USA > Michigan > Calhoun County > History of Calhoun county, Michigan, With Illustrations descriptive of its scenery > Part 50
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77
In the fall of 1835 Seth Rogers came from Cattaraugus county, New York, and located on the north half of the southwest quarter of section 23, the farm now owned by G. Kingsland. Mr. Rogers brought his wife and six children with him, and one child was born afterwards. Four of them are now living-one son, Luther D. Rogers, and three daughters. Mr. Rogers built a log house on his
place, and carried on his affairs about the same as the settlers did generally. Grain was put in, and improvements made as fast as possible. Part of his land was in the white oak openings, and part on lower, timbered ground. He died about 1856, aged in the neighborhood of seventy years.
Daniel Budlong, Sr., came to the township in 1835, and settled land in the southeast quarter of section 18, and the southwest quarter of section 17. He came from Herkimer county, New York, and brought with him his wife, four sons, and three daughters, all of whom are now living except one son and one daughter. Mr. Budlong owned two hundred and forty acres of land, which he divided among his children. His son, Philo H. Budlong, now living at Lower Eckford, has held numerous prominent offices, represented eight townships of Calhoun County in the State legislature, and been otherwise connected with the interests of the township and county. He owns a portion of the old Oshea Wilder place.
John Harris came from Cortland county, New York, and arrived in Calhoun County, Michigan, April 21, 1834. On his arrival he settled on section 28, in Albion township, and lived there till July, 1841, when he removed to the farm where he now lives, on section 15, in Eckford. This place was originally settled by Benjamin Rogers, who bought an eighty-acre lot and built a small shanty upon it. When Mr. Harris came to it he finished up the shanty, put a good shingle roof on it, and made it comfortable enough to live in. There is a fine spring near the house, which was known far and near among the early settlers. People were constantly arriving in the country, and many of them stopped for a short time with Mr. Harris. In those days it was not necessary that the doors should be bolted and locked, and the shutters tightly fastened, for honesty was written in the hearts and stamped indelibly on the faces of the settlers. As an instance, the following will be interesting : Mr. Harris at one time sold some land, for which he received five hundred dollars in silver. He placed the money in a tin pan and set it away in the garret, and left it there. He went away from the house afterwards and was gone all day. When he returned he found somebody had been there in his absence, but the only thing touched was a tin cup, which had been used to drink from and set back in a different position. Nothing else was disturbed.
When Mr. Harris came from New York, he was accompanied by his wife and two children, and his brother, sister, and mother. He is the only one left of them all, and is now seventy-one years of age. He was one of the first board of town- ship officers in Albion, and held the office of justice of the peace. He says he built a log house on the place upon which he settled in Albion, and very soon after began " shaking with the ague." Indians were strolling around numerously, and one morning he awoke and saw one sitting at a fire he had built, warming himself. He had entered quietly and without disturbing Mr. Harris, and was simply enjoying the benefit of a warm fire, which he probably supposed he was as much entitled to as any one. The Indians belonged to the Pottawatomie tribe, and could be seen riding by every day. Mr. Harris tells of the first Indian he saw as being a one-legged man, very drunk, and exceedingly anxious to treat him (Harris). He carried a full supply of " fire-water," having his rifle-barrel, powder-horn, and a fresh bladder full ! Mr. Harris speaks of seeing twenty-one deer cross the road southeast of his house in Eckford, one after another. The settlers depended to some extent on their rifles, and for many years they were abundantly able to supply their tables with fresh meat. " Massasaugers," or black rattlesnakes, were exceedingly numerous, and these spiteful reptiles are by no means extinct at the present day. The larger variety or the great banded rattle- snake was seldom seen. Around the marshes the black-snake and the terror- creating (though harmless) " blue racer" were found, and the traveler around their borders may still find numbers of them should he choose to search.
David Patterson came from the town of Richmond, Ontario county, New York, in company with his father (Abraham D. Patterson) and mother, his sister, then but ten years old, and his wife, and in October, 1835, arrived in Albion township. They came as far as Detroit by water, and landed there on the 18th of October. From there they came through with a team of horses and a yoke of oxen. The roads were in such a condition that it occasionally became necessary to hitch both teams to one wagon in order to pull it out of a mud-hole or slough. They walked the greater part of the distance from Detroit, and were a week on the road. They located on section 36, in Albion, and lived there until June, 1837, when David Patterson and his wife moved into Eckford and located on section 24, on a part of the farm he now owns. He purchased part of the place he occupies from the government, and the rest from second hands. Harvey Foot and Jacob Rosecrans had previously entered a portion of it. Foot had made some improvements, built a small frame house, dug a well, etc. After David Patterson sold his property in Albion township and came to Eckford, he built a log house similar to the one he and his father had built on the original place in Albion. He lived with his family in this dwelling for about fifteen years. Abra- bam D. Patterson died in February, 1864, aged nearly eighty-six years. His
* See history of Clarendon township.
