222 Hancock Avenue, Hancock Michigan:  A House and its People

by Julie A. Kloss, Michigan Technological University

Image courtesy of Keweenaw Photo Gallery

INTRODUCTION
On Hancock Avenue, in the town of Hancock, Michigan, there is a run-down, unassuming house. The house has stood for many years in this spot and has held several occupants who raised their families, made their livings and participated in the society that made up the copper mining community of Hancock. The structure, built in 1860 by Ransom Shelden, was once a large and spacious family dwelling, but in recent years it has been abandoned and left in disrepair. I first noticed this house on my second visit to the area of Houghton/Hancock before becoming a graduate student at Michigan Tech University. I was staying at the Best Western on Hancock Avenue and I noticed the abandoned house with its semi-circle window set amid the modern buildings and establishments of the city. When I was given the opportunity to research the history of a local house for a class assignment, I quickly remembered the house I had noticed on Hancock Avenue and chose it for my project. During the course of my research, I have discovered that this lonely and abandoned house was once connected with a multitude of men and women who contributed to the development and congruity of the town and its citizens.

LOCATION AND STYLE
The house involved in this study is of the Gable-Front Family style of the Greek Revival Movement (McAlester, p. 90). This style of house was most popular in the United States between the years of 1830 and 1850 but continued to be built into the early twentieth century. The house is long and narrow and includes two stories. There is also a small wing off of the west side of the structure near the front. There was once a front porch on the house that extended the entire length of the front façade. This porch was removed sometime after about 1976. The house is located at 222 Hancock Avenue, one block from Quincy Street, which is the main street and the center of the business district in Hancock . The location of the house is very convenient, being very close to the center of the town and within walking distance of many businesses, schools and churches. These factors would have added to the attractiveness of the house as a place to live, work from and raise a family.

THE EARLY YEARS (ca. 1860-1865)
The earliest record found of this property is a map of Hancock dated to 1859. The map is divided into plots with the names of the owners written in the plots. At the designation of block 6, lot 10, (the lot on which this house sits) the name “Fisher” is written in pencil. There are no buildings shown in the lot. In 1860 Ransom Shelden purchased the property and the house was constructed and put on the market as a rental property. Ransom Shelden was a wealthy man, well known for his business ventures in the Copper Country. Ransom Shelden organized several saw mills and mining companies in the area and ran a mercantile business with his partner Charles Douglass, but his most successful business venture was in real estate. In The History of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, it is stated that Ransom Sheldon once owned more than fifty thousand acres of land in the Upper Peninsula (pgs. 285-286). 222 Hancock Avenue was one of his numerous rental properties within Hancock and the surrounding area. From 1860 to 1867, lot ten and the house on it changed hands numerous times. The deed records show that there were often several transactions within a single year. It is difficult to tell who actually inhabited the house during this period due to the lack of records. However, by the deed records, it is certain that this property was a popular item.

The first record I found of a family habitation of the house is the family of William Walbridge Perry, who seemed to have been living in the house by 1865. The members of the Perry family are the people the house is associated with even today in the town of Hancock. The house is referred to as the Perry-Stratton house and every person who tells the legend has a slightly different version. Through my research, I have only come up with a sketchy sequence of events for the years that the Perrys made their home at 222 Hancock Avenue, and my story is also different from the legends I have heard.

THE PERRY FAMILY (ca. 1865-1880)
The reference to the house as the Perry-Stratton house comes from the daughter of William Walbridge Perry. Mary Chase Perry-Stratton (the Stratton having been added after her marriage) was an artist who developed a specific type of pottery from a type of clay found in the Keweenaw Peninsula. Although Perry-Stratton is only reported to have lived in the house for approximately the first twelve of her life, the history of the house has been attached to her artistic fame.

William Walbridge Perry was a doctor who lived in Hancock from the early 1860’s until his death in 1877. The family lived in the home and Perry used the east wing of the home for a period of time from which to operate his practice. A 1979 biography of Mary Chase Perry-Stratton entitled The Pewabic Pottery includes a short history of the Perry families’ life in Hancock. The author, Lillian Myers Pear, states that the family was renting the house from Ransom Shelden in 1965 when the Perry’s first daughter was born. Mary Chase was also born in the house in 1867. Pear goes on to say that the family (William, his wife and their three children) rented the house for a time but later purchased the home from Ransom Shelden. This piece of information is inaccurate. The deed records for lot 10 and the buildings on it contain no mention of William W. Perry. Ransom Shelden continued to own the property for the duration of the Perry families’ occupation. There are only four documents linking Perry to the house, three of which are tax records. Perry paid the property taxes for block 6, lot 10 for three consecutive years: 1875, 1876 and 1877. The other document is a copy of W. W. Perry’s business card found in Pear’s book, which gives the location of his office as “first house east of the Masonic Building” (p. 58). The Masonic Building still stands today on lot 9 of block 6, and lot 10 sits east of the Masonic Building. Perry did not operate his practice only from his house, however. There is an add in the February 27, 1871 edition of the Hancock Times which advertises Perry’s practice and lists the location of his office as “Corner of Franklin and Reservation Streets”.

