Alvah Brainerd’s A Pioneer History of the Township of Grand Blanc (originally published 1878) is a short, firsthand local history and collection of reminiscences about Grand Blanc Township from the perspective of an early resident. The book mixes chronological narrative with anecdote: it records the arrival and settlement of pioneer families (names, land entries, and dates), describes daily life on the frontier, and preserves stories about early schools, churches, roads, mills, and township government as the community grew from wilderness into an organized township.

Brainerd also devotes attention to interactions with Native Americans in the area (brief local notes and names), local geography (streams, roads, and important homesteads), and the practical hardships pioneers faced—harsh winters, limited supplies, travel difficulties, and building basic institutions. Scattered through the text are character sketches of notable residents, humorous or memorable pioneer incidents, and details that illuminate everyday social life in 19th-century rural Michigan.

The work functions both as a community memory (preserving names, dates, and places) and as a primary-source snapshot of Grand Blanc’s formative decades. Its tone is personal and anecdotal rather than formal academic history; readers get the sense of an author recording what he saw and learned over decades.

But it on Amazon