History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 34

Author: D.W. Ensign & Co. pub; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia, D. W. Ensign & Co.
Number of Pages: 821

USA > Michigan > Van Buren County > History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 34
USA > Michigan > Berrien County > History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 34

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

It is of course impossible to know the future of peach culture in Southwestern Michigan. Most of those engaged in it predict that the blight of the yellows will disappear, as it has from regions once ravaged by it in the East, and that there will succeed another period of as great prosperity as was known here in the days of the " Cincinnati orchard." This supposition seems reasonable enough, but as the sub- ject is more within the scope of prophecy than of history, it seems proper to omit its discussion here.

* Local Acts, 1875, p. 726.

COURT HOUSE, JAIL AND COUNTY BUILDINGS, BERRIEN COUNTY. BERRIEN SPRINGS, MICHIGAN.

BERRIEN COUNTY.

CHAPTER XX.

NATURAL FEATURES-EARLY SETTLEMENTS.

Location of Berrien County-Surface, Soil, and Streams-Cominence- ment and Progress of Settlement-Improvements made by the Early Traders-The Protestant Missionaries-First Immigrants in the several Townships-Population.

BERRIEN, the extreme southwestern county of the State of Michigan, has nearly the form of a right-angled trian- gle, of which the base, its eastern line, joins the counties of Cass and Van Buren, and the hypotenuse, or western boundary, is the coast-line of Lake Michigan. On the north it is bounded by Van Buren County, and on the south by the State of Indiana. The superficial area of the county is a little more than six hundred square miles, or about three hundred and eighty-five thousand acres.

The surface of Berrien County is greatly diversified, embracing a large proportion of rolling country, a consid- erable area that is level, wet, and swampy, and some that is broken into ravines and abrupt elevations of land. There is but little prairie land in Berrien. The principal one of these tracts is Wolf's Prairie, of about one thousand acres, lying in the central part of the county, but smaller ones are found in the southeastern part. The lands of the county which more than others suffer from insufficient drainage are those lying within a belt which extends in a northeast and southwest direction nearly parallel with the lake-shore, through the western townships. Marshes also exist along the shores of the St. Joseph River for some distance above its mouth. Elevated rolling lands are found along the eastern border of the county, while farther towards the southwest, in Buchanan and other townships, the swells become sufficiently lofty to be termed hills, not only in the Michigan acceptation of that term, but even by people accustomed to the more rugged surface of the State of New York. Sandy bluffs or hills extend along a large portion of the lake-shore, and high lands, broken in many places into ravines, form the banks of the streams, particu- larly those of the principal river. From the higher eleva- tions the swell subsides into gentle undulations, which extend over a large proportion of the area of the county.

Nearly every variety of soil is found here, from light and drifting sand, and friable loam intermixed with gravel, to strong and heavy clay lands, excellent for grazing and the production of hay. Much of the soil of Berrien is equal to the best in Michigan for wheat-raising, and nearly every part of the county is excellently adapted for orcharding and fruit culture.

The principal stream of Berrien County is the St. Jo- seph River, which, taking its rise in the counties of Jack- son, Hillsdale, Branch, and Calhoun, passes through St.

Joseph County to its southwestern corner and into the State of Indiana, from which it returns into Michigan on the line between Niles and Bertrand townships, in Berrien County. From this point it flows nearly north for several miles, after which it passes across the county in a general northwesterly direction, and enters Lake Michigan at the village of St. Joseph.

The Paw Paw River, after passing through Van Buren County in a westerly course, enters Berrien near its north- east corner, flows through the county in a southwest course, and enters the St. Joseph River within a few hundred yards of the point where the latter flows into the lake. Blue Creek, a small stream, but one of the principal tributaries of the Paw Paw, enters the latter from the southeast. The Dowagiac River, flowing southwestwardly from Cass County, enters Berrien across its eastern boundary, and, passing only a short distance through this county, enters the St. Joseph just below the city of Niles. Hickory Creek, taking its rise in the central part of Berrien County, flows in a general northerly direction, and enters the St. Joseph River (of which it is one of the prin- cipal tributaries) through its southern bank. Pipestone River, another tributary of the St. Joseph, enters the river from the eastward a few miles above its mouth.

The Galien River is formed by streams which unite their waters in the south part of Berrien County. From the point of confluence the river flows past the village of New Troy, and then, making an abrupt turn, flows in a general southwest course to New Buffalo, where it enters the lake.

There are a number of small lakes in Berrien County, mostly in the eastern and northeastern parts. The largest of these is Paw Paw Lake, which is one of the sources of the Paw Paw River. Further mention and a more ex- tended description of these lakes will be found in the his- tories of the townships in which they are situated.

