USA > Michigan > Van Buren County > A History of Van Buren County, Michigan: A Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its. > Part 54
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TERRITORIAL AND OFFICIAL
When the county of Van Buren was organized in 1837 and di- vided into seven townships, what is now the township of Hartford was a part of Lawrence and remained so until 1839, when it was set off from that township and made a part of Keeler. The next year, 1840, the legislature enacted that township three south, of range sixteen west, should be set off and organized into a township by the name of Hartford and that the first official meeting should be held at the house of Smith Johnson.
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At the following presidential election, held November 2 and 3, 1840, eighteen votes were polled in the township, twelve Demo- cratic and six Whig. The citizens who exercised their right of franchise on that occasion were Alexander Newton, Cornelius Wil- liams, Peter Williamson, Henry Hammond, Smith Johnson, Bur- rill A. Olney, Richard B. Everitt, and Joseph Ruggles, who de- posited their ballots on the first day of the election, and Ira Allen, Fernando C. Ruggles, Caleb Johnson, Hezekiah Olds, Martin Allen, Paul Wilcox, Clark A. Lapham, Thomas Conklin, James Spinning and Ferdino Olds, on the second day.
At the presidential election of 1908 the vote of the township had increased to 583, as follows: Taft, Republican, 316; Bryan, Demo- crat, 242; Chafin, Prohibitionist, sixteen; Debs, Socialist, four; Hisgen, Independent, five.
Following is a list of the names of those who have filled the of- fice of supervisor of the township: Joseph Ruggles, Burrill A. Ol- ney, Charles P. Sheldon, Sylvester G. Easton, William Thomas, Roswell Hart, Lyman Bridges, Howland C. Taylor, Thomas J. Johns, Jesse Thomas, Stephen Doyle, Henry Spaulding, Archi- bald P. Mc Williams, Howard Lobdell, John S. Thorn, Walter O. Gage, John Ryan, John McAlpine, Jasper H. Thompson and Charles E. Anderson (present incumbent ).
Of the foregoing named gentlemen the following served more than two years : Messrs. Olney and McWilliams, three years each ; Lobdell, four years; McAlpine died while serving his fifth year, and was succeeded by Thompson to fill vacancy ; Hart served eight years.
The first mail route through the township was established in 1854, between St. Joseph and Paw Paw. The mail was carried on horseback but no mail was delivered in Hartford until the next year, when a postoffice was established at Hartford Center, as it was then called, now the village of Hartford. The first school was taught in the spring of 1837 by Mrs. Martha Conklin, wife of Thomas Conklin, in their own house. The first school house, built of logs, was erected in the southeastern part of the township, and the first school therein was taught by Miss Olive Poole, who re- ceived $1.25 per week for her services.
The official educational records for 1911 are, in part, as follows : Number of pupils of school age, 681; number of volumes in dis- trict libraries, 1,995; ten schoolhouses; estimated value of school property, $24,200; district indebtedness, $2,601.72; aggregate number months of school, 167; number teachers employed, twenty ; sum paid for teachers' salaries, $8,153.50. Amount of moneys awarded to the township from the primary school fund of the state, $5,160.
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The assessed valuation of the township in 1840, the year of its organization, amounted to $31,678.75, as follows: Resident realty, $2,262.50 ; personal estate, $521.00; non-resident realty. $28,895.25. The sum total of taxes levied for that year was $401.52. The names of the resident taxpayers appearing on the roll were Alex- ander Newton, C. Williams, Hezekiah Olds, Ferdino Olds, Alvah DeLong, Smith Johnson, Caleb Johnson, Henry Minor, Ira Al- len, Joseph Ruggles, Fernando Ruggles, Burrill A. Olney, Thomas Conklin, Henry Hammond, Richard B. Everitt and Peter William- son.
The valuation of the township, including the village, for the year 1911, was $1,197,800, and the total of taxes levied was the sum of $19,853.97.
The population of the township, according to the census of 1910, was 2,597, only one other township in the county-Paw Paw- having a greater number, not including the city of South Haven. It also ranks second in point of wealth, Paw Paw being first.
"WHEN THE WORLD GOES WRONG WITH ME"
The following little poem written by Mrs. Mary L. Hall, one of our devoted pioneer mothers, entitled "When the World Goes Wrong with Me," voices the sentiment that actuated the heroic, self-sacrificing women who so nobly struggled in the primitive wil- derness to assist their husbands, brothers and fathers in securing a livelihood and educating their children so that they might become upright, God-fearing men and women, an honor to their parents, to the community and to themselves.
