It's time to get off the crowded expressway and throw the GPS out the window. get out and explore Michigan's back roads, towns and trails.
A guy, a camera, and a Jeep, and sometimes a black lab named Cooper
About 15 miles east of Gaylord on M32 is the town of Johannesburg. I saw this old building painted white and had to stop and take a pic of it. I thought it looked like an old general store or something. later that day I was in the grocery store in Gaylord and they had
In my half-century of living in Saginaw I have traveled to Bay City countless times. I can’t even tell you how many times I have passed by this old farmhouse and never even noticed it. I probably missed it because there was a large gas station that stood in front of it. Now that it
Somewhere south of Cheboygan I came across this old boarded-up building. I thought it looked like a schoolhouse so I stopped and took a pic. When I zoomed into the pic I can read BENTON 1918 on a stone in the front above the entrance. Thank you for Subscribing to Lost In Michigan, If you
Fort Wayne sits near Detroit along the Detroit River and was built to defend and invasion by Canada. The invasion never happened but the fort served the military for a long time. The building in the photo was the enlisted men’s barracks. I believe that is where they stayed before and after being sworn into
The southwestern Michigan town of Three Oaks was named after, you guessed it, three oak trees that stood nearby when the area was settled in 1850. This adorable little brick depot was constructed in 1898. It was used by the railroad until 1959. The little depot sat empty for years before it was restored in
A few miles north of the Upper Peninsula town of Hessel is the Rockview Cemetery. Reverend William Hainstock Law is laid to rest in the small township graveyard. In 1852 Law was born in Canada and in his late 20s he traveled to the Upper Peninsula to minister to the Lumberjacks. He settled in the
Michigan has some spectacular and impressive library buildings throughout the state. This library in Elk Rapids is rather unique being in a historic house on an island. Known as the Island House, it was built in 1865 by local businessman Edwin S. Noble. He converted a four-acre sand bar into an island by covering it
This old mill sits near downtown Hart near Silver Lake. The building is part of a complex of buildings that make up Hart’s Historic District. Next time you are over on the west side of the state near Pentwater and Ludington be sure to take a trip through the historic district. You can learn more
Just outside of Hancock in the Keweenaw Peninsula is the old Quincy Mine. It’s not hard to miss the massive lift tower that can be seen from Houghton. These old coble stone ruins sit on the property along with a few other decaying buildings. One of these days I am gonna take the tour and
The old town of Tyre is in the middle of the Thumb not far from Ubly. It is not a ghost town like in the wild west movies, but the town has for the most part disappeared. It no longer shows up on the map and only a few houses remain. The town was founded
