A twentieth century history and biographical record of Branch County, Michigan, Part 11

Author: Collin, Henry P
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: New York : Lewis Publishing
Number of Pages: 1198

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" The most of our beds and clothing were saved. That we saved so much is more to be wondered at than that the rest perished, when I assure you that in the judgment of the family five minutes was the utmost allowed us from the first alarm, until safety compelled us to abandon the building. The west wind soon wrapped the back kitchen in flames, from which they saved but one bag of flour. By tearing down the board flaming fence the ruin was stayed, and the schoolhouse and milkhouse were preserved. As soon as things were moved back near the well, we had our beds taken to the schoolhouse, had a candle lighted, and tried to preserve our health by wrapping up in blankets. * * *

' With the help of Mr. Glass and sons, a partition has been nailed up (in the schoolhouse), the floor laid double, two windows put in, and every hour adds something to our comfort. * * Bennie, the Scotchman, served us faithfully ; the other poor fellow, a Dutchman, who was hired for a few days, on hearing the alarm, like most weak-minded persons, was so bewildered that, instead of going down stairs, which were perfectly safe, he threw him- self out of the window without even raising the sash. It is a wonder he did not break his neck."

Until June, 1836, the family lived in the schoolhouse (which remained standing until 1877 and was used as a dwelling within the memory of many now living). The bishop returned on the 28th of June, and a few days later the family departed, by way of Chicago road, for the west. Thus ended the Bishop Chase episode in Gilead history and the romantic settlement which was the starting point of the township.

GILEAD TOWNSHIP.

In a passage already quoted, Bishop Chase mentioned the Indian trail which he followed southeast from Adams Mills (in section 29 of Bronson), to Gilead lake. By noticing some of the settlers who followed the bishop into Gilead, it will be seen that this trail was the important route that directed the pioneers. Abishi Sanders, one of the prominent Gilead pioneers and the first supervisor of that township, came along the Chicago road from Marion county, Ohio, about the same time as the bishop, and on reaching Bronson's prairie, turned aside and followed the trail into Gilead, where he entered two hundred and forty acres of land in sections 8 and 18.

In one of her letters to the bishop Mrs. Chase mentions her neighbors, the Booth family. Benjamin Booth started from Onondaga county. New York, and came first to Oakland county, Michigan, whence he journeyed along with another Gilead pioneer, William Purdy, both intent on finding a suita- ble place of settlement. Arriving at Bronson in the spring of 1832, they heard of Bishop Chase and decided to make him a visit. Delighted with the beauti- ful country about Lake Gilead, and especially with the burr-oak openings, Mr. Booth entered land and built what was the second frame house in the township, on the south shore of Gilead lake. Mr. Purdy likewise made settle- ment, being the first blacksmith of that community.

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

In Mrs. Chase's letter describing the burning of the home, she men- tions the faithfulness of Mr. Bennie, who was then in the employ of the Chase establishment. This was James Bennie, who with his brother-in-law. John McKinley-both names being familiar to Gilead citizens-had come from Scotland. and after spending a few years in New York state came to Gilead in 1833. Mr. Mckinley made his first location on section 8, while Mr. Bennie soon moved into Bethel.

It is easy to see how settlers coming from the same locality in the east would tend to settle down in adjacent communities at the end of their west- ern migration. The necessary isolation of pioneer life would be overcome to some extent by the grouping together of families who had been associated in their old homes. This fact seems to find illustration in the number of families which Onondaga county, New York, furnished to the early settle- ment of Gilead. Included in the number are the well known names of Ben- jamin Booth, Francis Bull, the Marsh family-Wallace, Daniel, Ebenezer and John-and William Sweeting. all of whom came early and settled about Lake Gilead, on sections 5, 6, 7. 8 and 18.

Thus the first Gilead community was formed on the high rolling land about the lake. But in entering this part of the county, some followed the Indian trail on across the low, marshy land to the east of the Chase settle- ment, and locating near the east line of the township, formed the nucleus of East Gilead. The first of these was Ezekiel Fuller, who settled near the Kinderhook line. In 1836 came Benjamin S. Wilkins, who took up land in section 13. And in the same year Samuel Arnold, from New York state. located at the southeast corner of section II. His name became distinctive of the locality of " Arnold's Corners." now East Gilead.

