Stevensville, Michigan

Thomas L. Stevens was a Niles banker who saw opportunity in the railroad pushing north along Lake Michigan. He owned a large tract of land here in Lincoln Township, Berrien County.

According to local tradition, he struck a deal with the Chicago and Michigan Lake Shore Railroad: sell them a portion of his land for one dollar in exchange for a depot named after him. The village was platted on his land. The village grew quickly as a station stop serving the surrounding farm country, becoming the commercial center for Lincoln Township.

Today that railroad right-of-way remains the backbone of the community Stevens built with a one-dollar handshake.