Peter Coan left Monroe looking for a parcel of land to claim as a homestead in 1830.  He traveled through the swampy land along the Potowatami Trail until he came to a woodsy, reasonably dry area of land.  He returned to Monroe and purchased 80 acres of land from the local government.

  Coan soon moved his family to the parcel of land.  He was followed by many other setters who began clearing and draining the land.  Some settlers took the easier rout up the Riviere D'Troit to stake out a community and form a landing named Ecorse.

  Coan and his neighbors, including the Charles Steward family, found themselves attached to Ecorse Landing by trade and politics.  They found it bothersome to make the journey to the neighboring community

  The members of the community led by Coan and Steward, petitioned for township status from the new state of Michigan.  Their petition was granted in the winter of 1847.  They named their new township "Taylor" after General Zachary Taylor,  a hero of the war of 1812.  The new township had 150 inhabitants.

  The growing community elected officials, including Coan as the first Justice of the Peace, and Steward as the first Township Clerk.  With newly elected officials and a great influx of homesteaders, it was time for the community to establish formal schooling for it's children.  It was decided at a town meeting that the children could be spared from their farm work and chores for the months of December, January and February to learn their letters and figures.  Steward became the first administrator of the school, collected taxes and fees, and keeping records.

  Dearborn, Romulus and Brownstown were the closest surrounding townships of Taylor.  Each township had a one-room schoolhouse that served anywhere from 25-45 students, ranging in age from 4-20.  Each schoolhouse had one teacher who was responsible for meeting the needs of all students.

  The remainder of the 19th century saw a slow but steady growth in Taylor Township.  Many of it's people came from families fleeing conscription in the Franco-Prussion War.  These peace loving, industrious immigrants found the rich soil of Michigan appealing to their agricultural backgrounds.

  Taylor Township continued to grow both in population as well as industry.  After the turn of the century there was a flourishing saw mill, gristmill, a wagon and blacksmith shop and a temporary post office. "Taylor Center," as it had become known had a good road that ran to Ecorse where the many farmers of the community hauled fresh produce.

  In 1865, a school was built on Van Born Road, or Town Line Road, as it was called at the time.  The teacher was Miss Carrie Schiman and she had 90 pupils.  It was called the Red School and had a construction value of $200.00.

  The construction of several schools occurred during this time period, being funded through  the new tax levied at $.50 per child.  Harvard I School was a portable, one room building on Ecorse Road, east of Pardee.  Harvard II School, also a one room portable, was constructed on Pelham and Van Born Road.

  In 1888, there were six school districts in Taylor Township, with six teachers employed.  There were 416 children in the districts, but only 260 attended school.

  The next major influx of settlers did not occur until the late 1930's and 1940's.  This was interesting in that the surrounding Downriver communities underwent tremendous building booms during the 1920's and 1930's which did not affect Taylor Township.  This lag was due in part to a lack of sewers and water mains and other public services in the area.

  In 1938, Taylor Center was the first school in Wayne County to be built by the Administrative Board of Wayne County and the Federal Works Progress Administration.  This created the seventh school district in Taylor Township.

  In the early 1940's a few housing subdivisions sprang up in the northern end of the township as fast as the sewers and water mains could be installed. This home building boom of the 1940's was also spurred by a wave of residents who came to Michigan from Tennessee, Mississippi, Kentucky and other Southern states to work in the Detroit area factories during the wartime shortage.  World War II brought factory workers to the Dearborn and Willow Run. Taylor  Township provided low cost homes for these laborers.  The population grew from 2,000 in 1930 to 8,860 in 1940.  The rapid growth created a new concern for the instructional needs of the children of the community.  Public education needed to provide more than letters and figures for the children to get by during the trying times of war.

  In June of 1946, the seven school districts of Taylor Township voted to consolidate into one district.  At this time 3,241 pupils were enrolled in elementary classes (grades K-8) while 808 pupils were bussed to neighboring high schools in Dearborn, Wyandotte and Detroit.