By the census of October. 1837, there were 184 persons in Gilead town- ship. The greater number of these were at the original settlement, the Ar- nold's Corners community being just at the beginning of its growth. A postoffice had been located at the Chase home in 1834. and in some other directions progress was being made from the first stages of pioneer existence. Included in this census, besides the families of those already named, were . probably Don C. Mather, who lived near the south side of the town and was a millwright by trade : Burr D. Gray, a carpenter and joiner, who built some of the early houses of Gilead: Obed Dickinson, who, having stopped over night at the old Taylor Tavern on the Chicago road, was induced to buy land in Bethel and Gilead, and who at this time had the largest log house in the vicinity : and Job Williams, whose three hundred acres of land were on the north shore of Lake Gilead.

GIRARD TOWNSHIP.

As concerns fertility of soil, ease of cultivation and drainage, beautiful Girard prairie. seventy-five years ago as to-day, was one of the garden spots of Branch county. There is little doubt that at one time this level area was the bed of a large lake, whose waters were hemmed in by the encircling hills

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

on all sides until finally a cleft was made for the outlet at the western end, a short distance west of the Hodunk mills and the junction of the Coldwater and Hog creek streams. When this shore line was torn apart, the waters gradually escaped and left a beautifully level floor, soon to be overspread by luxuriant vegetation, in which state it remained until the appearance of white settlers.

Without conspicuous advantages of nature, Girard prairie would not have been one of the first spots chosen for settlement in the county. It was situated five or six miles north of the Chicago road. It was not in the line of migration. Yet Girard's history is practically contemporaneous in its begin- nings with that of Bronson and Coldwater townships. The excellence of the locality for agricultural purposes offered attractions to home-seekers which no other parts of the county could surpass, and thus it is that Girard was one of the first townships to be organized.

By reference to the account of the civil organization of the townships, it will be seen that when Girard was organized in 1834 it contained the entire north tier of townships ; that in 1836 this long strip was cut in half and that until 1838 Girard township comprised what is now Butler and Girard. Con- sequently, the census of October, 1837, which gave 448 inhabitants to Girard, included also the settlers in the present township of Butler. But with few exceptions the families enumerated at that date lived in the central area of Girard township.

The Corbus family was the first and best known of Girard's pioneers. Joseph C. and Richard W. Corbus, leaving Detroit, their native home, came along the Chicago road as far as Hillsdale county in 1828. In the following spring Richard W. came to Girard prairie. The specific reasons that brought him thither are not assigned, but it was good judgment that directed him to choose that place for his home. He did not remain alone for long, and he was only the first of a group of strong and worthy pioneers.

From a preceding chapter we know that an Indian village existed on the prairie at this time. It consisted of about twenty huts and a large dance house, and was located near the northwest corner of section 22. The Indians were very friendly, were generous in sharing what they had, and in one of the rough houses which was not then in use by an Indian family, Mr. Corbus, with his mother and niece, made his first home. He at once went to work to build a log house of his own, on section 21, and in about six weeks after his arrival it was completed and ready for occupancy. Richard, though the first settler, remained only until 1831, when, having made an exchange of property with his brother, he returned to Hillsdale county, while Joseph C. continued the name and activity of the Corbus family in Girard. His brother John also settled with him, but lived only a year or so. Joseph C. Corbus was one of the most prominent of pioneers, and his name often figures in township and county history.

Thus the first white settlement was located near where the village of Girard has since grown up. This was the favorite locality, and was known as the " east prairie," to distinguish it from the " west prairie " settlement,

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

which was nearer the forks of the Coldwater river and Hog creek. Edward S. Hanchett became a neighbor of Mr. Corbus in the fall of 1830, locating in section 22, and in July, 1831, section 15 received a noted settler in the person of James B. Tompkins, the surveyor who platted the village of Cold- water, who became the first supervisor of Girard township, and whose own career and that of his descendants is identified most honorably with this part of the county. His land was partly in section 15 and partly in section 22, being covered in part by the present village. John Cornish, the Quincy pioneer heretofore mentioned, had come here about the same time. but was not a permanent settler. William McCarty, the first sheriff of Branch county, also settled on section 15 in 1831.

Another well known family that settled on the "east prairie " before the census of 1837 was taken was the Van Blarcums, consisting of the father, William, and his sons, Joseph, John, Abram and William W. The first entry of land in section 16 was made in 1837 by Aura Smith, who had come from Saratoga county. New York. He opened the first stock of goods in the township and made the beginning of commercial enterprise for the village of Girard.

