| Notes |
- Among the foreign born citizens of Washington County was Senator F. E. W. Brink, who was born on March 17, 1827 in Westphalia, a Province of Prussia. He left his native country at an early age and came to America, landing in Washington County September 22, 1844. His parents followed a year later. He went to New Orleans as a shipping clerk for 7 years and returned to Washington County on May 6, 1854 and married Carolina Hoffman who had also immigrated here from Prussia. They were the parents of ten children, namely: Fred Brink, Carolina Krueger, Louise Rolf, Mary Cohlmeyer, Henry Brink, Ann Cohlmeyer, Elizabeth Greiman, Rev. Edward Brink, and Flora Cohlmeyer. Frederich was involved in farming and stock-raising. They owned a farm in North Prairie, now owned by the Dueker family. In 1872 they moved to Hoyleton where he and William Weigel owned the Mill.
In politics, he was a democrat. His first vote was cast for Lewis Cass in 1848. In 1874, the Repubican party nominated him for Representative in General Assembly, but he did not accept. In 1876 he was nominated for the office of State Senator on the Democratic ticket for the 42nd District. He accepted the nomination and was elected by a handsome majority. While a member of the 30th Legislature he was honored with the chairmanship of an important committee. In the 31st General Assembly, he was a member of the committee on State Charitable Institutions, the Agriculture Drainage, Miscellaneous and Manufacturing and Labor Committee. He and his wife were life-long members of the Hoyleton Zion Church, of which he was one of the founders.
Newspaper article regarding the original Zion Evangelical Cemetery and Zion Evangelical Church in North Prairie - date of article unknown. (This cemetery is prior to North Prairie Methodist Church Cemetery).
HOYLETON CHURCHMEN HONOR PIONEER DEAD by Grover Brinkman
Back in 1861, a group of eighteen farmers met at the home of Frederick E. W. Brink in North Prairie to establish a new church. Eight acres of land was purchased from F. W. Krughoff for $12.50 per acre, and preliminary plans were made for the building program, which included a church, school, parsonage and "laying-off" a cemetery. Later that year, carpenter Henry Hake was given a contract to build a church 30 x 50 feet, 16 ft. high, with eight windows and a tower. He was to receive $217 for his labor.
The day the tower of the new church was completed, a bad storm leveled the building. Undaunted, the members set about to rebuild the church, completed it in 1863.
Back in those days, when the infant farm congregation was being organized, prices of commodities, compared with today, are little short of amazing. For instance, when the parsonage was ready for painting, the labor amounted to $15. Later a fence was built to enclose the property, each member being required to furnish ten fence posts or contribute a dime. On one occasion, the pastor was compelled to build his own chicken house. Another pastor, desiring a porch on the parsonage, added it himself.
Today this pioneer church is gone, its members long ago having transferred to Hoyleton, but the old cemetery remains. And recently a cemetery committee composed of Rueben Westerfeld, Clarence Hake, Roland and William Beckemeyer, were appointed to restore the long-neglected burial ground, now a thicket of hedge and bramble, dug up by marmots. Many of the old stones were gone, broken or vandalized. So, for the record, a large central marker was erected, upon which are engraved the names of all who are buried here, 85 in number. The oldest grave is that of Marie Westerfeld, born in 1832.
A new chain fence protects the site, which is southeast of New Minden and southwest of Hoyleton. Here is an example of pioneer cemetery restoration that is commendable. Washington County, like its sister counties in southern Illnois, has many of these old burial grounds, most of them completely neglected. Updating the same with a central marker, inscribed with all the names of those buried, seems a fine idea
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1827 - 1905 (78 years)
