About five miles North West of the village of Hickory Corners, three miles South East of the village of Prairieville, three miles South of the village of Cloverdale and six miles West of the village of Cedar Creek, and surrounded by several lakes and main highway 43, we find the settlement of Delton.

Delton was named after Del Monroe, a man from a farm west of Hickory Corners, the first merchant and postmaster. He erected the first store building in the year 1868 on the south west corner of the four corners of what is now the corner of Grove and Orchard streets on which the Red Arrow station now stands.

Mr. Lincoln Bush's mother, Mrs. Thyrza Bush wrote to Lansing asking for the name Del's Town and the name came back Delton.

At this time, there were several farmhouses, owned by F. A. Blackman, who obtained land from the government and was probably the first man to settle in the community around Delton, Jim and Ansel Bush, Arron Barret, W.P. Sidman and M.C. Givin.

Jim Bush was the next postmaster and the post office was located in the house north of the creamery, now owned by Mrs. Budd. Mr. Bush would go to Hickory Corners in a horse and buggy about two or three times a week for the mail and the people would go to his office to collect it.

When he made these trips to get the mail, he would take the mail to go out with him where it would be forwarded on from Hickory Corners.

In the year 1880, Frank Norwood bought the store from Mr. Monroe and also took over the post office and carried on the business for thirteen years.

Our first school house was located approximately where the garden between Kerns and Boulders is now. This was erected in about 1868 and about this same time a dance hall was erected just beside the school. This hall was called Blackman's or Macabees Hall, and dances were held every Saturday night in this building. This first school burned and another was built where H.J. Reynolds now resides. This one was called Blackman's School after the one that burned.

The first barber shop was run by Thomas Bird where our shoe shop now stands

The first blacksmith shop was started by George McCratin in 1883 and later taken over by Arthur Mantel. This was situated about where Farwell's house stands now.

The tracks for the Chicago, Kalamazoo, and Saginaw railroad were laid in the year 1887 and on the same day of July 26, when the first train pulled into Delton, a very special event took place. The Norwood twins were born and the twins still claim they came into town on the first train. Elgin Barton was our first ticket agent. At this time we had four passenger trains running through Delton and one freight train, that is two to Hastings and two to Kalamazoo.

The Delton Elevator, our first, was built and managed by R.T.F. Dodds in 1888 and later by Hartman, Branstedder and Gillis, then taken over by the co-op.

Dodge and Robinson started a furniture store where George Kerns lives. They ran this for a while, then John Williams took over and ran until it burned.

About the same time of the railroad, Myron Pennock built a boarding house where the tavern is or what is more commonly called Bralies, now stands. After the mill was built, the mill gang boarded there.

Goss and Hall ran the first lumberyard about that time also.

Ed Evans and Frank Brooks built and operated the first hardware store which was situated where our drug store is at this time. This was later purchased by Henry Arber and Quincy Hinds who used it as a drugstore as does E. E. Faulkner who is with us now.

John Creamer built a boarding house and hotel east of Leonard's drygoods store around this same time. This was a three story building and was called the Burton Hotel. Also, B.R. Hustead built and managed a drygoods store where the drygoods store is now.

Delton's next school was on a hill on the south east corner of the village. Ezra Morehouse organized the tenth grade class and the first graduation exercises, with Jennie Richards and Fern Branstedder as graduates and Burton Perry as teacher, took place in the Methodist Church in 1905.

Charles Gleason started the first shoe shop and Mark Skillman started the old livery barn which was later taken over by Pete Houvener, Mr. Hoeltzel, and then by Ashton Burpee and Orran Dayton. This was around 1889.

The apple dryer which was one of Delton's first industries was erected in 1890 and employed twelve person. This was operated by George Frances and later by the Engert Brothers

Dr. Scribner, our first M.D., started his practice here about this same time.

Religious meetings were held at the schools until 1893 when our first church was built with Rev. Ostrom as pastor. This church burned in 1908 with Rev. Johnston as pastor. A new church was built and dedicated that same year.

The first newspaper Delton had was called the Barry County Graphic and was published by a Mr. Higgins who later moved to Prairieville Press. [Laurence E. Bird of Woodland started the Delton News December 13, 1946]

July 4, 1892, the people of Delton received quite a jolt when Ellsworth Barret set off a half pound of dynamite in between the drygood store and Olmsteads. It blew out most of the windows in the stores and houses near by and Ellsworth had to get a job and pay for them. He hasn't celebrated the fourth in that manner since!

