Historical Reminiscence
The Talley Home

This data is furnished by E.E. Hall, a citizen most of his life in the community where these events occurred and to him we are indebted for preserving such valuable facts in the history of our county. He says this house is located on the North half of lot 1, S.W. ¼, 6, Township 39, Range 24 St. Clair County, Mo.
Isaiah Williams and three brothers A.P., Perry D. and Milton Williams, all Baptist ministers: also Andrew Brown, Peter Brown, W.C. Wright, William M. Love and A.H. Dent all Baptist ministers have begun public life in or near this house shown in the cut or lived for a time in that community. John Fields of this city also grew up in that neighborhood.
All the logs in this venerable building are well preserved but one, and at this time the house is somewhat remodeled by Mr. Masters.
This house was built by Mr. Tally in 1834 and is just my age and four years before my father came with his family from Tennessee.
Mrs. Burton, a colored woman in this city was a servant of Mr. Tally in this house before the war.
I was well acquainted with A.P. and Milton Williams as preachers and of A.P. Williams it was said that few men of his time were his equal as a preacher of the gospel.
Peter Brown was well known by most of the older citizens of the county and he, too, was a strong Bible scholar.
I can remember the preaching of A.P. and Milton Williams, some of A.P. Williams sermons are intact in my mind and I can write much of which he said today.
Of the Rev. Mr. Wright I had no personal knowledge, and Rev. Love and Rev. A.H. Dent all the people knew them.
Of the Tally Bend I had much hearsay knowledge from childhood though our home was twenty miles or more away but until Mr. Hall and others told me I had no idea that form within this dear old house or near to it many of the illustrious preachers of the county went forth to preach the everlasting gospel.
Take a long look at this house; its logs went up one by one. See the men on the corners ax in hand, reaching with the other hand to steady the great beam as the men below forced it up and into its place. Did you ever see it done? We are told that the principal logs in this building are thirty-two feet long.
It is a question as to how many of the men who lifted and placed those logs are now living, - time is a great leveler. Think of the surrounding forests at that time. Few wagon roads were in the county. “Bridle paths” as they were called were common in some parts of the county then. I remember when wagons undertook to pass along one of the paths an ax was necessary to make room for the axels and wheels where horses had easily passed for years.
Farewell Mr. Tally, Farewell the people of your day.
As we stand on the border land between you and the generation following we can see you better now than when you built your great log house.
We even seem to see your women as they were busy cooking the great dinners, - gone, all gone now.
Wolves were howling then and wild beasts were prowling in the night; where all is still now.
Verily man subdueth the earth then goeth to his long home.
B.F. Lawler

Submitted by: Stacy Kelly

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