Courtesy Lansing Community Newspapers

Unlike some small towns, Eaton Rapids has a rich history. Because of a wealth of mineral springs with supposed curative powers, it was once dubbed the “Saratoga of the West.”

When the first spring/well was discovered in 1852, news spread quickly and new wells were put down and hotels sprang up all over town. In all, fourteen wells were drilled. At this height of the “mineral” wealth, six passenger trains daily brought wealthy people to Eaton Rapids for cures. Every available hotel room was taken up by visitors and those seeking good health.

Eventually, the mineral cure craze passed, and the town returned to it’s mill-town roots. However, there are currently efforts on the part of the Eaton Rapids Area Historical Society and others to explore the possibility of once again opening these wells and letting the “curative” waters flow once more.

Some of Eaton Rapids’ other historical claims to fame include having given Michigan two governors — Judge Ransom in 1838 and Austin Blair in 1842. In 1891, one of the very first women physicians and surgeons, Henrietta Carr, practiced medicine her entire life in Eaton Rapids. A Dr. Derby of Eaton Rapids put together a cough syrup that is still being manufactured by Park Davis.

The Bissell Plow Co. invented, patented and manufactured horse drawn plows here. Twenty-five men were employed and they produced 6,000 plows a year. Also, Eaton Rapids’ True Manufacturing Co. invented a combination hay and stock rack for wagons.

The first newspaper published in Eaton County was born in Eaton Rapids in 1847, the “Eaton Democrat.” The Eaton Rapids post office was established in 1838, the second in Eaton County.