1752

On Sept. 2, 1752, British subjects in England and America switched from the Julian Calendar to the Gregorian Calendar.  They had a leap-month which put them ahead by 12 days, bringing them in synch with the rest of Europe.

1775

The American Revolutionary War took place from 1775–1783.

1789

One of the most important local chiefs in Michigan was Chief Okemos, chief of the Chippewa tribe from about 1789 to 1858 when he died.  He signed certain treaties allowing white people to settle on Indian lands.

1700’s

Native Americans developed a system of trails throughout Washtenaw County to facilitate trade between what is now Michigan and neighboring states. These trails remained major traffic lines throughout the centuries, and today the Great Sauk Trail is highway US-12 and I-94 runs the length of St. Joseph's Trail.

1805

The Michigan Territory is created, with Detroit designated as the seat of government. William Hull is appointed governor. Fire destroys Detroit.

1807

Treaty signed by Native Americans relinquishing their rights to Washtenaw County.  Signed by chiefs of Ottawa, Chippewa, Potawatome, and Huron tribes.

1810

A deed was recorded in July 1910 for the Ceas School.  Edward Ceas and Lena E. Ceas sold 3/4 of an acre to the school district for $100.  L 170 p. 124.

1812

Detroit and Fort Mackinac are surrendered to the British during the War of 1812.

1813

Jan. 22, 1813.  A force of 1,300 British soldiers and Native Americans fall upon a group of US soldiers on the River Raisin near present-day Monroe.  (This was a continuation of the War of 1812.)  Some of them were massacred.  This was the largest battle ever fought on Michigan soil.  Later that year, American soldiers drove out the British, amidst cries of “Remember the River Raisin!”

1813

American forces re-enter Detroit. Lewis Cass is appointed governor of the Michigan Territory.

1815

US Surveyor General Edward Tiffin reported that Michigan has very little land suitable to agriculture, it is mostly swamp.

1815

The first surveyed road was called the “Pontiac” Road, later known as Woodward Avenue.  That was authorized by Congress on Dec. 15, 1815.  The early roads were generally all Indian trails.

1817

Monroe County established on July 14, 1817 by Gov. Lewis Cass.  At that time, it included the land now known as Lenawee County.  Monroe County was established in a hurry because President Monroe was about to arrive in Michigan for a visit.

Congressional Land Act of 1820 allowed a person to purchase 80 acres of land out west (Michigan, for example) at only $1.25 per acre.

1822

Maine achieved statehood in 1822.  This was commemorated in 1970 with a six-cent stamp-- in 1970, that was enough postage to send a first class letter.

1822

Washtenaw County was established by the Michigan Legislature

1823

The Chicago Road was authorized by Congress March 3, 1823.  It followed an old Indian trail named the Sauk-Fox trail from Detroit to the shore of Lake Michigan, what is now Highway 12.  (The Indian trail connected Montreal to Chicago and then probably continued west.)

1824

A few settlers were arriving in York Township and creating homes there, according to History of Washtenaw County 1881.  Names of those settlers not known.

1825

Erie Canal opened Oct. 25, 1825, allowing a flood of newcomers to Michigan from New York and New England.  Previously, it took two months to travel to Detroit; now it was just five and a half days.

1825

On April 5, 1825, Orange Risdon purchased 164 acres in what would later be known as Saline.  He had surveyed the road through Saline and he was convinced that it would be a good place for farming.

1826

Sometime in the 1820’s, people started settling in Mooreville, so that it came into existence as a town or hamlet.  Sign at entrance to Mooreville says it was established in 1826.

1826

Monroe County was reduced to its present size, and a portion was removed to form Lenawee County.

1827

A sign says Judd Cemetery established in 1827 along Milan-Saline Road where it intersects with Judd Road.  Some members of Judd family buried there.  Actually cemetery was established March 26, 1839 when Pascal D. Webb signed a deed transferring the 3/4 acre plot to York Township for a burial ground.

1829

The first house in Saline was built in 1829 by Orange Risdon. The post office was established in Saline in 1830 with Risdon as post master.

1831

John Marvin builds a two-story log cabin along Plank Road next to a toll station.  His residence was upstairs, a general store downstairs.  This was the first structure in what is now Milan.  NOTE:  A book on history of Milan says it was 1830 but that is an error.  In 1981 the City of Milan celebrated it’s 150th anniversary since 1831.

1831

In 1831, first school building in York Township built in Section 18, according to a history of York Township prepared in 1976.  Burtis Hoag furnished the logs and was paid $50 for its construction.  A nearby farmer, Washington Morton, was retained as a teacher, with a salary of $12 per month.

1831

The first congregation in York Township was established in Mooreville.  It was a Baptist fellowship, according to a history of York Township done in 1976.  Later the congregation relocated to Platt and Stony Creek Roads.

1832

Dr. Jonathan Bowers came to Mooreville to practice medicine.  He was the first doctor in the area.  He practiced for 40 years in the surrounding country.

1832

Mooreville Cemetery established in 1832, according to the sign on the cemetery.

1832

London Township was organized June 13, 1832.  It included present-day Milan Township and Exeter Township.  It was named after the town in England, because that was the birthplace of an army officer living there.  Source: introduction to London Township census of 1880.

1832

First meeting on record towards formation of Baptist church in Mooreville, occurred Aug. 10, 1832.  They met Aug. 31 pursuant to an adjournment.  There  were 10 people in the church, w/ William Moore chosen as Deacon.  History of Washtenaw County, 1818, page 1419.

1832

In 1832, Saline was platted as an unincorporated village.  Orange Risdon was instrumental in this. 

1833

The town of “Farmer” (Milan) gets its first post office when Bethual Hack was named postmaster in 1833.  The town was then called Tolansville.  Before 1833, the only post office was in Mooreville.

1833

James L. Moore came from NY and settled in Mooreville by the saline River about 1830 He was appointed the first postmaster of Mooreville on Jan. 5, 1833.  The post office was renamed York, after the township, from May 2, 1834 until it closed April 30, 1907. Source: Walter Romig's Michigan Place Names.

1833

Township of London organized out of Raisinville and Summerfield townships.  Later, chunks were taken off it to form Milan Township and Exeter Township.  First township meeting for London Township was held April 1, 1833, at home of Abraham Hayck.  Cyrus Everett was elected supervisor.  Henry Chittenden, clerk. William E. Marvin, John C. Sterling and Samuel Nichols, Jr., assessors.   

1833

London twp was formed April 1, 1833.  The new township board immediately passed a resolution: “All swine weighing less than 60 pounds each shall not be permitted to run at large, without a good and sufficient poke.”

1833

First sawmill for York Township was erected at Mooreville by Isaac Hathaway in 1833, according to a History of York Township prepared in 1976.  That author suggests the saw mill may have been just west of Dennison Road at a mill site shown on an 1873 map.

1834

William Marvin and David Woodard established a flour mill.  William was son of John Marvin, first settler.  Flour mill used stone technology.  Later it switched to steel rollers, and it was then called the Roller Mills.

1834

Township of York organized and approved by the Territorial Legislature, with help from State Representative William Moore.  Named “York” because so many residents had arrived from New York.

1834

Cholera epidemic hit Saline.  In the Saline area, 7 people died of the disease.

1834

Not sure of exact date.  First organizational meeting of York Township.  Held at home of Boaz Lampson in Mooreville.  Supervisor elected: Noah Wolcott.  William Moore was elected Justice of the Peace.  Othniel Gooding, elected Clerk.  The township already had a mill, school, and church.

1835

Mooreville Baptists built their first house of worship, a log structure on the SW corner of Stony Creek and Platt Road, in October 1835.  NOTE: was that Platt or Mooreville Road??)  This was used for worship for 12 years.  Page 1419-20, History of Washtenaw County, 1881.  Location supplied by Warren Hale 9-1-1982

1835

First log home built in York Township.  Oliver McLouth erected his log home in the northeast part of the township in 1835. It was 28 by 18 feet.

1835

David Woodard changes the name of the town from “Farmers” to “Woodard Mills.” 

1835

The Toledo War ensues over the Michigan-Ohio boundary. Michigan previously was denied admission to the Union because it would not surrender its claim to the Toledo strip. The area eventually is surrendered in exchange for the western section of the Upper Peninsula.

1835

Spaulding Cemetery dedicated in 1834 on Plank Road, land donated by John Spaulding.

