History of Ingham and Eaton counties, Michigan, Part 123

Author: Durant, Samuel W. cn
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia : D.W. Ensign & Co.
Number of Pages: 772

USA > Michigan > Eaton County > History of Ingham and Eaton counties, Michigan > Part 123
USA > Michigan > Ingham County > History of Ingham and Eaton counties, Michigan > Part 123

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).

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MRS. D. B. BOWEN.

after their marriage they came to Kalamo, and located one hundred and sixty acres on section 32. His brother Hiram and family came at the same time. They built Hiram's house first, and lived in it until Daniel erected his. Hiram had been here and purchased his land previously. It was then he began fully to realize that life is an active, earnest warfare, and he who would prosper must be no laggard in the work. At "early morn and dewy eve" the sound of his axe was heard, intermingled with the crash of falling timber. So untiringly did he labor that soon his improvements were far in advance of many who had supe- rior advantages in the outset. Ilis present farm consists of two hundred and forty acres, with one hundred and fifty under cultivation, a large orchard, good farm-house and barns, and all appliances for practical farming. Two chil- dren came to bless their home : Mrs. Caroline Bardon, of Red Oak, Iowa, born Sept. 16, 1839; and George D., born Oct. 16, 1843, who resides near the old home.

Mr. Bowen has served his townsmen as justice and high- way commissioner for over twenty years ; is not a politi- cian, but a firm believer in a Democratic form of govern- ment. In domestic relations he is sociable and companion- able ; in business matters, prompt and reliable ; as a citizen, respected and influential.

BENJAMIN F. WELLS.

Benjamin F. Wells was born in Madison Co., N. Y., March 27, 1819, the eldest of seven children; was liberally educated, and thoroughly instructed in the duties of farm- ing. His father, Oziah Wells, was a native of Massachu- setts, and died at Princeton, N. J., his being the first pro- nounced death of that malignant disease, cholera, in the United States. After the father's death the duties of pro- viding for the family devolved upon Benjamin. Disposing of their small farm, they came to Clarendon, Calhoun Co.,

Mich., and purchased one hundred and twenty acres wild land, in the spring of 1837. The autumn following, the mother, with the remaining children, came here. They re- mained, experiencing the vicissitudes incident to the early settlement of a new country, until 1860, when Mr. Wells exchanged for one hundred and sixty acres in Kalamo, Eaton Co., with about forty acres improved, a log house, and small frame barn, all of which at this date has been transformed to one hundred and twenty acres finely im- proved land, thrifty orchard, commodious barn, and a fine

HISTORY OF EATON COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

B. F. WELLS.

brick dwelling. Mr. Wells has been twice married : first, on April 30, 1848, to Miss Ann M., daughter of Lewis and Mary Benham, of Clarendon, Calhoun Co. On May 25, 1856, she died, leaving four children. A second marriage, March 26, 1857, to Malissa R., daughter of John and Artemesia Hamilton, of Madison Co., N. Y., who has borne them two children. Mrs. Wells has led an exemplary Christian life as a member of the Methodist Episcopal So- ciety over thirty years. Mr. Wells has been frequently called to positions of trust, which he has filled with honor to himself and profit to his constituents, both in Calhoun and Eaton Counties. In 1875 he was elected supervi- sor, which position he has filled to the present time.

L. KENT.

The ancestors of Mr. Kent were English, and emi- grated to the New World at an early date in the history of the English colonies. They settled at Stafford, Conn., wbere Joseph Kent was born June 9, 1762, and identi- fied his interests with his country by joining in the struggle for liberty at the age of fifteen, and at the close returned with an honorable discharge to his home and the peaceful occupation of farining.

Later in life he married Esther Tupper, her geneal- ogy tracing back to the nobility of England. They lived to rear a large family of children, removed to Niagara Co., N. Y., in the year 1836, where they now " sleep the sleep that knows no waking," having enjoyed the re- gard of many friends, that a life replete with kindly

M- G

LEANDER KENT.

