Belding

By Cindy M. Hughes

Belding is located in the northwest corner of Ionia County along the Flat River. The land was first settled by Charles Broas in 1837 and became known as Broas Rapids. The name was later changed to Patterson Mills, and in 1871 the small village was renamed Belding in honor of the Belding family. The Belding brothers manufactured silk and brought much activity to the community. Between 1885 and 1917, the Beldings operated four silk mills, two dormitories, Hotel Belding, a hospital, an opera house, a library, and many more downtown businesses. The silk mills alone employed more people than all other area factories combined. With the brothers controlling 90 percent of the American silk market, Belding became known as Silk Capital of the World.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Aug 4, 2014
• ISBN: 9781439646618

Cindy M. Hughes

Cindy M. Hughes is a lifelong resident of Belding. Her family first settled in the area in 1849. Johnson Road was named for her great-great-grandparents. At ages 17 and 19, respectively, her grandmother and great-aunt came from Denmark to work in the Belding silk mills. Most images in this book are from the collection of the Alvah N. Belding Library.

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INTRODUCTION

In 1787, the Northwest Ordinance was passed, and Michigan was established as a territory in 1805. The opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 created a connection with New York City and brought large numbers of settlers to the area. Michigan’s state government was formed in 1835, but it did not formally enter the Union until 1837. The city of Belding is located in the northwest corner of Ionia County, which was organized in 1837. The external boundaries of the county, along with most of the townships, were mapped much earlier. Orleans, Keene, and Otisco Townships could not be surveyed until after the Treaty of Washington in 1836. This treaty between the Chippewa Indians and the United States released the land of these townships to the United States. Many of the first surveyors spoke of Indian settlements and trails. The land took time to survey and was not made available for purchase until August 5, 1839. Early pioneers who came to Otisco Township prior to that were preemptors. These individuals cleared land and built shelters with the plan to buy the land when it was made available. When the land came up for auction, a vigilante group was organized to convince non-resident bidders to disappear or suffer the consequences. This was done so that each homesteader could be sure to buy the land they had worked so hard to make improvements on. Outsiders who did bid on the already-improved land were said to have been thrown in the Grand River.

Early settlers typically came from New York and traveled on a barge down the canal to Detroit. With covered wagons and oxen, they made the long, slow trip to Ionia. From Ionia to the Belding area there were no roads, only dense forests, swamps, and, sometimes, Indian trails. The earliest settlers often housed newly arrived families until they could build their own homes. Indians remained in the area, but they were friendly.

Some of the earliest settlers in the area were Samuel Demorest, George W. Dickinson, J.M. Kidd, Rufus Cook, Lewis Ellis, and Charles Broas. In 1842, Broas and others built a bridge over the Flat River. This early community was referred to as Broas Rapids. In 1857, James Patterson ran a successful sawmill, and the area became known as Patterson Mills. In 1871, Wilson, Luther & Wilson purchased and modernized the mill. This was a large business, and it created much growth. In 1871, the village was renamed Belding in honor of the Belding family. Belding was not established as a town until 1893. While the town was named after the Belding family, they would not bring silk mills to the town until 1886. This was the start of Silk City. By the height of the Belding Brothers silk operation, there were six mills producing 95 percent of the silk thread manufactured in the United States. The Belding family was very generous to the town, building many businesses and homes, a hotel, an opera house, a hospital, and a town library. With the introduction of rayon, the silk mills closed in 1932. The loss of the business was compounded by the Great Depression. By the 1940s Belding began to establish other industries, and the town was on its way back.

One

EARLY SETTLERS

Early settlers arrived in the area between 1836 and 1841. The land was wilderness, covered in tall pines. Otisco Township was reported back east as having rich, fertile soil. These reports drew farmers to the area. The closest place for supplies during this time was Ionia or Lowell, a three-day trip with no road to get there. Settlers lived an independent life. They learned to use herbs to treat illness, and the Indians sometimes shared their knowledge of the area. Work on the farm was hard, and everyone in the family pitched in to get the chores done. Pioneers usually gathered for work rather than just fun, and it was just not possible to do some jobs alone. The men built barns and homes while the women prepared the food for the crowd, quilted, and shared local news. These occasions involved hard work but were still opportunities to celebrate and enjoy the company of others. The winters were long and confining. Families played games, read and reread the few books they owned, told stories, and, with luck, listened to a family member play a musical instrument.

In 1836, Rufus Cook, Amos Russell, and John Morse made the difficult journey from Ionia to the corner of what are now Michigan Highways 44 and 91. They paid a guide by the name of John Morrison $15 to bring them north. Some say that when they arrived, the campfires of the government surveyors were still burning. They built a small shanty that hardly had room for sleeping. In 1839, they returned for their families. They decided to find a shorter way back to Ionia, but they were soon lost. Indians helped them cross the river, but they were still lost and hungry. They eventually found a Welch settlement not far from Ionia, and when they arrived in Ionia the next morning, they were overcome with joy after the hardships they had endured. In 1849, the Dickinson Post Office was transferred to Cook’s Corners. A few years later Cook opened a general store, and in 1856, he platted the village of Cook’s Corners. He served as the first county clerk and was postmaster for 35 years.