History of Oakland County, Michigan, with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, palatial residences, public buildings, fine blocks, and important manufactories, Part 58

Author: Durant, Samuel W
Publication date: 1877
Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts & co.
Number of Pages: 553

USA > Michigan > Oakland County > History of Oakland County, Michigan, with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, palatial residences, public buildings, fine blocks, and important manufactories > Part 58

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Nearly the entire area of this township was originally timbered, chiefly with oak, splendid forests of this wood yet existing in the northwestern part of the township. In sections 3, 25, and 29 were fine bodies of pine, and this timber is still found in limited quantities in those localities and in other portions of the township. The soil generally is fertile, although it is more productive in some localities than in others. On the plains especially it is very readily cultivated, and yields fine returns. The uplands of the township are noted as a fine wheat- producing region. The farm improvements of the township are excellent, indi- cating an intelligent, industrious class of citizens.

FIRST LAND ENTRIES.

To Alpheus Williams belongs the credit of making the first land purchase in the township. The Williams family was then living in Waterford township, and this entry, made October 10, 1823, was, perhaps, not with a view of settlement. John W. Beardslee made the next entry, in 1826, on the Sashabaw plains, and this was the first purchase settled by the original owner. He moved on to his land five years later. In 1831 a number of purchases were made, and mostly by actual settlers,-by Melvin Dorr, Butler Holcomb, Thomas Beardslee, and others.

THE FIRST WHITE SETTLERS

had come the year before, in 1830, and squatted on section 20, without making more than a claim to the land. Linus Jacox, a native of the State of New York, first broke the stillness of the forest by hewing down trees for a home in its

wilds. He built a cedar-pole shanty on the southwest quarter of that section, roofing it with boards and finishing it in a rude manner. He spaded up some ground for a garden, and planted potatoes among the trees. In 1831 he sold his claim and improvements to Butler Holcomb for fifty dollars. He now located on a tract of land in the southwestern part of the town, where he lived several years. James Cronk came with Mr. Jacox, or soon after, and settled near him, on section 21. He did not purchase land, and soon sold what interests he had there to Butler Holcomb.

In the summer of 1831, Marvin Greenwood and Roswell Holcomb moved into the cedar-log house on section 20, and commenced improving for Butler Holcomb, clearing ten acres and seeding it with wheat that fall. This was the first sub- stantial improvement made in that part of the town.

Mention has been made of the land purchased by J. W. Beardslee on the Sash- abaw plains, in 1826. In the summer of 1831, Mr. Beardslee worked on this land, cutting hay on the marsh bordering the creek, and made other preparations for moving that fall. In October, J. W. Beardslee and family, Thomas Beardslee and family, and Marcus Riker moved to this locality, and built a shanty on J. W. Beardslee's land, on section 35, near the Sashabaw creek, which they occupied as soon as finished, and in which J. W. Beardslee lived all winter. The Beardslees were natives of Sussex county, New Jersey, and Riker of Chemung county, New York. The latter located on section 26, where he lived many years, on the farm now owned by D. Cook. He then become a resident of Pontiac. John W. Beardslee improved his land to its present condition, and still resides there, near the spot where his pioneer shanty was built. Thomas Beardslee located in the northern part of section 26, where he built a log house eighteen feet square in the early part of the winter, employing laborers to raise it from Dayton plains. At that time this was the best building in the township, and was the first one really entitled to be called a house. The next spring he cleared considerable land, and sowed wheat in the fall of 1832. This was the beginning of the settlement of the fertile plains, which were soon after dotted over with the humble homes of the hardy pioneers. Thomas Beardslee had a family of half a dozen children when he moved into the county. Of these, a son, Ebenezer T., was then ten years old. He grew to manhood on his father's place, and now resides on the old homestead.

In 1832 a number of immigrants were added to the Sashabaw settlement, Wil- liam Stephens, from Sussex county, New Jersey, locating on section 25; Peter D. Voorheis, from New Jersey, but had lived in New York for several years, located on the plains, on section 36; William and John Beardslee, also natives of New Jersey, settled on section 24; and Archibald Ayers, from Sussex county, New Jersey, on section 27. Bildad Phillips, and his nephew, Bine Bathrick, natives of New York, come into the country, with a view of purchasing land, in the fall of 1832. They stopped at Thomas Beardslee's, and took one of his little boys, a lad about eight years old, with him, to show a certain piece of land which had been recommended to them. Leaving the lad at an old camp, they went to look at the land, but, on desiring to return, found that they were disagreed as to the direction which would lead them back to the camp, one claiming exactly the op- posite of the other as right. Finally, Bathrick yielded to the older judgment of Phillips, and they started out. Mile after mile was traveled only to find, if pos- sible, that the forest was more dense than any they had yet seen, while not a trace of the camp could be discovered. Alarmed for the safety of the boy, who they feared would wander from the camp if they did not return by evening, they redoubled their efforts to reach him. It soon became apparent to them that they were lost, and that they did not have the remotest idea of the location of the camp. Thus they wandered on, until they finally reached the house of a settler, with not a hope of finding the boy that night. The lad had meanwhile become

