What do we know about Howell?

If you don’t live there, then you don’t know enough. I don’t know enough, either. Therefore, I turned to the City of Howell’s history page to learn a little more.

In “Fast Fact” fashion, here are some of the things I learned from the City of Howell:

1834
: First settlers were David Austin, George & James Sage, and John Pinckney. 1835: Village blueprint formed by Edward Brooks & Flavius Crane.
1835: Pinckney builds the first log house.
1835: Village named ‘Livingston Centre’.
1836: Saw mill built by Moses Thompson.
1836: Post office established in the Eagle Tavern.
1836: First blacksmith, William McPherson.
1830s: The town name was changed from ‘Livingston Centre’ to ‘Howell’ after Thomas Howell, a friend of Crane’s and son of Judge Howell of New Jersey.
1830s: First public structure built by Brooks & Crane, The Eagle Hotel & Tavern, southeast corner of Grand River and Walnut Street .
1840: Temperance Hotel built, forbidding alcoholic consumption alcohol. It had no bar, so weary travelers could sleep without being disturbed by noisy drunks.
1840’s: Melvin House, Shaft’s Hotel, and the Union Hall.
1850: Howell Steam Saw Mill. It burned down in 1851 and re-built. This mill supplied the planks for Michigan’s plank roads from Detroit, Howell, and Lansing.
1863: Established as a village.
1869: First planing mill constructed by John Wright, located on Clinton Street, between Center and Walnut.
1875: Planing mill burns down and re-built.

That’s Howell's beginnings in a nutshell….but the main thing in this article is the photo gallery, showing some interesting vintage photos, going back well over one hundred years. Check ‘em out below!

Vintage Photos of Howell

HERE ARE MORE VINTAGE PHOTOS OF OTHER MICHIGAN TOWNS!

Vintage Photos of Mulliken

Vintage Photos of Lake Odessa

Vintage Photos of Laingsburg

More From WBCKFM