State Parks Archives - Lost In Michigan

Orchard Beach

Posted on October 17, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in State Parks .

In the late 1880s, George Hart cleared the land north of Manistee where Orchard Beach State Park now stands and planted an apple orchard, which gave the park its name. The orchard sat on a high bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. By 1892 Hart had built a boardwalk and theater to attract more tourists. With its growing popularity, A trolley line ran from Manistee for people to visit enjoying the view and sunsets over Lake Michigan.

As Michiganders fell in love with the automobile few people were using the trolly and passenger trains. Trolley service to the park eventually stopped and the site was purchased by the Manistee Board of Commerce which deeded it to the state to become part of the Michigan state park system in 1921. The state built a campground among the apple trees and purchased the dairy farm across the street which is now a natural area and used for hiking trails.

The limestone buildings in the park were designed by architect Ernest F. Hartwick and built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps as part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal”. The apple trees are gone and large oak and maple trees have taken their place. The park was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2009, cited as “one of the most intact examples of a Michigan state park developed in the 1930s and 1940s

Because of the erosion of the Lake Michigan shoreline, the historic pavilion will be moved back 200 feet in order to save it for future generations.

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How Michigan Started with a Mistake

Posted on August 28, 2020 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, State Parks .

Located in the woods are two markers where Michigan got its start about two centuries ago. They mark the states Meridian, (north and south line) and the Baseline, (east and west line). All of the townships and counties in Michigan’s two peninsulas are surveyed from these two points. The markers are located in Meridian Baseline State Park about 15 miles north of Jackson.

The state has two points because there were two surveyors. On April 28, 1815, Benjamin Hough began surveying the Michigan territory. He started heading north from Fort Defiance in Ohio and about 70 miles north he set the first initial point in Michigan and began surveying sections 1 and 2. A second surveyor by the name of Fletcher surveyed sections 3 and 4 but his work was grossly inaccurate. To correct Fletcher’s mistakes a second initial point was established. One point is used for the east side of the state and the other is used for the west side of the state. Michigan is the only state to use two initial points for its public land surveying.

For years the twin initial points sat in a landlocked section of woods surrounded by private land. No one was allowed to visit them. In 2014 the state was able to create a parking lot and a trail to the two markers. It is about a mile and a half hike round trip to see the markers. If you do visit I recommend bug spray since they are in a rather swampy area.

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The Other Suspension Bridge in Michigan

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges, State Parks .

When I mention suspension bridge most Michiganders think of the Mackinaw Bridge with its tall white towers and green decking stretching across from the lower to the upper peninsula. There is another suspension bridge that crosses the Rifle River on the hiking trails in the Rifle River Recreation Area near Lupton.

Millions of motorists have crossed the ” Mighty Mac” but I wonder how many hikers have crossed this secluded little wooden bridge in one of Michigan’s serene state parks. If you haven’t explored the Rifle River Recreation, you should, you will never know what you might find.

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The Lighthouse Ruins and the Ghost Town of Duncan

Posted on July 12, 2016 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, Lighthouses, State Parks .

Hidden among the trees in northern Michigan and along the shores of Lake Huron in the Cheboygan State Park are the ruins of the old Cheboygan Point Lighthouse.

The first light at Cheboygan Point was built in 1851. There was a dwelling and a separate 40′ round brick tower, which was fitted with a Fifth Order Fresnel lens made by L. Saultier & Company of Paris. The light was built on a pier and after only eight years of service, high water was washing away at the foundation and the light tower was removed.
In 1859 the station was rebuilt as an eight foot square wooden tower resting atop a two-story eight room dwelling. The new tower rose 22 feet above the house and included the same white light which was used in the earlier tower. In May of 1890, a standard locomotive steam fog signal was installed in a separate building.

1890s photo of the lighthouse from the Cheboygan State Park sign

When the nearby Fourteen Foot Shoal Light was constructed offshore in 1930, the old Cheboygan Light Station was abandoned and the land was deeded to the State of Michigan. Following the vandalism, the buildings were dismantled in the 1940s when George Kling, son of Fred Kling, the last keeper of the lighthouse, purchased the station’s boathouse for $1 and moved it to his home in Cheboygan to serve as a garage. Bill Singer acquired the lighthouse and sold its materials to Bert Toles, who used them to build three small houses. All that remains today is the foundation from the old lighthouse, which you can see along the hiking trails at Cheboygan state park.

Besides guiding ships through the straits of Mackinaw the lighthouse marked the entrance to Duncan Bay and Duncan City on the opposite side of the bay from the lighthouse. Once the county seat of Cheboygan County(1853-1857), Named after Jeremiah Duncan who started lumbering in the area the city was a company town with a population of about 500 in its heyday, and also a refueling stop for Great Lakes steamships. Duncan City began to lose its importance when the Cheboygan River was dredged out deeper, thus allowing more shipping traffic to go to Cheboygan itself. The final blow for Duncan City came in 1898 when the sawmill burned to the ground. The property is now all residential and privately owned and nothing remains of the city today.

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Sweet 16 Round of the Michigan State Parks March Madness

Posted on March 6, 2016 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in SP March Madness, State Parks .

Lake Of The Clouds in Porcupine State Park

Now its time for the Sweet 16 round and there are a lot of wonderful State Parks on the list. It will be really hard to chose between them, but it will be fun to see which ones get to move onto the next round Sunday March 13th.

you can see the first round of polls HERE

This round of polls are closed, you can see the next round of Polls HERE

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Michigan State Park March Madness Poll

Posted on March 2, 2014 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in State Parks .

Time to pick Michigan’s favorite state park for 2014. I have not visited all of them. but a lot of them, to pic the best is going to be hard to do, but I thought it would be fun to try.

There are about 80 state parks not including historic and scenic sites. I broke it up into 16 groups with random.org. pic your favorite from each group and we will work it down tournament bracket style to the determine final champion and Michigan’s favorite state park.

Belle Isle Michigan’s most recent state park is on the list, it will be interesting to see how the young rookie contender stacks up against the strong veterans like Tahquamenon Falls State Park.

this round of polls will be closed on March 9th then we will pair up the winners and vote which park goes on to the next round.

Pick one favorite park from each group, The winners will go onto next week polls

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