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Monthly Archives: April 2021

Ypsilanti Water Tower

Posted on April 30, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Water Tower .

ypsilanti water tower

 

The Ypsilanti Water Tower was designed by William R. Coats and constructed as part of an elaborate city waterworks project that began in 1889. Located on the highest point in Ypsilanti, the tower was

Almost every community has a water tower as part of the municipal water system. Some have the name of the town painted across them or maybe a smiley face. Ypsilanti has one of the most unique water towers in the United States. The historical marker next to it reads:

Completed in 1890. It is 147 feet high and has an 85-foot base constructed of Joliet limestone. The substructure walls taper from a thickness of forty inches at the bottom to 24 inches at the top. The reservoir holds a 250,000-gallon steel tank. To protect themselves from injury, the builders made three stone crosses; one is visible over the west door. The Ypsilanti Community Utilities Authority has operated and maintained the structure since 1974. In 1975 this tower was designated by the American Water Works Association as an American Water Landmark. It was restored in 1976.

Day laborers constructed this water tower which was completed in 1890 at a cost of $21,435.63. The tower and the city waterworks supplied 471 customers the first year. An ordinance passed on April 14, 1898, established a yearly rate schedule. Rates were based on the number of faucets in use, the type of business that customers operated and the livestock they owned. A residence with one tap was charged $5.00; a private bathtub cost an additional $2.00. Saloon keepers paid $7.00 for one faucet, $3.00 for each additional faucet and $1.00 for each billiard table. Each cow a person owned cost $1.00. People who failed to pay their bill were subject to a $50.00 and ninety days in the county jail. Until 1956 this structure was the only water tower in the Ypsilanti water system.

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Crisp Point Lighthouse

Posted on April 29, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Lighthouses, upper peninsula .

Crisp Point Lighthouse stands along Lake Superior almost straight north of Tahquamenon Falls State Park. If you are looking for an adventure take a trip out to the historic lighthouse. It is one of the most remote lighthouses standing on the mainland of Michigan. It is about 20 miles of dirt road to get to the beacon but the view is spectacular and the beach is a wonderful place to go rock hunting. If you take the trip follow the signs from M-123 and do not trust your GPS. I may take you down what it thinks are roads but they are snowmobile trails and not suitable for cars and trucks. Also, make sure you have plenty of gas in your tank. It is a long way from a gas station if you get low on your trip.

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Space Train

Posted on April 28, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Train Depots .

I was passing by the Southern Michigan Railroad Society Museum in Clinton when I spotted this futuristic looking two-toned blue locomotive. It reminded me of the cars in the late 50s. Built in 1960, the GMDH-3 was an experimental diesel-hydraulic switching locomotive by General Motors Diesel of Canada. It definitely stands out among the other railroad locomotives that I have seen. It looks like it was influenced by the space race although it is missing the tail fins that were prominent on the back of so many cars in the 50s. You can learn more about the Southern Michigan Railroad Society at their website HERE. 

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Michigan’s Oldest Courthouse

Posted on April 27, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in courthouses .

lapeer courthouse

The Lapeer County Courthouse was built by Alvin N. Hart, one of Lapeer’s first settlers. Born in Connecticut in 1804, Hart came to Michigan in 1831 and platted the village of Lapeer two years later. He also served as sheriff and as a member of both houses of the state legislature.
Although the date in the pediment, 1839, marks the construction of the county’s first courthouse, this building was erected in 1845-46 and bought by the county in 1853. It is an impressive Greek Revival structure. The two-story exterior is of native white pine, supported by a brick foundation. The facade of the full-height portico has four fluted Doric columns supporting the pediment. A three-tiered tower rises at the rear of the building.

The Lapeer County Courthouse is the oldest courthouse in Michigan which serves its original purpose.

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Tustin Lumber and Grain

Posted on April 26, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Grain Elevators, small towns .

I saw this old building in the small town of Tustin. It looks as if it has been a while since it was used for lumber or grain. The Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad sent Dr. J.P. Tustin, A medical missionary, to Sweden to recruit laborers. About 300 settled in the area south of Cadillac and when the town was granted a post office in 1872, they named it Tustin in honor of Dr. Tustin.

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Parshallville Cider Mill

Posted on April 25, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Grain Elevators .

This old grist mill is in the town of Parshallville between Brighton and Fenton. Built in 1869. it was purchased by Tom Walker and John Browning for $10,000 in 1878. It was owned by the Walker family for three generations until Tom Walker’s grandson also named Tom Walker retired in 1969. It was one of the last water-powered grist mills in Michigan. It is now a cider mill and is a popular spot in the fall for cider and doughnuts.

It is about a mile west of US-23. I have been down that stretch of highway countless times and never knew this old mill was in Parshallville. I need to go back in the fall for some doughnuts and cider.

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A Little School in Big Prairie

Posted on April 24, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Schools .

This old schoolhouse sits alongside some other historic buildings north of Newaygo in Big Prairie Township. This was the Barton School which taught children from approximately 1880 to 1932.

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Half Brick House

Posted on April 23, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses, Thumb .

I saw this old farmhouse in the Thumb somewhere near Bad Axe. It looks as if it was a beautiful brick house at one time but it half of the bricks have fallen down. I am sure this old house could tell some stories and has lots of memories.

As always, I take pics from the road and do not trespass.

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The Stone Outhouse

Posted on April 22, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Parks .

This small stone building sits along the River Raisin in the southern Michigan town of Clinton. It looks like an old outhouse but I am not sure if that is what it was. I think it may have been part of an old water pumping station but I am not sure about that either. So for now I am just calling it a stone outhouse and thankful for modern plumbing.

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The Great White Castle of the North

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Haunted Places, upper peninsula .

Standing near Little Bay De Noc in Escanaba is a place known as The Great White Castle. No, I am not talking about fast food place where you get the little hamburgers, I am referring to the magnificent House Of Ludington hotel. It easy to find some historical information about it since there is a Michigan Historic Marker next to it that reads:

In 1864, E. Gaynor built the Gaynor House hotel, which he renamed the Ludington House in 1871 after lumberman Nelson Ludington. In the late 1800s proprietor John Christie enlarged the hotel and renamed the establishment the New Ludington Hotel. An advertisement in the 1893 Michigan Gazetteer and Business Directory read, “New Ludington Hotel – The Largest and Only hotel in the city having Baths, Steam Heat and Electric Call Bells – $2.00 per day.” The hotel exemplifies Queen Anne resort architecture, popular in the 1880s and 1890s.

 

An old postcard of the hotel, year unknown but looking at the cars I would say sometime in the 60’s

As with any large old structure, there are rumors of ghosts the reside in the historic building. they say they are friendly and like to play with the elevator controls and some people have claimed to see them in the hallways.  I don’t know about spirits roaming around but I can imagine over the years many travelers, tourists, and business professionals staying at the hotel enjoying ” Pure Michigan”.

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