EARLY SETTLEMENTS.

The first settlers in any region or section of country are those who first locate within its boundaries with the ex- pectation and intention of making it a place of residence for themselves and their families. The first persons of European descent who may have come, under these condi- tions, to the territory which is now Berrien County were the few French Canadians whose dwellings were clustered round the military post and mission at the mouth of the St. Joseph River in the first part of the eighteenth cen- tury. Of the subsequent history of this settlement, how- ever, nothing is known beyond the fact that it did not prove to be a permanent one ; and the people by whom it was made (who were perhaps many, if not most, of them partly of Indian lineage) must be regarded as having been

127

128

HISTORY OF BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

merely transient residents here, rather than settlers, as the term is usually applied.

But the same is not true of William Burnett, who came to the St. Joseph River about the year 1785, nor of Jo- seph Bertrand, who at about the same time established himself on the upper river, near the southern boundary of the present county, for both these men made improve- ments, and their settlements were of sufficient permanence to continue until white immigrants began to come into this region from the older States. They married women of In- dian descent (Burnett's wife being Kawkema, a sister of the chief Topinabe), and the children of both were well known residents of Berrien County. The business of Mr. Burnett, in particular, was quite extensive, and facts gath- ered from his old books of account give to his trading estab- lishment more of the character of a settlement than has usually been supposed.

From the two books of his which have been found (covering the period from 1792 to 1802), it appears that his post on the St. Joseph was the base of extended trading operations, not only on that stream, but on the Kankakee, Wabash, and Illinois Rivers, as far south as Peoria Lake, and also at Chicago and several other points. A large number of names are found, apparently those of employees who assisted him in his operations, and among these are the following : Pierre Chevellier, Pierre Courville, Louis Cote- noise, Louis Champlin, Louis Chaborliss, Charles Chodonet, Joseph Bertrand, Jean B. Boresseau, François Brisette, Baptiste Barron, Doneau Dequindre, François Ducharme, Jean Lalime, Joseph Lapleur, Laurent Lefevre, Jean Le Clerc (a blacksmith), Joseph Naimenville, and Baptiste Poinsable. Among the English names found recorded are those of John Cook, John Griffin, Joseph Howard, James Graham, John Kinzie, Benjamin Lyon, David Mitchell, and Major Henry Hinfrey. Of these last named, John Griffin and John Kinzie are known to have been employed in trade as agents of Mr. Burnett, but as to several of the others nothing is known in reference to their business with the proprietors of the post.

The entries in the Burnett books show clearly that his trade and connections were widely extended ; and some are very curious in other particulars. Some of them are as follows :

" Aug. 17, 1792.

" To Sundries, per J. Lalime, at Chicagou.

" By Peltries, " J. Lalime, at Chicagou.

" May 25, 1795.

" To Sundry Merchandise, per G. Martin, taken to the Wabash.

" Jan. 9, 1798.

" To Cash paid an Indian for carrying an express to Mil- waky.

"Sept. 15, 1800. " Jean Bte Pontsable, Dr.

"To 7 bottles Spirits paid an Indian, Askie, for going Ex- press with the Spanish commandant and letters to Fort Wayne."

Other entries found in these books furnish some indica- tion of the condition of the people who were then living in

the neighborhood of St. Joseph River, and show that their manner of life and their surroundings were such as to en- title them-to some extent at least-to be considered as settlers. The following items are of this kind, viz. :

" March 12, 1792.

" To Cash paid the Tailor.

" Aug. 21, 1792.

" To Cash paid the Doctor.

" Aug. 23, 1800.

" P. Lesseon, Bought of Wm. Burnett One Cow, One Calf, and three large Hogs, for .... .... £550 0s .*

" Aug. 23, 1800. "Joseph Naimenville, Dr.

"To Butter. £2 10s.

" Nov. 4, 1801. " Capt. Rough, Dr.

" To one Cow £100 0s."

These entries, and many other similar ones which are found in the books, show that the community in the vicinity of Burnett's post supported a physician and a tailor, that some of the people there kept cows and other animals, and that they carried on dairying in a small way. Another item, as follows-

" Nov. 2, 1800. " J. Naimenville, Cr.

" By 377 boards, sawing"

-suggests the probability that a saw-mill was in operation on some of the neighboring streams, though it may have been the case that these boards were cut in a saw-pit by hand-labor.

