were divided, and they took the arduous journey across the North Atlantic to America in 1846.

The Bishop Hill Colony (20 miles east of Galesburg) was founded in 1846 by Eric Jansson. Population: 108 (2022)

The Colony struggled early on after its founding. Many of the first 1400 colonists died from diseases on the way to Bishop Hill (named for Eric Jansson's birthplace, Biskopskulla), while others became disillusioned and stayed in New York. The quarters in Bishop Hill were cold and crowded, and food was scarce. After the first winter, life at the Colony began to improve.

What happened to Janssonists who stayed in New York?

It's likely that many Janssonists who stayed in New York gradually assimilated into the larger American society. They may have joined other Lutheran congregations or adopted different religious affiliations altogether. There's a possibility that some tried to maintain smaller, independent Janssonist communities in New York or its surrounding areas. However, without Jansson's leadership, these would likely have been less organized and more short-lived. A few may have even become disenchanted with America altogether and chose to return to Sweden.

In the next few years, housing was upgraded from dugouts to brick living areas, and crops were planted on 700 acres. By 1849, Bishop Hill had constructed a flour mill, two sawmills, a three-story frame church, and various other buildings. The Bishop Hill Colony was communistic in nature, as dictated by Jansson. Thus, everyone owned everything, and no one had more possessions than another. Work in the Colony was highly rigorous and regimented. It wasn't uncommon to see hundreds of people working together in the fields or large groups of laborers engaged in other tasks.

The Colony Hotel was initially built in 1852 as a dwelling for Colonists.

Letters sent back home from Janssonists to their friends and family, telling of the fertile agricultural land in the interior of North America, stimulated substantial migration for several decades and contributed to the formation of the Swedish-American ethnic community of the American Midwest.

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Both "Eric  Janson" and "Erik Jansson" (son of Jan) are considered correct spellings of the Swedish religious leader's name. When his story and movement spread internationally, the spelling of his last name was usually Anglicized to "Eric Janson."

The preaching and philosophy of Erik Janson are too complex for these few paragraphs, except to say that his convictions inspired many and caused consternation among more than a few. Bishop Hill became a hub for thousands of Swedish immigrants who eventually settled much of the Midwest, from Galva to Galesburg, Minnesota, to North Dakota.

Erik Janson's Murder

Bishop Hill underwent a major upheaval in 1850 after the murder of Erik Janson on May 13, 1850. This happened while Janson was at the courthouse in Cambridge, Illinois. According to some accounts, Janson had just delivered a sermon referencing Biblical passages where Jesus talks about drinking wine in his Father's kingdom. [Matthew 26:29], [Mark 14:25], [Luke 22:18], and [John 14:3]. 

Janson was assassinated by a former colony member, John Root, who was upset with Janson for interfering with his marriage to one of Janson's cousins. After their leader's death, the people of Bishop Hill appointed a group of seven trustees to run the affairs of the Colony. Among the trustees were Jonas Olsson and Olof Johnson, who would become the primary leaders of the Colony as they had been two of Janson's closest aides. The Colony flourished under these two men and the rest of the trustees. The workforce was reorganized to become more efficient, and more buildings were erected. However, despite Bishop Hill's success, financial problems arose amid accusations of mismanagement against Olof Johnson in 1857. Without colony approval, Johnson had made several significant investments that had turned out to be disastrous. Colonists voted to end the communal system as Bishop Hill headed for financial ruin. In 1861, the formal dissolution of the Colony was official, and many of its people would soon be forced to move away. 

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The followers of Jansson believed he would rise from the dead three days after his death, but that did not happen. The religious group eventually came to terms with Jansson’s death. John Root was convicted of manslaughter and served only one year in prison before being pardoned. However, he died not long after his release.

The community holdings were divided among the members, with women and children also receiving shares of property, which was unusual in the 1860s.

At the turn of the 20th century, many of the Colony buildings were falling into disrepair. The Old Settlers, The Bishop Hill Heritage Association, and the State of Illinois stepped up to save the existing buildings. Throughout the 1970s, restoration and preservation became the call to arms. With help from the Swedish Royal family, descendants of the hardy pioneers, and thousands of hours of volunteer labor, Bishop Hill became a thriving community once more. 

Descendants of Erik Janson still lived in the Colony until December 20, 2004, when Erik's great-great-grandson and Bishop Hill volunteer fireman Theodore Arthur Myhre Sr. died south of the Colony while on a fire service call. Other known descendants remain in Illinois.

Many other 'historic villages' one might visit are actually reproductions. They may have done some archeology, built new, or moved a mish-mash of landmark structures to an artificial commons. But Bishop Hill is the same town you would have seen if you came through in a horse and buggy over 175 years ago. It is a living, fully functional village with a mayor and fire department. The people who live here still farm the surrounding countryside, cut firewood for the winter, plant broom corn in the spring, and celebrate the changing of the seasons, just as their Swedish ancestors did. Yes, it's done for the folks who come to participate, but more importantly, it's because it is their way of living authentically. The crafts and trades that supported our forefathers and mothers are still a source of livelihood today. The pottery and brooms you buy are the same ones they use in their kitchens.

