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__  ___




A HISTORY
OF
Northern Michigan


AND ITS PEOPLE
BY
PERRY F. POWERS
Assisted by H. G. CUTLER
Editor of the Lewis Publishing Company
ILLUSTRATED
VOLUME I


THE LEWIS


1912
PUBLISHING COMPANY
CHICAGO


- ---- --- ----


- -- -- - -----




I




INTRODUCTION
Why should there be a history of Northern Michigan? Why should
it seem a desirable and proper expenditure of time and effort to gather
together and present the earliest incidents and traditional and recorded
statements touching movements and conditions in a single section of
Michigan?
What worthy purpose can be served through a history of Northern
Michigan that cannot be as well or better served through the inclusion of
such records and reviews, as are here included, in the history of our state
as a whole? These questions have suggested themselves to the writer
and they are here expressed in order that the answers, which present
themselves with most conclusive force, may also be given.
We have believed it to be true that Northern Michigan possesses a history so unique and that its material development and progress and the
lives of its people have been along lines so greatly influenced by its products and its peculiarities as to give more than ordinary value to a permanent, collective and conscientious record of the incidents and movements relating to the conditions and situations, to the men and women
of Northern Michigan.
We have come to very well know that the varying conditions of life
have most to do with the characteristics and peculiarities of people. If
it is further true, as we are so many times told, that here in the United
States there is being developed from the combination of the peoples of
many lands, characteristics and types quite apart from those possessed
by any of the nations from which they came, it will probably not be
questioned as to the source and cause for this unique type.
This land in which we, as a nation, have our homes, its possessions of
soil and climate so widely varying and representative in themselves of
many other entire nations, its varying products, its great distances, its
continental mountain ranges and its unusual lakes and rivers, have been
most important contributory influences to the activities and peculiarities
of the American people. As individuals, we have absorbed not a little
of the self-sufficient and bold and assertive characteristics of our native
and adopted homeland.
That such influence exists has been especially illustrated throughout
the development of the section and counties known as "Northern Michiiii




iV


INTRODUCTION


gan. " If no other reason could be given, this alone would be sufficient
to justify a separate review of this section and its people.
Hardly any other state in the Union presents such varying products
and activities as are provided and made necessary through the natural
differences that exist between what are known as "Southern Michigan"
and "'Northern Michigan" and the "Upper Peninsula." The problems
that have related to life and to living in what we have here somewhat
arbitrarily selected as the territory of Northern Michigan have not only
developed and modified the means and the methods and outlook of the
women and men who have been connected with them, but they have had
a very strong influence upon the history of our state as a whole. The
difficulties relating to pioneer life in Northern Michigan had not been
duplicated in the earlier settled sections. They provided for common
efforts and common sympathies and produced problems and interests
through which strong sectional relations were developed.
Through many years, Michigan held first place in the Union as the
great pine timber and lumber producing state. More than to other single
industry, perhaps, Michigan owes its progress and prosperity throughout the past half century to its timber and lumber products and resources. To a very large extent is it further true that the territory of
Northern Michigan was the section that provided the several important
industries and the enormous wealth directly and indirectly related to
the timber and lumber and wood-working industries.
It has often been complainingly referred to by the people of Northern
Michigan that their territory provided foundations for the great fortunes
that later have most enriched and assisted in building up the larger cities
and other sections of their commonwealth, as well as of other states. The
abandoned mill site and the almost obliterated sawdust accumulations
of some of the former great logging and lumbering communities of
Northern Michigan mutely but very eloquently testify to the sources of
fortunes that have been and are being spent in adding to the value of
life and the enjoyment of living in other more favored localities.
But the best that Northern Michigan has produced is that which it
has retained and which has become a permanent feature of its life. The
fact that its pioneers had more to struggle against in order to provide
homes for themselves and the necessary accompaniments of homes developed in them a degree of aggressive energy which has remained as a distinct sectional possession.
Sometimes the terms and phrases, "Northern Michigan spirit,"
"Northern Michigan sentiment," and "Northern Michigan point of
view" have been made use of through the press and from the platforms
of our state, and very rarely has it been necessary to add anything to
the explanation and understanding which such phrases would very
readily give. The life of Northern Michigan and the people of Northern
Michigan throughout their earlier years of existence, at least, have produced results sufficiently unique to be deserving of independent and
separate presentation.
There has been an honest effort in the pages that follow to mention
the men and women to whom much is due in connection with Northern
Michigan's first settlement and pioneer hardships. It would hardly be




INTRODUCTION


v


possible to escape injustice in the preparation of a list of those to whom
such tribute should be paid. Surely it will be true that many who never
figured prominently in county or community or sectional history performed service worthy of formal praise and permanent record. This
almost necessary feature of injustice is recognized as a part of every effort that seeks to do justice to worthy and helpful service. But there
are many names prominently known and connected with the pioneer
work in Northern Michigan which the volumes of this history have sought
to so properly and directly relate to their efforts and their accomplishments as to give them an enduring place in the memory of those of pressent years and the years to come whom they so splendidly served.
Northern Michigan has almost ceased to be the section of forests and
timber and lumber, or the abiding place of its earliest pioneers. Its first
days of record and those to whom from succeeding generations will recognition and credit be due for service well and worthily rendered, will
soon be memories. The section of Michigan which this history represents is now known and rapidly becoming better known as the orchard
and garden section through which our state in a few years will be enriched even beyond its bountiful provision of earlier years. In connection with the arrival and acceptance of this new era for Northern Michigan it is desirable that the years gone by should be remembered.
Gratitude is one of the most beautiful of all of the better qualities of our
human kind. It enriches and adds enjoyment to its possessor as well as
to those to whom it is directed and attached. That this sentiment may
have larger and more active existence in connection with the movements
and incidents herein recorded is a sincere purpose and wish in the mind
of the writer in connection with this work.
In the general history such topics as the Physical Features of Northern Michigan, Mound Builders, Indians, Lumber Industries and some
others are treated because they seem logically to be subjects of general
application to the region as a whole; in the history of the counties, therefore, these topics are largely ignored. The chief object in the sections
devoted to counties and cities has been to picture present conditions in
some detail, giving only so much of the past as is explanatory or necessary to the historical and logical basis of the present.
Speaking from the sectional standpoint, the general plan in the arrangement and grouping of the county histories is to present the Grand
Traverse region; then the counties of the Huron shore; finally to take
up the interior counties, passing from north to south-keeping in mind,
although not closely, their comparative importance. This plan was also
adopted because the Grand Traverse region was, generally speaking, the
pioneer section of Northern Michigan.
In the county histories are brought out, in detail, the physical features of Northern Michigan boldly sketched in the general history; and
especially the great central plateau is fully set forth, the histories tracing in special sections of the country the distinct ridge, or water-shed,
which separates such great systems as those of the Manistee, Muskegon,:heboygan, Au Sable and Tittabawassee rivers, of Grand Traverse and
Saginaw bays.
It has been made moie evident in the county histories that Northern




vi


INTRODUCTION


Michigan is divided so distinctly by its surface geology into eastern and
western portions that its very railroad systems were obliged to conform
to this physical peculiarity, and it is only within comparatively recent
years that her railroads have been fairly bound together by east and west
lines. Until this work is further advanced Northern Michigan will not
be a united section of the state.
To this interior physical feature of the central plateau and the
sharply divided watersheds of Northern Michigan is added the fact that
this part of the state is bounded on three sides by great bodies of water,
thus intensifying its isolation from neighboring territory. While these
two physical conditions have retarded its development in comparison
with other commonwealths whose territories lay adjacent to sections
which have stimulated their development, this very outward isolation
and interior division have developed a splendid type of manhood and
womanhood-self-reliant, strong, straight-forward, enterprising    and
moral.
In finally bidding adieu to this work, both of labor and love, the
writer wishes especially to acknowledge his indebtedness to the following
works, as sources of valuable information in the preparation of the history of Northern Michigan. Special credit is also given them in various
portions of the history.
Surface Geology of Michigan; 1908; by Alfred C. Lane for the Michigan State Geological Survey.
* Bulletins of U. S. Census Bureau, including population statistics
and Forest Products of the United States.
Michigan Geological and Biological Survey; sites of aboriginal remains; 1910.
E;arly History of Michigan; 1888; S. D. Bingham.
Michigan in the Civil War; 1880; by John Robertson, adjutant
general.
History of Michigan, civil and topographical; 1839; James H.
Lanman.
Michigan Tradesman; Origin of County Names; June 15, 1910.
History of the Grand Traverse Region; 1883; by Dr. M. L. Leach;
Grand Traverse Herald, publisher.
The Traverse Region; 1884; publishers, H. R. Page & Company,
Chicago.
History of the Lake Huron Region; 1883; same publishers.
Michigan Legislative Manual, 1911.
History of Michigan; 1910; by Lawton T. Hemans.
* The statistics of population published in each county history may be perplexing Without the explanation that the township figures sometimes include
cities and villages, whose populations, in the same columns, follow separately.
The totals, therefore, at the foot of the columns will not be correct unless the
figures of the villages and cities are excluded; in other words, the totals are
the additions of the township figures alone.
It sometimes also happens that the total population of the county will not conform to the addition of the township figures, the explanation being that, in such
cases, certain townships have been annexed or absorbed-the names of the townships given in the tables being those in existence in R10.




INTRODUCTION


*

History of the Northern Peninsula; 1911; Alvah L. Sawyer.
Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections.
Men of Progress; 1900; by Evening News Association, Detroit.
Northern Michigan; 1905; B. F. Bowen & Company, Chicago.
Publications of the Western Michigan Development Bureau.
Publications of the Northeastern Michigan Development Bureau.
Publications of the Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company.
Publications of the Traverse City Board of Trade.
Centennial History of Manistee County, containing addresses of Hon.
John C. Blanchard and Hon. B. M. Cutcheon.
Manistee, the Salt City of the Unsalted Seas; 1910; American Printing Company.
Ludington, Gateway of the Northwest; 1910; Ludington Board of
Trade.
Centennial History of Alpena County; by David D. Oliver.
Alpena; dates of events, 1862-1902; Alpena Argus.
Antrim County; 1910; by authority of Board of Supervisors.
Centennial History of Cheboygan County; by Rev. W. H. Ware.
Cheboygan Up-to-Date; 1898; Cheboygan Democrat.
History of Wexford County; 1903; by John H. Wheeler.
Cadillac City Directory; 1900; by W. A. Norton.
History of Alcona County; 1877; by Charles P. Reynolds.
"Back to the Farm in Crawford County;" 1910; by authority of
Board of Supervisors.
"Beauty Spots in Leelanau;" 1901; by Wilber E. Campbell.
Various sourvenir editions issued by the newspapers of Northern
Michigan, including the Cheboygan Tribune, Gladwin Record, Empire
Leader, Missaukee Republican, West Branch Times and the Onaway
Outlook.
Interviews with prominent citizens of all classes.
In the collection of this historical material requests for information,
as a rule, have met with full response, but if in any portion of the work
there appears to be insufficient treatment the defect is caused simply because the subject matter is not avhilable, for both editors and publishers
have endeavored in every possible way to gather all the facts for a fair
presentation of every section and community in Northern Michigan.
PERRY F. PowERs.








Contents
CHAPTER I
GEOLOGY, SOIL, PRODUCTS
THE GREAT LAKES AS GLACIAL POOLS-SURFACE GEOLOGY OF NORTHERN
MICHIGAN-PRE-GLACIAL HISTORY-ADVANCE AND CAUSE OF THE ICE
AGE-EFFECTS OF THE ICE ADVANCE-WALLED LAKES-GLACIAL
BOULDERS-LAKE DEPOSITS-ROAD     GRAVELS-BOG LIME-PEATRIVER SILTS-CONNECTION OF SURFACE DEPOSITS AND SOILS-TYPES OF
NORTHERN MICHIGAN SOILS-CENTRAL PLATEAU OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN-AREA OF SOIL INVESTIGATION-TOPOGRAPHY-NATURE OF SOILS
-UPLAND AND LOWLAND TYPES OF VEGETATION-THEIR DISTRIBUTION
-FUTURE OF THE REGION-PRODUCTIONS OF THE SOIL.......... 1-31
CHAPTER II
FIRST LORDS OF THE SOIL
ABORIGINAL REMAINS IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN-ORIGIN OF THE RED
MAN-WHEN FIRST FOUND BY THE WHITES-THE HURONS-OTTAWAS AND CHIPPEWAS-AT THE TIME OF PONTIAC'S CONSPIRACYOTTAWAS OF L'ARBRE CROCHE —OTTAWAS OF GRAND TRAVERSE —EXTINGUISHMENT OF THE INDIAN.............................. 32-53
CHAPTER III
PLANTING OF THE WHITE MAN
NICOLET LANDS ON MICHIGAN SOIL-THE COMING OF MARQUETTE-HIS
DEATH AND BURIAL-CADILLAC AND MICHILIMACKINAC-INSECURE
AND BURDENSOME LAND TENURE-MONOPOLIES RETARD PROGRESSFUR TRADE ENRICHES ONLY THE RICH-ENGLISH FLAG SUPPLANTS
THE FRENCH-INDIANS REBEL-MASSACRE AT FORT MICHILIMACKINAC
-SIEGE OF DETROIT RAISED-NORTHERN MICHIGAN BECOMES AMERICAN  SOIL.............................................. 54-78
ix




CONTENTS


CHAPTER IV
CIVIL GOVERNMENT FOUNDED
ORDINANCE OF 1787-NORTHWEST TERRITORY DISMEMBERED-SLAVERY
IN MICHIGAN-FOUNDING OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT-STATUS OF LAND
TITLES-ERECTION OF FIRST COUNTIES-TABULAR HISTORY OF
COUNTIES-SOURCES OF- NAMES-BASIS OF STATE GOVERNMENT-IDENTIFIED WITH STATE GOVERNMENT-SERVED IN THE LEGISLATURE...........................79-109
CHAPTER V
BENCH AND BAR
TERRITORIAL  SUPREME  COURTS-THE   LOWER COURTS ---TERRITORIAL
CIRCUIT COURTS-UNDER THE 1850 CONSTITUTION-UNDER THE 1909
CONSTITUTION-JUSTICE A. V. MCALVAY-CIRCUITS AND JUDGESHISTORY OF SETTLED JURISDICTION —THE CASE AGAINST KING STRANG
-EARLY PRACTICE IN GRAND TRAVERSE REGION-JUDGES LITTLEJOHN
AND RAMSDELL-COURTS AND LAWYERS IN CHEBOYGAN COUNTYEARLY JUSTICE IN EMMET COUNTY-FIRST JUDGES AND LAWYERS
IN ALPENA COUNTY-MANISTEE COUNTY'S FIRST LAWYER-JUDGE
RAMSDELL'S REMINISCENCES —IN LEELANAU AND ANTRIM COUNTIES
-CIRCUIT COURT OPENED IN CHARLEVOIX COUNTY-THE FIRST LAWYER-TWENTY-EIGHTH CIRCUIT AND WEXFORD COUNTY-KALKASKA
BENCH AND BAR-IOSCO COUNTY-MICHIGAN STATE BAR ASSOCIATION.................................................. 110-135
CHAPTER VI
PROFESSIONAL LIFE CONTINUED
NEWSPAPERS OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN-BIRTH OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
JOURNALISM-THOMAS T. BATES-MANISTEE AS A CLOSE SECONDMASON COUNTY-IOSCO COUNTY-CHARLEVOIX COUNTY-WILLARD A.
SMITH-ALPENA COUNTY-WEXFORD COUNTY-ANTRIM COUNTYOSCEOLA AND LAKE COUNTIES-KALKASKA COUNTY-EMMET COUNTY
-ROSELLE ROSE-OTSEGO AND ROSCOMMON COUNTIES-CHEBOYGAN
COUNTY ---LEELANAU  COUNTY-PRESQUE   ISLE  COUNTY-OGEMAW
COUNTY-CLARE AND CRAWFORD COUNTIES-OSCODA COUNTY-ARENAC  COUNTY-MISSAUKEE    COUNTY-BENZIE    COUNTY-GLADWIN
COUNTY —EXPLANATORY-FIRST REGULATING ACT-THE PIONEER
PHYSICIANS...........................................136-168




CONTENTS


xi


CHAPTER VII
GENERAL     IATERIAL DEVELOPMENT
FIRST NORTHERN MICHIGAN   INDUSTRY-MICHIGAN'S EPOCHAL YEAR
(1840)-SPLIT INTO Two PARTS-FATHER OF MICHIGAN RAILROADS
-THE GRAND RAPIDS & INDIANA-NORTHERN CONNECTING LINKSTHE PERE MARQUETTE RAILROAD-ANN ARBOR RAILROAD-FIRST
LOGGING RAILROAD IN THE WORLD-LUDINGTON AND MANISTEE RAILROADS-THE DETROIT & MACKINAC-GOOD ROADS-FIRST LUMBERING OPERATIONS IN MANISTEE COUNTY AND GRAND TRAVERSE REGION
-CHEBOYGAN AND ALPENA COUNTIES-IosCO AND ALCONA-HISTORIC
SUMMARY-MELTING OF THE PINE FORESTS-PRESENT STATUS OF
LUMBERING-THE SALT INDUSTRY-AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL
SOCIETIES-STATE LANDS OPEN TO PURCHASE-DIVERSE INDUSTRIES-GROWTH   THROUGH   NATURE'S FAVORS-GROWTH IN     STATISTICS................................................169-227
CHAPTER VIII
MILITARY HISTORY
EARLY CIVIL WAR MOVEMENTS-FOURTH AND SIXTH DISTRICTS ENROLMENT-TROOPS FURNISHED BY COUNTIES-COMMISSIONED OFFICERSTHE GRAND TRAVERSE REGION-MANISTEE COUNTY IN THE WARALPENA COUNTY-HOME COMING OF MICHIGAN TROOPS-ROBERTSON'S
TRIBUTE TO MICHIGAN SOLDIERS-SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR-THIRD
REGIMENT, M. N. G..................................... 228-243
CHAPTER IX
GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY
TRAVERSE CITY AND VILLAGES-PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL-TWENTY YEARS'
GROWTH-STEPS IN ORGANIC LIFE-OLD MISSION FOUNDED-FIRST
SCHOOL-FIRST SHIPBUILDING-THE MISSION AND OLD MISSIONFOUNDING   OF  TRAVERSE  CITY-LAND   OFFICE  TRANSACTIONSTRAVERSE CITY INCORPORATED-PUBLIC SCHOOLS-TRAVERSE CITY
CHURCHES-LIBRARIES-BOARD OF TRADE-THE BANKS-NORTHERN
MICHIGAN INSANE ASYLUM-COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY-VILLAGE
AND TOWN HISTORY................................... 244-263




xii


CONTENTS


CHAPTER X
CHARLEVOIX COUNTY
DIVERSE ADVANTAGES-THE COUNTY STATISTICALLY-THE PINE LAKE
REGION-HOLY ISLAND-KNOWN THREE CENTURIES AGO-RULE OF
KING STRANG-THE COUNTY AND THE COUNTY SEAT-ORGANIZATION
OF TOWNS-CHARLEVOIX AS A VILLAGE-THE CHARLEVOIX AND CHICAGO RESORTS-CHARLEVOIX   AS A   CORPORATION-SCHOOLS AND
CHURCHES-BANKS-BOYNE CITY-EAST JORDAN-OTHER COUNTY
COMMUNITIES.......................................... 264-292
CHAPTER XI
EMMET COUNTY
POPULATION AND PROPERTY-ORGANIC HISTORY-PHYSICAL FEATURESEARLY HISTORY OF EMMET COUNTY-THE PRESBYTERIAN MISSION
-PETOSKEY, THE COUNTY SEAT-IGNATIUS PETOSKEY-BEGINNING
OF THE VILLAGE-AS VILLAGE AND CITY-HARBOR SPRINGS-BAY
VIEW-OTHER VILLAGES AND STATIONS................... 293-315
CHAPTER XII
ANTRIM COUNTY'
VILLAGES AND COUNTY'S POPULATION-HISTORIC AND PREHISTORICABRAM S. WADSWORTH, THE COUNTY'S PIONEER-JAMES McLAUGHLIN
-FIRST BURIAL IN THE COUNTY-ELK RAPIDS A FACT-EARLY
COUNTY AFFAIRS-ANTRIM COUNTY ORGANIZED-FIRST COURT HOUSE
AND JAIL-COUNTY SEAT MOVED TO BELLAIRE-BELLAIRE, PRESENT
COUNTY SEAT-ELK RAPIDS OF TODAY-MANCELONA-CENTRAL LAKE
-STATIONS AND POSTOFFICES-ORGANIZATION OF TOWNSHIPS. 316-334
CHAPTER XIII
LEELANAU COUNTY
NATURAL CHARACTERISTICS-THE CARP LAKE REGION-THE GLEN LAKE
REGION-POPULATION AND PROPERTY-FIRST SETTLERS-FIRST YEARS
OF GROWTH ---COUNTY ORGANIZED-NORTHPORT, FIRST COUNTY SEAT
-LELAND, PRESENT    COUNTY   SEAT-EMPIRE-SUTTON'S   BAYPROVEMONT-OMENA AND PESHABATOWN-GLEN ARBOR AND BURDICKVILLE.............................................. 335-354




CONTENTS


xiii


CHAPTER XIV
BENZIE COUNTY
THE COUNTY PHYSICALLY-POPULATION STATISTICS-FIRST SETTLERSFOUNDING OF FRANKFORT AND BENZONIA-HOMESTEAD-COUNTY'S
"DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE -— COUNTY SEAT CONTENTIONSFRANKFORT OF TODAY AND YESTERDAY-THOMPSONVILLE —BENZONIAHONOR-LAKE ANN.................................... 355-367
CHAPTER XV
MANISTEE COUNTY
CHANGES IN POPULATION-THE COUNTY AND ITS NAME-PIONEER HISTORY-JUSTICE WADSWORTH VISITS "MANISTEE -— SETTLERS PRIOR TO
1850-THE LAST CHIPPEWA CHIEF-GROWTH OF SCHOOL SYSTEM1854-5, A GREAT ERA-MANISTEE CHURCHES-IN THE SIXTIESNOTED VANDERPOOL-FIELD CASE-THE FIRE OF 1871-AFTER THE
FIRE —GENERAL ADVANCES-CITY AND COUNTY OF THE PRESENTCOPEMISH, BEAR LAKE AND ONEKAMA.....................368-389
CHAPTER XVI
MASON COUNTY
SOIL PRODUCTS AND GENERAL RESOURCES-POPULATION AND PROPERTYMASON COUNTY AND HER GODFATHER-MEMORIES OF FATHER MARQUETTE-CITY OF LUDINGTON FOUNDED-A GREAT TRANSPORTATION
SYSTEM-INDUSTRIES AND FINANCES-CIVIC AND SOCIAL-SCOTTVILLE,
CUSTER AND FOUNTAIN................................ 390-403
CHAPTER XVII
WEXFORD COUNTY
CIVIL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES-BUILDING OF THE STATE ROAD —FIRST
SETTLERS AND INSTITUTIONS-THE COUNTY AND COUNTY SEATSEARLY HISTORY OF CADILLAC-VILLAGE AND CITY CORPORATIONSDEATH OF GEORGE A. MITCHELL-THE PRESENT CITY-MANTONHARRIETTA-SHERMAN-MESICK, BUCKLEY, BOON AND YUMA.. 404-423




xiv


CONTENTS


CHAPTER XVIII
MISSAUKEE AND KALKASKA
MISSAUKEE COUNTY-PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL-POPULATION AND PROPERTY-ORGANIC-FIRST EVENTS, PERSONS AND THINGS-LAKE CITY
-McBAIN AND OTHER CENTERS-KALKASKA COUNTY-STATISTICSFIRST SETTLERS AND POLITICIANS-COUNTY ORGANIZATION-KALKASKA, THE COUNTY SEAT-BOARDMAN.................... 424-437
CHAPTER XIX
CHEBOYGAN COUNTY
WATERWAYS AND THEIR INFLUENCE-SOIL AND ITS PRODUCTS-TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES-POPULATION AND PROPERTY-COUNTY ORGANIZATION-FIRST SETTLEMENTS-FOUNDING OF CHEBOYGAN-CHURCHES
-MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT CONTINUED-IMPROVEMENTS OF WATERWAYS -DUNCAN BECOMES CHEBOYGAN-THE CITY OF CHEBOYGANWOLVERINE-MACKINAW CITY —TOWER.................... 438-458
CHAPTER XX
ALPENA COUNTY
POPULATION AND PROPERTY-FIRST SURVEYS AND SETTLERS-DAVID D.
OLIVER REAPPEARS-VILLAGE OF FREMONT BORN ---ORGANIZATION OF
THE COUNTY-A TURNING POINT-FIRST YEARS AS A CITY-WATER
AND LIGHT-SCHOOLS AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS-RELIGIOUS-INDUSTRIES
AND BANKS-OUTSIDE OF ALPENA CITY.................... 459-476
CHAPTER XXI
PRESQUE ISLE AND MONTMORENCY COUNTIES
STRONG FEATURES OF PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY-LAKES AND STREAMS-PROSAIC FIGURES-INDIAN LORE-INTRODUCTION TO WHITE SETTLERSFOUNDING OF ONAWAY-REMARKABLE GROWTH-ROGERS, THE COUNTY
SEAT-MILLERSBURG —POSEN-MONTGOMERY COUNTY-NATURAL ADVANTAGES-POPULATION AND VILLAGES..................... 477-488




CONTENTS


XV


CHAPTER XXII
OTSEGO AND CRAWFORD COUNTIES
OTSEGO'S PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL-POPULATION-SETTLEMENT OF THE
COUNTY-OTHER PIONEER ITEMS-GAYLORD-VANDERBILT —CRAWFORD
COUNTY-POPULATION-GRAYLING........................ 489-497
CHAPTER XXIII
ALCONA COUNTY
PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES-POPULATION-THE FIRST SETTLERS-LEADING
FISHERMEN-FOUNDERS OF HARRISVILLE-COUNTY ORGANIZED —HARRISVILLE-LINCOLN AND MIKADO......................... 498-505
CHAPTER XXIV
IOSCO COUNTY
CENSUS FIGURES REVISED BY FIRE-INDUSTRIAL TRANSFORMATIONRIVERS AND LAKES-HISTORY OF AU SABLE-OSCODA VILLAGE-THE
AU   SABLE-OSCODA  FIRE-TAWAS   CITY-EAST   TAWAS-WHITTEMORE............................ 506-521
CHAPTER XXV
OGEMAW AND OSCODA COUNTIES
OGEMAW'S POPULATION-EARLY SETTLEMENTS OF THE COUNTY —OGEMAW SPRINGS-WEST BRANCH REALLY FOUNDED-INCORPORATED AS
A VILLAGE-BANKS, TRADE AND INDUSTRIES-WEST BRANCH A CITY
-ROSE CITY-PRESCOTT AND LUPTON-OSCODA COUNTY..... 522-529
CHAPTER XXVI
GLADWIN AND ARENAC COUNTIES
GLADWIN COUNTY PHYSICALLY-INCREASE IN POPULATION-FIRST SETTLER AND SETTLEMENT-GLADWIN, THE COUNTY SEAT-BEAVERTONARENAC COUNTY-POPULATION IN 1890, 1900 AND 1910-COUNTY
ORGANIZATION - STANDISH, THE COUNTY SEAT - OMER CITY - ATT
GRES AND TWINING.............................. 530-541




xvi                     CONTENTS
CHAPTER XXVII
OSCEOLA AND LAKE COUNTIES
PRODUCTS AND POPULATION OF OSCEOLA-HERSEY, THE COUNTY SEAT-4 -REED CITY VILLAGE-EVART-MARION —TUSTIN AND LEROy-LAKE
COUNTY-POPULATION FROM 1890 TO 191-0-ORGANIC AND PxONiRM
HISTORY-VILLAGES...................................54255




INDEX


Abbott, A. A., 434, 435.
Abbott, J. C., 329.
Abrahamson, Martin, 689.
Abbs, William H., 1251.
Ackerman, Charles B., 1071.
Adams, C. F., 518.
Adamski, Frank C., 663.
Agriculture in Northern Michigan, 218.
Agricultural Societies in Northern Michigan, 218.
Aishcum (see Lake) county.
Alanson, 315.
Alba, 334.
Alcona Agricultural Society, 219.
Aleona county-Mention, 34, 94, 137,
223; physical advantages, 498; population, 500; the first settlers, 500;
leading fishermen, 501; founders of
Harrisville, 501; county organized,
503; Harrisville, 504; Lincoln and
Mikado, 504.
Alcona County Agricultural Society, 504.
Alden, 334.
Alfalfa, 29.
Allen, Jesse, 785.
Allen, Thomas T., 1041.
Allouez, Claude Jean, 37.
Alpena, 225.
Alpena "Argus-Pioneer," 149, 150.
Alpena county-Mention, 34, 94, 123,
137, 223; physical features, 459; population and property, 460; first surveys and settlers, 461; David D.
Oliver appears, 462; village of Fremont born, 465; organization of the
county, 465; a turning point, 467;
first years as a city, 469; water and
light, 470; schools and public buildings, 472; religious, 473; industries
and banks, 473; outside of Alpena,
474.
Alpena County Savings Bank, 474.
Alpena "Evening Echo," 150.
Alpena "Evening News," 150.
Alpena "Farmer," 150.
Alpena National Bank, 474.
Alpena Portland Cement Company, 474.
"Alpena Weekly Argus," 150.


Alway, Curtis D., 1199.
American Regime Commenced, 77.
American Wood Rim Company, 485.
Amerson, Harvey S., 903.
Ann Arbor Railroad Company, 179.
Anderson, Aaron F., 983.
Anderson, Henry J., 1166.
Andresen, Thomas E., 654.
Andress, Perry, 331, 332.
Andrus, Enoch, 162.
Andrus, George F., 1081.
Annand, George, 1301.
Antrim  (see Furnaceville).
Antrim  county-Mention, 34, 94, 129,
137; physical features, 316; villages
and county's population, 318; historic
and prehistoric, 319; Abram S. Wadsworth, the county's pioneer, 320;
James McLaughlin, 321; first burial in
the county, 322; Elk Rapids a fact,
322; early county affairs, 323; county
organized, 324; first courthouse and
jail, 325; county seat moved to Bellaire, 326; Bellaire, present county
seat, 326-30; Elk Rapids of today,
330; Mancelona, 331; Central Lake,
333; stations and postoffices, 333;
organization of the townships, 334.
Archibald & Murray, 201, 202.
Arenac county-Mention, 93, 137; physical, 537; population, 538; organization, 539; Standish, the county seat,
540; Omer City, 540; Au Gres and
Twining, 541.
Arenac County Agricultural Society, 540.
"Arenac County Independent," 162.
Armstrong, John, 1073.
Ashton, Benjamin D., 998.
Ashton, Edwin L., 1000.
Atlanta, 488..
Au Gres, 541.
Au Gres "Enterprise," 162.
Au Sable, 511.
Au Sable & Northwestern Railway, 508,
529.
Au Sable-Oscoda fire of 1911, 513.
Au Sable river, 508, 529.


xvii




xviii:2Vll


INDEX


Babcock, Arthur R., 161, 645.
Babcock, Henry S., 1268.
Babcock Grain Company, 545.
Backus, Absalom, 204.
Backus, Albert S., 204.
Backus Brothers, 511.
Bahel, C. W., 752.
Bahle, Lewis E., 721.
Bailey, Charles E., 359, 360.
Bailey, George W., 797.
Bailey, John, 359, 360.
Bailey, Philip E., 762.
Baker, Herbert F., 1267.
Baker, Samuel W., 780.
Baldwin, 550.
Bank of Charlevoix, 287.
Bank of Grayling, 497.
Bank of Tustin, 547.
Banowske, August F., 1215.
Barber, Henry, 1023.
Barber, William W., 1049.
Barker, Lorenzo A., 609.
Barker, John S., 323.
Barker, "Ren," 156, 162.
Barnard, Alonzo, 726.
Barnard, James H., 729.
Barnes (see Gaylord).
Barnes, S., 256.
Barnes, Smith, 259.
Barnhart, William J., 812.
Barrett, Joel L., 13i4.
Barton, Ronald, 782.
Batchelor Timber Company, 528.
Bates, MelVin A., 735.
Bates, Morgan, 140, 241.
Bates, Morgan (Mrs.), 258.
Bates Thomas T., 262, 602.
Bates, T. T. (Mrs.), 258.
Baumberger, Charles A., 1042.
Bay View, 313.
Beach, Eugene M., 1168.
Beahan, Charles C., 810.
Bear Creek, 299, 300, 306.
Bear Lake, 389.
Beaverton, 536.
Bechtold, Frederick W., 328, 329, 330.
Bedell, Edgar E., 1207.
Bedford, Thomas, 276.
Beebe, Henry, 917.
Beers, Charles M., 911.
Beever, George W., 890.
Belknap, Howard M., 1272.
Bell, John, 285.
Bellaire, 326-30.
Bellaire State PanJ, 33Q.
Bellant, CharJes, 40.,
Bench   and  Bar-Territorial supreme
courts, OlQ; district cports, 111; lower
courts, 111; territorial circuit co0ur,
112:  state   iupreme   and  cireouit
courts, 112; under the 1800 ooSrtitution, 113; under the 1909 consti4u

tion, 114; circuits and judges, 115;
history of settled jurisdiction, 116;
the case against King Strang, 116;
early practice in Grand Traverse
region, 117; Judges Littlejohn and
Ramsdell, 119; in Cheboygan county,
120; in Emmet county, 122; Alpena
county, 123; Manistee county, 126;
Leelanau county, 129; Antrim county,
129; Charlevoix county, 130; Wexford county, 131; Kalkaska bench
and bar, 133; Iosco county, 133; Michigan State Bar Association, 134.
Benedict, Homer G., 685.
Bennett, George, 1138.
Benzonia Academy, 365.
Benzonia College, 365.
Benzie county-Mention, 95, 137; physically, 355; population and property,
357; first settlers, 358; founding of
Frankfort and Benzonia, 358; Homestead, 361; county's "Declaration of
Independence," 361; county seat contentions, 362; Frankfort of today and
yesterday, 363; Benzonia, 365; Honor,
366; Lake Ann, 367.
"Benzie County Leader," 163.
"Benzie County Patriot," 163, 1130.
Benzonia, 365.
Berry, J. U., 493.
Bewick, 470.
Big Beaver island, 279, 270.
Bigge, Carl A., 1149.
Birtch & Eldridge, 201, 205, 476.
Bisbee, C. G., 473.
Bisbee, Watson F., 991.
Bishop, Roswell P., 565.
Black, Albert W., 696.
Black lake, 440, 478.
Black river, 499.
Blair, Austin, 229, 230.
Blake, Henry A., 614.
Blake, W. Ernest, 1174.
Bleazby, Arthur A., 133.
Blodgett, D. A., 420.
Blumenthal, B., 527.
Boardman, 437.
Boardman, Captain, 194, 195, 196.
Boardman, Horace, 194, 195, 196, 249,
252.
Boardman   River Electric  Light and
Power Company, 256.
Bolen, James, 1330.
Bonneville, Antonie E.,, 786.
Boon, 423.
Booth, James H., 830.
Bontecou, Joseph C., 159, 1298.
Bontecou, Margaret C., 159, 1301.
Borucki, John, 656.
Boetwick, Theron, 323.
B0ochard, Edward A., 1005.
owen, Warren, 159.




INDEX


xix


Boyne City, 278, 287.
"Boyne City Citizen," 149.
Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena Railroad,
176.
"Boyne City Enterprise," 149.
"Boyne City Journal," 149.
"Boyne City Times," 149.
Boyne Falls, 292.
Boyne river, 267.
Brackett, Frank E., 1046.
Bradford, Cecil G., 717.
Bradford, Howard D., 620.
Brandenburg, H., 421.
Breakenridge, E. A., 465.
Briggs, Charles C., 899.
Briggs, Harry J., 156, 981.
Brink, Charles S., 491, 492.
Bristol, Howard C., 1305.
Broadwell, Hillyard, 201, 204.
Brockway, Charles T., 472.
Brooks, Edwin J., 237.
Brown, George G., 1075.
Brown, Henry L., 126, 371.
Brown, John W., 334.
Brown, Waldemar E., 662.
Brownson, Jay J., 898.
Bruce, Daniel D., 789.
Brutus, 315.
Buckley, 423.
Buckley, Edward, 1196.
Buckley, James, 741.
Burdick, William, 354.
Burdickville, 354.
Burley, George A., 547.
Burmeister, Byron, 601.
Burnham, Victor C., 126.
Burr, Teresa R., 672.
Burston, William, 750.
Burt lake, 440.
Burtch, Jonathan, 462, 463.
Busch, Schuyler, 1135.
Buttars, Archie, 305.
Cable, Albert, 309.
Cade, Peter B., 1065.
Cadillac, 413-20.
Cadillac, Antoine de la Mothe, 62-5, 69.
Cadillac "Daily Enterprise," 154.
Cadillac "Evening News," 152.
"Cadillac Globe," 154.
Cadillac State Bank, 420.
Cadillac "Weekly Citizen," 154.
Cameron, Duncan A., 1016.
Campbell, Julius, 892.
Campbell, J. A., 1337.
Canfield, Alfred R., 162, 734.
Canfield, John, 192, 373, 376, 377.
Cannon, Ellery C., 1043.
Caple, William H., 950.
Carle, William F., 834.
Carleton, George N. P., 1087.
Carp lake; 337.


Carpenter, Seth L., 125, 469.
Carpenter, Warren D., 723.
Carrier, Chauncey T., 359.
Carter, Daniel, 123, 167, 463, 466, 467.
Carter Sarah L., 167.
Cartier, Antoine E., 1187.
Cartier, Charles E., 793.
Cartier, Desire E., 706.
Cartier, Warren A, 1186
Case, Earl J., 889.
Case, George N., 1039.
Case, Ralph, 876.
Cass, Lewis, 53, 85.
Central Lake, 333.
Central Michigan Land Company, 554.
Central plateau of Northern Michigan,
12.
Chandler, Merritt, 483, 574.
Chandler, W., 453.
Chamberlain, Harman, 467.
Champenois, L. P., 422.
Chapelle, Edward W., 875.
Chapelle, Walter L., 1137.
Chapman, Willis E., 1203.
Charlevoix, 278, 278-87, 297.
Charlevoix county-Mention, 34, 95, 100,
130, 137; diverse advantages, 264;
property valuation, 265; population
(1890-1910), 266; the Pine lake region,
266; "Waking of the Northland," 269;
Holy island, 269; known three centuries
ago, 270; rule of King Strang, 271;
the county and the county seat, 277;
organization of towns, 279; Charlevoix
a village, 279; in communication with
Lake Michigan, 281; the Charlevoix
and Chicago resorts, 283; Charlevoix
as a corporation, 284; banks, 287;
Boyne City, 287; East Jordan, 288;
other county communities, 292.
Charlevoix County Agricultural Society,
265.
Charlevoix County Chamber of Commerce, 265.
"Charlevoix Journal," 149.
"Charlevoix Sentinel," 147.
Charlevoix resort, 283.
Chase, Irvin, 572.
Chase, Spencer C., 1240.
Cheboygan, 448-57.
Cheboygan county-Mention, 34, 95, 120,
223; waterways and their influence,
438; soil and its products, 440; transportation facilities, 441; population
and property, 443; county organization, 444; first settlement, 446; founding of Cheboygan, 448; churches, 450;
improvements of waterways, 450;
Duncan becomes Cheboygan, 454; the
city of Cheboygan, 454; Wolverine,
457; Mackinaw City, 457; Tower, 458;
stations and postoffices, 458.




TnT'I1'.'V


XX                                IXAi.
Cheboygan County Savings Bank, 457.
"Cheboygan Democrat," 160.
Cheboygan, name of, 445.
"Cheboygan News," 161.
Cheboygan "Northern Tribune," 160.
Cheboygan Paper Company, 455.
Cheboygan river, 438.
Cheboygan   Slack  Water   Navigation
Oomeplty, 450.
'C"Ve  ga  Trin e," 160.
Chsiweu et (see Maitmorency) county.
chiftgo   ort, 284.
C4    stoer, Leon, 892.
Chichester, Lew A., 1259.
Childs, George W., Jr., 977.
Chippewas, 40-53, 72.
Chittenden, Clyde C., 132.
Ohubb, Alok o, 219.
Church of the iGuarmi   Aigels, 755.
Churchill, C.  eson, 158, 159, 1053.
Churchill, Hobart D, 1211.
Churchill, Howard L., 1213.
Civil government-First counties, 85;
condensed history by counties, 87;
sources of names, 89; basis of state
government, 101; served in the legislature, 103.
Clare City, 553.
Clare county-Mention, 96, 138; general,
551; population and railroads, 551;
settled and organized, 552; Clare City,
553; Harrison, 553; Farwell, 554;
Temple, 554.
"Clare County Cleaver," 162.
"Clare Courier," 162.
"Clare Sentinel," 162.
Clark, A. B., 427.
Clark, John M., 1263.
Clark, L. A., 159.
Clark, Lewis J., 410, 414, 422.
Clarke, James T., 311.
Clarke. William J., 311.
Clayton, George W., 144, 146.
Clinch, R. Floyd, 261.
Clune, John H., 1332.
Coan, Edward A., 1185.
Coates, William E., 675.
Coats, W. R., 928.
Coffinberry, W. L., 427.
Cole, Galen B., 297.
Cole, George W., 306.
Cole, John, 202.
Collier, Charles S., 1106.
Collins, James, 150, 151.
Collins, John H,, 1024.
Comfort, John C., 474.
Commercial Bank, West Branch, 527.
Commonwealth Power Company, 508.
Comstock, Andrew, 470.
Comstock, A. W., 470.
Comstock, William B., 470.
Conklin, Charles, 1017.


JmJ.&


Conklin, Lorenzo J., 549.
Conkling, Edgar, 457.
Conover, Wellington J., 997.
Copeland, Jared, 520.
Copemish, 389.
Cook, John E., 328.
Cook, William C., 1320.
Cooper, Charles E., 151.
Cooper, Richard, 309.
Com, Cales C., 162, 719.
Coraell, Alexander S., 1148.
Cornell, Stephen H., 682.
Cotton, George R., 365.
County names, sources of, 89.
Cournyer, B. J., 161.
Covert, John A., 948.
Cowles & Campbell, 251, 254.
Cramer, William C., 1336.
Cramtmr, Edgar A., 1201.
"Crawford Avalanche," T12.
Crawford county, 97, 138, 494-7.
Crawftd, Ralph W., 154.
Crisp, George L., 895.
Croked river, 440.
Cross, Alden E., 1064.
Cross village, 48, 50, 299.
Cross, Wesley M., 792.
Crow, Amos B., 775.
Crowley, David H., 1256.
Cueny, Benjamin A., 992.
Cueny, William F., 1202.
Culligan, Patrick, 474.
Culver, William T., 1162.
Cummer, W. W., 420.
Cummins, George J., 916.
Curry, Thomas, 703.
Curtis, David R., 263.
Curtis, Henry, 1114.
Custer, 403.
Cutcheon, B. M., 171, 239, 371, 380.
Cutler, F. W., 235.
Cuyler, George A., 835.
Dablon, Claude, 36.
Dafoe, 476.
Dafoe, Lemuel G., 1248.
Dailey, Erastus R., 1084.
"Daily Resorter," 158.
Dame, Joseph, 346.
Danaher, Michael B., 1262.
Dann, Arthur E., 163.
Danser, George S., 817.
Darling, Lou S., 804.
Davis, Harry C., 261.
Davison, Crosier, 501.
Davy, Vernal R., 869.
Dawson, Fred R., 1013.
Day, D. H., 339.
Dayton Last Block Works, 493.
Deadman, Byron B., 733.
Deadman, John F., 731.
Deadman, Richard H., 809.




INDEX


xxi


Decker, Freeman L., 1247.
De Gowin, Moses, 1330.
De Kruif, William, 1338.
De Jean, Peter, 309.
Delzell, J. T., 156.
Dempsey, James, 1193.
Dennis, Orville, 580.
Detroit & Charlevoix Railroad, 176.
Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company.
186.
Detroit, Siege of, 75.
Deuel, Andrew L., 568.
Devil River (see Ossineke).
Dewey & Rouse, 157.
Dexter & Noble Lumber Company, 330.
Doane, George W., 666.
Dickinson, George W., 863.
Diebold, John G., 649.
Diffin, E. C., 211.
Diggins, Delos F., 590.
Diggins, Esther G., 590.
Diggins, Fred A., 1068.
Dixon, J. H.-(Mrs;), 286.
Dixon, John S., 280, 285, 296.
Dobson, W. B., 150.
Dolson, William L., 974.
Dona, Nazaros, 340.
Donovan & Huckle, 161.
Dorr, George J., 453.
Dorsey, John, 352.
Doudna, John F., 1139.
Dougherty, Peter, 250, 300, 351.
Douglas, Anna M., 680.
Douglas, William E., 678.
Douglass, Samuel F., 121.
Douseman, Michael, 462.
Dow, Herbert L., 665.
Dunan, Norman W., 808.
Duncan (see Cheboygan).
Duncan, J. W., 449.
Dunham, Charles C., 835.
Dunham, George A., 387.
Dunn, Howard W., 696.
Dunn, Wesley, 696.
Dunn, Wesley & Son, 696.
Dunwell, Frank P., 673.
Durfee, Elmer N., 664.
Duryea, R. C., 453.
Dwight, A. A., 491.
Ealy, John M., 520.
Ealy, McKay & Co., 520, 527.
East Jordan, 200, 278, 288.
East Jordan & Southern Railroad, 290.
East Jordan Lumber Company, 289.
Eastman, Milo, 1101.
Eastport, 333.
East Tawas, 517.
Edgerton, Will E., 713.
Edwards, W. H., 524.
Elberta, 364.
"Elberta Alert," 163.


Eldred, Anson, 462.
Eldridge, 511.
Elk Rapids, 322, 330.
"Elk Rapids Eagle," 155.
Elk Rapids Iron Company, 330.
"Elk Rapids Progress," 155.
Ellis, J. J., 527.
Elsworth, R. H., 395.
Elwell, John S., 659.
Emerick. Frank, 115, 126.
Emerson, Curtis, 511.
Emmet county-Mention, 34, 40, 97, 122,
138, 277; summer resort region, 293;
population and property, 294; organic
history, 295; physical features, 297;
early history, 299; the Presbyterian
mission, 300; Petoskey, the county
seat, 300-8; Harbor Springs, 308-13;
Harbor Point, 313; Bay View, 313;
other villages and stations, 315.
"Emmet County Independent," 158.
Emmet County State Bank, 311.
Empey, W. F., 289.
Empire, 349.
Empire & Southeastern Railroad, 180.
English regime, 70-7.
Epworth Assembly grounds, 402.
Epworth League Railroad Company, 185.
Evan Seed Company, 528.
Evans (D. J.) & Company, 204.
Evart, 546.
"Evart Review," 156.
Fairbanks, Earl, 791.
Falmouth, 430.
Farwell, 554.
'Farwell Register," 162.
"Farwell Sun," 162.
Ferguson, Edwin I., 764.
Ferguson, T. A., 132, 422.
Ferris, John L., 1338.
Ferris, Theodore A., 827.
Fife Lake (village,) 263.
Filer, Delos L., 242, 626.
Filer, E. Golden, 387, 630.
First Agricultural Fair, 218.
First National Bank, Boyne City, 287.
First National Bank, Cheboygan, 456.
First National Bank, Ludington, 402.
First National Bank, Manistee, 3~7.
First National Bank of Petoskey, 307.
First National Bank, Reed City, 546.
Fish, Walter J., 1151.
Fisher, J. E., 242.
Flanders, 476.
Flanders, "Doc" Selden W., 1243.
Fletcher, Addison F., 472.
Fletcher, A. F., 201.
Fletcher, Allan M., 474.
Fletcher, Frank W., 474.
Fletcher, George N., 201, 203, 464, 465,
466, 467.




xxii
* v
ZLX11


INDEX


Fletcher Paper Company, 474.
Fochtman, Frank, 774.
Foley, James, 1171.
Ford, Charles R., 122.
Forsyth, Edward, 160, 1276.
Foster, Eugene, 681.
Foster, Frank A., 1160.
Fountain, 403.
Fowler, Curtis, Jr., 235.
Fowler, Frank L., 1348.
Fowler, Granville F., 958.
Fox, Amos, 304.
Fox & Rose, 280.
Frankfort, 363.
Frazier, Clark L., 151, 152.
Frederick, Reuben D., 151.
Freeman, Alexander G., 1158.
Fremont, 464, 467.
French, Fremont F., 527.
French, Irving C., 685.
French, M. H., 527.
French regime, 65-70.
Friedrich, A. V., 260, 262.
Friske, Peter, 773.
Fruits, 27 (see also under counties).
Furbush, Eugene H., 867.
Furnaceville, 332.
Fur trade, 67-9.
Gardner, Edwin N., 1273.
Gardner, Louis A., 987.
Garfield, Charles W., 170.
Gage, L. H., 427.
Gagnier, Louis N., 1027.
Garland, M. L., 159.
Garland, Samuel, 261.
Gasser, Sanford, 422.
Gaston (see Harrietta).
Gates, Elgin M., 1306.
Gauntlett, James W., 1342.
Gaylord, 493.
Gaylord Manufacturing Company, 493.
Gaylord Motor Car Works, 493.
Gaylord, Nelson J., 904.
Gaylord State Savings Bank, 493.
Gebhardt, Otto H., 1277.
Geology-Great lakes as glacial pools,
1; surface, 3; preglacial history, 3;
the ice age, 4; walled lakes, 5; glacial
boulders, 5; lake deposits, 7; road
gravels, 7; bog lime, 8; peat, 8; river
silts, 8; connection of surface deposits
and soils, 9; central plateau, 12;
topography, 15.
Gerber, Harry, 546.
Gerber, Joseph, 546.
Gerhardt, J. A., 852.
Germaine, William D. C., 1078.
Gerow, Arthur M., 455, 939.
Gerow, Arthur R., 1057.
Gerrish, Nathaniel L., 182.
Gerrish, WVinfield Scott, 182.


Giddings, J. W., 152.
Giesman, George R., 650.
Gilchrist, Frank W., 474, 1279.
Giles, Charles H., 367.
Gilpin, Samuel, 603.
Gladwin county-Mention, 93, 138; physically, 530; increase in population, 531;
first settler and settlement, 532; Gladwin, the county seat, 535; Beaverton,
536.
"Gladwin County Record," 163, 532, 535.
Glen Arbor, 343, 352.
Glen lake, 338.
Glenn, Joseph C., 198, 289, 291.
Glerum, George A., 1341.
Goddard, Ezra G., 177.
Goheen, E., 820.
Goldsmith, E. R., 158.
Good roads, 189.
Goodale, David C., 256.
Goodale, D. C. (Mrs.), 257.
Goodale, Helen, 256.
Goodenough, Daniel W., 767.
Gordon, Newbury, 1308.
Gowans, Oliver J. 780.
Grand Forks (see Beaverton).
Grand lake, 478.
Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, 174.
Grand Rapids & Northwestern Railroad,
184.
Grand Traverse College, 361, 365.
Grand Traverse county-Mention, 97,
117, 138; physical features, 244; Traverse City and villages, 245; products
of the soil, 246; twenty years' growth,
248; Old Mission founded, 250; first
school and first shipbuilding, 251; the
Mission and Old Mission, 252; founding of Traverse City, 252; land office
transactions, 255; Traverse City incorporated, 256; public schools, 256;
churches, 257; libraries, 258; Board
of Trade and banks, 260; Northern
Michigan Insane Asylum, 262; County
Medical Society, 263; village and town
history, 263.
Grand Traverse County Medical Society,
263.
"Grand Traverse Herald," 140.
Grant, Isaac, 820.
Grant, John H., 805.
Graverat, G. A., 238.
Gray, Asa C., 587.
Gray, Charles J., 881.
Gray, E. George, 1157.
Grayling, 497.
Green, Alonzo B., 913.
Green, E. H., 130, 147, 285.
Green, H. N., '420.
Green, O. B., 452.
Green, Sanford M., 134.
Greenfield. William, 747.




INDEX


xxiii


Greenville treaty, 53, 82.
Gregory, W. J., 387.
Grier, Theophilus C., 134.
Griffin, Lewis, 347.
Griffin, W. H., 149.
Griggs, John F., 232.
Grimore & Son, 211.
Griswold, H. D., 168.
Guelph Patent Cask Company, 366.
Gumm, Julius E., 1192.
Hale, C. D., 186, 187.
Hale, C. E., 260.
Hall, B. W., 409.
Hall, Elias, 646.
Hall, Rufus, 328.
Hamlin lake, 403.
Hamilton, Frank, 639.
Hamilton, Guy, 873.
Hammond, C. A., 261.
Hammond, Finley M., 1015.
Hammond, L. G., 546.
Hammond, W. L., 261.
Hampton, C. D., 311.
Hampton, Charles S., 158, 305.
Hanchett, W. P., 470.
Hankey, Christopher F., 1132.
Hannah, Elsie R., 560.
Hannah, Julius T., 261, 559.
Hannah, Lay & Company, 196, 197, 253,
254, 255, 257, 260, 261.
Hannah, Perry, 241, 253, 256, 260, 261.
408, 409, 593.
Hannen, J. W., 260.
Hanson, John K., 722.
Hanson, Marius, 754.
Harbor Point Association, 311.
Harbor Springs, 308-13.
"Harbor Springs Graphic," 159.
Harger, Ezra, 421.
Harper, Thomas, 1285.
Harrietta, 421.
Harrington, Elisha, 468.
Harris, Benjamin, 501.
Harris, Henry H., 501, 502.
Harris, John M., 790.
Harris, Levi 0., 501, 502.
Harris, William, 278.
Harrison, 553.
Harrison, H. L., 469.
Harrisville, 223.
Hart, George A., 956.
Harwood, Harvey, 465.
Hastings, Ernest W., 1209.
Hastings, John, 328.
Hatch, Reuben (Mrs.), 259.
Haulter, K. A., 1190.
Hawkins, O. E., 156.
Hawkins, Orrin E., 1178.
Hawley, Frank W., 1163.
Haynes, Charles E., 1294.
Haynes, Elbert J., 1294.


Haynes, James, 1292.
Hazell, William E., 1339.
Hazelton, E. H., 183.
Henika, C. B., 306.
Henry, E. T., 366.
Herald and Record Company, 142.
Hersey, 544.
Heumann, Fred G., 982.
Heysett, E. Nelson, 831.
Hickox, Alfred A., 329.
Hicks, Mariette, 288.
Higgins, John A., 725.
Higgins, S. G., 214.
Hill, H. U., 220.
Hill, William, 501.
Hillman, 488.
Hinkley, Dana H., 1333.
Hinman, W. G., 314.
Hisey, William, 527.
Hodgson, John, 482.
Holden, Charles H., 119, 236.
Holden, James S., 162.
Holden, S. M., 500, 501.
Holden & Davison, 205.
Holdsworth, William, Sr., 412.
Holland, Nelson, 524.
Holley, M. B., 260.
Holliday, G. Arthur, 763.
Hollister, Chauncey, 412.
Holmes, J. D., 125.
Holmes, George B., 1219.
Holmes, George H., 1221.
Holmes, Warren M., 879.
Holy island, 269.
Homestead, 361.
Honor, 366.
Honor Public Building Association, 367.
Hopkins, George W., 693.
Horen, Michael, 1129.
Home, M. W., 448.
Home, Thomas, 655.
Hornkohl, Alex. C., 788.
Horticulture in Northern Michigan, 170.
Houghton, Douglass, 93.
Houghton, John C., 1083.
Howard, Merl, 159.
Howard & Van Ettan, 205.
Howe, Burton S., 133.
Hubbard lake, 498.
Hubbard Lake (postoffice), 476.
Hudnutt, J. C., 413.
Hudson, William G., 635.
Hull, Charles F., 972.
Hull, H. S., 261.
Hum, John F., 1143.
Humble, Joseph, 192.
Humphrey, George P., 1099.
Humphrey. Watts S., 452.
Hurons, 36, 42, 51, 52.
Hutton, Henry C., 1173.




xxiv


INDEX


Hutzler, Horace G., 154.
Hyde, George, 661.
"Illustrated Saturday Sun," 146.
Indians-Origin of the, 34; when first
found by the whites, 36; Hurons, 36,
51; Ottawas and Chippewas, 40-53;
"Men of the Falls," 41.   (See also
under Hurons, Ottawas and Chippewas.)
"Indian Worship," 498.
Indian river, 440.
Indian River (postoffice), 458.
Industries of Northern Michigan, 221.
(See also under counties.)
Innes, William P., 174.
Intermediate chain of lakes, 318.
Iosco county-Mention, 34, 98, 133, 138,
224; census figures revised by fire,
506; industrial transformation, 507;
rivers and lakes, 508 history of Au
Sable, 511; Oscoda village, 513; the
Au Sable-Oscoda fire, 513; Tawas
City,  515;  East  Tawas,   517-20;
Whittemore, 521.
"Iosco County Gazette," 146.
Ironton, 292.
Jackson, A. G., 520.
Jackson, Charles R., 146, 1297.
Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw Railroad,
492, 493, 524.
Jackson, Wylie & Company, 493.
Jennings, 430.
Jennings, Ray F., 1142.
Jenny, William, 468.
Jepson, George H., 1018.
Johnson, Canute A., 796.
Johnson, Donald, 1175.
Johnson, Peter, 1136.
Johnson, William H., 474, 616.
Johnston, James, 1082.
Johnston, John, 250.
Joseph, Hyman, 712.
Jonois, Father, 50.
Joslin, D. R., 150, 305.
Judges (see Bench and Bar).
Kaczmarek, Francis A., 851.
Kahn, J. J., 614.
Kahn, Samuel B., 837.
Kalkaska county-Mention, 34, 98, 133,
138; general description, 430; statistics, 433; first settlers and politicians, 433; organization, 434; Kalkaska, the county seat, 434; Boardman, 437.
Kalkaska County Agricultural Society,
219.
"Kalkaska Leader and Kalkaskian," 157.
"Kalkaskian," 157, 435.
Kanotin (see Ioaco) county.


Kautawaubet (see Wexford) county.
Kawaxicum, 376.
Kaykakee (see Clare) county.
Keep, John, 988.
Keiser, Addison A., 832.
Kelly, John F., 767.
Kelly, William B., 1090.
Kent, W. A., 144.
Kerley, Harry J., 716.
Keseberg, Arthur F., 694.
Keskkauko (see Charlevoix) county.
Kieldsen, Fred S., 417.
Kieldsen, John L., 1283.
Kihnke, Emil E., 619.
Kimball, Thomas Y., 854.
Kimball, William H., 710.
King, James A., 1179.
Kingscott, Edgar J., 824.
Kingsley, 263.
Kirster, Joseph, 387.
Knapp, E. S., 236.
Knight, H. V., 472.
Kobe, Edward E., 1208.
Kramer, Solomon W., 1246.
Krebs, William, 978.
L'Arbre Croche, 42, 46, 50.
Ladd, John R., 1067.
LaChappelle, Edward, 205.
LaChappelle, Francis J., 205, 1329.
LaChapelle, George W., 993.
Ladies' Library Association, Traverse
City, 258.
Lake Ann (village), 367.
Lake City, 429.
Lake City "Plain Dealer," 163.
Lake county-Mention, 98, 139; general,
548; population, 548; organic and
pioneer history, 549; villages, 550.
Lake City "Republican," 162.
Lake Superior Iron & Chemical Company, 330.
Lamb, Fred S., 115, 132.
Lamport, Warren W., 269, 302.
Land tenure under French, 65.
Land titles (early American), 84.
Lane, Alfred C., 3.
Lanman, James H., 65.
Lanman's "History of Michigan (1839),"
65, 71.
Lansing resort, 313.
Larke, Frederic Denny, 480.
Larsen, H. B., 738.
Larson, Edward, 1316.
Larson, Lauritz A., 894.
LaRue, Frank J., 1110.
LaRue, John, 340, 354.
Latham, D. R., 334.
Latta, William, 1069.
Lawyers (see Bench and Bar).
Lay, Albert Tracy, 260, 261, 576.
Lay, A. T. (Mrs.), 257.




INDEX


XXV


Leach, 252, 300.
Leach, DeWitt C., 147.
Leach, M, L., 13, 32, 43, 140, 234.
Lecuyer, Peter, 987.
Ledger, Henry E., 271.
Lee, Abner S., 314.
Leelanau (see Carp) lake.
Leelanau county-Mention, 40, 98, 100,
129, 139; characteristics, 335; Carp
lake region, 337; Glen lake region,
338; population and property, 339;
first settler, 340; Northport founded,
341; first "Fourth" in Traverse region,
342; first years of growth, 342; county
organized,  345;   Northport,  first
county seat, 346; Leland, present
county seat, 348; Empire, 349; Sutton's Bay, 350; Provemont, 351;
Omena and Peshabatown, 351; Glen
Arbor and Burdickville, 352.
Leland, 343, 348.
"Leland Enterprise," 161.
Lemon, Rollin F., 951.
Leroy, 547.
"Leroy Sun," 157.
Levering, 315.
"Levering Enterprise," 159.
Lewis, John C., 261.
Lewis, William F., 814.
Lewis, William J., 962.
Lewiston, 488.
Lincoln, 504.
Line, David A., 971.
Lisk, George A., 605.
Lister, Anna S., 1012.
Lister, Frederick, 1011.
Littlejohn, Flavius J., 119, 129.
Little Traverse (Harbor Springs), 48,
50, 122, 278, 297.
"Little Traverse Republican," Harbor
Springs, 159.
Little, William, 157, 167, 305.
Livingston, Burton E., 14.
Livingston, J. W., 527.
Lobdell, E. J., 485, 1353.
Lobdell & Churchill Manufacturing Company, 485.
Lockwood, James K., 201, 203, 464, 465,
467, 473.
Lockwood & Minor, 203, 204.
Long lake, 267, 440, 478.
Long Lake (station), 509.
Loud, Gay & Company, 513.
Lucas, 430.
Luce, Carlton W., 520, 938.
Ludington, 59, 62, 397-403.
"Ludington Appeal," 146.
"Ludington Chronicle," 146.
"Ludington Record," 146.
Ludington State Bank, 402.
Lumber industries-Manistee county,
192; Grand Traverse region, 194; east


and west shores, 197; Charlevoix
county, 198; Cheboygan county, 200;
first mills in Alpena county, 201;
Iosco county lumbering, 204; Alcona
county, 205; historic summary, 205;
melting of the pine forests, 209; last
big rollway on the Cedar, 210; present
status of lumbering, 212.
Lund, Julius B., 1229.
Lupton, 528.
Lupton, Emor, 528.
Lurvey, Claude B., 1131.
Luther, 550.
Luther Exchange Bank, 550.
MacArthur, Clark J., 1037.
McAlvay, Aaron V., 114, 132.
McArthur, John B., 1253.
McArthur, Southwick & Company, 200.
McBain, 430.
McCabe, George W., 967.
McCartney, Edward J., 709.
McClelland, Robert, 254.
McCullough, W. M., 1322.
McCune, William G., 737.
McDonald, Daniel J., 1255.
McFadzen, William H., 748.
MacGillis, James, 970.
McGillivray, Will, 146.
McGinley, James F., 239, 240.
McGovern, Daniel, 878.
McIntire, H. N., 162.
McIntyre, Frank, 1107.
Mack, John N., 1291.
McKay, Donald W., 608.
McKay, George D., 1323.
McKay, Robert C., 527.
McKillop, Daniel, 457.
Mackinaw City, 446, 457.
McKinley, Henry C., 942.
McKinley, Peter, 200, 448.
McKnight, Edward E., 759.
McLain, John S., 414.
McLaughlin, James J., 321, 341.
McLean, E. 0., 146.
McLeod, A., 200, 449.
McLeod, R., 200, 449.
McManus, William L., Jr., 1281.
McMillan, Archie, 314.
McMullen, Bartlett H., 1120.
McMullen, Daniel P., 1086.
McPhee, Malcolm, '871.
McRae, Donald, 946.
Madison, James S., 146, 645.
Magill, William, 371.
Magmer, James M., 688.
Mahon, George, 1233.
Mahoney, Daniel, 1317.
Maiden, W. P., 167, 454.
Maile, J. L., 450.
Main, J. Connine, 115.
Malone, Dennis E., 1167.




xxvi


INDEX


Maltby, William H., 241.
Maltz, George L., 470, 474.
Mancelona, 334.
"Mancelona Herald," 155.
Manistee county-Mention, 34, 99, 126,
139; changes in population, 368; the
county and its name, 370; pioneer
history, 373; Justice Wadsworth visits
"Manistee,"  374; settlers prior to
1850, 375; the last Chippewa chief,
376; growth of school system, 376;
1854-5, a great era, 377; Manistee
churches, 378; Manistee in the sixties,
379; noted Vanderpool-Field case,
379; the fire of 1871, 380; after the
fire, 384; general advance, 384; city
and the county of the present, 385;
Copemish, Bear Lake and Onekama,
389.
"Manistee Advocate," 146.
Manistee Board of Trade, 385.
"Manistee Daily News," 145.
"Manistee Democrat," 145.
Manistee fire of 1871, 380.
"Manistee Gazette," 144.
"Manistee Times," 145.
"Manistee Tribune," 144.
Manistee & Grand Rapids Railroad, 185.
Manistee & Luther Railroad, 185.
Manistee & Northeastern Railroad, 185.
Manitou county, 100.
Manton, 420.
Manton, George, 421.
Manseau, Antoine, 348.
Maqueston, I. H., 414.
Marion, 547.
"Marion Dispatch," 157.
Marquette, Jacques (Father), 36, 57-62,
373, 395.
Martin, George, 118.
Martin, George B., 291.
Martin, James B., 846.
Martin, Jane A., 923.
Martin, Joel, 922.
Martin, Thomas A., 1127.
Martin, Webster C., 1214.
Mason, A. E., 285.
Mason, Stevens T., 393.
Mason & Oceana Railroad, 185.
Mason county-Mention, 34, 99, 139;
soil, products and general prosperity,
390; population and property, 392;
Mason county and her godfather, 393;
memories of Father Marquette, 395;
city of Ludington founded, 397; a
great transportation system, 399; industries and finances, 400; civic and
social, 402; Scottville, Custer and
Fountain, 403.
Massacre at Fort Michilimackinac, 72.
Mauntler, Henry, 1153.
Mayne, Frederick W., 115.


Meads, Carl F., 935.
Mears, Charles, 242.
Meegisee (see Antrim) county.
Merschel, Andrew J., 698.
Mesick, 423.
Mesick, William S., 907.
Metheany, Eldon L., 1108.
Methodist State Camp Ground Association, 313, 314.
Meuffels, Henry H., 378.
Michigan, source of name, 89.
Michigan's epochal year (1840), 171.
Michigan Central Railroad Company, 172.
Michigan State Bar Association, 134.
"Michigan  State Democrat," Cadillac,
154.
Michigan Veneer Works, 474.
Michilimackinac, 62-5, 71, 72, 76, 77.
Michilimackinac county, 87.
Middle village, 48, 299.
Mikado, 504.
Military history-Early Civil war movements, 228; Fourth and Sixth districts'
enrollment, 231; troops furnished by
counties, 233; commissioned officers,
234; Grand Traverse region, 234;
Manistee county in the war, 239;
Alpena county, 241; home coming of
Michigan  troops, 241; Robertson's
tribute to Michigan soldiers, 242;
Spanish-American war, 243; Third
Regiment, M. N. G., 243.
Millard, Oliver L., 1093.
Miller, Carroll E., 1094.
Miller, Edward E., 884.
Miller, Hugh R., 288.
Miller, John, 288.
Miller, John I., 348.
Miller, Joseph K., 466.
Miller, William, 634.
Millersburg, 485.
Milliken, James W., 621.
Miltner, Henry, 825.
Minchin, George W., 156, 1032.
Miner, Glenn R., 919.
Ming, Frederick R., 1286.
Minor, E. B., 263.
Minor, John S., 201, 465, 467.
Mio, 529.
Mio "Mail-Telegram," 162.
Missaukee county-Mention, 99, 139;
products of the soil, 424; population
and  property, 426; organic, 426;
first events, persons and things, 427;
Lake City, 429; McBain and other
centers, 430.
"Missaukee County Reporter," 162.
"Missaukee Republican," 163.
Mitchell, Austin W., 184.
Mitchell, George A., 152, 412, 415.
Mitchell, William W., 591.
Moloney, Vet S., 1050.




INDEX


xxvii


Monaghan, John, 606.
Monroe, James H., 1030.
Montague, H., 260.
Montmorency county, 99, 139, 486-8.
Montmorency, Duke of, 99.
Moon, William E., 1231.
Moore, James, 309.
Morgan, James, 260.
Morgan, William, 260.
Morris, George A., 1271.
Morrissey, Francis M., 975.
Mortimer, John J., 1233.
Mosher, George A., 159.
Mound Builders-Remains of, in Northern Michigan, 32; location by counties,
34.
Mrack, Father, 348, 351.
Mullerty, F., 263.
Mullet lake, 440.
Munger, John J., 978.
Munson, James D., 262, 1029.
Murphy, Fred E., 1310.
Murray, William J., 1085.
Myers, Jacob I-I., 612.
Nauman, C. L., 525.
Negwegon (see Alcona) county.
Neihardt, Samuel E., 597.
Neil, Nicholas, 850.
Nelson, Charles, 632.
Nelson, John F., 1097.
Nelson, Redington & Co., 281, 290.
Nelson, W. C., 161.
Nerlinger, Amil F., 599.
Nettleton, D. C., 290
New Mission, 48.
Newspapers-List by counties, 137-40;
birth of Northern Michigan newspapers, 140; Manistee a close second,
144; Mason county, 146; Iosco county,
146; Charlevoix county, 147; Alpena
county, 149; Wexford county, 151;
Antrim county, 155; Osceola and Lake
counties, 156; Kalkaska county, 157;
Emmet county, 157; Otsego and
Roscommon counties, 160; Cheboygan
county, 160; Leelanau, Presque Isle
and Ogemaw counties, 161; Clare,,
Crawford, Oscoda, Arenac and Missaukee counties, 162; Benzie and Gladwin counties, 163.
"News and Express," Cadillac, 152.
Newville, Robert E., 952.
Nicolet, Jean, 36, 54-57.
Nix, John R., 743.
Noble, Henry H., 323, 325.
Noble, Oscar, 428.
Noll, John, 1009.
Northern Michigan Insane Asylum, 262.
Northport, 341, 343, 346.
Northrup, Elmore S., 1143.
Northwest territory, 52, 79-82.


Norwood, 292.
Notipekago (see Mason) county.
Noud, Patrick, 990.
Oakes, Benjamin F., 906.
O'Brien, Michael, 861.
Ogemaw county-Mention, 34, 101, 139;
population, 523; early settlement, 523;
Ogemaw Springs, 525; West Branch
really founded, 526; incorporated as
a village, 527; banks, trade and industries, 527; West Branch a city,
528; Rose City, 528; Prescott and
Lupton, 528.
Ogemaw County Agricultural Society,
527.
Ogemaw County Bank, 527.
"Ogemaw County Herald," 161.
Ogemaw Grain and Seed Company, 528.
Ogemaw Lumber Company, 525.
"Ogemaw Republican," 161.
Ogemaw Springs, 525.
Okkuddo (see Otsego) county.
Oldfield J., 201, 465.
Old Mission, 48, 250.
Olds Cheboygan Lumber Company, 456.
Oliver, David D., 123, 201, 205, 335, 462,
463, 465, 469, 476, 481, 482, 1335.
Oliver, Floyd E., 963.
Omeena (see Grand Traverse) county.
Omena, 351.
Omer City, 540.
Omer "Progress," 162.
Onaway, 483-5.
Onaway "Inter Lake," 161.
"Onaway Outlook," 161.
O'Neal William, 828.
Onekama, 389.
Oppenborn, Christian A., 652.
Orcutt, Frederick H., 474.
Ordinance of 1787, 79.
Osceola county-Mention, 101, 140, 528,
529; products and population, 542;
Hersey, the county seat, 544; Reed
City village, 545; Evart, 546; Marion,
547; Tustin and Leroy, 547.
Osceola County Agricultural Society, 547.
"Osceola County News," 156.
"Osceola Outline," 156.
Oscoda, 513.
"Oscoda-Au Sable Press," 146.
"Oscoda Press," 513.
Ossineke, 474, 500.
O'Toole, Felix, 512.
Otsego county-Mention, 101, 140; products of the soil, 489; population, 490;
settlement of the county, 491; other
pioneer items, 493; Gaylord, 493;
Vanderbilt, 494.
Otsego County Agricultural Society, 493.
"Otsego County Herald and Times," 160,
491.




xxviii
~ *
XXVlll


INDEX


Otsego Lake (village), 492.
Ott, John, 1296.
Ottawas, 40-53, 74.
Overpack, Silas C., 707.
Pailthorp, C. J., 306.
Palmer, Ambrose E., 326.
Palmer, 0., 162.
Palmer, Oscar, 960.
Parker, W. E., 311
Parkhurst, J. W., 546, 571,
Parmenter, Edward L., 472.
Patrick, John Lewis, 236.
Patterson, Len J., 147, 1116.
Pattie, Donald D., 1303.
Payne, Albert S., 912.
Payne, William W.,.1285.
Pearly, Palmer & Company, 428.
Pedden, John, 736.
Pehrson, John, 783.
Pellston, 315.
"Pellston Journal," 159.
Peltier, James E., 1146.
Pennell, James M., 1260.
People's Bank, Boyne City, 287.
People's Saving Bank, East Jordan, 291.
Pere Marquette Railroad Company, 177.
Pere Marquette   Steamship  Company,
399.
Perry, George W., 155.
Perry, John, 409, 410, 422.
Perry, John M., 1258.
Peshabatown, 351.
Peters, Richard G., 818.
Peterson, Peter T., 849.
Peterson, Robert H., 1126.
"Petoskey City Record," 158.
"Petoskey City Weekly Times," 157.
"Petoskey Evening News and Resorter,"
158.
Petoskey, Ignatius, 302, 303.
"Petoskey Independent," 158.
Pfister & Vogel Leather Company, 456.
Phelps, Clarence J., 1159.
Physicians-First regulating act, 164;
pioneers, 166.
Piehl, David, 1347.
Pierce, Benjamin F., 511.
Pilcher, E. H., 314.
Pine lake, 266, 267, 281.
Piret, A. D. J., 450.
Platz, Charles, Jr., 161.
Pomeroy, Wellington N., 1276.
Pontiac, 42, 44, 74, 75.
Pool, Wilber B., 801.
Population of Northern Michigan (1860 -1910), 226.  (See also under counties.)
Porter, Andrew, 300.
Porter, Reuben G., 745.
Posen, 486.
Post, Jacob J., 1104.


Postal, Frank S., 900.
Postal, James R., 1054.
Potter, E. K., 203.
Potter, Frederic N., 671.
Potter, James J., 667.
Potter, John D., 822.
Potter, Samuel, 377.
Potter, W. S., 300.
Poutre, J. Ephraim, 923.
Powell, Fred, 1170.
Powers, Perry F., 152.
Pratt, Edwin S., 1001.
Pratt, Edwin S. (Mrs.), 259.
Pratt, Fred H., 1168.
Prescott, 528.
Prescott, C. H., 187, 528.
Prescott, George A., 692.
Prescott, Rola E., 860.
Presque Isle county-Mention, 34, 101,
223; strong features, 477; lakes and
streams, 478; statistics, 480; Indian
lore, 480; introduction to white settlers, 481; founding of Onaway, 483;
remarkable growth, 483; Rogers, the
county seat, 485; Millersburg, 485;
Posen, 486.
"Presque Isle County Advance," 161.
"Presque Isle County News;' 161.
Presque Isle County Savings Bank, 485.
Press (see Newspapers).
Preston, George T., 297.
Price, A. J., 1309.
Price, Harry S., 1237.
Price, S. Ai, 210.
Price, W. Harry, 1252.
Proctor, Frank, 1096.
Products-Distribution of, 24'; fruits,
27; vegetables, 28; alfalfa, 29; stock
raising, 29.
Property valuation in Northern Michigan (1910), 227.
Provemont, 351.
Pyant, Joseph, 309.
Quackenbush, Irving, 1133.
Quaintance, M. F., 306.
Quay, Homer H., 589.
Quinlan, John F., 853.
Quinlan, Thomas, 306, 853.
Rachow, Warren J., 750.
Rademaker, John H., 1181.
Raff, George W., 561.
Railroads-Northern Michigan split into
two parts, 171; father of Michigan
railroads (Michigan Central), 172;
Grand Rapids & Indiana, 174; northern connecting links, 176; Pere Marquette railroad, 177; Ann Arbor railroads, 179; first logging railroad in
the world, 182; Ludington railroads,
184; Manistee railroads, 185; Detroit
& Mackinac Railway Company, 186.




INDEX


xxix


Rakestraw, Orlin L., 777.
Ralston, David, 1055.
Ramsdell, Jonathan G., 120, 126, 127,
128, 130, 132, 363.
Ramsdell, Thomas J., 387, 427.
Ramsay, Albert W.. l111..Ramsay, C. S., 160.
Ramsay, Dora M., 160.
Ramsey, C. E., 149.
Ransom, Henry C., 563.
Ransom, W. C., 173.
Rath, William, 778.
Rayburn, Elisha B., 1223.
Rayburn, Robert H., 741.
Rea, H. E., 682.
Redpath, John, 1234.
Reed, William, 1222.
Reed City, 545.
"Reed City Clarion," 156.
Reed City Woolen Mills, 545.
Reeder, Mary (Mrs.), 427.
Reeder, Washington, 427.
Reeder, William, 427.
Reek, Henry G., 1026.
Reeves, James, 168.
Reycraft, George E., 1035.
Reycraft, John J, 690.
Reynolds, C. P., 219.
Reynolds, Charles H., 657.
Reynolds, William H., 659.
Rice, Francis Y., 844.
Rice, George S., 843.
Rice, John M., 132, 152.
Rice, William W., 840.
Richard, Gabriel, 396, 397.
Richardi, Henry, 329, 1033.
Richardi, Robert, 328, 329.
Richards, Robert A., 847.
Richards, W. H., 330.
Richardson, Frederick L., 924.
Richmond S. Albert F., 633.
Riess, John J., 772.
Rietz, Charles, 384.
Risk, Robert A., 1004.
Rittenhouse, John C., 1019.
Roberson, William B., 769.
Robinson, John R., 428.
Robinson, M. 0., 262.
Rogers City, 225, 482, 485.
Rogers, Robert, 70, 71.
Rood, H. A., 255.
Roscommon county, 101, 554-5.
Roscommon (village), 555.
"Roscommon Herald," 160.
"Roscommon News," 160.
Rose, Charles H., 582.
Rose, Emma L., 584.
Rose, Eugene L., 305, 954.
Rose, H. E., 527.
Rose, Hiram 0., 280, 304, 305, 306, 314.


347, 1121.
Rose, Perry W., 305.
Rose, Roselle, 158, 305.
Rose City, 528.
Rose City "Review," 161.
Rosman, Alfred W., 642.
Ross, Donald G., 210.
Ross, George, 210.
Ross, Ronald, 210.
Ross, William, 210.
Rothwell, H. G., 504.
Round lake, 267, 281.
Row, Orange A., 437.
Ruch, Albert F., 909.
Rutherford, Henry, 253.
Sacred Rock, 481.
Saginaw treaty, 53.
St. Helen Development Company, 554.
St. Peter, Godfrey, 782.
Salt industry in Northern Michigan, 214.
Sammons, Frank M., 452.
Sammons, Jacob, 448.
Sanborn, James L., 1324.
Sanborn, Wilson H., 883.
Sanders, M. S., 260.
Sangster, Albert E., 1266.
Santo, John R., 260, 1021.
Sawyer, Alvah H., 79.
Sawyer, Charles T., 146.
Saxton, John J., 761.
Schoolcraft, 250.
Schoolcraft, Henry R., 93, 94.
Schram, Charles H., 838.
Schultz, Henry, 1346.
Schumacher, Anthony, 571.
Schumann, 0. P., 162.
Scott, Blair F., 839.
Scottville, 403.
Searle, Will Z., 1059.
Searles, Asbury M., 457.
Secord, Marvil, 532.
Secrist, William A., 965.
Seibert, Jacob E., 239, 240.
Selby, Dayton D., 1098.
Seven Mile Point, 48, 501.
Seymour, John, 969.
Seymour & Peck Company, 367.
Shank, Laban H., 1217.
Sharpe, Nelson, 115.
Shawono (see Crawford) county.
Shay, Ephraim, 1289.
Shephard, William C., 1326.
Shepherd, Frank, 115, 1062.
Sherman, 422.
"Sherman Pioneer," 151.
Shien, Peter E., 684.
Shipp, F. J., 888.
Shirley, V. W., 901.
Shirtliff, L. D., 700.
Simmons, Abraham, 953.




XXX


INDEX


Simon, B. F., 313.
Simons, James C., 1140.
Simons, L. Verna, 1140.
Slavery in Michigan, 83.
Sleeping Bear Point, 337.
Slepicka, Joseph F., 1056.
Smallwood, I. C., 535.
Smith, Charles W., 1218.
Smith, David, 452, 453.
Smith, Edward, 513.
Smith, Flavel J., 1204.
Smith, Fred P., 814.
Smith, G. L., 305.
Smith, Henry B., 1165.
Smith, Joseph, 376.
Smith, Lemuel R., 325.
Smith, Obed, 467.
Smith, Ralph C., 1003.
Smith, Samuel J., 928.
Smith, Wesley T., 1304.
Smith, Willard A., 147, 1123.
Smith, William H., 491.
Smith, William W., 858.
Smith, Van Valkenburg & Company, 204,
517, 518.
Smurthwaite, Thomas, 260, 797.
Smyth, Brougham H., 161.
Smyth, C. L., 161.
Snody, James R., 984.
Soils-Types of Northern Michigan, 9;
peat, muck and meadow, 11; investigation, 15; nature of, 16.
Sorenson, Alfred, 745.
Sorenson, Carl, 745.
Sorenson, Herluf, 745.
Sorenson, Olaf, 745.
Sorenson, Olaf & Sons, 745.
South Arm Lumber Company, 289.
South Frankfort (see Elberta).
South Harrisville (Springport), 500.
Spencer, George H., 1177.
Sprague, Elvin L., 142, 144, 155.
Sprague, Victor D., 1089.
Springport (see South Harrisville).
Squier, W. P., 291.
Standish, 540.
State Bank of East Jordan, 291.
State constitutions, 101.
State Geological Survey, 3.
State lands open to purchase, 220.
State Pomological Society, 219.
State representatives, 104.
State senators, 103.
Stearns, Justus S., 1311.
Stearns Lighting and Power Company,
400.
Stearps Salt and Lumber Company, 400.
Steel, Orlando, 1191.
Steele, Morgan L., 1109.
Steele, N. M., 378.
Steele, William H., 1221.
Steffes, J. M., 758.


Steinmetz, Arthur, 649.
Stever, Millard F., 1150.
Stewart, Alfred, 492.
Stewart, E. W., 132.
Stewart, John A., 1008.
Stockman, M. J., 283, 285.
Stockman, M. J. (Mrs.), 286.
Stone, Hamilton, 437.
Stout, Helen, 259.
Strang, Charles J., 149.
Strang, James J., 100, 116, 270, 271-7,
295.
Stray, George N., 1183.
Stronach, Adam, 192, 374, 375.
Stronach, James, 192, 375.
Stronach, John, 118, 192, 371-374.
Stronach, Joseph, 374, 375.
Stuart, Alexander A., 869.
Summer resort "business," 222.
Sunday, Lewis W., 776.
Sutherland, George, 1020.
Sutherland, J. G., 134.
Sutton's Bay, 355.
Sweet, Charles A., 996.
Swem, L., 547.
Switzer, George 0., 698.
Taft, A. C., 150, 151.
Tawas Beach, 509.
Tawas chain of lakes, 509.
Tawas City, 515.
"Tawas Herald," 147.
Taylor, C. H., 255.
Temple, 554.
Terwilliger, H. H., 152.
Terwilliger, John M., 144, 154.
Thacker, Callie (Mrs.), 259.
Thayer, B. E., 161.
Therry, Nicholas, 10,72.
Third Regiment, M. N. G., 243.
Thomas, H. T., 520.
Thompson, Edwin E., 1321.
Thompson, George, 378.
Thompson, R. L.. 435.
Thompsonville, 365.
Thompsonville "News," 163.
"Thunder Bay Monitor," 150.
Thunder Bay River and Harbor Improvement Company, 467.
Thurston, Albert, 936.
Thurston, Charles A., 937.
Thurston, A. & Son, 936.
Tifft, George W., 358.
Tinklepaugh, J. N., 157.
Titus, Leon F., 261.
Tolfree, John, 527.
Tonedogana (see Emmet) county.
Topinabee, 458.
Topography, 15.
Torch Lake (village), 333.
Torch Lake & Alpena state road. 491.
Townsend, Sherman S., 1144.




INDEX


xxxi


Townships (see under counties).
Tower, 458.
Trask, L. H., 313.
"Traverse Bay Eagle," 142.
Traverse City, 245, 252-62.
"Traverse City Eagle," 155.
Traverse City State.Bank, 260.
Traverse City, Leelanau & Manistique
RaiaWiy, 185.
Trude, *rank T., 886.
Trumpour, David A., 995.
Tucker, A. W., 151.
Turnbull, James D., 125.
Turner, James W., 920.
Tustin, 547.
Tuttle, Jonathan B., 233.
Tweddle, John J., 1238.
Tweedale, Charles B., 708.
Twenty-eighth judicial circuit, 131.
Twining, 541.
Umlor, W. H., 260.
Unwatin (see Osceola) county.
Upton, George E., 653.
Usewick, Frederick, 1274.
Utter, Charles, 660.
Valley, Joseph, 1052.
Vance, Arthur H., 1103.
Vanderbilt, 494.
Van Ettan lake, 508.
Van Sickle, Frank A., 1113.
Vaughan, Sylvester, 618.
Vegetation-Types of, 17; upland types,
18; lowland types, 21; hardwood
types, 22.
Vegetables, 28. (See also under counties.)
Viall, John C., 150, 701.
Vincent, John, 448.
Vogel, John, 427.
Voorhees, Sherman G., 1327.
Voorheis, Jacob, 363.
Wabassee (see Kalkaska) county.
Wachtel, P. B., 307.
Wade, Reuben, 1060.
Wadsworth, Abram S., 197, 320, 374.
Wadsworth, Henry, 128.
Wadsworth, J. M., 328.
Wait, S. E., 251.
Walker, Frederick R., 586.
Walker, James B., 241.
Walker, John J., 784.
Walrond, John E., 1344.
Walter, Lewis L., 870.
Walter, Robert E., 1241.
Ward, Eber B., 177, 398.
Wardell, Joshua M., 1147.
Ware's (Rev. W. H.) "Centennial History of Cheboygan County," 448, 452.
Warner, Dwight G. P., 1124.


Warren, C. A., 157.
Warren, Leroy, 334.
Watson, Byron M., 1316.
Watson, Carl L., 1130.
Watson, L. C., 306.
Weadock, 458.
Weadock, Thomas A. E., 397.
Weaver, John W., 945.
Weber, Al. H., 160.
Wechter, Carl J., 1156.
"Weekly Times-Sentinel," Manistee, 145.
Weidman, R. H., 524, 526.
Weiffenbach, Charles, 330.
Weimer, Emery D., 596.
Weine, Paul, 794.
Weldt, John W., 1152.
Welsh, Thomas R., 1013.
Welton, Frank, 261.
Wendall, Theodore, 296.
Wente, William, 944.
Wentworth, Alexander, 276.
Wequetonsing, 311.
West, T. F., 1134.
West Branch, 526-8.
West Branch Flour Manufacturing Company, 528.
"West Branch Times," 523.
West Branch "Herald-Times," 161.
West Harrisville (see Lincoln).
Weston, Colwell & Company, 504.
Weston, Frederick C., 1038.
Westover, George D., 546.
Wetmore, Fred C., 132.
Wexford county-Mention, 34, 101, 131;
civil and physical, 404; building of the
state road, 407; the county and
county seats, 411; early history of
Cadillac, 413; village and city corporations, 415; death of George A. Mitchell, 417; the present city, 418; Manton, 420; Harrietta, 421; Sherman,
422; Mesick, Buckley, Boon and Yuma,
423.
Wexford County Agricultural Society,
219.
"Wexford County Pioneer," 151.
Wheeler's "History of Wexford County,"
408.
Wheeler, H. H., 132.
Wheeler, John H., 151, 410, 413.
White, Elmer E., 877.
White, Robert, 501.
White, Shubal F., 132.
White, William H., 1226.
Whiting, J. L., 470.
Whitney, Frank M., 1345.
Whittemore, 521.
Whittemore, C. H., 146.
Whittemore, Gideon 0., 515.
Whittemore, James O., 146, 511, 518.
Widmark, Francis O., 1320.
Widmark, H. P., 1319.




xxxii


INDEX


Widmark, H. P. & Son, 1319.
Wiggins, A. G., 288.
Wilce, E. Harvey, 1092.
Wilce Co., The T. 1092.
Wilhelm, Charles, 262.
Wilhelm, Emanuel, 1047.
Wilkinson, Arthur, 739.
Willard, Albert E., 1077.
Williams, Oliver T. B., 124.
Willaon Hoop Company, 289.
Wilson, Farwell A., 1117.
Wilson, Isaac, 201.
Wilson, W. Henry, 771.
Widigan, W., 428.
Withey, Charles A., 115.
Wftter, Wak C., 715.
Wolverine, 457.
'Wolverine Courier," 161.
Wood, Charles, 1176.
Woodruff, Clintohi D., 856.


Woodruff, Henry H., 1154.
Woodworth, W. F., 124, 133.
Wright, Alfred, 524.
Wright, Charles R., 309.
Wright (D.) & Company, 524.
Wrisley, Charles I., 1044.
Wegazer, John M., 705.
Wyandots (see Hurons).
Wyandotte (Wyandot) county, 95.
Wyman, William A., 801.
Yeo, William G., 1319.
Yerkes, Louis N., 927.
Yockey, Henry, 803.
Young, A. S., 1245.
Yuma, 423.
Zoon, Fred B., 329.
Zuck, John Q., 815.




History of
Northern Michigan
CHAPTER I
GEOLOGY, SOIL, PRODUCTS
THE GREAT LAKES AS GLACIAL POOLS-SURFACE GEOLOGY OF NORTHERN
MICHIGAN-PRE-GLACIAL HISTORY —ADVANCE AND CAUSE OF THE ICE
AGE-EFFECTS OF THE ICE ADVANCE-WALLED LAKES-GLACIAL
BOULDERS —LAKE DEPOSITS —ROAD   GRAVELS-BOG LIME-PEATRIVER SILTS-CONNECTION OF SURFACE DEPOSITS AND SOILS-TYPES OF
NORTHERN MICHIGAN SOILS —CENTRAL PLATEAU OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN-AREA OF SOIL INVESTIGATION-TOPOGRAPHY-NATURE OF SOILS
-UPLAND AND LOWLAND TYPES OF VEGETATION-THEIR DISTRIBUTION
-FUTURE OF THE REGION-PRODUCTIONS OF THE SOIL.
To the scientific scholar and investigator the study of interior geology
is of profound interest-a study by which the mind's eye penetrates
to the very foundation of the earth-but to the student and writer of
human history it is sufficient to examine into the surface geology of the
earth, by which is determined its great ridges, and its valleys and depressions formed by interior convulsions and by the vast glaciers and
bodies of water which operated in prehistoric times.
With a vivid imagination and a logical mind one may form quite
a distinct picture of any section of the earth's surface under consideration.
THE GREAT LAKES AS GLACIAL POOLS
The lakes now washing the shores of Northern Michigan-Huron
and Michigan-may be considered but the scanty remains of far vaster
bodies,of water; but the meltings of huge glaciers which came down
from the north, covered all of the northern section of what is now the
United States and, with the changes of climate, dissolved into what
1




2


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


may be considered in comparison with the original masses of ice and
water as but small pools which settled in the deeper depressions of the
earth's surface.
It is immaterial to speculate as to the probable duration of the
glacial period, but is sufficient to know from numerous physical evidences that vast fields of ice and snow covered the entire country north
of the Ohio and Missouri rivers and from the Atlantic ocean to the
Rocky mountains. What is now northern Michigan was in the southern rim of this glacial region.
The departure of these great glaciers undoubtedly worked great
changes of the earth in this vicinity. When the ice had so far receded


A STRETCH OF HURON'S SHORE


as to have its southern boundary about midway in the present state of
Michigan, great lakes were formed which, although covering far greater
areas then those which are now known, were the parents of the present
system. Their present outlet through the St. Lawrence river then continued to be a solid mass of ice, affording no outlet whatever. The
lower portion of the present Lake Michigan had its outlet through
the state of Illinois, along about the course of the present drainage
channel into the Mississippi river. Lake Iroquois existed as an immense
body of water, covering the area now embraced by both Lake Erie and
Ontario, and much other surrounding territory, and that, too, found its
outlet to the south, and its water flowed with the then natural drainage
of the country to the southward into the Gulf of Mexico. With the passing
of time, the surface of the northern country gradually lowered, and the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


3


icefield continued to recede until the natural drainage of this lake region
changed its course, and the waters of our lakes found their way out
through the St. Lawrence. Lake Iroquois was drained off until her
surface had fallen many hundred feet from its highest altitude, and the
waters were divided into the two present lakes, Erie and Ontario.
It was at this period that the waters of the Niagara river, flowing from
Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, began to cut the mighty gorge which
now furnishes such a Mecca for tourists, and at the same time is the
most authentic evidence of the period of time that has existed since the
departure of the glacial era. It is generally conceded, from computations as to the amount of cutting accomplished, that this has taken
ten thousand years; and corroborative evidence as to the extent of this
period since the ice age is found in the wearing of some of the rocks
along the shores of Lake Michigan. We may therefore safely conclude
that man existed in the territory now known as Northern Michigan more
than ten thousand years ago.
SURFACE GEOLOGY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
But the significance of surface geology, as especially related to the
section of Michigan covered by this work, has been so thoroughly investigated and reported by the State Geological Survey that we condense the following from the publication of 1907, prepared by Professor Alfred C. Lane.
While the deeper geology of Michigan implying, as it does, a study
of salt, coal, oil, gypsum, copper and iron, is of great importancethe importance of the knowledge of surface geology may be estimated
when we consider its relation to agriculture, to the clay industries, to
the development of peat and cement factories. All these depend largely
for their material upon surface deposits. Road materials are also largely
surface deposits. And the study of such deposits, their origin, extent,
and the way they occur, is the field of surface geology. But besides
this, questions of water supply, the kind of material to be met in railroad cuts, canals, tunnels and foundations for dams, and other engineering works, all depend for their satisfactory solution upon knowledge
of the surface geology.
PRE-GLACIAL HISTORY
The deposits of Michigan are separated into two classes by a very
sharp line, which corresponds to a very long interval of time during
which the state was eroded. Geological history has been divided into
four great divisions, the Archeozoic, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic.
During the first two of these periods the harder rocks, including those
which contain copper, iron and coal were laid down. They are the bony
frame work, so to speak, of the two hand-like peninsulas of which
Michigan is composed. The oldest of these rocks are found somewhere
northwest of Marquette. This may be called the negative pole of the
state, from which the hard rocks dip. The positive pole would then
be the Saginaw valley, towards which the rocks dip in every direction,




4


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


under which the beds lie like a pile of saucers decreasing in size to the
middle. This might be considered the hollow of the palm of the Lower
Peninsula. But after these rocks were formed the state appears to
have been above sea level, and the rocks cut and worn into hills and
valleys by streams, the general aspect of the country being perhaps
much as Arkansas or Tennessee at the present date. The elevation which
carried the state above water seems to have carried it to a higher elevation than at present, for we find caves, river valleys and channels in
the ancient rock surface which go quite below sea level. The most important of these valleys in the rock surface seems to have passed west
from Saginaw, past Alma, and then turned somewhat northward and
to have passed beyond our tracing beneath Lake Michigan somewhere
between Manistee and Ludington, where the bed rock surface is beneath sea level.
ADVANCE AND CAUSE OF THE ICE AGE
As long as elevation continued erosion naturally also would continue. But at the close of the Tertiary a great ice sheet overspread
Michigan coming from centers lying at first northward from the west
of Hudson's bay and then from east of Hudson's bay. This sheet of
ice was what is known as a continental glacier, such as now buries Greenland. Other glaciers are found in Alaska, the Rocky mountains, especially the Canadian Rockies and in Switzerland. As to the fact of
this great ice sheet overspreading a good part of North America geologists are now entirely agreed. There is no such agreement as to the
cause. A number of causes may have helped to produce the ice sheet,
and once started there are a number of causes which would tend to
make it grow. In the first place a greater height of land would promote precipitation as snow rather than rain, and the minute the snow
fall, which even now often lingers in the Huron mountains until the
first of June, lingered so as to accumulate from year to year we have
conditions for steady growth of the ice sheet. After once the surface
of the country is covered by white snow throughout the year there
will be so much more heat reflected that the mean annual temperature
will be much lower. At the time of the ice age in Michigan there seem
to have been large lakes out west, and anything which would tend to
increase the amount of snow fall in the winter would tend to promote
the ice age. As the ice age seems to have extended widely over the
world, and there were great ice sheets in Europe at about the same
time as America, it is almost certain, however, that no mere local conditions contributed to bring about the ice age. One may imagine that
the sun gave out less heat.
Changes in the relation of the earth's orbit to the sun have also
been appealed to. Sometimes the earth's orbit is more nearly circular
than at others. At present the northern hemisphere has its winter
when its pole is turned away from the sun at the time the earth is nearest the sun. In some 10,000 years or so the earth will be nearest the
sun in the summer of the northern hemisphere, and an attempt has
been made to connect the ice ages with these astronomical changes.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


EFFECTS OF THE ICE ADVANCE
As the ice advanced it swept over the surface removing more or
less of, and mixing up the previously existing soils, tearing off or
plucking the sharp and loose ledges and reducing the form of the
bed rock surface to one of smooth round outlines and curves of least
resistance. Outcrops of rocks which had thus been smoothed by the ice
have been likened to sheeps' backs, and to the curves of a canoe turned
bottom side upwards. Besides this the ice did considerable cutting in
the hard rock. Just how much is a serious question. Where the limfestone, or sandstone or other hard cap was left as a table land on top of
a hill of soft shale the ice seems to have in many cases pushed it clear
off. These have been scratched on the rock by the ice passing over it,
or more properly perhaps by the sand and stones held in the ice. Now
every such scratch means the removal of a little rock flour, and the
results of this removal we have in the clays laid down under the ice
or in pools in front of it-our glacial clays. It is said that sixty per cent
of the mixed material thus found comes from within a few miles. The
average thickness of the glacial material scattered over Michigan has
been computed as about three hundred feet. If this be so then perhaps
an average of something like one hundred and eighty feet may have
been removed by glacial erosion. A good part of the balance certainly
has come from across the lake in Canada, where there is very much less
drift and the rocks are nearly bare, while on the other hand we find
numerous varieties of Canadian rocks in this state. On the other hand
something should be added for Michigan material carried farther south,
but it must not be forgotten that this thickness represents not merely
the matter removed from fresh rock, but also all soil and decayed rock
which may have been there before.   Still the limestone flour which
makes up twenty-five per cent of our clays is not soil or decayed rock,
but the direct effect of glacial erosion.
WALLED LAKES
So far as we at present know the salt ocean never reached the region
of Michigan, and that class of deposit need not be considered. But not
only were there, unquestionably, ice bergs in these old lakes, from the
ice front, but the lakes were frozen themselves in the winter, and so
in the midst of lake clays we are liable to have occasional stones, though
their general bedded character is quite different from that of the boulder
clay. Moreover, around the edges of the lakes ridges are pushed up
and boulders worked to the shore, as they are at the present day, forming the so-called walled lakes. The interesting stone wall in Sanilac
county is a relic of such a former walled lake, and in many places a
fairly continuous line of boulders marks the former shore line.
GLACIAL BOULDERS
A word may well be given to the boulders themselves. These are
popularly known as hard heads, field stone, and the like. They have




6


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


some value themselves, and it is worth something to get rid of them
from the farm. They are used very commonly for underpinning, but
rarely for stone walls such as are so characteristic of New England.
They often command a price of something like four dollars per cord.
Many very handsome buildings have been constructed from them. The
lower story of the new medical building at Ann Arbor and the Baptist
church in Lansing are good illustrations of buildings made from these
boulders. Their origin has often excited local interest. In many cases
their peculiar character is such that we can almost beyond question tell
from what region they came. For instance, there is a peculiar conglomerate of white sand with bright bits of red jasper which strikes
the eye almost at once and is widely scattered throughout the drift
of Michigan, especially that ice which came through or across Saginaw
valley. A rock precisely like this is found in what is known as the
original Huronian area which lies near Thessalon, east of the "Soo"
and north of Georgian bay, and there can be but little doubt that
these pebbles were largely derived from that region. There was a
singular rock with eye-shaped or orbicular balls in it discovered by
H. P. Parmelee of Charlevoix and figured by J. F. Kemp, whose original resting place, however, we do not know. This is not surprising since
among all these hard heads of boulders there is a very great variety.
Prof. Alexander Winchell collected at Ann Arbor specimens of over
one hundred distinct varieties of rock. In fact probably samples of
every rock to be found in Canada between Lake Huron and Labrador
could be found among these boulders. This would indicate of course
the Nipissing mining district, and samples of considerable value in
themselves, of lead, iron, gold, and other ores, and mica and other valuable substances have been sent into this office for determination. Such
samples are, however, of no more worth than the sample itself. They
are no sign of paying accumulations in the same region of anything
similar.
Very frequently these boulders have very queer shapes and as such
have attracted the admiration of residents and are set up around houses.
It is easy to see that no ordinary process of rolling or battering could
ever get the rocks into such shapes and a little careful study will show
that the projecting ridges which tie together these grotesque shapes
are veins of quartz or some other material chemically more resistant
than the rock as a whole, and that the shape of the boulders is due to
chemical corrosion. Anyone who will study parts of the northern country which are so lightly glaciated that the original weathered surface
still remains-this is true of a part of Mt. Homer in the Huron Mountains-will readily recognize the origin of these pebbles. The same
grotesque, deeply pitted surface bound together by harder projecting
lines, like the veins of one's hands, is characteristic of many of the
weathered non-glaciated outcrops north.  These freak boulders represent the remnants of the old, chemically-corroded surface of the rocks
which have been plucked and torn away by the ice, but not shaped by it.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


7


LAKE DEPOSITS
The east side of the Lower Peninsula up to an elevation of two
hundred feet and more above the lake has been washed by the glacial
lakes, while on the west side the same belt is much narrower, being only
from one hundred feet above the lake, down. It is worth while to
consider the characteristics of these soils.
These glacial lakes were muddy with a very slowly settling rock
flour, which would be called clay in fineness and plasticity, but is not
at all kaolin. In fact, it corresponds more to the dictionary (not the
factory) definition of marl. Usually about a quarter is dissolved by
acids and may be classed as a limestone or dolomite flour. There is
also a large amount of finely divided quartz and feldspar and other
minerals. Every once in a while in these glacial clays a big stone or
pebble may be dumped from the melting of an ice cake. But very often
they are quite free from any coarse grit, and very well bedded in thin
layers.
Even when free from coarse grit these glacial clays always contain,
however, a large proportion of sharp fine particles, so that they may
be used for brass polishing. As the water level dropped it was in shallow
water for a longer or shorter time, and then coarser, sandier deposits
accumulated.  These are sometimes quite thick, but in general it is
characteristic of the old lake bottoms that they have stiff clays overlain by more sandy clays, and sands which may very often be shallow.
Throughout the whole lake bottom region the sands will rarely be so
deep that trees or alfalfa can not get near enough to the bottom to
get water, and very many excellent orchard sites are found on the old
sand ridges.
These lake clays are often brick clays. But owing to the amount
of lime they will not generally burn hard or very red. They are white
to light orange or buff.
The lime has, however, often been leached out of the upper few feet,
which then makes a redder brick.
While they may be of value for pottery, brick and tiles, experience
so far goes to show that they are not fit for making Portland cement.
For this purpose there must be a uniformity in composition with low
magnesia, which they do not possess. Nor will they generally make
face, front, or paving brick.
ROAD GRAVELS
The road gravels are the old beach lines, especially the very highest
lake borders, where they cut and concentrate the gravel from stony
till, and the overwash gravels, kames, eskers and valley trains connected with the ice front. These gravels deposited in powerful swift
flowing streams in or from the ice are on the whole the best, and are
deposited in almost all parts of the state. In all our gravels there is
enough binder.
The great channel that comes down by Mecosta, that around Grand
Rapids, the upper valley of the Cass, the esker that runs from Mt.




8


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Hope cemetery, Lansing, south, are but conspicuous examples.    The
Tecumseh gravel is shipped clear to central Ohio. The Miami gravel
is the prevailing formation.
BOG LIME
With all the lime in the clays that we have mentioned it is no wonder that the waters of Lower Michigan, especially the spring waters,
are hard. In fact it may almost be said that they are normally saturated with bicarbonate of lime or its equivalent. Where this water is
exposed to air and sunshine whether in lakes or standpipes it is rapidly
decomposed and the carbonate of lime thrown out. Shell producing
animals do a small part of the work, but by far the greatest part of
the work is done by lowly lake weeds, especially vine-like forms of
the Chara family. Others like Schizothrix take part. But this latter
makes more or less firm coatings with a fibrous cross fracture over bits
of stick and dead shell, and makes the pebble-like bodies known as
marl biscuit. The soft white or blue slime which fills some of our lakes
to a depth of very many feet is the Chara-lime. Probably one-third
of the five thousand or more lakes of Michigan have more or less bog
lime, and there are very many bogs which were once lakes that have
been filled with it. It is often covered over with peat. It is most frequent in the upper chains of lakes in spring-fed lakes with cold water;
in lakes of the higher parts of the state in the morainal regions.
PEAT
This deposit in the broadest sense includes all accumulations of nearly
pure vegetable matter. Muck is not so pure. Davis distinguishes a
number of classes according to their origin. But, since the higher and
southern parts of the state have been longest exposed, there has been
the greatest length of time for the accumulation and decomposition of
peat deposits there. Moreover there are the divides where the drainage is most uncertain. There too are the old glacial dumping grounds
and the abandoned channels of the waters draining them.
This then is the region of our greater deposits of peat. Some peat
is also found back of the old beach ridges especially the very highest
ones, and those of Algonquin and Nipissing time. It very commonly
fills up small lakes and may build out over deposits of Chara bog lime.
The oldest, blackest, and most decomposed is in the south part of the
state along the old glacial drainage channel system from Niles northeast toward the Thumb.
RIVER SILTS
Most Michigan rivers overflow their banks-of late years more than
ever. In certain cases, miles and miles of country are naturally thus
covered.
When the muddy waters of the swollen streams thus spread over
their flood plains a deposit of mud takes place which is heaviest and




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


9


coarsest near the main channel, finer and lighter at the margin. Thus
the flood plains are built up and are normally somewhat higher next
the stream. Along the margins of the flood plains next the bluffs is
likely to be a swampy belt.
These flood plains are well stratified, but in irregular layers. We
do not find the enormously thick beds without apparent break which
are so characteristic of the glacial clays. They are generally very fertile, and their fertility is ever renewed.
CONNECTION OF SURFACE DEPOSITS AND SOILS
It is obvious that there is a close connection between the various
kinds of surface deposits and soils. Dune sand is a kind of soil, and
at the same time a particular kind of deposit. The fact is a classification of cicul- and surface deposits deal with the same material but from
a different point of view. The surface geologist is studying them in
the first place to see how they came to be, the soil expert to see what
they are good for agriculturally. But if there is any difference in
two soils there must have been some difference in their origin and
hence the surface geologist, if he has an economic factor in view, can
always make some distinction between soils which would be separated
by a student of soils simply from the view of the department of agriculture. The geologist has also other uses in view. On the other hand
some knowledge of how the soils were formed would be of the very
greatest assistance in mapping different kinds and helping one to
look out for important factors. Two soils of equal fineness may both
pass for clay, but if one were a very fine rock flour with a great variety
in chemical composition, while the other was almost entirely hydrosilicate of alumina, the agricultural value of the same, I think, would
be very different. While all of the factors could be found out by
sufficient detailed chemical and physical investigations, yet one can not
analyze every foot, and there is often great need in soil mapping of
knowing the geologic history.
TYPES OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN SOILS
The United States Department of Agriculture have so far mapped
the following soil areas, which are sufficient to give us a fair idea of
the types of the soils in the Lower Peninsula, though an area in the
Grand Traverse region is urgently needed, and one to give us some
clue to the soils of the western part of the Upper Peninsula, and thus
there are still important types of soils which they have not touched.
The following descriptions of their soils are taken from the United
States soil survey field book. It will be noticed that the most important
factor in their classification is the relative proportion of grains of different fineness in the soil and subsoil. There are a few types to which
no locality name is given. These are as follows:
"Dune sand-The dune sand consists of loose, incoherent sand forming hillocks, rounded hills, or ridges of various heights. The dunes are
found along the shores of lakes, rivers or oceans and in desert areas.