1835

Elijah Ellis established a store in Milan, in York Township, in 1835, according to a history of York Township written in 1976.

1835

On Sept. 7, 1835, Charles Darwin arrived at the Galapagos Islands aboard the HMS Beagle.  He obtained information to help him form his theory of evolution.

1836

The bloodless Michigan-Ohio War was resolved when the US Congress gave the City of Toledo to Ohio, and gave the Upper Peninsula to Michigan.

1836

Postmaster General stepped in and decided to name the town “Milan” so as to end the confusion about “Tolanville” and “Woodard Mills.”  The residents of Milan Township were already referring to their address as “Milan.”

1836

Township of Milan formed by splitting off part of London Township

1836

March 6, 1836, “Battle of the Alamo”, where 189 Texans fought a losing battle against about 1600 Mexicans.

1837

Dr. Issac Hurd came to Milan from Dansville, New York.

1837

University of Michigan moves from Detroit to Ann Arbor.

1837

Michigan became the 26th state Jan. 26, 1837.  Previously, it was a territory.

1838

May 26, 1838, about 4,000 Native Americans of Cherokee tribe died while being forced to move out of their native lands, cross country.  This is known as the “Trail of Tears.”

1839

Women in the US received the right to own property, for the first time, thanks to a law passed in Jackson Mississippi.  The law allowed women to own real estate.

1839

Judd Cemetery established on March 26, 1839 when Pascal D. Webb signed a deed.  He sold the 3/4 acre parcel to York Township for $30 for use as a burial ground.

Marble Memorial United Methodist Church was founded in 1840.  Church services were held in different private homes on a rotating basis.  At that time it was not called “Marble.”  It was just the “Methodist Episcopal Church.”  It is unknown when and why the name “Marble” was applied.  In 1887, Hannah Marble gave a deed of land to the Methodist Episcopal Church.

1841

On April 4, 1841, President William Henry Harrison died.  He took office earlier that year, at age 68, and was at that time the oldest President to take office.  He died of viral pneumonia only 31 days after taking office.  Milan land owner William Henry Harrison Hack was named after him.

1842

John Spaulding elected Supervisor of Milan Township.

1844

Death of Dr. Issac Hurd.  He left behind a wife and five children.

1844

Thomas and Hannah Braman erected a hotel on their property, at 141 W. Main, and they probably lived there as a residence.  It was a three-story building.  Catered to passengers on stage coaches who were traveling on the Monroe to Saline Highway.

1844

On May 24, 1844, the first electrical telegram was sent by Samuel Morse from Baltimore, Maryland to Washington, D.C.  His message:  “What hath God wrought?”  The US Congress paid $30,000 to build the 40-mile telegraph line.

1845

Elijah Ellis built and occupied a store in Milan in a location where people in 1925 thought of as the Blackmer Estate building.

1845

Beginning of the Irish potato famine.  Continues through 1849.

1845

On May 2, 1845, just after midnight, Sayre Reeves was trying to break a dam in Dexter.  An angry crowd arrived to express disapproval.  Reeves shot into the crowd, killing a man.  Reeves was later famous in Azalia as a founding father of the community.

1845

Dec. 29, 1845, Texas was admitted to the US as a State, after a rocky and violent history with Mexico.

1846

May 17, 1846, the saxophone was patented by Adolphe Sax.

1846

Catholic Church congregation organized in Cone in 1846 by Rev. Father Pierre Smothers.  Cone was known as “West  Milan” at this time. Congregants were mostly Irish. Built church in 1848 on Welch Rd. west of Dennison Rd.

1847

Thomas Wilson came to Milan with his wife Jane (Dodge) Wilson, and four children: Charles, Myron, Sarah, and George.  According to Warren Hale’s columns.  George died as a child.

1847

Michigan’s capital city moved from Detroit to Lansing.

1847

Flour mill and saw mill, owned by Henry Tolan, were sold to Thomas Wilson, according to Way Back When column of Nov. 6, 2003.  Thomas included his sons Charles and Myron in the business.

1847

July 1, 1847, the US issues the first postage stamp.  It was revolutionary because the price was the same no matter how far the letter had to travel.  Also, the cost was paid by the sender and not the letter’s recipient.

1848

Nicholas Childs establishes a saw mill along River Street (now Wabash) right about where Charles Wilson lived, near the bridge over the river (near the present Milan Fire Department building).

1848

Dedication of the Catholic church in Cone, then called “West Milan,”  in Milan township.

1848

January 24, 1848, James W. Marshall found gold at Sutter’s Mill, near Sacramento.  This set off the California Gold Rush.

1848

Cholera epidemic in New York kills 5,000 people.

Harmon Allen sold land to School District No. 1 in Milan on Oct. 8, 1853. Price: $50.  Located partly in York twp and partly in Milan twp on the county line.  One fourth of an acre along the Monroe and Saline plank road.  Source:  Washtenaw Register of Deeds L. 71 p. 682.

1854

In 1854, William Johnston and Pater Hanlon, who had adjoining farms fronting on Welsh Road, each donated 1/2 acre to the Most Rev. Peter Paul Le Fevre, Bishop of Detroit, for the first Catholic church in the Milan area.  It was named St. Mary.  A section of the land was designated for a cemetery. Eventually the little wooden church was closed and Catholics worshiped in the Village of Milan instead. Source: page 159 Arleigh Squires book.

1854

First Catholic church in the Milan area built in “Cone” or “West Milan.”  The church was named St. Mary’s.  It was a wooden building on Welsh Road.

1855

On June 18, 1855, water flowed into the locks.  Then the first ship passed through the newly-built Soo Locks along the St. Mary’s River in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

1856

Azalia Methodist Church was established in Azalia in 1856 by Shubel Lewis. The building was erected in 1870.

1857

Creation of the National Education Association, or NEA.  Note: the NEA was commemorated by a three-cent stamp in 1957.

1859

U. S. Postmaster ordered that only the name “Milan” could be used for the town, and not Farmers, Tolanville, or Woodard’s Mills.

1859

New post office was opened in “West Milan” (Cone) with John C. Cone as postmaster.

Episcopal Church was started in Mooreville, with deed of land from Thomas J. Olcott and wife on May 1, 1860.  Vestrymen were Asahel Edson, Thomas J. Olcott, Richard Alchin, Alexander McMullen and William McMullen.  Building not finished until 1863.  History of Washt. County, 1881, p. 1420.

1861

Start of the Civil War

1862

In 1862, first brick school constructed in Milan.  On Hurd Street at Ferman.  It burned down Jan. 10, 1900.

1863

Jan. 1, 1863, the slaves were freed.

1868

Charles Blackmer purchased land that had previously been a school house. The deed was signed April 21, 1868. Seller: Joshua Hanson and wife.  Apprently he built a brick home on E. Main, probably first brick residence in Milan.  Bricks were transported by oxen to Milan from Ann Arbor.  According to family lore, Charles calculated bricks so accurately, there was only 1 left over. Source: MAHS calendar 1992.

1865

The original Mead School was built about 1860-65, on Sherman Road and Half Road, Milan Township, according to one of Warren Hale’s columns.  I think the date is wrong, the school was built around 1880.

1865

George Whiting either bought or built the Babcock Hotel. He got it sometime around 1860 or before 1870.  He died before 1875, probably around 1874.

1865

On April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln was watching a play at the Ford Theater.  John Wilkes Booth shot him in the head.  Lincoln died the next morning.

1865

End of the Civil War.  On April l9, 1865, at Appomattox Court house in northern Virginia, General Lee surrendered his army.  Other confederate generals surrendered at later dates during the year.  Union veterans of the war called themselves GAR which stands for Grand Army of the Republic.

1866

On March 22, 1866, Thomas and Hannah Braman deeded property to the Milan Union Church Society.  That year, the Union Church was built on West Main Street.  It was for use by all the Christian churches.  No one church could use it oftener than once every two weeks.

1866

Rev. John Roughman came to Milan and preached to the United Methodist congregation, and probably to other congregations as well.

1866

House built on corner of Dexter and County, facing the “Crooked Tree.”  Jerry Weaver says his family lived there at some time.  House was no doubt built with lumber from Wilson Lumber Mill.  In 1934 the house was moved down the road to make room for a gas station.

1866

East Milan, or Reeves Station, was opened as a post office in 1866, with Stephen Frink as postmaster.  (Later became known as Azalia.) 

1866

Village of Saline incorporated October 18, 1866.

