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

He ran the sawmill "for all it was worth," in 1838 built a gristmill about
thirty rods south of it, and operated both until they were destroyed by
fire. The Chamberlain flouring mill, which was burned in 1846, was a
blessing to the housewives of the township, its product being considered
A No. i in every detail.
About 1838 a postoffice was established at Lakeville, with George
Larzelier as postmaster. At first, the mail route was from Royal Oak
to Dryden, in Lapeer county; mode of transportation, a small pony.
Soon afterward a stage was introduced, and routes were established
from Lakeville to Bald Eagle Lake and Beebe, now Lenox.
After the destruction of the Chamberlain mill, in 1846, Charles.W.
Chapel secured the mill site and in I847 erected a three-story and basement mill which long continued the fine record of its predecessor. Mr.
Chapel also opened the first complete general store of Lakeville, in 1851.
From that time until the building of the Pontiac, Oxford & Northern,
several miles to the west, Lakeville enjoyed a large trade; but that event
cut off its business, and was the making of the village of Leonard. The
village of Lakeville is now little more than a memory. It has a permanent population of less than a hundred, although during the summer
season this may be somewhat larger. It has a good school and a Methodist society, while its business and industries embrace several stores, a
small grist mill and a number of boat liveries for the accommodation of
summer visitors. Lakeville transacts its trade through the Oxford
bank, and its shipments also go to that point, six miles west. Connection between the two is maintained by means of a daily stage line, which
also carries the mails. /
TOWNSIIP' ORGANIZATION.\AN) DIS'RIzicT SCIi()()LS
The civil organization of Addison township was effected in April,
1837, when its territory was detached from Oakland township. It received its name in compliment to Addison Chamberlain, its foremost
citizen, and the first town meeting was held at his house. Lyman Boughton was then and there elected supervisor and William T. Snow clerk.
In the fall of 1838 the town was divided into eight school districts,
and the same year the first district house for educational purposes in
the southwestern part of the town was erected on section 27, about eighty
rods west of Lakeville. But the reader must not understand that during the six or seven years that children had been a factor in the township life they had been allowed to run wild as to their mental training;
far from it. As early as 1835 a shanty had been put up on section 23,
east of Lakeville lake, and Mariette Tedman had therein gathered about
a dozen children to see what she could do with their minds. In the
northeastern part of the town Sarah Gilbert, in 1836, had taught a little
class in Nicholas Ferguson's barn, and other like attempts were made
in dwelling houses until I838, when a small frame schoolhouse was built
on section 12. This was also in the northeastern part of the township,
and, with the schoolhouse put up near Lakeville, marked the real commencement of the district system of education.