The Class of 1855

While FHS was not yet on the graded system with classes, there were students attending.

The City of Freeport, Illinois Official Seal shows that the city was incorporated on the 14th of February, 1855. The seal was shown on the cover of the 1966 Polaris.

Perhaps Freeport should be known as the City of Love because of its founding date, rather than Pretzel City!

Thomas Johnston Turner, 1815-1874, was the first Mayor of Freeport, Illinois, elected in 1855. Although he did not go to Freeport High School, he did study law in Freeport.

Turner was born in Trumbull County, Ohio, on April 5, 1815. He moved to Freeport in 1838, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1840, and started his law practice in Freeport. He became judge of the probate court of Stephenson County in 1842, Postmaster of Freeport in 1844 and State District Attorney in 1845.

He established the first weekly newspaper in Stephenson County, The Prairie Democrat, in 1847. The next year, The Freeport Journal was started. These and other newspapers eventually were merged into today’s Journal Standard, which has been published under that banner since 1913.

Turner was elected as a Democrat to the Thirtieth Congress, and served in Washington, D. C. from March 4, 1847 until March 3, 1849. A Republican from downstate Illinois at the same time was elected and served the same time, a fellow by the name of Abraham Lincoln. This was the beginning of a long friendship between the two men.

Turner had an active law practice. His law partner was John B. Scroggs (left); they practiced together until 1866.

While no one has saved Turner's correspondence, people have saved the correspondence of Mr. Lincoln, and the two exchanged letters in regard to legal matters several times through the years. Lincoln archivists have letters between the two dated from February 8, 1850 to November 11, 1853. A letter dated June 27, 1853, ends, "I should be glad to see you & shake you by the hand; but as there is no contested jury question, I scarcely think you need be at the trouble & expense of coming. All the law questions which can arise at this term, the Judge has already decided. Very truly yours, A. LINCOLN"

Freemason Thomas J. Turner was Master of Excelsior Lodge No. 97 in Freeport in 1854, and Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Illinois, from 1863-65. He received the Royal Arch degree in Freeport Chapter No. 23, R.A.M., and was Senior Warden of Freeport Commandery No. 7, K.T. in 1864-65.

He was elected to the State House of Representatives in 1854, and served as Speaker of the House.

In 1855, Thomas J. Turner was elected the first mayor of Freeport, Illinois.

On August 27, 1858, Turner introduced Abraham Lincoln during the Lincoln-Douglas Debates that would determine who would become the United States Senator from Illinois. While Turner backed Lincoln, Stephen A. Douglas (left) referred to Turner during the debates, and even asked him questions. Turner's replies are part of the debate!

Lincoln and Douglas were debating slavery, and Douglas branded the Republican Party as the Black Republican Party, using the strong racist views of the day to influence voters. Quoting from the debate transcripts:

Mr. DOUGLAS: "In 1854, after the death of Clay and Webster, Mr. Lincoln, on the part of the Whigs, undertook to Abolitionize the Whig party, by dissolving it, transferring the members into the Abolition camp and making them train under Giddings, Fred Douglass, Lovejoy, Chase, Farnsworth, and other Abolition leaders. Trumbull undertook to dissolve the Democratic party by taking old Democrats into the Abolition camp. Mr. Lincoln was aided in his efforts by many leading Whigs throughout the State, your member of Congress, Mr. Washburne, being one of the most active. Trumbull was aided by many renegades from the Democratic party, among whom were John Wentworth, Tom Turner, and others, with whom you are familiar."

[Mr. Turner, who was one of the moderators, here interposed and said that he had drawn the resolutions which Senator Douglas had read.]

Mr. DOUGLAS: "Yes, and Turner says that he drew these resolutions. [“Hurrah for Turner,” “Hurrah for Douglas.”] That is right, give Turner cheers for drawing the resolutions if you approve them. If he drew those resolutions he will not deny that they are the creed of the Black Republican party."

Mr. TURNER: "They are our creed exactly."

Mr. DOUGLAS: "And yet Lincoln denies that he stands on them. Mr. Turner says that the creed of the Black Republican party is the admission of no more slave States. . . ."

A few minutes later, Douglas again turns to Turner:

Mr. DOUGLAS: "I want to know of Mr. Turner whether or not, when he was elected, he was a good embodiment of Republican principles?"

Mr. TURNER: "I hope I was then and am now."

Mr. DOUGLAS: "He swears that he hopes he was then and is now. He wrote that Black Republican platform, and is satisfied with it now. I admire and acknowledge Turner’s honesty. . . "

And again:

Mr. DOUGLAS: "Mr. Turner, who stands by me, and who then represented you, and who says that he wrote those resolutions, voted for Lincoln, when he was pledged not to do so unless Lincoln was in favor of those resolutions. I now ask Mr. Turner [turning to Mr. Turner], did you violate your pledge in voting for Mr. Lincoln, or did he commit himself to your platform before you cast your vote for him?"

Douglas did not wait for a reply, and plunged forward:

Mr. DOUGLAS: "I could go through the whole list of names here and show you that all the Black Republicans in the Legislature, who voted for Mr. Lincoln, had voted on the day previous for these resolutions. For instance, here are the names of Sargent and Little of Jo Daviess and Carroll, Thomas J. Turner of Stephenson, Lawrence of Boone and McHenry, Swan of Lake, Pinckney of Ogle County, and Lyman of Winnebago. Thus you see every member from your Congressional District voted for Mr. Lincoln, and they were pledged not to vote for him unless he was committed to the doctrine of no more Slave States, the prohibition of slavery in the Territories, and the repeal of the Fugitive Slave law."