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HISTORY OF OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

apprehensive that the men had lost their way, and had started in search of them, going several miles in different directions, but always returning to the camp. When it began to grow dark he made preparations to pass the night as comfort- ably as he could. It proved to be one of those bitter frosty nights which some- times succeed a warm day, and, as he was barefooted, it was only with the great- est difficulty that he kept from freezing. When the parents of little Charles found that their son and the men did not return, they alarmed the neighborhood, and instituted a search for him. The next morning he was discovered at the camp. apparently not much astonished at the experience which attended him t'trough the night, all alone in the woods infested by wild beasts. Both Phillips and Bathrick made selections on section 23, and moved on to their places early the next year.

In the mean time, Butler Holcomb, from Herkimer county, New York, had purchased six hundred and forty acres of land, located on sections 20 and 21, em- bracing the claims made by Jacox and Cronk. In the summer of 1832 he brought his family to this land, taking up his abode on section 20, on the present site of Clarkston. Among the Holcomb children were Daniel, aged fifteen, and William, then eight years old. The latter is now a resident of Clarkston, and has lived in Independence since 1832. Butler Holcomb was a man of considerable energy and enterprise, as was shown by the improvements he made soon after he came into the country. Isaac Davenport located on the northeast quarter of section 29 about the same time. He was also a New Yorker.

Jeremiah Clark, from Onondaga county, New York, came to Detroit in 1831. In the fall of 1832 he located on section 7, building a log house and seeding ten acres to wheat that year. Among Jeremiah Clark's children were three boys, Edwin, Milton, and Newton, who are now citizens of the township. The improve- ments made by Mr. Clark were very substantial, and did much to encourage the settlers who came soon after. His connection with some of these enterprises will be noted hereafter. Mr. Clark was held in great esteem by his neighbors, and was elected judge of the county years after he made the first settlement in that part of Independence.

There was an increase of immigration in 1833, the favorable reports of the set- tlers having induced many to join their friends living in the "land of promise." Aaron Beardslee, from Sussex county, New Jersey, was one of the first to venture farther north than the Sashabaw plains. He located on the elevated lands of sec- tion 13, making the usual improvements. He had several children when he came to the township, but Orsamus is now the only surviving member of the family he then had. Farther north, on section 1, William Wyckoff, from Warren county, New Jersey, and Jacob J. Perry, a native of the same State, opened farms and made the beginning of a settlement, which has prospered from that time.

Adam Fisher, from Warren county, New Jersey, came all the way from that State by wagon, reaching the plains in June, and locating on section 35. The Davis brothers,-John, Allen, William, and Arthur,-whose nativity is traceable to the green shores of Ireland, were among the incoming ones of this period, and settled in the central part of the township. John and Arthur became prominent in the history of the county ; the former was a legislator two terms, the latter sheriff of the county. Isaac D. Coon settled in the Davis neighborhood, on sec- tion 22; Charles Cohoon came from Auburn, in this State, and located on sec- tion 26. Peter Voorheis, from Sussex county, New Jersey, came to Independ- ence in 1832. He remained in the "Sashabaw plains" neighborhood with his father until the year following, when he located lands on sections 22 and 23, which he improved to a considerable extent that year and the one following. Leander Taylor, a New Yorker, settled south of Mr. Voorheis, on section 27; Jacob Petty, Jonathan Petty, and Henry Gulick, all from the State of New Jersey, settled on section 21; Stephen Bishop, of Herkimer county, New York, came in the summer of 1833, and settled on section 21; and Charles and Elisha Steward, natives of Warren county, New Jersey, also came this year, and settled on sections 35 and 36.

