The chronology
The land through time
Every documented event, from the property outward: Beloit, Rock County, the region and the world. Each one links to the page of the source that records it. The record so far covers 1820–1864; more years are being added.
1840
Beloit
- 1840 The Hanchett family came to Beloit, bought forty acres in Sec. 34, and Mr. Hanchett built the dam across Rock River at Beloit.
- August 7, 1840 Caleb Blodgett, the first white settler at Beloit, died.
- 1840 By fall, the Rock Prairie Norwegian settlement was established, consisting of five homesteads: Gravdal, Hallan, Odegarden, Lars Skavlem, and Gullik Halvorsen Blakstad (Skavlem); Gisle Hallan had taken possession of his new home in Sec. 6, Town of Beloit, and Gullick Halvorsen Blackstad (Skavlem) located on Sec. 28 during the spring and summer.
Rock County
- September 1840 The parents of Paul M. Green came to Rock Co. and purchased 120 acres on Sections 4 and 5 (Milton).
- 1840 Easton and Gusta Johnson arrived in Rock county and settled in Avon township.
- Fall 1840 A church and parsonage were erected on a lot at the southwest corner of Section 36, known as the First Congregational Church of Rock County, at a cost of about $500.
The region
- 1840 The lands in Rock and Jefferson Counties came into market; the sale was at Milwaukee; settlers could first obtain title to the land that year.
- Summer 1840 An organized school was set up in the shanty first occupied by the Ogdens.
- 1840 Rock County members served in the Fourth (extra) Session of the Second Legislative Assembly (James Maxwell, Edward V. Whiton, John Hackett, Hugh Long).
Nation and world
- August 5, 1840 James D. Doty was re-elected Territorial delegate.