January 2019 – Lost In Michigan

Historic Holmdene Hall, Is It Haunted?

Posted on January 31, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Haunted Places, Houses .

Holmdene Hall at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids was originally built as a family home for Edward Lowe and his family in 1903. He was such a prominent member of Grand Rapids society that President Theodore Roosevelt stayed there when he visited Grand Rapids for a speech in 1911. In 1945, the Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids bought the estate and moved Aquinas College to the estate from its site downtown. The mansion served as the main offices and classroom building for about 10 years while new construction expanded the college.

Students and staff have reported strange events in the old mansion. Like lights mysteriously turning on and off. The elevator seems to be operating as if someone was in it when there is no one inside. Others say doors slam shut on their own. There is also a rumor that Mr. Lowe’s son, James drowned in a pond on the property, or that he fell down a dumbwaiter shaft and died, but that is not true. He moved to San Francisco and became a successful businessman and died at the age of 65.

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The Old School House in Loomis

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Schools, small towns .

I saw this old schoolhouse in the community of Loomis east of Clare near U.S.-10. The town was originally named Buchtel with A station on the Pere Marquette railroad and post office. The name changed in 1871 when Erastus G. Loomis, George W. Wise and E. F. Gould built a sawmill and general store and platted the village. Wise Township that Loomis is located in, is named after George W. Wise.

It’s another bone-chilling cold day in Michigan and my daughter is home from school. As soon as the decision is made to cancel school I get an email and a phone call on my camera phone. When I was a kid I remember having to listen to the radio waiting for the DJ to read off a list of schools. Back then they did not have computers to alphabetize the list so they would read them in the order the cancellations came in. Since I went to a school in the city it was one of the last schools to close. Most of the rural districts closed first so everytime they read the list I would have to wait until the end to see if my school was closed. ” dang it, it’s not closed yet” I guess I will have to listen to John Cougar’s Jack and Diane and then hopefully they will read the list again. I figure back in the olden days they went to school because they had no way of telling them not to.

I hope you are safe and warm wherever you are at, and thank you for taking the time to read my posts.

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Big Red in Summer

Posted on January 28, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Lighthouses .

As I am writing this post most of Michigan is under a winter storm warning with temperatures expected to plummet well below zero. I was going through my photos with plans of showing a winter pic, but then I came across this photo I took on one of the hottest days last summer. It is the Holland Harbor Light affectionately known as “Big Red.” Built in 1907, the lighthouse stands at the entrance of a channel connecting Lake Michigan with Lake Macatawa. The lighthouse is not accessible because it is blocked in by private property, but you can get a good view of it from Holland State Park. I hope you are staying warm wherever you are.

P.S. if you like Michigan State Parks, be sure to check out my other website www.campmichigan.org by clicking HERE

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The Painted Lady of Coldwater

Posted on January 27, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses .

I saw this grand old Victorian house in Coldwater. I don’t know a lot about the house, but I did find out it was built by attorney Frank Skeels in 1886. The woodwork on these old homes are fascinating. A builder today could probably do ornate trim like it, but the labor costs would be astronomical. I wonder what they would have thought of vinyl siding back then.

P.S. there are a lot of beautiful old buildings and houses in Coldwater. I need to get back there again but hopefully on a less gloomy day.

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The Quarry Remnants In Da U.P.

Posted on January 26, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, upper peninsula .

Enormous concrete buildings stand desolate and quietly in a remote part of the Upper Peninsula. They were part of the Fiborn Quarry built in the early 1900s. The Fiborn Limestone Co. at its peak had two locomotives and a small town of 75 people that worked for the quarry. It operated until the 1930s when the depression crippled the company’s ability to operate. The ruins of some of the buildings are now part of the Karst Preserve which lies between St. Ignace and Newberry about 10 miles west of Trout Lake. It’s about a half mile hike to the buildings but if you are in the area it’s worth the trip.

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If you are looking for places in Michigan to explore I give detailed locations in my Lost In Michigan books which are available on my website HERE

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The School House in Eden

Posted on January 25, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Schools .

