In 19th century America, it was not uncommon for cemeteries to fall victim to the work of men called “resurrectionists”—freelancers who use nefarious means to procure cadavers for the use of medical schools. Because Rochester was situated within a night’s wagon ride of the university medical school at Ann Arbor, its residents were affected by this macabre practice. The Pavilion Hotel and livery stood on the southwest corner of Third & Main. Resurrectionists were arrested here in 1879. … [Read more...]
How Wilcox Street Was Named
May 22, 2018 by 3 Comments
Do you know the story behind the name of Rochester’s Wilcox Street? Early Avon Township settler Lyman J. Willcox and his son Elliot R. Willcox owned part of the land through which Wilcox Street now runs. According to an 1883 account in the Pontiac Gazette, Lyman Willcox left New York City with nothing but a rifle and a pack on his back and walked westward, traversing Ontario, and finally coming to Michigan. He stopped first in Troy Township and then settled in Avon Township in 1824, where … [Read more...]