In consideration of the evidence above, it is likely that W. W. Perry did hold a private practice from his home in addition to having an office separate form his home. Pear stated that Perry doctored specifically to miners (p. 58), but it is more likely that his practice was open to all members of the community. With the house as his office, the location would have been ideal for the numerous merchants who lived and worked in the nearby business district. In the course of my research, I spoke with a local historian, Nancy Manninen, who works for the Portage Health System and researches the histories of local physicians. She stated that Perry’s name did not come up in affiliation with the local hospital and that the mining companies where not in the habit of employing doctors on staff during this time period. It is not likely that Perry would have been affiliated with a specific mining company, which also supports the idea that he ran a private practice from his home.

In addition to running a private practice, Perry also served as the county physician of Houghton County for a number of years. The records from the county board meetings include three references to a Dr. W. W. Perry. On February 27, 1869, Perry was voted in monetary supplement for three physicians in order to cover the cost of treatment and medication for the poor (p. 87). The record indicates that Perry made the proposal for the increase, which was accepted. Perry was to receive six hundred dollars, while the other two physicians were to receive seven hundred dollars each. Perry served as County Physician for the duration of 1871 until he was replaced on December 17, 1871 (p. 118). The reason given for his replacement is stated as “removed from the county”. This suggests that Perry relocated outside of Houghton County, but I have found no other evidence to support this idea. Perry’s death certificate lists Hancock as his place of residence. The period of time in which Perry served as County Physician coincides with the record of his office being located outside of his home. Perhaps the County of Houghton provided an office for the County Physician and Perry ran his practice from this office during the time he was employed by the County.

The most controversial and confusing part of the Perry story is the account of the event that led to his death in 1877. The death certificate lists heart disease as the cause of death, but local legend gives a different account. Evidently, Perry was randomly attacked one evening near his home and bludgeoned on the head. Pear’s account of the event state the incidence as a case of mistaken identity. She claims that Perry was on his way to visit a sick miner when he was “mistaken for the conductor by a recalcitrant passenger who had been put off the train” (p. 10). Pear’s states that the attack occurred in the fall of 1876 and Perry lingered until the spring of 1877. Perry’s obituary in the February 22, 1877 edition of the Mining Gazette tells a slightly different story. There are no details of the attack included in the obituary, but it states that the blow to the head that Perry suffered in the winter of 1875 aggravated the pre-existing condition that led to his death. The date of death is given as February 19, 1877, which differs from the death certificate date of February 18. There are no newspaper reports in the 1875 winter editions of the Mining Gazette that document the alleged attack.

Local legend and hearsay about the death of William Perry vary from person to person. Many believe that the incident was truly a case of mistaken identity, similar to the story that Pear tells with some degree of differentiation. Others believe that the attack was intentional. A particularly interesting version stated that Perry was the victim of a jealous husband who was enraged at the doctor who was making frequent “house-calls” in which he visited the attacker’s wife. There is no evidence to support the accuracy of this story. Research on the attack has proved fruitless, and the general knowledge concerning the incident is that the attacker was never caught. It is likely that all stories concerning the attack of Dr. Perry are pure speculation and the true nature of the event will never be known.

After Dr. Perry’s death, it seems that the family continued to live in the house until about 1880. Pear states that the family rented the office wing of the house to a dentist named Dr. Stone until the family relocated to Ann Arbor, Michigan. The tax and deed records show that the property was held by the Ransom Shelden Estate (operated by George Shelden after the death of Ransom in 1878) until 1882 when it was purchased by a man named Charles H. Walker.

CHARLES H. WALKER (1881-1884)
Charles H. Walker, a dentist, purchased the house on lot ten in 1882, but it is possible that he was inhabiting the house prior to this date because the tax records show him paying taxes on the property in 1881. The book, History of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, contains a short paragraph of biographical information on Walker (p. 298). Walker moved to the area in 1873 and lived in Calumet while he operated his dental practice in Hancock. He then moved to Hancock in 1881 and presumably operated his practice from his home at 222 Hancock Avenue. The deed records list the grantor as Charles H. Walker and wife, but there is no information in regards to children. It is difficult to determine if the Walker family resided at the house the entire duration of his ownership. The Deed records show that Walker granted a mortgage to George W Rulison, a bookkeeper, in 1882. In 1884 Walker sold the house to Henry Drittler.

