Fennville in Allegan County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Welcome to Fennville
Elam Fenn moved to this area in 1852 from New York City. In 1863 he, along with his partner Levi Loomis, erected a sawmill just west of what is now known as South Street. When the first post office was granted in February of 1868, the settlement was given the name Fennís Mills. However, railroad conductors found the name difficult to call out, so when the new railroad schedules were printed, the railroad changed the name to Fennsville, a change accepted by the post office. The name changed to Fennville later in 1871 when the town was officially platted.
In October of 1871 a large blaze swept through the town on the same day as the great Chicago fire, leaving only the Methodist church on the east and a partially constructed hotel on the west. With the local sawmills running 24 hours a day to supply lumber for the rebuilding of Chicago (and Fennville and nearby Holland!),
Fennville became a village in 1889, and voted to become a city in 1960 under a new law lowering the population required to become a city, when the proposed city boundaries included land in two different townships, Manlius and Clyde.
In the early days Fennville served as a major shipping area for fruit, milled wheat, and the mint oil that was distilled on nearby farms. In 1906 a factory (still in operation) was built adjacent to the tracks for the canning of fruit. In 2000, Fennville had a population of 1,459 residents and a land area of 1.1 square miles.
Please enjoy a short walking tour of historic downtown Fennville sites still standing today (see map below). Beginning east of the post office on Maple and Main is (1) the Dickinson Opera House, built in 1902; (2) the Oddfellows Hall and (3) Masonic Lodge, both located above Main St. Businesses. Continuing east across the tracks is (4) the J.G. Lamoureaux home, built in 1882 and later purchased by the Womanís Club of Fennville to serve as a clubhouse and library. Crossing East Main Street and west beside the tracks is (5) the Stevens Hotel, built in 1910 to replace the wooden
Across the tracks and south are (6) the twin silos of the old Fennville Milling Co. The commercial block of East Main (7) between Fennville and Maple contains a number of historic structures built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. On the corner of Maple and Main is the (8) Old State Bank building founded in 1899. Other structures of note in the historic residential area on West Main are the (9) Kingsley House, a Victorian-style residence built in 1886 and (10) the J. Edward Hutchinson home at 58th Street and West Main. Hutchinson held political office in the state and nation from 1946 to 1976 and was the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee when impeachment hearings began against President Nixon in 1974.
Thank you for visiting Historic Fennville!
The history of a place is like an endless road...
... with an origin far proceeding the memory of mankind.
Erected by Fennville Downtown Development Authority.
Location. 42° 35.663′ N, 86° 6.301′ W. Marker is in Fennville, Michigan, in Allegan County. Marker is on W. Main Street (State Highway 89) west of Maple Street, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is located west of the U.S. Post Office. Marker is in this post office area: Fennville MI 49408, United States of America.
Other nearby markers. New Richmond Historical Timeline (approx. 3.9 miles away); The Railroad & New Richmond (approx. 4 miles away); New Richmond History (approx. 4 miles away); Fifty-Seventh Street Bridge (approx. 4 miles away); Ganges Township Civil War Monument (approx. 5.4 miles away); Welcome to River Bluff Park (approx. 5.7 miles away); The Allegan Road (approx. 5.8 miles away); Dutcher Lodge No. 193 / Douglas (approx. 6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Fennville.
More about this marker. The marker includes several historic photographs keyed to a map on the marker and discussed in the text of the marker. The historic photographs include (1) The Dickinson Opera House built in 1902; (2 & 3) North Side of Main Street - The Oddfellows Hall; (4) The J.G. Lamoureaux Home (Woman's Club & Library; (5) The Stevens Hotel built in 1910; (6) Train Depot, Fennville Milling Company Silos and Fennville Fruit Exchange; (7) South Block of Main Street; (8) Fennville Goose Festival 1990 with Old State Bank in background; (9) The Kingsley House; (10) The J. Edward Hutchinson Home; and six photographs of Main Street Through The Years.
The marker is at Site #10 of the Allegan County Heritage Trail.
Also see . . . Allegan County Heritage Trail. (Submitted on May 8, 2014.)
Categories. • Industry & Commerce • Politics • Settlements & Settlers •
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on May 8, 2014, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. This page has been viewed 370 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. submitted on May 8, 2014, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.