Dublin Core
Title
Finding Aid of Peninsula Township Government History records, 2020
Subject
Traverse City (Mich.)
Description
Finding aid of the Peninsula Township Government History records collection. Collection is part of the holdings of the Peninsula Community Library. Collection was processed and finding aid published in 2020.
Creator
Barritt, Amy; Morgan, Mary 1984-
Source
Local History Collections, Peninsula Community Library, Traverse City (Mich.)
Publisher
Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City (Mich.)
Date
2020
Contributor
Peninsula Community Library staff
Rights
This document is protected by copyright law. Contact the Peninsula Community Library for permission to reproduce, display or transmit this document.
Relation
Peninsula Township Government History records
Format
PDF
Language
English
Type
Text
Identifier
LHC005pcl-findingaid.pdf
Coverage
Peninsula Township, Grand Traverse County, Michigan
PDF Text
Text
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 1
LOCAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS
PENINSULA COMMUNITY LIBRARY
2893 Island View Road Traverse City, MI 49686
Creator: Peninsula Township residents and elected officers
Title: Peninsula Township Government History records
Inclusive dates: 1853-2013
Bulk dates: 1853-1945
Extent: 5 linear feet, 6 oversize folders
Call number: LHC 005 Pcl
Language: Material is in English
Acquisition: Anonymous donation.
Accruals: Periodic additions to the collection are expected.
Access: The collection is open without restriction.
Photographs: Oversize Folder 5.
A-V Material: Box 1
Digital Material: None.
Copyright: Copyright is held by the Peninsula Community Library.
Processed By: Amy Barritt, 2013, 2014, 2017, Mary Morgan, 2020
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 2
Abstract
The Peninsula Township Government History records include records created by the Township government in the process of carrying out the functions of a township, as well as records associated with maintaining the rural, farming and architectural character of the Peninsula. Series in the collection are: Directories, Periodicals, Photographs, Published Works, Reports, Township Records, and Maps.
History
In 1839, the Reverend Peter Dougherty was sent to the Grand Traverse Region, by the Presbyterian Board of Missions, to establish a church and school for the Native Americans who inhabited the area. In conjunction with Chief Ahgosa of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, the mission was established in the area of what is the present day site of Old Mission, Michigan, located on a peninsula 18 miles north of Traverse City. The Mission was supported by the United States pursuant to the Treaty of 1836. The tribe held no legal title to the land. The revised State constitution of 1850 granted citizenship to Indians who had been civilized, allowing them to purchase land from the government. Since the Old Mission land was not on the market for settlement, they purchased land in Omena and moved there in 1852.
As word spread of the excellent growing conditions in the area, white settlers moved to the area. On April 4, 1853, Peninsula Township was organized by a vote of 33 residents. The following positions were voted in: Supervisor, Town Clerk, Town Treasurer, School Inspector, Highway Commissioner, Justice of the Peace, and Constable. By 1860, according to the census, there were a total of 421 men, women and children. The chief profession was listed as “farmer”. Over time, the area became famous for its fruit orchards, especially cherries and apples. In the late 1800’s, inns and resort associations started to appear that catered to summer visitors. The township hall was built in 1876.
As residential development continued, in 1994 the Peninsula townships voters approved a tax of 1.25 mills for 15 years to fund the first Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) program. This program would provide farmers and owners of scenic land with cash that would allow them to continue to use their properties in a way that protects the Peninsula’s rural character. A renewal and increase of the PDR millage (2 mills for 20 years) took place in in 2002.
Although the center of commerce has shifted to Traverse City at the base of the Peninsula, the area continues to be a tourist destination for its beautiful landscape and farms. Wineries, cherry orchards and other agricultural ventures continue to be essential for sustaining and growing the community.
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 3
Scope and Content Note
Directories is an incomplete collection of directories that includes information on residents and businesses of Old Mission Peninsula. For a more complete collection, visit the Traverse Area District Library, Main Library.
Periodicals is a scattered collection of periodicals that mention some aspect of Old Mission Peninsula life and Grand Traverse County. Most of these have been collected by the Peninsula Community Library staff, and are locally published.
