The 12th Michigan Infantry was begun under Colonel Francis Quinn at Niles in 1861. The Quinn family built a home on Gratiot in 1881 and the settlement and street was named for the family.
The establishment of the 12th Michigan Infantry under Colonel Francis Quinn at Niles in 1861 is linked to the construction of a home by the Quinn family on Gratiot Street in 1881, which resulted in the area's naming after them.