USA > Michigan > Van Buren County > A History of Van Buren County, Michigan: A Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its. > Part 53
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Tavern and acquired rather an unsavory and undesirable reputation. Charles N. Poor, a blacksmith in Keeler, removed his shop to Cole- man's new location, where he remained and stuck to his bellows as long as the stages stuck to the road, after which he removed to California.
Aaron W. Broughton, who came to Hamilton in 1839, brought with him a considerable stock of merchandise, opened up quite a pretentious store near the residence of Philotus Haydon, and for a considerable time transacted a flourishing business. Mr. Brough- ton removed to Paw Paw, where he spent the remainder of his life. He became an influential citizen of the county, and in 1846 was elected to the office of judge of the county court.
SCHOOLS THEN AND NOW
There were no grist mills easy of access to the early settlers of Hamilton, and as "going to mill" was no pleasant task not infre- quently the home made mill on the top of a hollowed out stump was brought into requisition for a temporary supply of corn meal, or "johnny-cake timber," as it was sometimes called.
About the year 1837 or 1838 Mrs. Millard, who lived with her daughter, Mrs. Bennett, taught a day school and a Sunday school at her mother's house. Not long afterward Robert Nesbitt pro- cured the services of Miss Litchfield, who came from Pennsylva- nia to teach his children. The first public school was taught in the Little Red Schoolhouse near Coleman's tavern in 1837, and was patronized by some twenty pupils.
The condition of the public schools of the township at the pres- ent time is shown by the following official figures: Total number of pupils of school age, 266; volumes in school libraries, 1,061; number of schoolhouses, nine; estimated value of school property, $7,600; district indebtedness, $150; teachers employed, nine; ag- gregate number of months school taught, seventy-three; sum paid for teachers' salaries, $3,065. To the township was apportioned the sum of $2,032.50 from the primary school fund of the state for the year 1911.
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While there are no church edifices in Hamilton, the people are not without religious privileges. There are two Methodist Epis- copal societies holding regular meetings and there are three Sun- day schools.
The secret societies are Hamilton Grange, Patrons of Husbandry, which has upwards of seventy members; the Modern Woodmen, and two societies of the Gleaners. The ladies have a club of their own, not secret.
The inhabitants of the township are practically all engaged in
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the pursuit of agriculture and horticulture. The grape industry is becoming of some importance, there being several hundreds of acres of vineyard in the eastern part of the township, while celery is extensively cultivated on the low lands in the south-eastern por- tion.
THE HAMILTON TOWNSHIP FAIR
An unique feature in the history of the township, which is worthy of special notice, is the Hamilton Township Fair. The following sketch of the origin and growth of that institution was written by Arthur W. Haydon, at the request of the compiler of this work : "In the spring of 1876, a party of Hamilton farmers went to a sheep shearing festival at the home of B. G. Buel, on Little Prairie Ronde. At the next grange meeting the writer spoke of the good time they had and of the value of such meetings in general and suggested that the Hamiltonians hold an annual sheep shearing and organize a township fair. Captain Josiah Hendryx, Henry Smith and others spoke in favor of the plan, and from this beginning the first fair was held at the grange hall.
"It began as a township fair, but soon claimed jurisdiction throughout the world.
"As it finally developed, it differed essentially from the ordinary fair in that it was entirely free as to entries and admission, and its premiums consisted of honorary cards or ribbons. The neces- sary funds to cover expenses were secured by a moderate charge for booths, games, amusements, etc.
"It styles itself 'The Great Free Fair;' dear to the hearts of the children and also to the 'grown ups,' who like to take a day off, meet friends and have a good time.
"It has been addressed from year to year by noted men, govern- ors, congressmen and candidates for high public position, who come gladly and without pay to meet the 'dear people' of Hamilton and vicinity.
"It is at the present time less of a fair and more of a reunion, and its continued popularity is evidenced by an attendance of from one thousand to five thousand people. The township has purchased forty acres of land adjoining the grange hall property for the present use, at least, of the fair. Ultimately this may be- come Hamilton's 'Picnic Park,' if the forest trees growing thereon can be protected from fires.
"Taking a retrospective glance over the history of Hamilton, the greatest benefits seem to have come from the advent and the influence of the grange, the fair, and later the Woodmen, the Gleaners and the Woman's club.
