the Kalamazoo region

Kalamazoo is an Indian Word said to mean "boiling water." Originally it was applied to the river that flows north - westerly to Lake Michigan.  A  trickle of settlers in the late 1820's became   a torrent in the 1830's as the region's  fertile prairies, oak openings, bottom  lands  and ample   sources of   water power became known.  The village of  Bronson, founded in 1829 by Titus Bronson, is now the city of Kalamazoo. Here, Lincoln made his only known Michigan speech. J. Fennimore Cooper wrote about the area in Oak Openings. Kalamazoo  College  founded in 1833, Nazareth College (1897), Western Michigan  University (1903)  are here. Once famous for its celery and its stoves, Kalamazoo is now known for many products including paper and drugs.  The nation's first permanent pedestrian mall was opened in the downtown section in 1959.

One of three identical markers placed in highway rest areas that summarize the settlement of the Kalamazoo region.  This Marker is in a I-94 rest area east of Kalamazoo