1867

Daniel T. Hazen took office as postmaster in East Milan (Azalia).

1868

In February 1868, the building was completed, and Elder L. H. Dean dedicated the Methodist Episcopal church in Cone.

1868

June 8, 1868, Thomas Braman purchased a brick building that was used as a grocery store.  The seller was the estate of James Kelsey.  Price: $450.  On SE corner of Main and Wabash.  Source: Liber 73, page 496.

1868

Baptist Church in Mooreville had the following officers: Clerk, W. W. Kelsey; Deacons, A. R. Wheeler, Othniel Gooding, Srl, J. U. Fuller and Henry Kelsey.  Superintendent of Sunday School:  B. F. Gooding.

1868

David Blackmer moved to Milan from Saline.  In the spring of 1868 Charles went into the merchandising business at Main and River.

1869

Wyoming Territory passes legislation allowing women the right to vote.  Women’s suffrage.  This was probably done by mistake, the legislature passing the law on the assumption that the governor would veto it.

Sayre Reeves left Oakville and arrived in Azalia sometime between 1860 and 1870.  He had been operating a hotel in Oakville.  He was born in NY and his first home in Michigan was in Dexter, where he killed a man in 1845 over a mill dam.  His new neighbors in Azalia probably didn’t know about Reeve’s homicidal past.

1870

On July 4, 1870, the Detroit Hillsdale and Indiana Railroad was officially opened from Ypsilanti to Saline.  The citizens of Saline had to raise the money to pay the railroad before the railroad was persuaded to build a line between Ypsilanti and Hilldale, running through Saline.  Myron Webb was one of the promoters who helped make this happen in Saline.

1870

Sometime around 1870, paper was mass produced for the first time.  Students in public schools no longer had to rely on erasable slates for their lessons.

1870

In 1870 the 15th Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified.  It stated that the right to vote must not be denied because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.  Before this, laws in many states did not allow blacks to vote.  NOTE: in 1870, women were not allowed to vote, so the 15th Amendment was only about black men.  Suffrage. 

1871

In the early 1870’s, David Blackmer built the Blackmer store on the southeast corner of Wabash and Main. 

1871

The great Chicago Fire occurred Oct. 8, 1871.

1872

On April 3, 1872, Thomas Braman sold the building and lot on SE corner of Milan downtown to Charles M. Blackmer.  Apparently the brick building was already there, and being used as a grocery store, when Braman sold this parcel.  Size: 87 feet E-W and 83 feet N-S. Washtenaw Register of Deeds L. 79, p. 94.

1872

Joseph Meadows became Postmaster of East Milan (Azalia).

1875

Arnot block of buildings erected on Tolan Street, basically made of wood.

1876

Charles Gauntlett, age 23, of Milan, married Jennie Bunce, 18, in London twp. His occupation: “Stave Maker.”

1877

The Milan Township Hall was built in the fall of 1877 by Buckley F. Marble.

1877

John M. Lewis became Postmaster of East Milan (Azalia).

1878

On October 16, 1878 a group of Presbyterian ministers from the surrounding area met for a worship service in the Union Church, and organized the membership for the “First Presbyeterian Church of Milan.”

1878

The Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Railroad came to Milan.  “Toledo, Ann Arbor, and Grand Trunk” is another name for the train.

1879

Peter Cook, station agent for the Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad in York Township in 1878, became the first postmaster of Urania on Jan. 10, 1879.  The post office operated in Urania until Jan. 31, 1914.  [GSM 1879; PO Archives]

1879

Feb. 28, 1879, a fire destroys the courthouse in Monroe, resulting in the loss of many important records.

Charles Blackmer built his red brick home on East Main in 1880.  This was the location of the first schoolhouse in Milan.

1880

The Methodist Church in Milan was part of a circuit, which included Milan, East Milan (Azalia), West Milan (Cone), Oakville, London, Grape, Maybee, and Exiter.

1880

The Wabash Railroad came to Milan with its “Cannonball” express.  Also called “Detroit and Butler Railroad” which later became part of the Wabash train system.

1880

The name “Cone” was adopted in the community south of Milan.  The Wabash Railroad had just opened, and it was calling the place its “Cone” station. Numerous residents were of the Cone family, including the postmaster, John W. Cone.  So, the community followed the lead of the Railroad.  Before that, the place was called “West Milan.”

1880

Thomas Edison produced his incandescent light bulb for home use in 1880, providing stiff competition to the gas lights already in existence.  Electricity became available in Milan in the late 1890’s thanks to Wila Lamkin and his generating plant.

1881

On Friday, Feb. 15, 1881, the Milan Leader newspaper was founded by Albert B. Smith, who had a print shop, and his partner (or moral support), Alfred Emory Putnam, age 14.  Alfred’s father, Nathan, was first village president.

1881

In 1881, the Milan School Board decided to expand educational opportunities and offer grades 9-12.  Previously, the school district offered only through 8th grade.

1881

Milan Baptist Church organized.

1881

The first train depot was built.  The signal tower was made of wood.

1881

By 1881, there were five churches located in Mooreville.

1881

As an illustration of the enterprising spirit of Milan’s inhabitants, we have but to point to the fine residence of C. D. Blackmar and the almost palatial residences of Dr. Bessac and Mr. Burt, now being built. Source: Hist. of Washt. County 1881 Chapman.

1882

Farmers and Merchants Bank established by Mell W. Barnes and Starr Joseph, who both came to Milan from Quincy, Michigan.  They started out in a building (13 E. Main) which became Bill’s Coffee Shop in 1976.  Then they moved to the building on the southwest corner of Main and Wabash, and finally to the IOOF building.

1883

On April 15, 1883, the first baptism was held by the Milan Baptist Church.  The baptism took place in the Saline River just below the dam.

1883

A new Presbyterian church building was dedicated on the west side of North Street on August 14, 1883.  It was just north of Hurd street. 

1883

Dedication of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York

1884

On Dec. 10, 1884, the Milan Baptist Church was dedicated at 31 Ferman St. 

1884

A. C. Reynolds became postmaster of East Milan (Azalia).

1884

Dr. Henry B. Bessac purchases the land right next to the Babcock Hotel in downtown Milan.  He probably built his two-story brick building immediately.

1885

June of 1885, first high school graduating class in Milan.  The school district had added grades 9-12 only four years previously.  There were six students in that first graduating class.  Cora Hanson Kellogg; Cora Hitchcock Gump; Ona Andrews Meyers; Mattie Stever Harris; Warren Babcock; and Addie Van Wormer Gauntlett.

1885

Milan chartered as a Village by the legislature March 26, 1885.  Soon afterwards, first elections were held, and Village trustees were elected.

1885

On March 25, 1885, the first council meeting was held for the Village of Milan.  Place:  home of Buckley Marble on E. Main St. He was a justice of the peace; they held the meeting in his office.  President Nathan C. Putnam called the meeting to order.  Trustees were Dr. Emmett F. Pyle (1846 - 1918), Charles H. Wilson (1836 -1927), David W. Hitchcock (1838 - 1905), Lorenzo O. Hitchcock (1834-1914), and Charles Gauntlett (1858 - 1933).

1885

On Monday, April 13, 1885, the Milan village council held its second meeting. Location: the Main Street office of attorney Andrew Jackson of Milan.

1885

The post office in Cone got a new postmaster, W. Curry, who succeeded John C. Cone for the job.  However, the town kept its name, “Cone.”

1885

On Dec. 7, 1885, Milan Village council appointed a committee of two, to purchase a stove and some blankets for the Lock-up.  They bought 3 pairs of blankets for $6, 14 yards of ticking for $2.80, making ticks 50 cents.  One box stove $6. Lumber and nails for 3 benches, 55 cents, labor to make benches $1.

1886

Four young women graduate from Milan High School, they are the second graduating class.

1886

On March 8, the Village of Milan held its second election, votes were cast at the Babcock Hotel on south side of Main Street and Tolan.  Pres.: Henry B. Bessic [M.D.].  Trustees: William Whitmarsh, Charles Gauntlett, and O. A. Kelly for two years. C. A. Moore elected as Clerk for one year. Mell Barnes elected Treasurer for one year. Buckley W. Marble elected assessor for one year. William Whaley streets commissioner for one year.  Asa Whitehead, constable for one year.

1886

A photographer named Daniel Jewell takes pictures in Milan.

1887

Hannah Marble transferred some land for the purpose of building a Methodist Church in Milan.

