Azalia, Michigan
Encyclopedia
Azalia, is an unincorporated community in Milan Township
, Monroe County
in the U.S. state
of Michigan
. It is located south and east of exit 22 off U.S. Highway 23, about five miles south of the city of Milan
and about four miles north of Dundee
.
Azalia is situated between sections 24 and 25 on the north branch of the Macon Creek at 42°01′08"N 83°39′57"W. The Azalia ZIP code
48110 provides P.O. Box-only service. The Azalia post office is one of very few located within a business.
The community was first known as East Milan, or Reeves Station where a family named Reeves established the Star Bending Company. A post office opened on August 4, 1869 (or in 1866 by some accounts), largely through the efforts of Daniel T. Hazen, to avoid having to travel to West Milan (now Cone) to pick up mail. Steven Frink was the first postmaster, followed by Hazen in 1867, Joseph Meadows in 1872, John M. Lewis in 1877, and A.C. Reynolds in 1884. On September 1, 1887, the postmaster-general issued orders changing the name of the post office from "East Milan" to "Azalia", which was the name of the railroad station and also named Meadows as postmaster again.
The Toledo, Ann Arbor and Grand Trunk Railway (later the Toledo, Ann Arbor and North Michigan Railway and then the Ann Arbor Railroad), opened on June 8, 1878, with a station named "Azalia", named after one of the daughters of the president of the railroad, Azalia Ashley.
A Methodist Episcopal Church
began holding classes in the early 1850s, building a church in 1870, which continues to the present as the Azalia United Methodist Church
.
Milan Township, Michigan
Milan Township is a civil township of Monroe County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,670 at the 2000 census. The southern portion of the City of Milan bounds the township to the north, though the city and township have been completely separate jurisdictions since the former...
, Monroe County
Monroe County, Michigan
Monroe County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the 2010 population is 152,021. The largest city and county seat is Monroe. The U.S. Census Bureau defines all of Monroe County as conterminous with the Monroe Metropolitan Area...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. It is located south and east of exit 22 off U.S. Highway 23, about five miles south of the city of Milan
Milan, Michigan
Milan is a city in Monroe and Washtenaw counties in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,775 at the 2000 census. About 60% of the city's area and 75% of its residents are located on the Washtenaw County side adjacent to York Township in Washtenaw County; while 40% percent of the...
and about four miles north of Dundee
Dundee, Michigan
Dundee is a village in Monroe County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,522 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Dundee Township. Through a series of annexations and land transfers, the village has greatly increased in size over the past several years...
.
Azalia is situated between sections 24 and 25 on the north branch of the Macon Creek at 42°01′08"N 83°39′57"W. The Azalia ZIP code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
48110 provides P.O. Box-only service. The Azalia post office is one of very few located within a business.
The community was first known as East Milan, or Reeves Station where a family named Reeves established the Star Bending Company. A post office opened on August 4, 1869 (or in 1866 by some accounts), largely through the efforts of Daniel T. Hazen, to avoid having to travel to West Milan (now Cone) to pick up mail. Steven Frink was the first postmaster, followed by Hazen in 1867, Joseph Meadows in 1872, John M. Lewis in 1877, and A.C. Reynolds in 1884. On September 1, 1887, the postmaster-general issued orders changing the name of the post office from "East Milan" to "Azalia", which was the name of the railroad station and also named Meadows as postmaster again.
The Toledo, Ann Arbor and Grand Trunk Railway (later the Toledo, Ann Arbor and North Michigan Railway and then the Ann Arbor Railroad), opened on June 8, 1878, with a station named "Azalia", named after one of the daughters of the president of the railroad, Azalia Ashley.
A Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...
began holding classes in the early 1850s, building a church in 1870, which continues to the present as the Azalia United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
.