Township 4 Range 7

In this township Heacock (north) and Horse (SW) Prairies are located. The Kaskaskia (Okaw) River runs through the township. Settlers came early, Absalom Cox came from Abbeville, SC and claim #1044, his sons were John M and William Cox. Other early settlers were William McBride, Robert McDonald and James Thompson.Archibald Thompson settled on Heacock Prairie abt 1822. George Wilson's also settled on Heacock in 1827. George and James Wilson settled just south of present day Baldwin. George died there in 1856. John Adams came to Sec 20 in 1822, where he died in 1831. By 1822 other families where on Heacock Prairie: James Bean, Thomas McBride, James Redpath.

Baldwin was est 1873 by the Cario and St Louis RR as a stop or station. It was formerly named Cobb. There was a Post Office est there in 1857 long before the RR.

Grigg is located in Sec 7 & 8, on Rt 154. When the St Louis-Cario RR made the area a stop, SE Grigg of Sparta opened a store and a grain elevator there. The Post Office was estt 1904-1906. After this the RR made the small town a flag stop. Today there are a few houses there.

Ralls Ridge was founded in 1804 by James or Rawligen Ralls. It seems this was more the Ralls family homestead than a town. It is now a part of the wildlife refuge.

Lafayette on located on the Kaskaskia River in Sec 8 and est in 1836. At one point it was a shipping point for the area. It had 2 stores and a owned by James Ralls sawmill, when the RR cames through it took the shipping over and Lafayette disappeared. The site is now part of the wildlife refuge.

Cox Ferry was located in the "s" of the Kaskaskia River just south of Griggs. There was a ferry there for the river, it was probably run by one of Absalom Cox's sons.

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