10


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The\y are usually of no agricultural value on account of their irregular
surface, the loose, open nature of the material, and its consequent low
water-holding capacity. The dunes are frequently unstable and drift
from place to place.  The control of these sands by wind-breaks and
binding grasses is frequently necessary for the protection of adjoining
agricultural lands. In certain regions, where levelled and placed under irrigation, the dune sand is adapted to the production of truck
crops and small fruits."
The dune sands occur around the edges of the present lakes and
also along the lines where the lakes formerly existed. They are nearly


SOIL DEPOSITOR OF NORTHERN MICHIG\AN


pure silica, and the softest waters in the state have been obtained from
them. In fact, near East Olive, the excessive softness of the water is
supposed to have something to do with a hoof disease. The sand is also
shipped from Port Crescent in Huron county for furnace linings. There
is, however, quite a little difference in the sharpness of the dune sands
in the different regions. The longer it has been handled of course the
more rounded it gets, and in many cases it is derived from sands already rounded.
Muck, Peat and Meadow-The term muck as used by the department of agriculture is practically the same as peat, being, however, applied to the more decomposed varieties, such as are found for instance
around Kalamazoo, and are used very extensively in this state to grow
celery, peppermint, etc. It occurs in the more extensive swamp areas
especially those south of Saginaw bay. Further north the material will




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


11


be more commonly classed by them as peat. It may overlie to a varying
depth any of the other soils. It is particularly likely to overlie also
what is known as marl or bog lime, which occasionally occurs in this
state in what might be called a formation by itself as described below.
The peat overlying bog lime is not so likely to be sour, whereas many
other peats contain sulphate or other organic salts of iron, and in that
case are very likely to be sour. Such beds are very likely to be underlain by hardpan of quite a different nature from the till to which the
term is also applied. This hardpan is cemented together by iron, and
may pass gradually into deposits of bog iron ore, which may also contain considerable quantities of manganese. Small deposits of bog iron
ore are found in various places in the state, as in Branch county, as
well as in the Upper Peninsula, but are of no present commercial value.
The soil book of the department of agriculture describes muck and
meadow as given below. Meadow is generally a term applied to various
kinds of bottom land.
PEAT
"This is vegetable matter consisting of roots and fibres, moss, etc.,
in various stages of decomposition, occurring as turf or bog, usually in
low situations, always more or less saturated with water, and representing an advanced stage of swamp with drainage partially established.
MUCK
"This type consists of black more or less thoroughly decomposed
vegetable mold, from one to three feet or more in depth and occupying
low, damp places, with little or no natural drainage. Muck may be
considered an advanced stage of peat brought about by the more complete decomposition of the vegetable fibre and the addition of mineral
matter through decomposition from water and from Aeolian sources, resulting in a finer texture and closer structure. When drained, muck
is very productive and is adapted to corn, potatoes, cabbage, onions,
celery, peppermint and similar crops."
MEADOW
"This term is used to designate low-lying, flat, usually poorly drained
land, such as may occur in any soil type. These areas are frequently
used for grass, pasturage, or forestry, and can be changed to arable
land if cleared and drained. The present character of meadow is due
to lack of drainage, and the term represents a condition rather than a
classification according to texture. Textural variations frequently occur
in meadow areas on a scale too small to permit of detailed mapping.
In many areas the term 'meadow' has also been used to represent small
bodies of bottom land occasionally or frequently subject to overflow,
which are normally placed under cultivation and constitute land of high
value for the production of various general farm crops. Within these
bottoms the soils vary frequently in texture, even within small areas,




12


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


and on account of occasional overflow the character of the soil at any
one point is subject to change. The use of this term should be avoided
whenever it is possible to separate such areas into distinct soil types."
CENTRAL PLATEAU OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
With the recession of the prehistoric glaciers and great bodies of
water, not only did the lake system of the northwest, as we know it,
come into being, but the land surface of Michigan was fashioned into
its present configuration. Perhaps the most striking physical feature
of Northern Michigan has become known as the "central plateau. "
Commencing near the southern line of the territory covered by this
history and extending along the shore as far north as Leelanau point
is a succession of elevated bluffs. These bluffs are mostly the lakeward termini of a succession of elevated ridges extending inland and
converging to a common axis. In the southern portion their course is
about east, northeast, varying more to the eastward as we go north,
until, on reaching town twenty-six north, we find them running nearly
due east. Passing this point, their course varies to the southward. In
the northern portion of Leelanau their course is about south, southeast,
and in Antrim and Charlevoix counties nearly south by east.
Following the converging lines of these elevated ridges inland,
we find them centering at or near the headwaters of the Big Manistee
river, where they form a high plateau, covering a large area, from
which the larger rivers of Northern Michigan take their rise. The
height of this plateau has been estimated by different surveyors at from
seven hundred to nine hundred feet above the level of Lake Michigan.
The general character of these ridges is that of elevated table-lands,
gently rolling and gradually sloping to the river valleys on either side.
These slopes, however, are frequently intersected by lateral valleys,
which form beds of small streams and water-courses, that take their
rise in the numerous little lakes which rest upon the highest levels.
These little lakes, varying in size from a few acres to several sections
in extent, are so numerous, and their waters are so deep and pure, that
they form an important feature in the topography of these elevated
tables, as the larger lakes do in the topography of the lower lands near
the coast. So attractive are these lakes in their quiet beauty, that the
first settlements of the interior were always made upon their borders.
Starting from the axis of these ridges, and following them to their
lakeward termini, we find these lateral valleys and ridges increasing in
number and abruptness as we proceed, until, as we approach the lake,
we find them broken into high bluffs and deep ravines.
Another peculiarity characteristic of this western shore is the location at every river mouth, and upon every large point of land jutting
out into the lake, of a small lake, varying from one to several miles in
extent, separated from Lake Michigan by narrow bars of land.
These lakes are supposed to be the remains of bays and inlets once
a portion of the great lake, when that was at a higher level than now.
Another peculiarity in the topography of this shore, which will be found
to have a bearing upon its agricultural resources, exists in the system




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


13


of terraces which are found, more or less distinctly marked, upon the
borders of all the large rivers, around the margins of the lower-level
lakes, on the shores of Grand Traverse bay, and frequently bordering
the great lake itself, especially at the mouths of the large rivers. At
some points as at Pine Lake in the county of Charlevoix, these terraces
are so plainly marked as to form the principal and most pleasing feature
of the landscape view. The lower terraces are usually narrow and
sometimes worn entirely away; but the higher ones often extend to a
great distance inland-as at Manistee-where the upper terrace, rising about ninety feet above the lake, extends several miles inland east.. A./H E...............,  '...........  a:..
a-j
TYPICAL INLAND LAKE OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
of Lake Manistee.  The causes which have produced these terraces
and barred across these bays and inlets, forming them into lakes, are
interesting subjects of speculation, and will be considered when treating of the recent geological changes which have taken place in this
region, and which have determined to a great extent the character and
quality of the soil.
Dr. M. L. Leach, who is high authority on matters connected with
Northern Michigan, has this to say in further description of the high
central plateau referred to above: "The high central plateau of Northern Michigan is often referred to by writers who have occasion to
speak of the topographical features of the country. Its character is
not as well understood as it should be. Dr. Rominger, in his report
on the geology of the Lower Peninsula, says 'that the high plateau
in the northern part of the peninsula has its peculiar soil, a thick uni



14


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


form mass of fine sand, containing few pebbles and a small proportion
of argillaceous constituents. In accordance with it is the vegetation;
the pine tree finds a congenial home in these sandy hill lands, and their
surface is overgrown with splendid forests of this tree, to the exclusion
of almost every other kind. This soil, as long as some humus is mixed
with it, may give a fair potato crop, or, by careful attendance, garden
vegetables can be raised, but its productiveness is so soon exhausted
and its moisture so soon lost, that it can never be used for agriculture
on a large scale with any prospect of success.*' This statement of Dr.
Rominger is of the same character as that made by Horace Greeley,
many years ago, to the effect that the whole northern part of the state
was worthless for farming purposes. Both statements, no doubt, were
made without sufficient and careful examination, and therefore were
based on insufficient data.
"To get a clear understanding of what is meant by the high central
plateau, it is necessary to glance briefly at the general topographical
configuration of the Lower Peninsula. The surface configuration presents two grand swells, or regions of elevation, separated by a broad
valley, each having its long axis running in a northeasterly and southwesterly direction. The long axis of the more southernly of these swells
may be indicated somewhat accurately by a line drawn from Port
Austin, near the mouth of Saginaw bay, to the southwest corner of
Hillsdale county. In the north part of Oakland county, this swell
attains an elevation of five hundred and twenty-nine feet, but the highest summit is in Hillsdale county, where it reaches an elevation of six
hundred and thirteen feet.
" The valley separating this region of elevation from the more northerly one is accurately traced from Saginaw bay up the Saginaw and
Bad rivers and down the Maple and the Grand. The highest part of
this valley is a flat, swampy tract in the southeast corner of Gratiot
county, where the headwaters of the Bad river start within three miles
of the eastern bank of the Maple, and is not more than seventy-two
feet higher than Saginaw bay.
"The long axis of the more northerly swell may be indicated approximately by a line drawn through Gaylord, near the center of Otsego
county, and Bond's Mill, in the eastern part of Wexford county. The
broad undulating summit of this swell is the central plateau alluded to."
From the above descriptions it will be at once evident how closely
the present productiveness and material development of Northern Michigan is related to surface geology and the physical features of the country; how its fertile soils were produced by the offscourings of glaciers
and great lakes and rivers, which were in operation thousands of years
before man appeared upon the scene. The special relation between the
soils of the country and the natural and cultivated vegetation which
they produce has been scientifically investigated by Professor Burton
E. Livingston, of the Chicago University, in behalf of Michigan Board
of Geological Survey. The course and results of such investigations


* This was written before a careful study had been made of rotation of crops
and the scientific reinvigoration of deficient or exhausted soils.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


15


as they affect a considerable area of the central plateau of Southern
Michigan, is thus condensed:
AREA OF SOIL INVESTIGATION
That there is a marked relation between the natural vegetation of
the state and the nature of the soils has long been known, at least in
a general way. To determine exactly what this relation may be, both
quantitatively and qualitatively, is, of course, a problem which it will
take a long time to solve. A beginning can best be made by a careful
study of small areas, and such a beginning was made in 1900 and 1901
by the present author in his study of the' distribution of soils and vegetation in Kent county. The investigations reported in the present paper
were made in the summer of 1902, the area chosen being those townships of Roscommon and Crawford counties which embrace the lands
set aside by the legislature of 1901 as the Michigan Forestry Reserve,
together with portions of certain adjacent townships. The work was
carried on under the auspices of the bureau of forestry of the United
States department of agriculture, in conjunction with the Board of
Geological Survey of Michigan.
TOPOGRAPHY
The region consists of a series of ridges and depressions.  The
former are sometimes several miles wide, but more often narrow; they
are always comparatively low, seldom rising more than one hundred
and fifty to two hundred feet above the level of Higgins and Houghton
lakes, which lie in the center of the reserve. These ridges are terminal
moraines, left by the ice sheet as it melted back at the close of the last
glacial epoch. Between them are lower and more level stretches consisting, for the most part, of plains which gently slope downward from
the ridge margin to the nearest stream. These were produced by the
outwash of materials from the ice margin at the time the moraines were
being formed, and their surface has been more or less eroded by water
action since that time. Owing to the fact that they were formed by
water action, the material of these plains is quite thoroughly freed from
finer particles, and thus consists largely of sand. Gravel deposits are
very rare throughout the region, and in the true sand plains it is seldom
that one finds even good sized pebbles. It appears that the water from
which the material was deposited was not moving swiftly enough to
transport the gravel, but carried sand and clay. The finer particles,
clay and loam, were carried away in the streams, but the sand remained
in its present position.
The ridges, on the other hand, are more heterogeneous in composition. They were not so thoroughly washed by water while they were
being piled up, and hence contain considerable quantities of finer particles, clay and loam, and of coarser ones, gravel. Sand is the predominating substance in their composition, however. They are usually
bordered by rolling slopes of loamy sand which descend gently to the




16


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


sand plains. A few of the ridges contain clay enough to make this soil
best described by the term clay loam, or even loamy clay.
The whole country is underlain by clay, but this is generally far
from the surface, sometimes one hundred feet or more. Some of the
depressions have clay surface soil. They were prbably under cover
of the ice sheet at the time of formation of the neighboring moraines
and sand plains, or were the bottoms of glacial lake*.
The lowest portions of the depressions, whether these have sand or
clay as surface soil, are almost always occupied by swamps or lakes.
Through the swamps the very lowest part is often marked by a meandering stream channel, the line of drainage for all the region which lies
between the neighboring ridges.
NATURE OF SOILS
The soils of this region are nearly all sandy. The only exceptions
to this statement are a few low clay areas together with the Murray
hills, parts of Norway hill, and portions of the great southern ridge
in T. 21 N., R. 1 and 2 W., which are the only ridges which can truly
be called clayey. The surface soil of these ridges contains considerable
quantities of sand, however. The other ridges are of gravelly and
loamy sand, that is their surface soil is mostly of sand, but with a sufficient admixture of fine particles to produce a marked difference in
physical properties from that of the true sand plains, while they also
contain pebbles and sometimes scattered boulders. The slopes downward from these ridges are of sand, either pure or loamy. They seldom
contain many pebbles of any considerable size, thus being more thoroughly washed by water than are the ridges. The true sand plains contain little or no loamy material and no pebbles. They are of a fine,
grayish white sand, which drifts readily by the wind when loosened.
I have seen the surface soil actually blown away and piled in miniature
dunes along the wire fences, in places where the worst of the sandy
soils had been attacked for cultivation.
Obviously, difference in degree of water-washing, and hence of sorting of particles, determines these different soil characters. Sandy soils
are composed of coarse particles and contain much silica, loamy soils
are of finer particles and contain considerable quantities of alumina,
while clay soils are of still more finely divided materials and contain
a much larger percentage of alumina. Since all of this material was
transported to its present position by glacial action, and since it must
have been quite thoroughly mixed by this agency, it is reasonable to
suppose that, had it not been water washed during and after its deposit,
it would be at least fairly uniform in its mineral constituents. The
washing process sorted the soils according to size of particles, but also
according to their chemical nature. This is partly due to the fact that
alumina breaks down into fine particles more readily than does silica.
It is also due to the fact that, in well-washed soils, even the less soluble
constituents are apt to be actually dissolved and washed out to a greater
or less degree. Thus, phosphates and sulphates are usually less abundant
in well-washed soils than in those less thoroughly washed.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


17


In this glaciated region, fine soils, such as clay, were either deposited
under the ice of the glacial epoch, and hence not well washed, or else
they were deposited from deep and very slowly flowing water. The
former variety therefore usually contains many coarser particles, as
loam, sand, and pebbles. In the case of loamy soils, a good part of the
fine material has been washed out, but a considerable amount remains
with the sand, so as to give it a loamy character. Since the washing here
was not thorough, pebbles are often found amongst the sand and loam.
This is especially so of the ridges. The water which flowed over such
soils at the time of their formation must have been moving with a
velocity such that it deposited or left unmoved sand and gravel together
with some finer material caught between the coarser particles, but carried away most of the latter. Sandy soils are still more thoroughly
washed; the gravel was left farther up stream, usually on the slopes
of the ridges, while the clay was held in suspension, to be deposited at
a lower level, where the velocity decreased.
The nature of the soil particles themselves often plays an important
part in determining the water-retaining and water-lifting power. Especially is this so in the case of humus, which is composed of organic
debris, decayed plant parts and, to some extent, of animal offal. Pure
humus has a great power to hold and lift water. This is partly because
of its very fine particles, but is also to be traced in part to the actual
penetration (by imbibition) of the liquid into the intermolecular spaces
of the organic substance itself. Thus, by admixture of humus to a
coarse (and therefore porous and permeable) soil, the water-retaining
power of such a soil is increased.
The filtering power, or permeability to water, of a soil increases, of
course, with decrease in its capillary power. Also, its permeability
to air increases in the same way.
It will be here noted that sandy soils usually exhibit a marked scarcity of soluble salts. This fact may be explained in part by the "leaching" action of the percolating waters as well as by the thorough washing to which these soils were subjected at the time of their deposition.
The water of precipitation percolates rapidly through these porous soils
and may often wash the soluble salts down toward the level of the
ground water, a process which is termed "leaching. "
In humus soils, it is probably not to the point to determine humus
content and water capacity after the humus has been mixed with the
lower layers; the effect of the organic substance is very much more
marked when the humus lies as a distinct layer on the surface than
when it is distributed through the underlying soil. The humus layer
acts like a sponge filled with water, and allows the water to pass slowly
down in the underlying layers and thus keep them moist much longer
than would otherwise be.
THE TYPES OF VEGETATION
The vegetation of the region may be sub-divided into several types
or plant societies. These grade more or less into one another, but there
are few places where an observer would be puzzled to determine what
Vol. 1-2




18


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


particular type he was in. There are to be distinguished, four types on
the uplands and three on the lowlands. These will be described in the
following paragraphs.
Practically all the area under discussion has been lumbered. A
virgin pine forest is almost entirely unknown now, though some of the
finest pine of the state was cut here. What hardwood areas there are
have been left almost untouched until recently, except for the removal
of the white pine originally scattered through them. But the hardwood,
too, is now being rapidly removed, and it will not be long before there
will be none left. In the lowlands, the merchantable arbor-vitae or white
cedar has very largely been removed, as has also much of the spruce and
even considerable quantities of tamarack.
(1.) THE UPLAND TYPES
A. The Hardwood Type.-There is very little hardwood in the
region studied, but what there is, is typical of all Northern Michigan
Areas so covered have not been so thoroughly lumbered as those covered
with pine forests. The original form of this type comprised the following characteristic trees: sugar maple, beech, hemlock, red and American
elm, balsam fir, yellow birch, some spruce, and scattered white pine, the
latter of enormous size, together with such low forms as raspberry,
squaw-berry, Lycopodium clavatum, yew, June-berry, Echinosperum
virginicum, American pennyroyal, red-berried elder, Solidago caesia,
etc. Maple, beech and hemlock made up three-fourths of the forest,
sometimes one and sometimes another of the three being most numerous.
Lumbering has affected this type very little, excepting by the removal of the white pine and some of the hemlock. Hardwood lumbering is now going on in the areas covered by this type, in these operations everything is being removed which is merchantable. Fires have
not injured this form of forest to any great extent, and the original
humus usually remains.
B.   The White Pine Type.-This is typical pinery, often containifig little besides white pine. Usually, however, there is an admixture of Norway pine, and often of hardwoods. The type is quite sharply
distinguished from the preceding, but not nearly so well marked off
from the following type, into which it grades in many places.
As has been stated, there is at present hardly any of this type in
the region under discussion. In lumbering, all the pine was removed
and the subsequent fires have killed practically all the young growth
of this tree as well as the scattering hardwoods. Over vast stretches
originally covered with white pine there are now no trees at all. They
are regions of dwarfed white and red oaks, red maple, and a number
of shrubs. The oaks and maples are rarely more than twice as high
as a man; they are burned down every few years, and exist here at all
only because of the fact that they sprout from the roots which are
seldom killed by the fires. These shrubby oaks and maples thus possess
enormous roots which are partially dead or dying, gnarled and contorted and deformed by frequent burning.    It is these whicll are
called "grubs" by dwellers in the region.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


19


Among the lower forms occurring here may be mentioned the following: —Stag-horn  sumach, Monarda fistulosa, brake, huckleberry
(Gaylussacia resinosa), blueberry (Vaccinium  pennsyivanium, canadense and vacillans), sweet fern, Solidago concolor, witch-hazel, etc.
The ground between the blackened stumps is now thoroughly covered
by densely growing sweet fern, huckleberry, and blueberry, the growth
of the former of these being so luxurious that the numerous prostrate
logs are often entirely hidden from sight, so that passage through these
old "pine slashings" is rendered very difficult.


GROVE OF WHITE PINES


C. The Norway Pine Type.-At the time of lumbering, this type
consisted mainly of the species for which it is named, but usually contained scattering white pine and more numerous, though often dwarfed,
red and white oaks and red maples. The present aspect of this type is
much the same as that of the preceding. The two oaks, red maple, and
seedling Norway are the characteristic trees now. Seedling Norways
are more numerous than in the preceding type, perhaps because of the
greater number of seed trees here as well as the somewhat greater ability of this species to withstand fire than that possessed by the white
pine. The low plants are much the same as in the last, Solidago caesia
of that type is replaced here by S. juncea, and Liatris seariosa is common here, while in the other group it was of rare occurrence.
D. The Jack Pine Type.-This is the most open of the series and
occurs in the most sterile sands of the area. The only trees are the jack




U


I /


i


A
I
4




I


[Courtes\ Detrlit & Mackinac Railway Company]


OLD-TIME PINERIES




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


21


pine, scarlet oak, choke cherry, and seedings of Populus tremuloides
and P. grandidentata. All but the pine and oak are hardly more
than shrubs. The pines occur in two forms, one with a tall trunk
and a crown of short branches at the summit, the other with branches
longer and extending nearly to the ground. The former is called by
lumbermen "black jack pine," the second "yellow jack pine."     The
shape of the tree is of course caused by its place of growth, the former
occurring in dense groups, the latter in the open.
Besides the trees, there occur as characteristic on the jack pine areas
the following low plants:-Brake, Solidago memoralis, the three blue-.berries above mentioned (but not huckleberry), bearberry, sweet fern,
sand cherry, pin cherry, Andropogon scoparius and furcatus, Danthonia,
Liatris cylindracea, dwarf willow, reindeer lichen, etc. This type comprises the worst part of what is called "the plains."
(2.)  THE LOWLAND TYPES
For the most part, the swamps which were originally wooded have
not been denuded of forest. Where they contained white pine, that
was taken out, leaving the other trees, which protected the undergrowth
and soon produced a dense, almost jungle like formation. Within the
past few years the merchantable arbor-vitae and tamarack have been
removed from these swamps, but there are almost always left enough
small trees to produce shade. Also the swamps have not been subjected
to burning nearly so often as the uplands, and are generally in much
more nearly their original condition than are the latter. The three
types may be described as follows:
E. The Open Meadow Type.-This is treeless or nearly so, partly
open hay meadow, largely of "blue-joint," (Calamagrostis canadensis),,
partly of bulrush and cattail marsh, and partly of sphagnum bog. It
grades into the other two types.
F. The Tamarack and Arbor-Vitae Swamp.-This is the typical
swamp of the region. It contains tamarack, arbor-vitae or white cedar,
black and white spruce, and balsam fir, which form dense and often
impassable, thickets. In some localities the tamarack occupies almost
all the ground to the exclusion of other trees, and in other places the
same is true of the arbor-vitae. But there is not nearly so much tendency here for these two trees to form separate and distinct types as,
is found farther south.* There the tamarack seems to occupy the portions of the swamp lands which are most poorly drained, the arborvitae growing best in localities where drainage is more thorough, yet
still not complete enough for the river swamp vegetation. Here the
question of drainage does not appear to play so important a part.
G. The Mixed Swamp.-This formation is found near swamp
margins, especially where the underlying clay is near the surface.
Thus, it often occurs along lines where the hardwood forest reaches
down toward the swamp. It may be looked upon as intermediate between the tamarack and arbor-vitae type and that of the hardwood.
* For a description of the conditions further south in the state, the reader is referred.
to the author's paper on Kent county.




22


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


There is always a great mingling of species here. Aiong the trees
are: Tamarack, arbor-vitae, the spruces, balsam fir, white and yellow
birch (Betula papyrifera and lutea), black ash, hemlock, mountain
ash, sugar maple, Prunus serotina, white pine, June-berry, etc., together
with such low forms as raspberry, blackberry, brake, Lycopodium
clavatum, yew, alder, and Ilex verticellata. The relative proportions
of the different trees vary from one locality to another, and nothing
definite can be stated in this regard.
DISTRIBUTION OF HARDWOOD TYPES
The Uplands.-The Hardwood Type occurs in this region always in
soils which contain considerable amounts of clay. Such soils are always covered to a depth of several inches with leafmold or humus, and
in this layer the seedlings of hardwood and hemlock grow and thrive.
The white pine type occurs on the Murray hills, on the most clayey
parts of Norway hill, and on the great northwestern moraine, in T. 21
N., R. 2 W. These soils are often as clayey as those of many of the
hardwood areas, but are higher and therefore better drained. It also
occupies most of the gravelly ridge in T. 25 N., R. 2 W. Very often the
swamp margins are occupied by this type, especially where the slopes
are not abrupt, a condition which gives humus a chance to collect in
and upon the sand.
The Norway Pine Type occupies gravelly ridges and loamy sand
plains. The soil here is somewhat better than in the location held by
the next type, but it is generally too poor for profitable general agriculture. As will be seen by a glance at the map, most of the uplands
studied were originally covered by this type.
The Jack Pine Type occupies only the most thoroughly washed of
the sand plains. Excepting in the northern two tiers of townships
and in T. 24 N., R. 2 W. there is practically none of this type in the
area. These localities lie in the valley of the Au Sable. The parts
lying about the head waters of the Muskegon have abundant plains of
loamy sand, but these support the type of Norway pine. This fact
has no connection with the rivers themselves, however, for farther down
the Muskegon are to be found typical jack pine barrens. The soil of
this type is almost worthless for agriculture; it is light and dry, and
where the surface is broken it is apt to be wind blown, and often forms
small traveling dunes. This has been the fate of many once cultivated
fields in the northern portion of the Beaver Creek valley and also still
farther north in the neighborhood of Grayling.
The Lowlands.-As has been said, the distribution of the lowland
types was not worked out with accuracy.    Great difficulty was experienced in studying such areas, for the swamps are often almost utterly impassable. The greatest areas of open marsh encountered are
as already described. There are doubtless many areas of like nature
which were not seen at all, but these cannot be of very great extent.
In the swamps the ground is covered with a layer of humus, usually
of the nature of peat, and there seems to be no difference in this substance between the sand and the clay areas. Neither is there any




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


23


apparent difference in the swamp vegetation whether it is upon sand
or clay.
As cannot be too often repeated, the physiography of the Southern
Peninsula of Michigan depends very largely upon glacial topography,
however, so that if we wish to trace backward beyond the soils the
chain of cause and effect which determine plant distribution here, we
come at length upon the purely geological agencies which, at the end
of the last glacial epoch, caused one locality to be left a till moraine,
another a sandy or loamy one, and still another a sand plain or clay
plain, or a pond.
Of the upland series, the hardwood type of vegetation seems to
need the most water, the most soluble soil content, and the most humus.
Probably this is the reason why this type occupies the moister soils
of the uplands, no matter whether these are moist through nearness to
the underground water table or through greater lifting power of the
soil itself. The types of white, Norway, and jack pine seem to require
less water in the order of their arrangement. Probably the Norway
and jack require more air in the soil than either the hardwood or the
white pine. The typical tree forms of both the last named types occur
in the mixed swamp quite commonly, but neither Norway or jack pine
have been found in soil which is wet the greater part of the year.
Throughout the region it seems that each type occupies soils which
correspond in water content to its needs. It must be remembered here
that a sand or loam soil near the water level may contain much more
water than one of loam or clay where the water is farther from the
surface. This idea offers, perhaps, an explanation for the occurrence
of hardwood on low loam in T. 25 N., R. 4 W. Addition of surface
humus has also perhaps, raised the water-holding power of the soil to
the neighborhood of that manifested by clay itself. The subsoil is such
here that the white or Norway type might be expected.
The statement so frequently met with that the white pine will not
come up after it has once been cut off and the ground burned over,
seems to strike wide of the truth in this region. The writer visited almost every square mile of the uplands, and he is thoroughly convinced
that scattering seedlings of white pines are now evident on practically
all areas originally covered by that species, which have not been recently
subjected to the action of fires. Seedlings of the Norway are now,
however, more numerous on these areas than are those of the white
itself. They are plentiful throughout the region on light soils excepting
the very lightest. Fires destroy the young growth of the white pine
and also prevent humus formation. Thus, as long as the fires are allowed to occur so frequently, the water capacity is not apt to rise and
the growth of nitrifying bacteria is not apt to increase. But the presence of the few white seedlings is evidence that the species can grow
if protected. Indeed, the best young stands of any kind that the writer
has seen are of this tree, and they promise exceedingly well for reforestation.
As has been said, the Norway is coming in quite freely in the areas
originally covered by this species and by the white. The degeneration
goes no further, however; and it is rare to find even individual jack




24


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


pines in any of these areas. Indeed, there is evidence in some places
that the Norway is rapidly advancing its seedlings into the areas held
by the jack.
The hardwood forest reappears quite rapidly when cut. This is
doubtless in part due to the fact that this material does not burn so
readily nor so violently as do the pines. The scattered white pines which
formerly characterized these forests in the eyes of the lumbermen, are
not returning. They were perhaps only a relic of a past generation of
forest. Hemlock is reproducing well and will return with the beech
and maple if, through lack of humus, the soil does not become too dry
for the seedlings. The sugar maple is best for reclaiming cut over
lands. Its saplings stand close together and do not seem to suffer from
one another's shade, while they prevent the dying out and oxidation
of the surface soil.
THE FUTURE OF THE REGION
Since there has been considerable discussion in the state concerning the utility of these lands for various purposes, it may be well to consider this subject briefly here. On the uplands most of the different
kinds of soil have been tested for agriculture, the clay hills and the clay
plains, both of compartively small extent, make excellent farming land.
The gravelly and loamy sand of most of the ridges is easily tilled, and,
with enough care, yields good crops, but the soil is too light, and the
amount of energy necessarily expended in cultivation is much greater
than in heavier soils.
On the worst sand plains, originally covered with very open stands
of jack pine and scarlet oak, tillage is almost out of the question. With
constant manuring and cultivation, this sand can be held in place and
made to produce fair crops, but the expense, in time and energy, if not
actually in money, make such crops cost much more than they will actually bring on the market. Some of this land is so situated that irrigation would be possible, and this may some time become a practical line
of investment. The grazing of cattle on the Norway and jack pine plains
is practicable, and is being carried out successfully by several holders in Roscommon county. Several forms of bunch grass and the shade
of the scrubby oaks and pines, are the valuable features. But it requires many acres for a few cattle, and it is doubtful whether the small
landholder can ever accomplish much in this direction. Practically all
the small holders who are succeeding at grazing, are pasturing their
cattle, in good part, on the lands of the state and of other individuals.
The swamps which are abundant in the region, would all make excellent garden land if properly cleared and drained. It appears that
the most promising use to which to put the swamps is that suggested
by A. C. Lane, of the Michigan Geological Survey, namely, to derive
fuel peat from them. Samples assayed from fifty-two per cent to seventyfive per cent combustile material.
A number of tests have been made of the ability of the ridges and
more loamy plains to support apple trees, with considerable promise of
success.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


25


The feasibility of reforestation seems practically proved. Every
student of plant growth who has worked in the region has become convinced that the main reason for the failure of natural reforestation here
lies in the repeated and destructive fires.
With the fire nuisance removed, it is quite certain that nearly all
of the upland area would spring up to seedlings of white and Norway
pines. Further than this, it seems very probable to the present writer
that, if the land which will now support nothing better were kept covered with Norway forest, it would eventually become (through the accumulation of humus) capable of supporting a good growth of white
pine, which might be planted among the Norways when the time was
ripe for it. How long this process of amelioration might take, it is
useless at present to conjecture; there is no locality in the region which
is free from fires, and thus no possibility of collecting data for this
purpose.
It appears from these investigations that the main factor in determining the distribution of the forest on the uplands of this region, is
that of the size of soil particles, the sorting of which dates back, almost
entirely, to the glacial epoch.  The size of particles determines the
amount of air and moisture in the soil, and these in turn determine
the amount of humus formation and the growth of nitrifying organisms, and, to some extent at least, the amount of soluble salts.
A factor of less relative importance, because applicable only over
small areas, is that of the nearness of the underground water level to
the surface. This affects the uplands only along swamp borders.
In a broad way, physiography may be said to determine the vegetational distribution here. The physiographic features depend largely
upon glacial topography. Thus geological factors have, in one way or
another, determined the nature and distribution of surface soils and
the distance below the surface of the underground water level, and so
these factors have determined vegetational distribution.
It is probable that many dry soils may at length become moist
enough to support one of the more moisture loving types of vegetation,
simply by increase in humus content, which must go on slowly at first
but more rapidly as the amount of this substance increases.
The lowlands are covered with a vegetation which seems to be able
to bear excess of water and paucity of oxygen in the soil. From the
open meadow and coniferous swamp, we pass, with better and better
drainage, through the mixed swamp to the hardwood or the white pine
of the uplands.
It appears that the natural reforestation of the pine areas with the
Norway, and, to some extent, at least, with white pine, is practicable
if the fires can be suppressed. Orcharding gives some promise of success on the ridges and loamy plains, and, together with forestry, offers
probably the best use to which to put this region which contains so
little good land for general agriculture.
Although the above observations and deductions made by Professor
Livingston, under direction of the Michigan Geological Survey, relate
specifically to a comparatively limited area they apply quite closely
to most of the interior country covered by this history.




.MICIIGAN'S GREAT PRODUCTS: FRUTITS AND VEGETABLES




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


27


PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL
In general, it may be said that the soil of Michigan, especially the
western portion of the southern peninsula, consists of every variety
known to agriculturists or horticulturists. Originally much of this
area was covered by heavy forests both of pine and hard wood and the
results of comparatively a few years in the raising of all kinds of crops
have proven that the generally accepted idea of the pioneers as to the
strength and productiveness of land which would support timber is
correct in all its essential features. The heavy clay land and sand
loam of the hardwood forests which flourished in the early days are
still found in every county of northwestern Michigan, these classes of
soil forming about fifty per cent of the total. The muck lands of the
swamp areas form about 8.4 per cent of the total acreage. The hills
and plains of the sand loam known as white pine and Norway pine
lands form the lesser part of the soil of all the counties, averaging 26.5
per cent of the whole acreage. The mixed pine and hardwood areas
comprise 14 per cent of the whole. And lastly there are the much
maligned "jack pine plains," the area of which in the whole of western
Michigan is not to exceed 4.1 per cent of the total available arable
lands. On all of the other soils spoken of the farmers and fruit growers
are "making good," and it is believed, as already stated, that the "jack
pine plains, " under scientific treatment, can be made valuable for agriculture and horticulture.
Some of the best of the fruit lands of western Michigan were at
one time white pine and Norway pine areas. Peach orchards which
produce a value of from $200 to $600 and more per acre per year are
found in Mason, Manistee and Benzie counties; in the other counties
where this class of land is found, there has been no recorded attempt
to grow this fruit, and therefore the success or failure of the industry
is unknown. It is generally believed that apples will not do well on
the lighter sand loams, but in Wexford, Mason, Manistee and Benzie
counties this has not proved true. Apples are raised in all of them,
and profiting by the experience of the pioneers, there are thousands of
trees being set throughout these counties.
In the hardwood areas, especially those which lie near to the great
lake, or upon the bays or inland lakes of any considerable size, fruit
culture has attained the greatest perfection in western Michigan. Here
are also the most thickly populated sections, and where general agricultural activity is greatest.
Nearly all the fruits are successfully grown in every county of western Michigan. Apples are universally successful; the extent of the
"peach belt" is difficult to define, although it is generally accepted as
a fact that this fruit will do better on an elevated location near to a
body of water. Certain varieties of cherries are universally grown,
and with great success. Pears, plums and apricots do well wherever
peaches are grown. The small fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries,
blackberries, gooseberries and currants, do well everywhere. So far
as berries are concerned location does not count so much as proper care.
Perhaps next in importance to the cultivation of fruit comes the




28


HIST-GRY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


potato crop of northwestern Michigan, as there is no portion of this
entire country where that tuber cannot be grown successfully. In
many instances potatoes are even planted among the stumps of recently
cleared ground and returns from this crop have often more than paid
the original cost of the land. Sugar beets are also raised pron'tably
in many sections. The hay crop is also profitable, and various counties
over as far north as Emmet have produced wheat in yields as high as
forty bushel per acre. The growing of garden seeds such as peas, beans,
radishes, pumpkins and squash, is also a profitable industry, as well
as the raising of garden truck for canning and pickling. Interesting
and instructive information along this line is furnished by the Western Michigan Development Bureau, whose investigations cover Antrim,
Benzie, Charlevoix, Emmet, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Lake, Leelanau,
Manistee, Mason, Missaukee, Osceola and Wexford counties all embraced within the scope of this work.
If half of the world lives out of a can nowadays, as has been asserted
by authority, the only reason a greater percentage do not eat canned
stuffs is that there is not enough canned. The canning and pickling
industry has assumed important proportions in western Michigan in
the past few years, and is still growing rapidly. There are now in
the territory of the bureau nine plants engaged in canning the products
of the farms and orchards. The factories employ an aggregate of 2,500
men, women and girls during the canning season, besides the number
engaged in growing the products which are put up.
The packing plants put up a great variety of fruits and vegetables.
Commencing with the earliest fruits of the summer the pack runs
through the strawberry, raspberry, cherry, blackberry, peach, plum,
apricot and apple seasons, wherever such plants are equipped for handling fruits. Green peas, string beans, green corn, pumpkin, squash and
other vegetables are handled by practically all of them. As fast as
growers can be found willing to undertake the growing of sufficient
acreage, the pickle industry is springing up, and cucumber pickles are
salted in brine at stations in this territory at the present time. This
is an industry that is bringing out the superior quality of the warm,
quick-growing sand loam soils of this region, and is making lands valuable which have for years been considered of little worth. No figures
are at hand to show the value of this product to the growers of this
territory for the past year, but many growers report yields exceeding
300 bushels per acre, for which they received from 50 to 60 cents per
bushel at the salting station.
Crushed fruits and fruit flavors, which are so largely used in the
making of ices, and for flavoring ice cream and soda water, is a new
industry to Michigan. A plant for the preservation of fruits for this
purpose was opened in the season of 1909, and has proved so successful that the capacity will be greatly enlarged. The flavor of western
Michigan fruit products enables the manufacturer to obtain a greater
price than for such products grown elsewhere.
The soil and productions of northeastern and eastern Michigan are
similar to those described in connection with the western portion of
the Southern Peninsula. Not only potatoes but sugar beets are raised




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


29


in abundance; wheat produces from twenty to thirty bushels per acre,
rye sixteen to twenty bushels, oats thirty to fifty bushels, peas twenty
to thirty, beans twelve to twenty, and clover seed from three to twelve
bushels. The hay crops range from one and one-half to three tons
per acre.
The dominant feature of the soil in northeastern Michigan is gravelly loam, upon which grew the great forests of pine for which this
section of the state was noted. The soil, as a whole, is peculiarly adapted
to all root crops such as potatoes, sugar beets, onions, turnips, carrots
and cabbage. Such crops as wheat, oats, rye, buckwheat, timothy, clover
and alfalfa have also been successfully raised in northeastern Michigan.
During the past few years great attention has been given to the
growing of clover for its seed in northeastern Michigan and the results
have been astounding.   Experienced farmers can hardly credit the
statement that as high as twelve bushels of clover seed per acre have
been hulled, but such is a fact, which can be proved beyond dispute.
An average of the district would probably show about four bushels to
the acre.
Alfalfa is also receiving considerable attention at the hands of individual farmers and also from the state experiment station, and thousands of acres are now being successfully grown throughout the district.
This will materially increase the prosperity of the district and attract
many new settlers, for when farmers learn that clover seed is so successfully grown and that alfalfa promises to become one of the great
forage crops they will buy land and locate in the district.
The lower peninsula of Michigan, on account of the water protection surrounding it on the north, east and west, is pronounced by experts to be the most favored location for fruit growing in the United
States. This is especially true when the high flavor of the fruit and
its keeping qualities, together with its nearness to the fruit markets, is
taken into consideration. Numerous apple orchards are in the district
and during the past few years the attention of horticulturists has been
attracted to this apple belt, with the result that large tracts of land have
been purchased to be planted to orchard. Strawberries, raspberries,
blackberries, gooseberries, currants, grapes and all small fruit grow to
perfection. On the uncleared land there grow wild hundreds of bushels
of blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, which require only picking
and bring good prices.
Northeastern Michigan, with its wonderful natural growth of grass,
pure water and even climate, is essentially a stock raising country.
Cattle, sheep and hogs do splendidly on the natural pastures which
this land affords. For dairy farming the conditions are unsurpassed
anywhere. Sheep breeders all over the country are fast recognizing
the great advantages offered in northern Michigan for the production
of the high-grade wool and mutton. Many of the foremost sheep breeders have recently purchased lands and more are giving the subject
serious attention. The abundance of browse, clover and grasses makes
these lands, even in their wild state, immediately available for pasturing sheep, while the pure water and the healthy, bracing climate keep
all live stock in splendid condition.




r" --
' 77 --10,P




NORTHERN MICHIGAN HOLSTEINS AND ALFALFA CR~OP




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


31


The above statements as to the products of northeastern Michigan
apply with particular force to the counties with, which this history is
concerned-Cheyboygan, Alpena, Gladwin, Arenac, Ogemaw, Roscommon, Crawford, Otsego, Presque Isle, Iosco, Alcona, Montmorency, Oscoda and Clare. Much of the information given has also been collated
from the literature issued by the Northeastern Michigan Development
Bureau.


9




CHAPTER II


FIRST LORDS OF THE SOIL
ABORIGINAL REMAINS IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN-ORIGIN OF THE RED
MAN-WHEN FIRST FOUND BY THE WHITES-THE HURONS-OTTAWAS AND CHIPPEWAS-AT THE TIME OF PONTIAC'S CONSPIRACYOTTAWAS OF L'ARBRE CROCHE-OTTAWAS OF GRAND TRAVERSE-EXTINGUISHMENT OF THE INDIAN.
The evidence is strong in all the country northwest of the Ohio
river, that a race of men once inhabited the land who were powerful,
warlike and semi-civilized. The Indians found there by the first white
incursionists had traditions of a "race of giants, swift of foot and
powerful enough to kill buffalo with their hands. They were so large
and strong," continues one of their traditions, "that they defied their
Maker and derided him. The Ruler tried to kill them by shooting the
arrows of lightning at them, but these glanced off without harm; so
He sent a great rain, and the ground became so full of water and so
soft, that these heavy people sunk in it and were drowned."
It was the belief of some Indians that the fossil remains of elephants,
mastodons and other huge animals were the bones of these people.
Others held that the fantastic rock pinnacles, such as exist in the Pictured Rocks of the Lake Superior region, were the ruins of gigantic
temples.
ABORIGINAL REMAINS IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Whatever the fate of the Red Man's forefathers or predecessorswhether they perished in some cataclasm of nature, were driven away
through the fortunes of war or migrated to a milder southern land,
the most marked evidences of their existence are found in the mounds
in which are embedded gigantic trees, with their record of annual rings
marking these works as of hoary antiquity. As to the Mound Builders
of AMichigan, the following account is reproduced from the "History of
the Grand Traverse Region by Dr. M. L. Leach:
"There is indubitable evidence that the Mound-Builders wrought
the copper mines of Lake Superior-that the work was carried on by
large bodies of men through a period of hundreds of years-but the
evidence that they established permanent settlements there is wanting.
The most reasonable theory is that the laborers spent the summer in
the mines, but retired for the winter to a more genial clime. Hence,
32




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                       33
it becomes an interesting problem to determine the northern limit of
their permanent abode.
"It is evident that they had populous settlements in some of the
more fertile districts of the southern part of the state. Farther north
their remains are found less frequently, and are of a less imposing
character. Characteristic earth works (whether built for defense or for
civil or religious purposes is uncertain), are found in Ogemaw county.
Mounds are known to exist in Manistee county. That outlying colonies
extended north to the Grand Traverse country, scarcely admits of a
doubt. Around Boardman Lake, near Traverse City, several small
mounds formerly existed, some of which have been destroyed in the
search for relics. One small burial mound has been opened within the
village limits.
"The sites of several ancient manufactories of stone arrow-heads
have been found. In excavating for a street, on the bank of Boardman
river, in Traverse City, such a location was discovered, marked by the
presence of great numbers of chips of flint, or hornstone, the refuse of
the material used for making the arrow-heads. At Charlevoix, the soil
for a foot or more in depth, on the top of the bluff, north of the mouth
of the river, contains great numbers of these flint chips, together with
some unfinished arrow-heads that were spoiled in making and thrown
away. Another well marked site of an arrow-head manufactory, is
on the farm of John Miller, on the north shore of Pine Lake, about a
mile from the village of Boyne City.
"Fragments of ancient pottery, having the markings common to
the pottery attributed to the Mound-Builders, is found at the locality
last mentioned, and also within the village limits of Boyne City, as
well as sparingly in other places.
"At Charlevoix, in excavating a cellar, an ancient grave was
opened, in which was found a great number of beautifully finished flint
arrow-heads, and a quantity of copper beads. In the same locality,
some boys amusing themselves by running up and down the steep bank
of the "Old River," discovered a piece of copper protruding from the
gravelly bank. An examination resulted in the finding of two knives
and two bodkins, or piercing instruments, all of copper.
"The evidence seems conclusive that the Mound-Builders, the most
ancient inhabitants of the territory of the United States of whom we
have any knowledge, had extended their scattered frontier settlements
into the Grand Traverse country. Here, perhaps, mining expeditions
from the more populous south called to make their final preparations
for the northern summer trip, and here some of the returning miners
were accustomed to spend the winter.
"That ancient people have long since disappeared. Of the reason
and manner of their disappearance no record remains, except, perhaps, a vague and shadowy tradition, which seems to imply that they
retired towards the south, before the fierce and savage race that succeeded them in the occupancy of the country.
"It may be objected," concludes Dr. Leach, "that the Indians made
and used flint arrow-heads and stone axes, and that therefore the finding of these relics is no evidence of the former presence of the MoundVol. 1-3




34


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Builders. I freely admit the possibility that in the cases mentioned
the arrow-heads were made by the Indians, but I am fully convinced
that at least three-fourths of all the stone implements and ornaments
found in the United States are the work of the Mound-Builders. In
regard to the pottery of the Grand Traverse country, its marking and
general appearance place it with the pottery of the Mound-Builders.
As to the copper ornaments and implements, the fact is well established
that the Indians knew nothing of the copper mines, and did not put
copper to any practical use till the white men taught them how."
From the last compiled list of the sites of aboriginal remains in
Michigan, prepared by Prof. Harlan I. Smith and published as a part
of the 1909 Geological and Biological Survey of the state, are selected
the following which are embraced in the counties covered by this history:
Alcona county: East Hubbard lake mounds; Henry mounds; North
Hubbard lake mounds; Section 11 Greenbush mounds; South Hubbard
lake mounds; Sturgeon Point mounds; West Harrisville mounds; Roe
lake mounds.
Alpena county: Thunder Bay river mounds; Devil lake mounds;
Devil river mounds.
Antrim county: Elk Rapids earthwork; Custer mound; Round lake
mounds; Torch lake earthworks; Wequagamaw mounds; Grass lake
mound and earthworks.
Charlevoix county: Charlevoix Parmelee graves; Clarion mounds
and graves.
Cheboygan county: Indian river camp site; Columbus camp site;
Pigeon Cheyboygan mounds.
Emmet county: L'Arbre Croche village site; Mackinac mounds.
Iosco county: Tawas losco mounds; Tawas Point mounds; Alabaster mounds.
Kalkaska county: Rapid river earthworks; Torch river mounds;
Clear Water mounds.
Manistee county: Sauble lake mound; Manistee mounds and shell
heaps; Bear lake mounds.
Mason county: Sauble river mound.
Ogemaw county: Rifle river earthworks, Nos. 1 and 2; Rifle river
mounds; Hauptman earthwork; Churchill enclosures, Nos. 1, 2 and 3.
Presque Isle county: Oqueoc mound.
Wexford county: Boone earthworks; Cadillac earthworks; Wexford shell heaps.
ORIGIN OF THE RED MAN
The Red Men found in possession of the country by the white race
felt that they must account for the presence of these mounds and the
fantastic shapes fashioned by nature, which so mystified and awed
them. Therefore their traditions pictured their gigantic ancestors as
wiped out by a deluge, which left behind only such faint evidences of
their former power as these mounds and strangely fashioned ruins in
the sandstone of the northern regions.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


35


Following the destruction of this race of giants "the Great Ruler
made another race which he again destroyed because it was too powerful; then he made a man and woman and placed them on earth; other
people and animals he made in the sky, and sent the lightning his messenger to place them on earth, and having enclosed them in a cloud of
lightning sent them down with a crash that sunk them all in the ground
which was still wet and soft. The lightning felt so grieved at the result
that he cried. Now, whenever he strikes the earth he is reminded of
that mishap and cries; hence the rain and thunder. All these men and
animals being thus struck underground were in confusion, until one
day the mole burrowed to the top and the sudden rush of light put his
eyes out. So he decided to remain beneath the surface, which he has
constantly done ever since; but the rest crawled up through the hole
made by the mole, and their distribution over the face of the globe began." In the perplexities they encountered during their first days
they were, according to tradition, constantly assisted by the magic articles contained in a medicine bag given by the Great Spirit to a young
boy; so it is youth, personified, that conquers the world, and this was
merely a race, in its youth, working out its destiny.
It was the young spirit which made way through the pathless forest and over foaming rivers and deep ravines, but the ignorance and
superstitution of the race demanded some visible object as a proof of
supernatural help when any difficult thing had been accomplished, and
the medicine bag furnished this object. To it they attributed the production of animals, fish and snakes unknown to them before. They
were not many degrees removed from the cave man who seldom ventured far from his lair, and the things of the forest and field were all
new to them, so they were glad to believe the magic bag contained the
first arrow point as a model for future weapons, and the seed of corn
and tobacco for food and comfort. The primitive Indian gave his
imagination full play in finding reasons for the existence of things, and
their condition; thus the first cedar was bent because it had supported
the weight of the Indian race and saved them from destruction and the
crooked tendency of these trees was thereby established for all time.
The crow was turned black in a futile effort to bring fire from the sun,
and the swallow received his black feathers in a like vain attempt. Almost every natural object had some such notion connected with it, and
volumes might be filled without exhausting the material in this line.
The Indian legends in regard to their origin are almost endless.
They declare themselves to be aborigines, a declaration only supported
by fable or allegory. One authority will declare they climbed up the
roots of a tree to the surface of the earth, while another that they casually saw daylight through the top of a great cavern, and climbed to
find it. They claimed mysterious kinship with animals that burrowed;
always the tradition, or memory, of cave or underground life, clung to
them, which at least suggests that they were descendants of the primitive cave men, and that their line goes back unbroken to the beginning
of life on this continent. In their traditions they skip thousands of
years from the flood to the present time, and fill the interval with the
wildest mythology, or demonology. Each leading family has some great




36


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


hero or Manito who overcame these demons and delivered the Indians
from their spells; whether you call this hero Manabozho, Neo, Glooskap, Hiawatha, Tirawa or Hinun, depends merely on the locality; the
cffice is the same-to benefit mankind-just as it was the office of the
evil qualities, personified as Artotarho, Malsum, Enigon-ha-het-gea, and
others, to destroy them.
WHEN FIRST FOUND BY THE WHITES
When Nicolet and his white successors, French and English, first
visited what is now Northern Michigan in 1634, they found the soil, the
lakes, and rivers, in possession of various tribes of the great Algonquin
nation whose dominion stretched also far to the east. The Hurons and
Chippewas, with their allies the Ottawas, were most closely connected
with the history recorded in this work.
THE HURONS
The pioneer French priests, traders and explorers soon discovered
that Hurons were more tractable and dependable than either the Chippewas or Ottawas. They were evidently not warriors from choice and
were prone to found villages and semi-civilized communities. When the
fierce Iroquois drove them from their hunting grounds many of them
had fled to the Chippewa country. The Iroquois followed and carried
their work of destruction into the northern country. Iroquois Point,
on Lake Superior, commemorates a battle where the Iroquois were so
thoroughly defeated by the Chippewas and Foxes, who were allied at
that time, that they never attempted further encroachment on Chippewa
territory. The struggling bands of Hurons who thus became identical
with the Chippewas and Ottawas, were the first to welcome Nicolet and
Marquette to the country of the Great Lakes and were their faithful
companions on their toilsome and dangerous voyages through the vast
regions -then unexplored by the whites. It was among them that the
French priests founded their largest and most stable missions, and
probably no stronger band of affection ever existed between the white
and red man than that which bound, together the French and the
Hurons.
The letter written by Father Marquette to Father Dablon, in 1672,
regarding the Huron mission at St. Ignace, is characteristic of this
sentiment:
"My Reverend Father:    The Hurons, called Tionnontateronnous,
or the tobacco nation, who composed the mission of St. Ignace at Michilimakinang, began last summer a fort near the chapel, in which all
their cabins were inclosed. They have been more assiduous at prayer,
have listened more willingly to the instructions that I gave them, and
have acceded to my requests for preventing grave misconduct and their
abominable customs. One must have patience with savage minds who
have no other knowledge than the devil, whose slaves they are, and
their forefathers have been; and frequently relapse into those sins in
which they have been reared. God alone can give firmness to their




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


37


fickle minds, and place and maintain them in grace, and touch their
hearts while we stammer into their ears. This year the Tionnontater.
onnous were here to the number of three hundred and eighty souls, and
they were joined by over sixty souls of the Outaouasinagaux. Some of
the latter came from the mission of Saint Francois Xavier (Green Bay),
where Reverend Father Andre spent last winter with them; and they
appeared to me to be very different from what they were when I saw
them at the point of St. Esprit. The zeal and patience of the father
have won over to the faith hearts which seemed to us to be very adverse
to it. They desire to be Christians, they bring their children to the
chapel to be baptized, and they are very assiduous in attending prayers.
"Last summer, when I was obliged to go to the Sault with Rev.
Father Allouez, the Hurons came to the chapel during my absence, as
assiduously as if I had been there, and the girls sang the hymns that
they knew. They counted the days that passed after my departure, and
continuously asked when I was to return. I was absent only fourteen
days, and, on arrival, all proceeded to the chapel, to which many came
expressly from the fields, although these were very far away. I cheerfully attended their feasts of squashes, at which I instructed them and
called upon them to thank God, who gave them food in abundance while
other tribes, who had not yet embraced Christianity, had great difficulty
in preserving themselves from hunger. I cast ridicule on their dreams
and encouraged those who had been baptized to acknowledge Him whose
children they were. Those who gave feasts, although still idolators,
spoke most honorably of Christianity; And they were not ashamed- to
make the sign of the cross before everyone. * * *
"A savage of note among the MTurons invited me to his feast, at
which the chiefs were present. After calling each of them by name,
he told them that he wished to state his intentions to them, so that all
might know it;-namely, that he was a Christian; that he renounced
the God of Dreams and all their dances replete with lasciviousness; that
the black gown was the master of the cabin and that he would not abandon that resolution, whatever might happen. I felt pleasure in hearing
him, and at the same time I spoke more strongly than I had hitherto
done, telling them that I had no other design than to place them on the
road to Paradise; that that was the sole object that detained me with
them and compelled me to assist them, at the risk of my life. As soon
as anything has been said at a meeting, it is at once spread among all
the cabins. This I soon recognized, through the assiduity of some at
prayers and through the malice of others who endeavor to render our
instructions useless. * *
"Over two hundred souls left last fall for the chase. Those who
remained here asked me what dances I prohibited. I replied in the first
place that I would not permit those which God forbids, such as indecent
ones; that, as regards the others, I would decide about them when I
had seen them. Every dance has its own name; but I did not find
any harm in any of them, except that called 'the bear dance.' A
woman, who became impatient in her illness, in order to satisfy
both her God and her imagination, caused twenty women to be invited.
They were covered with bear skins and wore fine porcelain collars;




38


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


growled like bears. Meanwhile the sick woman danced and from time
to time told them to throw oil on the fire, with certain superstitious
observances. The men who acted as singers had great difficulty in
carrying out the sick woman's design, not having as yet heard similar
airs, for that dance was not in vogue among the Tionnontateronnous.
I availed myself of this fact to dissuade them from the dance. I did
not forbid others that are of no importance for I considered that my
winter's sojourn among them had been profitable, inasmuch as, with
God's grace, I had put a stop to the usual indecencies. * * * Although the winter was severe, it did not prevent the savages from coming to the chapel. Many came thither twice a day however windy and
cold it might be. In the autumn I began to give instructions for general confession of their whole lives, and to prepare others who had not
confessed since their baptism, to do the same. I would not have believed that savages could render so exact an account of all their lives.
* * * As the savages have vivid imaginations, they are often cured
of their sickness when they are granted what they desire. Their medicine men, who know nothing about their diseases, propose a number of
things to them for which they might have a desire. Sometimes the
sick person mentions it, and they fail not to give it to him. But many,
during the winter, fearing that it might be a sin, always replied with
constancy that they desired nothing, and that they would do whatever
the black gown told them.
"I did not fail, during the autumn, to go and visit them in their
fields, where I instructed them and made them pray to God, and told
them what they had to do. * * * A blind woman who had formerly
been instructed by Rev. Father Brebeauf, had not during all these
years forgotten her prayers; she daily prayed to God that she might
not die without grace, and I admired her sentiments. Other aged
women, to whom I spoke of hell, shuddered at it, and told me they had
no sense in their former country, but that they had not committed so
many sins since they had been instructed. * * *
"God had aided, in a special manner, the Hurons who went to hunt;
for he led them to places where they killed a great number of bears,
stags, beavers and wild-cats. Several bands failed not to observe the
directions I had given them respecting prayers. Dreams, to which
they formerly had recourse, were looked upon as illusions; and, if they
happened to dream of bears, they did not kill any on account of that;
on the contrary, after they had recourse to prayer, God gave them
what they desired.
"This, my Reverend Father, is all that I can write to your Reverence
respecting this mission, where men's minds are more gentle, tractable
and better disposed to receive the instructions that are given them than
in any other place. Meanwhile I aml preparing to leave it il the hands
of another missionary, to go by your Reverence's Order and seek toward the South Sea new nations that are unknown to us, to teach them
to know our great God, of whom they liave hitherto been ignorant."
What has long been knownl to Michigan writers and pioneers as the
G(lland Traverse Region was properly within the sphere of Father Marquette's mission, whose headquarters were at St. Ignaee, but it is not




. - Ip
-1.;a Al, j -
'PfO4


[C(oltc~s  Dettoit &  la(lkinac i:llafi a  ( m1l,.lll  l
WHEN NORTHIERN MICHIGAN WAS YOUNG: A CHIPPEWA MOTHER




40


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


known that he ever visited the beautiful wilderness bordering on Grand
Traverse or Little Traverse bays, or that he even coasted along the
shore. Popular belief credits him, however, with having visited some
of the Ottawas who, after the terrible devastation of their coutnry by
the Sioux about 1671 had fled westward with the Hurons. The Hurons
had stopped at St. Ignace; the Ottawas continued on to the Manitoulin
islands.
OTTAWAS AND CHIPPEWAS
The Ottawas were neighbors and allies of the Chippewas and were
bound by ties of kinship also, as intermarriage between the tribes was
common. They were so like the Chippewas in most ways that they need
no especial description. Of the same Algonquin stock, they have the
same language, nearly, the same dress, religion, myths and general customs. The Ottawas were less savage and fickle, however, than the Chippewas. They were somewhat in advance of their neighbors in agriculture, partly because they lived, most of them, on the southern mainland,
and partly because they were naturally more peaceful and possessed
greater intelligence. From the first they were more kindly disposed
toward the whites, and often saved them from the attacks of the more
savage Chippewas. The one great Indian of this tribe, who helped to
make Michigan history, was Pontiac. As he was half Chippewa, his
mother having belonged to that tribe, and of the otter totem, which
gave him high rank among them, the Chippewas were especially drawn
to his side.
Pontiac's plan of organizing the Indians and driving out the whites
was well conceived, and showed a mind far in advance of his time.
With almost supernatural foresight, he saw the downfall of his race
in the coming of the whites. This had not been so apparent when
there was only the French to deal with; for they amalgamated with
the Indians, and were content to live on equal terms of possession, hut
when the English came the keen mind of Pontiac recognized them as
men who would be masters; never brothers of his race. Had the savage
tribes who followed him possessed cohesion and self-control, the story
would have been different, and Michigan would have waited long for
civilization and peaceful settlement.
As stated in Sawyer's History of the "Northern Peninsula," from
which much of the foregoing is condensed: "When Jean Nicolet, with
his Huron companions, ascended the St. Mary's river on his fanous
journey which brought himn finally to Green Bay, he passed the nation
of Beavers, formerly called Amieways. They lived at one time upon
the Beaver islands * near the Michigan shore, but afterward moved to
the Manitoulin islands,t a locality to which all Indians in the vicinity
attached much importance, believing it was the abode of spirits, a belief easily suggested by their natural beauty and the frequent mirage
in their neighborhood. The Beaver tribe was no doubt a branch of
* Northwest of Emmet County, but now inc(lulded in St. James anti Peaine townships,
Charlevoix county.
t Now is Leland township, Leelanau county.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


41


the great Algonquin nation, which had separated from the main body
in its westward migration. The tribe was esteemed one of the noblest,
and claimed descent from the Great Beaver, a Manido next in importance to the Great Hare, which was the principal Algonquin divinity.
"At Sault Ste. Marie Nicolet found a powerful nation. They were
called Baouichtigonin by the early French writers (Relations of 1640).
There are several variations of this name given in the different Relations. The Iroquois called them Estiaghicks, or Stagigroone; the Sioux
called them Raratwaus, and the French called them Saulteurs. All of
these names refer to their location near the Falls. The Iroquois word
contains also an allusion to their Algonquin descent.  (The French
traders called all northern Indians Ottawas, or Saulteurs, regardless of
tribal distinctions.)
"MEN OF THE FALLS"
"These Men of the Falls were the immediate ancestors of the Chippewa or Ojibway nation, one of the largest and most powerful of the
northwest tribes. Like the Menominees, they came from the Nipissing
country. Their territory when discovered by the whites extended along
the St. Mary's river, which they held in company with their kinsmen
and allies, the Ottawas, clear across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan
on Lake Superior, and as far south as the headwaters of the Menominee
river. They controlled many islands including Mackinaw, and across
northern Wisconsin west to the headwaters of the Mississippi and south
to the Chippewa rivers. When first visited by the whites, the Chippewas were powerful enough to maintain themselves against the Sioux
on the west and the Iroquois on the south. * * *
"Nicolet has recorded this friendly attitude of the Indians toward
the whites at their first meeting, and Fathers Raymbault and Isaac
Jogues, who visited Sault Ste. Marie in 1741, corroborated this. They
were given a cordial reception, rest and refreshment by the Chippewas.
They also obtained much information from these Indians, concerning
the Great Lake (Superior), and the fierce tribe called Nadoussioux
(Sioux, or Enemies-snake-like-ones), who lived beyond its borders and
would not permit the Chippewas to enter their hunting grounds. The
history of the Jesuit fathers in Michigan is closely woven into that of
the Chippewas and Ottawas.
"The Chippewas were allies of the French in their colonial wars with
England which broke out in 1754, after years of bickering. Many of
them were in the siege of Quebec; and Montcalm was a great hero to
them. Led by Pontiac, whose mother was a Chippewa, under Sieur
Charles de Langlade, they helped defeat Braddock in his ill-starred
campaign against Fort du Quesne (1775). It was with great difficulty
that the English gained their allegiance after the French had been overcome.
"In the period which elapsed between the surrender of the French
in 1759 and the treaty of peace of 1763, much ill feeling had been engendered among all Indians by their untactful treatment by the English. The Chippewas, naturally warlike and full of a deadly hatred for




42


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the English, fell readily in with the schemes of Pontiac, the Ottawa.
In the massacre at Fort Mackinaw in 1763 they took the lead.
"Menominees and Ottawas took no part in the massacre. The French
were not molested and were apparently on good terms with the savages.
"The chief who led the Chippewas in this massacre was Mina-vavana. He was very tall and unusually fierce and stern in aspect. He is
often spoken of in history as 'The Grand Sauteur.' It had been
part of Pontiac's scheme to destroy the fort at Green Bay, and Chippewas, Ottawas and Pottawottomies, who formed sort of an alliance known
as the 'Three Fires,' were designated for this work, but they were prevented by the Menominees from carrying out the plan.
"'In the War for Independence the Chippewas sided with the British,
any many American scalps hung at their belts. In defense of the Indians it may be said that the countless cruelties which marked the
border warfare, were not usually of their own volition; they were usually instigated by white men who knew perfectly the Indian manner
of fighting.
"The Chippewas made peace with the United States government in
1785 and 1789. This did not last long, however, and in 1790 they joined
the Miami uprising under Little Turtle, but they were completely defeated by General Wayne in 1793, and the next year again made a
peace-treaty with the United States. Many of the northern Chippewas
joined Tecumseh in the Indian confederacy of 1810. They also fought
with the British under Colonel Robert Dickson and were in the attack
on the Americans at Ford Mackinaw in the war of 1812-14. The Chippewas were first recognized formally by the American government as
a treaty tribe in the treaty of Greenville in 1794, in which they, with
the Ottawas, ceded the island of Michillimackinac and other dependencies to the United States government."
THI PERIOD OF PONTIAC'S CONSPIRACY
At the time of Pontiac's conspiracy, nearly ninety years after the
death of Marquette, the Hurons had settled mainly at Detroit and
Sandusky, where they had taken the name of Wyandots. The mission
had been transferred from St. Ignace to L'Arbre Croche (the Crooked
Tree) south of the Straits. This is also said to be the period at which
the Ottawas reached their height of power.
L'Arbre Croche seems to have been used by the French as a general
Inamle for the Ottawa settlements along the shore of Lake Michigan,
in the western part of what now constitutes the county of Emimet.
The village of I'Arbre Croche proper, so named from a crooked pine
tree-a ('onspicllous and convenient landmark for the voyageurs coasting ill their canoes along the shore-was on the site of Middle village
of the present day. Another conspicuous landmark of those days was
a huge cross of cedar tilmber standing on the brow of the bluff at what
is now, from the circumstance, called ('ross village. Whether it was
erected by Father Jollois, or solme one wlho preceded himn, is inot kiiown.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


43


By whomsoever erected, it stood there for many years, being repaired
or renewed by the willing hands of the Catholic Ottawas.
OTTAWAS OF L'ARBRE CROCHE
Dr. M. L. Leach has written the following regarding the part taken
by the Chippewas and Ottawas of the Grand Traverse region in the
history and development of the northern Michigan covered by this
work: "The Ottawas of L'Arbre Croche, under their head chief, Nesaw-kee, could (at the time of Pontiac's conspiracy) muster two hundred
and fifty warriors. Many of them were nominal Catholics. Profiting
by the instruction of the missionaries, they had made some advancement in civilization, and cultivated the ground to a greater extent than
formerly. South of L'Arbre Croche, in the western part of the Michigan peninsula, there were other settlements of Ottawas, and there was
PRESENT-DAY ABORIGINES
a strong band in the vicinity of Detroit, under the immediate chieftainship of the renowned Pontiac.
"The principal village of the Chippewas in the northern part of
the peninsula, was on MIackinac island. The village contained a hundred
warriors. There was another smaller village at Thunder Bay, where
dwelt their chief, Minavavana. There were also numerous settlements
of the Chippewas in the Saginaw valley and on Grand river.
"A part of the Wyandots, as we have already seen, were living at
Detroit, and the Pottawattamies occupied the southwestern portion of
the peninsula. Theoretically, the peninsula, or, at least, the northern
part of it, belonged to the Ottawas and Chippewas, the former claiming the western and the latter the eastern portion, the boundary between them being an imaginary line drawn due south from the fort at
Mackinaw.
"At the close of the French and Indian war, in accordance with the
terms of capitulation agreed to by the French at Montreal, all the military posts of the northwestern wilderness passed into the hands of the




44


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


English. The Indians throughout the region were the enemies of the
English and the firm friends of the French. It was with ill concealed
displeasure that they saw the English come among them. The haughty
and sometimes brutal treatment received from the latter, so different
from the easy familiarity and kindness of the French, instead of tending to allay the irritation, had only the effect of increasing it. The
first English traders at Mackinaw, who came after the removal of the
French garrison and before the English troops arrived, ventured there
at their peril. They succeeded in propitiating the Chippewas, but the
Ottawas of L'Arbre Croche, a strong body of whom were at Mackinaw,
were bent on mischief. The traders saved their goods, and perhaps
their lives, only by arming their followers, barricading themselves in a
house, and holding the Ottawas at bay, till the arrival of the troops
assured some degree of security.
"Pontiac, an Ottawa by birth or adoption, having won distinction
at the head of a numerous body of his braves at the memorable battle
of the Monongahela, contributing not a little to the defeat of Braddock's army, now smarting under wrongs both fancied and real, and
foreseeing the probable ruin of his people before the increasing strength
of the English, conceived the bold plan of cutting off all the frontier
military posts, almost at a single blow. So well were the arrangements
of the wily chieftain carried out that, in a short time, with the exception
of the garrison at Detroit, not a British soldier remained in the region
of the Great Lakes.
"The fall of Mackinaw, next to Detroit the most important post in
the western country, has been a theme of thrilling interest both to the
historian and the writer of romance. In the events grouped around
the tragic fate of the garrison, the people of the region the history of
which we are endeavoring to trace bore a conspicuous part.
"When, towards the end of May, 1763, the Chippewas of Mackinaw heard that Pontiac had already struck Detroit, they at once resolved on the immediate destruction of the English at the fort. Their
number had recently been largely increased by tile arrival of several
bands from other localities. Though confetlderate with tile Ottawas of
L'Arbre Croche, they determlined to proceed independently of the latter, securing all tile plunder and glory to themselves.
"It was the fourth of June, the birthday of King George. Trle
Chippewas came to the fort, inviting the officers anld nmen to come out
and witness a game of baggattaway. their favorite hall-play, which had
been arranged between them   and the Sacs. several bands of whom,
from the Wisconsin river, were encamped in thie vicinity. The unsuspecting commander allowed the gates to be thrown wide open, and some
of the soldiers went out to watch the gamle. The Indian women collected near the entrance, each with a weapon concealed under her
blanket. When the excitelment of the game had apparently reached its
height, tile ball receive(l a blow that sent it over the palisade, into the
area of the fort. It seemed an accident, but was really a well executed
part of the plan of attack. In an instant there was a rush of players
through the gateway, as if to recover the ball. lbt. as they passed the
women each snatched a weapon. and fell upon tlhe nearest unsuspect



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


45


ing and defenseless Englishman. The bloody work was quickly colnpleted, and a general cry was raised of 'All is finished.' There were
at the fort thirty-four officers and soldiers, constituting the garrison,
and four traders. Of these, one officer, fifteen soldiers, and one trader
were killed. The others were made prisoners. Of the prisoners, five
soldiers were soon afterwards killed by an infuriated brave who had
not been present at the assault, and took this method of expressing his
approval of what had been done, and of his hatred of the English.
"It is uncertain what would have been the fate of the remaining
prisoners, had there been no check to the doings of the Chippewas.
Probably most of them would have met death by torture. Their lives
had not been spared from motives of humanity or clemency. The French
had looked coolly on, neither helping the Indians nor offering protection
to the English. The latter, however, found a friend in Father Jonois,
the Catholic missionary at L'Arbre Croche. But by far the most effectual aid came from  the incensed Ottawas.  Confederates of the
Chippewas, it was their right to be consulted in matters of such moment
as the destruction of the English, or, at least, to be invited to join in
the execution of the project. Regarding themselves as slighted and
wronged, if not insulted, they resolved to revenge themselves by taking
the control of matters into their own hands.
"A party of seven Chippewas, with four prisoners, started in a
canoe for the Isles du Castor (Beaver islands). When about eighteen
miles on their way, an Ottawa came out of the woods and accosted them,
inquiring the news, and asking who were their prisoners. As the conversation continued, the canoe came near the shore, where the water
was shallow, when a loud yell was heard, and a hundred Ottawas, rising from among the trees and bushes, rushed into the water, and seized
the canoe and prisoners. The astonished Chippewas remonstrated in
vain. The four Englishmen were led in safety to the shore. The Ottawas informed them that their captors were taking them to the Isles
du Castor merely to kill and eat them, which was probably not far
from the truth. The four prisoners soon found themselves afloat in an
Ottawa canoe, and on their way back to Mackinaw, accompanied by a
flotilla of canoes, bearing a great number of Ottawa warriors.
"Arrived at Mackinaw, the Ottawas, fully armed, filed into the fort,
and took possession of it. A council of the two tribes followed, in
which the wounded feelings of the Ottawas were somewhat soothed by
a liberal present of plunder, taken from the whites. The prisoners
seem to have been divided, the Ottawas, because they were the stronger
party, or for other reasons, being allowed to keep the greater number.
The Ottawas soon after returned to L'Arbre Croche, taking with them
Capt. Etherington, Lieut. Leslie, and eleven more. They were disarmed
but, probably through the influence of Father Jonois treated kindly.
Father Jonois performed a journey to Detroit in their behalf, bearing
a request to Major Gladwin for assistance, but that officer, beleagured
by a horde of savages, could do nothing.
"In the meantime, Capt. Etherington had found means to communicate with Lieut. Gorell, commanding the little garrison at Green Bay,
requesting him to come with his command immediately to L'Arbre




46


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Croche. Gorell had the fortune to secure the good will of the Menominees, ninety of whom volunteered for an escort. As the fleet of canoes
on the way approached the Isles du Castor, warning was received that
the Chippewas were lying in wait to intercept them. Immediately the
Menominees raised the war song, and stripped themselves for battle.
The alarm, however, proved to be false. When the party reached L'Arbre Croche, they were received with honor, and presented the
pipe of peace. After a series of councils, to which the Chippewa chiefs
were invited, the latter reluctantly consented not to obstruct the passage
of the soldiers to Montreal. Accordingly on the eighteenth of July,
the English, escorted by a fleet of Indian canoes, left L'Arbre Croche,
and, going by way of the Ottawa river, reached Montreal the thirteenth
of August.
"Parkman, in his History of the Conspiracy of Pontiac," continues Dr. Leach, "says that the name of the Ottawa chief at L'Arbre
Croche has not survived in history or tradition. This is a mistake. His
name, Nee-saw-kee, is familiar to the Ottawas of to-day. His grandson,
Nee-saw-wa-quat, a chief of the Little Traverse Indians, died in 1857.
"From the massacre at Mackinac in 1763 up to the close of the war
of 1812, a period of fifty-two years, we are able to gather from history
and tradition only meager accounts of events occurring strictly within
the limits of the Grand Traverse country. It was not at any time the
theater of active war. The Ottawas were still the only inhabitants, except here and there an adventurous fur-trader, or possibly a zealous
Roman Catholic missionary.
"That the Ottawas of L'Arbre Croche were concerned, directly or
indirectly, in most of the Indian troubles of the northwestern frontier,
occurring during the period alluded to, scarcely admits of a doubt.
They were probably represented at the grand Indian council held near
the mouth of Detroit river, in 1786. Some of their warriors, no doubt,
were present at the battles in which Harmar and St. Clair were defeated, and some of their braves may have fallen before Wayne's victorious army, on the banks of the Maumee. One of their noted chiefs,
Saw-gaw-kee, a son of the former head chief Nee-saw-kee, was a firm
believer in the Shawnee prophet Waw-wa-gish-e-maw, or, as he is called
by the historians, Elkswatawa. It does not appear that either Tecumser or the prophet visited L'Arbre Croche in person, but the influence
of the prophet was sufficient to induce a deputation of Ottawas from
that vicinity to visit the distant Indian villages on Lake Superior, with
a message he professed to have received from the Great Spirit, incended to rouse them against the Americans.
"When, in 1812, war was declared between the United States and
Great Britain, Capt. Roberts, commanding the British post on St. Joseph's island, was able in a short time to gather round him a thousand
Indian warriors, for the capture of the American fort on the island of
Mackinac. It is probable that nearly the whole force of the Ottawa
warriors of L'Arbre Croche and the scattered bands around Grand
Traverse Bay, was engaged in that enterprise. The affair ended in the
complete success of the British, happily without the shedding of blood.
Two years later, when the Americans, under Col. Croghan, attempted




IiJ    'I  i,:I::::,~:~:: ~i-iii~.~
i::::~:::...:
i? r5~C
I:?i::~ i


qI
lr


AMONG THE RICE SWAMPS OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN




48


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


to retake the fort, they were foiled mainly by the large force of Indians
the British commander had again been able to gather to his standard.
In this attempt the Americans suffered severe loss. The most shocking
barbarities were practiced on the bodies of the slain. They were literally cut to pieces by their savage conquerors. Their hearts and livers
were taken out, and cooked and eaten, and that too, it is said, even in
the quarters of the British officers. More than forty years afterwards,
when the Indians had become friendly towards the Americans, and the
settlements of the latter had reached the Grand Traverse country, Asabun, an Indian of Old Mission, used to be pointed out as one who had
been seen running about with a human heart in his hands, which he
was devouring. Another, a chief by the name of Aish-qua-gwon-a-ba,
was credited by the settlers, whether justly or not, with keeping a number of scalps, the trophies of his prowess at Mackinac, carefully hidden
away in a certain trunk. If, as their tradition asserts, the Ottawas were
at the height of their power and glory at the time of Pontiac's war, a
later period was the golden age of those at L'Arbre Croche, with reference to the prosperity that comes from peaceful pursuits.
OTTAWAS OF GRAND TRAVERSE
'"The principal and most permanent settlements of the Ottawas
were at Cross village, Middle village, Seven Mile Point, and Little Traverse; but between the first and last of these places, wigwams, singly
and in groups, were scattered at intervals all along the shore. A few
families had their home at Bear creek, on the south side of Little Traverse bay. There were gardens on the height of land, a mile or more
hack from the shore, not far south of the present village of Norwood.
andi a camping place, frequently occupied, on the shore. There were
gardens on the peninsula in Grand Traverse bay and a village at Old
Mission. West of the bay, a small band llad their home on the point
afterwards known as New Mission, and another on the shore of Lake
Michigan, at or near the site of the present village of Leland. Their
dwellings were of various sizes and shapes, and were constructed of a
variety of materials.  The most substantial and permanent consisted
of a frame of cedar poles, covered with cedar bark. One of these, called
o-tmaw\-gay-ko-gaw-lnig, was suare or oblong, with perpendicular walls,
andl a roof witll a slope ill opposite directions, like the simplest form
of framie houses among white men. Another, the ke-no-day-we-gaw-mig.
lia(l perpendicular end walls, )blt the side walls in the upper part were
)(bent inward, meeting along the middle line, thus foriming the roof in
shape of a broad arch. Houses of this kind were sometimes fifty or
sixty feet long, and h1ad places for three fires. The ne-saw-wahl-e-gun
and the Nwah-ge-no-gawn, were light but very serviceable houses, consistilng of t'ra11es of' poles covered witih nmats. Tie former was cone- shaped;
tile latter regularly convex at tle top.  11The1 Imats, ten or twelve feet
long alnd three or four wille, were made of the long, slender leaves of
the cat-tail flag (Typha), properly cured and carefully sewed together.
WhelL suitablly adjusted oll tile frames, with the edges lapping. they
itiaid;ai setrviceable roof. lheiilg light. ald(l, whllei rolled up, inot incoln



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


49


venient to carry, they were used for traveling tents. Houses of mats
were often used for winter residence in the woods, and were not uncomfortable. The ah-go-beein-wah-gun was a small summer house for
young men, usually constructed of cedar bark on an elevated platform
resting on posts, reached only by ascending a ladder. Winter houses
in the woods were sometimes built of slabs, or planks, of split timber.
They were often cone-shaped, and were made tight and warm. They
were called pe-no-gawn. In the woods, even in winter, they sometimes
lived in temporary wigwams of evergreen boughs, which they managed
to make comfortable.
"The Indian houses were without windows. The fire was built
upon the ground, in the center if the lodge was small; or there was a row
of fires down the middle line, in a long ke-no-day-we-gaw-mig. A hole
in the roof, above each fire, served for the escape of the smoke. A
raised platform, a foot or a foot and a half high, covered with mats,
along the sides of the room, served for a seat during the day and for
a sleeping place at night. The mats, some of them beautifully ornamented with colors, were made of rushes found growing in shallow
lakes, ingeniously woven together with twine manufactured from the
bark of the slippery elm.
"In their gardens the Ottawas cultivated corn, pumpkins, beans,
and potatoes. Apple trees, the seed for which was originally obtained
from the whites-either the Jesuit missionaries or the fur traderswere planted in every clearing. Wild fruits, especially choice varieties
of wild plums, were grown from seed introduced from their distant
southern hunting grounds. At the time of the present writing, fruit
trees of their planting are found growing wild in the young forests
that have sprung up on abandoned fields. The gardens were frequently
some distance from the villages. The owners resorted to them at the
proper season, to do the necessary work, living for the time in portable
lodges or in temporary structures erected for the occasion. Though
they hunted more or less at all times, winter was the season devoted
more especially to that pursuit. Then the greater part of the population left the villages, and scattered through the forest. The chain of
inland lakes in Antrim county, having its outlet at Elk Rapids, was a
favorite resort, on account of the facilities for fishing, as well as for
hunting and trapping. Many plunged into the deeper solitudes of the
forest, and fixed their winter abode on the Manistee, the Muskegon, or
the Sauble. Others embarked in canoes, and coasted along Lake Michigan to its southern extremity, from there making their way to the
marshes of the Kankakee and the hunting grounds of northern Indiana
and Illinois. Several families had their favorite winter camping place
on the northeastern shore of Boardman lake, within the present corporate limits of Traverse City. Here the women and children remained,
while the hunters made long trips in the woods, returning to camp, with
the spoils of the chase, several times during the winter. One principal
advantage of the location was the abundance of pickerel in the lakean abundance that seems fabulous to the white fisherman of the present
day. They were caught with spears, through holes cut in the ice, and
were an important addition to the winter supply of food.
Vol. 1-4




50


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


"In spring traders came from Mackinac, and sometimes from other
places, to barter goods for furs. Not infrequently, however, the Indian hunter, accompanied by his wife and children, preferred to visit
the center of trade with his peltries, in person. Then, sometimes, there
was a brief but fearful indulgence of the Indian's appetite for strong
drink. At home sobriety usually prevailed.
"How long the Jesuits continued active work at L'Arbre Croche
after the time of Father Jonois, is not known.  There seems to have
been a long period during which the Indians were left to themselves.
The great cedar cross remained standing on the brow of the bluff at
(Cross village, a memorial of the devotion and zeal of the early mission

OLD INDIAN TRAIL. NORTHERN AMICHIGAN
aries, but their teachings had been forgotten. It is said that when the
ground was afterwards reoccupied, only one Indian could be found
who could prove himself a Christian by making the sign of the cross.
"In 1825 the Catholics sent a missionary to reoccupy the long
abandoned field. Seven Mile Point was chosen as a center of operations,
and a church was immediately built. The building was about twenty
feet by forty in size, constructed, like the better class of Indian houses,
of the most suitable materials readily obtainable-cedar timbers for the
frame, and for the coverine cedar bark. Seven Mile Point not proving
a satisfactory location, in 1827 the mission was moved to Little Traverse.
At the latter place a church, of cedar logs, was built the following year.
About the same time a similar church was built at Cross village. The




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


51


work of the missionaries was successful, a considerable number of Indians readily becoming Catholics.
"About 1839 and 1840 the population was greatly diminished by
a sudden exodus, caused by distrust of the Indian policy of the United
States government. Fearing to be forcibly removed beyond the Mississippi, fully one-half of the Indians, it is said, took refuge in Canada."
This may be said to be the concluding chapter of Indian history in the
northern Michigan of which we write.
EXTINGUISHMENT OF THE INDIAN
But the Indians of Michigan, in common with those between the
Ohio and Mississippi rivers, saw the "handwriting on the wall" when
the new comers to their territory were known to be representatives of
the people further to the east who had triumphed over the great King
of England. In December, 1786, after nearly all the original states
of the Union had ceded their northwestern lands to the general government a grand confederate council of the Indians northwest of the Ohio
was held near the Huron village at the mouth of the Detroit river, and
was attended by the Six Nations, the Hurons, Ottawas, Miamis, Shawanese, Chippewas, Cherokees, Delawares, Pottawatomies and confederates
of the Wabash.
The ground of difference between the Indians and the United States
was a question of boundary, the Indians maintaining that the Ohio
river was not to be crossed by the Americans. The council was pacific,
providing that the United States did not encroach on their lands. The
Indians were not included in the treaty, and it became a nice legal question how far the United States had a right to advance upon the territory then occupied by the Indians. The savages attributed the mischief and confusion to the fact that the United States would "kindle
the council fires whenever they thought proper without consulting
the Indians." The posts in Michigan thus withheld from the possession of the United States were Detroit and Mackinac; and Great Britain,
in order to strengthen the post against the incursions of the Americans took immediate measures to garrison the fort at Detroit, under
instructions from Lord Dorchester.
It was finally determined to call a grand council of the Indians in
which the whole ground of complaint between the savages and the
United States should be discussed, and a final determination made, if
possible. As was natural, the Hurons, who had the confidence both
of their own people and the United States, were the chief promoters
of the proposed compromise and earnestly invited the federation of
eastern Indians-the Five Nations-to send representatives to the council. This invitation read:
MESSAGE OF THE HURONS OF DETROIT TO THE FIVE NATIONS
"January 21, 1788.
"Brethren: Nothing yet has reached us in answer to the messages
sent to the Americans on the breaking up of our general council, nor




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


is it now probable that we shall hear from them before our next meeting takes place, a circumstance that ought to expedite us in our business. The nations this way have adhered hitherto to the engagements
entered into before we parted, at least as far as has come to our knowledge, and we intend immediately to call them to this council fire, which
shall be uncovered at the time appointed; that without further delay
some decisive measures may be finally fixed upon for our future interest, which must govern hereafter the conduct of all nations in our
alliance. And this we intend to be our last council for the purpose;
therefore it is needless to urge further the indispensable necessity of
all nations being present at the conclusion of affairs tending so much
to their own future welfare and happiness.
"And we do in a particular manner desire you, the Five Nations,
to be strong and punctual in your promise of being with us early
and in time; and that not only the warriors, but the chiefs of your
several nations, attend on this occasion. We shall therefore endeavor
to have as many of the western and southern Indians as possible collected."
"STRINGS OF WAMPUM.
No records of this council have been discovered, although the accounts of the proceedings, it is believed, were forwarded to Lord Dorchester. It is probable that there was a division in.their deliberations,
because two treaties were held at Fort Harmar which were attended
by only a portion of the Indians. These treaties were held by General
St. Clair, in January, 1789; in the first place with the Five Nations,
with the exception of the Mohawks; and in the second place with the
warriors and sachems of the Wyandots, Delawares, Ottawas, Chippewas,
Pottawatomies and Sac.
In 1785 a treaty had been held with the Ottawas, Chippewas, Delawares and Wyandots at Fort McIntosh by which a belt of land commencing at the River Raisin and extending to Lake St. Clair, with a
breadth of six miles along the strait, was ceded to the United States;
and to this was added a tract of twelve square miles at Michilimackinac.
In the treaty of Fort Harmar, in the year 1787, all the stipulations embraced in the former treaties were confirmed.
From  1796 to 1805 Michigan was attached to the northwest and
Indiana territories. On the 15th of August of the former year, Secretary Sargent, by proclamation, organized the county of Wayne. It
included the lower and the eastern half of the Upper Peninsula, a large
tract across the northern border of the present states of Ohio and Indiana, and a strip along the entire western shore of Lake Michigan,
including the present sites of Chicago, Milwaukee and Green Bay. In
all this territory, over which so many times had swept the tide of
war during the previous hundred years, the only land under cultivation was the narrow border extending from the River Raisin to Lake
St. Clair. To this the Indian title had been secured by Governor Arthur
St. Clair. of the Northwest territory, it being described as "the post
of Detroit with a district of land beginning at the mouth of the River
Rosine, at the west end of Lake Erie and running up the southern bank




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


53


of said river six miles, thence northerly and always six miles west of
the strait, until it strikes the Lake St. Clair." It also secured the post
at Mackinaw and twelve miles square around it. The consideration
was $6,000.
In 1795 General Wayne by the Indian treaty made at Greenville,
Ohio, had secured the same territory in Michigan; also the islands of
Mackinac and Bois Blanc, and a piece of land on the straits of Mackinac
three miles in length and three miles back from the straits between
Lakes Huron and Michigan. At this treaty twelve tribes were represented by 1,113 Indians-the most prominent being the Wyandots
(Hurons), Delawares, Shawanese, Ottawas, Chippewas and Pottawatomies.
In 1808 Governor Hull secured a tract of land running north from
the mouth of the Auglaize river until it intersects the latitude of the
outlet of Lake Huron, thence northeast to White Rock. The southern
boundary was the Maumee river. This tract covered the land east of
the present meridian line....
By the treaty made at Saginaw in 1819, General Cass obtained in
addition the strip "commencing six miles south of the base line on
the boundary of the 1808 treaty, thence west sixty miles, thence north
in a direct line to the head of Thunder Bay river; thence down the
same to the mouth." General Cass, in his report of this acquisition,
says: "A large portion of the country ceded.is of the first character
for soil and situation; it will vie with any land I have seen north of
the Ohio river. The cession probably contains more than six million
acres." The above were the principal cessions of land by the Indians
up to the time they were thrown upon the market as public lands in
1818.




CHAPTER III


PLANTING OF THE WHITE MAN
NICOLET LANDS ON MICHIGAN SOIL-THE COMING OF MARQUETTE-HIS
DEATH AND BURIAL-CADILLAC AND MIICHILIMACKINAC-INSECURE
AND BURDENSOME LAND TENURE-MONOPOLIES RETARD PROGRESSFUR TRADE ENRICHES ONLY THE RICH-ENGLISH FLAG SUPPLANTS
THE FRENCH-INDIANS REBEL-MASSACRE AT FORT MICHILIMACKINAC
-SIEGE OF DETROIT RAISED-NORTHERN MICHIGAN BECOMES AMERICAN SOIL.
The planting of the white man in the territory now embraced by
the state of Michigan is generally conceded to commence with the coming of Jean Nicolet to the Soo in 1634. A young man of good education and religious instruction he had received a thorough training among
the Indians of the east, under the care of Champlain, who was the undisputed head of the fur trade as patronized by the French government. Twenty-three years before the coming of Nicolet, Champlain
had established a trading post on the island of Montreal and held a
council with the Hurons who had come to him from their far western
country. In 1617 the latter had personally traversed the shores of
Lake Huron, but it remained for his younger and equally enthusiastic
disciple, Nicolet, to actually plant his feet on the soil of Michigan. He
was well qualified to be the representative of Champlain and the great
trading company which the latter headed, known as the Hundred Associates. His mission was a double one-to develop trade among the
Indians and to discover, if possible, the northwest passage to India and
the Orient.
During the latter part of June, 1634, Nicolet was ready to set out
from Quebec upon his eventful journey. At that time there were in
all Canada but six Jesuits. To three of these the Huron mission was
assigned, and they were accompanied a portion of the trip by Nicolet
on his way to the Winnebagoes. At that time there were many savages
from the west at that point. It was difficult to get them to permit so
many white men to accompany them on the return journey, and many
hardships and privations had to be endured, even in the early part of
the journey; for there was a scant diet, many portages had to be made
and the savages required a large share of the labor to be performed by
the whites.
Nicolet could not tarry long with the Algonquins of the isle with
hom lie had lived so long, as lie was to go to the luron villages onil
54




WHERE NICOLET LANDED IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN (1634)




56


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the borders of Georgian bay before entering upon his journey into
the unexplored country on his mission to the Winnebagoes. He made
his way up the Ottawa to the Mattawan; thence to Lake Nipissing; and
thence down French river to Georgian bay, upon which he coasted
southward in a canoe along the shore to the villages of the Hurons.
This trip to the Hurons was far out of his course from the Ottawas to
the Winnebagoes; and it is evident that he went there on a mission from
Champlain to inform the Hurons of the desire of the governor of
Canada to have amicable relations established between them and the
Winnebagoes, and to secure a few of the Hurons to accompany him on
his mission of peace.
After his ceremonies with the Hurons had been completed, Nicolet
struck boldly out into undiscovered regions where he was to encounter
savage nations never before visited by white men, so far as the records
show. It was a voyage full of danger, and one that would require
great tact, courage and the constant facing of difficulty. No Frenchman, however, was better adapted to the occasion. Nicolet had brought
with him presents with which to conciliate the tribes he should meet.
Seven Hurons accompanied him, and a birch bark canoe bore a white
man for the first time along the northern shore of Lake Huron and
upon St. Mary's river to the Falls-Sault Ste. Marie; thence again
down the river, many miles on Lake Michigan and up Green bay to
the home of the Winnebagoes; and that first canoe was the leader of
a van of a mighty commercial fleet that has since developed upon
the great inlandseas.
NICOLET ON MICHIGAN SOIL
As Nicolet came westward, entering St. Mary's river, his canoes
were pushed onward to the foot of the rapids, where the intrepid
young Frenchman, with his seven Huron companions, rested with the
"People of the Falls." at their principal village on the south, or Michigan shore. They were still with the great Algonquin Indian nation,
among whose more eastern tribes Nicolet had been trained in their
woodscraft and tongue.
From Lake Huron the voyagers had threaded their way-first through
narrow rapids, then into and across placid lakes and around beautiful
islands, until they had finally come to within fifteen miles of the
largest fresh water sea in the world, stretching away in its grandeur
a distance to the westward of over four hundred miles. It is not recorded that Nicolet ever ascended the river above the fall, or set eyes
upon Lake Superior. Where he rested amid a cluster of wigwams,
indicating the center of the commerce of savagery, now stands the
beautiful and business-like city of Sault Ste. Marie, overlooking one of
the finest of all commercial waterways.
After a brief rest at the Falls, Nicolet returned down the strait,
and it is thought he passed through the western "detour" and through
"the second fresh water sea" (Lake Michigan), being the first white
man to set eyes upon its beautiful and broad expanse, the straits of
Mackinac and the island of that name. He continued along the north




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


57


shore of the lake, stopping on the southern coast of the Upper Peninsula, from time to time, until he reached the Bay of Noquet-the northern arm of Green bay.
After visiting the Menominee and Winnebago in what is now Wisconsin, as well as the Illini in the prairie country and the south, he
proceeded to return in the spring of 1635. He had, in reality, been the
primal discoverer of the "Territory Northwest of the Ohio." He had
traveled four hundred leagues beyond the Huron village at the Soo,
his homeward journey being also via Mackinac and the Grand Manitoulin islands. As near as can be ascertained he reached Three Rivers
about July 20, 1635.
THE COMING OF MARQUETTE
Various Jesuit missionaries visited the Soo and penetrated beyond
to the Lake Superior region within the succeeding thirty years, but
the coming of Father Marquette to that point in 1668 was really the
first event, after the landing of Nicolet, which had an effect upon the
opening to white settlement of Northern Michigan below the Straits
of- Mackinac. This heroic figure not only skirted many of its beautiful
shores with his fellow priests and dusky comrades, but drew his last
feeble and labored breath upon the territory to which this work is
devoted.
In 1669 Marquette was joined at the Sault by Pere Dablon, superior
of the Huron mission, and they were soon established in a square fort
of cedar pickets enclosing a chapel and a house, with growing crops
of wheat, maize, and peas in their clearing. In the fall of the same
year, Marquette took charge of the mission at La Pointe, and Dablon
remained at the Sault. In 1871 he returned from the La Pointe mission and established the mission of St. Ignatius (St. Ignace).
At St. Ignatius, Marquette learned from the Indians of the existence
of a great river to the west, which was said to flow through fertile
lands that were peopled with tribes who had never heard of the Gospel
of Christ, and he was filled with a desire to explore that country, preach
to its people and discover whether the great river flowed to the Gulf of
Mexico or to the Pacific ocean. The locality of St. Ignace had been
theretofore a favorite resort for the Indians on account of the abundance of fish and game. Marquette recognized its additional strategic
advantages as holding control of the water highway to the farther
west and it was because of his early recognition of these numerous
advantages that, in 1671, he established the mission at the old town of
Michilimackinac. Under the sanction of the king, and still pursuing
the hope of discovery of a passage to the Pacific ocean, Count Frontenac,
successor to Talon, who had retired in failing health, sent Joliet to
Michilimackinac where he joined Father Marquette, and they prepared
for their journey of exploration and discovery the following spring.
In 1673, May 17th, these two men set out from St. Ignace in two
bark canoes, with five Frenchmen and a goodly supply of provisions.
They took their course down the shore of Lake Michigan and Green
bay, thence up the Fox river to Lake Winnebago, and across the coun



58


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


try and down the Wisconsin river to the Mississippi which they discovered June 17, 1673. They followed down that river to the mouth
of the Arkansas, where Marquette concluded the course of the stream
was to the Gulf of Mexico. After a few days of rest and conference
with the natives, the explorers set out upon their return, reaching Green
bay in September.
In the meantime Father Marquette had been transferred to this
mission and, being tired from the effects of his long journey, he stopped
at this mission while Joliet proceeded to Quebec to make reports of
their discoveries. About a year later Marquette again set out upon
another southward trip, this time with a view to establishing a mission among the Indians of Illinois. He was in feeble health and
stopped for the winter a short distance up the Chicago river from its
mouth. On his return the following spring, he was too feeble to
stand the journey, and with his companions disembarked on the shores
of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Pere Marquette river, where
he died May 19, 1675. There his companions buried his body and
erected a cross to mark the site of his grave, but from this place the
bones of his body were removed the following year, by friendly Indians from various tribes, to St. Ignace, where they were buried with
proper ceremonies in a vault beneath the chapel, the ceremonies having
been in charge of Father Nouvel, then superior, assisted by Father
Pierson. This chapel was destroyed by fire in 1700, and the site seems
to have been lost track of for nearly two hundred years, until, in 1877,
Father Jacker identified the spot and there was erected thereon a
marble monument. The mortal remains were reverently borne to
Marquette college, Milwaukee, in whose keeping they remain.
DEATH AND BURIAL OF MARQUETTE
It seems to be the fate of some of the princely characters of history that either the places of their birth, or the exact scenes of their
exit from the earth, should be matters of doubt. This is particularly
the case regarding the passing, away of Father Marquette, although
beyond a doubt his soul took its flight from his disease-racked body
somewhere near the mouth of the river which bears his name, in the
vicinity of the present city of Ludington.
The following from the pen of a local writer brings the life and
lonelv death of Father Marquette into the bustling activities of the
present:
"Because it was at Ludington that death 's imperative summons
called him who well may be termed the patron saint of all Michigan,
the river that here finds its way into the big lake, the beautiful body
of water that forms Ludington's splendid harbor and many of the
commercial and industrial enterprises of the community, bear the revered name of Pere Marquette.
"The great railway that stretches its myriad of steel arms over
the length and breadth of the Lower Peninsula honors this loved and
historic name because when it first reached out toward the northwest,
the line from Flint found its terminal at the spot where the sainted




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


59


Jesuit missionary bowed to the final will of His Master. Ludington itself once was called Pere Marquette, yet today there is not even the
rough, wooden cross put there and maintained by the Indians more
than two centuries ago to mark the approximate spot where Pere Marquette breathed his last after blessing the devoted voyageurs who
vainly tried to bring him alive to his beloved Michilimackinac.
"There have been some doubts raised by other east shore cities as
to the authenticity of the claim that Pere Marquette died at the mouth
of the river which now bears his name, but it seems to be the opinion
of the majority of the historians who have gone into the matter that
here is the spot where his death occurred, and within the memory of
white settlers still alive there has been told by Indians here the legend
of the burial place of the 'great white saint' in whose honor the redmen always maintained a great rough cross.
"The story of Pere Marquette's life in its relation to early Michigan history is familiar to every one who has attended school in the
Wolverine state or made even a casual study of Michigan history. How
he came to this wilderness and by sheer force of his faith and the influence of his kindly ministrations prepared the way for an almost
peaceful conquest by the vanguard of civilization, need not be elaborated upon. It almost is as familiar throughout the state as is the
name itself.
"Pere Marquette was one of the earliest among those who gave up
their lives to the peculiarly exacting and hazardous missionary work
of the Jesuits. He joined the order in 1654. It had been organized
only a little more than one hundred years prior to that date and, as
among the Catholic orders of that day, was little more than an infant
organization.
"The order was made possible, according to able historians, through
the effect of Rudolph of Saxony's 'Life of Christ' upon one of the old
world warriors who occupied his time during an enforced idleness by
reading this exceptional story. He refused at first to read, but when
all other literature failed at last turned to it and soon became engrossed.
"The book marked the turning point in his life. He devoted himself to the church and indirectly was responsible for the organization
of the Company of Jesus, which Calvin subsequently called the Jesuits.
It represented the beginning of strenuous life in the Catholic church
along the line of a worldwide missionary movement.
"As stated, Jacques Marquette joined the order in 1654, and after
serving his novitiate asked permission to go among the first Jesuit
fathers who came to the then new America. He it was who lifted up
the Christian cross in the wilderness of the lake region and paved the
way among the Indians with an example of Christly life and forbearance that gave the redmen of this district a different idea of the whites
than was the case in most sections where the Indian was forced to give
way before the onward march of civilization.
"Everywhere throughout the lake region the Indians knew and
loved the 'little white father.' His name was as magic among them.
Small wonder indeed that after his example few among the aborigines
of Michigan hesitated to extend a welcome to other whites. He spread




FATHER MARQUETTE AMONG THE INDIANS




1I1STORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN.1


the gospel of his God through countless miles of wilderness and laid
the foundation for the church of Michigan today.
' Then came that historic trip down the Mississippi. It was there,
in 1675, the good Pere Marquette became a prey to that great scourge
of the present-tuberculosis. At first it seemed but a passing illness
and he continued. When he realized the disease was to terminate his
earthly work for the church Pere Marquette left the little party and in
a stanch canoe paddled by two sturdy and loyal French-Canadian
voyageurs started upon a race with death.
"The good father expressed but one wish. He wanted to reach his
mission at Michilimackinac and there seek his reward from the One
he had served so well. It was perhaps one of the greatest incidents
of devotion and physical endurance anywhere recorded in the annals
of Michigan history. The two paddlers worked ceaselessly, day after
day, paddling eighteen and twenty hours of each twenty-four, taking
the frail canoe against the great surges of storm-tossed Lake Michigan.
A kind Providence, indeed, watched over the little vessel and gave
strength to the paddlers.
" 4Up the east shore of Michigan they made their way, camping
when flesh and blood no longer could stand the strain, but getting away
after an hour or two of sleep. Death gained steadily, however, and
when opposite the mouth of the river which subsequently was to bear
his name the face of the Little White Father told his devoted voyageurs
that death was very near. They nodded and increased the pace. A
gesture of the thin hand stayed them. Pere Marquette, too, realized
the end was near and directed them to land upon the little peninsula
formed between what now is Pere Marquette lake and Lake Michigan.
"The sturdy paddlers carried the wasted figure ashore and hurriedly built a rough hut upon the sandy beach of the great lake. Then,
at the behest of the dying father, the men went to snatch a few moment 's
rest. They sank into a sleep seemingly as deep as death itself, but at
the first faint call from the lips of the priest they were up and stand.
ing at his side. They arrived just in time to receive his benediction.
"They hollowed a grave out of the sand on the beach and erected
a rough cross above the resting place of the mortal remains of the immortal Pere Marquette. Then they took up the sorrowful journey, the
bearers of sad tidings to the mission at 1\ichilimackinac.
"Perhaps a year of two later a hunting party of the Ottawas found
the grave and the cross. Remembering the kindness of the Little White
Father they exhumed the body, prepared it for burial in accordance
with tribal custom and started for M\ichilimackinac with a great funeral
escort of warrior laden canoes.
"On approaching the mission they were met by another great flotilla
of canoes and all formed into funeral formation and to the accompaniment of the death chant of the Indians, the body of Pere Marquette
was taken to the mission he loved and there, amid great ceremony, consigned to its permanent resting place.
"This is the story of the death of Pere Marquette. They named the
river that flowed by and the small lake it forms in passing after the
Little White Father. In the early days they called the settlement that




62


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


has since grown to the city of Ludington, Pere Marquette. Each day
sees from two to a dozen great car ferries steaming past that scene of
his death with the name 'Pere Marquette' emblazoned in big white
letters on the port and starboard bows. Locomotives pass within hearing of that historic spot with 'Pere Marquette' inscribed upon the
tender, drawing all sorts of railway vehicles upon which are also found
these historically magic words.
"There is a sincere regret in Ludington that the name of the city
was ever changed from the original Pere Marquette. There is a movement on foot at present to mark the approximate spot of his death with
a suitable monument. It is said the exact spot has been swallowed up
by the shifting sands and now lies under the water of Lake Michigan,
but the fact remains that Pere Marquette died within a few steps of the
deserted village of Butters and that from the exact spot of that historic
deathbed scene of more than two centuries ago, one might now see the
solitary smokestack of the old Butters sawmill."
CADILLAC AND MICHILIMACKINAC
Prior to the founding.of Detroit, in 1701, the old town of Michilimackinac (Mackinaw City), was the headquarters of the military, trading and exploring expeditions conducted by the French government.
With the establishment of the Northwest Fur Company, in 1694, Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac was appointed to the command at Michilimackinac, where the natives were exhibiting the same feelings of unrest and hostility that pervaded practically all Indian nations at that
period. This fur company established its base of operations at Michilimackinac, thereby largely increasing the number of traders that ranged
throughout the surrounding country with that place as the center of
operations; and a more extensive armed force seemed essential, and
was provided for the subjugation of the natives in that section. The
coming of Cadillac as commander, and his methods of government were
so obnoxious to, and were so resisted by the missionaries of the locality,
that it became notorious that he meant to destroy their missions.
In writing from Michilimackinac to the governor general, August
3, 1695, Cadillac said: "The village is one of the largest in all Canada;
there is a fine fort of pickets, and sixty houses that form a street in a
straight line. There is a garrison of well-disciplined chosen soldiers,
consisting of about two hundred men, besides many others who are residents here during two or three months of the year."  He also comments on the air as being penetrating, and therefore making the daily
use of brandy a necessity to prevent sickness. He speaks of the Indian villages in the vicinity being about a pistol shot distant from the
French village, and of its having a population of six thousand or seven
thousand persons. He also speaks of their occupation, and says that
all lands are cleared for about three leagues around the village, and
that they were very well cultivated, and of them he says: "They
produce a sufficient quantity of Indian corn for the use of both the
French and the savage inhabitants. The question is then, what reason
can there be for this prohibition of intoxicating drinks in regard to




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


63


the French who are here now? Are they not subjects of the king, even
as others? In what country, then, or in what land, until now, have they
taken from the French the right to use brandy, provided they did not
become disorderly?"
This letter is not only authoritative evidence of the popularity of
this part of the country in the eye of the Indians, but it shows that
the French had attained to a considerable settlement and that the fields
were made to add to the products of the forests and the waters, their
quota of a substantial and varied sustenance sufficient for all.
It is also a serious commentary on existing conditions wherein a
strife had grown up between the traders and the missionaries, and
wherein Cadillac took the part of the traders, who in order to promote advantageous bargains had brought into the country large quanCADILLAC
tities of brandy which they disposed of alike to the Indians and the
French. This was against the protests of the missionaries, who found
it seriously affected and impeded their ecclesiastical work, and was
demoralizing, generally, to the inhabitants of both races. Cadillac's
letter was written because of complaints made by the missionaries to
the home government of this evil effect of the traffic, and Cadillac
seems to have placed the advantage of a more profitable trade above
the moral question of the effect upon the characters of the people, as
judged from the form of his argument. He quotes upon this subject
from an address to him by some of the chiefs and inhabitants as follows: "Oh chief, what evil have thy children done to thee that thou
shouldst treat them so badly? Those that came before thee were not
so severe upon us. It is not to quarrel with thee that we come here;
it is only to know for what reason thou wishest to prevent us from




64


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


drinking brandy. Thou shouldst look upon us as thy friends, and the
brothers of the French, or else as thy enemies. If we are thy friends,
leave us the liberty of drinking; our beaver is worth thy brandy, and
the Master of Life gave us both, to make us happy. If thou wish to
treat us as thy enemies, do not be angry if we carry our beavers to
Orange (Albany) or to Cortland, where they will give us brandy, as
much as we want."
This question of the effect of the liquor traffic caused serious conflict between the missionaries on the one hand and the military and
the traders on the other, from which much friction resulted at a time
when they were seriously in need of the closest harmony. It is claimed
to have had much to do in adding to the turbulent temper of the savages, and their unrest which the events of the whole country were
then but too plainly evincing; and who can tell how great a part it
may have had in firing the temper of those savages to the point of the
subsequent massacres? The friction thus engendered between the missionaries and the military, as well as the threatening attitude assumed
by the Indians, may well be considered as the cause of the disruption
that soon followed, when the Jesuits withdrew from this section of the
country, and their work in this vicinity was abandoned with little perceptible enduring effect; for, noble as was the work, it was applied almost exclusively to the Indian race, and its effects were very largely
effaced in the absolute reign of the traders that was paramount for
the century to follow.
Another event of the times exhibited still further discord between
the missionaries and the military, which latter were in accord with
the officials of the government. The savage Iroquois had waged furious wars upon the Hurons and punished them relentlessly in many encounters, and the French believed that the Iroquois' assaults were at
the instigation of the English.
The French, for the purpose of protecting their interests in this
lake country against the intrusions of the English, endeavored to har,
monize and unite the opposing Indian nations, and therefore form a
barrier to English progress. The French and the English had clashed
over the territory west of the Alleghanies, and the Jesuits who had
been active as missionaries among the Iroquois found themselves out
of sympathy with the Canadian officials. This is strongly evidenced
by the fact that when Cadillac took up the mission of establishing a
colony at Detroit but one Jesuit came with him. He was Father Nalliaut
and he did not remain a day. He was later succeeded by representatives
of the Recollet order.
Immediately on the return of Cadillac to Quebec, in 1697, he presented to Governor Frontenac his plans for the establishment of a fort
at Detroit, and the advantages of the location for that purpose. Before any definite action was taken thereon Frontenae died, and was
succeeded in 1698, by Louis Hector de Callieres, as governor general.
Father Carheil presented to the newly appointed governor general the
protest of the mission of St. Ignace against the plans of Cadillac as
being calculated to destroy the missions at and about St. Ignace; but,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