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"Though without a village as a business center, we have the Grange Hall, suitable for church and funeral services; also used as a town hall, for caucuses, rallies and elections; for the fair, en- tertainments, socials, lectures, parties, theatricals, etc. These ad- vantages, together with the great work done within the various societies, have resulted in concentrating and developing social ties and friendships, and building up an interest and pride in Hamilton among its citizens."
Mr. Haydon speaks none too enthusiastically of the township of which he has been, ever since arriving at years of maturity, an influential and highly respected citizen.
A spring time or early summer drive along some of the fine highways of the town, between rows of magnificent shade trees, with elegant farm buildings on either side, fertile farms covered with bountiful crops, orchards in full bloom, filling the air with fragrance, thrifty vineyards clothed in a dress of emerald green, presents a scene greatly to be enjoyed. While Hamilton is not among the most populous of the townships of the county, it is one of the best and its thrifty, intelligent people keep fully abreast of the developments of these twentieth century days.
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CHAPTER XXVIII
TOWNSHIP OF HARTFORD
FIRST THINGS AND EVENTS-ALLEN'S PAPER TOWN-FIRST AC- TUAL SETTLERS-TERRITORIAL AND OFFICIAL-" WHEN THE WORLD GOES WRONG WITH ME"-THE VILLAGE OF HARTFORD- EDUCATIONAL AND PROFESSIONAL-CHURCHES AND SOCIETIES- BUSINESS AND INDUSTRIES.
Nearly all have passed away, Our pioneers we knew so well, Before whose steady, sturdy strokes The mighty forests, prostrate fell. The winter blast that sweeps the sky, No more disturbs their calm repose Than Summer evening's latest sigh, That o'er them gently blows.
As the present generation is enjoying their heritage in this fruit- ful land bequeathed to them by pioneers of stalwart worth, they should pause and consider whence came the fine development of their inheritance, and be not like the animals that roamed the primeval forests, partaking of the food they found in such abun- dance, without ever looking up to see whence it came.
Michigan first became known to the white man some two hun- dred and fifty years ago. It was then occupied by the Miami In- dians, who afterward migrated to the eastward. Their camp fires had scarcely ceased to burn before the ancestors of the present Pottawattamies swept south around Lake Michigan from Ouiscon- sin (Wisconsin) taking possession of this beautiful land.
Michigan is an Indian word signifying "monstrous lake." The Ottawas say it was pronounced by them "Mi-chi-gum."
NAMED AND ORGANIZED
The township of Hartford was organized in 1840, by act of the legislature. Ferdino Olds, Burrill A. Olney, Thomas Conklin and some others settled in the southern part of the township as early as 1837. Ferdino Olds, being the first settler, was permitted to name the town which he did, calling it Hartland, after his native 513
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town in the state of New York, but learning of another town of the same name in the state, at the suggestion of Mr. Olney, the name was changed to Hartford.
After the first election, nearly every man in the township was filling one or more offices. The officers chosen at that first town meeting as follows: Supervisor, Joseph Ruggles; township clerk, Burrell A. Olney; township treasurer, Joseph Ruggles; assessors, Thomas Conklin, Richard B. Everitt and Alexander Newton ; high- way commissioners, Richard B. Everitt, Cornelius Williams, Alvah De Long and Alexander Newton; constables, Alexander Newton, Richard B. Everitt, Smith Johnson and Burrell A. Olney.
FIRST THINGS AND EVENTS
The first schoolhouse, built of logs, was erected in the southeast part of the township. There were five pupils, and the school was taught by Olive Poole who received the munificent salary of $1.25 per week.
The first Protestant sermon preached in the township was by Rev. John Hammond, a Baptist traveling missionary, father of the late Henry Hammond and Mrs. Brodhead.
The first wedding was that of Mehitable Cone to Thomas Kemp. The next day Lucy Allen and James Griffin, and Abigail Mellen and Edward Eber were married at the home of Ira Allen. This double wedding was conducted by two magistrates, William Thomas and Burrell A. Olney, each marrying one couple and di- viding the honors and the fees. No cards were issued, no wedding bells were rung and few presents were given. At that time there was but a trail between Hartford and Watervliet, in Berrien county, along which the bridal party passed in single file, in order to be present at a dance and supper gotten up by the two bride- grooms at the latter place.
