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Barry County, Michigan

77 topographic sheets cover 33 settlements here, and 9 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Research this county

From the record

9 National Register listings published here.

Sources: the county history on the Internet Archive · the National Register database, National Park Service

Michigan within the United States
Barry County within Michigan

What the record shows

  • 452 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
  • 9 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places: 7 buildings and 2 districts.
  • 1 of the 9 listings was added during the 1970s.
  • The Geographic Names Information System records 33 populated places in this county; 33 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.

Places on the National Register

9

Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.

Photograph PropertyType ListedReference
Barry County Courthouse Complexbuilding198181000303
John Carveth Housebuilding199292001076
Chief Noonday Group Camp Historic Districtdistrict199696001481
Dwight, Austin H., and Frankie A., Summer Housebuilding198585000656
Hickory Lodge No. 345building2021100006410
Long Lake Group Camp Historic Districtdistrict199696001482
Michigan Central Railroad Middleville Depotbuilding2022100007564
Shriner-Ketcham Housebuilding198787000186
Daniel Striker Housebuilding197272000592

Wildfire, 1992 to 2020

227 fires

Every wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 227 of them, burning about 1,059 acres. 15 started naturally and 15 were recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.

Reported cause Fires
Debris and open burning56
Missing data/not specified/undetermined54
Equipment and vehicle use44
Natural15
Recreation and ceremony15
Arson/incendiarism15
Smoking12
Power generation/transmission/distribution5
Railroad operations and maintenance5
Misuse of fire by a minor4
Other causes2

The five largest, by the area the report gives. None of them was recorded as arson.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
11 April 1996Equipment and vehicle use120 acresMichigan Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
17 April 2015Debris and open burning57 acresMichigan Department of Natural ResourcesBARRY 02
6 April 2013Missing data/not specified/undetermined52 acresMichigan Department of Natural ResourcesBARRY 01
2 May 1996Equipment and vehicle use51 acresMichigan Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
10 April 1994Debris and open burning50 acresMichigan Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
6 April 2005Debris and open burning43 acresMichigan Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
24 March 1996Debris and open burning38 acresMichigan Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
12 April 2003Debris and open burning34 acresMichigan Department of Natural Resourcesnot named

Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.

Storms, 1955 to 2026

60 of 251 shown

The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 251 reports for this county, causing no deaths, 8 injuries and about $13,850,560 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.

Kind of event Reports
Thunderstorm Wind157
Hail59
Tornado21
Flash Flood11
Lightning1
Funnel Cloud1
Flood1

