USA > Michigan > Kent County > History of Kent County, Michigan, together with sketches of its cities, villages and townships, educational, religious, civil, military, and political history, portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 125
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1871
Nicholas R. Hill.
1872
William Graham. 1873
Jason R. Squires .. . 1874
Nicholas R. Hill, Edward Grosve- nor. 1875
Charles H. Miller.
1876
John Berridge
1877
Jason R. Squires
1878
Lyman H. Austin.
1879
Frank W. Hunter, Lyman H.
Austin. .
1880
Wellington Rasco
1881
SCHOOLS.
The school interest of the town has grown from a singularly humble beginning to magnificent proportions; with its districts and fractional districts, it now boasts of school property valued at $27,825. The township contains 10 school districts (three of which are fractional), 1,029 children of school age, one brick school-house, six frame school-houses, and three of logs. The value of the school property is $27,825; number of teachers, 27; amount paid teachers for the year ending June 30, 1881, $3, 882; total resources, $11,880.
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES.
The lumber-mill on sec. 22 was erected by its present owner, J. R. Squires, in June, 1874, at a cost of $4,000. It then com- prised a shingle-mill, which was operated in connection with the saw-mill till February, 1881, when it was removed to Marcelona, Antrim Co. The lumber factory employs on an average eight men, and cuts 15,000 feet per day. In 1880 it manufactured 10,000,000 feet.
The lumber and shingle factory, located on sec. 11, Nelson tp., owned and operated by S. L. Ware, was built in 1877, by Matthew Hart, and purchased by its present owner, in 1878. Employs in each department 12 men. Daily capacity in lumber, 25,000 feet; annual capacity, 2,000,000 feet. Daily capacity of shingle de- partment, 35,000; manufactured in 1881, 3,000,000 shingles.
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NELSON AND SOLON TOWNSHIPS.
The shingle-mill on sec. 21 of Nelson tp. was built in October, 1880, by Z. B. Cheney, at a cost of $3,500. It has a 30-horse- power engine, employs on an average 30 men, and manufactures 40,000 shingles daily. Manufactured in 1881, 9,500,000 shingles. The mill is superintended by J. A. Taft.
Sand Lake shingle-mill, located on the outlet of Sand Lake, was built in 1869, and was purchased by G. H. Barker, in October, 1878, at a cost of $1,400. The industry employs 14 men, and pro- duces daily 35,000 shingles. In 1881 the total number manufact- ured was 5,000,000 shingles.
The remains of four old mills still stand on the shore of the lake.
Ware & Olin's planing mill was built in 1879, by E. Ware & Co., and was purchased by the present owners in April, 1881. The engine is 30-horse power. The capacity of the mill is 60,000 feet per 24 hours. There are six men employed. Apart and from the regular shipping trade, the custom department of the mill pro- duces many thousand feet of planed lumber per year.
SAND LAKE VILLAGE.
This nucleus of a prosperous village is located on sections 4 and 5, Nelson township, on the northern borders of the county. It is distant 25 miles from Grand Rapids, and 171 northwest of Detroit. The population of the hamlet in 1880 was estimated at 700. The three years which have elapsed since its incorporation as a vil- lage have worked great changes for the better. The manufacture of lumber is extensively carried on, there being no less than five saw-mills and three shingle-mills in the village and immediate neighborhood.
The Congregational, Adventist and Methodist societies have churches in the village. Its railroad facilities form an important factor in its progress. The G. R. & I. R. R. Co.'s depot is located there, and northward still is an office of the D., L. & N. R. R. The postoffice is administered by M. L. Swift. In the following table the names and occupations of the principal inhabitants are set forth :
George Barker, shingle manufacturer; Stephen Bitely, lumber and shingle manufacturer; Bradish Bros., boots and shoes ; Mrs. M. J. Butler, millinery; F. Carpenter, shingle manufacturer ; Homer L. Carter, funiture, etc .; Z. V. Cheney, shingle manufact- urer; James S. Cowin, drugs, etc .; George W. Finch, jeweler and barber; E. C. Giddings, grocer; J. Gill, harness-maker; S. Hart & Son, shingle manufacturers; Hine, Wooding & Stone, lumber manufacturers; G. W. Jones, hotel; Lyman T. Kinney, shingle manufacturer; Oberhaltzer & Brackman, shingle manufacturers; Poland & Wenzel, shingle manufacturers; Miss H. Richmond, milliner; Russell & Beardsley, shingle manufacturers; Shattuck & Cain, general store; M. Sockerby, shingle manufacturer; M. Lewis
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HISTORY OF KENT COUNTY.
