Back in the 60s, Dionne Warwick once sang that old favorite “Do You Know The Way To Pewonagowink”.

Okay, it was actually San Jose'.

Pewonagowink was the original name of a town in Genesee County called Montrose. And no, Sammy Hagar's old band Montrose did NOT come from there.

According to Michigan Place Names, in 1835 the first hunk of land was bought by Dan Pifford. Then in 1842, Seymour Ensign bought many more acres, enough to start planning an entire village. Montrose Township was organized in 1848, followed by a re-naming of 'Pewonagowink' to 'Montrose'. Scotsman John Farquharson was responsible for changing the name, taking it from a village in Scotland – he was hoping to impress his Scottish friends by doing this. Maybe it worked, for people kept coming to live in Montrose.

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The post office opened for business in 1856 and the village was incorporated in 1899. The name 'Montrose' has no definite meaning – at least, not one I could find – and is mainly a surname.

There are four notable people that come from Montrose:
AMANDA CARPENTER, news commentator and author
DAN SEVERN, pro wrestler
JOHN CHERRY, lieutenant governor of Michigan, 2003-2011
SCOTT ALDRED, former major league pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, 1990-1992 and again in 1996. He also pitched for the Expos, Twins, Phillies and others.

While Montrose may appear to be just another Michigan village, it's still worth a stop to take advantage of their mom & pop shops. Once you see some of the vintage photos below from the early 1900s, maybe that will encourage you to stop...

Vintage Photos of Montrose

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