Wild birds swiftly find their nests, When the storm beats hard abreast, Honey bees spin home in haste, When black the clouds threaten waste; Oh! then I gladly fly to Thee, When the world goes wrong with me.
Tracked by hounds, the helpless fawn, Sleeping in the early dawn, Wakes to hear the cruel bay Of her foes not far away. Little fawn, I'm scared like thee, When the world goes wrong with me.
Lord, perhaps there's in thine eyes, Nothing living to despise; Love, forgiving, fond and true, Always, always dwells with you: Why should I not flee to Thee, When the world goes wrong with me?
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THE VILLAGE OF HARTFORD
The village of Hartford, the only village in the township, is lo- cated on sections fifteen and sixteen, so near to the center of the township that it was formerly called "Hartford Center." It was platted on the 3d day of March, 1859, by Truman Stratton, W. W. Shepard, Weare Hilliard, James Wolcott, Roswell Hart, J. C. Crandall and James Smith. Since the original plat was made, there have been sixteen additions to the town. It was incorporated by a special act of the legislature in 1877 (Local Acts of 1877, p. 99). It covers about one square mile of territory and has between five and six miles of streets, on either side of which are the best of cement walks, shaded by beautiful maples.
The population in 1910 was 1,268, making it third in number among the villages of the county, being exceeded only by Deca- tur and Paw Paw.
The growth of the village was quite moderate until the build- ing of the Pere Marquette railway in 1870, since which time there has been a constant, steady increase of both population and of business. The construction of the narrow gauge road from Law- ton to South Haven, intersecting the Pere Marquette at Hartford, which road has since been converted into a standard gauge, and is now known as the "Fruit Belt" line, gives the town excellent transportation facilities; none better in the entire county, except the city of South Haven, which, in addition to two railroads, has direct steamboat connection with the cities on the other side of Lake Michigan. .
There are sixteen daily passenger trains passing through and stopping at the village and a greater number of passengers it is claimed, get on and off the trains there than at any other station on the Pere Marquette railway between New Buffalo and Grand Rapids. There are also twelve daily freight trains on the Pere Marquette and four on the Fruit Belt line and more than four thousand carloads of produce and merchandise are handled yearly. There are upwards of three miles of side tracks and yet they are often crowded for lack of sufficient room.
The first store in the village was built by Willard Stratton, who did a small mercantile business. He was succeeded by Henry Baird, who found the business to be neither very extensive nor profitable. C. H. Engle says that Baird told him that a mouse that he had tried in vain to catch had eaten up all his profits, and, adds Mr. Engle, "I believed it."
In 1858 Cyrus Boynton opened. a store in the Rassette House. He brought on a large number of sacks of coffee and some other goods. After he had been doing business for a while he remarked
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that where he had kept store "out west" everybody wanted coffee and not much of anything else, but in Hartford they seemed to want everything else, but not much coffee.
The following incidents related by Mr. Engle are interesting and will not be out of place here: "Along in the sixties, during the time when we had state prohibition, Harvey Tamblin ran a groc- ery store and saloon near the present site of Bennett's hardware store. One evening an old soak known as Plutarch called at his place and wanted his quart bottle filled with whiskey. Tamblin refused, saying he had twice been fined by 'Squire Engle for sell- ing liquor in violation of law and that if he were to be again con- victed, he would be sent to jail sure.' Finally he told him that if he would not take the bottle out of his pocket until he was five miles from town, he would fill it for him.
" 'Oh, Mr. Tamblin, you are a good man, I will not touch it in ten miles of Hartford,' said old Plutarch. Tamblin then filled the bottle with kerosene and blackberry juice. The old fellow put it into his pocket saying, 'and sure Mr. Tamblin, you are a good man and I'll not betray you,' and started east in the direction of the village of Lawrence.
"Tamblin, anxious to witness the result, followed him. Plu- tarch went but a short distance when he sat himself down in a fence corner. Tamblin unnoticed crawled into an adjacent cor- ner. Plutarch took out the bottle, saying 'Ah, my good friend, it is you and I for it now,' and began to guzzle down the mixture; but as he got a fair taste of the dose he began to gag and spit; then holding up the bottle in the light of the full moon, in won- der and surprise he said, 'Will the Gott of the universe tell me what that is?'
