Fallasburg Historic District facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Fallasburg Historic District
|
|
Misner House Museum
|
|
| Location | Covered Bridge Rd., Vergennes Township, Michigan |
|---|---|
| Area | 33 acres (13 ha) |
| Built | 1839 |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 98001217 |
| Added to NRHP | March 31, 1999 |
The Fallasburg Historic District is a special historical area in Michigan. It holds the old buildings and remains of a small village from the 1800s. This village grew up around a sawmill and a gristmill.
You can find this district near the Fallasburg Bridge, where Covered Bridge Road crosses the Flat River in Vergennes Township, Michigan. Because of its history, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
Contents
A Look Back: The Story of Fallasburg
How Fallasburg Began
Around 1837, two brothers named John Wesley Fallass and Silas S. Fallass moved to West Michigan. They came from a place called Tompkins County, New York. In 1839, the land in this area became available to buy.
The Fallass brothers bought a section of land where Fallasburg is now located. Soon after, they built a sawmill on the Flat River in 1839. A year later, in 1840, they built a gristmill. A gristmill grinds grain into flour.
John Wesley Fallass built his own house, and more people started to move to the area. The small village, first called Fallassburgh, began to grow. In 1842, a school was built. A post office opened in 1849, making it easier to send mail.
The Rise and Fall of a Village
By 1860, Fallasburg had two general stores. There was also a blacksmith and a wagon maker. In 1864, a man named Charles Hecox bought the sawmill. He started a small factory that made chairs.
At the same time, the gristmill was very busy. It had five employees and made a lot of money each year for local farmers. A new school was built in 1867. In 1875, John Wesley Fallass's sons took over running the mill.
However, the 1850s and 1860s were the best times for Fallasburg. Soon, train tracks were built all over Michigan. This made nearby Lowell a very busy town. But the trains did not come to Fallasburg.
Without the railroad, Fallasburg started to decline. The sawmill closed and was taken down in 1878. The gristmill also struggled against newer, more modern mills. It was torn down in 1912. Some businesses and homes were destroyed by fire. In 1905, the post office closed.
Why Fallasburg is Still Here
Even though Fallasburg faced hard times, it did not disappear completely. It was a bit isolated, and much of the land was owned by the local government. This helped the old village stay mostly intact.
Later, the Fallasburg Historical Society worked hard to protect the area. They wanted to keep it from being developed. This is why Fallasburg is special. It's one of the few early settlements in Michigan that kept its historic look. It survived even when the railroads changed everything.
What You Can See Today
The Fallasburg Historic District has 14 old buildings. It also has a cemetery and the remains of the sawmill and gristmill. These buildings include 12 houses, a schoolhouse, and the famous Fallasburg Bridge.
Most of these buildings were built between the early 1840s and the late 1860s. They are simple wooden buildings with not much decoration. Some have simple details from the Greek Revival style, which was popular back then.
