October 2019 - Lost In Michigan

Applegate Barn

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in autumn, Barns and Farms, Thumb .

I was zig-zagging my way across the Thumb when I saw this old barn hanging out with the Autumn trees. I could not tell you where it is located or probably even find it again. I was not paying close attention to the names of the roads I was traveling down. I know it is somewhere near Applegate but don’t ask me where I am just wondering a traveler seeing what I can discover along the way. There is no better place to get lost than Michigan in Autumn.

“Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.” Henry David Thoreau

Reminder: My next presentation will be in Omer on Monday, November 4th at the historic Masonic Lodge at 7 pm.

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Autumn Cemetery

Posted on October 30, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in autumn, Cemetery .

I was out exploring the back roads before my presentation in Lakeville and I came upon this old cemetery. The Dickenson Whitesell cemetery looked so peaceful covered in autumn leaves.

Thank you to everyone who came out to the Tamarak Library in Lakeview yesterday. It was a lot of fun meeting all of you. My next presentation will be in Omer on Monday, November 4th at the historic Masonic Lodge at 7 pm.

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The Yellow House

Posted on October 29, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Houses, upper peninsula .

If you have ever driven down 28 across the central part of the U.P. you know it seems like that road goes on forever. One of the towns it passes through is McMillan. I was mesmerized by this old house near the center of town. At one time it’s faded and peeling yellow paint was vibrant and new. I imagine everyone in town must have known which house you were describing when you said the “Yellow House” The old house seems to be forgotten about but if it could talk I am sure it would have some stories to tell.

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Shaff Schoolhouse

Posted on October 28, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in autumn, Schools .

This old schoolhouse is known as the Shaff School. It sits a few miles northwest of Gaylord and is one of the few remaining schoolhouses still standing in Otsego County. It has probably survived the harsh Michigan weather because it is constructed with fieldstone.

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The German Headstones

Posted on October 27, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Cemetery .

Twenty-six solitary headstones are lined up In a section of Fort Custer National Cemetery. They mark the graves of German Prisoners of War that died in Michigan while being held in POW camps. Sixteen of the men were killed on October 31st, 1945 when their truck pulled in front of a train. The men were returning from working in a beet field in Blissfield Michigan, The violent crash killed the german men and Pfc Edward B. Loughrin who was assigned to guard the men. He was buried in his hometown of Cadillac Michigan.

The rest of the Germans buried at Fort Custer National Cemetery died of natural causes other than one who was killed when a wire snapped while on work detail. Michigan had approximately 30 POW camps during WWII. Most of the men were captured Germans from Africa. They worked the fields and lumbermills and most were model prisoners. For most, being a POW working in the fields was better than being shot at in the war. Many of the men emigrated back to the US after the war.

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Michigan’s Stone House

Posted on October 26, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in castles, Houses .

Michigan has a lot of unique old houses but among the houses in Lexington Heights is this ornate one of a kind stone house. It was built in the 1930s by Valentine Falzon, a stonemason from Malta, using the stones and sand from nearby Lake Huron. You can learn more about the house on their website HERE

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Antique Alley

Posted on October 25, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in autumn, Nature, Parks .

This row of old forgotten vehicles, abandoned from an old sawmill town, is deep within the Groen Nature Preserve. The preserve is in Otsego County near Johannesburg. The property once belonged to Louis M. Groen. He invented the Filet O Fish sandwich and owned 43 McDonalds franchise locations. After his death, he donated the property to Otsego County for use as a nature preserve.

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The Auditorium’s Ghost

Posted on October 24, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Haunted Places .

A piano mysteriously plays on its own. Footsteps are heard on an empty stage. Actors claim someone is tugging on their costumes. These are just some of the strange occurrences that have been attributed to a mischevious ghost at Kalamazoo’s Civic Auditorium.

The theater was built in 1929 and has continued operating since then. Volunteers have been performing plays for the community through the depression and during World War II. It is one of the premier civic theaters in the country.

Nobody knows exactly who the ghost is that haunts the theater, but unexplained incidents have been blamed on the lonely spirit. In the ’70s the ghost was given the name of Thelma Mertz by members of a summer youth program. The story goes that she donated items to the theater to be used in a stage production. After she died her spirit was transferred to the items and she now resides in the theater.

I am not sure if the theater is truly haunted but with any production, bad luck and mistakes can happen during a performance. Having a friendly ghost to blame it on is not a bad thing.

Interestingly, Thelma has her own Facebook profile.

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The Standard School in the Trees

Posted on October 23, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Schools, Thumb, Uncategorized .

On my trip to Marysville I could have taken the expressway but that would be rather boring. I decided to zig-zag my way through the thumb. I got near Sandusky and I figured I would take some back roads since I had already been through the town. I came upon an old building among the trees. I knew it was a school because the faded metal sign above the door had the words ” Standard School ”

I have seen many schoolhouses in Michigan that are a standard school. I searched and searched the internets to figure out what that is but I am still not exactly sure. I think it is a K-8 or K-12 school but I am not sure. I know a normal school is a school for training teachers. If you know what a standard school is please leave me a comment I am curious.

P.S. thank you to the Marysville library for having me and to everyone who came out to listen to me speak. It was a fun time. I have another presentation coming up in Lakeview at the Tamarack library on October 29th at 6 pm.

I also have one coming up in omer on November 4th at the Masonic Lodge at 7pm

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The Windmill of Pompeii

Posted on October 21, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Barns and Farms .

I saw this old windmill near Pompeii. It’s a small town in the central Lower Peninsula. I assume at one time a farm stood near the windmill when it was not so old. Most of the old windmills I see are broken. It was nice to see this one with all of its vanes still intact.

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