History of Oakland County Michigan a narrative account of its historic progress, its people, its principal interests / compiled from the official records of the county, the newspapers and data of personal interviews, under the editorial supervision of Thaddeus D. Seeley.

CHAPTER XXVI

BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP
PHYSICAL FEATURES-A GOOD MANY DEAD INDIANS-FIRST LAND ENTRY-FORMATIVE TOWNSHIP PERIOD-THREE COMPETING TAVERNSMILLS AND STORES OUTSIDE OF BIRMINGHAM-BLOOMFIELD CENTER
-BIRMINGHAM VILLAGE PLATS-OLD TIMES AT PIETY HILL-VILLAGE OF BIRMINGHAM-REINCORPORATED-VILLAGE PRESIDENTS AND
CLERKS-PUBLIC WORKS-SOLDIERS' MONUMENT-BIRMINGHAM
CHURCHES-SECRET AND FRATERNAL SOCIETIES.
Bloomfield township is one of the oldest civil divisions of Oakland
county, being created by a proclamation of the territorial governor
dated June 28, 1820. It was officially designated as towns I and 2 north,
in ranges 7, 8, 9, IO and I east, and embraced the two southern tiers
of towns in the county. Bloomfield continued to cover that territory
until April I2, 1827, when the legislative council detached Southfield,
Bloomfield and West Bloomfield (as now constituted) and erected the
township of Bloomfield. The organization of 1827 continued
until 1830, when what is now known as Southfield was taken away from
the original area, and in 1833 West Bloomfield was lopped off, thus reducing it to its present proportions.
PHYSICAL FEATURES
Bloomfield is watered by a number of beautifiul lakes and by Rouge
river, of which the eastern branch takes its rise beyond the boundaries
of the township in Troy and Avon, and the western one has its source in
the lakes of the northwest and west. These, uniting their waters a short
distance northwest of the village of Birmingham, form the stream which
thence flows in a southwesterly direction through section 35 and crosses
the town line into Southfield. The largest lakes of Bloomfield township are Wing, Upper and Lower Long, Island, Square, Forest, Turtle
and Gilbert, all of them lying west of its center line, and all but Wing and
Gilbert in the northwest quarter.
The general surface of the township is rolling, particularly in the
lake region. The soil of this section is rather light, both in color and
texture, as compared with that of the prairies and river bottoms, with
the result that the part of the county which has proven to be the best
grain and fruit producer was neglected by the settlers for many years.
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