History of Bay County, Michigan, and representative citizens, Part 15

Author: Gansser, Augustus H., 1872-
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago : Richmond & Arnold
Number of Pages: 738

USA > Michigan > Bay County > History of Bay County, Michigan, and representative citizens > Part 15

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Wenona had high ambitions in 1868, when it secured the Michigan Central Railroad line to Jackson, and it is pertinent in this consolida- tion year of 1905, to know that on March 2, 1867, at a trustee meeting to grant the railroad the right of way through Wenona, one of the enthusiastic citizens announced that Wenona was disposed to be magnanimous to Bay City folks, who should be allowed to take the cars over there for the outside world, and that if Bay City applied in good form for annexation to Wenona, the application would be granted!

Nor was this assumption merely a play of words, for in 1877 Wenona reached out and annexed to itself it's not too willing neighbors, -the village of Banks on the north, and the village of Salzburg on the south,-and all three little burgs disappeared from the map, while by act of the Legislature there sprang up in their place the promising city of West Bay City. The residents of Wenona said this con- solidation was a forcible illustration of the oft- repeated maxim: "In union there is strength !" The Legislative act was called "An Act to con- solidate Wenona, Banks and Salzburg, to be known as the city of West Bay City," and the

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boundaries included so much of the township of Bangor as formerly belonged to Wenona and Banks, and the plat, of Salzburg included within the described limits.

The little city was divided into three wards, and the charter election was held on the first Monday in May, 1877. The vote in the First Ward was taken in the old Banks town hall, P. Lourim, Robert Leng, Alex. B. Moore, Thomas B. Raymond and Ephraim J. Kelton being the inspectors. The Second Ward held its election in the council rooms, David G. Arnold, T. P. Hawkins, James A. McKnight, Spencer O. Fisher and George G. Van Alstine being the inspectors. The Third Ward vote was taken at Davis' Hotel, Frank Fitzhugh, J. IV. Babcock, Bartholomew Staudacher, Aaron Wellman and Robert Elliott being the inspec- tors.

The first officials of West Bay City were as follows : Mayor, David G. Arnold; recorder, E. S. Van Liew; treasurer, W. M. Green; aldermen : E. J. Kelton, C. E. Root, William Davis, William J. Martin, W. I. Tozer and Michael Hufnagel. The mayor was an old and respected citizen of the rising community, and together with the Board of Aldermen did much in the next year to secure better fire protection, better roads and other local improvements. The salaries were fixed as follows : Recorder, $400; comptroller, $800; city attorney, $200; mar- shal, $300; harbor master, $100; while the mayor and aldermen received the munificent sum of 50 cents per session ! This did not deter many good men from serving the city in an official capacity, as is shown by the following roster of city officials, until the consolidation of the East and West sides in 1905.

Mayors .- David G. Arnold, 1877; George Washington, 1878; William I. Tozer, 1879- 80; William E. Magill, 1881-82; Hon. Spencer O. Fisher, 1883-85; S. A. Plummer, 1886-87;

William J. Martin, 1888-91; Rousseau O. Crump, 1892-1895; Peter Lind, 1896-1901 ; John Walsh, 1902-03; C. J. Barnett, 1904-05.

Recorders .- E. S. Van Liew, 1877-81 ; Henry C. Thompson, 1882-83; William H. Phillips, 1883-87; William Stewart, 1888-89; William H. Phillips, 1890-91 ; John C. Angell, 1892-93; George L. Lusk, 1894-99; Fred G. Sweeney, 1900-1901 ; John M. Roy, 1902- 1905.

Comptrollers .- William E. Magill, 1885- 86; Alexander Zagelmeyer, 1887-88; James A. McKnight, 1889-90; F. C. Thompson, 1891; Charles Glaser, 1892; James Scott and Charles Glaser, 1893; Charles Glaser, 1894; Henry S. Lewis, 1895-96; F. W. Ingersoll, 1897; Frank G. Walton, 1898-1900; John Boston, 1901-03; George M. Staudacher, 1904-05.

