10/24/2026
Just south of Richmond, deep within Glacial Park & Lost Valley Visitor Center under the shade of what had been a 250+ year old oak tree, lies the Thomas Family burying ground. 🪦 🌳
The Thomases were a homesteading family who lived in the mid-1800s.
Five of their children never reached adulthood. 🌿
President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act in 1862, which encouraged early pioneers to brave the wilderness and lay claim to 160 acres, provided they could improve the land.
This proved impossible for many families: "Physical conditions on the frontier presented even greater challenges. Wind, blizzards, and plagues of insects threatened crops. Open plains meant few trees for building, forcing many to build homes out of sod. Limited fuel and water supplies could turn simple cooking and heating chores into difficult trials. Ironically, even the smaller size of sections took its own toll. While 160 acres may have been sufficient for an eastern farmer, it was simply not enough to sustain agriculture on the dry plains, and scarce natural vegetation made raising livestock on the prairie difficult. As a result, in many areas, the original homesteader did not stay on the land long enough to fulfill the claim."
Had the Thomas family been trying to live out a dream of settling new land when the elements and conditions simply became too much? 🤔 In the 1990s, the McHenry County Conservation District staff located the Thomas family burial site and placed new stone markers to commemorate this brave family and their five young ones lost far too early. 🪦 🪦 🪦 🪦 🪦
ℹ️ https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/homestead-act
| |
