Cannonsburg, Michigan
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Cannonsburg is an unincorporated community within Cannon Township, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Officially founded as part of Plainfield township, in 1842 by LeGrand Cannon of Troy, NY on an old Native American trail since Chippewa and Ottawa Native Americans populated this general area), the first farm was built by Andrew Watson in 1837 who was accompanied by the Stout family, (though this honor is sometimes ascribed to Zebulon Rood who built a log cabin there in 1838). In 1844 and 1845, mills were erected by Edwin B. Bostwick, with H.T. Judson as architect. As an inducement to settlement, the community was platted between 1845-1848. That same year, the village separated from the township. Also that year, Cannon, an eastern railroad and steamboat financier, commissioned his business agent E.B. Bostwick to purchase, plot and sell land as well as plot the village and grant lots to each resident who was unable to afford one. Twenty four lots were granted & the village honored its founder by naming the village Cannons-burgh. As a show of gratitude, L.G. Cannon bestowed upon the village the gift of a small cannon engraved with his name and the date. The cannon which was fired on holidays, became so popular with locals, they sought excuses to fire it. This practice ceased in 1885. Out of concern that it might discharge if fired by untrained personnel (as happened in nearby Rockford, MI), some of the town ‘fathers’ took it away to be buried under the cover of darkness. On July 3, 1885, several younger men, ages ranging from 25-40, found its burial place. They then dug it up, cleaned it & prepared it to be fired on July 4. Unfortunately, because of either age, condition or defect of the cannon, it overheated & the ramrod shot through the leg of one of the men, Walter Thompsett, who was assisting in its firing. Despite the effort of a local physician, he died, leaving behind a wife and daughter. Again during the early morning hours while it was still dark on July 5th, some of the town fathers, having seen their fears realized, took the cannon away to be dismantled and then re-buried. Rumor has it that it was buried in one of many nearby sinkholes. Four years later, the town experienced another sobering event. A “devil” fire started possibly by a wayward spark from a defective chimney of the Thomas hotel and that entire side of the street had become “one sheet of flame,” engulfing nearby businesses and homes on both sides of the main street were lost. The loss was approximately 90% of its downtown businesses. Though a post office was established on May 7, 1844, with the spelling as Cannons-burgh, the first town meeting in April, 1846 changed the spelling to Cannonsburg as verified by an 1874 township map. As the township grew, the township offices were relocated to a more central location on M-44. The Cannonsburg post office remains in Cannonsburg with a Cannonsburg zip code. Built at the site of the Bear Creek Rapids (near the intersection of Cannonsburg and Honey Creek Roads), Cannonsburg, at its 19th century peak, boasted a gristmill, woolen mill, cider mill, sawmill, cooper shop, two wagon shops, three blacksmiths, a hotel, a school (8 throughout the township), bootmakers, painters, carpenters, 6 physicians and 6 churches.
[edit] Sources
- TheRockfordNetwork.com Community Website
- History and Directory of Kent County, Michigan, Containing a History of Each Township and the City of Grand Rapids. Compiled and Published by Dillenback and Leavitt, County History, Directory and Map Publishers, Grand Rapids: Daily Eagle Steam Printing House, 1870. pp. 43-46.
Cannon Township 1837-1983, Compiled by the Cannon Historical Society. The Rockford Register (now The Rockford Squire), Rockford, Michigan.
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