Home Old Settler Family Pages UncategorisedLittle River Letts

Little River Letts

Pictures Courtesy of Marguerite Berry-Jackson

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Gabriel and Mary Ann Gross-Lett came from Champaign County, Goshen Township, Ohio on August 16, 1870. They traveled by two white oxen pulling a covered wagon. They settled in Mecosta County living in various places until buying a 40-acre farm in Little River. Gabriel Lett, the son of Ephriam Lett and Elizabeth Green-Lett was born in 1838 in Virginia. He was united in marriage to Mary Ann Gross, daughter of Abraham and Elizabeth Gross who was born in 1842. (SEE GROSS FAMILY) To this union, nine children were born. Before leaving Ohio four children were born: Amanda, 1863, Mahalia J., 1865, Ida Ann, 1866, and Emily 1868. Five more children were born after coming to Michigan; Cora, Charles, William, and Lillian (twins) and Walter 1883. Gabriel Lett had brothers and sisters who remained in Ohio and Virginia. they were: Dan, Sarah, Amelia, Rosa A., and Mahalia. A brother Sam came to Michigan.

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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.

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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.