Many other items are found similar to those given above, and besides these, charges against various persons for " Loaves of Bread" occur quite frequently ; from which it may be inferred that a bakery was carried on by Mr. Bur- nett or by some other person in the vicinity. But how- ever this may have been, it seems evident that the region around the trading-post was not an uninhabited waste, and that the people who lived there at that time were sur- rounded by some of the improvements and conveniences which are commonly found among white settlers. As to Mr. Burnett, there can be no doubt that he intended to make his settlement here a permanent one, and he furnished one of the best possible evidences of this by the planting of an apple-orchard, which was quite an extensive one for those days, and a part of which is still standing. Improve- ments were made (though probably to a less extent) by Joseph Bertrand; and there seems to be no good reason why these men should not be regarded as the first two white settlers in the present county of Berrien.

The Protestant missionaries who commenced their labors among the Indians of the St. Joseph in the year 1822 came with no intention of remaining here permanently, and could not therefore be regarded as settlers, though they made quite extensive improvements in clearing lands, plant- ing orchards, raising crops, and erecting buildings. One of

* The prices here carried out appear to have reference to Old Tenor, or Continental money, or to some other greatly depreciated currency.

129

EARLY SETTLEMENTS.

the most important of their improvements was the con- struction and putting in operation of a mill for the grinding of grain. Their first mill-operated by hand-power-was started in 1823. Of this rude mill, Mr. McCoy said that one strong man by constant labor was able to make Indian corn meal, of poor quality, sufficient for bread for the fam- ily. " Wheat-flour could not be manufactured." He says that at that time the nearest grist-mill was one hundred and ninety miles distant from the place where Niles City now stands. In 1825 the hand-mill at the mission was replaced by one driven by horse-power, which was capable of pro- ducing both corn-meal and wheat-flour. In that year the mission people harvested three hundred bushels of good wheat, raised in their own fields.

The first actual settler at Niles (as also the first in Ber- rien County, if Burnett and Bertrand are not considered as such) was Squire Thompson, who came here from In- diana in 1823, and brought his family to his new home on the St. Joseph in 1824. In the latter year he had a neighbor, in the person of William Kirk, who came there in the spring of that year. In 1825 the population of the neighborhood was increased by the immigration of Benja- min Potter, Nathan Young, John Lybrook, Joel Yard, and others. Eli Ford came in 1827, and built the first grist- mill which was propelled by water-power, and intended for public accommodation.

The next settlement after that at Niles was made on Hickory Creek, in what is now the township of Lincoln, by Timothy S. Smith, at whose house was held the annual election for the (old) township of St. Joseph, in 1827.

In that part of the county which is now the township of Berrien, settlements were made by John Johnson, Jr., in 1827, and by George H. Claypool, in the spring of 1828. In the following year Calvin Britain and Augustus B. Newell pre-empted lands where the village of St. Joseph now is, and in 1829 they became settlers at that place. Mr. Britain and Mr. Newell were usually mentioned as the pioneer settlers at St. Joseph. Daniel T. Wilson, Calvin Bartlett, Benjamin Chandler, and Benjamin C. Hoyt came there, however, at about the same time.

In the central part of the county John Pike made the first settlement, at Wolf's Prairie (Berrien Springs), in 1829. In the same year George Kimmel took up three hundred acres of land near Mr. Pike, but did not settle on it until a year or two later. Francis B. Murdock settled in the same township (Oronoko) in 1830.

In the southern tier of townships the first of the settlers was Benjamin Redding, who came to Bertrand township in 1830, and located at the point now known as Dayton. As the greater part of Bertrand was covered by the Indian res- ervation, settlements in that township were not numerous until after the cession of the reservation, in 1833.

Royalton received its first settlers in the persons of John Pike and his son William, who had previously located at Wolf's Prairie, but who removed down the river to this township in 1832. In the same year Jehial Enos entered land here, and settled soon after. Some three years later he removed from the township.

In that part of the county which is now Buchanan town- ship the first settler was Charles Cowles, who located on the

site of Buchanan village in 1833. Russell McCoy, John Hatfield, and Hiram Wray came in 1834.

The settlement of Bainbridge township was commenced by Bartholomew Sharrai and a man named Ruleaux, two French Canadians, in 1833. Two years later Martin Tice and John P. Davis came in, and the latter located on the Territorial road, where he opened a tavern which became a somewhat noted stopping-place for travelers by stage and otherwise.

