Chesaning, Michigan
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| Chesaning, Michigan | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| County | Saginaw |
| Area | |
| - Total | 3.1 sq mi (8.1 km²) |
| - Land | 3.1 sq mi (8.1 km²) |
| - Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²) |
| Elevation | 627 ft (191 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 2,548 |
| - Density | 818.2/sq mi (315.9/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 48616 |
| Area code(s) | 989 |
| FIPS code | 26-15140[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0623168[2] |
Chesaning is a village in Saginaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,548 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Chesaning Township.
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[edit] History
The first mention of Chesaning in the written pages of history is the Saginaw Treaty, signed in 1819. This treaty was between members of the Saginaw Tribe, Chippewa Indians and the government of the United States. They established a number of reservations, including 10,000 acres (40 km²) along the banks of the Shiawassee River known as "Big Rock Reserve." Chesaning is a Chippewa word meaning "big rock place." The treaty continued in effect until 1837 when a second treaty led to the reserve being surveyed and offered for sale in 1841. The first land was sold at $5 per acre to brothers Wellington and George W. Chapman, and Rufus Mason. After making their land purchase, they traveled back to Massachusetts and moved their families to their new wilderness home by late summer of 1842.
During the months they had been away from their land, several settlers had moved into the area, building a dam and a sawmill. A few years later, a grinding mill was added. The new settlers named their community 'Northampton' in honor of the home they had left in Massachusetts. In 1853, the legislature changed the name to Chesaning, the traditional name for the village and township. The first township elections, held in 1847, are considered to be the official birthday of the community. The village, first surveyed in 1851, was organized in 1869. The early business community was located on the east side of the river. The forest setting provided an abundance of lumber, which was used to construct many stores. However, the use of coal heating systems often caused major fires, which destroyed entire blocks of stores. The fires and the arrival of the railroad on the west side community influenced the business area to move on the west side of the river.
The Owosso and Saginaw Navigation Company, organized in 1857 to move merchandise by barge up and down the river, began construction of a canal and lock on the east side of the dam for hauling goods on the river. The river continued to be important for commercial use until the railroad arrived in Owosso. The railroad through Chesaning, built in 1867, was first surveyed to be built approximately three miles west of Chesaning, going directly form Oakley to St. Charles. Luckily, Wellington Chapman donated $18,000, a considerable sum at the time, to the railroad to secure a rail line through Chesaning. The rail was very important to the economy of the village.
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 3.1 square miles (8.1 km²), all land.
[edit] Major Highways
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 2,548 people, 1,060 households, and 693 families residing in the village. The population density was 818.2 per square mile (316.3/km²). There were 1,126 housing units at an average density of 361.6/sq mi (139.8/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.80% White, 0.35% African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.75% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.57% of the population.
There were 1,060 households out of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the village the population was spread out with 24.4% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.2 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $34,952, and the median income for a family was $51,029. Males had a median income of $38,424 versus $24,635 for females. The per capita income for the village was $19,408. About 7.0% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 12.4% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Chesaning Union Schools
Education in Chesaning had its beginnings during the summer of 1843 when a small board shanty was built on the east side of the river. Eliza Ann Smith was the first teacher. She had 11 pupils, which included her five younger brothers. The first school year was brought to an end when a heavy rainstorm flooded the building and sent the teacher and pupils fleeing the higher ground. The school moved several times over the years, until 1869, when a brick school was built for $14,000. The building was enlarged a few years later. Then a second brick school was constructed on the site of the first brick school and opened in 1918. A gymnasium was added to the school in 1938 and a few years later, a band room. The present high school opened in 1959 and had a capacity of 1,000 students. The building was later enlarged to accommodate 1,200 students. Today, the school district consists of a high school, a middle school and three elementary schools. The district includes a large rural area. Chesaning's most well known graduate include former State Senator Mike Goschka
[edit] Local media
Chesaning's local newspaper is the Tri-County Citizen. Founded in 1983, it is a weekly free paper delivered to over 19,000 area homes. Many residents also subscribe to the Saginaw News, the Bay City Times, the Flint Journal, or the Argus-Press out of neighboring Owosso.
[edit] Chesaning Showboat Music Festival
Chesaning is known for an annual event called the Showboat. Founded in 1937 and intended to be a Vaudeville style show, it has now become more-or-less a simple concert series. It takes place for a week in July. Each night of the event a riverboat known as the Shiawassee Queen brings the evening's performers around a bend in the river and docks at an outdoor theater, allowing them to make a grand entrance prior to their performance. Attendance has declined in recent years, as many performers schedule multiple performances in the same area in close succession, and many fans are more interested in seeing their favorite musicians perform than in the pageantry of the showboat, and so choose to see the same musicians elsewhere. Nonetheless, it is not unusual for Showboat to draw upwards of twenty thousand people. Recent years have seen performers such as Sandi Patty, Lonestar, and Alabama grace the Showboat stage. 2006 was the 65th annual Showboat. The 2007 Showboat saw a lot of changes to its show. First the name of the Showboat was changed from the "Chesaning Showboat" to "Chesaning Showboat Music Festival". This was in part to change the image of the Showboat to attract a much younger crowd, to increase attendance. This was also the first time a heavy metal rock type music had been played during the Showboat. The "Bad Boys of Rock Tour" which included the bands The Exies, Buckcherry, Papa Roach, and Hinder, turned out to be a complete success. Ticket sales were sold out but that didn't stop over 1000 people sitting in their lawn chairs outside the stadium to listen to the show.
[edit] Showboat History
In the summer of 1937 the Chesaning Chamber of Commerce went into show business. With the nation still gripped in the throes of the Great Depression, organizers of the first Chesaning Showboat were taking a huge gamble. Undaunted, Chamber members forged ahead with plans to debut a vaudeville-style show along the banks of the Shiawassee River in the village park complete with a replica Mississippi riverboat.
The idea originated with Chester M. Howell, owner/publisher of the Chesaning Argus newspaper, who spent several years convincing Chamber members to try what he frequently described as "a summer river spectacular" patterned after the then five-year-old Lowell Showboat.
The plan was for Showboat to attract people from neighboring towns to Chesaning to patronize local stores and buy tickets to the evening show. The town, it was hoped, would benefit from the publicity, the local economy would prosper and profits from the show would be plowed back into the community. In many ways the 1937 Showboat was quite different from today's sleek, 90-foot craft, but every version of the boat has remained a stern-wheeler.
The task of constructing the first Shiawassee River Queen fell to Joe Swartzmiller of Swartzmiller Lumber Company, who had never before built a boat. He would say later that the first thing they did was to measure the river to see how much room there was to turn the boat around. Then they designed the boat to fit the river. Start-up funds for the first Showboat included $100 from the Chamber treasury and a $500 loan from Harley D. Peet, owner of Peet Packing Company. Admission to the first Showboat was 25 cents for adults. An extra 25 cents got you reserved seating.
There were 18 men and 18 women in the first Showboat Chorus, joined by five Endmen and Captain Ollie Richards. Soloists were local residents Gertrude Richards, Helen (Rehmann) Petrulis and Sally Ann Howell.
After dark on Thursday, July 15, 1937, "Here Comes the Showboat" rang out as the spectacular boat made its way down the river for the very first time. Despite the cold, wet weather and a boisterous bullfrog in the weeds near the stage each night, the show was a hit.
That year the profit was a grand total of $87.10. In the six decades since the riverboat spectacle has pumped nearly a million dollars into the community. It has funded park facilities, fire trucks, ambulances, historic preservation and a host of other worthwhile projects.
[edit] References
- ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
[edit] External links
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