Swift, hardware, etc .; Oliver Taylor, lumber and shingle manufact- urer; E. Ware, lumber and planing mill; Watkins & Ferry, flour and feed; Wyman & Carnes, lumber manufacturers.
The village was platted by the following named persons previous to its incorporation in January, 1879. The original plat was made for Robert I. Salisbury, R. W. Salisbury and Fred. P. Wetmore, July 22, 1871, by Wm. Thornton ; the first addition for Emmer Ware, Aug. 19, 1872, by Riley Smith ; and the second addition for Frank B. Seeley, Jan. 24, 1876, by William Thornton, surveyor.
The village was organized Jan. 1, 1879, with Peter Haifley, President : John Berridge, Recorder ; T. I. Phelps, Treasurer ; W. H. Brooks, A. D. Eldridge, W. Kronkbright, Jerome Dicker- son, M. L. Swift and Abner Sheets, Trustees. Those men hield office from January until March, 1879, when the first annual meeting was held in accordance with the provisions of the Act of the Board of Supervisors. The officers elected since that period have been : 1879-Peter Haifley, President ; John Berridge, Recorder ; T. I. Phelps, Treasurer , E. D. Eldridge, M. L. Swift, W. Kronkbright, J. E. Goul, Abner Sheets, H. F. Hamilton. 1880-Abner Sheets, President; John Berridge, Recorder , T. I. Phelps, Treasurer ; J. E. Goul, W. Kronkbright, F. H. Olin, D. A. Hecox, H. L. Carter, H. F. Hamilton, Trustees. 1881-J. E. Goul, President ; John Berridge, Recorder ; T. I. Phelps, Treas- urer ; F. H. Olin, J. S. Cowin, S. J. Latimer, W. S. Gill, Welling- ton Rasco and W. H. Brooks.
The Methodist Episcopal church building was erected in 1875. Among its original members here were the Barker, Dodge and Grant families, Mrs. Goff and Mrs. Crabb. The building is located north of the public square, and is very creditable to the society.
The Congregational church was built in 1878'-9. The society was organized by Rev. Mr. Redcoff in 1878. Rev. Mr. Carinduff suc- ceeded him, and he in turn gave place to the present pastor. The church edifice, like that of the Methodists, form a high testimonial to the zeal and energy of the small congregation.
Many other sects of the Christian Church exist here without houses of worship.
The Sand Lake Lodge, No. 240, I. O. O. F., was organized Sept. 10, 1874, with the following charter members: Wm. Graham, W. F. Stuart, F. W. Allen, Mindries H. Whitney, Peter Haifley, Chas. A. Greene, J. C. Symonds, Oscar Johnson, J. V. Crandell, Alpha Pangborn. The charter officers were: S. A. Pangborn, N. G .; S. Hartt, V. G .; W. F. Stuart, Sec .; H. L. Carter, Treas., and W. S. Gill, D. D. G. M. The present membership is 52.
LOCKWOOD
was settled as recently as 1870, by a few lumbermen; to-day it is a hamlet with a population of 125. Its location on the G. R. & I. R. R., 22 miles north of Grand Rapids, was favorable to its advance- ment during the great lumbering era; and now that the pine woods
b. S. Ford M. D.
1239
NELSON AND SOLON TOWNSHIPS.
*
have almost disappeared, the same railroad will still continue to tend to the progress of agricultural industry, which is steadily growing. The principal industry of the hamlet is L. H. Austin's saw, lath, and shingle mills. A general store is operated by T. J. Sheridan & Co., while a grocery store is kept by Mrs. E. Avery. Packard and Austin are wholesale dealers in manufactured lumber, and L. A. Austin is postmaster.
Cedar Springs village is partly in Nelson township. The section line forms the principal business street, and may be said to divide the village equally between Solon and Nelson.
