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Why is the
festival called
Erin-Halfway Days?
This area was founded in the early part of the
19th century by the European immigrants who came to
establish homes in the New World. Originally known as Orange
Township in 1837, by 1843 the area was renamed Erin Township; both
names indicating that the earliest settlers were Irish. The Irish
were followed by pioneers from Bavaria, Macklenburg, Saxony and
other provinces of Germany. The German migration began in the early
1830's and soon became the majority of the
settlement.
What is now Gratiot Avenue was once an Indian trail cut
through the wilderness. In the early 1800’s, the army surveyed the
roadway and shortly after built a plank road. Logs were cut
horizontally and laid across to elevate the road above water. This
military road led from Fort Wayne in Detroit to Fort Gratiot (now
Port Huron). In 1850, a plank toll road replaced the original road.
The toll was one cent for each horse.
The Township form of government lasted until December 8,
1924, when the Village of Halfway was incorporated. The name Halfway
was first officially recorded in 1895, with the opening of the
Halfway Post Office. This name was given to the community in the
early days when the Halfway House, located at what is now the
Eastbrooke Commons shopping center at 9 Mile and Gratiot, was a
regular stopping place for stagecoaches traveling between Detroit
and Mount Clemens. The phenomenal growth in the village during the
next five years qualified Halfway for city status. The name was
changed to the City of East Detroit on January 7, 1929, by first a
vote of the people followed by the approval of the Michigan State
Legislature.
In 1992 the city of East Detroit was once again renamed by a
vote of the people to the City of Eastpointe.
At Erin-Halfway Days we hope to bring the history of this
area back to life, if only for one day. We encourage the attendees
of our living history festival to attend in period clothing if they
feel the desire to do so, and become a part of living history
themselves.
Read (and see) more about the history of the City of
Eastpointe in two wonderful books: The Halfway/East Detroit
Story by Robert S. Christenson, and Eastpointe, Michigan
(Images of America) by Suzanne DeClaire Pixley.
Both books
are available through the East Detroit Historical Society 
15500 9 Mile
Road
Eastpointe,
Michigan 48021
586-775-1414 | 
