June 2019 - Page 2 of 2 - Lost In Michigan

Martini House

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses, Thumb .

In a quiet subdivision not far from downtown Sebewaing is this ornate yellow house. The historical marker prominently standing in front of it reads:

Sebewaing businessman John C. Liken built 5 houses, one for each of his children. Constructed in 1890 – 95 in the fashionable Stick Style, this house remains the only historically intact structure associated with Liken, one of Sebewaing’s most prominent citizens, Liken intended this house for his daughter Mary and his son-in-law and business partner, Richard Martini, but the Martini’s never lived here. Instead, their oldest child John C. Martini (1878 – 1974) moved into the house with his wife, Tillie Kemp, in 1909. John C Liken retired in 1913, leaving control of the business to the Martini’s, Richard became president and John succeeded him. The Liken and Martini families were integral to Sebewaing’s development.

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The Mother Church

Posted on June 9, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Churches .

Built on a site that once had a log cabin for service the sandstone steeples of St. Peter Cathedral can be seen towering over downtown Marquette. Bishop Frederic Baraga laid the cornerstone for this heavenly looking church in 1864 and it became the mother church of the Diocese of Marquette. It has survived two devastating fires. The first in 1879 and the second in 1935 that destroyed everything but the sandstone walls.

Two years after Bishop Baraga dedicated the Cathedral he died and his remains were placed in a plain pine coffin and interred under the cathedral altar. After the first fire, a crypt with six niches was built in the southwest corner of the cathedral. After the second fire, A bishops’ chapel was added to the restored cathedral. A decision was made at this time to excavate the space under the chapel and build a crypt where the bishop’s remains are laid to rest to this day.

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Michigan’s Haunted Train Depot

Posted on June 8, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Haunted Places, Train Depots .

One of the largest Victorian-era train stations in the United States and the second largest train station in Michigan the old train depot in Saginaw is said to be haunted. Known to local residents as the Potter Street Station, the Flint and Pere Marquette Railway Saginaw Depot was constructed and opened in 1881, and was designed by the famous New York Architect Bradford Lee Gilbert. In 1964, the last passenger train departed the Potter Street Station. The rail line would continue to be used for freight until the station was closed in 1986.

There are several sources that claim the station to be haunted, bodies of soldiers who died in the war were shipped back to Saginaw by train to this depot. Richard Froeber was a casket maker in Saginaw and his shop was in the depot and he would build a casket for the fallen soldiers. There have been reports of people seeing a ghostly figure of a woman in white roaming the station.

the Depot was featured in a ghost investigation documentary “A Haunting on Potter Street”

Potter Street Station is owned by the Saginaw Depot Preservation Corporation, a non-profit organization based in Saginaw, MI you can find their website HERE

PLEASE NOTE the station is private property and under video surveillance and anyone trespassing will be prosecuted.

Since I live in Saginaw, and know some people in the Saginaw Depot Preservation Corporation, and have a membership, I was able to take some photos of the inside.

If you are ever in Saginaw, if you look closely you can see it from I-675 to the north and a few blocks east of the Saginaw River. I suggest you drive by it because it’s hard to capture the immense size of the depot in a photo. It truly is a spectacular building, and I hope someday it will be restored.

The fireplace in the women’s waiting room of the train station and yes back then the women and men had separate waiting areas.

The ticket window inside the train station

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The Mushroom Houses

Posted on June 6, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses .

Scattered around downtown Charlevoix are unique looking houses that look as if they belong in the Shire of J.R.R. Tolkien’s books than in Northern Michigan. They were constructed by self-taught builder Earl Young. He used locally sourced building materials such as stone and wood and include design elements such as wide, wavy eaves and exposed rafter tails. He built his first house in 1919 and over 50 years he built about 25 houses around Charlevoix. The houses are privately owned and not open to tourists, but driving around town you can see some of the whimsical looking homes. You can find a map and more info about these houses HERE

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Lost In Michigan Book Winner

Posted on June 4, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Giveaways .

Time to announce the winner of the Lost In Michigan Volume 2 book giveaway. I know I said I was going to announce it on the 3rd but I got really busy so I am now announcing it on the 4th. Thank you to everyone who commented I always enjoy reading them.

