My City May 2022

Milton C. Pettibone 1897-98

George R. Gold 1898-99

Milton C. Pettibone was born in Howell, MI in 1843 to farmer Roswell Pettibone and his wife Letitia. He was educated in Howell schools until the age of 19 when he joined the dry goods rm of Jewett & Crossman in Howell. In 1867, he migrated north to Flint taking a job as a clerk with Judd, McCreary & Avery. After ve years’ work, he was named rm partner. Four years later, the partnership dissolved and Pettibone moved on to work with the legendary Smith, Bridgeman Co. In 1878, he opened his own clothing business and soon joined up with Arthur C. McCall to open Pettibone &McCall clothiers at 609 S. Saginaw St.‹e father of his wife, Elsie, was one of the rst to bring thoroughbred cattle to the State of Michigan. Pettibone was active in most of the Flint social groups in his day including the FreeMasons, the Royal Arch Masons, the Genesee Valley Commandery, the Knights of the Maccabees and the Royal Arcanum. Pettibone died in 1916.

Coming to Flint from Cornwall, CT Gold was born in 1830 to a rich legal family. Following in the footsteps of his father, he studied law at Yale along with his two brothers, and was the only one to leave his hometown. As soon as he began practicing law in Flint, he gained notoriety as a man with skills equal to the likes of locals William Fenton and D. D. Aitken. He €rst settled in Pine Run at the county’s north end (Clio area) and taught school before beginning his a‡air with the law. In 1867, he moved to Flint and was elected to two terms as city recorder and then elected to 15 consecutive terms as city attorney. During that time, he also acted as judge of the probate court from 1868-1876. After his time as city attorney, Judge Gold opened a €rm with lawyer Charles D. Long and then with lawyers Sumner Howard and William New ton. In 1888, he protected the holdings of Josiah Begole in court after his son Frank’s untimely death raised questions of ownership amongst Frank’s second wife and his infant son Paul and toddler, Josiah W. Frank’s second wife, Louisa, claimed that Frank verbally promised all of his lands and holdings to herself and her family without documentation.–e case helped set precedent for the im portance of legal and written documentation over witnessed verbal claims. While Gold was mayor, Kearsley Elementary School was built in Flint. He died in 1902. 

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