About 1900, while Frank Adams was postmaster, our rural routes were started. Mr. Adams was responsible for them. Lacey and Harry Jones and George Mosier were the rural carriers.

In 1904, Ezra Morehouse started a bank and he was our first cashier.

The Delton Band was led by Roy McBain and was organized in 1903. They made their first public appearance at the wedding of Fred Gibsons which was held at the parsonage. Soon after this the band went to Battle Creek to the Macabee Rally in which 15 bands took part. Delton won the $25 award. At this time there were sixteen bands in the county. In 1904 Delton held a big band convention with all the trimmings. All of the bands took part in this program. We even hired an extra train to run that day so Delton would look more important. It cost us $100 but achieved the desired effect. All the members were gaily attired in the Delton Band uniform which consisted of blue jackets and pants with a yellow stripe down the leg of the pants and brass buttons on the jacket.

The brickyard, another of Delton's former industries, was operated first by the Bates Brothers in 1904 and later by William Leonard about 1908. After he sold out, Murdock had charge of it. One of the main reasons for the dwindling of the brickyard was completion of larger organizations and the freight rates were high. Then they developed face bricks which could be almost any shade you wished, while the Delton yard was only making brick with shale. Our bricks cost more to make and therefore had to sell for more. When these new types of bricks came out which were cheaper, our brickyard just gradually petered out.

Our creamery was built and managed by Aage Anderson in 1915 and was later taken over by the Co-ops.

Across from the Elevator we had what was called the Cooper Barrel Shop. Later, a man by the name of Rice made ax handles there.

The Aldrich Brothers built the first hardware and sold out to Bill Smith and Frank Doster.

The Community Hall was erected in about 1928 where barn dances, movies, plays, meetings, suppers, and now it is occupied every Saturday night by the town's teenagers who use it as a Student Canteen.

M-43 was paved in 1926 and Orchard Street was paved in 1937. This factor has certainly improved Delton as a whole.

Mr. Henton, our undertaker, started his parlors here in the year 1923 and is still with us. At one time he was one of our barbers as well as an undertaker and only in recent years has he been of the latter profession.

Electricity was brought here in the year 1928. Almost all of the homes around Delton have this convenience along with the addition of the telephones which were brought here forty or forty-one years ago.

Another thing which helped bring about the increasing population of Delton was the building of the Delton Kellogg Rural Agricultural School in 1936. This was erected on highway 43 just north of the village. We now operate 10 school busses and 520 pupils are enrolled.

Delton has never had any government except for the Justice of the Peace, a title which Marshall Norwood holds. The holding of offices has always been voted down because Delton cannot afford to keep officers.

Delton was steadily building itself up in businesses and homes and this was made greater by the building of the railroad which carried hundreds of berry pickers and sightseers to Delton every week as well as the people that just came to spend the weekend or summer on one of our many lakes. As a result of this, many people bought land and built cottages around Crooked and Wall Lakes.

The decline of Delton start in about 1920 due to the increased usage of automobiles which enabled the people to get around more quickly and more cheaply. People did not need to stay within the limits of their own small home towns but could travel easier to places which weren't right around home.

The big businesses have eaten up the small merchants because their large scale buying enabled them to sell their good more cheaply and therefore offers heavy competition for the small merchants. The coming of the auto has also greatly decreased the business of the small business man because people no longer need to rely on their home town merchants for the things they need. Then no longer need the industries of the small towns because they can get higher wages with less work in the nearby cities. This has done away with the entertainment which was offered because people can go to the cities and see famous movie stars and have no use anymore for home talent as well as the informal get togethers which use to take place within the community.

The main interest of these people in this community is the environment that our modern high school provides for their children by giving them a chance to get ahead with sports, dramatics, and music or any other achievements they desire.

Delton now is made up almost entirely of the old retired farmers as once Delton was almost purely made up of agricultural enterprises.

About the Author: Delores Burpee is the second of eight children of Harold (H.D.) Burpee (1899-1979). Harold, a life-long resident of Delton, Michigan, was a Barry County, and Michigan, Historian. He wrote a weekly newspaper column for the Hastings Banner, "Fresh Out of the Attic" throughout the 1960's. He also had a weekly radio show on Hastings radio station WBCH, called "Michigan Memoirs" during that same era. Delores graduated from Delton-Kellogg in 1947 and married Keith Kroes, also of Delton, in 1949. Keith is the son of Henry and Florence (Leonard) Kroes. Florence was the oldest child of William Leonard who owned the brickyard in Delton.

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Nancy Kroes
nancy.kroes@wmich.edu
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