The "west prairie " settlement was just as large and important, and almost as early, as the one just described. On the west side of section 20 Henry Van Hyning had located in the latter part of 1830, and in January. 1831, Martin Barnhart, whose name has already figured in other connections with this narrative, located on the section to the north, section 17. Barnhart was from Wayne county. New York, and from the same county was John Parkinson, who settled on section 18. and was the first postmaster of this portion of the county.

Section 20 was also the first home of Benjamin H. Smith, so well known to the early annals of this township. A native of New Jersey, he came from Wayne county. New York, to Michigan in 1829, and in 1831 settled in Girard. He was an associate of Abram Aldrich, Martin Barnhart, James B. Tompkins. J. W. Mann and Lyman Fox in the first mill building in the township. Other "west prairie " settlers were Samuel and James Craig, who came in the spring of 1831 and moved into the partially completed log house begun by Mr. Van Hyning on section 20.

Abram and Asa Aldrich, whose names receive mention in connection with other localities and other affairs, were settlers on section 19 in 1833. and helped to increase the number of aggressive men who were bent on de- veloping this part of the county.

In the line of public improvements the most important early event in the history of Girard township was the establishment, in the summer of 1831. of what has ever since been known as the "Marshall road." This is the thoroughfare that bisects the township from north to south, passing through the village of Girard, and continuing on till it meets the Chicago road at Coldwater. Furnishing the route of immigration to the fertile Girard prairie, as well as the means of ready communication with Coldwater and the central Chicago road. the Marshall road proved a great boon to the devel-

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

opment and growth of this township. This road was surveyed by James B. Tompkins, and was opened by the commissioners of highways, William H. Cross and Edward S. Hanchett, all well known to the early history of the countv.

When the first township meeting was held, April 7, 1834, Girard was, as already mentioned, four times as large as now. Several items from the record of that meeting throw light on the history of the township. The first is that it was held in a schoolhouse, situated in the present Girard vil- lage. Furthermore, all of those who took official part in the proceedings, with one and perhaps two exceptions, were settlers in the area of present Girard township and on the two "prairies." John Parkinson was the moderator and Joseph C. Corbus the clerk. The others who were chosen for officers were James B. Tompkins, Benjamin H. Smith, Justus Goodwin ( from what later became Union township), James G. Corbus, William Aldrich, Robert Waldron, James McCarty, Stephen Hickox, Samuel Craig, Asa Aldrich, James Craig, Martin Barnhart. It was resolved to hold the next town meet- ing at the house of " Mr. Aldrich, at the mill," which was the mill on the site of Hodunk.

From the Girard prairie as the nucleus the settlement spread out over the rest of the township, and by the end of the thirties every section had one or more settlers. Some of the pioneers of this period who have not been men- tioned were: Jabez Aldrich, Harris H. Aldrich, Hains Aldrich, Lyman Al- drich, Stephen Birdsall, D. B. Ogden, Israel Hoag, Samuel Estlow, William Barker, David Stanton, John Strong, Allen Cobb, Christian Estlow, Chaun- cey Barnes, John Worden, John Moore, Backus Fox, Cornelius Van Aken, John B. Mason, Jacob W. Mann, Lyman Fox, Robert Gorbal, Peter I. Mann.

Girard township has always retained its value and importance as an agricultural center. It was one of the first townships to have a grange organ- ization, and some of the best known farmers of the county have had their home in Girard.

BUTLER TOWNSHIP.

In marked contrast with the settlement of Girard was that of Butler. The first settler came to Girard prairie in 1829; it was six years after that before permanent settlers located in Butler. In Girard the first settlements were in one locality. No conspicuous grouping of settlers can be observed in Butler. Girard prairie was beautifully level, comparatively free from heavy timber, and had a natural drainage. Butler township, with the ex- ception of "Shook's prairie " in sections 26 and 27, was densely wooded ; the topography such that large areas were under water or in a swampy condi- tion, and, as elsewhere stated, Butler township has received incalculable bene- fits from the public drainage works.

Such natural conditions did not favor early settlement. And yet when the era of settlement was completed and the population of the county had assumed something like its present standard, Butler township had a few more inhabitants than Girard. Its property valuation has increased to a remarka- ble extent since the introduction of scientific drainage. The forests have

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

been cleared off and given place to fine farms. Some of the most productive land in the township was formerly swamp and considered unfit for any in- dustrial purpose. The township is agricultural; a very small part of the population is grouped in the two hamlets known as Butler and South Butler. Several stave and heading and cooperage mills and saw mills have found a natural field in this township at various periods of history, but aside from this department of manufacture the industry of the township has been almost entirely the tilling of the soil. With this general understanding of the town's history as a whole, we may speak briefly of the period of beginnings and the first settlers.

