A Brief History of the Village of Windsor by Pauline Lason

One hundred-fifty years ago, on September 14, 1857, four farseeing men went to Aledo and filed a plat of their brainchild–the Town of Windsor.  At that time the town consisted of nothing more than two houses and a dream in the minds and hearts of William F. Petrie, William T. Hammond, Olaf Johnson and Samuel Remington.

This dream sprang from the belief that a railroad line through the area was imminent.  Unfortunately, it was another thirteen years before the tracks were actually laid.  In 1869 the town was legally organized, and as the railroad drew near, Windsor made phenomenal growth; the original two dwellings became seventy-nine.  Between March and June of that year, 52 buildings were erected; and the July 1870 census lists 381 residents.

In 1878, the town was reorganized as the Village of Windsor; and in 1901 it was incorporated under that name.  Because another Windsor existed in eastern Illinois, “New Windsor” was used by the post office and railroad, but the official name remains the Village of Windsor.  As late as 1933, confusion about the name apparently still existed on the state level, for the Secretary of State sent a letter asking the Village Clerk if the town had changed its name.

The people of the village have always managed to bounce back after disaster.  The most outstanding example of this ability is evident in the business district’s recovery after the Christmas 1898 fire.  Although almost the entire western business block was destroyed and at least eight businessmen lost buildings and the majority of their merchandise, new construction began promptly and within a decade the original wooden stores had been replaced with fireproof brick buildings.

Even before the rapid population and business growth occurred, the people of Windsor felt the need for spiritual guidance and education.  By 1869 two churches had been established and the first school built.  In1900, there were five churches and a modern brick school had replaced the original frame building.

And of course, there were the people.  While most Windsorites were (and are) respectable, hardworking, everyday citizens, there are a few who have been outstanding.  There was Alson J. Streeter who, after serving as State Assemblyman and State Senator, ran for President of the United States, and Edgar L. Larkin who became renown for his prolific writing and for being the head astronomer at the Mt. Lowe Observatory in California.  And we must not forget the Shefren family and the town characters like “Cyclone Bill” and “Popcorn Sally” Frear.

Take a ride around New Windsor, today, and notice the many fine examples of late nineteenth and early twentieth century architecture.  As you pass, wave at the townsfolk you see working in their yards or sitting on their front porches.  The chances are great that they’ll wave back.

We’re proud of our town, as well we should be.  In August 1870, a reporter for the Aledo Weekly Record wrote that the new Lutheran church steeple was “rather high–eighty-one feet–but not an inch too much elevated for Windsor; in fact it could not be.”