"In 1861, after our first soldiers had gone to the front, several boys from thirteen to fifteen years of age used to parade the the streets with fife and drum, as the soldiers had done before them. During the last years of the war most of these boys enlisted. I swore them into the service and I do not know one of them that lived to return home. I can never recall this sad fact without say- ing in my heart, 'Oh, the cruelty of war.' "
"During the war," continued Mr. Engle, "I was called on to marry a couple some distance north of the village. The groom ar- rived on the scene very late in the evening, and then astonished and disappointed the bridal party by refusing to marry the girl. [ asked him what he meant by such action. He started for the door and beckoned me to follow. When we were on the outside he said he was engaged to the girl before the breaking out of the war, but so many had enlisted that men were getting scarce and, said he, 'I am now sure I can do better.' I was dumfounded and
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told him that there was no punishment known to the law that was adequate to his case. I learned afterward that he was drafted and hustled off to the front, but it was near the close of the war, and he soon returned home and had the cheek to again ask that girl's hand in marriage; but the plucky maiden replied, 'No, sir, the volunteer boys are now home and I can do better.' "
EDUCATIONAL AND PROFESSIONAL
The first school in what is now the village district was taught by Miss Antoinette Stoughton, in the dwelling house of Harvey Tamblin. The first schoolhouse in the district was built the next year, by William Shepard.
The present schoolhouse was erected in 1903, at a cost of $16,- 000, besides fixtures which are all modern and up-to-date. It con-
HIGH SCHOOL, HARTFORD
tains ten commodious rooms, one of which is occupied by the Nor- mal class. The building is heated by two furnaces of modern type and is centrally located in a grove of three acres. The school ranks among the best of the graded schools of the county. Its graduates are admitted to the Michigan University on presentation of diploma and without additional examination. Under the man- agement of Professor George S. Foster, who has been its efficient superintendent for the past six years, the school has been ex- ceedingly prosperous. The official figures for the school year of 1910-11 reveal the following items: Number of pupils in dis- trict between the ages of five and twenty, 341; non-resident pu- pils attending school, sixty-eight; average daily attendance, 276;
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volumes in school library, 835; value of school property, $15,000; district indebtedness, $2,500; teachers employed, ten; aggregate number of months of school, nine; salaries paid teachers, $5,032.50.
Dr. Milton F. Palmer settled in Hartford and commenced the practice of medicine in 1857. He was the second postmaster in the place and a great sportsman. He killed several deer in the vicinity, and ducks, wild turkeys and squirrels without number. His gun was named the "Rodlong." He planted an apple orchard in the center of the village, and said at the time that the fruit it would produce would be much better for the children than his medicine, all of which was verified in time. At least, it cost them less than his pills, for he was never known to drive a child out of his orchard.
Dr. W. A. Engle settled in the place soon after Dr. Palmer and the two practiced their profession there for more than forty years. Dr. Engle was postmaster for several years. He was somewhat of a poetical turn of mind, published two very creditable volumes of poems and had a third volume nearly ready for the press at the time of his death, which occurred at Hartford, on the 20th day of November, 1907, in his eighty-second year.
The first lawyer to settle in the village was Alonzo H. Chandler, who is yet practicing his profession in the place. Not long after- ward Cenius H. Engle was admitted to the bar and for several years they were the only practitioners in the town.
The first saw-mill in the township of Hartford was erected in 1855, on the Paw Paw river, one mile north of the village, by Cal- vin Cross and John Andrews. In 1870 it was purchased by Will-
ANDERSON'S MILL, HARTFORD
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iam Anderson, who converted a part the structure into a grist- mill, and for a number of years ran the two in connection. Since the death of their father, which occurred in the spring of 1900, the property has been managed by two of his sons, Julian H. and Edgar A. Anderson. A few years ago, the brothers greatly im- proved the water power and started an electric plant which sup- plies the village with both street and inside lights. They are en- titled to much credit for their venture, which has been a success, as at the time of the construction of the plant neither of them had had any experience, or knowledge, practical or theoretical, of the business. At the present time, Marion O., son of Julian H. Anderson, has immediate charge of the working of the plant. He is a graduate of one of the best electrical schools in the country and thoroughly qualified for the work.
The first steam grist-mill in the village was built in 1878 by E. J. Walker and is still in operation in connection with a hoop and heading mill.