deeds had won them. L. Kent, a son, was born in Staf- ford, Conn., May 14. 1813, and came with his family to Niagara Co., N. Y., in 1836, where he purchased forty acres of heavily-timbered land, and began the work of clear- ing, with an unyielding determination to transform his purchase into fields suitable for husbandry. In his youth- ful days he had received a common-school education, and at its close adopted a course of reading for self-cultiva- tion during his leisure hours. His studious habits and industry soon brought him to the notice of his townsmen. Official positions were to be filled, and the young farmer was soon favored with posts of honor and responsibility, his chief interest being the education of the young. In 1853, being desirous of conducting the business of farming more extensively, he sold, and removed to Kalamo town- ship, Eaton Co., Mich., his present home, purchasing one hundred and forty-five acres of comparatively new land, which he has brought to a fine state of cultivation. The spring following his arrival he was elected township treas- urer, which office he filled for ten consecutive terms, and that of supervisor six, when, from failing health, he was obliged to decline further favors. On Sept. 16, 1846, he married Paulina, daughter of Chauncey and Rhoda Brace, residents of Niagara Co., N. Y. The fruits of this union have been three children, viz. : Mrs. Henrietta E. Hollinsbeck, of Vermontville, born Dec. 25, 1847 ; Mrs. Amelia S. Bab- cock, of Kalamo, born Jan. 8, 1850; and Werter L., born Dec. 9, 1856, died Dec. 22, 1874. Mrs. Kent has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Society since seventeen years of age, a devoted Christian, a faithful wife, and an affectionate mother. Equally with her husband she enjoys the love of their children, and the confidence and esteem of a large circle of friends.

ONEIDA.

GEOGRAPHICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL.

THE township of Oneida* occupies a position on the northern extreme of Eaton County, and is bounded east, south, and west, respectively, by the townships of Delta, Benton, and Roxand, and north by Eagle township, in Clinton County. Grand River flows across the northeast corner of Oneida through a deeply-worn channel, and run- ning parallel with it is the Detroit, Lansing and Northern Railway, leading to Ionia and IToward City. The shores of the river are noted for their fine and varied scenery. Above the village of Grand Ledge the banks slope gently to the stream, but at and below the village they become abrupt and jut boldly out over the waters, laying bare the rugged masses of sandstone which here so closely underlie the surface. This rock, where exposed, is of a light yellow color, but taken from the lower strata is of a soft gray shade, and is much sought after for building purposes and is extensively quarried in the vicinity.

At the western extremity of the village a small stream, known as Sandstone Creek, discharges its waters into the river, after passing for some distance through a dark and rocky gorge, or " gulf," grown thick with hemlocks. The admirer of the rugged in nature would not expect, on ap- proaching the river at this point, the beauties which await him, and the surprise on a nearer approach is delightful.

A fine quality of soft coal for use as fuel is mined near Grand Ledge, although scarcely paying to produce for a home market, timber being yet so plenty. The vein aver- ages from eighteen inches to two and a half feet in thick- ness, and on the farm of W. J. Babcock, north of Grand Ledge, near the county-line, it has been found three feet in thickness. Mr. Babcock has mined more extensively than any other person in the vicinity, and at one time shipped large quantities to Detroit, Ionia, and Grand Rapids. He says it will yield 6000 tons per acre on his farm. The coal on his place is about sixty feet below the surface, yet he does not have to shaft to reach it and a natural drainage is obtained to the river. A vein has been recently opened on the south side of the river, west of the village, and is eighteen inches thick and of superior quality for fuel.

The portions of the township away from the vicinity of the river and its tributaries are generally rolling, and swamps of considerable size abonnded when the town was first settled, bnt a judicious system of drainage has re- duced them materially.

The soil is of good quality, and the amount of grain and fruit raised compares favorably with that of any township in the county.

LAND ENTRIES.

The following is a list of land entries in what is now the township of Oneida (town 4 north, range 4 west), as given in the tract-book for the county of Eaton :

Section 1 .-- 1836, W. Thompson ; 1837, S. E. Cole.

Section 2 .- 1831, If. Mason ; 1836, W. Packard, II. Butler, W. Thomp- son ; 1837, S. E. Cole.

Section 3 .- 1833, H. Wilmarth ; 1836, H. H. Comstock, H. Miller, W. Packard.

Section 4 .- 1836, J. R. Williams, W. Packard, L. H. Parsons, E. Newman, C. Rollo.

Section 5 .- 1836, E. L. Akin, Freeman Johnson, J. Tanner ; 1837, J. Dobbins.

Section 6 .- 1836, F. Johnson, O. Rowland ; 1837, E. Eddy, J. Dob- bins; 1848. V. Welch, J. Sanders; 1851, J. Sanders; 1854, E. Eddy ; 1855, A. A. Jenne.

