Croswell is a prime example of Thumb Area living - friendly people of the present who hold great pride in their past. Many buildings dating back to pre-Civil War times are found within the city. Famous throughout the country is the "Mother-in-Law Bridge," a suspension footbridge built in 1905. At that time, a sign stating "Be Good To Your Mother-in-Law" was placed at the east end and another sign, "Love Ye One Another," marked the west end. While only the "Mother-in-Law" sign remains, Croswell has not forgotten the words of the other.

Another historical part of Croswell is the Aitkin Memorial District Library, located on the north end of town. The library first opened in 1912 as the Croswell Free Library and Reading Room in two rooms above a barber shop. It eventually was named after banker, lawyer, and State Senator William H. Aitkin. When he died, his wife and son presented the library with a memorial fund in 1927. With this fund, a new building was built. This new library was dedicated on March 23, 1931. In 1959, the library built an addition which doubled its size. In 1981, the library expanded into the basement, which is used for the Young Adult and Children's section. Another expansion opened in 2000, allowing handicapped accessibility, more room for books, a reading area, and a technology room. Phase II of the renovation was completed in April 2001, creating the Donovan meeting/reading room in the original 1931 part of the building. The room was renovated back to the style of that time period. John and Lois Donovan partially funded the phase II renovation. The meeting room is available for public meetings. See the library's website, for details on applying for use of the room. In October of 2009, the Library renovated and exanded the Young Adult area, utilizing previously unused areas of the library. The library currently has about 40,000 materials and serves not only Croswell, but also parts of surrounding townships within the Cros-Lex School District.. In November 2006, the library became a district library and passed its own dedicated millage in February 2007. As a district library, they are now an independent government entity rather than a department of the City.

Library John and Lois Donovan Meeting/Reading Room

Croswell was one of the leading trading, industrial and shipping centers in the Thumb at the turn of the century. Lumbering was the main occupation. The Black River was used to transport millions of feet of timber from northern Sanilac County to Croswell. From Croswell, it was transported to Lexington, just five miles away, to be shipped to other areas. In 1845, when Ephriam Pierce built a sawmill on the west bank of the Black River, the resulting group of log cabins became known as Black River Community. With minor changes along the way, it was the beginning of what is known as Croswell. The east bank residents named their new location Croswell in honor of Charles M. Croswell, Governor of Michigan from 1877 to 1878. In 1881, Croswell incorporated as a village, and became a city in 1905. Today, Pioneer Sugar represents the sugar beet industry which became Croswell's leading industry after the Great Fire of 1881. For more local history see the library's website.

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