1887

On Sept. 1, 1887, the postmaster general issued an order changing the name of the post office in East Milan to “Azalia” to correspond with the Railroad designation.  At the same time, Joseph Meadows was appointed postmaster.

1888

In 1888, Marble Memorial Church was built on the south side of East Main street.  It was remodeled and enlarged in 1955.  Source:  calendar 1993 MAHS.  In its early days, it was referred to as the M.E. Church, or Methodist Episcopal. 

1888

In the spring of 1888, there was a terrible snow storm in New York that killed many people.  There was no electricity, no food, and people just froze or starved.  Prof. Henry Friend, of Hack House fame, died in New York March 10, 1888 just a day before the blizzard hit.

1888

The Hack House in Milan was first occupied.  This was the home of Olive Friend.  Home was purchased and built with money from fraudulent stock sales of the New York Electric Sugar Company.

1889

On March 7, 1889, the following people were taken from the jail in Ann Arbor and escorted by train to a jail in New York City over the New York Electric Sugar Company scandal:  Olive Friend, William E. and Emily Howard, Orin “Gus” Halstead and George Halstead.  William E. Howard quickly raised the money for his bail, and was freed, but his wife Emily and step-daughter Olive were left to rot behind bars for over a year, along with the Halstead boys.

1889

May 1889, the Worlds Fair and Exposition opened in Paris, France.  It ran from May 6 to October 31, 1889.

1889

June 21, 1889, William E. Howard sentenced to 9 years and 8 months at hard labor by a New York judge for his part in the Electric Sugar Refining Company scandal.  Other Milan residents remained in a New York jail, “The Tombs” until the following April.

1889

The River Street bridge (now Wabash Street) was installed by the Massillon Bridge Co. of Ohio in Feb. 1889 at a cost of $275. Source: Way Back When column July 25, 1979.

1889

A walkway was added to the River Street Bridge in Milan in 1889 at a cost of $275, according to a 1993 Calendar of the Milan Area Historical Society.

1889

Church building dedicated, Marble Memorial United Methodist Church, located at 8 Park Street, Milan. 

A photographer in Milan named Samuel C. Hunt takes pictures from 1890 to 1892.

1890

Village bought an old wagon shop from Lyman Burnham in Oct. 1890, and used it as a fire station.  It was a two-story wood building on stilts.  Purchase price: $500.

1890

In approximately 1890, the Braman Hotel stopped being used as an inn.  The third floor was removed, it was divided into two apartments.  Later John and Barbara Gaines purchased it and used it as a single family residence.  WBW 1-20-99.

1891

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Whittaker is founded.  Sometime between 1947 and 1949, this congregation joined with St. Paul’s Lutheran of Milan.

1891

Fire destroys an entire block of Main Street

1891

Milan had a fire causing $11,000 in damage on Oct. 30, 1891.  Source: Past and Present Wash County, 1906, p. 815.

1891

“The ladies’ aid society of the Baptist church will hold a maple sugar social in the Babcock hotel on Wednesday evening of next week. Supper will be served from 5:30 to 10:00 o’clock; tickets fifteen cents. A sweet time is anticipated, and everybody is invited to come.”  Milan Leader, Friday, March 20, 1891.

1891

In 1891, a steam-powered Ypsi Ann interurban line connected Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti.  Later the steam powered street car was replaced by an electric model.

1891

On Dec. 14, 1891, the Milan Village appointed a committee to look at purchasing a used Button fire engine from the Ann Arbor fire dept. It was a hand operated engine, hose cart, and 750 feet of hose for $425.  NOTE: they later had to build a platform on the river to obtain access to water for the fire truck.

1892

A photographer named Soloman W. Phillipson takes pictures in Milan from 1892 to 1894.

1892

Telegraph poles set in place along Milan streets.  This was done by the Commercial Telegraph Co.

1892

According to a history student, 52 E. Main was built in 1892.  (Warren told me once it was built in 1906.)

1892

Gay Building erected, including a third story created specifically for the Masonic Lodge.  It was built by Sarah Gay, according to 1996 calendar MAHS.

1893

Fire bell purchased by Village of Milan for the wooden fire station building.

1893

May 1, 1893, the Chicago World’s Fair was opened to the public. It included an elevated train to transport fair-goers around the White City, powered by electricity.  The Columbian Exposition ended October 30, 1893.

1893

Large fire damages Milan on Dec. 4, 1893, according to “Past and Present of Washtenaw County” 1906, page 815.  Note: this book is sometimes unreliable. Says this fire started in the saloon of Edward Doersam at 10:15 p.m.  It was confined to the 3 stores owned by O. A. Kelly, Jacob R. Verscelius and Mrs. Phoebe Kelly.  “The Ann Arbor Fire Dept. reached Milan before the flames were extinguished.”

1893

Colorado grants women the right to vote.  Women’s suffrage. 

1894

Photographer Charles Casey in Milan from 1894-1895.

1894

On June 1, 1894, the IOOF, or Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Wolverine Chapter, purchased property from Archie and Emma Gauntlett, to build a three-story structure on West Main street.

1894

Orin A. Kelly puts up a brick building on his property at 9 W. Main Street, and uses it as a hardware store.

1895

William Howard was released from Sing Sing prison in New York in about 1895.  That is probably the year when he had his photo taken in downtown Milan, on tintype.  He is shown seated in a carriage with two horses (not just one horse). 

1895

Water well created by Village of Milan directly behind the Babcock Hotel.  This was done March 4, 1895.  A 4-inch pipe was dug 54 feet searching for clean water, but unfortunately it was contaminated.

1895

On Sept. 11, 1895, the Village council passed the bathing ordinance.  Between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. of each day, no person shall expose his body naked in any river, stream, pond or other waters in the village.  Any violation will be punished by a fine not exceeding $20 or imprisonment of 30 days.

1895

Sarah Gay built an ornate Victorian home on the NE corner of East Main and Gay Street.  She also built the Gay Block in Downtown in 1892. Source: Calendar 1996 MAHS.

1896

Frank M. Miller established a new drug store in Milan by building a new building in 1896. It remained a drug store for over a century.

1896

The old Babcock Hotel was cut apart into two buildings and moved away after the property was purchased by George F. Minto.  Minto moved away the old wood building in 1896 to make way for his new two-story brick building, a men’s clothing store.

1896

Farmers and Merchants Bank of Milan moved from 13 E. Main to the SW corner of Main and Wabash.

1896

Marble Park Cemetery Association was formed in the spring of 1896 by J. L. Marble.

1896

Fred W. Elwood, photographer, in Milan from 1896 to 1897.

1897

Charles Wilson elected Village President.  At various times in his life he was church trustee, Worshipful Master of Milan Masons, and VP of the Farmers and Merchants Bank.

1897

Feb. 1897, new brick fire station was dedicated.  Later that year they bought a 790 pound fire bell for $84 to put in the new fire station.

1897

Store on the northeast corner of Wabash and Tolan was built in 1897 by contractor Dan Bell for George F. Minto. 

1897

March 4, 1897, William McKinley inaugurated as U.S. President.

1898

Spanish American War

1898

Wasley Robison, health officer for Village of Milan, reported that during the year, there were five contagious diseases: 3 scarlet fever, 1 typhoid fever and 1 measles.  All recovered.

1898

Willard J. Sissen is photographer in Milan from 1898 to 1901.

1898

Nov. 16, 1898, Village of Milan decided to install a railing around the bank of the river below the dam, to reduce the risk of drownings.

1898

July 1898 village council building was the first place in town lit up by electric lights.  Power came from Willa Lampkin’s generating plant.

1898

Telephone company began installing lines in the village of Milan.

1899

First electric lights installed in Milan in 1899. Source: 1995 calendar MAHS.

Jan. 12, 1900 the brick school house on the corner of Hurd and North burned to the ground.  A new brick school building was erected immediately, just to the east of it on Hurd and Ferman.

