Home Old Settler Family Pages UncategorisedWilliam Ricks, Sr.

William Ricks, Sr.

Pictures Courtesy of Dorothy (Ricks-Lett) Todd & Judith deJohnette-Franks - History: Deonna Todd-Green

William Ricks, Sr.

According to 1870 census records of Marshall Township, Calhoun County, Michigan, William Ricks, Sr. is listed: age 28, male, race black, occupation works on farm. He is listed in the household of a farmer named Freeman Hatelkoss. William Ricks is also listed in the 1894 Veterans' Census, in Fairplains Township, Montcalm County, Michigan as William Ricks, male, race Black, born in North Carolina.

William Ricks, Jr. married Martha Jane Calwell. Martha had three children before she and William were married. Their names were Christina Rebecca Ann (Feb. 18, 1868), Mary Elizabeth (Nov. 21, 1869), and Angeline Rodellar (Oct. 4, 1871). Together William and Martha had three children. Their names were John, Vonnie, and Alonzo. Dorothy's father Bert (shown above) worked in a lumber camp across the Straights and then worked in Flint after he moved to Sheridan, MI to take care of his parents.

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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.