 |
|
|
|
|
The first
settler in Hanover Township was Abiel Tripp, who arrived in 1832 with
a party of relatives. In 1854 Mr. George Baldwin and Mr. Charles Stone
built a grist mill and created a mill pond. A village grew up here, originally
called Baldwin's Mill, but later changed to Podunk. Eventually the village
was renamed Horton.
Location:
Horton is located in Jackson county Michigan, represented by the Red
Dot. |
 |
| Strange,
but true: |
|
|
|
| Golf |
Jackson
county has the second highest number of golf courses per capita in
the U.S. |
|
|
| Deer |
Jackson
county has the second highest deer population in the state. Almost
everyone here drives a pickup that is equipped with:
- chain
saw
- snow plow
- hunting equipment
(Well OK, Not everybody.)
We
also have cyote, wild boar (escapees from a local hunting preserve),
and wild turkies. A wonderful variety of birds, song birds, woodpeckers,
birds of prey, owls, etc. |
|
|
| Family
relations |
Everyone
is related. (Only a slight exaggeration). When we first moved here
we got the impression everybody was cousin to everyone else. I asked
one of the 80+ year old farmers why that was, and he gave an interesting
answer.
He
said , "Back in the old days when a man wanted to court a woman
he had to choose someone within 5 miles of his farm". When
I asked why 5 miles he got a wry grin on his face and replied, "Well,
by the end of a long day of work, the old horse could only go about
5 miles. So that was the limit of your courting distance". |
|
|
| Republicans |
For
better or for worse, Jackson county is also the birth place of the
Republican party. The county itself is named after Andrew Jackson. |
|
|
| Dark
skies |
My love
for astronmy was rekindled when we moved to Horton. The dark night
skies are wonderful for telescope or binoculars. I just hope development
in surround areas do not eventually destroy a great natural resource. |
| |
|
| Reed
organs |
Hanover-Horton
Historical Society maintains a museum containing the largest collection
of antique reed pump organs I've ever seen. As an organist, I enjoyed
playing many of the instruments in the museum. |
| |
|
| NASCAR |
Before
moving to Horton I don't remember hearing of NASCAR (locals would
call that "social deprivation"). Jackson county is the home
of Michigan International
Speedway, a major venue in the NASCAR circuit.
The most common bumper stickers and window stickers in this area are
the NASCAR numbers of a person's favorite NASCAR driver. |
| |
|
| Civil
War Muster |
Jackson
county annually hosts one of the nation's largest Civil
War Musters. |
|