65


notwithstanding this protest, in 1701 Cadillac obtained authority to
establish a military post at Detroit.
INSECURE AND BURDENSOME LAND TENURE
We have dwelt somewhat at length on this contest at old Michilimackinac over the liquor traffic, because its relates directly to the country covered by this history, and is also the starting point of the conflict between the advocates of temperance and anti-temperance which
has continued to this day; and the reader will note that many phases
of the question in 1695 and 1911 are very similar.
But the growing differences of opinion between the men of the Cross
and the men of the world were not the only causes for the unpromising
social and industrial conditions which were the outgrowth of French
dominion. The missions were abandoned, but the form of land distribution which prevailed did not encourage the settlement of the French
peasantry; the fur traders were migratory and few remained to found
homes and families.
Grants of land were made by the French governor of Canada and
Louisiana which were required to be confirmed by the King of France.
The commandants of the forts were also allowed to grant permissions
of occupancy to the settlers and lands were occupied by the French
settlers without permission. On that ground are based some of the old
French titles to land in the state. The regular grants made to the settlers were encumbered with the most illiberal and burdensome conditions, calculated to cripple the freedom of the tenant and the progress
of husbandry. Even the first grant which was made at Detroit in 1707,
six years after Detroit was founded, by Cadillac to Delorme, interpreter for the King, clearly exhibits the feudal spirit of the French
policy. It conveyed only thirty-two acres. The right of hunting hares,
rabbits and partridges was reserved.
A further exposition of this interesting but retarding period of
French dominion over the territory now covered by Northern Michigan
is thus given in James H. Lanman's history of 1839: "The grantee
was required to pay five livres quit-rent on the 20th of March of each
year; and also the sum of ten livres in peltries, until a current money
should be established, and that sum was thenceforth to be paid in money.
He was also required to begin to clear and improve the concession within
three months from the date of the grant on pain of forfeiture. He
was required to plant, or help to plant, a long May-pole at the door of
the principal manor on the 1st of May in every year. If the grantee
failed in this, he was bound to pay three livres in money or peltries.
He was also bound to pay for the right of grinding at the moulin bannal,
or mill of the manor. All the timber wanted for the construction of
fortifications, boats and other vessels, was reserved; and no person was
permitted to work on the land at the trade of a blacksmith, gunsmith,
armorer, or brewer, within the first ten years from the date of the
grant, without the consent of the grantor. On every sale of the lands,
the duty was to be paid called the lods et ventes. All effects carried
to or from Montreal were required to be sold by the grantee or other
Vol. I-5.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


person, who, with his family, was a resident, and not by clerks, foreigners, or strangers. If the grantee sold to a foreigner with permission7 the duties required were increased to a great degree. The grantee
was forbidden to trade brandy with the Indians, and in some cases
he was bound to obtain a brevet of confirmation within two years. Similar grants, equally burdensome, were also made in 1734, by Charles
Marquis de Beauharnois, governor for the king in Canada and Louisiana,
to St. Aubin; and in 1750 by De la Jonquiere to Antoine Robert, of
lands on the Detroit river. The abridgment of the rights of the tenants
was further effected in 1745 by an edict which passed ordaining that no
country houses should be built on plantations of one acre and a half
in front and forty back, and the scarcity of springs in the interior
thus confined the settlements along the banks of the streams. The influence of national policy is nowhere more strongly exhibited than in
the contrast with that period of the sturdy American enterprise whieh
is now acting on the soil.
"Beside the unequal and burdensome tenure of land distribution,
springing from the coutume de Paris, equal and exact justice could not
be administered in doubtful matters, except on application to the governor of Canada. At a subsequent period numerous grants were made
by R. de Bellestre, then the commandant of Detroit; and there is on
record a cause of Claude Campeau against M. Cabacier praying for
an injunction to prevent the demolition of a mill when M. Landrieve
was commandant of that post. In 1753 a temporary order was given,
sent to the governor-general, and finally received the signature of the
Marquis Du Quesne. The record shows that the government of the posts
on the lakes was subject to the authority of the commandants under
the cognizance of the governor-general; and it also establishes the fact
that there was no organized court or settled system of jurisprudence.
"'In 1749 a number of emigrants were sent out at the expense of
the French government, who were provided with farming utensils and
all the means necessary to advance a colony. These were settled at
Detroit; but no material advantage was gained to the posts on the lakes.
because there was too little energy and system in the government, and
too little enterprise in the people. Surrounded by streams and forests yielding abundance, removed from the settled portion of the world,
there was but little motive presented to their minds for the exertion
of energy and ambition.
" About this period the policy of the French government was exercised to establish a chain of posts from Quebec to the mouth of the
Mississippi, in order to secure the trade, overawe the Indians, and environ the English power, which was then confined to the Atlantic seaboard. In 1751 the fort of Detroit, as well as those on the upper lakes,
continued to be in a weak condition. About thirty French farms or
plantations were scattered along the banks of the river and the colony
contained a population of about five hundred, besides the Indians in
the free villages who could at that time command about four hundred
warriors. Detroit was then an important point of French influence o0
the northwestern lakes.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


67


MONOPOLIES RETARD PROGRESS
"The progress of the country under the French government was
obstructed by the fact that this region was long under the monopoly
of exclusive companies chartered by the French crown. The design
of these companies, especially the governors and intendants. was to
enrich themselves by the fur trade; and accordingly they had little
motive to encourage agriculture or general settlement. By that policy
the intendants accumulated large fortunes by the trade, while they
averted from the observation of the French crown the actual condition
of the colonies in Canada. They much preferred that the French inhabitants should undergo the labor of procuring furs, while they might
reap the profits, rather than that these tenants should become the free
husbandmen of a fertile soil. It was reverence for rank, ignorance of
the true principles of republican freedom, and, in some measure perhaps, a virtuous loyalty which they felt toward their monarch, that induced them to yield their allegiance to the colonial administration.
FUR TRADE ENRICHES ONLY THE RICH
"The fur trade was the principal subject of mercantile traffic upon
the coast of Michigan, and its central point was the shores of the northwestern lakes. Large canoes, laden with packs of European merchandise,
advanced periodically through the upper lakes, for the purpose of
trading for peltries with the Indians; and these made their principal
depots at Michilimackinac and Detroit. In order to advance the interests of the trade, licenses were granted by the French king, and unlicensed persons were prohibited from trading with the Indians in their
own territory under the penalty of death. The ordinary price of these
licenses was six hundred crowns. They were generally purchased from
the governor-general by the merchants, and by them sold out to the
Canadian traders or the Coureurs des Bois. The privilege granted in
a single license was the loading of two large canoes, each of which was
manned by six men, and freighted with a cargo valued at about a
thousand crowns. They were sold to the traders at an advance of about
fifteen per cent more than they could command in ready money at the
colony. The actual profits on these voyages was generally about one
hundred per cent. In this traffic the merchant acquired most of the
profit, while the trader endured most of the fatigue. On the return
of the expedition, the merchant took from the bulk of the profit six
hundred crowns for his license, and a thousand crowns for the prime
cost of the exported goods. From this sum the merchant took forty
per cent for bottomry and the remainder was then divided among the
six Coureurs des Bois, whose share, for all their hardship and peril,
was only a small consideration.
"The active agents of the fur trade were the Coureurs des Bois, the
pilots of the lakes. Sweeping up in their canoes through the upper
lakes, encamping with the Indians in the solitude of the forests, they
returned to the posts, which stood like lighthouses of civilization upon
the borders of the wilderness; like sailors from the ocean, to whom they




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


were not dissimilar in character. They were lavish of their money in
dress and licentiousness. They ate, drank, and played all away, so long
as their goods held out; and when these were gone, they sold their embroidery, their lace and clothes; and they were then forced to go on
another voyage for subsistence."
The scope of French enterprise upon the lakes was mainly confined
to the fur trade during the whole period of the French domination; and
the general course of the traffic may be known by the words of La Hontan,
written at Montreal in 1865: "Much about the same day, there arrived
twenty-five or thirty canoes belonging to the Coureurs des Bois, being
homeward bound for the great lakes and laden with beaver skins. The
cargo of each canoe amounted to forty packs, each of which weighs
fifty pounds and will fetch fifty crowns at the farmer's office. These
canoes were followed by fifty more of the Ottawas and Hurons, who
came down every year to the colony, in order to make a better market
than they can do in their own country of Michilimackinac which lies
on the banks of the Lake of Hurons, at the mouth of the Lake of the
Illinese. Their way of trading is as follows: Upon their arrival they
encamp at the distance of five or six hundred paces from the town. The
next day is spent in ranging their canoes, unloading their goods, and
pitching their tents, which are made of birch bark. The next day they
demand audience of the governor-general, which is granted them that
same day in a public place. Upon this occasion each nation makes a
ring for itself. The savages sit upon the ground with their pipes in
their mouths, and the governor is seated in an arm-chair; after which
there starts up an orator or speaker from one of these nations, who
makes an harangue, importing that his brethern are come to visit the
governor-general, and to renew with him their wonted friendship; that
their chief view is to promote the interest of the French, some of whom,
being unacquainted with the way of traffic and being too weak for the
transporting of goods from the lakes, would be unable to deal in beaver
skins if his brethren did not come in person to deal with them in their
own colonies; that they know very well how acceptable their arrival is
to the inhabitants of Montreal, in regard of the advantage they reap
by it; that in regard the beaver skins are much valued in France, and
the French goods given in exchange are of inconsiderable value, they
mean to give the French sufficient proof of their readiness to furnish
them with what they desire so earnestly. That by way of preparation
of another year's cargo, they are come to take in exchange, fuses, powder,
and ball; in order to hunt great numbers of beavers, or to gall the
Iroquese, in case they offer to disturb the French settlements. And, in
fine, that in confirmation of their words, they throw a porcelain colier,
with some beaver skins, to the Kitchi-Okima (so they call the governorgeneral), whose protection they lay claim to, in case of any robbery or
abuse committed upon them in the town. The spokesman having made
an end of his speech, returns to his place and takes up his pipe, and the
interpreter explains the substance of the harangue to the governor,
who commonly gives a very civil answer, especially if the presents be
valuable; in consideration of which he likewise makes them a present




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


69


of some trifling things. This done, the savages rise up and return to
their huts to make suitable preparations for the ensuing truck.
"The next day the savages make their slaves carry the skins to the
house of the merchants, who bargain with them for such clothes as they
want. All the inhabitants of Montreal are allowed to traffic with
them in any commodity but rum and brandy; these two being excepted
upon the account that when the savages have got what they wanted,
and have any skins left, they drink to excess, and then kill their slaves;
for when they are in drink they quarrel and fight, and if they were
not held by those who are sober, would certainly make havoc one of
another; however, you must observe that none of them will touch either
gold or silver.
"As soon as the savages have made an end of their truck, they take
leave of the governor, and so return home by the river Ottawas. To
conclude, they did a great deal of good, both to the poor and rich; for
you will readily apprehend that everybody turns merchant upon such
occasions.
"' Such was the condition of Michigan under the French domination,'
concludes Lanman. The energies of the colonists were directed to the
aggrandizement of their 'seigneurs' through the fur trade. Agriculture was checked by feudal clogs. The few French peasants scattered
around their posts, or mixed with the savages, adored their lords and
their priests. Amiable, contented, removed from the populated parts
of the world, dwelling in bark or log cottages, stretching along the banks
of the streams and surrounded by pickets, they were goaded by no impulse of ambition or avarice; they felt no fear, save when bands of the
Iroquois advanced to the surrounding forests; for the Iroquois, says
Charlevoix, 'set all Canada on fire.' They yielded a cheerful allegiance
to their lords, because they loved monarchy. The free schools of the
east had scattered intelligence through the English settlements; but
they were in ignorance. The conciliatory and mild but artful spirit,
first sent abroad by Ignatius Loyola in founding the order of the Jesuits,
diffused its influence through the frame-work of society in Michigan;
and the thunders of the Vatican had crossed the ocean, and rolled along
the shore of the lakes."
Cadillac remained in charge of Detroit, which he founded, until
called away from the colony in 1710. That settlement, which was the
outer gateway to the Northern Michigan of today, continued to exist but
showed little signs of growth during the period of French control.
Meanwhile the rival claims of France and England to the same territory in the valley of the Ohio and elsewhere, led to quarrels which
culminated in the French and Indian war, during which the French
lost the forts of Niagara, Ticonderoga and Crown Point.
At Niagara, the English secured a victory which carried with it the
control of the situation at Michilimackinac, Detroit and other lake
posts. This was in July, 1759, and at the same time the siege of Quebec
was in progress where Wolfe had under his command a force of eight
thousand men, and was supported by Admiral Saunders with his fleet
of twenty-two large ships and some smaller ones. The siege continued
for months with attack after attack met by stubborn defense, in a con



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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


flict between two of the bravest commanders that ever met in battle,
both of whom, in the final act of that long drama of war met their deaths
on the famous plains of Abraham in that most sanguinary conflict, which
gave to the British arms the possession of that almost impregnable fortress.
Montreal now alone remained as a French stronghold, and after considerable siege, by both land and naval forces, it too, on September 8,
1760, surrendered, and the province of New France closed its last chapter
in history. It was not until 1763 that the results of the war were fully
decided upon by the treaty of Paris, whereby the king of France surrendered all Canada to England, and was permitted to retain Louisiana
which was shortly thereafter transferred to Spain.
ENGLISH FLAG SUPPLANTS THE FRENCH
Immediately after the surrender of Montreal, Maj. Robert Rogers
was sent to take possession of Detroit and to command that and other
western lake ports. He took with him about two hundred Royal Rangers, and en route was reinforced by American infantry from Pittsburg.
The English were now penetrating new territory to meet a foe well protected by fortifications, and supported by the savages of the lake region,
who, through the teaching of the Jesuits, had become close friends of
the French. They much preferred them to the English because the
French met them as associates, while the English would not; and, furthermore, these Indians of the lake region had for years been accustomed
to think of the English as the allies of their most dreaded savage foes,
the Iroquois. It is not surprising that, under such circumstances, the
English found the French and the lake Indians combined to resist, to
the last, subjugation of the lake posts by their enemy; and, being forewarned, they were armed for their defense and even more; for Pontiac,
the great chief, with a delegation of followers, met Major Rogers at
the.present site of Cleveland and demanded of Rogers information as
to his mission, and why he had dared to come into the country without
permission. Rogers informed him of the surrender of the territory by
the French to the English, and that he had come to take command at
Detroit; and also gave to Pontiac assurances of friendship for the Indians, and of their kind treatment at the hands of the English. After
further conferences Pontiac appeared to be satisfied; the pipe of peace
was smoked, and Pontiac tendered his assistance to Major Rogers in
continuing his trip to Detroit.
Reaching the vicinity of Detroit communications were exchanged
by messenger between Major Rogers and the French commander, Bellistre, occasioning considerable delay and uneasiness to the small force
of English, in the presence of such strange and savage surroundings,
until finally, on November 29th, the fort was surrendered and the English flag, for the first time, supplanted that of the French within the
territory now comprising the state of Michigan.
A retrospect of French government in the Michigan of today reveals the fact that the most prominent feature of its mismanagement
was the neglect to develop the agricultural and other material resources




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


71


of the country looking toward permanent colonization and settlement.
Very little land was cleared, few permanent improvements were made,
and the settlements were small and weak, as the fur trade, which was the
chief occupation of the people, was not calculated to build up and sustain large and thriving settlements. Hence, at the close of the French
and Indian war, the little trading posts of Sault de Ste. Marie, Michilimackinac and Detroit were the meager results of a hundred years of
French control and colonization in the future state of Michigan, and
the old town on the present site of Mackinaw City was the only visible
evidence of the rich' and populous domain known as Northern Michigan,
south of the Straits.
" 'The social condition of Michigan was not much altered by the
transfer of its dominion from the French to the British government,"
says Lanman, in his "History of Michigan."  "The French subjects
were permitted by the capitulation of Montreal, to remain in the country in the enjoyment of their civil and religious rights; and the fur
trade was prosecuted upon the lakes with much energy by English companies, who employed French agents in its prosecution. So far as the
advancement of agriculture and colonization was concerned, the policy
of England in Michigan was not better than that of France. About the
year 1763 the British monarch issued a proclamation restricting the
extinguishment of native title. By this proclamation the English governors were prohibited to issue grants of land excepting within certain
prescribed limits; and the English subjects were also forbidden to
make purchases of the Indians, or settlements, without these bonds.
These grants, purchases and settlements, were, however, made, and they
form an important part of the ancient claims to land afterward adjudged by the land board of Michigan. Even after the treaty which
granted the right of possession to the limited state, this power was assumed on the part of the inhabitants.
"Settlements were made by the French along the principal streams
of the lakes. The farms scattered upon the banks of the rivers were
of narrow form surrounded by pickets, and the cottages (about fifty
in number) on the straits of Detroit, with orchards by their sides, were
constructed of logs, with roofs of bark or thatched with straw. It is
stated by a contemporary of that period that wheat was sown in rows.
Potatoes were first introduced by the English.
"The Canadian-French were an affable and contented class of men
preserving the same habits as now prevail among them throughout the
state. Schools were unknown, and the instruction of the children continued to be derived from the Catholic priests. Coin began to be introduced under English jurisdiction, while peltries were chiefly the circulating medium. The first horses used at Detroit were introduced
from Fort Duquesne and these were taken from the English by the Indians at Braddock's defeat."
Soon after the surrender of Detroit to Major Rogers, the English
commander proceeded to Michilimackinac to personally take charge of
the post there, leaving Captain Campbell at Detroit; but he found it
impossible to make the trip at the late season, either by land or water,
and so he returned east leaving MIichilimackinac, the Soo and Green Bay,




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


although formally ceded to the British, in the actual control and government of the French; and thus they remained until the spring of
1761, when they too formally surrendered to the English, and the French
withdrew permanently from their possessions and claims in Michigan,
although the forts at Michilimackinac, Sault Ste. Marie and St. Joseph,
were not occupied by the English until the fall of that year.
INDIANS REBEL
But the Indians did not like the change from the government of the
social, easy-going, intermingling French to the cold, calculating aggressive English, and the French who remained in the country did what they
could to fan the savage flames of resentment against the advancement of
the new "proprietors" of their soil and hunting grounds. The brave,
fiery and able Algonquin, Pontiac, saw his opportunity to organize the
western tribes against the invasion of this more dangerous type of
white man, and his so-called "conspiracy" fell but little short of its
desperate purpose. His conspiracy consisted in a plan to organize all
the tribes into a combination to drive out the English, and to maintain exclusively for the Indians the country northwest of the Ohio.
To this end he sent his representatives to all the tribes north of the
Ohio and into Canada and as far west as the Mississippi. This work
was carried on so secretly and cautiously that not a word of it came
to the ears of the English until the spring of 1762. The activities
of that war were of short duration within the territory of which we
write, but the great chief visited the Upper Peninsula in the building
up of his plans, and gained considerable individual following from the
tribes of this section who followed him to the contests below the straits,
and all the frontier posts became endangered practically at one time.
The English had only a small garrison at Fort St. Joseph, and that
fort was quickly captured and its garrison sent to Detroit for exchange; while at Michilimackinac a terrible massacre gave that stronghold into the treacherous hands of the Chippewas.
MASSACRE AT FORT MICHILIMACKINAC
The fort, about half a mile southwest of the present site of Mackinaw City, was occupied by Major Etherington, ninety-two soldiers
and four English traders. The commander had full and timely warning of the designs of the Indians, but foolishly disbelieved the reports
and neglected all precautions. On the second of June, 1763 (the
King's birthday), the savages engaged in a game of ball near the
gates of the fort. The officers and soldiers, unsuspicious of danger,
were idle spectators of the sport. About noon the ball was thrown
into the fort and the dusky players rushed after it through the open
gate. A party of squaws standing near furnished the assassins with
tomahawks which had been concealed beneath their blankets and the
massacre began. Details of this terrible affair which dyed with blood
this pioneer soil of Northern Michigan are thus given:*
* As a result of the massacre at Fort Michilimackinac Lieutenant Jamette and seventy
men were killed and scalped, and Major Etherington, three of the English traders and
twenty-three soldiers were taken prisoners and afterward released.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


73


"In the midst of the game there was an Indian war-yell, and the
crowd of Indians who had rushed after the ball within the pickets,
were seen furiously cutting down and scalping the English within the
fort; while many of the English were struggling between the knees
of the Indians, who scalped them while alive. The Canadians around
the fort did not oppose the Indians, or suffer any injury. Henry the
trader had seen from his window the butchery of the garrison, and
finding that his unaided arm was insufficient to cope with the savages,
who had by that time acquired the mastery, soon crawled over a low
fence which divided his own house from that of M. Langlade, and entering, requested some aid by which he could be preserved from the
general massacre. M. Langlade, a Canadian, who had been looking out
at his own window, turned for a moment to the trader, and shrugging
his shoulders, replied in French that he could do nothing for him.
'Que voudriez-vous, que j'en ferais?' said this white savage. At that
moment, a slave belonging to Langlade, of the Pawnee tribe of Indians,
carried him to a door, which she opened and informed him that it led
to the garret, where he was desired to conceal himself.  She then
locked. the door with great presence of mind and took away the key.
Through an aperture in the wall Henry could command a complete
view of the fort. He beheld the barbarian triumphs of the savages
in their foulest and blackest form. Heaps of dead lay around the
fort, scalped and mangled. The dying were shrieking and writhing
under the tomahawk and scalping knife, the bodies of the English
soldiers were gashed and their blood was drank by the savages from
the hollows of joined hands, amid demon-like yells. Henry remained
in terrible suspense for some time, until he heard the cry, 'All is finished,' and at the same time some of the Indians entered the house
where he was concealed, and inquired of Langlade whether there were
any Englishmen in the house. Mr. Langlade replied that he could not
say; that he did not know of any; they might examine for themselves.
The Pawnee slave had secreted Henry by stealth, and did not communicate the fact to anybody. The Indians, however, were brought to
the garret door. The key was soon produced, and the Indians, besmeared with blood and armed with tomahawks, ascended the stairs
just as Henry had crept into a heap of birch-bark vessels which were
used in making maple sugar and which lay in the further end of the
garret. After making two or three turns around the room, they departed without discovering him. The dark color of his clothes, and
the absence of light in the room probably prevented his discovery.
There was at that time a mat in the room; Henry fell asleep; and he
was finally awakened by the wife of M. Langlade, who had gone up
to stop a hole in the roof. She was surprised to see him there: remarked that the Indians had killed most of the English, but that he
might hope to escape. Henry lay there during the night. All chance
of flight seemed to be lost. He was without provisions, surrounded by
savage enemies, and was four hundred miles from Detroit.
"At length the wife of Langlade determined to point out Henry's
place of concealment, and showed the Indians the garret. Her design, she stated, was to prevent the destruction of her own children,




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


which would take place if an Englishman was discovered concealed in
her house. Unlocking the door, she was followed by several Indians,
naked down to their waist and intoxicated, who were led by Wenniway,
a chief. This warrior was more than six feet in height, and his face
and body were covered with charcoal and grease, with the exception
of a ring of two inches in diameter which encircled the eye. At their
entrance Henry roused himself from the bed which was in the garret,
and Wenniway, the chief, advancing with his lips compressed, seized
him by the coat with one hand, and with the other held a large carving-knife, as if to plunge it into his breast, while his eyes were steadfastly fixed on his. Gazing for a moment, he dropped his arm, and
said, 'I won't kill you.' He had been engaged in many wars with the
English, and had lost a brother, whose name was Musinigon. 'You
shall be called after him,' said the savage. Henry was afterwards
stripped of his clothes. He was subsequently carried to L'Arbre Croche
as a prisoner, where he was rescued by a band of three hundred Ottawas, by whom, however, he was soon returned, and finally ransomed by Wawatam. Several of the bodies of the English who had
been slain at Michilimackinac, were boiled and eaten, and Henry,
when a prisoner, was given bread by the Indians cut with the knife
which had scalped his countrymen. At the capture of Michilimackinac
only one trader, M. Tracy, lost his life. Seventy of the English troops
were killed, and the rest, together with the prisoners at St. Joseph and
Green Bay, were kept in safety by the Ottawas until peace, and then
freely restored or ransomed at Montreal. The massacre of the garrison, and the destruction of the fort by burning, completed this project,
which exhibits the strongest lines of tragedy. A number of canoes,
filled with English traders, also arrived about the same time; and these
were dragged through the water, beaten, and marched by the Indians
to the prison lodge. The massacre took place on the 3d of June; and
the savages, who were about four hundred in number, entertaining
apprehension of the English and the other Indians who had not joined
them, soon retired to the island of Mackinac. There Henry was concealed by Wawatam from the intoxication of the savages in the 'salt
rock,' where he lay for one night on a heap of human hones. The post
of Michilimackinac having been destroyed, the savages seemed to have
glutted their revenge; while some repaired to the post at Detroit, to
aid Pontias in that siege.
"The operations of Pontiac in this quarter soon called for efficient
aid on the part of the English government, and during the season
Gen. Bradstreet arrived to the relief of the posts on the lake with an
army of three thousand men. Having burned the Indian corn-fields
and villages at Sandusky and along the rich bottoms of the Maumee,
and dispersed the Indians whom he there found, he reached Detroit
without opposition. The tribes of Pontiac, with the exception of the
Delawares and Shawanese, finding that they could not successfully
compete with such a force, laid down their arms and concluded a
treaty of peace. Pontiac, however, took no part in the negotiation,
and retired to the Illinois, where he was assassinated about the year
1767 by an Indian of the Peoria tribe. The Ottawas, the Pottawatto



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


75


mies, and Chippewas made common cause in revenging his death, by
waging war and nearly exterminating the tribes of the murderer. That
terrific drama, got up by this son of the forest, stamps his name with
greatness. The living marble and the glowing canvass may not embody his works; but they are identified with the soil of the western
forest, and will live as long as the remembrance of its aboriginal inhabitants, the Algonquin race."
SIEGE OF DETROIT RAISED
In the meantime an attempt to gain entrance to the fort at Detroit
by craft had been twice frustrated by Major Gladwin, who had succeeded Captain Campbell as commandant, and when Pontiac discovered that his designs were known he boldly led the attack on that
stronghold in person. The siege, which lasted from early in May
until late in October, included the awful massacre at Bloody Run,
which was the only engagement fought outside the fort. The English
force of 250 men were ambushed by the wily Indians and seventy of
the men were killed and forty wounded. Within the fort the watchful
garrison had little to fear except that the siege might continue until
the provisions were exhausted. Fortunately, the food of the besiegers
first gave out, and it became necessary for the Indians to raise the
siege and go an their annual hunt. Major Gladwin at once laid in a
good supply of provisions for the winter, in anticipation of a possible
renewal of hostilities, but the Indians made no further demonstration
until spring when the negotiations of Sir William Johnson and the
approach of General Bradstreet in the summer induced them to relinquish their purpose. Gladwin county, northeastern Michigan, has
a worthy sponsor in the gallant and able commandant at Detroit.
The result of Pontiac's conspiracy was that the Indians captured
eight of the ten posts which they attacked, hundreds of Englishmen
were killed and a reign of terror prevailed throughout the valleys of
the west. But its great leader failed in the ultimate object of his masterly campaign-the driving of the English from the interior of what
is now the great Middle West.
As it was, the term following the protracted French and Indian
wars, accompanied by awful savageries, greatly retarded the settlement and general development of Michigan.
When the treaties had been duly signed with the several tribes
which had been embraced in Pontiac's conspiracy English military
officers were sent to again take command of the forts regained, and to
Michilimackinac and Sault Ste. Marie came Captain Howard for that
purpose, from which time those points remained at least formally in
the possession of the English until their acquisition by the United
States at the close of the Revolutionary war. With the coming of
peace, English and Dutch traders followed in the footsteps of the
French to reap the rich rewards offered by the fur trade, but employed the French coureurs des bois as their agents.
A controversy between the Hudson Bay Company and the Northwest Company over the division of the territory was adjusted by an




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


arrangement in the nature of a modern "trust," by placing the control of the two companies under one management; all governmental
restrictions such as the French had imposed upon the fur trade were
removed and free trade in furs was established.
The policy adopted by English in regard to the Indians was intended to extend to them pretty much the same freedom which they
had originally enjoyed, but to hold over them such supervising control
as to prevent tribal wars; to allow to them the principal portion of
the territory north and west of the Ohio as their hunting grounds, and
to acquire from them the province of Quebec, then including Michigan, which was peopled almost entirely with French. They were accustomed to the government of France and unfamiliar with that of
England; were almost exclusively of the Catholic religion, and so, with
the coming of the English governor Carlton, the affairs of Canada were
placed in the hands of the military and were not very satisfactory until the passage by parliament, in 1774, of the "Quebec act." This
provided for a governor and council and also for the application of
the criminal laws of England; the establishment, by appointment of
the crown, of local courts with both civil and criminal jurisdiction;
and granting the free exercise of religious belief to the inhabitants
of the province; also allowing them to retain their church property.
The act also extended the boundaries of the province so as to include
all the great lakes, and the country south thereof to the Ohio and west
to the Mississippi river. Because of this latter clause opposition was
engendered in the ranks of the followers of William Penn, who claimed
for his colony a considerable territory within that sought to be given
to Quebec; and it also met with disapproval from the settlers in the
seaboard colonies of the Atlantic coast, with whose western boundaries
the act came in conflict.
Although Michigan was then within the province of Quebec and
subject to her government, there was little occasion for laws beyond
those enforced by the military, as the colonies had not as yet assumed
any great pretense in numbers.
Accurate figures are not accessible, but the best that can be obtained are from a census taken at Detroit in 1773 by a justice of the
peace, wherein the population of that place was given as two hundred
and ninety-eight men, two hundred and twenty-five women, one hundred and forty-two young men and women, five hundred and twentyfour children, ninety-three servants, and eighty-five slaves. The area
of cultivated land is placed at one thousand and sixty-seven acres, or
a trifle over a section and a half.
But a small settlement existed at Michilimackinac, which was made
up almost wholly, aside from the small garrison, of the traders and
coureurs des bois, and they were of the character to be expected, considering the environment from which they came and the lack of restraint with which they were surrounded. While among them were to
be found men who had come from refined and educated families, including in some instances those from families high in royal favor,
they were for the most part of a far different cast, as, for instance,
such as those heretofore spoken of who had at an early day been gath



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


77


ered from the prisons of France, brought to New France for a private
colonizing purpose and, meeting with adverse conditions, had been
compelled to subsist on an island in a wild state for a term of years,
and were then given a measure of relief by being assisted by the
French government to engage in the Canadian fur trade. Such an
element could not be expected to maintain a very high standard of
morality and decency, and it is probable that in the colony at Michilimackinac this element furnished a larger percentage of representatives
than in that at Detroit, where a feeble attempt at permanent colonization and cultivation of the soil was being made.
So far as white population and real civilization were concerned,
Michigan really was but an insignificant quantity at the time the colonies of the east declared their independence. Although Michilimackinac had been third in the permanent settlements within the present
territory of the United States, being ranked in priority only by St.
Augustine and Jamestown, her early settlers gave their attention to
the attempted Christianizing of the savages and to the commercialism
of the fur trade, making practically no effort at colonization except
as an incident to one or the other of those objects.
This territory was in English control and was the scene of English
activity during the Revolutionary struggle, and while Cornwallis was
engaging the colonial forces in Virginia, General Haldimand was busily fitting out an expedition which was sent forward from Detroit.
This was made up of regulars under Captain Bird, of the Detroit
militia, under Joncaire, and a large body of Indians, also under Captain Bird. The savage excesses of the Indians in the scalping of the
settlers were too much even for their military associates, and after
terrible experiences of that nature in Kentucky Captain Bird concluded to return to Detroit, but not, however, until the acts of the Indians had so exasperated the Kentuckians that they determined to cut
off the retreat, which they did, and in the doing of this they succeeded
in scattering the Indian forces.
Captain Sinclair succeeded De Peyster, at Michilimackinac and
he was made lieutenant governor and also superintendent of Indian
affairs for the province. It was on his arrival, in 1779, that the post
was transferred from the south side of the strait to the island. Without waiting for authority from Governor Haldimand, he built the
new fort on the island, but his report thereof was approved by that
officer against the protests of residents of the settlement. At his request the name of Michilimackinac was retained and the post was called
"Fort Mackinac. "
Thus concluded the history of old Fort Mackinac, and thereafter
the locality is withdrawn as an important agent in the making of the
history of Northern Michigan.
NORTHERN MICHIGAN BECOMES AMERICAN SOIL
During the entire period of the American Revolution the posts of
Michilimackinac and Detroit were occupied by British garrisons, and,
although the treaty of Paris of 1783, which terminated the war, pro



78           HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
vided for their surrender to the United States, Great Britain retained
possession of them until July, 1796, when Michigan became in reality,
for the first time, an American possession.
But by treaty and the extension of civil government the area of
the present Michigan was American soil and included in the vast "territory northwest of the Ohio river" nearly a decade before it was
formally relinquished by the British. After the Americans gained
actual possession of the territory, the Lower Peninsula formed the
single county of Wayne in the Northwest territory and was entitled
to one representative in the territorial legislature.




CHAPTER IV


CIVIL GOVERNMENT FOUNDED
ORDINANCE OF 1787 —NORTHWEST TERRITORY DISMEMBERED-SLAVERY
IN MICHIGAN-FOUNDING OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT-STATUS OF LAND
TITLES-ERECTION OF FIRST COUNTIES-TABULAR HISTORY OF COUNTIES-SOURCES OF NAMES-BASIS OF STATE GOVERNMENT-IDENTIFIED WITH STATE GOVERNMENT-SERVED IN THE LEGISLATURE.
As has been stated, although the ordinance creating the Northwest
territory was passed by congress in 1787, the retention of Michigan
posts by the British until 1796 made the latter year the practical beginning of the American territorial period. This great civil instrument contains six articles of compact between the original states and
the people and of the territory to be carved into commonwealths of
the Union, and it provides that these articles shall forever remain unalterable except by common consent. As organized by that ordinance,
the Northwest territory included what are now the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin, and that part of Minnesota
east of the Mississippi river.
ORDINANCE OF 1787
The following interesting and broad epitome of the establishment
of civil government in Michigan is taken from Alvah H. Sawyer's
"History of the Northern Peninsula:"  "Prior to that (the passage
of the 1787 ordinance), this territory, following the signing of the
treaty, was nominally controlled by the Jefferson ordinance of 1784.
which provided the first American government for this territory and
by which Jefferson attempted to abolish slavery in the United States
north of the Florida line. Up to 1784, there were no United States
surveys of western lands and therefore no lawful western settlers. except on old French or British grants, and grants to the attaches of
military posts. In 1785 an ordinance was passed by congress providing for surveying lands into townships six miles square, and for subdividing these into sections one mile square, and for their sale by
sections and lots; and this ordinance provided for the reservation of
section sixteen in each township for school purposes. This opened up
a way and offered an inducement to settlers, for now titles could be
acquired that could be relied upon.
"The Northwest territory ordinance of 1787, which was passed by
79




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


congress after a vast amount of consideration, involving heated debates
on important points and principles, was considered by many as one of
the greatest achievements ever attained in the way of government. Of
it so a great a constitutional writer as Justice Cooley said: 'No charter
of government in the history of any people has so completely stood the
tests of time and experience.' While the ordinance provided a model
temporary government of the great territory, its greatest value was
found in the enduring principles provided by it to be engrafted into
the government of the states to be erected therefrom.
"It provided:
"1. For religious liberty.
"2. The right of habeas corpus, trial by jury, proportionate representation, inviolability of private contracts, etc.
"3. 'Religion, morality and knowledge, being necessary to good
government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of
education shall forever be encouraged.'
"4. That navigable waters are to remain free public highways.
"Shortly thereafter, these principles, that gave to the ordinance referred to references as 'immortal,' were embodied in the constitution of
the United States, and have become the vital part of our supreme law.
"Following the revolution, as the westward journey of the 'star of
the empire' was again taken up, the movement to Ohio was forwarded
by the Ohio Company of Associates, organized in 1786, on call of General Rufus Putnam and General Benjamin Tupper, after they had made
an exploratory trip into that country, but not until the summer of 1787
were they able to secure the action of congress, organizing the territory
and providing for the sale of government lands. The general agent of
the company, also largely instrumental in its organization and in the
drafting and passage of the ordinance of 1787, was Manasseh Cutler,
of Connecticut. In 1788 the first delegation from the Associates, under
Mr. Cutler, reached Ohio and founded Marietta; though numerous
'squatters' had preceded them and settled in advance of the government survey. Eevrything in the way of settlement was haphazard until
the coming of the Ohio Company, which took up and forwarded the organization of a regular government.
"General Arthur St. Clair, governor of the territory, with other appointed officers, arrived at Marietta, Ohio, in July, 1788, and there on
the 17th of that month, with due ceremony proclaimed the first civil
government of the United States over the territory now within the
state of Michigan. Up to that time this territory had been controlled
by the French and English under military rule administered from the
centers at Detroit and Michilimackinac.
"Before any headway could be made with the government land surveys and the sales of government lands, it became necessary to acquire
in some way the claims of the Indians to those lands; and for that purpose a commission had been appointed in 1784. This commission treated
with numerous individual tribes, but ignored the northwestern confederacy, and the confederacy in turn ignored the various treaties with the
individual tribes; so that really nothing was accomplished toward the
desired end for some two years or more, during which time the Indians




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


81


became restless, and, through their confederacy, they communicated
their grievances to congress, in December, 1786, by means of a document supposed to have been prepared by Joseph Brant, in which it
was said:
" 'We think the mischief and confusion which has followed is owing to your having managed everything respecting us in your own way.
You kindled your council fires where you thought proper without consulting us, at which you held separate treaties, and have entirely
neglected our plan of having a general conference....    Let us
have a treaty with you early in the spring. We say let us meet half
way, and let us pursue such steps as become upright and honest men.
We beg that you will prevent your surveyors and other people from
coming on our side of the Ohio river.' This address was unheeded, as
Governor St. Clair considered the confederacy of the tribes was not
enduring, and he believed it best to continue negotiating with the
individual tribes, but his mistake became apparent later, November
4, 1791, at 'St. Clair's defeat' on the Wabash.
"Hostilities continued until finally the treaty of Greenville was
signed August 3, 1795, following the defea' of the confederated tribes
by the forces of General Anthony Wayne a year previous. Among the
numerous tribes of this confederacy which joined in this treaty of
Greenville were the Ottawas and Chippewas, from this section of the
territory. When General Wayne, in the summer of 1794, was, with
his force of twenty-six hundred well drilled soldiers and one thousand
mounted Kentuckians, pressing hard upon the centers of the confederation, he made another effort to carry out Washington 's desire to
secure peace and avoid war, and he sent a message to the chiefs offering the terms of the Muskingum treaty as a basis of lasting peace.
This was refused, and the refusal is attributed to the fact that the
Indians were influenced by the English who were still holding possession of the territory, and by their assurances of superior strength,
with which they had been infused by their victory over Governor St.
Clair.
"The belief that the English were aiding and abetting the Indians
in their fight against the United States finds further basis in the fact
that the Indians, on rejecting the proffered peace, retired to the English Fort Miami, which had been constructed by Governor Simcoe, in
1794, long after the English had ceded their rights in this territory
to the United States. When General Wayne, on the 20th of August,
1794, advanced to within one mile of Fort Miami the confederated
tribes were prepared to meet him, strongly barricaded by fallen trees.
The Indians were soon routed, many slain, and the others scattered,
and the English fort came into possession of the Americans.
"Major Campbell, who was in charge of the garrison at Detroit,
protested against the possession of the British fort by General Wayne,
but met with a sharp defiance and was reminded that the British were
occupying American soil, and had built the fort thereon since the signing of the treaty. The decisive victory of General Wayne, which was
at least in part on Michigan soil, and was participated in by Ottawas
and Chippewas from Michilimackinac and Sault Ste. Marie, was imVol. 1-6.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


portant in many ways, and had unquestionable influence in the results
that soon followed, including Jay's treaty, in November of that year,
and the treaty of Greenville in August of the following year, followed
by the evacuation of Michigan territory by the British pursuant to
the terms of Jay's treaty. It also put an end to the terrible Indian
warfare that had continued throughout the territory, and thus opened
up to settlement a large region of fertile lands, over which there started
that ever-increasing horde of western emigrants that pushed forward
to the west, and upon tangents to the northward, with the final result
we now perceive; the entire Northwest territory divided into and making up five of the most prominent states of the Union, and a considerable contribution to another like prominent state."
In 1798 the Northwest territory became entitled to elect a territorial
council with representatives of the various districts of the territory.
The district of Wayne included the Lower Peninsula and parts of
Ohio and Indiana, and was entitled to one representative in the council. Consequently, in December of that year, an election for the district of Wayne was held in Detroit, at which James May of that city
is supposed to have been chosen as such representative, and the people
of that section were given their first opportunity of exercising the
glorious privilege of the elective franchise. No record of the election
can be found and it is supposed to have been considered void, for a
new election was held in January following. The representatives met
at Cincinnati, February 4, 1799, and chose ten freeholders to constitute the territorial council, the first legislative council in which the
people of any part of Michigan were represented.
The ordinance organizing the Northwest territory provides, that
"As soon as a legislature shall be formed in the district the council
and house, assembled in one room, shall have authority, by joint ballot,
to elect a delegate to congress." Pursuant to this provision, William
Henry Harrison was, in 1799, elected the first delegate to congress to
represent the Northwest territory, and in March, 1800, he was appointed
chairman of a committee of congress on the division of the Northwest
territory. As the result, the territory was divided into two districts
by a line running from the mouth of the Kentucky river north to the
Canadian boundary, the western part being called "Indiana territory"
and the eastern part "Territory Northwest of the River Ohio," the
boundary line dividing what is now Michigan, into two parts. Harrison was appointed governor of Indiana territory and also Indian
agent, and held the office until his appointment, in 1813, as major general in the American army.
NORTHWEST TERRITORY DISMEMBERED
The territory was dismembered by the formation of the state of Ohio,
by act of congress passed April 30, 1802, and thereupon what is now
Michigan became part of the territory of Indiana. Thus was blotted
from history the name "Territory Northwest of the River Ohio."
Nothing of importance to Michigan. history occurred during the
brief union with Indiana except the passage of a congressional act, in




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


83


1804, "providing for the disposal of the public lands within the territory to which the Indian title had been extinguished. By this act
section 16 in each township was reserved for the use of schools within
the same, and an entire township was to be located in each of the diss
tricts afterward forming Michigan, Indiana and Illinois for a seminary
of learning. This was the germ of the university fund in Michigan
and of the primary school fund."
SLAVERY IN MICHIGAN
The ordinance of 1787 had provided that "there shall be neither
slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory, otherwise than
in the punishment of crime, whereof the party shall have been duly
convicted. "
Under both French and English rule there had been a few slaves
in Michigan. Some were brought in, but most of them were Indians
purchased from the savages who had captured and held them as household servants. Under Jay's treaty the right of ownership in both
these classes was held to be good. There is no record to show the number, but it is probable that there were a few Qf these Indian slaves in
the region of the straits, both on the island of Mackinac and on the
southern mainland. In fact, in some of the writings of the early
Jesuits references are made to the slaves held by the Indians of that
region. None were returned in the census of 1800, when Wayne county
was attached to the territory of Ohio. In 1810 the county comprised
the entire territory of Michigan and was divided into four civil districts. Twenty-four slaves were returned by that census, of whom
seventeen were in the civil district of Detroit, four in Erie, two in
Huron and one in Mackinaw. In 1820 no slaves were returned, and
in 1830, thirty-two were enumerated. Of these all but one were from
the territory now forming a part of Wisconsin. One slave was returned
from Oakland county, a female between the age of fourteen and twentyfour. With the census of 1830 ended the slavery records of Michigan, which, furthermore, mostly concerns the Detroit district and has
little to do with Northern Michigan.
FOUNDING OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT
On January 11, 1805, congress passed an act for the organization
of Michigan territory, and on March 1st, President Jefferson appointed
General William Hull its governor and Indian agent. The governor
and other territorial officers arrived at Detroit on the 12th of June, that
year, only to find that the capital (which had been but a two-acre town
of little houses surrounded by a palisade of strong pickets) had been
destroyed by fire. When they took the oath of office on the second Tuesday in July some of the houses had been erected on the old site.
Despite this unfavorable outlook for the territorial government, "a
judicial system was established and the territorial militia was disciplined
and brought into the field. The attention of congress was also called
to the land claims which were made by the settlers, founded on oceu



84


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


pancy, or grants under the French and English governments. On
October 10, 1805, a report was made of the affairs of the territory and
forwarded to congress, and in May, 1806, the first code of laws was
adopted and published for the territory, called the Woodward code
after Augustus B. Woodward, one of the judges. The code was signed
by Governor Hull and Augustus B. Woodward and Frederick Bates,
judges, by which a civil government for the territory covered by the
present state of Michigan was at length established, and military rule,
whether by French, British or American commandants, forever abolished in times of peace.
As stated, prior to the organization of the territory what is now
Michigan had been included in Wayne county of the Northwest territory, which boasted a crude "court of common pleas," with headquarters at Detroit. This court was continued when the territory of
Michigan.was created in 1805.
STATUS OF LAND TITLES
It was not until 1806 that congress began in earnest to consider the
status of land titles in Michigan. In that year Judge Woodward made
a report to the secretary of the treasury which was laid before conLEWIS CASS
gress in which he stated that the total amount of land in cultivation
did not exceed 150,000 acres, or a little more than six townships. He
described the farms as from two to four acres front on the river, the
houses about twenty-five rods apart, and the people "honest beyond
comparison, generous, hospitable and polished."  He reported in all
422 farms, with dates of settlement running from 1763 to 1801. Nearly




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


85


all were held on French claims, bordered on rivers, with from two to
five acres frontage and forty acres depth (a French acre was about fourfifths of an American acre). As appeared from the report made by
the register of the land office at Detroit in December, 1806, only six of
these farms embracing less than 4,000 acres had valid titles.
The appointment of Lewis Cass as civil governor of Michigan in
1813 was the commencement of a stable order of things in the matter
of land titles, as of all else, and marked the starting point of the substantial development of Michigan. Under him the government acquired
by various treaties all lands south of Grand river to the headwaters
of Thunder Bay river, as well as such as were required to make the post
at Fort Mackinac safe against Indian attacks, thus safeguarding the
interests of traders and settlers in Northern Michigan.
Great Britain possessed Michigan from the time of Hull's surrender
in August, 1812, until Perry's naval victory of September, 1813, and
the Americans reentered Detroit on the 29th of that month. Lewis
Cass was appointed civil governor of Michigan territory October 9,
1813, but Fort Mackinac was not evacuated by the British forces until
the spring of 1815.
The survey of public lands was begun in 1816 and two years later
had progressed sufficiently to permit the authorities to begin the sale.
With the settlement of the interior, which practically began in 1818,
came substantial growth and prosperity to the southern part of the
Lower Peninsula which gradually extended northward.
ERECTION OF FIRST COUNTIES
Until 1817 there had been but one county organization-that of
Wayne. In that year Monroe, the second county in the territory was
established, and named in honor of the president who was then expected,
and who, in August of that year, visited the territory, accompanied by
a number of distinguished civil and military officials. It was in this
same year that the University of Michigan was created, and primary
schools were established at Detroit, Monroe and Mackinaw.
In January, 1818, Macomb county was established, as the third
county of the state, and it was followed in October of that year by the
organizing of Michilimackinac, Brown and Crawford counties. Michilimackinac included the whole of the Upper Peninsula and a part of
what is now Wisconsin, and was therefore the fourth Michigan county
organized. It had its seat at Michilimackinac. Brown county included
the eastern part of the present state of Wisconsin, with seat at Green
Bay; and Crawford county included the western part of the present
state of Wisconsin, with seat at Prairie du Chien.
Soon after General Cass became governor of Michigan, in 1813, he
issued a proclamation erecting the county of Michilimackinac, of which
Mackinac (on the island) became the county seat. This county was
bounded by the Cheboygan river on the east, by the Manistee river on
the south, west by the Manistique and north by Canada; so that it
included substantially the northwestern section of the area covered
by this history, as well as the eastern half of the Upper Peninsula. The




86


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


center of the fur trade had long been transferred to the Islanid of Mackinac and its activities to the country north of the straits, and for several
years after the accession of Cass to the gubernatorial chair the traders
clamored for some legal means by which disputes among themselves
and with the Indians might be legally settled. It is true the laws of
the territory provided a system of county courts, and Mackinac county
maintained such a court after its organization. This court was, however, presided over by a layman, and naturally slight realization of
legal remedies resulted. It was an expensive proposition to resort from
various parts of the county to Mackinac, with witnesses to a legal controversy, and this fact, together with the questionable chance of getting justice at trial, caused many grievances to be overlooked, or to
be fought out in the open arena of their origin, where the question of
right became one solely of might. True there was an appeal from the
county court to the supreme court at Detroit, and on appeal in those
times, the case could be tried by jury; but it was an expensive proposition to the people of this then remote region; and this was not all-the
supreme court had its session in Detroit once a year, and that in the
very last of September, so that navigation to the northward was very
likely to be closed against the vessels of those days, before the litigants
could return after the trial was over.
In 1822 this grievous situation was laid before congress by James
Duane Doty, who had removed to Green Bay, then in Brown county,
Michigan territory, and in his communication he informed congress of
the resulting hardships to the traders, and related that the Indian
debtors believed their debts to the traders were paid by a tender of a
due amount of furs at the trader's residence, and if the trader was absent he was pretty certain to lose his claim. In that communication
a showing was made as to the importance of the trade of this section,
and it was claimed it produced' a larger revenue than any other, with
the possible exception of Orleans. Mackinac was claimed to have
yielded duties to the extent of $40,000 in 1807, while in the month of
November, 1821, the same point exported 3,000 packs of fars, and it
was claimed that the sale of foreign goods in the tributary territory
amounted to a million dollars annually.
Upon these representations, congress passed an act in January,
1823, providing for a district court for this locality, to have jurisdiction over all offenses and transactions concerning commerce, and dealings with the Indians, and also the usual jurisdiction of the county
courts. Mr. Doty was made judge of the new court.
In March of the same year an act was passed whereby congress
made important changes in the form of territorial government, so that
legislative power of the territory was vested in the governor and a council of nine persons, these nine to be selected by the president and confirmed by the senate from a list of eighteen to be elected by the people of the territory; and by the same act the judges were given equity
as well as common-law powers.
So that to a considerable extent, the people of the northern portion
of the Southern Peninsula are indebted to the necessities and exer



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                     87
tions of the traders and settlers of the Upper Peninsula for the advancement of civil government over their country.
When Michigan became a state, in 1837, Michilimackinac county
was extended west to the Menominee river and in 1840 south to Saginaw
bay. The courts were still held at Mackinac, which village was the
center of all civic affairs for Northern Michigan, and during that year
(1840) all of the Southern Peninsula at the head of Grand Traverse
Bay was laid off as the county of Omeena. This, however, had a brief
existence, as the legislature of that year, for the purpose of forwarding
the work of the geological and topographical survey, divided that portion of the new state into twenty-eight counties.
CONDENSED HISTORY BY COUNTIES
It will become more plainly evident that 1840 was a great formative
year in the civil history of Northern Michigan by presenting the matter, as to the creation of its counties, in condensed form:
Aishcum-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Lake, March 8,
1843.
Notipekago-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Mason, March 8,
1843.
Unwatin-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Osceola, March 8,
1843.
Kautawaubet-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Wexford,
March 8, 1843.
Mikenauk-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Roscommon,
March 8, 1843.
Kanotin-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Iosco, March 8,
1843.
Negwegon-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Alcona, March 8,
1843.
Shawono-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Crawford, March 8,
1843.
Wabassee-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Kalkaska, March 8,
1843.
Okkuddo-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Otsego, March 8,
1843.
Cheonoquet-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Montmorency,
March 8, 1843.
Anamickee-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Alpena, March 8,
1843.
Keskkauko-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Charlevoix,
March 8, 1843.
Tonedogana-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Emmet, March
8, 1843.
Kaykakee-Date of act, April 1, 1840; changed to Clare, March 8,
1843.
In the following table is a list of the counties covered by this historical narrative, showing the date when they were laid out (on paper),




88


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the counties to which they were successively attached for judicial and
other civil purposes and the year when they were organized for practical government:
Alcona county-Laid out 1840; attached to Cheboygan, 1853; Alpena,
1857; Iosco, 1858; Alpena, 1859; organized 1869.
Alpena county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Cheboygan, 1853; organized 1857.
Antrim county-Laid out, 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Grand
Traverse, 1853; organized 1863.
Arenac county-Laid out 1831; absorbed by Bay county in 1857;
organized 1883.
Benzie county-Laid out 1863; attached to Grand Traverse, 1863;
organized 1869.
Charlevoix county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Emmet, 1853; organized 1869.
Cheboygan county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; organized 1853.
Clare county-Laid out 1840; attached to Saginaw, 1840; Midland,
1858; Isabella, 1859; Midland, 1869; Mecosta, 1869; organized 1871.
Crawford county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840;
Cheboygan, 1853; Iosco, 1858; Antrim, 1863; Kalkaska, 1871; organized
1875.
Emmet county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; organized 1853.
Gladwin county-Laid out 1831; attached to Saginaw, 1840; Midland, 1855; organized 1875.
Grand Traverse county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840;
organized 1851.
losco county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Saginaw,
1853; organized 1857.
Kalkaska county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Grand
Traverse, 1853; Antrim, 1863; organized 1871.
Lake county-Laid out 1840; organized 1871.
Leelanau county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Grand
Traverse, 1853; organized 1863.
Manistee county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Ottawa, 1846; Oceana, 1851; Grand Traverse, 1853; organized 1855.
Mason county-Laid out 1840; attached to Ottawa, 1840; Oceana,
1851; organized 1855.
Missaukee county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840;
Grand Traverse, 1853; Manistee, 1858; Wexford, 1869; organized 1871.
Montmorency county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840;
Cheboygan, 1853; Alpena, 1857; organized 1871.
Ogemaw county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Cheboygan, 1853; Midland, 1859; Iosco, 1861; incorporated with losco, 1867;
organized 1875.
Osceola county-Laid out 1840; attached to Ottawa, 1840; Newaygo,
1857; Mecosta, 1859; organized 1869.
Oscoda county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Cheboy



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


89


gan, 1853; Alpena, 1857; Iosco, 1858; Alpena, 1859; Alcona, 1869; organized 1871.
Otsego county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Cheboygan, 1853; Alpena, 1858; Antrim, 1863; organized 1875.
Presque Isle county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1841;
Cheboygan, 1853; Alpena, 1858; organized 1871.
Roscommon county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840;
Cheboygan, 1853; Midland, 1859; organized 1875.
Wexford county-Laid out 1840; attached to Mackinac, 1840; Grand
Traverse, 1853; Manistee, 1855; organized 1869.
SOURCES OF NAMES
As a fitting supplement to this tabulated list are presented the following extracts from the columns of the Michigan Tradesman, relating
to the sources from which the names of the various counties, as well as
the state itself, are derived:
"The county names of Michigan present a subject both interesting
and difficult. Owing to the fact that the county-making power-governor, legislative council or legislature-has in no instance when laying out and naming a county seen fit to indicate its motive in assigning a certain name to a county or the historical significance of such
name, it is frequently difficult and sometimes impossible to determine
with certainty the origin of their names.
"When the name is of Indian origin the meaning is frequently
doubtful, due to the difficulty in reproducing in English letters the
sounds uttered by the Indians, and when the word comes through the
French the difficulty is increased. These facts are illustrated in the
treaties made with the Indians. Each secretary, in writing out the
treaty, in the attempt to reproduce the names of the chiefs who affixed
their marks, spelled the names as they sounded to him, the result being, for example, that the Pottawatomie chief, Aishcum, had his name
spelled in seven different ways in the eight different treaties which he
signed. In the French transcription the sound Inini was by the French
written Illini. When the word was repeated to an Indian for translation, the slight difference in sound might indicate an entirely different
meaning from the one belonging to the original word. This is the
probable explanation of the widely differing meanings which we shall
see given to the Indian names of some of the counties.
"The word Michigan first appears as applied to land area in the congressional proceedings of 1804, culminating in the act of January 11,
1805, establishing the Territory of Michigan, which included the present
Lower Peninsula, but extending southward to a line drawn due east
from the southern extremity of Lake Michigan and also that part of
the Upper Peninsula east of Mackinac.
"Prior to that, in 1784, a committee of the Congress of the Confederation, of which Jefferson was chairman, reported a plan for government of the Northwest territory and its ultimate division into ten
states. One of these was to be named Michigania, to extend westward
from Lake Michigan to the Mississippi river and include a large part




90


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of the present state of Wisconsin. Fortunately, this report was not
adopted, as our Lower Peninsula was to be a state with the appropriate
but cumbersome name, Cherronesus, a Greek word meaning peninsula.
"Nicholas Perrot, who spent the years from 1665 to 1699 among the
Indians of the Great Lakes, in his Memoir Upon the Customs and Manners of the Savages, in giving an account of the warfare between the
Iroquois and the Hurons, after the serious defeat of the latter, says
they went after a time to Huron island, at the mouth of Green bay,
and the following year, upon hearing of the approach of a large band
of Iroquois, they withdrew to 'Mechingan,' where they constructed a
strong fort. From the connection he meant by this term the district
including the northern part of Wisconsin and the western part of the
Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
"The name Michigan, applied to the territory and state, unquestionably was taken from the lake, and that, in turn, had emerged in
its present form after many vicissitudes, and was the survival of differing forms and other names.
"The first map to show a body of water at all corresponding to
Lake Michigan was that of Sanson, made in 1656, and showing the Strait
of Mackinac and an opening at the west into an undefined body of water
called Las de Puans. This name was soon after appropriated to the
Baye des Puans, which subsequently became Grande Baye, corrupted
into Green Bay.
"The map of Du Creux, or Creuxius, of 1660, clearly indicates the
Lower Peninsula and the lake on the west and calls it Magnus Lacus
Algonquinorum seu Lacus Foetium, the last word having the same
meaning as Puans.
"Allouez, one of the Jesuit fathers, in his journal of 1666, refers
to 'Lac des Illimouek (probably a mistake for Illiniouek, found elsewhere in the journal), a large lake which had not before come to
our knowledge.'
"The map accompanying the Jesuit Relation of 1670-1 shows the
northern part of Lake Michigan under the name Lac des Illinois. This
relation speaks of the 'Lake called Mitchiganons, to which the Illinois
have given their name.' The map itself is remarkably accurate, so
far as Lake Superior is concerned, but does not attempt to give anything but the extreme northern part of Lake Michigan, and that not
with accuracy. Joliet's map of 1674, while showing the entire lake
for the first time, is not at all accurate in its outlines and calls the lake
'Lac des Illinois ou Missihiganin.'
"In another map, the author of which is not known but which appears to have been made shortly after the map of Joliet, Lake Michigan appears as 'Michiganong ou des Illinois.' Marquette's map of
1673-4. which showed only the west shore of Lake Michigan, calls the
lake 'Lac des Illinois,' while Thevenot's map of 1681, which he published as Marquette's, calls it 'Lac de Michigami ou Illinois.'
"A map ascribed to Franquelin, dater 1682, calls the lake 'Michiganong ou le Grand Lac des Illinois dit Dauphin.'
"Franquelin's map of 1684, much the most complete and accurate
map of the Great Lakes up to that date, shows the lake under the name




JOLIET'S MAP OF NEW FRANCE (1674): FOUNDED ON MARQUETTE-JOLIET VOYAGE OF 1673




92


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of 'Lac des Illinois,' while his map of 1688 calls it 'Lac des Illinois ou
Michiganay."
"A map by Coronelli of 1688 bears the name for the lake 'Lac des
Illinois ou Michigani ou Lac Dauphin.'
"Denonville, Governor of Canada, in a memoir of 1688, says that
La Salle navigated Lake Huron and thence through that of 'the Illinois or Missigans.'
"Raudin's map of 1689 has it 'Lac des Illinois ou Missiganin.'
"The Del'Isle map of 1703 calls it 'Lac des Illinois,' and to Lake
Huron gives the name 'Lac Huron ou Michigane.'
"In a memoir by Cadillac, written probably about 1697, he describes
the countries where he has been during the three years past and in his
first reference to this lake calls it 'Lac Michigan ou Illinois,' but during the remainder of the article always calls it Lac Michigan.
"In the Jesuit Relation of 1712 Pere Marest, a Jesuit priest who
had spent some time in Illinois with the Indians, speaking of his return in 1711 to Mackinac, says, 'We sailed the whole length of Lake
Michigan, which is named on the maps Lake Illinois without any reason since there are no Illinois who dwell in its vicinity.'
"The name Michigan became firmly established as the name of this
lake by the time of the maps of Delisle, in 1739, of Bellin, in 1744,
and of Mitchell, in 1755, although for some time the issue was doubtful whether this name would not be attached to Lake Huron.
"Gallinee's map of 1670, while not disclosing any knowledge of
Lake Michigan, and a very inaccurate knowledge of the western shore
of Lake Huron, has the latter lake much larger than the reality, under
the name Michigane ou Mer Douce des Hurons. The original map
made by Gallinee, which was deposited in the Department of the Marine
at Paris, has disappeared, but three direct copies are known to exist
and these disagree as to whether the final 'e' in Michigane is accented.
There are some confirmatory facts to indicate that it should be accented, the Franquelin map of 1688 and the Del'Isle map of 1703 indicating this. The written account by. Gallinee of his journey, upon
which the map was based, does not, however, indicate the 'e' to be
accented.
"In the description of the journey, which was from Niagara river
up through Lake Erie, the Straits and Lake Huron, Gallinee says. 'We
entered the largest lake in all America, called the Fresh Water Sea of
the Hurons, or in Algonquin, Michigane,' thus indicating the latter
word to be the translation of 'Le plus Grand Lac,' and being substantially the translation of the name found on the map of Creuxius, Magnus
Lacus Algonquinorun.
"Moll, in his map of 1720, has Lake Michigan named Illinese Lake
or Michigan, and Lake Huron, Huron Lake or Michigan.
"It seems to be reasonably clear that the meaning of the word is
the Great Lake, although the real derivation is somewhat uncertain,
the first part of the word 'michi' certainly meaning great, or large,
and is the same as Missi in Mississippi, Mississaga, and other names.
"Schoolcraft derives the word from 'mitchaw,' great, and Sagiegan,
lake, but this seems unlikely as it is not common to find an Indian com



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


93


pound word so greatly contracted as would be necessary to reduce
Mitchaw-Sagiegan to Michigan.
"Some authorities also give the meaning of the word Michigan as a
place for catching fish, but this again seems improbable.
"Arenac county has had a checkered career. Laid out in 1831, in
1857 a large part was taken off and put into the newly formed Bay
county. In 1859 the balance was added to that county and in 1883 it
was re-established with its present limits. The name was manufactured by Schoolcraft in accordance with a formula which he developed
more fully somewhat later. He analyzed Indian words, obtaining the
general meaning, and then by combining various roots and using the
proper consonants to give euphony he could produce a large number
of words 4of Indian basis, which could be applied to localities as a more
or less descriptive name. In this manner the syllable ac, derived from
auk or akke, which means land or earth, gives the idea of locality, and
Arenac is compounded from the Latin arena, sand-the derived meaning of place of combat comes from the fact that such places are sanded
-and ac and therefore means sandy place.
" Gladwin county laid out, with Arenac, in 1831, was named in honor
of Major Henry Gladwin, who was in command of the Fort at Detroit
during its memorable siege by Pontiac in 1763-4, and who for his gallant defense was promoted to lieutenant colonel and who afterwards
served with distinction upon the British side during the Revolutionary
war. "
The United States surveys of the Lower Peninsula had been nearly
completed when Michigan became a state in 1837, the wholesale Indian
title to its lands having become completely extinguished by the treaty
of the previous year. Douglass Houghton, the first state geologist, in
his second annual report to the legislature of 1839, recommended that
the remainder of the Lower Peninsula be subdivided into counties, as it
would assist him in making his surveys and maps. He repeated that
recommendation to the legislature of 1840; whereupon twenty-eight new
counties were laid out, making for the first time a complete subdivision
of the Lower Peninsula. The result of this legislation, so far as it
affects the portion of the peninsula covered by this work, may be seen
by a reference to the table already published of the twenty-eight counties thus legally created, all but one received Indian names, probably
at the suggestion of Henry R. Schoolcroft, geologist, scholar, historian,
Indian agent and legislator, who had negotiated the treaty of 1836 by
which the northeastern part of the Lower Peninsula and the eastern
portion of the upper had been ceded by the Indians to the United States,
and who was fairly entitled to such honor. The legislature of 1843,
however, changed the names of sixteen of the twenty-eight counties,
in order to honor historical characters connected with the founding
and development of Michigan as a commonwealth of white citizens. Five
of the new names were of Irish origin, supposedly in deference to that
strong racial element represented in the legislature of that year.




94


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Alcona county was first named Negwegon. The latter was the name
of a well-known Chippewa chief who was a firm friend of the Americans in their conflict with the British terminating in the War of 1812.
He was a fine type of the race, over six feet high, muscular, courageous
and of strong intellect. He was known also as the Little Wing, the
translation of his name. Alcona was undoubtedly a word manufactured according to the Schoolcraft formula in which "al" is the Arabic
for "the." "Co" is the root of a word meaning plain or prairie. "Na"
is a termination meaning "excellent;" hence the entire word has
the meaning "the fine or excellent plain."
Alpena county was originally named Anamickee. The latter name
was that of a Chippewa chief who signed the treaty of 1826 negotiated
by Schooleraft and was a peculiarly appropriate name for this county.
The word means thunder, and the county, as laid out, included the entire shore of Thunder bay. The name of the Bay was the English
translation of the French "Anse du Tonnere," which appears as early
as the map of Franquelin in 1688, and which was probably so called
from the Indian name, the Indians believing that it was peculiarly subject to thunder storms. Schooleraft, in his travels of 1820, refers to
his belief and says: "What has been so often reiterated as to the
highly electrified state of the atmosphere at this Bay seems to have
no foundation in truth; there is nothing in the appearance of the surrounding country-in the proximity of mountains or the currents of
the atmosphere-to justify a belief that the air contains a surcharge
of the electric fluid. In no place does the coast attain a sufficient altitude to allow us to suppose that it can exert any sensible influence
upon the clouds, nor is it known that any mineral exhalations are given
out in this vicinity, as has been suggested, capable of conducing towards a state of electrical urativility in the atmosphere." The retention of the original name would have preserved this historical tradition
and been preferable to the rather meaningless name which was substituted.
Alpena was a word manufactured by Schoolcraft from the Arabic
"al," meaning "the," and either "pinai," meaning "partridge," or
"penaissee," meaning "bird."  In one place in his writings he himself gives the latter word as the one entering the combination, the
name Alpena therefore meaning the bird country, but the former seems
more probable, and the word therefore means the partridge, or partridge
country.
Antrim county was originally named Meegisee. The latter was the
name of a Chippewa chief who signed the treaties of 1821 and 1826,
the latter of which was negotiated in behalf of the United State by
Schooleraft, and the meaning of the word is Eagle. The present name
was one of the five Irish names to which reference has been made and
is taken from that of a county in the northeastern part of Ireland. The
name, as it appears printed in the act of 1843, is Antim, and is only
one of the evidences of careless proof reading found in the act, as several other names are misspelled by omission or change of a letter. It is




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


difficult to properly characterize such a substitution as this and several
others. While some of the Indian names as originally given were not
particularly euphonious or pleasing, yet they all were more or less
appropriate, while with scarce an exception the substituted names
were chosen without any reference to locality, historical connection or
general appropriateness.
At the session of 1863 the county of Benzie was established, being
taken from the lower part of Leelanau county. The derivation of this
name is somewhat uncertain. One explanation is that it is a corruption of Betsey, the popular name of the river which runs through the
county. The word " Betsey, " however, is itself a corruption of the French
name of the river, Riviere Aux Bee Scies, which means the river of the
saw bill or Merganser duck, and is the translation by the early French
travelers of the Indian name of the stream, Uns-zig-o-ze-bee, which
has the same meaning.
Another and more probable explanation is that it is derived from
Benzonia, which was settled in 1858, and was the first county seat.
This village was settled by a colony from Ohio and one of its purposes
was to found an institution of learning, which was subsequently carried out. The name Benzonia has been stated to be composed of two
Hebrew words meaning Sons of Light, or by another interpretation,
Sons of Life, and by still another, Sons of Toil, but Professor Craig,
of the University of Michigan, says that it is most improbable that the
word is derived from the Hebrew, and if it were, it could not have
any one of the above meanings. If, therefore, the name was given in
the belief it had such meaning, it seems probable that the scholarship
was faulty. The county name might have been given as a contraction
of the name of this village, the largest settlement in the county or, possibly, as a combination of the first syllable of the village Ben, with
the last syllable of the river, thus making Benzie.
Charlevoix county had as its original name Keskkauko, who was
a leading chief of the Saginaw Chippewas and as such signed the Indian treaty of 1819. He was a noted character in his day, of a tyrannical, overbearing disposition, little disposed to recognize any system
of court or legal procedure. He was finally tried and convicted at
Detroit of being accessory to the murder of another Indian in January,
1826, and avoided suffering the penalty of the law by taking poison
conveyed to him by one of his wives. The present name was given in
honor of Pierre Francois Xavier de Charlevoix, the French Jesuit missionary, traveler and historian. Born in 1682, he came to Canada
in 1705 and made extensive travels up the St. Lawrence, through the
Great Lakes and down the Mississippi in 1721 and wrote during the
following year his important history of New France, which, however,
was not published until twenty years later.
Cheboygan county, laid out and named in 1840, was extended in
1853, to take in Wyandotte county, which was also laid out in 1840,
immediately south of the former county, but was never organized and
lost its identity, as stated above. It seems a pity that this latter name




96


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


was not preserved in some county, as the Indians whose name it bears
were an important element of our aboriginal population. The name
Wyandotte is a corruption from Wendat, the name by which the Hurons
who occupied the region in Canada around the foot of Georgian bay
called themselves. They occupied this region at the time of the coming of Champlain in 1615 and were closely related in language and
descent to the Iroquois, but were even then at deadly enmity with
them. Lacking, however, the fierce and persistent fighting qualities
of the latter, they were defeated and nearly exterminated in 1649.
A portion of them fled to the Island of St. Joseph, then to Michilimackinac, then to Manitoulin island, then, still pursued by the Iroquois, to
Green Bay, then, about 1657, a few leagues farther west to the Pottawatomies and a few months later still farther west to the Mississippi.
From there menaced by the Sioux in 1660 they came to the region of
Black river, Wisconsin, then a little later joined the Ottawas at Chequamegon bay and about 1670 moved back to St. Ignace, and not long
after down to Detroit, Sandwich and Sandusky, where they lived under
the protection of the French and became known as Wyandots, uniting
with the Chippewas, Ottawas and other Indians in their treaties with
the United States.
Cheboygan county is named from the river of the same name and
has had nearly as many meanings ascribed to it as it has letters.
Haines says it is derived from chi (abbreviation of Kitchi), meaning
great, and poygan, pipe. Another derivation giving the same meaning
and more in consonance with the French form of the name of the river
is Kiehibwagan.
Werwyst derives it from ji-bai-gan, a perforated object, hence a
pipe.
Another derivation is from Chab-we-gan, place of ore, which is
neither appropriate nor probable.
Hatheway, referring to Sheboygan, Wisconsin, derives the name
from Shab-wa-way-kin, which expresses the tradition of a great noise
coming underground from Lake Superior being heard at this river.
This, however, seems doubtful, as the Wisconsin name is the same word
as the Michigan, although the first letter is S instead of C, and this
meaning could not be applicable to both places and, as a rule, the Indian
names had more or less close applicability to the location.
Still other derivation is from Zee-bwa-gan, cane, or hollow bone. Sibwagan, according to Baraga's Ojibwa dictionary, means sugar cane.
There is one derivation which should not be omitted, on the authority of Richardson's Beyond the Mississippi: An old chief who had
several daughters, but no son, upon being congratulated upon the arrival of another daughter ejaculated with the greatest disgust, "Sheboy-gin," and strode from the place. And when a town sprang up
there it was called by common consent "Sheboygan."
Clare county had as its original name Kaykakee. The latter word
is Chippewa, meaning pigeon hawk, and was the name of a chief
from the Sault referred to in the treaty of 1826.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


97


Clare was another of the Irish names substituted in 1843, and was
taken from a county in the western part of Ireland.
Crawford county, which must not be confounded with the Crawford county of 1818, was originally named Shawono, from a noted
Chippewa chief who lived many years at the Sault, was doubtless personally known to Schooleraft and who, in behalf of his people, signed
several of the treaties with the United States, or possibly from a Potcawatomie chief of the same name who was a party to several of the Indian treaties with the United States. The word Shawono means southerner and the same word is found in the name applied by others-not
tiemselves-to the tribe known as Shawnees. It is somewhat uncertain
ior whom this Crawford county was named. To the legislature of 1843,
which made these changes in the names, there was presented a memorial
by Jonathan Lamb, of Washtenaw county, praying that if changes in
name were made one of the counties should receive the name of Crawford and the petition was granted. The former Crawford county, by
the act of congress establishing the Territory of Wisconsin in 1834, had
ceased to be a part of Michigan, and whether the new county was intended to restore the same name or to perpetuate the name of Colonel
William Crawford, who was captured by the Indians and burned at the
stake near Upper Sandusky in 1782, is now rather difficult to deter.
mine. The original petition has not been preserved, but evidence based
upon family tradition seems to render it reasonably certain that Mr.
Lamb's desire was to commemorate the Colonel Crawford of tragic fate.
Emmet county, still another of the changes to Irish names, was originally named Tonedogana for an Ottawa chief who was evidently well
known and of some importance, as he signed several of the treaties with
the United States affecting lands in Michigan. In the treaties his name
is always followed by the words "the dog," as if they were the translation, but doubt is now thrown upon that meaning. The name Emmet
was given in honor of the Irish patriot, Robert Emmet.
Grand Traverse county was in 1840 named Omeena, the change to
the present name being made in 1851 and 1853, the first act being defective in leaving a small unattached and unorganized territory, as
Omeena county, and this mistake was remedied at the following session,
when the remainder of the county was merged into Grand Traverse.
The Indian name means either "the point beyond" and would have reference to the narrow peninsula jutting up into Grand Traverse bay,
or, as Verwyst says, a corruption of ominau, "he gives to him." Grand
Traverse county takes its name from the bay upon which it borders,
which itself was so named from the fact that the early French voyageurs,
who always traveled in canoes and were compeled to coast the shores
of any large body of water, when they passed along the east shore of
Lake Michigan, found two considerable indentations of the coast line,
which under ordinary conditions they were accustomed to cross from
headland to headland. The smaller crossing they called la petite traverse. The larger, about nine miles across, they called la grande travVol. I-7




98


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


erse, or the long crossing, and this name was transferred to the bay. The
Indian name of the bay was Gitchi Wekwetong, which means large bay.
losco county was first named Kanotin. The latter name was that
of an Ottawa chief referred to in the treaty of 1836, as living in the
Grand river district. His name may be derived from the Chippewa word
meaning wind, and it is difficult to see any reason for discarding this
pleasing euphonious name. Iosco was, apparently, a favorite name of
Schoolcraft's. In 1838 he published losco, or the Vale of Norma, about
fourteen printed pages reminiscent of his boyhood in Albany county,
New York, and in 1839 he published Algic Researches, consisting of
translations and adaptations of Indian tales, and among them is one entitled losco, or a Visit to the Sun and the Moon, a tale from the Ottawa,
said to have been related by Chusco, an Ottawa chief. It relates the
travels and adventures of five young Indian men, the eldest of whom
bears the name Iosco, and a young boy. In the Myth of Hiawatha, published in 1856, and which contains many of the same tales and legends
found in Algic Researches, appears this one, but in this the boy bears
the name loscoda. It had been said that losco was a word manufactured by Schoolcraft according to his formula, but it seems more probable that he found it and then worked out his derivations. In one place
in his writings he says it means water of light, but in another he analyzes
it into parts of three words meaning "to be," "father" and "plain."
Kalkaska county was originally named Wabassee. The latter was
the name of a Pottawatomie chief who signed the treaty of 1821, and
the word itself means swan. Kalkaska was spelled in the act of 1843
Kalcasca and in its present form looks like a "sure enough" Indian
word, and if it is really that, its probable derivation is from the Chippewa and means "burned over." It is, however, possible that it is a
Schooleraft manufactured word.
Leelanau county probably had its name suggested by Schoolcraft, as
in his "Algic Researches" is found Leelinau, an Ojibwa tale, the story
of an Indian maid living along the south shore of Lake Superior, and
in one of his volumes he gives the word as meaning delight of life.
In his Hiawatha the heroine says, "From her baby name of Neenizu, my
dear life, she was called Leelinau."
Lake county was first named Aishcum. The latter name was that
of a well known Pottawatomie chief who was a party to all the treaties
with the United States in behalf of his people from 1818 to 1836, his
name being spelled in seven different ways, illustrating the difficulty of
identifying some of the old Indian names, as each individual in transcribing them might use different combinations in English or French in the
endeavor to represent the original sound. The word in Chippewa would
mean increasing, more and more, going farther. The name Lake is peculiarly inappropriate to this county, as it is an inland county. contains but few lakes and none of any size.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


99


Missaukee county was named for an Ottawa chief who signed the
treaties of 1831 and 1833. The meaning of the word is somewhat uncertain, Verwyst saying that it is a corruption of Missisaging, meaning
at large mouth of river. Another derivation is from Mississauga, an
Indian tribe at one time living at the northern end of Georgian bay, the
word meaning people of wide mouth river.
Montmorency county was originally named Cheonoquet for a Chippewa chief who was a party to the Indian treaties of 1807, 1815, 1825
and 1837, his name meaning Big Cloud. It is uncertain whom the name
Montmorency was intended to commemorate, and there does not seem
to be any one of that name of sufficient prominence in American or
Michigan history to justify this action. It is possible some legislator
of 1843 thought this a fine high sounding name, preferable to any Indian name, however melodious or full of meaning.
There was a Duke of Montmorency, High Admiral of France, who,
in 1620, bought the Lieutenant-Generalship of Canada and a few years
later sold it again without ever having set foot on this continent.
There was also a de Laval-Montmorency, the first Roman Catholic
Bishop, of Canada, an energetic, faithful churchman, who made great
efforts to prevent the giving of ardent spirits to the Indians and who
for many years during his bishopric, from 1658 to 1684, exerted a very
powerful influence in New France. If a French name were to be chosen,
it is unfortunate the name of some one of the early, active, energetic explorers, rulers or military men who came in personal contact with this
lake region was not selected.
Mason county was originally named Notipekago. The latter was
the Indian name of Pere Marquette river and the county was appropriately named after its most prominent natural feature. The meaning of the Indian name was "river with heads on stocks," referring to
a tradition that at an early period a band of Indians encamped at the
mouth of the river was nearly exterminated by some Pottawatomies
and their heads cut off and placed on stocks. The present name was to
commemorate Stevens T. Mason, the first governor of the state, who
came originally from Virginia and was appointed secretary of the Territory by President Jackson in July, 1831, then only 20 years of age,
but who rapidly overcame the prejudices against him and acquired popularity and a firm stand in the hearts of the people of Michigan.
Manistee county took its name from the river which flows through
it and empties into Lake Michigan within its borders. The word is Indian and various meanings have been ascribed to it. Among others
are Vermilion river, Lost river, Island in the river. Hon. B. M. Cutcheon, in an address at Manistee, said that one meaning given to the word
was river with islands, which would not be appropriate, and that another
and more poetic one was spirit of the woods. Still another interpretation is river at whose mouth there are islands. It does not seem that
this or similar meanings could be correct, as it does not at all correspond
with the fact. Another meaning is, the river with white bushes on




100


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the banks, referring to the white poplar trees found there. The name
is thought to be in origin identical with Manistique in the Upper Peninsula. Charlevoix gives the name of the latter river as La Manistie.
(Verwyst says that Manistique is from Manistigweia, meaning Crooked
river.)
Early maps and references have the same name for the Manistee
and Manistique rivers. The Franquelin map of 1684 has what appears
to be this river, bearing the name Aramoni. His map of 1688 has it
as La Manistre. Bellin's map, 1744, calls it Riviere d'oulamanities,
while Mitchell's map of 1755 shows this river as Manistie, but the one
in the Upper Peninsula as Oulemaniti. Schoolcraft in his travels of
1820 calls his river Manistie. Blois Gazetteer of Michigan, published
in 1838, gives the name Monetee to both rivers. This word probably is
derived from onumunitig or oulaman, meaning ochre or red powder,
which the Indians used in decoration and face painting. In one of the
early English maps of the Upper Peninsula a river is shown apparently
to represent the Manistique river and is called Red Clay river.
The legislature of 1855 established the county of Manitou, consisting
of the Manitou islands, the Beaver islands and the Fox islands, giving
to the county the name of the lower islands, Manitou. At that time
James J. Strang, the Mormon King of Beaver islands, was a member
of the house of representatives from Newaygo county, to which all the
Grand Traverse region was then attached. Beaver islands, his stronghold, had a population of nearly 2,000, which gave him great political
strength in his district. Several petitions were presented to this legislature praying that these islands be detached from Emmet county, and
the committee to which the matter was referred, after stating "that a
feeling of deep distrust and repugnance approaching warlike hostility
exists between different classes of people inhabiting the islands and
the mainland in that part of the state," "respectfully but earnestly"
recommended that a separate town and county organization be given
to the Beaver and Fox islands. In the bill, however, which was reported,
the Manitou islands were added, and the name of the new county reported by the committee as Beaver county was, upon motion of Strang
himself, changed to Manitou. Strang's death the following year by
murder and the rapid dispersal of his followers soon removed the necessity of a county organization and, after being for some years attached to other counties, it was finally disorganized in 1895, and Manitou
and Fox islands were incorporated into Leelanau county and the Beaver
island into Charlevoix county. The name itself is an Algonquin word,
meaning spirit, but it refers rather to the mysterious and unknown
powers of life and of the universe. Tradition is that many years ago
two powerful tribes, one from the Northern Peninsula and one from the
Lower Peninsula north of Grand river, were at war. The northern
band attacked and as they supposed annihilated the others and then
retired to these islands. There were, however, seven survivors, who at
night followed, attacked them while asleep and destroyed nearly all, and
escaped without being seen. The few survivors thought this an act
of the spirits, hence called the island Manitou.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


101


Otsego county was at first named Okkuddo. The earlier name is
said to mean sickly, but no chief or prominent person of that name appears. The latter name was taken from Otsego county and lake in
New York. This would be a Mohawk Iroquois word meaning clear
water. Another meaning is said to be welcome water or place where
meetings are held. Schoolcraft says the first part of the word denotes
a body of water, hence lake, and the term ego means beautiful, hence
beautiful lake.
Osceola county was originally named Unwatin.   The latter was
probably the name of an Ottawa chief, as such a one is referred to in
the treaty of 1836. Why such a name taken from an Indian chief of
Michigan should be changed to Osceola, the name of a Seminole chief
from Florida, even although the latter had a national prominence and
his unfortunate experience with the whites and unhappy death in 1838
were then fresh in the mind, it is difficult to see. The name Osceola is
said by some authorities to mean Black Drink, by others, the Rising Sun.
Oscoda county has a name of Schoolcraft manufacture, meaning
pebbly prairie from os, for ossin, stone or pebble, and coda from Muskoda prairie.
Ogemaw county takes its name from the Chippewa word for chief.
One of the leading Saginaw chiefs for many years and who signed the
treaty of 1819 was called Ogemaw-ki-keto, chief or head speaker.
Presque Isle county was so named from the narrow peninsulaPresque Isle-jutting out into Lake Huron toward the eastern end of
the county and which was a well known feature to the early canoe
travelers under that name. Schoolcraft speaks of it in his travels of
1820 as a place where by portaging 200 yards they saved a distance of
six or eight miles.
Roscommon county was another of the Irish changes of 1843, from
Mikenauk, the name the county first bore, and certainly not a change
for the better. Mikenauk was an Ottawa chief, his name meaning turtle,
who is referred to in the Indian treaty of 1836 as a chief of the first
class. Roscommon is a county in the central part of Ireland.
Wexford county was originally named Kautawaubet and is the last
of the Irish changes. The original name was that of a chief of some
prominence from Sandy Lake, referred to by Schoolcraft several times,
who signed the treaty of 1825, his name signifying broken tooth. Wexford is the name of a county in the southeastern part of Ireland.
BASIS OF STATE GOVERNMENT
The state constitution under which Michigan was admitted into the
Union, by congressional act approved January 26, 1837, provided for
the appointment by the governor (with the advice and consent of the
senate) of the secretary of state, auditor general and attorney general.




102


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The joint legislature approved the gubernatorial appointment of the
superintendent of public instruction.  All state officers above mentioned served for two years, the governor and lieutenant governor being elected. Judges of the state supreme court were appointed by the
governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, for a term of
seven years.
The provisions of the constitution providing for the improvemnents
of roads, canals and navigable waters in the interior of the state, as
well as for establishment of banks of issue, had little bearing on
the history of the northern portion of the Lower Peninsula.  Wild
speculation and inflated and unsecured issues of paper money, so frequent in southern Michigan and the more settled sections of the northwest, brought on the financial panic and the confusion of all permanent
projects which marked the period from 1837 to 1844, and thus retarded
all real development in the northern part of the state. It was not
until after the adoption of the constitution of 1850 that this portion
of the commonwealth evinced signs of stability. The most radical
change in the second constitution was that providing for popular election of all the heads of state departments and judges of the supreme
court.
In April, 1906, the people voted in favor of another revision of
the state's fundamental law. The delegates comprising the constitutional convention assembled at Lansing in October, 1907, and completed the revision in March of the following year, its work being approved by vote of the people November 3, 1908. What is known as
the constitution of 1909 is therefore now the basic law of the commonwealth of Michigan.
By that instrument, of course, the offices of governor, lieutenant
governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, commissioner of the state
land office, auditor general and attorney general were made elective,
and the functions of government were classified as executive, judicial
and legislative. The judiciary was divided into supreme, circuit and
probate and justices' courts, the incumbents of which were chosen by
popular vote. Provision was made for the organization and incorporation of counties, townships, villages and cities and for purposes of education. The superintendent of public instruction came into being, the
State university with its board of regents, the State Board of Agriculture with its Agricultural College, the College of Mines, the State Normal College and Normal schools, with the continuation of a system of
primary schools.
Section II provided: "The proceeds from the sale of all lands
that have been or hereafter may be granted by the United States to
the state for educational purposes and the proceeds of all lands or
other property given by individuals or appropriated by the state for
like purposes shall be and remain a perpetual fund, the interest and
income of which together with the rents of all such lands as may remain unsold, shall be inviolably appropriated and annually applied to
the specific objects of the original gift, grant or appropriation."
Section 12: "All lands, the titles to which shall fail from a defect
of heirs, shall eseheat to the state, and the interest on the clear




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


103


proceeds from the sales thereof shall be appropriated exclusively to
the support of the primary schools."
Section 13: "The legislature shall appropriate all Salt Spring
lands now unappropriated, or the money arising from the sale of the
same, where such lands have already been sold, and any funds or lands
which may hereafter be granted or appropriated for such purpose,
for the support and maintenance of the Agricultural College."
Section 14: "The legislature shall provide by law for the establishment of at least one library in each township and city; and all
fines assessed and collected in the several counties, cities and townships for any breach of the penal laws shall be exclusively applied to
the support of such libraries."
Section 15: "Institutions for the benefit of those inhabitants who
are deaf, dumb, blind, feeble-minded or insane shall be always fostered
and supported."
Under the head of "Corporations" the constitution provided that
such bodies might be formed under general laws but not created, "nor
shall any rights, privileges or franchises be conferred upon them by
special act of the legislature."
No corporation was to be granted a franchise for a longer period
than thirty years, "except for municipal, insurance, canal or cemetery purposes, or corporations organized without any capital stock for
religious, benevolent, social or fraternal purposes; but the legislature
may provide by general laws, applicable to any corporations, for one
or more extensions of the term of such corporations." The different
sections of the article on "Corporations" announced the individual
liability of stockholders; pronounced against disrimination in transportation charges and against railroad consolidation or monopoly, and
laid down the principle that "no general law providing for the incorporation of trust companies or corporations for banking purposes, or
regulating the business thereof, shall be adopted, amended or repealed,
except by a vote of two-thirds of the members elected to each house of
the legislature. Such laws shall not authorize the issue of bank notes
or paper credit to circulate as money. "
SERVED IN THE LEGISLATURE
The state senators and representatives who have served their constituents in the territory covered by this work, most of whom have resided within the counties therein included, are as follows. In the list
embracing the senators the subdivisions indicate name, postoffice address
and sessions of service. In the list relating to representatives the names
given in the third subdivision 'are those of counties, which were included in the various districts, and where only one is given it is to be
understood that in the year designated it formed a district alone:
SENATORS
Barnum, Ezra C.; Petoskey, Emmet; 1895, '97, '98.
'Barton, Walter W.; Leland, Leelanau; 1887.
*.\Aln representative




104


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Bell, George W.; Cheboygan, Cheboygan; 1879.
Burch, Marsden C.; Hersey, Osceola; 1877.
Cannon, Ellery Channing; Evart, Osceola; 1901, '03.
Carton, Augustus C.; East Tawas, losco; 1907.
Chittenden, Clyde C.; Cadillac, Wexford; 1895.
Cobell, George G.; Traverse City, Grand Traverse; 1897.
Doherty, Alfred J.; Clare, Clare; 1901, '03, '05.
*Fairbanks, Earl; Luther, Lake; 1907, '09.
*Farr, Augustine W.; Onekama, Manistee; 1901, '03, '05.
Forsyth, Alexander; Standish, Arenac; 1897, '98.
Foster, Eugene; Gladwin, Gladwin; 1909.
*Francis, Wm. H.; Frankfort, Benzie; 1885.
Fridlender, Charles A.; Oscoda, Iosco; 1891, '92.
Giddings, J. Wight; Cadillac, Wexford; 1887, '89.
Gilbert, Peter; Sterling, Arenac; 1891, '92.
Gullifer, Freeman O.; Au Sable, Iosco; 1883.
Harshaw, Andrew; Alpena, Alpena; 1887, '89.
Henry, Charles R.; Au Sable, Iosco; 1885.
Hickock, James W.; Walton, Grand Traverse; 1853.
Holcomb, James E.; Wolverine, Cheboygan; 1891, '92.
Leavitt, Roswell; Bellaire, Antrim; 1889.
McMullen, Daniel P.; Cheboygan, Cheboygan; 1899, '00, '01.
Mears, Charles; Lincoln, Mason; 1863, '64.
Mears, William J.; Boyne Falls, Charlevoix; 1893.
tMilliken, James W.; Traverse City, Grand Traverse; 1898, '99, '00.
-M\Iing, Fred R.; Cheboygan, Cheboygan; 1907, '09.
*Mitchell, Wim. H.; E. Traverse Bay, Gd. Traverse; 1873, '4, '5.
*M3offatt, Seth C.; Northport, Leelanau; 1871, '72.
Moffatt, Orlando C.; Traverse City, Gd. Traverse; 1903, '05.
Palmer, Ambrose E.; Kalkaska, Kalkaska; 1901.
Pierce, Charles S.; Oscoda, Iosco; 1893.
Prescott, George A.; Tawas City, Iosco; 1895, '97, '98.
Prindle, Frank L.; Gladwin, Gladwin; 1891, '92.
Smith, Alvah G.; Lake City, Missaukee; 1899, '00.
*Turnbull, James D.; Alpena, Alpena; 1893.
Walker, James B.; Benzonia, Benzie; 1865.
Wesgate, Ansel W.; Cheboygan, Cheboygan; 1887.
Wetmore, Fred C.; Cadillac, Wexford; 1907, '09.
Wheeler, A. Oren; Manistee, Manistee; 1891, '92, '95.
Wilkinson, Robert R.; Eastport, Antrim; 1891, '92.
Williams, Fitch R.; Elk Rapids, Antrim; 1877.
*Woodruff, Henry; Farwell, Clare; 1885.
REPRESENTATIVES
Agens, M. Levy; Ludington; MIason; 1905, '07, '09.
Alexander, Sylvanus; Wexford; Wexford and Lake; 1889, '01, '02.
* Also representative.
IElected to fill vacancy caused by resignation of George G. Cobell, of Traverse City.




H1STORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


105


Ashton, Benjamin D.; Traverse City; Grand Traverse and Kalkaska; 1887.
Austin, Daniel; Ludington; Mason; 1889.
Bagot, Richard W.; Elk Rapids; Antrim, Charlevoix and Kalkaska;
1893.
Baker, Herbert F.; Weadock; Cheboygan; 1907, '09.
Baldwin, Frank A.; Gaylord; Alpena, Montmorency and Otsego;
1887.
Barry, John A.; Iarrietta; Wexford; 1907.
Bishop, Roswell P.; Ludington; Mason; 1883, '93.
Blacker, Robert R.; Manistee; Manistee; 1883, '85.
(b) Blakely, Abraham R.; Alpena; Alpena, Montmorency, Otsego,
Oscoda and Crawford; 1893.
Bolton, Earl B.; Gaylord; *Alpena and Presque Isle; 1901, '03.
Bonnell, Benjamin C.; Pioneer; Wexford, Lake, Kalkaska and
Missaukee; 1883.
Brott, Charles A.; South Boardman; MIissaukee; 1907.
Bunting, Archibald F.; Empire; Leelanau; 1905, '07.
Burdick, Noah W.; Mancelona; Antrim; 1899, '00, '07, '09.
Burt, Edwin; Isabella City: Isabella, Montcalm and Clare; 1863, '64.
Caldwell, John; Monton; Wexford; 1897, '98.
Campbell, H. Frank; Sherman; Wexford, Missaukee and Clare;
1893, '95.
Campbell, Thomas G.; Gladwin; *Midland and Clare; 1901. '03.
Canby, Israel; Harbor Springs; Emmet, Cheboygan and Charlevoix; 1883.
Canfield, Irvin S.; Alpena; Alpena; 1905.
tCannon, Ellery C.; Evart; *Osceola and Osceola and Missaukee
1885, '07.
Case, Arthur T.; Homestead; *Leelanau, Antrim and Benzie and
Leelanau and Benzie; 1885, '07.
Cathro, John J.; Alpena; Alpena, Crawford, Osceola and Otsego;
1895.
(c) Chafey, Merrit N.; MIanistee; Manistee and Mason; 1873.
Chandler, David G.; Traverse City; Grand Traverse; 1909.
Churchill, Worthy L.; Alpena; Alpena, Iosco, Ogemaw, Alcona,
Oscoda, Montmorency, Presque Isle, and Cheboygan; 1875.
Clark. Jasper N.; Poulson; Mason; 1895, '7, '9.
Cole, William B.; Ludington; Manistee and Mason; 1875.
tComstock, Horace H.; Otsego; Allegan; 1849.
Cummins, George J.; Harrison; Clare; 1909.
tCurtis, William L.; Petoskey; Cheboygan; 1901.
Cutcheon, Otis E. M.; Oscoda; Midland, Iosco, Gladwin. Roseommon and Ogemaw; 1881, '82.
Dafoe, Lemuel G.; Alpena; Alpena, Montmorency and Otsego;
1891, '92.
Decker, Freeman L.; Lake City; Missaukee; 1905, '09.
* Two districts.
tAlso senator.
(b) Vice George W. Swift, resigned.
(c) Resigned before extra session of 1S74 and succeeded by Andrew J. Dovell.




106


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Dennis, Orville; Lake City; *Wexford and Missaukee; 1901, '03.
Dixon, John S.; Charlevoix; Emmet, Manistee, Grand Traverse,
Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Crawford, Kalkaska, Missaukee and Wexford; 1863, '64.
Double, Thomas E.; Vienna; Presque Isle; 1905, '07.
Dougherty, Archibald K.; Elk Rapids; Charlevoix, Antrim     and.Manitou; 1887.
(d) Dovell, Andrew J.; Manistee; Manistee and Mason; 1874.
Dundass, Robert W.; Ludington; Mason and Lake; 1881, '2.
Dunlap, Abijah B.; Traverse City; Grand Traverse; 1865, '67.
Dyer, Walter R.; Standish; Iosco, Alcona and Arenac; 1889.
tFairbanks, Earl; Luther; Wexford; 1903, '05.
tFancher, Isaac A.; Mt. Pleasant; Midland, Isabella, Gladwin,
Clare and Roscommon; 1873, '74.
tFarr, Augustine W.; Onekama; Manistee; 1877.
Fenton, Charles B.; Mackinac; Mackinac, Cheboygan, Chippewa,
Elnmet and Presque Isle; 1867, '71, '72.
Ferguson, Thomas A.; Sherman; Grand Traverse, Wexford, Missaukee, Kalkaska, Crawford and Manitou; 1873, '4, '5.
Ferris, Jacob; Greenville; Montcalm, Isabella, Osceola and Clare;
1859.
Fleischhauer, Alfred AI.; Reed City; Osceola; 1897, '98, '99, '00.
Foster, William H.; Traverse City; Grand Traverse; 1897, '98, '99,
'00.
Francis, James; Alpena; Alpena; 1903.
tFrancis, William  H.; Frankfort; Leelanau and Benzie; 1879.
Fraser, Charles L.; Petoskey; Charlevoix, Emmet, Antrim, Otsego
and Manitou; 1881, '82.
Gargett, James; Alma; Gratiot, Midland, Gladwin and Roscommon;
1863. '64.
Gerrish, Nathaniel L.; Hersey; Mecosta, Osceola and Lake; 1875.
Gibbs, James L.; Mayfield; *Grand Traverse and Wexford and
Grand Traverse and Manitou; 1877, '85.
Gibson, John; Detroit; Wayne; 1871, '72.
Gillam, George E.; Harrisville; Iosco; 1897, '98, '99, '00.
Gray, Humphrey S.; Ludington; Mason; 1899, '00.
Green, Edward H.; Charlevoix; Charlevoix, Antrim, Emmet, Mackinac and Otsego; 1873, '4, '5.
Gustin, Henry K.; Alpena; Alpena; 1897, '98, '99, '00.
(f) Hall, De Vere; West Branch; Ogemaw, Crawford, Oscoda and
Roscommon; 1891.
Halladay, Frayer; Ashton; Osceola; 1903.
Hampton, Charles S.; Harbor Springs; Emmet, Charlevoix and
Cheboygan; 1885.
Hannah, Perry; Traverse City; Grand Traverse; 1857.
Harley, Charles I.; Riverton; Mason; 1901, '03.
Harley, William; Scottville; Mason; 1891, '92.
*Two districts.
(dl Vice Merrit N. Chafey, resigned..Also senator.
if Seat vacated by removal from district before extra session of 1892.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICIIGAN


1(07


Harris, William; Norwood; Antrim; 1889, '95, '97, '98.
Hart, Henry; Midland City; Midland, Isabella, Gladwin, Clare and
Roscommon; 1875.
Hoeft, John, Jr.; Rogers; Presque Isle; 1909.
Holden, Dennison F.; Oviatt; Leelanau and Benzie; 1891, '92.
Hoobler; Samuel R.; Worth; Iosco, Alcona and Arenac; 1887.
Hosner, Orcott V.; Frankfort; Leelanau and Benzie; 1873, '74.
tHowell, William T.; Hillsdale; 1842; Newaygo, Mecosta, Lake, Osceola and Mason; 1861, '2, '3.
Huntley, Victor F.; Manton; Wexford; 1909.
Jackson, Andrew; Sault Ste. Marie: Cheboygan, Mackinac, Chippewa and Schoolcraft; 1879.
Kelley, Louis L.; Farwell; Clare; 1905, '07.
Kelley, Robert J.; Alpena; Alpena, Alcona, Presque Isle, Oscoda
and Montmorency; 1877.
Knight, Richard; Atwood; Leelanau, Antrim and Benzie; 1883.
Lockwood, James K.; Alpena; *Midland, Alpena, Iosco and Isabella, 1867; and Alpena, Alcona, Cheboygan, Iosco, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, and Presque Isle, 1873, '74.
Lonsbury, Philo M.: Reed City; Lake and Osceola; 1895.
Markey, Daniel P.; West Branch; 2Iosco, Otsego, Crawford, Oscoda, Alcona and Ogemaw, 1885; and Ogemaw, Crawford, Oscoda, and
Roscommon, 1887.
Marsh, William D.; Midland; Midland, Clare and Gladwin; 1891.
'92.
Martin, E. Broox; Reed City; *Osceola. Kalkaska, Missaukee and
Crawford, 1881, '82; and Osceola, 1883.
Marvin, Dighton R.; Hersey; Osceola; 1905.
Maxwell, Andrew C.; Bay City; Bay, Alcona, Alpena, Cheboygan,
losco, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda and Presque Isle; 1865.
McArthur, William; Cheboygan; Cheboygan, Mackinac, Chippewa
and Schoolcraft; 1877.
McCarthy, John J.; Standish; Iosco; 1903, '05, '07.
McFadzen, William H.; Oak Hill; Manistee; 1909.
McGovern, Daniel; Tustin; Osceola and Missaukee; 1891, '92.
tMing, Fred R.; Cheboygan; Cheboygan; 1905.
Mitchell, William H.; E. Traverse Bay; *Grand Traverse, Mason,
Lake, Manistee, Leelanau, Manitou, Antrim, Otsego, Crawford, Kalkaska, Missaukee, Wexford and Benzie; 1869, '70; Grand Traverse, Mason, Lake, Manistee, Leelanau, MAanitou, Antrim, Otsego, Crawford, Kalkaska, Missaukee, Wexford, Benzie and Charlevoix; 1871, '72.
tMoffatt, Seth C.; Traverse City; Grand Traverse and Wexford;
1881, '82.
Monroe, James IH.; Traverse City; Grand Traverse; 1903, '05. '07.
Orth, George; Au Sable; Iosco, Alcona and Arenae; 1891. '92.
Oviatt, George; Chase; *Wexford, Lake, Kalkaska and Missaukee
and Wexford and Lake. 1885, '87.


* Two districts
tAlso senator.




108


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Paddock, Robert W.; Charlevoix; Charlevoix; 1903.
Pailthorp, Charles J.; Petoskey; Charlevoix, Antrim, Emmet, Otsego and Manitou; 1879.
Palmer, Oscar; Grayling; losco, Crawford, Otsego, Ogemaw, Osceola
and Alcona; 1883.
Palmer, Walter H.; Reed City; Osceola, Kalkaska, Missaukee and
Crawford; 1877, '79.
Pearson, William J.; Boyne Falls; Charlevoix; 1909.
Perry, Charles W.; Pierport; Manistee; 1895, '7, '8.
Perry, John M.; Tustin; Osceola; 1907, '09.
Persons, Alonzo E.; Alpena; Alpena; 1861, '62.
tPost, Floyd L.; Coleman; Midland, Gladwin and Roscommon; 1885.
Potter, Edward K.; Alpena; Alpena, Montmorency and Otsego;
1889.
Probert, William; Bear Lake; Manistee; 1879, '89.
Ramsdell, Thomas J.; Manistee; Manistee; 1861, '62.
Read, J. Herbert; Copemish; Manistee; 1899, '00, '01, '03, '05.
Reader, George H.; Scottville; Mason; 1887.
Reynolds, Richard B.; Inland; Leelanau; 1903.
Rice, William E.; Rogers City; Cheboygan, Emmet, Presque Isle
and Manitou; 1895.
Richards, George D.; Wolverine; Cheboygan; 1903.
Robinson, George J.; Alpena; Alpena, Presque Isle and Montmorency; 1883.
Seymour, Henry W.; Sault Ste. Marie; Cheboygan, Chippewa,
Schooleraft and Mackinac; 1881, '82.
Sharpe, Albert E.; East Tawas, losco; 1901.
Shephard, Frank; Cheboygan; Cheboygan; 1897, '98, '99, '00.
Slosson, Willis M.; Reed City; Osceola and Missaukee; 1889.
Stone, Clement W.; Houghton; Midland, Iosco, Gladwin, Ogeinaw
and Roscommon; 1877.
Stroud, Alonzo J.; Horton Bay; Charlevoix; 1905, '07.
Tinklepaugh, Jacob N.; Kalkaska; Gd. Traverse and Kalkaska; 1889,
'91, '92.
Totten, William D.; Kalkaska; Antrim; 1901.
Turner, Stanley W.; Mason; *Ingham, 1877; and Ogemaw, Crawford. Oscoda and Roscommon, 1889.
Utley, William S.; Big Prairie; Newaygo, Mecosta, Lake, Osceola
and Mason; 1865.
Van Kleeck, James; Midland City; Midland, Gladwin and Roscommon; 1883.
Vinton. David, Jr.; Williamsburg; Grand Traverse and Manitou;
1883.
Wachtel, Philip B.; Petoskey; *Cheboygan, Emmet and Presque
Isle, 1889, '91, '93; and Cheboygan, Emmet, Presque Isle and Manitou,
1893.
Warner, Dwight G. F.; Frankfort; Leelanau; 1909.
*Two districts.
tAlso senator.




HISTORY OF' NORTHERN MICHIGAN                     109
Wendell, Jacob A. T.; Mackinac; ~,"Mackinac, 1855; Mackinac and
Manitou, 1865; Mackinac, Cheboygan, Chippewa, Emmet and Presque
Isle, 1869, '70.
Williams, Charles W.; Kassan; Lcclanau and Benzie; 1889.
Wing, Giles MI.; Manistee; Manistee; 1881, '82.
Wright, Charles R.; St. James; Manitou; 1861, '62.
Yeo, William T.; West Branch; Toso; 1909.
' Three districts.




