History
Charles H. calkins
Charles H. Calkins, was a native of New York. he migrated to the Perry, Michigan area in 1855, at the age of 24, with his father and uncle. He built his original home just east of the present Congregational Church. His front yard was where the present day Spalding Insurance Agency stands on the corner of Main and Second street. He married Minerva Matruis who was the mother of his only surviving child, Bessie.
Charles Calkins built his family a beautiful Italianate Bracketed Tuscan Villa which they moved into in the fall of 1879 when daughter Bessie was nine years old.
Some of the unique features of the house include the closets found in each of the bedrooms and the loose brick in the walls, which was used for insulation purposes. Many of the original features are located on the second floor and include the original woodwork and wallpaper.
Today this beautiful property is home to the Perry Historical Society and the Calkins Macqueen Museum. The historical museum houses hundreds of items, large and small lovingly donated by the many families that have called Perry home.
Perry Center
The community of Perry Centre was located approximately one mile south of the present location on M-52. In 1876 the railroad brought to the Calkins family a new era of prosperity by bisecting their farm. The citizens of Perry Centre decided to move the community closer to this new form of transportation. Charles Calkins and William McKellops who owned the farm on the west side of the present M-52, subdivided their farms into lots and sold them to the new citizens of the Village of Perry. From the Charles Calkins addition to the Village of Perry he gave lots to the township and village governments for their offices and lots to the Baptist, Methodist and Congregational churches. For this reason, many people purchased lots and moved their homes, businesses and churches to this section of the new village. The largest of these buildings move was the Methodist Church across the street .
Calkins-Macqueen House
Bessie Macqueen
Bessie Calkins was born on January 6, 1870 in Perry MI. Bessie married Alexander Macqueen on May 20, 1889 in the Calkins home. They bought the house from her father in 1911. Although they did not have children Bessie and Allie devoted much of their time and energy to improving many lives in the community. Bessie was a proud member of the Perry High School Alumni for over 50 years, serving for a time as President Emeritus. Bessie was a faithful member of the Perry Congregational Church. She was a member of the Eastern Stars Post #221 and was a devoted member and past president of the Perry Women’s Club. Bessie was well known for her poetry. Alexander passed in 1930 and in 1941 Bessie willed her house and its grounds to the Village of Perry to be used by the community she loved so much. The Perry Historical Society has used the house since 1974, working to maintain and preserve it for generations to come.