For a full account of this village see a few pages further on, and for personal sketches of citizens of Nelson township, see after the history of Solon township, next following.
SOLON TOWNSHIP.
The lands of this township may be termed the northern plateau of Kentcounty, being the summit between the Grand river and Muskegon river valley. It is composed mainly of high table lands, somewhat flat in portions, especially in the east and southeastern parts of the township, but more undulating or rolling in the central and western portions. About two-thirds of its area was originally a pine forest, much of it as valuable pine as was to be found in the county. In many portions, however, where pine is the prevailing timber, beech, maple and oak are interspersed, and a quality of soil is found far above the average of pine lands in value for all agricul- tural purposes; in short it is found in many cases to be the best quality of wheat land, yielding 30 and even 40 bushels per acre in some instances.
A half dozen small lakes, varying in size from ten to one hundred or more acres, are to be found in the township. Among these is one sometimes known as Lapham lake and Long lake, which is in the southwest corner of the town. Lapham lake has no outlet. One and a half miles east of this, on the northwest corner of section two, is a large, flowing spring, known as Crandall's Spring, which is the source of the west branch of Duke creek. The stream flows south- easterly through three lakes, known as the Chain of Lakes; the first being on the line of sections two and three; the next near the center of section two; and the third on the south line of two and partially on seven. This stream then flows a little east of south, to the north part of section 24, where it unites with the east branch, which rises in Jordan lake, on section one, flows out into Nelson, where it re- ceives some additional water, and again enters Solon at the south- east corner of section 12. At the junction of these two streams Wellman & Co. constructed a dam in 1856, at a cost of $1,000, with the intention of erecting a large saw-mill, which, however, was never built. From this point Duke creek flows in a southwest- erly direction across the township, and passes out on section 30 into Tyrone; it is supplied by several small streams, the largest of
70
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.
1240
HISTORY OF KENT COUNTY.
*
which comes from a small lake near the center of section 14, and flows into the main creek on the north side of section 28. This stream has been much used for running logs to the Rouge, and thence to Grand river. Cedar creek has its head waters in section 20, Nelson, flowing thence southwesterly through Cedar Springs to the confluence with the Rouge river in section 20, Algoma.
THE FIRST LAND-BUYERS AND EARLY SETTLERS.
Among the patentees of the township lands were the persons named in the following list, with the number of sections which they located, and the date of entry: Sarell Wood, section 18, June 24, 1850; Joel Parker, section 19, June 22, 1852; Morgan Allen, sec- tion 23, Oct. 12, 1853; Peter Van Every, section 26, Oct. 21, 1853; Peter Wilson, section 31, Sept. 14, 1853; Anna M. Gillespie, sec- tion 33, Nov. 22, 1854; George Leathers, section 36, April 18, 1853; Moses E. Ross, section 36, April 29, 1853: Ebenezer Sanford, section 5, July 29, 1853; Aloney Rust, section 7, June 12. 1852; George W. Farr, section 9, Sept. 27, 1853; and Ransom C. Luce, section 12, April 21, 1854.
Tradition divides the distinction of making the first settlement within the limits of this town, between Mr. Beals and Mr. J. M. Rounds, who located within its limits during 1854. About the same time three brothers, John, Martin, and Robbins Hicks, from Ohio and Indiana, settled within its limits. J. D. Watkins located in 1855. About the same time, Edward Jewell, John E. Roys, Andrew Fluent, Munson Robinson, Obadiah Smith, Ansel Rogers, and many others came in.
The persons named in connection with the first town meeting may be termed with propriety the pioneers of Solon, as they settled here in the pine woods, while yet the district was robed in its primitive wildness.
ORGANIC.
The township of Solon was organized in 1857 by the Board of Supervisors, who authorized the setting off of town 10 N., of Range 11 W., from Algoma. The first meeting was held at the house of Walter Rowe the first Monday in April, 1857, when R. W. Jewell, Edward Jewell, and Martin Hicks were appointed Inspectors of Election; John E. Roys and Martin Hicks, Clerks; and R. W. Jewell, Moderator.
