Greendale Township is located on the west Midland County line, abutting Isabella County’s Chippewa Township and described as Township 14 North, Range 2 West of the Michigan Meridian. On a map of Midland County dated 1873, there were 10 townships, which have since been divided into the 16 townships making up Midland County today. In 1875, Col William L Sterns and a number of other men (investors and friends) from Berea, Ohio, attempted to establish a perfect city, “Central City.” Their efforts failed because of greater opportunities for settlement elsewhere and that area is now known as Oil City. It is located about midway between the cities of Midland and Mt Pleasant on Isabella Road (M-20).

Greendale Twp was a part of a much larger area known as Jasper Twp. Jasper Twp was divided into Geneva, Greendale and Jasper Townships in 1882. Greendale Twp was organized effective January 5, 1882 and the first supervisor was Henry L Voorhees. In the 1800’s, lumbering and fur harvesting were the major draws to this area. There were two devastating fires during this time, one in 1882 and another in 1896. Old burned out shells of pine stumps remain as the reminders of these fires.

The big time logging and fur harvesting ended about the early 1900’s because the supply was depleted. Following the lumbering boom came the brine and oil drilling. Dow Chemical Company, commonly known as “the Dow” in those years, had an extensive network of brine wells throughout Greendale, from about 1918-19 through 1938, when the wells were abandoned. The Company has done quite a bit in the 1980-90’s to clean up and cap off abandoned wells. Pure Oil Company developed the Greendale Camp in the Mt Pleasant Oil Field just south of Oil City after discovering a massive oil reserve in 1928. Their development included service buildings as well as 20 dwellings for workers and their families on Bay City Road, now known as Greendale Court.

A horrendous tragedy occurred at that oilfield in August, 1930, when Mr McClanahan, the driller, brought in a gusher. The oil caught fire, causing the nearby storage tanks to explode, resulting in 11 deaths. The original death toll was reported as 10, but several days after, it was discovered that Mrs McClanahan, lost in the fire, had been pregnant and the count increased to 11.

The original Township hall was located at 1010 South Geneva Road and was a simple one room structure on wooden blocks and built in the early 1900’s (1903 or 1906). In 1975, the structure doubled in size with the addition of a foyer, kitchen, two indoor bathrooms and a storage room. There were also a number of United States Post Offices from January 30, 1882 until October 31, 1912, when the Shepherd Post Office took over mail delivery house to house by horse and wagon. Over the years the Township boasted four school districts. Gibbs School District #1, located in Section 27 and founded in 1879, was the only district until 1884, it was later annexed into Greendale #4 in 1956. Greendale School District #2, in Section 30, was built in 1884. Originally known as the O’Donnell School until the property was sold and became known as the Mullett School, it annexed into Greendale #4 in 1961. Greendale School District #3, called the Kelly School at the corner of Coleman and School Roads. The School was eventually relocated to a site east of Oil City at 4750 West Isabella Road and renamed Pleasantview School.

It was ultimately remodeled into the new Greendale Twp Hall in 2012. Riemenschnieder School District #4 was located on Prairie Road near Alamando Road. During the oil boom of the 1930’s, it was moved to the corner of Isabella and Alamando Roads. A much larger, more modern two-story brick building was constructed at a cost of approximately 10,000.00. This building later became the West County Community Center in 1974-75 through vigorous efforts of Phyllis Breedlove and friends. It finally was torn down and the location became the site of the West Midland Family Center in 1988-89, which has grown into a very active and vital resource in the community. The Center provides daycare, pre-school, after school activities, family counseling and senior citizen services.

The Greendale Twp flag was created by Helen Grass in 1990. It is of felt construction and machine embroidery and depicts the townships most prominent feature, the Chippewa River, and other historical landmarks.

Some of the above information was taken from a book entitled “Mostly Hearsay about the Green Days of Greendale, A Bicentennial Report.” It is a very well written book authored by Dorothy Wentz in 1976 with the help of many in the community; as well as from my memories of growing up and living in the township. Ruth L Knapp, Greendale Twp Clerk, 1992-2016.