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According to Wikipedia, Lawrence County, [[Illinois]] was formed in 1821 out of Crawford and Edwards counties, named for Capt. Lawrence, who was killed in action during the War of 1812 while commanding the full-rigged warship USS Chesapeake, and his final order to his men after being mortally wounded was, "Don't give up the ship".
In a 1910 biographical volume of Lawrence County, part of a series on Illinois history, there is a five page section dedicated to the Buchanan family, which it credits as being among the oldest families in the history of that area, although the French were actually the first white settlers. The first American settlement was prior to 1812 in Russellville, and another at Centerville by members of the Christian Church. A settlement of Shakers resulted in Charlottesville. Some of the early settlers constructed forts to defend against Indian troublesinvasion, the most popular known as the Allison Fort, in the northern part of Russellville, built in 1812. Some attempted to introduce slavery in the county, but many of the earliest white inhabitants left the Southern U.S. to extricate themselves from that culture, and so it was denied entry.
==Schools==
The first regular school in the county was within a fort built in Dennison township, the teacher being George Godfrey, in 1817. A school was taught in a small log cabin by Larkin Ryle in 1818, which was originally built by John Bray as a residence until his wife died and he relocated to Indiana. Charles Martin taught in 1826 in the first built schoolhouse. The first Normal Institute was held in 1880. The Lawrenceville District High School was built about 1890.
==ChurchesDenominations==
===Church of Christ, Disciples of Christ & Independent Christian===
The first church in Lawrence County was established in 1817 by the Church of Christ denomination, holding services in the old Center schoolhouse, later building a small log church. Their next location, the Spring Hill church, was built as early as 1820, the first preacher being D. Travis. The [https://sites.google.com/view/lvfcc/who-we-are Lawrenceville Christian Church] (now D.O.C.) was started in 1833 by pioneer preacher Maurice R. Trimble, with 41 charter members.
===Methodists===
The Methodist Episcopal church in Lawrenceville was founded in 1819 near the "present" site (1910) of Bethel Church. Other churches of that denom in the county included: Dollahan Chapel, Bridgeport, Sumner & Lawrenceville, as well as a Black M.E. church in Lawrenceville started in 1881. The Methodist Protestant church was organized as the Chauncey Circuit at the Munn schoolhouse in 1853. Others followed at Pleasant Hill, Bird's Station, Cochran, St. Paul's Meeting House, and the Oblong Mission. The United Brethren (later merged with the UMC) church in Lawrenceville was organized in 1909 founded by S.O. Stoltz.
There are presently Methodist-style churches in Lawrenceville (UMC & Free), Bridgeport (2 UMC, 1 Wesleyan & 1 Free), St. Francisville (2 UMC & 1 Free), Sumner (3 UMC & 2 Free), Pinkstaff (UMC) & Birds (Free) of Flat Rock, Allendale (UMC). The Free Methodists were meeting as early as 1910.
===Presbyterians===
The first two Presbyterian churches of the county was in Pisgah in 1835, and in Lawrenceville in 1848, both with Isaac Bennett presiding as their first pastor. Others included Shiloh of Charlottesville, Union (1854), Hopewell (1858), Bridgeport (organized by John Crozier, John Mack and '''Thomas Buchanan'''), Gilead (1870), and Sumner (1878). Current area churches include in Lawrenceville, Bridgeport & Allendale.
===Baptists===
Shiloh Baptist Church, located 1 1/2 mi. SW of Bridgeport was organized at Spring Hill with 13 charter members in late 1839, with James Highsmith as acting moderator, and William T. Young as clerk of the council. The first Bible School was organized in 1854 by W.S. Bishop. The Lawrenceville Baptist Church was organized in 1903.
===Others===
==Buchanan history==
The Buchanan clan is a Highlands Scottish Clan whose origins are said, according to [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Buchanan Wikipedia], to have "a strong DNA link to the Clan Gregor, which seems to indicate a common ancestor around the year 400 C.E.", and has allegedly been in [[Scotland]] for multiple millennia, particularly in Stirlingshire and on the shores of Loch Lomond. There are DNA lines in Loch Lomond, in the Auld Kingdom of Alba, well before the year 1000 C.E.
