SOLON ROBINSON, 1834 51 



A Friendly Hint 



[Madison Republican and Banner, July 10, 1834] 



[July 4, 1834] 



The gentleman who was so far from being "Indepen- 

 dent," as to be under the necessity before "Independence 

 day," of stealing two old ragged shirts from the line in 

 my yard, is "respectfully informed," that after he has 

 done celebrating his "glorious independence" in his bor- 

 rowed shirts, if he will return them, I will give him 

 cloth enough to make him two good substantial new ones 

 — provided he will agree to "steal no more." 



Solon Robinson. 



Madison, July 4th, 1834. 



Description of Northwestern Indiana 



[Madison Republican and Banner, Jan. 15, 1835 1 ] 



Robinson's Prairie, Oakland Co., la. 

 Dec. 16th, 1834. 



Messrs. Lodge & Patrick: — I avail myself of the pleas- 

 ure and take the privilege of addressing you and through 

 you some information not only of myself, but of the coun- 

 try, that I hope will be interesting to my friends and 

 acquaintances and many of your readers. 



Your first inquiry will be "where is the place you date 

 from." It is the territory which forms the North West 

 corner of Indiana — lying west of Laporte county and be- 

 tween the Kankakee river and Lake Michigan. Being 

 one of the first settlers, I have named it "Oakland 

 county," as descriptive of most of the timber in it. 2 This 

 Prairie having no other name, and I having moved the 

 first white family on to it, has been called "Robinson's 

 Prairie" by way of distinction. My location is 35 miles 

 South West of Michigan city on the Old Sioux Indian 



1 Reprinted in Indiana Magazine of History, 4:66-70, and in Gary 

 Evening Post, August 27, 1918, with comments by A. F. Knotts. 

 * The region was officially named Lake County in 1836. 



II. OF ILL UB. 