1900

Headline:  “Our public school building destroyed by fire.”   Wednesday about 10:00 some of the scholars discovered the west hall of the public school building in this place to be on fire. It had probably caught from the north furnace and the hall was in flames before the alarm was sounded. All of the children were gotten out of the building, without many mishaps. One of the teachers, Miss C. Eayrs, was obliged to jump from a second story window and Edith Cavanaugh, of London, and Emma Bentley, of Azalia, were quite badly burned about the face and hands. Several of the scholars had their hair singed, and one or two had their hands cut by glass. The teachers acted nobly in getting the scholars out and worked like heroes to save what books and other school paraphernalia they could. As it was many scholars lost their wraps, hats and probably about 150 their books. The building was entirely consumed and by 12:00 nothing but the walls were left. The building was insured for $5,000 and there was an insurance of $1,000 on contents.  The burning brands set fire to the Baptist church and the house occupied by W. H. Gay and family, but were put out with pails of water. During the excitement of getting out Ora Pepper was left in his seat, but Mr. Carrick saw him and carried him out. The building was a seven-room schoolhouse, and a $3,700 annex had only been added 3 years ago. With the building was consumed the Maynard library, probably containing the largest selection of books of any town the size of Milan in the state.  … During the fire Chief Dexter ran a nail almost through his thumb. The loss to the tax payers by the burning of the public school building is about $15,000.  Source: newspaper clipping, Milan Leader. Found at Genealogist Friend, book ?, page 15.

1900

Mrs. Maria Hill is photographer in Milan from 1900 to 1905.

1901

George Arnot adds the second story to the Arnot Opera House.

1901

April 8, 1901, residents of Milan petitioned the village council to pass an ordinance, requiring owners of chickens to “prohibit poultry running at large in the Village.”

1901

On Friday, May 31, (probably 1901), Mooreville High School graduated two students: Lillian A. Olds and Mary W. McIntyre. The invocation was given by Rev. Beardsley.

1901

Walter Stimpson bought the lot for the Stimpson Hotel in 1901.  He had it underway in the spring and it was occupied by summer 1901. 

1902

C. F. Needham is a photographer in Milan from 1902 to 1905.
W. C. Schmitt is photographer from 1902 to 1903.

1903

Village of Milan passed an ordinance in April, 1903:  no dumping of garbage on the river banks on the west side of River Street.

1903

Village of Milan requires “artificial stone” sidewalks downtown (concrete).

1903

May 1903, Village appointed Thomas Redman as special police at the train depot, without pay.

1903

Crayola crayons introduced.  They cost five cents for eight crayons.

1905

Fire destroys the wood-frame Mead School in Milan Township, on Sherman Road and Half Road.  New sandstone building takes its place.

1905

The alley on the west side of the IOOF hall, on West Main, was filled in with a roof.  According to Warren Hale in an early WBW article, this happened in 1905.  Martha says the first occupant of the “Alley” shop was the Post Office.  Today Jones Insurance is in there.

1905

An old Free Methodist Church in Mooreville was bought out by the Macabee organization in 1905, and used as a Maccabee Hall.  Then in the 1930’s it was used as a township hall.  It is about 100 x 40 feet, two stories high.  From: History of Mooreville 1952 by Donald R. Searfoss.

1906

George K. Weller was a photographer in Milan from 1906 to 1911.

1906

Independent Order of Odd Fellows built a three-story building at 19 W. Main, which was occupied right away by the Farmers and Merchants Bank.

1906

According to Warren Hale, Doc Emmet Pyle built his home, medical office, and hospital in 1906.  Location:  52 E. Main.

1906

Paving bricks for the downtown street.

1906

Fire station has a new hose drying tower added to the building.

1906

Private water system established by Wila Lamkin in conjunction with his electric generating plant.  Note:  his first name was “Wila.”  Later, perhaps 1908, the village established a municipal water system.

1906

Milan Leader purchased by Frank Gates.

1906

A sewer line was entrenched on Main Street on August 10, 1906 with an eight-inch sewer line.

1907

Mr. Wila P. Lamkin starts providing electric service in Milan from his generating plant.  His plant was located where the American Legion is today.

1907

Charles W. Gauntlett begins his term of service as village postmaster of Milan, and continues until 1915.

1907

DJ&C stands for the Detroit, Jackson and Chicago Railway.  DJ&C formed July 19, 1907.  The line went from Detroit to Dearborn, Inkster, Wayne, Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, Lima (near Chelsea), Grass Lake, and then Jackson.  Saline was connected at Ypsilanti.

1908

The first train depot was destroyed by fire in January of 1908.  They were immediately replaced.

1908

Completion of the Milan sewer system on July 12, 1908, for Main Street.  Cost $6,500.

1908

Milan’s new municipal water works was authorized and completed in 1908.

1908

April 21, 1908, brothers William and Charles Woolcott were returning home to Milan from Detroit in their new Ford automobile, and were killed by a train. They stopped for a train at a double train crossing in Dearborn, and when that train was past, the driver assumed the intersection was clear.  Another passenger train was coming from the other direction on the other track.  William owned a large candy store and Charles owned a barber shop.

1908

Downtown Milan got a public drinking fountain right in front of Minto store.  Thurlow Sanford helped caulk the water main joints when the fountain was installed in 1908, and he took the last sip out of it when the fountain was removed. (don’t know the year it was removed.)  See p. 227 Red Book.

1908

October 1, 1908, Henry Ford introduces the Model T to America.

1908

Masonic Lodge realized it had made a mistake building it’s third floor area without the rear 12 feet of space.  So, they enlarged their building to create an area for a kitchen, two bathrooms (“Sanitary Closets”) and larger dining room.

Boy Scouts of America organized by Chicago publisher William Boyce on Feb. 8, 1910.

1910

Milan State Savings Bank organized December 2, 1910.

1911

Feb. 2, 1911, Milan State Savings Bank opened for business.  They were located in the south half of the building on Wabash Street, where it is located today.  Maurine Schultz, mother of Duane Schultz, was involved in the bank’s organization.

1911

April 14, 1911, Thomas Goodridge appointed by the Milan Village Council to serve as Marshall at a salary of $20 per month.

1911

Oct. 19, 1911, corner stone laid for Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Milan, on North Street.  The pastor was Rev. L. H. Soest.  Many of the parishioners to St. Mary’s Church in Cone actually lived in Milan, and they didn’t like the commute.  Milan church was dedicated in July 1912.

1911

According to a 1993 MAHS calendar, the drinking fountain in downtown Milan was installed in 1911 at a cost of $14.50.  The book by Arleigh Squires says it was installed 1908. 

1912

Milan paved Main Street in 1912.  There were already concrete sidewalks (“Artificial Stone”).  A photo shows brick pavement on West Main Street.  According to WBW Jan. 17, 1990, Dexter Street was also paved in 1912.

1912

Wabash Railroad installed a second parallel set of track from Detroit to Chicago. 

1912

June 29, 1912, a car full of happy campers was photographed on W. Main just as they left Milan to go to Whomper’s Lake.  Behind them is the Farmers and Merchant’s Bank of Milan in the IOOF building.

1913

Detroit Edison begins providing electric service in Milan.  This was resisted by Wila P. Lamkin.  Mr. Lamkin wanted to continue as the electric provider for Milan, and Milan residents preferred to keep Lamkin.  They held an election and voted against Detroit Edison, 154 to 10.  Somehow D.E. began providing service anyhow, at least on a limited basis.

1913

L. B. Johnson purchased the Milan Leader and edited it until he died.  His wife Etta Johnson carried on until she died in 1938.

1913

George F. Minto formed a partnership with his brother in law, William R. Moore, and the new name of their store in downtown Milan was “Moore and Minto.”  The Mintos moved to Detroit and Moore operated the business.

1913

Henry Ford introduces moving assembly belts in his factories to increase production.

1913

Illinois passes legislation allowing women to vote in that state.  However, women in Michigan were still not able to vote.  Women’s suffrage.

1914

On Jan. 9, 1914, Village of Milan passes resolution to withhold a large sum from Detroit Edison’s bill, for “insufficient lighting.”  This problem was later resolved and the village paid DTE’s full amount.

1914

War declared in Europe, the beginning of World War I.

1915

Ideal Furnace Company starts operations in Milan where Dexter Street ends at East Main, alongside the Railroad tracks.  The building was first built for Stimpson Standard Scale Company in 1890.  Source: 1993 calendar MAHS.

1916

Fairgrounds at W. Main and Platt cleared, destroyed, to make way for houses.

1916

The Milan Free Methodist Society moved into their newly erected sanctuary on Hurd Street. 

1917

America declares war against Germany on April 6, 1917, thus entering into World War I.

1918

Influenza pandemic 1918-1919 goes around the world twice, killing 20-40 million people world wide.  Flu.  Soldiers were dying of influenza at a huge rate.  In the US, there was a shortage of coffins, and funerals were limited to 15 minutes.  In some places, bodies piled up.