In 1852 Wilkes and Fowler built a house on what is now the southwest corner of Main and Center streets in the village of Hartford. Wilkes raised a small crop of wheat, took it to Niles and traded it for whiskey and soon afterward the place was nick- named "Bloody Corners." Hartford postoffice and a semi-weekly mail between Paw Paw and St. Joseph was established in 1855. James Griffin was the first postmaster.
Mr. Engle says: "I came to Hartford in the fall of 1855 and built a log cabin ten by twelve feet, one mile east of Stoughton's Corners, where I lumbered during the winter; returned the fol- lowing year accompanied by my sister, Mrs. P. A. Travis. I was married in 1857 and again returned with my wife and my brother, the late Dr. W. A. Engle, and built in what is now the village of
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Hartford. Weare Hilliard and Roswell Hart, who had settled here two years before, were our nearest neighbors-Roswell and I owned one partnership dog. I well remember how all the cattle of the surrounding country used to congregate at night on the main corner to rid themselves of the flies and how the jargon of fifty cow bells-more or less-disturbed our slumbers, until, in our wrath, we would arise and let loose the dog which never failed to scatter them like autumn leaves before the wind."
The lands embraced in the present township of Hartford were first opened for settlement in 1829. In 1834, a noted hunter and trapper, the first white man ever known to come to Hartford, built a log shanty one mile east of the present village of Hartford and covered it with bark. Here he spent his winters hunting and trap- ping, returning to Niles in the county of Berrien, which place he made his summer headquarters. His cabin was called the "Half- way House," being about equidistant from Dowagiac creek and Black river. His habitual dress was trousers of deer-skin, a blouse and a slouch hat. He continued to occupy his shanty until 1844. This cabin remained for a good many years and was designated as the "Hunter House."
ALLEN'S PAPER TOWN
In 1835 John Allen opened business in Brush Creek (Lawrence) on the credit system, and made a failure. Being of a speculative turn, he conceived the idea of platting a village and disposing of the lots to strangers in the east.
"Could we with ink the ocean fill, Were Earth of parchment made, And every single stick a quill, Each man a scribe by trade, To write the tricks of scheming men Would dip the ocean dry."
At that time Waterford (Watervliet) was in its infancy. Hog Creek was about half way between Brush Creek and Waterford, and so our pioneer speculator located his imaginary village on the stream referred to, a few rods north of where it emptied its wa- ters into the Paw Paw river, naming it Middletown, and proceeded with Yankee shrewdness to make sale of lots to people in his former Green Mountain home. At that time the late Luther Sutton, then but a lad, was one of the parties to a practical joke in con- nection with Allen's paper town. Some half dozen families who had gathered at Brush Creek-its original name was Mason, but it was then better known as Brush Creek-and, supposing Middle- town to be quite a village, planned to make it a visit. The com-
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pany consisted of some half dozen ragged men and as many bare- foot boys. One of the company, John Miller, a Mohawk Dutch- man, being rather more destitute of clothing than the others, was ashamed to go among strangers so scantily arrayed, and so Humph- rey Barnum-the Barnums were all noted for being great jokers- lent the Dutchman his coat. Bent on reaching the town, the party started westward, past Mud and Sutton's lakes, through the brush and over logs, finally reaching a small stream where they halted to partake of their lunch. Mr. Barnum then informed them that he would take them to the Public Square and introduce them to the leading citizens of the place, and piloting them up the bluff bank of the creek, he said "Here they are boys, the residents of the place are all cannibals (mosquitoes). Flee for your lives." The joke was appreciated by the company and was the source of much merriment for a long time afterward.
The site of this paper village was covered by a dense forest for years thereafter. It was finally cleared off, with the expectation of converting it into a skunk farm, but skunk skins declined in value and so the place escaped being called Skunkville. Some ten or twelve years ago it was purchased by a Chicago party and con- verted into a duck and goose farm, but the venture did not prove to be a paying investment and it was abandoned.
It is said that what caused the name of the stream to be changed from "Middletown Creek" to "Hog Creek" was the following cir- cumstance : A gentleman having heard that the waters of the creek were strongly impregnated with medicinal properties decided to make an investigation and if he found the report to be true, his intention was to establish a sanitarium. He drank freely from the stream and was very much encouraged. He found that the water had a brackish taste, very like the waters he had drank at different watering places, but on looking around, he discovered a decaying hog in the stream, just above his place. He left suddenly, feeling somewhat "sea sick" and sought the aid of a doctor, and so Hart- ford lost a prospective sanitarium.
