Almost two decades ago, my great-great-great-great-grandparents left New Jersey to take a chance on a wooded lot in Independence Township near what would eventually become Clarkston, MI. Their descendants worked the farm until the late 1950s. My great-grandfather's brother eventually sold the farm and the land was converted into various subdivisions.
The area where the farmhouse once stood (northwest of this marker) is now a very nice subdivision. A local group that is dedicated to making the community more walkable decided to erect a plaque honoring my family's history in the area. (Click all photos to see a larger version.)
The main body of the plaque reads:
John and Malinda Maybee started it all when they left New Jersey in 1836 to take a chance on 80 acres of wooded land in Independence Township. Their success here as settlers was due to careful planning: They brought enough money, supplies and tools to survive for two years until their farm became productive. The family farm grew to 240 acres, including Spring Lake at its south end and a separate 80-acre "woodlot" at short distance down the road to the west. Five generations of Maybees thrived here, headed by John, Jesse, John, James Russell, and Charlotte Ann. They enrished the community and farmed this land into the 1950s.
The "Charlotte Ann" mentioned was my grandmother's cousin and James Russell was her father. She was a prominent fixture in my life growing up and was my first "date" to a concert at the Pine Knob amphitheater that is located a few miles from the family farm. I think it was Paul Anka, but don't quote me on that. It could have been Neil Sedaka.
I don't think that Charlotte Ann ever "headed" the farm, but I know that she worked it with her parents. After high school she went on to get a teaching degree from Michigan State University; it was probably a college at that time. She retired from Flint Community Schools and went on to serve as a consultant for the State of Michigan inspecting various primary educational institutions.
The marker is on Maybee Road near Spring Lake. The family history is that every bull that was kept on the farm was named Sashabaw and that the nearby road was named Sashabaw due to that fact. It is entirely probable that either the bulls and/or the road were actually named for the First Nations Chief Sashabaw.
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| Malinda and John Maybee, in the 1850s. All images courtesy of the Clarkston Community Historical Society. |
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| A portion of the 1872 map of Independence Township shows the location of the Maybee property. #1 is what became Sashabaw Road. #2 is what became Maybee Road. #3 is the 160-acre Maybee farm. #4 is their 80-acre "woodlot" property. #5 is the Saginaw Turnpike that became Dixie Highway. #6 is the village of Clarkston. |
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| The Birdland subdivision along Maybee Road was built in the 1950s. It occupies the 80-acre "woodlot" property that the Maybee family maintained for wood for lumber and firewood. The Maybees' careful conservation of this woodland is indicated in the large mature oak and other trees that endure amount these homes. |
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| James Russell Maybee milking a cow, late 1940s. In 1933, he was honored by the Nation Dairy Association for his 11 cows, each producing an average of 316 pounds of butterfat for the year. |
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| Cutting ice in 1911, on Spring Lake on the south end of the Maybee far. Ice was stored for year-round use before electrical refrigeration became common. |
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| The Maybee farm in the late 1940s. At that time, under the stewardship of James Russell Maybee, the farm was focused on dairy agriculture. |
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| Nickie Vance with the plaque honoring the Maybee family farm. |
