Griffith has been called "The Town that Came to the Tracks," and with good reason. The town was once an interchange point for five railroads - the Michigan Central, Erie, Grand Trunk, Elgin Joliet & Eastern, and the Chesapeake & Ohio.
In 1891, real estate speculators Jay and Elmer Dwiggins bought up farm land surrounding the interchange Point to found what they called "a factory town." Because of its proximity to the railroads, the Griffith they envisioned was a manufacturing metropolis to rival Chicago. Their vision never materialized. When a depression hit in 1893, the Dwiggins Brothers borrowed heavily against the land. Overextended and badly in debt, they eventually left the town behind and headed for greener pastures.
The railroads, however, remained and provided a stabilizing force for the fledgling town. Few long-time families in town were not connected to the railroads in some way - either by having had a family member directly employed on one of the railroads or by having owned or worked in a business that catered to the railroads.
At one time, more than 180 trains came through Griffith each day, but the pace has slowed dramatically since the 1970's. Today, only two railroads still operate through Griffith - the EJ&E and the Grand Trunk.
Some controversy surrounds the origin of the town of Griffith's name, but the one most generally accepted is railroad related. A surveyor by the name of Griffith set the grade for the Grand Trunk Railroad in this area in the 1870`s and, in the course of his activity, prepared and signed maps. Afterward, railroaders began to refer to this area as "Griffith's Section" and since so many people worked in railroading, the name stuck. The town founders, Jay and Elmer Dwiggins, toyed with the idea of changing the name to "Dwiggins Junction," but thankfully chose to name streets after themselves instead.
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November 26, 2004
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