Volume 42, number 3
November 2020
Grand River Times The Newsletter of the Grand Rapids Historical Society
Inside this issue:
A Journey from Plaster to Community: The Story of the GUB
(Galewood-Urbandale-Burlingame) Cover Story: November Program Letter from our President page 2 Leitelt Family, Part 3 of 4 page 4
Happening in History page 6 Photo Sleuth page 7
Search: Grand Rapids Historical Society
PRESENTED BY: David Britten Meeting via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/registertZMsdugrTgrE90gIIRym7bBHNWQuMhAdOZF
Thursday, November 12, 2020, 7:00 p.m. It was 1841, nearly eight years following the opening of Town 6 North 12 West to government land sales, that West Michigan’s first plaster quarry opened for business. With a mill located on what would become the Grandville Road at the junction of Plaster Creek, it set in motion the long but steady growth of north Wyoming. Cattle, dairy, garden farming, and the plaster industry were the primary occupations during the 1800s, but with the coming of the electric interurban trains (1901 and 1915), Leonard Refrigerator (1908), and a corridor of furniture and other factories along Godfrey and Grandville Avenues, the “GUB” (Galewood, Urbandale, and Burlingame) exploded, attracting primarily large Dutch and Catholic families which led to the growth of churches, public and private schools, and two viable commercial districts. Seeing this growth potential, land owners and developers began filing the first neighborhood plats in 1889 with more than ninety percent of the GUB platted by the end of the 1920s. The period of the largest population, commercial and industrial growth would last from that decade through the next thirty or more years. Continued on page 3
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY Dear GRHS Members,
Fifty-two years ago this December my fiancé at the time started a new job at Diesel Equipment Division of General Motors. For over three decades he worked there in a variety of jobs, retiring as an industrial electrician. What this means is that for years he drove through the neighborhood that is the topic of our November program. For a while he even rode his bike from our Grand Rapids west side neighborhood to and from work. One gets a different perspective when The Grand River Times is the you go across town on city streets rather than flying by on the freeway. newsletter of the Grand Rapids It wasn’t just the area where he worked. We bought our first bedroom Historical Society, published six times annually. Established in 1894, set from Galewood Home Furnishings. I shopped at Rose’s Shoes a few times. the Grand Rapids Historical Society Koeze’s was a favorite stop. Dutch almond pastry banket was bought next to the is dedicated to exploring the history plant at a small bakery. It was a treat at the holidays. Although we never lived of West Michigan; to discover its in the neighborhood, a lot of time was spent there. This is going to be a night of romance and tragedy, its heroes memories. Please join us and take a trip to the southwest side of town. and scoundrels, its leaders and its ordinary citizens. The Society This photograph is from a time before my husband worked at Diesel, it collects and preserves our heritage, is of the north entrance, the hourly passing it on to new generations employees’ entrance. The men’s through books, lectures, and locker room was to the left and the education projects. women’s locker room was straight ahead. The guard shack was on the Executive Committee: right. This photo is from the Gina Bivins, president Patrick Runchey collection at Matthew Daley, vice-president www.grpmcollections.org John Gelderloos, treasurer accession number 2015.38.5.25. Nan Schichtel, secretary I enjoyed the October presentation and you can too, even Board members: if you missed it live. Go on You Charles Bocskey Tube and type in Grand Rapids Thomas Dilley Historical Society. The program presented by Ruth Stevens “Women Should Be Seen and Heard: Matthew Ellis Grand Rapids and the Fight for the Vote” has been Chris Kaupa uploaded and you can watch it at your own leisure. Gordon Olson, emeritus Wilhelm Seeger, emeritus Jeff Sytsma Julie Tabberer Jim Winslow Kurt Yost Jessica Riley, editor Grand Rapids Historical Society c/o Grand Rapids Public Library 111 Library St. NE Grand Rapids, MI 49503 Website: www.grhistory.org Email: grhs.local@gmail.com Grand River Times