SOLON E. ROBINSON.
MRS.MARY J. ROBINSON.
100
RESIDENCE OF SOLON E. ROBINSON . SEC. 20, ECKFORD TP, CALHOUN CO., MICH.
137
HISTORY OF CALHOUN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
wife died in 1857, at the age of seventy-seven. David Patterson is the father of four children, three sons and one daughter, all living except the first-born.
Lionell Udell settled in the spring of 1835, on the farm now owned by Joseph G. Henshaw and C. E. Darrow, in section 24. It had been purchased for him in 1834, by Elijah Cook. Mr. Udell was from Clarkson, Monroe county, New York, and was accompanied by his wife and seven children, four sons and three daughters. He lived on the farm until Febuary, 1854, at which time he died, aged about seventy years. His wife died afterwards, in Marshall. His sons sold the property after his death and removed from the township. One son, John, died in Marshall in the fall of 1875.
George H. Smith, now living in Eckford, where he has resided only since 1874, came from Hadley, Massachusetts, and located in Marshall in 1837. His wife came with him, and about 1839, his first child, a daughter, Lorenza, was born.
In politics Mr. Smith is a strong Republican, a firm supporter of the rights of the country, and an immovable believer in " Union, now and forever."
Jacob Miller came from Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, and settled on the 20th of November, 1836, on the farm now partly owned by his son, Samuel Miller, near Lower Eckford. They were forty days on the road, and came the entire dis- tance with teams. They had been calculating to take the boat at Cleveland and come from there to Detroit by water, but on their arrival at the former city the lake was so rough they were fearful to attempt the voyage, and concluded to push on with their teams. They had one single buggy and a " big wagon," drawn by three horses. Mr. Miller was accompanied by a family of six children, three sons and three daughters, one of the latter married at the time. She settled afterwards in Branch county. The oldest daughter came about eight years after the settle- ment was made. Four of the children are now living. The sons were named Samuel, William, and Jonathan, and Samuel and William are yet living on fine farms in the township, the former on section 9, and the latter on section 10. When Mr. Miller first came he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of govern- ment land, at the regulation price of ten shillings ($1.25) per acre. This included the west half of the northeast quarter and the east half of the northwest quarter of section 9. He afterwards purchased forty acres additional.
John Lusk came from Ontario county, New York, with his wife and ten chil- dren,-six sons and four daughters, some of them married,-in the fall of 1836. Part of them settled in Marengo township, and part in Eckford. Mr. Lusk him- self settled in Marengo, on a farm now owned by H. J. Perrin, of Marshall. He afterwards removed to Eckford township and lived in it about three years, when he went back to Marengo, and lived in that township until March, 1874, when he died, at the age of eighty-six years. Four of the sons, Augustus, John, Jr., Thomas, and Frederick, located in Eckford when they first came. Thomas located on the northwest quarter of section 1, on the place at present owned by G. W. Hill. He built a frame house on the place in 1837. He had lived one year previously with his brother Frederick, with whom he owned the quarter-section in company. Frederick Lusk was married before leaving New York, and died a few years after coming to Michigan. In the spring of probably 1843, Thomas Lusk removed to the place where he now lives, the west half of the northwest quarter of section 11. With the exception of three years, the members of the Lusk family have lived within two hours' drive of each other. Eight of the chil- dren are now living, all but one in Calhoun County, and Eckford and Marengo townships. One lives at Grass lake, Jackson county. Augustus Lusk and his brother John, Jr., settled on the southeast quarter of section 11. The latter died early in May, 1873. John Lusk, Sr., served in the war of 1812, and was taken prisoner by the British, at Black Rock, in 1814, and taken to Montreal, where he was kept four months. His gun was thrown into the Niagara river. The farms owned by the Lusks are among the best in the township, and are all finely im- proved.
