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Biteley Post Office was established on Sept. 19th., 1889. It was named after Stephen Bitely, who had a large sawmill here. There was a large logging operation going on in this area. At one time the settlement had a population of over 500 people. It had a bank, blacksmith shop, lumber and supplies company, produce warehouse, hotels, several general stores, and a livery. The first Postmaster was Archer D. Martin. The Postal Service Department added a "e" to the spelling of the name when the post offices was established. Many people used the right spelling for years including the Postal Services, as I have a 1909 post mark spell "Bitely". The Postal Services did finally corrected the spelling to Bitely on Nov. 1st., 1949. Some people also spell the name as "Bitley" such as the Oceana County Road Commission. They have a sign in their county north of Walkerville with a arrow pointing to Bitely, spell "Bitley" There is also a picture of the Bitely Depot with the name Bitely on the front of the depot and Bitley written on the bottom of the picture. Bitely is still a Post Office as of today with a ZIP Code of 49309. |