1918

On June 17, 1918, Milan village council voted to change the names of certain streets:  Edwards St. to Ferman Ave; River St. to Wabash St; Richards St. to Hurd St; Lamkin St. to Ideal Ave. The portion of Lafayette St. extending from County St. to Second St. to be changed to Marvin St.

1918

Nov. 11, 1918.  Armistice Day.  The official end to World War I.

1918

In 1918, Milan residents had a Jordan Bakery calendar hanging on their walls, courtesy of the Jordan Bakery on Main Street in Milan, Mich.  Phone: 17.

1919

Henry Ford purchases a weekly newspaper, the Dearborn Independent, so that he can spread his hatred of Jews with anti-Semitic articles.

Webster Dairy established south of Milan, at 13873 S. Wabash.  It existed from 1920-1943.  Called Sun Rise Dairy at first.

1920

Women in the Milan area were allowed to vote for the first time, thanks to passage of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution.  Women’s suffrage.

1920

Beginning of Prohibition

1920

So-called Milan fairgrounds and race track, on north side of Main between Platt and the Argyle Crescent area, was cleared about 1920 to permit the construction of homes (apartments?).  Source: 1994 calendar MAHS.

1921

Charles Wilson donated land to the Village of Milan for use as a park.  This was done on July 1, 1921.

1923

Michigan Highway Department was ordered by the legislature to set up a ferry service crossing the Straits of Mackinac, connecting Michigan’s lower peninsula with the upper peninsula. 

1923

Pete Johnston built “The Garage” on Neckel Court as an auto repair facility in conjunction with his coal and lumber business, which was on the same property.  Source: WBW Feb. 24, 1988. 

1923

The “Jerome Map” was produced, looks a bit amateurish.  Contains a series of concentric circles.  It says “Copyright 1923 by Emery Jerome” with a drawing of an Indian.  Jerome Map Company is shown on Church Street near second, at bend in the street. It shows the Wilson Park area as a “City Park.”  Refers to the flour mill as the “Neckel Mill.”  Indicates a dance building on the “Park.”  Shows the “Milan Coal Yard” on Division Street, connected to Johnston’s Lumber Yard by way of Johnston Street.  There is a swimming pool indicated just west of the flour mill!

1924

Myron Wilson sold the flour mill and saw mill to Mike Neckel.

1924

Tornado, called “cyclone,” hit Milan in the late spring or early Summer.  Severe damage to buildings.

1924

Detroit Edison served Azalia with electric lights in January 1924.

1924

Detroit Edison purchased a building on West Main in Milan for its offices.  It was the former Braman Meat Market building, at 38 W. Main.  Detroit Edison stayed there for 50 years.

1924

Village council purchased a Model T fire truck for $3050.  It arrived by rail.  It had no gasoline in it so at first, when the firemen tried to crank it up, nothing happened.

1924

The fire bell cracked.  It was being rung for George Weller’s fire.  His studio and greenhouse were burning.  His buildings were located on Ferman Street where the Baptist Church parking lot is today.

1925

Village of Milan passed an edict on June 16, 1925 requiring every property owner to remove their outhouses, or the Village would do it for them.  some residents were fond of their outdoor privies and didn’t want to give them up.

1925

In July of 1925, the Staebler-Kemph Oil Company of Ann Arbor removed the old Doyle family home on West Main Street, to make way for a new gas station.  This building was located just east of the Detroit Edison Building, 38 W. Main St.  The Doyle Home was between the Braman Meat Market and Hotel Stimpson.

1925

Girls attending Milan schools were required to take Home Economics in 8th grade, for the first time, as a substitute for basic science.  Most kids finished their schooling after the 8th grade.  What do girls need science for, anyway?

1925

The last burial took place at the St. Mary’s Catholic Church cemetery in Cone in 1925.  After WW I the church was demolished.  Eventually the cemetery was destroyed, the ground disked, and tombstones removed. (double check facts here)

1925

On Feb. 1, 1925, buses replaced the electric streetcars in Ann Arbor for a one-year experimental trial.  Streetcars never returned.

1925

In 1925, Saline businesses were in favor of ending the Ypsilanti-Saline interurban commuter line.  However, this backfired.  Shoppers and businessmen went elsewhere.

1926

A second brick school building went up along Hurd Street, near North, right next to the 1900 building.  The 1900 building was at Hurd and Ferman.  The two structures were side-by-side.

1927

On June 10, 1927, the new addition to the Milan High School was dedicated.  The new wing contained a library, additional classrooms, and a gymnasium which could be converted to an auditorium.

1927

Walter and Pearl Draper purchased Stimpson Hotel in 1927, says WBW July 24, 2003.  “Grandma Pearl” Draper baked delicious pumpkin pie at the Milan Hotel from 1927 to 1941.  She was “Grandma’s Pantry.” 

1927

George Bassitt opens his new store, Bassitt’s, with just a little merchandise.  He bought the building in 1924, according to Shumla Bassitt.

1927

December 1927, Henry Ford introduces the Model A.

1927

Mid to late 1920’s, radio became easily available.

1928

Arthur C. Stevens and Leroy Bush purchase the Blackmer funeral parlor which had been located at 112 E. Main St.  They sold the building at 112 E. Main, sold the furniture business, and moved the funeral parlor to its present location -- 219 E. Main.

1929

The Detroit-Jackson interurban ended Nov. 7, 1929 when the railroad equipment was sold to Woodmere Scrap and Iron Metal Company.

1929

October 29, 1929, stock market crash, “Black Tuesday.”  It took about a year for the Great Depression to hit the citizens, as they rushed to withdraw their funds deposited in savings or checking accounts.  Chaos in the banking system throughout the country.  Depression lasted through most of the 1930’s.

May 23, 1931, Farmers and Merchants Bank of Milan merged with Milan State Savings Bank on Wabash Street.  New name:  Peoples State Bank of Milan.

1931

In October 1931, work was begun to construct a prison north of Milan.

1931

Construction started in 1931 on Ypsilanti State Hospital in York Township just north of Milan.

1933

March 5, 1933, President Roosevelt declared a “Bank Holiday” which lasted 3 days.

1933

April 6, 1933, Federal Correctional Institution opened in Milan.  Federal prison.  Construction costs: $440,000, or $700 per bed.  Almost 500 acres.

1933

December 1933, end of Prohibition

1934

Peoples State Bank of Milan re-opened in 1934 after the “Bank Holiday”

1934

The rear half of the train depot was demolished in 1934 by a train wreck, and all of the signal tower.  An eastbound Wabash freight train jumped the tracks at the junction and about 20 freight cars smashed into the depot and the tower.

1934

In 1934, Charles G. Murray moved the “crooked tree house” from the corner of Dexter and County, to a new location at 1061 County Street.  This allowed the Moreland Gas and Oil Co. to build a gas station next to the Crooked Tree. Source: 1996 Calendar MAHS.

1935

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Milan holds its first service in March 1935, in the lower level of the Danube Inn, in an area known as “Grandma’s Pantry.”

1935

March 14, 1935, Milan Free Library formally opened.  It was located on the second floor of the Milan Fire Station.

1936

Henry Ford was in Milan and noticed the Model T fire truck.  He wanted it, and offered to give the village a brand new truck in exchange.  The village said yes.  The new truck came in 1938.

1937

New dam, river moved, lake dredged, power house built, old flour mill restored, all done by Henry Ford.  Dedication took place in Milan on November 1, 1937.

1937

Henry Ford’s representative, Harry Bennett, uses violence against labor organizers in an effort to prevent a labor union from taking hold in Ford factories.

1937

Hindenberg airship disaster, explosion upon landing at Lakehurst, NJ. Happened May 6, 1937.  

1938

Etta Johnson dies, so her daughter Lucille Johnson De Ryke takes over the Milan Leader along with her husband Everett.

1938

At 5:08 a.m. on July 8, 1938, Anthony Chebatoris was hanged at the federal prison in Milan.  He was convicted of murdering a bank employee during the robbery of a Midland bank.  He was buried at Marble Memorial Cemetery.  This was the one and only time anyone has been executed by hanging in Michigan.

1938

Henry Ford was awarded, and accepted, the Grand Cross of the German Eagle which was the highest honor given to foreigners by the Nazi party in Germany.  He earned this award because of his anti-Semitic publications.  Henry Ford knew that Hitler wanted to rid the world of the Jews.  Ford really admired Hitler, and the feeling was mutual.  Hitler displayed a portrait of Henry Ford in his office.