There was no diminution of the number of settlers coming to Independence in 1834 and 1835. It was found to be a "goodly heritage," whose praise was heard in many homes in New York and New Jersey, prompting their owners to join those gone from their midst years before. On every hand was seen the prep- aration for the westward journey ; and stern winter had scarcely raised his em- bargo on the lakes before the advance of immigration pressed on their shores, eager to be conveyed to the Peninsular State. Ebenezer Clark came from Onon- daga county, New York, and located on sections 7 and 8. Levi Walter, an Englishman, settled on section 8. A widow, Mrs. Vouels, with her family, found a home on section 17. John Green, from the State of New Jersey, opened a farm on section 29. Thomas McGuin, an Irishman, following the Saginaw road in search of a home, was tempted by the lands on section 30 to abide there; and William Daniels, a native of Wales, also came to this part of the township. Not finding government land to suit him, he purchased a tract of Thomas Drake, lo-

cated on section 30. He now applied himself with great energy to make a home on American soil. Being without capital, he was obliged to seek work wherever it could be found, and often walked four miles to his labor, returning every evening. In the winter of 1835 he split fourteen thousand rails for a merely nominal sum, but was glad to get work at any price. Mr. Daniels has prospered, as he deserves to, and now lives to enjoy the fruits of his early industry. Eastward, in the same tier of sections, Samuel Curl and Joseph Tindall found locations on section 28, and Richard Bray, from New Jersey, settled on section 26. North of these, Thomas Johnson, a New Yorker, bought a tract of land of John Davis, on sec- tion 15, where he cleared a farm. On the east line of the township, on section 13, William Loop, from the State of Ohio, began work on a new home, and Clarkston Shotwell, from New Jersey, settled on section 12 a little later. Farther north, Daniel Burrows and Robert Bailey, natives of the State of New York, set- tled on lands on section 2 in 1834. Joseph Van Syckle, a prominent settler, from New Jersey, cast his lot on section 27 in 1834. Daniels Wells, a New Yorker, settled east of him, on section 26, and Nicholas Homler found a home on his south, on section 34; while a year later James Brown, also from New Jersey, located on section 25.

The additions to the several settlements were now so numerous that it is diffi- cult to classify all who came prior to the organization of the town in 1837. But among those who came early in 1836 was Nelson W. Clark, from the State of New York, who afterwards became one of the most prominent citizens of the township, inaugurating some of the most noteworthy improvements, and taking a conspicuous part in every public enterprise. William Dunstan, an Englishman, settled on section 5, where he was soon joined by Job Urch and John Derick, fellow-countrymen, who located on the same section. Patrick Tully, also from the British realm,-from Erin's Isle,-settled on section 5 about the same time. A year later, and on section 8, two more British subjects, but now already Amer- icanized enough to seek this as the land of their adoption,-Jacob Walter and James Clark,-located lands and opened farms. The former died in 1863; the latter survives, and still lives on his old place. In the extreme southeast, Rev. Oliver Earl settled on section 36 about 1836. Other settlers of an early date were Asa Walter, John C. H. Woodhull, James McKinner, William Gulick, Moses Cross, Andrew Freeman, Nathan Hammond, the Church brothers, Horace Robinson, William and John Axford, William Vleit, Patrick Gallaghan, Myron Cobb, and William Malby.

FRAME HOUSE.

Among the first, if not the first, frame houses built in the township were those of Adam Fisher and Marcus Riker, both on the Sashabaw plains, in 1834. Mar- cus Riker also erected the first brick house, which is now used as a residence by D. Cook, on section 26. This was built about 1850.

EARLY BARNS.

In 1834, Jeremiah Clark built a frame barn on his place, on section 7, forty by fifty feet, with basement. He had to procure hands at Pontiac to raise it. The building is at present in use as a barn on the Reese farm.

The same summer Marcus Riker erected a thirty by forty feet barn, on what is now known as the Cook farm, where the building still stands.

In July, 1835, Butler Holcomb raised a barn, whose dimensions were thirty- five by forty-five feet, and covered it with cedar shingles. The original roof yet remains, leaking but slightly.

ORCHARDS.

Jeremiah Clark planted the first apple-trees, getting one hundred from Buffalo, New York, in 1833. Nearly all of the trees grew finely, and the greater portion of the original orchard is yet in a fruitful condition.

Independence is especially adapted for fruit-growing, and much attention is paid to this branch of farming. Some large orchards exist, one of the largest, belonging to Harrison Walter, having two thousand trees.

IMPROVED STOCK.

William Holcomb, William Dunstan, and John Derick introduced the first blooded stock, purchasing a small herd of Durhams and Devons. Since that the stock of the township has been much improved, and there are now some fine herds. Ezekiel Dennis is at present one of the foremost breeders, having some unusually fine stock.

