The McGulpin Point Light, a true lighthouse with a light tower and attached lighthouse keeper’s living quarters, was completed by the United States Lighthouse Board in 1869 at a cost of $20,000. The living quarters were built as a vernacular 11⁄2-story brick structure. The lighthouse operated during the Great Lakes navigation seasons from 1869 until
The Barry County courthouse stands in Hastings and was constructed between 1892 and 1894. After a devastating fire swept through the town of Hastings it was decided that a brick courthouse would be less susceptible to fire and would not burn as easily as the previous courthouse even though it was spared by the fire.
I saw this old house somewhere near Wolverine. I don’t know its story or any history on it but it looked lonely sitting in the snow. Since I don’t have a story for this house I want to take the time to thank all of you for reading my posts. I especially want to thank
I was in Lansing recently and I decided to take the long way home and drive through some towns I have never visited. I went through the beautiful town of Portland and I saw this old wooden church on the other side of the river from downtown. I had to stop and take a photo of it.
When you are driving along US-31 through Manistee it is hard to miss the SS City of Milwaukee and the USCGC Acacia. Both ships have been decommissioned and tied up on Lake Manistee and are serving out their retirement as museum ships. The SS City of Milwaukee was built in 1930 for the railroad is
North of downtown Flint near the Flint River is this two-story brick building. It is not ornately decorated with victorian ara trim, nor is it extremely large but it is an important starting point for one of America’s largest companies. It was constructed in 1895 to be used as an office and showroom for the
The Millersberg train depot looks a little different than other depots in Michigan. While most are made using lumber or bricks this one is made with concrete blocks. The town of Millersberg not far from Onaway suffered from three major fires. In 1908 the Metz fire swept through the town. In 1911 a fire in
The Wagoshance Lighthouse (or as the old sailors called it, Wobbleshanks) sits out in Lake Michigan not far from Mackinac City off the coast of Wilderness State Park. It is at a remote place out away from sight by most tourists and has been forgotten and left to crumble into Lake Michigan. It was the
The old Skyline Ski Resort sits empty somewhere south of Grayling. It has been a long time since skiers rode the lift and slalomed down the hill. I am not sure when it closed but it has been at least ten years. I never skied here my wife and I usually drove a little further
This beautiful old house sits near downtown Chesaning. A Michigan historical marker gives some history on this magnificent old home. It reads: Leamington and Madeline Stewart built this Queen Anne house in 1895 – 1897. The design was based on Design No. 53 in George F. Barber’s The Cottage Souvenir No. 2, a pattern book published
