Oxford Township will honor its past with historical markers to be placed throughout the township in the coming years.

It will start with a marker honoring Detroit Tiger Hall of Famer Ty Cobb, who placed for the team from 1905-26.

It will be unveiled 10 a.m., Friday, April 4, at Stony Lake Township park.

“Oxford’s history is not just about downtown. We are a 36 square-mile township and we have history everywhere,” said CJ Carnacchio, communications manager for the township. “So I thought we should do a program putting markers around the township highlighting people, places, structures and events that are significant in terms of Oxford’s history.”

Cobb began traveling to the township in 1906 to fish at Stony Lake and he continued for more than a decade.

In addition to fishing, Cobb, even played three games for Oxford’s town team in in August 1906. He was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936.

The marker honors Cobb’s relationship with Oxford and will consist of a 16-inch bronze plaque mounted on a boulder. The Dearborn-based Edward C. Levy Co., which has a large gravel mining operation in Oxford, donated the boulder and funds to cover the cost of Cobb’s plaque.

“I want this to encourage residents and visitors to explore our entire community,” said Carnacchio. “Come and visit the historic buildings downtown and visit our shops and go to our restaurants, but also take some time to explore the community as a whole and I hope this will do that.”

He said the plan is to honor W.O. Smith with the next marker along the Polly Ann Trail near the Koenig Materials plant.

“W.O. Smith is the man who founded the gravel industry in Oxford,” said Carnacchio. “He is the one who pioneered it here and opened the first active gravel mine in 1912. Without him we never would have had the large scale gravel industry we had in Oxford.”

He hopes to create 16 to 18 markers in the future. Each marker will consist of a boulder and a plaque containing one or two images and a short historical narrative. Each will have a QR code sticker linking to a website with a background and a map to all the sites.

Oxford-based Koenig will also be donating boulders to the project.

Carnacchio said the plaques, that will cost almost $3,500 each, will be paid for through donations and grants..

Anyone looking to donate can contact Carnacchio at the township office.

“My goal is to have at least four of five up this year and it is going to be rolled out over the next few years,” he said. “I see these going up at around four or five each year.”