In 1907, Henry Fitch was one of the some 800 former residents of Brighton to return from all points of the compass to attend a Home Coming celebration. Henry had been away for more than 50 years, and at a mass meeting at the old “Opera House” (today, Stouts Bar on Grand River) reminisced, in […]
Its Springtime, 1907. As one approaches the Village from the north on Grand River and comes to the Village limits (at the corner of Grand River and Cross street), one sees a sign warning: ” Speed Limit 8 Miles per hour”. Continuing one passes over a red, wooded bridge spanning Ore Creek and attention is […]
THE DATE: May 30, 1884 – THE PLACE: The Brighton Village Cemetery alive with the flutter of small American flags placed at each veteran’s grave. THE PEOPLE: School children standing quietly, dressed in their finest; soldiers and veterans, hats in hand, heads bowed and other residents of the area, all in reverent attention as the […]
The history of Crooked Lake, along with that of all the SE section of Michigan, properly begins about 30,000 years ago when the last glacier slowly retreated, leaving in huge heaps the enormous amount of material it had scoured off the Laurentian Range in Canada. These heaps left hit or miss over this area, penned […]
The Brighton Argus, August 28, 1907, reported: ” The 1907 Homecoming was the biggest time we ever had” and “Friends who had not seen each other for years were brought together to laugh and weep for joy”. Visitors arrived each day by railroad, by horse and buggy and by horse and wagon. Many had not […]
Today one is accustomed to paying several hundred dollars a year for automobile insurance. Today one recognizes the need for liability limits of $100,00 or more. Today one is aware the purchase of a new and more expensive auto will mean an increase in ones insurance costs and to top it off there is the […]
“Arent you two ready yet? Ive got old Brownie hitched to the cutter. If we dont hurry itll be dark before we get back. I dont want to have to be on he lookout for wolves,” Papa teased. “Papa, Bonnies putting on her mittens and Im tying Elmers scarf so itll cover his ears. Dont […]
Further research will be necessary to determine who built the Western House Hotel, Livery and Carriage Barn in 1873. In 1879, P. D. Skillbeck owned the building and R.M. Filmore was the proprietor. Prior to the arrival of the railroad to Brighton in 1871, travelers had arrived by stage coach on the planked toll road […]
Upcoming planned changes to the built landscape of Nobles 1837 Plat of Brighton, which includes new construction on both sides of Grand River north of St. Paul Street, encourage a study of previous uses of lots 40-43 on the west side.
In 1871, Grant S. Burgess had been working for William McPherson & Sons in their general merchandise store in Howell. In partnership with McPherson he opened a dry goods, household, general store in Brighton, 1874. This was one of the very early businesses built west of Ore Creek at 334 W. Main. Originally the building […]
