Home2014 Old Settler Reunion

80th Old Settler Reunion

Mama Flag

80th Old Settler Reunion - August 16, 2014

Ione Todd, Angela Miles, Diana Green (Commemorative Flag Retirement)

(Pictures Courtesy of: Nanette Williams-Armstrong, Tammie Loving-Truth Kemp,

Carol Norman)

The Old Settlers Reunion commenced at 12:00 p.m. with a scripture reading by Barbra Norman-Singleton. Blake Cross had a musical selection jst before dinner. Angela Miles welcomed the group as the program started at 1 p.m. Following is the program for the day:

Program

Blanket

Commemorative 80th Reunion Blanket for Sale

Carolgroup

reunionpicture

Ione Todd, Angela Miles, Diana Green (Commemorative Flag Retirement)
Attendance for the 80th Reunion exceeded last year.

SisterPatConnie

Pat Miles and Angela Miles

mamatalking

Tera Green, Diana Green, Ione Todd, Angela Miles

Shirley Cross-Miles, Angela Miles, Marybelle Guy - Memorial for Old Settlers who passed away

OldSettlersgroup

New Commemorative Flag (Created by Deonna Green)

80 Years (The Picnic) - Lois Cross-Hart

Cumulus clouds in August run a race with time-

A hurry no-one understands, not least of all the pines

The placid lake still dreams away

Like eighty years ago,

The ebb and flow, a constant

From nineteen thirty four,

The generations trickle back;

Those old familiar names-

Younger now, yet old, somehow,

Like life's memorial page.

A distant echo sending back the sound of yesterday,

Reverberating, intimate, a voice of utter brave-

Stalwart strength for future years

To those who must survive.

Dream-weavers dream, visionaries' see-

Beyond what is and what can be.

Beyond the yoke the oxen wore,

Beyond the split log cabin floor,

Beyond un-furrowed virgin sod,

Into the very hear of God.

Honor can, honor them,

those who kept the charge.

And so today we celebrate

Those pioneers of yesterday;

Their legacy, posterity,

Heritage left for you and me

The faith that held through northern storms,

The strength it took to carry on.

Their spirit lives in this place,

And shines afresh on ever, face-

Our ancestor's grace.

Old Settlers

The "Old Settler" families arrived in Michigan from different places. They came from Canada through "The Underground Railroad," and from Payne's Crossing in Ohio as "free" people. The draw was to homestead land made available through the Homestead Act of 1862 which allotted homesteaders 160 acres. The Underground Railroad was the most dramatic nonviolent protest against slavery in the United States beginning in the Colonial Era and reaching its peak between 1830 and 1865. An estimated 30,000 to 100,000 slaves used the "railroad" to get to Canada and eventually came back to the states and Mexico. A large settlement stayed in Ontario, Canada.

Doraville Whitney was the first Black settler to Isabella County in 1860, and in Mecosta County, Michigan was James Guy. His deed was signed by Abraham Lincoln. He obtained 160 acres in Wheatland Township on May 30, 1861. Lloyd & Margaret Guy were the first Black settlers in Montcalm County in 1860. The Homestead Act of 1862 allowed each settler up to 160 acres in Michigan. By 1873, African-Americans owned 1,392 acres in the three counties of Isabella, Mecosta, and Montcalm. In the 1860's most of the land in Remus was owned by the Old Settlers.

$10 + $3 (Shipping/Handling)

More Information at: http://www.osrw.org

Old Settler Dedication

Instead of disappearing into the dust that swallowed many other Black rural areas, the old settlers of Mecosta, Isabella, and Montcalm Counties prevailed. They came there in 1860 and they're still here. Some have moved to the larger cities of Lansing, Grand Rapids, Flint, and Detroit. There is compiled data and drawn maps of Black households in nine townships in Mecosta and Isabella Counties. In 1870, the nine-township area had 41 Black households; 86 in 1975, and 106 in 1994. The website was created to remember our ancestors who were the trailblazers making us who we are. We have become enriched, enabled, and elevated because of the ample regard and gratitude for the work of our ancestors. This site is dedicated to the Old Settlers.