While Douglas won the election to the U.S. Senate in 1858, the tens of thousands who read every word of the debates across the country were impressed with Lincoln, and elected him President in 1860.

Thomas J. Turner was selected to be a delegate to the Peace Convention held in Washington, D. C., in 1861 in an effort to prevent the Civil War.

When the Peace Convention effort failed, Turner enlisted in the Union Army and on May 14, was elected by a vote of 529 to 367 by the volunteers to be Colonel of the Fifteenth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry.

The 15th Regiment was mustered at Camp Scott in Freeport on May 24th. Camp Scott was established as a staging area in 1861 on the present site of Freeport Senior High School. Camp Scott may have been named after General Winfield Scott, who was an important figure in the Blackhawk War peace process. Left, Camp Scott, Freeport, Illinois, as shown in Harper's Weekly, June 15, 1861.

A few weeks later, after receiving instructions at Alton, they left for the field.

Their first battle was in Missouri. Colonel Turner and the 15th served honorably in many battles in Missouri, Tennessee and Mississippi.

Colonel Turner resigned because of bad health on November 2, 1862.

The regiment suffered six officers and 81 enlisted men who were killed in action or who died of their wounds and five officers and 135 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 227 fatalities.

Colonel Turner and the 15th Regiment were ordered to report to Alton, Illinois, on June 1, 1861, and were on duty there until July 15, 1861. They moved to St. Charles, Missouri, then to Hannibal, Jefferson Barracks and Rolla, from July 15-August 7.

They advanced toward Columbus August 29-September 8, and joined Fremont's Army at Tlpton on October 1. They were attached to the Department of Missouri until February, 1862.

In March 1862, the 15th went to the District of West Tennessee, and served with the Army of the Tennessee in battles in Tennessee and Mississippi through Turner's resignation in November, 1862.

Battles that Colonel Turner and the 15th Regiment were involved in include:
Fremont's advance on Springfield, Missouri., October 13-November 3, 1861.
Capture of Fort Donelson, Tennessee, February 16, 1862.
Occupation of Pittsburg Landing, March 14-17.
Battle of Shiloh April 6-7.
Advance on and siege of Corinth , Mississippi April 29-May 30.
March to Memphis, via Grand Junction, Holly Springs and Lagrange, June 1-July 21.
Battle of Hatchie River, October 5.
Grant's Central Mississippi Campaign.
Operations on the Mississippi Central R. R. from Bolivar to Coffeeville October 31, 1862, to January 10, 1863.

Battles after Turner's resignation include:
Duty at Memphis until May, 1863.
Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi, May 22-July 4.
Siege of Jackson, Mississippi, July 10-17.
Assault on Jackson July 12.
Capture of Fort Beauregard September 4.
Meridian Campaign February 3-March 5, 1864.
Champion's Hill, Baker's Creek, February 4.
Movement to Cairo, Illinois, then to Clifton, Tennessee, and march to Ackworth, Georgia, via Huntsville, Alabama, Decatur, Alabama, and Rome, Georgia, April 28-June 8.
Atlanta Campaign June 8 to September 8.
Regiment consolidated with 14th Illinois Infantry July 1, 1864, as 14th and 15th Illinois Battalion Infantry.
Action at Big Shanty October 3, Ackworth October 4, Morris Station October 4, Allatoona Pass October 5.
March to the sea November 15-December 10.
Siege of Savannah December 10-21.
Campaign of the Carolinas January to April, 1865.
Pocotaliga, South Carolina January 14-16; Combahee River January 25; Salkehatchie Swamps February 2-5; Rivers' Bridge, Salkehatchie River February 3; South Edisto River, Binnaker's Bridge February 9; Orangeburg, North Edisto River February 11-12; Columbia February 15-17; Cheraw March 3; Battle of Bentonville March 19-21; Occupation of Goldsboro March 24, and of Raleigh April 14; Bennett's House April 26; Surrender of Johnston and his army.
Regiment reorganized at Raleigh, North Carolina April 28, 1865, from 14th and 15th Battalion Infantry.
March to Washington, D. C. via Richmond, Virginia April 29-May 19.
Grand Review May 24.
Moved to Louisville, Kentucky June 7-10, then to St. Louis, Missouri, and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
March to Fort Kearney July 1-14, and duty on the plains till September 1.
Ordered to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
Mustered out at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, September 16, 1865.

Throughout the war, the 15th traveled by foot, boat and train, a distance of about 11,000 miles. The officers were Col. Thomas J. Turner, Senior Major William R. Goddard, Junior Major Rufus C. McEathron, and Surgeon William J. McKim.

After the war, Thomas Turner was a delegate to Illinois State Constitutional Convention from the 56th District from 1869 to 1870.

He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for United States Senator in 1871.

Thomas J. Turner died at Hot Springs, Arkansas on April 4, 1874. He is buried in City Cemetery in Freeport.

Thomas Turner married Adeline R. Burnside. They had three children, Alice, Thomas E., and Jennie. He was also married at one time to Margaret Mitchell.

Mayors of Freeport, Illinois

One-year terms through 1863.
Two-year terms through 1921.
Four-year terms starting 1924.
Part-time with a city manager position in 2017.

Population of Freeport, Illinois