Northeast of Hesperia, deep within the Manistee National Forest, is Benton Lake. It is a small lake completely surrounded by wilderness other than a little rustic campground. As legend has it, back in 1874, a stagecoach was transporting gold coins to a nearby logging camp. The coins were to be used for payroll for the
This is the James Scott residence on the corner of Peterboro and Park in the Midtown District in Detroit. James Scott’s father also named James Scott was a prominent businessman in Detroit and when he died in the 1870’s he gave a large fortune to his son. He built this house in 1887, but from
Standing at the east end of downtown Holland’s shopping district, is the old city hall and Firehouse. I wonder how many people notice this stately old building while they are out shopping or enjoying a meal at one of the pubs. I know it’s not forgotten for there’s a historical marker out front recalling its
This brick house with the gingerbread style roof and beautiful stained glass windows was constructed in downtown Plymouth in 1875. It was built for Henry William Baker who was the president of the Plymouth Iron Windmill Company. With windmill sales struggling the company decided to giveaway an air rifle with the purchase of every windmill.
Yes, there is a town in Michigan called Podunk. Actually, there are a couple of towns, in a few different counties called Podunk. This old schoolhouse in the forgotten town of Podunk is a few miles northwest of Gladwin. I could not find any info about the town other than the name and location, I
I see a lot of interesting things at local parks around Michigan. From historic monuments to old locomotives but the park in Boyne Falls has some old jail cells on dislplay. They go back to the lumbering days when they needed to incarcerate rowdy lumberjacks. It is rather strange to see them in a park
The first lighthouse in St. Joesph was erected in 1832 on the shoreline and was the second lighthouse constructed on Lake Michigan. Two piers were extended out into the lake in 1870 to protect the ships entering the St. Joseph River, and a beacon was placed at the pier-head. In the early 1900s, the war
Near the tip of the thumb along the Lake Huron shoreline is the historic town of Huron City. No one lives in the former town but it is not a ghost town. It has been converted into a museum consisting of several historic buildings. One of them is this historic church that served as the
Near the Historic Midland Street district in Bay City is the magnificent brick Sage Library. A green Michigan historical marker stands in front of it giving a little history of the building. Henry W. Sage (1814-1897) founded the village of Wenona (later West Bay City) in 1863. A merchant and philanthropist, he was also a
These old stone ruins on the Middle River Rouge stand in Hines Park in Northville. The sign nearby reads Meads Mill but I have read that they were not part of the mill. According to Nailhed.com they were part of a 1937 Works Progress Administration project. It was built as a waterwheel and intake site