1938

The newly built power house with smokestack is operating in Milan, using partly water power from the dam, and partly coal-engine generated power.  The former flour mill is operating as a soybean storage facility.  Next to it is a building Ford brought over from Highland Park, manufacturing the soybeans into car paint and plastics.  Henry Ford loved soybeans, he actually wore suits made from soybeans.

1938

Milan Firemen receive their brand new 1938 Ford Fire Truck, which came from Henry Ford as a trade for our Model T.  Perhaps the 1938 truck was referred to as “Truck No. 1” although I am not sure.

1938

Village council purchases a new Ford V-8 truck cab and chassis.  Some of the firemen were mechanics.  The truck had to be outfitted to fight fires.  This was “Fire Truck No. 2” and was outfitted with scrap metal from the dump.  It was used until 1970 when it was sold to a collector.

1938

Lincoln School District unveils a statute of Abraham Lincoln.  It was created by sculptor Samuel Cashwan.  The statute still stands, larger than life, at Willis Road and Whittaker Road, by the Brick School.

1939

Movie theater built on W. Main by the Latham family.  It was later a furniture store, and now a hardware store.

Arnot Opera House burns on Feb. 16, 1941.

1941

June 1941, Henry Ford signs a labor contract with a union, ending Ford’s bitter and violent fight against the union.

1941

Dec. 7, 1941, Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, causing the US to enter WW II.

1941

Ford manufacturing plants in Germany stop producing passenger cars and concentrate on military vehicles to help the German Army.

1941

According to a 1941 map, the Milan township hall was located on SW corner of Welch and Petersrburg Roads.  There was a school, called Ceas School, located at Cone and Wabash, between the present-day townhall and Wabash.  The school was moved elsewhere.

1941

A 1941 map of Milan Township shows the township hall was on the south east corner of Welch Road and Petersburg Road.  A map of 1876 says the same thing.  When did the township hall move to Cone Road and Wabash?  The 1941 map shows Ceas School where the present-day Milan township hall is located, however the school was just west of where the township hall is today.

1943

George Trebilcox joined the Moore and Minto company as a clerk in 1941, and became a partner in 1943 after Minto died in May 1943. Note: George F. Minto died May 9, 1934.

1943

Police phone installed at the home of Tom Goodridge, 269 First St.  This was a special phone to be used for police and fire calls only.

1945

August 1945, peace.  End of World War II.  People in all the towns across America, including Milan, have a wild crazy celebration in the streets.

1945

Phone service improved, includes dial tone.  The answering service for police calls was moved to the Stevens and Bush Funeral Home on E. Main St.  A fire whistle was set off at the funeral home and stopped at the fire barn.

1946

“Milan Hotel” (aka Hotel Stimpson, Danube Inn) loses it’s portico sometime in late 1945 or early 1946.  The porch going out over the sidewalk, gone forever.

1947

Henry Ford dies at the age of 83, at Fair Lane, his estate in Dearborn.

1947

“The Garage” ceases to be a coil factory for Henry Ford.  It becomes  a bowling alley. 

1948

Basketball team from Milan High School makes the big time in Lansing, wins state championship in March.  At Jenison Field House.  Coach Fred Sukup was in Beyer Hospital in Ypsilanti, having had an appendectomy two days before.  However, Dr. Jack DeTar arranged for an ambulance to bring Sukup to the game as a spectator.

1948

Nov. 7, 1948 dedication of the Catholic School, part of Immaculate Conception on North Street.

1948

Rev. Leroy Cabbage becomes the pastor of The People’s Church.  (In 1951 the congregation changed the name to People’s Presbyterian Church.)

1948

Antibiotics become generally available as a treatment for infection. 

1948

Milan Free Fair was started.

1948

Direct dial phone service introduced for Milan area residents.  No more calling the operator and asking that a call be put through for every single phone call.  Two ladies who worked as phone operators were given the choice: severance payment or a job transfer to a nearby town. 

1948

American Legion moves to its new home on Wabash St. along Ford Lake.

1949

Milan Free Library was given the east half of the power house on Wabash to use for their library.  It’s former location on the second floor of the fire station was too small.

1949

Groundbreaking for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church took place at SW corner of Dexter and County Streets on April 21, 1949. Church was dedicated December 11, 1949.  This church combined the Milan and Whittaker congregations.

1949

Arthur J. Cox and Eleanor Cox, his wife, deeded all of Ford Lake to the Village of Milan in November 1949.  He was a local dentist and a member of the Rotary Club.  The deed was the result of community fundraising activity, it was not a private donation by Dr. Cox. 

Marble Memorial United Methodist Church purchases land for a parking lot.

1950

Census says Milan has 2,765 inhabitants.

1951

In the early hours of January 11, 1951, a fire completely destroyed the Presbyterian Church on North Street.  A new church was built in 1952 on Smith and Marvin Streets.

1951

Marble Memorial United Methodist Church purchases the home of Irma and Larry Ward, which was just east of the church property.  That home was moved southeast to make room for the church addition.

1952

People’s Presbyterian Church holds its first worship service at the new location, on Smith Street and Marvin in 1952.

1952

According to a column by Warren Hale, the People’s State Bank changed its name in 1952 and started calling itself Milan State Bank.

1952

Sept. 9, 1952, the Peoples State Bank reverted back to the name Milan State Bank, according to Arligh Squires’ book.

1953

Bank on Wabash is remodeled.  The 50th anniversary was observed in Dec. 1953.

1953

Milan Baptist Church purchases two lots south of the church.

1953

Village was planning from 1945 to 1953 for a sewage treatment plant.  Until 1953, all sewage from Milan emptied directly into Saline River, untreated.  It was disgusting and smelly, so no one would swim or boat in it.

1954

In about 1954, the Milan library moved from the Old Fire Barn to the Old Ford Generator Plant.  Source: WBW column about 1988

1954

Bassitt’s store on East Main is enlarged, takes over the former Garrick movie theater at 45 E. Main.

1954

Mass inoculations begin in 1954 for school children, with the Salk vaccine against Polio.  Starting immediately, the number of children stricken with Polio drops dramatically.

1954

Milan Area School District formed, by reorganizing 18 surrounding school districts in three counties.  Consolidated.

1954

Ideal Furnace Company goes out of business.  Ideal started its Milan operations at Plank Road/East Main Street and Dexter, along the Railroad tracks. Source: 1993 MAHS calendar

1955

New building addition dedicated, Marble Memorial United Methodist Church, on March 20, 1955. (The mortgage was burned in 1958.)

1955

Sometime in the 1950’s, there was a fire in the York Township Clerk’s home. All the records for Judd Cemetery and York Cemetery were destroyed.

1956

Natural Gas was introduced in Milan in 1956.  A photo dated Nov. 15, 1956 shows the local dignitaries symbolically turning on the gas.

1956

Nick Miller ended his career spanning 16 years of continuous management at Miller’s Drug Store, on March 1, 1956. That is when he sold the drug store to Ed Shirey. Source: Milan Leader picture w/ caption.

1957

Nov. 1, 1957, the Mackinac Bridge was opened to motorists for the first time, making it possible for people to drive back and forth from the upper peninsula of Michigan to the lower peninsula.

1958

High school on North Street dedicated, May 18, 1958.  Cost: $882,212.

1958

On Feb. 9, 1958, the Milan Free Methodist Church moved into a more modern brick sanctuary at the same address as their previous church (on Hurd Street).

1959

Dedication of new post office on East Main at the corner of Gay Street.

1959

John Stommen and his wife purchase the Milan Booster, then in 1959 they also purchase the Milan Leader.

Census says 3,600 people live in Milan.

1960

Diamond Jubilee celebrated in Milan, in honor of 75 years.  Men were encouraged to grow beards to commemorate the occasion, and they were referred to as “Brothers of the brush.”

1960

Crooked Tree removed by City of Milan DPW.  This was done matter-of-factly because the tree was dead anyway.  It was removed early in the year, in the winter, probably February or March.  The tree ended up in the Gump Dump.

1961

The post office issued a four-cent stamp in 1961 commemorating the 100 year anniversary of Fort Sumpter, a Civil War battle.

