How A Pioneer’s Clashes Led To Kalamazoo’s Name Change

Imagine a town torn apart by conflict in the 1800s, where one man's vision turned into a battle for identity. That's the backdrop of Kalamazoo's early days.

Was this man disliked so much that locals ran him out of town and changed the name to Kalamazoo?

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You may already know that Kalamazoo went by a different name once upon a time.  Before the city we now know as Kalamazoo was originally settled in the 1800s as Bronson.  Bronson was named after a man named Titus Bronson.  However, his time in Southwest Michigan was short-lived as he allegedly ruffled many feathers in his time here.  Titus was considered one of the very first pioneers of the city we now call Kalamazoo, as he brought his family to the area in 1830 and began city planning.  Bronson is likely responsible for the building of the first churches, school, and courthouse in the area before things turned sour, according to a Michigan History website hosted by MSU.

In March of 1836 Bronson was at odds with many members of the village. He was an outspoken man and was once fined for stealing a cherry tree.

A large number of villagers demanded that the Bronson name be removed from their city.  In March of 1836, nearly 190 years ago, Bronson was renamed after the Kalamazoo River.  It's unclear if Titus Bronson picked up his family and moved to Iowa before or after the city name change.  However, it appears he left in 1836, which is the same year the name change occurred.  So, what does the word Kalamazoo mean?  Get that full story by clicking here.

Bronson's name lives on as the name of a small town with just over 2,188 residents in Branch County, about an hour Southeast of Kalamazoo.