For several years, the site has been owned by Dr. Parker, who has planted several acres with different varieties of roses down to the very water's edge, and so the name of the locality has been re- deemed and it is now known as "Roseville."
The prospect is that during the coming season, the springs at the head of this creek will be piped to the village, which, if done, will supply the community with abundance of as pure spring wa- ter as can be found anywhere in the state.
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FIRST ACTUAL SETTLERS
The first actual settlers within the present limits of the town- ship of Hartford were Ferdino Olds and family who located on section twenty-nine. Mr. Olds had a family of ten children, most of them born after he came to Hartford. He departed this life in 1856. A little later two of his brothers settled in the township, Hezekiah and Orson. The Olds family have been prominent in the development of both the township and the village of Hartford.
Henry Hammond was the next settler. He located on section thirty-four and erected a cabin for temporary use in 1837. Both he and his wife bent their energies to the construction of a better and more commodious dwelling, and soon had a comfortable log house which they occupied as soon as completed. Here, on the 3d day of January, 1838, a daughter was born to them, the first white child born in the township. This was Catharine Hammond, after- ward the wife of Hiram E. Stratton. (We used to call her "Kate," when she was a schoolmate of the compiler.)
The first white male child born in the township was Luke Conk- lin, son of Thomas Conklin, born in 1838. Thomas Conklin came to Kalamazoo from New York in 1834, but did not remain. In the fall of 1836, in company with his brother James, he came back to Kalamazoo-then Bronson- and while there, in behalf of him- self, his brother, Mr. Sellick, James Spinnings and Burrill A. Olney, he entered and paid for about a thousand acres of govern- ment land. In the winter of 1837 the two brothers and Sellick built log cabins on sections five and six in the township of Keeler. Olney and Spinnings came the next spring, arriving in Hartford on the 14th day of March, 1837. Spinnings lived with Olney. He died on the 2d day of May, 1841, being the first death in the town- ship.
Mr. Olney was a man of great energy and ambition, and was possessed of a high degree of business ability. After clearing up his farm and cultivating it for twenty-five years or more he en- tered into a large lumbering business at Watervliet, in the adjoin- ing county of Berrien, the firm with which he was connected being known as Swain, Olney & Company. The business was very suc- cessful and profitable. At the time of his death, Mr. Olney was regarded as one of the wealthiest men in the county. His son, Horace M. Olney, is the president of the First National Bank of Paw Paw and also of the Olney National Bank at Hartford, the only two national banks in the county. Thomas Conklin remained a resident of Hartford until his death which occurred January 28, 1888.
Rufus Sayres located lands on section twenty-four at an early
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day, but did not become a resident. He sold his place to Horace Dowd in 1843. Mr. Dowd became a permanent resident and was active in the organization of the Baptist church in the village of Hartford. He died on the fourth day of July, 1870.
Smith Johnson was also a settler in 1843. He sold out to Will- iam Thomas, who became a man of some prominence in the com- munity. He served a term in the state legislature in 1875 and filled numerous local official positions.
Alvah DeLong was a settler of the town in 1839. He removed to California where he died. Two of his brothers, Asher and Allen, became residents of the township. Their father, a Revolu- tionary soldier, lived with his sons. He died at the extreme age of one hundred and two years.
In the fall of 1837 William Everitt and his son, Richard B., settled on section twenty-six and about the same time Alexander Newton settled on section thirteen. In 1839 Joseph Ruggles and family came from Huron county, Ohio, and located on section thirty-one.
Ira Allen, who was a soldier in the War of 1812, located in Hart- ford in 1839, having previously been a resident of Lawrence. He died about 1875. Charles P. Sheldon was also a prominent early citizen of the township and was the first settler on the north side of the Paw Paw river. He was several times elected as supervisor and was chosen as representative in the legislature in 1853.
Fabius Miles, another somewhat noted man, located three hun- dred acres on section twelve in 1844. He also served as a member of the state house of representatives for the session of 1859-60.