Section 7 .- 1836, F. Jobnson, B. Jones, T. Strange; 1838, Philip Eckler, R. Wood; 1839, A. Wood; 1848, S. Claytoo; 1854, J. Clayton.

Section 8 .- 1836, Grabam & Church, J. Tanner, S. E. Hitchcock ; 1837, Z. Lloyd.

Section 9 .- 1836, W. Packard, A. Newman, L. H. Parsons, S. L. Gage.

Section 10 .- 1833, N. J. Brown ; 1836, M. A. Perry, J. S. Rapleyer, S. L. Stoddard, S. B. Croger, W. llenry, L. Newman.

Section 11 .- 1833, J. Torrey, C. Thayer; 1835, Boyer & Co .; 1836, Z. Lloyd & Co., J. R. Williams, Z. Lloyd, A. Sumner.

Section 12 .- 1835, Boyer & Co., -- Hatch; 1836, J. R. Williams. Section 13 .- 1836, L. Brown, Thomas Beach.

Section 14 .- 1836, M. Jewell, C. Southwick, E. Tyler.

Section 15 .- 1836, H. Halbert, Z. Darling, A. Moore, H. Velzy, I. Corbett.

Section 16 .- No dates, W. H. Tenear, S. Sunderland, C. A. Matthews; 1851, G. W. Rogers; 1854, C. S. Fairchild, Charles Patterson ; G. Helrey, H. Sutherland ; 1855, S. Doxie ; 1860, M. M. Suther- land.

Section 17 .- 1837, G. Owen, V. Chapin ; 1846, E. Sutherland; 1848, H. Sutherland ; 1849, R. K. Stark; 1850, J. Van Gilder ; 1851, H. Westfall, E. Sutherland ; 1852, D. Beach, D. Sanders.

Section 18 .- 1836, Geo. Strange & Co., T. Beach, Wm. W. Norton.

Section 19 .- 1836, J. H. Loring, R. A. Merritt; 1837, H. Whitney ; 1839, J. B. Chapman ; 1848, E. Kimball.

Section 20 .- 1837, E. J. Penniman, T. Mosier ; 1848, Wm. Glyn, S. Sutherland ; 1850, Charles Jones ; 1851, A. Sburter, Orrison Mo- sier.

Section 21 .- 1836, N. Gleason, D. Harris; Berry & Russell; 1837, W. Whitlock, Timothy Mosier, R. Rix, E. J. Penniman.

Section 22 .- 1836, E. Parmelee, H. 11. Howland, A. Halbert, J. Berry, S. Russell ; no date, Jobn Diebert.

Section 23 .- 1836, J. Lemmon, P. Blasier ; 1837, W. P. Durkee; 1850, S. Perry, Itto Harman ; no date, John Diebert.

Section 24 .- 1836, George W. Teeple ; 1837, T. N. Scranton ; 1840, J. Lewis; 1841, F. Young ; 1846, E. M. Fargo; 1848, A. Frizzle; 1849, James E. Johnson ; 1850, L. Powers.

Section 25 .- 1836, T. W. Nichols; 1837, J. Stanley ; 1838, T. W. Nichols ; 1840, B. B. Munro; 1847, S. Waldo; 1848, A. Hotten- stein, Asaph Frizzle ; 1849, G. W. Nichols.

Section 26 .- 1836, J. R. Nichols, J. Jacobs, D. Monroe ; 1837, S. P.

Swartz; 1838, J. Davis; 1850, S. B. Dayton ; 1851, W. D. Mann. Section 27 .- 1836, Peter M. Kind, J. Mitchell, T. W. Nichols.

Section 28 .- 1836, P. M. Kind, B. K. Gear ; 1838, William Henry ;

1849, J. L. Mitchell ; 1852, L. W. Reynolds.

# The boundaries of this township were surveyed by Lucius Lyon in 1825, and the subdivisions by Orange Risdon in 1827.

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HISTORY OF EATON COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

Section 29 .- 1836, B. K. Gear : 1837, Win. Densmore, S. Hungerford ; 1848, R. Dye; 1819, Christopher Flowers, C. Verplank ; 1851, W. Guttery.

