Martinsville, named after either president Martin Van Buren or a local landowner Timothy P. Martin (depending on which local legend you subscribe to), was a small village of approximately 200 residents at the intersections of Judd and Martinsville roads (about a mile south of the cache location) in Southwestern Wayne county. It had a business district that included a cider and feed mill, two churches, a post office (1868-1906), two general stores, a wagon maker, two cobblers, a blacksmith, a threshers, a carriage maker, a saw/sorghum mill, a meat market and in the late 19th century a carriage factory.
Like most other lost towns, the failure to attract a railway stop led to the town's decline. Gradually Martinsville began to disappear, as nearby Belleville, having gotten the railroad, made it less expensive to obtain goods for retail and manufacture outside of this Township. The 1895 census shows that at the time, only seventy-five residents remained. By the end of 1906, the town had lost it's post office, and soon thereafter its identity.
The only remains of the town today is the town cemetery. It is here that you will not only find the cache, but also the Allens, Merrills, Coons, Aldridges, Morey, Anderson, St. Johns, and Brooks -- these are the Old Souls of Martinsville who helped establish the small towns of Sumpter Township.
Town Name: Martinsville
Founding: 1868
Beginning of Decline: 1906
Reason for town's decline: The failure to attract a railway stop led to the town's decline.
The cache is a medium size, screw top plastic jar hidden in Martinsville Cemetery. Please be respectful of individuals in the cemetery that may be paying their respects or mourning their loved ones. Please be respectful of the area and observe Dawn to Dusk hours only. Logs on this cache that indicate night caching will be deleted without notice.
This cache is part of the Michigan's Lost Towns cache series. Visit their website at www.losttownscacheseries.com to see the complete list and to submit your own.