The winner chosen at random from the comments is Kali Maxine, Please email me at mike@huronphoto.com with your shipping address.

Thank you all for taking the time to read my posts and sharing them with your friends. Your kindness and support really mean a lot to me.

P.S. if you are wondering the photo in this post is of an old house I saw near Mayville. Unfortunately, walls can’t talk so I don’t know anything about this lonely old place.

Point Betsie Lighthouse

Posted on June 4, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Lighthouses .

It is a little bit of a trip south of the Sleeping Bear Dunes to visit the red white and green lighthouse but it is well worth the trip. Completed in 1858 the Point Betsie Lighthouse, north of Frankfort, is the oldest building in Benzie County. Standing along the shores of Lake Michigan marking the southern entrance to the Manitou Passage. In 1875 one of the first life-saving stations was established by the U. S. Life Saving Service at the lighthouse. This was the last manned lighthouse on Lake Michigan, and the last Michigan lighthouse to lose its keeper after it was automated in 1982.

Erosion of the sandy point has always been a problem threatening the lighthouse, and in 1890 a ring of concrete was inserted under the tower. A curved breakwall was constructed at the water’s edge to absorb the energy of the waves crashing into the shore. I am thinking the blocks protruding from the surface of the concrete are there to keep the ice from Lake Michigan from pushing up to the lighthouse, but I could not find anything to confirm this.

Point Betsie Lighthouse is said to be one of Americas most photographed lighthouses, and with its red gamble roof and its green trim, it is a beautiful lighthouse standing watch guiding ships as they pass by. if you want to visit the lighthouse you can find out more at their page HERE http://www.pointbetsie.org/

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A Barn and the Weather

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Barns and Farms .

I saw this old barn north of Coopersville and like many barns I see, I do not know their history. I am sure many barns have an ordinary life of storing hay and giving a home to some horses and sheltering a tractor or two. I figure since I don’t have a story about this particular barn I would share a story of my own. I have been trying to erect a new fence around my property in the burbs. and with all the rain we have had in the past few weeks where I need to build my fence, it has been flooded with a few inches of water. It’s been really frustrating to do anything and I have no control over the weather. I only have a small project I want to get done. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be a farmer trying to plant or harvest crops and dealing with the weather.

If you are looking for places to explore this summer books are available on my website HERE or at Amazon HERE

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Catholic Point

Posted on June 2, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Churches .

I see a lot of old churches with Michigan historical markers, and this one along the St Clair River in Marine City was exceptional. Father Gabriel Richard received this triangular plot of land by way of a grant from President John Quincy Adams on April 1, 1825. This area, known as Catholic Point, contains, among other buildings a church, a rectory, a convent, the former high school, a new high school, and a grade school. The present church edifice, the second to stand on the site, was built in 1903. A bell, which formerly hung in the original church, was cast in Normandy, France in 1825. The tracker organ in the church was built in 1861 and is one of the earliest American built models in Michigan. Among former pastors of Holy Cross Parish, in addition to Father Gabriel Richard, were the saintly missionary Bishop Frederic Baraga, and a pioneer priest of St. Clair, Father Lawrence Kilroy. Holy Cross Parish has remained in continuous use and service to the people for over 150 years.

If you are looking for places to explore this summer books are available on my website HERE or at Amazon HERE

Thank you for Subscribing to Lost In Michigan, If you have not subscribed yet, It would mean a lot to me if you did.

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The Famous General Store

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in General Store .

In an area filled with fancy vineyards for wine lovers to explore is an old general store a little ways off the main road. Near the tip of the Old Mission Peninsula is the small almost forgotten town of Old Mission. That is where you will find the Old Mission General Store. Many people recognize it from the Pure Michigan commercials. When you visit the Old Mission Lighthouse the general store is a few miles away on the east side of the peninsula and it is a nice place to stop for a snack. The town is interesting with a lot of history, but that is a post for a different day.

If you are looking for places to explore this summer books are available at Amazon HERE

Thank you for Subscribing to Lost In Michigan, If you have not subscribed yet, It would mean a lot to me if you did.

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