The first livery in the place was established by Jacob Craiger, who ran a daily line of stages between St. Joseph and Paw Paw until the completion of the Pere Marquette Railway, after which he continued the line between Hartford and Paw Paw until the opening of the "narrow gauge" in 1883. Craiger was a very energetic man; no storm prevented him from being on time if pos- sible. "No lion was ever in his way." His old livery barn was torn down a few years ago and one of the finest residences in the town erected on its site, owned and occupied by George Ocobock and his wife, Craiger's youngest daughter.
Hartford has one of the most beautiful parks in the state. cer- tainly the finest in the county. It contains about three acres of ground and is situated midway between the main part of the vil- lage and the railroad depot. The park is a great resort for pas- sengers in the summer season while waiting for trains. They are often heard to say "We are glad we did not make connections, for this is certainly one of the most charming places in the state of Michigan;" and they are right about it. It is not only a park, but it is a regular botanical garden as well; a perfect beauty spot, adorned as it is with an almost endless profusion of flowers of all varieties and colors. The park was presented to the village by Horace M. Olney, one of its foremost citizens, and is called "Ely Park," in memory of his mother, whose maiden name was Elv.
Hartford has also a neat Opera House.
The town has an excellent fire department, which was installed in 1899. The water tower is of sufficient height so that a stream can easily be thrown to the top of the highest buildings in the town.
There is a first class weekly paper, the Hartford Day Spring,
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published in the village. A more extended notice of this sheet will be found in the chapter of this work devoted to the press of the county.
There are two banks in the village, the Olney National and Mer- riman's banks, the latter a private institution.
The postoffice is located in what is known as the Postoffice block, on the southeast corner of Main and Center streets. The building was erected in 1906 by Horace M. Olney. It is a fine two story structure sixty feet square, of marbleized Portland cement. The ground floor is occupied by the Olney National Bank, the post- office and the office of the Hartford Day Spring. The second floor is used for office purposes. The building is modern in every re- spect, steam heated and elegantly furnished. The National Bank quarters seem to have been fitted up regardless of expense and the
ELY PARK, HARTFORD
postoffice is one of the very best in the county. Thirteen mails per day are handled-during Christmas week of 1911, 279 pouches and sacks of mail matter were disposed of. Four rural mail car- riers are employed throughout the country adjacent to the town and they travel one hundred and thirteen miles each day, Sundays excepted. V. W. Olds, postmaster, and Estella M. Olds, his as- sistant, are about closing their eighth year in the office. During their administration the receipts of the office have increased forty- five per cent.
CHURCHES AND SOCIETIES
When the good people of Hartford desire to attend public wor- ship, they have the choice of five church organizations: The
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Methodist Episcopal, the Christian, the Congregational, the Bap- tist and the Latter Day Saints.
A Methodist society was formed as early as 1859 and used the old schoolhouse as a meeting place. Among the first members were Charles Doty, the first class leader; Sarah Doty, John and Maggie Van Ostrom and Fanny Goodenough. Some of the early clergy- man who attended the charge were Revs. J. Hoyt, C. C. Kellogg, H. H. Joy, T. T. George, G. A. Buell, J. W. Miller, F. I. Beard, J. W. Webster and J. P. Force. The church, however, was not recognized as a separate charge until 1873, when Rev. E. A. Tan- ner became its pastor. For a number of years afterward the churches at Hartford and Lawrence were united as one charge under the ministration of the same preacher. Since 1874 the fol- lowing pastors have served the church: Revs. S. C. Woodard, N. M. Steele, F. I. Bell, V. G. Boynton, L. W. Earl, L. S. Matthews, H. H. Parker, W. W. Lamport, W. A. Prouty, J. R. Oden, A. E. Hawley, H. L. Potter, G. F. Craig, G. D. Draper, H. A. Lyon, Geo. Killian, R. E. Quant and F. L. Niles (present pastor). The church now has 200 members and the Sunday school has an en- rolment of 190. The first superintendent of the Sunday school was C. H. Engle, who acted in that capacity for thirty-five years.