  The consolidation gave the Taylor Township School District the following schools:

Eurekadale
Treadwell
Edison
Edgewood
Fletcher
Sand Hill
Taylor Township School

  Immediately after consolidation in 1946, the Taylor School District began adding to the existing buildings.  At this time, Federal and Taylor Parks Elementary were constructed.  Half day sessions were required to accommodate the growing enrollment.  During the first five-year period, six bond and millage proposals were placed on the ballot for voters.

  The following table shows the election results of these elections:

  The school district had to work closely with the city planning commission to know where the new subdivisions were being planned in order to meet population growth of various areas.  Many factors were taken into consideration for the planning of new schools.  The schools needed to be within walking distance of where students lived.  Boundaries were drawn from the confines of traffic arteries, railroads or topographic features.

  In 1949 plans began for the first high school to be built in Taylor Township.  The community was divided on this issue.  In a July 1951 election, the voters rejected a bond issue for a new high school by only 27 votes.  Six months later they voted again and 80% of the voters approved the bond issue.  The change in the community came about because the district's 500 graduating 8th graders would have to be bussed 25 miles to Southwestern High School in Detroit.

  In the five years since the consolidation of the original seven school districts, the community had become proud of it's new, larger school district.  Forming this new district had not been easy.  The school district included 24 square miles of Taylor Township and arts of Brownstown, Dearborn and Nankin Township.  When the districts voted to consolidate, it was with a feeling of pride that they entered the next stage of development of the community.  In five years the semi-rural school district of Taylor Township had become the 10th largest district in the state of Michigan.

  Previously the district had been growing by a few hundred students each year.  During the 1950's Taylor doubled it's enrollment.
 

  The following table shows the district's growth during this period:

  In the five years from 1955-1960 the enrollment increased by 6,500 students.  This tremendous surge in growth in such a short period of time created numerous problems:

  Glenn Bowen served as superintendent from 1949 to 1954.  During this time his administration and the teachers were organizing one of the first Michigan Federation of Teachers locals in the state.  The Taylor Federation of Teachers endorsed tenure and was one of the first districts in the state to approve teacher tenure in 1952. The school boundaries issue was a difficult one for his Administration and the School Board.  The problems involved in building new schools every year was immense.  Boundaries had to be drawn with many contingencies.  Construction deadlines were often not met.  Children might start at one school in overcrowded conditions or placed on half-days for a few months only to be moved when the new school was completed. One new neighborhood school could fill up in a matter of months.  All the new children, only a few blocks away, could be transported for miles to another school.

  Orville Jones was superintendent from 1954 to 1961.  The unprecedented rapid growth of the community, and the subsequent increase in the school population, troubled the Board and Administration.  It was during that time that the greatest growth occurred along with numerous boundary changes.  They realized there was no master plan for the community development  and that long range planning was virtually impossible.  The Administration and the Board worked well together to deal with the issues they faced during this period.  Two of the most controversial issues that caused considerable conflict in the community were boundaries and the safety of children.  Both issues required many town hall format meetings to let the citizens and parents voice their concerns.

  During that decade, the community support is evidenced by the following:

  In 1961 voters rejected part of the bond issue because of the inclusion of an administrative building. This building was needed since the district's administrative staff was being housed at Taylor Center High School.
In the 1960's, school population increased by nearly 1,000 new students per year.  Consequently, the need for additional operation funds and new bond issues continued to be a priority for the Board of Education and Administration.  During the period from 1961 to 1971, only three millage proposals passed while eight were defeated.  Five bond issues were proposed and only one passed.  The following schools were built during and following this time period:

1961 - Bartlett Elementary
1962 - West Jr. High
1972 - McDowell Elementary
1973- Myers Elementary
1973- Truman Jr. & Senior High
1978- Maley Career Center

  The 1980's, 1990's and the beginning of the 21st Century saw much political and economic upheaval.  The economy shifted from the U.S. auto base in the Detroit Metro Area to a global economy.  Several schools were closed and continue to be closed due to declining enrollment.  Many of the challenges of the previous decades still face  the Taylor School District today.  District employees continue to strive to meet the ever changing needs of it's students and families.

Compiled and written by the Taylor School District's Historical Team