Lenawee Historical Society

09/03/2026

This is on the east end of Wampler's Lake at the foot of Cedar Hill, ca. 1910.
At that time the state park was called Cedar Hill Park. This was the only road from US 112 to the north shore from the Irish Hills area.
Visit the Historical Society page daily for an illustrated story of Lenawee's past. We also look forward to seeing you at the Lenawee Historical Museum in Adrian!

09/01/2026

Once rivaling downtown Adrian, was the busy east side, referred to by some as "Dutch Hill" This photo from 1909 shows 3 young travelers at the Lake Shore train station at the corner of East Michigan and Tecumseh Streets.
Most interesting in the background facing north is the only image the museum has of the popular 3 story hotel and upscale restaurant of that period, the Botsford House.
This structure was built in the 1850s and was torn down in 1915 after mismanagement and neglect.
SEE PHOTO IN THE COMMENTS SECTION BELOW AND CLICK ON FOR LARGER IMAGE

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08/31/2026

One of the most familiar icons in Lenawee County, the Irish Hills Towers are clearly the hub of activity in this 1940s-era aerial photo. The twin towers, built amid much controversy in 1924, were just the centerpieces of an entire commercial district along US 12 (formerly US 112, then the main Detroit-to-Chicago highway predating I-94). Three gas stations, a motel, and a restaurant are visible in this image, in addition to multiple homes clustered around the site.

Visit the Historical Society page daily for an illustrated story of Lenawee's past. We also look forward to seeing you at the Lenawee Historical Museum in Adrian!

08/30/2026

Looking for some well-tailored fowl? Curtis Poultry supplied the very thing from 1952 to 1969.

The building, located at 105 E. Church Street in Adrian, was built in 1903 as the O.W. Davis garage. It later became the Raymond Ford dealership for a short time and the Cities Service Oil Company in the 1940s. Curtis Poultry later became the Curtis Foods restaurant until 1992. The building's most recent occupant, Nova's Soda Pop Candy Shop, took up residence in 2012 and repainted the building bright red.

Visit the Historical Society page daily for an illustrated story of Lenawee's past. We also look forward to seeing you at the Lenawee Historical Museum in Adrian!

08/30/2026

The Raisin Valley Friends Church may be the second oldest church building in Michigan - it was constructed in 1835 during the presidency of Andrew Jackson. Half of the $800 construction cost was funded by Darius Comstock, a local Quaker leader and father of Adrian's founder Addison Comstock. Originally a center partition divided the men's half of the church from the women's half. The partition could be raised and lowered via a pulley system, so that the congregation could worship as a group but meet for business purposes separately.

The church has been remodeled several times over the years, including the addition of a basement in 1947 and an expansion project in 1953. The columned porch, which was not an original feature of the very simple and clean-lined Quaker church, was added in the 1960s. Here we feature a couple of photos taken in the 1930s, when the church still retained its original exterior appearance.

Many of the members at Raisin Valley were heavily involved in the abolitionist and Underground Railroad movements before the Civil War. Two of the most famous were noted abolitionist hero Laura Haviland and her colleague Elizabeth Chandler. These two local icons ran the Logan Anti-Slavery Female Society, an active Underground Railroad group. Haviland's grave can be seen in the cemetery next to the church.

Visit the Historical Society page daily for an illustrated story of Lenawee's past. We also look forward to seeing you at the Lenawee Historical Museum in Adrian!

08/29/2026

The volunteer staff at the Lenawee Historical Museum is saddened by the recent passing of one of our own.

Keith Daniel Derbyshire, age 75, died suddenly August 23rd at his Baker Hwy home near Fairfield.

He was born in June 1951 in Adrian to Burdette and Beulah (Logan) Derbyshire. Keith graduated from Adrian High School in 1969, and later earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Siena Heights.

Keith married Gail Henry in 1973, and she preceded him in death in 2013. He is survived by daughter, Marli.

Keith was employed with the Postal Service before retirement. He was very involved in organizing the annual Post Office "Stamp Out Hunger" drive every May, Keith was the proud owner and sole operator of “GoodTunes” where he repaired and tuned pianos. Keith enjoyed classical music and was an avid piano player. He was an active member of the Salvation Army and regularly attended services.

Besides his work with the Historical Museum, Keith was also a member of the Lenawee Family Researchers for over 40 years. He also enjoyed going to the movies, reading, collecting books and cookbooks.

Funeral services will take place Saturday, September 5th at 1:00 p.m., at Wagley Funeral Home, Adrian, with Captain Curtis and Major Laura Lunnam from the Salvation Army officiating. Visitation will be held at Wagley on Saturday from 11:30 a.m. until the time of the funeral service. Burial will follow at Hunt Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be directed to the Salvation Army or the Lenawee County Historical Society.

08/29/2026

A well known name in musical instruments is Grinnell Brothers. From 1893 until 1969 there was always a Grinnells serving the Adrian area.
The store began downtown on the west side of N Main {left) , then moved to north side of E Maumee (right) about 1910.
In the 50s and 60s Grinnells was located on the corner of E Church and Center Streets.

Visit the Historical Society page daily for an illustrated story of Lenawee's past. We also look forward to seeing you at the Lenawee Historical Museum in Adrian!

08/27/2026

We recently posted a photo story of the old Carnegie Library, now museum, in Adrian. Today we focus on the Carnegie Library in Tecumseh. Built in 1905, it served the area as a library until 1962 when it became the headquarters for the Tecumseh Public Schools.
It is located just west of downtown and now serves a community arts center.
The site was chosen because the former owner of the property, Benjamin Baxter, was noted as lawyer, teacher, statesmen, editor and "laughing philosopher" who had a large collection of books that he often loaned to others.
The photo at the check out desk shows library director Julie Fosbender assisting a patron. She later became director of the Adrian Library until her retirement in 2006.

08/27/2026

In 1927, Adrian schools built and opened 3 new elementary schools, all with 'presidential" names, Garfield, (New) McKinley and Lincoln. Jefferson was built 20 years previous, while the original McKinley on East Maumee eventually became Comstock (primary grades).
All but Lincoln have been closed and torn down.
Click on each image to see the captions.

08/26/2026

Founded in the late 1880's, and originally called Balch, the village of Britton on M-50 was divided by railroad tracks. West side downtown (left photo) was anchored by the Exelby Block, while the east side (right) featured the unique looking Daykin Block with its arched windows and doors.
These photos were taken from the excellent history publication entitled "Bygone Days - History of Britton" released in 1971 by the area Campfire Girls.
Visit the Historical Society page daily for an illustrated story of Lenawee's past. We also look forward to seeing you at the Lenawee Historical Museum in Adrian!