About the Grand Rapids Historical Society. The Grand Rapids Historical Society sponsors eight programs each year, beginning in September and running through May, including lectures, audio/video presentations, demonstrations, collections, or special tours. Membership. Membership is open to all interested persons with annual dues of $30 per family, $20 for seniors and students, or $400 for a lifetime membership. The membership year runs from May to the following May. Members of the Grand Rapids Historical Society receive eight newsletters each year. Members also receive a 20% discount on books published by the society as well as books published by the Grand Rapids Historical Commission. Change of Address. If you will be permanently or temporarily moving to a new address, please notify GRHS before your change occurs. Let us know your new address and the date you plan to leave and plan to return. Email to grhs.local@gmail.com, or mail to Grand Rapids Historical Society, c/o Grand Rapids Public Library, 111 Library Street NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 2
GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY Continued from front page The GUB, which today is defined primarily within the boundaries of the Godfrey-Lee Public School system lying along Burton Street, Godfrey Avenue, Chicago Drive and Burlingame Avenue, was Wyoming’s “first downtown” especially when you exclude the Village of Grandville that was charting its own political course. Besides containing Grand Rapids’ main highway to Grandville, Hudsonville, Zeeland, Holland and eventually Chicago, it boasted the largest refrigerator manufacturing plant in the world, the Pere Marquette Railroad’s Wyoming Yard, and a large number of substantial industries in or nearby this suburban community. Developers and realtors advertised the attractiveness of living in the suburbs while having easy access by walking or riding the interurban to work. The electric interurban trains began in 1901 with the Grand Rapids, Holland & Chicago line coming down Grandville Avenue, crossing Plaster Creek, and travelling along a line that today marks the Lee Street boulevard. This first line made it easy and inexpensive for those living in the GUB to travel into the city to work, shop or sell their wares. It naturally attracted more working families. Fifteen years later, the Kalamazoo line began with both railroads meeting at a new depot where today’s Chicago Drive and Lee Street meet. While the trains would last only another 10-12 years, they served as a catalyst for the growth the Galewood-Urbandale-Burlingame community. It wasn’t long before commercial growth took off. Beginning with Harry Groendyk’s grocery near the corner of Godfrey and Burton, a number of neighborhood grocery and meat stores, dry goods stores, furniture stores, and eventually automobile dealers, filling stations and repair shops popped up. Others included bakeries, dairies, a movie theater, hardware stores, shoe stores, dry cleaning establishments, a bank, jewelry, barber shops and several drug stores. Outside of the City of Grand Rapids, the first bowling alley opened in the 1920s and the first tavern at Tubbs Corner dates back to the 1890s. Besides Tubbs and Groendyk, other names of the pioneer business leaders included Mulvihill, Neuman, Huizen,Pfeffer, Greenwald, Burkhead, Rose, Kimble, Dykstra, Waalkes, Nagel, DeWitt, Clock, Steenstra, Schmitt, Koeze and many others. Tensions arose between the GUB and its neighboring bigger brother Grand Rapids, beginning with the first successful annexations of Wyoming Township territory in 1891 and 1916, flaring up periodically through 1961 with failed attempts to grab even more. As a result, some citizen groups in the GUB made a couple of attempts to split off from Wyoming Township organized as a fourth class city in its own right. Battles over water, sewer, and fire protection added to the smoldering conflict. The GUB served as the first “seat of government” for the township throughout the 1930s and 40s. Often mentioned as “an urban-suburban neighborhood with a small-town attitude,” the history of Galewood-Urbandale-Burlingame is one that historically is rich in pride, loyalty, and changing culture. It’s an interesting story of how communities on the urban fringe get started, grow up, suffer setbacks, and attempt to rebuild themselves over time. About the presenter: David Britten is a retired U.S. Army officer with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel of Infantry. Upon his retirement, he was appointed principal of Wayland’s Steeby and Pine Street Elementary Schools. In 2002, he left Wayland and took on the role of principal at Lee Middle & High School, in the community he grew up in during the 1960s. He later was appointed superintendent of Godfrey-Lee Public Schools, retiring in 2017 following nine years in that position. An avid local history researcher, he published the book Courage without Fear: The Story of the Grand Rapids Guard in 2004, a 150-year history of the area’s national guard in war and peace. He is currently working on a second publication centered on the topic he’ll explain at the presentation. Grand River Times
