Upton House / Upton House

Constructed in 1866-67, the William Upton House is one of the oldest surviving nineteenth-century brick dwellings in Sterling Heights. Italianate in style, the house features a reconstructed open porch topped by a second-story balustrade, a cupola, period chimneys and refurbished window units. According to oral tradition, the interior building materials were imported from England. Most farmsteads of this era were constructed of wood; the brick used on this one demonstrates the affluence of its builder. By 1891 the Upton farm consisted of 138 acres. Upton farmed the land and sold fish from the Clinton River. When the exterior restoration of the house was done in 1981-1982, the interior was adapted for use as public offices. William Upton, a wealthy farmer and merchant, built this stately Italianate house in 1866-67. Born in 1835 in Leicestershire, England, Upton came to this country with his parents in the fall of 1841. The family lived in Detroit for several years before settling in Sterling Township in 1845. In 1861, William married Sarah Jeanette Aldrich. He built this house on his farm, where he, his wife and their children lived until 1891, when they moved to Utica. There, Upton purchased a three-story business block from which he sold Shropshire sheep and ran a successful mercantile and real estate business until 1897. In 1904 fire destroyed the Upton Block. Shortly afterwards, William moved to Rochester, Michigan. He died in 1923 at the age of eighty-eight.