Ghost towns Archives - Lost In Michigan

The Ghost Town of Deward

Posted on May 25, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

This concrete block, with a metal eye in the top, sits along the Upper Manistee River. I think it was used by lumberjacks to pull logs from the river for the sawmill. It was part of the town of Deward northwest of Grayling. You can still find several concrete foundations and machinery supports. They are slowly being overtaken by the trees and vegetation. If you are looking for an adventure this spot in the state forest is a fun place to explore. You can read more about it on my post 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.

The Ghost Town of Winona

Posted on May 18, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, upper peninsula .

The town of Winona sits at the base of the Keweenaw Peninsula near the Twin Lakes. There are a few houses there but for the most part it is a ghost town. During its heyday in the 1920s, Winona had restaurants, a brewery, sports teams, churches, boarding houses, a train depot, a saloon, stores, boardwalks, a school, and a barber shop. The town of Winona sprung up around the mines that were started in 1864. The mine closed in 1923 and soon after the town began to dwindle and eventually almost everyone moved away. I saw this old building being consumed by the forest. I am not sure what it was, but its rather large, so maybe a store or boarding house.

Lost In Michigan Books are ON SALE at Amazon. You can see more by clicking 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.

The Old Building in Pequaming

Posted on April 29, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in General Store, Ghost towns, upper peninsula .

This old building stands in the trees in the Upper Peninsula town of Pequaming. There is not much remaining in the town today but back in its heyday it the entire town was owned by the Ford Motor Company. It was a sawmill town making lumber for Model-T bodies. I am not sure what this old building was, maybe a general store or an old boarding house. It seemed kind of lonely and forgotten surrounded by trees.

You can read more about Pequaming in my other post 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.

Lost In Pinnebog

Posted on April 25, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, Thumb .

I saw this old building, or at least what is left of it in the town of Pinnebog. It’s located near the tip of the thumb on the Pinnebog River. It was started back in the 1840s as a lumbering town. Another sawmill town had the same name, but when they established a post office the town changed its name to Port Crescent. That is where the state park is now and is named after the former town.

Some of the buildings from Port Crescent were moved to Pinnebog. I am not sure if this one was one of them but maybe it could have been. There is only a few houses left in the small town and I am sure it has been a long time since it heard the whirring of saw blades at the sawmill.

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

The Store in Herman

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, upper peninsula .

This old building stands along the tracks that pass through the Upper Peninsula town of Herman. It is located a remotes section of the Huron Mountains southeast of L’Anse. The town was named for lumberjack Herman Keranen who took up farming in the area. Over the decades the population has dwindled and it is mostly a ghost town. I am not sure what this old building was but it looked like a store that was supplied by the railroad at one time.

Lost In Michigan Books are ON SALE at Amazon. You can see more by clicking 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.

The Ghost Town of Waterville

Posted on February 24, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, Mills .

This old mill sits near Saranac. It is all that remains of the old town of Waterville. In 1836 Robert Hilton from Grand Rapids purchased the large tract of land and platted a village he named Waterville. Hilton believed the town would prosper from people visiting it as they traveled along the Grand River Turnpike. To help the little town prosper he gave land to James Hoag to build a mill. In 1838 Hoag opened his mill and store and it became the post office for Waterville. Unfortunately, the turnpike never came through the little town and about a year after the post office opened it was moved to Saranac. The old mill with its whimsically painted boards covering the windows still stands as a reminder of the short lived town of Waterville. Hoag continued living in Waterville and ran his mill until a tree fell on him and killed him in 1851.

Please note: I do not give the exact location of the mill because it is privately owned. If you do know where it is please be respectful and do not trespass.

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

The Forgotten Town and the Church

Posted on February 13, 2022 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.

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

Glen Haven

Posted on February 10, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns, Sleeping Bear Dunes, small towns .

The village of Glen Haven is a few miles west of Glen Arbor in the Sleeping Bear Dunes. The town started out as a place for steamships to stock up on firewood to fuel the steam boilers. Over time the town became more of a resort community. By the mid 1970s it had pretty much declined to nothing. The National Park Service has taken over the little town and restored the blacksmith shop and general store. The old cannery is now used as a maritime museum. During the winter months it is rather quiet but in the summer it is bustling with tourists exploring and learning about days gone by.

Lost In Michigan Books are ON SALE at Amazon. You can see more by clicking 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.

Bell Cemetery

Posted on November 12, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Cemetery, Ghost towns .

The old Bell Cemetery is in the Besser Natural Area north of Alpena. The old cemetery is the eternal home of some of the residents of the ghost town of Bell. I am not sure what year the last burial took place but I am thinking it was a while ago. The sign above the entrance reads that the cemetery was restored in 1989 by the Presque Isle Lions.

The thing that I found interesting is that the crosses and headstones are cast out of concrete. It is not surprising that concrete was used because the area is one of the largest producers of cement. I wonder if the crosses and headstones were cast and placed during the 1989 restoration. It took me a while to find this unique cemetery but If you want to find it the cemetery is located almost directly west of the parking lot down a two-track trail. If you want to know more about the ghost town of Bell check out my post HERE.

Lost In Michigan books are ON SALE this weekend on 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.

The Hard Scrabble Ghost Town of Keno

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

I went past this old building and I am not sure if it was a school, boarding house, or what. It looks like it has been standing for a long time but it has been a while since it was used for anything. I saw it while I was heading north from St Helen. I looked on the map and it shows the name of Keno. I am wondering if it is the last remaining structure from the forgotten town.

From the research I did, I found out that the area was originally known as Hard Scrabble. The Hyde family came to the area from Virginia and were early settlers. The town was given the name of Keno and Sarah O. Wheeler became the first postmaster in 1910. I am not sure what happened to the town in later years, I can only assume the timber was cut and lumberjacks moved away.

P.S. They should have kept the name Hard Scrabble. I am thinking no one would forget a town with such a tough-sounding name.

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