Early Delhi Township History
Map of Native American land cessions in Michigan
(Bureau of American Ethnology, 1899).
Delhi Township is located on the ancestral lands of the Anishinaabe, The People of the Three Fires — Ojibwe, Odawa and Bodéwadmi peoples. The land was ceded in the 1819 Treaty of Saginaw, which included the western half of Ingham County as its southernmost point (the eastern half had been ceded in the 1807 Treaty of Detroit). For centuries, the Anishinaabe peoples established trails which survive today as some of Michigan and Ingham County’s most-used thoroughfares, such as I-96, U.S. 127, Grand River Avenue, the Grand River, and Red Cedar River. The noted “Hogsback” between Holt and Mason were important landmark hills and used as gravel trails for the indigenous peoples in the area. Ojibwe Chief Okemos was a signatory of the 1819 Treaty of Saginaw and is known to have traveled in the area of Lansing and Delhi Township along the Sycamore Creek.
The land that is now Ingham County was set off from portions of Shiawassee and Washtenaw Counties in 1829, but remained administratively tied to Washtenaw County in the territorial days. On January 26, 1837, Michigan became the 26th state in the union. Shortly, in 1838, Ingham County separated and formed its own government. Because of east to west expansion, the areas first settled by European-American settlers in Ingham County are at the east - Stockbridge being the first settlement.
From 1829 to 1838, the entire western half of Ingham County was Aurelius Township. In 1838, the northwest quadrant of Ingham County was set off and became known as Alaiedon Township. In 1842, that quadrant was again divided in four creating Delhi, Lansing, and Meridian Townships, leaving Alaiedon Township with the remaining quarter. “Enactment Day,” as it has come to be known, occurred on February 16, 1842 when Delhi Township was created by an Act of the Michigan Legislature.
The earliest European-American settlers and land owners in Delhi Township were Frederick R. Luther on May 4, 1837 and John Norris on May 22, 1837. Other early settlers include William Wood, Joseph Wilson, Philander Morton, David Wait, Alonzo Douglass, George Phillips, and the North family. Most of Delhi's earliest residents came from New York, Ohio, and Detroit.
The first meeting of the new Township of Delhi was held April 4, 1842 in the Delhi Center log school. The first election was held on April 7, 1842, when the first township officials were elected. With that election the first supervisor, clerk, and treasurer, among other offices were filled by those earliest settlers. Henry Harrison North was elected supervisor with 16 votes. Caleb Thompson was elected clerk with 20 votes. Roswell Everett was elected treasurer with 20 votes.
Delhi Township Firsts
What is Holt? Who is Holt?
Joseph Holt
Today, Holt is an unincorporated community in Delhi Township. The school and post office take their name from the community. Originally, that community was named Delhi Center. However, due to postal confusion with a town called Delhi Mills in Washtenaw County, Delhi Center’s post office name was changed to Holt on February 10, 1860. The name Holt was chosen to honor Joseph Holt, Postmaster General of the United States under the Buchanan administration. He would later gain further prominence as Abraham Lincoln’s Judge Advocate General of the Union Army, a position in which he enforced military law across the nation, and which led to his role as chief prosecutor in the trial of the Lincoln assassination conspirators in 1865. No, Joseph Holt never set foot in Holt, Michigan, as far as we know. It was common practice to name towns and communities after prominent national figures. It took locals a half century to fully transition from Delhi Center to Holt, and most still called the community Delhi Center until after the turn of the twentieth century.
Delhi Township Communities
Delhi Center / Holt — The original settlement at the “main corners” or “four corners” of modern Holt Road and Cedar Street. Renamed Holt officially in 1860.
North Holt / Midway — The area along modern Cedar Street, north of Aurelius Road and south of Willoughby Road. Also known as the Midway for its location “midway” between Lansing and Mason.
Five Corners — The name for the convergence of three roads: Cedar Street, Aurelius Road, and Keller Road. The roads came together in the same intersection until 2018 when Keller Road was reconfigured. The original intersection created five corners rather than four typical of a two-road intersection. This was the other business district outside of Delhi Center, and while not an altogether separate community, it was often referred to as such in the nineteenth century. Often used interchangeably with North Holt.
Grovenburg / West Holt — The separate settlement located along Grovenburg Road in southwest Delhi Township, founded by the H.W. Grovenburg family around 1842. See Grovenburg and West Holt.
Visit Annexations to learn about the Maple Grove District and North District (also known as the Miller Road Community), which were both annexed into the City of Lansing in the 1960s. They get their distinct foundations from the school districts which comprised their borders.
The Birth of Delhi Charter Township
For years there had been discussion about expanded powers of self-governance in Delhi Township. The option of incorporating Holt as a city came before the community multiple times, never coming to fruition. In 1958, the township began a proper years-long study of the topic, considering the options of the incorporation of the City of Holt, merging with the City of Lansing, or becoming a Charter Township. Charter Townships are a uniquely Michigan concept, granting townships the power of home rule typical of a city without the incorporation, created by the Michigan Legislature in 1947. Delhi Township opted for the Charter Township possibility of the three options. The matter was placed on the ballot for voters in Delhi Township to decide in 1961.
The move toward a charter came due to the expected growth from sewer expansion work. The charter would give the township more home rule and rights of self governance, administrative flexibility, powers to regulate streets, sewers, and other general operations, and greater deals on bond issues for capital improvements. At the time of this move in Delhi, only three other charter townships had been created in Michigan, including Meridian Charter Township in 1959.
Delhi residents approved the move to a charter township by a vote of 550 to 324. As a result Delhi Charter Township was established on September 18, 1961.
As provided for in the Charter Townships Act, Delhi Charter Township moved to hire a Township Superintendent in 1988, though Delhi opted to call the position Township Manager. The role would manage administrative and daily operations for the township, similar to the duties of a city manager. Previously, the Township Supervisor was a fulltime position filling much of those responsibilities. Supervisor Richard Bacon and the Board of Trustees moved in this direction and in 1989 hired Robert Homan as the first Manager of Delhi Charter Township. Homan served in the role from 1989 to 1996. He was succeeded by John Elsinga as Township Manager in 1996. Elsinga served as Manager through 2019 and was succeeded in the position by Tracy L.C. Miller in 2019.