My City March 2023

Morris A. Knight House 1105 Church St., Flint Built: 1887 The two-story Queen Anne Victorian home was built in 1887 by successful business owner Morris A. Knight in Downtown Flint on the corner of Church and 6th Streets. Born in Detroit, Knight moved with his family to Flint in 1863 when they opened a shoe store in the city. He spent his younger years working in the store until he set off on his own in 1873 to work in the mercantile busi ness in Bay City. He returned to Flint just two years later and opened a store of his own with partner O. M. Smith.

Their business, O. M. Smith and Company, quickly flourished, allowing the opening of a second location in Bay City. By the early 1900s, O. M. Smith and Company grew to sell a variety of goods including clothing, dry staples and home amenities be coming one of the first true depart ment stores in Genesee County. The store eventually closed in 1932 due to the Great Depression. Morris A. Knight never lived to see the closing of his flagship store; he died in 1918. His wife, Harriet, continued to live in the house in Flint until her death in 1935. Ownership passed to daughter Alice who remained in the house until her death in 1977. ß

Horace Gilbert & Enos Miller House 5023 Holland Dr., Swartz Creek Built: 1870 Built by Horace Gilbert in 1870, the house would soon transfer to the hands of Swartz Creek co-founding family, the Millers. In 1836, German migrant and pioneer, Adam Miller started the Miller Settlement on the land of the city. His son, Enos Miller, felled the first tree, clearing the way for the route that would be come known as Miller Road. When a post office was established at the settlement in 1842, it was named for the nearby stream of Swartz Creek. The name stuck and the Village of Swartz Creek was platted in 1877. In 1902, Morgan Miller, the son of Enos, purchased the house at 5023 Holland Dr. from the Gilbert Fam ily as a residence for his father and mother. Enos and Martha retired to the house and lived there until their deaths, Martha in 1905 and Enos in 1920. The home is no longer a fam ily residence and has transitioned into a commercial property.

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