Adoniram J. Dyer came to Hartford about 1850 and engaged in teaching. In 1853, with a small company, he crossed the plains to California, with ox teams. They were six months in reaching the Pacific coast, but since that time, Mr. Dyer says, he has sev- eral times passed over nearly the same route in three or four days. He was instrumental in building the first store in the village of Hartford, which was afterward remodeled and fitted up for a hotel and was widely known as the Rassette House. The postoffice block now occupies the same site. Returning from California in 1855, Mr. Dyer became the manager of Cross & Andrews saw-mill, some- times shipping as much as 150,000 feet of lumber in cribs, floated down the Paw Paw river to St. Joseph, thence across the lake to Chicago. Millions of feet of lumber and logs have been thus floated down that stream. Mr. Dyer and his late brother, Andrew J., vouch for the following anecdote: On a trip to his father's place, southeast of the town, he saw a large flock of wild turkeys settle down behind a fallen tree. Young A. J. crept cautiously up to the tree, and, seeing a number of turkeys' feet on the opposite
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side, he carefully introduced his hand under the log, grasped the patriarch of the flock by the legs and held him until his brother dug a hole under the log large enough to draw the old gobbler through. When dressed, his captive bird weighed twenty-one pounds and the Dyer family and their neighbors, who were invited to partake, as was the custom in those days, enjoyed a great feast. After that, Adoniram was considered to be the family Nimrod. A few years later he caught a live deer that was being held at bay by a dog. Dyer never would admit that he failed to get any veni- son on that occasion, but those who were acquainted with the abil- ity of a wild deer as a fighter, declare that he came home nearly naked and bleeding from the numerous wounds inflicted by his quarry.
A SOLDIER OF THE REVOLUTION
Perhaps the only Revolutionary soldier who ever lived in Van Buren county was Francis DeLong, who was born in 1760 and died in 1862. at the extreme old age of one hundred and two years and eight months. He and his wife came to the township of Hartford in 1854 and lived with their children.
Mr. DeLong enlisted in the American army on the 13th day of September, 1777. He was taken prisoner by the English forces at Charleston, South Carolina, and was held as a prisoner for five months: he was then taken to the island of Jamaica, where he was held for six years, when he was transferred to Halifax and detained for a year : then sent to Montreal, and three months afterward he and his comrades in captivity were sent to the West Indies to fight the natives. but not being of the requisite stature of an English soldier, he was discharged, a stranger in a strange land, without money and without friends. He finally succeeded in working his way to Northern New York, where he was married and raised a family of eight children.
When the old veteran was told that Fort Sumter had been bom- barded and captured by the rebel forces, he wept, but when told that Lincoln had called for troops to put down the rebellion, he roused up like one from sleep and said: "Eighty-one years ago I volunteered and fought to save Charleston from being captured by the English army, and I am now ready to volunteer again and do all I can to save my country for whose liberty I fought and dragged out so many of the years of my youth in British prisons."
The old veteran was laid to rest in the Hartford cemetery, in military style, in the presence of friends, relatives and a few sol- diers, who had just been sworn into the United States service by C. H. Engle. The scene was an impressive one. "We are con- signing to his grave," says Mr. Engle, "in the presence of the
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young soldiers, one of the last of the Revolutionary heroes who fought for the liberty that was secured to us by such loyal souls as Francis DeLong."
"Soldier, Rest thee from a hundred years of toil; Rest thee: Nobly thou didst fight for Freedom's soil. We'll go forth and battle for our Country's cause, Until all traitors shall obey our union's laws."
Three grandsons of the old hero were in the Civil war-Silas, Henry and Nathan DeLong. The first two were wounded and Silas was a prisoner in Libby prison for more than a year. Free- man Stowe, a great-grandson, was also a soldier and was also wounded during his service. Numerous descendants of the old veteran, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, are residents of the townships of Hartford and Bangor.
Nathan DeLong was a great hunter, known as the "Nimrod" of the family. The following anecdote is related in his own words: "I had been out hunting one day, and as I was returning home, just south of the Jackson Hotel (now the site of the Postoffice block), a big buck jumped up within a few feet of me. I fired and he fell as if dead, but when I came to where he lay, I saw that the ball had broken off one of his horns close to his head. I com- menced to reload, but found there was not a ball in my, pouch. I grabbed a rope that I always took with me while hunting, tied it about his neck and hitched him to a staddle close by. I had no sooner done this than he recovered from the shock and sprang to his feet, and of all the pitchings, divings, and gyrations that that buck went through was a 'sin to snakes;' it beat any circus per- formance I ever did see. I ran half a mile to my home in the pinery, reloaded my gun and returned as quickly as I could. My prisoner was as quiet as a lamb, but when he saw me the circus again began in earnest. I fired. The circus was ended. When dressed, that buck weighed two hundred pounds."
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