The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 1965Tornado (F3)not stated5 hurt, $250,000no account filed
April 1967Tornado (F2)not stated1 hurt, $25,000no account filed
August 1955Tornado (F2)not stated1 hurt, $25,000no account filed
September 1997LightningHastings1 hurtA young boy was treated and released from Pennock Community Hospital in Hastings after lightning struck next to him. He received minor injuries.
April 2013FloodMiddleville$5,000,000Significant flooding occurred on rivers and streams across Barry county due to heavy rainfall and antecedent high river levels and saturated grounds.
April 1956Tornado (F3)not stated$2,500,000no account filed
April 2023HailIrving$500,000Hail up to tennis ball sized was reported in Middleville and Irving. The hail did considerable damage to area homes with numerous reports of damaged roofs and siding.
April 2023HailFreeport$500,000Hail to around golf ball sized was reported in and near Freeport.
April 2023HailWoodland$500,000The public reported hail close to two inches in diameter in and near Woodland.
June 2008Flash FloodYankee Spgs$500,000Numerous roads across portions of Barry county were washed out by very heavy rain. In fact a half a million dollars worth of damage resulted primarily from washed out roads. Due to the extensive flooding a presidential disaster declaration was issued.
July 2011Flash FloodFreeport$250,000The Barry county road commission indicated that there were numerous road closures and washouts. Radar indicates that six to eight inches of rain fell across northeast and east Barry county.
July 1986Tornado (F2)not stated$250,000no account filed
April 1965Tornado (F1)not stated$250,000no account filed
May 2001Tornado (F0)Yankee Spgs$200,000A tornado classified as a F0 produced maximum estimated wind speeds to 65 m.p.h. It had a path length of only a tenth of a mile long, was 75 yards wide, and briefly touched down near Yankee Springs road and M-37. The tornado produces some tree damage, damaged a barn, and a porch was blown from a home.
June 2019Thunderstorm WindSchultz$150,000Barry county dispatch reported trees and power lines were blown down across large portions of the county.
September 2018Tornado (EF0)Cressery$150,000An NWS storm survey confirmed that an EF-0 struck near Hickory Corners. Several trees and limbs were snapped on the northwest and northern ends of Little Long Lake in Barry county. Snapped trees also fell on a home.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindParmelee$100,000Several trees were snapped or uprooted and a report of hail up to an inch in diameter was also received.
April 2024Thunderstorm WindHastings Muni Arpt$100,000The public reported that multiple trees were blown down and that one tree fell onto a house.
July 2017Thunderstorm WindMiddleville$100,000Several trees and power lines were blown down across Barry county.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindGun Lake$100,000Trained spotters reported that several large trees came down around Gun Lake including one that fell on a house. Some storage sheds and carports were also damaged.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindOrangeville$100,000A bow echo raced east across Barry county during the late morning hours, bringing down scattered trees countywide.
April 2008Tornado (EF1)Doster$100,000A National Weather Service storm survey determined that the EF-1 tornado that touched down just southwest of 388 3rd Street in the southeast corner of Allegan county continued northeast into Barry county. The tornado knocked down numerous trees near Pine Lake, southwest of Prairieville.
February 2001Flash FloodCountywide$100,000no account filed
May 2000Flash FloodCountywide$100,000no account filed
August 2007Thunderstorm WindHastings$75,000Large trees were blown down and blocked West State Road in Hastings. Trees were reported down countywide.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindCoats Grove$50,000There were numerous reports of downed trees, limbs and power lines in the Hastings area.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindHastings$50,000Law enforcement reported numerous trees blown down in and near Hastings.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindHickory Corners$50,000Several large trees which were greater than twenty inches in diameter were blown down three miles east of Hickory Corners, in Barry county.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindCrooked Lake$50,000Numerous trees were reported to have been blown down in Prairieville, Johnstown and Assyria townships by an emergency manager.
May 1999Thunderstorm WindCountywide$50,000Many trees and power lines were downed by strong winds across Barry County.
June 1997Thunderstorm WindMiddleville$50,000Barry County Central Dispatch reported several large trees and power lines downed across the Middleville and Yankee Springs area of northwest Barry County. Many trees fell across roads, creating hazardous driving conditions for motorists. One Middleville home, at 3240 N. Yankee Springs Road (Highway M-37), sustained damage from 2 trees downed in the front yard. The downed trees damaged the resident's garage, front picture window, and roof.
May 2001Flash FloodCountywide$50,000no account filed
May 2001Flash FloodCountywide$50,000no account filed
May 2000Thunderstorm WindGun Lake$50,000no account filed
May 2000HailDowling$50,000no account filed
May 2000HailDelton$50,000no account filed
July 2003HailWoodland$40,000One and one half inch diameter hail was reported with a severe thunderstorm in Woodland.
July 2003HailMiddleville$40,000Numerous reports of hail were received from Middleville, including one report of one inch diameter hail 3.5 miles south Middleville off M-37.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindFreeport$30,000A barn door was blown in and numerous large trees were blown down near Freeport.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindOrangeville$30,000no account filed
June 2023Thunderstorm WindBanfield$25,000Several large trees and tree limbs were blown down.
June 2020Thunderstorm WindAssyria$25,000Several trees and power lines were blown down countywide.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindMiddleville$25,000Several trees were blown down.
December 2007Thunderstorm WindHastings Muni Arpt$25,000A tree was blown down onto a house and crashed into the kitchen.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindMiddleville$25,000A pole barn was blown off it's foundation and numerous trees were blown down just southeast of Middleville.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindNashville$25,000A 65 m.p.h. wind gust was reported 5 miles north of Nashville.
May 2003HailAssyria$25,000An off duty police officer reported that an isolated severe thunderstorm produced one and three quarters inch diameter hail one miles west of Assyria.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindIrving$25,000Several trees were blown down near the Yankee Springs State Recreation area. A 70 m.p.h. wind gust was measured in Hastings. An estimated 70 m.p.h. wind gust blew down two trees four miles north of Nashville.
June 1998Thunderstorm WindOrangeville$25,000Six large trees and several telephone poles were downed near the intersection of Patterson and Wildwood Roads, just south of Gun Lake and 2 miles north of Orangeville in Orangeville Township.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindHastings$25,000Numerous trees and power lines were downed in and around the city of Hastings. No significant structural damage and no injuries reported. Damage estimated around $25,000.
June 1997Thunderstorm WindGun Lake$25,000A line of severe thunderstorms which moved across Barry County downed trees and power lines in the Gun Lake area. One Gun Lake home sustained minor damage. A Rutland Township man went out in the storm and became entangled in a downed power line in the 3800 block of Gun Lake Road, but escaped without injury.
June 1997Thunderstorm WindHastings$25,000Barry County Central Dispatch reported trees and power lines downed across the city of Hastings as a gust front associated with a line of severe thunderstorms moved through.
May 2001Flash FloodCountywide$25,000no account filed
May 2001Flash FloodCountywide$25,000no account filed
September 2001Thunderstorm WindDelton$25,000no account filed
June 2000Thunderstorm WindNashville$25,000no account filed
June 2000Thunderstorm WindOrangeville$25,000no account filed
June 2000Thunderstorm WindMaple Grove$25,000no account filed
July 2000Thunderstorm WindHastings$25,000no account filed
August 1986Tornado (F2)not stated$25,000no account filed

Mines and quarries

13 recorded

The Survey's mineral resources record lists 13 workings inside this county. 4 still produce and 9 are closed or unrecorded. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.

Commodity Workings
Sand and Gravel, Construction10
Limestone, General2
Clay1

The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Leonard Bros Clay PitClayPast Producer
Currie and Duncan Lake MarlLimestone, GeneralPast Producer
Darrell Hamilton Marl OperationLimestone, GeneralPast Producer
Barry Co Pit Bill Smith S & GSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Barry Co Pit Cole BrosSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Barry Co Pit Yerington ConstSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Barry Co Road Comm PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Bohn PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Cole Sand & Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Nashville PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Rieth-Riley Construction Co PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Stidham Pit & PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Sutherland PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

The county's history books

58,366 words

One book written about this county, cut here where the book itself is cut, at its printed chapters: 1 chapter in all. Every chapter is public domain, machine-read from the scan and reproduced complete. A chapter already given under one of the county's towns is not repeated in this list.

History of Barry County, [Michigan] (1912)

ChapterLength
The whole text58,366 words in 4 parts

Every populated place in the county

33

Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.

Provenance

  • Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
  • Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
  • Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.