Parking Lot Construction: As part of our ongoing work to maintain and improve Central Library, the parking lot will be closed for construction from Tuesday, July 28, to Saturday, August 1. Visit the Central Library page for more details. 

Notice of Public Meeting: Kalamazoo Public Library Board of Trustees | July 27 | 5:30 pm | Central Library/Van Deusen Room. The packet of information for the meeting can be found on the library’s website. 

Local History

Biographies

Hodgman, Francis

History reminds us that it isn’t always the big and medium size cities that produce transformative individuals. Francis Hodgman was born and lived in the small village of Climax for most of his life, but left an indelible legacy.

LeRoy, Rockwell A. : Kalamazoo Architect

During the first decades of the 20th century, few Kalamazoo architects were perhaps as successful or as well respected as was Rockwell A. LeRoy, who designed many of the area’s finest municipal, residential, and commercial structures.

Little, Frank: Kalamazoo Pioneer, Civic Leader, Historian

Little was twenty-one when the harvest was finished in October, 1844. He left the farm then and established himself as a merchant, hoping to make a go of it in Grand Rapids with his Uncle Lovell Moore. Another pioneer Richland farmer, Rockwell...

McCrea, Annette Maxson

Reputedly the first American female landscape architect, Annette Maxson McCrea, began her career in Kalamazoo.

McElhaney, Eugene C.

During the community’s formative years, Kalamazoo was full of highly talented musicians, bandleaders, teachers, and inventors, yet few could lay claim to all those talents. One of the few who could, however, was Professor E.C. McElhaney.

McNair, Rush Dr.

One of several founders of Bronson and Borgess Hospitals, Dr. Rush McNair was a central figure in Kalamazoo’s medical community for more than four decades. His good fortune as a…

Minott, Margaret

Margaret Minott was the first African American elected to the Kalamazoo Board of Education. She was instrumental in the effort to desegregate Kalamazoo Public Schools and it was through her efforts that the Oshtemo Branch Library came to be.

Mittenthal Brothers

The Mittenthal name itself has been linked to successful enterprise in the United States since the middle of the nineteenth century. But one branch of the Mittenthal family placed Kalamazoo closer to the popular entertainment limelight than ever...

Newell, George B. and Frank A.

When William and Marilla Newell came to Kalamazoo County in the 1850s and estabished their farm in Texas Township near the Van Buren County line, little could they have known about the lasting impact their future children would have on the...

Newman, Kirk H.

Kirk Newman’s artistic legacy is part of both the physical and cultural landscape of Kalamazoo. Few local artists have had as significant an impact on their community as Newman. Recognized…

Nichols, Sabin M

During the 1840s, brothers James, Ezra, and Sabin Nichols moved their families from New England to Kalamazoo, where they established one of the earliest commercial dairy farms in the area. Their family business carried on over three generations.

Norton Pomeroy and Jane Chipman

Favorable reports about the climate and resources in Michigan, along with low prices for cash payments, enticed many eastern families to buy land in Kalamazoo County. Two families that saw…

Orcutt, Benjamin F.

Benjamin F. Orcutt, a native of Roxbury, Vermont, fought in and survived both the Mexican War and the American Civil War, yet it was his role as county sheriff that tragically led to his death in 1867.

Packard, Cullen Channing

One of Kalamazoo’s most prolific photographers during the late 19th century was Cullen C. Packard. Packard’s photography studio prospered during an important period in Kalamazoo’s commercial and social development.

Phillips Brothers

Of all the dance orchestras and concert ensembles that Kalamazoo produced during the 19th century, the Phillips Brothers’ Orchestra was among the busiest… and perhaps the best. Five talented violinists; Joseph, Joshua, Sylvester, Albert and...

Pratt, Charles A.

One of several existing legal associations in Kalamazoo, is the Charles A. Pratt Bar Association, which takes its name from a homegrown success story. Pratt, who passed away on 21…

Praus, Alexis A.

The museum’s second director was Alexis A. Praus, a central figure in Kalamazoo’s local preservation community, who was “endlessly curious and fascinated by history.”

Ransom, Epaphroditus

He was one of those men whose lives are constantly in the spotlight. Whether for good or ill, the fortunes of Epaphroditus Ransom were well known to characters of all sorts, for he mingled freely with old stock New Englanders and pioneer...

Rawls, Paul W.H.

Paul Wideman Huntington Rawls was well known by the people of Kalamazoo, not as a man of wealth and industry, but as a talented student with a promising future. Rawls’…

Rhodes, Jay B.

Kalamazoo has long been a hotbed for creative, inventive people. One such person was Jay B. Rhodes, whose inventions ran the gamut from automobile accessories to railroad machinery to fishing lures, some of which received worldwide attention.