A. C. Robinson came from the old township of Peru, Clinton county, New York, in 1836, and arrived in Marshall the last week in May of that year. He was accompanied by his wife and two children, and his father, George Robinson. They lived in Marshall until 1855, when A. C. Robinson removed to the farm upon which he now resides, section 22, and has lived on it since. He purchased the land of Charles Jaggar, now of Marshall. Mr. Jaggar's father, living on Long Island, New York, bought this farm for his son Charles, and another tract in the township for his son Augustus. Charles Jaggar lived on his farm ten or fifteen years before it became the property of Mr. Robinson.
Some time during the year 1838 Joel B. Marsh came from Ontario county, New York, and built a house and made other improvements on section 4, on the farm now belonging to the estate of P. Hinebauch. . Mr. Marsh had but recently been married, and his wife came with him. His first house was built of hewn logs, and stood immediately in front of the site of the present frame dwelling. Mr. Marsh bought about five hundred acres of land in the neighborhood before he settled. He raised a family of six children,-four sons and two daughters,-
of whom three are yet living. He held numerous township offices, and was a member of the board of supervisors. With the exception of the time necessa- rily spent in his official duties, he lived on his farm the greater portion of it, after he settled, and devoted it to agricultural pursuits. He died in 1850, from the effects of a fall from the roof of his barn. He was a man much esteemed by his townsmen, and his loss was deeply felt.
Samuel Freed came with his wife from Allentown, Lehigh county, Pennsyl- vania, in 1838, and settled two hundred and forty acres of land, mostly on sec- tion 6. He was an old man when he came, and lived on his place until his death, which occurred in 1858. His son, John W. Freed, came from the same county in 1840, with his wife and six children. Five children were born in the family afterwards, and of the eleven there are six now living. Mr. Freed located on the same place with his father, and afterwards purchased considerable land in the . vicinity. He lived until June, 1873, when he died at the age of seventy-three years.
Among other settlers were E. W. Robinson, G. F. White, William S. Harris, E. H. Cook, John Skinner, Guy Markham, G. R. Mckay, and Elisha Gilbert. The latter settled on section 20 in 1835, and owned two hundred and forty acres of land. He lived on his place some twenty years and then removed to Marshall, where he died. He was married to Miss Jeannette Baldwin, a sister of Mrs. Edward L. Rogers, and a teacher in the early schools. The farm he owned is now the property of Joseph Shipp, who came to the place just previous to the breaking out of the Southern Rebellion. Henry Howe, on section 17, is also an old settler.
On section 16 a man named Jones was the first settler, and owned forty acres on the northwest corner, now the property of W. N. Hill. He had a log house and other improvements on the place. None of the family are left in the neigh- borhood, most of them being dead, and the rest removed to other places. The old gentleman himself is yet alive, residing somewhere in Nebraska.
Stephen Burton, Jr., came from Mendon, Monroe county, New York, in the fall of 1843, and bought land where he now lives. He brought his wife and five children with him, and settled on the northeast quarter of section 10. A few acres had been cleared on the place some years before, but when Mr. Burton came it had grown up to brush. Mr. B.'s father, Stephen Burton, Sr., served in the war of 1812, and was wounded at Black Rock. He enlisted from Ontario county, New York, and never came to Michigan to locate. Lyman Burton, son of Stephen Burton, Jr., served in the Sixth Michigan Volunteer Infantry during the rebel- lion, and was with General Butler at New Orleans. Mrs. Burton's son, Charles Gilbert, was in Company K of the First Michigan. Enlisted from Marshall, and served three years under Sherman.
Abraham Giltner came from Northampton county, Pennsylvania, in 1845, and settled forty acres where he now lives, it being the northeast quarter of the south- east quarter of section 16. Brought his wife and six children with him, and made the first improvements on the place. Three of his children are now living.
John Tilford was originally from Washington county, New York, but previous to the time he came to Michigan had lived in Cayuga county. In the fall of 1845 he and his wife came to this State, and stopped in Detroit, where they stayed until the following March (1846), when they came to the place which they now occupy, on section 9. Mr. Tilford purchased eighty acres and became the first settler upon it. He built a frame house, which is yet standing near his present brick residence.
