Stockbridge, Michigan Forest Parke Library & Archives - Capital Area District Libraries Ctl7£' Cnu:1& 2 010 . ~j( 'I Bring Your Classic Car or Vintage Tractor and Join the~ un ( *People Choice A 11ards *Raffles* 50's Music *Refresh ens This Yea; There \'\/'II Be A 175th Stockhridge Celebra ion Parade That YoL and Your Vehicle Can Participate 1i·1 TOWW\g c-e!°" Av.JtlaLle in case of Bt kdCN•'rt5 Call 517-851-7999 Hisner Ttre & TOW11VJ .. Stockbridge M1. is a wor.Jetful s:ieoic IOca ly acoer.sible""' route ' 2 J"'1 nr.ly 15 monu'"s from 194or196 •• GPS 4 4 S Cbnton Rrt (··· M106) Slockbndge Mi •'l2e5 Forest Parke Library & Archives - Capital Area District Libraries Stockbridge Arca 17'.'ith Anniversary Souvenir Book Compiled by the Stockbridge Arca Ucncnlogical/l listorical Society Copyright 20 I 0 by the Stockbridge Arca Genealogical/ II islorical Society and the Stockbridge Area Anniversary Committee I, ,1 Stockbridge, Michigan ~ I McCreery Homestead, McCreery and Territorial Roads I Forest Parke Library & Archives - Capital Area District Libraries Stockbridge Area 175th Anniversary Celebration Stockbridge, Michigan The first settlers came to this area in I 835. These hardy pioneers came by wagon and horseback, often bring­ ing a cow or two with them, from "out east." The migration came through Detroit and Ann Arbor. · These pio­ neers would stake out a claim and enter the land at the land office in Detroit. 111ey would arrive at their new home and erect what amounted to little more than a shed or a shanty before building a more substantial log house or cabin and commence the arduous task of clearing the land. This was a hard life for all involved. Both the husband and the wife and even children put in long hours of back breaking labor. These people stuck to it and prospered. Log cabins gave way to substantial houses, many of which still dot the area. It is these hardy pioneers and what they started that we are celebrating. Their perseverance paved the way for the pleasant community we live in today. It is a history well worth celebrating. The Stockbridge Area Anniversary Committee was formed in the fall of2009 for just that purpose. Many indi­ viduals have contributed to the celebration that is planned for later this summer. We hope you ponder the list of people at the back of this book who have selflessly volunteered their time to make this celebration a success. We also hope you attend the many events that have been planned, also listed at the back of this book. We take great pride in the people that have made the area what it is today. From the earliest pioneers to the current farmers, business people and community leaders, it is indeed an area to be proud of. With this thought in mind, let us continue the celebration, mindful of the past, proud of what we are and looking forward to the future. ~/YlcoJik Deanna McAlister, Co-Chair (£;.m M~ Lisa Schneider, Treasurer The Steering Committee l 75th Anniversary Celebration Forest Parke Library & Archives - Capital Area District Libraries From the Editor I was born at Rowe Memorial Hospital in Stockbridge way back in 1942. Many of you may not be aware that Stockbridge used to have a hospital. The building still stands and is a private residence now. Dr. Guy Culver and Ellen Mayer were the moving forces behind the hospital which lasted from about 1930 into the late 1950's. The Stockbridge Brief-Sun carried a column each week listing who was in the hospital and why. I can imagine that it was avidly read by the newspaper's subscribers. The newspaper continues, of course, as the Sun-Times. Should you wish to go back and read about who was in the hospital and why, the Brief-Sun is on microfilm at our local library. This book is about a lot of things. Outside of what I put in this letter, we are not going to give you a history of the area. That bas been done. In developing articles for the book, we have concentrated on four areas. The most exciting for us was getting the story of the many centennial farms and properties in the area. This is something the previous books haven't done. We feel these are important stories to be told. We have expanded coverage of churches to include all the churches in the area, roughly that of the school district, rather than just the churches in Stockbridge. In addition, we are doing the usual coverage of the many businesses and organi­ zations in the area. As I stated, I was born in Stockbridge. I consider it a privilege to have grown up in this area. When I started school in 