June 2019 - Lost In Michigan

Rolling Uphill in Michigan

Posted on June 28, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Haunted Places .

Michigan has a road where you can defy gravity and your car will roll uphill. Known as “Gravity Hills” they are hills where gravity seems to work in reverse. Near the town of Rose City, there is a road where you can stop and put your car in neutral, and you will swear you are rolling uphill. I had to check out the gravity hill on Reasner Road northeast of Rose City. I was not sure what part of the road the hill was on until I came near the end of the road, and saw a sign that said ” Do Not Stop, Do Not Go Backwards” well they put up a sign telling someone not to do it, I could not resist the temptation of going to jail just to try out the gravity hill. I figure the deer on the side of the road would not mind either, so I put the jeep in neutral, and it sure felt like I was going uphill. Now I know gravity does not work backward, and its more of an optical illusion, but it sure seemed like I broke Issac Newtons Laws.

I can’t tell you to do it, because you are probably breaking some sort of motor vehicle law, but I thought I would share my experience with you, I hope there is wifi in jail if they come to arrest me so I can keep posting more pics.

P.S. If you do attempt to defy gravity. I recommend you turn your car around so you are at the bottom of the hill and then put it in neutral so you are rolling forward.

If you want to know more about this place and other strange places around the Mitten State take a look at the Lost In Michigan books ON SALE at Amazon by clicking HERE

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The Old Engine 4 Firehouse in Detroit

Posted on June 25, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Fire Houses .

I had already taken pics of the oldest church in Michigan (Ste Anne De Detroit, you can see my pic HERE) on a previous trip to Detroit and did not plan on taking more but when I was in the neighborhood I saw the twin steeples of the church looking out over the trees and the houses and decided since I was near there why not get a few more pics. I headed over there from a different direction than last time, and that is when I saw the old firehouse sitting near the church, as if the tall steeples were watching over it, and protecting it all these years. The numbers 1897 displayed between the doors gave away the year it was built but I found out the DFD stopped using the old firehouse in 1976. It’s still standing with its magnificent brickwork like you will never see on a new building. Looking at it, I can only imagine the firefighters going from a horse-drawn apparatus, to an early primitive motorized firetruck, and then on to a post WWII truck with the fireman riding on the back, but the station was passed by in the 70’s before it could get a new modern fire truck.

P.S. thank you to all the firefighters who answer the call for help, It takes a special kind of person to run into a burning building.

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The Museum Church

Posted on June 23, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Churches .

I see many old churches, especially in a town where the population has declined, for sale or abandoned by their congregation. It is nice to see one repurposed and saved from the wrecking ball like this church that now serves as the Elk Rapids History Museum. The historical marker in front of it reads:

In the late 1850s traveling pastors began to conduct Methodist services in Elk Rapids and nearby communities. First Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in the early 1870s. Services were held in a former school and then a former courthouse. The Rev. John W. Hart, who became pastor in 1899, decided the church needed a permanent building. In 1901 the congregation purchased architectural plans created by Benjamin D. Price and his son Max C. Price, Philadelphia architects who contracted with the Methodist Episcopal Board of Church Extensions to design a variety of plans for small, rural churches. These plans were made available to congregations nationwide through mail order catalogues. The church purchased the land for its new building in August 1901

Construction on this auditorium-type church began on October 29, 1901, with a cornerstone-laying service. Locally made yellow brick forms the walls. The Kinsella Glass Company of Chicago produced eight of the 13 Gothic stained-glass windows, which also served as memorials to early church members. The total cost of the building and lot was $8,250. On August 10, 1902, the Reverend William Dawe of Detroit dedicated the church building. In 1971 the church was renamed First United Methodist Church, a name it bored until it closed in 2011. The building was then donated to the Elk Rapids Area Historical Society, which converted it into its headquarters and a history museum. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

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Michigan’s Haunted Lighthouse

Posted on June 22, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Lighthouses .