The First Baptist church was organized in the old district school- house, on the 17th day of November, 1858, by Rev. Harvey Mun- ger, with seventeen members. The present membership is 119. Since the pastorship of Elder Munger the church has been served by the following named ministers: Rev. Albert Gore, whose min- istrations were terminated by his enlistment in the Civil war; Revs. W. M. Simons, W. Gates, P. S. Dean, J. F. Ross, J. G. Port- man, S. Hendricks, Samuel Jackson, L. W. Olney, Charles Bailey, Walker, - Armstrong, - Chappell, J. Howard, - Dean, Charles Rock, E. E. Branch, C. B. Kendall, C. A. Salyer, - McConnell, F. A. Carlisle, J. B. Reynolds, Preston, and the present pastor, D. C. Henshaw. There is a flourishing Sunday school in connection with the church with a membership of about 100. J. D. Stewart is the superintendent. The first Sunday school was organized soon after the church with forty scholars and Jefferson Dowd as its superintendent. The present officers of the church are as follows: Deacons, Henry Brown, Kendrick Smith and Arthur Dowd; deaconesses, Mrs. Freeman Stowe, Mrs. L. Prichard and Mrs. George Webster; trustees, Ed. Ewald, Henry Brown, and James Clark. During the pastorate of Rev. J. F. Ross, in the early seventies, the present house of worship was purchased of the Universalist society, which, for a time, had been in quite a flourishing condition, but was finally abandoned, disposed of its church property and went out of existence. Vol. 1-34
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The Congregational church was organized in 1885 with twelve members, among whom were Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Spaulding, Mr. and Mrs. Van Vrankin, A. J. Dyer, Mrs. Smith and others. The following year the society built a fine house of worship on South Maple street. The church now has forty-five members.
The Christian, or Disciple church, as it is sometimes called, was organized in Reynolds' hall, now the town hall, in the spring of 1886, after a series of meetings held by Elder Levi Dewey of Dowagiac, who was its first pastor and who served the church for about four years. A house of worship was erected in 1887, on Shep- ard street. The church started with a charter membership of about fifty, mostly men and women in middle life. The following pastors have served it during the twenty-five years of its history : Levi Dewey, J. H. Hammond, J. H. Reese, Nathan Fellows, Garry L. Cook, Willard McCarthy, F. F. Schultz, Frank A. Taylor and James A. Brown, the present pastor, who has been its minister for the past five years. The church has a flourishing Sunday school, is free from debt and the future outlook is very promising.
The local congregation of the reorganized Church of Latter Day Saints is known as the Hartford branch. It was organized on the 6th day of September, 1885, with sixteen members, Henry Manea as president (pastor), and George Conolly as secretary. The pres- ent membership is forty-four. Francis Earl is president and. secretary. The church building is located at the corner of Mary and Barnard streets.
The town is also well represented by the ladies and gentlemen of mystic grips, signs and pass-words. Charter Oak Lodge, No. 231, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was instituted on the 7th day of May, 1874. The lodge now has a membership of about 100.
Hartford Rebekah Lodge, No. 281, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was organized on the 22d day of February, 1879, by au- thority of Grand Master James M. Servoss. The lodge now has 115 members.
Florida Lodge No. 309, A. F. and A. M., was instituted Jan- uary 17, 1873, with E. C. Hurd as worshipful master, Thomas J. Johns, senior warden, and James C. Crandall, junior warden. The lodge has 137 members at the present time.
Benevolence Eastern Star Lodge, No. 46, was instituted on the third day of October, 1877, with Allie Manley as worthy patron. A year later the name was changed to Benevolence Eastern Star Chapter and the number changed to 19. After a time the chap- ter, by reason of lack of interest, ceased to exist and was dormant until January 30, 1902, when it was revived with twenty-nine char- ter members and rechristened as Benevolence Chapter, No. 46, Order of the Eastern Star. Since the reorganization, it has been
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prosperous and now has a membership of 156. One of its members, Mrs. Emma Ocobock, has filled the position of worthy grand matron of Michigan and at the general grand chapter meeting at Jack- sonville, Florida, was elected to the office of grand worthy con- ductress.
A tent of the Knights of the Modern Maccabees, No. 230, was organized on the 15th day of August, 1890, by authority of W. S. Linton, great commander, and Major N. S. Boynton, grand rec- ord keeper. They now have about seventy members.
BUSINESS AND INDUSTRIES
The village business is transacted at one department store, two general dry goods stores, four groceries, two clothing and furnish- ing stores, three meat markets, three hotels, three eating rooms, one saw-mill, two stave and heading mills, two jewelry stores, two furniture stores, three shoe and repair shops, one bazaar, one 5 and 10-cent store, three canning factories, three cider mills. two grain elevators, three blacksmith-shops, one feed store, one grist- mill, two lumber yards, one garage, two machine shops, two livery barns and two banks, while five doctors look after the physical well being of its citizens and three lawyers settle the few disputes that arise among a happy and prosperous community.
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