NORTHVILLIANS,
Over the past few weeks, we have spoken about summer happenings in town (both past & present). This week we transition to the 2023-24 school year as we get ready for fall. With that, I’ve chosen to highlight my alma mater (NHS) and the various elementary and middle schools I’ve been associated with over the years. Additionally, the Northville High School football team is gearing up to play their first game of the season at the Big House (University of Michigan Stadium) – Friday night, 7:00 pm, against Clarkston.
The City and the Township have a special bond with the School district. In fact, we are one of the few municipal areas in the State that present our “State of the Community” together as one Northville TEAM (Superintendent Dr. RJ Weber, Supervisor Mark Abbo and myself).
Last year, Northville Schools were ranked 1st out of 618 in the state. Today, we continue to be highly ranked, claiming the top SAT scores in the State of Michigan and also ranked as Best Place to Work.
Before looking into Northville School History, let's look at what's going on in town:
- Mill Race Historical Village Sundays - Through summer on most Sundays, 1-4 PM. Docents in Mill Race buildings share Northville’s history.
- 8/25 - Northville High School Football game (7:00 PM) @ THE BIG HOUSE in Ann Arbor, vs. Clarkston.
- 9/7 @ 7 PM – Northville Community Support Fund (NCSF) Fundraiser - NCSF will showcase some exciting, planned initiatives in our community. This will be the first major event at NOMI’s, Northville’s New Speakeasy next to the Sports Den.
- 9/13 – Northville Old Timers Lunch & History presentation (ALL INVITED) along with the Senior of the Year announcement (11:00 AM Arrival, 11:30 lunch, at Genitti’s - 108 E. Main St.). Pay at door ($15) or over the phone (248 349 0522). Link
- 9/20 – Northville District Library Victorian Festival History Seminar (7:00 PM). Mayor will touch on Northville’s Victorian history and have an open Q & A. Link
- 9/22 – Victorian Festival in Northville with weekend events – Link
- Oakland County Times video interview with the Mayor, talking about Northville – Link
Take advantage of MUSIC IN TOWN before the summer is over.
- The Northville Winery (630 Baseline Rd). Link
- Great White Buffalo Brewing Company downtown @ (101 W. Main St) Link
- North Center Brewery (410 N. Center St.) Link
- Summer Concerts, Friday & Saturday at 7:00 PM – Downtown. Come these last weekends of summer & enjoy the music in town. Link
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Now let's transition to School activities through time...
1826 – The first schoolhouse in the Northville area was built out of logs, located east of downtown. It wasn’t uncommon for students to see wolves on their way to school.
1829 – Two other district schoolhouses were built in Northville, and thus the Northville District began, with Griswold School and Taft School opening their doors.
1833 – The first school board was elected, including Messrs. Cady, Dunlap, and Mead (of Meads Mill). The group decided to erect a schoolhouse built of cobblestone for 100 students, which remained until 1923 (by CVS/The Exchange area).
1865 – A two-story brick building close to where Old Village School sits today was built for $11,000. The structure was known as the Union School and became the High School.
School Names – Through the years, many of the schools were named after early educators such as Ida B. Cooke and superintendent Russell Amerman. Later on, schools were named after unique natural geography or activities in the vicinity, like Mead's Mill, Thornton’s Creek, Moraine, Silver Springs, etc.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
Amerman was built in 1955 as a modern 10-room schoolhouse on 10 acres. The school commemorates the name of Russell Amerman, a past Principal & Superintendent.
Moraine was built in 1966 and was named after a geological formation (a collection of earth, stone & sand) deposited by glaciers.
Silver Springs was built in 1975 and named for the famous bubbling Silver Springs which historically fed our Northville Well. (Silver Springs Lake is the only natural lake in the County).
Winchester was named in 1975 for one of the primary avenues within Northville Commons, keeping the Northville frontier theme.
Ridgewood was built in 2002 and was named in a contest for its regional geological significance. With its woods around this ridge of Northville, the name is perfect.
Thornton Creek (circa 1991) was on property through which the Thornton Creek ran. Sally Thornton was an early pioneer in the Northville area.
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
Meads Mill was built in 1975 where the Mead brothers had a mill in the 1800’s. The Meads Mill community was as large as Northville at one time, and the mill workers sent their children to a one-room schoolhouse which sat at the entrance of where the school is today.
Hillside (previous site of Northville High School) is one of highest points in the county. In the 1800’s, this area was known as Buchner Hill because of the Buchner Family mansion located on top of this ridge. One could view Detroit to the east and Ann Arbor to the west. To the north, was Taft’s gravel pit and at the time, 8 Mile Road didn’t cut through the property (with its athletic fields) until it was developed in the late 1950’s. Notably, the football field is sculpted into the side of the gravel pit in an amphitheater setting.
HIGH SCHOOL
NHS was built in 2001 on some of our original settlers’ farm property dating back 200 years.
OTHER SCHOOLS
OVS (Old Village School on Main St.) was the historic high school of multi-generations until 1959, when it transitioned to being the 6th Grade Annex. After that, it housed special education activities. Now it’s the home of the Board of Education. In the 60’s, Bob Seger even played concerts at the “Cavern” in the lower level of the school and the community center next door.
Cooke School was named in honor of Ida B. Cooke who grew up and taught many years in Northville. Cooke School was the first & only Junior High in town when it was built in 1967 (I attended its ribbon cutting). Cooke is now a special education center of excellence.
St. Paul Lutheran School was founded in 1896 and began a Christian Day School program. The present school facility contains ten classrooms from pre-school through 8th grade.
Northville Christian School & Montessori Schools have also provided educational opportunities for students in the community for decades.
Our Lady of Victory – The OLV school was established in the parish building in 1950 and transitioned in 1952 to the original 8-room school building. My eldest brother (Bob) was part of the first 8th grade class of 1959 (of whom all 13 attended the full eight years). The current facility opened in 2006 with nineteen classrooms.
I hope you can see how important our schools are to the fabric of our community. We are so fortunate that our civic leadership and the School District work together for the benefit of our youth and their continuing education. With school soon back in session, we can all be reminded that the greatest asset we have is our people, especially our children who begin yet another new school year. Let’s stay connected to our youth and support their dreams. I ask you to spread hope and to be there for our next generation, the future leaders of our community and country.
Keep that Northville School Faith!
Brian Turnbull
Mayor – Northville
[email protected] / 248.505.6849
(Reach out to me anytime or forward this communication to others interested.)
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https://mailchi.mp/5a31f2ec1a6e/turnbullformayor
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