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Any photos not otherwise credited are from the personal collection of Frank Passic, Albion Historian.
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Morning Star, December 6, 2020, pg. 7 Let’s feature one of Albion’s streets this week. Crandall St. is located in the southwest portion of town, in Precinct 3. Crandall is the last street you come to when you’re headed south on M-99 (S. Superior St.) just before the Kalamazoo River. You can’t tell it’s Crandall St. however because the street sign is still missing, and has been for some time. Crandall St. was once part of the large fruit-tree farm of Albion banker Samuel V. Irwin (1823-1890) who owned land south of a line beginning with Mechanic and River streets on the north, Dalrymple Blvd. on the west, past S. Superior St. to the millpond south of River St., and then following the north bank of the millpond southwestwards to an imaginary Dalrymple St. line. His large home sat at 103 Irwin Avenue. Upon his death in 1890, his widow Amelia authorized the subdividing of their property for the development, sale, and platting of the property into lots, and public streets. A few lots had already been sold by the Irwins in the 1880s. This was handled by their son, Frank L. Irwin (1863-1947). Irwin’s First Addition to the city plat involved houses along Irwin Avenue all the way to Dalrymple St. The Irwin & Hodges Addition involved the Mechanic St. area. Next, Irwin’s Second Addition involved houses along Crandall St. and streets south to the Kalamazoo River. Thus, it can be said that Crandall, Lincoln, and Adams Streets were named and developed between 1890 and 1894. Crandall St. first appears in the map of Albion found in the 1894 Atlas of Calhoun County. The street is three blocks long. After whom is Crandall St. named? We don’t know. Two written sources about Albion street names both state they don’t know, either. The street would probably have been named after an acquaintance of the Irwin’s, or maybe after some prominent public figure. There was one neighborhood grocery and meat market store located on Crandall St. It was operated by Chris and Haddie (Jasienski) Petroff, out of their home at 306 Crandall St. as listed in the 1926 and 1928 directories, before they moved to Marshall. Typhoid fever struck some residents of Crandall St. in 1911. The August 11, 1911 Albion Evening Recorder stated, "Mr. and Mrs. Louis [Ada] Steinkraus of Crandall Street [515] are both reported as ill with typhoid fever. This is Albion’s first case of the disease this year. Health Officer Hafford advises citizens against the use of water from old wells. There is no danger of typhoid fever from the city water. Residents on Crandall St. state however, that they are on a tag end of the city water supply and that the water line stops at the end of the street, thus making a congested condition unless the water is flushed from the city hydrant at the end of the street. Crandall street residents say the water on that street is so rusty that they are forced to resort to their wells as the city water is not fit to drink." Back in those days people had cisterns before city water was installed, and those proved to be very prone to typhoid. From our Historical Notebook this week we present a photograph of a Crandall Street sign. When is the last time you have driven on Crandall St?  Crandall Street sign
All text copyright, 2026 © all rights reserved Frank Passic | Artwork copyright Maggie LaNoue © 2026
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