USA > Michigan > Saginaw County > History of Saginaw County, Michigan; historical, commercial, biographical, Volume II > Part 23
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" One d_
fool's enough in business. I can do that part.
"I came to know him very well. When he was sober he was quiet. refined, gentlemanly, big-hearted and courteous. lle was a man of fine ability, of energy and courage. But a little liquor affected him. When he had been drinking he liked to make speeches and to quote Latin.
"Conditions here were different in those days. This was the frontier and the men were of the 'hail fellow well met' kind. I found in Saginaw when I came men of great ability, young, eager, energetic, capable - men who did things. It is always those of the greatest energy and hardihood who lead in the frontier work. And they were all a convivial set. Every- body drank. There was a great deal more liquor consumed in those days than now. I sometimes think it curious as I look back at some of the lead- ing figures of those days, able, dignified, honored, and yet they drank freely and enjoyed the conviviality of the times. They were not necessarily intox- icated ; but they became mellow.
"Alfred M. Hoyt was here developing the East Side when I came, and for a year after my arrival he made his home at the Webster House. There was little enough of the East Side then. It is hard for the eastsider today to realize what it looked like then, when it was solid forest from the river back to the bayou. The only road to Saginaw was the Mackinaw Road,
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coming into what is now the South Side, but already they were working on the plank road from Bridgeport, which came into East Saginaw by what is now known as Genesee Avenue.
"Norman Little was the man at the head of the East Side development. Back in 1836 he had been associated with three or four other men in a com- pany that platted a part of Saginaw City, and altogether carried on an im- portant work expending over two hundred thousand dollars by 1840, when they failed. There was nothing more done until 1849, when Alr. Little in- terested the Hoyts in building up a city on the Saginaw. Jesse Hoyt had some difficulty with the promotors on the West Side and announced his intention to develop an entirely new town on the east side of the river, then only a forest and swamp. Alfred M. Hoyt came on and was engaged in clearing off the land there when I came. I don't know what arrangements Norman Little had with the Hoyts, but he was the man of push and energy in the work. The Hoyts were behind him and furnished the capital. With the completion of the plank road, the East Side began to grow rapidly, and it soon developed into a thriving city.
"Saginaw was only a small town in 1851. The census of 1850 showed that there were between two and three thousand persons in Saginaw County, which included what are now Bay, Tuscola, the east half of Gratiot, Midland, Isabella and Gladwin Counties, and extended north on the bay shore. On the west side of the river I suppose there were four hundred or five hundred persons.
"Curt Emerson had one hundred and sixty acres of land extending from where the City Hall now stands to Emerson Street, and it was cleared back to the bayou. Alfred M. Hoyt owned the property north of that. It is a somewhat curious fact, illustrating conditions in those days, that the winter mail used to be brought down from Lake Superior by dog train.'
Joseph A. Whittier Paid Tribute to Jesse Hoyt
Coming to this State when it was still undeveloped, and helping mate- rially in its making, and prospering thereby, Joseph A. Whittier, an honored citizen, was one of the prominent figures in our early history. The rugged honesty and Quaker-like simplicity, which marked his long life of usefulness and broad purpose, are among the pleasantest memories of those who knew him best, and found expression in a letter he wrote several years before his death. It tells of the early days of Saginaw and other interesting facts, and should be preserved in enduring form.
"I came to Saginaw in October, 1856," wrote Mr. Whittier. The rail- road terminus was at Holly, thence by plank road to Saginaw. The road between Holly and Flint was not completed. The first sight of Saginaw was after one emerged from the woods but a short distance east of Jefferson Street. Across the bayou from Jefferson to Franklin was an embankment of earth not much wider than was necessary for two teams to pass. There were two taverns at the corner of Genesee and Washington Streets, and one church - Methodist - which stood on German Street, just back of where the Vincent Hotel now stands. The residence part of the town was on Wash- ington and Water Streets. The stores were mostly on Water Street ; a few on Genesee and a few shops on the bayou, with long plank approaches to them. Jefferson Street, north, did not exist. South of Genesee it was an unmade road winding through the trees, with two or three small cottages on it. It terminated at the lloyt Street school house, where a long elevated plank walk across the bayou connected with Washington Street.
