In November of 1866 when William John Getty, Sr. (right) and his family moved from Lenawee County in extreme southern Michigan to Antrim County in the north, the area was thinly settled by Europeans. Native American tribes were still common in the region.

William started a farm on a plot near what later became the town of Bellaire. We do not know for sure but he may have had a role in naming the county after his birthplace in County Antrim, Northern Ireland .

William filled in his ownership around the homestead until he had more than a full section of land at least 671 acres all told, half of which was in Forest Home Township and half in Central Lake Township. Central Lake Township was where his brother, James, Jr., took out Homestead in 1865, and John Hanley, Will's son-in-law, later homesteaded on land that became part of the town site of Central Lake. Because Will owned land in both townships, he could take an active part in each. He had a hand in laying out the original town sites of Bellaire and Central Lake.

William, Sr. first settled just north of Lake Bellaire in the lower area in red below. In 1867 after the birth of George Baird Getty in 1867, they bought property to the north and began to establish what they called the Forest Home homestead. The area nearby was later designated as Forest Home township.

Below is a map of part of Antrim County from the mid-19th century when William Getty, Sr. settled in the area.