Section 30 .- 1851, Asaph Landers, D. O'Neil, I'. Hackathorn ; 1854, J. Ilitehman; 1855, George Braley, J. O'Neil; 1858, V. Frisbee. Section 31 .- 1837. C. Griswold, J. Hughes, Jr. ; 1846, 1848. G. R. Trum- bull; 1849, Jenne & Co .: no date, W. A. Barker ; 1852, H. West- faall: 1854. H. A. Moyer; 1855, D. O'Neil.

Section 32 .- 1836, B. White, D. Harris ; 1837, A. Mygatt, J. Smith, G. H. Hall, L. Spragne.

Section 33 .- 1836, II. Barber, W. Loveland, S. Preston, J. Smith, V. Criddeman, J. Little.

Section 34 .- 1836, George Strange & Co. (entire).

Section 35 .- 1836. D. Allen, James Nixon, James R. Nichels, H. Thomas ; 1837, R. Nixen.

Section 36 .- 1836, James Nixon, J. Boyce; 1867, Henry 11. Crapo.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the first entry in the township was made on section 2, in 1831, by H. Mason. Hl. Wilmarth, N. J. Brown, J. Torrey, and others pur- chased in 1833, mostly on speculation. Hon. Ilenry H. Crapo, of Flint, a prominent manufacturer of and dealer in lumber, and at one time Governor of Michigan, purchased timber lands in the township at later dates.

EARLY SETTLEMENT .- PIONEER INCIDENTS, ETc.

The first settler in the township of Oneida was Solomon Russell, from Orleans Co., N. Y. His journey was per- formed in the autumn of 1836, by ox-team, and his route lay through Canada and across the counties of Oakland, Shiawassee, and Clinton, in Michigan. He finally arrived in the township of Eagle, in the last-named county, and after having established a crossing over Grand River (since known as the " old ford"), he cut his way through the trackless forest to section 22, in what is now the township of Oneida, Eaton Co. He there built the first habitation erected by a white man in the township, and settled in it with his wife and several small children. He employed the first " hired men" in the township, Robert Rix, after- wards of Roxand, and William Henry, who became one of the wealthiest and most prominent citizens of Oneida. Not long after his arrival Mr. Russell had a hand severely in- jured by falling upon his axe while chopping, and he was carried on a litter to the township of Eagle, where he finally recovered.

The second settler in Oneida was Samuel Preston,* who had come to Michigan from Cayuga Co., N. Y., in the spring of 1835, and located nine miles west of Adrian, Lenawee Co. In the fall of 1836 he paid Stephen Per- kins twelve dollars for locating 160 acres of land for him in the Grand River Valley, and early in January, 1837, visited his purchase, finding Mr. Russell ahead of him in the matter of settlement. The claims of the two men were about two miles apart. On this trip Mr. Preston stopped over-night with Robert Wheaton, in Chester town- ship, and the next day Mr. Wheaton accompanied him to his land, which was covered with a thick growth of " gi- gantic trees," as Mr. Preston expressed it. At that time but nine families had settled on the route between Mr. Wheaton's and Jackson, a distance of forty-five miles.

Mr. Preston returned to Lenawee County the day after he had " viewed his land," and on the 2d day of February set out with his family and two ox-teams, with the household effects, for their future home in Oneida. Three days later they arrived at Asa Fuller's, near Mr. Wheaton's, and after making arrangements to remain there for a time Mr. Pres- ton, aided by the two gentlemen above named, began the task of cutting a road to his place. Of this work Mr. Preston wrote as follows in 1869 :

