What is the history of Burton, Michigan?
Many of the original settlers of Burton came from the towns of Adams (town), New YorkAdams and Henderson, New YorkHenderson in Jefferson County, New York. For many years the place was known as the Atherton settlement, after brothers Shubael and Perus Atherton (and later joined by another brother, Adonijah), who settled on the Thread Creek in 1835. Although there were other persons who purchased land earlier, and even some who attempted to settle there, the first permanent white settler in the area is considered to be Levi Gilkey, who purchased land on May 11, 1831, and settled near the mouth of the Gilkey Creek (in what is now part of Flint, MichiganFlint). The City of Burton was originally organized as ‘Burton Township’, named after John Burton, a prominent local farmer. Burton Township had first been a part of Grand Blanc Township, MichiganGrand Blanc Township and then Flint Township, MichiganFlint Township until it was separately organized by the Genesee County Board of Supervisors