ROADS AND RAILROADS.

The Territorial road, or what is now better known as the Saginaw turnpike, was built through the southwest of Independence in 1832. In October the first bridge was built across the Clinton river. When the turnpike was projected it followed this road closely, varying but very little from its general course. It makes the diagonal of five sections in that locality. The Detroit and Milwaukee

OLD HOMESTEAD

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RESIDENCE OF J. AND D. REESE , (SEC. 7 ) INDEPENDENCE TP, OAKLAND Co., MICH.

VIEW LOOKING N. E.

RESIDENCE OF MOSES CASE, (SEC. 1) INDEPENDENCE TP, OAKLAND CO., MICH

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HISTORY OF OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN.

railroad was constructed through the township in 1851. It passes across the southern half of section 31, and has a station at Clarkston, which is the principal shipping-point of the township. The Midland railroad was projected through the northern portion of the town, but there is no probability of its early completion. The highways are generally in a good condition, considerable attention having been paid to them since the formation of the town, when there was already provision made for twelve road districts.

POST-OFFICES AND MAIL-ROUTES.

The first post-office in the township was established on section 15, and Thomas Johnston was the postmaster. The exact date cannot be given in this connection. A few years later it was moved to Clarkston, where it has remained ever since. The mail was carried from Pontiac on horseback. Clarkston now has daily mails carried by the Detroit and Milwaukee railroad to Clarkston station.

An office was established on section 6 in 1862, with Guy Selden as postmaster. This position he held until 1870, when Miss Sarah P. Selden received the appoint- ment. The mail-route was from Clarkston to Hadley, and Joseph Phipps was the carrier, making semi-weekly trips. The office was discontinued on the 18th day of May, 1877.

PIONEER TRADING-POINTS.

About 1837, Bruce and Merrick, store-keepers for the New York company, at New Philadelphia, in Waterford township, had a store on section 33, just on this side of the town-line. Subsequently the store was moved to Waterford township. A year or so later two Irishmen, John O'Roke and Hugh Quinnan, opened a store on section 29, in a frame house which still stands, as the property of N. Cummings. They were excellent judges of goods, and kept a better stock than could be gotten in any of the neighboring stores. After some years the store was closed, and, in 1849, John Hertwig kept a tavern at that point. This public- house was much frequented by a certain class of people who often held high car- nival there, drinking such enormous quantities of whisky that it seems almost incredible in these days of temperance tendencies and aversion to Bacchanalian feasts. The place is now a quiet farm-house.

William Gulick, a son of Peter Gulick, had a small store at the Sashabaw Cor- ners, on section 35, about 1835. He conducted it but a short time. About the same time John Cole opened the first blacksmith-shop in that part of town. He carried on his trade for several years at that point. No other trading-points have existed in the township outside of Clarkston.

EARLY SAW- AND GRIST-MILLS.

In 1833, Butler Holcomb built a saw-mill on the east branch of the Clinton river, bringing the water to the mill in a ditch nearly half a mile long. It did quite an amount of work. Roswell Holcomb was the sawyer. This property and all the milling privileges at this point-now Clarkston-was sold to Jere- miah and N. W. Clark in 1838. The Clark brothers immediately began work on a dam two hundred feet long, near the mill, which enabled them to get a fall of twenty-two feet, with water enough to propel an overshot-wheel twenty feet in diameter. They also sawed the lumber this year for a grist-mill, which they completed in 1839. The building was forty by fifty feet, two stories and base- ment, and was supplied with two run of stones. Thomas Farmer, an English- man, was the pioneer miller, and the flour he produced brought joy and happiness to many a home. For many years after he left it was a well-known plaint of the housewife, "If we could only get such flour now as Tom Farmer used to make !" A few years later another run of stones was supplied, giving the mill a capacity of about three hundred and fifty bushels per ten hours. In 1849 an addition of twenty feet made the dimensions of the mill forty by seventy feet. In later years the mill was still further enlarged and improved, but in essential features it is now the same as when erected.

A second saw-mill was built by Judge Melville Dorr, on a branch of the Clin- ton river, on the northwest quarter of section 19, in 1834. It has been remodeled and enlarged, and is still operated. In 1873 a small feed-mill was built in con- nection with the saw-mill. The property is now owned by Moses Garter and son. A third saw-mill was built by Jeremiah Clark, at the outlet of Crooked lake, on section 3, but on account of the insufficiency of the water-power the enterprise was soon abandoned.