Treasurers .- W. M. Green, 1877-81 ; An- drew Weir, 1882-83; James A. McKnight, 1884; H. W. Weber, 1885-86; D. McLaugh- lin, 1887-88; Theo. E. Bissel, 1889-90; W. M. Green, 1891-92; R. C. Tasker, 1893-96; Au- gust J. Bothe, 1897-1900; C. M. Larue, 1901- 02; William E. Magill, 1903-1905.

THE TOWNSHIPS OF THE COUNTY.

BANGOR .- On petition of 18 freeholders, led by John G. Kiesel, John Gies, Charles Nickel, Scott W. Sayles, Frederick Kiesler and Mathew Miller, of Hampton township lying north and west of the Saginaw River, the Board of Supervisors on March 22, 1859, erected the township of Bangor, and on April 7, 1873, the township held its first election. Scott W. Sayles, John Raymond and Frederick Kiesler were the inspectors, and Scott W. Sayles was chosen supervisor. When West Bay City was chartered in 1877, Bangor lost most of its territory, wealth and importance. In 1864, for instance, Bangor paid $6,457.40 in

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county taxes, while for some years after losing the three villages the tax was less than $800, and the assessed valuation dropped from $259,- 885 in 1866, to a little over $100,000, in 1880. Since the land comprising Bangor has been thickly settled, some of the most important coal mines have there been opened, and the township is again taking a prominent place in the affairs of the county, despite its mutilation. The pop- ualtion in 1880 was but 271, while in 1894 it was 843, and in 1900, 1,195. Bangor town- ship is bounded by Monitor and Kawkawlin townships on the west, West Bay City on the south and west, the Saginaw River on the east and Saginaw Bay on the north. The township officials for 1905 are : Supervisor, Stewart M. Powrie; clerk, N. D. Zimmer; treasurer, Charles Lind; highway commissioner, George Walker; School Board,-Nicholas Casper and Stephen Corbin ; justices of the peace,-Joseph Carrier and John Zentz.

BEAVER .- In February, 1867, the Legisla- ture created the township of Beaver, by taking from Williams "Towns 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 north, range 3 east." On the first Monday in April, 1867, the first election was held at the home of Levi Willard.

The inspectors were Levi Willard, Josiah L. Wellington and Oscar H. Kellogg. Levi Willard was the first supervisor. The new township was bounded on the north by Fraser (now Garfield) township, on the east by Kaw- kawlin township, on the south by Williams township and on the west by the Midland County line. It lies 10 miles west and five miles north of Bay City. During its early years considerable lumbering was done in its vicinity and the pioneers had no trouble selling their hay and other products right at their doors. Later the Midland Branch of the Mich-

igan Central Railroad was constructed five miles to the south, on an east and west line through Williams township, and an excellent road system provided excellent means of dis- posing of the products of their rich farms. As late as 1873 there were less than 50 families in the township, and the land brought from $2.50 to $5.00 per acre. In 1905 this same land, since improved, drained and cleared, brings from $75 to $125 per acre. Branches of the Kawkawlin River thread all portions of the township. The population in 1870 was 161 ; in 1880, 350; in 1894, 1,236; and in 1900, 1,539. The present township officials are : Supervisor, William Peoples; clerk, John End- line; treasurer, Charles B. Craig; justice of the peace, Frank Nowak; highway commis- sioner, George Buchler. There are postoffices at Willard, Loehne and Duel villages.

