Norton Cemetery
Muskegon Township, Michigan
Sec. 17, T9N , R16W
Norton Cemetery
Airport Rd.
Norton Shores, MI 49441
231-798-4391
The City of Norton Shores serves as caretaker of the Cemetery.
History
Norton Township which was organized in 1855 has developed from a wilderness to be a hub in modern transportation by motor vehicles and airplanes.
In 1847 a man named Witherell built a small water power sawmill and a dam on Little Black Creek below the hill where the Cottage Inn has been many years. The mill and dam were washed away. A mill was put in operation at three different locations with the last one at the outlet into Lake Michigan.
Ira Porter had settled at the West end in 1850 and he introduced the fruit growing phase. The first regular road in the township was laid out in 1860 along the locality between Grand Haven and the township was laid out in 1860 along the locality between Grand Haven and the township and into the settlement named Muskegon, the road being known as the Muskegon-Ferrysburg Trail. Stages carried passengers and freight over the route.
The stage line was put out of business by the first railroad in 1869 from Ferrysburg to Muskegon and organized by Muskegon men. The first settler in the Norton region was a German named Ben Brist and his children were said to have been the first white children born there. The first permanent settler was John Kittle in 1853 and the Kittle farm became the first unit of the county airport in 1929. (The Kittle’s gave the land that Norton Township Cemetery was built on.) The earliest recorded burials were in 1871 on a lot belonging to J. Walker, James Ellis and Jane J. (age 68) the wife of Jonathan Walker (The Man with the Branded Hand). Jonathan Walker was buried beside his wife but was moved to Evergreen Cemetery in Muskegon when his grave proved to be a tourist attraction.
In 1885 the Pioneer and Historical Society held an annual picnic there (Mona Lake) with over 200 people present. Ten trains a day provided transportation to and from the park and the fare was 25 cents a round trip.
In 1897 the street railway company started operating electric motor cars to the lake and Mona became a favorite place for thousands of people. In 1900 the Mona Lake Resort Association built a large pavilion at the edge of the lake and had a dance floor, bowling alley, and dining hall.
(Excerpts from Charles H. Yates column in Muskegon Chronicle 14-7-1956)