This living history museum complex is anchored by the Van Hoosen Farmhouse which dates back to 1840. The museum includes a small home occupied by tenant farmers from the 1850s, an authentic one-room schoolhouse built in 1848, and a permanent exhibit that tells the history of the Rochester community through the 19th century and beyond. There is even a model train and a miniature replica of downtown Rochester within the complex's Dairy Barn, which was built in 1927. The museum also includes a small research library full of historic photographs and documents related to the history of community leaders, residents, and institutions.
The Red House, now part of the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm, was built circa 1850. Dr. Sarah Van Hoosen Jones purchased the home in the 1920s for use as a tenant farmhouse for employees of the Van Hoosen Farm. Decorated with furnishings of the late 1800s, the Red House is currently used as an educational space for school programs, public tours and special events.
This building, now repurposed as a private residence, was originally constructed in 1938 to serve as the farm store for the Van Hoosen Farm, a well-known dairy operation run by master farmer Dr. Sarah Van Hoosen Jones. The building served as a farm store until 1952, when Jones retired from farming. The store's name references the farm's Black-and-white Holstein cattle. The building is part of the Stony Creek Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
This early American frame home was built in the late 1800s, possibly around 1870 by Elias Roberson. Roberson also operated the neighboring grist mill, known as Stoney Creek Mill. A true multigenerational home, 947 E. Tienken was home to members of the Roberson family and their descendants until the late 1960s.
Stoney Creek School is a circa 1848 wood frame schoolhouse that was built to serve Fractional School District #1 of Avon and Shelby Townships. The building is closely associated with the adjacent village of Stoney Creek, and served the children of the village until the district was consolidated with Rochester Community Schools in 1952. Today, the school is part of the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm. The school received a Michigan Historical Marker in 2005.
Stony Creek Cemetery is a small, roughly triangular-shaped, rural cemetery established in 1839 to serve the nearby village of Stony Creek. The cemetery is perched high on a hill overlooking the village, and is the burial place of many of its pioneer settlers. It includes the graves of the Cole, Taylor, Van Hoosen, and Millerd families, as well as the grave of Michael Van Wagoner (1750-1825) a Revolutionary War soldier. The cemetery is also the location of a Masonic monument commemorating the only Masonic lodge in Michigan to continue operation during the anti-Masonic movement of the early nineteenth century. The Stoney Creek Masonic Lodge #5 operated Stony Creek Cemetery from 1924 until 1981, at which time it was deeded to the Township of Avon (now Rochester Hills).
This Tour is a Driving or Biking Tour.
Get a QR Code for this tour
Nestled in the growing City of Rochester Hills, Stoney Creek Village is a remarkable collection of historic builidings. From subsistence farmers to world renowned doctors, inventors, soldiers, businessmen, water powered mills, and more, this small village has many stories to tell.
