About five miles north of Reed City next to S210th Ave is an old wooden cross with the words THE OLD RUGGED CROSS attached to it.  The cross was erected in 1954 and stands on the property that was once home to Reverend George Bennard. He was a composer and preacher and is best known for composing the famous hymn, “The Old Rugged Cross”.  He wrote it in while living in Albion Michigan in 1912. Rev. Bennard retired to Reed City where he died in 1958 at the age of 85.

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A while back I took a photo of this old building in Pequaming in the Upper Peninsula. I thought it might have been a general store, but I was mistaken. While doing research for my recent Lost In Michigan Ghost Town book, I came across a photo titled Pequaming Odd Fellow Hall.

I recognized the building Instantly, The front porch has changed but the arched front window on the front and the windows on the side matched the building that still stands today. The Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) is a non-political, non-sectarian international fraternal order like the Masons. At one time the town of Peqauming was owned by Ford and had several employees to operate the sawmill located there. The hall must have been a popular place to hang out and socialize in. Today it sits empty and is a reminder of a time when automobile bodies were made of wood.

I hope you will take a look at my new Michigan Ghost Town book available on Amazon HERE 

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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.

If you like this post, I hope you will take a look at my new book Lost In Michigan’s Ghost Towns and Similar Places. I just released it on Amazon HERE 

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I am excited to announce that the Lost In Michigan Volume 7 is now available on Amazon HERE

Like my other books it has stories from all around the Great Lakes State. From the southern border to the top of the Upper Peninsula and places in between. I am sure you will enjoy reading it if you liked my other books.

Thank you all so much for purchasing my books and supporting what I do. I don’t get any outside funding, and my book sales help me with expenses to continue writing posts. Many people have told me they enjoy traveling to the places in my books and experiencing them in person. Volume 7 is a great way to plan for your summer travels and I hope you have fun exploring Michigan as much as I do.

P.S. I am working on distributing books to my local retailers. It will take me a few weeks to get books and ship them out to the stores that sell my books.

This old school house sits in Topinabee in the appropriately named School House Park. I could not find much info about the old school other than the township owns it and hope to get the money to restore it or convert it into a library or something. It is a nice looking building, and at least it has a new roof to keep it from getting water damage. For now it sits next to the playground and picnic area waiting for a day when it can be used.

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The violent and ruthless Purple Gang in Detroit was in control of the liquor that came in from Canada across the Detroit River into Michigan. If you wanted a good quality bottle of spirits from the distilleries in Canada you have to deal with the Purples. Two influential members of the Purple Gang, Sam Bernstein, and Louis Fleischer lived in Albion during Prohibition. They would meet with clients that took the train from Chicago to Albion at the Bohm theater. They sat in the balcony under the projector window to discuss business. The noise from the movie and projector would cover the sound of their conversations. Prohibition has ended and the Purple Gang is gone, but the stories still linger along with the historic buildings in downtown Albion.

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A friend of mine told me a story of an old native american legend about a half dog half wolf ( I always thought a dog was a wolf, but I digress) that roams the Omer Plains along the Rifle River, protecting the spirits of the native american warriors that have died and are buried in the Omer Plains. Maybe I am a little naive but I think many legends and stories start with a little bit of truth to them, and so I figured I would do a little research, Of course I went to where everyone goes looking for information, no not the library, or the encyclopedia, but Google.

Searching for the old native american cemetery, I found the Plains Cemetery on google maps on Jose Road near Grove Road. On my recent trip up north, why not stop by and see what’t there. Heading north out of Standish I found Jose road, and traveled towards Omer, the biggest little city in Michigan, I stopped where Google said there was a cemetery. Maybe there was one there, but I did not see anything that looked like one, nor did I see the Witchy Wolf. A deer ran across the road which scared the bejesus out of me, good thing I was wearing my brown pants. I was there during the daytime. so maybe the Witchy Wolf only comes out at night.

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On this date a few years ago, I was heading home from a long trip around the U.P. As I was crossing the big green bridge, the Stars And Strips were proudly flying on one of the twin towers of the bridge. At the moment I saw the flag I remembered that it was 9-11. I was not alive for the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor, or when President Kennedy was assassinated, but I remember the morning of September 11th vividly. I will never forget that day, and I am thankful for the women and men who diligently protect the United States Of America.

I started Lost In Michigan on July 21, 2013. It is hard to believe I have been doing it for a decade. I never imagined that it would become what it has. It started out as a place for me to share photos of the interesting things I have found on my travels around the Great Lakes State.

I am so grateful for the kindness and support from all of you. I have meet some wonderful people along this journey, and I have also learned a lot about Michigan that I never learned in the history books. I am still out exploring the back roads and have recently expanded my travels beyond the Mitten and posting stories on Lost In The States.

If you want to see my first post you can see it HERE. I think I have gotten better on my posts over the years, but I am still learning.

Thank you all so much for following what I do. The past ten years has been a lot of fun and I hope to continue for another ten more.

Enjoy The Journey,

Mike Sonnenberg

Sunday April, 2 from 1:00 to 4:00 I will be at Charlin’s Book Nook at the Frankenmuth River Place Shops. If you want a book autographed you can bring your own or they will have them available for purchase. If you just want to stop by and say hello and chat for a few minutes that’s fine too. I hope I will see you there. You can find out more about Charlin’s on their Facebook page HERE