May is Preservation Month in Oakland Township

May 19, 2023, Oakland Township MI - Join your Oakland Township neighbors in celebrating their historic cemeteries for preservation month. Oakland Township is proud to have three historic cemeteries; Bigler Historic District, Kline Presbyterian Historic District, and Paint Creek Cemetery.

In honor of preservation month, the Historic District Commission will be placing American flags at the 1800's cemeteries on Thursday, May 25th at 2pm at Bigler Cemetery.

There are many important Oakland County settler’s headstones one can find. Bigler Cemetery was created by the Bigler Family in 1825 when the family’s one-year old daughter, Rocksina passed, being the first graveyard in Oakland Township. Others buried at Bigler are Jesse Decker, John Bigler, and James Colman. Paint Creek Cemetery has Revolutionary War Hero Lydia Barnes Potter with a specially marked headstone that was added by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1911, and now the Stoney Creek Chapter NSDAR.

Historic District Commissioner Jan Derry recently visited the sites and found the most unusual monument at Bigler for Polly and Robert Crawford, depicting a large tree with an open book centered in the tree’s trunk. Smaller tree trunks border both sides with the inscription ‘Mother’ and ‘Father’. Either join us on May 25th at 2pm or stop visit the sites over the Memorial Day weekend.

ABOUT OAKLAND TOWNSHIP

Charter Township of Oakland is a charter township in the northeastern portion of Oakland County, in the outskirts of Metro Detroit, in the State of Michigan. The population was 16,779 at the 2010 census and 20.067 in the 2020 census.

Oakland Township is less densely populated than neighboring townships to the west, south, and east; and retains many elements of a rural, wooded residential bedroom community. Local ordinances and zoning laws are aimed at limiting commercial and industrial development while maintaining a cap on population density by way of a master plan.

Oakland Township has the distinction of being one of Michigan's oldest townships. It was one of the original 25 townships in the Territory of Michigan when counties were further divided into townships in 1827. The Township is a complete 36 square miles.

A grist mill and mill race was built on Paint Creek in 1835. Later named Goodison Mill, it operated for more than 100 years before being dismantled in the late 1940s. The former site of the mill is the current location of Paint Creek Cider Mill, which is home to the Oakland Township Parks and Recreation, among other offices and a year round Cider Mill/Restaurant.

Currently the Township is served by three school districts: Rochester Community Schools, Lake Orion Community Schools, and Romeo Community Schools. There are also three private schools: Eagle Creek Academy, Premier Academy, and Alpine Academy.

The Township is governed by a seven member elected Board of Trustees. A separately elected Commission manages the Parks and Recreation. An appointed Township Manager runs the day-to-day operations.

Our neighboring communities include: Oxford Township, Addison Township, Orion Township, Auburn Hills, Rochester, Rochester Hills, and in Macomb County Bruce Township, Washington Township, and Shelby Township.

Townships serve other governmental units by providing tax collection services. To avoid imposing an unnecessary burden on citizens to pay separate property taxes to the township, schools, special assessment districts and the county, Michigan townships provide uniform assessment of property values and collect all property taxes on behalf of the other units of government. Only a very small portion of the taxes collected are retained by the township for its own operating purposes.

Michigan townships, large and small, provide services tailored to meet the needs of their residents. Township officials represent the level of government closest and most responsive to the wishes of the people.

April 10, 2023, Oakland Township and Rochester.Life Staff