Editing Spring Valley, Illinois (section)

===Coal===
Spring Valley was founded in 1884 in the heart of the [[History of coal mining|coal]] fields of Northern Illinois for the express purpose of mining of coal.  The building of Spring Valley was the enterprise of Henry J. Miller, one of the first settlers of this area, and his son-in-law, Charles J. Devlin. Charles Devlin had lived in [[Peru, Illinois]] as the manager of the Union Coal Company in [[LaSalle, Illinois|LaSalle]].<ref>Pianceti, Jim (2011). The Promise of a Better Life: The Coal Mines of Eastern Bureau County, Illinois. Ladd, Illinois: Locust Street Publishing.</ref> They conceived the idea of establishing a coal metropolis, in the Valley and on the slopes of the bluffs bordering Spring Creek, in the southeastern corner of Bureau County. They acquired the mineral rights of {{convert|5000|acre|km2}} and purchased {{convert|500|acre|km2}} on which to build the town.  They secured the financial aid and cooperation of coal and railroad capitalists, E.N. Saunders of [[St. Paul, Minnesota]], a director of the [[Chicago and North Western]] railroad, Mr. Taylor of [[What Cheer, Iowa]], and [[William L. Scott]] of [[Erie, Pennsylvania]].  Scott was a United States Senator from Pennsylvania during the administration of President [[Grover Cleveland]].  Most of these men are remembered in the name of the streets of the town.<ref>{{cite book|author=John H. M. Laslett|title=Colliers Across the Sea: A Comparative Study of Class Formation in Scotland and the American Midwest, 1830-1924|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fbAJtEeU0rIC&pg=PA128|year=2000|publisher=University of Illinois Press|page=128ff|isbn=9780252068270}}</ref>

[[File:Route 89 Bridge in Spring Valley, Illinois.jpg|thumb|left|The Route 89 Bridge in Spring Valley, Illinois  This bridge is outdated as it has since been replaced in the summer of 2018.]]

Two companies were formed, the Spring Valley Coal Company in partnership with [[Alexander Campbell (Illinois politician)|Alexander Campbell]], and the Spring Valley Town Site Co.<ref>Pianceti, Jim (2011). The Promise of a Better Life: The Coal Mines of Eastern Bureau County, Illinois. Ladd, Illinois: Locust Street Publishing.</ref>  Backed by the almost unlimited resources of the coal barons, these two companies spent over $2{{frac|1|2}} million in less than four years in the building of the town.

The boring of the mine commenced in 1884 and the town surveyed and platted.  Spring Valley did not grow from a crossroads country store or framehouse, it was planned with the hope it would grow to be a large city. Space was set aside for churches, schools and public buildings and broad streets were laid out.  St. Paul Street became one of the widest streets in the state and in 1984 made even wider.  In the residential section of the city property line, lies {{convert|25|ft|m}} from curb and ample room for expansion.

Spring Valley was a boom town, its growth was so rapid that it was called the "Magic City."  In less than four years, by 1888, the Chicago North Western railroad had laid a line from [[DeKalb, Illinois]], four mines had been sunk and the town had 3,000 people.