In 1832 during the early settlement period of Calhoun County, the Cholera epidemic hit the US first arriving at a port in Quebec, Canada and ultimately finding its way down to New York City and across the Great Lakes region to Michigan.  In June of that year it arrived in Marshall with devastating results killing almost half of the village in less than a month.  The disease spread to other parts of the County and Southwest Michigan, but Marshall seemed to have the worst impact in this region.  

In this episode I read several accounts from the time period of those who lived during that time, and also cover the other events that occured in that same time period that made life even more challenging for the pioneers.

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In this episode I explore various types of Bear encounters that were reported in Michigan newspapers covering stories from 1830 - 2008.  Some are tragic, but several are quite comical and might even make you laugh.  The bear does not always come out okay in the end, but in one incident the bear did outrun a pickle.  Another unusual story involves a bear gettng caught on a cowcatcher and riding it for 10 miles to the next train station, and eventually engaging in a face off with a lawyer.  

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The small village of Colon, Michigan was founded in 1830, but it has a history that goes back to the early days of the Northwestern Territory.  It began as a farming community, but in the 1900's a medicine man began coming to town to put on magic shows.  A local druggist learned some of his tricks, and also began performing them for his customers.  The fever for magic began to grow, and a young boy named Donald Watson AKA 'Monk' Watson along with a friend Neil Sweet began to put on several magic shows in the area.  In 1925, Magician Harry Blackstone moved to Colon and along with his brother and stage crew would refurbish their illusion show in the summer months in preparation for traveling the country.

The history of Magic grew from there, and eventually in 1934 the legendary Magician Lester Lake who was a frequent vistor to Colon coined the phrase 'Magic Capital of the World' and the title stuck.  This episode covers the early history of Colon, and how it evolved.  It also goes into some of the life of Harry Blackstone.

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For more information on Colon Michigan, visit: ColonMichigan.org

Explore the history of the Battle Creek Michigan Fire Department and its evolution over the years, which mirror many other cities in Michigan.  Hear about the sequence of events that resulted in the first pieces of fire fighting equipment being purchased, and how men were organized initially as volunteers to use them.  I also cover the establishment of the first four fire stations, and some of the most significant fires in the city history.  

You will also learn how fire safety ordinances came into being following the devastating fire in Chicago of the Iroquois Theatre on December 3, 1903 when 602 people died in the blaze.  The legacy of the fire departments in the country include lessons learned from past disasters, brilliant innovation, ingenuity and bravery.

To watch the video on the Haskell Home Orphange Fire (mentioned in this episode) click here.

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Did you know there was an old War Horse buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in Coldwater, Michigan?  He served four years in the Civil War with the Loomis Battery, and was the only one of 200 horses sent from Coldwater to survive the war.  When he died in 1876, his regiment wanted him buried alongside his human comrades.  The story of Old Sam is worth hearing.

Coldwater has a rich pioneer history that dates back to the first trading post founded in 1822 by Joseph Godfrey, and prior to that it was the land of the Potawatomi tribe of Indians.  The village was once on reservation land, and later became incorporated as a city and approved by the state legislature in in 1861, and designated as the seat of Branch County in 1842.  

The city is the home to the second oldest theater in Michigan, the Tibbits Opera House which was built in 1882.  It has some other amazing historical landmarks such as the Wing House which was built in 1875, now a museum, and the Coldwater Library which is one of the oldest functioning libraries still in its original building.  

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Have you ever wondered how the City of Battle Creek got it's name?  The name itself conjours up all manner of graphic ideas to spark the imagination.  Was there some great battle?  How long did it last?  How did it shape history?  This is the topic I explore in this episode, as it has a connection to some early Southwest Michigan history.

A video I reference in this episode is: The Journey of Michigan from Territory to Statehood & How the First Counties were Named

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This is the story of Ezra Convis who was also known in his time as General Ezra Convis.  He was an early pioneer industrialist to Calhoun County who founded the Village of Verona and also was a co-founder of the Village of Augusta in Kalamazoo County.  He at one point was a partial owner in downtown Battle Creek.  He became elected to the Legislature when Michigan was vying for Statehood, and was elected as Speaker of the House.  He won re-election the year Michigan became a state, and died in a sled accident near Detroit on the way to a wedding in the winter of 1837-38.  Speculation on what would have happened in Calhoun County had he not died when he did, as the railroad coming through the county was still undecided at the time of his death.  Convis Township in Calhoun County was named in his honor after his death.

Watch the video I created on Verona here: The Rise & Fall of Verona

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This episode goes into who The Pioneer Society of Michigan (established in 1784) was and how they organized to preserve the early pioneer history of the territory.  I also go into one story they preserved about the fate of the first steamboat ever on Lake Erie, called Walk-in-the-Water.  I cover how this society recorded exactly how the early pioneers survived when they first arrived before they had permanent homes, crops and established themselves on the land.  Have you ever wonder where they got food during those days?  A lot of it was survival off the land, but also it was trading the Native American population who had already had a 500+ year history trading with the French.  It is a fascinating history.

The Pioneer Society of Michigan collected information from all the early established counties, and wrote personal histories on many of the early pioneers that settled these areas, which I plan to feature several of these profiles in future episodes.

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MichaelDelaware.com

This episode takes you from when Michigan was part of the New France territory founded in 1534 by explorer Jacques Cartier.  Prior to that, the land was occupied exclusively by the First Nation people.  France ceded the territory to Britain and Spain under the Treaty of Paris in 1763, and eventually the region was formed into the Northwest Territory by the United States Government following the Revolutionary War.  This territory again changed to the Indiana Territory after Ohio achieved Statehood, and eventually was separated into the Michigan Territory in 1805.  

The episode covers that journey, and much more as the wilderness region was settled with pioneers, and took the steps to become the 26th State in the Union.  It also covers the organization of the earliest Eastern, Southern and Southwestern Counties and how they were named.  

To watch my video on this topic on YouTube: The Journey of Michigan from Territory to Statehood & How the First Counties were Named

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In doing research on stories for larger projects, I occasionally come across stories of wolf encounters in the old newspapers of the 1800's.  In Southwest Michigan there were several encounters in the early 1830's as settlers began arriving in Calhoun, St. Joseph, Hillsdale and many other Southern Counties.  In researching the Hicks family history at Hicks Cemetery in Pennfield Township I came across a detailed one about the time when William Hicks took his three teanage sons to his new property with the family cow, and telling them to keep a fire going all night and he would see them in the morning.  The boys spent the entire evening keeping wolves at bay who wanted a taste of their bovine companion and maybe a teenager sandwich or two.  There were also several other tales I uncovered about wolves chasing, attacking and occasionally killing people in those unpredictable times, which I include in this episode.

If you would like to see the video I created on YouTube about the Hicks Cemetery, that I mention in this episode, here is the link:

Exploring History at Hicks Cemetery

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