While officially founded in 1837, Bureau County traces its roots back before the birth of our nation. During this period, traders and settlers began to arrive throughout what is now North Central Illinois, finding an abundance of rich fertile prairie land. Those early years were extremely tough on our early settlers, often struggling to survive both the untamed wilderness and the dangers of the Indian Wars. Around the time our forefathers were declaring independence from the British, a French trader by the name of Pierre de Beuro established a trading post near the mouth of a creek along the Illinois River. He would eventually become the namesake for that creek, Big Bureau Creek, a small community near by, Bureau Junction, and after several decades, our county itself.