" Night coming on we clustered ourselves into a cave dug in the snow, after giving our team a supper of tree-tops. Here, in the depths of a snow-bank, surrounded by almost interminable forest, we cooked, ate, and finally retired to our beds.t It is easier to speak of the ocen- pation of such a position as was ours than to endure it. Cut loose from any earthly home, deeply involved in the dreary, wintry forest, de- pendent upon the capricionsness and uncertainty of circumstances, re- fections must and did arise of no very pleasant nature. And now, in these after-years of a letter state, it is difficult to realize how this, as well as the many succeeding trials of life in a new country, were so well endured. Abont ten o'clock of the second day from Mr. Fuller's we reached the site we were in quest of, and, after clearing away the deep snow, some legs, and underbrush, commenced the work of building a log cabin. To myself this was an entirely new experience; hut with the more experienced aid of my kind new neighbor I sneceeded in putting up a fourteen-by-eighteen habitation, which proved to be the secend white man's abode in the wilderness of Oneida. After this feat, of course, we had the honor of its first occupation over-night. Some time during this eventful night it commenced snowing, and before two o'clock the following day we had an addition of another foot of snow. Judging it to he a matter of prudence to seek some safer asylum, and depositing our implements in the newly-made cabin, we commenced our retreat. Mr. Fuller's home was full seven miles distant, and it was still snowing. When within about two miles of his place the snow rose so high over our floundering sled that we were compelled to abandon it altogether, and trust to our weary legs for the remainder of the way, arriving about nightfall at the house of my kind friend, Mr. Fuller. As soon as the snow had settled, which took several days, by the help of my good Chester neighbors I completed my cabin, excepting those very essential parts, floors, doors, windows, and chimuncy. In this unfinished condition we all went into it-self, wife, and a brace of little ones-on the 4th day of March, 1837. This event, though infi- nitely less notable, we deemed of far greater importance to us than that parallel event then transpiring beneath the dome of the national Capitol.

" About one year after our first settlement Mrs. Presten attended a funeral at Canada Settlement, walking and carrying a young child in ber arms, a distance of three er mere miles. On her return home the next day she missed her way, taking a deer trail, supposing it to be the right path. Being myself ont the next day at about three o'clock P.M., for the purpose of driving in my cattle, they took a sudden fright at some unusual object when ahout two miles from home, and looking for the cause I discovered my wandering wife, still hearing her babe in her arms. Which party was the most frightened-myself or the cattle-it would be difficult te say."

Among the notable events in the early history of the township were the following : The first death was that of a child of James Nixon at Canada Settlement; the first marriage, that of Robert Rix and Mrs. A. Carr; the first birth, that of Horace Preston, second son of Samuel Pres- ton. The first national celebration was held at the house of J. II. Nichols, when about thirty or forty persons gathered to enjoy the exercises of the day. In the winter of 1839 twenty-seven of the thirty-two inhabitants of the town were afflieted with the measles, but none died.

In the southeast corner of the township of Oneida is what is known as the " Canada Settlement," from the fact

* Mr. Preston was an early postmaster in the township at the old post-office of Oocida, and held the position a number of years.

t The work of the first day had brought them to within one and a half miles uf the terminus, Mr. Preston's location.

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ONEIDA.

that the first arrivals in the neighorbood were from Canada. The history of its settlement is thus given by Hon. Robert Nixon, in an article published in the Charlotte Republican in October, 1869 :

"James A. Nichols, James Nixon, Samuel Nixon, and myself left London, Canada West, in October, 1836, and examined the country between Lake Huron and Black River in this State; but finding so much of it occupied by extensive hemlock swamps, and becoming disgusted with the whole region, we took a lasting leave, hound by steam from Fort Gratiot to the city of Detroit. Ilearing, on our arrival there, of the great beauty of the Grand River Valley, we started on foot for Ionia, on what was called the Grand River pike. For twelve miles out of the city the mud was deep enough to make two miles' travel a day's journey for a team. The road from Howell to De Witt, Clinton Co., was quite passable. Taking hreakfast at De Witt before daylight, we started upon tbe Dexter trail for Ionia, thirty-two miles distant. Six of us started on this long pull and traveled until nearly night, not having been able to obtain any food through the whole day. Some of the party becoming exhausted, Nichols and myself went ahead in search of food. After a seeming long time we came npon a shanty, and finding the lady of the mansion at home we ap- plied for relief, but her ladyship, not being of the Florence Night- ingale school, denied us wholly. After a long expostulation against her inhumanity, we obtained some bread and returned to our famish- ing companions. On meeting them we proceeded .to the sbanty, and finding our feminine friend a little more complacent, all fared sump- tuously npon our feast of bread. At Ionia we formed the acquaint- ance of Mr. Stephen B. Groger, the first settler of Eagle, Clinton Co., who kindly assisted us in locating lands in town I, of range 4, in the county of Eaton, the present township of Oneida. Finding our lands all right as to soil, situation, and timber, we returned home to Canada in November. About the last days of February, 1837, we again ar- rived at Oneida. We were six in number, all quite young men, besides some boys. Mr. J. H. Nichols, tbe oldest of the company, was twenty-nine; James Nixon, twenty-six ; Martin Nichols, twenty- three; Jason Nichols, twenty-one; Robert Nixon, nineteen; Samuel Nixon, sixteen ; all farmers hy occupation, although, being Yankee born, we could turn our bands to anything needed,-at least so we thought. In a physical point of view all were decidedly ' iron-sided,' and without the fear of field or forest before our eyes. The snow was a solid mass three feet in depth, and remained so until after the 20th day of March.