THE FIRST BIRTH.

In the winter of 1831 there was a birth in the family of J. W. Beardslee,-a son, who was named Townsend. He was, without doubt, the first white child born in the township. Having attained his manhood, young Townsend adopted law as his profession, and applied himself with energy to the prosecution of that calling. Upon the breaking out of the Rebellion he enlisted in his country's ser- vice; was appointed captain of Company D, Twenty-second Michigan Infantry,

and discharged his duties there with credit and distinction, until his death in the service.

EARLY MARRIAGES.

Cupid claimed his own at an early day. Stephen Bishop had wooed and won Maria Holcomb in the State of New York, but their vows were not consummated until the gallant Stephen had followed his lady-love to Michigan, in 1833. In- stead of taking an extended wedding-tour, they sensibly settled down to a pio- neer's life on section 21, and commenced at once to clear a farm. In the eastern part of the town, on the Sashabaw plains, love's young dreams were sweetly dreamed by a number of couples. In the balmy Indian summer days of the fall of 1834, young Peter Voorheis won Maria Fisher, marrying her in November of that year. Before the winter had fairly come, in December, 1834, John Terry and Ellen Gulick pledged to each other the troth of man and wife; and while the following year was yet in its infancy, in January, 1835, John Demond and Catherine Voorheis concluded to share life's battles together.

DEATHS AND CEMETERIES.

The voice of lamentation for the dead was soon heard in several homes, where but a short time before all was gladness. In 1836 the family of William Wyckoff, on section 1, was bereaved of an infant. It was interred in what is now known as the Union burying-ground, on section 2. Here half an acre has been neatly fenced, and is kept in good order by an association, of which David Dunn is president, Chester Wyckoff secretary, and Moses Case treasurer.

In the eastern part of the town, a Mr. Beetle died in 1836. He was buried at the school-house, on section 26. A year later Aaron Beardslee was also interred at this place. This was the beginning of the Sashabaw cemetery, now perhaps one of the finest country cemeteries in the State. On the 19th of May, 1849, it, passed under the control of the Sashabaw Burial Association. Its first officers were : President, Peter Voorheis; Secretary, Joseph Van Syckle; Collector, John Maybee; Treasurer, Thomas Bird; Sexton, Marcus Riker. Adam Fisher donated one acre of ground, which was subsequently enlarged by another acre, donated by John C. Fisher. This lot, located on section 35, was inclosed with a neat fence and otherwise improved. Subsequently the grounds were surveyed and graded in a very fine manner. Since its opening there have been several hundred interments. The present officers of the association are: President, H. C. Voorheis ; Secretary, J. D. Maybee ; Treasurer, Luke Voorheis.

The first grave-yard in the western part of the town was in the eastern part of section 20. Among the first interments was a man named Singer, a Canadian, who froze to death in the winter of 1839. This was used for several years, but, not being deemed a good location, three acres of ground on section 29 were se- cured from the farm of William Van Syckle. This passed into the hands of an association organized July 20, 1850, and the burying-ground received the name of

Clarkston Union Cemetery .- In 1870 six acres of ground were added to the original three, and the whole has been well improved. A Mr. Greenleaf was first interred, in 1851. The original officers of the association were : President, James Bartlett ; Secretary, Horatio Foster. It is now officered by : President E. Stiff; Secretary, H. H. Howe ; Treasurer, John H. Dresser.

SOLDIERS OF THE REVOLUTION AND THE WAR OF 1812. .

Jacob Petty was a Revolutionary soldier, and claimed to have been a member of Washington's body-guard. He died in 1838, and was buried on his farm, his grave being now unmarked.

Adam Drake was a soldier of 1812. He died in 1874, at the advanced age of ninety-seven years. The honor of his residence is claimed, in part, by Oxford township.

SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL-HOUSES.

The first school taught in the township was in a small board shanty built on section 26, in the spring of 1834. Here, the following summer, Miss Eliza Holden endeavored to teach the younger members of the Beardslee, Riker, and other families of that neighborhood. A log building soon superseded this primi- tive temple of wisdom, which was, in turn, replaced by a frame school-house.

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History of Oakland County, Michigan, with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, palatial residences, public buildings, fine blocks, and important manufactories, Part 58

Author: Durant, Samuel W Publication date: 1877 Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts & co. Number of Pages: 553

Author: Durant, Samuel W
Publication date: 1877
Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts & co.
Number of Pages: 553