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Little Bohemia: The Leitelt Family, Part 3 (of 4) By: Nan Schichtel—GRHS Trustee This is the third article in an occasional series by Nan Schichtel, entitled, Little Bohemia: From Kratzau to Grand Rapids, Michigan
Adolph Leitelt We left off with Adolph Leitelt, the most well known of the Leitelt brothers who started A. Leitelt & Bros. Blacksmith & Machine Shop, an iron foundry and blacksmith shop with his brother Franz and brother-in-law, Eduard Ansorge, Jr.,….. Charles Belknap, an early Grand Rapids historian, recounted his memories of Adolph Leitelt in “Mr. Leitelt and the Telephone.” “One day in the late fifties I wandered into the forge of the McCray Bros. machine shop, then on the bank of the east channel of the river below the Eagle hotel. The two young Leitelt brothers were forging a heavy piece of iron, such as only strong men could handle. It was not the hot metal that attracted me, for I was familiar with forgings from my first days. It was the two brothers. I doubt if there were two other men in the town of such fine and powerful physique. Adolph guided the blows, his brother behind the anvil swinging the sledge. It was toward night and the heated metal and the glow of the charcoal fires lighted the building, casting deep shadows all about. I had been reading the tales of Vulcan, G " od of Fire,"which my mother termed mythical, but here was Vulcan in action; bared chest and arms, muscled and coated with hair, giants midst the flakes of fire. When the heat worked off the forging was returned to the fire, more coal heaped on and with man at the bellows the anvil was soon ringing to the blows. Many passers dropped in, for the scene charmed men as well as boys. It was thus Big Adolph Leitelt came into my life and for many years was associated in my mind with the forge, though he served in many capacities. In 1870 he was a city councilman and chairman of the fire department committee. I was the foreman of the very busy No. 3 company, for this was just about the time of lumber yards, sawmills, and stove-heated dry kilns, and the town fairly oozed with pitch, pine, shavings and sawdust. The possibilities of the telephone were just coming to light -a few believed but nearly every one scoffed and ridiculed the idea of talking by wire. William Hovey and his able assistant, Mr. Apted, were heads of the Grand Rapids Plaster Co. Mr. Hovey's office on Monroe-av. and Mr. Apted's at the mills three miles away were the first places connected by wire. This was an experiment and was made largely with a view of securing quick fire service. I was eagerly watching the venture. One day Mr. Hovey sent his buggy for me and on the way picked up Mr. Leitelt. We entered the office to find several other men there. Mr. Hovey said to the alderman: A " pted at the mills wishes to talk with you."He placed the receiver to Mr. Leitelt's ear and told him to speak up loud. Leitelt's voice was in proportion to his body and when he spoke everything in the office vibrated. Mr. Apted replied with a joke that caused a roar of laughter. Mr. Leitelt dropped the receiver, going out into the hallway. It was empty, so he explored the coatroom and every place where a man might be concealed, all the time getting more impatient until at last he turned on Hovey with a roar that was far from a song of peace and returned to his own office in full belief that he was being made the victim of a farce. The evening after, Mr. Apted cornered Mr. Leitelt in Leppig's coffee house in the Arcade. Leppig's coffee was the best ever and gave men confidence to meet the whirl of new events. Mr. Leitelt thereafter became a power in the common council for the fire department. His assistance was certainly needed for insurance rates had gone sky high and much equipment was needed to keep up with the growth of the city. These primitive telephones were installed in some of the engine houses, as was also the fire alarm box system.