William C. Richfield came from Batavia, Genesee county, New York, in 1834, and in 1844 settled ninety-six acres on section 16 of school land. He afterwards purchased additional land on section 15. His father, Daniel Richfield, and his mother came from New York at the same time with him, and for ten years the family lived in Branch county. Daniel Richfield died in 1864, aged eighty-four years. His wife is now living, at the extreme age of ninety-eight. The old people were originally from Brunswick, New Jersey, where they raised all their children, except William C., who was born in Batavia, New York, to which they removed from New Jersey. William C. Richfield suffered the loss of his dwelling by fire in 1874, and is now living on a farm northwest of his old place. On the opposite side of the road Valentine Dean has a tool-handle factory, started within a year or two.
Joshua Henshaw came with his wife, four sons, and five daughters, from Genesee county, New York, in October, 1844, and stopped first at Ypsilanti, Washtenaw county, Michigan. Before leaving Genesee county, New York, he had lived in both Batavia and Darien. In the spring of 1845 he left Ypsilanti and came to the old Udell farm, on section 24 in Eckford, where Joshua G. Henshaw now lives. Mr. Udell had divided his farm among his children, and Mr. Henshaw purchased John Udell's share. One of Mr. Henshaw's sons came some time afterwards. Four of the children are now living,-three sons and one daughter.
Among the later arrivals in Eckford were Deacon Darius Bickford, his brother,
18
138
HISTORY OF CALHOUN COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
James P. Bickford, Esq., and Hon. S. E. Robinson. The latter is an old settler of Marshall, and has lived in Eckford but a few years. Darius Bickford came in March, 1853, and lived on section 17. He is now living in Marshall. Was a deacon in the Presbyterian church. James P. Bickford came to the township May 16, 1853. Was elected justice of the peace about 1860, and has held the office a good share of the time since. Has been town clerk since 1869. The Bickfords were from Rochester, Monroe county, New York.
On the first Monday in April, 1834, while Eckford was a part of Homer town- ship,
THE FIRST TOWN-MEETING
was held, at the house of Milton Barney. Henry Cook was moderator of this meeting, also of the one held the following year. Of the early records of Eckford nothing can be found, and it is therefore impossible to give the first town officers. In 1834-35 Charles Olin and William Winterstein were highway commissioners. In the month of April, 1836, after Eckford township was organized, it was divided into seven road districts. The first roads were laid out as early as 1834 or 1835. The first town clerk of Eckford was L. M. Howe. In June, 1836, C. M. Church, T. J. Walker, and Joseph Otis were highway commissioners.
The first complete record we have found of a township election was in April, 1842, at which the following officers were elected :
Supervisor, Charles Olin ; Town Clerk, Oshea Wilder; Treasurer, Elijah Cook ; Justice of the Peace, Thomas J. Walker ; Assessors, Edward L. Rogers, John Whitcomb; Highway Commissioners, Alfred Arnold, Simeon A. Stone, Benoni Cutler; Overseers of the Poor, Elijah Cook, B. H. Cutler; School Inspectors, E. L. Rogers, S. B. Keep, Joel B. Marsh; Constables, John Kennedy, Jonathan Miller, Elisha H. Cook. The following were appointed overseers of highways: District No. 1, Joseph Otis; No. 2, Harry Cooley ; No. 3, Jacob Miller; No. 4, Alfred Arnold ; No. 5, Eli T. Chase; No. 6, John Kennedy ; No. 7, Daniel B. Eddy ; No. 8, John Prior; No. 9, Ashley Harris.
At a special meeting held December 13, 1862, it was voted by the township to raise by tax the sum of one hundred and seventy-five dollars, to pay to each per- son who should enlist from it, to the number of sixteen or seventeen, if found necessary to do so in order to fill the quota. December 31, 1863, it was again voted to raise three hundred dollars each to pay volunteers, and fill the quota without drafting. February 27, 1864, a meeting was held, and a bounty of one hundred dollars voted to each volunteer from the township, to the number of twelve, if necessary. This was afterward revised so that either a veteran or a new recruit enlisting from the township at any time during the year 1864 should be entitled to the bounty.
The officers of Eckford for 1876 were as follows: Supervisor, John Taylor ; Town Clerk, James P. Bickford; Treasurer, Arzah Robinson; Justices of the Peace, Valentine Dean, James P. Bickford, George W. Zimmerman, Joseph G. Henshaw; Superintendent of Schools, Charles E. Darrow; Commissioner of High- ways, George W. Zimmerman ; Drain Commissioner, William McPherson; Con- stables, William C. Richfield, H. A. Shatzel, Jerome A. Zimmerman, Thomas J. Shipp.
