Thumb – Lost In Michigan

The Pigeon Depot

Posted on September 8, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Thumb, Train Depots .

The Pigeon Depot was constructed in 1908 and served two railroad lines. In 1883 the Pontiac, Oxford and Port Austin Railroad, a north-south line, had been extended to Caseville and a depot was built at Berne, one mile north of here. Around 1886 the Saginaw, Tuscola and Huron Railroad built tracks through the Tamarack Swamp and crossed the north-south line at this point. This railroad stop became known as Berne Junction. Berne’s population dwindled as people moved to the junction where they established Pigeon in 1888. The Pontiac, Oxford, and Port Austin Line became the Pontiac Oxford and Northern and later the Grand Trunk Railroad. The Saginaw, Tuscola and Huron was absorbed by the Pere Marquette Railroad and then the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. The Pigeon Depot presently serves as the Pigeon Historical Society Museum.

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The White Rock Schoolhouse

Posted on August 20, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Schools, Thumb .

In a field located in the town of White Rock is a two-room brick schoolhouse. It is the third schoolhouse in the town located in the Thumb along the Lake Huron shoreline. The first one was built after the great fire of 1871. It burned down in the great fire of 1881. The second schoolhouse burned down in 1908 and this brick one is what replaced it. The school’s teachers taught children until 1968 when it was closed. A few years later the Huron County Historical Society purchased it and converted it into their museum.

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The White Rock

Posted on July 28, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Thumb .

Along the Lake Huron shoreline in the Thumb is the town of White Rock. It was named after, you probably guessed it, a white rock. They rock is about a half-mile offshore. Over the years it has broken up in the ice and is not as prominent as it once was but it is still visible. The rock was used as a boundary marker to define the territory ceded by Ottawa, Chippewa, Wyandot, and Potawatomi Native Americans with the Treaty of Detroit in 1807. A roadside park was built on M-25 and an overlook allows visitors to see the rock. The lake levels also have an impact on how much of the rock is visible. Next time you are taking a drive down M-25 and you see the roadside park be sure to stop and look at the rock that helped define Michigan.

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Martini House

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses, Thumb .

In a quiet subdivision not far from downtown Sebewaing is this ornate yellow house. The historical marker prominently standing in front of it reads:

Sebewaing businessman John C. Liken built 5 houses, one for each of his children. Constructed in 1890 – 95 in the fashionable Stick Style, this house remains the only historically intact structure associated with Liken, one of Sebewaing’s most prominent citizens, Liken intended this house for his daughter Mary and his son-in-law and business partner, Richard Martini, but the Martini’s never lived here. Instead, their oldest child John C. Martini (1878 – 1974) moved into the house with his wife, Tillie Kemp, in 1909. John C Liken retired in 1913, leaving control of the business to the Martini’s, Richard became president and John succeeded him. The Liken and Martini families were integral to Sebewaing’s development.

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A Soldiers Final Resting Place

Posted on May 27, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Cemetery, Thumb .

When thinking of Memorial Day many people can recall an image from a national cemetery with row and rows of headstones and American flags placed alongside them. I have visited many old rural cemeteries and see some individual tombstones with the Stars and Stripes proudly waving in the breeze. They may not be laid to rest with their brothers and sisters in a large elaborate cemetery, but that does not mean that the sacrifice they made was insignificant or forgotten. Thank you to the people who honor the veterans by placing flags next to the graves. I notice them and am grateful for their sacrifices.

I saw this headstone and flag on a hill in the Old Bayport Cemetery where many of the residents of the Ora Labora Colony are laid to rest. you can read about that HERE

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The Forgotten Schoolhouse in the Thumb

Posted on May 7, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Schools, Thumb .

I saw this old school house somewhere between Bad Axe and Ubly. I can only assume it was an old school since there is a swing set next to it.

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Gateway To The Thumb

Posted on April 11, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in small towns, Thumb .

Traveling down M-25 from Bay City into the Thumb you pass through the town of Unionville. The sign welcoming travelers proudly says “Gateway To The Thumb” The town was founded in 1854 when Horace C. Marvin built the first home in the area. He also built and operated a general store and was the towns first postmaster. He named the town Unionville after his native town of Union Ohio.

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The Pigeon House

Posted on April 5, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Houses, Thumb .

When I say “the pigeon house”, I don’t mean a house full of pigeons. I saw this old farmhouse near the town of Pigeon in the Thumb. It probably has pigeons living in it but I don’t know. I stopped got a pic from the road and moved on. If only walls could talk, they could tell a story of the life this house once had.

Lost In Michigan books are ON SALE this week, you can order them HERE

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Lost In Quanicassee

Posted on March 27, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Forgotten Places, Thumb .

I saw this old building in Quanicassee. I am not sure if it was a schoolhouse or not, it looks as if it had a sign above the door at one time. I don’t have a story to tell about this place I just thought it was interesting on one of my trips through the thumb. If you are wondering, according to Wikipedia the name Quanicassee is a Native American word meaning “lone tree”

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Bach Michigan, but not that Bach

Posted on March 14, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in General Store, Thumb .

Southeast of Sebewaing is the little town of Bach which is home to this old general store. If you are like me and think the town was named after the famous composer than you would be incorrect. You know what they say about assuming, you make an ass out of you and… well I guess I better get back to the town of Bach. The town was named after Fredric Bach who founded it in 1889. The little town even got a station on the Michigan Central Railroad and a post office in 1912.

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