Station: Lawton, MI

Lawton was founded in 1848. Ten acres of land were donated to the Michigan Central railroad to build their depot here in 1897. The town was known as Paw Paw Station, South Paw Paw (four miles south) and then renamed Lawton in 1851. It became a village in 1858 in Van Buren County.

Photo info: Top, An early shot of the MC depot taken at the turn of the century. 2nd photo, another photo of the depot. Note the lower quadrant train order semaphores. [Both, Alan Loftis collection], 3rd photo of the depot, taken in 1989. [Charlie Whipp].

Notes

Time Line

1917, The MC had an agent-operator here around-the-clock. The MC also had a dedicated freight agent here. [TRT]

1920. On the Michigan Central, this is a passenger ticket and freight agency. Interline tickets are available. H. V. Healy is the agent. The telegraph call sign is "Q". [MCOAS]