For several years the town meetings and elections were held near the center of the town, at school-house No. 2, until the year 1865, when the township headquarters were removed to the village of Cedar Springs. A meeting of the township Boards of Solon and Algoma was held May 12, 1857. Smith Lapham, Morgan Allen and Charles Hartman were representatives from Algoma; Edward Jewell, E. W. Jewell and John E. Roys represented Solon. The settlement between the new and old township resulted in
1241
NELSON AND SOLON TOWNSHIPS.
granting one-fourth of the highway fund, $158.23, to Solon; six dollars from the library fund, and one-fourth the number of books in the town library, valued at $18.75. Sept. 16, 1865, the ques- tion of granting $5,000 aid to the G. R. & I. R. R. was brought before the people of the township, when, 41 votes being the entire number recorded, were cast in favor of the subscription.
The names of the township officers elected since organization are as follows:
SUPERVISORS.
Edward Jewell.
1857-8
Reuben W. Jewell. 1867
Nicholas R. Hill.
1859
Mindrus H. Whitney 1868
Edward Jewell.
1860-1
Asel B. Fairchild. 1869-71
Nicholas R. Hill. .1862
Benj. Fairchild. 1871
Edward Jewell.
1863
Edward Pryce. 1872-7
Edward Pryce. . 1864
O. P. Jewell.
1865
Oliver R. Lewis. 1880-1
John J. Dean
1866
CLERKS.
John E. Roys. 1857-8
Martin Hicks. 1859
Wm. P. White. 1860-1
D. C. Lyle. . 1875-7
Edward Pryce. 1862-3
Edward E. Riely
1878
John H. Jacobs. 1864
D. C. Lyle. 1879
M. J. Clark.
1865
E. J. Roys. .1879
Edward Pryce.
1866-9
W. P. Skinner 1880
James H. Maze.
1870
Alonzo Pelton. 1881
Leander E. Morris.
1871
W. H. Cornell 1881
TREASURERS.
John D. Watkins
.1857
Isaac M. Clark. 1873
Jeremiah McDonald.
1858
Edward J. Roys
1874-8
Cyrus F. Coon.
1859-60
Ransom E. Wamsley .. 1879-80
Isaac Corey 1881
JUSTICES OF THE PEACE.
Andrew Fluent. 1857
.1857
Obadiah Smith.
1857
W. W. Johnson. 1869
David Forest. 1858
John Thelgo. 1870
Nicholas R. Hill.
1858
James Clark. 1870-71
Edward Pryce ..
1859
C. S. Ford. 1872
Nicholas R. Hill. 1860
Geo. Hoyle. .. 1872
M. H. Whitney 1861
A. B. Fairchild. 1872
M. J. Clark .. 1862
Edward Pryce. 1873
Edward Pryce 1863
N. F. Slawson. 1873
Chester S. Ford 1863
Newell F. Slawson. 1874
C. S. Ford. . 1864
John C. Chapman. 1875
J. A. Champlin. 1864
J. L. Clark. 1865
R. W. Jewell. 1866
R. E. French 1866
Geo. Hoyle. . 1867
Jeremiah Lawrence. 1867
C. S. Ford. 1868
C. S. Ford.
1869
E. Pryce. 1869
A. B. Fairchild. 1869
C. S. Ford, 1876
Nelson Mabie 1877
John Chalmers. 1878
N. F. Slawson. 1878
John C. Chapman. 1879
C. S. Ford. 1880
H. H. Slawson 1881
-
Benj. Fairchild. 1872-3
Hiram L. Brace. 1874
-
Asel B. Fairchild. 1878-9
J. D. Clark. 1861-4
Wm. S. Johnson 1865-72
Munson Robinson
1242
HISTORY OF KENT COUNTY.
TOWNSHIP SCHOOLS.
The reports of 1880 point out the number of children belonging to school district No. 1 to be 32, instructed by a corps of three teachers, who received $150 for eight months labor. The building is a frame, valued at $500. District No. 2 claimed 72 children, under three teachers, who received for eight months' labor $194.50. The school property is valued at $700. The children belong- ing to No. 3, number 58, presided over by two teachers, who received $200 for nine months' services. The school property is valued at $1,000. No. 4 is attended by 24 pupils, of the 35 chil- dren of school age in the district. Two teachers were employed for six months in 1880, to whom the sum of $160 was paid. The school property is valued at $300. The pupils belonging to No. 5 district, number 89. Three teachers presided over this school from time to time, who received $186.
