An act of the General Assembly of the State, approved 07 Mar 1867, incorporated the Murphysboro & Shawneetown Railroad Company, and a proposition to subscribe $100, 000 to the capital stock thereof was submitted to the people of the county at an election held 03 Nov 1868, which resulted in 1779 votes for and 108 against the subscription. On the 12th of Dec of that year the county court ordered that the subscription should be raised by issuing county bonds to run for 20 years at 8% interest per annum, the interest to be paid annually at the office of the county treasurer. The bonds were not to be issued until the road was completer and the cars running thereon form Carbondale to Marion; and if the road was not completed by 01 Jan 1870, the subscription was to be void. At the same time the court entered into an agreement with Samuel Dunaway, president of said company, to sell to the latter the entire amount of stock for the sum of $5000 on the condittions expressed in the following order, to wit:
Whereas, the county of Wmson has this day subcribred $100, 000 tot he capital stock of the Murphysboro & Shawneetown Railraod Company. Now, therefore, for the purpose of securing the construction and early completion of said road, that said county make and enter into agreement with the Murphysboro & Shawneetown Railroad Company, and that the said county, in and by said agreement, sell to said company the $100,000 stock. That the terms of said sale and agreement shall be in effect as follow:
That when the certificates of stock shall have been issued by said company to said county, the said county, after the said road shall have been completed, and within ten days after said railroad company shall have issued to said county, the certificates of stock for said $100,000, assign, transfer and set over to said company the certificates for said $100,000 stock so issued to said county, for the consideration of $5000 to be paid to said county, at the time of said transfer and assignment, in the bonds of said county, issued to said company, in payment of subscription.
This contract seems to have been made without any authority by law, and without the knowlefge and consent of the people by who the bonds would have to be paid. It appears that an undue influence was brought to bear upon the court, and the officers composing it were led to believe that such a contrct was necessary "for the purpose of securing the construction and early completion of said road." An act of the Legislature approved 10 Mar 1869, changed the name of the said railroad company, to that of the Carbondale & Shawneetown Railroad Company. And on the 24 Dec 1870, the county court made an order extending the time for the completion of said railroad, to 01 Jan 1872. And at a special term of the court held 07 No 1871, it was induced to sign the bonds, which it did, and placed then into the hands of WN Mitchell as trustee, who gave the bond in sum $100,000 for their delivery when called for. At the adjourned term of said court in Dec 1871, the railraod being completed, the bonds were delivered to the company, adn the certificates of stock for $100,000 received therefrom. And soon thereafter, the certificates of stock were al surrendered to the company, except $10,000 which were retained to secure the building of the road to Crab Orchard. But the road has never been extended beyond Marion. The county applied the $5,000 consideration for the certificates of stock in paymeny of interest on the bonds, and left the entire amount of bonds outstanding for the $100,000, which will not be due until the year 1891. Meanwhile the county is paying $8,000 annually as interest thereon. The length of the main track of the Carbondale & Shawneetown Railroad in Wmson Co, is about 13 miles, and that of side track about 2 miles. It has stations at Marion, Bainbridge, Crainville, Carterville and Fredonia. It is of great benefit to the county, but the people who contributed so liberally toward building it, have no controlling interest in it. They have one consolation however, that of taxing it annually, and thereby making it contribute something toward paying the interest on the bonds.
The Cairo & Vincennes Railroad crosses the SE corner of Wmson Co, and has 9,652 feet of main track and 266 feet of side track therein. It has a station at New Stone Fort on the line between this and Saline Counties.
The indebtedness of the county consists of the $100,000 of bonds above described; $6,000 of bridge and funded bonds and about $59,000 in tother claims, making a total of about $156,000---the bonds only drawing interest. On the 18 Jun 1870, a vote was taken for or against subscribing $100,000 to the Belleville & Southern Illinois Railroad Co, resulting in favor of subscription. But the road was never constructed, no bonds were ever issued to raise the subscription, and thus the people did not have that additional burden saddled upon them.