Editing Kent County, Michigan (section)

==History==
The [[Grand River (Michigan)|Grand River]] runs through the county. On its west bank are [[tumulus|burial mounds]], remnants of the [[Hopewell culture|Hopewell]] Indians who lived there.<ref>{{cite book |last = Beld |first = Gordon G. |year = 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=EsalzuFqmpUC&pg=PA17 |title = Grand Times in Grand Rapids: Pieces of Furniture City History |pages = 17–19 |publisher = The History Press |isbn = 9781609496296 |via = [[Google Books]] }}</ref> In the 18th century the [[Odawa]] migrated to this area and established multiple villages along the Grand River valley.<ref name="HISTORY1881">{{cite book |title = History of Kent County, Michigan |date = December 1881 |publisher = Chas. C. Chapman & Co. |location = Chicago, Illinois |url = http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/micounty/bad0958.0001.001/7?page=root;rgn=full+text;size=100;view=image |access-date = October 2, 2016 |via = University of Michigan Libraries |archive-date = November 26, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161126083755/http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/micounty/bad0958.0001.001/7?page=root;rgn=full+text;size=100;view=image |url-status = live}}</ref>  By the 19th century there were estimated to be over 1000 Odawa.<ref name="HISTORY1881"/><ref name=WILD>{{Cite book |last1=Simon-Tibbe |first1=Dorothy |title=Wilderness to Wyoming |last2=Branz |first2=Bill |last3=White |first3=Kelly |publisher=Franklin Press, Inc. |year=2009 |isbn=9780578028583 |edition=1 |location=[[Wyoming, Michigan]] |language=en}}</ref>  The [[fur trade]] became an important industry in the valley during the early 19th century. After the [[War of 1812]], [[Rix Robinson]] and [[Louis Campau]] were the earliest traders in the area.<ref>{{cite book |last = Fuller |first = George Newman |year = 1916 |url = https://archive.org/details/economicsocialbe01full |title  = Economic and Social Beginnings of Michigan |page = [https://archive.org/details/economicsocialbe01full/page/423 423] |publisher = Wynkoop Hallenbeck Crawford |via = Internet Archive }}</ref> In 1826, Campau established a trading post in [[Grand Rapids, Michigan|Grand Rapids]]. In 1831, he bought land and platted the town. Campau is considered the town's "father".<ref name="HISTORY1870">{{cite book |title = History and Directory of Kent County, Michigan, Containing a History of Each Township, and the City of Grand Rapids; the Name, Location and Postoffice Address of All Residents Outside of the City: A List of Postoffices in the County; a Schedule of Population; and Other Valuable Statistics |url = https://archive.org/details/bad0957.0001.001.umich.edu |date = November 21, 1870 |publisher = Daily Eagle Steam Printing House |location = Grand Rapids, MI |pages = [https://archive.org/details/bad0957.0001.001.umich.edu/page/114 114]–136 }}</ref><ref name=Fued>{{cite news |url = http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2012/12/feud_between_grand_rapids_foun.html |title = How a feud between the city's founding fathers shaped Monroe Center and downtown Grand Rapids |first = Garret |last = Ellison |work = MLive |date = May 22, 2014 }}</ref><ref name=Statues>{{cite news |url = http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/08/history_in_bronze_grand_rapids.html |title = History in bronze: Influential figures immortalized at 12 sites so far in Grand Rapids |author = Garret Ellison |work = MLive |date = August 11, 2013 }}</ref> One year later, government surveyor [[Lucius Lyon]] purchased land north of Campau's property. Campau surveyed and platted the village following Native American trails<ref name=Fued /> and Lyon had platted his property in an English grid format, which meant there were two adjoining villages, with different platting formats.<ref name=Fued /> Campau later merged the villages under the name of Grand Rapids.<ref name=Fued />

In 1831, it was set off from [[Kalamazoo County, Michigan|Kalamazoo County]].<ref>{{cite book |last = Purkey |first = Thomas H. |year = 1986 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=fYLhAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA2 |title = Soil Survey of Kent County, Michigan |page = 2 |publisher = United States Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service |via = Google Books }}</ref> In 1838, Grand Rapids was incorporated<ref name=Fued /> as the county's first village. By the end of the century, stimulated by the construction of several [[sawmill]]s, the area was a significant center for agriculture, [[logging]], and manufacturing [[furniture]].