A History of Van Buren County, Michigan a Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its People, and Its Principal Interests

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More than eighty years have elapsed since the first settlements were made within the limits of Van Buren county. None of those earliest pioneers are left to tell the story, which at this late day rests in tradition, in letters that chance to have been preserved, in ancient public documents that have been placed on the records of the county, and in former publications that have been issued. And while many facts set forth are within the personal knowledge of the author of this “History of Van Buren County/7 he has drawn liberally from all available and authentic sources. He has freely used the information contained in a history of the county published a generation ago, has corresponded with and interviewed many of his friends and older residents of the county in various localities, and has endeavored in all practicable ways to gather the most authentic matters in reference to the county of which he has been a resident for the past fifty-five years. His familiarity with the public records of the county enabled him to obtain many facts pertaining especially to the earliest records of the county that he might not otherwise have been able to set forth.

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