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Cass

At the time of early Euro-American settlement, present day Cass County was home to Potawatomi settlements including those near Sumnerville where burial mounds have survived. Upon being set off in 1829, the newly formed county was named after Lewis Cass, Territorial Governor of Michigan from 1813-1829.  While U.S. federal policy forced the relocation of Native Americans from their homelands, the band led by Leopold Pokagon peacefully resisted by purchasing their land in Silver Creek Township.  Cass County was also a haven for people fleeing slave holders in the southern United States due to a large population of abolitionists residing in the county.  Although the Sauk Trail, which ran from Detroit to Chicago, passed through the southern part of the county, a large portion of early settlers came from Ohio, Indiana, Virginia and Tennessee.  While land further west was still significantly unsettled, maps noted the good farmland in southwest Michigan and the migrants would have been aware of the impending issue of slavery and the advantages of residing in areas covered by the Ordinance of 1787 which addressed the issue of slavery and land for schools.

Selected general works

Cass County, Michigan sourcebook. 1941.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 C377 1941z

Corwin, Nancy.
Early marriages Cass County, Michigan, 1830-1858. 1995.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 C675 1995

Historical Reflections of Cass County. 1981.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 H58

Rogers, Howard S.
History of Cass county, from 1825 to 1875. 1999.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 R7 1999

Schoetzow, Mae R. Streeter.
Brief history of Cass County. 1935.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 S35 1935

Selected newspapers

Cassopolis.
Cassopolis vigilant. 1872 - 2016.
LIB OF MICH MICROFILM NEWSPAPERS 2S

Dowagiac.
Dowagiac times. 1887 - 1906.
LIB OF MICH MICROFILM NEWSPAPERS 2S

Edwardsburg.
Edwardsburg argus. 1879 - 2016
LIB OF MICH MICROFILM NEWSPAPERS 2S

Marcellus.
Marcellus miscellaneous newspapers. 1886 - 1978.
LIB OF MICH MICROFILM NEWSPAPERS 2S

Marcellus.
Marcellus news1887 - 2015.
LIB OF MICH MICROFILM NEWSPAPERS 2S

Selected plats, maps, and atlases

Cass County, Mich. 1955
LIB OF MICH Flat File 2N  Undersize G4113.C3P2 1955

C.O. Titus.
Atlas of Cass County, Michigan. 1872.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  Folio G1413.C3 L3 1977

Miller Management Services, Inc.
Cass County, Michigan, 1993 computerized ownership directory. 1993.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  G 1413 .C3 M7 1993

Rockford Map Publishers.
Land atlas and plat book, Cass County Michigan. 1997.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  G 1413 .C R6

Selected records, indexes, and transcriptions

Capt. Samuel Felt Chapter, NSDAR.
Cass County, Michigan cemetery records. 1976.
LIB OF MICH Microfilm 2S  F574.O847 C4 1980a

Cass County, Michigan marriages, 1830 - 1850. 1950.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2S  F572.I7 I8 1900a

Castle, Amelia B.
1888 assessment roll for Cass County, Michigan. 1997.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 C36 1990z

Chamberlin, L. F.
Cass County business guide and historical review. 1933.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F 572 .C3 C53z 1933

Corwin, Nancy.
Index to 1872 land owners, Cass County, Michigan.1990.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N  F572.C3 C6734 1990z

Selected government publications

Cassopolis area school study: a study conducted through the cooperation of fifty-four citizens in the Cassopolis service area. 1958.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N   LA 309 .C37 C37z 1958

Community profile: Cassopolis. 1986.
LIB OF MICH MICH DOCS OFFICIAL    HC108.C377 C66 1986

Extract: a concentrate of fundamental information for Southwestern Michigan, Berrien, Cass and Van Buren Counties. 1992.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N   HC107.M52 B551 1992

Inland lakes sediment trends: Mercury sediment analysis results for 27 Michigan Lakes. 2006.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN DOCUMENTS 2S TD224.M5 S8-06/090

Southwestern Michigan fact book: Berrien, Cass, Van Buren. 1985.
LIB OF MICH MICHIGAN 2N   HC107.M52 B5 1985

Updated 11-23-2022