The early History of Big Rapids is associated with the logging industry. The Muskegon River was used as a transportation artery moving logs downstream to the mills that were located in Muskegon. The name Big Rapids comes from the swift currents near the present location that were referred to by early lubermen as "the big rapids". The year 1855 is considered to be the year that permanent settlement of Big Rapids began with construction of  homes and the establishment of families. For the first few years the community was known as "Leonard".
In 1859 the first recorded plat was created in Big Rapids and was named Village of Big Rapids by Mr. Warren and Mr. Ives. It comprised about 100 acres of land located south of Maple Street. The second plat created was originally named the Village of Glen Elm and included present day North State Street. It was recorded in 1860 by Margaret and Zerah French and became known as French's Addition to Big Rapids.
Post Civil War Years witnessed the arrival of many Scandinavian and German people, the construction of new wooded homes and stores as growth occurred in response to the continued logging of the pine forests. Three railroad companies began operations during the growth of the lumbering era.The expansion of the city prompted its citizens to adopt a city form of Government. A resolution was introduced in the State Legislature and passed in April 1869, the first City Council met for the first time on April 22, 1869.
 In May 1884, Woodbridge Nathan Ferris arrived in Big Rapids and organized a school which opened in September of 1884 with an enrollment of 15 people. The student body grew and by 1906, enrollment reached 2,000 with students ranging from ages 14 to 65. The school suffered through several slumps in enrollment during World War I, the Depression, and World War II. In 1950  Ferris Instutiute, which it was named, suffered a fire that destroyed its main buildings. Ferris Institute is no a major state university offering a wide wariety of academic and trade courses and serves a growing global student body. Mr. Ferris went on to become Governor of Michigan in 1912 and a U.S. Senator in 1922. Today Ferris State University is the leading employer in the Big Rapids area.
During the early part of the twentieth century, construction of two dams provided electricity to the area and people began to describe Big Rapids as Water Power City. The two concrete dams were built to harness the hydro-electric power of the Muskegon River, on located at Rogers Heights in 1906 and the other in Big Rapids in 1914. This availability of energy enabled the city to diversify its economic base to produce a variety of manufactured products. The Big Rapids dam was removed in 1966, however the Rogers Heights dam continues to produce hydro-electric power of customers of Consumers Electric company.
Mercy Hospital opened in 1879 by the Sisters of Mercy, it was the first  hospital in Big Rapids. After it's third major fire, the Sisters were unable to recover from the financial losses, and the hospital came to an end in 1919. The Community Hospital opened its doors in 1927 with 10 private rooms and 7 doctors. It was part of the City administration until 1975 when it became Mecosta County General Hopital and came under the jurisdiction of Mecosta County. Today Mecosta County Medical Center has 74 beds with approximately 25 doctors on active staff, it is the second largest employer in the area.
In spite of the City growing smaller in area since the 1930's , during the 20th Century the Citizens of the Big Rapids community have established a record as an early adopter of progressive ideas such as the City Commission/City Manager form of administraton (1914), School district consolidation (1950 &1965), income tax vs. property tax (1965) and the creation of many parks. |