Medina Village

Is this the location of the old cheese factory on the left?  or is it on Mill St. looking north to the main four corners?

Spring 2020 Medina Federated Church, main section built 1846 as a Baptist Church during the days of Reverend Lauren Hotchkiss.

2020 Medina Federated Church now with large gymnasium and attached hall for events.  It has a very large and active congregation

Old Bothwell Hwy. looking north toward Lake Hudson (In the past it was the road to Big Bear and Little Bear Lakes, Haley Rd. and Tomer Rd.) Once the "Old Town Road" between Hudson and Medina Twps. was about 1/4 mile beyond the hill.  The landscape was rolling all the way to Tomer.

Colvin House with Mrs. Chas. Colvin, the former Nellie Ely (daughter of Dr. Ely who lived corner of Warner and Main).  Colvin house was destroyed in the 1929 cyclone and replaced by Mero house.  Mrs. Colvin was a WW1 Gold Star Mother because her son Delancey Colvin died in France.  I believe she traveled there once to visit his grave.  He is one of the namesakes of the Hudson American Legion Hannan-Colvin Post, along with Dennis Hannan.  This house was built in the 1850's by Dr. Carlos Hampton.

This house was the childhood home of Medina historian Annis Darr--the family lived in the small portion until her father Ruben Cooley bought the old Gardner house that sat adjacent to the east side of the Baptist Church--for fifty dollars.  He had it moved here and converted the two homes into a larger house for his family.

Old schoolyard site.

One of the oldest houses in the village, believed to be the home of a young Mr. Ludden, the first Miller for Medina Milling Company in the village.  I'm pretty sure he was married to a daughter of Baxter Lyon, and the old census records show Mrs. Ludden and some young children on their own later on.  Given the danger involved in the occupation, he may have met an early demise and his burial place is not certainly known.  This house must be built of very strong timber such as walnut, to survive so long as over 180 years.  Many prominent persons of the past have lived at this residence.  Dr. Hamilton used to live directly across the street, in the foreground of this photo.  A reader reports that most of these old buildings were framed from white oak and that accounts for their longevity.

Joyce and I called this Strobeck house as Mr. Strobeck the woodworker used to live here for a time.  It was probably built by Lauren Hotchkiss as he owned it once in the 1840's, and perhaps it was built in stages.  It was only torn down this past year of 2020 after a fire.  I retrieved a pretty smooth stone from the rubble that was probably a part of a cobblestone foundation.  Many others lived here, including Hudson Post Gazette publisher Ed Potter.

This looks like the grave of Mr. Mumford, Civil War veteran.  (see Photographs page, City Fathers picture)  He lived a little east of the Baptist Church on same side of street, before the blacksmith shop.

Beautiful Medina Cemetery

At the head of Mill Street looking south.  Harrington/Gambell house is on left while home of Charlie Brown, proprietor of White Store (before Aldrich McLouth) on right.  The Old White Store has been replaced by a white house, though part of the foundation can still be seen in the front yard.  Joyce said the White Store was still in existence in 1939, so my Grandpa and Dad would have seen it.

Charles "Charlie" Brown, proprietor of the Old White Store after Allen Daniels, from the mid-1850's to around 1881.  He lived behind it on Mill Street and his house is still there.  Mr. Brown married a widow, the mother of Ed Farnsworth, whose family owned a farm to the west of the village.  Ed later lived in a house across Eagle St. that no longer exists, the one with the decorative spindle work described by Joyce Longo to me.  I believe Ed was a US Sharpshooter in the Civil War, and after that did jewelry and watch repairs at the store.  Mr. Brown held many positions of prominence in the county--from Portrait and Biographical Records of Lenawee County, Volume 2--Medina Twp. Postmaster 24 1/2 years, Medina Twp. Clerk 14 years, County Superintendent of the Poor 3 years, Notary Public 32 years, and he was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 1874, serving for 2 years  Charlie was followed at the White Store in 1881 by Aldrich McLouth, who remained at that location until his son-in-law Abner Griffith took over in 1906.  But McLouth's lived on Main Street at the NE corner of Bothwell and Main.  Charles Brown remained in the village after retirement.  Charlie's first wife was buried back in Cayuga County NY, and his second wife was Elizabeth, widow of C. G. Farnsworth and mother of Elizabeth and Edward.

Civil War veteran Thomas Hemenway and wife Almira with their one and only daughter.  They lived in various locations, but this one is believed to be the home built by Dr. Increase Hamilton when he first moved to the village.  The house that was 'stolen' from Canandaigua was reportedly so wrecked from the trip that the doctor built a new one at NW corner of Main. and Finch St.  When he left Medina, Dr. Brown lived at this house until he built the Red Brick House in 1853.  Today these lots are the site of a newer home.  The Shadbolt family is related to Mrs. Hemenway, and Joyce once showed me a scrapbook kept by her that included GAR ribbons belonging to Thomas.  They lived for a time in Canandaigua, and his obit says he is buried there, while there is a stone for her in Medina.  I find it hard to believe that his obit is correct.  UPDATE-- I see in the Gravestone Records of Lenawee for Canandaigua Cemetery that Almira's parents, the Newarks, are there--so I am changing my mind and now think Thos.' obit is correct.  Almira died last by 30 years, in 1949, and apparently wanted to be in Medina, pretty much her lifelong home. Joyce told me she got this photo scan from the archives of Medina Federated Church.

This is the old Mann/Stone farm south of Medina village and it is still owned by descendants of the Stones--by the Potters.  The Alvah Stones who lived here were related to the Charles Stones at Tiffin Mills area; I believe they were not directly descended, rather they were some sort of cousins.  

This is Bean Creek off the village bridge south of the old main four corners.  I took this in the winter around a year ago. It is interesting that all the clearing of the pioneers has given way to nature again and the forest is returning to old Bean Creek.  What would they say if they could see this now?  This is looking to the east where the Mills once were located.