FRANKENLUST township is bounded on the south and west by Saginaw County, on the north by Monitor township and on the east by the Saginaw River. When the Legislature in February, 1881, took the township of Koch- ville from Saginaw County, it gave to Bay County at once one of its richest and most in- teresting additions. Rev. Ferdinand Sievers, born in Lunenburg, Germany, May 18, 1816, was left an orphan at the age of seven years. His uncle, Rev. Philip Sievers, educated the promising boy, who graduated from Goettin- gen University in 1838. After teaching school for three years, he studied theology at the universities of Berlin and Halle, taught for three years more to accumulate a little fund of his own, and in 1847 was ordained for the Lutheran ministry. Led by Rev. Mr. Sievers, a number of German families immigrated to the Saginaw Valley in 1848, and with com- mendable perseverance and foresight estab-

SHIPYARD OF THE WEST BAY CITY SHIP BUILDING COMPANY

A LAUNCH AT THE WEST BAY CITY SHIP BUILDING COMPANY'S SHIPYARD

FLOATING DRY DOCK

THE RAFT-TOWING TUG "TOM DOWLING" (A noted character of the Saginaw River.)

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lished the now prosperous township of Frank- enlust. In May, 1850, Rev. Mr. Sievers mar- ried Caroline Koch, daughter of Rev. Freder- ick Koch, who had left the comforts of home to follow her affianced to the wilds of Michi- gan. Eleven children blessed their home, crude enough during the early years. Seven survive, but like most of the descendants of these early pioneers of far-famed Frankenlust, they have scattered over the surrounding townships and to other pastures new. The early history of Frankenlust is the story of the life-work of Rev. Mr. Sievers and his devoted colony. Their judgment in selecting that neighborhood has been verified by the passing years.

Frankenlust is one of the richest townships, for its soil is fertile, its location higher than the east shore of the river, and by thrift and in- dustry these hardy pioneers and their descend- ants have made it a veritable garden spot in the State. Here it was that the infant beet sugar industry found experienced and willing culturists, and the prosperous farmers of Frankenlust willingly invested in the German- American Sugar Factory built at their very doors on the cooperative plan, and which in 1904 had a most profitable season's campaign. The discovery of coal added three mines to the industries of the township, and as a fine fire clay is found in these coal shafts, another industry of great possibilities is just beginning in the township,-the manufacture of building and paving brick. A busy little village has sprung up around the white spire of the Ger- man Lutheran Church at Amelith, while well- kept roads point the way to Bay City.

German hospitality is proverbial, hence the cozy farms and inviting cross-road hostelries of Frankenlust township are the most popular outing places in the county. A drive over those well-kept roads, past thriving little settlements and well-kept farms, either during the heat of

summer, or over the snow on a crisp day in winter, is one of the townspeople's delights. It usually produces an appetite for the good things to eat which always grace the tables of these hospitable people. The township has five school districts, and four churches, three of them German Lutheran, and the fourth, Ger- man Methodist.

Upon the application of 75 freeholders, the Board of Supervisors of Saginaw County erec- ted Frankenlust township, then known as Kochville township, on October 12, 1855, in- cluding "Town 13 north, Range 4 east; sec- tions 6, 7, 18, 19 and the north half of Sec- tion 30, Town 13 north, Range 5 east ; and Sec- tions 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33. 34, 35 and 36, Town 14 north, Range 4 east." The first election was held April 7 1856, at the home of Adam Goetz, in the little village of Koch- ville. G. Stengel, J. P. Weggel and J. S. He- belt were the inspectors, and the following offi- cers were elected: Supervisor, Luke Welling- ton; clerk, John C. Schmidt; treasurer, An- dreas Goetz; school inspectors,-J. G. Helm- reich and Caspar Link; highway commission- ers,-William Butz, Heinrich Hipser and Paul Stephan ; justices of the peace-Luke Welling- ton and Louis Loeffler ; poor commissioners,- George Henger and Andreas Goetz. Fifty- nine votes were cast, and the action was prac- tically unanimous, the German settlers sympa- thizing with the oppressed black race of the South. They had left their native land seek- ing the land of liberty, and they had found peace and personal freedom in the wilds of Michigan, and their hearts went out to the chattel slaves of other days.