1961

Milan State Bank was acquired by National Bank and Trust Co. of Ann Arbor on Dec. 4, 1961.  NBT’s Milan “Advisory Board” included Donald Conklin, John D. Lawson, Arleigh N. Squires, Arthur C. Stevens. G. C. VanOrman and Dan Vass.  Shareholders of the Milan bank received stock in National Bank and Trust.  The book value of Milan State Bank (acquired for 7,500 shares) was $403,309.

1961

April 1961, Bay of Pigs invasion.  Cuba.  Fear of atomic bombs being used.

1962

Arborland shopping center constructed in Ann Arbor, changing forever the way people in Milan shop for clothing and other consumer goods.

1962

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church purchases property at 12544 Carpenter Road.  This purchase took place sometime between 1960 and 1964.

1962

The first person to orbit the Earth was John Jesus Glenn Jr., who circled the globe from outer space aboard the Friendship 7 on Feb. 20, 1962.  The mission lasted almost 5 hours.

1962

Heath Lake was opened to the public for the first time on June 23, 1962. On the south side of Cone Road close to Wabash.

1963

US-23 as a limited access highway, is completed, and it bypasses Milan.

1963

Milan Dragway built in London Township.

1964

Death of Milan Patrolman Milton”Sy” Tooman on Feb. 2, 1964. Happened while Myrlan “Tom” Goodridge was police chief. Tooman was making an arrest when he collapsed on the street and died.

1964

Milan Free Methodist Church purchases a small factory located at 120 Hack Street, which they remodeled for high school and junior high Sunday School.

1965

In Feb. 1965, Arleigh Squires watched his manufacturing building burn.  This building was at 609 County Street, the land was purchased from James Hack.  Less than 2 months after the fire, a tornado damaged more of the plant.  In about six months, Arleigh was back in business.

1965

A tornado struck Milan on April 15, 1965, which was Palm Sunday.

1965

Myrlan “Tom” Goodridge retired as Milan’s police chief, ending a dynasty of 54 years.  He had served Milan’s law enforcement since 1935, and his father had served as the village marshal starting in 1911.

1965

On Aug. 6, 1965, a voting rights act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson.  The law enforces the rights of people of color who wish to vote.  President Johnson played a large part in passage of this law.  The law was necessary because some states were doing everything in their power to prevent blacks from voting.

1966

Milan Baptist Church purchases and remodels a building on Tolan Street directly behind the church.

1966

Corner stone laid in July 1966 for the new church building, 420 North Street, to serve the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church.

1966

Dec. 4, 1966, the new building for the Milan Public Library was dedicated, adjacent to the Village Offices in the “Power Building.”  The new library was to be supported by tax millage, State aid and penal fines.

1967

Detroit police tried to arrest over 80 people at a “blind pig” in a predominantly black neighborhood.  The result: 5 days of rioting.  There were 43 people left dead.

1967

City of Milan approved by voters in an election held Nov. 6, 1967.  The charter was approved 412 to 191.  Mayor: Millard Frank Phillips.  Charles Maupin, Ethel Richards, and James Cullip elected to 4-year terms.  Duane Schultz, Le Roy Cabbage, and Fredrick Smith elected to 2-year terms.  John P. Stommen elected Justice of the Peace.

1967

Nov. 13, 1967, first meeting of the Milan City Council held.  Millard Phillips sworn in as first mayor.

1968

Bassitt’s store undergoes a second major expansion, adding 39 E. Main to its original building.

1968

Milan Police Department housed in the “Coil Factory” located west of City Hall.  (The “Coil Factory” had originally been the Johnston Lumber Company main building.)  Police were there from the late 60’s to the early 70’s, then they moved to a building on West Main which had just been vacated by Detroit Edison.

1968

Cone United Methodist Church will hold a special service this Sunday, Dec. 29, 1969 in honor of 100 years of continual service to the community. Corner of Cone and Farr Rd.  Rev. Thomas Dupton was first pastor, holding services in the schoolhouse until the church was dedicated in 1868.

1968

Police dispatcher started taking calls for police or fire business.  No longer using Stevens and Bush Funeral Home to take such calls.

1968

Martin Luther King, Jr. killed April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tenn.  Born Jan. 15, 1929, Rev. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his Civil Rights work.

1969

Pool opens at Milan High School (on North Street)

1969

Sandy and John Collins open a TV repair business Oct. 4, 1979 at SW corner of downtown.  In 1994, they expanded to musical instruments and cement geese.

1969

In June 1969, police in riot gear assembled on East University at Church street, and at other locations, to quell a civil disturbance in Ann Arbor.  Police used night sticks, riot helmets, and gas masks.  Milan police assisted.

1969

City of Milan decides to let the firemen build a new fire station.  Located across E. Main St. from the old fire barn.  Cement block construction.

In June 1970, the Catholic school closed in Milan.  Located near Immaculate Conception Church.

1971

Nick and Ingrid Schenk purchase the Hotel Stimpson in 1971. They called it “Danube Inn.”  According to WBW July 24, 2003, Nick bought it from his brother Joe Schenk and Joe’s wife Lottie, both of Detroit.

1972

Milan Area Historical Society formed as a nonprofit organization to accept a 1938 fire truck as a gift from the Milan City Council.

1972

York Township has a new township hall built on Stony Creek Road, while Charles Hayes was supervisor.

1972

According to notes with a photo, the Milan high school was torn down in 1972.

1973

Briarwood Mall opens for business in Ann Arbor, putting the last nail in the coffin for dry goods stores and clothing shops in small towns like Milan.

1974

Detroit Edison vacates the building at 38 W. Main Street, and sells the building to the City of Milan.  It was then used as a police station.

1974

Fire department gets a new truck, (“No. 3?”)  New truck is a 1975 International 1500 gallon tanker-pumper and it cost $28,000.

1975

In approximately 1975, the drinking fountain was removed from the corner of Main Street and Tolan.  The Milan Historical Society took the fountain, with the idea of placing it in a museum.  Erik McGovern was photographed taking the “last sip” from the fountain and he was 8 years old on that occasion. He was born May 1967.  Source:  LS

1975

Moore and Minto went out of business, after having a change of ownership a number of times, and near the end, introducing women’s clothing.

1976

The old Bassitt’s store taken over by the Breedveld’s.

1976

New sidewalks installed in downtown Milan.

1976

December 23, 1976, the Moose Lodge burned down.  In was on the north side of West Main in a building that used to be a car dealership.  That location is a parking lot today.  Someone called in the fire at 10:45 p.m. due to smoke from the roof.  The entire building was destroyed, despite 30 firemen from 3 fire departments battling the blaze throughout the night.  The police station next door (to the east) was saved.  The Moose later rebuilt on Sanford Road south of Milan-Oakville Rd.  Moose administrator Al Kohler’s wife died in the fire.

1977

St. Joseph Hospital opens new building in Ypsilanti along Huron River Dr.

1978

In the fall of 1978, Police Chief Warren Hale first started jotting down some notes to go with historical pictures, the beginning of his career as a weekly historical columnist.

1978

Milan DPW digs down between the “Power House” (City hall) and the old flour mill (Community Center).  DPW installs water pipes so that the mill stream goes underground.  This allows a road on the surface.

1979

Fire station on E. Main abandoned.  Milan Fire Dept. took up residence in a former car dealership on Wabash.  (1979 or 81)

Sesquecentenial celebrated in Milan, for 150 years.

1981

NBD acquired National Bank and Trust of Ann Arbor, including the Milan branch bank on Wabash Street.

1981

Milan Fire Department moved from the old fire hall at County Street and East Main in 1981, and took its place on Wabash Street.  (1979 or 81)

1983

City of Milan donated the old Fire barn to the Milan Area Historical Society.  The building needed restoration.

1984

In 1984, the Milan Public Library was enlarged.  Source: WBW

1985

Centennial Celebration in Milan, 100 years since the town became a village.

1991

Free Methodist Church built on Arkona Rd.

1993

Senior Citizen building is constructed on Neckel Court.

1995

Aug. 20, 1995, at 10 p.m. kitchen fire at Danube Inn.

1995

NBD merged with First National Bank of Chicago, to form First Chicago NBD, with a Milan branch on Wabash.

1996

McDonald’s restaurant goes up on Dexter near US-23.

1998

First Chicago NBD merged with Bankone.

2002

On October 26, 2002, dedication of the restored Fire Barn. 

2002

In 2002, cut the ribbon on the new Milan High School on Redman Road.

2004

Bankone merged with J. P. Morgan Chase, creating a Milan branch bank for “Chase.”