"The largest stores as I recollect them, were kept by Beach and Moores, John F. Driggs, Curtiss and Bliss, Copelands, and W. II. Beach. The mills
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were the Mayflower Hour mill, Williams. Miller, Paine & Wright, the Chi- cago mill, owned, I think, by Whitney, a mill opposite the center of the town, afterwards bought by James Hill: Charles Merrill & Company, and the Westervelt mill at Carrollton. A mill just below the F. & P. M. was bought by D. G. Holland, who ran it for many years; and a mill built by Jesse Hoyt, was afterwards owned by C. H. Garrison. The Gallagher mill, which was bought and run for many years by Sears and Holland; the old yellow mill worn out and condemned, was built, I think, by Curt Emerson. Curtis & King had a mill at Salina, now South Saginaw. There may have been one or two more mills, but they do not occur to me.
"The product of lumber was small: most of the logs were cut on the lower waters of the Flint and Cass Rivers. The quality of the lumber was very good, but the manufacture was poor, mostly done with upright saws. Miller, Paine & Wright had a round log gang, and the winter of 1856-57 C. Merrill & Company put in a flat gang, which sawed boards from cants.
"But few logs had been cut on the Tittabawassee and its branches. If I recollect clearly, Thomas Merrill cleared the Pine River in the winter of 1856-57 from the Horse Race, a short distance above Midland, to St. Louis, so that logs could be driven, and that he cut some timber near St. Louis that winter. Two or three years after he cleared the Chippewa River. The Tittabawassee had logs driven out of it from where the Gerrish dam now stands. The quality of the timber on Pine River was equal to that of the Cass and Flint : that on the Chippewa not quite so goud. The Tittabawassee afforded a large quantity of sound desirable timber. One has but to look over the statements of the annual production to ascertain the immense quantity of timber that was cut on Saginaw waters. As the business in- creased, the manufacture improved, until Saginaw lumber was acknowledged the best for quality of timber and nicety of manufacture.
"As the years passed and the business increased Saginaw grew and be- came a place of note. No town ever had a better set of men to guide and to help its destiny, and first of all I wish to speak of Jesse Hoyt, who pro- jected the town, bought the land when it was a forest, and with just dis- cernment saw the opportunity to build a city. Ilis large means were lib- erally used in building mills and vessels. He had one of the finest fleets on the lakes. He built the plank road to Flint, the Bancroft House, the May- flower Mill, a planing and saw mill, and many other enterprises to help the city. His bequest to us of park and library will ever be a reminder how much we owe to his strong, forcible character."
James F. Brown Was the First Bank Cashier
An almost unbroken residence of fifty-seven years in Saginaw was the record of James F. Brown, who first arrived in August. 1853, and with the exception of one year, when he went west for Mrs. Brown's health and was glad to get back, he had resided here continuously. In 1850 he entered the employ of W. L. P. Little & Company, Bankers, in the capacity of cashier. a position he held for many years. When this private bank of which Jesse Hoyt was a partner, was succeeded by the Merchants National Bank, Mr. Brown was elected cashier and, upon the death of Mr. Little, in 1867, he was made president. A short time before his death Mr. Brown talked enter- tainingly of the old days and pioneers.
"The first year when it was all woods where my office is now, I tell you we had to rough it and I became very lonesome for the more enlivening times of New York, whence we had come. But in time that wore off. Then there were only about three hundred persons in East Saginaw. The Irving House. at the corner of Water and Genesee Streets, was the first hotel. It was built
JAMES F. BROWN
Who was the first bank rashier in Saginaw Valley, having come from New York City in 1853. He succeeded Mr. Little as president of the Merchants National Bank, in 1867.
EMIL A. L. MOORES
One of the earliest residents of East Saginaw, cuming here in 1849 and identifying himself with the Floyt interests. For many years he was manager of the Mayflower Mills.
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by Jesse Hoyt and run by Menzo C. Stevens. In the spring of 1854 we were a hamlet in the township of Buena Vista, and we got sixty-four votes towards organizing a village. There wasn't a brick building here then. The town extended only to Cass ( Baum) Street ; and there were a few buildings on Water Street, and nothing on the bank of the river.