CHAPTER V


BENCH AND BAR
TERRITORIAL  SUPREME  COURTS-THE    LOWER   COURTS-TERRITORIAL
CIRCUIT COURTS-UNDER THE 1850 CONSTITUTION-UNDER THE 1909
CONSTITUTION-JUSTICE A. V. MCALVAY-CIRCUITS AND JUDGESHISTORY OF SETTLED JURISDICTION-THE CASE AGAINST KING STRANG
-EARLY PRACTICE IN GRAND TRAVERSE REGION-JUDGES LITTLEJOHN
AND RAMSDELL-COURTS AND LAWYERS IN CHEBOYGAN COUNTY— EARLY JUSTICE IN EMMET COUNTY-FIRST JUDGES AND LAWYERS
IN ALPENA COUNTY-MANISTEE COUNTY'S FIRST LAWYER-JUDGE
RAMSDELL'S REMINISCENCES-IN LEELANAU AND ANTRIM COUNTIES
-CIRCUIT COURT OPENED IN CHARLEVOIX COUNTY-THE FIRST LAWYER-TWENTY-EIGHTH CIRCUIT AND WEXFORD COUNTY-KALKASKA
BENCH AND BAR —IOSCO COUNTY-MICHIGAN STATE BAR ASSOCIATION.
As a matter of historic investigation it is of interest to trace the
origin of the various courts of justice which have extended their jurisdiction over the northern half of the southern peninsula of Michigan.
Reference has already been made to the Quebec act of 1774 which provided that the civil law of Paris and the criminal law of England
should prevail in that region as well as the country farther to the north
and northwest. So although it may satisfy historic curiosity to know
that William Dummer Powell, afterward chief justice of Upper Canada, was the first to preside over the court which sat at Detroit until
1796, when Jay's treaty went into operation, it is well understood that
Northern Michigan was virtually an unpeopled region and was little
affected by the supreme court and courts of common pleas and quarter
sessions which convened in that city, the seat of justice from 1778 of
the Canadian "district of Hesse.",
TERRITORIAL SUPREME COURTS
By the ordinance of 1787 the Northwest territory was provided
with a governor, secretary and three judges, who composed the supreme court which held sway over the Northern Michigan of today.
The judges, with the governor, constituted a legislature empowered
to compile laws selected from the statutes of the original states, but
not to enact original laws. The new territory acquired by the Jay
treaty, which included all of Michigan and Wisconsin containing any
110




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


111


settlements, was attached to the Northwest territory as the county of
Wayne, and it was during the year when that treaty became operative
(1796) that the authorities made the first appropriation ($85) for a
court in Detroit after Michigan came under control of the United
States. One session of the supreme court was held in that city annually
and John C. Symmes, the presiding judge who lived in Cincinnati,
never missed a session until the Northwest territory was dismembered
by the setting off of Ohio in 1800.
The territory of Michigan was set off from Indiana in 1805, a separate government modeled after that of the Northwest territory being
created on June 30th of that year. Under the provisions of its constitution the supreme court consisted of a chief and two associate justices appointed by the president of the United States. The judge holding the earliest commission was named chief justice, or if two held
commissions of the same date the oldest judge was placed at the head
of the court. The term of office depended solely on "good behavior."
No radical change was made in the provisions governing the organization and jurisdiction of the supreme court until 1824, Augustus B.
Woodward having served as chief justice during the entire period and
James Witherell as one of his associates.
TERRITORIAL DISTRICT COURTS
At first the supreme court had original jurisdiction in all cases involving the title to land, capital criminal cases, and divorce and alimony suits, and afterwards in all cases to which the United States was
a party, as well as all actions of ejectment. During the existence of
the district courts, from 1805 to 1810, jurisdiction in civil matters involving sums to exceed $500 was divided, and after the organization
of county courts in 1815 the supreme court had jurisdiction over ejectment and civil actions when more than $1,000 was in controversy. "It
also determined all legal questions arising in circuit courts on motion
for new trial, in arrest of judgments or cases reversed, and issued writs
of error to circuit and county courts."
Soon after the organization of the territorial government, on July
25, 1805, an act was adopted establishing three distinct courts to be
held by the judges of the supreme court, one annual term to be held
for the district of 1Michilimackinac. Demands exceeding $20 were to be
adjudicated by that court. In 1807 two associate judges, residents of
the district, were added to the members of the court, but proved really
of small assistance in the settlement of controversies.  There is on
record in the archives at Fort Mackinac a commission issued to Samuel Abbott, dated July 10, 1807, as associate justice of the district
court of Michilimackinac. These courts were abolished in 1810 and
for the succeeding five years there was no intermediate judicial body
between the supreme and justices' courts.
THE LOWER COURTS
In 1815 county courts were established, its members consisting of
one chief and two associates appointed by the governor. As stated by




112


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the "Michigan Manual:    "They had exclusive jurisdiction over all
claims exceeding a justice's jurisdiction and not exceeding $1,000, but
no jurisdiction in ejectment. Until 1818 final appeal lay to the county
court from justices' courts. Chancery jurisdiction was then given them
and provision was made for the appointment of masters in chancery.
When the act to establish county courts was passed, Wayne county
was the only one organized, and the district of Michilimackinac was
excepted from the provisions of the act. After the establishment of
circuit courts (1824) the county courts began to decline."
By act of the governor and judges, July 27, 1818, a court of probate was established in each county. A "Court of General Quarter
Sessions of the Peace" had already been provided for by act of November 25, 1817, composed of the justices of the county courts and
the justices of the peace of each county. They were required to hold
four stated sessions per year, their duties being similar to those of the
board of supervisors as now constituted. Judicial officers (other than
the federal judges), including justices of the peace, were appointed
by the governor.
TERRITORIAL CIRCUIT COURTS
In 1824 a radical change was made in the organization and functions of the supreme court, its three members being required to hold
an annual term in each of the counties of Wayne, Monroe, Oakland,
Macomb and St. Clair and special sessions in Michilimackinac, Brown
and Crawford whenever deemed advisable "in their sound discretion."
Circuit courts were established in name during the following year,
but were still held by the judges of the supreme court. In 1827 two
circuits were added, but the same discretionary powers were continued
as to holding special terms in the counties named, Michilimackinac
being, of course, the circuit which embraced the present territory of
Northern Michigan.
In 1833 the county courts in the territory east of Lake Michigan,
except in Wayne, were abolished and their places supplied by the "(ircuit court of the territory of Michigan," comprising one judge for the
circuit and two associates for each county, whose respective terms were
four and three years. The courts already existing were called "superior circuit courts" and were empowered to issue writs of error to the
lower circuit courts. William A. Fletcher was judge of the circuit
court of the territory from its organization until the coming of statehood.
STATE SUPREME AND CIRCUIT COURTS
The first state constitution framed by the convention of 1835 became operative when the enabling act for the admission of the state
was approved by popular vote June 15, 1836. By act approved March
26th of that year the state had been divided into three circuits, each
of which was presided over by a judge of the supreme court, each to
hold court in the -several counties of his circuit and all to sit together




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


113


for the decision of appeals. These courts were given the same powers
as the territorial circuit courts, except in chancery matters.  Under
the state constitution equity matters were vested in a court of chancery until that body was abolished in 1846.
The circuit judges, under the first state constitution, were appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate for a term of
seven years. The circuit assigned to Chief Justice Fletcher comprised
the counties of Monroe, Lenawee, Hillside, Jackson, Washtenaw, Oakland and Saginaw; that assigned to Associate Justice George Morell,
Wayne, St. Clair, Lapeer, Michilimackinac (Northern Michigan) and
Chippewa, and that assigned to Associate Justice E. Ransom, the
counties of Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, Allegan
and Kent.    As under the territorial system, two associates were
chosen for each county. They were known as "side judges," were not
necessarily lawyers, and, as they were generally considered more ornamental than useful-perhaps a part of the political "graft" of those
days-were dispensed with in 18'46.
UNDER THE 1850 CONSTITUTION
In that year a county court was established by statute, comprising
a judge and associate, elected for a term of four years. The second
judge was to act only in cases where the first was "a party in interest
or in cases of absence or disability. The court was to sit in term on
the first Monday of each month and during such part of the month
as might be requisite for transacting the business before it. This court
was the fruit of a reform agitation largely centering in Washtenaw
county, which demanded cheaper and more speedy means of securing
(or trying to secure) justice for the average citizen or poor litigant
than was afforded by the circuit courts. It was not a popular institution with the lawyers, who dubbed it 'the one-horse court.' It went
out of existence with the adoption of the constitution of 1850. The circuit judges, sitting together, constituted the supreme court of the state
until the system was changed as hereafter noted.
"Section 1 of article 6 of the constitution provides, 'The judicial
power is vested in one supreme court, in circuit courts, in probate
courts, and in justices of the peace,' with authority on the part of the
legislature to establish municipal courts in cities. It was provided
that after six years the legislatures might provide for what was popularly termed an independent supreme court, 'to consist of one chief
justice and three associate judges,' to be elected by the people. This
power was acted upon by the legislature of 1857, and judges were
elected at the spring election in that year, the court being organized
January 1, 1858. The term of the judges was eight years, and they
were so classified that their terms expired successively every second
year. It is provided in the constitution that the court, when established, should not be changed for eight years. To what extent changes
might be made after eight years may be a matter of construction.
In 1867 the legislature so far departed from the letter of the constitution
as to provide that the judges should be elected as judges or justices
Vol. I-S




114


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of the supreme court, without designating any person as chief justice,
and that the senior judge in service should be chief justice. An even
number of judges was found to work great inconvenience, because on
some questions of importance there was an equal division, and hence
no decision. In 1885, a bill was introduced in the state senate by Senator Hubbell, of Houghton, providing for an additional judge. An
examination of the convention debates of 1850, made at his request,
showed quite clearly that the intention was to have a bench of four
judges only. Whether this was his reason for not pressing his bill is
not known, but no action was had upon it at that session. At the next
session a bill was passed for a fifth judge with a ten year term."
To recapitulate: Under the first state constitution, the supreme
court consisted of a chief justice and two associates, appointed by the
governor, who also had jurisdiction over three circuits, and their term
of service was seven years; the constitution of 1850 provided that for
the term of six years the five circuit judges of the state should constitute the supreme court, their office being made elective; in 1857 the
members of the supreme court were made by legislative enactment
to consist of one chief and. three associates, elected by the people for a
term of eight years; the legislature of 1887 increased the number of
justices to five and lengthened the term to ten years, and in 1903 the
court was made to consist of eight justices, with term reduced to eight
years.
Under the first state constitution Michigan was divided into three
circuits, over which the supreme court judge presided; the constitution of 1850 made the circuit judge elective and the term of office six
years. In 1879 the state was divided into thirty-five circuits; in 1899.
the Thirty-sixth was created; in 1901, the Thirty-seventh and Thirtyeighth and in 1907 the Thirty-ninth and last.
UNDER THE 1909 CONSTITUTION
The constitution now in force, which was accepted by the people
November 3, 1908, vests the judicial power of the state in "one supreme
court, circuit courts, probate courts, justices of the peace and such
other courts of civil and criminal jurisdictions inferior to the supreme
court, as the legislature may establish by general law, by a two thirds
vote of the members elected to each house." The supreme court consists of a chief justice and seven associates, two new members of that
body being elected biennially. Four terms of court are held annually,
its jurisdiction being generally understood.
JUSTICE A. V. MCALVAY
Justice Aaron V. McAlvay, whose term expires December 31, 1915,
has had his home at Manistee since 1871. The following biography is
from the Michigan "Red Book" of 1911: "Aaron Vance McAlvay
was born at Ann Arbor, Washtenaw county. Michigan, July 19, 1847.
His early years, when not in school, were spent on his father's farm.
Mr. McAlvay received his early education in the public schools of Ann




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


115


Arbor, being graduated in 1864. He was graduated from the literary
department of the University of Michigan in 1868, with the degree of
A. B., and in 1869 from the law department with the degree of LL. B.
He taught school for one year before graduation, located at Manistee
in 1871, and began the practice of law, continuing his practice until
1878 when he was appointed judge of the nineteenth judicial circuit
to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Hon. H. H. Wheeler.
At the expiration of the term he returned to practice and continued the
same until June, 1901, when he was appointed judge of the same circuit, and was elected November, 1902, without opposition. He was appointed a non-resident lecturer in the law department of the University of Michigan in 1897 and filled that position until his resignation in
October, 1903. In 1910 the University of Michigan conferred upon him
the degree of LL. D. Mr. McAlvay was united in marriage with Miss
Barbara Bassler of Ann Arbor in 1872 and six children have graced
this union, five of whom are now living. He was elected justice of the
supreme court for the three years' term, November 8, 1904, and reelected for the full term April 1, 1907, by a vote of 220,044 to 114,567
for George P. Stone, 11,600 for Winent H. D. Fox, and 5, 126 for James
H. McFarlan. Justice McAlvay was chief justice during the year 1907.
CIRCUITS AND JUDGES
By the constitution of 1909 the courts of the thirty-nine circuits
into which the state is divided are also required to be held four times
each year in every county organized for judicial purposes.  Circuit
courts have "original jurisdiction in all matters civil and criminal
not excepted in this constitution (1909) and not prohibited by law,
and appellate jurisdiction from all inferior courts and tribunals and
a supervisory control of the same. They shall have power to issue
writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, injunction, quo warranto, and certiorari and to hear and determine the same; and to issue such other
writs as may be necessary to carry into effect their orders, judgments
and decrees and give them general control over inferior courts and
tribunals within their respective jurisdictions and all such other cases
and matters as the supreme court shall by rule prescribe."
The judges of the circuit courts are elected for a term of six years,
and those who are now serving the portion of Michigan of which we
write are:   Frederick W. Mayne, Thirteenth circuit, Charlevoix;
Charles A. Withey, Nineteenth circuit. Reed City; Main J. Connine,
Twenty-third circuit, Oscoda; Frank Emerick, Twenty-sixth circuit,
Alpena; Fred S. Lamb, Twenty-eighth circuit, Cadillac; Frank Shepherd, Thirty-third circuit, Cheboygan; Nelson Sharpe, Thirty-fourth
circuit, West Branch.
The Thirteenth judicial circuit includes Antrim, Charlevoix, Grand
Traverse and Leelanau; the Nineteenth, Lake, Manistee. Mason and
Osceola; the Twenty-third, Alcona, Iosco and Oscoda; the Twentyeighth, Benzie, Kalkaska, Missaukee and Wexford; the Thirty-third,
Cheboygan, Emmet and Mackinac; and the Thirty-fourth, Arenac, Crawford, Gladwin, Ogemaw, Otsego and Roscommon. Mackinac, in the




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Thirty-third circuit, is the only county named in the foregoing list
which is not included in this history, and the only one omitted is Clare,
in the extreme southern tier, which, with Isabella and Midland, comprises the Twenty-first judicial circuit, over which presides Peter F.
Dodds, of Mt. Pleasant.
Under the constitution of 1909 the probate courts of the state
"have original jurisdiction in all cases of juvenile delinquents and dependents," besides the powers usually ascribed to them. The judges
are elected for a four-years' term, provision being made for "more
than one judge of probate in counties with more than one hundred
thousand inhabitants."  Such additional judges are chosen at alternate biennial elections.
Justices of the peace were appointed by the governor during territorial times, but all the state constitutions have made them elective
officials, with terms of four years. Not to exceed four justices of the
peace are elected in each organized township, the legislature providing for city justices.
HISTORY OF SETTLED JURISDICTION
The history of settled jurisprudence in the territory of Northern
Michigan covered by this work had its origin in the constitution of
1850. The first subject of adjudication of the higher courts, within
this area, was the Mormon King, James J. Strang, of Big Beaver
island, who had established his capital at St. James, and settled a colony
and erected a kingdom around it which threatened the supremacy of
the Utah monarchy.
While visiting a brother in the city of Detroit, President Millard
Fillmore was informed that among the remote islands of Lake Michigan
a person named Strang had established what he termed a kingdom,
but which actually was but a nest of freebooters engaged in robbing
the mails and counterfeiting the coin. The president dispatched the
armed steamer "Michigan" to the insular kingdom and ordered the
arrest of the king for treason.
THE CASE AGAINST KING STRANG
The United State authorities decided to proceed against Strang also
for trespassing on the public lands and stealing timber, his kingdom
being at the time under the jurisdiction of the district court of Wayne
county. The "Michigan" was therefore placed under orders of District Attorney George C. Bates, and, with a force of deputy marshals
to serve warrants upon the king and his lieutenants sailed from Detroit for Beaver Island late in May, 1851. About midnight the steamer
reached the harbor of St. James, and the following morning King Strang
and two-score other Mormons surrendered themselves to the officers of
the law. These officers had been told that they would find the workshop of the counterfeiters in an artificial cave fashioned from Mount
T'isgah, but failed to locate it.
Whereupon a court was convened under an awning on the steamer's deck, in St. James harbor, and a great mass of testimony was taken




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


117


before United States Commissioner W. D. Wilkins.    Over one hundred witnesses were examined. Strang was represented by Colonel A.
T. McReynolds, the government's legal champion being, of course, District Attorney Bates. As a result of the examination the United States
officials released many of the Mormons and steamed for Detroit with
King Strang and a few of his leading men. "There, from the latter
part of May until the 9th of July, was held a trial that attracted attention all over the country. The indictments against Strang were on
twelve counts, including mail robbery, counterfeiting and treason. He
conducted his own defense with such skill and shrewdness as to result
in his acquittal. His speech to the jury was highly dramatic. He pictured himself a martyr to religious persecution. He was a master of
emotional oratory and on this occasion particularly so. His acquittal
was gained in the face of a violent local prejudice and the most virulent
attacks in the local press. It was a victory that gave him an immense
prestige at home and aided him abroad.
"Biding his own opportunity, Strang planned to secure the machinery of the law in his own hands. He so shrewdly manipulated politics
that the solid vote of Beaver Island became of great concern to politicians. To the discomfiture of the people of Mackinac, in 1851, the
Mormons elected all the county officers. They now had the sheriff and
the entire machinery of the law and could do as they pleased. A Mormon sheriff could serve the warrants, a Mormon jury convict and a
Mormon judge sentence anyone resisting the mandate or authority of
the king.
"In 1853 King Strang secured his own election to the legislature
by clever political manipulation. His candidacy was not announced
until election day; the Mormons then plumped their votes for him
and snowed under their unsuspecting enemies, who supposed their own
candidate would go in without opposition. An attempt was made to
prevent Strang from taking his seat by serving an old warrant for
his arrest. To outwit his foes, Strang barricaded himself in his stateroom and withstood a siege until the boat entered the St. Clair, when
he broke down the door and sought neutral territory by jumping on a
wharf on the Canadian shore. Arrived at the capital, he ascertained
that his seat would be contested. He argued his own case, and made
such a favorable impression that he obtained the disputed seat."
King Strang was a lawyer and had practiced in New York and Wisconsin before he joined the Mormons of Nauvoo, Illinois, and led a
rebellion against Joseph Smith and the council of twelve. He therefore may be considered the first resident lawyer of the northern section of the Lower Peninsula, as the examination of himself and leaders aboard the "Michigan," and under the jurisdiction of the United
States district court, may be called the first trial of a ease in that territory before a regularly constituted bench of justice.
EARLY PRACTICE IN GRAND TRAVERSE REGION
Grand Traverse was the first of the counties between the straits of
Mackinac and the Saginaw valley to enjoy a permanent judicial organ



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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


ization, and the constitution of 1850 was the basis for the founding of
law and order, through the courts, in that region. Prior to that year
matters in dispute were settled in a crude way through the justices'
"courts."  A picture of the times prior to the coming in of the regular judicial machinery, with the increase of population and civil organization of the counties, is thus given by General B. M. Cutcheon,
in his centennial address at Manistee; but the picture will apply to
most of the justices' courts of 1849: John Barret's saloon "was a small
room and contained a small box stove about twenty inches long, a
bunk and a bench. It was full of men drinking and drunken. The furniture of the room consisted of two whisky barrels, a wash basin and a
ladle; they drew the whisky in the wash basin, and every man helped
himself with the ladle, and when the wash basin was emptied it was
filled and passed again, at twenty-five cents a round. I have seen,
said he (a settler of '49 is telling the story), in one Sunday, seventeen
couples of men stripped and fighting around that place. The nearest
justice was John Stronach at old Stronach mills, and only a trail to
reach there. When called on he gravely took his statutes under his
arm; the court made his way on foot, or in a canoe, down to the mouth,
and held court in Barret's saloon."
"The exercises were introduced by a drink all around. Then the
case was heard, and the court was not annoyed by lawyers or embarassed by law. Having heard the evidence the court delivered his
opinion as follows: 'Well, boys, this is a bad muss, and I guess you'd
better settle it.' The parties were usually of the same opinion, and a
drink of whisky all around closed the exercises."
Although the act for the organization of Grand Traverse county
was approved April 7, 1851, that instrument contained no provision
for organizing a township and choosing inspectors of election, and the
county therefore remained without a legal government until the special election of May 9, 1853. During the preceding winter the legislature had passed the act to complete its organization, providing for
the special election of May and attaching to it, for judicial purposes,
the counties of Antrim, Kalkaska, Missaukee, Wexford, Manistee and
Leelanau. At the May election, George N. Smith, a son of Lyman, the
first settler of the Traverse region south of Traverse City, was elected
judge of probate, and Thomas Cutler was chosen clerk and register.
At that time Grand Traverse county was included in the Eighth
judicial circuit, George Martin being the presiding judge. The first
circuit court in the county was held at Mr. Cutler's house on the
27th of July, 1853, and Ebenezer Gould was appointed prosecuting
attorney by the court. A. S. Wadsworth was foreman and Dr. D. C.
Goodale clerk of the first grand jury. Benjamin Adsit heads the list
on the record, and the familiar names of Samuel K. Northam, Elisha
P. Ladd, Henry D. Campbell, Joseph Dame, Thomas Hitchcock and
Lewis Miller follow. At that time Robert McLellan, afterward a prominent and respected farmer on the peninsula, was admitted to the bar.
The first trial by jury of which there is any record, was that of James
E. Scott, for murder. It commenced on the 24th of August, 1855, and
ended on the following day, the jury finding him  guilty.  He was




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


119


sentenced to imprisonment in the state prison for fifteen years. The
business of the courts was evidently dispatched with commendable
celerity in those days.
The first attorney in the county was C. H. Holden, who moved to
Traverse City from Northport in the fall of 1858, having been elected
prosecuting attorney at the fall election. Soon afterward C. H. Marsh,
located there, and in the spring of 1862, J. G. Ramsdell moved from
Northport to Traverse City, having located at Northport in the fall of
1861. George P. Griswold, E. C. Tuttle and 0. H. Mills were also
early lawyers.
In the spring of 1865, E. S. Pratt and L. D. Boynton came to the
city and were associated together in practice. Boynton afterward went
away, but Pratt remained and was long the senior member of the law
firm of Pratt, Hatch & Davis.
JUDGES LITTLEJOHN AND RAMSDELL
The first judge to serve Grand Traverse county after it became attached to the Ninth circuit was Hon. Flavius J. Littlejohn, who was
succeeded in 1866 by Judge J. G. Ramsdell.
The following is one of the best sketches ever published of Judge
Littlejohn and is from the pen of Edwy C. Reid, of the Allegait Journal:
"On the morning of the 28th of April, 1880, ex-Judge F. J. Littlejohn
was stricken with pain in his bowels and was forced to stop at his
daughter's, Mrs. A. S. Butler, a short way off, not being able to go
home. He remained there in great pain and dangerously sick for a
few days when, becoming better, he was taken home, but not at any
time afterward able to quit his bed except for short times. He remiained
in full possession of his mental powers and conversed quite freely
though at times his voice was made weak by pain. His physician fromLL
the first doubted his ability to effect a cure, but thought it possible to
to restore him to his former state." The venerable jurist, however,
passed away on May 15, 1880.
"Judge Littlejohn was born in Herkimer county, New York, in July,
1804. He graduated from Hamilton college in 1827, and delivered the
valedictory address. In 1830 he was admitted to the bar. He practiced law at Little Falls in his native county until the spring of 1836,
when his health failed and he sought a home in the West. He settled
in Allegan, being among the pioneers of that section of the country. He
was engaged for some years as a surveyor, engineer and geologist. In
the fall of 1841 he was elected to the lower house of the legislature and
was afterward chosen for second and third terms. In 1845 he was
elected to the senate. He was president pro tem of that body during
the lengthy session of 1846, when the revised statutes of that year
were adopted. He was again returned to the house in 1848 and sat
as a member during its first session at Lansing. He was also elected
to the same body in 1855. As a legislator his labors were arduous
and his influence salutary. He was the originator and chief advocate
of many measures which, having become laws, have strongly aided the
growth and development of the state. In 1849 he ran as a Whig and




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Free-ooil candidate for governor, making a thorough canvass of the
state and lacking little of an election.
'The only county office Mr. Littlejohn ever held was that of circuit court commissioner, but his defeats were always because of political questions, he having been a Democrat since 1850. He was frequently, however, made a candidate by his party whose confidence and
respect he always retained.
"In the interval between his last two elections to the house, Mr.
Littlejohn returned to the practice of his profession, in which he had
also been engaged for the previous ten years. In 1858 he was elected
judge of the Ninth circuit. This circuit had been newly organized and
embraced, territorially, some twenty counties, viz.-those lying along
the eastern shore of Lake Michigan from Van Buren to Emmet, besides the contiguous inland counties. No reliable means of public conveyance then existed-there were not even roads-and the performance
of his duties was therefore difficult.
"In 1875 or 1876, Judge Littlejohn prepared the material from
which an historical work was compiled. As a lecturer he was, a few
years since, in frequent demand, being sought both for his logic and
his eloquence. In public matters he was always prominent and his
influence was for good, his labor in the cause of temperance Deing constant and effective. Living always a moderate and exemplary life, he
professed Cbristianity only in his later years, but he was then very
firmly convinced of its truth and did some work for its advancement.
As a citizen and a judge he always bore a spotless reputation, and goes
to his grave full of honors and of years, widely known and as widely
respected, peacefully and in faith moving to his reward."
Jonathan G. Ramsdell was a native of Wayne county, Michigan;
commenced the study of law at Lansing and was admitted to the bar
in 1857. For a time he held the office of circuit court commissioner of
Ingham county, and for four years was clerk of the Supreme court.
In 1861, by request of the governor, he became identified with the Agriculture College as a lecturer on commercial law, having during the campaign of the previous year visited the Grand Traverse region and familiarized himself with it while making political speeches. About that
time he went to Manistee to assist his brother, Hon. T. J. Ramsdell, at
a term of court. The fall and winter of 1860 he spent at Northport,
but had purchased a large tract of fruit land in Grand Traverse county,
upon which he moved as a homestead in the spring of 1862. He engaged successfully in the practice of law, and as circuit judge from June
19, 1866, to December 31, 1875. He was both able and popular.
COURTS AND LAWYERS IN CHEBOYGAN COUNTY
Under the act of 1853 by which the counties of Cheboygan and
Wyandotte were erected into Cheboygan county, the county seat was
established at Duncan, and the counties of Alpena, Presque Isle, Montmorency, Otsego, Crawford, Oscoda, Alcona, losco, Ogemaw and Roscommon were attached to it judicially. In the new county therefore
centered the judicial functions of most of the eastern half of the tpr



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


121


ritory covered by this work. Cheboygan did not assume organized
civil government, however, until at the special election of May, 1855,
when Bela Chapman was chosen judge of probate and Samuel H.
Price, circuit court commissioner.
The first session of the circuit court was held in the United States
land office, at Duncan, on the 22nd of July, 1856, and was presided
over by Judge Samuel F. Douglass. In the following mouth, Duncan
was displaced by "the town of Inverness" as the seat of justice for
the county.
At the time of his death March 28, 1898, Judge Douglass was the
oldest member of the Detroit bar and had held leadership for several
generations, until old age and threatened paralysis incapacitated him
for the activities of his profession. He was born in Wallingford, Rutland county, Vermont, February 28, 1814, but western New York was
his home from infancy to early manhood. Judge Douglass studied law
under able instructors until he came west to Detroit, in 1837, and was
admitted to the Michigan bar in the following year. He commenced
practice at Ann Arbor, but returned to Detroit, which was his home
city during the many years of his practice and judicial service. He
was also active and prominent in municipal affairs.
In 1845, and on the first creation of that office, Judge Douglass was
appointed reporter of the state supreme court, and in that capacity published the first two volumes of its decisions, 1843-7 inclusive. The constitution of 1850 divided the state into eight judicial circuits, of which
Wayne county was the third, and provided for the election of a judge
for each circuit, the eight together to constitute the supreme court.
This was Michigan's first' experiment of an elective judiciary. At the
first election, under the constitution, Judge Douglass, who had run as
an independent candidate, was chosen by a large majority. This was
a most flattering compliment, as he was known as a decided Democrat. But he was not an aspirant for the bench, his name had not
been used until a few days before the election, and the confidence in
him, irrespective of his political connections, was general; hence his
election. He held the office until the spring of 1857 and gave unqualified
satisfaction to the bar and his associate judges, but declined a renomination and returned to practice. For thirty or more years thereafter he
was an acknowledged leader at the Detroit bar.
James S. Douglass, the first circuit court commissioner who is known
to have really served in Cheboygan county, had to be admitted to the
bar in 1857 in order to legally qualify. So Judge B. F. H. Witherell
(who had succeeded Judge Samuel F. Douglass) asked James S. Douglass, who was regarded as most eligible for the office, whether he had
read Blackstone or Kent. He replied "no." The judge handed him
a copy of Blackstone and a pair of green spectacles and told him to
read it at once. After perusing its pages a few minutes to become
posted upon the points of the law of which it seemed most necessary
that he should be informed, the judge asked him a few questions, he
was admitted to the bar and appointed circuit court commissioner.
It may be noted of Judge Witherell that his admission to the supreme
court of the United States was made on motion if Daniel Webster.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


For the greater part of the period between 1830 and 1840 he filled the
offices of probate judge and prosecuting attorney for Wayne county. In
1843 he became judge of the district criminal court, then consisting of
the counties of Wayne, Washtenaw and Jackson, and held the office
until it was abolished by the constitution of 1850. Some years afterwards he was chosen to the position of circuit judge of Wayne county
to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Judge Douglass, in 1857,
whose term  he completed. At the expiration of this he was again
elected and had served about four years of his third term at the time
of his death, having occupied the position altogether ten years. In his
prime the Judge was over six feet in stature and weighed about two
hundred pounds. He was genial and kindly in his disposition and one
of the sturdiest Democrats of his day.
The judicial machinery of Cheboygan county was thus early planted
and set in motion, but it was several years before the legal field was
considered fruitful enough to attract permanent practitioners. Among
the first to appear were D. R. Joslin, George W. Bell and Watts S.
Humphrey. who settled at the village of Cheboygan in the spring of
3869.
EARLY JUSTICE IN EMMET COUNTY
In 1855 the few people of Eminet county who lived on the mainland determined to throw off the Mormon yoke which had been placed
on them through the heavy preponderance of anti-Gentiles living on
the Beaver group of islands. To accomplish this Theodore Wendall,
of Mackinaw City, and John S. Dixon, of Charlevoix, went to Lansing
and succeeding in cutting off the Mormon kingdom from the reorganized
county of Emmet. Under the legislative bill passed for the purpose
Mackinaw City was made the county seat and at the first election held
at Little Traverse (Harbor Springs), on the first Tuesday in June,
1855, a full set of officers were chosen, including A. J. Blackbird as
probate judge.
It was nearly twenty years thereafter before the first resident lawyer
opened his office in Emmet county, as now organized. In the fall of
1874, Charles R. Ford located at Little Traverse (now Harbor Springs)
andl soon afterward was elected prosecuting attorney. It is said that
this pioneer member of the bar was a cigarmaker, preacher, lawyer and
a "victim of temptation." He only remained about two years and left
for other fields, being reported drowned in 1883. D. R. Joslin came
from Cheboygan in the winter of 1875 and located at Petoskey. Soon
after C. J. Pailthrop settled in Petoskey, and in the fall of 1875 J. G.
Iill located at the same place. The next were Turner and Andrews,
A. J. Southard and George W. Stoneburner, who located at Little
Traverse. Mr. Joslin remained only a few years and removed from
the county. The bar in 1884 was composed as follows: Petoskey-C. J.
Pailthorp, J. G. Hill, Clay E. Call, Jay L. Newberry, M. S. George, Ira
G. Mosher, Ezra C. Barnum, H. F. Higgins, David Herron, John Mosher,
R. C. Dart and D. C. Paige; Harbor Springs-Benjamin T. Halstead,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MiCHIGAN


123


WAade P. Smith, George W. Stoneburner, Alphonso J. Southard, Andrew L. Dedel and William Crosby.
FIRST JUDGES AND LAWYERS OF ALPENA COUNTY
From 1840 until 1853 Alpena county was one of the unorganized
counties of Northern Michigan attached to the county of Mackinac for
judicial and all other purposes, but by the legislative act of 1857 it was
given a separate corporate existence. By the same act the counties of
Alcona, Oscoda, Montmorency and that portion of Presque Isle lying
east of range 4 were attached to Alpena for judicial and municipal
purposes. The first township election in January, 1858, resulted in
the choice of David D. Oliver (the first permanent settler of the county),
Russel R. Woodruff, Lewis Atkins and Isaac Wilson. Mr. Oliver was
an old surveyor and was elected county surveyor at the general election in the following November, while David Plough, who had but
recently moved from Bay City to work on the Alpena light house, was
chosen circuit court commissioner. Mr. Plough afterward became state
road commissioner, county treasurer, judge of probate and city comptroller of Alpena, and was prominent in other ways, besides going into
history as the country's first circuit court commissioner.
The following from the "Centennial History of Alpena County"
by David D. Oliver is a concise, graphic and thorough account of the
establishment of the judiciary and legal practitioners in that section
of Northern Michigan:
"Soon after the writer was elected justice of the peace in 1857 he
purchased a justice docket and Tiffany's Justice Guide, being the
first docket and law-book used in the county. At the spring election
of 1 p58, Daniel Carter was elected justice of the peace, and the writer,
having no desire to do any business in the justice line, turned over to
Mr. Carter his docket and law-book.
"Some time during the summer of 1859 Leonard Jewell came into
the river with a sail boat, having liquor on board to sell. As soon as
he commenced to sell his liquor J. K. Miller brought suit against him
before Daniel Carter. There were, at that time, no lawyers in the town,
and Mr. Carter was very young in the business. However, it so happened that Obed Smith, who was then a justice of the peace in St.
Clair county and who had some experience in law matters, was in Fremont on a visit. So Mr. Smith, after instructing Mr. Carter in regard
to his duty as justice of the peace, then acted as counsel for Mr. Miller. The case was tried. It was proved that he had sold liquor unlawfully and he was fined. The boat was anchored out in the stream
and the constable had taken the rudder ashore to prevent the boat
leaving until they had got through with it. Jewell pretended that
his money to pay the fine was on board the boat and requested the
privilege of going after it, which was readily granted, the supposition
being that he could not go away without his rudder; but what was
their surprise when they saw him sailing out of the river steering his
boat with an oar. There was no boat to chase him and bring him back.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


so they had to let him go, but he never came back to sell liquor. This
was the first law business transacted in the county.
''Under the constitution of 1850 the judiciary was changed making
eight circuit judges, each presiding over a circuit. This number was
soon enlarged, and in 1857 Alpena was placed in the Tenth judicial
circuit, which was composed of the following counties: Saginaw, Gratiot,
Isabella, Midland, Iosco, Bay and Alpena, the unorganized counties
attached to them for judicial and municipal purposes. Subsequently
the circuit was changed and in 1876 Alpena was placed in the *Eighteenth judicial circuit, composed of the counties of Bay, Iosco, Alcona,
Alpena, Presque Isle and Otsego.
"The constitution of 1850 also fixed the salaries of all officers,
making the circuit judges' $1,500 a year, a sum barely sufficient to
pay the board and traveling expense of some of the judges in the
northern counties; and they were compelled to seek relief through the
several boards of supervisors, who, in order to do the justice denied
by the legislature, were compelled to violate the laws of the state and
become a law unto themselves.
"The first session of the circuit court was held in the Myers block,
in October, 1860, and presided over by Judge Woodworth. The court
officers were: William R. Bowman, sheriff, and Addison F. Fletcher,
clerk. Oliver T. B. Williams was the only resident lawyer. He had
moved to Fremont in the spring of 1860. He was a man of considerable
ability and in the fall of 1860 was elected first prosecuting attorney.
Judge Woodworth held but one or two sessions of court and was succeeded by the Hon. James Birney, who held but one session of court
each year until the fall of 1865, when the Hon. Jabez G. Sutherland was elected. Judge Sutherland held two sessions of court each
year until 1870, when he was elected to congress.  The Hon. T. C.
Grier was appointed to fill the vacancy and held the May term  for
1871. Judge Grier died before the time of holding another session of
the court and the Hon. Sanford M. Green, elected to fill the judgeship,
was the presiding judge in 1876.
"Alpena has been very fortunate in her selection of circuit judges.
All have been lawyers, old and experienced jurists and well headed.
The court's officers, in 1876, were: Thomas B. Johnston, sheriff; John
Thompson, under sheriff; George W. Jones, deputy sheriff; Charles
N. Cornell, clerk; Alexander McDonald, deputy clerk; Victor C. Burnham, prosecuting attorney; A. M. Haynes, reporter and John H. Stevens,
circuit court commissioner.
"The circuit court continued to be held in the Myers block until
1863, when the first session of the court convened in the so-called Hitchcock court house, and all the county officers and records were moved
there and so remained until 1870, when the building was destroyed by
fire and many of the papers were burned, including the court records,
records of the board of supervisors and of marriages, deaths and naturalization, and some assessment rolls, account books and vouchers.
The court and offices were then removed to rooms over Potter Brothers'
* Now in the Twenty-sixth circuit.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


125


hardware store, where they remained until they again passed through
the ordeal of fire, but this time without being scorched, as everything
belonging to the court and records were saved. The court was then
held in the Union schoolhouse until the Potter block was finished, when
the court and county offices were removed to rooms prepared for
them over the hardware store of Potter Brothers, where they remain
in 1876.
"The following were the members of the Alpena bar in 1876: Obed
Smith, J. B. Tuttle, R. J. Kelley, J. D. Turnbull, J. D. Holmes, J. H.
Stevens, V. C. Burnham and A. R. McDonald. All survived the Centennial year excepting Obed Smith, who died at his residence in Alpena on the 20th day of November, 1876. He was the oldest member
of the bar, being an octogenarian. He was admitted in 1862. He was
a Mason in good standing, and was buried with Masonic honors-the
Alpena bar attending his funeral in a body. He was one of the early
settlers of Fremont, having built the first steam sawmill in the county
in 1859. In 1865 he built the first bridge across Thunder Bay river
between Dock and Second streets. He was active in business, temperate
in habits, truthful in his expressions and was just in his dealings with
his fellow men."
One of the most prominent pioneer attorneys of Alpena county was
Seth L. Carpenter, first mayor of the city. He was a Maine man, born
in 1825, served in the Mexican war, returned to his native state to
be married and in 1848 moved to Wisconsin, where he taught school,
studied law and was admitted to the bar (1854). After practicing
his profession in Wisconsin for three years he returned to Maine, where
he continued in that field until he located at Alpena in 1868. In the
fall of 1870 Mr. Carpenter was elected county clerk and in the spring
of the following year first mayor of Alpena. By 1872 he had amassed
considerable property, and in that year went to Minnesota, where he
engaged in farming on a large scale. But he was a victim of the grasshopper plague, lost nearly all his property, and in 1878 returned to
Alpena, where he resumed practice, served as city attorney in 1881-2
and became a well known corporation attorney in connection with the
lumber interests.
J. D. Holmes, born and educated in Michigan and a Union soldier
in his boyhood, studied law at Pontiac, was admitted to the bar in
1868 and in July of the following year permanently located at Alpena.
During his earlier practice he was a partner with Hon. J. B. Tuttle,
circuit judge. He was city attorney, in 1871-2, and circuit court commissioner of the county; was prosecuting attorney for the county in
1873-4, actively engaged in prosecuting violators of the Prohibitory
law of the state; and in 1877 was prominently mentioned as the Republican nominee for the circuit judgship of the Twenty-third circuit.
James D. Turnbull and Victor C. Burnham, who located for practice at Alpena city in 1872, may also be classed as pioneer lawyers.
Mr. Turnbull came out of the Civil war as a lieutenant in the Twentieth
Michigan infantry; was admitted to practice in 1871, at Chelsea, Michigan, in the Washtenaw circuit, and located at Alpena in the spring
of the following year. He served as city comptroller in 1875-79, as




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


representative in the legislature in 1878-80 and 1880-82, and was always
ranked as an able lawyer and a leading Democrat.
Victor C. Burnham, a Wayne county man, studied law at Saginaw
and the Michigan university, graduating from the latter with his degree in 1871. In the following year he located at Alpena, where he
subsequently served as United States commissioner, circuit court commissioner, city attorney and in other offices which demonstrated his
legal ability.
Hon. Frank Emerick, present judge of the Twenty-sixth circuit,
is a native of Ypsilanti, Michigan; graduated from the law department of the State University and was admitted to the bar in 1874.
In April, 1881, having already held the offices of prosecuting attorney
and circuit court commissioner of Washtenaw county, he moved to
Alpena and formed a partnership with Seth L. Carpenter. In April
of the following year he was elected judge of the Twenty-sixth circuit,
which then also embraced Otsego county.
MANISTEE COUNTY 'S FIRST LAWYER
Manistee county perfected its civil organization by the election of
its officers on the first Monday of April, 1855, at which H. L. Brown
was chosen both probate judge and prosecuting attorney-seemingly
an unusual combination of official functions. But the first settled attorney did not appear until 1860. Let General B. M. Cutcheon tell
the story in his own way: "Early in 1860 came a young attorney
with a one-horse sleigh and a box of law books. 'Manistee' was then
located below 'Canfield's Hill.' There was no hotel. He brought up
at Canfield's boarding house. D. L. Filer was then boss, and the young
lawyer was informed that in order to be taken in he would need to
see Filer, and that Filer was up to the roadway, scaling logs. The
young lawyer had an idea that 'scaling logs' was pealing the bark off.
"With some misgivings he unpacked his box of books, and struck
his shingle down at 'the mouth.' He was the pioneer of that noble
fraternity, who by learning, large views, strict morality and integrity,
and a wise interpretation and enforcement of the laws, have done as
much as any class of men to bring law out of lawlessness, to educe order
from chaos and to foster public morals and intellectual progress.
"The young attorney was the Hon. Thomas J. Ramsdell. His old
gray horse and sleigh he traded with D. L. Filer for the forty acres
of land on which the residence of John M. Dennett stands, near the
trotting park.
"The first document that appears upon the records of Manistee
county, drawn by him, is a deed and acknowledgement of Hugh and
Susan McGuineas executed March 26, 1860.
"The first retainer paid to a lawyer in this county was paid by
Hugh Me Guineas and for this he deserves a monument. He has always remained a patron of the bar. In November, 1860, Mr. Ramsdell
was elected representative in the lower house of the legislature, and
this one term is all the representation that Manistee has ever had in




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


127


the legislative or judicial branches of the government in the twenty-one
years since the county was organized.*
"Mr. Ramsdell became at once a leading man in public affairs, and
there have been but few enterprises having in view the material, mental or moral improvement of the community in which he has not been
active. In 1867 he became one of the incorporators of the Boom Company. During the same year he advocated the erection of the Union
School house, and became the contractor himself. During the war he
was one of the most active in raising funds to secure enlistments, and
has been ready to take hold of anything that promised to enhance the
importance of Manistee.
"Perhaps I may as well say here what is necessary about the legal
fraternity of Manistee. Mr. Ramsdell was followed in the same year
by W. W. Carpenter (now of Howell, Michigan), who remained but a
short time and migrated. Next came, in 1865, Capt. Geo. W. Bullis
seeking an opening to practice, as well as to recuperate a physical system broken down by hard service in the army. Next in order, in the
spring of 1867, came Daniel W. Dunnett, a young graduate of Ann
Arbor who remained about three years and migrated to Kansas. In
May, 1867, came E. E. Benedict, and in July, B. Al. Cutcheon, the one
joining in partnership with Mr. Ramsdell, the other with Mr. Bullis.
"In 1868 S. W. Fowler located at Manistee in the double capacity
of editor and attorney. Alexander H. Dunlap followed the same year,
succeeded by C. H. Marsh and N. W. Nelson in 1869, by Dovel in
'71 and Morris and MeAlvay in '72.
"I am aware that it does not become us lawyers to blow our trumpet,
but on my own responsibility I undertake to say, that I do not believe
that there is a town in the state, that taking its whole history, can show
a more public spirited, temperate, courteous, high-toned bar than that
of Manistee. "
RAMSDELL 'S REMINISCENCES
Judge Ramsdell himself has contributed the following interesting
chapter to the pioneer legal history of the Manistee region to the anniversary number (1899) of the Daily -News: "In the year 1860, passing on the Indian trail, following the crest of the sand bluffs about
half way between Bear Lake and Portage one's attention would have
been arrested by the remains of a log cabin. Near it stood a large
hemlock tree upon which, beautifully carved, were the words 'Capt.
J. Patterson, died Nov. 15th, 1835.' The cabin was erected to accomnmodate the crew of a boat wrecked at that point, belonging to Newberry
of Detroit. The crew were saved but the captain being the last one
to leave the boat was so chilled and exhausted that lie died and was
buried near the tree. There were sufficient supplies saved from the
wrecked boat to keep the crew during the winter and in the spring they
found. their way to St. Joseph. This was probably the first settlement
of any kind made by white men in the county. Two years from this
* Written in 1876.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


time, in 1837, parties sought to obtain water power for milling purposes on the Manistee river and built a house on the river below the
mouth of the south branch which stood for many years and was spoken
of as 'The Old House.' This house was built to accommodate a crew
who were to work on a dam and much timber was taken out for constructing the dam. Capt. Humphrey sailed a vessel and brought it
into Manistee river but had difficulty in getting over the bar and that
fact, together with the apparent cost of constructing the dam, discouraged the enterprise and it was abandoned.
"Henry Wadsworth, one of the four justices of the peace of the
Territory of Michigan, whose jurisdiction extended from Grand Rapids north to the Straits, told of coming on 'The Old House,' a few
years after its construction and, to his great surprise, finding it occupied by a number of men who exhibited great nervousness at his approach and appeared very ill at ease in the presence of a stranger
among them. As he glanced about the cabin he saw evidences of tools
for making counterfeit money and he afterwards learned that counterfeit money was made here and sent by means of Indian ponies to other
parts of the country for circulation.
"The first circuit court in these regions was held by Flavius Josephus Littlejohn, author of the 'Legends of Michigan.' He was a
man remarkable for his versatility of talent, the charm of his conversatior was irresistible and his great, good heart made him beloved by
all N\1o knew him. In his judicial capacity one found him ever tender
witl the criminal and averse to giving pain. He held his court in the
dance-room of any available hotel. During his first term of court no
lawyer was located at Manistee but lawyers from Newaygo or Grand
Haven accompanied him and picked up what business they could during the court session.
"'The first attorney (Ramsdell himself) settled here during the
winter of '59 and '60. He came through from Grand Haven to Manistee with a horse and cutter following the Indian trail. As he neared
the town he found himself at the foot of a steep hill well nigh impassable from the icy condition of the road. The attorney stood in great
perplexity wondering how he would ever succeed in getting his cutter
loaded with his law books up to the summit of that hill. He had about
resolved to carry his books up, an armful at a time, and then help his
horse to pull the empty cutter up, when a sound of drunken shouting
and boisterous merriment reached his ears and he was accosted by a
band of men who had been spending the profits of a successful shingle
steal in the saloons of the town. At first they stood by, amused by the
predicament of the young attorney, when one of them by chance called
out, 'What is your name?' At the reply he turned to his fellows with
a beam of satisfaction and the hearty exclamation:   'Scotchy, by
George. let's give him a hand.' When he reached the town the young
lawyer found many who were ready to give him a hand. Until his
advent the processes of the law were an inscrutable mystery, the.methods of its procedure unknown; it was more often the strong who prevailed. For instance, he found a certain Stillman Stubbs confined in
jail on a criminal offense, namely, a breach of trust, having failed to




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


129


live up to a contract which he had taken for clearing land for a man
named Walker. The justice found that Walker had trusted Stubbs
to clear land, which Stubbs had not done. Stubbs must therefore be
guilty of breach of trust. Another man walked from Traverse to Manistee to get a writ of habeas corpus to let him out of jail, not appreciating the fact that the habeas corpus could do no more for him than he
had done for himself. Still another complained to the attorney that
he could not collect a debt owing him from the justice of the peace, for
the justice had garnisheed himself and so claimed that it would be
contempt of court should he pay the bill.
"One evening the attorney and a young friend, wishing to cross
the river, called across to a man in a canoe on the opposite bank asking
him to take them over; but the man showed no inclination to oblige
them. Thereupon, the friend suggested: 'Tell him it's the lawyer
that wants to cross.' When these magic words were shouted across the
river the man jumped up with the utmost alacrity and goodwill, it
must be confessed much to the lawyer's surprise, as he had not before
appreciated the majesty of his calling."
LEELANAU COUNTY
The act under which Leelanau county was organized was approved
in February, 1863, and in the following April John E. Fisher was
elected judge of probate and E. Cromwell Tuttle, prosecuting attorney
and circuit court commissioners among the other county officers.
The first term of circuit court for the new county was held at the
village of Northport, May 5, 1864, by Judge Flavius J. Littlejohn.
This first term of circuit court, over which Judge Littlejohn presided, was held in a school house on the hill in Northport. According
to the records there was no business before the court further than to
appoint some minor county officials and to designate the common jail
of Grand Traverse as the proper "lock-up" for Leelanau county.
The second term was more lively. It was held September 15th and
Judge Littlejohn disposed of three civil cases.
The first criminal case appearing on the court docket is that of the
People vs. Peter Drew, for adultery. It is entered under date of September 14, 1865, and was continued until June 19, 1866, when a "nolle"
was entered.
The first grand jurors of the circuit court were summoned for the
August term of 1867.
As stated Judge Littlejohn was the first to preside over the circuit
of which Leelanau formed a part. He held four terms of court-the
first commencing May 5, 1864, and the last September 15, 1865.
ANTRIM COUNTY
Antrim county, which had been organized by the election of its first
officers on April 6, 1863, was also in Judge Littlejohn's circuit. In
fact, he convened court at Elk Rapids, three days before he passed
south to favor the taxpayers of Leelanau county. The Traverse Bay
Vol. I-9




130


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Eagle, although but two years old, could make itself heard some on this
point, as witness: "On Monday, May 2, was held the first term of the
circuit court ever held in Antrim county. Elk Rapids enjoyed for
a whole day the presence of a judge and two lawyers. There was little
business before the court, it appearing that there was no place in Antrim county where naughty folk could be shut up. It was ordered that
if anybody in said county shall hereafter do anything very naughty,
he shall be shut up in the jail of Grand Traverse county and Antrim
county shall pay his board bill. It appearing that Antrim county had
neither prosecuting attorney nor circuit court commissioner, it was
ordered that J. G. Ramsdell, Esq., fill these offices till his successor
shall be elected and qualified.
"This is all that was done, except to metamorphose an Englishman
into a bred and born Yankee, after which sleight-of-hand performance
the court adjourned sine die, which means in English without dying;
wherefore it is probable that we shall see the court again, though we
can't tell when.
"In the evening the Judge made a political speech to the citizens
of Elk Rapids."
At that time Antrim county belonged to the Ninth judicial circuit,
and Jonathan G. Ramsdell mentioned in the preceding extract, succeeded Judge Littlejohn as its presiding judge. The county was afterward attached to the Thirteenth circuit.
CIRCUIT COURT OPENED IN CHARLEVOIX COUNTY
The first session of circuit court in and for Charlevoix county was
held in the hall over Fox & Rose's store, in August, 1869, Hon. J. G.
Ramsdell presiding. The record shows that court opened on the 24th
of August, but no judge being present it adjourned to the following
day, when Judge Ramsdell having arrived the business before the court
was dispatched. The first case on the docket was "The People vs.
Walker McCool," on information for maliciously burning wood. The
cause was continued to the next term of court. The appointment of
Archibald Buttars as county clerk was approved, and the Antrim county
jail was designated as the common jail for the county.
THE FIRST LAWYER
Edward H. Green, the pioneer lawyer of Charlevoix county, who
located at Charlevoix in 1868, was born at Reamstown, Lancaster
county, Pennsylvania, Oct. 31, 1834. His early education was obtained at the district school and at the normal school at Millersville.
At the breaking out of the Civil war he was one of the first to respond
to the call of President Lincoln for troops to defend the nation. On
April 19, 1861, he enlisted at Maytown, Pennsylvania, in the three
months' service. Afterward he enlisted in Company E, One Hundred
and Seventh Pennsylvania Infantry; made a brilliant war record and
endured all the suffering and hardships possible to pass through and
live. He was first promoted to lieutenant, then to captain, and at the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


131


close of the war was breveted major in recognition of gallant services.
At the battle of Bull Run he received gun-shot wounds through the
foot and thigh and was obliged to lie upon the ground for several days
before his injuries could receive attention. He was taken prisoner
but turned over to a hospital for treatment, and as soon as he was able
to get about he returned to service, although entitled to discharge for
disability. He was then made lieutenant and shortly afterward captain. At the battle of Spottsylvania, in 1864, he was taken prisoner
and for ten months endured the suffering of Libby, Macon and other
southern prisons. In July, 1865, after the close of the war, he was
mustered out of service, a physical wreck, as many another who survived that terrible conflict. In the winter of 1865-6 he taught school,
and then entered the University of Michigan, from which he graduated in March, 1868, and immediately thereafter was admitted to practice law in the supreme court of Detroit.
Mr. Green then started in pursuit of location, and, acting upon the
suggestion of Judge Ramsdell, of Traverse City, located in Charlevoix,
then a part of Emmet county. He was the first lawyer to locate between Traverse City and the Straits, and the field at that time was
not calculated to fascinate a young attorney who had both fortune and
fame to acquire. Just about that time the county seat of Emmet
county had been located at that point, and the immense forests of timber surrounding Pine Lake led Mr. Green to reason that this must
sometime become a business point.
At the August term of court Mr. Green was appointed prosecuting
attorney for Emmet county, and upon the organization of Charlevoix
county, in 1869, was elected its first prosecuting attorney. He was also
the first circuit court commissioner and also held the offices of county
treasurer, supervisor, and deputy collector of customs, besides having
been twice elected on the Republican ticket to the state legislature.
His early experience was diversified. He cleared the lot for his dwelling and built it himself. It was while working upon this house that
he received his first retainer, which was twenty dollars from Dennis
T. Downing to defend him in the county clerk embezzlement case. He
was editor of the Charlevoix Sentinel, from its first issue in April,
1869, to February 11, 1871. During the winter of 1868-9 he taught
the village school. It will thus be seen that Major Green's pioneer
experiences covered a wide range, but it will be observed that they
were all in line with the theory that working for success is surer than
idly waiting for it. In addition to his practice as a lawyer Major Green
held the offices of treasurer of the county and deputy collector of customs.
TWENTY-EIGHTH CIRCUIT AND WEXPORD COUNTY
When Wexford and Benzie counties assumed civil organization in
1869 they were attached to the Thirteenth judicial circuit, the unorganized county of Missaukee being attached to Wexford. In 1873
Wexford county was made a part of the Nineteenth, and in 1881 of
the Twenty-eighth. The latter circuit then composed Wexford, Mis



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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


saukee, Kalkaska, Benzie and Roscommon-the only change in the circuit since its establishment in 1881, being the excision of Roscommon
which is now included in the Thirty-fourth circuit. Early judges of
the Twenty-eighth have been Hons. J. G. Ramsdell, Shubal F. White,
H. H. Wheeler, A. V. McAlvay (now associate justice of the state supreme court), S. D. Haight, J. B. Judkins and Silas S. Fallass.
Judge Fallass, one of the old and respected lawyers of Cadillac,
came to that city in 1872, soon after his graduation from the law school
of the state university and his admission to the bar. In the fall of
the same year he was elected prosecuting attorney, which office he held
for two years. He was a member of the board of supervisors for five
years and was a leading actor in many of the stormy events of the
famous Wexford county seat war. In April, 1882, he relinquished a
lucrative law practice to accept the position of circuit judge by appointment from Governor Jerome. He was unanimously nominated
for election as his own successor by the bar convention of the circuit
and was elected in the following November. Judge Fallass took a
prominent part in all the local affairs of Wexford county, and in 1885
was a strong opponent of General B. M. Cutcheon in the congressional
race in the Forty-ninth district.
The first judge of the new Twenty-eighth judicial circuit, created
by the legislature in January, 1881, was Hon. John M. Rice, who resigned from the bench in April, 1882, and was succeeded by Judge
Fallass. The other residents of Wexford county who have presided
over the Twenty-eighth circuit have been Hons. Fred H. Aldrich, Clyde
C. Chittenden and Fred S. Lamb.
The first lawyers in Wexford county were T. A. Ferguson, who was
appointed prosecuting attorney soon after the county was organized
in 1869, and E. W. Stewart, both of whom located at Sherman. The
next lawyers were Silas S. Fallass and D. A. Rice, who located at Clam
lake, now Cadillac, in 1872. W. H. Cavenaugh, R. L. Rice, E. P. Sawyer and D. E. McIntyre came soon after. The members of the bar in
1884 were: E. F. Sawyer, J. R. Bishop, W. C. Haire, J. B. Rosevelt,
S. J. Wall, E. Eugene Haskins, D. A. Rice, W. H. Parks, H. M. Dunham, D. E. McIntyre, M. L. Dunham, Clyde C. Chittenden.
While the county seat remained at Sherman, that place always had
one resident lawyer, generally two and sometimes three. Since it was
removed to Cadillac the village has been without an attorney at law
most of the time. As facetiously remarked by one of its citizens: "An
old saying that 'blessed be nothing' can well be quoted by Sherman
just now, as it has no lawyer.^
Among the leading members of the bar now residing at Cadillac
are Judge Fred S. Lamb, of the Twenty-eighth circuit; Fred C. Wetmore, ex-probate judge and now district attorney for the Western district of Michigan; Eugene E. Haskins, D. E. McIntyre and E. F. Sawyer.
Hon. Clyde C. Chittenden, for ten years judge of the Twenty-eighth
circuit, first came to Cadillac in 1883, and prior to ascending the bench
had served as circuit court commissioner, prosecuting attorney and
state senator. He was both a professional and a public leader. He




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


133


was first elected circuit judge in 1900 and resigned from the bench in
the fall of 1910, moving at that time to Seattle, Washington, where he
is still successful in the practice of his profession.
KALKASKA BENCH AND BAR
In 1840, when the northern part of the southern peninsula of Michigan was divided into unorganized counties the present territory of
Kalkaska was laid off and named Wabassee. In 1843 it assumed the
name by which it is now known, and the county was successively attached to Grand Traverse and Antrim counties for judicial purposes.
Kalkaska remained attached to the latter until its own civil organization was completed in 1871, it being included in the Thirteenth judicial circuit.
Burton S. Howe was the first lawyer to locate in Kalkaska county
for the purpose of practicing law. A. T. Kellogg had been admitted
to the bar and held the office of prosecuting attorney of the county,
but did not make the practice of law a pursuit. Mr. Howe was born
at Centerville, St. Joseph county, Michigan, in 1838. In September,
1861, he enlisted in the Fourth Michigan Battery. At Pittsburgh
landing he received severe internal injuries, and a gun-shot wound
in his left hand. At the end of eighteen months he was discharged for
disability and returned home. He engaged in the hardware business
but, suffering from injuries received in the war, was led to take up
the study of law. He was admitted to the bar in 1868, and practiced
in St. Joseph county until the winter of 1874, when he removed to the
village of Kalkaska and was the only attorney in the county for about
two years. He held the office of prosecuting attorney one term.
Arthur A. Bleazby was the second lawyer to locate in Kalkaska
county. He is a native of Ireland and emigrated to Canada with his
parents at the age of six years. He attended school there and subsequently entered college. Before completing the course he came to the
States, and in 1861 enlisted at Lockport, New York, and went into services with Colonel Ellsworth. He remained in the service about two
years, and soon after his return north went to Kalamazoo, Michigan,
and entered Kalamazoo College. After graduating from that institution he studied law in the office of Severance & Burroughs, and was
admitted to the bar in 1873. Having business interests at Niles requiring his attention, he went there and remained until March, 1876,
when he removed to the village of Kalkaska, and engaged in the practice of law. He held the office of prosecuting attorney one term and
was extensively connected with the business interests of the village.
losco COUNTY
It was a matter of "journal" record that the first term of the circuit court for Tosco county was commenced at the courthouse in Tawas
City, on Tuesday, the 17th day of May, 1859. The circuit judge failed
to arrive and no business was transacted until August 9th following.
Court was held in the room over the Whittemore store, Judge W. F.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Woodsworth presiding. The first case tried was that of Amos Miner
vs. Archibald Phillips. The next court was held August 1, 1860; and
the case tried was that of William Daggett vs. Charles Harris. On
May 25, 1861, Judge James Birney held court one day, and Judge
Birney presided June 24, 1862. The peace and dignity of the State
of Michigan and County of Iosco seem to have been held in great respect during those years, and but little business came into court. Upon
what meat lawyers fed is not explained in the recorded proceedings
of the court. It was the custom of the court to open in due form at
the stated time, but the honorable circuit judge only appeared at long
intervals.
The next business done in court after 'June, 1862, was upon June
13, 1866, at which time Judge J. G. Sutherland presided. This session
lasted two days and in September following a term of like length was
held. In June, 1867, Judge Sutherland held court one day and Hon.
Josiah Turner occupied the bench on September 17, 1867. From this
time, as the population increased and civilization tightened its grasp
upon this ambitious region, litigants multiplied and the cloud began
to turn its silver lining toward the legal fraternity.
In 1868 Judge Sutherland held court one day in May, and two days
in October, and was an incumbent of the circuit bench for three days
in May and two days in October, 1869. In 1871 Judge Sutherland was
succeeded by Hon. Theophilus C. Grier, who continued judge of this
circuit until his death in 1872, when he was succeeded by Hon. Sanford M. Green. Judge Green held court at Tawas City until the division of the Tenth circuit in 1877, when Iosco county became a part of
the Twenty-third circuit, with Hon. J. B. Tuttle as judge.  It has
since remained in that circuit.
The first session of the Probate court for Iosco county was held
on the first Monday in March, 1859, Gideon O. Whittemore presiding.
The first entry in the records is the application of William Hill of
Alcona county for appointment as guardian to a minor son, Sam Hill.
Gideon O. Whittemore was succeeded in 1864 by James O. Whittemore, who was succeeded by David J. Evans in 1868, by O. E. M.
Cutcheon in 1874, and James E. Whittemore was then reelected and
held the Probate bench for some years thereafter.
MEMBERS STATE BAR ASSOCIATION
The Michigan State Bar Association is now in the twenty-second
year of its corporate life and is one of the strongest organizations of
the kind in the northwest, its membership numbering over 660. It is
safe to say that there are few members of the Michigan profession, in
substantial standing, who are not identified with the association, and
its published membership is a fair index of the personnel of the fraternity. We have therefore collated therefrom the names of lawyers
who reside in the counties covered by this publication:
Alpena.-James Frances and Michael O'Brien.
Boyne City.-James M. Harris.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN13


135


Cadillac.-F. 0. Gaffney, D. E. McIntyre, E. F. Sawyer and Fred
C. Wetmore.
Cheboygan.-Maxwell W. Benjamin and James F. Shepherd._
Clare.-Joseph F. Bowler and C. W. Perry.
East Tawas.-Edwin Rawden.
Gladwin.-Isaac Foster.
Grayling.-George L. Alexander.
Harrison.-George J. Cummins, Francis M. Morrisey and John
Quinn.
Kalkaska.-J. L. Boyd and Ernest C. Smith.
Ludington.-M-V. B. Danaker, Henry C. Hutton, A. A. Keiser, John
Phelan and C. G. Wing.
Manistee.-Charles N. Belcher, Frank L. Fowler, Leland S. MacPhail, Roy M. Overpack and R. D. Smith.
Marion.-W. L. Kinney.
Pellston.-Frank L. Keating.
Petosky.-C. J. Pailthorp.
Reed City.-B. N. Savidge.
Roscommon.-Charles L. De Waele.
Standish.-John J. McCarthy.
Traverse City.-H. C. Davis, Parm C. Gilbert, Fred H. Pratt and
M. W. Underwood.
West Branch.-Nelson Sharpe.




CHAPTER VI


PROFESSIONAL LIFE CONTINUED
NEWSPAPERS OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN-BIRTH OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
JOURNALISM —THOMAS T. BATES-MANISTEE AS A CLOSE SECONDMASON COUNTY-IOSCO COUNTY-CHARLEVOIX COUNTY-WILLARD A.
SMITH-ALPENA COUNTY-WEXFORD       COUNTY-ANTRIM COUNTYOSCEOLA AND LAKE COUNTIES-KALKASKA COUNTY-EMMET COUNTY
-ROSELLE ROSE-OTSEGO AND ROSCOMMON COUNTIES-CHEBOYGAN
COUNTY-LEELANAU    COUNTY-PRESQUE    ISLE  COUNTY-OGEMAW
COUNTY-CLARE AND CRAWFORD COUNTIES-OSCODA COUNTY-ARENAC   COUNTY-MISSAUKEE    COUNTY-BENZIE    COUNTY-GLADWIN
COUNTY-EXPLANATORY —FIRST REGULATING     ACT —THE   PIONEER
PHYSICIANS.
Such professional life as relates to newspaper work and to medicine
is essentially of a personal nature; unlike that which centers around
the bench and bar, it has primarily little connection with the state or
with public affairs. The editor and the physician are concerned in
the proper conduct of the newspaper and medical and surgical practice, while the judge is the state's officer of justice and the lawyer is
bound to the court by all the ties of official connections and self-interest. This chapter is therefore to deal with those professions which
are especially personal in their nature, although the calling of the
journalist has so expanded as to partially transform its functions from
a personal to a public nature.
NEWSPAPERS OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
As a solid basis for a sketch of newspaper work and newspaper life
in Northern Michigan, with a somewhat extended mention of the pioneer newspaper men who have contributed to' its establishment and
growth, is herewith presented a list of existing newspapers in the
counties included in this history. It is rather an exposition of the
survival of the fittest in the newspaperdom of that section of the state.
In the first division of the list, where names of newspapers are placed
in parentheses it is an indication that the two are associated under one
management; in the last division the appearance of two dates indicates
the years when weekly and daily editions were established, or the years
when consolidated papers were founded:
136




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


137


ALCONA COUNTY
*Alcona County Review, Harrisville; Rep., 1877.
*Herald, Lincoln; Ind.-Rep., 1907.
ALPENA COUNTY
*Argus-Pioneer (Evening News), Alpena; Rep., 1871.
tEvening Echo (Farmer), Alpena; Ind., 1890.
tEvening News (Argus-Pioneer), Alpena; Rep., 1899.
*Farmer (Evening Echo), Alpena; Ind., 1898.
ANTRIM COUNTY:Argus, Alden; Ind., 1910.
*Independent, Bellaire; Rep., 1895.
*Torch, Central Lake; Rep., 1893.
*Antrim County News, Elk Rapids; Ind., 1909.
*Progress, Elk Rapids; Rep., 1872.
*Herald, Mancelona; Rep., 1879.
'News, Mancelona; Rep., 1908.
ARENAC COUNTY
*Enterprise, Au Gres; Rep., 1906.
*Progress, Omer; Rep., 1895.
*Arenac County Independent, Standish; Ind., 1882.
BENZIE COUNTY
*Benzie County Patriot, Frankfort; Rep., 1897.:Banner, Benzonia; Rep.,
*Benzie County Leader, Honor; Rep., 1908.
Alert, Elberta; Ind.-Rep., 1911.
*News, Thompsonville; Ind.-Rep., 1894.
CHARLEVOIX COUNTY
**Citizen. Boyne City; Rep., 1881.
t*Journal, Boyne City; Rep., 1883, 1909.
*Times, Boyne City; Rep., 1911.
*Courier, Charlevoix; Rep., 1883.
*Sentinel, Charlevoix; Rep., 1869.
*Charlevoix County Herald, East Jordan: Rep., 1897.
*Enterprise, East Jordan; Rep., 1882.
* Weekly.
* * Semi-weekly.
tDaily.
t*Daily and weekly.




138


138   HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


CHEBOYGAN COUNTY;`Denioerat, Cheboygan; Dem., 1880.
*Nexws, Ch eboygan; Ind., 1886.
*Trib~une, Cheboygan; Rep., 1875.
* Courier, Wolverine; Rep., 1904.
CLARE CO[UNTY
"Courier, Clare, Ind., 1895.
"Sentinel, Clare; Rep., 1878.
"'Clare County Cleaver, Harrison; Rep., 1881.
*Su11. Farwell; Ind., 1907.
CRAWFORD COUNTY
"Crawford Avalanche, Grayling; Rep., 1879.
EMMET COUNTY
-"Graphic, Harbor Springs; Rep., 1895.
*Republicani, Harbor Springs; Rep., 1876.
"Journal, Peliston; Rep., 1903.
T{Evening News & Resorter, Petoskey; Ind., 1883.
*Jndependent, Petoskey; Ind., 1875.
GILADWIN COUNTY
* Clarion, Beaverton; Ind., 1895.
*Gladxvin County Record, Gladwin; Rep.. 1878.
GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY
'''Grand Traverse Herald and Traverse Bay Eagle, Traverse City;
Rep., 1858, 1864.
fRecord-Eagle, Traverse City; Rep.. 1897, 1893.
*Monit~or, Fife Lake; Ind., 1891.
*-Eeho, Kingsley; Ind.,
Josco COUNTY
M, —osco County Gazette, East Tawas; Rep., 1868.
*Press, Oseoda; Rep., 1877.
*Tawvas Herald, Tawas City; Ind., 1883.
KALKASKA COUNTY
*Kalkaska Leader and Kalkaskian, Kalkaska; Rep., 1874, 1878.
*Weekly.
' *Semi- weekly.
"Daflv




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


139


LAKE COUNTY
*Lake County Star, Baldwin; Rep., 1873.
*Observer, Luther; Rep., 1892.
LEELANAU COUNTY
Journal, Empire; Rep., 1900.
Leelanau Enterprise, Leland; Rep., 1877.
Leader, Northport; Rep., 1900.
Leelanau News, Sutton's Bay; Rep., 1903.
MANISTEE COUNTY
*Beacon & Onekama Lake Breeze, Bear Lake; Ind., 1888.
*Progress, Copemish; Ind., 1902.
t*Advocate, Manistee; Rep., 1883, 1885.
tNews, Manistee; Ind., 1894.
*Michigan Volkszeitung, Manistee; Dem., 1890.
**Times (News), Manistee; Rep., 1866.
Kindergarten Primary Magazine (monthly), Manistee; 1888
MASON COUNTY
*Review, Fountain; Rep., 1910.
*Chronicle, Ludington; Rep., 1901.
tNews, Ludington; Rep., 1901.
*Record-Appeal, Ludington; Rep., 1867, 1874.
*Enterprise, Scottville; Rep., 1885.
MISSAUKEE COUNTY
*Missaukee Republican, Lake City; Rep., 1884.
*Plain Dealer, Lake City; Ind., 1887.
*Chronicle, McBain; Ind., 1890.
MONTMORENCY COUNTY
*Tribune, Atlanta; Rep., 1886.
*Herald, Hillman; Rep., 1901.
*Journal, Lewiston; Rep., 1893.
OGEMAW COUNTY
*Review, Rose City; Rep., 1904.
*Herald-Times, West Branch; Rep., 1878, 1890.
*Ogemaw Republican, West Branch; Rep., 1896.
* Weekly.
* * Semi-weekly.
'Daily.
t*Daily and weekly.




140


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


OSCEOLA COUNTY
*Review, Evart; Rep., 1871.
*Osceola County News, Hersey; Rep., 1908.
*Sun, Le Roy; Ind., 1910.
*Dispatch, Marion; Rep., 1890.
*Clarion, Reed City; Rep., 1872.
*Osceola County Herald, Reed City; Rep., 1870.
OSCODA COUNTY
*Mail-Telegram, Mio; Ind.-Rep., 1881.
OTSEGO COUNTY
*Otsego County Herald & Times, Gaylord; Rep., 1875, 1905.
PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY
*Presque Isle County News, Millersburg; Rep., 1901.
*Inter-Lake, Onaway; Rep., 1902.
*Outlook, Onaway; Rep., 1898.
*Presque Isle County Advance, Rogers; Rep., 1878.
ROSCOMMON COUNTY
*Herald, Roscommon; Rep., 1907.
*News, Roscommon; Rep., 1875.
WEXFORD COUNTY
Enterprise, Buckley; Rep., 1880.
t*Globe, Cadillac; Ind., 1898.
tEvening News (News & Express), Cadillac; Rep., 1900.
*News and Express, Cadillac; Rep., 1872, 1886.
*Tribune, Manton; Rep., 1879.
*Sun, Mesick; Rep., 1901.
*Pioneer, Sherman; Rep., 1872.
BIRTH OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN NEWSPAPERS
It was at Traverse City that the first newspaper of Northern Michigan had its birth, in 1858, its sponsor being Morgan Bates, founder of
the Grand Traverse Herald, who also had the honor a quarter of a
century ago of issuing the first real history of the Grand Traverse region (written by Dr. Morgan L. Leach).
As Mr. Bates was the father of the press in that section of the state
*Weekly.
t Daily.
t*Daily and weekly.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


141


he is certainly worthy of an extended notice. Born at Queensbury,
Warren county, New York, near Glen's Falls, July 12, 1806, at an
early age he became a printer's apprentice at Sandy Hill, and when
twenty established the Warren (Pennsylvania) Gazette. Here Horace
Greeley worked for him as a journeyman printer, and a strong friendship grew up between them, which continued till the close of Mr.
Greeley's life. Afterwards he worked for Greeley as foreman in New
York as Greeley had worked for him at Warren. In Greeley's office
he was associated with several other young men who afterwards made
their mark in the newspaper world, among whom were Elbridge Gerry
Paige, better known by his norn de ptume of "Dow Jr.," and George
Wilkins Kendall, the projector and first publisher of the New Orleans
Picayune.
In 1883 Mr. Bates came to Detroit, and was employed as foreman
in the office of the Advertiser. In 1839 he purchased that journal, in
company with George Dawson, afterward connected with the Albany
Evening Journal. Mr. Dawson soon retired from the firm, and Mr.
Bates becoming sole owner, conducted the paper till 1844, when, in
consequence of the defeat of the Whig party whose policy he had ably
advocated, he prudently sold out.
In 1849 Mr. Bates went to California, by way of Cape Horn. After two years, he returned by way of the Isthmus. In 1852 he again
sought the land of gold, going again by way of Cape Horn. He remained in California until 1856 and during that period he was for
more than a year sole owner and publisher of the Alta California, daily
and weekly. The daily was at that time the only one published west
of the Rocky mountains. Returning to Michigan, he was employed for
some time in the auditor general's office, at Lansing, till he removed
to Traverse City, in 1858.
To most men Traverse City would have seemed the most unpromising place for establishing a newspaper, while in reality it was the most
eligible in the state, a fact Mr. Bates's experience and knowledge of the
business enabled him to see. The first number of the Herald made its
appearance on the 3d of November, 1858, and in his salutatory Mr.
Bates defined his editorial position in unmistakable terms. "In politics we admit no such word as neutrality," he writes. "We hate slavery in all its forms and conditions, and can have no fellowship or
compromise with it. We entertain no respect for any party or any
religion which sanctions and supports it, we care not from what source
they derive their authority; and regard that politician, minister, or
layman, who advocates its extension and perpetuity, as an enemy to
the human race and false to the God we worship. Entertaining these
views on what we regard the great political issue of the day, we shall
support, with zeal and firmness, to the best of our ability, the Republican organization, so long as that party shall be true to the principles
that now govern it."
When the control of the general government passed into the hands
of the Republicans, in 1861, Mr. Bates was appointed by President
Lincoln to the registership of the land office at Traverse City. He held
the office till 1867, when his outspoken condemnation of the policy of




142


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


President Johnson's administration was followed by his removal. On
the accession of General Grant to the presidency he was re-appointed
and continued to hold the office until his death. He was four times
elected treasurer of Grand Traverse county, and would no doubt, have
been again the choice of the people had he not declined the honor. In
the fall of 1868 he was elected lieutenant governor on the Republican
ticket, the office coming to him unsolicited as a worthy tribute to his
character and services.
Mr. Bates was twice married. His first wife died in 1855; the second preceded him to the grave by a little more than a year. His own
death occurred March 2, 1874, at the age of sixty-eight.
In December, 1867, less than five years before his death, Mr. Bates
had sold the Herald to DeWitt C. Leach, a man of wide public reputation and strong character. In 1849 he had served as a member of the
state legislature from Genesee county; in 1850 as a representative in
the Michigan constitutional convention and for several years afterward as state librarian. In the fall of 1856 he was elected to congress
from the Fourth district which then embraced the northern portion
of the Lower peninsula and all of the Upper and was reelected in 1858.
In recognition of his splendid services for Unionism and his fine, stalwart character, President Lincoln appointed him United States Indian
agent for Michigan in March, 1861, in which position he served four
years, moving from Lansing to Traverse City in the fall of 1865. In
1867 Mr. Leach was elected a member of the constitutional convention
which met at Lansing, and shortly afterward purchased the Herald of
Mr. Bates, conducting its publication for nine years. In 1876 he sold
the Herald to Thomas T. Bates, who, by various purchases and consolidations, has since come into virtual control of the press of Traverse
City, and is one of the best known and most influential journalists in
Northern Michigan. His biography will be found elsewhere.
The Herald and Record Company was incorporated in 1904, its
present officers being Thomas T. Bates, president; George G. Bates,
vice president; J. W. Hannen, secretary; and Clara N. Bates, treasurer. In 1910 this company secured control of the Eagle-Press, which
had been incorporated in 1897, with M. G. Sprague as president, as
well as the Fife Lake Monitor and Kingsley Echo, thus absorbing the
second oldest newspaper established in the Northern Michigan covered
by this work.
The Traverse Bay Eagle was the second newspaper published in the
Lower Peninsula north of Big Rapids, Antrim county, the last of
March, 1864, by E. L. Sprague, under the name of the Elk Rapids
Eagle. It first appeared as a very small folio sheet, the size being only
fifteen by nineteen inches. At the end of the first year James Spencer
became part owner and publisher, and the paper was enlarged to
twenty by twenty-six inches. On January 1, 1866, the name was
changed to Traverse Bay Eagle and the paper was enlarged to twentytwo by thirty-two inches. In the spring of 1866 a power press was
purchased, the first in the Grand Traverse region, and in the fall of
the same year the paper was moved to Traverse City, and Lyman C.








144


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
I


Wilcox was admitted as a partner, the firm being Sprague, Spencer &
Wilcox. The paper was at this time enlarged to an eight-column folio.
One year later Mr. Wilcox retired, Sprague & Spencer purchasing his
interest. At the same time, a steam engine and boiler were purchased,
to drive the press. Previous to this, however, at the time Mr. Wilcox
became a partner a job press was added to the office, the first ever
brought into this region. In 1872 Mr. Spencer's health failed, and
the management of the office devolved entirely upon Mr. Sprague.
The first of January, 1880, the paper was again enlarged to a nine
column folio. In July, 1882, Mr. Spencer sold his interest to Mr.
Sprague, the original owner and publisher.
These are the main facts in connection with the establishment of
the Traverse Bay Eagle, whose daily edition was first issued in 1893.
As stated the Eagle-Press was organized in 1897, and the Morning
Record established the same year, the latter being changed to an evening
edition four years afterwards.
Outside of Traverse City are published the Monitor, at Fife Lake,
and the Echo, at Kingsley. On the whole Fife Lake has not been a
fertile field for the growth of newspapers. In 1881 the Fife Lake Eye
was started and succumbed in the following year. About the time of
its decease E. B. Dennis commenced to issue the Fife Lake Comet, but
its course was spent by March, 1884.
The Fife Lake Monitor was established in 1891 by Bert Hough. J.
M. Terwilliger purchased it in 1893, selling the paper to W. A. Kent in
1902. Mr. Kent discontinued the Monitor in 1910, selling its subscription list to the Traverse City Herald.
MANISTEE A CLOSE SECOND
Manistee closely followed Traverse City as a newspaper town with
a substantial future. The first newspaper in the county, the Manistee
Gazette, appeared at the county seat December 17, 1864, and from
that date until January, 1868, was published by Robert R. Rice. This
pioneer in the journalistic field was established through the influence
and active aid of Judge T. J. Ramsdell; was a small sheet devoted
chiefly to local matters and was Republican. In 1868 Mr. Rice's failing health forced him to relinquish its publication and sell his property
to Hon. S. W. Fowler, then of Jackson. The new proprietor enlarged
the paper and changed its name to Manistee Times. The village had
then between two and three thousand inhabitants.
The first power press in the county was brought to Manistee in
the summer of 1868 and placed in the office of the Manistee Times,
which thereupon developed into a five-volumn quarto. Hon. E. L.
Sprague, the veteran editor of the Traverse Bay Eagle, helped to place
"the monster press," as it was then called, in position, and by his
superior knowledge of the business proved a true friend of the Times.
The Manistee Tribune commenced its publication in 1869, edited
by Geo. W. Clayton of Ludington for a time; afterward by John E.
Rastell who continued it for two years. R. Hoffman also published a
paper from 1871 to 1875 called Manistee Times; passing into the hands




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


145


of App. M. Smith, it continued thus until 1881, when it was purchased
by H. S. Hilton, enlarged and in 1886 consolidated with Manistee Sentinel, joint proprietors.
In 1875 the Manistee Standard, published by 0. H. Godwin was
bought by Colonel Fowler and merged with his paper into the Times
and Standard. Ten years later this was sold to James Madison, who,
in partnership with App. M. Smith, published it for a year under the
name of Manistee-Sentinel, afterward Times-Sentinel.
In 1874 a small paper called the People's Advocate was issued for
a brief period; a Democratic paper called also the Advocate, was published by E. J. Cady till 1881, when it changed proprietors, V. W.
Richardson of Milwaukee taking charge for three years when J. P.
O'Malley became its owner and later S. C. Thompson as joint proprietor and name changed to Manistee Democrat.
Early in the year 1894 twenty-five prominent business men of the
Salt City, realizing that a daily newspaper was a necessity to the growth
of the city, organized the News Publishing Company, which was incorporated with a capital stock of $15,000 for the purpose of publishing a non-partisan daily and carrying on a general job printing business.
The first board of directors were Edward Buckley, president; E. E.
Douville, vice president; Geo. A. Hart, secretary; Robert R. Blacker,
treasurer; H. W. Carey and A. J. Dovel. The plant of the Manistee
Weekly Times-Sentinel was purchased by the News Company and a
month later the Daily Democrat was absorbed.
The first daily newspaper that saw the light in Manistee was published during the noted Vanderpool trial in February, 1870, in the
office of the Manistee Times, and gave the daily court proceedings in
that famous case. Its publication continued for two weeks and the
history as published was from the pen of the lawyer-editor, Colonel
Fowler, with Mrs. Fowler as assistant and proof-reader.
Clarence W. Lee, city editor of the Traverse Bay Eagle, a thorough
Ohio newspaper man who had assisted Mr. Sprague in the establishment of that paper, became managing editor of the Manistee Daily
News at its founding in 1894, and continued to guide it, in that capacity until May, 1899, when Herbert Harley, still president of the News
Publishing Company, succeeded him. In March, 1901, the office of
publication was moved from the Fowler to the Engelmann block, and
in 1907 Mr. Harley erected the building with special view to accommodate the News and its semi-weekly edition, the Manistee Times. Upon
taking possession of the new building, the News installed the first linotype machine at Manistee; also the first press in the county to print
from roll paper.
It was back in 1883 that the precursor of the Manistee Advocate
had its beginning. In 1874 the first paper to bear the name of Advocate was issued under the title of the People's Advocate, suspending
after a brief period. In 1878 it was revived by E. J. Cady, and in
1881 passed into the hands of V. M. Richardson. In 1884 J. P. O'Malley and S. C. Thompson secured control, branching out into the Manistee Democrat, which was later run separately and finally suspended
in 1901. In 1883 the Labor Advocate came into the field, changing its
Vol. X-10




146


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


name later to the Mauistee Advocate, having since been issued continuously as a weekly paper until the present time. It was by a slow
process that the paper was developed from its humble beginning into
its present form. In October. 1892, James S. Madison, the present
proprietor, purchased a half interest in the plant. Six months later,
in March, 1893, he bought the remaining interest of John P. O'Malley,
and has conducted the business independently since. Acting upon
his own initiative, in April, 1895, Mr. Madison launched a daily edition in addition to the weekly publication of the Advocate.
MASON COUNTY
Mason county has always been considered a good field for news -
paper publications, both as a profession and a business, and the institution was initiated about the time that Pere Marquette (Ludington)
was born as a village. On September 17, 1867, the Record was established by George W. Clayton and the Appeal was founded by Messrs.
Cole, father and son, June 27, 1873, shortly before the village of Pere
Marquette became Ludington. Hopkins & Darr succeeded Mr. Clayton in the conduct of the Record, which was combined with the Appeal
in 1903. Charles T. Sawyer, who had been identified with the business
since 1899, purchased the interests, successively, of Messrs. Hopkins,
and Darr, and April 1, 1911, purchased the News, which had been
founded by W. Scott Luce as a daily in 1901. Mr. Luce had also established the Illustrated Saturday Sun, in 1907, which was also absorbed by the new management, under the style of Record Company.
Besides the publications owned by the Record Company, of which
Mr. Sawyer is president, the only newspaper in Ludington is the
weekly Republican journal, the Chronicle, founded in 1901 and conducted by E. 0. McLean.
lOSCo COUNTY
The losco County Gazette was started at Tawas City in 1868, by
James 0. and C. H. Whittemore. In September, 1869, Charles S. Hilbourn purchased the office and published the paper until October, 1873,
when H. E. Hoard assumed control and continued the business until
February, 1881, when he sold it to the present proprietor, Charles R.
Jackson, who removed the office to the village of East Tawas. Mr.
Jackson is a native of Shiawassee county, Michigan, where he learned
the printer's trade. In January, 1877, he came to Tawas City, and
was with Mr. Hoard in the Gazette office until he made the purchase.
Mr. Jackson is an able journalist and a wide-awake citizen. For further particulars, of a more personal nature, the reader is referred to
Mr. Jackson's biography published elsewhere.
Although Oscoda had a newspaper as early as 1877, the real predecessor to the existing Oscoda-AuSable Press was established in 1896.
Will McGillivray, its editor and postmaster of Oscoda, is a bright,
plucky young journalist, who has done much to maintain the courage
of the community so stricken by the terrible fire of 1911.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


147


The Tawas Herald, of Tawas City, was founded in 1883, and is now
conducted by Len J. Patterson.
CHARLEVOIX COUNTY
Charlevoix county is in the pioneer journalistic territory of Northern Michigan, and in the person of the venerable Willard A. Smith,
of the Sentinel, has the distinction of still maintaining one of the honored fathers of the profession. He is, in fact, the veteran journalist
of that section of the state, having been in harness, as a sturdy worker
and thinker, for more than forty-two years. A sketch of his life and his
long and honorable career as a newspaper man is published elsewhere
in this work.
The Charlevoix Sentinel itself has been an important factor in the
general development and progress of Charlevoix county and Northern
Michigan. In 1869 the county of Charlevoix was organized. At that
time DeWitt C. Leach was publishing the Grand Traverse Herald and
Willard A. Smith was a compositor in the office of the Grand Traverse
Eagle. Mr. Leach desired to establish a newspaper in the new county
and selected young Smith as the proper person to come to Charlevoix
and manage the enterprise. A satisfactory arrangement was effected
and Smith took such material as he thought necessary from the Herald
office and it was transported to the new field of journalism. An office
was set up in the Althouse building, near the Fountain City House,
and Saturday, April 24, 1869, the first number of the Charlevoix Sentinel was issued for DeWitt C. Leach by Willard A. Smith, with Major
E. H. Green as editor. Its field was wide, for north of Traverse City
there was no competition. Charlevoix village was scarcely a prophecy
and even if every white family in that territory had each paid for one
copy during the year, the publisher would not have grown rapidly rich.
Turning back the issues of fifteen years to the early numbers we
find a well printed and well edited local newspaper. Public questions
are there discussed with candor and ability, and the make-up of the
paper displays the work of a printer skilled in his craft. The paper
was a five-column folio and was printed on a Washington hand press.
Thus the business of the village was fairly presented at that time.
During the second year the office was removed to a building at the
corner of Clinton and Bridge streets. On March 12, 1870, Mr. Leach
sold the establishment to Willard A. Smith.  Mr. Green continued
editor until February 11, 1871, when he retired from a position which
he had very ably filled and Mr. Smith became sole editor and proprietor, as at present. In 1874 the paper was changed to a six-column folio,
afterward to a five-column quarto, and in 1881 to a six-column quarto.
In 1871 Mr. Smith built an office on Main street. Subsequently that
building was moved to Bridge street and occupied a time, when it was
again moved and the present Sentinel building erected upon its site.
Mr. Smith continued sole proprietor until August, 1883, when he sold




^/-^ *
tl/ / z5X
BAGI


It
I




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


149


a half interest to Ed. F. Parmelee, and the firm became Smith & Parmelee. At that time the paper was increased to a seven-column quarto.
Mr. Smith afterward purchased Mr. Parmelee's interest.
When first established the Sentinel was the official paper of seven
counties, including two of the Upper Peninsula. Since that time its
field has narrowed, as population multiplied upon this inviting domain,
but it has ever maintained a high standard of independence and its
influence has been continuous, strong and elevating.
The Charlevoix Journal was established by Charles J. Strang, and
the first number was issued in June, 1883. The paper is a five-column
quarto, is Democratic in politics and is conducted with evident ability.
Charles J. Strang, founder of the Journal, was a son of the late
James J. Strang, leader of the Michigan Mormons. He was born at
St. James, Beaver Island, Michigan, April 6, 1851, and after the death
of his father in 1856 he moved to Walworth county, Wisconsin, and
three years later to Jackson county. In February, 1860, he located
in Eaton county, Michigan. He was educated in the district schools
of the county, and in March, 1868, entered the office of the Eaton Rapids Journal as an apprentice, where he worked one year. Subsequently
he worked at Bay City, Michigan, three years, in western states one
year, at Charlotte, Michigan, two years, and at Lansing eight years.
In June, 1883, he located at Charlevoix and established the Journal
as above stated.
The present editor and proprietor is C. E. Ramsey. A daily edition, Evening Journal, was established in 1909.
Other long-established papers in Charlevoix county are the Citizen
and Journal, of Boyne City, founded respectively in 1881 and 1883.
The Standard, deceased, was first issued from that city by William
Mears, March 11, 1881. At the beginning of the third volume the
name was changed to the Statesman. Rev. T. J. Hill and P. A. Badour
were editors of the Standard and the Statesman. The Boyne City
Times was established in fall of 1911 and is edited by W. H. Griffin.
In the spring of 1882 East Jordan had become of sufficient importance to induce the establishment of a local newspaper. The Boyne
City Enterprise had been started at Boyne in September, 1880, by Budd
& Garrison, and on April 7, 1882, it was moved to East Jordan by E.
N. Clink, who conducted it alone until April 14, 1883, when W. F
Palmiter purchased a half interest in the office. On October 11th following Mr. Clink rented his interest to Thomas F. Nelson. On the night
of November 18, 1883, the office was destroyed by fire, and the publication of the paper was suspended until February 21, 1884, when it was
resumed by Palmiter & Nelson, the latter having purchased the interest belonging to Mr. Clink. The present editor and proprietor is C. L.
Lorraine, who bought the paper in 1891. His son, R. L. Lorraine, has
been in active charge for several years.
ALPENA COUNTY
The four newspapers published in this county are all issued from
the city of Alpena. The Argus-Pioneer stands for both age and stabil



150


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


ity. Wrapped in it is the pioneer history of journalism in Alpena
county.
On April 29, 1863, D. R. Joslin, a lawyer, issued the initial number
of the Thunder Bay Monitor, the first paper published in Alpena county.
It was a five column folio. In his salutatory the editor announced that
he was in favor of a vigorous prosecution of the war, and would also
dedicate his paper to serving the best interests of the village and county.
Mr. Joslin, in 1866, sold the office to David D. Oliver, who employed
James A. Case to edit the paper and manage the business. The name
was then changed to Pioneer. Mr. Oliver afterward sold an interest
to Robert S. Toland, and still later disposed of his remaining interest
to James K. Lockwood. In the fall of 1868, A. C. Taft purchased the
office and paper, which had been changed in name to Pioneer. Succeeding publishers have been Fred C. Fletcher and H. C. Hainmel, who
sold to the Evening News when it was founded in 1899.
The Alpena Weekly Argus was first issued on June 29, 1871, by
John C. Viall. Mr. Viall was born at Pittsfield, New York, March 9,
1842. and in the fall of 1850 had removed to Michigan with his parents, who settled at Pontiac. He attended the Union schools until
fifteen years of age, at which time he entered a printing office to learn
the trade, which he followed for many years. In 1871 he came to Alpena on a tour of observation. After looking over the field he became
convinced that there was a good opening for a Democratic newspaper,
and he proceeded forthwith to start an office. The Argus was first
located in the McDonald block, a wooden building destroyed in the
fire of 1872, and subsequently rebuilt of brick. The fire wiped out of
existence every vestige of the Argus printing establishment, and left
Mr. Viall only his debts and a good credit, which he had worked hard
to earn. His clear grit came to his rescue, and scraping together what
money he could, he immediately purchased a new outfit and opened a
new office in two rooms of Mr. Bolton's residence on the north side of
the river, which that gentleman kindly placed at his disposal. Although
heavily burdened with debt, he resumed the battle with increased energy,
and extricated himself from all his embarrassments. Mr. Viall conducted the Argus until December, 1908, and in September, 1909, a
combination of Alpena citizens was formed comprising James Collins,
the veteran journalist, W. B. Robertson and Thomas J. Ferguson. These
gentlemen purchased the Pioneer, consolidated it with the Argus, and
also bought the News, which had been started the previous month by
A. C. Taft. The consolidated business is now owned by Mr. Collins.
The Evening Echo was founded by James Collins as the Daily Echo
in April, 1890. It was sold by Mr. Collins to J. D. Turnbull in 1891,
and came into possession of W. B. Dobson, its present proprietor, in
1898. The Farmer, also conducted by Mr. Dobson as a weekly. was established by the latter in 1898. The daily and weekly are issued under
the corporate management of the Echo Printing Company, of which
Mr. Dobson is president.
The Frolic was a journalistic enterprise started in August, 1873,
by William Boulton, author of the "Centennial History of Alpena
County."   The office of the Frolic was located in the backwoods of




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Alpena county, a mile and a half from the nearest neighbor. It was
afterward printed in the city and was continued up to 1880, when
its publication was suspended.
The Michigan Labor Journal was established in Alpena, 1883, by
Horton Williams. The publishers in June, 1883, were Williams & Metcalf.
The Journal was a state paper, and ably conducted, but finally fell by
the wayside and suspended publication in 1892. James Collins conducted it for eight years.
The Reporter, the first daily in the county, was started by A. Dinsmore in February, 1882, and published by him until April, 1883, when
he sold to Mr. Taft and merged into the Pioneer. Later in the spring
Mr. Taft revived the daily, but after a few weeks its publication was
again suspended, the patronage not being commensurate with the expense and trouble.
WEXFORD COUNTY
Wexford was one of the first of the interior counties in Northern
Michigan to welcome journalism and newspaper pioneers. The year
1872 was large with events for the county, as the Grand Rapids &
Indiana railroad had by that time thoroughly bound its communities
to the outside world, and its substantial future was assured. The old
town, Sherman, and the new town Cadillac, or Clam Lake, blossomed
forth with newspapers almost simultaneously.
In the early days of 1873 there came to Sherman, the county seat,
two young and energetic men from Howell, Livingston county, Michigan, to see what encouragement they could get toward the establishment of a newspaper. Everybody was anxious to have a newspaper
started and it did not take long to secure pledges enough to warrant
the venture, and on the first day of May, 1872, the first issue of the Wexford County Pioneer was printed.  The publishers were Charles E.
Cooper, late editor of the Manton Tribune, and A. W. Tucker. This
was the first newspaper venture in the county.
After running the paper together a few years, Mr. Tucker sold out
his interest to Mr. Cooper, who continued in control until 1877, when
he sold it to C. S. Marr, who conducted it for a little more than a
year. It then went into the hands of H. F. Campbell and John H.
Wheeler, where it remained until January, 1880, when Mr. Campbell
sold his interest to Mr. Wheeler, who thus became the sole owner. Mr.
Wheeler published the paper for twelve years, at the end of which time
he sold it Reuben D. Frederick, who still retains it and is therefore
one of the old war horses of the profession in Northern Michigan. Upon
assuming the proprietorship of the paper in 1883, Mr. Frederick
changed its name from the Wexford County Pioneer to the Sherman
Pioneer.
Clam Lake was still a lumber camp deep in the woods when the News
was founded. The Cadillac News and Express tells the story of its
birth and growth:   "About the middle of March, 1871, Clark L.
Frazier, of Manistee, in company with Justice Ingram, Dr. John Leeson
and George Butts, all then residents of Manistee, constituted a sleigh




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


load who drove across the country and through the woods to the new
settlement of Clam Lake. Mr. Frazier, who was conversant with the
printing business, came to investigate the opening here for a newspaper
and printing office. A conference with George A. Mitchell, the founder
of the place, resulted in the donation of a desirable business lot on
Mitchell street, the same being now owned by Dr. Leeson and E. F.
Sawyer, and the residence lot, where now stands the dwelling of J.
W. Cummer. Mr. Mitchell further arranged to subscribe for twentyfive copies of the proposed newspaper, and gave such other substantial
assurance of business support that instead of returning with his companions to Manistee, Mr. Fraiser at once proceeded south by the new
railroad to procure his printing outfit. The Clam Lake News had its
birthplace in the first frame building erected in the bustling new settlement. On the fourth day of July, 1872, the printing office was removed
to Doctor Leeson's building, and the printing office apartments for
some time had neither doors nor glass windows.
"In 1873 Mr. Frazier sold his paper to J. A. and O. Whitmore, of
Adrian, Michigan. Jayno A. Whitmore, the son, removed here and conducted the business until the summer of 1878, when C. T. Chapin
brought on a job printing outfit from Toledo, Ohio, and assumed control of the office. In January, 1879, John M. Rice purchased the interest of the Messrs. Whitmore, and the paper was published by Rice
& Chapin for several months, when Rice sold his interest to Mr. Chapin.
In the fall of 1880, H. H. Terwilliger, of Mason, Ingham county, became an associate owner of the News, but retired on January 1, 1881,
to engage in the banking business at Montague, Muskegon county. On
the tenth of February, 1882, the News was purchased by J. W. Giddings & Company. The political vigor and influence of the paper was
largely enhanced by Mr. Giddings, who filled the editorial chair until
he was honored with a seat in the state senate, serving as lieutenant
governor in 1893-4."
It was while Mr. Rice was serving his constituents at the state capital, in March, 1887, that the paper was sold to the News Publishing
Company, E. E. Haskins filling the editorial chair until succeeded by
John M. Rice, at the consolidation of the News with the Saturday Express, May 16, 1887. The latter was first issued in December, 1886, by
Chapin & Sill.
Perry F. Powers, the present publisher of the Evening News and
News and Express, the weekly edition, succeeded the News and Express Publishing Company, on December 1, 1887. Mr. Powers had
but recently come to Cadillac, having within the previous two years,
in association with George C. Smithe, made the Ypsilantian a representative paper of Southern Michigan. Having faith in Northern Michigan,
he transferred his activities to Wexford county. He has made the
News and Express felt in the best sense of the word and the Evening
News has also been molded into one of the influential dailies of Northern Michigan. Mr. Powers has served as president both of the State
Press Association and of the Michigan Republican Press Association,
as president of the State Board of Education, as auditor general of
the state, in 1901-4, and in 1911 was appointed by Governor Osborn




KJj




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


as state commissioner of labor, his term  expiring January 1, 1913.
The Daily Enterprise was a newspaper venture started in the summer of 1880, and backed by A. K. Moyer, E. F. Sawyer, S. S. Fallass,
George Holbrook, Daniel McCoy, J. G. Mosser and a number of other
citizens, to aid in forwarding the removal of the county seat from Sherman to Cadillac. John B. Rosevelt, an active and vigilant young attorney, was the managing editor, and upon his vermilion head at that
time fell the wrath of the "north half" fighters in the county seat
struggle. This was the predecessor of the Enterprise, now published at
Buckley.
The Wexford Cotunty Citizen had an existence from August 16,
1884, to June, 1885. It was printed at the job office of C. T. Chapin
and was edited and published by Prof. H. M. Enos.
The first Democratic paper published in Cadillac was established
by Alfred Rindge, at Mendon, St. Joseph county, Michigan, in June,
1882. It was afterward moved to Cadillac and named the Weekly
Tiimes. This paper was absorbed and succeeded by the Michigan Stat(
Democrat, a paper which had been first established in Detroit by M. T.
Woodruff. Mr. Woodruff continued the publication of the State Democrat, with a single partial intermission in the summer of 1889, when
Bright & Tweedie were publishers, until December 10, 1891, when it
passed into possession of George S. Stanley, formerly of Coluinbiaville,
Lapeer county.  In 1884 Mr. Stanley began the publication of the
Daily Citizen. and in 1906 changed the name of his weekly publication,
the State Democrat to the Weekly Citizen. In May, 1911, Mr. Stanley
sold both publications to Perry F. Powers, and removed to Muskegon to
assume the business management of a daily newspaper in that city.
The Cadillac Globe, weekly, was founded by John M. Terwilliger, on
September 1, 1898. Mr. Terwilliger had had previous newspaper experience as reporter and solicitor for the Cadillac State Democrat and
as editor and publisher of the Fife Lake Monitor for five years. He
was also the founder of the Boardman River Current. In July, 1899,
Ralph W. Crawford became associated with Mr. Terwilliger in the publication of the Cadillac Globe, and in July, 1909, the publication of an
evening paper, The Daily Globe, was entered upon by a corporation organized for that purpose with Messrs. Terwilliger and Crawford as
majority stockholders and in full charge of the management and direction of the publishing company's affairs.
The Manton Tribune was established in October, 1879, by Marshall
McClure, but remained only a short time under his control. It then
passed into the hands of A. J. Teed and soon afterward became the
property of E. C. Cooper. In September, 1883, it passed into the
hands of H. F. Campbell. Horace G. Hutzler, the present editor and
proprietor, purchased the Triblne in 1892.
Before the list in Wexford county is exhausted mention must be
made of the Enterprise, founded at Buckley in 1880, and of the Sun,
established at Mesick in 1901.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


1D5


ANTRIM COUNTY
As an early settled section of the Grand Traverse region Antrim
county put forth several pioneers of the Northern Michigan press. The
first of the brood was the Elk Rapids Eagle, born March 31, 1865, under the fatherhood of Elvin L. Sprague. It was a three column folio,
the size of the page being sixteen by thirteen inches. The Elk Rapids
advertisers in the first number were as follows: Dexter & Noble, dealers in lumber, lath and shingles, dry goods, groceries and provisions;
James P. Brand, notary public; S. Edwin Wait, architect and builder;
George Goodhue, manufacturer of boots and shoes; Lemuel R. Smith,
who offered 3,000 apple trees for sale; and Ada R. Sprague, milliner.
The paper stated that four men were wanted as substitutes for the
Union army by citizens of Elk Rapids. It was also mentioned that a
dock would be completed at Elk Rapids during the following season.
The Eagle was afterward removed to Traverse City and continued as
the Traverse City Eagle.
Mr. Sprague was born in Gill, Massachusetts, December 22, 1830.
In 1836 he removed with his parents to Washtenaw county, Michigan,
where they settled. He remained at home and in the vicinity until
1853, when he came to the Traverse region where he afterward lived
and bore an active part in its affairs. He first located at Elk Rapids,
where he assisted in the erection of a grist-mill for the firm of Craw
& Company. He worked in the mill after it was in operation until
1860, when he came to Traverse City and was in the employ of Hannah,
Lay & Company as salesman in their store for three years. He then
returned to Elk Rapids and started the Eagle as heretofore stated.
From that time until his death he was in the newspaper business. He
was treasurer of Antrim county six year and was prominently identified with the early history of that county. He was one of the early
school teachers of Elk Rapids, having taught two terms in 1858 and
1859. In the fall of 1864 he married Sarah E. Spencer, of Elk Rapids.
Their wedding tour embraced a trip to Traverse City, where the marriage ceremony was performed, and the return to Elk Rapids which
was their home until 1872, when they moved to Traverse City.
The Elk Rapids Progress was established in 1872, by E. L. Sprague,
who sold it to H. E. Gemberling, and Mr. Gemberling, in turn, to B.
F. Davis. Early editors were F. R. Williams, James Parkinson, E. L.
Sprague, Giles Daubeny, H. E. Gemberling and B. F. Davis. The
Progress was first published as a six-column folio, was changed to a
five-column quarto, and then back to its original size and form. Since
1905 it has been edited and published by George W. Perry, one of the
old and still active journalists who have done such fine "promoting"
for Northern Michigan. Mr. Perry's detailed record will be found
elsewhere in this work.
The Mancelona Herald was established in 1879 by Clark S. Edwards and L. E. Slussar. At that time there were but a few families
in the village, and the outlook for newspaper success was not particularly assuring. With the advent of a local paper, however, the prospects of the village began to brighten and the following year a tide of




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


prosperity set in that soon made the village an established and growing community. On April 1, 1882, Mr. Edwards retired and Mr.
Slussar became sole owner and editor. It is now conducted by 0. E.
Hawkins.
The Antrim County News, of Elk Rapids, was established by its
present editor and proprietor, H. J. Briggs, in 1909.
The Bellaire Breeze was an early journalistic venture, which has
died down, it being established by Albert S. Abbott, September 29, 1881.
Another enterprise which failed to survive the buffets of the average
pioneer journal was the Antrim County Record, whose first number
appeared on November 7, 1883.
OSCEOLA AND LAKE COUNTIES
Osceola county has seven newspapers. The pioneers were in order
named as follows: The Osceola Outline, Reed City Clarion and the
Evart Review. The first named has passed out of existence.
The Osceola (Hersey) Outline was established June 5, 1871, by
(D. A.) Blodgett & Teal; within a year John F. Radcliffe bought the
Blodgett interest and also that of the other partner, and, with exception
of one year when W. G. Cameron was editor, conducted the paper until
a short time before his death in June, 1906. For several months the
paper was not published; then the plant passed to the hands of M.
Walls and the old paper was renewed. The good will of the paper was
sold by Mr. Walls, in 1909, to the Osceola Publishing Company which
had recently purchased the Reed City Democrat, and had established
the Osceola County Herald at Reed City. The Osceola County News
(Hersey) was then established by R. L. Lewis, and is now published by
business men at the county seat, being edited and managed by J. T.
Delzell.
The Reed City Clarion was established by C. K. Fairchild, in the
spring of 1872, and the ownership passed during the next few years to
T. D. Talbot, Minchon Brothers (G. W. and J. T.) C. E. Barnes and
"Ren" Barker, who conducted the paper more than twenty years, then
sold an half interest to E. Blair, the publishers now being Barker &
Blair.
The Evart Review was established by W. R. Hess, October 20, 1872.
In April, 1873, Irvin Chase, present judge of probate, purchased a half
interest and in April, 1874, bought out W. H. Hess, and continued the
publication as sole owner until January 1, 1881, when he sold to Minchin Brothers (G. W. and J. T.) who published the same until January
1, 1884, when George W. Minchin became sole proprietor by purchase
of his brother's interest and has continued as editor and publisher during the past thirty-one years.
The fourth paper to be established was the Tustin Advance, by H.
C. McCollough in 1878, which was succeeded by the Echo by E. J.
Luick. "Del" McGovern then became possessed of the plant and for
several years published the Topics. The Times has also been lately
issued by Will. A. McDowell.
A paper printed by 0. H. Hovey, at Reed City, called the Times,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


157


was the first paper printed at LeRoy in 1883. Its successor was established by R. H. Alien in 1884, and continued for several years. George
A. Glerum, at one time county clerk, was the owner, and the publication ceased. After various attempts to keep it alive for a time, it is
now succeeded by the Sun, C. A. Warren, publisher.
The Marion Dispatch was established in April, 1889, by George B.
Howe, druggist. The paper was managed by Mr. Howe about two
years, when C. T. Chapin, of Cadillac, became owner and publisher,
who sold to W. H. Hess, the founder of the Evart Review. He was
succeeded by C. T. Sadler, who published the paper for a number of
years under the name of Dispatch-Leader. The paper passed to the
hands of Lawrence & Reed, March 8, 1908, and to J. Clemens, June 8,
1908, and April, 1909, Dewey & Rouse, the present publishers, bought
the plant who cut the hyphened name, which is now plain Despatch.
Lake county is represented in the newspaper field by the Lake
County Star, founded in 1873, and the Observer, of Luther, established
in 1892. They are both Republican.
KALKASKA COUNTY
The Kalkaskaian was the first newspaper published in Kalkaska
county. It was first issued March 6, 1874. In January of that year
Charles P. Sweet came to Kalkaska from Van Buren county with
the view of starting a newspaper at the county seat. He first established his printing office in the Mapes building, where he carried on
business until he erected a structure of his own called the Kalkaskaian
building. He remained there until the new brick block was completed
in 1880 when he removed to rooms in the second story. Mr. Sweet,
the founder of the Kalkaskaian, had been twenty years in the business
when he came to Kalkaska. In 1876 he platted an addition to the
village and also engaged in the clothing business, amassing, in various
lines, considerable property.
In May, 1878, the Kalkaska Leader was established at Kalkaska, by
J. N. Tinklepaugh and E. B. Dennis.
The consolidation of these two papers, in 1911, under the management of J. N. Tinklepaugh under the name The Kalkaska Leader and
The Kalkaskian, makes the latter the only newspaper in the county.
EMMET COUNTY
The middle and late seventies brought the first newspapers to Emmet county close on the heels of the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad; the clang of the press even slightly preceded the snort of the horse.
It was on August 8, 1874, that Dr. William Little issued the Petoskey
City Weekly Times, the first newspaper of the county, and although it
was only a little sheet four by six inches and but a few circulars were
struck off from an old proof press owned by the Doctor, it died with
its first number. Two issues of the Emmet County Democrat had already appeared, but they were printed in Chicago and "did not count"
in local history. The first newspaper which was printed in Emmet




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


county, and survived the first day of its birth, was that same Democrat,
which was printed on an old Washington handpress at Petoskey by
Roselle Rose, pioneer journalist, on the 14th of May, 1875. The Democrat was published for a few months in the Dickerson store and then
the office was removed to a little building sixteen by eighteen feet in
size, which stood just south of Mr. Rose's residence at the corner of
Mitchell and Petoskey streets. The same building afterward performed
the humbler duties of a woodhouse, at the rear of the editor's residence.
He occupied that building for some time and then removed to the
main street.
Mr. Rose was born in the town of Pike, Wyoming county, New York,
in the year 1847. After beginning active life for himself he engaged in
farming. In 1869 he was obliged to seek a change of occupation and
climate on account of his health, and for that purpose removed to
Michigan and settled in Plainwell, Allegan county. At that place
he was engaged in the drug and insurance business and afterward
was connected with the newspaper at that place.  In 1875 he moved
to Petoskey and started the first newspaper published in the county, as
already stated. The first money he received in his business there was
from the late Dr. Little, and the first job printing was a quantity of
envelopes for James M. Burbeck, of Harbor Springs. In the winter
of 1886, Mr. Rose sold the Democrat to a syndicate of Petoskey business men.
In 1878 the Emmet Coumity Independent was started in what was
then the Indian village of Little Traverse, now  Harbor Springs.
Charles S. Hampton, who had served as principal of the first graded
schools in Petoskey and Little Traverse, was editor and proprietor of
the Independent, which, despite the difficulties and obstacles incident
to the publication of a paper in a new and sparsely settled region
steadily grew in strength and public favor. It was started with less
than a five hundred dollar outfit, and its office was the old weatherbeaten trading post building, but within five years it occupied a spacious
and convenient building of its own on Main street, and had a fully
equipped newspaper and job office, including good steam presses. During the summer of 1883 the publisher issued a six-column daily paper
called the Daily Resorter, which was so well received by the public and
especially by the summer visitors that it has never been suspended.
It was at first published ten weeks during the year.
In December, 1887, the Independent was moved from Harbor Springs
to Petoskey and consolidated with the Democrat. Soon afterward C.
E. Churchill entered Mr. Hampton's employ and in April, 1900, with
E. R. Goldsmith, he purchased the Democrat and Daily Resorter of Mr.
Hampton. In 1902 they made a year-round-daily of The Resorter,
under the name The Petoskey Evening News and Resorter. Mr. Goldsmith died in 1904, Mr. Churchill then becoming sole owner of the
papers. In 1905 the name of the weekly was changed from the Independent Democrat to the Petoskey Independent and the policy of the
paper was also changed from Democratic to independent.
The Petoskey City Record owes its origin mainly to James Buckley,
a hardware merchant in the village of Petoskey. TIn the summer of




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


159


1878 Mr. Buckley associated with himself, George A. Mosher, a practical printer, and June 20th issued the first number of the Petoskey
City Record, a seven-column folio paper, bearing the practical motto
"For your good and our profit." The paper from its start presented
a neat appearance, and was highly creditable as a pioneer enterprise.
The first of January, 1879, Mr. Buckley withdrew to engage in other
business, and Mosher & Gibson became proprietors. In the summer
of 1879 the paper was enlarged to an eight-column folio. Mr. Gibson
remained in the business but a short time, and was succeeded by Frank
M. Pray. In December 1880, Mr. Pray withdrew and Mr. Mosher continued the business alone for weeks. In January, 1881, C. E. McManus
purchased an interest and the firm became Mosher & McManus, and in
September of that year F. S. Freeman became proprietor. Capt. Joseph
C. Bontecou assumed the editorship and ownership of the Record in
April, 1883, and conducted it with courage and ability until his death
March 25, 1904. Captain Bontecou went into the Union army before he had graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University and resided in
Chicago and Jackson, Michigan, before coming to Petoskey to purchase
the Record. A biography of his eventful life is published elsewhere.
At his death in 1904 the affairs of the paper were assumed with courage
and success by his daughter, Miss Margaret C. Bontecou, who sold the
business in October, 1911, to C. E. Churchill.
The Little Traverse Republican, the first newspaper published at
Harbor Springs, was started in May, 1876, by Warren Bowen. L. A.
Clark did the mechanical work, and the following September purchased
the office, over which throughout most of the subsequent development of
the enterprise, he has presided. The Republican was started as
a six-column folio. The paper has been and is Republican in politics,
and a stanch advocate of local interests. Mr. Clark continued as editor
and proprietor from the time he purchased the office in 1876 until 1910,
when he sold to M. L. Garland, its present owner. Mr. Clark is a native
of the city of Cleveland, Ohio. At the age of thirteen years he began to
work at printing at Hillsdale, Michigan, and has followed printing and
journalism most of the time since. In April, 1861, he enlisted in Company A, Twelfth Indiana Regiment, and was in service about two years.
He was then transferred to the government bureau of printing at Nashville, Tennessee, where he remained until the close of the war. In
the spring of 1876 he came to Harbor Springs from Missouri. In
1877 he was appointed postmaster which office he held until the spring
of 1884. He also served as president of the Harbor Springs Novelty
Works and Saw-Mill Company and has extensive farming interests
in the county.
The Harbor Springs Graphic made its appearance in 1895; is Republican in politics; H. S. Babcock, editor and proprietor.
The Pellston Journal came to life in 1903, with L. A. Grayson editor; The Pellston Journal Company, publishers.
The Levering Enterprise came to life in the spring of 1911, and is
published by Merl Howard.
The Emmet County Appeal, a socialist paper, was launched in 1908
at Harbor Springs by Jos. Womock; and about a year ago was pur



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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


chased by William Kilpatrick and his son Vernon, and the plant moved
to Petoskey. The Square Deal, a daily effort by the Appeal, lived less
than two weeks during the fall of 1911.
Emmet county is something of a graveyard for papers, having furnished a resting place for The Standard, a Democratic paper by Joseph
C. Wright, which made its appearance at Harbor Springs early in the
nineties; The Artesian Well, by Robert Wright, at Harbor Springs, after
a short life in the early nineties; The Petoskey Herald by Robert Wright,
lived about a year in Petoskey, in 1892-3; The Alanson Inter-Lake had
a short career and was consumed by fire and never "Phaenixed;" The
Lyre was a magazine adventure of J. C. Wright which lived only a couple
of years, 1900-1.
OTSEGO AND ROSCOMMON COUNTIES
Gaylord, Otsego county is a point at which journalism became early
rooted. The Herald, still flourishing, was founded in 1875, and the
Elmira Gazette, now deceased, was started by C. S. Edwards in 1882.
The second existing journal, the Times, is of recent birth, 1905.
Roscommon county also promised so well in 1875 that her News
was founded, the Herald not appearing until 1907.
CHEBOYGAN COUNTY
Of the four newspapers published in this county three are issued
from the city of Cheboygan. The first journal launched was the Manitawaba Chronicle, which Dr. W. P. Maiden put forth from Cheboygan
village in 1871. It was a weekly, twelve by eighteen inches in size,
and only twelve numbers were published. Another short-lived paper
was the Cheboygan Free Press, started by Thomas Bentley and James
J. Brown in January, 1876.
The Northern Tribune, which survives as the Tribune, was started
by William Chandler, in July, 1875. In January, 1882, C. S. Ramsay
and C. J. Hunt purchased interests in the office, and became actively
identified with the paper, Mr. Ramsay as editor, and Mr. Hunt in the
mechanical department. In the summer of 1882, Merrit Chandler became interested in the business. In the spring of 1883 the Tribune
Company was organized, and Rev. R. M. Thompson, who had become
a stockholder, succeeded Mr. Ramsey as editor, the-latter of whom has
been at the head of the Tribune since 1885. Miss Dora M. Ramsay,
his daughter, has been in active editorial charge for some time.
The Cheboygan Democrat was first issued February 12, 1880, by
two young men from Bay City, Edward Forsyth and Milie Bunnell.
At that time Cheboygan had no railroad communication and the outfit had to be brought in by sleigh from Petoskey at a cost of nearly three
cents per pound, and those who know what printing material, presses,
composing stones, lead type, etc., weigh can furnish their own estimates
of costs. In the fall of 1883, Mr. Forsyth erected the building in which
the Democrat is now located. Since February, 1911, on account of Mr.
Forsyth's failing health, Al. H. Weber has been conducting the Demo



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


161


crat as lessee and manager. A sketch of Mr. Forsyth, who is one of
the associate editors of this work, will be found elsewhere.
The Cheboygan News was founded in the fall of 1886 by Brougham
H. Smyth, upon whose death October 23, 1893, C. L. Smyth & Company,
present proprietors, succeeded to the ownership.
Besides the Tribune, Democrat and News, Cheboygan county has the
Courier, at Wolverine, founded in 1904 and now conducted by B. E.
Thayer.
LEELANAU COUNTY
The oldest existing newspaper in Leelanau county is the Enterprise,
published at Leland, but founded at Northport by B. H. Derby in
1877. In 1879 Mr. Derby sold it to W. C. Nelson, the present editor
and proprietor, who has been its owner continuously with the exception of a short period when George A. Cutler had a half interest in it.
Following the change in the county seat the Enterprise was moved to
Leland in January, 1883.
The Leelanau Tribune was started by A. H. Johnson, at Northport,
in June 1873. In the winter of 1877-8, Mr. Johnson removed it to
Suttons Bay. In 1880 it was sold to the Tribune Publishing Company, who changed its name to the Tribune and removed it to Traverse City, where, after a short time, its publication was discontinued.
Mr. Nelson commenced his career as a printer on the-Leelanau Tribune.
The Northport Leader, Empire Journal and Leelanau News, of Suttons Bay, are all of comparatively recent birth.
PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY
The only newspaper which has passed the age of thirty in Presque
Isle county is the Presque Isle County Advance, of Rogers, founded in
1878, with Charles Platz, Jr., as its present editor and proprietor. The
Outlook, of Onaway, was established in 1898; Presque Isle County News,
Millersburg, in 1901, and the Inter Lake, Onaway, in 1902.
OGEMAW COUNTY
The Ogemaw County Herald was the first paper established in West
Branch and had the field to itself from 1878 to 1882. Jay Allen conducted the Herald from 1880 to June, 1890, when he consolidated it
with the Times, which had been established by Weeks and French in
1882. Mr. Allen continued as editor and proprietor of the HeraldTimes until October, 1902, when Arthur R. Babcock assumed its ownership and management which he still retains.
The Ogemaw Republican, founded in 1896, is under the ownership
of George L. Donovan and John W. Huckle, under the style of Donovan
& Huckle.
Rose City also has its Review, by B. J. Cournyer, founded in 1904.


