Tenth Judicial Circuit

Marshall County FYI

Named for John Marshall, chief justice of the United States Supreme Court from 1801 to 1835.  

The first settler in the future Marshall county was in 1824 Thomas Brooks

Marshall County was created from Putnam County on January 19, 1839. Lacon was chosen as the county seat. The first session of circuit court in the new county was held in the Lacon Methodist church, April 23, 1839.

Peoria County FYI

Named for the Indian tribe called the Peorias, one of the tribes from the Illinois confederacy.

The county of Peoria was created on January 13, 1825. Peoria was incorporated as a town on July 18, 1835, and was incorporated as a city on April 21, 1845, when an election was held at the courthouse..

Putnam County FYI

Named for Israel Putnam [1718-1790] served in the French & Indian War and Pontiac's War.

Putnam County is the smallest county in the state of Illinois, encompassing only 166 square miles.

Putnam County's courthouse in Hennepin is the oldest courthouse currently in use in Illinois which has been maintained in an original form. The courthouse was built in 1839, the year Putnam County's present-day boundaries were established.

Stark County FYI

John Stark [1728-1822] was a Lieutenant in the French & Indian War [1755]. He was a Colonel from New Hampshire during the American Revolution, serving at Bunker Hill in 1775. Stark commanded battles at Trenton and Princeton. By 1777, he was a Brigadier General, and served until the end of the war.

Tazewell County FYI

Lyttleton Waller Tazewell [1774-1860] was an eminent lawyer. He served in the Virginia house of delegates, and was a representative from Viriginia. Between 1824-32, the time when Tazewell County, Illinois, was named, he was a U.S. senator. In 1834, L.W. Tazewell became the 27th Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is, however, possible that it was named for Littleton's father, prominent Virginia politician Henry Tazewell, for whom Tazewell County, Virginia was named

Tazewell County was formed out of Peoria County in 1827.