The site was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1984. Bishop Hill is interpreted as a living community of Swedish-American heritage. Due to state budget cuts, the Bishop Hill State Historic Site was closed for nearly 5 months from December 1, 2008, to April 23, 2009. Today, the site is open Wednesday through Friday during regular business hours.

With tens of thousands of visitors yearly from all 50 states, Sweden, and other Scandinavian countries, Bishop Hill has a well-earned reputation as a place to step out of the hustle and bustle and back to a simpler time. 

The Steeple Building.

Several historically significant buildings have survived and are scattered throughout the village, four of which are owned by the state of Illinois and managed as part of the Bishop Hill State Historic Site. In addition to the historic structures, the state owns the village park with a gazebo and memorials to the town's early settlers and Civil War soldiers. A brick museum building houses a valuable collection of folk art paintings by colonist Olof Krans.

Bishop Hill, Illinois, is genuinely Utopia on the Prairie.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Kampsville, Illinois, is a Quaint Little Village of 300 on the Illinois River.

Kampsville was initially known as Beeman's Landing after James L. Beeman, a ferry operator on the Illinois River. After Stephen Farrow purchased the Ferry from Beeman, the name was changed to Farrowtown. The name "Vedder" was used when the post office was established in 1857. 

The name Kampsville was made official on March 6, 1872, and refers to Michael A. Kamp, who served as President of the village board and was also a postmaster at Silver Creek, north of Kampsville.

In 1863, German immigrant and Civil War veteran Captain M. L. Kamp moved into Calhoun County and set up a general store and post office in Silver Creek, just north of the site of present-day Kampsville. Kamp flourished as a farmer and merchant, and in 1869, Kamp purchased a tract of land south of Silver Creek and began to develop it. 

Initially named Farrow Town, the town was renamed Kampsville to honor Captain Kamp. The wealth and success of Kamp are reflected in the red brick home at the intersection of Routes 100 and 108 that he had built for his family in 1882.

In 1902, Captain Kamp gifted a newly constructed and completely supplied store, including one dollar in coins in the cash register for good luck to his son, Joseph A. Kamp. This store is one of the few surviving early commercial buildings in Calhoun County. The store was an important center of commerce for the County, and much of the business used the barter system, which allowed Kampsville to grow despite a shortage of money. Apples, peaches, lumber, and fish were traded at Kamp's store for supplies and later resold and shipped downriver to destinations such as St. Louis. The store was sold to the Capps family when Joseph Kamp died in 1952, and after several owners, it was acquired by the Center for American Archeology in 1991. 

Kamp and other European settlers weren't the first people to find the bluffs and rolling hill country an attractive place to live. The area is located in one of the world's richest archeological regions, with recorded human habitation dating back to the Early Archaic period (8500-6000 BC). Kampsville is home to the Center of American Archeology (CAA), which conducts ongoing excavations and educates future archeologists and the public. The CAA features exhibits and displays in its Visitor's Center, a museum facility in Kamp's Store, and its administrative offices in the Kamp family's former home.

The village of Kampsville is the base of operations for the Center for American Archeology, an educational and research organization dedicated to the archeological understanding of the Indigenous People and European settlers in the region. 

The Center of American Archeology building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. It contains exhibits demonstrating evidence of 7,000 years of human habitation excavated at the Koster Site, a prehistoric archaeological site in nearby Greene County.

The two ferries are FREE. There is 24/7 service.

The Kampsville Ferry crosses the Illinois River at Route 108, connecting the east side of the river in Green County and the City of Carrollton on Rt. 108, a two-lane undivided surface highway for its entire length. It is one of two permanent ferries operated by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

The town hosts many annual events, including Old Settlers Days and a series of educational events organized by the CAA. Just south of town on the Great River Road (Route 100) is the McCully Heritage Project, with 12 miles of nature trails and other recreational activities.

The village of Kampsville is the base of operations for the Center for American Archeology, an educational and research organization dedicated to the archeological understanding of the Indigenous People and European settlers in the region. It exhibits evidence of 7,000 years of human habitation excavated from 3 acres at the Koster Site, 11 miles due east, a prehistoric archaeological site in nearby Greene County. 

The Koster Site was discovered in 1967 on the farm fields of Theodore and Mary Koster and subsequently named after them. The discovery was made by Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois) anthropologist Stuart Struever, who stumbled upon the farm and the rich trove of historically significant artifacts that lay beneath the cornfields after a tip from a local farmer. Struever had recently founded the Center for American Archeology, 101 Broadway,  Kampsville, Illinois. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Marquette and Jolliet French Exploration of the North American Interior, 1673.

On May 17, 1673, Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet, a skilled cartographer and fur trader, set out on a four-month voyage that carried them thousands of miles through the heart of North America to explore the path of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi's vastness awe-struck them, and they recognized its potential as a major route for trade and exploration.

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Louis Jolliet likely met Father Marquette at the Jesuit mission at Sault Ste. Marie. Born near Quebec, Joliet had been destined for the priesthood when he decided to change course and become a fur trader.