In the northeast corner of the county the first improve- ments were made in 1832 by Job Davis, who made prepa- rations to build a saw-mill, but soon became discouraged and sold out to parties in St. Joseph. These attempted to carry out the mill project, but failed. Levi Ballengee went there intending to board the men who were expected to work in the mills, and after the failure of the project he was compelled to remain. He was there engaged in shingle- making in 1834; and in that year Stephen R. Gilson be- came a settler, near the present village of Coloma, in Water- vliet township. Rumsey Christy settled near them in the winter of 1834-35, and others were added to the pioneer community in the following spring. In Benton the first settlement was made by Jehial Enos, who had prospected there as early as 1828, and about six years later he became the pioneer settler in the township, where he is still living.

In the southwest corner of the county the first settlers were Wessel Whittaker and several associates, who came from Western New York to New Buffalo, in 1835, with the expectation of founding a city which should be the principal lake-port of Western Michigan. The story of their operations there is told in the separate history of that township and village. In the township adjoining the last- named on the east (Three Oaks) the pioneer settler was Richard Love, who came there in 1835. Sylvester and Erasmus Shead settled there in the following year. The first settlers in what is now Galien were Samuel H. Gar- wood, John P. Johnson, and James H. Wilson, who came there in 1835 or 1836; and about the same time Phineas Stratton, Timothy Atkins, and others settled farther down the Galien River, in the present township of Weesaw.

The first settlements in Lake and Chickaming were also made in 1836; that in the latter being made by Luman Northrop, and the pioneers in the former being John Harner, Horace Godfrey, Thomas Ruggles, and Thomas Phillips. In the part of the county which is now the township of Sodus, the first improvement was the erection of a saw-mill by James B. Larue on Pipestone Creek in 1835. David S. Rector worked as a sawyer in this mill in 1836, and afterwards became a settler in the town. His father, David Rector, settled there with his family in the fall of 1837, as did also Hiram, a brother of David S. Rector. The owner of the mill, Mr. Larue, did not be- come a permanent settler in the township until after 1840. In Pipestone (originally a part of Bainbridge) the first settlers were James Kirk and Dr. Morgan Enos, who came there in 1837. In the northwest corner of the county (now Hagar township) the first man who made a clearing was Henry Hawley, a Canadian, who came in the spring of 1839, but soon became discouraged and left. In the same year came Charles Lamb, who was properly regarded

130

HISTORY OF BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

as the first permanent settler, and who remained without neighbors in the township for a number of months. Several other settlers, however, arrived there in the year 1840.

The preceding is intended merely as a notice of the very earliest settlements, and of the dates at which these were made in different portions of the county. Detailed accounts of settlements and settlers form the most important part of the history of townships, and such accounts will be found in subsequent pages, and in their proper connection.

POPULATION OF THE COUNTY AT DIFFERENT PERIODS.

The population of Berrien County and of its townships, at different periods from 1840 to 1874, is shown by the several censuses to have been as follows :

TOWNSHIPS.

1840.

1845.

1854.

1860.

1870.

1874.

Bainbridge

251

613

574

938

1,337

1,418

Benton.

237

641

1,028

3,116

2,524

Berrien.

543

566

999

1,253

1,405

1,381

Bertrand

1,298

1,305

1,084

1,510

1.522

1,361

Buchanan.

264

630

1,282

1,728

2 973

2.880

Chickaming.

Galien ..

141

404

528

85€

1,231

Hagar

834

823

Lake

Lincoln

123

416

873

834

1,389

1,444

Niles

.1,420

1,935

3,174

2,722

1,910

1.795

Niles City

335

664

874

1.252

1,617

1,625

Pipestone.

277

875

1,052

1,379

1,405

Royalton. Sodus

246

284

452

964

2,190

959

St. Joseph

489

628

703

1,358

2,994

3,288

Three Oaks ...

539

1,328

1,316

Watervliet.

545

1,328

1,718

Weesaw

142

155

404

753

1,243

1,276

Total pop. of county .... 5,111 8,881

12,835

21,801 36,155

35,029

CHAPTER XXI.

ERECTION AND ORGANIZATION OF BERRIEN COUNTY-COURTS AND COUNTY BUILDINGS.

The County set off from Lenawee-Election of County Officers-Sub- division of the County into Townships-Establishment of Courts in Berrien County-The County Courts-The Circuit Court and its Judges-Organization and Early Proceedings of the Board of Su- pervisors-County Commissioners-County-Sites and County Build- ings-First Location of County-Site-The Log Jail at St. Joseph- Removal of County-Site to Berrien-The Old Jail at Berrien Springs-Erection of the Court-House-The Present Jail-County Office Buildings-County Poor-House and Farm.