Vol. I-11




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


CLARE AND CRAWFORD COUNTIES
The pioneer newspaper in Clare county was the Farwell Register,
established by James S. Holden in 1871 and published by him for nearly
twenty years. Farwell's present newspaper is The Sun, edited by
Charles C. Coors.
The Clare Press made its first appearance in 1878. This paper was
started by A. F. Goodenough, who in 1880 sold to D. E. Alward, by
whom it was published for eight years. In 1890 it was consolidated
with Marvin D. Eaton's Clare Democrat, which paper had been established four years before.
E. D. Palmer and R. G. Jefferies began publication of the Clare Sentinel in 1892 and later bought the Democrat-Press plant, merging it
with the Sentinel. R. G. Jefferies, Welch & Bennett and Palmer & Andrus successively owned this paper and in November, 1911, it became the
property of Enoch Andrus, Mr. Palmer retiring from the firm.
A. Ray Canfield established The Courier at Clare in 1895 and has
ever since published it. At present (1911) his son is associated with
him in the business.
The Clare County Cleaver of Harrison, was founded in 1881; present editor, Jesse Allen.
Crawford county is represented by the Crawford Avalanche, of
Grayling, a good weekly edited and owned by O. Palmer. It is over
thirty years old, having been founded in May, 1878, by Maurer, Masters
& Brown. It was transferred to Salling, Hanson & Company in January,
1880, and Dr. O. Palmer in February, 1881. On July 1, 1911, the latter disposed of the paper to O. P. Schumann, the present proprietor.
OSCODA AND ARENAC COUNTIES
The Mail-Telegram, published at Mio, where it was founded in
1881, does its full share in conserving the interests of Oscoda county.
It is owned and edited by G. Houston.
Several substantial papers flourish in Arenac county. The veteran
of them all is now the Arenac County Independent, founded in 1882,
and conducted by Harry M. Myers. Its previous proprietors were James
J. Decker and Nelson Ireland. Then there are the Progress, of Omer,
started in 1895, and the Enterprise, Au Gres, established in 1906.
MISSAUKEE COUNTY
Several early attempts were made to plant newspapers in Missaukee
county before the Republican was established at Lake City in 1884. In
1873 S. W. Davis commenced the publication of the Missaukee County
Reporter, at that place, but it only lasted two years.
The Journal, also of Lake City, was established by L. A. Barker,
familiarly known in newspaper circles as "Ren" Barker, April 27, 1877,
who was publisher and editor up to April 22, 1884, when it was sold
to H. N. McIntire, and consolidated with the Lake City Leader, a paper
which Mr. McIntire had established in 1883. In May, 1884, the name




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163


of the consolidated papers was changed to New Era. The Journal,
started as a seven-column folio, had previously been enlarged to eight
columns. In November, 1882, the office was burned, but the Journal
continued its weekly appearance without missing a number, although
it eventually succumbed to give place to the Republican. The latter
is now owned and edited by Orville Dennis.
The Plain Dealer was established at Lake City, in 1887, by M. To
Woodruff, under the name of Missaukee Independent. Mr. Woodruff
sold it to George S. Stout in September of that year and in 1891 its
name was changed to the Plain Dealer. In 1903 its ownership was
transferred to R. W. Bird and later to C. W. Newton. The latter sold
it to a stock company of local people.
BENZIE COUNTY
Although Benzie county has no newspapers of long standing-the
oldest being the News, of Thompsonville, established in 1893-the journalistic field was cultivated as early as 1870. About May 1st of that
year A. Barnard commenced to issue thb Citizen from Benzonia, but
it was discontinued in the following summer.
W. F. Cornell founded the Weekly Express, at Frankfort, in June,
1870. Its plant was burned in 1881, but the paper resumed publication and continued for several years thereafter.
In 1872 appeared the Benzie Countty Journal under the auspices of
a joint stock company organized at Benzonia, and its publication was
continued until January, 1882.
A still later publication of Benzie county was the South Frankfort
News, established by James M. Gillmore in 1884.
The existing papers, besides the Thompsonville News, are the Benzie
County Patriot, of Frankfort, founded in 1897, the Benzie County
Leader, Honor, first issued in 1908, and the Elberta Alert, founded in
1911.
GLADWIN COUNTY
The oldest and leading paper in the county is the Gladwin County
Record, founded in 1878. Eugene Foster has been identified with the
Record from the start and his brother, Isaac, became associated with
him in 1884. Foster Brothers are still its publishers and editors, and
are strong and well known journalists and citizens.
The Clarion, the only other paper in Gladwin county, was founded
at Beaverton in 1895. Arthur E. Dann is its present owner and editor.
EXPLANATORY
In the foregoing text, which may be considered an accompaniment
to the tabulated list of newspapers classified alphabetically, the history
of the press of Northern Michigan has been traced chronologically, special stress being placed on the pioneer journals and journalists. While
the counties have been taken up in the general order of priority as




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fields for newspapers and newspaper men, the record of each county
has been sketched before another has been considered. With this explanation the subject is dismissed, not because it is considered absolutely complete, but simply that the space at the writer's disposal forbids further elucidation.
FIRST REGULATING ACT
Long before there were any regular physicians to regulate in Northern Michigan the territorial legislature passed an act designed to drive
quacks and incompetents from practice, the same having already secured a foothold and done much mischief in the settled communities
of the south. The act became the basis for later legislation along the
same line, and was the forerunner of the present well regulated State
Medical Society and numerous county organizations which, with existing statutes, make it now almost impossible for an ignoramus or a rascal
to place human life in jeopardy even in the most obscure hamlet or
district.
"On March 12, 1827," says Dr. 0. C. Comstock in "The Medical
Profession in Michigan" (Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections,
Vol. 22), "an act of the territorial legislature of Michigan was approved which did much to save suffering pioneers from the horde of
ignorant quacks found in every settlement and doing their deadly
work without restraint." The preamble is in the following words:
"Whereas, well regulated Medical Societies have been found to
contribute to the advancement and diffusion of true science and particularly the healing art.
"Section 1-The Medical Society of the territory of Michigan, as
already incorporated by that name, shall continue to be a body politic
and corporate.
"Section 2-County Societies to be formed of persons in regular
standing in the Territorial Society and commissioned by said society
for that purpose.
" Section 3-Doctors exempted from military duty, serving on juries.
"Section 4-Proceedings of its annual and other meetings to be
filed in the office of the county clerk.
"Section 5-Society. after an approved examination, may grant
diplomas.
"Section 6-Restrictions in reference to the examination of students.
"Section 7-Appointment and duty of censors.
"Section 8-No person shall commence the practice of physic or
surgery within any of the counties of this territory until he shall have
passed examination and received a diploma from one of the medical
societies established or to be established as aforesaid; and if any person
shall commence the practice without having obtained a diploma for
that purpose he shall forever thereafter be disqualified from collecting
any debt or debts incurred by such practice in any court in this territory.
"Section 9-That if any such person, except those who were residents in and have continued to reside and practice within the ter



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


165


ritory since 1819, shall practice physic and surgery without being regularly licensed, such person shall forfeit and pay twenty-five dollars
for each and every offense of which he may be duly convicted, to be
recovered with costs of suit before any justice of the peace of the county
where such penalty shall be incurred by any person who will prosecute
the same, except army surgeons.
"Section 11-No person shall be admitted to an examination as
a candidate for the practice of physic and surgery in this territory
unless he shall have previously studied medical science four years after
the age of sixteen with a regular physician and surgeon-but any portion of time of the study, not exceeding one year during which the
candidate after the age of sixteen shall have pursued classical studies,
shall be accepted in lieu of an equal portion of time of the study of
medical science, and if he shall have attended one or more complete
courses of medical lectures on all the branches of medical science in
any medical college or institution, the same shall be accepted in lieu
of one year spent in the study of medical science as aforesaid, the commencement of his studies to be certified to-not to be licensed under
twenty-one years of age.
"Section 12-Physicians and surgeons who may have received diplomas in other states cannot practice in this territory until they have
satisfied the censors of the territorial or county society that their medical education has been full and complete, as is here required.
"Section 13-Persons practicing, without reporting to or connecting themselves with some society, shall incur the penalty named in
Section 9 of this act.
"Section 16-That upon complaint in writing, filed with any county
inedical society charging any practitioner of physic or surgery within
such county with having been guilty of infamous crime, habitual drunkenness, or with gross ignorance and incompetency, every such medical
society at a regular meeting thereof may proceed to investigate such
charge or charges, and if upon such investigation and due proof of the
facts so charged the person complained of shall be found guilty by a
vote of two-thirds of all the members present, then such medical society is hereby authorized and empowered to suspend such person from
the practice of physic and surgery, and the person so suspended, if
he continue to practice physic and surgery within this territory during
the time of his suspension, be subject to the penalties of Section 9 of
this act. The person so suspended shall have three months' notice of
the filing of charges and have a copy thereof. The testimony in the
case shall be in writing and filed with the records of the medical society.
The suspended practitioner may appeal to the Territorial Medical Society.
"Section 18-Witnesses to be subpoenaed.   If refusing to appear
and testify, liable to a fine of twenty-five dollars. Swearing falsely,
perjury, and liable to its pains and penalties.
"Section 26-Copy of diplomas and licenses to be deposited with
county clerks. Charges made before that is done not collectible at law."
This act of twenty-nine sections, passed in the infancy of the territory, is remarkable in many particulars, as regards doctor, quack and




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


client. It proved how early the importance of regulating the practice was recognized, and gave birth to the earlier medical societies of
the counties which, under state regulations, have since so multiplied.
THE PIONEER PHYSICIANS
The physicians of a new country, in some guise or other, appear
about the time that the first settlers arrive. In Northern Michigan the
Jesuit priests first ministered to the physical as well as the spiritual
needs of both the red man and the white. The Protestant missionaries
were pioneers in medical practice when the Grand Traverse region commenced to take on the semblance of a growing country of permanent
settlements. Among the best known of these Godly, albeit irregular
practitioners, was Rev. Peter Dougherty, who came to Old Mission and
the Grand Traverse region in May, 1839.
During the period of Mr. Dougherty's residence at Old Mission,
there being no physician in the country, he was often applied to for
medicine and advice for the sick. On one occasion, after Mr. Boardman
had established himself at the head of the bay at the place where Traverse City now stands, he was called to prescribe for Mrs. Duncan, who
was keeping a boarding-house at that place. He found Mrs. Duncan
very sick. Two or three days after, not having heard from his patient
in the interval, he became anxious for her safety and resolved to get
some information in regard to her condition, and to send a further
supply of medicine, or repeat his visits.
There were some men from Boardman's establishment getting out
timber at the harbor on the west side of the peninsula (Bowers' Harbor),
which they were conveying home in a boat. Hoping to get the desiredc
information from them and to send the necessary medicine by their
hand, he walked across the peninsula to their place of labor. The
men had gone home with a cargo. Thinking he might get to Boardman's in time to return with them on their next trip he started for
the head of the bay on foot, making his way as rapidly as possible along
the beach. There was no bridge over Boardman river near the boarding-house, and, on his arrival, the skiff used for crossing was on the
other side. There was no time to lose. Not to be delayed he quickly
entered the stream and waded across, the cold water coming up to his
chin. Fortunately he found his patient much improved; unfortunately,
the boat in which he had hoped to return was already nearly out of
sight. on its way back to the peninsula.
Mr. Dougherty would have been hospitably entertained could he
have been persuaded to remain, but he felt that he must return home.
Not stopping to put on a dry suit that was offered him, he partook of
a hasty lunch and set out on his return. Some one set him across
the river in the skiff. As soon as he was out of sight in the woods, he
resolved to dry his clothes, without hindering himself in the journey.
Taking off his shirt, he hung it on a stick carried in the hand, spreading it to the sun and air as he walked rapidly along. The day was
warm, and the sun shone brightly. When the shirt was partly dry,
he exchanged it for his flannel, putting on the shirt and hanging the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


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flannel on the stick. It was near sundown when he reached home, thoroughly fatigued, but happy in the thought that his patient was getting well. This is but a sample of how the pioneer practitioners of
medicine had to dispense with their dignity in order to do tleir duty.
Among the early practitioners of Traverse City may be mentioned
Dr. Holton, who located there in the spring of 1852 and Dr. D. D. Ashton, who came about ten years later.
Benzie county's pioneer physicians included Dr. Alonzo J. Slyfield,
of Frankfort, who located in 1848, and Dr. Isaac Voorheis, of a later
date.
Dr. William Little, a graduate both of Michigan University and
Rush Medical College, Chicago, located at Petoskey for practice in
1868, and in 1870 Dr. Lewis Levi settled at the village of Boyne as its
first physician.
In 1868 Dr. William H. Nelson opened a drug store at Northport,
Leelanau county, also practicing medicine for which he was fully
qualified. Another early physician of that county was Dr. R. H. Monroe who located at tviatt.
The first physician in Alpena county was Mrs. Sarah L. Carter.
Her husband, Daniel Carter, was the first postmaster of Fremont and
one of the founders of both the city and county of Alpena. Mrs.
Carter was among the pioneer women of the region and from November, 1856, to about 1862 everybody depended upon her for medical
services. She did not come into the country to practice, and did not
intend to let it be known that she was familiar with the use of medicine
and treatment of the sick, but she had hardly reached her new home
in the wilderness before the services of a physician were in such urgent
need that she could not refuse to render aid. Before coming to Alpena
county, circumstances had brought her into contact with the sick, until she had become skilled as a nurse and successful in the use of medi
cines, and in the new settlement to which she came her knowledge was
a great blessing. Her services were continually in demand and sometimes for months she would have scarcely time for rest or attention to
her own household duties.
About 1862 a Dr. Truax located at Alpena, but did not remain long.
Dr. W. P. Maiden, who came in July, 1865, is generally considered
the first regular practitioner of the county whose career is permanently
identified with her people.
In the fall of 1874 Dr. Maiden organized the Alpena County Medical Society, one of the first to be founded in Northern Michigan, at
his house in Alpena. He was elected president; James McTavish, vice
president; and J. F. McSween, secretary and treasurer. The members of the society all resided in Alpena and were as follows, the names
of their alma maters and dates of graduation being given: William
P. Maiden, Queen's College, Kingston, 1862, and Bellevue Hospital,
New York, 1873; James McTavish, Eclectic Medical Institute, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1866; Augustus Jeyte, Medical College University of
Buffalo, New York, 1856; J. F. McSween, Detroit (Michigan) Medical
College, 1870; George H. Shelton, Medical College University of Michigan, 1872.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Among the first physicians to locate at Cheboygan were Dr. A. M.
Gerow, in 1868, and Dr. Thomas A. Perrin, in 1873.
Dr. James Reeves, the first resident physician at East Tawas and
perhaps in losco county, located for practice in 1868.
The first physicians to permanently locate in Wexford county were
Dr. H. D. Griswold, who settled at Sherman, and Dr. John Leeson at
Clam Lake, both in 1872. The story of Dr. Leeson's coming is told
somewhat in detail. "Dr. Leeson visited the Clam Lake lumber camp,"
says the narrator, "from which the city of Cadillac developed, in November, 1871, walking from LeRoy, which was as far as the Grand
Rapids & Indiana railroad was then built. The Doctor spent one night
in the place and walked out the next morning, with no desire and less
expectation that he would ever return to the shores of the Clam Lakes
to spend the best days of his life. He returned again, however, in March,
1872, and in the following month of that year entered upon his permanent residence here. He opened the first drug store in the fol
lowing May, and in connection with his practice and drug business
more fully developed the preparation of the famous Tiger Oil, which
had in an incomplete way been inaugurated at Manistee." This was
Cadillac's father of local physicians.
The first physician in the village of Kalkaska was Dr. E. Morgan,
who was a resident of the county several years. Dr. E. R. Boyd, also
a physician at Kalkaska, located there in 1882, and Dr. Zina Pitcher
came in the following year.




CHAPTER VII


GENERAL MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT
FIRST NORTHERN MICHIGAN INDUSTRY-MICHIGAN'S EPOCHAL YEAR
(1840)-SPLIT INTO TWO PARTS-FATHER OF MICHIGAN RAILROADS
-THE GRAND RAPIDS & INDIANA —NORTHERN CONNECTING LINKSTHE PERE MARQUETTE RAILROAD-ANN ARBOR RAILROAD-FIRST
LOGGING RAILROAD IN THE WORLD-LUDINGTON AND MANISTEE RAILROADS-THE DETROIT & MACKINAC-GOOD ROADS-FIRST LUMBERING OPERATIONS IN MANISTEE COUNTY AND GRAND TRAVERSE REGION
-CHEBOYGAN AND ALPENA COUNTIES —osCO AND ALCONA-HISTORIC
SUMMARY-MELTING OF THE PINE - FORESTS-PRESENT STATUS OF
LUMBERING-THE SALT INDUSTRY-AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL
SOCIETIES-STATE LANDS OPEN TO PURCHASE-DIVERSE INDUSTRIES
-GROWTH THROUGH NATURE'S FAVORS-GROWTH IN STATISTICS.
It is only from the early forties that Northern Michigan can be
said to have continuously developed; and that, notwithstanding the terrible shock and drain of its best resources, human and material, caused
by the Civil war. Even during that period it was in its infancy, as
compared with Southern Michigan, and this is most strikingly illustrated in its splendid contributions to the Union cause-splendid, in
proportion to its resources, but small in actual numbers of brave men
and good dollars. Even in the late seventies the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad was but just penetrating to the northern sections of
that territory into the Grand Traverse region, and it was almost a
decade afterward before the Pere Marquette, the Michigan Central and
the Mackinac & Detroit lines commenced to push up into the territory
from the pineries and salt districts above Saginaw, Ludington and
Manistee.
The years 1841-3 were seasons of very hard times, the abatement of
the strong speculative fever which marked the previous half decade
having left business enterprises torpid and exhausted. The legislation
of the years mentioned had been largely devoted to passing various
measures of financial relief, such as extending the time for collecting
taxes, and, as in all other periods of readjustment, "times were dull."
Iut the state had been surveyed to a large extent, and the resources of
Northern Michigan, both as to timber, soil and minerals, had been set
forth in a new and favorable light. By the division of that part of the
state into counties-even by the changing of most of their names from
169




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Indian to historical nomenclature-a substantial semblance of civil government had been given to the country between Mackinaw City, the
Pere Marquette river and the Saginaw valley.
Even from the times of the early Jesuits and the later Protestant
missionaries the riches of Northern Michigan in its natural resources of
timber had been understood in a vague and general way; but in the
early forties those vast riches which dwelt in the forests of pine and
hardwood still lay dormant, and there were not to exceed half a dozen
little saw-mills in all the broad region covered by this history.
FIRST NORTHERN MICHIGAN INDUSTRY
As to practical results, horticulture had its birth in Northern Michigan before the industries which are consolidated under the comprehensive term of "lumbering;" for in the very early records of the missions established by the French are references to old apple and pear
trees which they found planted on the sites of Michilimackinac, Sault
Ste. Marie and Detroit, indicating that when white men first came into
the country the climate and soil of Michigan had already had a most
favorable test as to their adaptability to fruit raising. Further, "the
great age to which the first plantings of trees attained and their productiveness indicated strongly the possibilities of the future in the
growing of fruit. The plantations of both apples and pears made on
both sides of the Detroit river, or at D'Etroit, the straits, as it was then
written, were very productive in fruits, and as this was on the line of
travel of many of the tribes of Indians who each autumn took a trip
from our peninsula to English and French stations in Canada, it is
not singular that fruit trees sprang up along their trails, which are
mentioned in the early records of the country about Pontiac and the
Saginaw valley as old and productive trees when first the white man
penetrated the wilderness of these regions.*"
Horticulture spread northward from   the Detroit district, Grand
River valley, St. Joseph, Benton Harbor, Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids
and the Saginaw valley, but the first state society for its encouragement
was not organized until 1870 (at Grand Rapids) and fifteen years
afterward the only county societies established in Northern Michigan
were those in Mason county (Ludington), Manistee county (Manistee).
Benzie county (Benzonia), Wexford county (Cadillac) and Osceola
county (Evart).
Consequently, although horticulture is much older than lumbering
it has been of slower development, and commenced to fairly come into
the great sources of wealth and prosperity in Northern Michigan at
about the time that her pine forests had been practically cleared away.
In fact, the fruit raiser followed very closely on the heels of the lumberman, and much of the most productive land for apples, peaches,
pears, plums and berries in Northern Michigan was formerly covered
with forest growths.
* Hon. Charles W. Garfield in address delivered at Lansing in 1886 during semicentennial celebration of Michigan's statehood.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


171


MICHIGAN'S EPOCHAL YEAR (1840)
Before entering into a detailed account of the founding of the
lumber industries of Northern Michigan, and the establishment of the
railway system of that part of the state, as a direct result of their
development, the writer feels justified in pausing a moment to insert
a picture of the state as drawn by Hon. Byron M. Cutcheon in his
"Fifty Years of Growth in Michigan" (1892). He speaks of that
epochal year 1840: "It is no part of my purpose to dwell at all
upon the events which fill the years from 1830 to 1840. In many respects they are the most interesting years in the history of the state.
Here belong the administration of the Boy Governor, Stevens T. Mason,
who was acting governor at nineteen; the rapid rush of immigration
and the settlement of the interior across the southern portion of the
state; the boundary war with the neighboring state of Ohio; the addition of the Upper Peninsula to the domain of the state; the founding
of our educational system, including the University of Michigan; the
great land speculative excitement, when paper towns were platted
upon every stream and by every waterfall; and the banking craze-a
special development of the cheap money insanity which has passed
into history as the 'wild cat' epoch. During this decade also arose the
schemes to gridiron the state with railroads and canals, which fostered
every form of speculation, and ultimately plunged the state into disastrous debt and brought it to the brink of repudiation."
In 1840 Chippewa and Mackinac were the only organized counties
in the Upper Peninsula, with 534 and 923 population respectively.
Ludington, Manistee, Cheboygan, Alpena-not one of these, or any
other of the progressive cities in Northern Michigan with which this
history deals had an existence. Detroit and Monroe were the only incorporated cities in the entire state.
In 1840 the railroad system of Michigan consisted of three short
lines-the Erie & Kalamazoo, from Toledo to Adrian, 33 miles; the
Detroit & Pontiac, from Detroit to Royal Oak, 12 miles (one locomotive);
the Detroit & St. Joseph, from Detroit to Ypsilanti, 29 miles. The
last was the most pretentious, its rolling stock consisting of four small
locomotives, five passenger cars and ten small freight cars.
SPLIT INTO Two PARTS
The railroad system which now partially accommodates Northern
Michigan has its base on the east and west lines of the Michigan Central and Pere Marquette railroads. These great corporations, as well
as the Grand Rapids & Indiana and the Detroit & Mackinac roads, have
now north and south lines converging at Mackinaw City, the extremity
of the Southern Peninsula. The Grand Rapids & Indiana pushes its
system up between the lines of the Pere Marquette and Michigan Central lines, while the Detroit & Mackinac hugs the Huron shore as far
as Alpena, venturing further inland as far as Cheboygan, and occupies northeastern Michigan. But while Southern Michigan has a network of lines running in all directions, that part of the state north of




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the Pere Marquette road which runs from Saginaw to Ludington has
virtually no east and west lines. The eastern and western portions of
Northern Michigan are as foreign countries; but small spurs are shooting out toward the interior from all the four north and south systems,
so that before many years it is probable that this serious defect in the
transportation facilities of that section of the state will be remedied.
FATHER OF MICHIGAN RAILROADS
As is generally known, the Michigan Central is the father of the
railroad system of Michigan, although the Grand Rapids & Indiana
reached the extremities of the Southern Peninsula shortly after it. In
his annual message to the state legislature of 1837-8, Governor Mason
reminded its members of the undeveloped resources of the state and
exhorted it to prompt action in providing canals and railroads. "The
period has arrived," said he "when Michigan can no longer, without
detriment to her standing and importance as a state, delay the action
necessary to the development of her vast resources of wealth."  Animated by the same spirit, the legislature promptly responded, and
passed an act for the construction of three lines of railroad across the
state-one from Detroit to the mouth of the St. Joseph river; one from
Monroe to New Buffalo, and one from the mouth of Black river to the
navigable waters of Grand river, or Lake Michigan. Thus was Southern Michigan early provided for by the governor and legislature in
their recommendations to future generations.
In the face of the "wild cat" banking, limitless speculation, panic,
depression and threatened bankruptcy, the state of Michigan continued
work upon its three east and west trunk lines until 1846, when the
Central had been completed to Kalamazoo and the Southern to Hillsdale. Early in the session of that year's legislature a syndicate of
Boston capitalists through their agent proposed to the state authorities
the purchase of the Central road. The proposition was favorably reeeived by the legislature to whom it was referred by the governor;
and a bill chartering the Michigan Central Railroad Company and providing for the sale to it of the Michigan Central Railroad for the sum
of $2,000,000 in due time became a law.
With the acquisition of its property the Michigan Central Railroad
Company at once commenced the extensions and improvements that
have made it the chief railroad property in the state. The old line
was relocated and reconstructed along its former tortuous course up
the Huron valley, relaid with heavy rail to Kalamazoo, and in the
spring of 1849 "the locomotive for the first time roused the echoes among
the dunes of Lake Michigan. The Southern Company, lacking in financial ability, was less prompt in carrying out the engagements required
by its charter, and it was not until after much supplementary legislation and an almost entire change in corporate ownership that work
was at last commenced in good earnest. From that tinme the strife between it and its old rival for the first entrance into Chicago waxed very
warm; and so close was the race that both crossed the corporate limits
of that city within a few hours of each other, in May, 1852.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


173


" Soon after the other of the first trio of Michigan railroads resumed
the work of extension, and November 22, 1858, the Detroit & Pontiac,
rechristened as the Detroit & Milwaukee railway, ran its first train
into Grand Haven; and Governor Mason's prophesy that within twentyfive years from the admission of the state three railroads would cross
its territory from east to west met with fulfilment. "*
What is known as the Detroit & Bay City Railroad-a division of
the Michigan Central was organized May 6, 1871, and the main line
opened to Bay City, July 31, 1873. In 1866 the Jackson, Lansing &
Saginaw Railroad had purchased the franchises and land grant of the
Amboy, Lansing & Traverse Bay Railroad Company, including the
road already built from Owasso (Shiawassee county) to Lansing, and
in July, 1873, finished the road to Gaylord (Otsego county), 236 miles
north of Jackson "and," says a report of 1878, "will undoubtedly, at
no distant day, extend their line to the straits of Mackinac."
In May, 1875, the original Michigan Central defaulted and its property was sold to the Michigan Central Railroad Company, which also
secured the section road from Bay City to Owasso, finished by the
Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw road, as noted, and in possession of the
old Michigan Central. The present company was formed February 236,
1881, and in the fall of that year the line was completed to Mackinaw
City.
The following proprietary and leased railroads are portions of the
great Michigan Central system which penetrates the territory covered
by this work from north to south:Jackson, Lansing and Saginaw Railroad runs from Jackson to Mackinac City, over 295 miles (with branches 355 miles). It was chartered
February 24, 1865, and acquired the incomplete Amboy, Lansing &
Traverse Bay Railroad, which had been operated between Owasso and
Lansing in 1863. It was leased September 1, 1871, to the Michigan
Central Railroad Company, at a rental of $70,750 per annum, that
company also acquiring the original land grant. During 1901 the Saginaw Bay & Northwestern Railroad (sixty-two miles) was merged into
this road.
Detroit & Charlevoix Railroad runs from Frederic to East Jordan,
Charlevoix county, forty-three miles, and Blue Lake Junction to Blue
Lake, eight miles; total, fifty-one miles. It was chartered and opened
in 1901, and is a northwestern spur from the main line.
The original charter of the Michigan Central Railroad Company
was repealed in 1900, and the company was incorporated under the
general railroad law of Michigan, on December 30, 1901. The railroad forms a part of the New York Central system, but is operated as
an independent organization.
The present stations on the Michigan Central, which are at the
same time postoffices, are as follows, those selected being in the counties
embraced in this history:
Mackinaw Division-Standish, Sterling and Alger, Arenac county;


* Major W. C. Ransom's address at Michigan's semi-centennial celebration at Lansing,
June 15, 1886.




174


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


West Branch and Beaver Lake, Ogemaw county; St. Helen and Roscommon, Roscommon county; Grayling and Frederick, Crawford county;
Waters, Otsego Lake, Sailing, Gaylord and Vanderbilt, Otsego county;
Trowbridge, Wolverine, Rondo, Indian River, Topinabee, Mullett Lake,
Cheboygan and Mackinaw City, Cheboygan county.
Saginaw Bay & Northwestern Division-Rhodes, Highwood and
Gladwin, Gladwin county.
Twin Lakes Branch-Grayling and Lovells, Crawford county; Kneelands, Oscoda county; Vienna and Lewiston, Montinorency county.
THE GRAND RAPIDS AND INDIANA
The Grand Rapids & Indiana main line runs from Fort Wayne,
Indiana, to Mackinaw City, Michigan, a distance of over 366 miles.
It passes through west of the central portions of Northern Michiganthe western townships of Osceola county and the eastern  of Wexford, where (at Cadillac) it sends off branches toward Lake Michigan on the northwest and Lake Erie on the far southeast; cuts through
a southeastern corner of Grand Traverse county, with branches
running northwest to the extremity of Leelanau county, on Lake Michigan; then passes through northwestern Kalkaska county and central
Antrim into Charlevoix county; turns north to Petoskey, and thence
northeast and north, through Emmet county, to Mackinaw City.
The original survey of the Grand Rapids & Indiana trunk line was
made in the late fifties, but the Civil war and other events and conditions detrimental to railroad construction delayed the actual building, so that nearly fifteen years passed before the line reached Reed
City, or the Northern Michigan of this history.
The engineer father of the road was General William P. Innes, of
Grand Rapids, who died at his home in that city on August 2, 1893.
He was born in New York City and came to Michigan, in 1853, as a
civil engineer in the employ of the Detroit, Grand Haven & Milwaukee
(then the Oakland & Ottawa) Railroad Company. He remained in
the employ of that road until its completion, when he took charge of
the Amboy & Lansing, then extending from Jonesville to Saginaw, and
was with that road until 1861. In 1857 he made the preliminary survey for a road from Grand Rapids to Mackinaw, being the land grant
road afterward merged into the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad.
In the Civil war he was colonel of the Michigan regiment of engineers
and mechanics and for a time was military superintendent of railroads
of the department of the Cumberland
In its extension northward the Grand Rapids and Indiana road
reached Morley, Mecosta county, in October, 1869, and Big Rapids a
year afterward. In the closing days of 1870 Reed City (the first station in our historical territory) was bound to the outside world through
the iron horse, and thereafter progress was more rapid. Cadillac celebrated her advent into the list of railroad towns before the close of
the year 1870 and in 1871 Traverse City followed. By the spring of
1874 Boyne Falls (a creature of the road) and Petoskey had been
reached, and then, for some years the enterprise lagged, for the good




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


175
1 (D5


reason that land titles were somewhat insecure in Emmet county, and
tile inlan(l region from Petoskey to Mackinaw City was wilderness.
The general settlement of the county and the development of its
agricultural resources had been delayed by the fact that the lands of
Emnlmet county were still subject to the Indian treaty. In August,
1874, the eastern tier of townships came into market, and April 15,
1 875, the remainder of the county was thrown open to actual settlers.
At that timle the white population of the county was about one hun(Ired and fifty. As stated, the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad had
just opened a highway of travel and transportation through the county,
and the village of Petoskey had just entered upon its career. Upon
PUTTING A RAILROAD THROUGH NORTHERN MICHIGAN
the date named the books were opened at the United States Land Office at Traverse City, and so great was the rush for land that over
eight hundred claims were entered during the first three days. Under
an act of congress soldiers in the late war could homestead one hundred
and seventy acres of land while a citizen could homestead only eighty
acres; consequently the greater portion of the land was taken by soldiers who settled upon homesteads of one hundred and sixty acres.
During the summer and fall of 1875 a steady stream of immigration poured into the wilderness of Emmet county and wilderness it
indeed was. There was not a road in any direction in the woods except onie state road to Cheboygan. The settlers who came in scattered
over thle county so that settlement was general, and the woods resounded with the sturdy strokes of the woodman's ax, and log cabins
were set in the numerous openings in the wilderness.
But the development of the interior country did not warrant the




176


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


extension of the Grand Rapids & Indiana road to Mackinaw City until
1882, although Bay View had secured connections in 1876 and Harbor
Springs in 1880.
The corporation now known as the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railway Company was chartered in July, 1896, under the laws of Michigan
and Indiana, to take over the railroad and property of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company, which was sold under foreclosure
August 1st of that year. The company owns practically the capital
stock of the Traverse City Railroad Company and a one-third interest
in the Mackinac Transportation Company.
The following lines, in Northern Michigan, are now operated by
the Grand Rapids & Indiana:
Main line-Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Mackinaw     City, Michigan,
366.63 miles.
Missaukee branch-MAissaukee Junction to Michelson, Michigan,
81.94 miles.
Missaukee City spur-Northward from Ardis Junction, 3.85 miles.
Harbor Springs branch-Kegomic to Harbor Springs, Michigani.5.91 miles.
Traverse City railroad, from Walton to Traverse City, Grand Traverse county, 25.86 miles.
The stations and postoffices along the lines of the Grand Rapids
& Indiana in the territory under consideration are as follows: Northern division-Mackinaw City, Cheboygan county; Carp Lake, Levering. Van, Pellston. Brutus, Alanson, Oden, Conway, Bay View and
Petoskey. Emmet county; Clarion and Boyne Falls, Charlevoix county;
Elmira, Otsego county; Alba and Mancelona, Antrim county; Westwood, Leetsville, Kalkaska and South Boardman, Kalkaska county;
Fife Lake, Grand Traverse county; Manton, Cadillac and Hobart, Wexford county; Tustin, Le Roy, Ashton, Crono and Reed City, Osceola
county.
Harbor Springs branch-We-que-ton-sing and Harbor Springs, Emmet county.   Missaukee   branch-Michelson, Roscommon    county;
Jennings, Lake City, Falmouth, and Missaukee City, Missaukee county.
Traverse City branch-Summit City, Kingsley, Mayfield and Traverse City. Grand Traverse county.
NORTHERN CONNECTING LINKS
The Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena railroad is a line twenty-seven
miles in length. from Boyne City, Charlevoix county, to Gaylord, Otsego county, and is a connecting link between the Grand Rapids & Indiana and the Michigan Central systems.
The Detroit & Charlevoix Railroad runs from East Jordan, Charlevoix county, to Frederic, Crawford county, forty-four miles, and also
connects the Grand Rapids & Indiana and the Michigan Central lines.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


177


THE PERE MARQUETTE RAILROAD
The Pere Marquette railroad which is the great transportation agent
for the extreme southwestern and western sections of Northern Michigan was chartered in January, 1857, as the Flint & Pere Marquette
railroad, to build the line from Flint to Pere Marquette (afterward
Ludington), on Lake Michigan, a distance of 171 miles. The western
division of the line was from Saginaw to Pere Marquette and was surveyed in 1862 by Ezra G. Goddard, of the former place.
Mr. Goddard, who died at Saginaw, July 13, 1893, became a resident
thereof in 1862, the year of his preliminary survey. He was a native of
Massachusetts and passed his mature active life as a civil engineer in
connection with railroad work. He was first employed by the Worcester
& Nassau railroad in his native state, and was afterward engaged with
the Buffalo, Corning & New York, the Richmond & Danville, the Virginia Central and Northern Central. Then, at the early age of twentynine, he was appointed chief engineer of the Cleveland, Ohio & Indiana,
Cleveland & St. Louis and Terre Haute railroads. After leaving Worcester for a time he made his home at Ithaca, New York, his duties finally
taking him to Winona, Minnesota, where he was in charge of the engineering work on the Winona & St. Paul railroad. Mr. Goddard's
next railroad work was his survey of the Pere Marquette route. He
afterwards became heavily interested in the lumber industries of both
the northwest and south, but retained his home at Saginaw, where he
was recognized as an able business man and a substantial, courteous
citizen.
From the first the headquarters of the Flint & Pere Marquette road
-that is, its western division-were at the place whieh did not assume
the name of Ludington until 1874. That locality was not only the
leading lake port and outlet for the rapidly developing lumber and
salt industries of northwestern Michigan, but was largely dominated
by the remarkable energy, enterprise and foresight of Captain E. B.
Ward, nephew of Captain Samuel Ward. The younger man became
even more widely known than his uncle in the more modern world of
industrial and commercial development. Beginning life as the humble
servant of his prosperous uncle, his energy and genius for great undertakings made him the leading ship owner on the greatest waterways of
the globe; more specially, he was identified as president with the early
embarrassments of the Pere Marquette road and guided it into safe
waters. He was also largely interested in railways west of the Mississippi river; was the largest pine land owner in all the vast pine region
of these north-central states, and built the first of Ludington's immense
saw mills. As a promoter of the iron industries of the northwest he
obtained national fame. Locally, Detroit claimed him, as well as his
famous uncle, both of whom had much to do with the development of
enterprises which were at the basis of the progress of Northern Michigan.
The first locomotive to reach Flint over the Pere Marquette road
arrived in that city during the spring of 1863. The line had been completed as far as Saginaw, but it afforded such a limited outlet, or the
Vol. I-1 2




178


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


city was so distracted with the events of the Civil war, that the arrival
of the first locomotive seems to have excited no special attention. Work
on the Flint and Holly road was begun the same spring that the above
named section of the Pere Marquette road was completed, and largely
through the untiring energy of Governor Crapo, president of the company, it was graded, tied, ironed and ready for the rolling stock in
about eighteen months. The trip of the first locomotive, Pere Marquette, in November, 1864, was the occasion of great rejoicing. A few
years later the road was sold to the Flint & Pere Marquette Company
at a handsome advance upon its original cost, and prior to 1880 the
latter added the Flint river division, extending from Flint to Otter
lake, to its system. Early in 1882 the Flint & Pere Marquette system
had been extended to Manistee, and along in 1887-8 the latter city entered into the business of railroad building herself by constructing the
lines known as the Manistee & North-Eastern and the Manistee & Grand
Rapids.
The extension of the Flint & Pere Marquette, with its numerous
spurs lakeward and inland, is a matter of such detail that it is beyond
the province of this work, and it is of such comparatively recent date
that the information is accessible through the newspapers and other
agencies.
As we know it today, the Pere Marquette Railroad Company was
chartered December 11, 1907, under the laws of Michigan and Indiana,
being a consolidation of the Pere Marquette Railroad Company organized in December, 1899, and of one of its subsidiary companies, the
Pere Marquette Railroad Company of Indiana, organized in 1903.
The principal lines owned by the road as they affect Northern Michigan are the following: Grand Rapids to Bay View, 247.10 miles. and
Saginaw to Ludington. 217.40 miles.
The stations, which have the distinction of being postoffices. on the
various lines of the Pere Marquette Railroads passing through the
territory covered by this history are as follows:
Main line (Grand Rapids to Bay View)-Baldwin, Peacock and
Irons, Lake county; Dublin, Brethren, Kaleva and Henry, Manistee
county; Thompsonville, Wallin and Bendon, Benzie county; Interlochen, Grawn, Acme, Bates and Williamsburgh, Grand Traverse county;
Elk Rapids, Alden, Bellaire, Central Lake and Ellsworth, Antrim
county; Barker Creek and Rapid City, Kalkaska county; Phelps.
Charlevoix and Bayshore. Charlevoix county; Petoskey and Bay View,
Emmet county.
Honor branch-Honor, Benzie county.
Kalkaska branch-Rapid   City, Kalkaska; Spencer and Sharon.
Kalkaska county.
Toledo to Ludington-Beaverton, Gladwin county; Clare, Farwell.
Lake, Chase, Nirvana and Baldwin, Lake county; Chippewa, Sears,
Evart, Hersey and Reed City, Osceola county; Branch, Walhalla, Custer, Scottville and Ludington, Mason county.
Clare to Harrison-Clare. Hatton, Harrison and Leota, Clare
county.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


179


Walhalla to Manistee-Walhalla, Fallman, Fountain and Free Soil,
Mason county; Stronach, East Lake and Manistee, Manistee county.
ANN ARBOR RAILROAD
The Ann Arbor Railroad Company operates from Toledo, Ohio, to
Frankfort, Benzie county, northwestern Michigan, a distance of over
300 miles. It was chartered September 21, 1895, under state laws, as
successor to the Toledo, Ann Arbor & North Michigan Railway Company, whose property was sold under foreclosure on July 2d of that
year. The company operates three car ferries from the Frankfort
terminus on Lake Michigan, which afford connection with the Chicago,
Milwaukee & St. Paul, Chicago & North-Western, Wisconsin Central
and Canadian Pacific systems and with the Kewaunee, Green Bay &
Western, the Wisconsin & Michigan and the Manistique & Lake Superior railroads. The line was formerly controlled by the Detroit,
Toledo & Ironton Railway Company, through stock ownership, but on
April 1, 1910, control passed to the present management, and the road
has since been operated as an independent line.
The stations and postoffices along the 113 miles of the Ann Arbor
Railroad which runs within the territory covered by this work, are as
follows: Clare, Farwell, Lake George, Clarence and Temple, Clare
county; Summit, Grand Traverse county; Marion and Park Lake, Osceola county; MeBain and Lucas, Missaukee county; Cadillac, Boon,
Harrietta, Yuma, Mesick and Bagnall, Wexford county; Harlan, Pomona and Copemish, Manistee county; Thompsonville, Beulah, South
Frankfort and Frankfort, Benzie county.
The details of the building of the Ann Arbor line from Mt. Pleasant,
Isabella county, to Frankfort, Benzie, are given in Wheeler's "History
of Wexford County." "During the winter of 1883-4," says that publication, "the surveyors of the Chicago & West Michigan Railroad visited Northern Michigan, taking observations as to the most desirable
route for the extension of their road. They visited Sherman, Wexford
county, looked over the approaches to the Manistee river from the
north and south, and expressed themselves as well satisfied with the
feasibility of crossing at that point and following the valley of the
Wheeler creek northward, running a little east of Wexford corners
and then dropping over into the Boardman river valley, thus making
an easy grade into Traverse City. The people in the western part of
the county were greatly elated over the prospects of having a railroad
near their farms, but railroads have queer ways and their building is
accompanied often with vexatious delays, and so it happened that when
the Chicago & West Michigan Railroad was built several years later
it took an entirely new route and did not touch Wexford county; in
fact, it was run so far west as to be of very little practical benefit to
the farmers of the county.
"In the meantime the Toledo, Ann Arbor & North Michigan Railroad Company had been organized and had started in to build a road
to some points on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. The projectors
of this undertaking were the Ashleys, of Toledo-father and two sons,




1i0


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Harry and James, or 'Jim, as he was called. Neither of these parties
had much mtoney of their own, but they had enterprise and push. especially 'Jim.' who could overcome more difficulties and surmount
more obstacles than a half a dozen ordinary business men; and it was
largely through these qualities that the road was completed, though
its building covered a period of several years, and more than once it
was said 'The Ashleys have got to the end of their rope and the road
will never go any farther;' but still the next year would witness another extension, and so little by little the work progressed.  In the
sulmmer of 1886, through the promise of thirty-five thousand dollars
on the part of the city of Cadillac, the work of extending the road from
MIt. Pleasait, Isabella county, its then terminus, to Cadillac was undertaken. A large force of men were put to work at various points along
the line and before September the laying of rails was commenced.
This work progressed from both ends of this section, the rails being
brought to Cadillac over the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad to use
il laying the northern end of the section. Winter set in before the
last rail was laid, and some of the grading and several miles of track
laying was done when the snow covered the ground to a depth of several inches. But notwithstanding the cold and the snow the first train
over the new extension reached Cadillac within the time agreed upon,
January 1, 1887, and its arrival marked a new era in the county's
history.
"To fittingly celebrate this event the railroad company gave a free
excursion to Alma (its junction with the Pere Marquette in Gratiot
county) and a free dinner at the celebrated Wright Hotel of that place,
inviting many of the prominent men of the city and the county at
large, and the city arranged for a grand banquet at the Hotel McKinnon when the party, including railroad officials and the railroad commissioner of the state, should return in the evening.
'During the summer of 1887 the road was completed as far as
Harrietta and graded some distance west of that place, and the following year it passed on through Wexford county, reaching Frankfort in
the fall of 1889. The Ashleys bought a piece of land and platted the
village of Harrietta in 1888, the name being a combination made from
Harry Ashlev and the name of his intended wife, Harrietta Burt.
The village of Boon was platted about the same time, and the next year
witnessed the platting of the village of hMesick. A year or two after
this the village of Yuna was platted. making four villages as the direct
result of tar building of the Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Michigan Railroad, as it was called, but now known as the Ann Arbor Rail
road. This road, penetrating as it did one of the best farming seclions of the county, gave a new impetus to the farming industry arpd
since its coming a marked and steady growth of that industry has
been noticeable. Not only did it open up a more direct and less expensive market for the shipment of farm products, but it stimulated
the lumbering business to such an extent that the demand for the prodtuits of the farm for the mills and camps greatly increased the home
market and correspondingly the prices received for such products. The
lumbllering operations growing out of the building of this road being




ENGINE AND TRAIN ON THE FIRST LOG(GING RAILROAD OF THE WORLD
[Logging locomotise built b> Porter, Bell & Company, builders of light locomotives, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.]
[Lake George & Muflskegon lier I1 Ti., W   8    eminsh, Manager, near Famrell, 3Michigan ]




182


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


largely confined to the hardwood of the county, resulted in causing the
clearing of thousands of acres of land and transforming them into
productive farms, as every acre of hardwood land, when once cleared,
makes food-farming land."
FIRST LOGGING RAILROAD IN THE WORLD
In January, 1877, Winfield Scott Gerrish completed what, so far
as is known, was the first logging railroad in the United States or the
world. It was about six miles in length and ran from Lake George on
the main line of what is now the Ann Arbor Railroad to the headwaters of the Muskegon river. Both by training, and perhaps by inheritance, Mr. Gerrish was the proper man to have achieved this distinction. His father, Nathaniel L. Gerrish, was a native of Maine, in which
state he spent the first thirty-seven years of his life, working in its
pineries and on its farms. Both kinds of work were calculated to harden
him into a stalwart man. As such, in 1857, he moved with his family
to Werner, Wisconsin, where he continued lumbering until 1861, when
the household located at Croton, Newaygo county, and remained there
for eight years, or until the pine was nearly exhausted in that section
of the Muskegon valley. Mr. Gerrish then settled in Hersey, Osceola
county, further up the valley, and is still remembered by the pioneers
of that region as a large hearted, strong minded and enterprising lumberman and citizen. In 1875-6 he represented the Mecosta district in
the legislature and continued his logging and lumbering operations at
Hersey until 1881, when chronic rheumatism forced him to withdraw
from one of the most active and commendable careers known among
Northern Michigan lumbermen. In that year he became a citizen of
Cadillac, Wexford county, where he became interested in the planing
mill business, as a member of the firm of Cummer & Gerrish. After
some years he retired from all business. His death, at the home of
his daughter, Mrs. D. F. Higgins, of Cadillac, on the 13th of October,
1895, removed from the community a splendid man of usefulness and
high honor-a worthy father of Winfield Scott Gerrish.
The son was also born in the Pine Tree state, and spent his life
from the age of twelve to twenty-four in the region near Croton, on the
Muskegon river, in the southeastern part of Newaygo county. He
commenced log driving when he was eighteen, and in the autumn of
1873, when in his twenty-fifth year, made his first large logging contract. From this point on, let the American Lumberman tell the story
of how the first logging railroad was built and operated in the United
States: "The timber was to be banked on the Dock and Tom creek,
and delivered in the Muskegon. The following spring (1874) found
him with his logging done in good time, and preparations completed
for the drive. Driving was presently begun and vigorously prosecuted,
but this treacherous stream, the terror of log drivers of the Muskegon
district, soon shrunk to a rivulet, while the drive was not finished. In
those days the 'State of Mainers,' as the Maine lumbermen were familiarly called, knew everything, so to speak; this possibly was a mild
illusion, yet they were quite free with their advice to the green Michi



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


183


gan boys. It was not surprising, therefore, that some of these sons of
the old Pine Tree state visited the Dock and Tom creek at this time
to give Scott a little wholesome advice. The stream being carefully
examined, and a council thereafter duly held, the young logger was
most emphatically advised to abandon the drive, but he happened to
be of a contrary opinion. 'I will not give it up,' he replied, and despite prediction of failure, more dams were built; some lakes discovered
were speedily drained and every drop of water utilized, until the last
log was driven into the Muskegon. Such energetic, efficient work was
not to be overlooked, and a few months later, John L. Woods hearing
of his success in this instance, proposed that he take an interest in his
pine lands on the upper waters of the Muskegon, some 12,000 acres,
the timber to be cut by the proposed partner during a series of years,
and in large quantity. The proposition being accepted, a much larger
field was now before him.
"In 1874, in connection with E. H. Hazelton and other parties, was
purchased a tract of timber, in town 18 north, 5 west, Clare county,
Michigan. Not a tree had been cut in this township. There were at
this time few, if any, townships in the state so heavily timbered, but
being remote from water from six to ten miles, the pine was not available, and therefore of little value. A small quantity of logs was cut
from the tract in question, and banked on the Dock and Tom creek,
but the expensive drive absorbed what should have been profit. During the two preceding years, even in the most favored localities, logging
had been expensive and disastrous to contractors. Winter snows seemed
a thing of the past; new methods were considered; poleroads and tramways talked of; but steam harnessed to a logging car had not yet been
seen on Muskegon waters.
"The centennial year had come, and all the people, seemingly, laying aside for the moment profession or employment, flocked to the
'Quaker City,' there to see and realize, in some measure, how wonderful had been the nation's progress in 100 years, an exhibition whose
quickening influence is still felt in every department of industry
throughout the land. With the multitude went Scott Gerrish, his lovely
wife and beautiful boy. Those were busy, pleasant days. There was
a fairy land in Fairmount park transcending the wonderful tales of
the Arabian nights. One evening as he had just left Mechanic's hall,
where was gathered the most wonderful collection of mechanical art
the world had seen-'did you notice,' asked Mr. Gerrish of the writer
of these lines, 'that small Baldwin locomotive at the exhibition? Just
the kind of a horse to haul logs without snow!'
"This was a germ idea. A few days later, returning to Michigan,
plans were matured to build a steam railroad for logging purposes with
light rail and equipment, connecting Lake George in town 18-5, with
the Muskegon river, six miles distant. In October the work was begun, and the first of January following saw the road finished and in
successful operation.
"Of course the croakers, never silent when new methods are to be
tried, predicted a failure of the enterprise, and ruin for the owners,
yet a few months later some of these same men, riding over the road




184


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


and witnessing its successful operation, were loudest in their approval,
and their repetition of the exasperating 'I told you so' was as glibly
constant as if it had applied to failure instead of success. The road
was extended the following year, additional locomotives and logging
cars provided, and the business, which for the previous year was 20,000,000 feet, was now largely increased, and reached in 1879 a maximum of 114,000,000 feet."
Mr. Gerrish afterward became largely interested in various Muskegon mills, part owner of the Saginaw Bay & Northwestern logging
railroad, and prior to his death May 19, 1882, was probably the largest
individual logger in the world, his highest annual contribution to Muskegon river being 130,000,000 feet in 1879. While making plans for
an extension of his operations into the Georgian bay country, Louisiana
and Georgia, he was stricken with sudden and mortal illness, at the
home of a sister in Evart. He was only a little past thirty-three at
the time of his death, which was caused by an affection of the spine
and acute inflammation of the kidneys.
The late Austin W. Mitchell, of Cadillac, was another leading lumberman and manufacturer who was largely identified with the building
of logging railroads in Northern Michigan, especially in Wexford and
Missaukee counties. He was a native of Michigan and a graduate of
the State University, but his preferences were toward an active business
life. After serving in the internal revenue department for several
years, in 1879, then twenty-seven years of age, he bought a section of
pine land at Jennings, Cedar Creek township, Wexford county, six
miles north of Cadillac, and in March of the following year began the
manufacture of lumber at Bond's mill. He afterward became associated with his brother, William W., both in the purchase of timber
lands in Michigan and New Mexico and the manufacture of pine products, maple flooring, handles and other articles which are made from
soft and hard woods. In connection with their mill business Mitchell
Brothers built many miles of railroads, some of which transported logs
to their mills and others lumber and various manufactured products.
A. W. Mitchell, the pioneer and founder of all these operations, died in
1902, while on his way to Japan in a vain search for restored health,
being still a man of middle age.
LUDINGTON RAILROADS
The Grand Rapids & Northwestern Railroad is a line projected from
Ludington to Grand Rapids, ninety-eight miles. It was chartered February 1, 1908, under the laws of Michigan. The project is for the
relocation and extension into Ludington and Grand Rapids of the Mason & Oceana railroad, and for the establishment of a line of car ferries
with terminals in Milwaukee and Manitowoc. The company owns the
entire west shore of Ludington harbor where car ferry slips and transfer docks and warehouses will be built. It will occupy the Bridge
street terminal at Grand Rapids in conjunction with the Grand Trunk.
The company owns all the capital stock of the Mason & Oceana railroad, which it has completed from Ludington to Cobmoosa, Michigan,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


185


thirty-five miles, and newly graded the section from  Ludington to
Crystal valley, twenty miles.
The Mason & Oceana Railroad was originally organized in 1886,
and has been used primarily for the logging operations of the Butters
Salt and Lumber Company of Ludington. Its equipment is practically
worn out, and the burning of the lumber company's plant put the
narrow gauge railroad out of business, as that corporation gave the
road ninety per cent of its earnings.
The 'Epworth League Railroad Company was organized March 9,
1895, chartered for thirty years on April 1st and opened May 30th of
that year for the purpose of accommodating summer tourists to summer resorts north of Ludington. In July, 1901, the name was changed
to the Ludington & Northern.
MANISTEE RAILROADS
The Manistee & Luther Railroad, whose southeast line is from Eastlake to Eleanor, thirty-three miles, was chartered March 26, 1886,
chiefly for logging purposes to which it is still virtually confined.
The Manistee & North-Eastern Railroad, from Manistee to Traverse
City, is over seventy miles long (with branches 183 miles) and was
opened in sections between January 14, 1889, and July 1, 1892; branches
opened at various subsequent dates. It was originally chartered January 7, 1887.
The stations and postoffices on the main line and branches of the
Manistee & North-Eastern which traverse Northern Michigan are as
follows: Main line-Manistee, Norwalk, Kaleva and Copemish, Manistee county; Grayling, Crawford county; Nessen City, Lake Ann and
Cedar Run, Benzie county; Karlin, Interlochen and Traverse City,
Grand Traverse county.
River branch-Kaleva and Marilla, Manistee county; Buckley,
Wexford county; Walton, Grand Traverse county; Grayling, Crawford county.
Platte river branch-Honor, Benzie county.
Omena branch-Schomberg and Provemont, Leelanau county.
The Traverse City, Leelanau & Manistique Railway's main line is
from Hatchs to Northport, Leelanau county, and is a virtual continuation of the Manistee & North-Eastern. It is about twenty-four miles
in length, and the controlling company was organized under state laws
September 19, 1908, as successor to the Traverse City, Leelanau &
Manistique Railroad Company whose property was sold under foreclosure April 17, 1907. Its main stations are Traverse City, Grand
Traverse county, and Keswick, Sutton's Bay, Omena and Northport,
Leelanau county.
The Manistee & Grand Rapids Railroad was chartered November
17, 1889, under state laws, and the line completed from Manistee to
Marion (Osceola county), (seventy-two miles) and from Dighton to
Hartwick (Osceola county), (five miles) on May 1, 1893. As is evident from the name, the line, as projected, will be 116 miles in length
-from Manistee to Grand Rapids. The principal stations on the Man



186


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


istee & Grand Rapids are Manistee and Filer City, Manistee county;
Millerton, Mason county; and Peacock, Luther and Edgetts, Lake
county. The people of Manistee take just pride in this road, which is
purely a home concern; or to quote a local print: " The Manistee and
Grand Rapids Railroad is distinctively a Manistee enterprise, organized in November, 1889, and financed entirely by local capital. Projected originally as a logging road to bring to our home mills great
bodies of timber held by local lumbermen, this road at present operates over some seventy miles of track, extending in a southeasterly
direction from Manistee, traversing the southwestern portion of Manistee county; the northeastern section of Mason county; from west to
east entirely across the central part of Lake county; and into the rich
farming lands of Osceola county, crossing the northern extension of
the Pere Marquette Railroad at Peacock, the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad at Tustin, and connecting with the Ann Arbor Railroad at Marion, the eastern terminal of the line, and is fast becoming
a very important factor in the freight and passenger business between
Manistee and the outside world. By the construction of this railroad
there was opened for settlement one of the most promising sections of
Western Michigan, in the cities, villages and on the farms of whose
great fruit belt, are already to be found a full half million of inhabitants, with land and opportunities awaiting four times as many more."
The Empire & Southeastern Railroad is a line eleven miles in length
which runs through the southwestern corner of Leelanau county into
Benzie county, where it connects with a spur of the Pere Marquette
system.
THE DETROIT & MIACKINAC2
What is so well known as the Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company
has extended its lines into northeastern Michigan by way of Jackson,
Lansing and Saginaw. The old Jackson & Lansing was organized
February 23, 1864, and in the following year the name changed to the
Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw. Its line was completed to Mason in 1865,
to Lansing in 1866 and to Wenona, on Saginaw bay, December 6, 1867.
In 1871 the Detroit & Lansing Railroad was organized under the
general law and built through to Lansing. In 1876 it was consolidated
with the Ionia & Lansing and still later with the Detroit, Lansing &
Northern. In the same year the Detroit & Bay City was organized,
and quickly extended to both Saginaw and Bay City, and now constitutes a portion of the Detroit & Mackinac system. These two roads
were built largely by those interested in the Michigan Central Company.
The originator of the present Detroit & Mackinac Railway was the
Detroit, Bay City & Alpena Railroad, which was projected by C. D.
Hale, of Tawas City, as a logging road. In 1878 the Lake Huron &
Southwestern Railway Company was organized with Mr. Hale as manager. Under his direction the road was built in the summer of 1878,
* The map of the Detroit & Mackinac railway is published in this chapter because it is
the only one of the large transportation systems mentioned which lies almost entirely in
Northern Michigan.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


187


from the Hale mill, at Tawas City, to township 21 north, of range 4
east, in Ogemaw county, a distance of twenty-one miles, at a cost of
$90,000. Mr. Hale continued manager of the company until February, 1879, when the pressure of private business made it necessary
for him to resign.
In the spring of 1879 the company made an assignment, and in
DETROIT &
FORD  OSC DA
October of that year the road was purchased by C. H. Prescott, of
Bay City, who had a short time previous purchased an extensive mill
property at Tawas City. Mr. Prescott operated the road alone for
several months, and then organized it under the name of the Tawas &
Bay County Railroad.
This road was mentioned in 1880, as follows: "Not the least among
the enterprises which are at present of benefit to the place, and bid




188


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


fair to be the means of its future wealth, is the Tawas & Bay County
Railroad. On Monday a party of ladies and gentlemen, composed of
Mr. Prescott, the president of the road, with his wife; Superintendent
Clark and wife; Mrs. John McKay and her mother; Mrs. Johnson, of
Bay City, and the writer, took possession of the only palace car on
the line, and started for the western terminus of the road, drawn by
a powerful little six wheeled freight engine, which has done duty for
two years without a repair, other than what has been made in a country blacksmith shop, which fact speaks to the credit of the builders and
the care of those having it in charge. This road penetrates the pineries
for a distance of twenty-five miles, its western terminus being in the
southwestern corner of section 14 of town 21, range 4 east, or about
twelve miles from Summit, on the Mackinaw division of the Michigan
Central. The extreme western portion is newly laid, and not yet ballasted, but by far the greater portion is as well ballasted as any road
in the state. The superintendent, Henry Clark, is an experienced railroad constructor and bridge builder and he has worked the road-bed
as systematically and skilfully as though intended for passenger traffic.
That he has been successful is fully proven by riding over the road,
as did our party, on an ordinary log truck without springs, and the
softest seat being a pine plank covered with a blanket. This fifty
mile ride was made without fatigue even to the ladies in the party.
The ballast is of superior quality, easily handled and forming a solid
and impervious bed. Cross ties instead of stringers are used, and are
placed nearly twice as close as ordinarily, thus compensating for light
iron which, when so tied, is fully adequate to the service of a narrow
gauge road-three feet, two inches-and costs much less.
'There are now two engines in use, one being used for making up
the trains, and the other for hauling, running two trips each way every
day. Another engine is being negotiated for, and will be on the track
by the close of navigation, when the trips will be increased to four.
Beside hauling logs to the mills, all the lumber sawed at McIver's mill,
and the product of a large shingle mill is transported to the lake. Settlers, to a large number, have already taken advantage of the traveling
facility afforded and taken up farms along its line. Thirty or forty
men are constantly employed either in extension of the main line, of
branches to skidways, or in improving the road-bed. The entire work,
from beginning to end, gives evidence that the managers contemplate
not only permanency, but a great degree of service."
Thus was born the Detroit & Mackinac system, as a crude logging
railroad running from Tawas City twenty-five miles into the pine forests of Ogemaw county.
Within a few years, however, the vigorous management behind the
Detroit, Bay City & Alpena Railroad was pushing the line southward
from Tawas City to Bay City and northward from Alpena to Cheboygan. On September 20, 1886, the first train entered Alpena county
over the Ossineke road and ran into a temporary depot about three
miles from the village. In August, 1891, the second survey of the
line into Presque Isle county was made, and on November 20, 1893,
the first regular train run over the Alpena & Northern road. The




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


189


Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company was chartered under state laws
in the following year, and the old Detroit, Bay City & Alpena Railroad
went out of existence. The new road was a reorganization of the old
to acquire by purchase the railroads owned by the latter, running from
Alger, Arenac county, to Alpena, 105 miles, in addition to several
logging branches aggregating about seventy miles. It acquired these,
as well as the railroad known as the Alpena & Northern, twenty-five
miles, and all these properties were consolidated, as above mentioned.
In 1901 the shore road was built from a point nine miles north of Au
Sable to Harrisville, connecting there with the main line. The branch
from Alpena west to Hillman, Montmorency county, a distance of
twenty-five miles, was opened for traffic in December, 1909.
The main line of the Detroit & Mackinac runs from Bay City to
Cheboygan, 196.24 miles, and its branches are: Emery Junction to
Rose City, 31.21 miles; Emery Junction to Prescott, 11.85 miles; Omer
to Au Gres, 7.95 miles; Lincoln Junction to Lincoln, 14.38 miles and
Alabaster Junction to Alabaster, 22.40 miles. These, with the various
logging branches (76.11 miles) give the system, which accommodates
northeastern Michigan, 364.49 miles of trackage.
The chief stations on the Detroit & Mackinac Railway are: South
division-Saganing, Pine River, Omer, Twining and Turner, Arenac
county; Emery Junction, McIvor, Tawas City, East Tawas and Tawas
Beach, Iosco county; Greenbush and Harrisville, Alcona county; Ossineke and Alpena, Alpena county.
North division-Alpena, Cathro and Bolton, Alpena county; Posen,
Metz, Millersburg and Onaway, Presque Isle county; Tower, Alcha
and Cheboygan, Cheboygan county.
Rose City division-Emery Junction and Hale, losco county; Longlake, Clare county; Maltby, Lupton and Rose City, Ogemaw county.
Lincoln branch-Mikado, Gustin and Lincoln, Alcona county.
Au Gres branch-Omer and Au Gres, Arenac county.
Prescott division-Emery Junction and Whittemore, losco county;
Prescott, Ogemaw county.
Hillman branch-Alpena and Lachine, Alpena county; Emerson,
Chippewa county; Hillman, Montmorency county.
The Au Sable & Northwestern Railway is operated from Au Sable
to Comins, Oscoda county (over fifty miles) and Hardy to Curran (Alcona county) (seven miles). It was chartered December 26, 1907, as
successor to the Au Sable & Northwestern Railroad Company, and
continued to be used chiefly as a logging line by H. M. Loud's Sons
Company until the time of the sweeping fire of 1911.
GOOD ROADS
By this term is meant, not good railroads but well-built highways
for farmers, automobilists, pleasure seekers and travellers generallyroads to accommodate both those who ride in vehicles of any kind and
those who prefer nature's mode of locomotion. The Good Roads movement has come to stay and grow in Northern Michigan, and in the
reform is especially demonstrated the progressive spirit of the rural




190


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


communities. Fine highways radiate from almost every village, and
every county seat is certain to be an active center for them. Under
the system of state rewards for the building of highways of a fixed
standard, hundred of miles of the best roads that clean stone and gravel
can make are yearly being added to the systems of each county. Good
roads mean almost as much to the farmer as good railroad and boat
transportation; good roads effect an enormous saving in the cost of
hauling produce to the nearest loading station, and the farmers of
Northern Michigan have shown that they understand the meaning of
this economy. Under the law, the state offers a reward for every mile
of highway built according to specifications furnished by the state
highway commissioner; that is to say, the state will pay $1,000 per mile
for a macadam road built in accord with its instructions, $750 for the
highway surfaced with slag from the iron furnaces, and $500 for the
road built of gravel. The result is that there has sprung up a keen
rivalry between the different townships of the counties, and the proposition to vote bonds for the purpose of building good roads almost
invariably carries when submitted to the voters. This progressive spirit
is exerting a wonderful influence in the settlement of the country;
there are sections in this territory where stone or gravel roads have
been built through a populous section to the borders of the wilderness,
and the result is that settlement is pushing back the frontier so rapidly that soon Northern Michigan will have no frontier.
FIRST LUMBERING OPERATIONS
The development of the lumber industries of Northern Michigan
was the primary force which drew the railroads into that country; to
a large extent the growth of the salt industries also contributed to
their extension from Saginaw to Ludington and their construction along
the Lake Huron and Michigan shores. Lumber, salt, climate, scenery
and fruit were the chief forces contributing to the growth of Northern Michigan, the first named having almost abandoned the field-and
the last being now first.
When the railroads had fairly established themselves in the northern country the benefits became mutual. Mills were built; lumbermen
came into the regions around Manistee, Ludington, Alpena and Cheboygan in solid companies; camps, villages and cities appeared; general trade and commerce were founded and expanded, and another
civilization was developed from the wilderness. Railroads were built
in widely separated sections of the country to assist logging operations
and get the first outputs of lumber to the shores of both lakes, whence
they were shipped by water to the southern markets. As all the lumber industries developed and communities were founded and grew and
required better transportation facilities, these old logging roads were
absorbed into the various systems which have already been described.
The zenith of the lumber industries in Northern Michigan was reached
in 1888, since which they have gradually declined, though still presenting features of imposing magnitude.




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WAITING FOR THE SAW MILLS




192


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


LUMBERING IN MANISTEE COUNTY
The first sawmill built within what is now Manistee city-the first
one of any consequence in the county and the shores of northern Lake
Michigan, in the territory with which this work deals, was built by
James and Adam Stronach, and was afterward known as the Humble
mill, from Joseph Humble, who owned and operated it. Next after
this was erected the Joseph Smith mill, soon followed by the Bachelor
mill, the latter located on the point at the outlet of Manistee lake on
the south side.
As the coming of the Stronachs is coincident with both the first settlement of Manistee county and the planting of the lumber industry
on the shores of northwestern Michigan, the following account of their
coming is reproduced from General B. M. Cutcheon's Centennial address:
"In the fall of the year 1840 John Stronach of Berrien county,
Michigan, accompanied by his brother Joseph Stronach of Muskegon,
coasted along this shore in a small sail boat, until they arrived at the
mouth of the Manistee. They were met by a party of Chippewas, who
treated them cordially, and gave them information of the county.
"Hiring a company of Indians to take them in their canoes, they
explored the Manistee until they came to an ancient 'jam' of logs, flood
wvood and fallen trees, and finding no good place for a dam, they returned and explored the 'Little River, ' called by the Indians 'Mamoosa' or 'dog-river.' After locating a point for a millsite they set
sail and returned to Muskegon.
"The following spring, about the 13th of April, John Stronach
chartered the schooner 'Thornton' of St. Joseph to convey them and
their machinery and supplies to the Manistee.
"They arrived at the mouth of the Manistee on the 16th of April,
1841, and from that day dates the actual, permanent, white settlement
of -Manistee county.
"They found it impossible to enter the river, on account of the
shallowness of the water, there being not to exceed three feet on the
average between Lake Michigan and Manistee lake.
"Unable to enter the stream, they constructed a pine raft, bound
together with cross pieces and wedges.
"This raft they towed with the yawl to and from the vessel, until
the cargo except the cattle, was landed; the cattle they threw overboard,
and all but one swam safely to the shore.
"They found the yawl boat of the wrecked schooner 'Anadogge'
and this they used to tow their raft loaded with machinery and supplies to the head of the little lake and up the 'Mamoose' or 'LittleDog' to the site of Stronach mills. A camp was built, a road cut, a
dam constructed, and by the close of 1841 the first saw mill that ever
startled the silence of these unbroken forests, was ready for operations. "
In 1849, the year during which the Chippewa Indian reservation
came into the open market, John Canfield caine to Manistee, took up
land near the mouth of the river and commenced the erection of a




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


193


steam sawmill on the site of the large plant so well known in later
years under the ownership of Canfield & Wheeler.
In 1852 the Stronach, Smith, Bachelor and Canfield (two) mills
were still in operation. They all used the upright or muley saw-circulars were then unknown-and were cutting a few thousand feet of
lumber daily.
In the following year (1853) occurred what a few old lumbermen
still remember as the timber war. "It happened in this way," says
one of them who writes from vivid recollections: "In those days there
was a good deal of land in the United States, much of it belonged to
the government and of necessity a good deal of it had to be left out of
doors nights.
"Now there came to be a general opinion abroad that this was a
free country. This opinion was supposed to be derived from the glorious Declaration of Independence.
"People reasoned like this: This timber belongs to the Government. This is a Government of the people, by the people, for the people.
"We are the people. Ergo, this timber belongs to us.
"Quod erat demonstrandum!      The very thing to be proved!
Therefore we will take our timber, and if history can be credited they
did.
"Our venerable Uncle Samuel arose in his wrath; he sent out his
officials. One Williams was U. S. timber agent, and Durkee was U. S.
marshal. All Michigan was one district with seat in Detroit.   The
marshal came on with his cohorts; he shut down mills; he seized logs;
he gobbled shingle bolts; he went on the booms and put U. S. on all
the logs; he forbade the sawing of logs until a settlement was effected;
the mill men were contumacious, and the war was vigorous. At this
time the Hon. Stillman Stubbs was keeping a sort of tavern on the
north side, near Shannon's place. The U. S. marshal made his headquarters there. He was greatly lionized. The hands from the mills
on the other side of the river resolved to give him a special display of
fireworks. So they prepared large balls of wicking saturated in spirits
of turpentine, and after His Excellency had retired for the night, the
night being warm and the windows being open, they threw their lighted
fireballs into the marshal's windows, and so gave him a grand illumination. To add to the vexation, the marshal's boat was sunk in the lake.
Some arrests were made and some refused to stay made. There is a
tradition which has come down from that remote period, of one who
was sleeping, like the apostle of old, bound between two soldiers, and
how he 'slid out' in light marching order! But I am not aware that
he ever claimed supernatural deliverance.
"In 1854 the timber war came to a head. The mill men carried
'the war into Africa,' and the marshal, instead of 'seeking new fields
to conquer,' was finding all the employment he needed in defending
himself. The war ended like most of wars-in a compromise-and I
believe that it has never since been renewed. The idea that this is a
free country has suffered an eclipse."


Vol I —    3




194


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


THE GRAND TRAVERSE REGION
As the Manistee river at its mouth was the center of the pioneer
lumbering operations on the Michigan shore of the northwestern part
of the state, so was the region around Grand Traverse bay the scene
of activities of only a little later date.
In 1847 Captain Boardman, a thrifty farmer living near Napierville, Illinois, purchased of the United States government a small tract
of land at the mouth of the river which bears his name, and furnished
means to his son, Horace Boardman, to build a sawmill. The latter
with two or three men in his employ, arrived at the river in the early
part of June of that year, and immediately commenced the construction of a dwelling. The place selected was on the right bank of the
stream, a little way below where it issues from Boardman lake. The
exact location of the building was in what is now East street, Traverse
City, between the center of the street and its southern boundary, just
east of the eastern boundary of Boardman avenue. It was a house of
modest pretensions as to size, being only sixteen feet by twenty-four,
and one story high. The material for the walls was pine logs hewn
square with the broad-ax. In after years, it was known to the inhabitants of the village as the "old block-house."  It was eventually destroyed by fire.
On the 20th of June, a week or more after Mr. Boardman's arrival,
the "Lady of the Lake," owned by him and sailed by Michael Gay,
one of his employers, arrived in the mouth of the river with supplies.
There came with Gay a man by the name of Dunham, who, having
been in the bay on a previous occasion, acted as pilot. After assisting
for a few days in the building of the house, Gay was dispatched with
the little vessel to the Maniton Islands, to bring on a party of employes,
who, it had been arranged, should come as far as the islands by
steamer. Returning, the "Lady" entered the river on the 5th of July.
There came in her as passengers Mr. Gay's young wife, then only about
fifteen or sixteen years of age, and her four-months' old baby, Mr. and
Mrs. Duncan, a hired girl named Ann Van Amburg and several carpenters.
Only the walls of the house had as yet been erected. The building
was without roof, floors, doors or windows. A sort of lean-to, or open
shed, with a floor of hewn planks, had been built for a temporary
kitchen against one side of the house in which a cook stove had been
set up. A tent was now constructed of some spare sails, inside the unfinished building, for the accommodation of the two married couples
and the girl. The single men shifted for themselves. The company
lived in this manner during the remainder of the summer, as the house
was not finished until the sawmill was so far completed as to saw
lumber.
It had been Mr. Boardman's intention to throw a dam across the
river at some point not far below the lake and build a sawmill on that
stream. The convenience of residing near the mill had been the main
consideration that determined the location of the blockhouse. After a
more thorough exploration of the country, however, and an estimate




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


195


of the probable difficulties in the way of building, he was led to modify his plan. Mill creek, a small stream that has its source in the hills
to the south and west of the bay and enters the Boardman at the western angle of its bend, seemed to offer facilities for cheaply building a
small mill that should answer existing purposes. He therefore determined to build on that stream, with the intention of erecting afterward a larger and more permanent structure on the Boardman. By
that plan he would have the advantage of the smaller mill for making
boards, planks, and timbers for the larger, thus avoiding the difficulty
of obtaining from a distance the lumber it would be necessary to have
before a large mill could be put in a condition for service. There was
no place nearer than Manistee where lumber could be obtained, and
the "Lady of the Lake" was too small and too unsafe to be relied on
for bringing any large quantity such a distance. It was not easy at
that time to induce vessel masters to enter the bay, which to them was
an unexplored sea.
Immediately after the arrival of the carpenters, all hands were set
to work upon the mill. The "Lady of the Lake" made a trip to Manistee after plank for the flume. When the frame was ready all the
white men at Old Mission and several Indians came to help raise it.
It took three days to get it up. It was finally got into a condition to
be set running about the first of October. Then some of the first
boards made were used to complete the blockhouse which up to that time
had remained unfinished. It was a long walk from the house to the mill.
The path from one to the other ran along the southwestern bank of
the Boardman. For convenience of reaching it from the house, a footbridge of poles was thrown across the river at the canoe landing. This
slight structure was afterward replaced by a broader and firmer bridge,
on which wagons could cross. In after years the sawmill was remodeled and put to a variety of uses. It was known among the inhabitants
of the village as the "old planing-mill."  All vestiges of the bridge
have long since disappeared.
The mill having been completed, and there no longer being suitable
employment for the mechanics who had been engaged upon it, it be
came necessary to provide for their conveyance home. It was arranged
that Mr. Boardman should take them in the "Lady of the Lake" to
the Manitous, where they could get passage on one of the steamers
that were in the habit of touching there. He would then freight his
vessel with supplies, which he expected to find waiting there and return.
The only opening in the forest visible to the party as they landed,
was the narrow clearing which had been made for the tramroad. Following this, Captain Boardman keeping well in advance, his party soon
arrived at the mill. The mill was not running. On entering the house,
the hands were all found there, amusing themselves with the game of
old sledge. After shaking hands all round, Captain Boardman said to
his son, "Horace, how is this, that you are not running the mill?"
The reply was: "Father, it was a little rainy to-day; the boys outside
couldn't work very well, and they wanted the men in the mill to make
up the number for the game; so I concluded to shut down for a time,
in order that they might have a little fun."  This easy way of doing




196


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


business did not suit the energetic old farmer, Captain Boardman,
who was now more fully convinced that the property had best be sold.
After looking over the premises for a day, a party consisting of
Mr. Hannah, Horace Boardman, Mr. Morgan, and a man named Whitcher, with packs of blankets and provisions, set out to explore the
country and examine the timber along the Boardman river. At the
end of a week, Mr. Hannah estimated that they had seen at least a
hundred million feet of pine on government land open to sale. This
was a sufficient inducement to the firm to accept Captain Boardman's
proposition to sell them his entire interest in the property, consisting
of a sawmill, the cheap buildings that had been erected and about two
hundred acres of land, on which the village plat was afterward located, for $4,500.
The first work done by the new owners was to construct a tramroad
from the bend of the Boardman to the mill, so that logs floated down
the stream could be hauled out at the bend and transported over land
to the mill, whence the lumber, as formerly, could be run down to the
slab-wharf for shipment. The next task performed, which proved to
be one of no small magnitude was the clearing of the river, so that
logs could be floated down from the immense tracts of pine on the
upper waters. It was not merely here and there a fallen tree that had
to be removed. In some places the stream was so completely covered
and hidden with a mass of fallen trees and the vegetation which had
so taken root and was flourishing on their decaying trunks that no
water could be seen. Ten long miles of the channel had to be cleared
before the first pine was reached. With an energy and a steadfastness
of purpose that ever after marked the transactions of the firm, the
work was pushed on till logs could be run down the stream.
The sawmill had only a single muley saw. Finding from a few
months' experience that it was too small and too slow for their purposes, Hannah, Lay & Company determined to construct a new one to
be run by steam power. A site was selected on the narrow tongue of
land lying between the lower part of the river and the bay, where,
on one hand, logs could be floated in the stream directly to the mill,
and, on the other, the lumber could be loaded on vessels by being conveyed only a short distance on trucks. The project was executed in
1852, and the next year the mill went into successful operation. About
the first work done in the steam mill was to saw up the pine timber
on the tract of land now occupied by the city. It was cut into bridge
timber for the Illinois Central Railroad Company, which used it for
constructing a bridge over the Illinois river at La Salle.
In those days the lumber was all carried across the lake in sail
craft. The first vessel that carried for the firm and brought in the
boilers of the steam mill was the "Maria Hilliard." No lake surveys
had been made in the region of Grand Traverse bay and the masters
of vessels were guided more by guess than by charts. Amusing anecdotes are told of their experiences, one of which we repeat. The "Richmond" one very dark night was beating up the bay against a light
head-wind. On attempting to tack for some unaccountable reason she
would not come in stays, and as she seemed to be fast the captain was




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


197


forced reluctantly to let her remain. When daylight revealed the situation, what was his surprise to find his vessel lying close to a bold,
wooded shore with her bow-sprit entangled among the trees.
When the pine in the immediate vicinity of the mill had been worked
up, Hannah, Lay & Company commenced the system of lumbering
common on the streams of Northern Michigan, even at that day giving
employment, summer and winter, to a large number of men.
EAST AND WEST SHORES
In the meantime lumber camps were being established both on the
eastern and western shores of Grand Traverse bay and along Lake
Michigan in what is now Leelanau county. Antrim county, in the
vicinity of Elk Rapids, was a pioneer locality for the building of sawmills and the founding of the industry. It happened, as was the case
in so many other districts of the lumber country, that the pioneer settler of Antrim county, Abram S. Wadsworth, was a lumberman and
settled therein because of its advantages for mill-building and operating.
Mr. Wadsworth was a native of Durham, Connecticut and came
from Rochester, New York, to Michigan at the age of twenty-one years.
He spent some time in Monroe and later located lands in Portland,
Jonia county, and built the first mill-dam built across the Grand river
in that region. That he first visited the Grand Traverse region in
1846, there is no doubt, but as to his movements during the next few
years accounts differ. As nearly as we can ascertain, in 1846 he came
northward, coasting in a small boat, and voyaging as far as the Pictured Rocks in Lake Superior and thence to Mackinaw. Thence he
went by steamer to Detroit and thence returned home. The next spring,
accompanied by his brother-in-law, Samuel K. Northam, he took his
family to Detroit, where the party embarked on a propeller for Mackinac. From the latter place they found passage on a schooner as far
as Cross village, Emmet county. There, after camping for several days
on the beach, waiting for a storm to subside they embarked in a small
boat for Old Mission, Grand Traverse county.
At Middle village they again went into camp, and waited two days
on account of rain. The next stop was made at Little Traverse (Harbor Springs) where they hoped to obtain provisions of the Indians.
They only succeeded, however, in getting a few potatoes and a single
loaf of bread. The party had lived on fish until that food had ceased
to tempt the appetite. The children, especially, were suffering for
want of their accustomed diet. After leaving Little Traverse they
were favored with pleasant weather and got on rapidly. The last day
the bay was rough and they had some fears about crossing to Old Mission from the eastern shore, along which they had been coasting. Seeing a smoke on the shore near Elk river they ran to it. Fortunately
they found there some Indians with an excellent sea boat, wcho were
about to cross. As a matter of precaution, Mrs. Wadsworth and the
children were put into the Indians' boat, which was navigated by Mr.
Wadsworth and one of the Indians, while Mr. Northam and the re



198


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


maining Indians occupied Mr. Wadsworth's boat. In a short time the
party landed at Old Mission in safety. They arrived at Old Mission
July 16, 1847.
Mr. Wadsworth remained some time at Old Mission, but being a
man that had had much experience in mills he saw the immense water
power that was running to waste on the east side of the bay, and
bought the land where Elk Rapids now stands. About the spring of
1849 he built a small log cabin near the present site of the town hall
at Elk Rapids village. This was the first building put up by the white
man in Antrim county of which there is any account; at all events
this was the initial movement in the direction of settlement. There,
with Samuel K. Northam, his brother-in-law, assisted by some Indians, he peeled a quantity of hemlock bark and shipped it to Racine,
Wisconsin. About that time he was employed by the government in
the re-survey of lands, and with the funds arising from his work and
his bark, he erected a house on his lands, and late in the fall his family
settled therein. Thus was the first shipment made from the pineries
east of Grand Traverse bay and a commencement made in the founding of Elk Rapids.
In 1851 the Wadsworth family moved again to Connecticut and
spent some time in that state. Later they returned and spent some
three years more in Old Mission; thence they returned to Elk Rapids,
and, finally, after various changes, made that place their permanent
home. Mr. Wadsworth died in Traverse City in June, 1871.
In 1850 Mr. Wadsworth began to make preparations for building
a sawmill. In the winter of 1850-1 James McLaughlin put up the
frame of the first saw-mill on the east side of the bay. It was designed
for a picket and lath-mill. In the spring of '51 Wadsworth sold out
to a man by the name of Norris, but for some cause the property came
back into Mr. Wadsworth's hands and in November, 1851, McLaughlin
moved his family to Elk river.
As Mr. Wadsworth had surmised, the excellent water power at Elk
Rapids soon attracted other manufactories besides lumber mills-shingle
and planing mills, a rolling pin factory, cement mills, etc.
Northport and Sutton's Bay, on the west shore of Grand Traverse
bay, and Leland, Glen Arbor and Burdickville near Lake Michigan,
further west, were all the sites of sawmills erected in the fifties. They
turned out some lumber and did quite a business in supplying the
early steamers with cordwood fuel, in shipping bark to southern ports
and (later) in supplying the railroads of Southern Michigan with ties.
These statements, in fact, apply to all the lumber camps and towns of
Northern Michigan.
CHARLEVOIX COUNTY
Lumbering in Charlevoix county is a comparatively modern indusary. In the summer of 1879 J. C. Glenn moved his sawmill from Leland, Leelanau county, to East Jordan, and erected it upon the shore
of the lake. William P. Porter, also of Leelanau county, became a
partner of Mr. Glenn under the firm name of Glenn & Porter. The




'n


1


l -     -,


-as


/// /




200


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


timber had been exhausted in the vicinity of Leland and the mill was
moved to this point on account of immense quantities of hard wood
timber in this vicinity.
Mr. Glenn was a native of Pennsylvania and settled at New Mission
in 1855, being one of the pioneers of Leelanau county. He remained
at New Mission about two years, and then engaged in farming which
he carried on successfully for several years. He came to Leelanau
county with only five dollars to start with, and realized enough from
his farming operations to start himself in other business. He engaged
in the manufacture of lumber at Leland and carried it on about ten
years, until his removal to East Jordan in 1879, as already stated.
The starting of this mill was the beginning of East Jordan as a
business center. Some industry was needed as a nucleus of business
interests and activities. The lumbering operations of Glenn & Porter
gave employment to men, made a market for logs and opened the way
for other interests to follow. Mr. Glenn opened a store and carried
on mercantile business for many years. At the time the mill was established at East Jordan there were only five or six families at that
point. The firm built a boarding-house and docks, erected a number
of store buildings and dwellings and was active in many ways in building up the village.
CHEBOYGAN COUNTY
The first sawmill in Cheboygan county was built in the winter of
1846-7, by A. and R. McLeod. It had two old-fashioned upright saws
set in frames and a lath mill attached to it. It cut in its best days
from ten to fifteen thousand feet of lumber in twenty-four hours.
In the winter of 1848-9 Peter McKinley built the first steam sawmill in Cheboygan county. It was situated at the mouth of the river
and had two upright saws, capable of cutting from eight to twelve
thousand feet of lumber in twenty-four hours. It was kept in running
order for only a few years and then allowed to go into decay.
In 1865 the property was purchased by the firm  of MeArthur
Southwick & Co. In the fall of 1866 they sold the Duncan property,
including about 1,200 acres of land and some village property, to
Messrs. Sanford Baker, Archibald Thompson, and Robert Patterson,
who took hold of the business under the firm name of Baker, Thompson & Co. This was really the beginning of Duncan City as a business
point. For ten years or more the property had lain idle, and the
buildings were little more than wrecks. The new firm immediately
put the property in condition to be operated. In 1868 Messrs. Thompson and Patterson sold their interests to Mears & Co. of Chicago. and
the firm was changed to Baker, Mears & Co. In 1870 Thompson Smith,
of Toronto, Canada, purchased the interest owned by Mears & Company,
and two years later Messrs. Baker and Smith divided the property,
Mr. Smith retaining the Duncan property, and Mr. Baker taking other
property.
By 1883 Cheboygan had become established as one of the leading




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MIC(J11GAN


201


lumber centers of Northern Michigan, as is evidenced by the following
list of establishments, with a statement of their output for that year:
Thompson Smith: Sawed lumber, 26,000,000; on dock, 10,500,000;
lath, 10,000,000.
William Smith: Sawed lumber, 7,000,000; lath, 3,000,000.
W. & A. McArthur: Sawed lumber, 14,000,000; on dock, 500,000;
lath, 2,000,000; pickets, 30,000.
Southern Michigan Cedar & Lumber Company: Sawed lumber,
4,000,000; on dock, 1,000,000; shingles, 8,000,000; shingles on dock,
1,000,000.
Quay & Son: Sawed shingles, 2,500,000.
J. B. McArthur: Sawed lumber, 7,500,000; on dock, 1,000,000.
Nelson & Bullen: Sawed lumber, 20,000,000; on dock, 2,000,000;
lath, 2,000,000.
Young & Co.: Sawed lumber, 2,500,000; on dock, 700,000.
Mattoon, Ogden & Co.: Sawed, 3,500,000; on dock, 1,200,000.
There were also a few small mills in the county not included in this
list that would slightly increase the aggregate product for the year.
FIRST MILLS IN ALPENA COUNTY
The first sawmill in Alpena county was built at Ossineke, or Devil
river, by the firm of Birch & Eldridge, in 1844. Mr. Birch had previously visited the mouth of Thunder Bay river in pursuit of a mill
site, and decided to build one on the river at the rapids. He commenced getting out timber for a dam, but Indians interfered and drove
the party away.
On the first day of August, 1845, Isaac Wilson, a native of the
State of New York and his wife, who was a native of the State of
Rhode Island, with their little son, Charles Henry, then seventeen
months old, accompanied by Mr. Wilson's sister, were landed by the
good schooner "Baltic" at Devil river. Mr. Wilson had come to this
wilderness home, on the west shore of Lake Huron, to run the recently
abandoned sawmill built by Birch & Eldridge. This isolated family
lived there six weeks before seeing the face of a white person, and
claim to have been the first actual settlers between Lower Saginaw,
now Bay City, and Thunder Bay island, which was at this time occupied by a few temporary fishermen from the latter place and Detroit,
who usually left for their homes in the fall. During this time the mill
at Ossineke was the solitary monument of permanent industry in all
this wilderness.
In the fall of 1847 the old Ossineke mill property was purchased
by David D. Oliver. That was a watermill, and was afterward torn
down, when in 1866 a steammill was built. That mill was destroyed
by fire in 1872.
The pioneer lumbermen at Alpena were Geo. N. Fletcher, James
K. Lockwood, John S. Minor, Archibald & Murray, A. F. Fletcher,
J. Oldfield and Hillyard Broadwell.
The first move toward lumbering was the building of a dam. This
was partially done in the summer of 1858. At that time John S.




202


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Minor and J. Oldfield had acquired portions of Mr. Lockwood's interest at Alpena, and, in company with Geo. N. Fletcher, they located
the dam and arranged that Mr. Fletcher should go ahead and build
it. It was intended to build canals and furnish water-power for
mills, but they found so much quicksand that the project had to be
abandoned. The dam was not entirely finished until 1863.
The first lumbering was done in the winter of 1858-59 by Archibald
& Murray. They had a contract to put in the river one million feet,
more or less, of logs for Lockwood & Minor. The logs were taken from


STEAM LOG LOADER IN THE THUNDER BAY REGION


town 31 north, range 6 east, and the contract price was about two dollars per thousand feet. Men's wages were from fourteen dollars to
sixteen dollars per month, the lumbermen agreeing to stay until the
drive was done.
Mr. Samuel Boggs felled the first tree cut into saw logs; Mr. E. K.
Potter scaled the first log, and also measured the first cargo of lumber
that left Alpena, which was carried by the schooner "Meridan," Capt.
Flood, in the latter part of the summer of 1859.
The first steps toward building a sawmill on the site of the city
were taken in December, 1858, when John Cole arrived at Alpena,
accompanied by a number of mechanics, for the purpose of building
two sawmills, one at each side of the dam which had been commenced




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


203


that season. One of the mills was for Lockwood & Minor and the other
for George N. Fletcher.  The timber was got out and framed, but
neither was finished at that time. The timber for Mr. Fletcher's mill
was burned up in one of the numerous fires that afflicted the place.
E. K. Potter, one of the lumbermen who was in the first Lockwood
& Minor camp, thus writes of these pioneer operations in the great
Alpena pineries: "In the fall of 1858 Lockwood & Minor inaugurated
the first lumber operations on the Thunder Bay river. Contracts were
let to Archibald and Murray, and Alvin Cole. It being something
new to provide a supply of everything for six months, in a country as
new and undeveloped as this was, it is not to be wondered at that the
supplies run short long before spring, and by the first of February,
1859, that 'General Scarcity,' you spoke of, was here in full dress
uniform. I was in the lumber camp that winter, and with sorrow beheld the last piece of pork hung up by a string, over the center of a
rude table, as a reminder of happy by-gone days of peace and plenty.
Mr. Whitefish stepped in and took the place of honor which had been
occupied by Hog, and held the balance of power from that time until
the 16th of March. Mr. J. K. Lockwood being informed of our sad
state, had his good schooner, the J. S. Minor, fitted out and started for
Alpena, or Fremont, as it was then called, with pork, beef, sugar, etc.,
and she arrived as above stated, on the 16th of March, and to all appearances, it was just as cold and winter-like as at any time during
the winter. We felt rejoiced to hear the news in camp, that the Minor
had arrived with provisions, and we all sang Mr. Lockwood's praise,
as many a poor man and his family have had occasion to do since;
and I will here say to Mr. Lockwood, more than to any other man,
belongs the credit of starting and keeping in motion the then small
lumbering operations which gave employment to the few who were
here, and thus securing the necessaries of life until better times should
change the then discouraging situation of affairs, it being right after
the dreadful panic of 1857, which will be remembered by all as the
hardest times this country had seen for fifty years. Messrs. Lockwood
& Minor built the so-called 'Island Mill,' in 1860, which was the principal means of support for this then small and poor village, for three
or four years. One pair of horses did the log hauling for the mill in
the summer and the lumber woods was the present site of Alpena. Down
timber and burnt timber, and in fact everything that would make a
piece 6x6, was hauled to the little mill, and squared, and the block ends
cut off, and shipped to Cleveland, and pork, tea, sugar, etc., brought
back in return; and thus, from year to year, the 'log' was kept rolling,
until today we have, from this small beginning, which has been so imperfectly described, a city of nearly, if not quite, five thousand inhabitants, an honor to the founders, who, while striving to advance its interests and that of its inhabitants, in all proper ways, have not, by
selfishness, grown rich in this world's goods, but they have the satisfaction of knowing that they helped their fellowman."
Mr. Fletcher and the firm of Lockwood & Minor having failed to
build the two water mills referred to were anxious to have their logs
manufactured into lumber, and gave sufficient inducement to Messrs.




204


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Obed Smith and Harman Chamberlain, of St. Clair county, to determine them to erect a steam sawmill at Fremont; and in the spring of
1859 they commenced the work of building the first steam sawmill in
Alpena county. They pushed forward the work with vigor, and in
August or September of the same year they sawed the first boards.
This was an important and an encouraging event. All before had
been failure, disappointment and expense, without any adequate returns. Now the mill would give employment to the people, and the
proceeds would furnish the means to purchase the necessaries of life.
The first work done by this mill was to cut the logs belonging to the
firm of Lockwood & Mimor. This occupied the balance of the season
of 1859, and a part of 1860. The mill was destroyed by fire on April
17, 1863, but was immediately rebuilt by George N. Fletcher, who was
interested in the property.
The next mill was built by Hillyard Broadwell in the summer of
1859 about four miles up the river, where a dam was also built. It
commenced running in the fall of 1859 and Mr. Broadwell operated
it until 1870. In 1871 it was sold to Speechly & Lee, who run it a
short time. The mill stood idle for a number of years and finally
burned in 1882, and the dam was carried away soon after.
About the first sale of logs was made by Geo. N. Fletcher. They
were white pine logs and were sold at three dollars and fifty cents per
thousand.
As late as 1864 a few houses and sawmills constituted Alpena; it
was but a small, crude lumbering camp.
Iosco COUNTY LUMBERING
The old Whittemore mill at Tawas City was the pioneer of the industry in losco county. It was built in 1854 by Charles H. Whittemore, who was the owner of the property until it was bought by
MieBain & Whitney in 1878. In the early 'eighties the product of the
mill was about 7,000,000 feet of lumber a season.
In the year 1863 the firm 'of Smith, VanValkenburg & Company
commenced the erection of a sawmill at Sand Point, but after the timbers were partly prepared, decided to locate the mill at East Tawas,
and early in 1864 the timbers were removed to that point. In 1869
the property passed into the possession of the Tawas Mill Company,
and was popularly known as the Company mill.
The Emery mill, located at East Tawas, was built in 1867-8 by the
firm of D. J. Evans & Co. They operated it about two years, and
were succeeded by the firm of W. G. Grant & Son. In 1875 the firm
of Grant & Son failed, and H. W. Sage & Company, Bay City, came
into possession of the property under mortgage. In May, 1877, it was
purchased by Temple and Hiram A. Emery, under the firm style of
Emery Brothers.
Absalom and Albert S. Backus, composing the firm of Backus &
Brothers, settled in Au Sable in the fall of 1865, before any dock was
built on the shore thereabouts. Steamboats and sail craft landed supplies on the banks of Sable river, lightered by small fish-boats, Mes



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


205


sers Backus built their little sawmill, which had a cutting capacity of
but 10,000 feet a day, and represented the pioneer of the kind between
Tawas and Harrisville. It was burned in 1867, but was afterward
rebuilt and greatly enlarged. This was the first sawmill to be erected
at the mouth of the Au Sable.
ALCONA COUNTY
By the early fifties the reputation of the pine along the Huron
shore was established at all points, and at no locality from Bay City
to Alpena was such pine visible from the lake as that seen in the forests of Alcona county. In 1854 Messrs. Holden & Davison, two pioneer fishermen, became partners in logging and lumbering and purchased the pine lands and valuable mill privilege at Harrisville; built
a small water mill of one saw, and commenced the first manufacture
of lumber in Alcona county. Mr. Davison continued his fishing business, intending to close it up as soon as his numerous advances had
been realized, and then invest in pine lands, whose rapidly increasing
value offered better inducements in his sagacious judgment, than either
fishing or lumbering.
Already the land hunters were swarming on every stream and waters adjacent to the lake, and the stroke of the woodman's ax was
echoing along the rivers and lake. Many were the struggles to be first
to locate the government and state pine lands that were in close proximity to the lake shore. Conspicuously successful in this important
business was Edward Chappelle, a son of Francis LaChappelle, Sr.,
one of the pioneer coopers of the region. He had been under the
teaching of D. D. Oliver, of Devil river, a noted woodman, and learned
much of his woodcraft that required all the sagacity of an Indian,
combined with the endurance of a white man trained to the business.
HISTORIC SUMMARY
It is a fact not generally known that as early as 1836 a sawmill was
built at Van Ettan Lake, near the Au Sable, by the firm of Howard
& Van Ettan. They expended quite a sum there to build a watermill,
but after their dam had been carried away or undermined two or three
times they were obliged to abandon the enterprise. They never sawed
any lumber.
In 1844 a sawmill was built at Devil river, now Ossineke in Alpena
county, by the firm of Birch & Eldridge. In 1854 Messrs. Holden &
Davison built a small watermill at what is now Harrisville. The Whittemore mill, at Tawas City, was built the same summer.
The first lumbering in Alpena county was done in the winter of
1858-9, and the first mill built in the spring and summer of 1859. From
this time the lumber business continued to increase, and the hitherto
unknown region of the shore began to come into notice.
For purposes of comparison the following figures are presented
representing substantially the lumber business of the Huron shore re



206


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


gion in 1867-8 when the first reliable figures were collected, and 1882-3,
which was a high-water mark.
1867-8.


Capital
Mill and Iocation             Invested
Mason, Doty & Luce., Alpena........$ 70,000
L. M. Mason & Co., Alpena.......... 150,000
E. Harrington & Co., Alpena........ 125,000
B. H. Campbell & Co., Alpena.......87,000
J. Oldfield & Co., Alpena............ 150,000
H. Broadwell & Co., Alpena.........  8,000
John Trowbridge & Co.,
Trowbridge Point............... 15,000
John Trowbridge & Co., Corlies...... 60,000
Loud, Priest & Gay, Au Sable....... 300,000
Backus & Bro. Au Sable...........: 75,000
A. Burrows, Au Sable..............  8,000
C. H. Whittemore, Tawas City...... 45,000
Smith, Van Valkenburg & Co.,
East  Tawas....................  50,000
Adams, Swanky & Co., East Tawas.. 50,000
Weston, Colwell & Co., Harrisville.... 60,000
D. D. Oliver, Devil River.......... 36,000
Other mills, Devil River............ 84,000


Lumber
5,200,000
9,750,233
10,000,000
5,795,539
6,500,000
1,500,000
1,000,000
3,000,000
12,700,000
1,200,000
800,000
3,800,000
7,100,000
2,800,000
6,850,000
2,497,606
5,000,000


Lath
2,167,000
4,403,450
2,000,000
1,518,850
3,000,000
o.......
1,500,000
3,294,000........
1,500,000
700,000
2,000,000
504,867
1,000,000


Num ber  of  m ills......................................
Amount of capital invested............................
Lumber  cut  in  1867..................................
Lumber  on  the  dock  unsold..........................
Number of men  employed...............................


19
$1,380,000
85,335,872
8,979,772
772


The following is the number of feet of logs run out of the Au Sable
river from 1867 to 1882:


1867
1868
1869
1870
1871
1872
1873
1874
1875
1876
1877
1878
1879
1880.............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................