District No. 1 was organized in 1858, and a small frame house erected, which was used until 1860, when a good frame building was erected, at a cost of $600. It is located one and one-half miles west of Cedar Springs, on the north side of section 35.
District No. 2-Solon Center-was organized in 1858, and a small log house erected. In 1869 a nice frame building was erected on the southern corner of section 16, at a cost of $700.
The school-house is really an ornament to the district, and, in fact, to the township, showing, as it does, that the people of Solon are wide awake, and understand the effect of good educational ad- vantages on the growth and prosperity of a new country, and are willing to provide for the comfort of their children.
District No. 3 (fractional with Nelson) was organized in 1860, and a small log house was erected, which stood on the west side of section 13, near the residence of A. B. Fairchild. This has been replaced with a pretentious school building.
District No. 4 (fractional with Algoma) was organized in 1869. In the spring of 1870 a nice little frame house was erected at a cost of $250, located on the southwest corner of section 29, four and one- half miles west of Cedar Springs, on the C. S. & M. State Road.
District No. 5 was organized in 1866, and a frame house erected the same year on the west side of section 11, at a cost of $180.
The village school of Cedar Springs was completed in 1872. at a cost of $20,000. It was dedicated to the uses of education Jan. 1, 1873, and forms a monument to the laudable efforts of the people in the cause of education. In the history of Cedar Springs reference is made to this school, and again in the school statistics of Nelson the figures, from the report of Sept. 5, 1881, are given.
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES.
I. E. Goul's shingle mill, in Solon township, was purchased by him in March, 1880. The capacity of the mill is about 40,000 shingles per day. The concern gives employment to 25 men, and forms one of the leading industries of the northern townships:
1243
NELSON AND SOLON TOWNSHIPS.
Other mills have been established from time to time, each of which had its part in the drama of settlement. A number of the manufacturing concerns mentioned in the history of Cedar Springs ยท are within the boundaries of Solon.
CEDAR SPRINGS VILLAGE.
In the settlement of Cedar Springs the old-time idea of selecting an Indian camp ground for a village site was revolutionized, and a new American community formed where the aborigines feared to dwell. Cedar Springs was then a dense forest, rich in its huge pines, and wealthier still in its groves of hardwood. Both forest and grove fell beneath the woodman's ax in a few short years, and in the clearing grew up a village, which gives promise of advance- ment. Though the woods may, in a short time, disappear, yet the rich soil of the neighborhood holds rewards for the husbandman; and though the lumber industries may vanish with the forest, new industries, now unconceived, will spring up, breathing, as it were, a new life into the people --- urging them to wonder why the true re- sources of the land remained unknown so long.
GEOGRAPHICAL.
The village was first platted for Nicholas R. Hill, April 7, 1860, by Henry Yates, Surveyor. An addition was made for John Smith, jr., July 8, 1861, by William Thornton, and one for Enoch Hin- man, Dec. 31, 1869, surveyed by John B. Colton. On April 24, 1871, William Thornton platted an addition for Fanny P. Fair- child, Samuel Scudder, Enoch Hinman, J. G. Wait, Cyrus Stilwell, and Lucy A. Oldfield. The last addition to the village was platted by Dorr Skeels, Sept. 22, 1875, for Theodore Nelson.
Cedar Springs is located on the line of the G. R. & I. R. R., 20 miles north of Grand Rapids, and 178 west by northwest of Detroit. The district was settled in 1855 by Robbins Hicks, and incorporated as a village in 1871. This business center of the northern town- ships is named from the fine springs, bordered by a cedar grove, in the vicinity. It owes its existence, as a village, to no Providential distinction, but to the will of two men who said here should be a village; here be a country seat, and a business center. Prof. Ev- erett states: "One of these men is the same N. R. Hill who now dispenses justice in the village he has founded, and who smilingly walks the streets as though he knew he was appreciated-a man whom sinners fear and whom saints respect. As he is still in his prime, we will not write his eulogy. But the day may come when, as in venerable age he takes the air, the Cedar Springers will doff their beavers as he passes along, recognizing the sagacity that pointed to the location, the wisdom that fostered the rising place, and the modesty that did not name it Hillopolis. The other father of Cedar Springs is Benjamin Fairchild, who platted the part of the village that lies in the township of Solon. He was very influ- ential in gettting settlers and in securing the railroad. We are
1244
HISTORY OF KENT COUNTY.