Wayne county, New York, furnished a majority of the pioneers of But- ler township, which was given its name to commemorate the home town of Butler, New York. From Wayne county came Caleb Wilcox. the first set- tler, who found a home in section 2 in the spring of 1836; he did not remain long, but sold out to Charles C. Hayes and moved away.

The southeast corner of the township was favored with settlement about the same time. In sections 26 and 27 settled Jacob Shook, whose name figures in county history as one of the few county judges that Branch county had. He was also prominent in township affairs. At the same time Robert Wood settled in the same locality, buying land in sections 35 and 36. All three of the men mentioned were from Wayne county. New York. George Lockwood came to this part of the town in the fall of 1836 and for half a century was a well known citizen.

Calhoun county on the north furnished not a few early settlers to Butler. among these being the Rossman family, consisting of Isaac, the father, and the sons, Thomas J., Solander and William, who had located in Calhoun county about 1833, and all came to Butler township before 1839. From the same county came Henry S. Lampman, another well known pioneer of Butler, who was originally from Green county. New York, and who spent several years in Calhoun county before removing to Butler in December, 1836.

John T., Asa and Charles M. Wisner were active and influential in early township and business affairs; Asa being the first township clerk and Charles M. the first school teacher. David Lindsay, the first supervisor, who located on section 15, opened the first store at what is now South Butler (then known as Whig Center) in 1843.

The first town meeting was held at David Lindsay's house in April, 1838. There were only twenty voters in the town. Most of these received office, and the names of those who were burdened with the official managment of the town for the first year of its organized existence will be a fairly complete record of the pioneer settlers. They were: John T. Wisner, southeast But- ler : Jesse Bowen, sec. 36: Asa R. Wisner, sec. 24; Tyler McWhorter, sec. 35 : David Lindsay, sec. 15; Jacob Shook, secs. 26 and 27; T. J. Rossman. sec. 14: Charles M. Wisner, sec. 24: Solander Rossman, secs. 12 and 13: Henry S. Lampman, sec. 14: Daniel Shook, sec. 26; Caleb Wilcox.

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

CHAPTER XII. SETTLEMENT AND BEGINNINGS (CONTINUED).

UNION TOWNSHIP.

In October, 1837. the number of persons residing in Union township was 260. The town had already been organized with its present boundaries, so those figures apply to the Union township as we now know it. The popu- lation has since increased more than ten times, and material development has been even greater.

Though topographically one of the most attractive townships in the county, Union was not easily accessible for several years after the heavy stream of immigration began and the dense woods that covered its fertile soil were here, as in Butler and elsewhere, an impediment to early settlement. The abundant water power furnished by the St. Joseph and Coldwater rivers had undoubtedly induced a considerable proportion of the first inhabitants to locate in this town. The principal centers of settlement were at the junction of the Coldwater with the St. Joseph-Union City-at the junction of Hog creek with Coldwater river-the Hodunk community -- and the more open country in the southwest part of the township.

The Chicago road could not influence settlement in this township to the extent that was true. of the townships previously described. The State road, that follows an angling course from Hodunk to Union City, forming part of the route from Kalamazoo to the state line, was not authorized until 1837. Communication with the central part of the county was by the haphazard windings of Indian trails or blazed paths through the woods. The first regular road into Union township was probably the state road that followed the course of the old Washtenaw Indian trail, and was laid out in 1834 from Jackson to White Pigeon through Union City. This road and its predecessor, the Indian trail, as well as the St. Joseph river, which was utilized for trans- portation to no inconsiderable extent in the early days, brought north Union township in connection with Calhoun and other second-tier counties and many of the earlier settlers came along that way. The building of the railroad, in 1870, along practically the same route strengthened the commercial connec- tion with the towns and cities along that line.

It was at the confluence of the Coldwater and the St. Joseph rivers that settlement was first made. Because of its accessibility by water this spot had been conspicuous for many years. Perhaps the French missionaries of the eighteenth century had penetrated this far, and it is reasonably certain that French traders had a. trading post at this point. A successor to these Indian

Congregational Church and Soldiers' Monument, Union City

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

traders. John Clawson, was located at the mouth of the Coldwater about 1830, and it has been customary to grant him the honor of being the first settler in Union township.

