ALBION—JUST RIGHT

Through the years, Albion has had numerous "mottos" designed to promote our town and to give us a better image to those around us and in the rest of the state. Some have been better than others, and one I can think of not so good. Some were "real official," while others not so official. You may have heard slogans such as "Albion-An Honest Slice of Life," "Give a Thought to Albion," "Albion, A Better Place To Live, Work, Play," "Albion, the Smart Community," "The Friendliest Little College Town in the Midwest," and others.

One slogan, however which I think surpassed all others was coined early in the 20th century and was used from the 1900s through the 1910s for approximately twenty years. It simple stated, "Albion—Just Right." This slogan was repeated in various ways, from appearing on the bottom of locally-produced soda pop bottles, to "Albion’s Theme Song" entitled "Hang Your Hat in Albion," written in 1912. In that musical ditty one line goes, "Hang Your Hat in Albion. Albion—Just Right. It’s a happy pretty College town, growth and business all around…" And so it went.

From our Historical Notebook this week we present a picture postcard dated January 19, 1916. The card was written by Flora Edwards, who was a clerk at the local Mounteer’s Bakery, as well has her husband Russell who was a baker there. The family lived at 117 W. Porter St.

The written text states, "This is the cottage we were in this summer at the lake. The flags were to celebrate our seventh wedding anniversary." I am assuming here that the cottage was at Duck Lake, but it could be elsewhere. The picture shows the family on the front porch of their cottage, with the slogan "ALBION JUST RIGHT" sign proudly hung in front.

With there apparently being some sort of competition involving yard signs promoting various area school districts happening recently (It’s nice to see that the Albion Public School district finally scrambled to get their own signs made and placed), the slogan "Albion--Just Right" would be a positive unifying theme for the entire community. Perhaps it would be appropriate for that slogan to be revived and promoted for the times we live in.

	Frank Passic — Albion Historian An Albion native and 1971 graduate of Albion High School, Frank Passic has been researching and writing Albion history since 1976. He is the creator of the Albion Historical Notebook, with hundreds of articles appearing weekly in the Morning Star and The Recorder. Frank maintains an extensive personal archive including Riverside Cemetery records, family surname files, genealogies, photographs, city directories, and high school yearbooks. Support his 2026 research at the Historic Albion Michigan Facebook page. Historical Notebook \| From the Archives \| Subject List \| 100 Years Ago \| Alphabetical Index \| Frank Passic Home Page \| Albion History Books \| Contact Frank
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