Lost Towns of Illinois - Parker City, Illinois.

Parker City, aka Parker, was a former settlement in Johnson County, Illinois. 

Parker City was west of New Burnside, south of Creal Springs, and founded at the crossings of the former Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway and Marion to Brookport branch of the Illinois Central Railroad. 

The settlement was named after George Washington Parker, a former president of St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad, the predecessor to the "Big Four."

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The Big Four wasn’t four railroad companies, but one — "The Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway Company" [CCC&StL], (1889-1930).

At its peak, the village reached a population of nearly 300 but slowly began to decline in the 1920s. At one time, there were two hotels, two stores, a post office, dining rooms, and restaurants, and two barbershops that were always full of men. 

The Parker City Post Office opened on December 28, 1889, and closed on October 31, 1941. 

There were approximately 40 houses in Parker City during its pinnacle.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Lost Towns of Illinois - Palmyra, Illinois.

Palmyra was a village two miles north of Mount Carmel in what today is Wabash County. 

First settled in 1814, Palmyra was originally the site of a ferry across the Wabash River. Soon after the town was founded, a road was built between the settlement and the county line of Gallatin County, Illinois. Palmyra was named the first county seat of Edwards County, with meetings being held at a resident's house.

The peak population of the village was claimed to be between 500 and 600, though it is more likely that number would be between 300 to 400. Epidemics of Malaria and Yellow Fever killed a large portion of Palmyra.

By 1821, it was clear that Edwards County's seat had to be moved to a stable community. On April 10, the Illinois General Assembly named Albion, Illinois the new county seat.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Lost Towns of Illinois - Milton, Illinois.

Milton was a former settlement in Brown County, Illinois. 

Lewis Gay and William C. Ralls laid out the town on McKee creek, four miles from the Illinois River, near the site of the old Johnson mill, on August 26, 1836. In advertising the sale of town lots, the promoters referred to it as "located at the head of slack water navigation."

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Lost Towns of Illinois - Mills Prairie, Illinois.

Mills Prairie was a former settlement in Edwards County, Illinois, located 2 miles southeast of West Salem.

Mills Prairie was in the eastern part of Edwards County, Buck Prairie in the southeastern section, and Long Prairie in the western region. All were fertile areas and a center of considerable wealth.

Adam Hedrick, with his wife and five children, David, Joseph, Catharine, Matthias, and Elizabeth, his sister and stepdaughter, arrived in Illinois in 1829 and settled in, then called Mills Prairie. He was a prominent and valuable citizen, being a master of most of the mechanic trades. He held the office of township treasurer and was postmaster at the Mills Prairie post office.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Lost Towns of Illinois - Midway, Illinois.

Midway is a ghost town in Fulton County, Illinois, about 2 miles southeast of London Mills.

Midway was a small settlement of about forty inhabitants. In 1835, it contains a general store, blacksmith shop and post office. 

The "Mount Pleasant Methodist Episcopal Church of Midway" was organized in 1836 with 12 members. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.