The Township of Eden on the west side of the state located in Mason and Lake County is mostly rural farmland. I saw this old school house surrounded by the farm fields, like it is still waiting for students to come through the door. Carved in the stone above the door is Eden Dist No.2 1892. I grew up in the big city and so did my parents and grand parents. They walked to school and growing up in the 70’s I walked to and from school on days when the weather was decent. I could not imagine the kids walking to school in the winter with the winds howling across the empty farm fields. It’s not like they had busses and cars in the 1890’s. I suppose they could hitch up the horse to the wagon. I wonder if they had remote start on the horses back then.

I hope you are staying warm this winter. Dont forget to enter my Lost In Michigan book GIVEAWAY by clicking HERE

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Lost In Michigan Book Giveaway

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Giveaways .

Here is your chance to win a Lost In Michigan Volume 2 paperback book. To enter the giveaway you have to be a subscriber to Lost In Michigan. If you have not subscribed to Lost In Michigan you can do it HERE . After you subscribed, or if you are already a subscriber, then comment on this post down below. (Note that I use Facebook for comments, If you are not able to comment be sure you have a facebook account and are logged in on the device you are using to post comments. )

Books are ON SALE this weekend and you can order them HERE or at Amazon HERE

I will choose a winner from the comments at random and they will be announced in my post on Sunday, February 3rd

Thank you all so much for taking the time to read my posts and especially to those of you that got a book or two from me. Your support really means a lot to me since it’s my book sales that help me with expenses to do this website.

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The Fabulous Clements House in Bay City

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses .

Built by Henry & Luella Clements in 1890 on Historic Center Ave in Bay City. Henry worked with his father James and brother William at Industrial Works, designers of a rail-mounted shovel and cranes employed at the Chicago Columbian Exposition and the Panama Canal. His house is unusual in Bay City because it is one of the few Queen Anne Style homes built of brick. Instead of ornamental trim, bricks are placed in decorative patterns to accentuate the structure’s shape and composition. The first floor plate window is framed with a distinctive Romanesque arch of rusticated stone, displaying the Victorian tendency to mix styles. In 1913 Hector McKinnon, president of McKinnon Boiler and Machine Co., purchased the house, followed in 1920 by Judge Samuel Houghton, who prepared the charter that united Bay City and West Bay City

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The Other Depot In Battle Creek

Posted on January 22, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Train Depots .

A few years ago I was driving out of downtown Battle Creek and near the railroad tracks, I saw this magnificent Spanish church/castle-like building. I figured it must have been built by the railroad since It was near the tracks but there was no platform for the passengers but the twin towers looked like church steeples. I kinda forgot about the photo I took and now here we are a few years later and I finally found out it was the old Grand Trunk Railroad passenger depot. It was one of the largest depots in Michigan built in 1907 and it was used up until 1971. A grant from the Kellogg Foundation refurbished the old depot, and it is now being used by a nonprofit community group. It is definitely one of the more unique looking train depots I have seen, and I am glad it found a new purpose instead of being left to decay like so other depots around the state.

P.S. My wife gets annoyed with me because I don’t like to fly. I don’t mind the flying through the air at 300 mph part. It’s the security, boarding, luggage and everything else that comes with flying. I wish I could hop on a train and go on a trip. I know there is Amtrack which runs south of me, but by the time I drive to the station, I might as well drive to where the train is going to. I often wish there was a passenger train that went along I-75 that I could hop on and go to Detroit for the day and then go back home.

Don’t forget to enter the February book GIVEAWAY HERE

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Have you Been to Jam Michigan?

Posted on January 21, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in small towns .

In southern Midland county near the Saginaw county border, just north of Merrill, is the Jam store in the town of Jam Michigan. It sounds like someplace you would go to get some delicious spread to put on Spatz bread, but I found out the name is actually the initials of the first postmaster of the town. J.A.M. stands for James A Murphy. The post office opened in July 1894, and because the sign on the Jam Store says “Since 1894” I am assuming that is the site of the post office. in September of 1903 the post office closed, probably because all the trees were gone, hence all the farmland.

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