Continued on page 5 Grand River Times
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY Continued from page 4 The number of persons who took stock in the innovations was limited, but nevertheless it was the initial step toward our present fine system. About the time these improvements were being made Gen. I. C. Smith was appointed chief of the department and I was advanced to the position of assistant chief. Fire department days did not close my association with Mr. Leitelt. In 1884 we were the targets for the public to shoot at —the victim to fill the office of mayor at one dollar per annum. I beat him to it, for size was of no advantage when it was running that won. But after all the years Mr. Leitelt comes more often to memory with the glow of the forge, the ring of the anvil, the swing of the sledge. I am convinced boyhood memories are the more lasting.” (Belknap, Charles Eugene. The Yesterdays of Grand Rapids. Grand Rapids: The Dean-Hicks Company, 1922. p.34-37) The Leitelt firm succeeded in a big way, supplying and supporting both the lumber trade and the growing number of furniture factories and machine shops in Grand Rapids, and news of their company was included in many trade magazines and directories. In 1873, Adolph Leitelt provided all the steel used to build St. Mary’s Catholic church for free by Adolph Leitelt. (Geschichte Der St. Mariengemeinde in Grand Rapids, Mich., 1907, p.172.) 1884, the company lined the walls of the Kent County Jail with boiler plate after jail breaks where prisoners burrowed through the jail walls. In 1886, the company provided equipment and a new boiler for the City of Grand Rapids Water Works. In 1891, brother Eduard left the business which was renamed Adolph Leitelt Iron Works. Adolph was also active outside of his own family business. In 1887, Adolph was one of fifty prominent citizens who supported an experimental company to sink a test well, to ascertain the geologic structure under the city of Grand Rapids, and served as one of the directors of this project. In 1888, he served as VicePresident of the Kusterer Brewing Company. In 1889-1891, Adolph served as a Director for the Phoenix Furniture Company, and in 1889 was elected President of the Grand Rapids Michigan Fuel Gas Company. (American Gas Light Journal, 1:19; #727, 13 May 1889, p.629). In 1896, Crystal Springs Water, Fuel, and Northern Ice Co. was incorporated with Adolph Leitelt Sr. & Jr. and Edward Ansorge as stockholders or trustees. (Ice and Refrigeration Illustrated, 11:2, August 1896. p.105) Adolph also was a public servant, serving in 1888, 1891-1893 on the Board of Police & Fire Commissioners; in 1891-1892 on the Property Committee; and in 1892 on the Finance Committee. “One of the oldest, as it is among the largest, iron foundries in the state is the Adolph Leitelt Iron Works, corner Erie and Mill streets, Grand Rapids. Founded in 1862, during the storm and stress of the Civil War, the company, with each passing decade, has steadily grown, adding building after building to its plant, until it now ranks among the most prosperous concerns of its kind in Michigan. The company’s plant consists of a group of modern factory buildings, including among its departments, machine, blacksmith, boiler and pattern shops, iron and brass foundries, and structural iron works, with a total of 65,600 square feet of floor space. About 150 men are employed. The leaders of the Leitelt line are steam engines, boiler and mill and machine shop tools. Special attention is paid to the lumber trade, the company manufacturing the Nichols lumber dryer, which re-dries any air-dried inch lumber, with the exception of oak and hickory, in twenty-four hours without injury, the Adolph Leitelt, Jr.; Adolph Leitelt lumber remaining perfectly straight and flat, thus saving from ten to twenty per cent Iron Works. Newspaper in material. These dryers, which are made in any desired size, have proven Cartoonists' Association of satisfactory and efficacious and are to be found in lumber yards all over the United Michigan. A Gallery of Pen Sketches in Black and White of States. The Leitelt Iron Works produce many essentials of a modern factory, Our Michigan Friends "as We including Leslie's improved veneer cuter, live and exhaust steam hot blast apparatus See 'em," Michigan: W. Graham for heating factories, dry kilns, iron pipe and fittings, valves, and a general line of Printing Co. 1905 p.435. light and heavy iron and brass castings for all purposes, and, in addition to these lines of work, does a general machine shop business. Continued on page 6 Grand River Times
