Editing Clinton County, Illinois (section)

==History==
{{expand section|date=September 2011}}
In 1805, prior to the establishment of the county, the [[Indiana Territory|territorial government]] established a [[post road]] from its capital ([[Vincennes, Indiana]]) to [[St. Louis, Missouri]], passing through the county.<ref>{{cite book|title=Making the Heartland Quilt|author=Douglas K. Meyer|publisher=SIU Press|year=2000|isbn=0-8093-2289-7|page=58|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NF33WbcUKgUC&pg=PA58|access-date=September 11, 2011}}</ref>

In 1808 a wagon road was laid out through the future Clinton County. It extended from the [[Goshen Settlement]] to the Ohio [[salt works]] and crossed the [[Kaskaskia River]] at Carlyle.<ref>[http://clinton.ilgenweb.net/history/1913commer/page03.htm 1913 Commercial History of Clinton County, Illinois] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723154454/http://clinton.ilgenweb.net/history/1913commer/page03.htm|date=July 23, 2011}} from clinton.ilgenweb.net. Retrieved November 10, 2010</ref> Clinton County became the home to early settlers by 1814, when the first land entries were made. <ref>{{Cite web |title=History, Index, Clinton Co, IL |url=https://clintonilgenweb.org/history/ |access-date=2024-12-10 |website=clintonilgenweb.org}}</ref>

Clinton County was created on December 27, 1824, from portions of [[Washington County, Illinois|Washington]], [[Fayette County, Illinois|Fayette]], and [[Bond County, Illinois|Bond Counties]]. It was named for the seventh [[governor of New York]], [[DeWitt Clinton]], who helped build the [[Erie Canal]].<ref>{{cite book|title=History of Marion and Clinton Counties, Illinois|page=77|year=1881|publisher=Brink, McDonough & Company|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/History_of_Marion_and_Clinton_Counties_I/rc1MAQAAMAAJ}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Origin_of_Certain_Place_Names_in_the/T4RMvNutfAQC?hl=en&gbpv=0|page=85|year=1973|last=Gannett|first=Henry}}</ref>

Crossing the Kaskaskia became much easier when the bridge now known as the [[General Dean Suspension Bridge]] was built in 1859, at a cost of $40,000.<ref name=carlyle/> Before the bridge was constructed, crossings involved a ferry or a mud bridge.<ref>{{cite web|title=Suspension Bridge, Spanning Kaskaskia River, Carlyle, Clinton, IL|url=https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/il0143/|work=[[Historic American Buildings Survey]]|publisher=Library of Congress|access-date=September 11, 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121002123557/http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/il0143/|archive-date=October 2, 2012}}</ref><ref>Plaque on site, [http://www.bridgemeister.com/imgdda/ddilcarlyle15.jpg Photograph of plaque at Bridgemeister] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927210619/http://www.bridgemeister.com/imgdda/ddilcarlyle15.jpg|date=September 27, 2007}}.</ref> The [[Illinois General Assembly]] set aside $20,000 for bridge restoration in 1951, and in 1953 the bridge was named after [[William F. Dean]].<ref name=carlyle>[http://www.playandstaycarlyle.com/outdoor_recreation.htm Attractions & Outdoor Recreation] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070207082843/http://www.playandstaycarlyle.com/outdoor_recreation.htm|date=February 7, 2007}}, City of Carlyle, Official site</ref>