sorry to record the fact, that in those operations, instead, as he should, of making a fortune, he lost one. But as long as Cedar Springs has an existence, Fairchild will not be forgotten. These two men, having determined that a place should arise on their land, . platted their swamp, and invited occupation by giving alternate lots to those who would build. The few wise ones looked on, put their thumbs on their noses, and winked with the left eve. But they knew, as the railroad was coming north, a place must be built up somewhere about there; it might as well be in their swamp as anywhere. By giving lots or selling for a song, and giving credit for that, they accomplished their end. Cedar Springs is a place, but those who founded it have to work for a living."
Few people located at Cedar Springs until the railroad was com- pleted to that place, in 1867. For a time it was the terminus; and it sprung immediately into importance. Mills for the manufacture of lumber sprung up as if by magic, in the region around; and the lumber interest, centering there, became immense. It is now a lumbering town; there were 45 saw-mills within five miles of the village in 1878. This lumber found its exit by the railroad, and was tributary to the business of Cedar Springs.
Depending on lumber, the place will continue to prosper as long as the lumber lasts. It will by that time be, like Ionia, the central place of a region,-the market town; and, as they confidently ex- pect, the county seat of a new county, whose center is about there. They have failed thus far to secure the new county, but probably will in time succeed.
Considering the short existence of Cedar Springs as a place of any importance, we cannot but commend the public spirit that has established her excellent graded school, and erected her noble school- house-perhaps the best in the county out of Grand Rapids; that has built her two churches-the Baptist and the Methodist; and that is so persistently pushing the project of a new county.
As recently as 1866, the nearest railroad depot was that at Grand Rapids. In that year the trade and professional interests were represented as follows : Anmond, A., blacksmith ; Brown, William, carriage maker; Buck, Myron, saw-mill; Clark, M. J. & Co., general merchants; Cooper, W. S., boot and shoe maker ; Collins, J. B., druggist ; Day, J. J., cabinet shop ; Eddy, B., car- riage-maker ; Eddy, Mrs. M. A., milliner ; Fairchild, B., hotel ; Fairchild & Russell, general merchants ; Hill, N. R., Justice of the Peace ; Hill, O. B., shoemaker ; Ford, C. S., physician ; Kapp, L., saw-mill ; Loomis, Hugh, hotel ; Neggus & McChesney, grocers ; Pangborn, Samuel, pail-maker ; Scudder, S., planer ; Slawson, M. H., feed store; Stiles, L. R., shingle machine ; Stiles, L. Wright, general store. To-day it contains a population of over 1,120 people, with a full list of trades and professional men, five religious and two secret societies, 39 retail stores, 23 lumber factories in the village and vicinity, a railroad depot, bank, and grain elevator. Notwithstanding the progress made here
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NELSON AND SOLON TOWNSHIPS.
within the last 20 years, there are only two brick fronts in the village, together with the Union School building, which is a solid brick structure.
ORGANIC HISTORY.
Cedar Springs was incorporated as a village by act of the Legis- lature, approved March 18, 1871. The first village meeting was held April 4, 1871, at the house of Benj. Fairchild. Then the meeting was organized, and subsequently adjourned to the house of John Thetge. The Board of Election comprised John Thetge, Russell Kromer and Robert J. Gouldsborough. The election resulted as follows : Benjamin Fairchild, for President, received 115 votes ; J. H. Maze, for Recorder, 114 votes; E. P. Hayes, for Treasurer, 114 ; and L. W. Stiles, for Assessor, 114. Edward C. Wamsley, Russell Kromer, Morrison H. Slawson, Trustees for two years ; Franklin T. Johnson, Jacob Beckhart, George W. Hogle, for one year.
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