NORTHVILLIANS,
This past week’s weather has been truly outstanding, with record highs and unseasonably warm, sunny days. Many folks in the community have enjoyed the greenspaces of Cass Benton Park and Hines Drive. I would like to take time this week to give you a background on their origins. It is an exceptional park for everyone to enjoy all kinds of recreation: Cross Country races, Frisbee golf, picnic parties, and of course, strolling, biking, and driving down the 20-mile stretch that runs from Northville to Dearborn.
We in Northville are looking at various ways to connect with the parkway through our Rouge River Restoration (River Walk) initiative and Ford Field upgrades. With these projects launching, it’s important we look back at how Cass Benton Park & Hines Drive came to be and their connection to the Northville community.
Some Historical Nuggets on Hines Park –
Let’s look at how Northvillians have been recreating in Cass Benton Park through the years … it’s a lot!
- Northville High School played their football games at the Northville Athletic Park (Northville Downs), then moved to games in the parkway, then to Ford Field in 1938 and eventually, to the present location on Eight Mile in 1962.
- Cass Benton Park is one of the oldest and more hilly areas of Hines Park. The Park has been popular since the 1920’s when it was gifted to Wayne County by park trustee Cassius Benton, a former Wayne County Road Commissioner whose family had owned the property from 7 Mile to 6 Mile & Haggerty to Sheldon. In fact, the Benton Family first laid claim to parts of this land in 1823, before Northville was a community.
- DID YOU KNOW – Cass Benton Park has some of the largest beech and oak trees found in Michigan. It also offers walking trails, picnic areas, cross country courses, sledding and even Frisbee golf. The historic Tudor restroom facilities feature slate-covered gables and oak lintels.
- Bennett Arboretum, developed in the 1930’s, is truly a jewel with a two-mile trail through one of the oldest arboretums in Michigan. Many rare trees from around the world were planted here, as well as maple trees (maple syrup is still demonstrated in this area at times). The arboretum is located on Hines Drive between Six Mile & Seven Mile.
- Mr. Hines was one of the pioneers in roadside beautification. He served on the Wayne County Road Commission with Cass Benton and Henry Ford. All three had an affinity for Northville – Hines’ wife was from the City of Northville, Cass Benton’s family were pioneers of the area and Henry Ford spent his honeymoon on Center St. at one of his cousin’s homes. Ford was so taken with the town that he built a factory here and bought the land known as Ford Field.
- Cass Benton Park and Arboretum is a great asset to local Northvillians and was built by the three commissioners listed above. Through the years toboggan hills, ski jump competitions, Cross Country running invitationals, water parks, tennis courts, volleyball courts and many park gathering areas dating back to the early 1900’s have been available for the community to enjoy. My father used to speak about trying to navigate the ski jump platform on top of the hill on Seven Mile and Hines Drive, which was no easy task.
Jumping to modern times, the Northville Rotary has taken advantage of the beautiful road structure of Hines Drive in its annual Tour de Ville bicycle event which cruises down Hines with its tree-lined park scenery and well-placed rest stops along its rolling hills.
Additionally, DON’T MISS the holiday season in Wayne County when it transforms the parkway into a winter wonderland with its annual LightFest, the longest drive-through holiday light show in the Midwest. Hundreds of thousands of community residents enjoy this Holiday light sensation each year. Even better, it can be experienced from the safety of your own vehicle, perfect for the times we live in now. It all begins Wed, November 25th and runs through Dec. 31st.
Get out today and enjoy the natural beauty of Cass Benton Park and Hines Drive and bask in their history!
Keep that Northville Faith!
Brian Turnbull
Mayor – Northville
BTurnbull@ci.northville.mi.us / 248.505.6849
(Reach out to me anytime or forward this communication to others interested.)
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