History of St. Clair County - Ira Township

[St. Clair County Marriges & Deaths]

Extracted from
History of St. Clair County, Michigan
by A.T. Andreas

History of St. Clair County

Ira Township.

[728] Ira Township forms the extreme southwest town of the county with the Lake St. Clair on the south, Chesterfield Township west, Cottrellville and Casco on the east and north. Swan Creek runs through the town from north to south. The pioneers were the Chortiers, Stephen Rose, Christopher Miller, F. Beckman, Charles Chatoreau, and others whose names appear in the list of early land buyers. The population of Ira in 1845 was 392; in 1854, 897; in 1864, 1,072; and in 1880, 1,645. The equalized value is $178,755, and the area, 11,173 acres. The population is principally made up of foreigners, who are very industrious.

[729] The original land buyers were James Seymour, Bowen Whiting, James Edwards, Gardner Wells, Elisha Steele, Benjamin Hazen, located lands on Section 1, in 1836; J.L. King, on Section 2; Hanford Reynolds, on Section 5; James Edwards, on Section 6; Henry Connor, Barney McCann, on Section 11; R.H. Waller, on Section 12; J.W. Throop, James Dunlap, Levi Beardsley and Smith Titus, on Section 13, in 1836; Julius Eldred, F. and R. Moore, Alonzo Merrill, on Section 24, in 1834.

INDIAN RESERVE.

The Indian lands in Ira Township, or Township 3 north, Range 15 east, were disposed of between May 15, 1839, and October 30, 1848. The purchasers, May 15, 1839, were James H. Cook, 480 acres, on Sections 4, 9, and 15; Henry Connor, 160 acres, on Sections 11 and 15; Medar St. James de Beauvais, 80 acres; Charles Paquette, 250 acres; Luther Stoddard, 80 acres; Lansing B. Mizner, 190 acres, on Sections 10, 14 and 17; Antoine Eabire, 80 acres, Section 9; Peter Rose, 80 acres, on Section 8; Ira Davenport, 160 acres, on Section 9; John Dalloz, 50 acres, on Section 16; Stephen Rose, 37 acres on Section 16; Timothy Boyer, 158 acres, on Section 15; Stephen Chortier, 80 acres, on Section 15; Antoine Laponse, 62 acres, on Section 17; Augustus Fauche, 46 acres, on Section 15; Louis Beaufait, 170 acres, on Sections 14, 15 and 22; Ed. R. Kearsley, 80 acres, on Section 15; and Jonathan Kearsley, 140 acres, on Section 14.

The sales made in May, June and August, 1839, were to the following named buyers: Jonathan Kearsley, 70 acres, on Section 23; Ed. N. Kearsley, 51 acres, on Section 23; L.B. Mizner, 115 acres, on Sections 8 and 22; Constant Lorselle, 80 acres, on Section 10; Charles S. Johnson, 175 acres, on Section 3; Barney McCann, 284 acres, on Section 11; and Charles S. Johnson, 165 acres, on Section 35.

Joseph Socier purchased 40 acres of Indian Reserve, October 16, 1844, on Section 4, Ira; Venson Paquette, bought 40 acres on Section 10, July 26, 1844; Joseph Merceraux, 40 acres, on Section 10, December 9, 1844; Henry R. Mizner, 40 acres, on Section 10 August 16, 1845; Abram Destrut, 80 acres, November 19, 1845; Joseph Miller, 40 acres, Section 10, December 27, 1845; Francis Palms purchased 887 acres on Sections 2 and 3, in December, 1847, also 787 acres, on Section 4 and 5, at the same time; Felix Vigneron, 80 acres, on Section 4, May 8, 1847; Lansing B. Mizner, 61 acres, on Section 8, November 26; Francis Palms, 137 acres, on Section 8, December, 1847, also 268 acres on Sections 10, 11, and 14, in December, 1847; Toussaint Chortier, 40 acres, on Section 14, June 23, 1847; Antoine Legar and Joseph Merceraux, 40 acres each, on Section 10, in August and December, 1847; James Landry, 80 acres, on Section 14, September 1, 1848; and Francis Palms, 104 acres, in March and October, 1848.

The Supervisors of Ira since its organization, are named as follows: Charles Kimball, 1837; Commissioners Board, 1838-41; Charles Kimball, 1842-44; Job P. Gorham, 1845-47, Antoine Bethny [Bethuy?], 1848; John Dalloz, 1849; George King, 1850-51; Larkin Hatch, 1852; John Dalloz, 1853-54; Ira Marks, 1855; John Dalloz, 1856; Abram Yule, 1857; C. McElroy, 1858-59; E.G. Marks, 1860; Godfroy Deroche, 1861; Louis A. Allor, 1862; Stephen Rose, 1863; H. Nedermeyers, 1864-71; H. Meyer, 1872-79; Benjamin Latour, 1880-82.

JUSTICES OF THE PEACE.

Chester Kimball, 1837; Chester Kimball, 1841; Charles Kimball, 1841; Ira Marks, 1842; John Dalloz, 1843; Stephen Rose, Jr., 1843; Job T. Gorham, 1845; Larkin Hatch, 1846; James Dunlap, 1846; John Dalloz, 1847; Job T. Gorham, 1849; John Dalloz, 1850; Samuel Irons, 1851; Godfrey Derocheo, 1853; William F. Chipman, 1853; John Dalloz, 1854; Larkin Hatch, 1855; John Sadler, 1857; E.H. Butler, 1857; Larkin Hatch, 1857; Crocket McElroy, 1858; George C. Walker, 1859; E.G. Marks, 1859; Louis A. Allor, 1860; E.H. Butler, 1860; Stephen Rose, 1861-62; W. Zantgreffer, 1861-62; J.M. Leroy, 1861-62; H. Johr, 1862; R. Martyn, 1862; H. Neddermeyer, 1863; John Sadler, 1864; R. Martyn, 1865; H. Neddermeyer, 1867; John Sadler; 1868; Charles Fosbender, 1869; Robert English, 1869; Charles Fosbender, 1870-74; R. Martyn, 1870; H. Neddermeyer, 1871; John Sadler, 1872; James Landry, 1873; Stephen Rose, 1875; Charles Rose, 1876; A. Merceraux, 1876; Alexander Landry, [730] 1877; C. Fosbender, 1878; A. Merceraux, 1879; Sebastin Habarth, 1880; Joseph T. Landry, 1881; Charles Fosbender, 1882.

TREMBLE CREEK.

A settlement was made as appears by a Captain Francois Marsac in about 1798, at Tremble Creek, the stream near New Baltimore, on the Ridge Road, and also prior to 1796, at Swan Creek, some four miles west of New Baltimore.

From the early settlement of that section a tradition has been handed down, and this tradition has many believers even now, that an English Captain or Lieutenant, who had been largely successful in gathering together a quantity of bullion, being compelled to flee from the Indians, buried his treasure in the earth, about a mile from the present isle of New Baltimore, that he was either killed by the Indians, or died from exposure, and the secret of his treasure's hiding place died with him. Many searches have been made by infatuated individuals after this treasure, and many believe that the ghostly shade of the deceased Captain guards the treasure-trove so jealously, and has such power of moving its location, that all search is in vain.

Fair Haven, in Ira Township, thirty miles south of Port Huron, on Anchor Bay, is one of the early settlements of St. Clair. It has four churches, viz.: Catholic, Methodist, Lutheran, and Reform. Its industries comprise saw and grist mills. The school is found there also.

PERSONAL HISTORY.

Following are the biographical sketches of many of the most prominent citizens of the township:

Patrick B. Flaherty

Henry Meyer

Charles Rose

Henry C. Schnoor