Then & Now: Hudson Mills—Village to Metropark

From the Dexter Area Historical Society

A settlement called Hudson Mills grew near the intersection of North Territorial Road and Dexter Pinckney Road and extended along Huron River Drive in Dexter Town-ship. Here a sawmill was erected in 1827 by Cornelius Osterhaut and Isaac Hull. Thomas Birkett established a pulp mill on the river at the Hudson Mills site in 1832, and in 1846, Osterhaut and Hull built a grist mill at the site, followed by a cider mill and a plaster mill. Finally, in 1882, a wood pulp mill was put in by Thomas Birkett.

Shortly after the sawmill and the grist mill were erected, small businesses began locating nearby. Patrick Fleming opened a grocery store at Hudson Mills, and David Chamberlain had a store in a small house standing near the bridge across the Huron River.

David Dudley purchased land along Dexter-Pinckney Road, and in June of 1841, he sold a little over an acre of it for $5 to the Dexter Township Board for a burial ground, now called Hudson Cemetery. Buried here are many of the early settlers of the Hudson Mills settlement.

Across the road from the mills, just off Dexter Pinckney Road, was located a two-story framed hotel. It was once famous as a stopping place for wagon trains hauling freight from Detroit to Livingston and Ingham counties. Once referred to as a tavern or opera house, the old hotel was the scene of many social events.

The hotel at Hudson Mills

The Howard Family purchased the hotel building and property, and in 1925 they tore down the old hotel and built a barn to the rear of where the ho-tel had stood. In the 1950s, the Howard’s barn was purchased by the Harold Swarthouts, and they converted it into a beautiful home and is still in use today.

At one time, the Gallagher country school stood on the corner of North Territorial Road and Huron River Drive. After the country schools consolidated with the Dexter school system, the building was sold and moved.

Across the road from the school was the tavern and store owned by the Gallaghers. This intersection was referred to as “Gallaghers Corners.” Bouillon Sales occupies this site today.

The school at Hudson Mills

Hudson Mills Metropark opened in 1957 and is the largest Metropark in Washtenaw County. Much development has taken place, and today there is a 3- mile loop around Hudson Mills Metropark which connects to a 4.75-mile paved path to the City of Dexter, a portion of the Border-to-Border Trail.

A historical marker was erected in the park and dedicated in October 1971, denoting the site of the hamlet of Hudson Mills. Norma McAllister and Frank Wilhelm, founders of the Dexter Area Historical Society, were instrumental in obtaining the Historical Marker, which reads:

"This hamlet developed around the mills which were located here to utilize the great water power of the Huron River. Cornelius Osterhout built a sawmill here about 1827, followed in 1846 by a grist-mill in which three men produced six thousand barrels of flour a year. Later a cider mill and a plaster mill became part of the complex. In 1882 a wood pulp producer, the Birkett Manufacturing Co., acquired the mill property. Across the Huron, the remains of the Birkett mill and dam are still visible.”

Additional signs have been posted in and near the park. During 1996-97 the old crumbling bridge across the Huron River at the mill site was replaced by a new wider bridge. The Hudson Mills Metropark is busy year-round with sports enthusiasts, nature lovers, and those coming to the many special events, including the Fourth of July fireworks and maple syrup program.

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The Dexter Area Historical Society and Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is preserving area history and inspiring our community to connect the past with the future. For more information, please visit www.dexterhistory.org

Photo credits: DAHS Collection