|
The township of Chikaming / Chickaming was set off from the territory of New Buffalo in 1856 by the Board of Supervisors. Cemetery records for Berrien County of persons born before 1867 were published in 1930 as copied by the Algonquin Chapter of D.A.R. The following is listed for Chickaming under Drew Cemetery: Drew-New, 30 persons, Drew-Old, 144 persons, and Lakeside Cemetery, 117 persons. Of these 291 names, 39 could no longer be found as of the publishing of the Chikaming cemetery book in 1982 due to broken or missing headstones and the normal wearing down of the stones. The Chikaming Township Hall has master maps which show the lot purchases for both Lakeside and Riverside cemeteries. Kirk Schrader has been the sexton for the past 18 years (as of 2002) and has a ledger for each cemetery with recorded lot purchases starting in the year 1908. The ledger for Riverside Cemetery skips from 1941 to 1947.
Lakeside Cemetery is located in section 20, on the east and west sides of Lakeside Road off Red Arrow Highway. The older section on the east has no known records of lot purchases, burials or maps. It is surrounded by a golf course on three sides and is approximately 4 acres. Some written accounts claim that the land was owned by John Wesley Wilkinson and he donated the land as a cemetery. The lanes are paved and water is available. There are many wonderful headstones found in the rolling hills of the cemetery. This side is full and to be buried there a space must already be reserved. The west side is approximately 2 acres and has been township owned for many years. The first burial was in 1984. The lanes here are not paved at this time.
Many interesting people and early settlers are buried in Lakeside Cemetery.
Richard Peckham came to New Buffalo in 1842 where he opened a factory which manufactured rakes and grain cradles. The following year Richard purchased land in section 20 of Chikaming. Richard also held office for the Township of Chikaming as a Supervisor in 1857 & 1870. From 1858 to 1860, he was the Clerk for Chikaming Township.
Alfred Ames purchased 78 acres in section 30 of Chikaming in 1844. He married Mary Fisher who was a school teacher. In the year 1847, it was at the Ames’s house that 9 children were gathered and the first school class was held, with Mary as the teacher. Mary was also considered a celebrity for her poetry and prose that was published in newspapers and magazines. The home of Alfred & Mary was located on the shores of Lake Michigan and was known as “Clay Banks”. It’s interesting to note that Alfred Ames, Samuel Stoddard and his wife Naomi all died of small pox March 4, 1864.
Freeman Pulsifer held the title of Chikaming Township Treasure in 1859.
John C. Miller was a member of the House of Representatives of Michigan in 1862. John held office for the Township of Chikaming as a Supervisor in 1858, 1861-62 and 1867-68.
About 1850, in section 30, Amos Fisher located a farm where he and his wife resided starting in 1853. Early that year a schoolhouse was built on Amos’s land where John W. Wilkinson’s daughter Martha taught school in the summer of 1853.
John W. Wilkinson came to New Buffalo in 1847. Joseph and John Wilkinson purchased twenty-five hundred acres of land in Chikaming. They went on to build a six hundred foot pier, a steam sawmill, Greenbush Pier and Pikes Pier. James Abner Wilkinson held office for the Township of Chikaming as a Supervisor in 1866. A.B. Wilkinson held the title of Chikaming Township Clerk in 1856-1857. Abram Wilkinson and Daniel Hibner layed out Lakeside Cemetery. In a strange twist of fake, they were the first two buried there. Daniel died at the age of 41 in 1858 and Abram died in 1859 at the age of 29. Lydia Wilkinson and Ethel Edmonds put together ‘Mothers and Others’; a group who sponsored hot lunches and school activities.
A post office was established in 1858. Abner Clark and J. W. Wilkinson were two of the three postmasters. After completion of the Chicago and Michigan Lake Shore Railroad, new post offices were established. James Spaulding was the postmaster at the Sawyer post office at Troy Station, and the postmaster of the Lakeside post office at Wilkinson Station was John S. Gibson.
John F. & Franklin Gowdy came from New York. Catering to the Chicago market, Frank was deeply involved in the lumber and wood industry. The Gowdy’s built a sawmill and pier in what became Union Pier. The mill was in the possession of William Gowdy who was running it as of 1880. Frank Gowdy was Chikaming Township Clerk for the years 1863-65 and 1867-68. Herbert Gowdy worked on the resort development of Union Pier.
On August 7, 1869 the Union Pier Baptist Church was organized in Union Pier by Mrs. J. A. Wilkinson, Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Gowdy and Mrs. John Gowdy, along with other folks, which made up the 13 members.
Riverside Cemetery is located in sections 22 and 23. Take Red Arrow Hwy to Sawyer Road, turn right on Three Oaks Rd, down 2.8 miles.
The west side of Riverside is a wonderful, older cemetery which is surrounded on three sides by tall, stately oak trees. The outer edges of the cemetery, as well as much of the center, are covered with soft, jewel green moss due to the amount shade and the acid in the oak leaves that fall upon the grounds. Maple and pine trees can be found scattered throughout the gently sloping cemetery. The lanes are dirt and there is no water source on the west side. There are unique headstones including a 54 inch high chair; a tree with winding ivy, fern leaves and a potted plant at the base which measures 7 feet high, and another tree with ivy, ferns, a book at the base and a hanging flower basket on an outstretched branch which is 61 inches high. You will also find a metal headstone dated 1894. It is decorated with flowers, a wreath, a hand with the finger pointing to Heaven and drapery. The metal of choice for headstones was usually zinc. Rumor has it one could order a zinc headstone from the Sears catalog! The west side of the cemetery has paved lanes and water is available. Headstones are varied and include a Woodmen of the World Memorial. You will find Veterans on both the east and west side of the cemetery. The Riverside Cemetery is tidy and well kept with a combined total of approximately 8 acres. The east side is still active while the west side does burial only if the lot has already been reserved. The earliest burial to be found today was in 1867.
Who’s buried in Riverside Cemetery?
The northwest quarter of section 14 in Chikaming was purchased in 1854 by Jerome W. Burnett.
Albert L. Drew and his wife Helen came to Chikaming in 1860 and purchased 480 acres in sections 25 & 26. After building a log cabin on the land, Albert moved his family into their new home October 23, 1860. A.L. & H.L. Drew built a steam saw mill about 1862 on section 26 which ran for around eight years. Albert held office for the Township of Chikaming as a Supervisor in 1873-79 and Clerk in 1871-72.
In 1861, at a cost of $700.00, a schoolhouse was built. The first teacher was Mrs. Albert. L. Drew who began her class with just 5 students.
James H. Spaulding held the title of Chikaming Township Treasure 1868-69.
George Garland is listed as an early settler of Chikaming. He lived to the age of 90 years 8 months 7 days, passing January 18, 1892. His wife Rachel died in August of the same year.
Wells Sizer was photographed as a member of the Twenty Club in 1898.
Sources: "History of Berrien and Van Buren Counties, Michigan: Its Prominent Men and Pioneers", Berrien County: A Nineteenth Century Story, Berrien Bicentennial, Kirk Schrader-Chikaming Sexton/2002
|
