From Centennial History of the Town of Turtle, 1836-1936
by Annie McLenegan
The full story of the boundary between Wisconsin and Illinois is a humorous one; but it is also sorrowful evidence of the great labor of many, one step at a time, and often over again, in bringing order out of the wilderness. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 provided that a line drawn east and west through the south end of Lake Michigan should be used in creating not more than five states and not less than three out of Northwest Territory. In making Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, what was thought to be this line was used. But it did not “come out right,” and made all kinds of trouble, which resulted in slicings off of and additions to the newly made states to satisfy all concerned. Finally, a mere beaver trapper, who measured by the north star, told both surveyors and political leaders that the end of Lake Michigan was farther south than they thought it was. Congress ordered more surveys; but, when they did find out the correct latitude of the point, in making Wisconsin, they proceeded to disregard it. In order to give Illinois a lake frontage, the boundary line between Illinois and Wisconsin was pushed up to 42 degrees, 30 minutes, which was selected, it would seem, merely “as a good place to stop.”
This line was then ordered surveyed at an early date. At the close of the Black Hawk War, 1832, a survey was made by Lucius Lyon and John Messenger, the former doing the work with little else than a pocket compass and by observation of nature. This line, meant to be a straight east and west line, appears so on all ordinary maps. In reality, it runs from northwest to southeast. The line is much farther north in west Wisconsin and much farther south in the eastern part of the state, beginning at about Beloit, than it should be. Modern surveyors declare the line even zig-zags between the section lines which touch this boundary at every six miles, in both states.
The State Line road runs near what has been accepted as the State Line only a short way out of Beloit to the east. It then leaves the boundary to run north. All early settlers heard the heated discussions about the line. Yet the boundary, however imperfect, was accepted. The pioneers had so much to contend with that, possibly bacause of the great hardship in changing land titles from one state to another, should the boundary be moved, they “let well enough alone.” It is said the Sate Line should pass through Beloit at about the Goodwin Block [State and Grand], instead of through the Wilford Lumber Yards [near State and Shirland], as it does. The village of Bergen in the Town of Clinton is on the line, as it has been left; but the line should go farther north at Bergen. Between the Meech and Egery farms is a bridge over Egery Creek, which marks the supposed State Line.