The identity of the woman in blue is a mystery. Some believe she is the spirit of a runaway slave the died while traveling the Underground Railroad to freedom. She has been seen in McCourtie Park near Somerset Center in southern Michigan. No one knows who she is or why she would be haunting the
Sharon Mills near Manchester was built in the 1830s. Later a gristmill was erected and operated by John Rice and subsequently by the Kirkwood family until the late 1920s. In 1928, Sharon Mills was purchased by Henry Ford for use as a small plant. He rebuilt the mill, added a stone addition, and installed a
There’s a smal parcel of Burt Lake State Park situated at the intersection of Old US-27 and M-68, just south of Burt Lake. It appears to be a forgotten corner, with overgrown grass and weathered picnic tables clearly in need of repair. A lookout platform, once offering breathtaking vistas of Burt Lake, now stands
Nestled within Palms Book State Park, Kitch-iti-kipi, an Ojibwe term translating to “big cold spring,” is Michigan’s largest natural freshwater spring. This spring, also referred to as the “Mirror of Heaven,” features a 40-foot-deep basin with an emerald green bottom. It consistently releases 10,000 gallons of 45 °F water per minute from underground limestone fissures.
If you are looking for someplace different to visit that few people know about you need to stop by the old western town of Coopersville. You won’t find it on a map of Michigan since it’s not an official town. It was built by Spike Cooper who is a big fan of westerns and John
At the corner of the Old Chicago Road (U.S. 12) and the La Plaisance Pike (M-50) in Michigan’s Irish Hills, is Cambridge Junction Historic State Park / Walker Tavern Historic Site. The site contains a modest, one-and-a-half-story farmhouse that has sat on its original site for nearly two centuries. Built about 1832, the white clapboard
If you are searching for Bliss in northern Michigan you will it find somewhere between Mackinaw City and Cross Village. It’s the name of a small town in the agricultural area south of Wilderness State Park. In 1878, the town got a post office, and the little community was named after Arron T. Bliss, a wealthy
The SkyBridge at Boyne Mountain ski resort is the largest timbered suspension bridge. Maybe you have already experienced it, or it is out of your budget for your family, but you want to walk across some amazing foot bridges. There are a few other bridges in Michigan that are free to explore. They may not
South of Grand Rapids, Near Hudsonville is Spring Grove Park. It is a county park that has a stream flowing through it fed by a natural spring. The crystal clear water bubbles up through the ground into a pool of water. It reminded me of a small version of Kitch-iti-kipi at Palms Book State Park
I can only imagine how lonely and isolated it must have been to be a Lighthouse keeper in northern Michigan, but for the crew at Poe Reef Lighthouse, it must have been especially challenging. In the fall they survived Michigan storms raging with the waves of Lake Huron splashing up the sides of the lighthouse. In early