Washington Lewis is another one of Kappa's respected citizens. Mr. Lewis was born in 1806 in eastern Tennessee, moved to Indiana and in 1834 he came to Illinois, landing as did so many of the early settlers at Pekin. He had started out a young man in search of "a land of corn and wine, or milk and honey," but he expected to enter into it only by labor and exertion. The first year he worked for Rev. Zadoc Hall, the noted pioneer Methodist preacher. Afterwards he taught school near Mackinawtown, where he had as one of his pupils, Shelby M. Cullom, now U.S. Senator, and formerly Governor of Illinois. After a few years Mr. Lewis moved to what is now Kansas Township, where he settled in the heavy timber, whose dark green shades he loved. Here "the century living crow, whose birth was in their tops, grew old and died among their branches," and there old trees flourished in all transcendental glory for ages, until the coming tide of emigration rolled in that direction and its waves were checked against "these fair ranks" of trees. Here Mr. Lewis was married and here he was twice elected Justice of the Peace. In 1856 he moved to his present residence west of Kappa. In 1856 there was a voting precinct at Kappa and here Mr. Lewis was again elected Justice of the Peace, which office he has held for twenty-four years. He was also elected assessor when the territory he was required to go over, included Hudson, Kansas, Kappa, El
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