About 1831 Isaiah W. Bennett, a well known pioneer character and the founder of the city of Jackson. and Jeremiah Marvin bought a large tract of land about the forks of the two rivers. They understood the advantages offered by the site for commercial and industrial development. and bought the land with the intention no doubt of personally exploiting a village at this point. Bennett did not locate here until 1834. He kept the old Union City House in 1837, and later a store on the southwest corner of Broadway and High streets.

In the meantime. in 1833, the first permanent settler had come to the site of Union City. He purchased of Bennett and Marvin a large tract of land, including the present site of the business section, and began the work of improvement. According to his own notes, when he came here in May, 1833, with the exception of two settlers and a few settlers on Dry prairie there were no persons between his location and Homer, all being "an un- broken wilderness, chiefly government land, and no road made nor even laid out.

Let the historical notes of Mr. Goodwin carry the narrative a little further: "Early in the fall of 1834 J. Goodwin, having agreed to build and sell a saw mill at Union to I. W. Bennett, commenced improving the water power by making a race and building a saw mill ( the mill being located south of the Coldwater road and about where the municipal power plant now stands). In doing this work- or rather the first part of it-though from ten to twenty men were at work, there was no woman at Union. * * About the first of December of that year a postoffice was established by the name of Goodwinsville, and J. Goodwin appointed postmaster, who held that office until 1846."

In November. 1833. Mr. Goodwin had sold to E. W. Morgan of Ann Arbor 322 acres of land. and in 1835 Mr. Morgan platted a village to which the name Goodwinsville was given, the plat being recorded August 27, 1835. This was the first plat. In the spring of 1837 the " village of Union City " was platted on a "two hundred acre tract " that had been purchased by a company of eastern men with the purpose of founding a village and develop- ing the mill facilities of the place. The men most prominent in this transac- tion were Israel W. Clark and Isaac M. Dimond, both of whom came here in 1838 and with a large force of men began extensive improvements. The water power was improved and both a saw and a grist mill built. A store was established by the company, in addition to one or two that had been con- ducted previously by individuals. The " company " store, which was kept by John N. Stickney, was located on the northeast corner of Broadway and High streets, opposite the hotel.

Other settlers during the pioneer period of Union City, were various members of the well known Hurd family, some of whom lived over the line in Calhoun county but whose interests were closely identified with Union

HISTORY OF BRANCH COUNTY

City-namely, Homer C. Hurd, Dr. William P. Hurd and Dr. Theodore C. Hurd. Chester Hammond, originally from Chenango county, New York, located in Union City in 1836. His son, Charles G. Hammond, was agent for the company that purchased the village site in January, 1837, and he did as much to establish the town and further its interests as any other pioneer citizen.

From this chief center, whose subsequent history will be recorded else- where, we turn to other portions of the township. In the history of Girard we have alluded to the prominence of the Aldrich family as settlers and citizens on the west side of the prairie. Abram Aldrich, who had located and purchased lands on Girard prairie in 1833, built his home just over the town line in Union township, and became the first settler at what became known as Orangeville and later as Hodunk. Here, near the confluence of the Cold- water and Hog creek, he built a saw mill. Lumber from this mill went into buildings in many parts of the county. When James G. Corbus, the Quincy pioneer, built his frame house in 1833, he obtained his lumber from this mill. Several years later Mr. Aldrich built a grist mill, which was a story and a half in height. It was the second grist mill in the county, and began grinding in 1837. Its product was superior to that turned out by the old Black Hawk mill at Branch, and it drew a large patronage from all over the county. This mill was the predecessor of the present " Hodunk Roller Mills," a five- story structure, which was erected by Roland Root in 1847, after the first mill had burned. Nearly sixty years of use have caused many changes in the Hodunk mill. The old millstones have been removed, modern roller pro- cesses have been introduced, and the old-fashioned water wheel has given place to the powerful turbine. The mill building is a striking witness of these changes of more than half a century, for some of the old machinery is still to be found on the floors, and the location of former mechanical parts and their wear on the woodwork have not been entirely obliterated.

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A twentieth century history and biographical record of Branch County, Michigan, Part 11

Author: Collin, Henry P Publication date: 1906 Publisher: New York : Lewis Publishing Number of Pages: 1198

Author: Collin, Henry P
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: New York : Lewis Publishing
Number of Pages: 1198