In 1851-52, John A. Leinberger carried "Uncle Sam's" mail on foot between Saginaw and Bay City. He would go up one day, and come back the next. One day he met the late James Fraser, Bay County's famous "man on

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horseback," in the woods, where both were following an Indian trail. Fraser asked Lein- berger why he did not get a horse to carry him and the bag those 16 miles, and on being told that he could not afford the luxury of a horse, at the exorbitant value of horses in these wilds, Fraser told him to go to Fraser's stable and take his pick, which was promptly done the following day. Meeting Fraser soon after on the same trail, Leinberger asked how much he owed for the horse. "Well, John," Fraser re- plied, "when you get able, you can pay me $50, and if you never get able, keep the horse any- how." That horse helped John Leinberger over many a rocky place in the road, and by dint of thrift and industry he soon owned one of the finest farms in Frankenlust. Since the Frankenlusters sold all their farm products in Bay City, they long desired to join the new county near Saginaw Bay, and in 1881 they kept John A. Leinberger at Lansing to lobby for the separation. Having brought about the union' with Bay County, he was elected the first supervisor, and for years represented Frankenlust on that board. He had 10 chil- dren by his first wife, and was married again in 1883.

The population of Frankenlust was 768 in 1880; 1,266 in 1894, and 1,395 in 1900.

The pioneers erected a log hut, 30 by 40 feet, in the wilderness in 1850 for a house of worship, and a frame church, 38 by 70 feet, was built in 1870. The year 1905 will be made memorable in the township by the erec- tion of a large and handsome new brick and stone church, the material for which is now being gathered, and work will begin this spring.

The opening of the coal mines has brought new life and activity to Frankenlust, but it will require some time for the staid, quiet and de- voted German farmers to become accustomed to the influx of coal miners from other States,

with customs and manners so foreign to their own, and clashes between the younger genera- tions are not infrequent. The present town- ship officers are: Supervisor, John J. De- Young; clerk, Philip Martens; treasurer, George C. Schmidt; justice of the peace, J. C. Neumeyer ; highway commissioner, Fred Kolb.

FRASER township was created at the ses- sion of the Legislature in 1875, and included "Town 16 north, Ranges 3, 4 and 5 east." On the first Monday in April, 1875, the settlers of Fraser township met at the home of William Michie, and elected their first officials. Mr. Michie, Albert Neville and B. W. Merrick were the inspectors. William Michie was elected supervisor ; B. W. Merrick, clerk; and Albert Neville, treasurer. Fraser is one of Bay County's largest townships. It is bound- ed on the east by Saginaw Bay, on the north by Pinconning township, on the south by Kaw- kawlin township, and on the west by Garfield township. The Michigan Central and Detroit & Mackinac railroads traverse Fraser, stations being located at Lengsville, Michie and Lin- wood. Many French Canadians were among the early pioneers, and they have exercised a growing influence over the development and the destinies of the township.

Lumbering has been carried on for years in the township. After the virgin forest was de- nuded of pine, came the demand for the previ- ously ignored and despised hardwood timber, and ere long the last giant of the primeval for- est in that section will have fallen before the axes of the industrious settlers and lumber- jacks. As the forest disappears, new farms spring up, and the locality will soon compare favorably with the older townships.

Among the pioneers of this township are a few men with interesting incidents in their ca-

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reers, one of which will bear repeating. Will- iam Fitch, at the age of 21, was a sailor before the mast on the schooner "Henry Watson" when, in 1857, she collided with the brig "Gid- dings" on Lake Erie. With a boy as the only other survivor, he navigated the ship into the harbor at Buffalo, and was promoted to be cap- tain of the ship. By 1868 he had wearied of a sailor's life and having a good opinion of Bay County, which he had often visited in his lum- ber craft, he purchased a farm in Fraser town- ship. There were no roads, and his team of oxen were his only help in erecting his large log hut, and his barn, 38 by 28 feet in size, with posts 10 by 10 inches and 16 feet long. He cleared the land with his own hands, solitary and alone. Twice, falling trees injured him, once breaking his leg, and next breaking his arm. He was of herculean strength. He would take a barrel of flour, placed in two sacks, one on each shoulder, and carry it nearly four miles to his log hut. The first supervisor, William Michie, was murdered near his home in Fraser township in 1882. The post office at State Road Crossing is named in his honor.

