ENCORE FIVE FAVES
Five Faves
Historian highlights couples and their community contributions by
LYNN HOUGHTON
One of the biggest challenges in
writing about five favorites of anything is that there always seem to be more than five on a list. Bringing it down to that magic number is hard, as it was for this month’s issue in choosing five couples from the past who have made significant contributions to the community (a category chosen to coincide with Valentine’s Day). There have been, and continue to be, many couples whose contributions have enriched and enhanced where we live. In the historical records there is often a wealth of information about the male member of a duo, but at times finding the same level of information about the female member presents more of a challenge and requires perseverance. After a great deal of deliberation, here are my five choices.
The Harrises Enoch Harris (1785-1870) Deborah Harris (1793-1881) Before Western Michigan University’s Parkview Campus was built on Parkview Avenue, there was a series of farms there, including one owned by Enoch and Deborah Harris, Kalamazoo County’s first African American residents. Enoch originally came to Oshtemo Township from Ohio in early 1829, planting corn and returning with his wife and growing family by the fall of the next year. Credited with planting the first apple orchard in the area, Enoch also raised wheat, corn and oats on their farm on Genesee Prairie, as the farm grew to more than 200 acres. Historical accounts credit Enoch for his hospitality, but Deborah also played a role in that, preparing whatever food was necessary to feed guests while also raising her children and working on the farm, as most farm wives did with their husbands in that era.
The Upjohns Dr. Uriah Upjohn (1808-1896) Maria Mills Upjohn (1821-1882) Before it was a pharmaceutical company, Upjohn was the surname of a family with roots in Kalamazoo County. Uriah came to the United States from England in 1828 with his brother, William, and both became doctors. Moving to Michigan by 1835, they joined many families in Richland, including the Mills family with their daughter Maria. After Uriah and Maria married in 1837, they raised 12 children while Uriah traveled on horseback for 20 years across five counties to treat patients. Education was important to both Uriah and Maria, and by 1869 eight of their sons and daughters had moved to Ann Arbor to attend school, several at the University of Michigan medical school. This couple certainly laid the foundation for their children’s successes and accomplishments. Their son William Erastus Upjohn was a medical doctor who founded the Upjohn Co. in 1886. w w w.encorekalamazoo.com | 11