 

 

Map of Marquette and Jolliet's exploration of the Mississippi River, 1673.

Their voyage helped to initiate the first non-Indian settlement in the North American interior that introduced Christianity into 600,000 square miles of wilderness, gave French names to cities in Wisconsin and Illinois, transformed traditional Indian cultures, and nearly exterminated the fur-bearing mammals of the Upper Midwest.

The two explorers were an unlikely pair. Father Jacques Marquette was a studious Jesuit two weeks shy of his 36th birthday. His partner, Louis Jolliet, was a 27-year-old philosophy and cartography student who had become a fur trader.

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The word "Mississippi" comes from the Ojibwe Indian Tribe (Algonquian language family) word "Messipi" or "misi-ziibi," which means "Great River" or "Gathering of Waters." French explorers, hearing the Ojibwe word for the river, recorded it in their own language with a similar pronunciation. The Potawatomi (Algonquian language family) pronounced "Mississippi" as the French said it, "Sinnissippi," which was given the meaning "Rocky Waters."

Marquette and Jolliet did not discover the Mississippi. Indians had been using the "Sinnissippi" for thousands of years, and Spanish explorer Hernan De Soto had crossed it more than a century before them. They confirmed that the native peoples who lived along the route were generally friendly and that the natural resources of the lands in between were extraordinary. Equipped with this information, French officials led by the explorer LaSalle would erect a 4,000-mile network of trading posts to systematically exploit those riches over the next century and a half.

They left St. Ignace at the head of Lake Michigan on May 17, 1673. They crossed Wisconsin between June 1 and June 17, then followed the Mississippi River hundreds of miles south to Arkansas.

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The five voyageurs (names unknown) were almost certainly of French-Canadian or Métis (mixed French and Indian) heritage. They were knowledgeable in wilderness survival, skilled canoeists, guides, and outdoorsmen, making them essential to the success of the expedition.

Two canoes carried seven, including Marquette and Jolliet, paddled by five unnamed voyageurs.

In June of 1673, Father Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit missionary, and Louis Jolliet, a fur trader and skilled cartographer, entered what is now the state of Illinois during their groundbreaking exploration of the Mississippi River. They began their journey in May from St. Ignace in present-day Michigan, intending to find the river's course and potential route to the Pacific Ocean. While their exact duration within Illinois borders is somewhat debated, they spent a significant amount of time exploring the region, likely staying roughly a month before continuing their trip in July.

As they paddled their canoes down the Mississippi, they made an essential encounter with members of The Illinois (aka Illiniwek or Illini) Confederacy. The Illinois comprised several Indian tribes consisting of the Kaskaskia, Cahokia, Peoria, Tamarais (Tamaroa, Tamarois), Moingwena, Mitchagamie (Michigamea), Chepoussa, Chinkoa, Coiracoentanon, Espeminkia, Maroa, and Tapouara tribes that were of the Algonquin family. They spoke Iroquoian languages. The Illinois called themselves "Ireniouaki" (the French word was Ilinwe).

These tribes were welcoming, and the explorers learned much about their culture and way of life. Marquette, fluent in several native languages, likely used his skills to communicate and foster peaceful relationships. The Illinois shared vital information about the river's course and warned of potential dangers downstream, including hostile tribes. 

The relationship between the explorers and the Illinois people were mainly friendly; they engaged in trade and shared information. Marquette, a Jesuit missionary, was keen to learn about their customs and languages while also seeking to introduce them to Christianity.

While in Illinois, Marquette and Jolliet meticulously documented the land they traversed. Marquette likely kept detailed journals of their observations, noting the abundance of wildlife, fertile soil, and diverse plant life they observed. As a cartographer, Jolliet would have carefully mapped out the landscape and river, creating valuable records for future French exploration. Marquette's journal is a valuable historical source offering insight into the geography, flora, fauna, and the lives of the Indians they encountered.

Despite the valuable knowledge and hospitality they received from the Illinois people, Marquette and Jolliet eventually decided to turn back. Rumors of conflicts further south and fears of encountering Spaniards convinced them that continuing the journey was too risky. They reasoned that they had discovered enough to confirm that the Mississippi River emptied into the Gulf of Mexico, not the Pacific Ocean. Thus, they began their return journey in July after a relatively short stay within Illinois' boundaries.

A significant part of their Illinois travels involved venturing up the Illinois River, a major tributary of the Mississippi. This fertile river valley was teeming with wildlife and rich agricultural potential. They likely encountered villages along the river banks,  interacting with more members of the Illinois Confederacy.

On September 30, 1673, they arrived at St. Francis Xavier Mission at modern DePere, Wisconsin.

Marquette and Jolliet's expedition solidified French claims to the territory, paving the way for later colonial expansion into the Mississippi River valley and the establishment of Illinois Country.

Additional Reading:

Exploring Seventeenth Century "Païs des Illinois," the Illinois Country.

The Last Two Years of Jacques Marquette, Jesuit Missionary and Explorer. (1673-1675)

The Marquette and Jolliet "Cross" Chicago, Illinois, 1907.

Complied by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.