Photographs include a small collection of largely unidentified and undated images.
Published Works include written accounts by Old Mission Peninsula residents about their lives on the Peninsula. Various authors, dates and subjects are represented.
Reports include primarily unpublished reports on various topics related to Old Mission Parks and Land Management
Township Records includes various records created by the Township government in the process of carrying out the functions of a township as specified by the Legislature of the State of Michigan. Records include the reports of various committees of the Township, i.e., the Township Board and the Highway Commission, as well as financial information relevant to these committees.
The Peninsula Township Register of Voters ledgers, spanning the years 1919-1946, contain information on individual voters in Peninsula Township, Grand Traverse County, Michigan. The ledgers contain the following information: first and last name of voter, current address, date of registration and a tally of the number of elections in which the individual voted. Also includes amendments to personal information, i.e., surname changes, event of death, removal from the voting district. Some registers contain additional information about voters, including birthplace, date of naturalization and race. Of special note, the records include the first register of women voters after the passing of the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution. The Party Enrollment ledger lists male voters in the Township and their political party affiliation, 1906-1910. In addition to given and surname name, current address, birthplace, age and race were also recorded.
The Peninsula Township Journals begin with an entry describing the Township’s organization on 4 April 1853. They contain minutes from the Annual Township Meetings and meetings of the Township Board, as well as brief reports made to the Board by the
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 4
Highway Commission and the Board of School Inspectors. Additional committees may also be represented. Financial records are included within these reports as well, issued by the Treasurer of the Township. All entries in the journals are recorded by the Township Clerk. Details of elections and appointments to various committees are also recorded in the journals.
Maps includes items retained by the Peninsula Community Library for their historical value, focusing on the businesses, farm lands and township cemeteries of Peninsula Township. Also contains survey maps of Old Mission Peninsula, handwritten from the late 1880s.
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 5
Container No. Description
Directories [series]:
Box 1 Miscellaneous (Note: Traverse City Telephone Directory, Michigan Bell
Telephone Company, July 1940; Robinson’s Farmers Directory (Photocopy), Grand Traverse Area 4-H, 1968; Old Mission Exchange, Peninsula Telephone Company, 2008)
Periodicals [series]:
Box 1 Newspaper clippings, undated
Box 1 “One More Harvest,” Detroit Free Press Magazine, 14 October 1990
Box 1 “Pyatt Lake Purchase Underway,” Landscript, Grand Traverse Regional
Land Conservancy, Summer 1992
Box 1 “Forging New Protections: Purchasing Development Rights to Save
Farmland, how Peninsula Township, Michigan, Designed and Built Support for Farmland Protection,” American Farmland Trust, 1996
Box 1 “Fighting for Our Future: Why There’s Hope on Old Mission”, Traverse:
Northern Michigan’s Magazine, September 1997
Box 1 “With These Hands: lives that shape the land”, containing histories of
Ocanas, Seibold and Island View Farms of Old Mission Peninsula, published by the Grand Traverse Land Conservancy, 2000 (pamphlet and video cassette tape)
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 11 April 1913
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 17 June 1929 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 19 July 1929
Folder 1
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 6
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 23 July 1929 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 1 August 1929 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 22 April 1935 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 1 June 1935 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 5 June 1935 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, May 1947 (centennial anniversary souvenir
Folder 2 edition)
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 20 February 1962
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 22 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 23 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 25 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 26 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 28 March 1969
Folder 3
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 12 July 1975
Folder 3
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 7
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 31 August 1976
Folder 3
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle Summer Magazine Supplement,
Folder 3 21 June 1985
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle Summer Magazine Supplement, 5 June 1987
Folder 3
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle Summer Magazine Supplement,
Folder 3 17 June 1988
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 31 December 1999
Folder 4
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 1 January 2000
Folder 4
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 2 January 2000
Folder 4
Oversize Old Mission Peninsula News & Views, Winter 1997
Folder 4
Photographs [series]:
Oversize Aerial view of Old Mission Peninsula farm, undated
Folder 5
Published Works [series]:
Box 1 Architecture and Site Design Guidelines for the Old Mission Peninsula,
by Joanne M. Westphal. Michigan State University, Board of Regents; December 1997. Report is a set of guidelines developed for possible adoption by the Planning and Zoning Commission, Peninsula Township, Grand Traverse County, Michigan. Contains many photographs and useful descriptions of properties and their uses, both current and historical.
