The first white men kown to have been in the territory of Wmson Co were Col George Rogers Clark and his soldiers, while on their march to Kaskaskia in 1796. After leaving Fort Massac, in June of that year, this command, consisting of about 150 men, entered the territory of the county at or near the southeast corner thereof, and marched by way of Sarahville to the Thomas Hill place, and then, turning northward, passed a little west of the site of Marion, thence through Phelps and Herrin's Prairies, crossed the Big Muddy at or near the mouth of Pond Creek, and arrived at Kaskaskia, July 4, 1796. The first settlement in Franklin Co was made in 1804, by the seven Jordan brothers and others, and very soon thereafter Frank Jordan settled in and built a fort in what is now Northern Prec in this county. It was a stockade of timbers enclosing about an arce, and on the inside were a number of log cabins and a well. It was located about 50 yards from Pond Creek, and was afterwards and is still known as the "Old Station." An Indian doctor, by the name of John Dunlap, lived in this fort. He claimed to have been captured by the Indians when a boy and brought up by them to the practice of medicine. He lived a great many years and followed his profession, and always got his medicine out of the roots and herbs in the woods. Francis Jordan was undoubtedly the first settler in the territory of Wmson Co, and those who followed him up to and including the year 1822, as given by Milo Erwin is his history of the county, settled at the following dates and places: In 1811, John Phelps on Phelps Prairie; Jay & McClure at Odum Ford; Joseph & Thomas Griffith, at Ward's Mill; Wm Donald on the Hill place; John Maneece and his son James, on Phelps Prairie. During this year these settlers and some living on the Cache, built a block-house on the John Davis pace, west of Marion. It was built of hewed logs, was 20 feet square, was covered with slabs, and had port holes 8 feet from the ground. They all went into this fort at night to sleep. A man by the name of Hibbins settled the west side of Herrin's Prairie during this year, but was compelled to leave it the next.
In 1812, Flannery settled at the Flannery Springs, Richard Bankston on the Spiller farm north of Marion, and a few more at Jordan's fort. Richard Ratcliff settled on the Roberts farm in Northern. In 1815, Nathan Arnett settled on the Hinchliff farm, and Abraham Piatt, Wm Doty and Nelson McDonald settled near him. Solomon Snider and James McDonald moved from Johnson Co, and settled in Grassy Prec. Dempsey Odum Settled on the FC Kirkham farm, Spencer Crain at Bainbridge and Aaron Youngblood on the Jacob Sanders place. In 1816, Joshua Tyner, Phillip T Russell and his 3 sons, and Wm Campbell settled on the Eight Mile Priaire, Wm Lindsey on the Samuel Russell place, and Jasper Crain on the west side of the prairie. The latter moved the next year to Phelps Prairie. In 1817 Ragsdall Rollins settled on Phelps Priaire, Isaac Herrin on the Stotlar place in Herrin's Priairie, Capt David Springs on the Graves place. John Phelps moved to Union Co, and John Roberts bought Ratcliff's improvements in Northern Prec, and John Hooker, James Howe and a Mr Worthen settled near him. In 1818 Samuel K Perkins settled on Herrin's Priaire, William Burns and 5 brothers in Northern Prec, Major Lockaleer on the Burns place, George Davis on the Bell place, Dickenson Garrett a little south of the James Edwards place, Hezekiah Garrett on the Ben Eaton Farm, and Wm Norris on Phelps Prairie. Elijah Spiller bought out and settled on the Bankston farm. In 1819, David Herrin settled on Herrin's Priaire, named in honor of Isaac Herrin, its first permanent settler. Sion Mitchell, SM Mitchell and Moses Jones settled in Northern Prec, Wm and Benjamin Spiller in the Spiller settlement, Abraham Tippy and his son John, a little south of Bainbridge; Sterling Hill at the Hill place, and the Simpkins brother near thereby.
The year 1820 is signalized by the settlement of Wadkins, and a negro, the latter being the first colored settler. Dowell Russell settled on the Lewis Park's place, Mark Robinson on the Kid place, the Shultzes in Saline Prec, James Stewart and his sons on the Pease farm. In 1821, David Corder settled the Erwin farm on the east and George Davis on the west, and Major James Corder on the Stilly farm. In 1822 Hamilton Corder settled where he now lives, Charles Erwin on the farm where he lived and died, Hugh Parks on the Jack Tompson place and Daniel Mosely at the site of Blairsville, and Samuel Stacks in Southern Prec.
These early settlers being scattered as they were, all over the county, had made but little impression on the face of the country prior to 1823. Like the Indians, they depended mostly on hunting for their living. They never dreamed of living to see again a thickly populated community,and having imbibed the spirit of frontier civilzation, with its attended adventures, in a land where game and wild honey were abundant, they seemed content to live in their log cabins, surrounded only with a few arces of cleared land on which they raised corn and vegetables for the partial subsistance of their families, and obtained their meat from the abundant game of the woods. After the year 1828, the settlement of the county increased more rapidly though not with great rapidity, as will be observed by refernece to the census of 1840, the first one taken after the organization of the county, when the entire population was only 4, 457. The early settlers of the county, were nearly all from the State of Tennessee, and consequently the most of them were either natives or the descendants of natives of the Carolinas or Virginia. The later settlers were also mostly from TN, but many came from KY, OH and other states. The first settlers exercied squatter's rights, and settled upon the lands of their own choosing, mostly along the streams, or where a good spring of water could be found, feeling that their rights would never be infringed upon. Many of them did not enter their land at the land office, and take a patent therefor from the Government, for a long time after the same became subject to entry. Perhaps some delayed acquiring title to avoid taxation, for so long as the title remained in the Government, the lands were not subject to taxation. The pubic lands were not made subject to entry until the year 1814, when Francis Jordan entered the first tract of land in the county. Some of the early settlers never entered their lands to acquire title thereto, but sold their improvements to others, who afterward entered the lands and aquired the title. Those who sold their improvements, generally moved farther to the west, either preferring to follow "the star of genial empire, " as it moved westward, or believing that they could find a better land toward the setting sun.