"In July, 1854, a fire burned our store and other buildings, and the first brick block on the east side was put up on the site of the Irving House. It was called the Buena Vista Block, and still stands, the property of the Hoyt Estate. The Bancroft House was built in 1858-59 and opened to the public September 7, 1859.
"It was anything but a fashionable life in those days. We had to get our provisions from boats that came in from Cleveland and Detroit. Besides the dense woods which surrounded the town, there were bayous and it was very unhealthy. Every second man was continually shaking with the ague. We used to cross the bayou at Baum and Genesee on a bridge that was made by felling three big oak trees for stringers, then nailing plank to them with wooden pegs, and piling up small branches for railings.
"But in the winter we had a jolly good time, the few of us that were here. The young fellows would hire the hotel dining room for the evening. then go around and get their girls and until 12 o'clock there would be a good time. Tom Willey was the fiddler and Joe llatzel the harpist. Those who came from the other side crossed the river by means of a scow, pulled by a rope with an old German, named Fritz, as the man power. A pioneer of those days can recall any number of interesting events of early Saginaw."
Emil A. L. Moores Was Here in Pioneer Days
One of our oldest residents, who was associated with the Hoyts at an early day, was Emil A. L. Moores. He came here in 1840, at the very be- ginning of the settlement on the east side, did some hard work for a time. and then secured employment in the store of W. L. P. Little & Company. For many years he lived in the Mott homestead at the southeast corner of Water and Fitzhugh Streets; and was manager of the Mayflower Mills. He was thoroughly conversant with the history of the Little Company, which was backed by the Hoyts, and years after was wont to eulogize Jesse Hoyt when speaking of the early days.
"The site of East Saginaw was picked out by Norman Little, who was acquainted with James M. Hoyt and Son, of New York. The old gentleman wanted to invest for his son, Alfred M. Hoyt, and purchased a large tract of land here from parties in Detroit. Seth Willey took the contract for clearing about two hundred acres of land along the river. Alfred didn't like the country very well, and when his brother Jesse came here, he returned to the East. Jesse then took control of affairs, and always kept it though he never lived here permanently. lle was a fine man. East Saginaw began to grow and then to boom after he built a saw mill, a flouring mill, a plank road to Flint, and made other improvements in the place. He delighted in bringing in people to the new town in the wilderness; and he got W. L. P. Little interested in running a general store, and used to come out here fre- quently to visit us. He was a handsome man and a kind one.
"When I arrived here the settlement was very small, but the west side of the river, or Saginaw City as it was then called, was well built up, was high and dry, and had several hundred permanent residents. There was practically no business district on the east side. and the country was largely water and swamps. Five years later, or 1854, in the block where the Tower Block now stands, between Plank Road (Genesee) and what is now Lapeer Street, at Jefferson, there was only one house, owned by a man named
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Godard, and a lime-kiln operated by a Scotchman. The entire block and property could have been purchased for five hundred dollars. There was no Lapeer Street, and the land to the north was nearly all bayou. Where the Anchor House now stands was the toll gate, which was the end of civilization.
"The only streets regularly laid out at that time were Water, Washing- ton, Franklin, Tuscola and German, besides the Plank Road to Flint, with which Saginaw was connected by a stage line. There were no railroads then north of Holly, but the steamer Huron, a freight and passenger boat. made occasional trips between here and Detroit. There were only a few stores then, and some roughly built houses; but there was plenty of timber. and game and wilderness.
"One day I was dealing with a customer," continued Mr. Moores, "and not having enough change I told him 'I will have to owe you a sixpence.' A gentleman standing near by heard me and said, "I'll loan you a sixpence.' That was my first sight and introduction to Jesse Hoyt. Some time passed and I had forgotten the incident, but he had not. for one day he said to me, Young man, you owe me a sixpence,' and I had to pay it.
"Jesse Hoyt was something of a musician, and was much interested in a singing society we had in the early days. Among his many enterprises, he had sailing vessels built here, and were named, Sunshine, Quickstep. H. C. Potter, Sunlight and others I have forgotten. His main object was to keep men employed. In the store we kept everything from a needle to a crowbar. and shipped goods to remote points in the State.