48,800,000
34,102,341
44,500,000
60,000,000
52,000,000
105,000,000
96,148,000
52,000,000
55,000,000
47,150,000
68,800,000
62,000,000
113,000,000
138,500,000




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


207


1881...............................................  160,232,347
1882................................................ 200,000,000
Total............................................ 1,337,232,688


THE Au SABLE OF TODAY


The following table gives the total cut of logs on all streams tributary to Au Sable and Oscoda during the season of 1882-3:
PINE RIVER
Pack, Woods & Co.................................. 25,000,000
D.  A.  M cDonald.....................................  2,500,000
0. S. & L. Co....................................... 21,000,000
B. Killmaster & Co................................... 3,000,000
J.  H.  Killmaster.....................................  2,000,000
Joseph  Dudgeon......................................  3,500,000
Roberts  &   Cowley....................................  500,000
McKay Bros.........................................   500,000
58,000,000




208          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Au SABLE RIVER-MAIN STREAM
D. A. McDonald......................................     7,000,000
0.  S.  &   L.  Co........................................  5, 000,000
Moore, Whipple & Co................................      5,000,000
Cristy Bros..........................................  8,000,000
Moore  &   Tanner.....................................  4,000,000
Penoyar Bros..........................................  2,000,000
Platt & Millen........................................ 1,500,000
Dease & Hayes........................................    3,000,000
T. F. Thompson......................................     3,000,000
I. P. Pulcifer........................................   2,000,000
Jones  &  Porter.......................................  3,000,000
Kinney & Beard......................................  1,000,000
Gardner  Bros.........................................  1,500,000
Joseph Dudgeon......................................     1,000,000
Thickstan & Manwarring.............................. 2,000,000
W.  H.  Clough........................................   500,000
49,500,000
SOUTH BRANCH
Moore, Whipple & Co.................................     2,000,000
Emery Bros........................................... 6,000,000
Win. Jenkinson...................................... 3,000,000
11,000,000
UPPER SOUTH BRANCH
Pack, Woods & Co.................................... 2,000,000
J.  E.  Potts...........................................  1,500,000
Moore, Whipple & Co..................................    8,000,000
O. S. & L. Co......................................      4,000,000
The B. L. Anderson Co...............................     3,000,000
Wonderly, Rimington & Co............................     4,000,000
Martin Bresnaham....................................   2,000,000
24,500,000
NORTH BRANCH
Pack, W oods  &  Co.................................... 15,000,000
J. E. Potts.......................................      17,000,000
Gratwick, Smith & Fryer Lumber Co................... 25,000,000
Cheesebrough & Charleton.............................    7,000,000
S. 0. Fisher.........................................    8,000,000
Stephen  Moore........................................  1,500,000
Penoyar Bros........................................     1,500,000
Platt  &   M illen.......................................  3,000,000
78,000,000




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


209


PERRY CREEK'
J.  E.  Potts.........................................  5,000,000
Grand  total.......................................226000,000
MELTING OF THE PINE FORESTS
The early logging railroads and the extension of regular lines into
the interior of Northern Michigan have so decimated the pine forests
which lie far from the lake counties that lumbering in soft woods is a
dying and, in most sections, a dead industry. Lumbering in this age
and day is an entirely different proposition from the operations of
forty or even thirty years ago. Most of the pine is gone and it is the
hardwood that is now being largely lumbered. As has been well stated,
"the lumbering industry while tending toward the vanishing point is
still flourishing." It may be added that its hopes are now largely
centered in the development of the hardwood products used in the
manufacture of furniture and all cabinet work, flooring and much interior woodwork, and a variety of other articles.
Wexford county is a fair illustration of this transformation. In
1872 Cadillac was a crude railroad station on the G. R. & I. line standing in the midst of a dense pine forest extending from a mile in one
direction to three or four in others. George A. Mitchell commenced
lumbering in the summer of that year, and twenty years afterward
Cadillac was a flourishing city of over 4,500 people, but with the pine
woods nearly gone in the vicinity of the place. The nearest solid body
was about five miles away toward the southeast, and for some years
her large mills had been supplied from timber brought from ten to
fifty miles away. As announced by' a local print of Cadillac in the
early nineties: "Within the last year one of the largest mills in Northern Michigan has been built here exclusively for the manufacture of
timber which grows at a distance of from forty to sixty miles. What
the pine forests have done the others will do. The pines have led the
way and the hardwoods are already following."
And still later, 1903: "The year 1872 witnessed the inauguration
of the stupendous lumbering operations which have at last swept away
nearly the last vestige of the large tracts of pine timber which the
county then possessed. In addition to the heavy operations along the
Manistee river the new village of Clam Lake (Cadillac) was a genuine
lumbering town. As early as June, 1872, there had been two sawmills
(each with a capacity of twenty-five thousand feet per day) put in
operation, and a few months later two others were started, with a
capacity of forty and sixty thousand feet per day, respectively. These
four mills manufactured about four million feet of lumber per month,
or nearly fifty million per year. If one stops a moment to contemplate
the work of these mills and those built soon afterward at Haring, Long
Lake, Bond's Mills, McCoy's Siding and on the shores of Clam lake,
and their constant operation for ten, fifteen and twenty years each,
Vol. 1-14.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


he can get some idea of the vast wealth in the pine forests in Wexford
county at that early day."
LAST BIG ROLLWAY ON THE CEDAR
Still later (1906), from the columns of the Gladwin Record: "Ross
Brothers have been the only large operators in timber on the Cedar
and Tobacco rivers during the last fifteen years.
"Their output of lumber for a number of years was not far from
the 10,000,000 mark, besides large products of shingles and ties. For
the last few years, however, this record has been cut about half, and
this year will be some 6,000,000 feet of logs on the Cedar and Tobacco
rivers.
"The Ross brothers are a family of lumbermen. Their honored
father, Donald Ross, the founder of Beaverton, was one of the first to
manufacture sapless-paving from cedar. The four sons are engaged in
lumbering extensively; Ronald and William being the firm of Ross
Bros. at Beaverton, and George and Donald G. being heavy operators
in the upper peninsula. The first-named are also large stockholders
in the LaClede Lumber Co., having a large mill and big timber holdings at LaClede, Idaho.
"The past eight years Ross Bros. have been fortunate in having
S. A. Price for their superintendent of work in the woods. Mr. Price
has had an experience of 30 years in the lumberwoods. He attends
strictly to business, having very little time for recreation, and sometimes few hours for rest. To make the rounds of the camps, buy and
scale logs, bolts and ties gives him a round of work for which few men
would have the endurance. Mr. Price is one of those whole-souled men
so typical of woods-life, and is popular with all.
"During the past two years, Martin Price of Merrill, Saginaw
county, a brother of Superintendent S. A. Price, has had charge of
one set of camps of Ross Bros. on the Cedar, seven miles north of
Gladwin. He has had an experience of 30 years lumbering, the greater
part of the time foreman of camps, 20 years in Michigan and 10 years
in Florida, Idaho and Washington. He is a hale fellow well met with
all. Notwithstanding the bad winter for logging he has banked his
quota of logs, the last season's work at these camps. As a woods foreman he has few equals.
"It was the good fortune of the writer to be included in a recent
party of visitors to these camps, and to enjoy the hospitality of Messrs.
Price. In the party were Alex Graham, Guy E. Smith, M. H. Aitkin,
Grover Goodrum, M. E. Baker, Harry Robinson, D. G. Fraser and
Eugene Foster. A dinner in camp is one to satisfy the appetite, and
the dinner that day included all that could be desired. The boys will
look forward with pleasure to their next annual visit to the camps.
"Ross Bros. expect to have 4,000,000 feet of logs on the Cedar this
year, of which Martin Price has banked 1,000,000 feet; Peter Ladd,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


211


jobber, will put in 1,000,000 feet; John Sharkey, logs and cedar; W.
R. Looker, 150,000 pieces of cedar. F. J. Reithel's mills will saw 500,000 feet, and a mill near Meredith about the same, to be shipped from
Gladwin. On the Tobacco A. P. Clark will have 200,000 feet, and
John Reagle 200,000 feet. Besides a large amount of logs, etc., have
been bought on bank and at small mills.
"A few years 'picking-up' and lumbering on these streams will be
completed, after over forty years operations, and an output reaching
perhaps 500,000,000 feet or more from the Cedar and several times as
much from Tobacco and branches.
"According to the recollection of E. C. Diffin, the first lumbering on
the Cedar was done in 1866 by 'Bill' VanWay, who had camps just
east of the present site of the city cemetery. Among the heavy operators have been Moore, Smith & Co., Tiff Jerome, Butman & Rust,
Hamilton, McClure & Co., J. F. Rust & Co., D. W. Rust & Son, Lane
& Busch, Rust Bros., and Ross Bros.
"Perhaps the largest camp in lower Michigan is being operated
by Grimore & Son at Winegar's, and this will be the last big camp in
these parts. They are getting out several million feet of logs which
are being shipped by rail to Bousfield & Co. and Ross & Wentworth at
Bay City. They will have another winter's work there."
These pictures drawn of the status of lumbering in Wexford and
Gladwin counties are but illustrative of the waning of the pine industries of Northern Michigan. But the fruit raiser is close upon the
retreating lumberman of the pineries, and even in certain sections of
the hardwood country the farmer follows that class of lumberman so
closely that what was this year a solid forest will next year be cleared
and planted to potatoes or rye or wheat.
The wonderful results that have been accomplished in the manufacture of lumber, as well as the wasteful devastation of the pine forests,
are due not alone to improved machinery, but to improved systems of
labor, as well. In no other business are the systems and methods of
labor more thoroughly organized and adhered to. From the time the
towering pine in the forest is noted in the minutes of the land hunter,
until in the form of lumber, lath and shingles, it is piled upon the
vessel or car, there is no deviation from carefully devised plans of
action. The logging operations form a distinct business by themselves
and during the winter months create a new world which drains the
manufactures centres of quite a considerable part of their population.
Thousands of people observe sawmills in operation, devouring logs
with marvelous rapidity, without having any conception of the methods employed to obtain the logs. The logging camp, and the process
of converting the tree into logs and placing them in the streams, are
interesting factors of the lumber business, but these methods have been
so often described that space will not be devoted to the narrative here.
Machinery, method and fires have nearly swept away the once noble
pineries of Northern Michigan. The fires have cleared away square




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


miles of brush and debris, and left much land free and as it can be
purchased by the farmer at low prices these conflagrations, which have
sometimes raged even at the cost of human life, will prove to be evils
not unmixed with good.
PRESENT STATUS OF LUMBERING
According to the bulletin issued by the national Bureau of the
Census May 19,1911, Michigan now ranks tenth of the states in the


I        p. I~_


COUNTRY IN THE TRANSITION STATE


production of lumber, which amounts to 1,889,724,000 feet, manufactured by 1,323 mills.
In all the states bordering on the Great Lakes a marked decrease
is shown as compared with the figures of 1899. In the latter year
Michigan's output was 3,018,338,000 feet. The marked decreased in
Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, is attributed solely to the diminishing supply of white pine.
Yellow pine has ranked first in quantity of product since the output of white pine began to fall off decidedly in the middle nineties,
and in 1909 the yellow-pine output amounted to 36,6 per cent of the
total, or three and one-half times as much as its nearest competition,
Douglas fir. Oak holds third place, with 9.9 per cent of the total produetion, while white pine has dropped to fourth place, and hemlock
to fifth. Spruce and western pine ranked, respectively, sixth and seventh in both years. In 1909, for the first time, a production of more
than one billion feet of maple was recorded. The eight woods named
furnished 82.8 per cent of the country's lumber product in 1909.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


213


Michigan now ranks first in the production of maple lumber, her
961 active mills turning out 543,214,000 feet valued at $8,664,263.
This was over fifty-nine per cent of the total production in the United
States.
She also leads in the output of beech lumber, with 111,340,000 feet,
or more than twenty-one per cent of the total manufacture of the
United States.
In basswood products Michigan's output is only exceeded by that
of Wisconsin, the two states cutting one-half of the total, of which the
Wolverine state is credited with more than seventeen per cent. Michigan is also second in elm and birch products, Wisconsin again being
her only competitor.
Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, in the order named, now
supply about two-thirds of the hemlock lumber produced in the United
States. There is little difference in their comparative importance as
producers, each having an output of over twenty per cent. Michigan
has nearly 800 mills in operation, manufacturing 614,622,000 feet valued at $7,289,417.
In 1909 Wisconsin and Michigan together cut one-half of the total
output of basswood lumber, and the balance was contributed by twenty-six states, none of which cut large quantities.
Elm is another hardwood in the production of which Wisconsin
leads. Of the total cut of 347,456,000 feet in 1909, reported by thirtyfour states, Wisconsin furnished 21.7 per cent. Michigan ranked second, with 16.8 per cent, and Indiana third, with 11.6 per cent of the
total. Although elms are very widely distributed throughout the eastern half of the United States, no large quantity of elm lumber was
cut in any state other than the three above mentioned, which together
supplied one-half of the total production. As a whole, the production
of elm lumber is decreasing, the heaviest decreases within the decade
being in Michigan and Ohio. These two states produced 202,856,000
feet of elm lumber in 1899 and only 45.1 per cent as much in 1909.
The production of elm lumber in Wisconsin has remained at practically the same level for the past ten years.
Michigan stands fourth both in the production of cedar and ash
lumber, although she stands low in the percentages of cedar manufacture as compared with Washington, which now puts out fifty-three
per cent of the total. Michigan's quota is a trifle over five per cent.
The manufacture of ash lumber is widely and quite evenly distributed,
Arkansas leading with 11.4 per cent of the total product and Michigan
being fourth with 8.5 per cent.
Northern Michigan is making rapid strides in the manufacture of
veneers, so that the following from the census of 1911 will especially
interest that part of the state: "The consumption of logs in veneer
manufacture in 1909 occurred principally in Illinois, Michigan, Florida, Wisconsin, Indiana, Tennessee, Missouri, and Arkansas, ranking
in the order named. Each of these eight states reported a consumption of over 25,000,000 feet, log scale, and together reported 249,658,000, or 57.2 per cent of the total consumption. Of the twenty-nine
states reported separately, both in 1908 and 1909, twelve showed de



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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


creases in the amount of wood consumed in the latter year. The principal gains in quantity consumed in 1909 were in Michigan, Arkansas,
Virginia, and New York, all of which states report gains of over 8,000,000 feet. Maple was used principally in Michigan and in New York,
and formed 45.9 per cent of the total quantity of wood consumed in
the former state and 31.6 per cent in the latter.
"Michigan used 457,362 cords, or 39.8 per cent of the total wood
consumed in hardwood distillation in 1909. This quantity, reported
by fourteen establishments, was 146,452 cords more than that consumed by the Michigan establishments in 1908. The consumption
per establishment, moreover, was greater by over 4,400 cords in 1909
than in 1908, and the average cost per cord was 55 cents higher."
Only within the last few years has any considerable quantity of
Wisconsin and Michigan twenty-nine and twenty-eight per cent retamarack lumber been sawed. It is cut almost entirely in the Lake
states, Minnesota supplying approximately two-fifths of the total, and
spectively.
Hemlock bark, which in 1909 had the lowest average cost of any
of the barks used for tanning, was used principally in Pennsylvania,
Wisconsin, Michigan, West Virginia, and New York, these five states,
ranking in the order named, consuming 620,693 tons, valued at $5,680,044, which represented 88.9 per cent of the total quantity and
88.3 per cent of the total value. Michigan produced 100,285 tons of
tanbark and tanning extract, valued at $1,225,655.
Michigan is seventh in pulp-wood consumption, and 43.8 per cent
of the wood used is hemlock.
The foregoing figures apply to Michigan as a state, but, although
Northern Michigan is a term, the statistics and general statements
as to the status of lumbering and lumber manufactures are closely
significant of conditions in that section of the state.
THE SALT INDUSTRY
Northern Michigan is one of the greatest producers of salt in the
world, and much of that article of prime necessity comes from the
territory covered by this history. The historical part of the subject
has been so well traced by S. G. Higgins in the 1902 "Proceedings of
the Michigan Political Science Association" that liberal extracts are
taken from his paper.
"During the last forty years," he says, "upwards of 85,000,000
barrels of salt have been manufactured in the state of Michigan. Beginning in 1860, with a production of 4,000 barrels, it has steadily
increased from year to year, with a total of over 600,000 barrels in
1890 and 4,000,000 barrels in 1898. In 1866 the manufacturers received an average price of $1.80 per barrel, including the cost of the
barrel. The price steadily declined until in 1896 it reached 35 cents
per barrel, containing 280 pounds of salt, and the manufacturer paid
out of this price the cost of the barrel, 15 cents. At the present time
Michigan manufactures about one-quarter the total salt production of
the Tnited States.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


215


"Probably no other state in the Union has developed so many valuable mineral resources as the state of Michigan. We have iron, copper, salt, coal, gypsum, limestone, sandstone, marble, silica and many
other minerals in great abundance, and the prosperous condition of
the state is largely due to the development of these mineral industries,
although much of our wealth has come from the pine forests, which,
unfortunately, have been principally cut off and sawed into lumber.
The manufacture of salt with the exhaust steam of the lumber mills
and the cheap fuel accessible at these mills in the form of stabs and
sawdust have enabled the manufacturers of Michigan to produce salt
at the exceedingly low prices which have prevailed for a number of
years. What the conditions will be when the lumber is exhausted yet
remains to be seen.
"It was known during the earliest settlement of the country that
the Indians formerly supplied themselves with salt from springs in
the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, but the development of our salt
industry begins with the report of the state geologist, Dr. Houghton,
in 1838. In his report Dr. Houghton says: 'On the Tittabawassee
river in Midland county numerous indications of the existence of
brine springs were noticed, extending from the mouth of the Chippewa
river, as far as I ascended the former stream, being a few miles above
the mouth of Salt river. Upon either side of the Tittabawassee river,
between the points noted, small pools of brackish water were observed,
as also, occasionally, springs discharging a similar water in small
quantities; and although an examination showed the waters to contain
large quantities of the salts of lime and occasionally of iron they were
never destitute of more or less salt.
" 'Springs of a more decided character occur in the vicinity of the
mouth of Salt river. The first observed occurs in the stream near the
right bank of the Tittabawassee, a little below Salt river, and at the
time of my visit was covered by some two to two and a half feet of
water. The spring was found by actual measurement to discharge
about seventy gallons of water per hour. Nearly a mile above this
spring upon the same bank and elevated from eight to ten feet above
the water of the river, is a second spring discharging a somewhat
larger quantity of water. Near by, but at a greater elevation, several
small springs of brackish water were seen issuing from the sloping
bank, which upon examination were found to contain a notable quantity of salt.
" 'The quantity of water discharged from these springs is small,
but when considered in connection with those already noticed they
become matters of considerable interest, since they serve to show that
the salines are not confined to one or two springs, but are dispersed
over a large district of country. Brine springs are known to exist near
the mouths of Flint and Cass rivers, in Saginaw county, and also in
Sanilac county, but as they occur in a flat section of country the unfavorable season compelled me to defer examining them until some
future time.' "
From 1838 to 1859 the state of Michigan, through its legislatures,
governors and geologists, devoted itself to the encouragement of the




216


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


salt industries of the Saginaw valley, locations being selected and wells
sunk under the patronage of the commonwealth. After the expenditure of many thousands of dollars, under state appropriations, the
practical results were scarcely tangible, and then private enterprise
took up the enterprise; and the promoters of the first salt manufacturing company in Michigan, East Saginaw Salt Manufacturing Company, requested the legislature to pass an act granting a bounty of ten
cents per barrel on salt produced from Michigan brine. The manufacture was regarded with so much doubt that one of the legislators
offered an amendment that the bounty be fixed at ten cents per bushel,
instead of ten cents per barrel; the amendment was promptly adopted,
rather as a joke, and the bounty was thus made fifty cents per barrel.
Not long afterwards, sober second thought came to the members of
the legislature and the original amendment, fixing the bounty at ten
cents per barrel, was adopted.
The first successful salt well in Michigan was sunk to a depth of
647 by the East Saginaw Company, in 1859-60, on land in that city
belonging to Jesse Hoyt. The first salt was made from this well under
the personal superintendence of Dr. H. C. Potter, afterward vicepresident and general manager of the Flint & Pere Marquette Railroad Company, 4,000 barrels of salt being manufactured the first year.
"The success of this first well," continues Mr. Higgins, "together
with the bounty offered by the state, caused great excitement throughout the Saginaw valley and thousands of dollars were invested in sinking additional wells. The state refused to pay the bounty earned by
the East Saginaw Salt Manufacturing Company and a mandamus was
asked against the board of state auditors to require them to audit the
accounts for bounties due under the act of February 15, 1859.
"It has been popularly understood that the Supreme court at that
time declared this bounty law to be unconstitutional. On the contrary
the court sustained the bounty law and held that the Salt Company
had acquired a vested right to the bounty upon all the salt manufactured up to the time a change in the law took effect by the enactment
of a subsequent statute and that the company could not be deprived
thereof by the passage of the subsequent act. There is no doubt but
the passage of this bounty law by the state legislature had a very large
influence in turning the attention of private capital to the enterprise,
similarly to the manner in which a subsequent bounty law has induced
the investment of nearly $5,000,000 in sugar factories in this state
during the last two years. It is to be regretted that the state, after
receiving such generous response from investors 'in the salt and sugar
industries, should have treated them in such an unsatisfactory manner.
Admitting that the bounties were too high, the state, to be just, should
have promptly made such appropriations as would have given some
compensation, in both these instances, to the pioneers who invested
in these enterprises, relying upon the solemn promise of the state to pay
the bounty. How long the state of Michigan might have waited for the
development of its salt and sugar industries had it not been for these
bounty laws, no one can tell, but it is certain that they very decidedly
hastened the investment of capital.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


217


"While the writer would not be understood as favoring the bounty
system as a rule, it is certainly a very remarkable inducement to the
development of a new industry, and if such a proposition should hereafter arise for the encouragement of any other line of business it is to
be hoped that the bounty will be made moderate and that the pledge
of the state will not be lightly disregarded after the investor has put
his money into the enterprise. Such a practice as the state has followed in these two instances, if adopted in private business, would
brand any firm or company with dishonor. The constitution does not
prohibit the payment of such bounties, and the legislature has the
authority to do as it sees fit in making the appropriation."
The group of rocks which form the lower peninsula has been graphically compared to four oblong saucers, one within the other, depressed
in the center of the state and cropping out at the edges. The upper
saucer is known to geoligists as the "Waverly group" and is formed
of the salt-bearing sand rock which is the source of the Saginaw brine.
"It is a sea-shore rock. Prints of seaweeds are found in it and shark's
teeth, some of enormous size; and also the remains of enormous reed
trees are found, testifying to the proximity of land. Hence we can
infer that the waves of the Devonian sea, whose rocky bottom was
far below, here dashed against the shore and deposited their briny
burden for our use.
"Let us understand that the formation which gives the most valuable salty brines in the Saginaw valley (and in the districts to the
north) is named the Waverly group by Dr. Rominger, formerly state
geologist, and consists of a series of sandstones and blue and red shales
amounting to from 1,000 to 1,200 feet in thickness. This formation
commences at the bottom of the gypsum formation and extends downward to the black shales as seen at Sulphur island, Thunder bay. Indications of rock salt have never been found in any of the salt weRs
of Saginaw valley; but the outcrop of this Waverly group on tb e
eastern shores of Lake Michigan is composed of sand-drift, some six
hundred feet in thickness, which has long ago been deprived of its
salt.  Borings at Manistee, in the northwestern part of the state,
passed through six hundred feet of sand, then into the limestones of
Hamilton group and lastly of the Helderberg group, striking at the
distance of 1,950 feet from the surface, the rock salt of the old Devonian ocean, and corresponding, in all probability, to the rock salt
of Wayne county and Goderich. In making these borings brines of
various strengths were found at different depths, but all below 1,400
feet.
"Salt wells in Wayne, Manistee and Mason counties reach the solid
salt beds, and fresh water is pumped into the wells, where it becomes
saturated with the salt, and it is then pumped to the surface and
evaporated. In recent years the vacuum pan process has been introduced in a number of salt works in Bay, Manistee, Mason, St. Clair
and Wayne counties, the remainder of the salt being principally manufactured by open steam evaporation. The vacuum pan salt, however,
cakes more than the other and sells for a lower price. There is only a
small amount of solar salt manufactured in the state."




218


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


All the salt in Michigan is inspected under a state system, pursuant
to an act of the legislature passed in 1869 and amendments since adopted.
This insures good quality and uniformity. The state is divided into
eight inspection districts, of which Iosco county forms the fourth;
Manistee county, the sixth and Mason county, the seventh.
AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES
With the clearing away of the forests by lumbermen and fires, horticulturists and agriculturists have come to occupy the land. Until
Northern Michigan was pretty thoroughly denuded of its pineries, the
cultivation of fruit and the standard crops did not make rapid advances. But within the past fifteen years its productiveness in these
lines has been thoroughly demonstrated, and has been set forth in a
previous chapter.
The standard crops of Northern Michigan are hay and forage, potatoes and seeds. In actual value ($36,037,000) the first named was
the leading crop in the state, and the following figures may be largely
credited to that part of Michigan-the statistics given being for the
year 1911.
Hay and forage showed an increase of 386,803 acres, or 16.6 per
cent between 1899 and 1909. From 1,245,441 acres in 1879, hay and
forage increased to 2,024,736 in 1889; to 2,328,498 in 1899; and again
to 2,715,301 in 1909. The total yield in 1909 was 3,632,919 tons, valued
at $36,037,000, over 50 per cent of which was "timothy and clover
mixed." The average yield per acre for all hay and forage was 1.3
tons; the average value per acre $13.30.
During the decade prior to 1909 potatoes increased 53,520 acres,
or 17.2 per cent. From 1879, when 128,848 acres were harvested, potatoes rose to 198,476 in 1889; to 311,963 in 1899; and again to 365,483
in 1909. The aggregate yield in 1909 was 38,243,828 bushels, as compared to 23,476,444 bushels in 1899. The average yield per acre was
105 bushels; the average value per acre $27.10. Value of crop $9,913,778.
Dry edible beans increased from 167,025 acres in 1899 to 398,133
acres in 1909, a gain of 231,108 bushels or 138.4 per cent. The total
yield in 1909 was 5,195,055 bushels, as compared to 1,806, 413 bushels
in 1899. The average yield per acre was 13 bushels; the average value
per acre, $24.
The organization of county fairs and societies to encourage agriculture was of infrequent occurrence prior to 1880, as the lumbering and
salt industries held the stage to the exclusion of almost all else until
well along toward 1890. The pioneer fair in Northern Michigan was
held at Benzonia, Benzie county, on the eighth of October, 1864, several years before the organization of the county agricultural society.
The previous notice was short, and the day was blustering and unpropitious, yet the fair was not a failure. The grains and vegetables
exhibited were, for the most part, first crops from new ground imperfectly worked. There were no premiums, the only award being an
honorable mention by the committees, the merit of the article being




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


219


classed as extra good or fair. There was but little fruit. Of livestock
of all kinds, only three animals were mentioned by the committees,
presumably the only three present. This fair was mainly gotten up
by W. S. Hubbell and H. E. Steward. Among the articles exhibited
were twelve green pumpkins, and one solitary peach in a bottle. The
next year the fair was a little better and continued to improve as the
county developed. In 1867 a county society was organized and the
following year the grounds at Benzonia, consisting of six acres of land,
were purchased.
In 1873 the State Pomological Society was held at Traverse City,
and Benzie county exhibited four hundred plates with fruit and divided the first premium with the peninsula in Grand Traverse county.
The Alcona Agricultural Society was organized in 1872,:it a public meeting called for that purpose, and a committee appointed to draft
bylaws and other rules and regulations. These were drafted and submitted by C. P. Reynolds and adopted by the meeting, and the first
election of officers was held at the courthouse in 1873, when George
Hamilton was elected president, Edward Chapelle treasurer and C. P.
Reynolds secretary. Mr. Reynolds made a certified report of said
organization to the board of supervisors, who granted the sum of $100
to the society in aid of its finances. The first annual fair of the society was held at the courthouse, October 16, 1873, which was well
attended and over $200 paid to prize-takers in the various departments;
and the first exhibition was pronounced a success, although it had required weeks of personal exertion to collect the articles from various
parts of the county, bring them to the place of exhibition and arrange
them in their several classes.
There is evidence of an early interest in the agricultural advancement of Wexford county, in the fact that before its population had
reached 3,000 a county agricultural society was organized. Early in
October, 1873, a meeting was held at Sherman, a report of which was
published in the local paper as follows: "At a meeting of the citizens
of Wexford county at the courthouse in this village on Tuesday last
for the purpose of organizing an agricultural society, the following committee was chosen to draft articles of association: T. A. Ferguson, C.
Hollister and I. N. Carpenter.   The committee were requested to
make their reports on Thursday evening, October 16th. As no more
business came before the meeting, after a few remarks, it adjourned
until Thursday evening, at seven o'clock P. M.
"Sherman, October 16, 1873-The meeting was called to order by
Alonzo Chubb, chairman. On motion H. B. Sturtevant was chosen
secretary pro tem. On motion of William Mears the report was accepted and the committee discharged.   On motion the articles were
voted on separately and adopted. On motion of George Wheeler the
society proceeded to elect the following officers: President-Alonzo
Chubb, Cleon; vice-president-A. Lamb, Clam Lake; T. A. Ferguson,
Hanover and Warren Seaman, Cedar Creek; secretary-George Manton,
Colfax; treasurer-C. J. Manktelow, Selma."
In 1878 a number of the leading farmers of Kalkaska county determined to interest themselves in promoting its agricultural interests, and




220          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
with that end in view a farmers' club was organized. The meeting for
the purpose of effecting an organization was held at the courthouse in
Kalkaska, Wednesday, July 24, 1878. A committee on permanent organization was appointed to report at a subsequent meeting. August
15th an adjourned meeting was held, of which H. U. Hill was chairman and D. D. Smith secretary. A permanent organization was effected
by the election of the following officers: President, H. U. Hill; vicepresidents one from each township; secretary, C. H. Metzgar; treasurer, Henry Spence. The object of the organization was to facilitate
the study of agriculture, gather statistics for local and general circulation and promote the general welfare of the county. Stated meetings
were held for discussion and the membership of the organization steadily
increased.
In April, 1879, it was decided to organize for a county fair, and
such an organization was effected. J. E. Rainbow was elected president, C. H. Metzgar, secretary, and Henry Spence, treasurer. A constitution and bylaws were adopted and a very successful fair was held
in the fall of that year. Grounds were provided and buildings erected.
This society has been liberally encouraged by the people of the county
and village, and its annual exhibitions have increased in variety and
interest.
STATE LANDS OPEN TO PURCHASE
Agriculturists who are interested in taking up lands in Northern
Michigan should know that over a third of a million acres may be purchased directly from the state through the Land Office at Lansing. No
local agents are employed by that department which does not engage
to furnish information. Plats, however, are sold at the legal prices
and those who desire to purchase are advised to examine the lands for
themselves. Full information as to all these lands is given in the Michigan Manual for 1911, to which all interested are referred. The present
object of the editor is to indicate the various amounts which the state
offers for sale in the counties embraced in this history:
Swamp     Primary  Tax HomeLand.     School  stead Land.
Acres.     Land.     Acres.
Counties.                         Acres.                 Totals.
Alcona.302.63                     440.00   30,543.48   31,286.11
Alpena.                  801.73     80.00   15,080.59   16,002.32
Antrim.1............... 1.00          531.40      647.40
Arenac...............         40.00    5,769.80    5,809.80
Benzie.................160.00                      160.00
Charlevoix...........  158.25               601.02      759.27
Cheboygan............ 1,026.20    735.35   11,841.90   13,900.13
Clare.................   40.00    413.03    3,395.37    3,848.40
Crawford............. 2,920.00     40.00   33,506.16   36,466.16
Emmet...............    240.00    280.00    2,499.99    3,019.99
Gladwin..............   135.00    200.00    6,302.81    6,637.90




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


221


Swamp
Land.
Acres.


Primary
School
Land.
Acres.


Tax Homestead Land.
Acres.


Counties.
Grand Traverse.......
losco.................
Kalkaska.............
Lake.................
Leelanau..............
Manistee..............
M ason................
Missaukee.............
Montmorency..........
Ogemaw..............
Osceola...............
Oscoda...............
Otsego................
Presque Isle..........
Roscommon...........
W exford..............


560.00
79.00....


40.00
80.00
32.18
120.00
418.95
487.11.....   9,019.32
796.86    13,946.97
120.00    30,104.87
620.65
159.20       258.20.....    360.00.....    240.00.....   9,234.01
400.00    38.067.79.... 18,082.09.....   6,122.86
200.00    30,342.77
240.00     7,845.77
240.00    29,891.97.....   3,875.42.....     5,397.36,384.44   313,642.57


Totals.
9,019.32
15,303.83
30,303.87
620.65
417.40
360.00
240.00
9,274.01
38,507.79
18,162.09
6,122.86
39,523.85
8,205.77
30,577.38
4,362.53
5,397.36
334,936.19


Totals......... 7,557.05  4


In addition to the swamp, primary school and tax homestead lands
are the Agricultural College lands, comprising small areas in all but
Oscoda county. The lands of this class held by the state amount to the
following: Alpena county, 40 acres; Cheboygan, 296.68 acres; Missaukee, 40 acres; Oscoda, 8,948.90 acres and Presque Isle, 26.46 acres.
DIVERSE INDUSTRIES
Perhaps Northern Michigan now contains as great a diversity of
manufacturing plants as can be found in the country. The old lumber
centers —Ludington, Manistee, Traverse City, Cheboygan and Alpenastill turn out the standard products, such as lumber, shingles and lath,
but with the development of horticulture and agriculture, the opening
of hardwood tracts and the demands of modern communities, they have
added such branches as the manufacture of baskets, crates and all kinds
of fruit packages; potato and seed planters and agricultural implements
in general; furniture, billiard cues, veneering, maple flooring, game
boards, and what not? Canneries and flour and grist mills, have sprung
up in all directions, as well as foundries and iron works on a small
scale. Ludington makes watch cases and game tables, as well as
manufactures wood and salt, boasting not only the largest salt plant
in the world (capacity 7,500 barrels daily), but the leading factory
in the production of game boards. Manistee, the "Salt City," includes,
besides her great lumber and salt industries, a plant for the manufacturing of lumber machinery and implements, a factory which turns
out hardwood sideboards and chiffoniers, candy and shirt factories,




222


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


boiler and engine works and other even more diverse manufactories.
Traverse City claims the largest oval dish factory in the world and
the largest basket factory in the state and has also plants for the making of maple flooring, starch, plows and leather; its tannery one of
the largest west of New York. Then comes Alpena with its pulp works,
canneries, veneer manufactories, breweries and cement and lime plants,
besides her old-line lumber and shingle mills. Cadillac is one of the
most flourishing interior points in the line of industrial life. Her
pineries have been eaten away, but manufactories for hardwood furniture, maple flooring, charcoal, wood alcohol, pig iron, chemicals, carriage stock and sawmill machinery have replaced the old order of things
to her manifest advantage. Reed City is a noted manufacturing point
for hardwood flooring. In all of Northern Michigan there is not a
community of a thousand people which has not established some form
of industry to contribute to the convenience and prosperity of the
people.
GROWTH THROUGH NATURE'S FAVORS
Climate, scenery and nature as a whole have also contributed in a
marked degree to the development of all Northern Michigan-particularly northwestern Michigan. In the earlier periods the steamers of
the great lakes brought little parties of visitors to the beautiful country around the two Traverse bays, who returned to their homes smitten
with its charms. The reputation as an ideal region for those seeking
rest, recreation and invigoration spread abroad, the coming of the railroad and the added incursion of visitors broadened its fair name, and
Charlevoix, Harbor Springs, Petoskey and the picturesque and freshening regions around became annually so many Meccas for tired and
restless pilgrims who flocked thither in thousands, by boatloads and
trainloads, from every section of the universe. Substantial stores and
industries; great hotels; meeting places for literary and religious organizations; villages, towns and cities followed in the wake of this
periodical migration which was ever leaving behind not a few permanent settlers who could not break away from these charms of nature.
As stated more in detail: "Western Michigan is the playground of
hundreds of thousands of people from the inland cities of the middle
west and south. The 'summer resorter' is a development of the oldtime picnic party, and in the process of development from the drive
to the country, with its merry crowd of young and old, spreading a
feast beneath the trees on the banks of the river, the great resort centers
of this region have come to be known throughout the United States.
Here the climate plays an important part in making this an ideal vacation country. In the old days 'back home,' a picnic was not a picnic
unless the scene was laid on the banks of a river; here, in the land where
lakes are so numerous, the resorts are principally located on the shores
of Lake Michigan, or upon the banks of some one of the hundreds of
beautiful rivers and inland lakes which dot the country. From Holland, with its Macatawa Park and Ottawa Beach, through Grand Haven,
Muskegon, Whitehall and Montague; Pentwater, Ludington and Ham



CHARMS OF LAKE AND RIVER




224


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


lin lake, Manistee and Onekama lake; Empire, Glen Haven and Glen
Arbor with their Glen lake; Leland at the outlet of Lake Leelanau;
Northport and Northport Point, at the entrance of Grand Traverse
bay, and down that bay to Traverse City, passing Omena, Sutton 's
Bay, Old Mission and Neahtawanta and Edgewood, all well known to
the summer-loving folk of many states; Elk Rapids, at the outlet of
the Intermediate Lakes Chain, extending for a distance of over seventy
miles into the interior and including such beautiful bodies of water as
Elk lake, Round lake, Torch lake (the rival of any lake in America for
beauty); Clam, Grass, Intermediate and Central lakes, easily reached
through the beautiful towns of Alden, Bellaire and Central Lake; and
Charlevoix, the queen of the northern resorts; "There's only one Petoskey," the center of the Little Traverse bay region, round which are
situated Bay View, Ramona Park, Roaring Brook, Wequetonsing, Harbor Springs, Harbor Point and Forest Beach.
"And of the lakes of the interior contiguous to the great lake ports
mentioned, there are hundreds, each with its community of summer
enthusiasts, and many of them supporting good hotels. The rivers
and brooks throughout the whole territory are the natural home of the
brook trout, and the lakes are as naturally the habitat of the black bass,
the pike and the lordly muscallonge, while the smaller pan fish, such as
perch, bluegills and rock bass, abound everywhere.
"The woods' coverts furnish the sportsman with such sport as
kings spend millions to preserve, in the gamiest of all game birds, the
ruffed grouse. The lakes and water ways are the breeding ground of
the wild duck, and in season these birds are plentiful. The swamps of
the far interior shelter deer and bear, with occasionally a cat to enliven the monotony of the stilly night.
"All of this paradise of picnic ground and sporting country is
easily accessible to the tourist through any of the railway stations or
lake ports. It is estimated that no less than five million strangers
annually visit this section of Michigan, either for sport or for recreation."
Northeastern Michigan has also its splendid actualities and its
brighter future as a summer resort country, only awaiting better transportation facilities and a more thorough "advertising" to equal the
older and more developed country of the northwest. Along the line of
the Detroit & Mackinac railroad may be found numerous beautiful
spots, a few "improved" by the hand of man-or rather made accessible to the general public not inclined to "rough it"-but more presented fresh from the hand of nature.
In losco county are the sparkling Tawas lakes, with the popular
summer resort at East Tawas known as the Beach, with its thorough
accommodations as to lunching, boating, dancing, etc., and its large
hotel and charming cottages. This is the finest summer resort on Lake
Huron.
Further north is what is left of Au Sable village, but the trout still
run plentifully in the river-rainbow, speckled, brook and all the rest.
Two miles away is Van Ettan lake, about half a mile inland from Huron,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


2"V


which is also a pretty bathing resort, abounds in fish and its shores are
being built up with cottages.
Harrisville, Alcona county, is getting to be quite a resort, while Hubbard lake about midway between that place and Alpena, but some distance to the west of the railroad, is lined with fie beaches and well
stocked with white fish, bass, pickerel and perch. It is reached from
Alpena by public automobile, and in the summer season its waters are
lively with sail boats, launches and steam yachts. Hubbard lake is
eight miles long and varies in width from one to six miles; is surrounded
by wooded hills and bluffs, and, in many respects, bears several striking resemblances to the famous Chautauqua lake.
Alpena itself is by no means given over to lumber and cement, but
lies in the center of a beautiful country which is the delight of fishermen, boatmen and tourists. The place is usually the headquarters of
those who make flying trips to Hubbard and Long lakes, the latter
about seven miles north of the city. Then there is Grand lake, in
Presque Isle county, sixteen miles north, which is almost "unfished'"
and therefore provides rare sport for the angles. This body of water
is twelve miles long and averages two wide, embraces nineteen densely
wooded islands, and is embedded in a region which furnishes the sportsman with such game as partridge, duck, deer, fox and (occasionally)
b)lack bear.
Resorts such as El Canjon Beach and "Stonycroft," within ten
miles of Alpena, are provided with facilities for boating, bathing and
fishing and furnish ideal camping sites-all of which tourists and sportsmen are rapidly learning.
Rogers City, Presque Isle county, on Lake Huron, is reached by a
spur of the Detroit & Mackinac road, and has become the center of
quite a tourist's activity. Trout river flows into the big lake a mile
north and there is also good hunting in the vicinity. Hay-fever patients
are also flocking to all the country between Alpena and Cheboygan;and they know a good thing "when they can see it."
The Presque Isle county chain of lakes, the sparkling, cool and
teeming waters of Roscommon county to the west, and finally Cheboygan, which is now proud to be known as the "Hub City of the Resort
Region, " provide more strong proofs that northeastern Michigan is
also destined to owe much of its substantial development to its pure
air, clear sunshine, crystal water, picturesque combination of lake, river
and forest, and to all those provisions calculated to refresh and reinvigorate human kind.
The distinction which Cheboygan has earned as a center of the
summer travel and resorters is largely due to its favored natural position and harbor on the straits of Mackinac and that it has transportation lines to practically all northern resorts radiating from it as the
base. It is also itself the center of a fine hunting and fishing country. The Cheboygan river, Mullet lake, Burt lake, Carp lake, Douglas
lake, Sturgeon creek, Pigeon creek, Upper Black river, Little Black
river, Elliott creek, Black lake and a number of others offering splendid
sport, ranging from brook trout and small-mouth bass through all va

Vol. T-15




226          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
rieties found in that section of the country. Deer, rabbits, squirrels,
partridges, ducks and similar game and birds are plentiful.
GROWTH IN STATISTICS
The development of Northern Michigan has been traced in broad
lines from lumbering to resorting, and the writer hopes he has put up
a tolerably strong case in proof that all the agencies mentioned have
played good parts in the general progress of this fair and vigorous land.
Perhaps the most marked general evidence of its growth from infancy
to lusty manhood is found in the population statistics which follow:
Counties           1910     1900    1890    1880    1870   1860
Alcona........... 5,703    5,691    5,409   3,107    696   185
Alpena........... 19,965  18,254   15,581   8,789  2,756   290
Antrim.......... 15,692  16,568  10,413   5,237   1,985   179
Arenac..........  9,640   9,821   5,683......
Benzie........... 10,638   9,685   5,237    3,433  2,184...
Charlevoix....... 19,157  13,956  9,686    5,115  1,724...
Cheboygan....... 17,872   15,516  11,986   6,524   2,196   517
Clare............ 9,240    8,360   7,558   4,187    366...
Crawford........ 3,934     2,943   2,962   1,159
Emmet........... 18,561   15,931    8,756   6,639  1,211 1,149
Gladwin.......... 8,413     6,564   4,208    1,127   (b)
Grand Traverse.... 23,784  20,479   13,355   8,422  4,443  1,286
losco............ 9,753  10,246  15,224    6,873  3,163   175
Kalkaska......... 8,097    7,133   5,160    2,937    424...
Lake............. 4,939    4,957    6,505   3,233    548
Leelanau......... 10,608  10,556    7,944   6,253  4,576 2,158
Manistee......... 26,688  27,856   24,230  12,532  6,074   975
Mason............ 21,832   18,885   16,385  10,065  3,263   831
Missaukee........ 10,606   9,308    5,048   1,553    130...
Montmorency.. 3,755      3,234    1,487....    (e)
Ogemaw.......... 8,907      7,765    5,583   1,914     12
Osceola.......... 17,889  17,859  14,630   10,777  2,093    27
Oscoda........... 2,027    1,468    1,904    467      70
Otsego..........   6,552   6,175    4,272   1,974    (e)
Presque Isle...... 11,249  8,821   4,687    3,113    355    26
Roscommon....... 2,274     1,787    2,033   1,459    (e)
Wexford......... 20,769  16,845  11,278   6,815    650...
Totals.....328,544 291,663  217,204 120,704 38,919  7,798
The only counties in the above list enumerated by the census of
1854 were Emmet, with a population of 4,965; Gladwin, 14 and Grand
Traverse, 911. Emmet is reported as follows: Peaine township, 2,020;
Galilee, 588; Charlevoix, 1,706; unorganized territory, consisting of
some small islands and about five townships of the main land east of
Peaine, a few islands at the entrance of Green bay, and a very few
small islands south of Charlevoix, 651. Total, 4,971. This census was




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


227


taken when James J. Strang was king of the Beaver Island Mormons
and of the realm, and false returns were made of the population, as
was afterward satisfactorily shown.
The counties embraced in this work are also worth something in dollars, as witness these figures indicating the valuation placed on their
property by the various boards of supervisors and the state board of
equalization, respectively, with the amount of state tax produced by
each in 1910.


Supervisors'    State Board's
Valuation (1906) Valuation (1906)


Counties


Alcona.............
Alpena...............
Antrim................
Arenac................
Benzie................
Charlevoix.............
Cheboygan............
Clare.................
Crawford.............
Emmet................
Gladwin...............
Grand Traverse......
Iosco..................
Kalkaska.............
Lake.................
Leelanau..............
Manistee...............
Mason...............
Missaukee.............
Montmorency..........
Ogemaw.............
Osceola................
Oscoda................
Otsego...............
Presque Isle.........
Roscommon............
Wexford.............


$


1,014,877
5,800,000
5,248,615
1,950,744
3,213,582
5,652,462
6,426,000
1,820,138
1,519,000
7,881,229
2,063,555
8,457,000
1,960,000
3,229,051
1,342,805
2,229,220
9,737,303
6,746,974
2,130,910
1,0000,000
2,337,000
3,892,000
800,000
2,777,769
2,654,246
952,580
6,098,000


$ 1,300,000
6,500,000
7,500,000
2,600,000
3,600,000
6,000,000
6,500,000
2,500,000
1,600,000
9,000,000
2,500,000
10,000,000
2,0000,000
3,600,000
1,400,000
3,0000,000
11,500,000
7,00000,000
3,000,000
1,500,000
2,500,000
5,500,000
900,000
3,000,000
3,000,000
1,000,000
7,0000,000
$115,500.000


State Tax
$ 3,545.21
17,725.91
20,452,94
7,090.36
9,817.46
16,362.38
17,725.91
6,817.65
4,363.29
24,543.57
6,817.65
27,270.65
5,454.12
9,817.46
3,817.87
8,181.18
31,361.25
19,089.44
8,181,18
4,090.58
6,817.65
14,998.86
2,454.36
8,181.18
8,181.18
2,727.07
19,089.44
$314,975.80


Totals..........$98,936,060




CHAPTER VIII


MILITARY HISTORY
EARLY CIVIL WAR MOVEMENTS-FOURTH AND SIXTH DISTRICTS ENROLMENT-TROOPS FURNISHED BY COUNTIES —COMMISSIONED OFFICERSTHE GRAND TRAVERSE REGION-MANISTEE COUNTY IN THE WARALPENA COUNTY —HOME COMING OF MICHIGAN TROOPS-ROBERTSON 'S
TRIBUTE TO MICHIGAN SOLDIERS —SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR —THIRD
REGIMENT, M. N. G.
While the territory of Northern Michigan was being secured to the
white man for purposes of civilization, and was being defended against
the aggressions of England, after it became American soil, the active
part played by its people was confined to the operations which centered
at old Fort Michilimackinac and, later Fort Mackinac on the island.
This, for the very good reason that actual settlers did not come into
the country until some years after the lands from the straits to what,
in 1840, became the southern bounds of Gladwin and Arenac counties
extended to Lake Michigan, had been transferred to the United States
by their aboriginal owners. At the outbreak and during the progress
of the Mexican war, the settlers in the part of Northern Michigan to
which this work refers were confined virtually to scattering settlements
in the Grand Traverse region. In short until nearly the period of the
Civil war the population was so sparse as to escape the national census
enumerations. The only counties in this area which the United States
census bureau deigned to notice prior to 1860 were Grand Traverse
and Mason-the former being credited with a population of 900 in
1854, and the latter of 93 in 1850. So that until the period covered
by the War of the Rebellion, Northern Michigan had no military history-that is, as a consolidation of civil communities.
EARLY CIVIL WAR MOVEMENTS
Northern Michigan played a gallant part in all the battles and campaigns of the Civil war and raised an unusually large proportion of
troops, considering the small population of that period. Prior to the
opening of the rebellion only these counties had been organized between the Saginaw valley and the straits of Mackinac: Grand Traverse,
Emmet, Cheboygan, Mason, Manistee and losco.
For the purpose of forming a background to the narrative of the
Civil war which especially concerns Northern Michigan it is necessary
228




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


229


to trace the course of events in the state at large. As all Michigan
patriots well known Governor Blair was the great and heroic figure in
the drama of the war as it concerned that commonwealth. On Tuesday, April 16, 1861, four days after the firing on Fort Sumter, Governor Blair reached Detroit and in the afternoon held a conference
with the state military officers and a large number of leading citizens
and capitalists. President Lincoln had called upon the state to furnish
one regiment of infantry fully armed and equipped to aid the national
government in suppressing the rebellion. Although the treasury was
comparatively empty the necessary funds for such purposes were
promptly pledged by private citizens, and the chief executive at once
issued a proclamation calling for ten companies of volunteers and directing the adjutant general to accept the first ten that should offer.
The president's call upon Michigan for troops was promptly met by
the muster in of the First regiment of infantry and its early movement
to the seat of war in Virginia. In the meantime authority had been
received from the war department to raise three other regiments, but
at the same time stating that it was "important to reduce rather than
to increase that number." This authority only covered the Second,
Third and Fourth infantry regiments already in process of recruitment,
while many companies throughout the state not included in the organizations referred to, had been recruited without authority in the hope of
obtaining places in those or other regiments. These companies were
disappointed and most of them sought and found service in the troops
of other states. This was largely the case with many of those who volunteered from the sparsley settled counties of Northern Michigan. Furthermore, many of those who fought bravely throughout the Civil
war did not serve under officers who were residents of their home communities and therefore were absorbed in the commands which were
credited to the more southern sections of the state.
Under a law of congress passed August 3, 1861, President Lincoln
was authorized to receive into service five hundred thousand volunteers
in the prosecution of the war. In response to this requisition, Michigan
continued a vigorous recruitment and up to December, 1861, had sent
to the front thirteen regiments of infantry, three of cavalry, and five
batteries of light artillery, with a total strength of sixteen thousand
four hundred seveny-five officers and men. Ten of these regiments,
one battery and one company had been clothed and partly armed by
the state. In addition to this, thirteen companies had gone into the
service of other state regiments, failing, as before stated, to find service
in home commands.
If any personal force more than another could be said to predominate in the raising, equipping and transportation of the troops to the
front Governor Blair may be thus named. As long as he continued in
office he was classed by President Lincoln and the entire country as one
of those grand "war governors" of which the Union was so justly
proud. His attitude toward the Rebellion and those who supported it
is well illustrated in this extract, taken from his message delivered to
the legislature on January 2, 1862; "I cannot close this brief address
without an allusion to the great object that occupies all men's minds.




230


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The southern rebellion still maintains a bold front against the Union
armies. That is the cause of all our complications abroad and our
troubles at home. To deal wisely with it is to find a short and easy
deliverance from them all. The people of Michigan are no idle spectators of this great contest. They have furnished all the troops required
of them, and are preparing to pay the taxes and to submit to the most
onerous burdens without a murmur. They are ready to increase their
sacrifices, if need be, to require impossibilities of no man, but to be
patient and wait. But to see the vast armies of the Republic, and all
its pecuniary resources used to protect and sustain the accursed system
which has been a perpetual and tyrannical disturber, and which now
makes sanguinary war upon the Union and Constitution, is precisely
what they will never submit to tamely. The loyal states having furnished adequate means, both of men and money to crush the rebellion,
have a right to expect those men to be used with the utmost vigor to
accomplish the object, and that without any mawkish sympathy for
the interest of traitors in arms. Upon those who caused the war, and
now maintain it, its chief burdens ought to fall. No property of a
rebel ought to be free from confiscation-not even the sacred slave. The
object of war is to destroy the power of the enemy, and whatever measures are calculated to accomplish that object and are in accordance with
the usages of civilized nations, ought to be employed. To undertake to
put down a powerful rebellion, and, at the same time, to save and
protect all the chief sources of the power of that rebellion, seems to
common minds but a short remove from simple folly. He who is not
for the Union, unconditionally, in this mortal struggle, is against it.
The highest dictates of patriotism, justice, and humanity combine to
demand that the war should be conducted to a speedy close upon principles of the most heroic energy and retributive power. The time for
gentle dalliance has long since passed away."
It was largely upon the advice of the governors of the loyal states,
among whom Governor Blair was foremost, that President Lincoln issued his proclamation of July 2, 1862, calling for five hundred thousand men. Under date of July 28th, the president telegraphed to Governor Blair: "It would be of great service here for us to know as fully
as you can tell, what progress is made and making in recruiting for old
regiments in your state. Also, about what day the first new regiment
can move from you, what the second, what the third, and so on. This
information is important to use in making calculations. Please give
it as promptly and accurately as you can."
To this dispatch the governor instantly replied as follows: "Very
little can be done in recruiting old regiments until the new regiments
are filled up; although every exertion will be made to do so. The new
regiments will commence to take the field about the 1st of September,
or sooner, if possible, and will all be in service in the field during
that month."
It is with pride that the student of Civil war history is able to state
that Michigan was no exception to the general rule that the states of
the Union were able to raise their troops for service far in advance of
their field equipment. The consequence was that the eight new regi



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


231


ments which left Michigan fully armed, clothed, and equipped prior
to the 19th of September, 1862, were well in readiness for the field some
time before they actually marched to the front.  On the completion
of the eight regiments referred to it was ascertained that more companies had been raised than could be assigned to organized regiments,
and on the 20th of August the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth regiments
of infantry were recruited and to them were sent these surplus companies.
While great activity prevailed among the people and the State
military department in meeting the call of July 2nd, strong hopes
were entertained that the final requisition for additional volunteers had
been reached, but on the 4th of August, 1862, the president issued an
order for a draft to be made without delay of 300,000 men to serve for
nine months. On the 9th of the same month general orders were issued
from the war department assigning the quotas of the several statesthat of Michigan being 11,686, the same as under the preceding call.
In pursuances of these orders and requisitions Governor Blair issued
his proclamation to the proper officers of the townships and wards to
make a complete census of those of military age and return the same
to the county clerks of the state on or before the 10th of September following. The result showed that 91,071 men throughout Michigan were
subject to the draft, and of the forty-two counties comprising the state
three only had been organized which came within the territory covered
by this history. The figures relating to them are as follows: Cheboygan county-Number of men enrolled, 109; number exempted, most
of these being Indians, 72; number subject to draft, 37.
Emmet county-Number subject to draft, 25.
Mason county-Number of men enrolled, 111; number exempted,
76; number subject to draft, 35.
It may be added to the above that 1,278 men were drafted under
the president's call, but that although 97 were subject to draft in the
three counties mentioned, none actually were thus called into service.
FOURTH AND SIXTH DISTRICTS' ENROLMENT
In March, 1863, congress passed "an act for enrolling and calling
out the national forces," leaving the execution of the enrollment entirely in the hands of the federal authorities. Under the law referred
to, the national force was declared to consist, with certain specified exceptions, of "all able-bodied male citizens of the United States and
persons of foreign birth who shall have declared on oath their intention
to become citizens under and in pursuance of the laws thereof, between
the ages of twenty and forty-five;" and this force was divided into
two classes, the first to comprise "all persons subject to do military
duty between the ages of twenty and thirty-five years and all unmarried persons subject to do military duty above the age of thirty-five and
under the age of forty-five;" and it was provided that the latter class
"shall not, in any district, be called into the service of the United States
until those of the first class shall have been called." Each congressional
district was formed into an enrolment district, a provost marshal and




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


board of enrolment provided for each, and these districts were again
divided into sub-districts, consisting of wards and townships.
The counties with which this history is concerned were included in
the Fourth and Sixth congressional districts. The headquarters of the
Fourth were at Grand Rapids with Norman Bailey, of Hastings, as
provost marshal, and those of the Sixth were at Flint, Randolph Strickland, of St. Johns, being provost marshal of that district.
In the Fourth congressional district were included the counties of
Mason, Manistee, Grand Traverse, Cheboygan, Leelanau, Benzie, Emmet and Antrim, and the enrolment for the same was as follows:
First Class   Second Class
Mason.................................    100             31
Manistee.............................     188             51
Grand Traverse........................    203             91
Cheboygan............................      36             24
Leelanau..............................   143             50
Benzie..................................  85         47
Em met................................    27             15
A ntrim...............................    55             15
Alpena................................    124             45
Iosco..................................  58             14
Total............................... 1,019            383
In the Sixth congressional district were the counties of Alpena and
losco. In the former county 124 were subject to the military duty
in the first class and 45 in the second; in losco, 58 under the first class
and 14, under the second.
The wide extent of territory covered by the state of Michigan and
the difficulty of communications in many portions of it at this period
of its history delayed the completion of the enrolment until the fall
of 1864. On the 27th of October a draft began in the Second, Third,
Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth congressional districts and on the 5th of
November in the First. Total number drafted in the state was 6,383,
of which the Fourth district furnished 1,441 and the Sixth 1,022.
On the 29th of July of this year (1864) the Sixth district was provided for by the appointment of Hon. John F. Griggs to take charge
of the organization of a new regiment to be called the Thirty-first,
with headquarters at Saginaw, and into this command went not a few
of the volunteers and those who were drafted from the eastern portion
of the Southern Peninsula. The counties of the western half sent a
considerable quota of troops to the three companies which were raised
in the Fourth congressional district. The Fourth district regiment
was enabled to take the field and left the state with 726 officers and
men, on the 22d of October, 1864. The Sixth district regiment completed its organization from its own territory and was the first of the
new regiments to leave the state, having broken camp at Saginaw and
taken their departure for Nashville on the 6th of October, with 856
officers and men.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                    233
TROOPS FURNISHED BY COUNTIES
Prior to November 1, 1864, the following number of troops had been
furnished by the counties named, the figures not including the three
months' infantry, Michigan companies in regiments of other states and
some additional soldiers whose residence could not be ascertained.
A lpena.....................................................  51
A ntrim.....................................................  22
B enzie.....................................................  47
Cheboygan..................................................  29
E m m et.....................................................  36
Grand   Traverse.............................................  166
Josco.......................................................  19
L eelan au...................................................  71
M ason......................................................  48
M anistee...................................................  84
O sceola....................................................  1
Total...................................................  574
A general summary, compiled from the reports of the adjutant
general's office, shows the following to have been the total number of
troops raised, either under the enrolment, enlistment or drafting system, in the several counties within the scope of this history:
Enlistments
Enlisted Enlisted               previous to
in Army  in Navy Draft    Total Sept. 19, '63  Total
G'd Traverse...  14        3       10     28..        28
Alpena.......... 39                12     51       7        58
Benzie.......... 25        1       44     70..        70
Cheboygan.....   9..        7     16      15        31
Emmet......... 12                   6     18      21        39
G'd Traverse... 80         8        9     97      74       171
losco...........  6       1       17     24       1        27
Leelanau....... 33..       45     78      20        98
Mason.......... 25..       22     47      12        59
Manistee....... 69..       13     82       6        88
Total....... 312       13      186    511     156       669
In closing the record showing the number of troops contributed by
the various counties covered by this history to the rank of the Union
troops, a brief word is due to the several colored soldiers who participated in the hardships and triumphs of the Michigan forces. Quite a
number joined the One Hundred and Second United States Colored
Infantry and Jonathan B. Tuttle, of Alpena, served as captain of
Company C. The colored troops left Detroit in March, 1864: joined




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the Ninth corps at Annapolis, Maryland, and afterwards acquitted
themselves with honor at various engagements in Florida and South
Carolina.
COMMISSIONED OFFICERS
The following are the commissioned officers credited to the territory of which we write, the rank given being that which they held at
the time of discharge:
Thomas C. Chase, losco county; first lieutenant, Company B, Twentysixth Infantry.
John Earl, Harrisville; first lieutenant, died of disease, October 13,
1862.
Anthony Eisworth, Stronach; second lieutenant, First Veteran
Cavalry; discharged March 10, 1866.
Clark D. Fox, Otsego; captain Thirteenth Infantry; killed at Chickamnauga, September 19, 1863.
Garrett A. Graverat, Little Traverse (Harbor Springs); first lieutenant, First Sharpshooters; died of wounds received near Petersburg,
Virginia, June 17, 1864.
Miles Horn, Otsego; second lieutenant, Company F, Eighth Cavalry;
died of disease at Kalamazoo, September 8, 1865.
Samuel M. Hubbard, Otsego; captain, Nineteenth       Infantry;
wounded; discharged November 30, 1864.
Thomas Kerry, Manistee; first lieutenant, Third Infantry; discharged May 25, 1866.
Charles R. Lackey, Traverse City; first lieutenant, discharged, June
4, 1865.
James F. McGinley, Manistee; captain Fifth Infantry; wounded,
taken prisoner and died of wounds, October 27, 1864.
Guy Newbre, Emmet county; Second lieutenant, First Sharpshooters; discharged for disability, October 22, 1864.
John D. Potter, Alpena; first lieutenant, Company K, Third Infantry; mustered out May 25, 1866.
Jonathan B. Tuttle, Alpena; captain First Michigan (One Hundred
Cand Sixty-second U. S.) Colored Infantry; resigned May 12, 1864.
Andrew J. Underhill, Grand Traverse; second lieutenant, Company
A, Twenty-sixth Infantry; resigned December 31, 1862.
THE GRAND TRAVERSE REGION
An examination of the table in which is summarized the entire number of troops raised for Civil war service in the Northern Michigan of
this history indicates that the Grand Traverse Region sent to the front
more than one-half. It is therefore entitled to special consideration in
this narrative and receives such in the following from the pen of Dr.
M. L. Leach: "To avoid misunderstandings, it should be remembered
that at the breaking out of the war, the unorganized counties of Antrim,
Leelanau, and Benzie were attached to Grand Traverse for civil and
judicial purposes. When, in this chapter, Grand Traverse county is




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


235


mentioned, the territory of the three referred to is intended to be included. Grand Traverse county as thus defined, was divided into nine
townships-Meegezee, Milton, Whitewater, Peninsula, Traverse, Leelanau, Centreville, Glen Arbor, and Crystal Lake.
"The number of men in the territory alluded to of an age suitable
for military service, making no allowance for exemptions on account of
disability, could not have exceeded six hundred, and probably fell short
of that number. From this territory, it is believed, more than two
hundred went into the service within the next four years. Of course
considerable accessions to the population resulted from immigration,
during that period, thus increasing the number liable to military duty.
"One of the first to volunteer was Curtis Fowler, Jr., son of Hon.
Curtis Fowler, judge of probate for Grand Traverse county. Fighting bravely in the ranks of the gallant First, he was wounded at the
battle of Bull Run, in July, 1861, was discharged from the service on
account of disability from the wound, and returned home. His brother,
Francis Z. Fowler, considering it a matter of honor as well as of patriotism that the family should be represented in the ranks of the defenders
of the country, volunteered in his place, and laid down his life in the
second battle of Bull Run the following year, 'the first martyr from
Grand Traverse to the slaveholders' rebellion.'
"Thirteen volunteers started from Traverse City on or about the
13th of September, 1861. Their names were as follows: Martin A.
Hopper, Andrew McKillip, Isaac Winnie, James Nicholson, James Fitzpatrick, Wm. E. Sykes, Samuel A. McClelland, E. J. Brooks, Lewis
Steele, Frank May, Aaron Page, Orselus Evans, and Thomas Lee. Of
these the first five had been for a long time in the employ of Hannah,
Lay & Co. On settling with them, Mr. Hannah made each a handsome
present, and told them that if they were ever in distress or in need of
funds, to draw on him at sight, and their drafts would be honored.
Wm. E. Sykes was sheriff of the county. McClelland, Brooks, Steele,
May, and Page were from Northport, Evans was from Whitewater,
and Lee from Centreville.
"At the time of leaving Traverse City, it was the intention of several
of these men to enlist in Chicago, in Capt. Busteed's company of light
infantry. We afterwards find some of them in the First New York Artillery, one of their number, McClelland, holding the rank of second
lieutenant. At the battle of Malvern Hill, the first of July, 1862, the
'Grand Traverse boys' received special commendation from their officers
for bravery and good conduct. Of the thirteen mentioned above, the
following are referred to by name, in a published letter from Lieutenant
McClelland-Sykes, Evans, McKillip, Nicholson, and Hopper. In the
list of those specially commended, Lieutenant McClelland also gives
the names of nine other 'Grand Traverse boys' in his company, of whose
volunteering and enlistment we have no account. They were M. V.
Barns. Albert M. Powers, A. N. Brown, Jared D. Delap, James Hutchinson, Charles A. Lee, Sidney Brown, Wm. Wilks, and Hiram Odell.
"On the fourth day of October, 1861, fifteen volunteers left Traverse City for Grand Rapids, under command of F. W. Cutler, a recruiting officer. The following is the list of names: Edward Stanley,




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Mathew Shanley, Eber Stone, Wmn. Callison, George Flack, Benjamin
Rattelle, Dudley Wait, John O'Leary, Patrick Graham, George Askey,
John Rodart, John Williams, Lewis Stevenson, Andrew Anderson, and
Edward Dewaire.
"On the 15th of August, 1862, John Lewis Patrick, a young man
who had been for two years an apprentice in the office of the Grand
Traverse Herald, started for Chicago, where he enlisted in the Mercantile Battery. Not long after, it fell to the lot of the paper on which
he had wrought to publish his death, which occurred in the hospital at
Memphis, Tennessee, on the first of February, 1863. The editor of the
Herald, Morgan Bates, afterwards lieutenant governor, speaks thus
tenderly of his young friend: 'He was one of the noblest and purest
young men we ever knew, and it caused a heart-pang when he left us
to volunteer for the defense of his country. All who knew him loved
him, and his early death will cast a gloom over many hearts.'
"In August, 1862, recruiting was lively. Capt. E. S. Knapp, (called
L. Edwin Knapp in 'Michigan in the War,') assisted by Lieutenants
Jacob E. Siebert, of Manistee, and Charles H. Holden, of Northport,
raised a company in a short time, in Manistee and Grand Traverse counties, to which was given the name of the 'Lake Shore Tigers.' The following is an imperfect list of the men enlisted by Lieutenant Holden,
in Grand Traverse, with the names of the townships to which they were
credited:
"Whitewater-P. D. Greenman, Francis Hopper, C. R. Lackey,
Horace Philips, John A. Brainard, Milton Stites, John Duncan, Henry
Odell, Oscar Eaton, George Allen.
Traverse-Elias Langdon, Jr., Thomas Bates, Giles Gibson, Asa V.
Churchill, George Moody.
" Peninsula-Gilbert Lacnor, John A. Thayer.
"Leelanau-Wm. H. Voice, Mortimer Boyes, Henry Budd, George
W. Bigelow, Win. W. Nash, Henry Holcomb, Charles E. Lehman.
"Centreville-George Ramsdell, Joseph Warwick, Melville Palmer,
Win. Lawson, James Lee, Frederick Cook, Jacob Hans, Deidrick White,
George W. Miller, John Egler, James Adameson, L. Grant, H. Dunekelow, Thomas McCreary, Charles E. Clark, George H. Mills.
"Captain Knapp's company had originally been intended for the
Twenty-first, but on arriving at Ionia, that regiment was found to be
full. Application was next made to the Twenty-fifth, then organizing
at Kalamazoo, but that being full also, the company finally proceeded
to Jackson, and was mustered into the service as company A of the
Twenty-sixth, under Colonel Farrar.
"Lieutenant Holden, was prosecuting attorney of the county at the
time of organizing the company, and resigned his office for the purpose
of entering the service. He was mustered in as first lieutenant, and
was afterwards made quarter master of the regiment. He resigned
April 4, 1864, and was honorably discharged. The second lieutenant
was Sewell S. Parker, of Monroe. Lieutenant Siebert, who helped to
enlist the company, does not appear ever to have belonged to the Twentysixth. According to 'Michigan in the War,' he belonged to the Twentieth, and was killed in action at Poplar Spring Church, Virginia, Sep



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


tember 30, 1864. Of the enlisted men from Grand Traverse, Sergeant
Wm. H. Voice died in camp at Jackson, September 22, 1862; P. D.
Greenman at Fairfax, Virginia, March 27, 1863; and George Moody at
Yorktown, Virginia, July 15, 1863.
"In the summer and fall of 1863, from the early part of July till
late in October, Lieutenant Edwin J. Brooks, of Northport, was engaged in recruiting for the Tenth Cavalry, under Colonel Foote, having
its rendezvous at Grand Rapids. Unfortunately there is at hand no list
of Grand Traverse men who volunteered for that regiment under Lieutenant Brooks. Lieutenant Brooks was mustered in as first lieutenant
of Company E. He was promoted to a captaincy April 25, 1864. March
13, 1865, he was made Brevet Major of United States volunteers 'for
gallantry in action at Strawberry Plains east Tennessee, November 17,
1864.' On the same day he was further promoted to Brevet Lieutenant
Colonel United States volunteers, 'for gallant and meritorious conduct
through four years of active service.' He was mustered out and honorably discharged November 11, 1865.
"I  September, while Lieutenant Brooks was recruiting, the citizens
of Traverse, anxious to make up the full quota of the township by voluntary enlistment, raised by subscription a fund for the payment of fifty
dollars bounty to each recruit enlisted and credited to the township before the expected draft should take place.
"On the 12th of October, official information having been received
that the draft would take place on the 26th of that month, and that
only eleven men were needed to fill up the quota of Grand Traverse
county, the board of supervisors appropriated eleven hundred dollars
lo a fund to be called the military bounty enlistment fund. The chairman and clerk of the board were authorized to draw orders on this
fund for one hundred dollars each in favor of the first eleven men
who should enlist and be sworn into the service of the United States
prior to the 23d of the month, provided they should be accredited to
the county in the coming draft.
During the following winter, additional calls for troops made it
necessary to hold out additional inducements for voluntary enlistment.
In the month of February a series of war meetings was held in Traverse, which resulted in the calling of a special township meeting, to
authorize the issuing of bonds for the purpose of raising money to pay
bounties to volunteers.
"The efforts at enlisting were successful. On the second day of
March, forty-two recruits left Traverse City for the rendezvous at
Grand Rapids, constituting the full quotas for Traverse, Peninsula.
and Centreville. On the evening previous to their departure, the ladies
gave them an entertainment, providing a bountiful supper, at the boardinghouse of Hannah, Lay & Co., at which a large proportion of the
population of the village and surrounding country was present. Mr.
Hannah presided, brief addresses were made by Hon. Morgan Bates
and Rev. J. H. Crumb, and the scene was enlivened by patriotic and
soul-stirring music, under the direction of Mr. Charles H. Day.
" The following is a list of the volunteers:
"Traverse-Albert S. Brooks. Earnest Crain, Win. W. Bradley,




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


George L. Smith, Edward Beavis, Aaron Mettes, Myron A. Moody, Paul
Gravel, Robert Myhill, James Lynch, Tobias F. Houghtaling, John Sutherland, Win. W. Johnson, Henry C. Fuller, Sands Moon, Alonzo F.
Hopkins, John Flannery, James Monroe, George W. Hargraves, Wilson P. Johnson.
"Peninsula-James Birney Lancaster, Charles Lonkey, Columbus
Winnie, Richard W. Smith, Abram D. Langworthy, Francis L. Bourasaw, Wm. B. Munn, John M. Allison.
"Centreville-Thomas Harmer, Adam Cook, James Manseau, Isaac
Clark, James Mason, Jacob Burger, Clouve Warren, Martin Novotney,
Ferdnand Kord, Philip Egler, Albert Norris, Henry Lemmerwell,
James Clark, Martin Wachall.
"Several of these men found their way into the Fourteenth regiment, and first entered upon active duty at the front in the vicinity
of Nashville, Tennessee. Those known to have been in that regiment
are Crain, Mettes, Gravel, Lynch, Lancaster, Lonkey, Winnie, R. W.
Smith, Langworthy, Bourasaw, and Allison.  The names of the regiments in which the others served are not known. Myron A. Moody
died in hospital at Grand Rapids, March 26, 1864.
"In the summer of 1864, the call for troops taxed to the utmost the
patriotism and ability of Grand Traverse, as well as most other sections of the loyal north. On the 10th of June a draft was had, in Grand
Rapids, for Whitewater, Elk Rapids, Milton, Centreville, Glen Arbor,
and Leelanau. In August the township board of Traverse offered a
bounty of two hundred dollars for recruits. On the 30th of the same
month a meeting of the enrolled men of the township was held to raise
funds to pay an additional bounty. Three thousand dollars was subscribed on the spot. With this sum the aggregate of bounties to each
volunteer was raised to nearly six hundred dollars. Twenty-three men
under the calls of the president, were due from the township. Eight
had already been obtained, eight more came forward at this meeting,
and the remaining seven were obtained within the next forty-eight
hours. The names of all but one are contained in the following list:
number joined the One Hundred and Second United States colored
Wm. Tracy, Adolphus Payette, Harvey Avery, Ira Chase, Joseph Kunn,
Nelson C. Sherman, Edward Morgan, Ora E. Clark, Wm. Sluyter,
George Sluyter, Barney Valleau, Zodoc Wilcox, James Mason, John
Reynolds, John Falrue, Leander Curtis, Album Atwill, Abram Adsit,
Marcus Lacore, Michael Gallaghn, Anstin Brinnon, David Sweeney.
All of these except Clark went into the Tenth Cavalry, and got their
first experience of active war at Strawberry Plains, east Tennessee.
"We close this imperfect war record of the Grand Traverse country
with the following melancholy items:
"Daniel Carmichael, of Traverse City, who was a member of a Wisconsin regiment, died in hospital at Lake Providence, May 6, 1863.
"George Leslie, of Traverse township, died in the Shenandoah valley, September 22, 1864.
"In the fight before Petersburg, on the 17th of June, 1864, Lieutenant G. A. Graverat, a gallant young officer from Little Traverse,
laid down his life for his country. He was the second lieutenant of




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


239


Company K, First Michigan Sharpshooters.   While fighting by the
side of his father in the trenches, he saw his parent shot dead. Bearing the body to a safe spot, weeping bitterly, he dug a grave with an
old tin pan in the sand, and buried it. Then drying his tears, the
devoted son returned to the battle. His rifle told with terrible precision
among the rebel officers, till he was disabled, wounded in the left arm.
He was brought to Washington, where the arm was amputated at the
shoulder, resulting in his death on the 10th of the following month.
Lieutenant Graverat was partly of Indian descent. He was but twentyfour years old, was highly educated, being master of several modern
languages, besides being a fine portrait and landscape painter and an
accomplished musician."
MANISTEE COUNTY IN THE WAR
How Manistee county participated in the War of the Rebellion is
well told by General B. M. Cutcheon, in his historical address delivered at the centennial celebration held at Manistee; it will be remembered by "old timers" that the general was successively captain,
major, and lieutenant colonel in the Twentieth Infantry, colonel of the
Twenty-seventh and came home to Ypsilanti as a brevet brigadier
general:
"We come now to the war period. Manistee at this time was a spot
in the wilderness, but nevertheless the 'shot heard round the world'
was heard even here. Communication was slow and infrequent; the
mails arrived once a week, brought overland from Grand Haven by
John Blanchard. Thursday was universally known as mail day. Here,
as everywhere else in the north the fires of patriotism were kindled.
Recruiting officers not only from the lower part of this state but from
neighboring states, visited Manistee to recruit their companies from
the mills and the woods. Many of the first recruits went to Chicago to
enlist, and among them Mr. J. H. Shrigley, who enlisted in the Chicago
First Light Battery. Many from Manistee entered the old Third Michigan Infantry, but the largest number that enlisted in any one organization entered the Sixth Michigan Cavalry, Company I.
"The adjutant general's report shows that the whole number that
enlisted in Michigan organizations from Manistee county was 88-11
from Stronach, 10 from Brown, the rest from Manistee-composed of
Manistee town, and city and Filer. But this is no fair criterion of the
part Manistee took in the war, for beyond doubt nearly if not quite as
many enlisted in other states as our own.
"I wish I had time and space to enroll here the whole list of brave
men who answered to their country's call. But I must forbear. Many
of them sleep on battlefields; many more sleep at Andersonville and
Belle Isle. In that roll of honor in the capitol at Lansing are the names
of some Manistee men, the peers of any in patriotism and gallantry.
There were two among them of whom I would especially speak, partly
because they paid with their lives the full measure of devotion to their
country. They are Lieutenant and Adjutant Jacob E. Seibert and
Lieutenant and Adjutant James F. McGinley.




2] 0


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The first, Adjutant Seibert, was my tent-mate at the tine he fell,
shot through the body at the battle of Poplar Spring's Church, September 30, 1864. He was German by birth; served in the Prussian army
in the body guard of the Crown Prince. He was every inch a soldier.
He enlisted July, 1862, in the Twentieth Michigan as a private in Company A. He had been, and was, I think, at the time, deputy county
clerk and register of deeds. He and E. Golden Filer enlisted together.
Seibert was a splendid clerk, and they were so anxious to secure his
services at brigade headquarters that he lost chances for promotion he
might have had. It was my pleasure as commander of the regiment
to promote him to sergeant, sergeant major, and finally to first lieutenant and adjutant of the regiment. In the first action after he received his commission he was killed by my side, in an almost hand-tohand encounter in front of Petersburg. We buried him on a grassy
knoll, where he fell, with a cedar tree at his head.
"He lies like a warrior, taking his rest
With his martial cloak around him.
'The general commanding named one of the forts in front of Petersburg in his honor, and that is perhaps his most appropriate monument.
"Lieutenant MeGinley went out in the old Third. He greatly distinguished himself by his cool daring and marked courage, and was
one of the hundred men of Birney's division who received the Kearney
Cross of the legion of honor in the French army. This cross he wore
with great pride and honor, and after' being transferred to the old
fighting Fifth, he was promoted to first lieutenant and adjutant for
gallantry. I visited him at his quarters and parted from him the evening before his death. He fell at the battle of Hatchie's Run, in front
of Petersburg, October 27, 1864, while leading his men with his a(customed gallantry. I hope the time may yet come when these two
brave men, and their comrades who fell, may receive some fitting memerial at the hands of the people of Manistee.
"Besides the promptness of the men in.enlisting, those who remained
at home did their full share in raising subscriptions and voting bounlies, and assisting those who went. Seventy-seven hundred dollars
were raised by subscriptions and voting bounties to the volunteers, and
nearly as much more was raised by vote of the town, and this out of
a population of only one thousand souls. War meetings were held,
speeches made and feeling ran high. Nor were they always particular
about the place and manner of holding their meeting. On one occasion
a war meeting was called in 'Hans & Ton's' saloon, which stood where
A. H. Dunlap's block now stands. The crowd was dense and the
atmosphere, or that which served the purpose of an atmosphere, was
denser. Among the speakers on this occasion was our excellent fellow citizen, Dr. Ellis, who mounted on a beer barrel, in an atmosphere
so redolent of tobacco smoke and whisky that you could cut it with a
cheese knife and shovel it out on a spade, and addressed the assembled
crowd.
"What greater evidence could I give of the patriotic fervor of the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


241


time? Manistee, the babe in the woods, performed her part well in saving the nation, and it forms an honorable page in her history."
ALPENA COUNTY
In 1860 the entire population of Alpena county was but 290 and
in 1864 it had only increased to 674, but out of this small stock from
which to draw men about thirty went to the front and fought with
the best. In June, 1864, a special election was held at which it was
unanimously voted to raise $100 for each volunteer. As is justly stated
by "one who knows," "the enterprise and patriotism of a county that
sends nearly one-half its voting population to do a soldier's duty can
never be called in question." Greenbacks were first issued in 1862
and in 1864 began to be frequently seen in Alpena county. The supply of pitch and tar from the southern states and articles manufactured there being cut off by the blockade brought Norway pine into
demand, and tar and turpentine reached fabulous prices. This brought
a large number of people to Alpena to look for Norway pine from which
to manufacture tar and turpentine; so that the later portion of the Civil
war was somewhat of a "boom period" for the Alpena region.
HOME COMING OF MICHIGAN TROOPS
With the fall of the Confederacy in April, 1865, the Michigan
troops began to arrive home, under orders from the war department.
The Twentieth regiment was the first to arrive in Detroit, reaching
that city on the 4th of June, 1865, and being enthusiastically received
by the committees of ladies and gentlemen appointed for their reception and by large and enthusiastic crowds of citizens. Others followed
in such rapid succession that Governor Crapo issued a general proclamation of welcome to the returning Michigan troops.
Under date of June 13, 1865, the war department authorized the
chief mustering officer of Michigan to turn over to the governor, at
his request, all the colors of Michigan regiments, which provision proved
the foundation of the splendid and pathetic collection which is now
deposited in the rotunda of the capitol, and which has ever been a
source of much pride to the soldiers of Northern Michigan as well as
of the entire state.
The reception of troops continued up to June 10, 1866, when the
Third and Fourth regiments of infantry reached Detroit, being the
last belonging to the state to leave the field.
Before the last of the Michigan soldiers had been welcomed to home
soil a movement had been inaugurated in Detroit for the erection of
a grand monument, commemorating the valor and self-sacrifice of the
soldiers and sailors of the Wolverine state. Several prominent citizens
of the Northern Michigan covered by this history took a leading part
in the raising of funds and their management for the erection of the
grand memorial which now stands in Detroit. Among them may be
mentioned Morgan Bates, Hon. James B. Walker and Hon. Perry Hannah, of Grand Traverse county; William H. Maltby, of Cheboygan;
Vol. I-16




242


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


J. E. Fisher, of Leelanau; Hon. Delos Filer, of Manistee county; and
Hon. Charles Mears, of Mason county.
ROBERTSON 'S TRIBUTE TO MICHIGAN SOLDIERS
In completing this unworthy tribute to the faithfulness and bravery
of Michigan soldiers we can do no better than quote the following from
"Michigan in the War," by Adjutant General John Robertson, who
gave the state such invaluable official service from 1861 to 1887: "Michigan troops, prominent at the onset of the rebellion, were in at its
death. They were among those who, under the command of the brave
and lamented Richardson, first opened fire on the rebels, in the vicinity
of Bull Run, at Blackburn's Ford. They were with General McClellan
in West Virginia, in the first year of the war, and were in South
Carolina and Georgia in 1862, and during that year served with the
Army of the Potomac on the Peninsula and in Maryland, with General
Banks in the Shenandoah valley, in Virginia under General Burnside,
in Louisiana under General Butler, and in Missouri with General Pope
and Colonel Mulligan.
"In 1863 they bore a conspicuous and gallant part in the ever
memorable campaigns under General Hooker in Virginia, and General
Meade in Pennsylvania, at the defense of Knoxville by General Burnside, at the capture of Vieksburg by General Grant, and on the celebrated Kilpatrick raid against Richmond. They were also engaged in
the campaign of General Rosecrans against Chattanooga, and were actively employed in the field at various points in Tennessee, Mississippi,
Kentucky and Louisiana, under other generals.
"In 1864-5 they were with General Grant on his great march against
Richmond and bravely participated in most of the hard fought battles
of that eventful campaign. They were also with General Sherman on
his remarkable march from Chattanooga to the sea, and were prominently engaged in most of his memorable and successful battles, and
with General Sheridan in his matchless encounters with the enemy in
the valley of the Shenandoah, where their sabres flashed in every battle. They took part in the gallant defense of Nashville by General
Thomas, and were with Generals Stoneman and Wilson on their raids
into North Carolina and Georgia. They were also at the capture of
Mobile, and servied in Texas and Utah territory during a part of 1865-6.
"Michigan was well represented at the surrender of Lee and Johnston-the termination and death of the rebellion, and a Michigan regiment captured the president of the so-called Confederacy, Jefferson
Davis, in his inglorious flight to escape deserved punishment for his
infamous treason and rebellion.
"Michigan troops in all the campaigns and battles in which they
participated, were most reliable, conspicuously brave and gallant. In
every position in which they were placed, they were true, self-sacrificing, patient under hardship, murmuring not, meeting death by exposure,
starvation and cruel treatment in rebel prisons, and many more by
rebel bullets in sanguinary strife.
"Aside from their acknowleded bravery and efficiency in battle,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


243


they were in a most remarkable manner entrusted with posts of honor
and great responsibility, which could scarcely have been accidental,
but with a purpose.
"From the beginning of the war until its end, Michigan soldiers
evinced a most persistent determination to fight on, until all rebels in
arms against the government should be conquered and subdued, and
if needs be, utterly destroyed, so that their country might live. That
determination they most successfully carried out; they met the enemy
in his 'last ditch,' and he was theirs; they compelled him to lay down
his rebellious arms, to beg for quarter, peace, and even for bread, and
submit, unconditionally, to the terms of their dictation. Having done
that, the troops of Michigan returned to their homes, As the conquerors
of the enemies of their country, the preservers of their nation, receiving
the plaudits and gratitude of their fellow countrymen, and of every
friend of freedom and humanity throughout the world."
SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR
Northern Michigan furnished its full quota of troops, both among
the infantry and the naval reserves, during the short but nevertheless
trying campaign against the Spaniards in Cuba and Porto Rico. They
were distributed among the five regiments which were raised in the
state and among the Michigan naval reserves. The Thirty-third and
Thirty-fourth Michigan regiments formed part of the expedition under command of General Shafter against Santiago. The reserves were
detailed on the auxiliary cruiser "Yosemite," and saw service at
Havana, Santiago, Guantanamo, and San Juan de Puerto Rico. The
Thirty-first regiment served at garrison duty for a time in Cuba, and.
the Thirty-second and Thirty-fifth regiments which were quartered in
southern camps on American soil. These commands did not see active
service because of the sudden termination of the war, but whatever
their duties, whether in garrison or on the field of battle, Michigan
troops could always be relied upon; and this second generation of soldiers well upheld the prestige of the Civil war veterans.
THIRD REGIMENT, M. N. G.
The Michigan National Guard is a splendid organization consisting of a full brigade of three regiments, commanded by General P. L.
Abbey, of Kalamazoo. The twelve companies comprising the Third Infantry are distributed over Northern Michigan, its lieutenant colonel,
John B. Boucher, being a resident of Cheboygan. William T. Conboy,
captain of Company K is also a citizen of Cheboygan, which is the headquarters of his command. Company D is stationed at Alpena, with
Harry V. Knight as captain, and Company I is at Manistee in command of Charles Koch.




CHAPTER IX


GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY
TRAVERSE CITY AND VILLAGES-PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL-TWENTY YEARS'
GROWTH-STEPS IN ORGANIC LIFE-OLD MISSION FOUNDED-FIRST
SCHOOL-FIRST SHIPBUILDING-THE MISSION AND OLD MISSIONFOUNDING   OF  TRAVERSE  CITY-LAND    OFFICE  TRANSACTIONSTRAVERSE CITY INCORPORATED-PUBLIC    SCHOOLS-TRAVERSE CITY
CHURCHES-LIBRARIES-BOARD OF TRADE-THE BANKS-NORTHERN
MICHIGAN INSANE ASYLUM-COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY-VILLAGE AND
TOWN HISTORY.
Grand Traverse county, with an area of 317,440 acres of which
nearly one-half is now given over to horticulture and agriculture, lies
south of the bay for which it is named and forms the base of the rich
and beautiful country around its shores popularly known as the Grand
Traverse region. La Grande Traverse, as the bay was designated by
the early French voyageurs, stretches from forty-four degrees and
forty-five minutes to forty-five degrees and fifteen minutes north, being nearly thirty-five miles in length and eleven in width, with a coast
line of about one hundred and thirteen miles. The southern portion
is divided into the east and west arms by a belt of land from one to
two miles in width and about seventeen miles in length known as the
Peninsula. The east arm has an average width of about four and onehalf miles; the west arm is somewhat wider. The height of the bay and
of Lake Michigan, above the level of the sea, is five hundred and seventyeight feet. The depth of water in the bay is generally from twenty to
seventy fathoms. The east arm attains the greatest depth, being about
a hundred fathoms at a point opposite Old Mission, and thence as far
as Petobego lake. The maximum depth is six hundred and eighteen
feet, and is found opposite Birch lake, and on a line between Old Mission and the north end of Elk lake. The entire bay constitutes a harbor secure from all except northerly winds; while the two arms of the
bay are not seriously disturbed by storms from any direction. The
shores of the bay, however, present a number of harbors, in which vessels may at all times lie with the utmost security.
These brief facts convey no idea of the beauty and grandeur of this
northeastern projection of Lake Michigan. Its upper reaches which
gradually merge into the long finger thrust into Charlevoix and Emmet counties represent the ideal waters for the summer tourist. Grand
Traverse county and Traverse City, possessing every charm of climate
244




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


245


and scenery enjoyed by the region further north, are rapidly developing in commerce, agriculture, fruit-raising and diversified industries.
TRAVERSE CITY AND VILLAGES
The metropolis of the Grand Traverse region is now a city of more
then twelve thousand people and has increased in population threefold within twenty years. Traverse is a well-built, progressive city of
sound banks, large stores and varied manufactures, and has complete
transportation facilities both by land and water; the railroads which
give her access to all the markets of the south and north are the Grand
Rapids & Indiana, Pere Marquette and Manistee & Northeastern. Traverse City has some ten miles of paved streets and forty-five miles of
cement sidewalks; seven good school buildings, twenty churches and
three substantial banks. Its public utilities include a municipal water
plant and an electric light and power plant-the latter controled by a
private corporation. No city in Northern Michigan is more intelligently,
energetically or fairly exploited than Traverse City through its young
and virile board of trade.
Traverse City's exceptional transportation facilities make it a favorite center for excursionists bent upon getting the most enjoyment
out of the Grand Traverse region. Partly within the city limits is
Boardman lake which affords excellent fishing for pike, black bass and
perch.
Via Pere Marquette, there are pleasant trips to Duck lake (Interlochen) and Green lake, and trout fishing at Henry, State Road or
Kaleva (fishing in Bear creek) and at Beitner on the Boardman.
The Grand Rapids & Indiana runs convenient trains touching Sutton's bay, Omena and Northport. Fine' trouting trips are conveniently
made to points on the Boardman river over this line, also.
On the Manistee & Northeastern trips are taken to Fouch, Solon,
Provement, Lake Ann and the fine trout fishing on the Platte river. In
connection with steamer on Lake Leelanau, Fountain Point, Bingham,
Leland and the resorts and cottages on that pretty body of water are
reached.
Around the head of East bay are popular cottage communities; two
miles northeast of Traverse City on the west shore of the peninsula is
Edgewood. Near the end of the peninsula famous for its fruit orchards
and overlooking the beautiful harbor of Old Mission, is the village and
resort of the same name. Old Mission is one of the very first settlements in all the north country and for thirty years has been renowned
as a quiet summering place, so that each season finds it gay with a
'merry throng of recreation seekers.
The pretty villages, resorts and lakes of Leelanau county to the
northwest are also within easy reach of Traverse City, whose summer
trade and travel therefore form quite a proportion of her local activities and attractions.
Outside of Traverse City, there are no large centers of population
in the county. The only incorporated villages are Kingsley, formerly
Paradise and in the town by that name in the southern part of the




26


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


county, and Fife Lake, in the extreme southeastern part. Kingsley,
which has about five hundred people, has a slight advantage of Fife
Lake in population. Both are stations on the Grand Rapids & Indiana
Railroad, and were founded as a result of the building of that line
through the county in the early eighties.
PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL
Grand Traverse county was never more prosperous or developing
faster as a producer from the soil. Grand Traverse county is one of the
most important potato-growing sections in the state, raising nearly two
million bushels annually. Potatoes are a good crop for newly cleared
land and they can be grown at a profit between the rows of trees in
newly-set orchards. The annual yield varies from seventy-five to two
hundred bushels to the acre, according to the richness of the soil, the
attention given the growing crop and the favorableness of the season.
Timothy hay is also a profitable and large crop in the river valleys
and about the shores of the many inland lakes of the county, the average rainfall of thirty inches per season ensuring a constant and large
vield. The raising of clover for seed is another large and growing industry, especially among the farmers of the Williamsburg section.
Alfalfa is just becoming popular, although the plant has been growing upon the Grand Traverse Peninsula for thirty years. The gravelly,
sandy soil which predominates seems to be just the thing for alfalfa.
In several parts of the region the ground is strewn with pebbles and
boulders that are filled with fossil remains. As these disintegrate, lime
and other valuable elements of plant food are released and become part
of the soil, and thus are available for the support of vegetation, particularly alfalfa, which is a lime-loving plant.
And fruits have not even been mentioned! In Grand Traverse
County. as in other sections of the region, "the apple is king," the
varieties which especially flourish being Alexander, Baldwin, Canada
Red. Duchess of Oldenburg, Grimes Golden, Hubbardston, Jonathan,
King. Maiden Blush, Greening, Snow and Spy. The Grand Traverse
apple tree acreage is so great and the crop so important that each suminer and fall a large number of buyers establish headquarters in Traverse City, going into the fruit sections to buy the fruit on the trees.
As a cherry-producing region the Grand Traverse Peninsula 'has
become one of the most important sections of the country. At first
it was thought that cherries could be grown successfully in commercial
quantities only at the tip end of the peninsula, but now it is eo'nwu
knowledge that the whole Grand Traverse country is adapted to the
growing of both sour and sweet cherries of exceptional keeping qualities and delightful flavor. The time is near at hand when a large
share of Leelanau county and a goodly portion of the water front sections of Antrim, Grand Traverse and Benzie counties will be given
over to the cherry-growing industry. The first special fruit train out
of the Grand Traverse region left Traverse City one July morning in
the summer of 1909. It was loaded with cherries.
Peaches and plums constitute leading fruit crops of Grand Trav



CHERRY HIARVEST TN GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY




248          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
erse county. As the peach is from two to three weeks later in this section than in Southern Michigan it is usually marketed at high prices.
In the growing of small fruits, such as raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, currants and gooseberries, the country is also rapidly progressing.
It is only a few years ago that thoroughbred livestock was introduced to the Grand Traverse region, which is an ideal country for
this branch of agricultural industry. The scores of inland lakes, swiftrunning streams and bubbling brooks, with abundance of nutritious
forage, constitute most favorable conditions for the breeding of blooded
stock, or milch cows. And, as has been so well stated: "Stock raising
and fruit growing are two industries that dovetail into each other. The
one requires the maximum of attention in the winter, the other in the
summer. The former furnished the fertility that is so essential to the
success of the latter."
TWENTY YEARS' GROWTH
Increase of population is one of the strongest evidences of growth,
as people do not multiply and reside in a county permanently unless
they find means for bettering themselves and adding to the general
fund of prosperity. Uncle Sam, through his Census Bureau, furnishes
evidence of the continuous growth of Grand Traverse county in his
enumerations of 1890, 1900 and 1910.
Civil Divisions                             1910   1900   1890
Acme  township.............................  731  692..
Blair  township.............................  891  797    676
East Bay township..........................  663   553   1,018
Fife Lake township, including Fife Lake village.  837  1,019  810
Fife  Lake  village........................  340  456  394
Garfield  township...........................  932  986   843
Grant  township............................  882  699     498
Green Lake township.......................  793    787     371
Long Lake township........................  745  663     492
Mayfield township..........................  977  878     560
Paradise township, including Kingsley village.. 1,747  1,693  1,357
Kingsley village.........................  497   419
Peninsula township......................... 1,262  1,134   957
Traverse  City...............................12,115  9,407  4,833
W ard   1........................1,666.........
W ard   2.................................  2,301
W ard   3.................................  4,388
W ard  4...............................  1406
W ard   5.................................  2,354..
Union  township...........................  219   208     148
Whitewater township.......................  990    963     792
Totals..................................23,784  20,479  13,355




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIlGAN


)49


STEPS IN ORGANIC LIFE
In tie civil and industrial development of Grand Traverse county
certain important steps were taken which it is necessary to notice, in
addition to those which may be traced in the general history. In 1840
that part of the state embraced in towns 25, 26 and 27 north, ranges 9,
10, 11 and 12 west, and town 28 of ranges 9 and 10 west, and including
all the peninsula at the head of Grand Traverse bay, was laid off as a
separate county and designated as Omeena. This was the mother of
Grand Traverse county, which was organized by act of the legislature,
approved April 7, 1851. In the winter of 1853 an act was passed to
COURT HOUSE, TRAVERSE CITY
complete the organization of Grand Traverse county and to make it
coextensive with the original unorganized county of Omeena. The counties of Antrim, Kalkaska, Missaukee, Wexford, Manistee and Leelanau
were attached to it for judicial and municipal purposes. The county
seat was fixed at Boardman's Mills, the nucleus of Traverse City.
The first county election was held at the house of Horace Boardman,
founder of the settlement, on the 4th of August, 1851. Twenty-eight
votes were polled and the following officers elected: Sheriff, William
H-. Case; clerk and register, L. O. Schofield; judge of probate, George
N. Smith; county judge, Joseph Dame; treasurer, Horace Boardman:
prosecuting attorney, Orlin P. Hughson.
A special election was again held May 9, 1853, at which seventy-one
votes were cast and the following county officers elected:  Judge o'
probate, George N. Smith; sheriff, Norman B. Cowles; clerk and register.
Thomas Cutler; treasurer. Hosner R. Cowles; prosecuting attorney,




250


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Robert McClelland; surveyor, Abram S. Wadsworth. The first regular
election was held November 7, 1854.
OLD MIssION FOUNDED
The real history of Grand Traverse county commences in 1839 with
the advent of the Protestant missionaries. In May of that year, Rev.
John Fleming and Rev. Peter Dougherty arrived at the little cove on
the northwestern shores of East Bay and the upper portion of the peninsula, known as Mission Harbor. They had come by boat from Mackinac, where they had spent the previous winter and had now ventured
into this new region around Grand Traverse bay as agents for the
Presbyterian Board of Missions.
The day following their arrival an Indian chief with a number of
men visited the missionaries, who informed the red men that they had
come by direction of their agent at Mackiniac, Henry R. Schooleraft,
and by permission of their great father, the president, to establish a
school among them. After some uncertainties as to location, the mouth
of Elk river at the present site of Elk Rapids being at one time almost
decided upon, the school was finally located at the original site, Old Mission. The decision was made definite by the arrival of Mr. Schooleraft
on June 20th, and on the following day the school and mission were
established.
In the fall John Johnston arrived at the Mission, having come by
appointment of Mr. Schooleraft to reside there as Indian farmer. During the winter the mission family consisted of four men, Dougherty,
George, Greensky and Johnston. Mr. Johnston had brought with him
a yoke of oxen for use in Indian farming. There was no fodder in
the country, unless he may have brought a little with him. Be that as
it may, he found it necessary to browse his cattle all winter.
In the spring of 1840 the log house which had been built at Elk
Rapids the previous year was taken down and the materials were transported across the bay and used in the construction of a schoolhouse and
woodshed. Until the mission church was built, a year or two after, the
schoolhouse was used for holding religious services, as well as for school
purposes.
In the fall of 1841, besides Indian wigwams, there were five buildings at the mission-the schoolhouse and four dwellings. All were built
of logs, and all, except Mr. Dougherty's house, were covered with cedar
bark. The dwellings were occupied by Mr. Dougherty, missionary,
Henry Bradley, Mission teacher, John Johnston, Indian farmer, and
David McGulpin, assistant farmer. Mr. George was still there, and there
had been another addition to the community in the person of George
Johnston, who had come in the capacity of Indian carpenter. As regards race, the little community, the only representative of Christian
civilization in the heart of a savage wilderness, was somewhat mixed.
John Johnston was a half Indian, with a white wife; McGulpin was a
white man with an Indian wife. All the others, except Greensky, the
interpreter, were whites.
In 1849 there were three stores at Old Mission, viz., Lewis Miller,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


251


A. Paul and Cowles & Campbell. Business was conducted at a great
disadvantage. During that winter the mail arrived only twice. In the
fall a man was sent on foot for it to Mackinac, but on his arrival at the
straits he was compelled to wait until they froze over before he could
get across to the postoffice on the island.
Thus was founded Old Mission, the first settlement in Grand Traverse county. The Mission consequently has the credit of being the origin
of many "first things, " among others of the pioneer school in the
county whose founding and "first term" make an interesting chapter.
FIRST SCHOOL
In November, 1851, five young men arrived at Old Mission, in the
schooner "Madeline," with the intention of wintering in the vicinity.
Three of them were brothers named Fitzgerald. A fourth was William
Boyce. The name of the fifth, who was employed by the others as cook,
is not known. The five were all good sailors and three of them had been
masters of vessels during the past season, but all were deficient in education. None of them were even fair readers and one of the number was
unable to write his name. An eager desire to learn was the occasion of
their coming. Here in the wilderness they would be removed from the
allurements that might distract the attention in a populous port. It is
probable, also, that diffidence arising from a consciousness of their own
deficiencies made them unwilling to enter a public school where their
limited attainments would be displayed in painful contrast with those
of younger pupils.
At Old Mission, the man who had been engaged as teacher failing to
meet the contract, S. E. Wait, then only nineteen years of age, was employed at twenty dollars per month and board. Bryce and the Fitzgeralds were to pay the bills, the cook receiving his tuition in compensation for his services. The "Madeline" was brought round to Bowers'
Harbor and securely anchored for the winter. The after-hold was converted into a kitchen and diningroom and the cabin used for a schoolroom. Regular hours of study were observed, and the men voluntarily
submitted to strict school discipline. Out of school hours they had a
plenty of exercise in cutting wood and bringing it on board, to say. nothing of the recreation of snow balling in which they sometimes engaged
with the delight of genuine schoolboys. The bay that year did not freeze
over until March. Previous to the freezing, the wood was brought on
board in the yawl; afterward it was conveyed over the ice. Except by
way of Old Mission, to which occasional visits were made, the party was
entirely cut off from communication with the outside world.
The progress of Mr. Wait's pupils in their studies was a credit to
themselves and their youthful teacher. Their after history is not known,
except that four of them were captains of vessels the following season.
FIRST SHIPBUILDING
On the 4th of October, 1853, the schooner "Robert B. Campbell,"
which was built by Cowles & Campbell, merchants, at Old Mission, was




252


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


completed and launched at that place. She was built entirely of timber
obtained at the head of the bay and sailed between Chicago and Old
Mission. This was the first attempt at shipbuilding in the Grand Traverse region. The business, which on account of the abundance of timber
adapted to that purpose, ought to have been extensively engaged in,
does not seem to have prospered since. About this time the Pishaba
Indians, then inhabiting the foot of the peninsula about eight miles
north of Traverse City, built a fore-and-aft schooner sixty feet in
length, with deck and cabin, called the "Maguzee," which sailed about
the bay a few years; but as might have been expected she was poorly
built and soon became worthless. The schooner "Arrow" also, in the
winter of 1850-1, was brought from Mackinaw to Boardmaa river, where
she was cut in two and lengthened out fron forty-eight to sixty feet.
She afterward ran regularly between Mackinaw and Old Mission for
three years.
THE MISSION AND OLD MISSION
"Concerning the mission," says Dr. Leach's history, "it only remains to mention that the financial embarrassment of the board, growing
out of the war of the rebellion, necessitated the discontinuance of the
work. The school was finally broken up, and the mission farm passed
into other hands. Looked at from the Christian standpoint, the mission
seems to have been moderately successful. A good understanding was
always maintained between the missionaries and the Indians.  Mr.
Dougherty testifies that the latter were uniformly kind. Both at Old
Mission and Mission Point, a considerable number were hopefully converted."
Old Mission was platted in 1879 by L. N. Beers as Old Mission Harbor, but as a postoffice it is still known by its original name. It is somewhat of a summer resort, but chiefly interesting for its historic associations.
FOUNDING OF TRAVERSE CITY
The first settlement on the present site of Traverse City by Horace
Boardman and his mill hands, in 1847, has already been described in
the early history of lumbering. In the summer of 1848 a small wharf
was commenced on the shore of the bay, and a tramway built for the
purpose of transporting lumber to it from the mill. The next winter a
beginning was made toward getting out timber for the construction of
the contemplated large mill on the river. Mr. Boardman from time to
time varied his business by getting out shingle bolts and hemlock bark
for tanning purposes for the Chicago market. He cleared three or four
acres of land, and was successful in the cultivation of garden vegetables.
The summer of 1849 was marked by several incidents that added
interest to the life of the settlement. A man of the name of Freeman
came and got out a considerable quantity of hemlock bark for shipment, employing Indians to perform most of the labor. The bark was
stripped from trees growing upon government land. There was no one




HISSTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


253


in this remote region whose interest it was, or who considered it his
duty, to prevent spoliations of the public property.
The government had found it necessary to order a resurvey of the
lands in the vicinity of the bay. For some time the surveyors' camps
were pitched in the vicinity, the settlement being for them a sort of
headquarters and base of supplies.
Tn the employ of Risdon, one of the surveyors, was Henry Rutherford, afterward well known in the settlement, whose wife was with him.
Word was brought to the women at the mill one evening that there was
a woman in Risdom's camp. The announcement was sufficient to produce
i flutter of excitement. Mrs. Duncan had visited the ladies at Old
Mission, but Mrs. Gay, since her arrival at the river, had not seen the
face of a civilized person of her own sex, except the two who had come
with her. Setting out alone the next morning, she found her way to
the surveyors' camp and spent the forenoon with Mrs. Rutherford, remaining to dinner in response to a cordial invitation from the latter.
The cloth was spread on the ground, where there was a bit of clean grass,
outside the tent, the company sitting around it in oriental fashion. The
viands consisted of pork and potatoes, fried, with huckleberries for dessert. The next day Mrs. Rutherford returned the visit, dining with Mrs.
Gay. Mrs. Rutherford was partly of Indian descent, nevertheless she
was regarded as an important acquisition to the society of the colony. In
this way was laid the foundation for the future society of Traverse City.
In 1851 the firm of Hannah, Lay & Company located at what is now
known as Traverse City and started upon a business career which proved
wolnderflly successful. Mr. Hannah had previously visited that local



254


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


ity and ascertained by personal examination the great quantity of pine
timber along the Boardman river, and, having had considerable experience in the lumber business, saw at once that there was a grand opening for a lucrative business. The firm bought a large quantity of pine
land that cost them only one dollar and a quarter per acre. They
started in a moderate way, for in those days markets were limited,
prices were low, and transportation facilities were confined exclusively
to sailing vessels on the lakes and it took from six to nine days to land
s small cargo of lumber in Chicago from Traverse Bay. Their first sawmill was the one heretofore mentioned as having been built by Mr.
Boardman and which they purchased of him. This what was known as
a "Muley Mill," having but one upright saw, which under the most favorable circumstances would not cut more than two and a half or three
thousand feet of lumber in twelve hours. This proved to be altogether
too slow a process even for those slow times and accordingly, in the
spring of 1852, they commenced the construction of the first steam sawmill ever built in Northern Michigan. Having already cleared out the
Boardman river far enough to reach the first or nearest of their pine
lands, they were in position to do what was then considered a "big lumber business."
The advent of Hannah, Lay & Company was the "dawning of the
morning" in the settlement and development of the whole Grand Traverse region. They furnished work for all applicants. They supplied
the wants of all newcomers, and by their liberal and honorable dealings
did much to encourage those seeking homes. But the home seekers were
not numerous for the first few years. The vast unbroken forest that
stretched back from the little opening made at Traverse City to a seemingly unlimited distance was not very inviting to those who had lived
in an old settled country. So the fifties passed by and the total population in Grand Traverse county (Indians excepted) was twelve hundred
and eighty-six. This included the people who were connected with the
mill, the boardinghouse, the lumber camps and those who had been bold
enough to strike out into the forests to make homes for themselves. It
is needless to say to anyone who has ever entered the Grand Traverse
region that the successors of Hannah, Lay & Company, known since 1883
as Hannah & Lay Mercantile Company, are still behind much of the advancement of the Grand Traverse region.
The first meeting of the board of supervisors was held at the store of
Cowles & Campbell, in the town of Peninsula, on Wednesday, July 27,
1853. Little was done and an adjournment was taken to the following
day, the meeting place to be at the store of Hannah, Lay & Company
in Traverse City. Another adjournment was effected before the board
felt equal to business. A resolution was then adopted to the effect that
there being a vacancy in the office of circuit court commissioner, the
governor of the state would promote the general welfare by appointing
Robert McClelland to said office. A petition requesting the board to
legislate against the practice of throwing sawdust in the bay was
promptly tabled. Orlin P. Hughson having escaped from the custody
of the sheriff while under arrest a reward for his apprehension was authorized by the board.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


255


A proposition was received from Hannah, Lay & Company, offering
to donate ground to the county for the use of county buildings, which
was accepted and placed on file. Another proposition from the same firm
to advance $600 for the erection of a courthouse and jail was also accepted.
It was voted to expend the $600 in the construction of a courthouse
and jail, and Robert Campbell, Wm. McKilip and Thomas Cutler were
appointed a building committee.
The first county buildings erected in 1854 were destroyed by fire
about eight years afterward and rooms were rented by the county. For
a good many years the county officers were located in the Leach building. In 1882 the question of erecting a new building or buildings,
which had been agitated upon for some time was acted upon. The question of location then came up and a committee was appointed to ascertain the exact location of the county site. They reported that Hannah,
Lay & Company had donated block 10 as a site, provided the county
should erect a courthouse and jail within a year from the conveyance
of the property, June 5, 1854, and that the same parties had conveyed
block 10, without reservation, March 7, 1860. Courthouse and jail were
completed in February, 1883.
LAND OFFICE TRANSACTIONS
What has been known as the Traverse City district was created out
of the Ionia district and the office located at Duncan, Cheboygan county,
with C. H. Taylor, register, and H. A. Rood, receiver. The first entry
was made September 1, 1852. On November 1, 1857, Jacob Barns was
appointed register and 0. A. Stevens, receiver. March 1, 1858, the office was moved to Mackinaw Island, and July 1, 1858, was closed there
and opened at Traverse City, August 2, 1858. June 1, 1861, Morgan
Bates was appointed register and Reuben Goodrich, receiver, and they
were superseded, May 16, 1867, by L. G. Wilcox as register and E.
Anneke receiver. May 18, 1869, Morgan Bates and Reuben Goodrich
were reinstated in their old positions. July, 1, 1872, Perry Hannah succeeded Reuben Goodrich in the receiver's office. Morgan Bates died
March 2, 1874, and on March 23, Seth C. Moffatt was appointed to the
vacant registership, and held the position until July, 1878, when the
office was discontinued, the books and papers pertaining thereto were
transferred to Reed City and the two offices consolidated.
When the office was moved to Traverse City, Northern Michigan
was a vast wilderness. The state had already selected its " swamp lands"
and the great reservations of the Grand Rapids & Indiana and Jackson,
Lansing & Saginaw Railroads had been made. Since then several "Indemnity" reservations have been made by the state and the extensive
agricultural college grant located. During the nineteen years and
eleven months that the office was kept at Traverse City, the business
transacted was as follows:




256


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Acres.
Entered with warrants, act 1842......................      256.20
Entered with warrants, act 1847......................     2,440.00
Entered with warrants, act 1850......................    16,872.29
Entered with warrants, act 1852......................      320.00
Entered with warrants, act 1855......................   299,246.68
Total land  warrants entries........................  319,135.27
Entered with agricultural scrip.......................  155,768.37
Entered  with  cash...................................  320,794.13
Whole amount purchased..........................    795,697.77
Entered  as  homesteads...............................  1,048,101.91
Grand total of entries at Traverse City............. 1,843,101.91
TRAVERSE CITY INCORPORATED
The question of incorporating the village was agitated for two or
three years and finally in the winter of 1881 a bill was passed "to constitute a village corporate and known by the name of the village of
Traverse City."
The first charter election was held the third Monday of April, 1881;
229 votes were polled, and the following non-partisan ticket elected:
President, Perry Hannah; clerk, Thomas W. Browne; treasurer, M. E.
Haskell; assessor, Henry D. Campbell; street commissioner, John Kelley;
constable, William J. Moody; trustees, Smith Barnes, Seth C. Moffatt,
Homer P. Daw, Joseph B. Haviland, James Lee, Joseph E. Greilick.
The Traverse City fire department dates back to the year 1877. On
March 16th of that year a meeting was held at Leach's hall for the
purpose of effecting an organization. A few months prior to that time
a fund had been raised by subscription, and two small engines purchased. Two hose carts had also been ordered. At this meeting the
Traverse City Fire Department was organized and officers elected, as
follows: Fire marshall, S. Barnes; assistant H. D. Campbell; chief
engineer, W. V. Harvey; fire inspectors, Charles Duprey and John
Stevenson. Officers for the engines Wide Awake and Invincible were
also elected. Other business relating to buildings, location, etc., was
also transacted. With the introduction of water works in 1881 the
fire protection of the village was completed.
The fire department now consists of two modern steamers, two com)ination wagons, one hose and ladder trucks, one chemical engine and
four hose carts, and seven paid and seventy-five volunteer members.
The Boardman River Electric Light and Power Company, which
furnishes the city with illumination and many of its factories with
power, was incorporated in 1903 with a capital of $100,000.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
The first regular teacher of a Traverse City school was Miss Helen
Goodale, daughter of the pioneer physician, Dr. David C. Goodale, of




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


257


Vermont, who came to the place in 1853 to keep the boarding house of
Hannah, Lay & Company, and incidentally to practice. It was a part
of the contract between the enterprising doctor and the firm that his
daughter, then fifteen years of age, should teach school for one dollar
a week and board. In those days there were nothing but subscriptions
schools and Hannah, Lay & Company promised Dr. Goodale that if
the people failed to pay the teacher's salary they would make up any
deficiency. As yet, there had been no legal organization of a school
district, and the best that could be done to provide Miss Helen with
accomodations was to clean out a tumbled-down log stable that had been
used by Mr. Spencer, in the winter of 1851-2, while getting out logs
and timber. The building stood in what would now be the eastern part
of Traverse City. But the school was opened with eleven pupils, Miss
Helen afterward went to Chicago to better fit herself to instruct the
boys and girls of the infant settlement, and finally became Mrs. T. A.
Hitchcock, a highly respected and deeply beloved member of the community. District No. 1 was formed May 11, 1854, and the public system may be said to have been established in Traverse City and Grand
Traverse county.
The seven city schools as now organized comprise the High and Central school with an average attendance of 26 and 317, the latter figure
covering eight grammar grades; Boardman Avenue school, 264; Elmwood Avenue, 316; Oak Park, 330; Union school, 284; State School for
the Deaf, 6, and Booneville school, 16. L. L. Tyler became superintendent of schools in 1911, and G. H. Curtis is principal of the high school.
Ten men and fifty-six women constitute the teaching force.   Besides the usual courses taught in advanced high schools, the Traverse
City institution has taken somewhat of a departure in establishing a
department of agriculture and horticulture, including practical botany
and soil analysis.
TRAVERSE CITY CHURCHES
The credit for arousing interest in religious matters and founding
the first Sunday school in Traverse City rests with Mrs. A. T. Lay and
Mrs. D. C. Goodale. In the early summer of 1853 they induced Hannah, Lay & Company to furnish an old log house for the purpose, and
when the school finally met eight children reported and three teachers,
Messrs. A. T. Lay and L. Schofield and Mrs. Goodale. The meeting
was rather unsatisfactory, and on the second Sabbath the teachers
assembled but no children appeared. At length Mrs. Goodale offered
to go out and look for them, and, sure enough, she found them near
by picking and eating huckleberries. They were gathered in from the
hedges, but the Sunday school soon disbanded and no further attempts
were made in that direction until the summer of 1858, when Rev. D.
R. Latham, a Methodist minister and the first regular pastor, located
at Traverse City.
The first Methodist class in Traverse City was organized by Mr.
Latham April 11, 1858, and consisted of William Fowle, Mrs. Goodale
Vol. 1-If




258


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


and five others. The first meetings were held in the district school
house which had recently been built.
The First Congregational church was organized February 1, 1863,
Rev. C. E. Bailey, of Benzonia preaching the opening sermon and receiving ten members which formed the society. Rev. J. H. Crumb was
the regular pastor and Elvin L. Sprague the first deacon.
Other pioneer churches were the First Baptist, organized in 1870;
Grace Episcopal, 1873, and St. Francis Catholic, 1877. It should be
stated regarding the activities of the Catholics that Father Mrack came
to Traverse City as a missionary priest as early as 1855; that others
visited the place and that in 1871 Father Herbstrit, of Sutton's Bay,
built a small church in Traverse City. The first resident priest, however, was Rev. George Ziegler, who assumed charge of St. Francis Catholic Society in 1877.
Traverse City has now twenty or more churches-three Methodist,
two Lutheran, two Roman Catholic, two Congregational, two Disciples
and two Christian Scientist, and representatives of the Presbyterians,
Episcopalians, Free Methodists, Seventh Day Adventists, Friends and
Latter Day Saints. It is also strong as a center of the secret and benevolent societies. The Masons, Knights of Pythias, Eagles and Elks all
have large and well furnished halls, as does the Salvation Army which
is well entrenched in its work.
THE LIBRARIES
In a notice of the forces which have worked for the uplifting of
Traverse City, both morally and intellectually, too much stress cannot
be placed on the Ladies' Library Association, and we therefore cheerfully accord its history a generous amount of space. On a July afternoon in the year 1869 a little company of Traverse City women met in
the old Leach hall, on the corner of Front and Park streets, to organize
a Ladies' Library Association, for books were scarce and prized in those
days in a way that would be unappreciated by readers in these days
of an over-abundance of reading-matter. At that time Flint had the
only Ladies' Library in the state.
Mrs. Morgan Bates presided as chairman of the meeting. Mrs. Reuben Hatch, Mrs. T. T. Bates and Mrs. C. K. Buck were appointed a
committee to draft a constitution and by-laws and the meeting adjourned for one week.
At the second meeting, the following officers were elected for a term
of two years, dating from October, 1869: President, Mrs. Morgan
Bates, Sr.; Vice-president, Mrs. Oscar L. Noble; secretary, Mrs. H. R.
Hulburd; treasurer, Mrs. S. W. Arnold; librarian, Mrs. T. T. Bates;
assistant librarian, Mrs. B. D. Ashton; corresponding secretary, Mrs.
Reuben Hatch.
From its organization the association has been largely composed of
members who have its welfare at heart and who have given freely of
money received from yearly dues and some entertainments, in the
their time and talents in its service. By careful management of the
earlier days, valuable property has been gained. There has been one




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


259


legacy of $3,000 from the late Smith Barnes. The first real estate was
purchased in 1871; following this several purchases and sales were
made until in 1878 a building was erected on Front street just east of
Cass, at a cost of $1,940; this property they sold in 1909 for $10,000.
The building was a good investment in every way, for the first floor
furnished ample room for the library as well as offices which always
brought in good rental. The upper floor was known as The Ladies'
Library Hall, for years the largest and best entertainment hall in the
place, being used for parties and all theatrical performances until the
City Opera House was built some twenty years later.
Having sold this building the association decided to build a permanent home upon their lots on Cass street, for which lots they had paid
$1,800 and shortly after the purchase had refused $2,200 for them.
The cornerstone for this building was laid with impressive ceremony by the Grand Lodge of Masons of Michigan, on July 23, 1909,
in the presence of a large number of people. The history of the association was given by the two women who had been members continuously since its organization, Mrs. Reuben Hatch of Grand Rapids and
her sister, Mrs. Edwin S. Pratt; Mrs. Hatch has since passed away,
on February 24, 1911; so Mrs. Pratt is the only living continuous member. She has been president since January, 1910, and always an active
worker.
When the building was completed a large reception was given to the
husbands of the members and their friends, all of whom united in declaring it a most attractive, homelike place. It contains parlors, library with some four thousand volumes of carefully selected books,
dining room, kitchen and toilet-room, all with the latest conveniences.
Every two weeks during nine months of the year a "social afternoon" is held which the ladies greatly enjoy as many new ideas are
exchanged over their pretty needlework, a short musical and literary
program is given and last but not least all adjourn to the dining-room
to partake of delicious refreshments prepared by a committee of seven,
this committee changing with each time.
It is also believed that at a not far-distant time the rooms may be
kept open oftener and the work of the association broadened.
In October, 1911, there are 175 members and the following officers:
President, Mrs. Edwin S. Pratt; first vice president, Mrs. Arthur Wait;
second vice president, Mrs. Thomas D. McManus; secretary, Mrs. J.
V. McIntosh; financial secretary, Mrs. R. L. Corbett; treasurer, Mrs.
C. J. Kneeland; librarian, Mrs. Callie Thacker, who has held this office
many years. Board of Directors: Mrs. L. Soule, Mrs. J. B. Haviland,
Mrs. Frank Kafka, Mrs. C. F. Hunter, Mrs. B. Thirlby and Mrs. O. P.
Carver.
Traverse City has also a convenient and well arranged Carnegie library of some eight thousand volumes, which is a further credit to her
enterprise and intelligence. Miss Helen Stout is the librarian. The
City Library is also a tribute to the women, having its origin in the
Woman's Club of the Carnegie Library organized in 1891.