HENRY DRITTLER (1884-1887)
Henry Drittler owned and paid taxes on the house at 222 Hancock Avenue from 1884 through 1886. Drittler was involved in several trades as well as being active in the community. History of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (p. 293) states that Drittler worked for the Quincy Mine, was an operator for the Cliff Mine, and was the proprietor of a billiard hall and a dealer in wines, liquors and cigars for his store, Drittler Brothers’. In addition to this varied resume, Drittler also served terms in several public offices including Village Treasurer of Hancock, Marshall and Justice of the Peace. Drittler served as a member of the Village Council as well. It is not certain whether or not Drittler and his family lived in the house on lot ten. After three years, Drittler sold the property to Charles M. Coon, turning a small profit .

CHARLES M. COON AND DAVID S. KENDALL (1887-1899)
The records concerning the house on block 6, lot 10 are quite a jumble for the years from 1887 to 1899. Charles M. Coon purchased the property in 1887, but did not hold it for the entire time period until 1899. Tax records show that Coon paid the property taxes from 1887 to 1896 while the house changed hands on the deed records. Whether or not Charles M. Coon actually lived in the house is not clear. The 1895-1896 Polk County Directory shows his place of residence as Summit Avenue in Hancock. His occupation is listed simply as “manager” with no elaboration. No other information was recovered pertaining to Charles M. Coon.

David S. Kendall is listed as having a mortgage on the house at 222 Hancock Avenue from 1887 to 1895. It is possible that Kendall was the one living in the house for this period of time. History of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan has a brief history on a man named David S. Kendall (p. 294). Kendall was part owner of the Mathews and Kendall Mercantile business until 1861. He then went into business with a man named James A. Close involving warehouses and storage. I believe that it is likely that Kendall inhabited the house from 1887 to 1895 in some sort of agreement with Charles Coon.

The last year that Charles M. Coon paid the taxes on the property was 1896. After this, three different people or organizations paid the property taxes for three consecutive years. The tax records show that in 1897 the Building and Loan association of Hancock paid the taxes, Joseph Peltier in 1898 and John Deulis in 1899. Who inhabited the house at this time is unknown.

WILLIAM REID (1900-1945)
By 1900, William Reid was renting the house and paying the yearly property taxes. Reid’s address is listed in the 1901-1902 Polk County Directory as 222 Hancock Avenue, Hancock. His occupation is listed as a grocer and the location of his store was 217 Tezcuco Avenue, Hancock, which is less than a block from the house. In 1903 or 1904, Reid moved the location of his store to 315 Tezcuco Avenue, only one block north of the prior location (Polk County Directory, 1903-1904). The location of the house was ideal for the Reid family because of its close proximity to the business. The Reid family (William, his wife, and his son, William T. Reid) continued to live in the house until 1945, when William T. Reid purchased the house from the state of Michigan.

CONCLUSION
Through the research of this one structure, a picture has been painted of a segment of community life in Hancock, Michigan in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The people who inhabited this house from 1860 to 1945 all played a significant part in their communities and helped to form the city of Hancock. Fortunately, some of the historic importance of this structure will be maintained under the care of the Hancock Pewabic House & Museum Society who is executing plans to repair and restore the structure. In this way, future generations can have the opportunity to view the house and be able to witness a piece of history within the context of the modern city of Hancock.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Assessment Files, Property Tax Records, Hancock, Michigan; 1868-1945. Copper County Archives, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan.

Deed Records, Abstract Records, Block 6 Lot 10. Deeds Office, Houghton County Court House, Houghton, Michigan.

Hancock Times, Hancock Michigan, Vol. 1, No. 13, February 27, 1871.

History of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Chicago: The Western Historical Company, 1883.

McAlester, Virginia and Lee, A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000.

Pear, Lillian Meyers, The Pewabic Pottery: A History of its Products and its People. Wallace-Homestead Book Co., 1976.

Perris-Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, Hancock, Michigan. Copper County Archives, Michigan Technological University, Houghton Michigan.

Polk County Directories, Hancock Michigan; 1895-1896, 1901-1902, 1903-1904, 1916-1917. Copper County Archives, Michigan Technological University, Houghton Michigan.

Portage Lake Mining Gazette. Houghton, Michigan, Vol. XVIII, No. 32, February 22, 1877.

Records of the Supervisor, Houghton County, Vol. 2. Copper County Archives, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan.

Residential Assessment Record, Block 6 Lot 10, 222 Hancock Avenue, Hancock, Michigan. Copper County Archives, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan.