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.

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HISTORY OF OAKLAND COUNTY

gation. Some of the ministers who served since the organization of
the church up to the present time are: S. W. Stone, Israel Mudge,
William Rennie, James Curtis, M. Cuthbert, W. G. Roe, A. E. Thomas,
W. E. Hosmer, Edward Steere, John Spencer, M. E. Howard and
J. J. Morrish (present pastor).
The Catholics of South Lyon and vicinity are also organized into
a society under the priesthood of Father T. J. Hennessy.
SOUTH LYON INDUSTRIES
As early as 1835 William and Robert R. Thompson erected a steam
sawmill on the lot later owned by Isaac Burnhunt, and operated it for a
number of years. Later Robert Dunlap and Robert Parks erected a
mill in South Lyon, the year being 1871. In 1877 the manufacturing
interests were largely controlled by Wilbur Jones and A. G. Barnes,
proprietors of a planing-mill and lumber-yard; Robert Dunlap and RobZ
ert Parks, steam sawmill; William Weatherhead, steam gristmill; John
Challis and Odell & Cooley, carriage and wagon shops; Richard Bridson and John Bay, blacksmiths; Robert Parks, cider mill.
Various other industries have become factors in the life of South
Lyon since those early days, and today the J. D. McClaren Company
operate one of the big elevators in this section of the country. It was
erected in I894 at a cost of about $5,000, with a capacity of eight thousand bushels. Grain and beans are handled in large quantities.
The Detroit Creamery Company has a cream station and the Keokuk Canning Company of Lansing, a salting station. There are also a
canning factory owned and operated by F. B. Herricks and two greenhouses.
THE POWER COLONY FOUNDS QUAKERTOWN (FARMINGTON)
The first settlers in the township of Farmington located at or near
the village by that name, which was originally called Quakertown from
the fact that its site was first occupied by a colony of Friends who came
from Farmington, five miles west of Canandaigua, New York. About
the Ist of February, 1824, Arthur Power and his sons John and Jared,
with David Smith and Daniel Rush-the latter in Mr. Power's employset out from that place to occupy certain lands which the head of the
little colony had entered the year before in Oakland county, Michigan.
The sleigh containing the party was drawn by a pair of good horses
and in two weeks their journey took them through western New York
to Niagara, and thence through Upper Canada to Detroit. There supplies were purchased, after which the Power colony took the old Saginaw
road to Royal Oak and Hamilton's (Birmingham) and thence, in rather
a roundabout way, to section 22, northeast of the present village site.
Mr. Power had promised one of his sons, Nathan (who had remained
at home on the New York farm to care for the family) that he would
make the first clearing on the northeast quarter section which he had
deeded to him. When the men therefore arrived at that locality, two
of the party left the sleigh and began the felling of the nearest giant of