Niles, Michigan...the City of four flags!

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History

Historic Timeline

1870
1880
1900
1905
1910
1920

- 1871 - First dam built on the St. Joseph River creating Niles’ first "industrial park"

1880 - J. W. French buys the Michigan Wood and Pulp, changing the name to The French Paper Company in 1904
1885 - Ring Lardner (1885-1933), journalist and author, born in Niles

1900 - Garden City Fan opens offices in Niles

1904 - Niles’ first public library, the Carnegie Library, opens with 5,000 books.
1906 - F.J. Plym founder of the Kawneer Company, builds Niles’ first large manufacturing facility
1907 - National Cable and Manufacturing Company, now National Standard, is founded
1912 - Niles High School opens

Picture of the building of the first dam over the St. Joseph River

Office staff of the French Paper Company

Sketch of the planned Carnegie Library

Kawneer Mfg. first Niles factory.

Niles High School in 1912

Information for this timeline provided by Nancy Watts-Styles, historian and co-author of Niles, A Pictorial Guide. Nancy is the owner of Historic Interpretations, a provider of historical and multi-cultural research, planning and interpretive consulting services.

Historic Timeline

Community section