The population of Fraser township was 301 in 1880; 1,444 in 1894, and 1,656 in the United States census of 1900. The present township officers are: Supervisor, Henry B. Lints ; clerk, Benjamin F. Parsons; treasurer, Joseph Loyer; justice of the peace, John Vincent ; highway commissioner, George W. Meddaugh.

GARFIELD .- On October 18, 1886, the fol- lowing residents of Fraser township petitioned the Board of Supervisors to grant them a sepa- rate township: Elof Johnson, Gustav Men- ten, Valentine Knoedel, Owen Hazen, James Potter, Samuel L. Bishop, Francis Gallagher and Urban Lewenson. On October 19, 1886, the committee on township organization,-J.

M. Reichard, Charles Fischer, Fred Schoof, J. Lourim and Jacob Dardas,-reported favor- ably on the petition, and by a vote of 18 ayes and no nayes the board concurred. In accord- ance with the action of the board at this session, the township of Garfield was organized, taking in the west half of Fraser township. Garfield township is bounded on the north by Mount Forest township, on the east by Fraser town- ship, on the south by Beaver township, and on the west by Midland County. The first town election was held on April 4, 1887, and the fol- lowing town officers were elected : Supervisor, Elof Johnson; clerk, Joseph H. Waldron; treasurer, Charles Johnson ; school inspectors, -Erick Erickson and James Potter.

There is still considerable hardwood tim- ber standing in Garfield, while the farms cleared show the soil to be fertile, while the North Branch of the Kawkawlin and the Michie drain furnish both a water supply and drainage. The Garfield stone road gives a ready means of getting to market, and has done much to develop the interior of the township. The post offices are at Tebo and Crump, the latter named in honor of the late Hon. R. O. Crump, Member of Congress from this district. The population in 1894 was 302, and 555 in 1900. Industrious and thrifty Swedes form the bulk of the population, who have their own church services. The township also has ample public school facilities for the scattered popu- lation. The voters are largely of Republican faith, casting 98 votes to their opponents' 21 at the last election for Governor. The present township officials are: Supervisor, William H. Reid; clerk, W. V. Renner ; treasurer, Fran- cis Conrad; justice of the peace, Joseph Du- ben; highway commissioner, Alonzo Dodge.

GIBSON township was erected by the Board

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of Supervisors on December 3, 1888. On October 18, 1888, the following residents of Pinconning township petitioned for the separa- tion : Garrett J. Stanton, Charles L. Bingham, S. S. Morris, William Carter, W. J. Shirley, L. A. Pelkey, Dr. W. B. Abbott, J. Edmunds, H. Shook, H. Gardner, Z. W. DeGraw, B. W. Stewart, J. Barie, M. Dowley, A. E. Bell, M. G. Bentley, Frank E. Bentley, E. M. Burlin- game, O. G. Davis, Peter Edmunds, C. Peter- son, O. S. Bentley, James Johnson, Ed. Walsh, Samuel McGlinchey, Abram Edmunds, Will- iam Edmunds. The organization was to date from April 1, 1889, and on the first Monday in April, 1889, the town meeting was held at the school house in School District No. 5, Peter Edmunds, Frank E. Bentley and O. G. Davis being inspectors of the election. The follow- ing town officers were elected: Supervisor, Murray Bentley ; clerk, Edward Walsh; treas- urer, Smith Bowers; school inspectors, An- drew Faulds and Lafayette Dento.

