Ghost towns Archives - Lost In Michigan

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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Abandoned Places In Michigan to Explore

Posted on February 3, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Ghost towns .

Over the years Michigan has seen several booms and busts from lumber to manufacturing. Many places have been abandoned, from factories to whole towns. Some of these locations in the Mitten State can still be seen and visited. They may have been abandoned for their original purpose they are still maintained by state and local parks or by historic groups.

Here is a list of interesting and abandoned locations that you can visit. Some have more artifacts and buildings than others but all are something worth visiting and a fun way to learn about Michigan’s history. A couple of locations are in parks that require a small fee or a state Recreation Passport on your license plate to enter the park. A few locations are on property owned by an organization that has been kind enough to allow visitors.

Remember they may be abandoned for their original purpose but they are still maintained and cared for. If you visit please be respectful and obey any posted signs or fences so that they remain open to the public.

For more information about places on the list, be sure to check out the Lost In Michigan book series available on Amazon by clicking HERE Books are also available at select locations in Michigan, you can see the list HERE

Now on with the list (please note a couple of places were close together so I used the same number.)

1 Central Mine Ghost Town

2 Powerhouse Falls

3 Ardis Furnace

4 Sand Point Life Saving Station

5 Bay Furnace Ruins

6-A Fayette Historic Town

6-B Peninsula Lighthouse Ruins

7 Vermillion Point Life Saving Station

8 Fiborn Quarry

9 Camp Raco

10 Cheboygan Lighthouse Ruins

11 Bell Ghost Town

12-A Frankfort Ironworks

12-B Aligator Hill Kilns

13 Groen Nature Center Sawmill Town

14 Durant Castle Ruins

15 Hamlin Ghost town Cemetery

16 Lake rail-trail coal tower

17 Grousehaven Celler

18 Port Crescent

19 Lincoln Brick Factory

20 Peninsular Paper Powerhouse

21 Dyer Kiln ruins

22 Fort Wayne Detroit

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Michigan’s Ghost Town Bridge

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Ghost towns .

Nestled among the trees and over a small creek is an old iron truss bridge. The sign hanging from the top beams reads: MICHIGAN BRIDGE AND PIPE CO. LANSING MICHIGAN. You can see the old bridge from M-25 near Port Austin and it was part of the old sawmill town of Port Crescent. The town started back in 1844 when Walter Hume built a hotel and trading post near the mouth of the Pennebog River. A few sawmills sprang up in the area around the river and the town was known as Pennebog but another town upriver had the same name. It was decided to change the name of the town to Port Crescent for the crescent shape the river made as it flowed into the Saginaw Bay.

The lumber town continued to thrive and even survived the Great Fire of 1871. Woods and Company built a large steam-powered sawmill with a brick smokestack that soared into the sky. The town had several houses and even built a large two-story schoolhouse to educated the children. By 1881 the lumberjacks had cut most of the timber, and what was still standing, was mostly destroyed by the great fire that swept through the thumb. Slowly houses and buildings were moved or dismantled and taken to the surrounding towns such as Port Austin and Bad Axe. By 1894 all the buildings were gone and very little remained of the once prosperous town. The trees were gone, but a few people realized the sand was valuable for glass making and copper smelting and began mining and shipping the sand around the Great Lakes.

By the 1930s sand mining operations have ceased and that would have been the end of the land being used for anything. After WWII and the prosperity that followed Michigan families began vacationing during the summer. The state of Michigan acquired the property along the shoreline in 1959 and established the Port Crescent State Park. Little remains of the town of Port Crescent. The old bridge is used for a hiking trail and the foundation for the sawmill chimney stands near the entrance to the campground. Next time you visit Port Crescent State Park, or drive past the sign for it on M-25, maybe you will remember the town and the hard-working lumberjacks who lived there.

P.S. If you like camping in Michigan I hope you will check out my other website www.CampMichigan.org. you can find it by clicking HERE

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