Before Royal Oak became the hipster town it is today, the township it resides in was swampy, disease ridden and generally considered uninhabitable. Most of the Royal Oak Township area (where the city of Royal Oak is now located) was laid out in 1832, and is the most southeastern area in Oakland County.
Most of the towns’ early inhabitants came from western New York. At the time, the center of the settlement was known as Chase’s Corners – around the Crooks and 13 mile area. In 1835, Sherman Stevens purchased 80 acres of land near the town. He used this land to lay out the village of Royal Oak, which consisted of over 40 total blocks. Using current street names, the village stretched from 11 Mile, to Lincoln Ave., to West Street and finally, to Troy Street.
In 1836, a City Charter was granted to the Detroit and Pontiac Railway Company,gusoline alley and track was laid between Detroit and Royal Oak. Extensions to Birmingham and Pontiac soon followed. The first business in town was a sawmill, which made oak rails for railway construction. The first schoolhouse in the area was located on the corner of Main Street and Lincoln Ave. Later, in 1870, a two-story building was built at the corner of Fourth and Williams Streets.
In 1891, when the population of Royal Oak Village was less than 500, the area was incorporated by an act of the Michigan State Legislature. In 1921, Royal Oak was made a city when residents decided to form a local government.
Currently, Royal Oak has a population of over 70,000. The area currently has 13 elementary schools, a junior high and high school, a community college, and several churches, businesses and much more. Today, the streets of Royal Oak are lined with chic restaurants, shops and coffee houses.