The township has nearly three hundred voters, and is strongly Republican in politics. The population is in the neighborhood of thirteen hundred. The town hall, located in the centre of the township on land donated by Arzah Robinson and Robert Sackett, is a substantial frame building, erected in 1870 at a cost of one thousand dollars. Previous to that time town elections had been held in school-houses, generally in the old "yellow school-house," on the Homer and Marshall road, in district No. 1.
SCHOOLS.
Eckford is divided into twelve districts and fractional districts, and contains nine school buildings. Fractional district No. 4 sends its children to the school which is located in the main part of the district, in Marengo township, while those from fractional district No. 1 attend at the brick school-house, which is just across the line, in Clarendon township, opposite the Free-Will Baptist church.
In district No. 1, a frame school-house was built about 1848, and is still stand- ing. John Harris was one of the building committee. A man named Smith built the house, and soon afterwards the California gold-fever of 1849 broke out, and he made one of the number who were charmed by the stories of untold wealth which lay hidden in the new El Dorado, and which was said to be found in nuggets " as big as a brick." This school-house was built partly for church purposes, the Presbyterians, who at that time had an organization in Eckford, contributing considerable money in order to have it made larger, and convenient to hold meetings in. It was painted yellow, and has always been known as the " yellow school-house." It has been used for a school-house, for church meetings, town-meetings, lectures, and various other purposes, and, in the language of one of the old settlers, the site " fairly smokes with goodness."
Probably political matters were not so corrupt in this neighborhood, and the good influences of the many religious meetings held in it were not overthrown by tricks of politicians, and the various intrigues of "rings" and office-seekers.
The first school kept in district No. 2 was taught in a frame building erected for a dwelling, by Joseph Otis. It was purchased by the directors, and moved to the southeast corner of section 2, where it was used for some time as a school- house. A young lady named Minerva Prosser was the first teacher in it. This was about 1839-40.
A school-house was built in the same district in 1841 or 1842, near the spot now occupied by the frame school-house on the southwest corner of section 2. This building was made of oak boards, four and five inches in width, laid one upon the other, and spiked down, with their outer edges even, and the alternate spaces between them on the inside allowing the wall to be lathed and plastered. It was clapboarded on the outside, and was a warm, comfortable building. The first teacher in it was Ann Reamer.
In fractional district No. 2, a frame school-house was built about 1840, and was used until within a few years. A neat brick house now stands on nearly the same spot, and is the only brick school-house in the township. The early teachers were generally in every way competent to carry on the schools, and did exceed- ingly well, although they received small pay.
The first school in the township was taught at Lower Eckford, in district No. 3, in the summer of 1834. There were only six or eight pupils, and they were taught by William N. Wilder, now living in Marshall. Mr. Wilder was then quite young, and taught merely for pastime, as he had become temporarily crip- pled by stepping on a spike and severely injuring one of his feet. This was his first experience at teaching.
The first school-house in this district was a frame building, erected in 1834 or 1835. The first teacher was a lady, her name now forgotten. The first school- house built in fractional district No. 3 was the frame building now standing. It was erected about 1850, and stands on the township line.
A school-house was built on Palmer's plains, in district No. 4, in 1836, on land donated by Edward L. Rogers. It was a frame building, and was burned about two years afterwards. Another was erected on the same spot, but finally torn away and a third one put up, which is now standing. In the first school- house the first teacher was Miss Jeannette Baldwin, a sister of Mrs. Rogers. She afterwards married Elisha Gilbert, and is now living in Marshall. Her husband has been dead several years.
In district No. 5 a frame school-house was built in 1838, the work being done by a carpenter named Amasa Waters. This house is yet standing, and is the only one ever erected in the district. It was originally painted red, but has been considerably repaired, and since painted brown. The first teacher in it was Miss Minerva Prosser, the same who afterwards taught the first school in district No. 2, and also taught in other places. She was a fine teacher, and was much esteemed by all. She came to Eckford the spring previous to the time she taught in dis- trict No. 5. She was a sister of the first wife of John Udell. Before the school- house was built, Mrs. Udell (Miss Prosser's sister) taught a select school in the cabin where they lived, and it was attended principally by grown pupils. This was in the winter of 1836-37. Mrs. Udell was also a very competent teacher, and both she and her sister were well educated.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.