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HAPPENING IN HISTORY: NOVEMBER 2020 Western Michigan Genealogical Society Saturday, November 7, 2020, 1:30 p.m. Main Library—Ryerson Auditorium 111 Library St. NE ***Virtual presentation via Zoom Webinar*** ***Check www.wmgs.org for Zoom link*** Topic: The Cultural Phenomenon of Home DNA Testing Presenter: Libby Copeland The presentation will explore the extraordinary cultural phenomenon of home DNA testing, which is redefining family history. It will draw on Libby Copeland’s years of research for her new book The Lost Family: How DNA Testing is Upending Who We Are (Abrams, 2020), which The Wall Street Journal calls “a fascinating account of lives dramatically affected by genetic sleuthing.” With more than 35 million people having been tested, a tipping point has been reached. Virtually all Americans are affected whether they have been tested or not, and millions have been impacted by significant revelations in their immediate families. West Michigan PostcardClub . Faith United Methodist Church 2600 7th St. NW ALL PROGRAMS CANCELLED FOR THE FALL Grand Rapids Civil War Round Table De Witt Student Center Kuyper College 3333 East Beltline NE ALL PROGRAMS CANCELLED FOR THE FALL Grand River Times
Continued from page 5 In elevators, the Adolph Leitelt Iron Works is one of the leaders in the country. Power freight elevators, hydraulic sidewalk lifts, automatic elevator gates and elevator lifts are manufactured. A full line of cables and supplies is always carried in stock. As is the case with many other of Michigan's industrial successes, the history of the Leitelt Iron Works is one of slow but steady growth. When, fifty-two years ago, Adolph Leitelt moved into a small building and commenced the production of the steam engines which were the foundation upon which the company built, it is hardly to be surmised that he could foresee the marvelous development and expansion which was to characterize the business half a century later. Though Mr. Leitelt employed but six men at the start, his experience gained as a journeyman locksmith and machinist, and later as a foreman in the same line, well fitted him to undertake the new enterprise. His reputation as a thorough and careful workman was well known, and before long Mr. Leitelt had all the business which his small plant could handle. In 1868 Adolph Leitelt opened a boiler shop, the first one of any size in Grand Rapids. The rapid growth of the company, which up to this time had been known as the Valley City Iron Works, was temporarily checked in 1872 by the destruction of the foundry and machine shop by fire. But Mr. Leitelt's courage and determination rose superior to any adversity, and in a short time the plant was rebuilt on a larger scale. The founder of the company successfully managed its affairs until his death in March, 1897. After the demise of Mr. Leitelt, the affairs of the company passed into the hands of his son, Adolph Leitelt, Jr., who occupied the position until his death in 1906, when the management devolved upon Edward Ansorge, secretary and treasurer. Mr. Ansorge was succeeded by Julius LaBonte, who, in addition to being secretary and treasurer, is general manager and has complete charge of the company's affairs. The position which the Leitelt Iron Works now occupies in its field is in large extent due to the ability and energy displayed by Mr. LaBonte since he assumed charge of the management. Production has been increased, and new ginger injected into the sales force. By his own example of undeviating attention to the company's affairs, Julius LaBonte has imbued each employee with his own enthusiasm, with the result that the Adolph Leitelt Iron Works in every department is a fine example of industrial efficiency. It is in the forefront among the big plants which have made Grand Rapids one of the centers of American manufacturing.” (Michigan Manufacturer & Financial Record, 13: 25 Apr 1914.)
To be continued in a later issue…... 6
GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY JOIN THE GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY OR GIVE A MEMBERSHIP AS A GIFT The Grand Rapids Historical Society sponsors eight lectures each year. Members of the society enjoy these benefits:
The Grand River Times is the newsletter of the Grand Rapids Historical Society. Published and mailed to members eight times a year, it includes current items of historical interest, details of upcoming lectures, historically relevant activities, and short articles.
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY PHOTO SLEUTH Our November Photo Sleuth selection comes from the Robinson Photo Studio Collection. Four smiling children participate in the Bike Safety Parade which ran from Monroe Ave. to John Ball Park, where bike races took place. This picture was taken on September 6, 1939. If anyone in this picture looks familiar please email the Grand Rapids Historical Society at grhs.local@gmail.com
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Grand Rapids Historical Society, Inc. c/o Grand Rapids Public Library 111 Library St. NE Grand Rapids, MI 49503
GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY
A Journey from Plaster to Community: The Story of the GUB
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Inside this issue:
(Galewood-Urbandale-Burlingame) PRESENTED BY: David Britten
Cover Story: November Program
Meeting via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/registertZMsdugrTgrE90gIIRym7bBHNWQuMhAdOZF
Letter from our President page 2
Thursday, November 12, 2020, 7:00 p.m.
Leitelt Family, Part 3 of 4 page 4 Happening in History page 6 Photo Sleuth page 7
For more information on Historical Society programs, please visit www.grhistory.org Grand River Times
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