Pioneer history of Ingham County, compiled and arranged by Mrs. Franc L. Adams, secretary of the Ingham County pioneer and historical society.

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PIONEER HISTORY OF INGHAM COUNTY

section of the township, Lemuel and Joe Dennis. Lem, the elder,
had four sons, while his brother's family were all girls. Lem was a
hard worker, a shrewd investor, and left a large estate to his sons.
The boys after his death added farm after farm to the original
acres until they owned land from Williamston to the brick school
house, five miles south. All of them were in the stock, elevator
and banking business in Williamston. Two or three of these
brothers have passed away, but left behind a good record, a
faithful stewardship of their inheritance.
On the opposite side of the road lived David Gorsline, another
prosperous farmer, who left sons that inherited all their father's
sterling qualities.
North of the Gorsline farm and adjoining it was the Hammond
or Sunnyside farm. H. Hammond was a progressive, prosperous
farmer fifty years ago. He had all the comforts and blessings of
independence, but in the midst of his prosperity he went to
Williamston, engaged in the manufacturing business and lost all
his property. After this loss he drifted west in hopes, no doubt,
he could start anew and make another fortune. In this he was
disappointed and a few years ago he drifted back a disappointed,
broken down old man and died in a few eeeks.
Jacob Stoffer was the king bee in the western part of the township. He was an ideal farmer, progressive and up-to-date in all
his operations and prosperous in all his undertakings. He came
from northern Ohio or Indiana and introduced a certain style in
his barns. His bank barn, with overshot sills, two double floors,
one above the other, created a sensation and was the talk of the
neighborhood. It was a Pennsylvania bank farm, such as we
would find in Berks county, Pennsylvania.
Near White Dog school house, in the center of the township,
lived the Cole boys, Henry, John, Jesse and Frank. They came
from New York state. In the winter of 1878-9 while teaching
at the Westgate school I boarded with Frank. I never met a
more happy family. Frank's laugh or his wife's happy disposition could not be duplicated. One year later I visited them and
all was changed. Death had entered the home and taken the
only son. The father had met with financial losses in building,
and I found him gloomy and sorrowful. In a few days the sad
tidings came that he had, by his own hand, ended his life. This