"Yes, there were many Indians here then, and they comprised two tribes which roamed this section; but we did not have any trouble with them. They generally behaved themselves unless drunk with the white man's 'fire- water'; and the troubles were due to the loafers, sailors, raftsmen and woodsmen.'
East Saginaw in 1854
A most interesting document relating to the early days is a letter written by Anson Rudd, when East Saginaw was only four years old. He was a farmer in Pennsylvania, and came here in 185-4, the letter being written soon after his arrival. The property for which he paid six hundred dollars is at the corner of Washington Avenue and Tuscola Street. The letter follows:
"East Saginaw, Vienna, Mich., 1854.
"Worthy and Honorable Sir - After my best respects to you and family I would inform you I have bought a house and lot in the village of Sag- inaw. on the second street from the water, near the center of the town. The town is about four year's growth and covers an area of not far from three miles: is the most flourishing and enterprising place I ever saw for the time. I paid six hundred dollars for the house and lot: the house is not quite finished. We started the next Wednesday after Edwin and Marthy did. We came as far as Detroit by water: from thence we sent some of the heavy boxes to this place and came from there by land with the family wagon and horses, and drove the two cows on the way. We went a day's drive up Cass River to look for land: found a very fine country. Thought we were getting too far from market. From thence we turned about and came to Bridgeport, where we hired two rooms about a week. Did not like that part of the country as well as many other parts. The mosquitoes were confounded bad, now mind, I tell you.
"While there we came down here to the wharf to get our boxes, calcu- lating to go to some place to buy a farm, but on arriving here I was so well pleased with the place, and while here I inquired for a house and lot for sale
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and found this, which I have since bought : exactly suits my notion, as it is one street north of the plank road running to Flint, a distance of not far from thirty miles, and one street east of the street that runs along the river. I went to Bridgeport and informed Lurey of the circumstances and situation of the place; wanted her to come down and examine the place for herself. but she declined. Told me to suit myself : therefore Albert and I came down and bargained for the place. We calenlate when we will get our addition finished, which is now in a state of progression, as I finished putting on the roof yesterday, and the joiners are making the doors and window frames ( the addition is 20 x 28), to keep a boarding house.
"I think the village is as handsome a place as ever I saw for the age of it. It is allowed to be the second best place of market in the State. There are forty-one steam mills in the distance of seventeen miles, mostly run night and day. Such immense sights of pine lumber on the wharfs. The pine logs are rafted down the tributaries that come in to Saginaw, a distance of from seventy to one hundred miles. There is but one log house in the town. As handsome looking land as ever i saw in any country.
"There are two steamboats coming in here daily, and vessels and rafts of almost every description running to and from up and down the river, also hundreds of rafts of pine logs. There are two daily stages running from this to Pontiac - a distance of sixty miles. Albert drives team from this to Flint, a distance of thirty-two miles; he generally has a load both ways. Loduski is at work at a tavern in this place for two dollars a week, and is liked first-rate.
"Provisions of all kinds are very high. Flour is ten dollars per barrel : corn one dollar per bushel: oats six shillings; pork one shilling a pound : beef eight cents; hams about the same; butter eighteen pence; and pota- toes six shillings per bushels. Crops of hay and grain to all appearances are coming in first-rate ; for that matter crops of every description look well. Read this and send to Sarah: tell her I want her to write directly : also I want you to answer this as soon as possible after you get this. Don't forget it. Lurey sends her love and respects to you all. Tell me where Edwin and Marthy are. I want you to understand this is a lively place.
"To Jobish Sawdy."
"Anson Rudd."
It is important that the reminiscences of our pioneers, who have seen a panorama of scenes and events covering three-fourths of a century and more, should be preserved in enduring form for the enlightenment of future gen- erations, as well as our own. Beginning with savages and wild beasts, a frontier fort, fur traders, hunters and explorers, followed by permanent settlers with their farms chopped out of the primeval forest ; then the saw mill with its yellow cubes of pine lumber on the docks, and the salt block with cargoes of snow-white crystals, this panorama spread itself before them in a kaleidoscope of human endeavor. From the day of the tallow dip, or pine splinter lighted with flint and steel, to the day of the electric light pro- duced at the touch of a finger - all this has been accomplished in the span of one life. It is not possible that each individual may develop and be rounded out in a fullness of life and accomplishment equal to the material change that these old pioneers have witnessed. Only a few still living have seen this magic transformation. May they live out their century in honor and peace, for they and their fathers built well, and we of another generation and those to follow have profited and will profit by their works.