1947, there was but one school building in Stockbridge. That was what is now the middle school.. The building housed kindergarten through 12th grade and was the only building I went to school in. It wasn't until the many one room schools in the area began to close and consolidate with Stockbridge in the 1950's that the need for additional space arose and Smith Elementary School was built. The new high school came along in 1967. I not only grew up in a great small town, I grew up in a great neighborhood. When I see someone from the old neighborhood, we quite often talk about how lucky we were. Very few of the parents that made the neighbor­ hood great are left but you know who you are and we thank you. r thought it might be fun to take a look back at a specific period of time. I was here in 1960 when the area cele­ brated its 125th anniversary. It was a great time for the community. The enthusiasm for the celebration was intense and the participation almost universal . I thought it might be fun to go back and take a look at what Stockbridge was like in 1960. As far as population was concerned, the village was about the same, just over 1,000 souls. We had five churches, Baptist, Church of God, Methodist, Presbyterian and Stockbridge Community Church. The Church of God has become the Highest Praise Worship Center and the Community Church has disappeared. We had four grocery stores in Stockbridge. One could shop at Bradshaw's, Stanfield Brothers, Watson's Gen­ eral Store or Wilde's Super Food Market. We had a full fledged department store in Dancers. We also had Brown's hardware and the A. W. Brown Co. drugstore. Before we started renting our school books, we would buy them at A. W. Brown's. We had two soda shops, Collins' and Spadafore's. And, automobiles. In Stock­ bridge, you could buy a Chevrolet or Buick from C. W. Glenn and Sons, a Ford or Mercury from Malcho Brothers, a Plymouth or a DeSoto from H. M Collings or a Pontiac from Cobb and Schreer. If you didn't want to buy a car in Stockbridge, you could drive over to Munith and buy a Plymouth or DeSoto from H & F Sales and Service. Stowe Brothers was still selling Fords but Ray Stoddard had stopped selling Oldsmobiles. Forest Parke Library & Archives - Capital Area District Libraries Retail outlets proliferated throughout the area. Both Stockbridge and Munith had lumber yards. You could buy furniture from Caskey's in Stockbridge. Munith offered Porter"s Grocery and Frinkers Hardware. You could shop at Tom's Market, H. E. Munsell General Store, H. E. Marshall's Dry Goods or Howlett Brothers Hardware in Gregory. Unadilla, Fitchburg and Plainfield had top notch general stores. How many of you can remember riding out to Millville on your bicycle to get one of their gargantuan ice cream cones. They were good. Stockbridge even had a movie theatre. It was located in the Township Hall. It had closed by 1960 but I re­ member going down there on Saturday afternoon and getting a bag of popcorn and a ticket to watch a cowboy double feature, usually in black and white, all for 25 cents. The first settler in the area was John Baptiste Barboux, an early fur trader. Mr. Barboux claimed to be in the area as early as 1815. Although several fur traders probably came through the area, Jlvlr. Barboux is the only who stayed around, establishing a farm on the north shore of Batteese Lake. Mr. Barboux married an Indian lady, Mary White, and entered the first and third parcels of land in Henrietta Township. Eli Ruggles is generally credited with being the area's first settler. Eli and his brother-in-law, Amos Williams were directed to the Unadilla area by friends in Dexter. Mr. Ruggles entered land and built a log house but did not remain in the area. Mr. Williams did remain, returning in the fall of 1833 along with his wife, son, daugh­ ter and son-in-law. He built a saw mill on Portage Creek in 1834 and called the area Unadilla. The actual vil­ lage of Unadilla was originally called Milan but when the post office came in 1836, the name had to be changed because there already was a post office called Milan south of Ann Arbor. The Collins brothers, Selah, Josiah and Harrison, also settle in the area in the fall 1833 but in Lyndon Township. Probably the most interesting Collins was Judson. Mr. Collins was an early graduate of the University of Michigan, taught at Albion College and became the Methodist Church's first missionary to China. Mr. Collins died at the tender age of29 and is buried in Collins Plains Cemetery near Joslin Lake.