An Old School is All That Remains of the Michigan Village of Edgewood

Not too far from the capital city is another hidden village: the little hamlet of Edgewood, in Gratiot County.

Nestled in between Shad Creek and Bad River, Edgewood sits right on the line that separates the Lafayette and Hamilton Townships. We happened across this former little burg by accident while traveling down the Michigan backroads of Gratiot & Midland Counties.

From what I could find out, at one time, Edgewood had a general store on the northwest corner of the "downtown" intersection, a blacksmith shop and a post office that was open from 1874 - 1904, when the Ithaca post office began handling their mail.

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Edgewood also had an Odd Fellows hangout, the Edgewood Lodge No. 257, organized in December 1888. Another lodge, the Forest Rebecca Degree Lodge No. 146 was organized in May 1895, and an encampment, Number 165 in 1907.

It also had a one-room schoolhouse, still standing just north of town at the corner of N. Barry and E. St. Charles Rd.

Without a post office and an already-small population, Edgewood dwindled down to just a few homes, with all the businesses - except the church - shutting down. Today, the founders and settlers of Edgewood can be found in the cemetery, just a few feet south of town on S. Barry Road.