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

Many Southwest Michigan residents already know that the city we know as Kalamazoo went by a different name when it was originally settled in the 1800s.  Kalamazoo was first named Bronson, a man named Titus Bronson.  However, his time in Southwest Michigan was short-lived as he allegedly ruffled man feathers in his time here.  Titus was considered one of the very first pioneers of the city we now call Kalamazoo, as 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.

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A large number of villagers demanded the Bronson name removed from their city.  It was 186 years ago this month that 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 as the name change.  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 2,000 residents in Branch County.

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