Simmons, Pollard

Born: 1799-05-02 Mason County, Kentucky

Died: 1864-02-14 Mason County, Illinois

Flourished: Mason County, Illinois

In 1821, Simmons married Harriett Ritter, with whom he had numerous children. Simmons and his family moved to Sangamon County, Illinois, around 1828, settling near the location of what would become the town of Petersburg, Illinois, an area later subsumed into Menard County. In 1836, he was among the first settlers to the area of Menard County that would become Mason County. When the Illinois General Assembly established the latter county, Simmons was one of those who suggested the name Mason. He became a justice of the peace, and in 1843, Simmons was among those authorized to determine the seat of justice for the county. Simmons settled near what would become Havana, Illinois, and concentrated most of his attention on farming. He also acquired huge tracts of land in and around Havana and in other parts of the county. In 1850, Simmons owned real estate valued at $3,000. In 1860, he owned real estate valued at $1,500 and had a personal estate of $1,860.

The History of Menard and Mason Counties, Illinois (Chicago: O. L. Baskin, 1879), 285, 426, 507, 775; Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales, Menard County, 68:68, 76, 93; Mason County, 70:24, 70, 110, 133, 819:11, SWP:3, 5, 145, 147, 175, 179, 181, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Mason County, IL, 202; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Mason County, IL, 17; Kentucky, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1783-1965, 6 August 1821, Mason County (Lehi, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, 2016); Gravestone, Eckard Cemetery, Havana, IL.