LUMBERING ON THE SAGINAW IN THE FIFTIES Familiar scenes that remind the pioneer of by-gone days in the woods, at camp and of the activities along the river.
CHAPTER XI AN ERA OF PROSPERITY
Advent of Enterprising Men - Some Items of Interest - Early Conflagrations- Extracts From the Diary of James S. Webber - Incorporation of the Village and City - Incorporation of the Village of Salina - The Commercial Interests of East Saginaw in 1858 - Incorporation of Saginaw City -William Binder - Myron Butman - William II. Sweet - The Commercial Interests of Saginaw City - The Fish Trade - Summary of Trade in 1853 - The Extensions of Trade to Hamilton Street.
1 N the eighteen-fifties a new life was infused into the business of the valley by the advent of enterprising, courageous men of public spirit, generous and forceful, possessing capital for the development of its industries. Among them were Ammi W. Wright, Ubel A. Brockway, Timothy and David H. Jerome, Thomas Merrill, John Moore, Frank Sears, Myron Butman, Joseph T. Burnham. David. John. Amasa and Ezra Rust, and Newell Bar- nard, who settled at Saginaw City : and Moses B. and George Hess. W. L. P. Little. Michael Jeffers, Jefferson Bundy. James Hill, Byron B. Buckhout. James S. Webber. James L. T. Fox. Chester B. Jones, Alexander Ferguson and others, at East Saginaw.
The political, social, moral and business structure which the early pioneers of the valley had before reared, though of somewhat infantile pro- portions, was the deep-laid foundation upon which the newcomers reared a substantial superstructure, and the foundation thus laid stands an imperish- able monument to the foresight, prudence and wisdom of the early pioneers.
It would seem that these daring and hardy spirits, in spite of every difficulty that arose to dishearten and discourage them, were gifted with a sort of divination in their determination to make the valley a prosperous place of abode. They must have foreseen Saginaw a great, flourishing city. teeming with life and busy animation, and her bright river agitated with vessels and noisy steamboats. Some of these men, indeed, lived to realize their most extravagant anticipations, and doubtless felt amply repaid for their toil, trials and difficulties. Of the newcomers, however, who builded on the foundation already laid, many were better adapted to the effeminate and luxurious life of the city than to the hardships and stern realities of border life. But to their credit, be it said, they went to work with resolute and determined will of true pioneers, and deserve greater credit for their enterprise.
Early in the fifties all was bustle and activity in the valley of the Sagi- naw. and the sound of the axe, the hammer and the saw rang merrily over the waters of the river, or echoed in the green woods around. One or two steamboats plied regularly between Saginaw and Detroit, barks and schooners came up the river to the towns, and more docks were built to accommodate them. The demand for lumber began to increase, and in every direction saw mills appeared along the banks of the stream. As early as October, 1853, there were twenty-three saw mills, some of small capacity it is true, in operation on the river, and twenty-one others in course of construction.
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Nor was agriculture neglected. The dense forest which surrounded the primitive settlements began to melt away, and lands previously chopped off were cleared, fenced in, and dwellings erected thereon. Farming lands in the immediate vicinity were quickly located and settled upon, and tilled fields, fruit trees, and cattle soon gave evidence of rural industry. The eastern states were awakening to a realizing sense of the growing importance of the new country. Everything gave promise of great things.
Some Items of Interest
The ferry established by Elijah N. Davenport in 1851, at the foot of the Plank Road, now Genesee Avenue, became a paying enterprise the following year. The entire outfit consisted of a primitive-looking scow, propelled by poles, and attended by a curiously-fashioned "dug-out" to escape by in case the scow went under. Afterward a large rope was stretched across the river. as a better means of propulsion, and the operation of the scow then became more certain and safe, especially in times of heavy ice and flood. The course of this ferry was a line upon which the piers of the Genesee Avenue bridge now stand. Later a steam ferry was run at irregular intervals between the two towns. It was not until 1864 that the first bridge, operated by a com- pany of citizens as a toll bridge, was completed and opened for traffic at Genesee Street.
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