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Old Posted Aug 27, 2017, 2:54 PM
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Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: The Zoo, Michigan
Posts: 3,498
West by Southwest recently did an interesting short piece explaining the history of how Portage became incorporated as its own city, and why it's not part of Kalamazoo today. It's about 5 minutes long; you can listen to it here.

Basically, The Upjohn Company (now part of Pfizer) played a major role in Portage's eventual incorporation. After Upjohn made the decision in the 1940s to relocate from downtown Kalamazoo to the rural countryside south of the city, many people moved with it. Kalamazoo fought back by tripling its size through annexation efforts. But combined with the growing racial tensions of the 1950s and 60s, Upjohn's move created an expanding suburban population base that soon desired incorporation and independent governance from the County.

It is common local knowledge (among older residents anyway) how, in early 1963, two different Petitions were submitted to the County Clerk's office on the same day. One, by the City of Kalamazoo, was submitted to annex the rural land that The Upjohn Company sat upon (effectively eliminating Portage Township's primary economic engine, and in theory, it's rapid growth). The other one was submitted by Portage Township to incorporate itself and everything within its boundaries (including the Upjohn facility) as a new City. Portage ultimately won the race to submit its petition by a mere 45 minutes ahead of Kalamazoo. And thus, the City of Portage was born, in February 1963.

Portage is much more than just one company today, but the legacy of Upjohn lives on in the area through Pfizer's facilities. Back in the day, Upjohn was king of the rural countryside south of Kalamazoo. Here's an image of the Upjohn plant, as it appeared in 1958, shortly after its suburban relocation, in what was then Portage Township:


Image Source: John Todd / John Todd Collection, Portage District Library
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