Ghost towns Archives - Lost In Michigan

Michigan’s Forgotten Town of Allenville

Posted on August 8, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, upper peninsula .

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.

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Ghost Town of Tyre

Posted on July 21, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, Thumb .

The old town of Tyre is in the middle of the Thumb not far from Ubly. It is not a ghost town like in the wild west movies, but the town has for the most part disappeared. It no longer shows up on the map and only a few houses remain. The town was founded in 1857 and given the name Tyre for its stony terrain. This old grain elevator slowly being overcome by trees still stands next to the railroad tracks.

An old cemetery nearby marks the graves of some of the former residents or should I say, permanent residents. Among the people laid to rest are the Sparling men who were murdered. The court case involving the accused became a national sensation. You can read about it in my post HERE.

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Ghost Town of Afton

Posted on May 30, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

The town of Afton may not be a true ghost town since there are a few houses and a beautiful little church still in the area but the row of old abandoned buildings sure makes it feel like a ghost town.

Located between Indian River and Onaway many people past through the little town on M-68. The town started as a lumber camp in 1887. In 1905 it was given a post office. The nearby Pigeon River was similar to the Afton River in Scotland and thus the town was named after it.

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The Ghost Town of Sauble

Posted on May 1, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

This old log cabin stands in the Huron Manistee National forest about 15 miles northwest of Baldwin. The hand-painted sign above the door reads “Sauble Station est 1937” The town started in 1898 with a depot on the Manistee and Grand Rapids railroad. A post office was opened up in the general store in 1910. I could not find anything that tells the story of the demise of the small sawmill town, but I can only assume the trees were cut by the lumberjacks. With no trees left for cutting up into lumber, the lumberjacks moved on and the town faded away.

This little log cabin stands along the road where the town once stood. I am not sure if is old enough to have been part of the town originally, but it is a reminder of the long-forgotten town in the western Michigan forest.

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Vickeryville

Posted on April 27, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Ghost towns, Grain Elevators .

The small town of Vickeryville is located in the central Lower Peninsula west of Carson City. It was plated in 1857 by John Vickery in Bloomer Township. The town was originally called West Bloomer but its name was changed to Vickeryville. The little town thrived at the turn of the century, ( yes I mean the early 1900s) but over time the little town declined. By 1953 the post office closed and not much remains of the little town today. A few houses and some old buildings. The most prominent building is the old grain elevator. It still has a faded sign that reads: CENTRAL BEAN AND GRAIN.

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The Herron Explosion

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Ghost towns .

It’s amazing the stories I find just by wondering about a couple of old buildings. I saw these two derelict structures that look like old general stores southwest of Alpena. Along with a few houses and a church they are what remains of the town of Herron. It was founded by Fred Herron in 1920 and given a post office named after him. Like most little towns I figured that was all I would find abut its history until I saw a snippet about a mine explosion.

On October 30th, 1952 five men were killed when a mine near Herron exploded. Six men were searching the long-abandoned gold mine for uranium. According to the only survivor John Pastuszka, two of the men went down the 180-foot deep shaft to check on water pumps being used to drain the shaft. The other three men were standing around the opening to the shaft when it suddenly exploded. Pastuszka was spared because he was standing next to a tool shed when the explosion occurred. It is believed methane gas and a spark from the pumps was the cause of the violent blast.

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The Forgotten Town and the Church

Posted on February 16, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Churches, Ghost towns .

This old brick church stands among the farm fields between Freeland and Bay City. A few modern houses and this old church are all that stand in the area of the old town of Amelith. Frederick Koch purchased two thousand acres of the former Saginaw Bay Chippewa Reserve at $1.25 an acre. In 1851 the first settlers arrived from the Bavarian town of Tosstel. In 1894 the town was given a post office and at one time the town included a coal mine, and a cheese factory, along with stores, mills, and saloons. By 1900 the mine had closed and immigration had ceased and the post office closed in 1904.

A historical mark proudly was proudly erected in front of the historic church and reads:

German missionary Pastor Ferdinand Sievers organized St. John Church in June 1852 to serve a colony of German migrants, some fleeing the turmoil that followed the European revolutions of 1848. Initially, the church met in a log cabin that once housed recent arrivals to the colony of Amelith. In 1870 a wood-frame Gothic style church was built. The present structure was completed in 1912. Schools run by the church began in 1853 with instruction in German surviving until World War I. Some church services continued in German until 1979. During World War II, German prisoners housed at Freeland Camp were ministered to by St. John Lutheran. An addition to the church was completed in 1997.

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Going to Hollywood

Posted on February 13, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Ghost towns .

When I say the name Hollywood most people think of the giant sign on the side of the mountain in California. But did you know there was a town called Hollywood in Michigan? The town was a few miles south of St Joeseph and given a post office in 1888. I could not find out how the name was chosen or it’s origins but the post office closed in 1902. I saw this old house not far from where the town once was. I am not sure if it was standing in the time that Hollywood was in existence in Michigan. I think everything from the town is gone. Today a school and some newer houses are in the area where the town once stood.

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Lost in Holloway

Posted on February 10, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

I was traveling down the backroads from Dundee to Adrian when I came across this old building. It looks like it was a store, saloon, hotel or something. It was on Holloway road so I can only assume it is or was the town of Holloway. The town sprang up along the railroad tracks that were laid down in 1881. The town was originally named Butler after Butler Holloway who sold the lots in 1881 for the first homes in the town. Since there was already a town named Butler in Michigan the town was named Holloway and given a post office. The post office closed in 1962. Some houses and this old building along with memories are what make up the little town of Holloway in Southeast Michigan.

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Star City: a Fallen Star and Ghost Town

Posted on February 4, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, Schools .

I love the name Star City, It sounds like a promising place full of celebrities with glitz and glamor. In reality, it is or was in the middle of nowhere west of Houghton Lake in the center of the Mitten. An old schoolhouse and cemetery are all that remains of the town. I found a couple of different references to it but I am not sure how accurate they are.

One story I found claimed that Star City was originally named Starvation Lake after a local trapper who was found dead in his cabin from starvation. In an attempt to sell property for farming and hunting around the small city, developers renamed the area Star Lake. Unfortunately, the name change did not help and the developers went bankrupt. Eventually, people began referring to the small town as Star City.

The other reference I found says that the settlement dates from approximately 1872. A post office named “Roy” Opened February 27, 1880, with Chauncey Brace as the first postmaster. The name changed to “Putnam” on June 6, 1883, with Elizabeth Putnam as postmaster. The name changed again to “Star City” on February 13, 1885 and was discontinued on December 15, 1923.

Whichever is true ( maybe a little bit of both ) the town is mostly forgotten now. This old schoolhouse knows the story but unfortunately, walls don’t talk.

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