Mathew R. Flagstad was one of six children born to Capt. Andrew and Rosanna (nee Keilty) Flagstad Oct. 13, 1876, in Montague.
On Feb. 12, 1901 he married Lillian Violet “Dollie” O’Connell. They had a baby daughter who died at birth Nov. 26, 1901. They would later divorce in February 1926.
Mat followed in his father’s footsteps and for many years sailed on ships on the Great Lakes as a marine engineer. In March 1911 Mat stepped away from the life at sea, planted his feet on dry land and opened a grocery store in Maple Grove. The store joined his residence and was very convenient for the summer resort trade and others. In March 1912, his cousin Ira Flagstad purchased the grocery business and remodeled the house for the stock.
After selling his business to his cousin, Mat returned to life at sea. In 1918 when he completed his World War I draft registration form, he indicated he was working on the Str. Shenango. The Shenango was built in 1909 in Encore, MI and owned by the Shenango Furnace Company. It was classified as a bulk freighter and was 580 feet in length. In the 1930s he was living and working with his brother Andrew at River Rouge near Detroit, where he died Sept. 22, 1937. He is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery.
Lillian Violet O’Connell was one of seven children born to Maurice and Clara (nee Rogers) O’Connell. She was born Nov. 18, 1879 in Montague.
She held an AB degree from Western Michigan College of Education and a vocational degree from the University of Michigan.
She taught school at Maple Grove for 16 years, and when it was consolidated with Montague School, she taught at Montague. Later she taught at Wilson School in Muskegon and in 1940, she returned to Montague where she taught until her retirement in April 1951.
Dollie was instrumental in having a parent-teacher association organized in 1921 and served as its first secretary and other capacities through the years. While teaching school, she was secretary of the Teachers’ Club and also a leader of a Girl Scout troop. She was involved with the Red Cross during the war years. She also widely traveled both in the United States and Europe.
During her last couple of years, Dollie had been living in a Convalescent home in Muskegon where she died Dec. 30, 1961. She is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery.
At a school meeting in July 1923, Mrs. Flagstad made a motion to sell the Maple Grove School property, which was seconded and passed. The Maple Grove School building was divided, moved and remodeled to become two summer cottages, which still exist today. The Flagstad residence, which was two doors north of the school, was torn down at some later point.
