History
The Founders of Waterloo Area Historical Society (Part 3)
by Arlene Kaiser This is the conclusion of the three-part Founders article, which follows the September and October installments. The author believes this to be the most poignant and thought provoking of the three. Thomas Howlett grew up in Gregory, a dozen or more miles from the Village of Waterloo. His great grandparents on the […]
The Founders of the Waterloo Area Historical Society (Part 2)
by Arlene Kaiser The following is a continuation of the September article. There is so much to tell of these inspiring people who founded the Waterloo Area Historical Society that it was impossible to keep it to one article. Carl and Edna Burklund saw the potential of a real, working museum. In Harriet Beckwith’s words, […]
The Founders of the Waterloo Area Historical Society (Part 1)
by Arlene Kaiser This is the first of a three-part series. The Waterloo Area Historical Society was the driving force behind the restoration of the Realy farmstead to become the Waterloo Farm Museum. As we look to the future with great concern, I’m taken back to our past. How our ancestors survived through illness, drought, […]
History of Metal Roofing
by Arlene and Ron Kaiser Thomas Jefferson’s home, Monticello, was being built in 1769. It had a standing seam metal roof. Metal roofs with galvanizing were common in Canada 1850s, more common in post Civil War era in the United States. The Realy (Reuhle) homestead farmhouse had a meal roof in early photographs, and with […]
A glance in the rearview mirror: April 2020
By Mary Jo David • On Saturday, April 1, 1995, more than 2,500 were in attendance, including 561 competitors, at a USA Wrestling Federation / Michigan Wrestling Federation sanctioned freestyle developmental tournament at Stockbridge High School. The Stockbridge club consisted of 27 wrestlers, including two girls. Twelve Stockbridge wrestlers captured medals, including four golds by: […]
StockBIZ: Women’s work is never done
by Mary Jo David March is Women’s History Month and 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote. What better time to take a look at how women have progressed in the world of work since then. In the 1920s, few married women worked outside […]
Clara Barton’s American Red Cross and Michigan
by Arlene and Ron Kaiser In 1881 Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross. The organization’s first meeting had taken place in Washington D.C. at the home of Sen. Omar D. Conger of Michigan. Their first official disaster relief operation was the response to the Great Fire of 1881 in Michigan’s Thumb. There are conflicting […]
A glance in the rearview mirror for the month of: February
25 years ago this month • The Stockbridge High School ice fishing team qualified for the Class B State Fishing Championship that was to be held on February 4, 1995. To qualify, they finished second at the MHSAA regional competition. Per the Town Crier, “The Panthers hooked a school record 52 fish, including 16 by […]
The Prosperity of Munith
by Ron and Arlene Kaiser The log house on the Sutton Farm owned by Hiram Sutton became the site for the depot of the Grand Trunk Railway in 1884 when it was built from Pontiac to Jackson. Seeing the possibilities afforded by the railway, Mr. Sutton platted his farm for the building of a new […]
A Victorian Christmas
by Arlene and Ron Kaiser Prince Albert wanted his wife, Queen Victoria, to know of the Christmas he enjoyed when he was a boy in Germany. Many magazines published “Victoria’s Christmas tree,” after which, the English and later the Americans warmed to German Christmas customs. On the Realy farm, Christmas was celebrated joyously. This family and many […]