IT has been mentioned in preceding pages that the part of Berrien County which was included in the cession made by the Indians at the Chicago treaty of 1821 (being the part lying east and north of the St. Joseph River) was attached to Lenawee County by act taking effect Dec. 31, 1826, and that the part lying south and west of the river (ceded by the Carey Mission Treaty of 1828) was also attached to Lenawee by an amendatory act, approved Sept. 22, 1829. Thus, from the date last named, the county of Lenawee included all the territory of the present county of Berrien, except the tribal reservation, embracing an area of nearly fifty square miles lying on the west side of the St. Joseph, and extending from a point on the river below Niles, southward to the Indiana line.

The county of Berrien was erected by Legislative act,* approved Oct. 29, 1829, which provided " That so much of the county as lies within the following boundaries, viz. :

beginning on the boundary line between this Territory and the State of Indiana, where the line between ranges sixteen and seventeen west of the meridian intersects the said boundary line ; thence west along the said boundary line to Lake Michigan ; thence along the shore of said lake to the intersection of the line between townships two and three south of the base line ; thence east on a line between said townships to the intersection of the line between ranges sixteen and seventeen west of the meridian ; thence south on the line between said ranges to the boundary line be- tween this Territory and the State of Indiana, be and the same is hereby set off into a separate county, and the name thereof shall be Berrien."+ The boundaries thus described are identical with the present limits of the county. The same act which erected Berrien also established the coun- ties of Washtenaw, Ingham, Eaton, Barry, Jackson, Cal- houn, Kalamazoo, Van Buren, Hillsdale, Branch, St. Jo- seph, and Cass. Six days after the erection of these coun- ties the territory included in Berrien was, by legislative act, attached to the county of Cass, and on the 5th of Novem- ber, 1829, the same territory was erected into the township of Niles.

ORGANIZATION AND SUBDIVISION OF THE COUNTY.

By an act of the Legislative Council of Michigan Terri- tory, approved March 4, 1831, to take effect Sept. 1, 1831, it was provided " That the county of Berrien shall be or- ganized from and after the taking effect of this act, and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled to all the rights and privileges to which, by law, the other organized counties of this Territory are entitled." Under this act a special elec- tion was held in September, 1832, resulting in the election of Augustus B. Newell as sheriff, Titus B. Willard as county clerk, Obed P. Lacey as register of deeds, and Jacob Bee- son as county treasurer. Cogswell K. Green was made judge of probate by appointment. The second election for the choosing of county officers was held at Niles, on the 2d of April, 1832. The only existing record of this meet- ing is a certificate, of which the following is a copy :

"CERTIFICATE TO COUNTY CLERK.

" Thomas K. Green, Alamanson Huston, and Eber Griswold, In- spectors of Election for Coroner and County Treasurer of the County of Berrien held at the 'Council House,' in Niles, April 2, 1832, do hereby certify that Solomon E. Mason was elected coroner and Jacob Beeson treasurer for said county without one disputing vote. B. E. Mason had for coroner 12 votes, and Jacob Beeson 14 votes.

" THOMAS K. GREEN. " EBER GRISWOLD. " A. HUSTON."

At that time Berrien County was all included in the township of Niles, the erection of which, in November, 1829, has already been mentioned, as also the previous erection of the (old) township of St. Joseph, covering all of this county except the lands reserved for the use of the Indians.

On the 9th of June, 1832, parts of the territory of Niles were taken from it, and erected into the townships of Ber- rien and St. Joseph. The latter comprised survey town-

t So named in honor of John McPherson Berrien, LL.D., a native of New Jersey, who removed thence to Georgia, and held the office of Attorney-General under President Jackson, 1829-31.

* Territorial Laws, vol. ii. p. 737.

269

438

557

1,006

1,083

1,181

1,122

New Buffalo

1,030

2,788

4,648

4,592

Oronoko ...

674

906

841

310

993

947

227

131

COURTS AND COUNTY BUILDINGS.

ships 3 south, in ranges 17 and 18 west, and township 4 south, in ranges 17, 18, and 19 west, and four tiers of sec- tions in township 5, of ranges 17, 18, and 19 west. This was the second township erected under the name of St. Joseph, and the same which-though now greatly reduced in di- mensions-still bears the name. Berrien township, when erected, comprised survey township 6 south, in ranges 17, 18, 19, and 20 west, and two tiers of sections in township 5 south, in ranges 17, 18, and 19 west.

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History of Berrien and Van Buren counties, Michigan. With biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 34

Author: D.W. Ensign & Co. pub; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Johnson, Crisfield Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Philadelphia, D. W. Ensign & Co. Number of Pages: 821

Author: D.W. Ensign & Co. pub; Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia, D. W. Ensign & Co.
Number of Pages: 821