260


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


BOARD OF TRADE
Traverse City can point to no one agency which is doing more for
her advancement all along the line than her Board of Trade, which is
the outgrowth of a Business Men's Association that was formed in
1886 and was carried on until it was permanently organized as a Board
of Trade in 1899, with C. E. Hale as secretary, since which time the
following gentlemen have filled that important office: Thomas Smurthwaite, J. W. Hannen, W. H. Umlor, M. S. Sanders, H. Montague and
now M. B. Holley, who is the first paid secretary that it ever has had.
The work was growing so fast that it was found that a paid officer was


b-  _  I ---- -   --  -       - -- ---- ------..
rs


I.1 T.s:.1...     I...


A
A


THE BUREAU OF INFORMATION


absolutely necessary. Former Mayor A. V. Friedrich was one of the
active presidents, as were Mayor John R. Santo and W. H. Umlor,
judge of the recorder's court. The Board has a neat building of its
own at the foot of Cass street. It is designated "Bureau of Information, Board of Trade," and if ever a structure was well named it is
this one. Mr. Holley, the secretary, is a storehouse of information, and
the Traverse City Board of Trade is one of the most energetic publishing houses in Northern Michigan.
THE BANKS
The Traverse City State Bank is the oldest of the solid financial
institutions which assist so materially in maintaining the good standing of the place. It is also a child of Hannah, Lay & Company. When
that firm entered the banking business in 1856, it was composed of
Perry Hannah, A. Tracy Lay, James Morgan and William Morgan. For




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


261


a period of thirty-six years, or until 1892, this private bank as managed and controlled by its founders was a financial stronghold, its integrity never questioned, and safely passed through all panics and
business disturbances. The duties of the partners were divided, Mr.
Hannah looking after the interests in Traverse City and Mr. Lay the
interests at Chicago, where their extensive lumber yards were located.
In 1892 the private banking house of Hannah, Lay & Company was reorganized and incorporated under the laws of the state of Michigan
as the Traverse City State Bank, with a fully paid up capital stock of
$100,000. The first officers were Perry Hannah, president; A. Tracy
Lay, vice president; J. T. Hannah, cashier, and Samuel Garland, assistant cashier, and they together with James Morgan and William
Morgan subscribed for the stock. In 1903 the capital stock was increased to $200,000. In 1904, upon the death of Perry Hannah, his
son, J. T. Hannah, assumed the responsibility of the local management.
In 1905, when Providence called this young and promising son to join
his father, A. Tracy Lay was elected president, R. Floyd Clinch, vice
president, and Samuel Garland, cashier. The present officers are A.
Tracy Lay, president; R. Floyd Clinch, vice president; Harry C. Davis,
vice president, and A. J. Maynard, cashier, the last named assuming his
position upon the recent death of Mr. Garland. The resources of the
Traverse City State Bank were $381,000 in September, 1911; its capital stock, $200,000; surplus and profits, $105,000, and deposits, $1,887,000.
The First National Bank of Traverse City first opened for business
in the old Leach building, April 9, 1885. During its entire history the
bank has had only three presidents: John C. Lewis, who was elected
at the time of its organization, acted until 1894, when John T. Beadle
was elected the first time. H. S. Hull was president from 1896 to 1902,
at which Mr. Beadle, the present incumbent, was again chosen. There
have been four cashiers of the bank: C. A. Hammond, W. L. Hammond, Frank Welton and the present cashier, Leon F. Titus, who has
held this position since 1903. When the bank was established, it was
capitalized at $50,000; in March, 1905, the capital was increased to
$100,000, under a renewed charter granted by the United States government.
In the spring of 1906 the bank purchased the lot on the northeast
corner of Front and Cass streets where its present building was erected.
The cornerstone of the new First National Bank building was laid on
July 30, 1908, under the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Free and
Accepted Masons of the state of Michigan. The ceremonies were directed with appropriate dignity by Grand Master Montague of Traverse City. Next to the opening of the new building, the laying of the
cornerstone was the most significant event in the history of the bank.
The resources of the First National Bank in September, 1911, amounted
to $1,046,000, and its liabilities as follows: Capital and surplus, $125,000; bank note circulation, $100,000, and deposits, $821,000.
The Peoples Savings Bank was organized in November, 1902. Its
resources amount to $406,000; capital stock, $60,000; surplus and undivided profits, $2,800; deposits, $342,000. Present officers:  H. S.




262


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Hull, president; A. V. Friedrich and Charles Wilhelm, vice presidents;
M. 0. Robinson, cashier.
NORTHERN MICHIGAN INSANE ASYLUM
The Northern Michigan Asylum for the Insane at Traverse City was
organized in 1881 and the first patient received November 30, 1885.
Its first cost was $522,430.68 and its present value is $1,046,862.46.
The property consists of forty-two buildings, occupying a site of 728
acres and the asylum cares for 1,384 patients.
The trustees of the Northern Michigan Asylum are: Thomas T..  4


NORTHERN MICHIGAN INSANE ASYLUM, TRAVERSE CITY


Bates and H. C. Davis, Traverse City; W. W. Mitchell, Cadillac; M.
F. Quaintance, Petoskey; W. Lloyd, Manistee, and E. S. Wager, Edmore. Resident officers: Drs. James D. Munson, medical superintendent; A. S. Rowley and W. D. Mueller, assistant superintendents; R.
E. Wells and Adah Epperson, assistant physicians. Rev. D. Cochlin
and Samuel Garland, both of Traverse City, are respectively chaplain
and treasurer. The evolution of the hospital has been along many
lines-development of its grounds, clearing and additions to its farms,
and enlargement of the hospital by the construction of cottages and
extensions to the main building. There has been a broadening out in
the care of the insane; isolated provision is made for the treatment of
tubercular patients, training school for nurses has been established and
maintained, a dietician employed to look after foods and their preparation, and skilled men placed in charge of the gardens, green houses,
orchards and other farm departments.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


263


COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY
Grand Traverse county has a growing medical society with a membership of about 25. It was organized in 1902 with the following officers: Drs. A. S. Rowley, president; 0. Kneeland, vice president; 0.
E. Chase, secretary, and F. P. Lawton, treasurer. Present officers:
Drs. E. B. Minor, president; F. Houseworth, vice president, and R. E.
Wells, secretary-treasurer.
VILLAGE AND TOWN HISTORY
The village of Kingsley, formerly Paradise, was brought into existence by the building of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad and was
named in honor of Judson W. Kingsley, an early settler of Paradise
township who came into the region about 1865. He was the first mrierchant and postmaster of the village, which was platted in 1882 by Dr.
Myron S. Brownson, a pioneer physician, large land holder and founder
of many early industries in the southern part of Grand Traverse county.
Kingsley is a growing little place, with four churches, flour and planing mills, bank, electric light and water plant, and a good school.
The village of Fife Lake was brought into being by the building of
the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad. In the spring and summer of
1872 two villages were platted, called respectively "North Fife Lake"
and "Fife Lake." The latter was made in June, 1872, by L. L. Shaw
and others of Grand Rapids, and the north town was platted about the
same time by Thomas T. Bates, who purchased the land of Hon. Morgan Bates. All contentions between North Fife Lake and Fife Lake
were settled by the incorporation of the village under the latter name
in 1889. It has now several churches, a fine school, weekly paper and
a well established bank and is quite a shipping point for lumber products and potatoes.
Traverse and Peninsula townships were organized at the time of
the county, in 1851; Whitewater in 1859; Grant in 1866; Mayfield,
East Bay, Long Lake and Blair in 1867; Paradise in 1870; Fife Lake
in 1873; Garfield in 1882; and Green Lake in 1883.
David R. Curtis, a cousin of Gen. Curtis, settled near the present
site of Yuba postoffice in what is now the town of East Bay in 1852.
In 1853 Messrs. Voice & Nelson built a sawmill at the head of East
Bay, and the following year sold the property to Green & Holden who
added steam to the water power.
Captain F. Mullerty settled near the present site of Acme postoffice, in 1853, and was followed the next year by Isaac Love, W. IH.
Fife, Gilbert Ainslie, Orrin B. Paige and A. T. Allen. Among those
who came soon after were the Pulciphers, Joseph Sours, Enos Peck,
George Brown and H. S. Beach, who settled in what are now East Bay
and Whitewater townships.




CHAPTER X


CHARLEVOIX COUNTY
DIVERSE ADVANTAGES-THE COUNTY STATISTICALLY-THE PINE LAKE
REGION-HOLY ISLAND-KNOWN THREE CENTURIES AGO-RULE OF
KING STRANG-THE COUNTY AND THE COUNTY SEAT-ORGANIZATION
OF TOWNS —CHARLEVOIX AS A VILLAGE-THE CHARLEVOIX AND CHICAGO  RESORTS-CHARLEVOIX    AS A   CORPORATION-SCHOOLS AND
CHURCHES-BANKS-BOYNE CITY-EAST JORDAN-OTHER COUNTY
COMMUNITIES.
Charlevoix county, northeast of Grand Traverse bay, is one of the
most prosperous and progressive sections of Grand Traverse region,
and has attained its standing through several channels. In fact, perhaps of all the counties in western Michigan none presents more diversified advantages than Charlevoix. It has a national fame as a resort
for seekers after health and recreation and its business houses feel the
effects of the stimulation of the summer months throughout the entire
year. Much of her permanent settlement has been derived from visitors who came only as transients but were charmed into lifelong residence.
COUNTY'S DIVERSE ADVANTAGES
Boyne City, with its 5,000 people, and East Jordan and Charlevoix,
each of about 2,500 population, are also industrial centers which turn
out all kinds of lumber products, leather, cement, flour, beet sugar,
agricultural implements, fruit packages, chemicals and various iron
fabrications.
As a fruit-raising and an agricultural section Charlevoix county
has taken her first steps, albeit she is far advanced in horticulture.
With an area of 270,720 acres, 109,000 acres are already devoted to
orchards and farms; and it is estimated, that another 100,000 acres
are available for cultivation.
The surface of Charlevoix county is gently rolling, dotted here and
there with beautiful lakes and veined with streams well stocked with
fish. Its remaining timber is mostly hardwood, which supplies many
of the factories with their raw material. Fruit growing can nowhere
be carried on with better assurance of success, as the influence of the
lake usually keeps frosts off until the beginning of winter, and as her
harvests are later than those of Southern Michigan during the last of
264




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


265


the seasons her pears, berries and apples bring unusually high prices.
The county also enjoys good home markets, particularly in the warm
seasons. Outside of fruits, the large and standard crops are potatoes
and seeds of every variety, with sugar beets as close competitors. Dairying and poultry raising are also growing and already profitable industries.
All of which goes to prove the original statement, that perhaps the
strongest characteristic of Charlevoix county is the diversity of her
advantages.
Two organizations which are doing much for the development of
the region are the County Chamber of Commerce and the Charlevoix
County Agricultural Society. The former is an association of Boyne
City, Charlevoix and East Jordan business men and farmers who work
in harmony to inform the public as to the true "inwardness" of the
county and all its institutions.
Organized in 1885, the Charlevoix County Agricultural Society has
held a creditable fair each fall since, each annual exhibition increasing
in variety, size and interest. Some years ago the society acquired forty
acres of ground near East Jordan, and erected buildings which were
then ample for the housing of the exhibits, but with the rapid progress
in horticultural and agricultural matters of recent years in 1910 it was
found necessary to erect the modern and up-to-date buildings which now
stand upon the grounds.
THE COUNTY STATISTICALLY
The best idea of the comparative wealth of the townships and cities
of the county is obtained from the 1911 assessment of real and personal
property.
Townships and Cities   Acres     Real     Personal    Total
Bay..................    10,064 $ 125,665 $   11,690 $ 137,355
Boyne Valley.........    22,334   251,440     63,800    315,240
Chandler.............   23,039    230,670     49,350    280,020
Charlevoix twp........   3,871    170,630      8,150    178,780
Evangeline............    6,938    58,235        932     59,167
Eveline...............   15,856   207,760     11,770    219,530
Hayes................    19,030   214,705     27,650    245,355
Hudson...............    22,226    162,850    36,280    199,130
Marion................   16,020    252,025    23,935    275,960
Melrose...............   19,016    351,650    52,568    404,218
Norwood..............    11,512    176,165    24,770    200,935
Peaine................   28,675    88,625     11,675    100,300
St. James............    6,957     78,140     39,400    117,540
South Arm............   21,000    780,725    249,075   1,029,800
Wilson...............   21,572    197,080      7,925    205,005
City of Boyne City...........  1,117,148   614,978   1,732,126
City of Charlevoix..........   1,327,375   326,420   1,653,795
Total.............. 248,111  $5,790,883 $1,560,368  $7,351,256
The grand total, as finally equalized, was $7,192,211.




266          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Viewed from the standpoint of population, Charlevoix county shows
a continuous advance. The details are furnished by the census of 1910,
as follows:
1910   1900    1890
Bay  township.............................  466    503     469
Boyne  city...............................  5,218  912    450
W ard   1..............................  819..
W ard  2..............................  1,177
Ward 3..............................    1,828........
W ard  4...............................  1,394........
Boyne valley township, including Boyne Falls
village.............................   952   1,258    509
Boyne Falls village...................    325    431
Chandler township.......................     397    273    144
Charlevoix  city...........................  2,420  2,079  1,496
W ard   1..............................  447........
W ard   2..............................  1,045........
W ard   3..............................  898.......
Charlevoix township......................    207    178     22
Evangeline township......................    228    342    269
Eveline  township.........................  768    847    923
Hayes  township..........................   854    780    692
Hudson  township.........................   673    255     118
Marion  township..........................  636    681    441
Melrose  township................:........  676    620     436
Norwood township........................     366    652    484
Peaine  township..........................  370    372....
St. James  township.......................  695    420
South Arm township, including East Jordan
village............................  3,426  2,839  2,103
East Jordan........................    2,516   1,205    731
Wilson  township..........................  806    945    576
Total.................................  19,157  13,956  9,686
THE PINE LAKE REGION
The most marked physical feature of Charlevoix county is Pine lake
and the adjacent country. It is also the birthplace of its history and the
scene of the most interesting and exciting events of its early life. To
add to its importance, locally, and to its wider fame it has been celebrated by many pens, both in prose and poetry, as one of the loveliest
of the many beautiful regions of mingled water and land which adorn
Northern Michigan.
At the center of the promontory between Grand and Little Traverse bays a small river used to wend its serpentine course into Lake
Michigan. It was named See-pe-wa, or Green river. This stream was
only about a quarter of a mile in length and came out of a small round
lake. which was connected by a river about sixty rods in length with




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


267


Long lake. Various names have been applied to these lakes and streams,
such as Green lake, Mormon lake and finally Pine lake and Pine river
and Pine lake region. The river has been made navigable for the
largest vessels and Round and Pine lakes connected by an artificial
channel.
Round lake is a park-like body of water, covering an area of about
thirty acres, upon the shores of which is situated the beautiful little
city of Charlevoix, although its business and civic centers are on the
river about three-quarters of a mile away.
Pine lake stretches east and south some twenty miles. About five
miles east it divides, South Arm extending, as its name implies, south
to the distance of some five miles. Into the finger end of the south
arm flows the Jordan river, the famous trout stream. East Jordan
lies across the finger northeast of the river's mouth. The shores of
Pine lake are bold and its waters deep; it embosoms some beautiful
islands, is indented by numerous promontories separated by deep bays
and harbors, and presents some really beautiful scenery.
In 1865, long before any one ever thought of locating a summer
resort in this locality, Professor Winchell, then state geologist, in one
of his published reports said: "From the foot of Pine lake a scene
of surpassing loveliness presents itself. We land perhaps upon the
wharf at the mouth of Pine river. Before us is a sandy slope, on the
left of which we discover the usual features of a new settlement. Beyond is the forest. It is a pleasant October morning, however, and
we follow the well-beaten road through the fresh clearings which stretch
out for about a mile inland. We emerge from a screen of forest trees
and find ourselves standing upon an elevated bluff overlooking as
lovely a sheet of water as the sun ever shone upon. You feel almost
a transport of delight in emerging so suddenly from the depths of the
habitual forest into a prospect so vast, so gentle in its features, so delicate in its tints, and so glowing in the sunshine of a fair October morning. Far away to the southeast for fifteen miles stretches the placid,
smiling surface of the water, its white and pebbly shore chasing the
contour of the hills in all its meandering sinuosities. The verdant
ridges rise on every side from the shining shore line and hold the lake
in their enchanted embrace, while rounded hill tops bubble up in
rapid succession across the retiring landscape, till hill, vale, and sky,
green, purple and blue, dissolve together in the blended hues of the
distant horizon." When Professor Winchell wrote these words Charlevoix consisted of little more than a dock, a rude store and a boarding
house.
The name, the Boyne, was given by "Uncle" John Miller, a good
Irishman and the first settler near its mouth, to the stream that empties
into the head of Pine lake at the present village of Boyne. Next to
the Jordan it is the most noted trout stream in this part of the state.
It also affords a great variety of picturesque scenery.




"
II, "
S1C
~i


It4
I s Pa. I  L

ENTERING THE PINE LAKE REGION




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


269


" THE WAKING OF THE NORTHLAND "
This beautiful "northland" has been celebrated in verse by not a
few poets but by none more strikingly than by Rev. W. W. Lamport,
whose contribution, several years ago, to the columns of the Charlevoix
County Herald is herewith republished:
The slowly northing sun again
Calls softly to the slumbering hills.
The arbutus, waking in the glen,
For joy her cup of fragrance spills.
The wanton wind a-wand'ring goes
Along the valley's rugged side,
If he may find the sweet wild-rose
And woo her for his blushing bride.
From out its Antrim cradle springs
The Jordan for its lakeward run,
And to the bending willow sings
Of summer's joyous reign begun.
Adown the swiftly flowing stream
Dances again the light canoe;
And in the sunshine's golden gleam
The troutman whips the tide anew.
From yonder deadened hemlock tree
The sable crow sounds his alarm;
And on her snowy pinions free
Slowly the gull wheels o'er the Arm.
And sweetly trills the warbler's note;
The robin sings his cheer-up song;
While bursts from many a swelling throat
The chorus of the feathered throng.
Hail, happy harbingers of spring!
Soft winds and flowers and warming streams.
All hail ye joyous birds that sing,
Responsive to the sun's bright beams.
Ye tell us of the nearing day,
That happy day so soon at hand,
When friends shall come from far away
To share anew our "summer-land."
HOLY ISLAND
Holy Island, situated in the south arm   of Pine lake, about a mile
and a half below Ironton, is historic and picturesque. It was set apart
by the "Saints" as a place for holding the "Feast of First Fruits,"
in the summer of 1855. At that time it was an isolated spot where the
feastings and revelries could go on undisturbed by Gentile settlers.
The feast commenced on the first Sabbath after the full moon in August each year and generally continued several days. One of the principal articles of food was a roast ox or other animal, large enough to




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


feed the multitudes assembled. James J. Strang, the Mormon King,
explored the Pine Lake region, and his reports to the Northern Islander, the official Mormon newspaper on Beaver Island, gave the place
great value in the eyes of the Saints, and Holy Island was to become
sacred and devoted only to the worship of God. There was an evident
intention to make it the future headquarters of a colony of Saints to
be established on Pine lake. The death of Strang in 1856 prevented
the realization of their ambitions in this locality as on Beaver island,
the nucleus of the Mormon kingdom. Holy Island, which contains a
trifle over eleven acres, is covered with evergreen and white poplar,
and, commencing with the eighties various improvements have been
attempted to convert it into a popular summer resort.
KNOWN THREE CENTURIES AGO
Big Beaver island and the islands scattered farther north are now
embraced in St. James and Peaine townships, although much nearer
the coast line of Emmet county, to which they were formerly attached
in a civil and political sense. The story of the founding, rise and fall
of the Strang Kingdom therefore is a chapter in the history of Charlevoix county.
It is an accepted fact that a few years after Champlain founded
the French colony at Quebec, in 1608, his operations had extended to
Beaver island and that one of his trading houses was in operation at
what is now St. James. Writing as late as 1883, Dr. M. L. Leach says:
"Utensils left by them at different early periods are frequently found.
Extensive fields which they cultivated are grown up to woods, and
some remain in grass. But there are strong indications of the presence
of civilization at a still earlier period. The French settlement in Canada dates in 1608, but there are extensive fields on Beaver which have
been thoroughly cleared and cultivated; and some very fine garden
plats remain with the beds, paths, and alleys as well formed as the
day they were made, and laid out on an extended scale, on which trees
have been cut of two hundred and four years' growth. Consequently
these places have been abandoned, and grown up to timber, at least
since 1650. But cultivated fields are generally several years abandoned
before they grow to timber. These were too extensive and show too
many signs of wealth and ease to have been the work of a few adventurers. There is room at least to believe that of the numerous European colonies which were planted in America and lost without their
fate every being known, some one was carried captive to this recess
of the continent, and allowed to remain in peace."
In 1688 Baron La Hontan passed the Beaver and neighboring islands on his voyage to the St. Peter's early river of Minnesota, and other
travellers and explorers, both French and English, became familiar
with them while navigating the lakes between Canada and the Illinois
and Mississippi valleys. But it was King Strang who made them best
known to the people of the United States and first brought them within
the pale of civil government.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


271


RULE OF KING STRANG
James J. Strang, whose personality has already been introduced
to the readers of this history, was an eccentric, but a strong and a remarkable man. He was born in New York and passed most of his life
until manhood in Chautauqua county, where he gained a local reputation for his wonderful memory and his forensic skill. He borrowed
and devoured every law book he could obtain, was admitted to the bar,
taught school, edited a newspaper, and practiced his profession as he
could, before he married and moved to Racine county, Wisconsin.
Here he resumed practice and was recognized as an able lawyer with
a substantial future, when he came under the influence of one of those
Mormon missionaries who were being sent abroad by Joseph Smith
from the Nauvoo Church of Latter Day Saints. In January, 1844, he
visited Nauvoo and Joseph Smith, was baptized, and upon the death
of the latter, at Carthage, Illinois, with his brother Hyrum Smith,
Strang endeavored to supplant Brigham Young by every means in his
power. But the Council of Twelve opposed him. Strang seceded and
led his followers to the City of Voree, Wisconsin, "on the prairie on
White river, in the lands of Racine and Walworth," which he proclaimed had been designated as the site of the future Zion by Joseph
Smith shortly before his death. He challenged all the old leaders of
Mormonism to debate with him as to the justice of his claims, but in
vain, and with the fall of Nauvoo, the Mormon stronghold in Illinois,
and the exodus of Brigham Young and his followers across the Mississippi, Strang's colony at Voree alone remained in the northwest of the
thousands who had embraced the faith of Joseph Smith.
*It soon became apparent to Strang that the same conditions which
had driven the Mormons of Nauvoo to a trans-Mississippi wilderness,
would endanger the permanency of his colony in the course of a few
years. For the growth of a Mormon community isolation was essential; where Gentile influences controlled the vicinage, there the utter
annihilation of Mormonism was but a question of time. In his wanderings he had caught a glimpse from a vessel's deck of the natural
beauty and seeming fruitfulness of a cluster of islands near the door
that divides the great inland seas of Huron and Michigan. Here was
an ideal seat of power, remote from the obtrusiveness of civil officers
whose views of laws might differ from his own; yet not so distant from
the line of travel as to render profitable traffic impossible. The waters teemed with excellent fish; the forests would furnish an abundance
of most excellent timber; the soil needed but to be scratched to yield
in multiplied plenty. To this land of promise could be led his Saints,
and here would they wax fat and strong.
If this was Strang's dream of empire, as subsequent events indicated, the beginnings were indeed humble. He is authority for the
statement that he fixed on the islands in Lake Michigan as a place for
a Mormon community in 1846. Nearly a year elapsed before his plans
could be set in motion. With four companions he took passage on a
* From article by E. Ledger, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


273


little hooker, the captain agreeing to land them on Beaver island. They
sold their blankets to pay their passage and on the 11th day of May
stepped from the little sailing vessel upon the soil of the land which
the leader prophetically declared would prove to them an inheritance.
They were without a cent of money, but had provisions enough to
last two days. Their reception was inhospitable in the extreme. At
neither of the two trading houses then on the island could five penniless men arrange for lodging, so they sought the shelter of the woods.
Constructing a camp of hemlock boughs, they undertook a thorough
exploration of the island. Leeks and beechnuts served for food while
they were thus engaged.
Their perseverance brought its reward. They soon obtained employment, and it was not long before they had accumulated a store
of provisions, built a log cabin and arranged for the use of a boat.
Strang and two of the men returned to Voree to start the migration
to the new land of promise. Winter locked upon the island a Mormon
population of five men and thirteen women and children. The following winter the Mormons on the island numbered sixty-two, seventeen
of them being men. In the summer of 1849 the Saints began to arrive
in considerable numbers. Instead of confining their efforts to working
for the traders at the harbor they now felt numerically strong enough
to begin for themselves. Twelve elders went in various directions to
summon the faithful to the new stake of Zion, and to seek additional
converts. The islanders began the construction of a schooner, built a
steam saw-mill and made a road to the interior, where the land was
excellently adapted for agriculture. They manifested so much energy
that the fisherman whose rude huts punctuated the coast here, as well
as on the mainland opposite, took serious alarm. A land sale being
held about this time, considerable friction occurred between Mormon
and Gentile claimants of choice tracts. There arose an unpleasantness
that later bore bitter fruit. It was claimed by the Saints that the
fishermen induced the captains of vessels bearing Mormon emigrants
not to land at the Beaver. Many were carried on to Wisconsin who
had been ticketed from the east for the harbor of St. James, for so
the Mormons had rechristened the horseshoe bend where vessels came
to land, and where in stormy-weather they found a safe haven.
It was not long before the Mormons bade fair to control the island.
They but believed that they had come into their own, for this was the
revelation given unto their seer and revelator long before their coming:
"So I beheld a land amidst wide waters and covered with large timber, with a deep broad bay on one side of it; and I wandered over it
upon little hills and among rich valleys, where the air was pure and
serene, and the unfolding foliage, with its fragrant shades, attracted
me till I wandered to bright clear waters scarcely ruffled by the
breeze. And one came near unto me, and I said, What meaneth this?
And he answered and said, Behold, here shall God establish His people.
For He will make their arm strong, and their bow shall abide in strength,
and they shall not bow to the oppressor, and the power of the Gentile
shall not be upon them, for the arm of God shall be with them to supVol. I-i1




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


port. It hath abundance in the riches of the forest, and in the riches
of the earth, and in the riches of the waters. And the Lord God shall
add possession unto the faithful, and give good gifts unto them that
keep His law, and He will establish them therein forever."
To appreciate the spirit animating the Saints in thus taking possession, one must realize the fervor of their faith in the revelation of their
seer. There were among them some who had in mind mere pelf and
plunder, but the greater number of the misled people was no doubt
inspired by fanatic zeal. The law of Moses was their law, supplemented
by the doctrines of Mormon and the visions of Strang. To follow these
injunctions was to do no wrong, no matter what laws of the land they
violated. Like the children of Israel, they were going from the wilderness to a land overflowing with milk and honey. As the people led by
Moses had ruthlessly slain the Amorites, the Amalakites and the Midianites, so they felt justified in smiting the Lamanities, or Gentiles.
There was this distinction, that they lived in an age when prudence
forbade violent physical onslaught upon neighboring inhabitants, and
legal strategy took the place of physical violence. This, at least, was
the policy of the leaders, and they were implicity obeyed as a rule.
The Mormons manifested their sense of ownership by giving new
names to the physical distinctions of Beaver island. The beautiful
land-locked harbor was called St. James. The cluster of houses that
were reared on the ancient mounds along the shore-in the eyes of
the Mormons the evidences of an extinct race alluded to in the Book
of Mormon-they dignified by the name of City of St. James. A hill
in the interior received the biblical name of Mount Pisgah. The river
Jordan discharged into the lake the waters that poured into its bed from
the Sea of Galilee. Thus did the nomenclature of the island receive
the distinctive impress of its Mormon population.
Encounters between Mormons and Gentiles soon became frequent.
The Mormons planned a large tabernacle. While some of them were
cutting out the timber for the structure, they were set upon and
soundly beaten. Doubtless there is much truth in the claim made by
the Mormons that up to this time they were more sinned against than
aggressors. Drunken fishermen invaded their homes and subjected
the women to indignities; debating clubs were attended by uninvited
guests, whose boisterous conduct prevented proceedings. Men from
old Michilimackinac came in boats to raid outlying farmhouses. Families sent by the missionary elders were met at the wharf and told to
return to the boat, as all the Mormons would soon be driven away or
killed.
About the year 1850 the Saints began to retaliate in earnest. Their
numbers had so increased that they could safely do so. The ambitions
of Strang were about being realized. He had reorganized his community of Saints. The Book of the Law of the Lord, which he had
"translated" from plates dug out of the hill at Voree, had added another sacred book to the Mormon library, ranking in the faith of the
Beaver islanders with the Bible and the Book of Mormon. "Written
on metallic plates long previous to the Babylonish captivity," as Strang




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


275


explained to his credulous followers, the Urim and Thummim brought
to him by an angel's hand had enabled him to interpret the characters
thereof. Thus had he restored to the chosen people the ancient manuscript long lost to the Jewish nation. The sacred book kept in the ark
of the covenant and lost when the children of Israel were hurried into
captivity, came back after all these centuries by revelation given to
Strang.
And the Beaver island Mormons believed what he said.
It was now open war between all the fishermen of the region, whether
of Beaver and Mackinac islands, or the coasts of the Grand Traverse
region, and the Mormons under Strang. Their energetic leader had
announced the date of his coronation as July 8, 1850, and the opposition plotted to destroy his power and his budding kingdom before that
decisive event should transpire. In May a general invitation was given
by the Gentiles on all the fishing grounds to come to Whiskey Point,
near the scene of the proposed coronation, and there celebrate the glorious Fourth-and "incidentally" to get into a fight with the Mormons
who had called a general assembly at the same time and place. But
the Mormons, under the alert Strang, had forestalled their intentions
and provided themselves a real live cannon and heated balls, and their
twelve artillerists were prepared to level all the shanties at Whiskey
Point if they were molested in their legal services to be held in the unfinished Tabernacle near by. In a word, the plans of the Gentile fishermen quite miscarried. The threatened invasion having failed, the
coronation occurred, according to programme, July 8, 1850.
King Strang was now supreme on Beaver island, and bade fair to
soon control the entire group of islands. His policy was to foster the
fisheries as a source of profit to his colony and to use the power of
political machinery to secure immunity for infractions of the law. As
the population of the island multiplied and the power of the Mormons
with it, the hatred of the traders and fishermen on the opposite coasts
became more intense. The border feud became so bitter that the newspapers of Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo and New York devoted considerable space to its incidents. As a rule, these accounts represented the
Mormons as a band of pirates engaged in plunder and crimes of all
kinds. The center of the hostile camp was at old Mackinac, and here
plans were made for discomfiting the Mormons. It is difficult at this
day to judge how far the Gentiles were in the wrong and in how far
the Mormons. Doubtless there was much wrong on both sides.
At first the advantage was with the Gentiles at Mackinac, for they
had the machinery of government in their hands. The sheriff aided
them by arresting Mormons and taking them to Mackinac for trial.
On one occasion Strang and a company of workmen had gone to Hog
island to save from the wreck of a vessel a yawl boat frozen in the
shoals. A man named Moore, who had been chased off Beaver for selling whiskey, went before a justice of the peace at Mackinac and swore
out a warrant for the arrest of thirty-one men on the novel charge that
they had "put him in fear of danger." Sheriff Granger, with a posse
of thirteen white men and thirty-two Indians, went to the island, where




276


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the men were, seized the boat of the Mormons, and, believing their
prey secure, proceeded to the camp of the Mormons a little past midnight. A wild Irish hurrah and an accompanying Indian war-whoop
awoke the Mormons to a night of terror and suffering. Hatless and
shoeless they rushed into the woods and sought the protection of a
swamp, while the sheriff's men plundered the camp and divided the
spoils of war. The Mormons found a leaky fish-boat at the opposite
end of the island, and this launched. It was a cold April morning.
According to the account they afterwards gave, "the lake was spotted
with vast fields of drift ice. With a boat preserved from sinking only
by the ice frozen in it, without sails or oar locks, and with three unsuitable oars; not half clothed, no provisions, without a line to tie their
boat nor an ax to repair any accident, they set out on the broad blue
waters for a place of safety." It took twenty-four hours for them
to reach Gull island, and here they spent five miserable days in a fish
shanty before they managed to repair the boat sufficiently to proceed.
After this a price was set on Strang's head, and several hundred armed
men, including Irish fishermen and Indians hunted for him weeks
to earn the reward of $300 offered by the sheriff for the body of
Strang, "dead or alive."
The arrest and trial of Strang and his followers in the spring and
summer of 1853 have been described as the "first regular law case"
in the Grand Traverse region. He was discharged and returned to
his own, more autocratic than ever. Not a few of the Mormons themselves deserted the kingdom and joined the hostile fishermen on the
small islands and mainland. King Strang conceived the idea of getting them back into the fold by strategy. A grand jury was therefore
called at St. James and the Mormon sheriff and his posse went to
Charlevoix (Pine river) to serve a summons on ex-Elder Savage, several other Mormons who had fled being also summoned as jurors or
witnesses. When the papers were served on him Savage tore them in
pieces and when the sheriff attempted his arrest a score of sturdy fisher
lads attacked the Mormons, drove them to their boats and wounded
several before they got out of reach. King Strang at once took steps
to punish the colonists at Charlevoix, but the fisher boys and men had
fled.
Another serious encounter occurred when a Mormon constable attemlpted to arrest Thomas and Samuel Bennett, Gentiles who lived on
Beaver island. They resisted; Thomas Bennett was instantly shot
dead and his brother had one hand nearly shot away.
Such episodes caused renewed activity in the Gentile strongholds
among those who planned to sweep the Mormon settlements with fire
and sword. Before their plans could be executed the king was assassinated by two of his rebellious subjects-Thomas Bedford and Alexander
Wentworth. Bedford had been whipped by order of the king for some
offense; he is said to have upheld his wife in disregarding the mandate
to wear bloomers. Wentworth also had a grievance. About the middle of June, 1856, the "Michigan" steamed into the harbor, and by
invitation of the captain King Strang proceeded to visit the vessel's




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


277


officers. As he was about to step on the pier, two pistol shots were
fired from behind, both taking effect. He turned and recognized the
assassins as they fired again. As he sank to the ground they struck
him over the head and face with the weapons, ran aboard the steamer
and gave themselves up. They were taken to Mackinac, where the
murderers were received as heroes. They were never brought to trial.
The wounds of Strang proved fatal. He called his elders to his
deathbed, gave them instructions for the government of his Mormon
Kingdom, and as a last request asked to be taken to the city of refuge
which he had founded in Wisconsin. There he died July 9, 1856, and
there his bones rest in an unmarked grave.
The kingdom fell with him. The Gentile invasion came soon after
his removal to Voree. The fishermen came with torch to destroy and
with ax to demolish. His printing office was sacked; the tabernacle
was reduced to ashes and the Mormons were exiled. On the islands of
Green Bay and its adjacent peninsula a few of them built new homes;
some sought the land whence they had followed the prophet; the rest
were scattered to the four points of the compass. Like that of the
prophet Joseph, the life of the prophet James ended in a tragedy and
the exile and dispersion of his people.
THE COUNTY AND THE COUNTY SEAT
The settlement of Charlevoix or Pine river followed the founding
of the Mormon Kingdom on Beaver island by several years: As early
as 1852, and perhaps earlier, there were fishermen located about Pine
river, and in the spring of 1853 quite a colony was collected there.
Captain T. D. Smith had an establishment in the bay, southwest of
the mouth of the river, between it and Pine River Point. There were
four more west of Smith, between him and the point, three at the
mouth of the river, and one-half a mile farther north. These were not
simply bachelors' homes, but contained families of women and children. There were also two other families in the vicinity, and other
fishermen.
At this time, in 1853, the counties of Emmet and Charlevoix were
organized under the name of Emmet, and provision was made for organizing the town of Charlevoix to embrace the territory of the county.
When Emmet county was reorganized in 1855 Charlevoix township
held its first official meeting at the house of John S. Dixon, the "board"
being represented by Galen B. Cole, sole supervisor. At the annual
meeting in October of that year he created the towns of Evangeline
and Eveline. Both the supervisor and George T. Preston, the clerk,
were Mormons.
In the winter of 1869 a bill was passed by the legislature fully organizing the county of Charlevoix. Prior to that time its territory,
except the townships of Hudson, Boyne Valley, Wilson and South
Arm, was a part of Emmet county; three of its organized towns, Little
Traverse, Bear Creek and La Croix, had been in Emmet county, and
three also, Charlevoix, Evangeline and Eveline, in the county of




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Charlevoix. The county seat had been at Little Traverse, or Harbor
Springs, until 1865, when the supervisors of Emmet county moved it
to Charlevoix. The fight between Little Traverse and Charlevoix was
taken up by Dennis T. Downing, Emmet county clerk, with such vigor
that the bill was passed in 1869 which divided the territory, making
Little Traverse the seat of justice for Emmet and Charlevoix, for the
county by that name.
A union convention to nominate county officers was held April 17,
1869. William Harris was chairman and Willard A. Smith secretary.
Delegates were present from the several towns as follows: Charlevoix,
J. S. Dixon, A. G. Aldrich, M. J. Stockman; Norwood, L. H. Pearl,
Geo. Olney, Wm. Harris; South Arm, D. R. Cole, A. R. Struthers, Solomon Isaman; Evangeline, H. R. Miller, W. C. Fordham, E. R. Boynton; Eveline, S. Steele, J. Preston, Daniel Staley; Marion, L. W. Skinner, R. Williams, W. Vosburgh. A ticket was nominated as follows:
Sheriff, Richard Cooper; treasurer, Jackson Ingalls; clerk, William
Harris; register, M. J. Stockman; judge of probate, Philo Beers; prosecuting attorney and circuit court commissioner, Edward H. Green;
superintendent of schools, John S. Dixon; coroners, L. W. Skinner and
Solomon Isaman.
The first election in the county was the general election on the
first Monday of April. The highest number of votes polled was 213.
The county election was held on the first Monday of May. The
highest number of votes polled was 175. The ticket nominated at the
convention was elected with the addition of William Miller for surveyor.
In the organization of Charlevoix county, under the act of 1869, the
south line of Emmet went through the middle of Bear Creek, and in
order to get territory enough to make the new county of Charlevoix,
the town of Hudson was taken from Otsego county and Boyne Valley,
Wilson and South Arm from Antrim county. That settled the fight
between Emmet and Charlevoix counties, and everything was quiet on
the county seat question for a time.
Then Boyne City and East Jordan got into the controversy and
in 1885 the latter secured the prize. Boyne City held it from 1886
to 1897, when it returned to Charlevoix. How the last removal came
about is told by Hon. William Harris, the old settler and prominent
public citizen of Norwood township:
"The final and successful attempt was made," he says, "at the meeting of the board in January, 1897. Petoskey, which had grown much
faster than Harbor Springs, began to lay wires for the removal of the
county seat to that place. The towns of Bear Lake, Spring Vale and
Resort were near Petoskey and they wished to be set off into Emmet
county. This Petoskey favored and of course Little Traverse, or Harbor Springs, opposed. Now if these towns could be let go to Emmet,
they would vote for removal from Boyne City to Charlevoix.
"At the same time there were bills pending in the legislature to
disorganize Manitou county and attach the Manitous and Fox island
to Leelanau county and the Beavers either to Emmet or Charlevoix




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


279


county. Charlevoix did not want the Beavers very badly, thinking it
not a very good trade to take the Beavers in place of territory let go to
Emmet county. But while at the spring election there was a majority
in favor of the removal of the county seat to Charlevoix, two or three
of the towns whose supervisors had voted for removal had been defeated at the spring election and men who would oppose removal elected,
and Boyne City would have a majority on the board. Former experience had shown what a majority of the supervisors meant in a county
seat fight.
"The bills pending in the legislature were passed and Beaver island,
composed of three townships, was attached to Charlevoix county; Resort, Bear Lake and Springvale went to Emmet county; and the
CHARLEVOIX COUNTY POOR FARM, NEAR EAST JORDAN
county seat went back to Charlevoix after an absence of about thirteen
years.
ORGANIZATION OF TOWNS
Thie organization of the towns of Charlevoix, Evangeline and Eveline
1have already been noted. South Arm, previous to the creation of
Charlevoix county formed a part of Antrim, and was organized by
the board of supervisors of the latter in March, 1868. The town of
Norwood was set oft from Marion in April, 1869; Boyne Valley was
organized at the January session of the board in 1873, and the town
of Wilson at the same session; Hudson, at the October meeting of the
county board in 1876; Hayes at the same times; Melrose, in October,
1877, and Chandler in July, 1880.
CHARLEVOIX AS A VILLAGE
The early events which transpired at Pine river have already been
narrated. and we come to the starting point of Charlevoix as a village.




280


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The narration of events already given show that the site of Charlevoix
village is historic ground. The Mound builders have left their traces
and the character of the location would be sufficient evidence of its
being a favorite resort of Indians. From the purchase of the land by
John S. Dixon in 1854, until the beginning of the operations of Fox
& Rose in 1864 nothing occurred that is connected with Charlevoix as
a village.
In the course of the summer of 1864 Mr. Dixon completed arrangements with the firma of Fox & Rose, of Northport, by which they were


CHARLEVOIX HARBOR AT SUNSET


to come here and build a dock to a sufficient depth of water for the
accommodation of steamboats. H. O. Rose. of Petoskey. arrived and
assisted in measuring the ground they were to have. which included
all convenient dock sites around the mouth of the river. It was also
arranged that Mr. Dixon was to take charge of a stock of goods which
he was to dispose of in exchange for wood. and that winter was begun
the propeller wood trade at the mouth of the river. Work on the dock
was pushed as rapidly as possible. and before the close of navigation
one was partially completed and everything was ready to receive wood.
About the 25th of October there came a heavy northwest blow, the
severest that had been known on the lakes for many years and carried away about a hundred feet of the dock, doing considerable damage to what was left.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHiGAN


281


This disaster was an unfortunate one, but did not discourage the
firm which was composed of pioneer business men who had already been
in the same kind of business at Northport for several years. Early in
the spring they repaired the damages and completed the dock.
When the goods were first shipped to Pine river in the fall an old
block building was used, but during the winter of 1864-5 they brought
lumber and put up a store.
Returning to the spring of 1869 we find the activities of the little settlement directed toward building up a village. A spirit of improvement pervaded the place and the people who were there seem to have
been determined to make their surroundings as attractive as possible.
The question of opening a channel through to Pine lake began to be
agitated, and in June steps were taken to carry out the project. Messrs.
Redington, Nelson & Company built a dock near their mill on Round
lake, and in July the new store of Fox & Rose on the south side of
the river was filled with goods, and Archibald Buttars arrived from
Northport to take charge of the mercantile business. The style of the
firm was changed to A. Buttars & Company. Mr. Buttars became a
leading business man of the place and afterward represented this
senatorial district in the state senate.
IN COMMUNICATION WITH LAKE MICHIGAN
The improvement of Charlevoix harbor and the opening of a channel through to Pine lake were of incalculable advantage to Charlevoix
county; in fact, without this improvement the county could not have
attained its present state of development.
The whole region of Pine lake was cut off from the commerce of
Lake Michigan by a narrow sandridge that separated it from Round
lake, and Pine river was a shallow stream coursing through the sand
and emptied into the lake some fifteen rods south of its present outlet.
There was a series of rapids with water from eighteen inches to two
feet in depth. Only canoes and Mackinac boats entered and the latter were towed along the south banks with great difficulty.
In 1868 a survey of Pine river was made by Major Wheeler, who reported insurmountable obstacles in the way of making a harbor and
that a harbor refuge was not necessary at this point, owing to its proximity to other good harbors. His conclusions were based upon the
fact that the River Improvement Company had commenced making a
cut at the mouth of the river and owing to lack of funds had discontinued work.
When the dredge arrived at the bridge Colonel Mansfield of the
United States eorps of engineers arrived and at once saw the erroneous
judgment of Major Wheeler's report. He immediately made a favorable report upon his recommendation and an appropriation was obtained
from the government. Colonel Mansfield's report is dated August 26,
1873, and from it we make the following extracts: "A cursory examination satisfied me that no further survey was needed to project a
plan of improvement. The stream connecting Round and Pine lakes




282


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


with Lake Michigan is only about 1,200 feet in length and from 75
to 100 feet in width. Its course where it entered into Lake Michigan
at the time the survey was made, had been changed to a straight cut,
and the depth of water at the time of my visit was about six feet, while
the rapids spoken of had almost entirely disappeared, owing in some
measures doubtless to the unusually high water in Lake Michigan. The
current, however, was swift but did not indicate a difference in level
of the lakes of over three inches.
"I found a dredge at work in the river near the bridge making
eleven feet water, the intention being to carry the depth entirely
ONE OF COHARLEVOIX' HOTELS
through with one cut of thirty-five feet width. No stone bowlders had
been met. The material dredged was chiefly sand, with coarse gravel
and small stone. In making the cut at the mouth of the river, no bowlders were met with to interfere with the work as had been feared; the
bottom through the water here appeared to be composed of pebbles
and small rounded stone or shingle, no stone larger than your fist. The
bed and banks of the river throughout showed only a material that
could easily be removed with the dredge, it being sand, marl, gravel
and clay mixed. A crib pier was built on the north side about 460 feet
in length last fall, and during the winter two cribs eighty feet over
all were placed in on the south side.
"The direction of the piers seems to be admirably well chosen. The
physical formation of the shore here-the mouth of the river before
any improvements were attempted being almost closed about 450 feet
south of the present outlet indicates clearly the direction of the severe
blows. namely. from the north and northwest. No storms from a di



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


283


rection south of west can have any injurious effect upon the mouth
of the river, as it is thoroughly protected by a jutting headland, a short
distance off, in a direction nearly due west, therefore, in any improvements to be made here the north pier is, and will be the weather pier.
The place seems, therefore, readily susceptible of improvement and at
small expense.
"The work already done is the result of the commendable spirit
and energy of the people who seem to be thoroughly in earnest. In addition, the difficulty attending the navigation of the narrow tortuous and
shallow stream connecting the waters of Round lake and Pine lake
has been surmounted by a straight cut at the head of Round lake
through a narrow neck of sand, gravel and marl. The banks are not
revetted and notwithstanding the rapid current are not disturbed."
Upon the strength of the report work rapidly progressed and resulted in placing Charlevoix in direct water communication with the
ports of the Great Lakes.
THE CHARLEVOIX AND CHICAGO RESORTS
The Charlevoix resort was established in 1878, and its history is
substantially as follows: The idea of establishing a resort at this point
was first suggested by the organization of the Bay View Association
and the location of the grounds at Petoskey. Hearing that certain
Presbyterians contemplated a similar resort, several citizens of Charlevoix made an effort to induce them to locate at this point. Before this
project was fully matured, a location near Harbor Springs was decided
upon. While looking after the interests of this enterprise, the Charlevoix gentlemen succeeded in interesting H. W. Page, of Kalamazoo, in
this location, and through his instrumentality the organization of the
association was brought about.
The articles of association and call for the first meeting were filed
with the county clerk of Kalamazoo county, May 23, 1878, and with
the secretary of state on the following day. On June 21, 1878, the first
regular meeting of "The Charlevoix Summer Resort" was held at No.
63 Lovel Street, Kalamazoo.
During the summer of 1878 six cottages were erected, and a substantial pier, with fourteen feet of water at the front, was built. Other
improvements were made, such as the building of a bath-house, and the
sinking of a well from which is obtained an abundant supply of delicious water, cold as ice. The amount expended in these improvements
was $1,600. The number of persons who visited Charlevoix that summer because of the establishment of this resort, and who occupied the
cottages or lived in tents, or found board in private families, and who
considered the grounds of the resort as their headquarters, was considerably above one hundred. In 1879 a commodious boarding-house was
built upon the grounds, in order to accommodate many visitors who
desire temporary quarters. In May, 1880, the association purchased
all the land directly north of the original twenty-acres deeded by M.
J. Stockman, and lying between it and the channel and Round lake.




284


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


In October, twenty-five acres more were purchased, giving the resort
water front on Pine lake.
The Chicago resort was located upon the north shore of Round lake,
and upon an elevation commanding a magnificent view of the lakes and
country around it. This resort was founded by a stock company of
wealthy Chicago gentlemen for a private summer retreat for their
families and their friends. The origin of this resort was related by
a Chicago paper in the fall of 1880, as follows: "During the past
summer a company of Chicago gentlemen desirous of taking a breathing spell during the hot July and August days, took a trip up in the
region of the 'fishing line.' They visited Mackinac, Petoskey and
Charlevoix. At the latter place they stayed several days, charmed by
its surroundings, its cool nights, pleasant breezy days, pure air and the
absence of the dust and heat of the city, all of which combined to make
their stay very pleasant. One of the gentlemen, liking the place so
well, secured a piece of land intending it for a summer residence lot.
The three other gentlemen, meeting sometime after and comparing notes
and opinions regarding Charlevoix, agreed to purchase a large tract
of land and set it apart for a summer resort. This has been done, and
a stock company formed, a charter obtained and enrolled under our
state laws as the 'Chicago Summer Resort Company.' "
From these two first "resort associations" developed "Charlevoix"
reputation as an ideal place for out-of-doors recreation, and they largely
advanced the prospects of the settlement on Pine river. The resorts
and the village corporation were almost twins.
CHARLEVOIX AS A CORPORATION
Early in the year 1879 the question of obtaining a village charter
pressed upon the minds of the people with considerable force, and
early in February a public meeting was held to consider the subject.
A resolution was adopted to the effect that it was the sense of the
meeting that Charlevoix should be incorporated. A committee consisting of Messrs. Buttars, Eaton and Bell were appointed a committee to
determine the boundary lines of the proposed incorporation. A petition was forwarded to the legislature, and the bill was passed and approved April 3d. The act reads as follows:
"That all those tracts of land situated in the township of Charlevoix, in the county of Charlevoix, and state of Michigan, which are
known and described as follows, to-wit: Lots numbered 1, 2, 3 and
4, and the north half of the southwest quarter of section 26 and lot
numbered 1, and the northeast fraction and the north half of the southeast quarter of section 27, all in township 34 north, of range 8 west,
be and the same are hereby constituted a village corporate by the name
of the village of Charlevoix.
"The first election of officers for said village shall be held on the
second Monday in April, 1879, at the town hall in said village, notice
of which shall be posted in three public places by the board of registration, hereinafter appointed, at least the days previous thereto.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


285


"Byron See and Robert Miller are hereby constituted a board of
registration for the purpose of registering voters for the first election
to be held in said village, and said board of registration are hereby required to meet on the Saturday preceding the second Monday of April,
1879, aforesaid, and register all persons presenting themselves for
registration, and having the qualifications of voters at annual township
meetings.
"The bridge now built and all that may hereafter be built across
Pine river, within the territory described in section 1 of this act, shall
be built, and maintained, as heretofore, by the township of Charlevoix,
or the county of Charlevoix, and all moneys raised by general highway tax in the village of Charlevoix shall be expended under the direction of the highway commissioners of the township of Charlevoix,
for the benefit of the highways of said township and village in the
same manner as though said village was not incorporated.
"The said village of Charlevoix shall in all things not herein otherwise provided be governed by and its duties and powers defined by an
act entitled: 'An act granting and defining the duties and powers of
incorporated villages,' approved April 1, 1875, and such amendments
as may be made thereto.
"In case the said officers are not elected at the time designated in
section 2 of this act, an election for officers may be had at any time
within one year from the time designated in said section 2 of this act,
on notice being given as provided in said section."
In 1881 the charter was amended so as to leave the grounds of the
Kalamazoo resort outside the village limits, and to accomplish that section 1 was amended so as to read as follows: "That all those tracts
of land situated in the township of Charlesvoix, in the county of Charlevoix and state of Michigan, which are known and described as follows,
to-wit: Lots numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4, and the north half of the southwest quarter of section 26, and lot numbered 1, and the northeast fraction and the north half of the southeast quarter of section 27, all in
township 34 north, of range 8 west, excepting that portion of the north
half of the southwest quarter of section 26 aforesaid, known and described as follows, to-wit: Commencing at the northeast corner of the
southwest quarter of section 26, thence west along the east and west
quarter line of said section 26, eleven rods and two feet to the north
and south quarter line of section 26 aforesaid, thence due north along
said quarter line to the place of beginning, be, and the same are hereby
constituted a village corporate by the name of the village of Charlevoix. "
The first charter election was held Monday, April 28th and resulted
in the election of the following officers: President, John S. Dixon;
trustees, J. Milo Eaton, A. Buttars, W. A. Smith, J. M. Clark, Robert
Miller, D. C. Nettleton; clerk, M. J. Stockman; treasurer, John Bell;
assessor, E. H. Green; street commissioner, A. E. Mason.
The city of Charlevoix was really founded on three corporate summer resorts and it has never lost its distinctive feature. There is no
city in Michigan of its size which has more perfect hotel accommoda



286


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


tions, and it is safe to say that during the summer season its population is increased on an average by ten thousand people.
By no means, however, is Charlevoix prosperity temporary or spasmodic. Its settled population is nearly three thousand; its retail and
wholesale trade is large; its stores, public buildings and residences are
substantial and attractive; its streets broad and finely paved; its sidewalks well built and well kept, and its industries firmly established and
growing. Among Charlevoix leading manufactures are lumber, shingles,
boats, flour, cement and beet sugar, her fisheries still being active and
productive. The Western Michigan Sugar Company, Charlevoix Rock
Products Company and the Charlevoix Lumber Company are all leaders in its industrial growth, its fisheries being largely controlled by
the Butell Fish Company and the Booth Packing Company. The shipments from Charlevoix include lumber and fish, wood bark, ties and
cedar posts, beet sugar and flour, rock products and cement. The city
is far from being simply a fashionable summer resort.
SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES
In the fall of 1861 a small log house was erected on the bank of
Pine lake about fifteen rods south of where the Belvidere House afterward stood, on the Charlevoix resort grounds, and in the following
winter Mrs. M. J. Stockman, who lived on the south side of Round lake,
opened it as the first school in the village. Her salary was one dollar
per week. In the fall of 1867 the first frame schoolhouse was built
at the corner of State and Antrim streets to accommodate the children
of the dozen white families which the village and vicinity then embraced. In 1873 a good building for the Union school was erected, and
from that time on the public system of education, both of village and
city, has developed along modern lines. Charlevoix at the present time
has a handsome Central school and two well built ward schools.
Religious life had its birth in Charlevoix long before the village had
a corporate existence. Its first Sunday school was organized in the fa~l
of 1859 by Mr. and Mrs. J. S. Dixon. Their children attended it, as
well as those of S. F. Mason, Medad Thompson and Hugh Miller-ten
scholars in all. Meetings were held in the Dixon log house near Pine
lake.
The Methodists organized their first class at A. D. Brady's, town of
Marion, in the summer of 1867, and in the fall of that year the village
of Charlevoix was made the head of a circuit. In January, 1868, a
class of seventeen was formed in the village of Charlevoix, and a church
building was completed in August, 1877.
The Congregationalists got together in 1866-7 and in the fall of
1879 commenced to hold regular services under Rev. N. L. Otis in the
schoolhouse. The cause was weak for a time but revived in 1882, and
the church organization has since been continuous.
Church activities at Charlevoix are now represented by societies of
Congregationalists, Methodists, Baptists, Catholics and Episcopalians.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


287


BANKS
The Bank of Charlevoix, established in September, 1882, was the
first institution of the kind founded in the county. For some years the
business was carried on by Lewis Reynolds and W. P. Brown, under
the firm name of Reynolds & Brown.
In July, 1883, the Merchants and Farmers Bank was established
by the firm of Buttars, Upright & Company, with A. Buttars as president, A. R. Upright vice-president and G. S. Thomas cashier. In the
following year the bank was reorganized under state laws and has
since been known as the Charlevoix County Bank. Its assets are $250,000; responsibility, $100,000; and officers: John Nicholls. president;
Harry Nicholls, vice-president and A. Buttars, cashier.
The Charlevoix State Savings Bank was established in 1905. Present officers: R. P. Foley, president; G. C. Geiken and H. S. Harsha,
vice-presidents, and W. J. Rachow, cashier. Its total resources amount
to $203,885; paid-in capital stock, $25,000; surplus and undivided profits, $4,886; deposits, $173,992.73.
BOYNE CITY
Boyne City is a stanch little municipality of five thousand people,
lying at the head of Pine lake and the mouth of Pine river, having railway connections through the Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena line. It
was incorporated in 1907, is lighted by electricity and has a perfect
natural drainage supplemented by a fine sewerage system. Boyne City
has well paved streets, lined with substantial business houses and residences, and a natural-gravity system of water works which furnishes
an abundant supply for both domestic and industrial purposes. In the
hills north and south of the city are the flowing wells and living springs
from which are drawn the splendid water supply through sixteen miles
of mains connected with two reservoirs. The mean pressure for the
ordinary water supply is twenty-seven pounds to the square inch; for
fire purposes a special reservoir is provided, which, when connected
with the mains, raises the pressure to one hundred and fifteen pounds.
The industries of Boyne City are various and many of them important. Its hardwood lumber mill, shingle plant, chemical works, sole
leather tannery and brick yards are leading manufactories, and the
car shops of the Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena Railroad add to the
still growing list of establishments. Flooring, veneer, boxes and baskets and wooden ware are also made and shipped.
The industries and trade of Boyne City are financially handled
through two banks. The First National is the only national institution
of the kind in Charlevoix county. It is capitalized at $50,000; has a
surplus of $10,000; and is officered by W. H. White as president, W.
S. Shaw, vice-president and S. C. Smith, cashier.
The People's Bank, established in 1907, is a private institution whose
responsibility is placed at $500,000.




288


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The settlement of what is now Boyne City commenced when John
Miller took up land for a farm at the head of Pine lake in 1856.
In 1869 the postoffice of Boyne was established and Mr. Miller was
appointed postmaster. The office was kept at his house; the mail route
at that time extended from Traverse City to Cheboygan.
About the year 1871 Messrs. Esterly & Co. purchased the tract of
land at the mouth of Boyne river with the intention of laying out a
town. Circumstances prevented them from doing so and the site remained unoccupied, with the exception of one log house, until the original part of the Pine Lake House was built in 1874.
In 1879 1Messrs. Nicholls & Morgan platted a large addition, called
South Boyne, which was afterward incorporated into the village. It
was in this section that the Cobb property was situated. During the
years 1879 and 1880 the place began to develop, and almost the entire
growth of the village has been since that time. Developments came so
rapidly and continuously that the village was incorporated in 1885.
In the meantime both educational and religious forces had entered
into the development of the growing community. The first school was
opened in a board shanty on Hugh R. Miller's farm and School Fractional No. 1 was organized in 1870 with that gentleman as director. In
1871 bliss Mariette Hicks commenced to teach the first public school
in that building. In 1874 the school was moved to a log building near
the shore of the lake, in what was afterward South Boyne. This
property, including fifty-eight acres of school land, was sold in 1879
to a Mr. Cobb who made the purchase in order to establish a summer
resort there. After the property was sold to him a good frame schoolhouse was built, which was replaced by the first brick structure devoted
to school purposes in 1883. It was a two-story building and was pronounced at the time as "by far the finest school building in Charlevoix
county. '
With a fine Central and High school and abundant provision to accommodate pupils in the four wards of the municipality, Boyne City
would now smile over this enthusiastic statement.
The church history of the city commences with the organization of
the South Arm charge by the Methodists in September, 1873, with Rev.
A. G. Wiggins as pastor in charge and Robert Thompson leader. Meetings were held at Mr. Thompson's house until 1875, when, under the
care of Rev. Thomas Pierce, they were transferred to a log house in
the village of Boyne. The present Boyne charge was formed in 1876
by Rev. D. H. Pierce. Presbyterian services were first held at Boyne
by Rev. J. Beardsley in 1878. Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists,
Catholics and Evangelical denominations are now part of the religious
life of Boyne City.
EAST JORDAN
A flourishing and growing village of more than twenty-five hundred people. at the extremity of the South Arm of Pine lake on its




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


289


eastern shores, East Jordan is one of the three leading centers of population in Charlevoix county.
W. F. Empey was the first settler at this point. He was born in
Canada in the year 1840. In 1866 he came to MAichigan, although he
had previously been in the states. For several years he was connected
with the lumbering interests and had traveled over this part of the
state locating pine land for a Toledo firm. In 1874 he built a store on
the eastern shore of the South Arm, and the following year began putting up the first building on the present site of East Jordan for a
store. About this time a blacksmith named John Vote came along and
Mr. Empey induced him to locate here. He built a block building for
a shop upon a lot opposite the future site of the Jordan River House,
but he only remained a short time.
In June, 1877, a postoffice was established and Mr. Empey was appointed postmaster. When the office was about to be established the
question of a name for the settlement came up. Mr. Empey sent a
number of names to the department, but they were rejected on account
of there being other offices having the same; at last he sent among
others that of East Jordan, which was adopted. Mr. Empey carried
on his store also handled wood and bark and engaged in farming. In
the fall of 1883 his store building was destroyed by fire.
The lumber mills of East Jordan "made the town." The first to
be established there was that of Joseph C. Glenn, in 1879, and it was
the pioneer mill above Charlevoix on Pine lake. It was small, but successful because it had the right man behind it. Soon after its establishment W. P. Porter bought an interest in both mill and general store,
and the business was thus conducted until 1888, when Mr. Glenn sold
all his interests to Ames & Frost of Chicago. Thereupon was organized
the East Jordan Lumber Company, which has been a never-failing
source of strength and prosperity to the community. It has not only
aided in the local advancement, but the corporation has been the means
of developing fine fruit and farming lands in the county and the
Grand Traverse region generally.  It operates two sawmills and a
large maple flooring plant at East Jordan and draws its lumber supplies from large tracts of both soft and hardwood lands which it owns
in Charlevoix, Antrim, Kalkaska and Otsego counties. The East Jordan
Lumber Company is one of those up-to-date concerns in Northern Michigan which has had the foresight to push the sale of its cleared lands
for farming and fruit-raising purposes.
The original plant of the East Jordan Lumber Company was erected
on the west side of the South Arm, and in the eighties other sawmills
followed its example. Stoppel & Company and Empey & Palmiter installed plants in that locality. In 1890 the sawmill of the former
concern was purchased by the East Jordan Lumber Company and became its B mill. Later the Empey mill was moved away and on its
site the East Jordan Company put up a plant for sawing cedar shingles.
On the west side, also, John Monroe, Sr., erected a sawmill which
was purchased and operated by the South Arm Lumber Company until
it burned in 1902. The Willson Hoop Company also operated at East
Vol. I-19




290


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Jordan for a number of years what was then the largest hoop factory
in the country, but the lack of elm stock caused it to discontinue about
ten years ago.
What is now known as East Jordan Station was formerly the village of South Arm, on the west side of the Arm. Its first industry was
the lumber mill carried on by Nelson, Redington & Company. The name
of Nelsonville was given to this locality, and in May, 1869 a postoffice
was established about a mile from the present site of the village, and
Mr. D. C. Nettleton, now of Charlevoix. was postmaster. At an early.     -,-                                                           --....... _. -                  a~~.   ~..~~i —~ --- — ~~ --- —-'~


I


MAIN STREET, EAST JORDAN


day Amose Williams, a character already mentioned, had squatted in
this vicinity. Mr. Nettleton kept the postoffice a short time, and then
removed to Charlevoix. The office was removed to Intermediate. At
this time Charlevoix county was just beginning to be settled. Pine
river was only a diminutive settlement, and the "head of the Arm"
was far away in the wilderness.
The present industries of East Jordan are flourishing and their
future assured. The East Jordan Lumber Company continues to be
in the foreground. As the headquarters of the East Jordan & Southern Railroad, which commenced operation in October, 1891, there are
well-equipped machine and car-repair shops at this point. There are
also cooperage and box factories and planing mills; flour mills and
chemical works and enterprises are under way and likely to result in
the establishment of several iron and brass foundries.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


291


The State Bank of East Jordan was the first financial institution
organized in the village, having been founded by George B. Martin as
a private enterprise in 1886. In 1891 Mr. Martin was succeeded by
R. R. Glenn, who conducted it with Alex Bush until the former's death
in 1895. This organization was succeeded by Glenn & Company in
1897, Mr. Bush retiring and being succeeded by George G. Glenn. In
July, 1901, the bank was reorganized as a state institution with a capital of $20,000, with Joseph C. Glenn president, W. L. French vice-president and George G. Glenn cashier. The building which the bank occupies was erected in 1899. In 1909 the capital was increased to $50,1..
SCENE ON THE RIVER JORDAN
000, as at present. Its surplus and undivided profits amount to $5,000;
its total resources, $306,543; deposits, $251,460.
The People's State Savings Bank of East Jordan was established
in October, 1910. It has a capital stock of $25,000 and its surplus and
undivided profits amount to $1,622. W. P. Squier is its president and
R. O. Bisbee, cashier.
East Jordan owns its water works, the municipal plant, which is
under the control of the mayor and two commissioners, having been
erected in 1896. The village is furnished with light and power by a
good plant operated by a private company. As will be correctly inferred
from the above, East Jordan is having its initial experience of the
commission form of municipal government, having been incorporated
as such in July, 1911. Its commissioners are heads of three departments comprising (1) Public Utilities, (2) Streets and Sewers and (3)
Finance, Health and Sanitation.




292


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The public system of education embraces a Central school, in which
is the High school, and the West Side and Jordan River buildings.
East Jordan has a number of churches, the leading religious organizations being St. Joseph Cathoilc, Methodist, Presbyterian and Norwegian
Lutheran. There are also societies of Episcopalians and Latter Day
Saints.
The secret and benevolent societies of the place flourish in the shape
of large lodges of Masons, Knights of Pythias and Odd Fellows, with
numerous minor organizations.
OTHER COUNTY COMMUNITIES
Boyne Falls, the second incorporated village in the county, was
brought into existence by the construction of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad. The town of Boyne Valley was organized in 1873 and
in the spring of 1874 the railroad commenced operations. Boyne Falls
was incorporated as a village in 1893. It is located on the Boyne river
and has railway accommodations through the Boyne City, Gaylord &
Alpena and the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroads. A good graded
public school, three churches, a well organized public bank and a
growing trade with the surrounding country, describe the status of this
little village of three or four hundred people.
Norwood, on the shore of Grand Traverse bay in the township by
that name, and Ironton, on Pine lake in Eveline township, are small
shipping centers, but rather interesting historically. Norwood, eleven
miles southwest of Charlevoix was settled as early as 1866. A dock and
sawmill were built and at one time it promised to become quite a lumber point. Ironton, on the other hand, did develop into a lively industrial place in the early eighties, through the operations of the Pine
Lake Iron Company. Operations were commenced in 1879, but actual
manufacturing was not realized until 1881. A few years afterwards
the company were employing over two hundred men; but lack of support and transportation facilities and distance from profitable markets
vaused the enterprise to fail and Ironton to disappear as an industrial
community.




CHAPTER XI


EMMAET COUNTY
POPULATION AND PROPERTY-ORGANIC HISTORY-PHYSICAL FEATURESEARLY HISTORY OF EMMET COUNTY-THE PRESBYTERIAN MISSION
— PETOSKEY, THE COUNTY SEAT-IGNATIUS PETOSKEY-BEGINNING
OF THE VILLAGE —AS VILLAGE AND CITY-HARBOR SPRINGS-BAY
VIEW-OTHER VILLAGES AND STATIONS.
Emmet county is one of the star summer resort sections of the northwest, and it is but necessary to mention Petoskey, Harbor Springs and
Bay View to prove the positive statement. Its central region in this
regard is Little Traverse bay, which deeply indents its coast from the
west. This beautiful bay extends inland from the coast line of Lake
Michigan about nine miles, and is six miles broad at its mouth. The
water is clear and pure, and contains great quantities of fish. The
CROOKED RIVER, INLAND WATER ROUTE
scenery about the bay is romantic and the whole region is full of legendary interest. Upon the north and south shore are the villages of Harbor Springs and Petoskey and Harbor Point. We-que-ton-sing and Bay
View are famous summer resorts. The beauties of this region have
been told in prose and verse by numerous writers who have visited
the locality and experienced an ecstasy of delight at what they beheld.
The Indian name is We-que-ton-sing, meaning a small bay. A few
miles east of Little Traverse bay are Crooked lake and river, the


293




294


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


western terminus of the inland water route which connects the Grand
Traverse and Cheboygan regions.
The country around Little Traverse bay, as well as the coast to
the north, is also identified with the Indian and missionary history of
Northern Michigan, Little Traverse (Harbor Springs), Seven Mile
Point, Middle Village, Cross Village and L'Abre Croche all carry with
them the shadows and the sunshine of Indian romance; reminders of
the vanished Ottawas and Chippewas, the long-gone fathers of Catholicism and Protestantism. Emmet county even embraces a fraction of
old Mackinaw City, the oldest settlement in the Lower Peninsula, although the bulk of it lies in Mackinaw township, Cheboygan county.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY
There are few counties in Northern Michigan which have increased
so rapidly in population within the past two decades as Emmet. The
best picture of its growth in that regard is furnished by the United
States census reports for 1890, 1900 and 1910, which are reproduced
in detail.


Civil Divisions                              1910
Bear Creek township......................... 1,630
Bliss township...............................  694
Carp Lake township, including part of Mackinaw
City village.........................   847
Mackinaw City village (part of).............  126
Center township............................   441
Cross township..............................  600
Friendship township.........................  487
Littlefield township, including Alanson village... 1,055
Alanson village.......................     473
Little Traverse township, including Harbor
Springs village........................ 2,268
Harbor Springs village.................... 1,805
McKinley township, including Pellston village... 2,120
Pellston village.......................... 1,089
Maple River township.......................   759
Petoskey City.............................. 4,778
Ward 1.........................        1,203
Ward 2..........................    1,323
W ard  3.................................  1,018
W ard  4..................................  1,234
Pleasant View township......................  429
Readmond township.......................      600
Resort township........................       780
Springvale  township..........................  737
West Traverse township......................  336


1900   1890
1,387  1,153
704   202


561
98
636
544
369
877
2,152
1,643
354
516
5,285
341
479
752
630
344


236
219
484
305
343
1,488
1,052
140
603
2,872
278
433


Totals................................. 18,561   15,931   8,756




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                   295
As equalized by the board of review, the value of real and personal
property in the county is given below:
Civil Divisions                           Acres     As Equalized
Bear  Creek..............................  25,727.57  $  936.002
Bliss....................................  22,432.15   163,081
Carp  Lake..............................  30,654.20    209.518
Center..................................  22,370.70    155,775
Cross  Village............................  6,353.26    96,660
McKinley...............................  22,181.21     417,315
Friendship..............................  24,464.46    181,200
Littlefield...............................  13,680.58  227,436
Little  Traverse..........................  11,179.82  1,222,220
Maple  River.............................  22,733.32   175,710
Readmond...............................  19,870.74     177,906
Resort..................................  13,259.00    370,686
Pleasant  View...........................  22,921.47   155,560
Springvale..............................  28,004.07    182,845
W est Traverse...........................  8,287.35    363,185
City  of  Petoskey................................  2,965,004
Totals............................... 294,120.10  $8,000,103
ORGANIC HISTORY
Emmet had its origin in the counties of Tonedagana and Kishkokro,
which were among the original divisions of Northern Michigan made in
1840. In 1843 these names were changed to Emmet and Charlevoix,
which remained unorganized and attached to the old county of Michilimackinac until 1853.
In 1847 the township of Peaine was erected, embracing the territory
of the Beaver islands. In the course of that year three meetings were
held to elect town officers, but did not succeed in effecting a regular organization. In 1851 the Mormons elected all the officers and had full
control of affairs.
In the winter of 1853 James J. Strang, the Mormon leader, was a
member of the state legislature and succeeded in securing the passage of
a bill uniting the counties of Emmet and Charlevoix and organizing them
under the name of Emmet. The act so far as it related to county organization is as follows: " The people of the state of Michigan enact: 'That
the county of Emmet shall be organized and the inhabitants thereof entitled to all the rights, privileges and immunities to which by law the
inhabitants of other organized counties of this state are entitled.
"There shall be elected in the said county of Emmet, on the first
Tuesday of May next, all the several county officers to which by law said
county is entitled; and said election and the canvass shall in all respects
be conducted and held in the manner prescribed by law for holding elections and canvassers for county and state officers: Provided, That the




296


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


canvass shall be held at the village of St. James, in said county, on the
Monday next following said election; and said county officers shall
immediately be qualified and enter upon the duties of their respective
offices, and their several terms of office shall expire at the same time that
they would have expired had they been elected at the last general election.
"And provided further, That until such county officers are elected
and qualified the proper county officers of the county of Mackinac shall
perform all the duties appertaining to the said county of Emmet, in
the same manner as though this act had not passed.
"The board of canvassers of said county, under this act, shall consist of the presiding inspectors of election from each township therein,
who shall organize by appointing one of their number chairman, and
another secretary of said board, and shall thereupon proceed to discharge all the duties of a board of county canvassers, as in ordinary
cases of election for county and state officers.
"The county of Emmet shall have concurrent jurisdiction upon
Lake Michigan and Green Bay with the other counties contiguous
thereto.
"All the islands, bars, rocks and lands under water contiguous to
the said counties of Emmet and Charlevoix and within the state of Michigan, not heretofore by any legislative enactment. included within the
body of any county in said state, together with so much of range 4
west as was heretofore included in Cheboygan county, are hereby annexed to said county of Emmet and shall for all purposes be deemed
and taken to be within and a part of said county.
"The county seat of said county shall be fixed by the board of
supervisors of said county.
"The register of deeds of the county of Emmet shall, on the request and at the expense of the persons interested, copy from the records in the office of the register of deeds at Mackinac all records of
deeds and instruments in writing conveying, or in any wise limiting
or affecting the title to any real estate in the county of Emmet as
hereby organized, and the copies so made shall be made and deemed
and taken to be original records for all purposes whatsoever."
The act was approved January 29, 1853, and was to take immediate
effect. At the same time the towns of Peaine, Galilee and Charlevoix
were organized.
The township of Peaine extended so as to include rocks, bars and
land under water continguous to Beaver island. Galilee included all
that part of Peaine in towns 37 north of ranges 10 and 11 west and
south half of town 38 north of ranges 10 and 11 west. The first
election was appointed at Ludlow Hill. The township of Charlevoix included all of the county of Charlevoix, and the first township meeting was appointed at the house of Galen B. Cole.
In 1855 it was determined to secure better protection to the Gentile
interests on the mainland and to secure this Theodore Wendall and
John S. Dixon went to Lansing and secured the passage of a bill reorganizing Emmet county so as to include its former territory except the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


297


Beaver group, north and south Fox and territory west of the same.
The first election under this act was held at Little Traverse on the first
Tuesday in June, 1855, and the towns of Little Traverse, La Croix,
Bear Creek and old Fort Mackinaw were organized.
The county seat was established at Mackinaw City, but the county
business was transacted at Little Traverse until 1867. In that year the
county seat was removed to Charlevoix and in 1868 the board of supervisors met at that place. There was strong opposition to the county
seat being removed to Charlevoix and in 1868 the county seal and some
other property mysteriously disappeared.  Dennis T. Downing, the
county clerk, was supposed to be instrumental in their removal. An
action for embezzlement was brought against him, but in 1869 the
county of Charlevoix was organized and the county seat of Emmet returned to Little Traverse. Little Traverse, or Harbor Springs, remained
in possession of the coveted prize until July 10, 1902, when Petoskey,
which had outstriped it in population became the county seat by popular vote.
The first meeting of the board of supervisors was held at Little
Traverse in October, 1855, but there is no record of it among the
county documents. The first election was not observed in any township but Charlevoix, where Galen B. Cole, the Mormon, was elected
supervisor. Remembering that he was the sole board, the records of
his rule are really humorous. For instance, in the appendix to the session laws of 1857 it is recorded that Galen B. Cole, "as chairman of
the board, and George T. Preston, county clerk, certify that the several acts for the organization of the new township were cast by a majority of votes of all the members elected to the board of supervisors, upon
due notice and application according to law, at an adjourned sitting
of the annual meeting of the board of supervisors, the 22nd day of
October, 1855."  The first supervisors' meeting which is recorded in
the county archives was held at Little Traverse, October 12, 1857, but
only two of the three supervisors were present and no business was
transacted.
In 1869 the territory of Emmet county was divided and Charlevoix
county organized, but no new towns were created in Emmet county until 1876. In 1875 the name of La Croix had been changed to Cross
River township, and in the following year Friendship, Maple River,
Bliss and Pleasant View townships were organized; followed by Readmond and Littlefield in 1877, Center in 1878 and Carp Lake in 1879.
PHYSICAL FEATURES
Emmet county, which is at the northwestern extremity of the Lower
Peninsula of Michigan. contains 294,120 acres of land, and its general
surface is characterized by north and south ridges. There are four of
these ridges or ranges of hills, commencing on the north side of Little
Traverse Bay. Two or three miles from the east shore of the lake
colnmences the first range, rising to an altitude of about 350 feet, then
descending gradually to a valley varying from one mile to two miles




298


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


in width. Then commences another range like the first, running parallel and also descending into a valley. So on to the fourth range,
which reaches an altitude of some six hundred feet above the water in
the lake. The valleys are undulating and vary in altitude from one
hundred to three hundred feet. Many parts of these ridges are table
lands, where the very best farming lands are to be found with great
fertility of soil, and susceptible of the highest state of cultivation, while
the hills are equally fertile, but better adapted to fruit raising. The
valleys include the meadow lands, which are much the same character
of soil as the ridges and are adapted to all the varied purposes of
agriculture. The general character of the soil throughout the county
varies from a grey to a black sandy loam, which reaches from one foot
to three feet in depth with a subsoil of clay; beneath this are clay,
limestone and gravel. This sandy loam is strongly impregnated with
lime. Throughout the entire county limestone rock is to be found in
abundance everywhere upon the surface, with outcroppings of limestone ledges, indicating great strength of soil, which is further emphasized by the dense growth of hardwood in many sections of the
county. This timber consists mostly of maple, elm and ash. Bird'seye maple especially has become an important article of manufacture
and wealth. In some parts of the eastern and northern portions of
the county extensive cedar swamps furnish an important supply of
timber for shingles, cooperage and other purposes. They are supplied
with the purest spring water and are sufficiently elevated to be easily
drained. Where cleared of their dense growth of timber, they have
been transformed into valuable fruit and farm lands.
The county, though well supplied with fine springs of pure water,
is not noted for its extensive streams. Maple river, the principal stream,
heads on the north and bears south through the eastern portion of the
county, emptying into Crooked lake east of Little Traverse bay. This
stream is sufficiently large for rafting purposes, and is susceptible of
slack water navigation; it also has sufficient fall for milling purposes.
The next stream of importance is Bear creek, entering into Little
Traverse bay at Petoskey. This stream has a magnificent water power.
It has its source in Bear lake, Charlevoix county. These, with one
other stream entering the Straits on the north, of sufficient size and
fall to be utilized for manufacturing purposes, comprise all of any'
importance in the county.
Emmet county, like every other portion of the Grand Traverse region, is a fine fruit and potato country. The raising of garden seeds
has also been a growing industry for some years and alfalfa is one of
the coming crops. Stock and poultry raising and dairy farming are
other branches which are encouraging the settlement of agriculturists
in the county. It is estimated that 150,000 acres of fruit and farming
land are still available; the present area in farms amounts to over
97.000 acres.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


299


EARLY HISTORY OF EMMET
The Indian history applying to Little Traverse bay and the western shores of what is now Emmet county has been set forth in previous
chapters, as well as the labors of the earlier Catholic priests. As also
stated, the points most prominently associated with Indian and missionary history, in this territory, were L'Abre Croche, Cross village and
Little Traverse.  As L'Abre Croche occupied an elevated position
that could be seen far out upon the lake and for a long distance along
the shore, the name came to be applied to an extensive region. About


OLD MISSION CHURCH, HARBOR SPRINGS


1825 the Catholics returned to this part of the Grand Traverse region
to reestablish their missions. They first built a church at Middle village, a short distance below L'Abre Croche, but in 1827 moved the
mission to Little Traverse. About this time a church was also built
at Cross village. In 1853 business began at Little Traverse, and in
1855 Father Weikamp established the convent at Cross village.   In
1852 an important movement was inaugurated at Bear creek, which
was continued until merged in the greater enterprises of modern progress.
The early history of Bear creek is almost entirely confined to matters connected with the Presbyterian mission, which was established
in the year 1852. The name Bear creek is applied to the region in
the vicinity of the mouth of the stream known by that name. The Indian name is MIuhquh Sebing.




300


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


THE PRESBYTERIAN MISSION
Dr. AM. L. Leach, long of Traverse City, and Rev. W. S. Potter, of
Petoskey, have both written narratives of what transpired at this mission, and we quote portions of each: "About the year 1851 the number of Ottawas and Chippewas living at this point was increased by
the coming of several families from Old Mission, where Rev. P. Dougherty had been laboring.  Shortly after a request was made to Mr.
Dougherty that a school might be established at Bear creek. By order
of the Presbyterian board, under whose authority he was acting, Mr.
Dougherty visited them in the winter of 1851-2 and made so favorable
a report that the board determined to accede to their request, and Mr.
Andrew Porter. who had previously spent some time as teacher at
Old Mission, was appointed for the work.
"Mr. Porter. with his family, left his home in Pennsylvania early
in May. 1852. arriving at his destination the first of June.  From
Mackinac he canme in Captain Kirtlands vessel. the 'Eliza Caroline,'
the captain bringing him for a very small sum. Mr. Dougherty had
previously sent a vessel with a cargo of lumber for the construction
of the necessary buildings. The pile of lumber on the beach served to
guide Captain Kirtland to the proper landing. On leaving the vessel,
the party were kindly received by the head man, Daniel Wells, or Mwake-we-nah, whom the band afterward elected chief; and who a few
years later laid down his life for the country in the War of the Rebellion. Ite placed his best room at the disposal of 'Mr. Porter, till
the mission house could be built.
"The place selected for the mission was on the high land west of
Bear creek. half a mile back from the bay. Itow to get the lumber to
the spot was a problem that caused sonie anxiety. The only domestic
animlal in thle settlement tlat could be put to such work was a single
pony and the only vehicle was a cart, and then the new road which
had recently been cut through the forest by the Indians was too rough
and uneven for a wheel carriage of any kind. The anxiety, however,
was soon removed by the announcement that the Indians of Little
Traverse were offering their assistance. Soon after, on a set day, about
seventy men and seven ponies with sleds were found to have come
together on the beach ready for work. The ponies did very well, but
more than half of the lumber was carried up the hill to the site of
the proposed buildings on the shoulders of men.
"''r. Porter found the Indians uniformly kind. Ile never failed
to secure their services, when the services of a friend were needed. On
first coming amnong them. lie and his family threw themselves upon
their honor and honesty, never turning a key to prevent them from
stealing, and. though they were then poor and often hungry, the confidence reposed in them was not betrayed."
Some time after Mr. Porter's arrival, a Catholic mission was established at this point. It was the intention to build a church upon
high ground, but Mr. Porter would not permit them to cross his domain and a small frame building was erected on the shore of the bay.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


301


For a considerable number of years after hMr. Guthrie's departure. the
Bear creek church had no settled pastor. Mr. Porter continued his
school and his religious work among the Indians.
During the continuance of the mission, the Indians made steady
improvement in farming. In 1852 there was only one pony and one
plow among them. The surface of their small tields was strewn with
the trunks of fallen trees, among which cultivation was carried on with
no implement but the hoe. Afterward, when they had to some extent
been provided with teams and farming utensils by the government
according to treaty stipulations, their helds were cleared and plowed.
Oats, wheat, corn and potatoes were the principal crops. Of the last
two enough was usually raised to supply their own wants and leave a
surplus for sale. Unfortunately the men sent to that locality by the
agents of the government as Indian farmers, whose duty it was to instruct them in the art and practice of farming, were frequently too
shiftless to do anything but draw their own salaries. A well remembered case will illustrate the statement. The Indians had become dissatisfied with one of this kind, and resolved if possible to get rid of
himl. Accordingly an old chief was delegated to present a complaint
to the agent, which he did in the following brief terms: "For the
first year or two he would sometimes come out to the field where we
were plowing, take hold of the plow handles and go half across the
field, and then would say 'I am hungry,' and return to the village and
remain there the rest of the day; but now he never comes near us at
all." As the so-called farmer, who was sitting by and heard the complaint, had no defense to make, he was promptly discharged.
For the first two or three years the expense of the mission was
borne wholly by the Presbyterian board. After the establishment of
Indian schools by the government, the one at the mission was adopted
by the agent as a government school, and the usual salary was paid to
Mr. Porter as teacher. About 1871 the government funds set apart
by treaty for the benefit of the Indians being exhausted, and the board
finding itself straitened for means, the mission was discontinued. The
landed property of the establishment passed into other hands, and in
1875 Mr. Porter returned to his Pennsylvania home.
Mr. Porter was for a long time justice of the peace and judge of
probate. He was very popular with the Indians. and it is said had
become so accustomed to their ways and habits that he was no longer
contented after white people settled about him. In 1870 his mother,
who was living with him, died at the age of ninety-six years. Hazen
Ingalls was then living near by, and at Little Traverse were three or
four white people. Mr. Porter, however, called about him his Indian
friends and conducted the funeral services himself.   By means of
strings a long pole was fastened to the rude coffin, and with Indians
as pall bearers his aged mother was buried in the grave he had dug
near by.




302


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


PETOSKEY, THE COUNTY SEAT
Petoskey is a beautiful city of five thousand people situated on an
amphitheater of imposing hills overlooking Little Traverse bay. It
shares the honors with Charlevoix as the most noted summer resort
of Northern Michigan and one of the most popular in the country.
Steamers from every port around the Great Lakes enter its splendid
harbor both to deposit crowds of gay excursionists and summer visitors
and to facilitate her large trade, which cannot all be handled by her
railroads-the Pere Marquette and Grand Rapids & Indiana systems.
No resort in the country has a better reputation with asthmatic
and hay-fever patients than Petoskey. This class of sufferers will
appreciate "When Dust Is On the Rag Weed," from the pen of Rev.
Warren W. Lainport, now of Mancelona, Antrim county, who has made
rich contributions of poetry, both humorous and eloquent, to the Grand
Traverse region in which he has long resided.
When dust is on the ragweed, and the ragweed's in yer nose,
When yer nose is full o'sneezin', and the sneezin' full o' woes;
Then's come the time to pack your duds and quickly git away;
Petoskey is the Mecca then, why don't you come and stay?
When dust is on the ragweed, and the ragweed's in yer nose,
And you keep a-sneezin, sneezin' till it lifts you off your toes,
Why don't you buy yer ticket quick and git across the land?
Petoskey is the Mecca then, for all the sufferin' band.
Petoskey's got the atmosphere, without the other stuff;:
You don't go sneezin' round as though you'd been a-takin' snuff;
But all the summer long you find you're scoopin' in the health,
While hotels and the Midway are a scoopin' in the wealth.
There's lots o' fun an' frolic here, there's lots of things to do;
And if religion's what you want, they got that at Bay View.
So come along without delay, and don't forgit yer tin;
The hotels an' the Midway, all '11 kindly take you in.
And when the frost has nipped the fields, and the ragweed's lost its grip,
Then you can pack yer duds agin and take the homeward trip.
An' don't fergit to take along some souv'nirs of yer stay,
And don't fergit we'd like to see you back agin some day.
IGNATIUS PETOSKEY
The city of Petoskey was named in honor of one of the original
proprietors of the soil, and who had spent more than fourscore years
of his life in its vicinity. In the year 1787 he was born at the mouth
of a little creek near where the city of Manistee now stands. His father, Nee-i-too-shing (the Early Dawn) with others of his tribe, went




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


303


down to the lake shore into the south country hunting and trapping,
as was their custom. On their return well laden with skins and game
they camped at Little creek near the mouth of the Manistee river. Here
was born the "patron saint" of the village. Nee-i-too-shing put back


THE OLD INDIAN CHURCH, PETOSKEY


the t(eer-skin door of his rude lodge and looked up at the morning
sky. Bright shafts of sunlight shot up like streaks of flame lighting
the eastern woods. Just then the first cry of his new-born child came
to lhis ear and he named him Pe-to-se-ga, which is translated as "the
Rising Sun.' The home of the Chippewas was the region about Little
Traverse bay. and the lodge of Nee-i-too-shing was about seven miles
north and west of the present village of Harbor Springs.
When l'e-to-se-ga was twenty-two years old, he took for his wife




301


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICIIIGAN


the daughter of a near neighbor, Keway-ka-ba-wi-kwa. They planted
an apple orchard, the remains of which may still be seen. The missionaries gave him the name Neyas. He was afterward persuaded that
Nevas was an abbreviation of Ignatius, and thus it became Ignatius
Pe-to-se-ga, and later, when a village was to be named it assumed a
corruption of his last name, Petoskey.
When the government decided to try the experiment of schooling
some of the brightest Indian children, Pe-to-se-ga sent his two eldest
sons to a school in northern Ohio. It was a Protestant school and the
priest objected and finally declared he must bring the children home
or he would be excommunicated. His wife, womanlike, sided with the
priest, and Pe-to-se-ga yielded, but so impatient did he become of such
arbitrary rule that he left the spot where he had spent forty-three
-ears of his married life, and moved with his family across the bay,
settling on the south shore upon land now comprised within the limits
of the city. He and his sons owned nearly all of what is now Petoskey.
But the trouble did not cease. Protestant mission services were held
within reach, and Pe-to-se-ga attended with his children. Mrs. Pe-tose-ga would none of it, so she left her husband and went with his
brother to her own relatives on the north side of the bay.
The chief took another wife. Several years passed, but the motherlove in the dusky breast overruled all other considerations and Mrs.
['e-to-se-ga came back to her family, and the woman who had usurped
her place was dowered and sent forth. They had fourteen children,
of whom eight sons and two daughters are still living. Mrs. Pe-tose-ga died in April, 1881, at the age of eighty-six, and some years
after she was followed by Neyas Pe-to-se-ga, the centennarian.
BEGINNING OF TIlHE VILLAGE
The operations at Bear creek have already been narrated in the
early history of the county, but other than geographical connection
they had no relation to the city that has since grown up, and had not
otlier and later influences combined to make this particular spot a
center of activities. the associations of the locality might never have
vested a populous community with historic interest.   Of the early
movements of the village we will now proceed to speak.
The building of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad was the incentive to the development of the natural resources at this point and
its improvement as a village site. Messrs. H. 0. Rose and Amos Fox
had been pioneer business men in the Traverse region nearly twenty
years and had already laid the foundation of Northport and Charlevoix. They had traded at Little Traverse, now Harbor Springs, and
were familiar with this entire region. Knowing of the vast limestone
formation on the shore of Little Traverse bay, they purchased about
two hundred acres of land at this point. In the summer of 1873 the
railroad to Petoskey was approaching completion, and Mr. Rose came
there for the purpose of beginning business. The material for his
house was got out at Traverse City and shipped thither by boat. The




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


305


firm of H. O. Rose & Company (Ames Fox) first commenced selling
from their miscellaneous and general stock of goods in a small log
building near the residence of Ignatius Petoskey in June, 1873. As
there was then no dock they were obliged to land their goods with a
scow. In October, 1874, Mr. Rose wishing to devote his time more especially to lime manufacture, made a change by which the store came
into possession of Fox, Rose & Buttars, consisting of Amos Fox of
Charlevoix, Hiram O. Rose of Petoskey and Archie Buttars of Charlevoix, Mr. Buttars taking sole charge of the store, as well as the one
which the firm operated at Charlevoix. Afterward the Petoskey store
was rebuilt and enlarged, and following the dissolution of Fox &
Rose, in 1882, the firms of Rose & Buttars and Rose Brothers & Company conducted and developed the business which did more than aught
else to build up Petoskey in its early days. The Rose brothers were
II. O., Eugene L. and Perry W.
The first house actually built on the site of Petoskey was the board
shanty erected on the bluff by G. L. Smith, familiarly called "Pa"
Smith, in the early summer of 1873. In the same year Dr. William
Little, the first physician, came from Traverse City on the same boat
which brought Mr. Rose's stock of goods. He was in poor health, but
liked the atmosphere so well that he camped out on the lake shore, and
in November, the month after the Grand Rapids & Indiana road reached
the locality, sent to Traverse City for his family. By January 1, 1874,
a frame shack had been erected by the Doctor which he called the
Rose House. This was the first hotel of Petoskey's numerous progeny
and from it developed the Occidental. Dr. Little, however, its builder,
was not permitted to see the transformation of the region, but died
at Grand Rapids, November 19, 1875. In the previous year he had
issued the first newspaper of the county, the Petoskey City WVeekly
Times.
The year 1875 gave the settlement a general business start. Early
in the winter the first lawyer arrived in the person of D. R. Joslin,
who had already been a pioneer at Alpena and Cheboygan, and on
April 30th the first number of the Emmet County Democrat was issued by Roselle Rose and local happenings commenced to be recorded.
In August of this year the status of Petoskey was summarized as follows: 118 houses, three hotels, ten stores, six saloons, one bakery, a
blacksmith shop, two physicians, two lawyers, two churches, three lime
kilns and one manufactory about to commence operations, with three
dams across the river. Shortly after this summary was made the new
school building was finished on Howard street and the first graded
schools placed in charge of Charles S. Hampton, afterward editor of
the Harbor Springs Independent.
As VILLAGE AND CITY
So rapid was the growth of Petoskey that in the fall of 1878, the
question of incorporating the village began to be agitated. On November 30, 1878, a public meeting was held at McCarty's Hall for the purVol. I-20




306


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


pose of taking action in the direction of obtaining a charter. A committee consisting of John G. Hill, H. O. Rose, A. S. Lee, W. M. Everett and George S. Richmond was appointed to draft a map of the
territory to be incorporated and take such other steps as were necessary. The boundaries of the territory were described as follows: Commencing at the west eighth line of section 6, on the shore of Little
Traverse bay, thence south 111 rods to quarter line, thence east 40
rods, thence south 80 rods, thence east 80 rods, thence south 80 rods
to section line between sections 6 and 7, thence east 380 rods, thence
north 1 mile to town line, thence west 80 rods, thence north on the
quarter line of section 32, Town 35 north, Range 5 west to a point
on Little Traverse bay, thence westerly along the shore to place of
beginning, including nearly two sections of land.
Hon. C. J. Pailthorp, representative in the legislature from this
district, had charge of the matter, and in February, 1879, secured the
passage of a bill granting the charter to the village.
There were three tickets in the field at the first village election held
in April, 1879. No. 2, the winning ticket, comprised H. O. Rose as
mayor; L. C. Watson and C. B. Henika, trustees; Thomas Quinlan,
treasurer; M. F. Quaintance, clerk; Abner S. Lee, assessor; Isaac L.
Austin, street commissioner, and Joseph A. C. Rowan, constable.
In 1881 the original water works were built and during that year
also were graded the village schools under the laws of the state.  The
first principal under the graded system was Thomas H. Clayton.
Petoskey was incorporated as a city in 1896. In 1902, the year of
the removal of the county seat from Harbor Springs to Petoskey, a
substantial court house was built by the city at a cost of $40,000 and
leased to the county for fifty.years. The offices between the municipality and county are divided, headquarters for the fire department
being in the basement of the building.  The city owns its $100,000
electric light and power plant, as well as its water works. Its $85,000
water works plant, with one hundred and fifteen pounds pressure,
forces an abundant supply through thirty miles of mains. Petoskey
has a dozen miles of sewers, two public hospitals and brilliantly lights
the business sections of her streets with the Tungsten arch system.
As a residence and business town Petoskey presents an appearance
of elegance, comfort and prosperity, with broad thoroughfares, solidlybuilt stores and thoroughly-stocked stores, a well-equipped public library and a modern system of popular education. Its central and four
ward schools enroll about 1,100 students and carry a teaching force
of more than thirty competent instructors. The Central High, Sheridan, Lincoln, Howard street and Edgerton schools are all high credit
marks to Petoskey.
The church history of Petoskey extends back to the old Bear creek
mission established in 1852. Soon afterwards the Presbyterian society
was organized, which evolved into the First Presbyterian church of
Petoskey. Rev. George W. Cole, a Methodist missionary, came among
the Indians west of Petoskey in the winter of 1874-5. The early history of Catholic mission work in this locality has been given, the pres



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


307


ent church dating from   July, 1881.   Catholics, Methodists, Presbyterians, Seventh Day Adventists, Lutherans, Hebrews, Episcopalians,
Christians, Menonnites and Christian Scientists are now all represented
bly more or less vigorous societies, some of the houses of worship being
both elegant and architecturally imposing.
Petoskey numbers among its industries manufactories of lumber,
maple flooring, pulp paper. flour, leather, lime cement, lath, cedar ties


and blocks. A large plant for the salting of cucumbers was added in
1911.
The city has two good banks-the First National and the First
State, the former with a capital of $100,000 and the latter of $50,000.
The First National was organized in 1878 and incorporated in 1900.
It represents the first bank established in Emmet county, which was
opened in May, 1878, by P. B. Wachtel. From his father and others,
who had come to Petoskey. Mr. Wachtel learned something of the village while he was a resident of St. Mary's, Pennsylvania. Having a
taste for banking. he decided to experiment at this far-northern place
which was then considered but a raw settlement in the Indian country.
Accordingly in May, 1878, he arrived at Petoskey and established his
t)ank in a little frame house on Mitchell street. His capital was small,




308


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


but Mr. Wachtel and his enterprise "took," for his deposits at the
end of the first year of business amounted to $17,000!
HARBOR SPRINGS
Harbor Springs is a prosperous, attractive and interesting village
of over two thousand inhabitants located on one of the finest harbors
in the Great Lakes region formed by the projection of Harbor Point
across the northern part of Little Traverse bay. Nine miles across the
bay, a little east of south is Petoskey, and between these two points,
along the extreme eastern shores of that beautiful and noble body of
water are Bay View, Kegomic, Menonaqua Beach, Roaring Brook, Wequetonsing and other charming resorts which have made the region
famous. Harbor Point is southeast of Harbor Springs, and beyond it
are Wildmere Springs, Emmet Beach and Idylwilde, completing a continuous stretch of picturesque and homelike cottages, parklike grounds
and splendidly improved tracts of shore lands. The Grand Rapids &
Indiana Railroad enables the visitor to make a delightful tour of inspection near the sunny shores of Little Traverse bay. Harbor Springs
at one extremity of this noble garland of activity and beauty and
Petoskey at the other, share alike the prosperity and the enjoyment
which-attach to this section of the Little Traverse region. It is the
small bay formed by Harbor Point that gave the place its Indian name
of Wequetonsing, a name afterward appropriated by the resort to the
east.
The village was permanently christened with its present name
when it was incorporated in 1881. During the earlier periods of its
history it was known as Little Traverse.
Harbor Springs takes its name from its harbor, known as one of
the finest on the great lakes and from its beautiful springs of pure
water, boiling and bubbling up in every part of the village. The
analysis of this water, as made by Professor Kedzie, shows it to be
even a purer water than the famous Waukesha or Bethesda waters of
Wisconsin. Pipes are driven to a depth of from   one hundred and
seventy-five to two hundred feet and by gravitation the water raises
from fifteen to twenty feet above the surface, where it is piped into the
houses and cottages, thus giving a never-ending supply of the purest
water at no cost except that of installation. The municipal water
supply is obtained from these flowing wells and is likewise of the
same quality.
Owing to its excellent harbor, the steamship "Northland," the
finest passenger steamer on the great lakes, owned by the Great Northern Railroad Company, makes Harbor Springs the only port of call
on the east side of Lake Michigan, while many other steamers, including the "Manitou," ply between Chicago and Harbor Springs.
It is this excellent boat and railroad service, together with the
pure water and invigorating air, that makees Harbor Springs such a
leading center of the resort region. and here are found people from




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


309


nearly every state in the Union, who have their summer homes and
enjoy the best there is in nature at nominal expense.
The authentic as well as legendary history of the place is full of
interest. Pieces of ancient crockery have been found here indicating
that it was once a stopping place of the extinct race of Mound Builders on their journeys from Mexico to the Lake Superior mines. It is
not known that it was ever in very early times an important Indian
village, but it has unquestionably been a camping ground much frequented. It was in this quiet retreat that several of the noted chiefs
of the war of 1812 spent their declining years, and here for years they
assembled their people by hundreds to receive their annuities from
the general government.
We have already shown in the general history of the county, that
about the year 1827 the Catholics removed from Seven Mile Point to
Little Traverse, and built a church of cedar logs and covered it with
bark. This was built by Rev. Father Peter De Jean who was the first
resident priest at this point. Twelve or fifteen years later a more
modern house of worship was erected beside the old log church. Among
the acts of Father De Jean, worthy of remembrance, may be mentioned
his founding of a liquor law which prohibited the use and sale of
liquor, and which was rigidly enforced until about the year 1854.
The year 1853 is the earliest point of continuous operations related
to the present village. Prior to that time M'ackinae traders had sent
goods to Little Traverse at various times for the purpose of trading
with Indians, but none remained any considerable length of time. In
the fall of 1853, Richard Cooper, afterward a citizen of Charlevoix,
arrived at Little Traverse on the trading schooner "'Eliza Caroline,'"
and opened a store for Captain Kirtland. He had previously been
engaged in fishing at Beaver islands, but had returned to his home in
Genesee county, New York.
At the time of Mr. Cooper's settlement at Little Traverse the fishermen had already established themselves at several points on the
northern part of Lake Michigan, but there were none at that place.
That same fall, however, was marked by the arrival of Charles R.
Wright, Albert Cable and James Moore. Wright and Cable at first
stopped on the point and the others in the village and for years fishing
was one of its leading industries. Some who came in those early days
to fish remained to become identified with the permanent growth of the
village and the region. Associated with the fishermen were always a
number of coopers who generally had a shop near the fish shanties;
thus cooperage was the first manufacture of Little Traverse. Small
trading establishments, like that of Captain Kirtland under the management of Mr. Cooper, also sprang up at various points, drawing their
custom from both the fishermen and the Indians. A few small vessels
or "hookers," found a lucrative trade in going from place to place,
selling supplies and whiskey and purchasing fish. It is said that the
Captain never indulged in the sale of liquor, at least that he never sold
it to the Indians; which is to his credit. Joseph Pyant was one of the
best known early traders, who often "made" Little Traverse.   He




of'
let
07"' M


SOME PLACES OF ENTERTAINMENT AT HARBOR SPRINGS




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


311


was of the noted Mackinac class, finally located at Little Traverse in
1855, was sheriff of Emmet county in 1858-64 and 1868-70, and served
two terms as register of deeds.
A postoffice was established at Little Traverse in 1861, but the great
tide of immigration came in 1875-6 when all the lands of the county
were thrown open to settlement. Real estate and professional men
located, the fish dealers commenced to build new docks, a sawmill was
erected by W. E. Parker on the bay shore, the Harbor Springs Republican was born and the Methodists organized their first regular society.
The progress of the place was continuous and normal; other newspapers came into the field and helped the village along; Mr. Parker
extended his interests both as to lumber manufacturing and general
merchandizing; business houses carrying special lines of goods joined
the procession, in 1880 railroad connection was secured with Petoskey,
and by 1881 the people were ready and entitled to be incorporated
under a village form of government. And more, visitors to the Little
Traverse region had discovered the advantages of the village as a resort center. The movement had started at Harbor Point, several years
before, in the form of what was known as the Lansing resort, and referred to in the incorporating act of Harbor Springs as the Harbor
Point Association. Its grounds were excluded from the village site.
The act incorporating Harbor Springs was passed by the legislature in the winter of 1881, and the first charter election in April of
that year resulted in the choice of C. D. Hampton for president of
the board; E. Bement clerk; E. J. Palmer treasurer; W. H. Miller assessor; Merritt Scott constable; W. W. Bowen, W. E. Parker, N. Hinman, J. M. Burbeck, I. Canby and E. H. Martindale, trustees.
Ten years after its incorporation Harbor Springs had reached a
population of more than a thousand and it has since about doubled
It is an up-to-date village, with good water, electric light, clean wellpaved streets, and a thorough system of public schools. A community
of noticeably intelligent people it has naturally given much attention
to its educational institutions, and its schools are of the best.
Harbor Springs supports two good weekly newspapers and Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Lutheran and Episcopalian
churches. Both Catholics and German Lutherans have large parochial
schools, and the former have long maintained the Convent of the Sisters of Notre Dame.
As to the status of the village from a trade and an industrial point
of view-it has in operation manufactories of' lumber, hoops, staves,
iron, furniture and boats, and is quite a point of shipment for produce,
grain, maple sugar and fish. Banking accommodations are furnished
by the Emmet County State Bank, organized in 1905, of which William
J. Clarke is president and James T. Clarke cashier.
As stated, Wequetonsing and Harbor Point, are small resorts and
virtual suburbs of Harbor Springs-the former on the Grand Rapids
& Indiana Railroad adjoining the village on the east and the latter on
the peninsula to the southeast.
Wequetonsing, as originally laid out in 1877, comprised eighty




312


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


acres of land donated by the citizens of Harbor Springs. The enterprise originated and was founded in this wise. In the summer of 1877
Revs. McCord of Allegan and Essex, of Elkhart, visited all the.points
along Grand Traverse and Little Traverse bays, with the idea of selecting a location for the establishment of a resort where worn-out


/
/


WILLIAM J. CLARKE
and sweltering humanity could repair to recover health and enjoy
rational recreations.
After an impartial survey of all points, they decided that Little
Traverse possessed greater advantages than any other place and so
reported to the synod which met that fall. In accordance with this
report it was decided at a meeting held in Elkhart in the fall of 1877
to accept the gift of the citizens of Harbor Springs of the eighty acres
of land situated on the harbor shore. An association was then and
there formed for the purpose of improving the grounds and selling
or leasing lots to parties desiring to put up cottages.
In the spring of 1878 work began on the grounds, numerous lots




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


313


were sold and a large boarding-house erected. On July 17, 1878, the
grounds were formally dedicated, Hon. Schuyler Colfax delivering his
famous address on Abraham Lincoln. The organization was not fully
completed until the summer of 1879. August 6th a business meeting
was held and L. H. Trask elected president; H. H. Pope, secretary;
H. H. Dennis, treasurer. Streets have been laid out and a number of
cottages erected in that year.  The original site has since been increased, and the erection of cottages and beautifying of grounds have
been constant.
The Indian name of this place was Wa-ba-bi-kang, meaning a white
gravelly shore, but the association evidently did not consider this as
musical as the one adopted and the founders of Wequetonsing were
right.
Harbor Point was at first called the Lansing Resort from the circumstances which brought it into existence. In August, 1878, a party
of Lansing people visited the spot and camped out. They were so delighted with the location and the many advantages it possessed, that
before they left they began making arrangements for the purchase of
the Point of Rev. Father Weicamp of Cross village, the owner of the
land. They were successful in their negotiations and proceeded with
the necessary steps of establishing a permanent resort.  On August
28, 1878, a stock company was organized under the statute for park
associations and the first officers were as follows: President, B. F.
Simon; secretary, N. B. Jones; treasurer, Eugene Angell. The original stockholders numbered nineteen and the capital stock was $2,500,
but so popular did the resort become that the capital stock was subsequently increased to $10,000. The grounds were laid out with winding
walks and drives, the underbrush cleared away. A hotel, dock, boat
and bath houses were built, and each year improvements have been
added and new cottages erected until now everybody who delights in
restful scenery and invigorating recreation is a friend to Harbor Point.
BAY VIEW
For thirty-six years Bay View has been the home of the Methodist
Camp Ground Association and this fact founded it and is the striking
feature of its history. Sometime in September, 1875, the citizens of
Petoskey first learned that the Methodists of Michigan were desirous
of selecting a site somewhere in the state for the purpose of holding
annual camp meetings and establishing a summer resort. Soon after
a committee consisting of ten leading members of the Methodist Episcopal church from different parts of the state was appointed to select
a suitable site for this purpose, and in November of that year decided
on locating at Bay View, at that time a dense forest. The land was
then owned by a number of individuals, but Petoskey people, well
knowing what an advantage it would be to them to have a permanent
state camp ground at that locality at once took hold of the matter, and
by liberal donations on the part of citizens enough money was raised
by subscription to purchase the three hundred and thirty acres of land,




314


IlISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the price paid being nearly $3,000. The Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company agreed to furnish money to buy this land, providing
payment for so doing would be guaranteed. which was done by a few
leading citizens and as fast as the money was collected it was paid
over to the company.
\V. G. IHinman. o' the land department of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company selected the site chosen, and to this gentleman. I. 0. Rose. Abner S. Lee, Arehie AMeMillan and a number of other
leading citizens. is due much credit for the part they performed in
estal)lisling this institution.  The railroad company also did much
WTOODL\AWN AVENUE, BAY VIEW
toward furtlering tile project. It was first deeded to J. Mi. Matheney
and b) hlim to the \Michigan State Camp Ground Association of the
Methodist Episcopal church. By the conditions of this deed the associatiol agree(l to hold an annual camp meeting on these grounds for
fifteen successive years, and during that time to expend in erecting
cottages, laying out streets, parks. grading and in other ways improving the grounds, not less than $10,000. These conditions, as is well
known, were far more than met by the association. In 1876 the Grand
Rapids & Indiana railroad was extended to the camp grounds, where
the first meetings commenced on August 1st. The dedicatory sermon
was preached by Rev. E. H. Pileher, president of the association.
Bay View is now one of the most prosperous resorts around the
bay, nearly seven hundred cottages, two large hotels and numerous
rooming houses standing upon the beautiful grounds of the Mlethodist
Camp Ground Association. Its affairs are managed by the Bay View




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


315


association and are in no way subject to the city government of Petoskey. The resort has provided not only everything necessary for mental
and religious exercises but for general relaxation and recreation, including boating and fishing and a swimming pool and bowling alley.
Nothing has been neglected to make the name Bay View fragrant with
pleasant and invigorating influences.
OTIER VILLAGES AND STATIONS
Cross village, on Lake Michigan in the western part of the county,
is little more than a historic memory. A huge wooden cross, several
times replaced, has stood at this point since the establishment there
of the first Catholic mission for the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.
From this fact, the town was first named La Croix and in 1875 changed
to Cross village, although it has never been incorporated. In 1869 a
postoffice was established there, and it is still on the list, but does not
add much to Uncle Sam's receipts of the postal service.
Alanson is quite a brisk little village, settled in 1877 and located
on Crooked river about a mile north of Crooked lake. It is a station
on the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, has a sawmill and wooden
ware factory and is the trading center of a thriving farming country.
Levering, on the Grand Rapids & Indiana line twenty-four miles
southwest of Petoskey, is the shipping point for a good farming, live
stock and fruit country. It has a graded school, a bank, several good
general stores, a stave factory and other evidences of growth.
Brutus, a station on the same road several miles to the north, was
the pioneer settlement of what is now M\aple river township, its founders,
who came there in 1874, having been A. S. Lee and D. R. Sherman.
A postoffice was established the same year.
Above Brutus is Pellston, another postoffice and station on the
Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, which was founded by William H.
Pells, of Paxton, Illinois, in 1882. A few years before he had commenced to purchase considerable tracts of land in the central portion
of Emmet county, on one of which he platted Pellston.