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 8
Reports [series]:
Box 1 Reimaging Social Spaces, by Dana Brown, for the Old Mission Peninsula
Township Park Commission and Land Management, Sept. 2013
Township Records [series]:
Box 1 Record of Books Received and Delivered, 1890-1907
Box 2 Party Enrollment, 1908
Box 2 Register of Women Voters, 1919-1928
Box 2 Register of Men and Women Electors, 1919-1932
Box 3 Register of Men and Women Electors, 1936-1940
Box 3 Register of Men and Women Electors, 1941-1946
Box 4 Treasurer’s Records, 10 April 1903-1921
Box 4 Township Apportionment, 1893-1903
Box 4 Township Apportionment, 1903-1917
Box 5 Health Officer’s Record of Dangerous Diseases, 1906-1939
Box 5 Clerk’s Account Book, 1922-1925
Box 5 Kennedy, Salem F. Kennedy’s Standard Tax Tables, 1913
Box 6 Peninsula Township Record vol. 1, 4 April 1853- 7 October 1865
Box 6 Peninsula Township Record vol. 2, 12 December 1865-
26 September 1891
Box 6 Peninsula Township Record vol. 3, 21 October 1891- 3 April 1907
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 9
Transcribed Records of the Township of Peninsula [subseries]:
Volume 1 1853-1891
Volume 2 1891-1945
Maps [series}:
Oversize “Old Mission Peninsula Map”, Bergmann Originals, undated, (11x17”)
Folder 5
Oversize “Important Farmlands, Grand Traverse County, Michigan”,
Folder 5 U.S. Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service, June
1977, (80x96”)
Oversize Survey maps of Peninsula Township, ca. 1885-1887 , by surveyor E.A.
Folder 6 by surveyor E.A. Stevens, to the Board of Trustees of Peninsula
Township and William L. Ayers, Highway Commissioner (handwritten; 5 maps and two, one-page notes)
Oversize “The Old Mission Story with Map,” Julianne E. Meyer, 1993,
Folder 7 (11x17”, 3 copies)
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 1
LOCAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS
PENINSULA COMMUNITY LIBRARY
2893 Island View Road Traverse City, MI 49686
Creator: Peninsula Township residents and elected officers
Title: Peninsula Township Government History records
Inclusive dates: 1853-2013
Bulk dates: 1853-1945
Extent: 5 linear feet, 6 oversize folders
Call number: LHC 005 Pcl
Language: Material is in English
Acquisition: Anonymous donation.
Accruals: Periodic additions to the collection are expected.
Access: The collection is open without restriction.
Photographs: Oversize Folder 5.
A-V Material: Box 1
Digital Material: None.
Copyright: Copyright is held by the Peninsula Community Library.
Processed By: Amy Barritt, 2013, 2014, 2017, Mary Morgan, 2020
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 2
Abstract
The Peninsula Township Government History records include records created by the Township government in the process of carrying out the functions of a township, as well as records associated with maintaining the rural, farming and architectural character of the Peninsula. Series in the collection are: Directories, Periodicals, Photographs, Published Works, Reports, Township Records, and Maps.
History
In 1839, the Reverend Peter Dougherty was sent to the Grand Traverse Region, by the Presbyterian Board of Missions, to establish a church and school for the Native Americans who inhabited the area. In conjunction with Chief Ahgosa of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, the mission was established in the area of what is the present day site of Old Mission, Michigan, located on a peninsula 18 miles north of Traverse City. The Mission was supported by the United States pursuant to the Treaty of 1836. The tribe held no legal title to the land. The revised State constitution of 1850 granted citizenship to Indians who had been civilized, allowing them to purchase land from the government. Since the Old Mission land was not on the market for settlement, they purchased land in Omena and moved there in 1852.