Gibson township is bounded on the north and east by Arenac County, on the south by Mount Forest township, and on the west by Midland County. The branches of the Pine and Saganing rivers traverse Gibson from west to east. It will be seen that Gibson township is really a projection into Arenac County, and the people of that county, which formerly was a part of Bay, have ever since their separate or- ganization been trying to pry Gibson from Bay and add it to their own southern border. The eastern part of Arenac want the county seat at Omer, while the western part want to keep the county seat at Standish. Since Omer is more centrally located, Standish has to keep constantly on the alert to prevent the honor going to her enterprising rival on the east. The Standish people figure that with Gibson township added to Arenac County, the

position of Standish as county headquarters would be secure for all time. The Michigan Central Railroad passes through Standish and hence is interested in the fight for Gibson be- cause the Detroit & Mackinac Railway touches Omer.

These combined interests made an almost successful attempt to kidnap Gibson from Bay County in the legislative session of 1903. Rep- resentative J. J. McCarthy of Standish, Arenac County, introduced the bill, well backed by Senator Doherty of that district. The Bay County representatives turned up missing one fine day, and next morning Bay was notified that one of its most promising townships had been taken away, without one word of protest from Representatives Washer or Sheldon. De- spite the protests from Bay, the separation bill was rushed through the Senate, Senator F. L. Westover also turning up missing, and as the Bay representatives made no protest the ef- forts of Hon. T. E. Webster and others were unavailing. The bill was signed by Governor, Bliss and Bay had but 12 townships left.

When the citizens of Bay County realized their loss, they went to work with a will to save Gibson. The supervisors carried the case into the courts, claiming among other things that this steal of Gibson divided the 24th Sena- torial District, contrary to law, besides causing no end of confusion in the affairs of the town- ship and county. Judge T. F. Shepard of the 18th Judicial Circuit decided the case in favor of Bay; his decision was later sustained by the Supreme Court of Michigan and Gibson brought back into the fold. The three repre- sentatives of Bay, who allowed the disruption of the county without active opposition, were relegated to private life at the 1904 election, and any future attempts of Arenac to profit at the expense of Bay will be vigorously contested.

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As a matter of fact, Bay is one of the smallest counties in Michigan, owing to the large por- tion taken out by Saginaw Bay.

The residents of Gibson township are as earnest in their desire to remain with Bay County, as we are to have those sturdy pio- neers remain. They are many miles nearer to Standish than they are to Bay City, but they will soon have stone road communication all the way, the splendid macadamized road sys- tem reaching out year after year in their direc- tion, and the Gladwin Branch of the Michigan Central crosses Gibson from north to south, furnishing a ready and cheap means of reach- ing the metropolis of Northern Michigan. Gib- son had for years paid its share of this stone road tax, and by the forced separation stood to lose it all. The township and county affairs were naturally much muddled during the in- terim between the legislative separation and the Supreme Court reunion, but these matters have now all been satisfactorily adjusted, and things are moving as smoothly as if though nothing had ever happened in our sisterhood of town- ships.

Gibson township has the same rich black and clay loam soil which makes farming in Bay County so easy and profitable, and many of the farms there had enough standing hard- wood timber to more than pay for themselves. Bentley is the shopping center and post office of this flourishing young community. The residents are public-spirited, look well after their schools and their spiritual welfare, and have many road and drain problems to solve in the immediate future. Like their neighbors in Garfield, they are of the political faith of Lincoln, Garfield and Mckinley, almost to a unit, and by their vote have contributed much in recent years to the remarkable change of Bay County's political complexion. The popu- lation in 1894 was 494, and 761 in 1900. The

present town officers are: Supervisor, Ezra Truax; clerk, John C. Smith; treasurer, Mat- thew Loeffler; justice of the peace, Sam- uel Yeager; highway commissioner, Charles Shoultes.

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History of Bay County, Michigan, and representative citizens, Part 15

Author: Gansser, Augustus H., 1872- Publication date: 1905 Publisher: Chicago : Richmond & Arnold Number of Pages: 738

Author: Gansser, Augustus H., 1872-
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago : Richmond & Arnold
Number of Pages: 738