Written by Sandy Kinter, from Waterford Genealogical Society E-Newsletter Volume 13 Number 2
The biography of Solomon C. Elwood starts the biographies from Section 18, Waterford Township. The route of the original northern section of Williams Lake Road was right up the center of the section, connecting Gale Road to Highland Road. Those of us who reside in the area are aware of the quirkiness of our Lake roads and where these roads may zigzag in their route. Such was the case with Williams Lake Road. A few years ago, Williams Lake Road between Gale and Highland Roads was moved further west in order to eliminate one of the more confusing zigzags in the area and to make a smoother flowing intersection with the southern part of Williams Lake Road.
At the same time the Oakland County International Airport extended its runways to the west. The farms that used to be on the western side of Section 18 are now bisected by the new Williams Lake Road. The western side of the road is part of the Pontiac Lake Recreation Area and the eastern side is part of the airport
George Fowler
Mary Loretta Hunt
The farm of George Fowler is located in the southwest corner of Section 18, on both sides of Highland Road (M-59). The eastern boundary of the farm was the old Williams Lake Road where it met Highland Road. A few years ago, Williams Lake Road was moved further west and the new road now crosses the Fowler farm. The east side of the new Williams Lake Road is now part of Oakland County International Airport. In the 1870 census, page 594, Township of Waterford, Oakland County, Michigan, George Fowler is reported to be 44 years old, born in New York, his wife is Mary L., age 37, born in Michigan, child Estella V, age 12, born in Michigan, and Conrad Manges, age 70, born in Pennsylvania.
George Fowler was born 12 October 1826, the son of Nathaniel Fowler and Mary Gunn. (1)(2) He married Mary Loretta Hunt, 14 December 1853, in Oakland County. (3) George died 13 December 1898, in Waterford Township, Oakland County and is buried in the Oak Hill Cemetery, Pontiac, Michigan. (1)(2) Nothing further could be found about George Fowler or his parents. George was not found in the 1850 census. His parents are named on George’s death certificate, but nothing was found to confirm their names. So far George Fowler’s family remains a mystery.
Mary Loretta Hunt was the daughter of Morgan L. Hunt and Huldah Hunter, born 3 January 1833, in Michigan. (1)(4) She died 25 November 1907, in Pontiac, Michigan. (1)(4) Mary is also buried in the Oak Hill Cemetery, Pontiac, Michigan (1)
Morgan L. Hunt, was born in 1806, in Auburn, Cayuga County, New York. (5)(6) He died 10 November 1876, in West Bloomfield Township, Oakland County. (6) Morgan is buried in the Four Towns Cemetery, Waterford. (5) The family records of The International Haskell Family Association, found on RootsWeb, state that Morgan is the son of Stephen Hunt and Mary Whitmore Shepard. Confirmation of Morgan’s parents could not be found with online research. Stephen and Mary Hunt also resided in West Bloomfield Township. They are living with their son, Hazael Hunt, 1850 census, page 116, West Bloomfield Township, Oakland County. Stephen died 3 August 1858 and is buried in the Four Towns Cemetery, Waterford. (5) The Find A Grave entry for Stephen has a picture of a newer headstone which includes, Mary, his wife, 1776-1863, and Hazael S. Hunt, 1814-1895. (5)
Stephen Hunt’s family can be traced back to a Thomas Hunt who lived in New Haven, Connecticut by 1639. The family of Mary Whitmore Shepard has been traced to Ralph Shepard who settled in Dedham, Massachusetts in 1635. (8) This family line also includes a connection to George Soule, a Mayflower passenger. (8)
The death certificate of Mrs. Loretta Fowler states that her mother was Huldy Hunter. (4) Huldah’s headstone in the Four Towns Cemetery, Waterford, just has the dates of 1816-1893. (5) Morgan L. Hunt married Huldah Hunter, 28 March 1832, in Oakland County. (3) She was the daughter of John W. Hunter and Margaret Prindle. (9)(11)
Brothers John W. and Daniel Hunter were the first settlers of Bloomfield Township. The Hunter brothers, from Auburn, New York, arrived in Detroit in March 1818. Their father, Elisha Hunter, arrived later along with the rest of the family. In 1819 the Hunter family settled in Bloomfield Township on the site of what is now Birmingham. (10) John W. Hunter’s home is still standing and is a historical landmark of Birmingham.
John West Hunter died 30 January 1880, Waterford Township, Oakland County. (12) He is buried in the Greenwood Cemetery, Birmingham. (13) John had married Margaret Prindle, daughter of Michael Prindle and Sarah Crofford. (11) Margaret was born 16 December 1795 (11) and died 27 September 1856. (13) She is also buried in the Greenwood Cemetery, Birmingham. (13) Margaret is a descendant of William Pringle/Prindle and his wife, Mary Desborough, settlers of New Haven, Connecticut about 1654. (11) After Margaret’s death John W. Hunter married secondly, Sarah Van Antwerp, 24 October 1858, in Oakland County. (3)
Sources
- Oak Hill Cemetery, Pontiac, Michigan, Find A Grave, www.findagrave.com
- Death Certificate, George Fowler, Death Records, 1897-1920, Seeking Michigan,
www.seekingmichigan.org - Michigan Marriages, 1822-1995, FamilySearch, www.familysearch.org
- Death Certificate, Mrs. Loretta Fowler, Death Records, 1897-1920, Seeking Michigan,
www.seekingmichigan.org - Four Towns Cemetery, Waterford, Michigan, Find A Grave, www.findagrave.com
- Michigan Deaths, 1867-1897, FamilySearch, www.familysearch.org
- The Settlers of the Beekman Patent, Volumes 1-8 (Dutchess Co., NY),
Frank J. Doherty, Volume 6, pages 861-900, New England Historic and Genealogical
Society, American Ancestors, www.americanancestors.org - The Shepard Families of New England, Ralph Shepard of Dedham, Volume 1,
Gerald F. Shepard, The New Haven Colony Historical Society, 1971, page 193,
FamilySearch, www.familysearch.org - History of Oakland County, Michigan, L.H. Everts & Co., Philadelphia, 1877,
page 312, Hathi Trust Digital Library, www.hathitrust.org - History of Oakland County, Michigan, Volume I, Thaddeus D. Seeley, The Lewis
Publishing Co., Chicago & New York, 1912, page 373, Ancestry, www.ancestry.com - The Prindle Genealogy, Franklin C. Prindle, The Grafton Press, New York, 1906,
page 123, Hathi Trust Digital Library, www.hathitrust.org - Michigan Death Records, 1867-1950, Registers 1867-1897,
15: Oakland-Isabella, 1880-1882, Oakland County, page 322, Ancestry,
www.ancestry.com - Greenwood Cemetery, Birmingham, Michigan, Find A Grave, www.findagrave.com