As word spread of the excellent growing conditions in the area, white settlers moved to the area. On April 4, 1853, Peninsula Township was organized by a vote of 33 residents. The following positions were voted in: Supervisor, Town Clerk, Town Treasurer, School Inspector, Highway Commissioner, Justice of the Peace, and Constable. By 1860, according to the census, there were a total of 421 men, women and children. The chief profession was listed as “farmer”. Over time, the area became famous for its fruit orchards, especially cherries and apples. In the late 1800’s, inns and resort associations started to appear that catered to summer visitors. The township hall was built in 1876.
As residential development continued, in 1994 the Peninsula townships voters approved a tax of 1.25 mills for 15 years to fund the first Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) program. This program would provide farmers and owners of scenic land with cash that would allow them to continue to use their properties in a way that protects the Peninsula’s rural character. A renewal and increase of the PDR millage (2 mills for 20 years) took place in in 2002.
Although the center of commerce has shifted to Traverse City at the base of the Peninsula, the area continues to be a tourist destination for its beautiful landscape and farms. Wineries, cherry orchards and other agricultural ventures continue to be essential for sustaining and growing the community.
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 3
Scope and Content Note
Directories is an incomplete collection of directories that includes information on residents and businesses of Old Mission Peninsula. For a more complete collection, visit the Traverse Area District Library, Main Library.
Periodicals is a scattered collection of periodicals that mention some aspect of Old Mission Peninsula life and Grand Traverse County. Most of these have been collected by the Peninsula Community Library staff, and are locally published.
Photographs include a small collection of largely unidentified and undated images.
Published Works include written accounts by Old Mission Peninsula residents about their lives on the Peninsula. Various authors, dates and subjects are represented.
Reports include primarily unpublished reports on various topics related to Old Mission Parks and Land Management
Township Records includes various records created by the Township government in the process of carrying out the functions of a township as specified by the Legislature of the State of Michigan. Records include the reports of various committees of the Township, i.e., the Township Board and the Highway Commission, as well as financial information relevant to these committees.
The Peninsula Township Register of Voters ledgers, spanning the years 1919-1946, contain information on individual voters in Peninsula Township, Grand Traverse County, Michigan. The ledgers contain the following information: first and last name of voter, current address, date of registration and a tally of the number of elections in which the individual voted. Also includes amendments to personal information, i.e., surname changes, event of death, removal from the voting district. Some registers contain additional information about voters, including birthplace, date of naturalization and race. Of special note, the records include the first register of women voters after the passing of the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution. The Party Enrollment ledger lists male voters in the Township and their political party affiliation, 1906-1910. In addition to given and surname name, current address, birthplace, age and race were also recorded.
The Peninsula Township Journals begin with an entry describing the Township’s organization on 4 April 1853. They contain minutes from the Annual Township Meetings and meetings of the Township Board, as well as brief reports made to the Board by the
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 4
Highway Commission and the Board of School Inspectors. Additional committees may also be represented. Financial records are included within these reports as well, issued by the Treasurer of the Township. All entries in the journals are recorded by the Township Clerk. Details of elections and appointments to various committees are also recorded in the journals.
Maps includes items retained by the Peninsula Community Library for their historical value, focusing on the businesses, farm lands and township cemeteries of Peninsula Township. Also contains survey maps of Old Mission Peninsula, handwritten from the late 1880s.