In a forementioned history of Lawrence County, in a biographical piece on Aaron B. Buchanan (1835-1910), it references a Scotch family named Boahahan, whose family coat of arms included a sprig of birch. It was theorized that when members of the Scotch clan wedded with Irish, the surname was changed to Buchanan.
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%22Major%22_John_Buchanan John Buchanan] (1759-1832) - co-founder of Nashville, [[Tennessee]]
Also see [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buchanan_(surname) Buchanan (surname) wiki] which includes mathematicians, scientists, scholars, philosophers, educators, physicists, artists, writers, soldiers, musicians, clergy, engineers, attorneys, and ambassadors.
===Emigration===
====Pennsylvania====
====Kentucky====
====Lawrence Co., Illinois====
Thomas Buchanan was among the initial crew overseeing the revenue directed at building highways, then forming a militia, and licensing taverns. James H. Buchanan is noted as an early settler of Dennison Township. Victor Buchanan was the 2nd, 4th & 6th supervisor of Denison Twp. William T. Buchanan was the 10th.
===Ralph Ernest Buchanan family===
In 1917, Gertrude Minnie Beckwith Buchanan (b. 1884 East St. Louis, St. Clair, [[Illinois|IL]] - d. 1957 St. Francisville, [[IL]]) was listed in a TW meeting list as being in fellowship, while living in Lawrenceville. She was a daughter of Milan Beckwith and Minnie Putnam Beckwith. Her siblings included Forest Beckwith (East St. Louis, IL) & Mrs. Guy Stelle (Fort Worth, [[Texas|TX]]. Paul Geveden (KY) officiated her memorial service in 1957. By 1923, Gertrude's husband Ralph Ernest Buchanan (b. 1883 Denison Twp., Lawrence, IL - d. 1959 Lawrenceville, IL) was listed as the correspondent. Son of Clarence Buchanan & Phebe Irwin Buchanan. In 1927, Harley Ernest Adams (b. 1882 - d. 1929 Lawrenceville, IL) was added as a secondary correspondent of the meeting room, alongside Ralph Buchanan, serving until his death in 1929. Ancestry:
By 1949, the meeting room had relocated to St. Francisville, with Ralph & Ernest Buchanan, and Ralph's second son Clement, the latter replaced by his third son Warner in 1951. In 1962, the correspondents were Ernest Buchanan, and Thomas Van Holstyn. In 1966, it was Ernest, and his brothers Clement and Warner, and by 1973, Joe Sanford had been added, replaced by Edward F. Dear in 1973. By 1999, the meeting room had returned to Lawrenceville, and the contacts were Ralph E., Arthur and Clement Buchanan. Clement was replaced by Daniel Buchanan in 2005, and Chuck Henricks, and the correspondents in more recent years are four Buchanans.
Children of Ralph & Gertrude Buchanan included:
* Ernest Buchanan
* Clement Buchanan
* Rowland Buchanan
* Ura Buchanan
* Mrs. Boyce Hayhoe
** 1957 @ Toronto, [[Ontario|ON]]
** 1959 @ Pine Grove, ON
* Mrs. Otto Klassen - Aberdeen, [[Idaho|ID]]
* Mrs. John Turton - Tremont, IL
* Mrs. Stanley Wilson - Denver, [[Colorado|CO]]
=Sources=
** [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Buchanan George Buchanan]
** [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_II_of_England James II]
* [https://www.ancestry.com Ancestry.com]
** [https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/18498/images/dvm_LocHist005453-00001-0?ssrc=&backlabel=Return&pId=2000000000 Illinois Historical / Lawrence County Biographical]. Chicago: Munsell Publishing Company, 1910. Ed. by John William McCleave (1877-1957). pp. 734-739.
* EB/TW AB's 1917-2021