History of Saginaw county, Michigan; together with ... portraits ... and biographies ... History of Michigan ...

752

HISTORY OF SAGINAW COUNTY.

ORGANIC.
As early as 1857 an application was made to the county board
by 19 electors of this township, asking that the territory now
known as Brant and Marion should be organized as a township
under the former name. The board considered the application
during its session of January, 1858, and on the 8th of that month
acceded to all which the first settlers demanded in it. The following is a copy of the act of organization:It appearing to the Board of Supervisors that application has been made, and
that notice thereof hasbeen signed, posted up and published, as in manner required by law, and having duly considered the matter of said application, the
Board orders and enacts that the territory described in said application, as follows,
to wit: Township number ten (10) north of range number one (1) east, and township number ten (10) north, of range number two (2) east, be, and the same is hereby erected into a township, to be called and known by the name of the township ot
Brant.
The first annual meeting thereof shall be held at the house now occupied by
Albert A. Aldrich, on the first Monday of April, A. D. 1858, and at said meeting,
John B. Adams, Ezra T. Cogswell and Thomas Berry, three electors of said township, shall be the persons whose duty it shall be to preside at such meeting,appoint
clerk, open and keep the polls, and exercise the same power as the inspectors of
election at any township meeting, as the law p)rovides.
The 15 members of the supervisors' board present were unanimlous in support of the motion to grant the application.
The first township meetingwas held April 5, 1858, at the house
of Albert A. Aldrich, with Ezra T. Cogswell, Moderator; Bradley
Adams, Clerk; Charles H. Cogswell, Assistant Clerk, and John
B. Adams, Ezra T. Cogswell and Thomas Berry, Inspectors of Election. Two hundred and twenty votes were recorded in the aggreate, but in reality there were only 19 citizen voters present:
Thomas Berry was elected Supervisor; John B. Adams, Clerk;
Ezra T. Cogswell, Treasurer; Bushrod W. Lamb, Bradlev Adams,
Jason B. Eldridge, Columb. L. Luther, Jason P. Eldridge and
Benjamin Colville, Justices of the Peace; Alliheus Oliver and Bradley Adams, School Inspectors; Purchlasc I. Hill, Albert A. Aldrich, Charles HT. Cogswell and G. M. Campfield, Constables, and
Bradley Adams, Overseer of the Poor. Bushrod W. Lamb was
appointed Overseer of the Poor by the towllship board April 21,
1858, vice Bradley Adams, resigned. Tlie new officer had very
little trouble with the office. as there were n1(one so poor as to require his aid, and the township was too distant fromn tle great
higlways to warrant a visit from the ordinary tranlps.
In the following list tile names of the irilncipal township officers
are given with, tlhe dates ofthleir services:
SUPERVISORS.
Thomas Berry.............. 1858-'60 Perry Crane................. 1873
John B. Adaums.............1861-'2 eo. Ward...................1874-7
Levi W. Berry..............863 B. J. Downing...............1878
Stephen Crane................164-'7 Geo. Ward(................1879
Winsor Crane...........8.... 1868-'9 Giles McKeon............1880
Thomas Berry...............1870 David J. Webbl.............. 1881
(leo. Ward................1871-'2