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 5
Container No. Description
Directories [series]:
Box 1 Miscellaneous (Note: Traverse City Telephone Directory, Michigan Bell
Telephone Company, July 1940; Robinson’s Farmers Directory (Photocopy), Grand Traverse Area 4-H, 1968; Old Mission Exchange, Peninsula Telephone Company, 2008)
Periodicals [series]:
Box 1 Newspaper clippings, undated
Box 1 “One More Harvest,” Detroit Free Press Magazine, 14 October 1990
Box 1 “Pyatt Lake Purchase Underway,” Landscript, Grand Traverse Regional
Land Conservancy, Summer 1992
Box 1 “Forging New Protections: Purchasing Development Rights to Save
Farmland, how Peninsula Township, Michigan, Designed and Built Support for Farmland Protection,” American Farmland Trust, 1996
Box 1 “Fighting for Our Future: Why There’s Hope on Old Mission”, Traverse:
Northern Michigan’s Magazine, September 1997
Box 1 “With These Hands: lives that shape the land”, containing histories of
Ocanas, Seibold and Island View Farms of Old Mission Peninsula, published by the Grand Traverse Land Conservancy, 2000 (pamphlet and video cassette tape)
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 11 April 1913
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 17 June 1929 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 19 July 1929
Folder 1
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 6
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 23 July 1929 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 1 August 1929 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 22 April 1935 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 1 June 1935 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 5 June 1935 (incomplete)
Folder 1
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, May 1947 (centennial anniversary souvenir
Folder 2 edition)
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 20 February 1962
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 22 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 23 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 25 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 26 November 1963
Folder 2
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 28 March 1969
Folder 3
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 12 July 1975
Folder 3
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 7
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 31 August 1976
Folder 3
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle Summer Magazine Supplement,
Folder 3 21 June 1985
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle Summer Magazine Supplement, 5 June 1987
Folder 3
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle Summer Magazine Supplement,
Folder 3 17 June 1988
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 31 December 1999
Folder 4
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 1 January 2000
Folder 4
Oversize Traverse City Record-Eagle, 2 January 2000
Folder 4
Oversize Old Mission Peninsula News & Views, Winter 1997
Folder 4
Photographs [series]:
Oversize Aerial view of Old Mission Peninsula farm, undated
Folder 5
Published Works [series]:
Box 1 Architecture and Site Design Guidelines for the Old Mission Peninsula,
by Joanne M. Westphal. Michigan State University, Board of Regents; December 1997. Report is a set of guidelines developed for possible adoption by the Planning and Zoning Commission, Peninsula Township, Grand Traverse County, Michigan. Contains many photographs and useful descriptions of properties and their uses, both current and historical.
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 8
Reports [series]:
Box 1 Reimaging Social Spaces, by Dana Brown, for the Old Mission Peninsula
Township Park Commission and Land Management, Sept. 2013
Township Records [series]:
Box 1 Record of Books Received and Delivered, 1890-1907
Box 2 Party Enrollment, 1908
Box 2 Register of Women Voters, 1919-1928
Box 2 Register of Men and Women Electors, 1919-1932
Box 3 Register of Men and Women Electors, 1936-1940
Box 3 Register of Men and Women Electors, 1941-1946
Box 4 Treasurer’s Records, 10 April 1903-1921
Box 4 Township Apportionment, 1893-1903
Box 4 Township Apportionment, 1903-1917
Box 5 Health Officer’s Record of Dangerous Diseases, 1906-1939
Box 5 Clerk’s Account Book, 1922-1925
Box 5 Kennedy, Salem F. Kennedy’s Standard Tax Tables, 1913
Box 6 Peninsula Township Record vol. 1, 4 April 1853- 7 October 1865
Box 6 Peninsula Township Record vol. 2, 12 December 1865-
26 September 1891
Box 6 Peninsula Township Record vol. 3, 21 October 1891- 3 April 1907
Peninsula Community Library
Local History Collections
Peninsula Township Government History records, 9
Transcribed Records of the Township of Peninsula [subseries]:
Volume 1 1853-1891
Volume 2 1891-1945
Maps [series}:
Oversize “Old Mission Peninsula Map”, Bergmann Originals, undated, (11x17”)
Folder 5
Oversize “Important Farmlands, Grand Traverse County, Michigan”,
Folder 5 U.S. Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service, June
1977, (80x96”)
Oversize Survey maps of Peninsula Township, ca. 1885-1887 , by surveyor E.A.
Folder 6 by surveyor E.A. Stevens, to the Board of Trustees of Peninsula
Township and William L. Ayers, Highway Commissioner (handwritten; 5 maps and two, one-page notes)
Oversize “The Old Mission Story with Map,” Julianne E. Meyer, 1993,
Folder 7 (11x17”, 3 copies)
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