"James H. Nichols and James Nixon moved in with ox-teams. In the month of April following we were all taken by surprise by the arrival of a new settler at our shanty, in the person of Mr. John Stanley, accompanied by his wife and three children. Mrs. Stanley was the first white woman in Canada Settlement.

"In the month of June thereafter, Mr. T. Walker Nichols reached us with a very numerous family, all from Canada. With them came the wives of J. H. Nichols and James Nixon. So numerous an ac- quisition put ns in mind of what the Scripture says, ' About this time men began to multiply upon the earth,' and, as we thought with ns, women too. Mr. T. W. Nichols was from Canada West. Mr. Stanley was a Vermonter. Some very old people-Mr. Johnson Jones and wife and Cornelius Jones-came in the summer of 1837, but did not stay long.

" In May of this year John Stanley sowed two bushels of spring wheat. From this sowing he harvested sixty-two bushels of gond wheat. This was the first crop raised in Canada Settlement. We learned by this experiment that things would grow in Michigan. All that was necessary was to clear away the huge trees and tickle the soil a little with the hoe and harrow. This most of us felt abund- antly able to do, though some felt differently and sighed for the ' flesh-pots' of royal old Canada.

"Some time during the spring of the same year Mr. Cornclins P. Swarts came, and shortly after his wife arrived, all from Canada West. They were young people, some twenty-six years of age, and settled on section 26. In the fall of 1838, Ahijah Hutchins came with a family of nine persons, all from Canada, of course. Ile located on section 27. And thus Canada Settlement grew in numbers. It is pleasant to reflect upon those times of prosperity and encourage- ment,-an age of kindness and sympathy one with another.

"Soon after wheat-sowing, in May of the first year, Mr. John Stanley had the misfortune to lose his oxen. They strayed as far as

Washtenaw County, and were not recovered until the October follow- ing. Mr. Stanley seemed to be a child of accidents; he had a pe- culiar knack of getting lost in the woods; always thought bome was right the other way .. We have several times had to follow this good neighbor night and day. At one time he drove all his cattle across Grand River, where the city of Lansing now stands, semingly with- out any apprehension of his mistake. He, nevertheless, beat us who were in search of him, arriving home long before ns, by way of the great bend north of Delta Mills, so we hadn't much to say that time.

"The first white man's shanty erected in Canada Settlement was put up on the last day of February, 1837. Six of us had just half a day's time to cut and draw the logs (they were drawn by hand), split the covering, displace the snow, and cook our supper before we could go to rest. However, all this was done, and the shanty stood all gracefully up before we took our respective places on the wet lap of mother Earth, which we did in commendable obedience to the law of necessity, having each tbe whole of a friendly blanket both under and over our weary bodies. Our dreams might have been of hay, straw, or feathers, but we were destined to wake in the morning with- out having realized either. Our sleep was none of the worst ; but, oh ! the getting up in the morning, with other garments than our liuen well saturated with liquefied snow, and the weather as cold as ' Greenland's icy mountains,' was not a little trying to pioneer grit. But being all young and hardy, we passed this trying ordeal safe and sound from any lasting damage to either body or soul. This was not the only hard raising we had to accomplish for ourselves and others. Among other distant cases, we traveled, in the fall of 1838, nine miles through the woods to the township of Roxand, for the purpose of as- sisting Mr. Lemuel Cole in the raising of his first log cabin ; and again, the same scason, six miles to the new township of Delta, to aid our respected friend, Mr. Genet Brown, on his second log edifice. Eight or ten men in those days could do almost anything,-sweep away our own timber, build our own shelters, then go off to distant places and help others. It is to be feared that little of the kind, neighborly spirit which then existed would be found in the heart of the present grasping generation; but circumstances, perhaps, may alter cases.

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History of Ingham and Eaton counties, Michigan, Part 123

Author: Durant, Samuel W. cn Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Philadelphia : D.W. Ensign & Co. Number of Pages: 772

Author: Durant, Samuel W. cn
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia : D.W. Ensign & Co.
Number of Pages: 772