This post is a little different than what I normally post. Dianna Higgs Stampfler was kind enough to send me a copy of her book Michigan’s Haunted Lighthouses. It tells the story of several great lakes Lighthouses and whose spirit might possibly be haunting them to this day. I liked that it explored the history of the lighthouse along with the hauntings. She has done a lot of research for the book and has done a wonderful job of telling their stories making it a pleasure to read. If you love Michigan lighthouses and like a good ghost story be sure to check out her book. By the way, she used my photo of the Saginaw River rear range lighthouse for creating the image on the cover. You can get a copy of her book on Amazon HERE or learn more at her facebook page HERE

Bessemer Building

Posted on June 21, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places .

I saw this old building north of Bessemer in da U.P. It looks like it may have been a schoolhouse at one time but I don’t know. I come across many old buildings especially in the Upper Peninsula that I wonder about.

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The Ghost Town of Allenville

Posted on June 19, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

If you take M-123 to Tahquamenon Falls a few miles from I-75 is where the town of Allenville is or at least was. About all that remains is an old general store that stands on Brevort Lake Rd.

I have found two different origins for the name of the town. One says it was named after Allen P Hulbert the superintendent of the Martel Furnace Company that had charcoal kilns in the town. The other source is Wikipedia that said the town was named after J. Alley, head of the Alley Lumber Company and was known as Alley Town. Which is correct I am not sure but like the town, its history is slowly fading away.

Because Amazon has pushed back shipping of books I have started selling books from my website. I have them in stock and you should have them in a few days if you live in Michigan. You can order them HERE

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The Lonely House

Posted on June 17, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Houses .

I saw this old house or maybe an old schoolhouse hiding among some trees and I had to stop and take a photo. I was out roaming the backroads somewhere between Richmond and Marine City when I came upon it. I was not able to find out any history and walls don’t talk so I continued on my way left to wonder what the story is of this old forgotten house.

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A Blissful Church

Posted on June 16, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Churches .

In the small town of Bliss in northern Michigan stands this beautiful white church. The historical marker proudly posted in front of it gives some of the history of this old building. It reads:

The congregation of the East Bliss United Brethren Church was organized in 1880. During the pastorate of the Reverend Edward McFarland, this Carpenter Gothic style church was erected. It was dedicated on May 4, 1903. The congregation flourished until 1923, then declined. Financial difficulties forced it to disband in 1949. Former members purchased the church from the United Brethren Conference in 1965 and renamed it Bliss Pioneer Memorial Church. Memorial Day and fall homecoming services are held in it annually.

If you are wondering the town of Bliss is between Mackinaw City and Cross Village and it’s south of Wilderness State Park. It has an old general store and is a nice stop while out sightseeing.

Last chance to order your Lost In Michigan books before the sale ends, you can order them HERE

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The Historic Sowers House in Ovid

Posted on June 15, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses, Michigan Historical Markers .

Built in 1869-70 for George D. and Carrie Sowers, this house in Ovid is an excellent example of Italianate architecture. Sowers, the first of several prominent local businessmen to live here, owned a planing mill located across the street with his partners George Fox. Sowers later became a partner in the Ovid Flour Mills. In 1882 Frank Scofield and his wife, Adelaide, purchased the house. Scofield co-owned the Ovid Carraige Works, one of the village’s largest employers during the late nineteenth century. His business declined with the rising popularity of the automobile. Henry and Sophia Hudson purchased the house in 1907, one year after Henry founded Hudson and Son Farm Implements, another prosperous Ovid business.

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Michigan’s Forgotten Fort

Posted on June 13, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places .

Long before the Mackinaw Bridge, expressways, wineries, and craft breweries, tourist destinations were a lot different. They were more like roadside oddities and strange-looking places to attract motorists. One of the earliest tourist attractions in the Upper Peninsula was Fort Algonquin north of St. Ignace. The fort was built by Vaughan Norton in the 1920s to look like an old fort from Michigan’s fur trading days. He also purchased Castle Rock, but sold it during the Great Depression. He entertained tourists for decades displaying his Native American artifacts and selling trinkets to tourists.

An old postcard of the fort

The old fort sits on the Mackinac Trail north of St Ignace and because of its location away from town, it is mostly forgotten. It’s no longer open but the fort style structure is still standing. I drove past it and wondered what it was and found their facebook page HERE

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