Parshall's Diary Tells of Early Day's
In Parshallville and Hartland

Parshallville is a small picturesque community situated on the banks of North Ore Creek. Isaac Parshall came to Michigan in September 1835 to visit his brother Luther of Brighton Township and his brother Thomas of Oceola Township. It took him eight days to travel from New York to Detroit and on to his brother's home on the Huron River. Isaac Parshall, having been a miller in New York , was interested in an area to build a mill. The next day the brother's went on a hunting trip in hopes of finding such an area. He found a number of sites that fit his needs. On September 18th, 1835 he started back to New York , but first made a stop in Detroit to buy 180 Acres, in Section 5 of Hartland Township.

He tells in his journal, which he started when he was twenty-one years old, of him and his wife Seraphina starting their trek to Michigan and the trials and tribulation of moving to North Ore Creek. Their journey started on the 10 th of September 1836 and they did not arrive in Detroit until the 3 rd of October. They picked up supplies and started for North Ore Creek. He wrote in his journal “the roads were wonderfully muddy and bad.” They arrived on North Ore Creek on the 10 th of October 1836 . They put up a small frame home and moved into it October 31 st 1836 . That winter they cut trees and had them sawed into timbers to build a mill. On July 22 nd, 1837 they raised the lower part of the mill and by August 10 th the upper part. By January, 1838 he had his mill finished enough to “grind corn and chop some.”

Around 1837-1838 Isaac Parshall asked the government to establish a post office there, naming the community Parshallville. The first one was run out of his home. He was the postmaster for four years and eight months. Little is known about the first mill as it was destroyed by fire in 1868 but in 1869 the present mill was built by Daniel Townley and purchased by Tom Walker and John Browning in 1877. After Browning sold his interest over to Tom Walker, it was passed on to Mr. Walker's son Judson and in turn to his son Thomas. Thomas Walker operated it as a gristmill, along with his wife Marion. He ground grain for no more than seven cents a bag. Marion Walker ran the mill by herself when Tom was ill with Polio. “Note” Tom Walker sold the mill in 1969, at which time it was turned into the Parshallville Cider Mill. The mill enjoys visitors every fall.

*Portion's of above article were from the
Livingston County Press Article, February 28, 1968 .