CHAPTER XII


ANTRIM COUNTY
VILLAGES AND COUNTY'S POPULATION —HISTORIC AND PREHISTORICABRAM S. WADSWORTH, THE COUNTY'S PIONEER-JAMES MCLAUGHLIN
-FIRST BURIAL IN THE COUNTY-ELK RAPIDS A FACT-EARLY
COUNTY AFFAIRS-ANTRIM COUNTY ORGANIZED-FIRST COURT HOUSE
AND JAIL-COUNTY SEAT MOVED TO BELLAIRE-BELLAIRE, PRESENT
COUNTY SEAT —ELK RAPIDS OF TODAY-MANCELONA-CENTRAI       S LAKE
-STATIONS AND POSTOFFICES-ORGANIZATION OF TOWNSHIPS.
Antrim county includes the main stretch of the eastern shores of
Grand Traverse bay. Torch, Round and Elk lakes, with Elk river and
other connecting streams, extend into the county almost as far as its
main northern line, forming with the Bay a long peninsula which juts
out from the main body with a very narrow neck at Eastport.
The largest and prettiest of these lakes is Torch lake, eighteen miles
long and from one to two miles wide with a water surface of thirty
square miles. It is said to be several hundred feet deep and lies parallel with the Bay, but flows in the opposite direction south and empties its waters through Torch river and Round lake into Elk lake,
which also lies parallel with the Bay; thence the accumulated waters
of all the rivers and lakes pour through Elk river into Grand Traverse
bay, forming one of the largest and best water powers in Northern
Michigan. The scenery about Torch lake is harmonious and picturesque.
The river Jordan rises in Warner township and waters the northeastern sections of the county, the scenes along its courses being restful
and beautiful.
The county embraces five hundred and eighty-one square miles of
land surface and fifty-five square miles of lake surface. Of this area
there are four hundred and twenty-five square miles, or fifteen sections
of land, on which there are rivers and running streams. The whole
country is abundantly watered, excepting a couple of townships in the
southeastern corner in which there are springs but no large creeks.
Clam, Grass and Intermediate lakes discharge their waters through
rivers bearing the same names, into the east side of Torch about six
miles from the south end of it. These lakes and streams abound in
fish, and during the season sportsmen come from all parts of the country to enjoy the rare sport that is here afforded.
Antrim county lies in the belt which formerly was heavily timbered
316




r i,M 11
'r
Aft.,, "N.
'WI, Z,


SCENES ON THE RIVER JORDAN



318


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


with hardwood. This has been nearly all cut by lumbermen who are
now offering the land for agricultural purposes. As all the heavy timber has been removed the lands are easily cleared and made ready for
cultivation. Watered abundantly, they are well adapted to the raising
of peas, beans, and seeds, and all root crops such as potatoes and sugar
beets. It is also a fine grass and forage country, with pure water everywhere and a bracing climate tempered by the presence of Grand
Traverse bay and Lake Michigan.    Cattle raising and dairying are
therefore bound to succeed, while the raising of apples, the small fruits
and berries is a profitable and established industry.
The Intermediate chain of lakes which lies almost wholly within the
county extends from Elk Rapids, on the East arm of Grand Traverse
I 4i
VEGET ABLE GARDEN: EIGHTY ACRES OF RADISHES
bay. to Echo, in the northern part of the county, a distance of almost
seventy-five miles. The shores of these lakes, as well as of the arm,
rise in a series of terraces from the water and there is no better farm
and fruit lands in the county than are to be found in these districts.
The entire area of 314,000 acres is more or less rolling, with some rough
land and considerable tracts of muck soil. Fully ninety per cent of
the acreage is considered tillable, with more than one-third already in
farms.
The county is traversed by four railroads-the Grand Rapids &
Indiana, Pere Marquette, Detroit & Charlevoix and East Jordan &
Southern-thus giving travellers and shippers excellent facilities.
VILLAGES AND COUNTY'S POPULATION
The four villages of Antrim county are all situated on or near its
chain of lakes, with the exception of Mancelona in the southern por



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


319


tion on the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad. The largest are Bellaire, the county seat, just northeast of Grass lake on the Pere Marquette
line, with a population of about 1,600; Elk Rapids, somewhat larger
perhaps, on Elk lake and Elk river, and MAancelona mentioned above.
The third village within the lake belt is Central Lake, a corporation numbering between eight and nine hundred people situated on the western
shore of that serpentine body known as Intermediate lake. It is also
a station on the Pere Marquette Railroad.
With this etching of Antrim county as it is we present the figures
taken from the census of 1910, showing its population at the end of
the last three decades.


Civil Divisions
Banks  township...........................
Central Lake township, including Central
Lake  village........................
Central  Lake  village...................
Chestonia  township.......................
Custer  township..........................
Eeho   township...........................
Elk Rapids township, including Elk Rapids
village.............................
Elk  Rapids  village.....................
Forest Home township, including part of
Bellaire  village.....................
Bellaire  village  (part  of)..............
Total of Bellaire village in Forest Home
and Kearney townships.............
Helena  township.........................
Jordan  township..........................
Kearney township, including part of Bellaire
village.............................
Bellaire  village  (part  of)..............
Maneelona township, including Mancelona
village.............................
Mancelona  village......................
M ilton   township..........................
Star   township............................
Torch  Lake  township......................
W arner  township.........................


1910   1900    1890


1,603
1,482
813
512
591
721


1,810
1,935
1,307
481
526
598


802
510
537
411
473


1,775  2,042   1,486
1,673....
967   1,181    548
450    560...


1,050
762
496


1,157
926
482


1,371  1,143
600    697


537
440
437....
2,323
1,205
868
380
350
311


2,560
1,200
737
957
329
829


2,729
1,226
928
598
488
701


Totals................................  15,692   16,568   10,413


HISTORIC AND PREHISTORIC
What people may have traversed portions of Antrim county in
prehistoric days will never be known. There is no doubt that these
portions of the county bordering upon the water were visited by the




320


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


representatives of whatever races traversed this northern country. It
was a favorite country with the Indians and the Mound Builders have
left their relics in several places, the particular localities noted in a
previous chapter. What white men may have built their camp fires
here prior to the coming of the first settlers in the late forties is
neither certain nor important; that some were in this region is probable.
In 1840 the unorganized county of Megesee was laid off and in
1843 the name changed to Antrim. The unorganized county embraced
the territory of townships 29, 30, 31 and 32 north and west of the line
Tbetween ranges 4 and 5 west and east of Grand Traverse bay. This
is the earliest defined existence of the territory of Antrim county.
ABRAM S. WADSWORTH, THE COUNTY S PIONEER
The pioneer settler in Antrim county was Abram  S. Wadsworth,
a native of Durham, Connecticut, who came from    Rochester, New
York. to Michigan at the age of twenty-one years. He spent some time
in Monroe and later located lands in Portland, Ionia county, where he
built the first mill-dam thrown across the Grand river in that region.
Thllat he first visited the Grand Traverse region in 1846 there is no
doubt, but as to his movements during the next few years accounts
differ. As nearly as can be ascertained, in 1846 he came northward,
coasting in a small boat and voyaging as far as the Pictured Rocks
in Lake Superior and thence to Mackinaw, Detroit and home. The
following spring, accompanied by his brother-in-law, Samuel K.
Northam, he took his family to Detroit, where the party embarked on
a propeller for Mackinac. From the latter place they found passage
on a schooner as far as Cross village. There, after camping for several days on the beach waiting for a storm to subside, they embarked
in a small boat for Old Mission.
At Middle village the party again went into camp and were delayed two days on account of rain. The next stop was made at Little
Traverse where they hoped to obtain provisions of the Indians. They
only succeeded, however, in getting a few potatoes and a single loaf
of bread. The party had lived on fish until that food had ceased to
tempt the appetite. The children, especially, were suffering for want
of their accustomed diet.  After leaving Little Traverse they were
favored with pleasant weather and proceeded rapidly. The last day
the bay was rough and they hesitated about crossing to Old Mission
from the eastern shore along which they had been coasting. Seeing
a haze of smoke on the shore near Elk river they headed for it and
there found some Indians with an excellent boat who were about to
cross. As a matter of precaution, Mrs. Wadsworth and the children
were put into the Indians' boat, which was navigated by Mr. Wadsworth and one of the Indians, while Mr. Northam and the remaining
Indians occupied Mr. Wadsworth's boat. In a short time the party
landed at Old Mission in safety, arriving there on July 16, 1847.
Mr. Wadsworth remained some time at Old Mission, but being a
man that had much experience in mills, he saw the immense water




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


321


power that was running to waste on the east side of the bay, and
bought the land where Elk Rapids now stands. About the spring of
1849 he built a small log cabin near the present site of the town hall
at Elk Rapids village. This was the first building put up by a white
man in Antrim county, of which there is any account and was the initial movement in its settlement. There, with Mr. Samuel K. Northam,
his brother-in-law, assisted by some Indians, Mr. Wadsworth peeled a
quantity of hemlock bark and shipped it to Racine, Wisconsin, the first
recorded shipment of the county's natural products. About that time
he was employed by the government in the resurvey of lands and with
the funds arising from his work and his bark he erected a house on
his property for his family who arrived late in the fall.
In 1851 the Wadsworths removed to Connecticut and spent some
time in that state, but returned and spent some three years in Old
Mission; thence they relocated at Elk Rapids and finally after various
changes made that place their permanent home. Mr. Wadsworth died
in Traverse City in June, 1871. One of his sons, James M. Wadsworth,
was a business men of Bellaire. The elder Mr. Wadsworth was one
of the most prominent of the early settlers in the Grand Traverse
country, and his writings relating to this region were considered standard authority, having been largely instrumental in making the region
known abroad.
Elk Rapids river and lake were so named by Mr. Wadsworth because of a pair of elk horns which he found in the sand at the mouth
of the river. He named Round lake from its shape and Clam lake
from the vast number of clams found in the river. Torch lake was so
named by the Indians because of the fishing lights they saw used on
the lake when the white settlers first came to the country. Waswagonink, the Indian name, signifies a lake of torches.
JAMES MCLAUGHLIN
In 1850 Mr. Wadsworth began to make preparations for building
a sawmill. In the winter of 1850-1 James McLaughlin put up the
frame of the first sawmill on the east side of the bay. It was designed
for a picket and lath-mill. In the spring of 1851 Wadsworth sold out
to a man by the name of Norris, but for some cause the property came
back into Wadsworth's hands, and November, 1851, McLaughlin moved
his family to Elk river. During the fall the families of Amos Wood,
Alexander McVicar and a Mormon family named Barnes arrived. The
Mormons remained but a short time. Wood and McVicar became settlers of the county.
Up to 1852 there were no cattle in the vicinity of Elk Rapids, except a yoke of oxen at the lumber camp on Round lake. In July Mr.
McLaughlin went out to the south part of the state and drove in from
Allegan a pair of oxen and a cow. Of this trip James McLaughlin
says: "At Grand Rapids I was joined by William Slawson and Perry
Stocking, each with a cow. From Grand Rapids they struck north and
from the Muskegon river to Traverse City their route lay through
Vol. 1-21




322


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


unbroken wilderness, with only a section line to follow. The first day
out from the Rapids, Slawson's cow broke away and they lost herit being the only serious mishap they had, and after traveling thirteen
days they arrived at Elk Rapids. Our town was thrown into quite
an excitement at the sound of a cow bell, these being the first that had
ever been heard in this region. Soon after this Alexander McVicar
came up from Canada, bringing with him his father's family and also
two cows, which made in all four cows and two yoke of oxen on our
side of the bay. It was a little amusing and at the same time it was
touching to see the little children when they were offered milk; they
would not touch it and didn't know what it was. The summer passed
away pleasantly, bringing now and then a new recruit to our village
and we soon had quite a settlement."
FIRST BURIAL IN THE COUNTY
About the first of November, 1852, a cloud settled over the community, caused by the death of Charles, youngest son of Mr. McLaughlin, a bright boy of thirteen. His death was caused by his swallowing
a pin which he had bent for a fish hook. He had it in his mouth and
was running along when he stubbed his toe and as he pitched forward
the pin flew down his windpipe and lodged in his lungs. He lingered
along for about two weeks and was in great distress until he died. He
was the first white person ever buried in Antrim county. There was
no clergyman on the east side of the bay, but appropriate funeral
services were conducted by a layman, Mr. John McDonald. The grave
was made in a grove of pines, in a beautiful spot on the first terrace
above the bay. For several years afterward the place was used as a
burying ground by the inhabitants. The remains of the first occupant
were removed at a later date to Maple Grove Cemetery.
ELK RAPIDS A FACT
In the spring of 1852 Mr. Wadsworth laid out the village of Elk
Rapids, lots being sold for twenty-five dollars each. The employment
furnished by the mill was an inducement for new comers to settle in
the vicinity. The first two lots sold were where the town hall now
stands, which were purchased by James McLaughlin and in payment
therefor he gave a blacksmith's bellows.
Among those who came that season were Michael Gay, John Lake,
Jared Stocking and John B. Spencer, with their families. Gay and
Lake being sawyers, they were employed in the mill. During this season the schooner "Telegraph" made monthly trips to the head of the
west bay for Hannah, Lay & Company, so that there was regular communication with the outside world; and for two or three seasons she
was the only regular boat trading between the bay and Chicago.
The year of 1853 brought many changes. Large additions of immigrants were made to the population. Among those who became residents of the village or settled in the vicinity were John Denahy, E. L.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


323


Sprague, J. W. Arnold, David F. Parks, Alexander Campbell and
Hiram Robinson. The clearings of farners began to dot the shores
of Elk lake. Early this year Mr. Wadsworth sold his mill to James
Rankin & Sons, who built a store and brought in a stock of goods.
Jared Stocking opened a hotel. In the fall and following winter Mr.
Wadsworth built another sawmill on the site of the mill since owned
by Dexter & Noble, Mr. Northan having charge of the business. The
mill was scarcely completed, when he sold it to M. Craw & Company,
of which firm Wirt Dexter was the principal partner. Communication
with the outside world was now more regular, two vessels trading between Elk Rapids, Chicago and Milwaukee; besides the propeller
"Stockman" made regular trips to Mackinaw. The fame of the country was spreading and people were coming in to seek homes and employment, there being a good demand for labor of all kinds.
A notable event of the year 1853 was the opening of the first school
at Elk Rapids. The house in which it was kept stood for many years
a few rods from the large brick school building that has since been
built. The district was organized in May, 1853, and the school was
taught by George W. Ladd, a young man from the peninsula. He has
long since gone to his rest, having been cut down in early manhood by
consumption.
Another event of 1853 was the establishment of a postoffice. It was
first called Stevens and afterward changed to Elk Rapids, and the first
postmaster was Theron Bostwick.
Elk Rapids received its first decided impetus as a business place
when Henry H. Noble located there in September, 1855, as an employee
of M. Craw & Company. He came from Washtenaw county, and in
the fall of 1856 when his employers dissolved partnership he associated himself with Wirt Dexter in the establishment of the firm of Dexter & Noble. For several years after 1861 their lumbering and mercantile operations monopolized the business of Elk Rapids, and placed
it in line as the only available location for the county seat.
EARLY COUNTY AFFAIRS
Until 1863 Antrim county was attached to Grand Traverse. Its
earliest records while so joined are found in an old book in the county
clerk's office and relate to various township elections in 1853. It appears that John B. Spencer, John S. Barker and William H. Case,
three electors of the town of Antrim, called the first town election on
April 25th of that year at the house of A. S. Wadsworth, and that the
following officers were chosen: John S. Barker, supervisor; Samuel
Northam, treasurer; William H. Case, town clerk; John S. Barker,
William H. Case, Samuel Northam and Orselas Evans, justices of the
peace; William Slawson, James McLaughlin and William Wells, commissioners of highways; William Slawson and John B. Spencer, school
inspectors; Enoch Wood, Jerome B. Stocking and Charles Walker,
constables; Enoch Wood and John B. Spencer, directors of the poor;
John B. Spencer, overseer of highways; Amos Wood, poundmaster.




324


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


From the frequent repetition of names it is evident that the supply of
official material was scarce in 1853.
It was voted at the same election that twenty-five dollars be raised
to defray town expenses and that "swine shall not be permitted to
run at large from the first of Mlay until the twentieth of October,
1853-" in other words during the warm season.
It also appears from the old records that the first list of grand and
petit jurors, filed with the county clerk May 1, 1853, included John
B. Spencer, James McLaughlin, William H. Case, Orselas Evans, William Slawson, John S. Barker, Jared Stocking, Samuel Northam, William Wells, Chauncey Hall, Amos Wood and Enoch M. Wood.
Before Antrim county was organized the township by that name
was changed to Megesee, as the original county was designated.
ANTRIM COUNTY ORGANIZED
On March 11, 1863, an act of legislature was approved providing
for the organization of Antrim county. The act reads as follows:
"The pople of the state of Michigan enact, That the county of Antrim, consisting of the territory embraced by the present county of
Antrim, be, and the same is organized into a separate county by the
name of Antrim, and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled to all
the privileges, powers and immunities to which, by law, the inhabitants of other organized counties in this state are entitled.
"The unorganized counties of Kalkaska, Crawford, and Otsego
shall be attached to the said county of Antrim for municipal and
judicial purposes.
"All that part of the said county of Antrim which lies north of
the south line of township 31 north, shall be organized into a separate
township by the name of Banks, and the first township meeting thereof
shall be held at the house of Gurden Geer on the first Monday in
April, next; and James Orr, Thomas Flanigan and Rock W. Geer shall
be the inspectors of the election.
"The dimensions of the township of Milton, in said county, shall
be enlarged by adding thereto the following described territory, towit. fractional township 30 north, of range 9 west; also townships
28, 29 1, north, of range 8 west.
"The name of the township of Megesee, in said county, is hereby
changed to that of Elk Rapids and all of the county of Antrim and
the counties attached thereto, not included within the limits of any
other organized township thereof, is hereby attached for township
purposes to the township of Elk Rapids.
"The county seat of said county of Antrim shall be established by
the board of supervisors at the village of Elk Rapids, to-wit in township 29 north, of range 9 west, and on sections 20 and 29.
"At the township meeting of several townships in said county to
be held on the first day of April next, there shall be an election of all
the county officers to which the said county is entitled, whose term of
office shall expire on the first day of January, A. D. 1865, and when




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


325


their successors shall have been elected and qualified. Said election
shall be conducted in the same way, by the same officers and the returns thereof made in the same manner, as near as may be, as is now
required by law in elections of county officers in this state.
"The county canvass of the votes for county officers shall be held
on the second Tuesday succeeding the election at the house of Henry
H. Noble at the village of Elk Rapids, and said canvass shall be conducted in the same way and by the same officers as the requirements
of law now provide in organized counties, as nearly as may be, by the
appointment by the board of canvassers of one of their own number
to act as secretary to said board of county canvassers.
"Said county shall be in the ninth judicial circuit and shall be
entitled to one court therein in each year.
"This act shall take immediate effect."
The first county election was held on the sixth day of April, 1863.
The highest number of votes polled was sixty-six and the following
were the county officers elected: Sheriff, Jared W. Arnold; treasurer,
Ienry H. Noble; clerk and register, James L. Gilbert; judge of probate, Solomon Case; prosecuting attorney, John B. Spencer; circuit
court commissioner, John B. Spencer; surveyor, A. S. Wadsworth.
FIRST COURT HOUSE AND JAIL
At a special session of the board held July 19, 1865, it was resolved
that the sum of one thousand dollars should be raised, in the tax roll
of 1865, for the purpose of building a court house and jail for Antrim
county, to be erected on the northeast quarter of the southeast fractional quarter of section 20, town 29 north, of range 9 west, known as
lots 46 to 201 inclusive, in the village of Elk Rapids according to a
plat made by A. S. Wadsworth of said village.
On motion of Lemuel R. Smith it was resolved that, in addition to
the one thousand dollars raised by tax, two thousand dollars should
be appropriated from the contingent fund then on hand, belonging to
the county, for the purpose of building a court house and jail.
On motion of Lemuel R. Smith, Henry H. Noble was appointed
a building committee of one to procure plans and specifications for
the proposed county buildings and to let contracts for their erection.
During the year 1866 a court house was completed at a cost of about
$7,100. A jail was also erected. About this time a local paper, speaking of the jail, said: "While speaking of the court house and jail
we are reminded that while this county has all the 'machinery' necessary to punish delinquents there seems to be but little use for it; there
never having been a criminal suit in the county since its organization.
Either the people are very moral or the rogues think the jail too substantially built for them to be caught in it, and so keep out of mischief. "
Up to 1874 the county had not received a perfect title to the prop



326


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


erty and in October, 1874, the supervisors reported having received
satisfactory evidence of title by warranty deed from Dexter & Noble.
COUNTY SEAT MOVED TO BELLAIRE
As the country developed and the eastern part of the county became settled, the question of removing the county seat to a more central point than Elk Rapids was agitated. In October, 1878, there were
thirteen organized townships in the county, and at the meeting of the
board of supervisors held that month it was voted to remove the county
seat to the "south fractional half of the southwest fractional quarter
of section 19, in town 30 north, range 7 west."
The question was voted upon at the spring election. The whole
number of votes cast was 1,020, of which 574 were for removal and
446 against- removal. The vote of the several towns was a follows:
Banks, 35 for, 75 against; Central Lake, 35 for, 35 against; Chestonia,
52 for; Custer, 71 for; Echo, 90 for; Elk Rapids, 6 for and 145 against;
Forest Home, 43 for and 3 against; Helena, 66 for and 4 against; Jordan, 29 for and 34 against; Kearney, 60 for and 1 against; Mancelona,
74 for and 1 against; Milton, 12 for and 122 against; Torch Lake, 1
for and 28 against.
The decision of the board having been affirmed by popular vote,
the courthouse site was in the following June definitely located on the
land above described. The owner of the land thus designated platted
the same, and on the 24th day of June, 1879, the plat was recorded in
the office of the register of deeds and the village of Bellaire became
the new capital of the county.
As indicated by the vote the removal involved a bitter contest. Efforts were made to prevent the payment of money for the erection of
buildings at the new county seat, and a temporary building was erected
by Ambrose E. Palmer, of Kalkaska, the owner of the site. In 1880,
at the April term, the question was tried in the supreme court and at
the decision affirmed the proceedings by which the removal had been
made.
Five acres of land were then set apart by Mr. Palmer for a courthouse square, and in 1883 a large building was erected by the town
of Kearney for a town hall, which by an arrangement by the county
was used for county purposes, the first floor for county offices and
the hall above for a courtroom. A jail was built in 1883 at a cost of
about $5,000. The buildings now occupied are modern and convenient,
as will be seen by the illustration.
BELLAIRE, PRESENT COUNTY SEAT
Bellaire, the present official seat of Antrim county, is a neat thriving village of some sixteen hundred inhabitants lying within both in
Kearney and Forest Home townships. It is also situated on both
sides of the Intermediate river which connects Intermediate and Grass
lakes, and has an improved water power of much value and promise.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


327


Bellaire is the center of a good farming, fruit and live stock country,
has a number of growing industries and enjoys transportation and
shipping facilities through the Pere Marquette and East Jordan &
Southern railroads.
Geographically, Bellaire is a little west of the center of the county.
It lies in what is known as the Intermediate valley, which is about
thirty miles in length and watered mainly by the Intermediate chain;:.O
of water- are from a few rods to three or four miles in length and are
the delight of the sportsman and fisherman who are really fond of
outdoor life with comparative quiet.
The history of Bellaire commences in 1878 with the location of the
county seat at the south fractional half of the southwest fractional
quarter of section 19, town 30 north and range 7 west. In June of
that year the courthouse site was definitely located on the land described, the state supreme court having decided that the removal from
Elk Rapids was legal during the previous month. Mr. Palmer, the
owner of the land, recorded the plat, including the five acres set aside
for the courthouse square, on June 24, 1879. The proprietor had been




328


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


charmed by the purity of the air in this region, and so named the new
village and county seat Bellaire.
A postoffice was established at this location known as Keno, with
Rufus Hall as postmaster; in July, 1881, Dempster H. Stebbins was appointed to succeed Mr. Hall and, through his influence, the name was
changed to Bellaire, to correspond with the village plat.
In January, 1880, with the growth of the village, Harvey T. Alcott
platted the first addition to his tract lying to the south, and in the
following year John Hasting made one to the north. In 1882 J. M.
Wadsworth and John E. Cook. the latter proprietor of the pioneer
BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF BELLAIRE
hotel, purchased the original plat of the village. Cook & Wadsworth,
as the firm was known, laid out Mound Park on the opposite side of
the river from the business section of the village. The land rose in a
series of terraces, or mounds, in which various prehistoric relics had
been found, and became a favorite residence quarter as the village extended in that direction.
The excellent water power at Bellaire soon attracted various manufacturing enterprises and by the early eighties Richardi & Bechtold had
in operation a large sawmill and wooden ware factory and there were
also two shingle mills, a planing mill and a rolling pin and desk factory.
The firm of Richardi & Bechtold was composed of Robert Richardi,
a practical and inventive German machinist who had served in the
Civil war and settled at Bellaire in 1881; and Frederick W. Bechtold,
a young Belgian and Union soldier, who had had experience as a salesman and has ever since been active in the industrial and financial en



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


329


terprises of the village. Before coming to Michigan Mr. Richardi had
invented a wooden scoop and various machinery for manufacturing
wooden trays. As the practical man of the enterprise he joined Mr.
Bechtold, who was especially adapted to pushing the sales of their
products. Their partnership resulted in the establishment of a manufactory for the making of trays, bowls and wooden ware in general,
and the industry in a much extended form has been continued to this
day. Henry Richardi, the son, has succeeded his father, the founder
of the business, and Frederick W. Bechtold is still a partner.  Mr.
Bechtold has been continuously active in the industrial and financial
interests of the village and is also associated with Henry Richardi in
the ownership and management of the Bellaire Hydraulic Light and
Power Company. The early operations of Richardi & Bechtold, with
subsequent developments brought about by the firm whose presidency
has passed to Henry Richardi have been of such concern to the well
being of Bellaire that a reliable account is taken from a late publication: 'Robert Richardi continued to be actively identified with the
industrial enterprises here until 1895. when he sold his interests to
his son, having had charge of the mechanical and operative departments of the business and being a man of distinctive talents and skill
in a mechanical way. Upon closing out his interests here, he established an electric light and power plant in the village of Plainwell,
Allegan county, whence he eventually moved to the city of Richmond,
Virginia, to operate a fine electric plant there.
"Robert Richardi was associated with Mr. Bechtold in the development of the valuable water power at Bellaire, utilizing the same in
the operation of the first wooden ware plant in which employment was
given to about forty men. In 1900 a stock company was organized
and incorporated, while the scope of operations has been greatly expanded under the present regime, that of the Bellaire Wooden Ware
Company. "
Since the above was written and mainly through the efforts, influence and capital of Henry Richardi and Mr. Bechtold the water
power has been utilized as a generator of electricity for lighting and
power purposes. In 1906 the fine plant at Bellaire was completed at
a cost, with the conveying system, of about $75,000. Mr. Richardi is
president and Mr. Bechtold secretary of the controlling company.
Through this plant electric light and power are sent to Charlevoix
and thence distributed from a central plant and the planing and grist
mills at Bellaire are supplied with power.
The village of Bellaire has its own municipal lighting plant for
night service. It is located on the Cedar river about a mile from the
village, having been established in 1901 and rebuilt in 1910.
Bellaire was incorporated as a village in 1891, and its first officers
consisted of Frederick W. Bechtold as president; Fred B. Zoon, clerk;
Alfred A. Hickox, assessor, and J. C. Abbott, treasurer.
It has a well organized Central Union school and a public library
of some 1,500 volumes. The latter is a consolidation of the old Forest
Home and Kearney township libraries, which occurred in 1905, and the




330


HIISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


collection is housed in the Kearney town hall. The leading churches
are the Methodist, Catholic and Congregational.
The Bellaire State Bank, successor of a private institution, was
established in 1906. It has a capital of $20,000; surplus and undivided
profits amounting to $4,400, and the following officers: F. W. Bechtold, president; Charles Weiffenbach, vice-president, and W. H. Richards. cashier.
ELK RAPIDS OF TODAY
The pioneer times in the history of Elk Rapids have been traced in
preceding pages of this chapter up to the period of the transfer of


MIAIN STREET, ELK RAPIDS


I he county seat to Bellaire. At that time the Dexter & Noble Lumber
Company had branched out into many enterprises. It had built a furnace and was conducting it as the Elk Rapids Iron Company, and
various stores were being conducted as the Elk Rapids Supply Company. while the Elk Rapids Light Company was to be a later evolution. A flour mill was started, which is still in operation, and the Elk
Rapids Iron Company improved the water power so that it became the
greatest asset in the prosperity of the place. In 1890 the Elk Rapids
Cement & Lime Company was organized and built a large cement mill
at the village. which was in operation until 1911. The Lake Superior
Iron & Chemical Company was perhaps the latest outgrowth of the
Dexter & Noble enterprises and the Elk Rapids Iron Company, in which
were bound up so much of the industrial and business life of Elk Rapids.
It was incorporated as a village in 1900.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


331


The village still supports various wooden manufactories, such as
lumber and lath mills, has a good flour mill and one of the best natural
water powers in its section of the state. It is located in a fine fruit
and farming country, and is in the midst of the great potato-producing
section of Northern Michigan. During one season of the past six years
about 75,000 bushels were shipped from the township, the bulk from
Elk Rapids. The shipping facilities of the place are excellent, as it is
situated on the Pere Marquette road and has deep water communication with all the ports of the Great Lakes. The local trade and business are transacted through the Elk Rapids Savings Bank with a capital of $35,000.
Elk Rapids has an excellent graded school housed in a $24,000
building, a public library, and churches organized by Methodists, Presbyterians, Catholics, and Episcopalians. There is also a strong German
Reformed Society. It was here, at the mouth of Elk river, that the religious activities first began on the eastern shores of Grand Traverse bay,
or to give the details in Dr. Leach's words: "Until 1857 there had
been no stated religious service anywhere on the east side of the bay.
On the second day of August in that year, Rev. D. R. Latham crossed
from Old Mission and preached at Elk Rapids. He attempted to include
that point in his round of regular appointments, but often found it
difficult to cross the bay. When, in the fall of 1858, the Michigan
Methodist Conference detached Elk Rapids from Old Mission and
Traverse City and erected it, with the adjacent territory, into what was
known as the Whitewater circuit, Mr. Latham was assigned to it as
preacher in charge and moved from Old Mission to his new work. "
In the fall of 1862 the Congregationalists sent Rev. Leroy Warren
up into Northern Michigan to see what chance there was for a mission
in that benighted part of the country, and he located at Elk Rapids
as the first preacher of that denomination. A society was organized in
February of the following year.
The Church of the Covenant, Protestant Episcopal, was formed at
the old courthouse in Elk Rapids, August 29, 1867. These were the
earliest foundations of religious life laid in the village.
MANCELONA
Mancelona, thirteen miles southeast of Bellaire, is a flourishing village on the Grand Trunk & Indiana Railroad and is but a few years
younger than the county seat.
The first movements at this point having any connection with a
village were in the spring of 1872 by Leander C. Handy and A. D. Carpenter, who opened a store and established the nucleus of a business
center. Prior to that time section 20, upon a portion of which the
village is located, had been occupied a short time.
Perry Andress, after residing several years in Lapeer and St.
Joseph counties, Benton Harbor and Allegan, came with his family
in 1869 to where Mancelona now is, before the township was organized.
He took the site of the Mancelona Hotel and vicinity as a homestead.




332


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Mr. Andress erected the hotel building and opened a place of public
entertainment when the railroad was just being surveyed, and also
gave some attention to lumbering. In 1880 he removed to Petoskey,
purchased the Occidental Hotel and retained it until his death, March
11, 1881. The town and village of Mancelona were named from Mr.
Andress' youngest daughter, Mancelona Andress, afterward well known
in Petoskey society.
Leander C. Handy and A. D. Carpenter opened the first store at
Mancelona in 1872. Mr. Handy bought the first village lot, erected
the first frame building, sold the first merchandise, bought the first
load of wheat and the first load of apples, shipped the first carload of
wheat and assisted in securing the location of the blast furnace operated
by J. Otis & Company, the Mancelona handle factory and the butter
dish and sash, door and blind factories. He may be put down in local
history as the real founder of the village.
The second store was started by Marshall Emery, and soon after
the arrival of Perry Andress, the proprietor of the village plat, a postoffice was established with Mr. Andress as postmaster. He kept the office in his hotel for about a year, when Mr. Handy succeeded him and
continued in office for many years.
A Congregational church was organized at Mancelona in 1874. The
Methodists supplied the villagers with occasional preaching in 1873-5,
and the Mancelona and Kalkaska circuit was organized in 1877.
In 1875 a schoolhouse was built which answered the needs of the
district for several years, but in 1882 a Union building was erected,
the pupils being regularly graded during that year.
In 1877 Mr. Andress, the original proprietor of Mancelona, platted
about fifteen acres on the north half of section 20, thus adding to the
area of the village.
Furnaceville, or Antrim, which adjoins Mancelona on the south, is
practically a part of the village. It was founded by John Otis, a New
York man who located there in 1882 and, with R. M. Cherrie, erected
and started a blast furnace for the manufacture of charcoal pig iron.
In May, 1883, the furnace and all the main buildings of the plant were
consumed by fire at a loss of about $40,000, but in September Mr. Otis
resumed the enterprise alone and developed it finally into a large iron
manufactory employing about one hundred and fifty men. He also
started a broom factory, built large kilns for the manufacture of charcoal and made Furnaceville a busy industrial town. It is still an important manufacturing center with a large plant for the making of
wood alcohol and chemicals, an extensive charcoal pig iron furnace, and
saw and planing mills.
Mancelona and Furnaceville combined present a picture of varied
industrial life, for, besides the manufactories mentioned, they turn out
flour, veneer, cheese box material, broom handles, butter and gasoline
launch engines-certainly a conglomeration.
Mancelona township contains about twelve thousand acres of cutover hardwood timber lands, the soil of which is of a heavy sandy
loam and particularly favorable to heavy potato crops. Abundant




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


333


crops have, in fact, been raised, as may be verified by the shipments of
over one hundred and seventy-five carloads of potatoes in one of the
recent seasons. Most of this trade gravitates to the village.
A village incorporation was secured in 1889; so that Mancelona is
now a regular civil bddy with wide paved streets, electric light and
power plant, an excellent system of water works, a good bank (Antrim County State Savings), two weekly newspapers, an up-to-date
public school system and a fine county normal school, a township library,
an opera house and a number of churches. The last named include
Methodist, Catholic, Congregational, Episcopal and German Reformed
organizations.
CENTRAL LAKE
Central Lake, which was incorporated as a village in 1895, is eight
miles north of Bellaire on the Pere Marquette road. It is a substantial community of between eight and nine hundred people and is the
center of a productive farming country of the Intermediate lake region.
Swveet corn, beans, squash and all kinds of fruit are plentifully raised
in the adjacent sections, and Central Lake has one of the largest canning factories in the Grand Traverse region, besides being a leading
shipping station for these varieties of farm produce. Its industries
also include flour, lumber, stave and shingle mills and the building
of boats.
The trade and industries of the village require the facilities of
two banks-a private institution and the First State Bank, the latter
capitalized at $20,000.
The good points of Central Lake are spread abroad by a weekly newspaper and four religious organizations minister to its spiritual needsthe Congregational, Methodist, Free Methodist and Episcopalian.
STATIONS AND POSTOFFICES
Outside of its incorporated villages, there are several stations and
postoffices which may now be mentioned. Eastport, at the head of Torch
lake and about six miles northwest of the village of Central Lake, is
a small settlement which was first known as Wilson. About 1869 a man
named Phillips built a hotel here, but the place did not seem to prosper,
although a survey was made for a village plat in 1873 and given the
name of Wilson. A postoffice was established and several stores opened
and the name was soon changed to Eastport. But this more imposing
name did not greatly stimulate the village. It is still but a small collection of buildings depending upon Central Lake for its banking and
shipping accommodations. A daily stage runs to that station and, in
the open season, it is connected by steamer with Elk Rapids.
The village of Torch Lake is on the western shore of the body of
water by that name, or, more strictly speaking, on a narrow strip of
land between Torch lake and Grand Traverse bay. It is nine miles
from Central Lake, which is also its nearest shipping and banking point.




334


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The settlement has stage communication with both Central Lake and
Elk Rapids. But Torch Lake carries one back to as early as 1858, for
in that year, Captain John W. Brown built a large log house and barn
where Torch Village now is. He also built some shanties on the beach
of Torch lake and cleared some thirty acres of land. The place was
named Brownstown. Captain Brown was commander of the "Paine"
and is said to have been a better sailor than farmer. He spent considerable time and money without reaping any benefit. In 1864 he sold
to Wilcox & Newell, who moved on and erected a sawmill, which they
had hardly gotten in running order before it was burned down. In
the summer of 1866 a postoffice called Torch Lake was established with
Major Cicero Newell postmaster, and from  that time the name of
Brownstown was dropped.
Alden is a pretty summer resort on the southeastern shores of Torch
lake near its extremity, and was formerly known as Spencer Creek,
as it is also at the mouth of that stream. The stream received its name
from John B. Spencer, a lumberman who operated in that vicinity. In
1870 F. J. Lewis built a store there, naming the settlement which clustered around it, Noble; but the village was afterwards called successively
Spencer Creek and Alden, receiving its present name as a station of
the Pere Marquette Railroad.
Alba is at the junction of the Grand Rapids & Indiana and Detroit
& Charlevoix railroads, in the eastern part of the county, lying both
in Chestonia and Star townships. The original plat of the village was
made by William J. Barker in 1878, and two additions were platted
in 1882 and 1883. It has a good graded school, a private bank, two
churches, several stores, a flour mill, machine shop and saw planing and
feed mill, and is altogether quite a brisk little place.
ORGANIZATION OF THE TOWNSHIPS
The town of Milton was organized by the board of supervisors of
Grand Traverse county at a meeting held March 3, 1857.
In 1865, two years after the organization of Antrim county, the
town of Milton was changed to Helena and a new township was created
under the original name.
The legislative act of 1863 organizing the county created the townships of Banks and Elk Rapids-the latter being previously known as
Megesee township.
The town of Torch Lake was organized by the county board in 1866;
Forest Home and Mancelona in 1871, the former by the board of supervisors and the latter by the state legislature; Central Lake by the legislature in 1873; Chestonia by the county board in 1874; Kearney, Echo,
Custer and Jordan by the board of supervisors in 1875; Star by the
county board in 1881, and the town of Warner by the legislature of
the state in 1883.




CHAPTER XIII


LEELANAU COUNTY
NATURAL CHARACTERISTICS-THE CARP LAKE REGION-THE GLEN LAKE
REGION-POPULATION AND PROPERTY-FIRST SETTLERS-FIRST YEARS
OF GROWTH-COUNTY ORGANIZED-NORTHPORT, FIRST COUNTY SEAT
— LELAND, PRESENT    COUNTY   SEAT-EMPIRE-SUTTON'S      BAYPROVEMONT-OMENA AND PESHABATOWN-GLEN ARBOR AND BURDICKVILLE.
Leelanau county with its 227,200 acres of area constitutes that
sharply defined peninsula which juts out from the northwestern shoulder of Northern Michigan between the deep waters of Lake Michigan
on the west and those of Grand Traverse bay on the east. The great
bodies of water which embrace the county on three sides affect the climate to the great comfort and advantage of the people and the region
of their residence; for the summers are not as warm in Leenanau or
the winters as cold as in most places in the state of the same latitude.
Eighty-three per cent of this county was once covered with maple,
beech, elm, birch, oak and other hardwoods, and ten per cent was swamp
land, but most of the heavy timber has been cut away, and one-third
of the county is now in cultivated farms and orchards. More than
138,000 acres have been set aside for agricultural purposes, and the
rolling uplands of the northern sections are ideal for the raising of
fruit. Apples and peaches flourish, as well as alfalfa and all forage
crops, and the abundance of lakes and streams throughout the county,
with the equable climate, make dairying a growing industry.
LEELANAU CHARACTERISTICS
Leelanau county is an aggregation of hills, valleys, plains, forests,
lakes, headlands, inlets and islands, one of the most picturesque regions
of Northern Michigan and warmly favored by- the sportsman and summer resorter. The county is an irregular triangle in shape, its greatest
length being thirty-nine miles and its greatest width, along its southern boundary, twenty-two miles. It has a shore line of more than one
hundred miles. The most striking interior features of the county center
in the valleys of Carp and Glen Lakes. The late Professor Winchell
thus speaks of the topography of Leelanau county: "Some parts of
the county present hills of somewhat formidable magnitude. Most
335




FRUIT FARM IN LEELANAU COUNTY, OWNED BY MRS. C. P. TAFT OF
CINCINNATI, SISTER-IN-LAW OF PRESIDENT TAFT




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


337


of the northern part of the triangle is decidedly rough. The ridge of
land separating Carp lake from Sutton's bay attains an elevation of
nearly four hundred feet above the bay. Carp lake is a beautiful sheet
of pure water, resting in the bosom of hills, which with their rounded
forest-covered forms furnish it a setting of surpassing loveliness. Except for a short space on the east side south of the narrows the shores
of the lake are occupied by dry and arable land. The region between
Glen Arbor and Traverse City is substantially an undulating plateau,
lying at an elevation of about three hundred feet above the lake. Glen
lake is surrounded by hills, which attain an elevation of two hundred
and fifty to four hundred feet.
"North Unity is a bold bluff of clay and sand, formed by the wasting of the lakeward side of a prominent hill by the action of the waves.
"Sleeping Bear Point is an enormous pile of gravel, sand and clay,
which has been worn away on its exposed borders till the lakeward
face presents a precipitous slope rising from the waters to an elevation of five hundred feet, and forming with the horizon an angle of
fifty degrees. Back from the face of the bluff is an undulating plateau
of clay, pebbles and sand covering an area of six or eight square
miles, over which the only signs of vegetation are a few tufts of brown,
coarse grass with scattered clumps of dwarfed and gnarly specimens
of the blam of Gilead, a miniature desert lying three hundred and eighty
feet above the lake. Across this waste of sand and clay the wind
sweeps almost incessantly,-sometimes with relentless fury-driving pebbles and sand into the shelter of the neighboring forest, and causing
the stunted poplars to shrink away in terror at its violence.   The
pelting sand has polished the exposed surface of the larger fragments
of rocks to such an extent that they reflect the sunlight like a mirror.
Their surfaces are sometimes worked into furrows, pits and grotesque
inequalities in consequence of the unequal hardness of different portions of the stone. The 'Bear' proper is an isolated mound rising a
hundred feet above this desolate plateau and singularly covered with
evergreens and other trees, presenting from the lake the dark appearance which suggested to the early navigators the idea of a bear in
repose. "
THE CARP LAKE REGION
Carp or Leelanau lake, a fine body of water twenty-five miles long
and from a few rods to three miles wide, cuts longitudinally through
the two eastern tiers of townships to Lake Michigan by way of the
Leelanau river. The entire shore on both sides is indented with bays
into which empty some fine trout streams. Cedar river, a cold spring
brook, empties into Carp lake near Cedar and is one of the best of the
trout streams. Carp lake itself supplies to the sportsman virtually
every fish known to the waters of Northern Michigan-Mackinaw trout,
black, green and speckled bass, white fish, pickerel, muskalonge, perch,
sunfish and speckled trout. A special feature of the fishing on Carp
lake is the deep water trolling for Mackinaw trout.
Vol. 1-22




338


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Around Carp lake, or Lake Leelanau as it is becoming known, are
springing up summer camps and cottages and its future as an attractive and popular resort country is assured. The entire region well
upholds the translation from the Indian name Leelanau, "Delight of
Life."  Leland, the county seat, is located between the head of Carp
lake and Lake Michigan.
THE GLEN LAKE REGION
This includes the southwestern townships of the county, and some
of the most picturesque, romantic, fertile and progressive sections of


D. H. DAY HOMESTEAD, GLEN LAKE


its territory.  An interested enthusiast speaks thus in 1911: "Glen
lake, from one to three miles wide. seven miles long-is abundantly
stocked with fish, bass, lake-trout, pickerel and perch. Yearly, since
1893, the spawn from the state fish hatcheries is planted in the lake
and the brook-trout stream that empties into it after passing through
Atkinson's pond at DeGrawville.   For beauty scenery Glen lake is
classed as the equal of Lake George and by some even of Lake Como.
Tt is fast becoming a great resort lake. Many hotels and cottages are
beginning to line its shores and it is destined to soon be one of the most
popular resorts in MIichigan. accessible by railroad to Empire and by
the Northern Mlichigan Transportation Company's steamers to Glen
Haven.   The roads throughout the region surrounding the lake are
good, thus making automobiling a delightful pastime.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


339


"On the north shore of the western end of the lake is one of the
finest private forestry propositions in the state of Michigan. Fourteen hundred acres are covered with second growth birches, elms, maples,
basswoods, oak and pines. These trees are now forty years old and beneath their shade-giving branches are beautiful walks and drives. The
forest is the property of D. H. Day. To the south of the lake are several pieces of virgin timber that are being preserved and that prove a
fairy world to all lovers of the woodland. Elsewhere there is already
all too little of the 'forest primeval.'
" Overtowering the inland lake on the west is the celebrated 'Sleeping
Bear.' This is one of the points of greatest interest in the state. The
stretch of sand dunes, reaching from Sleeping Bear Point to Empire,
eight miles to the southward, with its wide expanse of ever changing
hills and ravines and with a sandy surface that is so hard that it can
be driven upon, is a glorious place for resorters and picnic parties to
while away dreamy summer days. From the top of the Bear a beautiful view of Lake Michigan is to be had. At the northern extremity of
the Bear is a United States life saving station, which furnishes much
of interest to visitors. The north and south Manitou islands are places
for the excursionist and explorer. They are admirably located for
days' outings as they can be reached from Glen Haven by launches.
"The Glen Lake Valley reaching from Burdickville to Maple City
contains some of the best lands in Leelanau county. This valley lies
entirely in Kasson township, within the limits of which have been
found some of the finest stands of hardwood timber in the country.
This fact is a testimonial to the richness of the soil. Down the valley
is a good road to Burdickville where is located a large warehouse at
which all kinds of produce is received for shipment and is bought.
Freight is here loaded on cars, ferried across Glen lake to the railroad at Day's mill, hauled to his dock on Lake Michigan and forwarded
by the Northern Michigan Transportation Company steamers to Chicago and other lake points."
It may be added that lands in Empire, Kasson and Glen Arbor
township are especially well suited to the raising of fruits; that fine
orchards are being planted and the proprietors locating. Neither is
the Glen lake region a new country. It is well settled, has good roads,
telephone service, rural delivery and well established schools and
churches; in a word, it is a good region for those looking for homes.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY
Besides Empire. in the Glen Lake region, the only other incorporated
villages are Northport and Sutton's Bay on Grand Traverse bay, places
of about four and five hundred people respectively. North -Manitou
island is civilly attached to Leland township and South Manitou to
Glen Arbor. The status of these communities, as well as the several
townships of the county, is fairly indicated by the census figures for
1890, 1900 and 1910.




340


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Civil Divisions


1910   1900   1890


Bingham township...........................    744
Centerville township......................... 1,051
Cleveland township..........................  586
Elmwood township..........................  744
Empire township, including Empire village..  1,212
Empire village...........................   578
Glen Arbor township.........................  550
Kasson township.............................   838
Leelanau township, including Northport village.. 1,668
Northport village.........................  524
Leland township............................. 1,248
Solon township..............................   766
Sutton Bay township, including Sutton's Bay village.................................  1,201
Sutton's  Bay  village......................  402
Totals................................... 10,608


811
1,285
506
824
1,155
609
593
685
1,620
946
888


927
927
552
734
596
353
558
1,397
708
367


1,243 1,033
398.....


10,556 7,944


The assessed valuation of property for 1910, as equalized, is as
follows: Real estate, $2,597,207; personal property, $420,170; total,
$3.017,377.
FIRST SETTLERS
It is claimed by some that the first white settler within the present
limits of Leelanau county was a Frenchman named Nazaros Dona,
who lived about two miles south of the present site of Leland, then
called Shemacopink. It is not probable, however, that he lived there
except while engaged in fishing, or that he could be considered a settler of the county.
In 1847 John Lerue came from Chicago to the Manitou islands in
search of health. At that time there was a pier, or wharf, on each of
the two islands where passing steamers used to call for wood, the one on
the north island being owned by Mr. Pickard, that on the south by Mr.
Barton. On the north Manitou were two fishermen without families.
The lighthouse was kept by a man named Clark. There were no white
men at that time in Leelanau county. Farther south, at the mouth of
the Betsey river, there was living a white man named Joseph Oliver,
with an Indian wife, who supported his family by trapping and fishing. There were no Indians living on the Manitous, but they frequently came there to trade. Finding the climate favorable to his
health, Mr. Lerue commenced trading with the Indians, and the next
year moved his establishment over to the mainland, locating at what
was then called Sleeping Bear bay, now Glen Arbor, and was probably
the first permanent white settler.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


341


NORTHPORT FOUNDED
The most prominent figure in the earliest history of Leelanau county
is that of the late Rev. George N. Smith, a minister of the Congregational church who had spent ten years in missionary work among the
Indians of Black river, Ottawa county. Visiting the bay in the summer of 1848, with some of the Mission Indians, he selected a location
on the shore some distance north of the site of the present village of
Northport.
The arrival and the first experiences of the party are related by
James J. McLaughlin, long a resident of Elk Rapids, and a son of
James McLaughlin. "It was a beautiful morning," he says "in the
early part of June, 1849, that the schooner 'Merrill' rounded Cat
Head Point and stood up the bay. She had on board three families
that were to make the first commencement where Northport now stands
-those of James McLaughlin, the owner of the vessel, who was in the
employ of the government; Rev. George N. Smith, missionary and
teacher among the Ottawa Indians, and William H. Case, a brother-inlaw of the owner of the vessel. These parties had been ordered by
the government to Grand Traverse, then almost unknown to white
men, with an Indian mission from Allegan county in this state. It
seemed to us, as we gazed upon the beautiful scenery that met our
eyes at every turn, that we had found the 'Eldorado.' The forests
were unbroken; the axe of the white man had not marred its beauty;
the beach of the bay was not strewn with the refuse of the sawmill,
but all lay in the state that Dame Nature had kept it, beautiful beyond
description.
"The place decided upon as the point to settle was near the creek
where Northport is. The vessel was anchored off there the morning
of the 11th of June. The men, armed with their axes, went ashore to
prepare to build a house. The women and children enjoyed a walk
on terra firma once more. Soon the sound of the axe broke the stillness of the forest, logs were cut, the ground cleared and everything
made ready for the first raising on the west side of Grand Traverse bay.
But right here arose a difficulty; the logs were cut for a house nineteen feet square, good sized logs too and there was no team to haul
them with. We couldn't go to the neighbors and borrow one, for the
nearest neighbors were fifteen miles away and they across the water.
But the pioneer is generally equal to the emergency; at least he was
in this case. The vessel was now resorted to and blocks and ropes were
brought ashore and a purchase rigged, by which, with the help of every
man, woman and child that could pull on a rope, the logs were hauled
into their places, and the house began to rise, and in the course of two
or three days it was ready for the roof. Right at this point we found
there was no roof ready, but taking a few boards that were in the
vessel we stuck one end in a crack, the other on a beam, thus obtaining a sort of a shelter for the beds. We learned that lumber could be
obtained at the head of the bay, the schooner was started for some,
and in a short time we had a very fair house.




342


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


FIRST FOURTH IN TRAVERSE REGION
"It seemed a very short time before what should come along but
the Fourth of July; the glorious old Fourth, and that must be celebrated in good old style! But what were we to do? We had no cannon,
no flag, nor any of the prerequisites necessary for celebration; but an
old man-of-wars-man that had left the vessel to stay with us on shore,
brought to light a red flannel shirt, and with a sheet for the white,
he soon made a respectable flag. The morning of the Fourth was
ushered in with a salute from all the guns we could muster, and our
flag flying. The whole force of the settlement, numbering fifteen alltold. started for a picnic on the little island out in the bay. We ate
our dinner, spent the day pleasantly and toward night returned home
well pleased with ourselves and everybody else. Thus passed the first
Fourth of July celebration in the Grand Traverse region, a small beginning, but as full of patriotism and love of country as any that has
ever been held since. With early fall preparations were made for a
long northern winter, supposing of course that in this high latitude,
we would have at least six or eight months of winter; but we were
agreeably suprised to see the fall months pass away, and no snow until
the 12th of December, and instead of the cold dreary winter we had
anticipated it was a mild, pleasant winter that would compare favorably with that of the south part of the state. There was but very little ice in the bay, and not enough at any time to obstruct navigation.
The spring opened early, the first of April finding the snow and every
vestige of ice removed, and the ground ready for the farmer.to go to
work; but there were no farmers to go to work."
About fifty families of Indians followed their missionary to the site
of the present Northport. A log schoolhouse was built and an Indian
village there established, named Wau-ka-zoo-ville in honor of one of their
noted chiefs. During the first years of his residence, Mr. Smith devoted
himself solely to mission work among the Indians, but afterward he organized a Congregational church among the whites of which he was
pastor for many years. His death occurred on the 5th of April, 1881,
after a brief illness caused by long-continued physical exposure, and his
remains were buried near the home he had hewed out of the forest on
the shore of Grand Tranverse bay.
FIRST YEARS OF GROWTH
The development of Leelanau county was very materially retarded
by an extensive Indian reservation, lying in the midst of an active white
population. This reservation was made a few months after the settlement of Northport. It extended from the village of Northport south
to township 28, and embraced the entire county as far west as range 13
west. leaving only the small triangle north of Northport as the sustaining back country for that village. The term of reservation expired in
1866.
In 1858 and 1859 farmers began to come in slowly, and from that




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


343


time development was steady. Leelanau county was mentioned in the
winter of 1862 as follows:  "The county of Leelanau embraces the
entire peninsula formed by Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse bay
and extends south seven miles below the mouth of Betsie river. It is
bounded on the east by Grand Traverse bay, on the west and north by
Lake Michigan, and on the south by Manistee. It has eighty-six miles
of lake and forty miles of bay coast. There are five organized townships, viz: Leelanau, Centerville, Glen Arbor, Crystal Lake and Benzonia. Leelanau contains 720 whites and 319 Indians; Centerville 411
whites and 237 Indians; Glen Arbor 252 whites, no Indians; Crystal
Lake 127 whites, no Indians. Total: 1,603 whites, 554 Indians; grand
total, 2,157. As Benzonia was only organized last fall we have no means
of knowing its number of inhabitants. It includes the Benzonia or
Bailey colony, where it is in contemplation to build a college. Many
of the best lands in the county are held by and reserved for the Indians,
which has greatly retarded its settlement.
"The village of Northport is in the township of Leelanau. It is
pleasantly situated on a safe and capacious harbor of the bay. About
ten miles from its mouth, and is the largest village on the bay, containing
four hundred inhabitants. The old Indian village of Wau-ka-zoo-ville
and Northport are now one and the same, the Indians having sold out
and abandoned it. It is an important wooding point for the propellers
trading between Chicago and the lower lakes, and has two extensive
wharves, five stores, three hotels, several saloons, one sawmill and a
number of mechanic shops.
"The new Indian mission under the charge of Rev. Mr. Dougherty
is also in this township. It is delightfully situated on a commanding
eminence of the bay six miles south of Northport.
"Centerville joins Leelanau on the south and extends nearly to the
head of the bay, and westerly from the bay to Lake Michigan. It embraces Carp lake-some eighteen miles long, and from one to two miles
wide-a beautiful sheet of water abounding in choice varieties of fish.
"The principal business point is Leland, at the confluence of Carp
river with Lake Michigan. Messrs. Cordes & Thiess have an extensive
wharf here for wooding propellers, and they have also a saw and gristmill. John I. Miller has a beautiful farm in the immediate vicinity
of the bay, among which are those of James, Robert and Thomas Lee,
Messrs Bates, Sutton and Cumberworth. Further up the bay Mr. Norris has a tannery, a gristmill and an excellent water power.
"'Glen Arbor lies north and west of Traverse City and is an excellent
township of land. The settlement is mostly on the western side of the
town in the vicinity of Lake Michigan. There are two villages, Glen
Arbor and North Unity, the latter a German settlement. Glen Arbor
is at the cone formed by Sleeping Bear Point and is a wooding point for
propellers. "
At the time the foregoing was written Leelanau county had just been
born as a civil and political body.




I.* "*t  -:
l,   % > 1  i


iSI


[Courtesy Western Michigan Development Bureau]
EIGIT YEARS FROM TIMBER LAND




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


345"a


COUNTY ORGANIZED
In 1840 that portion of the state lying west of the county of Omeena
and of Grand Traverse bay, including the Mlanitou islands, was laid off
and designated as the county of Leelanau. It was attached to Grand
Traverse county for judicial purposes. It was not regularly organized,
however, until in the winter of 1862-3, when the legislature passed the
enabling act.
AN ACT
To organize the county of Leelanau and define the county of Benzie:
"Section 1. The people of the state of Michigan enact that all that part
of the county of Leelanau which lies north of the south line of township
28 north shall be organized, and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled
to all the rights, privileges and powers to which, by law, the inhabitants
of other organized counties in this state are entitled.
" Section 2. At the township meeting to be held in the several townships in said county on the first Monday in April next there shall be an
election of all the county officers to which, by law, the said county may
be entitled, whose term of office shall expire on the first day of January,
A. D., eighteen hundred and sixty-five, and when their successors shall
have been elected and qualified.
"Section 3. The board of county canvassers under the provisions of
this act shall meet on the second Tuesday succeeding the day of election,
as herein appointed, in the village of Northport in said county at the
house of Joseph Dame or at such other place as may be agreed upon
and provided by such board, and organize by appointing one of their
number chairman and another secretary, and shall thereupon proceed
to discharge all the duties of a board of county canvassers as in other
cases of the election of county officers as prescribed by the general law.
"Section 4. The location of the county seat of said county shall be
determined by the vote of the electors of said county at a special election
which is hereby appointed to be held by the several townships of said
county on the first Monday in June next. There shall be written on the
ballots then polled by the qualified electors of said county, one of the
following names of places, to-wit: Glen Arbor, Leelanau or Northport,
and that one which shall receive the greatest number of votes shall be
the county seat of the county of Leelanau.
"Section 5. It shall be the duty of the several boards of township
inspectors in each of the townships of the said county to conduct the
elections aut4rized by the provisions of this act and to make returns
thereof in accordance with the general provisions of law for conducting
elections in this state, so far as the same may be applicable thereto.
"Section 6. The board of county canvassers for the special election
for locating the county seat shall consist of the persons appointed on the
day of such special election by the several boards of township inspectors,
and said board of county canvassers shall meet on the second Tuesday
succeeding the day of said special election at the house of Otto Thies, in
the village of Leland, and having appointed one of their number chair



346


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


man, and the county clerk of said county acting as secretary, shall proceed to canvass the votes and determine the location of the county seat
in accordance therewith, and it shall be the duties of the clerk of said
board to file a copy of the determination of said board as to the location
of the county seat, signed and certified by him, and countersigned by
the chairman, with the secretary of state and with the township clerks
of the several townships in said county.
"Section 7. All that part of the county of Leelanau which lies south
of the south line of township 28 north, shall be and remain the county
of Benzie, and the several townships thereof shall be attached for civil
and municipal purposes to the county of Grand Traverse.
"Section 8. The secretary of state is hereby directed to furnish
the township clerk of the township of Leelanau with a certified copy
of this act, and it shall be the duty of said clerk to give the same notice
of the elections to be held under the provisions of this act that is required by law to be given by the sheriff of unorganized counties.
"Section 9. That the said county of Leelanau when so organized
shall be attached to the tenth judicial circuit, and the judge of said
circuit shall hold courts in said county as be law in such cases made
and provided.
"Section 10. All acts and parts of acts contravening the provisions
of this act are hereby repealed so far as any provisions therein may conflict with this act.
"Section 11.  This act shall take immediate effect.
"CHARLES S. MAY, President of the Senate.
"SULLIVAN M. CUTCHEON, Speaker of the House of Representatives.
"Approved February 27, 1863.       AUSTIN BLAIR, Governor."
NORTHPORT, FIRST COUNTY SEAT
The first business operations which led to the founding of the present
village of Northport were inaugurated and advanced by Joseph Dame,
a New England and New York lumberman who, in 1840, became a trader
with headquarters at Mackinaw City. He carried on a trade in lumber,
clocks and general goods and was employed by the government as a
teacher of the Indians. From Mackinaw he finally moved to Old Mission,
Grand Traverse bay, where he was employed in teaching farming to the
Indians. Sir. Dame remained there until 1845 when he went to Wisconsin and bought a farm in Spring Prairie, Walworth county. He
made his home there seven years and then returned to the Traverse
region. and, leaving his family at Old Mission, bought a tract of land
where now stands the village of Northport. He commenced the construction of a dock, engaged in trade and platted a village to which he gave
the name it still bears. Writing at that time to the New York Tribune
he gave such a description of the country that it speedily attracted attention, and from this and other causes the tide of immigration turned
in his direction. His coming and labors eventuated in opening the neighboring country to settlement, and making Northport the distributing
point of travel and supply. Mr. Dame built and conducted the Traverse




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


347


Bay Hotel, the first house erected for the care and entertainment of the
public. He also commenced the construction of a wharf in 1853, which
was afterward completed by H. O. Rose.
Northport received quite an access of population within the following few years. In 1856 a sawmill was running, and Mr. Rose, in
partnership with Amos Fox, had established quite a business in supplying the steamers with wood for fuel. By 1858 they were handling
from 13,000 to 15,000 cords of wood on their Northport docks, being
under regular contract to supply the boats of the Northern Transportation Company plying between Ogdensburg and Chicago. They also
VARMILL STREET, NORTHPORT
shipped hemlock bark and cedar posts, and these lines of industry and
trades were taken up by others who located in the village, or built
docks for that purpose in the vicinity. The first settlement on the site
of Northport is said to have been made June 11, 1849, but Mr. Dame
was its first permanent and substantial citizen.
In 1855 Northport was organized into a school district-the first
in the county-and in the following year a small one-story frame building was erected to accommodate the few scholars in attendance.  The
postoffice was also established in 1855.
Of course the first religious exercises conducted on the site of Northport were by Rev. Mr. Smith, the Congregational minister, as already
stated. In 1858 Rev. Lewis Griffin organized the Methodists into a class,
and in 1863 the Congregationalists formed a regular society.
Thus were laid the foundations of the trade and industries, the
educational and religious institutions, and the general community life




348


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of the village of Northport, the seat of justice from the organization
of the county in 1863 to the year 1882 and which was incorporated by
the board of supervisors of Leelanau county in October, 1903. Wilber
E. Campbell being its first president.
The village of Northport has one of the best harbors in Grand Traverse bay and has railroad facilities over the Grand Rapids & Indiana
line. With active flour and lumber mills, still maintaining quite a
fishing trade, and backed by a country which is productive of fruit,
vegetables, seeds and grain, Northport is one of the most promising
centers of population in Leelanau county. The village transacts its
business through the Leelanau County Bank, enjoys electric lighting
and shows its moral stamina by supporting six religious organizations
-one Methodist, one Congregational, one Catholic, one Swedish Mission
and two Norwegian Lutheran.
LELAND, PRESENT COUNTY SEAT
Leland has been the county seat of Leelanau county from 1882 to
the present time. It lies at the mouth of the Leelanau river, about midway along the shore of Lake Michigan, and, although not an incorporated
village, has a population of some four hundred. Its nearest railroad
point is Provemont, four miles to the southeast on the Manistee & Northeastern railroad, with which it has stage connections. Aside from being the county seat, Leland has a canning factory and a shingle and
sawmill, and still maintains quite a fishing trade; shipments include
fish, hardwood lumber and railroad ties. It has a light and power plant,
a township library, a good school and two churches.
The story of the founding of Leland is the usual narrative of "ups
and downs." In 1848 Antoine Manseau and John I. Miller, both lumbermen, prospected in the Grand Traverse region in search of a desirable location for a sawmill. Mr. MAanseau partially decided to locate
at a point just above Traverse City, afterward called Norrisville, but
the land being entered ahead of him he and Mr. Miller located at the
mouth of the Carp river. At that time there was an Indian village
on the hill near where Mr. Miller's house afterward stood, but the Indians soon left believing that the land had all been bought by white
men and would soon be seized by them. But nothing was done at this
point until June, 1853. when Mr. Manseau and his son Antoine arrived
and built a sawmill on the river. A dam was also constructed and
the mill put in operation.
In the following September, John I. Miller arrived and settled on
the land which was long his homestead. The elder Manseau died in 1856
and his widow in 1860, and Antoine, Jr., moved to a locality near
Sutton's Bay. Mr. Miller was the first postmaster at Leland, and held
the office until June 1861, when he was succeeded by Simeon Pickard.
The first religious worship at Leland was conducted by Father Mrack,
one of the early Catholic missionaries, who began to visit the place in
1855. After him came Fathers Young and Herbstrit. In 1870 the
society. Holy Trinity. built a church edifice.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


349


Mr. Miller and the Manseaus were soon followed by John E. Fisher,
John Porter, H. S. Buckman, John Bryant, Sr., Frederick Cook, Dr.
W. H. Walker and George Ray. A pier was built, several stores erected,
the water power was improved, and several mills put in operation. In
March, 1867, the damn was carried which seriously interfered with business for some time. Great expectations centered in the iron furnace
erected by Detroit capitalists in 1869, but early in the summer of 1872
the property was sold to Captain E. B. Ward, who interested others
in the enterprise. Although the plant was twice burned and rebuilt,
and employed quite a number of men it is said to have proved a detri

EMPIRE AND SURROUNDING COUNTRY


ment to the town, as the company controlled a large amount of village
property which it kept out of the market and barred, in a way, from
improvements. Leland became simply a creature of the iron company,
whose furnace was finally abandoned. Her later history is chiefly connected with her position as the county seat since 1882.
EMPIRE
Empire in the southwestern corner of the county near Lake Michigan is the largest of the three incorporated villages of the county. It
is on the line of the Empire & Southeastern railroad and is quite a
lumlber, fruit and produce market. A large hardwood manufactory is
also located here. A good bank (Empire Exchange), well organized
school, two churches and a number of general stores also add to the
life and standing of the village.




350


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Empire had its beginning in a mere opening in the forest made
upon its site by John Larue who brought his family into the country
in the fall of 1851, soon after John Dorsey located at Glen Arbor.
With years it developed into a brisk lumber town, and still later into
the trading and banking center of a fine fruit and farming region. Of
late years the Empire Lumber Company, under its various managements, has been the strong stay of the village, particularly in its development of hardwood manufacturing. The basis of the industry,
with its business auxiliaries, was laid in 1887 when the T. Wilce Company bought the mill formerly operated by Potter & Struthers. Extension of the plant and docks, building of the railroad and other improvements followed and made Empire a fine little town. The company has also invested in thousands of acres of timber lands in Empire
and adjoining townships, and altogether has been a strong promoter
of the best interests of the village and the entire Glen Lake region.
Empire became a village by an act of the county board of supervisors passed in October, 1895, and the first election held December 2nd
of that year resulted in the choice of E. R. Dailey, manager of the
Empire Lumber Company, for president; Fritz Rohr, clerk; Dr. S. A.
Gates, treasurer; William Sullivan, assessor, and I. Nurko, R. Sullivan,
James Daly, A. E. Willard and George Taylor, trustees. Michael F.
Horen was the first village marshal.
SUTTON'S BAY
This village, incorporated in 1898, is located on the Grand Rapids
& Indiana Railroad and is at the foot of the body of water from which
it is named-Sutton's bay being at the head of the West arm of Grand
Traverse bay where it joins the main body. It has a charming location,
but its business is largely confined to lumber. Like Northport its earlier
trade centered in cordwood and railroad ties, the former being supplied
to the steamers of the Great Lakes. It has now a good sawmill and
the usual minor industries of a small village and is the trade center
of a considerable agricultural district, its transactions being conducted
through the Leelanau County Savings Bank. The village has a thoroughly organized school system and three churches-the Catholic, Congregational and Lutheran. The Catholics also have a parochial school
and a convent conducted by the Sisters of St. Dominic. Sutton's Bay
dates from the middle sixties, the following mention of the place being
made in January, 1866: "A new village has also sprung into existence
near the head of Sutton's bay, which, in honor of Mr. H. C. Sutton,
the former and early owner of the soil upon which it stands, has been
christened Suttonsburg, and bids fair to become quite a boy within a
few years; and if it does not then the fault will be itself, for nature
had dealt nobly with it. The bay, at the head of which this village is
built, is a body of water four or five miles in length, and about two
miles in width; is tributary to Grand Traverse bay, intersecting it
from the west about twenty-four miles from its junction with Lake
Michigan; is deep enough to float any steamboat on the lake. Extend



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


351


ing in a southwestern course, as it does, there is but one direction from
which the wind can approach and be at all violent; and then it is not
sufficiently boisterous as to materially affect boats lying at its dock. The
site of the village is a pleasant one, gradually rising from the bay and
extending westward over an even, fertile piece of land, broad enough
for a city of an untold number of inhabitants. Suttonsburg is situated
about three and a half miles from the geographical center of the county,
and therefore, if the county seat should ever be removed from Northport, will probably be the point fixed upon by a majority of the people
for its permanent location."
PROVEMONT
Four miles west of Sutton's Bay, on the Manistee & Northeastern
Railroad, is Provemont, which, although not an incorporated village,
is a banking center for the county seat and also a shipping point for
a considerable area of country. It has a saw and gristmill, a good
school and is a neat little place. Provemont is also the seat of a Catholic
convent and school conducted by the Sisters of St. Dominic.
Along in 1867 Provemont was a place of considerable notoriety. A.
De Belloy was an early settler there and in the year mentioned the
Grand Traverse Bay Mineral Land Association sunk a well but failed
to strike oil. Afterward an artesian well produced some mineral water,
but neither oil nor water brought the expected development of the village and the region around.
OMENA AND PESHABATOWN
Omena is a pretty summer resort located on the West arm of Grand
Traverse bay five miles south of Northport and the same distance north
of Sutton's Bay. To be more specific, it is on the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad and also on the shores of New Mission bay. Omena is
on historic ground, also; at that point Rev. Mr. Dougherty of Old Mission built the little Presbyterian church to serve as a nucleus for his
labors among the Indians. And his work, even among the Chippewas,
lives after him, for some of the children and grandchildren of those
he converted and educated live along these shores, intelligent, moral
and industrious men and women.
At the head of Sutton's bay, also on the line of the railroad, and a
few miles south of Oimena, is Peshabatown, or Pshawbatown, the only
pure Indian village in Michigan-a memorial to the faithfulness of
Father Mrack, who, in 1849, brought hither from the Soo his little band
of Christianized Chippewas. Here a little community of their descendants, cultivating their patches of corn. beans, potatoes. squashes and
pumpkins, or weaving their simple but beautiful basketry. As described by the Detroit Free Press of February 12, 1911:  'Two long
rows of log cabins, built in 1849, comprise the village. They show the
battering of nearly three-quarters of a century of tempestuous northern winds and snows. Altogether the aggregation of buildings presents




352


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


a forlorn and dilapidated appearance, with broken window    panes,
stuffed here and there with rags to keep out the cold. And in the midst
of this desolation the old church and cloister stand like derelicts on a
dead sea. Adjoining the church, and right in the center of the village,
is the cemetery where lie all of the Pshawbatown dead who have departed for their happy hunting grounds. Like all the rest of the village, the cemetery has the same deserted appearance. Mullens, milkweed and thistles grow in the space between the graves and clamber
over the toppling crosses which mark the last resting place of once
mighty Nimrods of the forest and add the finishing touches to a typical
Goldsmith's deserted village.
" The one street of Pshawbatown is one and a half miles long. The
reason of this is that the houses were built on the old Indian trail, which
follows the indentation of the shore. A few of the houses scatter back
toward the hills that form a background for the village, that are cold
and bleak in the winter, but cool and green in the summer, and beautiful beyond description in the autumn when Neenabushoo has spilled
his paint pots of crimson, russet, and gold over the hills and surrounding woods.
"The doors of the houses all fasten with a latch string, a piece of
bent wire hooked over a nail or an occasional padlock. Outside the
door of every house is a big iron kettle, one-time property of someone's
ancestor, which swings over a fire by a heavy iron hook and chain. During the summer the Indians cook their food over the fire just as they
did in the days when they lived in wigwams. They also cling to their
legends and their traditions, and no amount of baptism can wash away
their superstitions concerning their manitou (the great spirit,) and
their michibous (genii of the water); and their lullabys of today are
the same that the gushnas (grandmothers) of a hundred years ago
crooned to their papooses.
"The only building in the village that looks as if it had been built
since the days of Noah's ark is the school, which was erected by Father
MIarak so that the nuns might teach the children. Since the departure
of Father Marak this has become a district school, receives its share
of the state primary money, and has a board who hires teachers and
looks after the requirements just as all the other district school boards
of Leelanau county do. The school board is composed of the following red men: Sam Chippewa, director; Pete Nanago, moderator, and
William Macsauba, treasurer.  There are twenty-five pupils enrolled,
all of them Indian children. The school is taught by a pedagogue who
must show the Indian board that she holds a third-grade county certificate, and she must sign a contract for the full term of nine months,
which means complete isolation for her from early fall until she locks
the school in the late spring.''
GLEN ARBOR AND BURDICKVILLE
These are centers of early settlement in Leelanau county. particularly the former. In the summer of 1851 John Dorsey located at Glen




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Vol. 1-23




354          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Arbor. In the fall of that year John Larue brought his family into
the country, spending the following winter at Northport. Soon after
Mr. Larue's arrival, Mr. McLaughlin, who had previously been engaged in building A. S. Wadsworth's sawmill at Elk Rapids, removed
from Northport to that place, leaving the original number of three
families at Northport-Smith's, Case's and Larue's. In the spring of
1852 Mr. Larue returned to his former location at Glen Arbor. John
E. Fisher and Dr. William H. Walker arrived in 1854. They landed
on Manitou islands and came to the main shore with their families and
goods in small boats. The next season George Ray landed here with
two families from Ashtabula county, Ohio, bringing with him ai small
sawmill. They landed from the propeller "Saginaw," August 28, 1855.
That was the first boat that ever made a landing in this bay. Tho next
summer Mr. Ray, with a partner, commenced building a dock, which
was completed in 1857 and afterward known as the Central Dock.
In the late fifties William Burdick came to the site of the place
which bears his name, and built a saw and grist mill, which burned
about a decade later. In 1867 John Helm located on the present site
of Burdickville, southeast of Glen lake, established himself there as the
keeper of a general store and built up a fair business. S. S. Burnett
was a later merchant of the little settlement.




CHAPTER XIV


BENZIE COUNTY
THE COUNTY PHYSICALLY-POPULATION STATISTICS-FIRST SETTLERSFOUNDING OF FRANKFORT AND BENZONIA-HOMESTEAD-COUNTY 'S
"DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE — COUNTY SEAT CONTENTIONSFRANKFORT OF TODAY AND YESTERDAY-THOMPSONVILLE-BENZONIAHONOR-LAKE ANN.
Benzie is one of the counties bordering the northeastern shores of
Lake Michigan which is prospering both as a commercial, a manufacturing and a fruit-raising section. Its chief point of commerce and
trade is Frankfort with its splendid harbor and its favorable transportation facilities by land and by water. The county as a whole is traversed by the Ann Arbor, the Pere Marquette, the Empire & Southeastern railroads and the Manitou & Northeastern railroads, the last named
cutting across its southeastern corner and through its central section.
Frankfort is the lake terminus of the Ann Arbor system which operates
three fine ferries from this port to Menominee and Gladstone, in the
Upper Peninsula, and Manitowoc and Kewaunee across the lake on the
Wisconsin shore. Thus Benzie county has a remarkably free outlet for
all it may produce and Frankfort is becoming an important shipping
point for quite a section of the Grand Traverse region.
THE COUNTY PHYSICALLY
Benzie county has an area of 197,760 acres, of which about 100,000
are available for cultivation and some 80,000 are already in farms. The
principal stream in the county is the Benzie or Betsie river, as it was
originally called. As has already been stated, the name originated in
Aux Bee Scies, as the French called the river, which American sailors
and settlers corrupted first into Betsie and then Benzie. After flowing southwest it makes a loop in the northern part of Manistee county
and then takes a general northwesterly course through Betsie lake, its
mouth forming the harbor at Frankfort. Platte river, which drains
the northern sections of the county, is the only other considerable stream.
Benzie county has fifty-nine lakes of sufficient size to be named, the
largest ones being Crystal and Platte, in the northwestern townships
not far from Lake Michigan. As the land is abundantly watered, it
is naturally a goood dairy country, but as the soil is a warm, sandy
355




PEACHES AND BERRIES IN THE GRAND TRAVERSE REGION




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


357


and gravelly loam it is primarily adapted to the raising of such fruits
as apples, peaches, plums and berries. Benzie is also in what may be
called the "potato belt" of Northern Michigan. Poultry and bee-raising,
especially on the shores of Platte lake, are industries which are attracting considerable attention.
The original forest growth of Benzie county was hardwood mixed
with pine, and included such varieties as hard and soft maple, white
and black ash, white and black birch, oak, elm, beech, basswood, cedar,
tamarack, hemlock and spruce. This section has shared the general
experience of Northern Michigan in the decline of its softwood manufactures, but its hardwood industry and trade are still considerable.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY STATISTICS
As a basis for a presentation of an outline history of the county
the tabulated statement of the United States census bureau for 1890,
1900 and 1910 is presented herewith:


Civil Divisions
Almira township, including Lake Ann village
Lake  Ann  village.....................
Benzonia township, including Benzonia village
Benzonia  village.....................
Blaine  township.........................
Colfax township, including part of Thompsonville  village........................
Thoinpsonville village (part of)........
Total for Thompsonville village in Colfax
and Weldon townships..............
Crystal Lake township, including Frankfort
village.............................
Frankfort village......................
Gilmore township, including South Frankfort
village.............................
South Frankfort village (now Elberta)..
Homestead township.......................
Inland  township..........................
Joyfield township.........................
Lake township............................
Platte  township...........................
Weldon township, including part of Thompsonville village........................
Thompsonville village (part of).........
T otals................................


1910   1900    1890


686
171
1,325
563
640


790
241
1,122
484
498


278
506
346


744    962    404
168    233
815    893
2,024  1,903  1,472
1,555  1,465  1,175


969
681
1,415
652
442
189
448
1,104
647
10,638


886
639
1,009
485
328
126
477
1,099
660
9,685


755
3.30
419
262
170
198
97
5,237


The total equalized assessment of real and personal property in
Benzie county for 1911 was $4,967,751, as against $3,242,330 for 1910.




358


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


FIRST SETTLERS
The first settler in Benzie county is said to have been Joseph Oliver,
a Pennsylvanian who was a trapper and trader and located temporarily
at the Manitou islands, Manistee and other places along Lake Michigan before he came to the mouth of the Betsie river and put up a rude
log hut for his home, the first building erected on the present site of
Frankfort. This is believed to have been in 1850.
In the same year the government sent Orange Risdon to reexamine
the surveys in this section. He found Mr. Oliver, who had located fourteen acres on the south side of the river near where the Park House
was afterward built, and bought his property. Both he and his wife
purchased large tracts both on the river and the lake; and fishers and
trappers commenced to plant their homes in this locality.
FOUNDING OF FRANKFORT AND BENZONIA
Then a peculiar incident brought the Betsie river to the notice of
the "outside" world.  George W. Tifft, a wealthy vessel owner of
Buffalo, sent his vessel, commanded by Captain Snow of Chicago in
the season of 1854. The craft was caught in a terrible west gale abreast
of this place and became unmanageable. The boat was drifting towards
the beach, which meant loss of crew, passengers and vessel. Sighting
the mouth of Betsie river through the trees and knowing his craft was
fated anyway, Captain Snow ordered all sails hoisted and headed for
the mouth of the river, taking chances of grounding the bar. The
water was fortunately sufficiently deep to float the craft and she sailed
safely into the river, escaping the onslaught of the gale. This was the
first vessel to enter Frankfort harbor.
Mr. Tifft, learning of the splendid location, determined to start a
business opening here and bought all of the Risdon's lands and made
other large purchases of government land in 1857. George S. Frost
of Detroit, Ranson Gardner and others purchased all of Tifft's interests
and began the first actual settlement of Benzie county.
The light house at Point Betsie, four miles north of Frankfort, was
built in 1856. The light house keeper and his family together with
three of four other families were the first residents of Frankfort and
vicinity.
In the latter part of August and the following month of September,
1859, the Detroit colony organized by Messrs. Frost, Gardner and others
of that city and under the direct management of Louis A. Doby and
John H. Adams, arrived at the mouth of the Betsie river and prepared
to make a permanent settlement.   A small steam  sawmill was constructed that season, and soon afterward the "gang" began to improve
the harbor. The channel at that time was just in front of where the
Park House was erected. L. A. Doby had the contract for building the
piers. A boarding house was built and William H. Coggshall came
from Glen Arbor to conduct it.
In the meantime another colony had planted itself between Betsie




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


359


river and the inland end of Crystal lake. In the year 1857 Charles E.
Bailey and John Bailey of Medina county, Ohio, and Chauncey T. Carrier of western New York, after hearing described in glowing terms
the country around Grand Traverse bay through an article written by
Deacon Dame, decided that they would come to Northern Michigan and
establish a Christian colony, believing this to be one of the best agencies for laying a foundation for good in the world. As Mr. Carrier
had business in Minnesota it was arranged that he should pursue his
journey and that he should finally meet the Bailey brothers at the most
northerly point in Grand Traverse bay, though none of them knew its
name or had any definite idea of its location.
As the time for the appointed meeting approached, Mr. Carrier
landed at Northport while the Messrs. Bailey landed on one of the
Manitous, whence they passed over to Glen Arbor in a small boat.
While they were making their way to Northport on foot, Mr. Carrier
visited a location on the east side of Elk lake in Antrim county which
seemed to him to offer important advantages for the establishment of
the proposed colony. He induced his comrades to visit the place, it
being stipulated, however, that before coming to a final decision the
three should also examine a tract of country of which the Baileys had
heard favorable reports lying between Traverse City and Glen Arbor.
The tract near Elk lake not proving satisfactory to the Baileys, the
party started in the direction of Glen Arbor. On arriving there the
explorers were so well pleased with the country they had seen that they
resolved to return and make a temporary home at that place until a
more suitable site for their colony could be definitely fixed upon. However, it was thought best to first take a look at a tract in Missouri that
seemed to offer similar advantages for their purpose. C. E. Bailey and
Mr. Carrier accordingly visited the northern part of that state, but
returned fully convinced that all things considered the Grand Traverse
country offered more and better facilities for their contemplated enterprise.
A decision having been reached Messrs. John and Horace C. Bailey
and H. A. Wolcott with their families moved to Glen Arbor in the
fall of 1857. Mr. H. C. Bailey was not permitted to be a resident very
long, for he died as a member of the new colony in June, 1858. C.
E. Bailey remained for the winter at Illinois where he was preaching
and where he prepared the articles of association for the colony. They
are styled "Articles of Agreement and Plans for a Christian Colony
and Institution of Learning, to be located in the Grand Traverse Bay
Country, Northern Michigan."
Mr. Carrier never became a resident of the Grand Traverse country.
At the breaking out of the Civil war he was living in Clinton county
and gave his life as a Union soldier of the First Michigan Cavalry.
In the spring of 1858 a party of six set out on an exploring tour
to fix upon a permanent site for the colony, including C. E. Bailey,
John Bailey, H. A. Wolcott and Charles Burr, the last named having
but recently arrived from Bellevue, Ohio. The place finally selected
as the central point of the colony and village site was one mile south




360


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


and two miles east of the present Benzonia. A minority of the party
favored the site of the village which was afterward chosen. The lands
having been selected, Messrs. Burr and Wolcott were delegated to visit
the United States land office and make the purchase.
In the spring of 1858, when the projectors of the colony arrived,
there were a few white persons already in the county. There was a
lman at the light house, three families at the mouth of Betsie river and
a man named Averill had a sawmill at Herring creek. Just how long
these people had been in the county is not known and not important
as the development of Benzie county began with the advent of the
Frankfort and Benzonia colonies.
During the summer of 1858 Messrs. John and C. E. Bailey made
several visits to the proposed site of the colony. A small boat was constructed that two men could carry. which was conveyed over the ridge
that separates Lake Michigan and Crystal lake and launched on the
latter. The vicinity of the purchase could then be reached from Glen
Arbor by coasting along the shore of Lake Michigan to the portage
over the ridge, crossing it and passing in the small boat up Crystal lake
to its eastern extremity. Returning from one of these visits, they were
once compelled by stress of weather to remain over Sunday near Point
Betsie light house, when C. E. Bailey improved the opportunity to
preach to a small audience in a fisherman's shanty. Captain Emory
and his son, of the peninsula, happening to be present, were among the
hearers. The sermon was the first ever preached in Benzie county.
The lumber for the first house had to be transported from Glen
Arbor to the mouth of the Betsie river in small boats, and thence up
that stream to a point as near the intended location as practicable.
Several days were spent in clearing the river of obstructions. Becoming discouraged with the magnitude and difficulties of the work, Mr.
Wolcott and the Baileys commenced explorations for an available land
route for a portion of the way. While engaged in this project, they
had occasion to pass over the tract on which the village has since been
built and all became convinced, that. all things considered, it was a
more suitable location for the central point of the colony than the one
already selected. A change was accordingly agreed upon, and the location of the future village, now Benzonia, was permanently fixed.
Late in October, 1858, final preparations were made for permanently
locating the members of the colony, and a vessel was chartered to convey their goods from Glen Arbor to the mouth of the Betsie, the women
and children being conveyed in a small boat. It was eleven o'clock at
night when they landed at the mouth of the Betsie where Frankfort
now stands. This was nearly a year before the arrival of the Detroit
colony, and there were only three Canadian French families to welcome
them and shelter them for the night. Two and a half days were consumed in ascending the river, and at noon of the third day they arrived at their future home. Within the next five years the colony and
village became quite a settlement. 1863 being especially fruitful of new
comers; it is stated that sixty arrived within ten days during the early
part of that year.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


361


The Institution of Learning which was to be a chief part of the
colonial enterprise had been chartered in December, 1862, and in June,
1863, was held the first meeting of the board of trustees of Grand Traverse College. In November the first work on the college chapel was
performed, but so many were the drawbacks that it was not dedicated
until September, 1869. The enterprise was still progressing but slowly
when in March, 1874, the college building was entirely destroyed by
fire. Iard times interfered with its rebuilding and vigorous maintenance, although from it originated several churches and most worthy
movements in the cause both of education and religion.
In other ways Benzonia had become established and was making
progress. There had been a postoffice at Herring Creek, which had
been moved thither in 1859 and in 1860 a Congregational church had
been organized at the house of Rev. Charles E. Bailey.
HOMESTEAD
The first location of lands in what is now Homestead township was
made in 1862 by E. E. Kirkland, who immediately commenced erecting
a house and making improvements. In 1863, quite a number, principally from Benzonia, located homesteads. These included William
Steele, D. Piper, William Weston, D. Spencer, A. T. and Morris Case,
H. Averill, Hugh Marsh, Daniel Carter and George St. Clair. The
majority of the new comers settled in the southern part of what is now
the township of Homestead, and the community took its name. Homestead consisted only of a few families when the county of Benzie was
laid off from Leelanau in February, 1863, and attached to Grand Traverse for civil and political purposes, while Frankfort and Benzonia were
well along as villages. In 1868, however, when the people were ready
for an independent civil organization, these three settlements were about
on a par. At that time the territory to be organized embraced the
townships of Almira. Benzonia, Crystal lake. Gilmore. Homestead. Joyfield, Weldon and Colfax.
COUNTY'S "DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE'
In the fall of 1868 the question of a separate civil organization was
agitated by the people of Old Benzie county, and on December 12th
a mass meeting was held at the school house in Frankfort to consider
measures looking toward securing that object. Resolutions were adopted
that petitions be circulated and that Hon. W. H. C. Mitchell. who was
the representative-elect from this district, be requested to lend his aid
in securing the passage of a bill which would provide for county organization. The result was the enactment of a law, approved March
30, 1869, which provided as follows: "That the county of Benzie. consisting of the territory embraced by the present county of Benzie, be
and the same is hereby organized into a separate county by the name
of Benzie, and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled to all the privileges, powers and immunities to which by law the inhabitants of other
organized counties in this state are entitled.




362


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


"At the township meeting to be held in the several townships in
said county on the first Monday in April next, there shall be an election of all the county officers to which by law the said county may be
entitled, whose term of office shall expire on the first day of January,
A. D. 1871, and when their successors shall have been elected and qualified.
"The county canvassers under the provisions of this act shall meet
on the second Tuesday succeeding the day of election, as herein appointed, in the village of Benzonia, in said county, at the house of John
Bailey, or at such other place as may be agreed upon and provided by
said board, and organized by appointing one of their number chairman
and another secretary, and shall thereupon proceed to discharge all the
duties of a board of county canvassers as in other cases of the election
of county officers, as prescribed by the general law.
"The location of the county seat of said county shall be determined
by the vote of the electors of said county at a special election which is
hereby appointed to be held by the several townships of said county
on the first Monday in July next. There shall be written on the ballots then polled by the qualified electors of said county one of the names
of the following places, to wit:-Frankfort, Benzonia, and the southeast quarter of the northeast quarter of section 28, township 26 north,
of range 14 west (Homestead), and that the one which shall receive a
majority of all the votes cast at such elections shall be the county seat
of the county of Benzie: Provided, That in case no one of said places
shall at said election be designated such county seat in the manner
aforesaid, another election shall be held on the first Monday of October
next, in the same places, at which the said electors shall designate by
majority vote one of the two above named places, which shall have received the highest number of votes at said July election, to be the
county seat of said county of Benzie.
"The said county of Benzie when so organized, shall be attached
to the thirteenth judicial circuit, and the judge of said circuit shall
hold two courts therein each year."
COUNTY SEAT CONTENTIONS
According to this enabling act, the election for determining the location of the county seat was held on the first Monday of July, 1869.
As therein specified if one of the places received a majority of all the
votes, it was to be the county seat; if no place received a majority then
another election was to be held on the first Monday of the following
October, at which the electors should designate by a majority vote one
of the two places which should have received the highest number of
votes at the July election. At the first election the vote stood for Benzonia, 75, Homestead, 237, and Frankfort, 194. As there was no choice
the second election was held in October, resulting in favor of Frankfort by 301 to 265 for Benzonia, Homestead having withdrawn.
The first county officers had been chosen at the spring election of
April, 1869. Addison P. Wheelock had been elected sheriff; Roland 0.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


363


Crispen, county treasurer; Theodore C. Walker, county clerk and register of deeds; Digby B. Butler, judge of probate; James B. Delbridge,
prosecuting attorney; William J. Young, circuit court commissioner;
George E. Steele, county surveyor; A. E. Walker, superintendent of
schools; Dr. A. J. Slyfield and L. Kinny, coroners. On the 22d of
April the first board of supervisors convened at the school house at
Benzonia and elected Silas F. Judson, of Benzonia township as chairman. The second meeting of the board, held after the county seat had
been fixed at Frankfort, was held on the 11th of October, 1869, at Victory Saterlee's hotel (a two story frame building, corner of Third and
Main streets) and afterwards adjourned to a two story frame building,
prepared for county purposes, situated on the corner of Main and
Second streets. It was originally erected by Doaby brothers and was
for years designated "the old court house building." In this building
was also held the first term of circuit court for the county, over which
Hon. Jonathan G. Ramsdell presided.
At the annual township meeting in 1872 the total number of votes
cast for "removal of the county seat" sustained Frankfort, but on account of some irregularity in the election proceedings of Crystal lake
township resulted in the cancellation of the ballots cast from that section and the result was removal to Benzonia. Despite protests and
court proceedings the latter remained the county seat until 1895. As a
result of the balloting at the annual township meeting of April, 1895,
Frankfort again resumed the county seat honors, taking possession of
commodious buildings and grounds prepared by the township of Crystal lake. The seat of justice remained at Frankfort until it was transferred to Honor in the northern part of Homestead township near the
geographical center of the county.
FRANKFORT OF TODAY AND YESTERDAY
Frankfort lost the fight for the county seat in 1872, but went right
along on its sturdy way, and in October, 1873, petitioned the circuit
court to have the question of incorporating as a village under the general law of 1873 submitted to a vote of the electors at a special meeting to be held in December following. There were at that time said
to be 684 inhabitants, and the territory to be incorporated covered
1,240 acres. The petition bore 685 names and was granted. The proposition carried and Frankfort became an incorporated village. Not
long after, however, the law of 1873 was declared unconstitutional and
the charter became null and void. The village obtained its present
charter in 1885.
The pioneer churches and schools of Frankfort were established
about at the same time. In 1866 Jacob Voorheis settled in the town as
the agent of the local land company. He also kept a hotel and a small
store, and in the spring of 1867 invited all the neighbors to his place
for an old-fashioned praise meeting. There were held the first religious
exercises, from which developed a Bible class and Sunday school. In
January, 1868. a Congregational church was organized. Frankfort has




364


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


now not only a Congregational church, but religious organizations representative of the Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist and Adventist elements.
In the same month and year School District No. 2 of Crystal lake
was organized and included in its territory the village of Frankfort.
The district was bounded on the south by Benzie lake and river, east
by Benzonia, west by Lake Michigan and north by Platte township.
The first school had been taught during the winter of 1867-8 by W. H.
Marsh in a small building temporarily fitted up for that purpose and
which stood on Water street between Third and Fourth. The winter
term of 1869, however, was taught in a building especially erected for
school purposes-a $2,000 frame, twenty-five by fifty feet in size. It
would be an object lesson in the thorough and generous methods of
modern education to place this crude little building beside the fine
$25,000 central school, with its up-to-date arrangement and equipment,
which is representative of the prevailing village system.
Frankfort is a pretty, substantial village of about sixteen hundred
people, with modern electric light and water plants and good systems
for the distribution of both these necessities of life-good light and
pure water. As an open port provided with a splendid harbor, natural
and improved, and abundant means of communication, transportation
and shipment, Frankfort is an important agent in the commercial development of Northern Michigan. Frankfort's harbor is eighteen feet
deep and her light house and life-saving station add to her reputation
as a leading lake port. Her shipments include fruits, vegetables and
hardwood lumber, and her lumber and flour mills represent the chief
part of her industrial activities.
Elberta, formerly South Frankfort, is a village of about seven hundred people and lies on the south shore of the harbor. It was platted
in 1867 and was at one time quite a prosperous iron manufacturing
town. The Frankfort Iron Furnace Company which opened its $200,000
plant in July, 1870, gave the village an industrial standing for many
years, and South Frankfort with its large furnace, its extensive docks
and bustling activity seemed destined for large things. But like other
ventures of the kind in this far northern region, this one was "ahead
of the times" and had to be abandoned.
South Frankfort was incorporated as a village in 1894. Of late
years it has become the solid center of a fine fruit country which has
been especially prolific of peaches. Of all the varieties raised the Elberta has become most widely known. So, although the village has a
lumber and a shingle mill, and is one of the thriving stations on the
Ann Arbor railroad, its future depends more upon the development
of the surrounding country horticulturally and agriculturally than in
any other respect.
In the spring of 1911 a bill passed the legislature changing the name
of the village from South Frankfort to Elberta, this action being afterward approved by popular local vote.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


THOLIPSONVILLE
This village, the second in size in Benzie county, is situated on the
Betsie river in the southeastern part of the county at the junction of
the Ann Arbor and Pere Marquette railroads, and lies in both Colfax
and Weldon townships. Its first settlers located in 1890 and it was
incorporated in 1892; so it is comparatively a present-day village, and,
considering its age, has grown more rapidly than its sister corporations.
Thompsonville is a village which is well lighted by electricity and supplied with good water through an adequate plant and system. It has
graded and thoroughly organized schools and is the headquarters of
the Weldon township library of several hundred volumes. The Congregationalists and Methodists have well-supported churches.  The surrounding country being a fertile fruit and vegetable country,
Thompsonville gets the benefit of a good trade thereby and reciprocates
by providing good banking facilities.
BENZONIA
The village of Benzonia, the old county seat, was incorporated in
1891. It is a place of somne six hundred inhabitants and its railway station is known as Beulah, a mile distant, on the Ann Arbor railroad
It enjoys a fair trade with the adjacent country, has a good bank and
weekly paper, two churches (Congregational and Methodist), and its
old-time standing as the seat of the Grand Traverse College and an
influential center of education is recalled by the Benzonia Academy, a
Congregational institution of promise.
The following sketch by Professor George R. Cotton, its principal,
is self-explanatory: "Benzonia College succeeded Grand Traverse College in April, 1891, at which time the buildings, property and traditions of the earlier institution were transferred to the later one.
Benzonia College, in its turn, was changed to Benzonia Academy in
June, 1900, under which title it has continued to the present time.
"As stated, Benzonia Academy is the legal successor to Benzonia
College, an institution founded by a body of devoted men and women
from Oberlin and vicinity who came to this region in 1858 for the
purpose of establishing a 'Little Oberlin,' a village that should have
a church and school as centers of its community life and should be
to the Grand Traverse country what Oberlin had been to the whole
Northwest. This entire region was then a dense wilderness and developed slowly, over a third of a century elapsing before the coming of
a railroad. Besides the rugged qualities of the true pioneer, these
were men and women of good parts and no little culture. Many of
them were college trained, some were Christian ministers and missionaries and one had been a college president. Throughout the hardships
and privations of their wilderness life they held true to their ideals.
The institution they established had varying fortunes and was sustained
by great sacrifice, but its influence was felt through the surrounding
counties and Benzonia became known as a 'city set upon a hill.' Be



366


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


fore the full tide of settlement flowed into the Traverse region, Olivet
had become a flourishing institution and it was felt there was hardly
place for two Congregational colleges in Mlichigan. Accordingly, in
1900, Benzonia College was changed to an Academy. It succeeded not
only to the plant and property of the college, but to its traditions and
ideals. Another generation has taken the place of the pioneers, but
their spirit and vision are still cherished and the church and the school
are still the centers around which the life of the community revolves.
"After the change fromn College to Academy had been fairly made,
a vigorous growth was secured. The alumni of the academy already
constitute a respectable list. Its student constituency comes from constantly widening sources. Its diploma admits to the University of
Michigan and leading colleges of the west. In spite of a destructive
fire over two years ago, its buildings and equipment are better than
ever. Its friends are to be found in almost every Congregational church
of the state. It is coming to be seen that the academy has an important
place in the educational field.'
HONOR
Honor, the present seat of justice for Benzie county, was first located in November, 1894, by E. T. Henry, at that time foreman for
the Guelph Patent Cask Company and George Briggs of Wolverine,
Cheboygan county. The land upon which it stands was bought of Robert Buckans.
About the first of April, 1895, E. T. Henry arrived on the grounds
with a crew of men and a small portable sawmill and began to clear a
place for a set of camps, which were successfully conducted for several
years by Charles H. Giles, who finally retired to his farm in Cheboygan county. L. F. Lane, who was the first to start a general store,
moved his stock fromi Lake Ann. Then came the Case Mercantile Company, J. L. Crane and others. But the real foundation of the town
was laid by the Guelph Patent Cask Company, of Wolverine, which
spent considerable money in erecting its plants, clearing lands and manufacturing its specialties. In the fall of 1896 a $2,500 school house
was completed and church services commenced about the same time.
The name Honor was given the town in compliment to the baby
daughter of J. A. Gifford, general manager of the Guelph Patent Cask
Company. The village was made the county seat by popular vote in
April, 1908. It has about six hundred people; is on the Platte river
and a station on the Manistee & Northeastern and the Pere Marquette
railroads.  The surrounding country is productive of fruits, seeds,
vegetables, etc., and Honor is benefited accordingly; this advantage
being supplemented by the steady business which comes to the village
as the county seat.
Soon after the removal of the county seat from Frankfort to Honor,
in 1908, the principal business men of the latter, formed the Honor
Public Building Association, purchased the cement building now occupied as a court house (formerly the Methodist church), and erected a




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


367


modern jail together with sheriff's residence, also of cement, at a cost
of nearly $6,000. Both said buildings are today rented by the county
for official and judicial purposes.
The Seymour & Peck Company, successors to the Guelph Patent Cask
Company, manufacturers of lumber and veneer, have timber enough, it
is estimated, to keep the plant running for about ten years. The plant
furnishes employment for about ninety men during the summer months


BENZIE COUNTY COURTHOUSE (FORMERLY M. E. CHURCH), HONOR
and nearly that number during the winter months, the larger portion of
the veneer being shipped to Chicago, where the firm manufactures it into
boxes, crates and similar articles.
LAKE ANN
This little village of about two hundred people is in the northeastern part of the county and is a station on the Manistee & Northeastern
railroad on the body of water from which it was named. It has a good
graded school, two churches and has been incorporated as a village
since 1893.




CHAPTER XV


MANISTEE COUNTY
CHtANGES IN POPULATION-TIIE COUNTY AND ITS NAME-PIONEER HISTORY-JU'STICE WADSWORTII VISITS "MANISTEE" —SETTLERS PRIOR TO
1850-THE LAST CHIPPEWA CHIEF-GROWTH OF SCHOOL SYSTEM1854-5, A  GREAT ERA-MANISTEE CHURCHES-IN THE SIXTIESNOTED VANDERPOOL-FIELD CASE-THE FIRE OF 1871-AFTER THE
FIRE-GENERAL ADVANCES —CITY AND COUNTY OF THE PRESENTCO()PEMIASIi, BEAR LAKE AND ONEKAMA.
Manistee. one of the leading counties of Northern Michigan, lies
southwest of the Grand Traverse region, and its industries are chiefly
devoted to lumbering, all kinds of manufactures from soft and hard
wood, and the production of salt. The greater part of Manistee county
consists of a high plateau from eighty to two hundred and fifty feet
above Lake Michigan, cut in every direction by the water courses into
valleys, of which those of the Manistee, Little Manistee and Bear creek
are the principal. It was along these streams and valleys that the dense
forests of soft pine originally flourished, which furnished food for the
great sawmills of the early days and brought the first settlers into the
country. At the present day the mass of the farming community is
also located on this plateau which is so marked a feature of the county.
CHA.NGES IN POPULT.vrION
WVith the radical decline of the lumbering industries since 1890,
Manistee county has been in what may be termed a transformatory or
readjusting stage for the past twenty years. New industries have been
established, however; agriculture and horticulture are coming to possess much of the land formerly covered by forests of pine. and the
varied manufactures of soft and hard woods and of salt, make Manistee
city and county one of the most prosperous and substantial sections of
Northern Michigan.
The shifting of the different sections of the county in the matter of
population is illustrated by the United States census figures for the
years including the last three decades.
368




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to
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Vol. 1-24




370


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Civil Divisions
Arcadia  township........................
Bear lake township, including Bear lake village...............................
Bear lake village.......................
Brown township..........................
Cleon township, including Copemish village..
Copemish village......................
Dickson township........................
Filer township...........................
Manistee  city............................
W ard  1...............................
Ward  2...............................
W ard  3...............................
Ward 4..............................
W ard  5.............................
Ward 6...............................
W ard  7.............................
Manistee township.........................
Maple Grove township.....................
Marilla township..........................
Onekama township, including Onekama village
Onekama village.......................
Pleasanton township......................
Springdale township......................
Stronach township........................


1910    1900


1890


994     881    671


1,584
504
752
1,357
490
425
1,969
12,381
1,314
1,582
1,470
1,152
1,718
1,853
2,692
2,990
903
550
784
324
685
581
733


1,428
448
799
1,237
429
2,283
14,260........
*...
3,128
508
404
920
274
659
558
791
27,856


1,287
432
726
810
2,101
12,812....
2,631
361
341
1,082
593
105
710
24,230


Totals................................  26,688


THE COUNTY AND ITS NAME


In the year 1840 that portion of the state lying in towns 21, 22, 23
and 24 north and west of the line between ranges 12 and 14 west was
laid off as the county of Manistee. By an act of the legislature passed
February 13, 1855, the county was organized with the village of Manistee
as the seat of justice.
Until 1840 Mackinaw included all that part of the lower peninsula
of Michigan lying north of Mason county and also a large part of the
Upper Peninsula. The rest of the shore as far as Allegan was Ottawa
county. In 1840 this vast territory was divided and laid off into counties, and then for the first time Manistee county had a local habitation and a name, and for judicial purposes was attached to Mackinaw
county. In 1846 it was attached to Ottawa county and the county offices were at Grand Haven and there also was to be found the nearest
justice of the peace. If a man wanted to be married or to die decently he had to go to Grand Haven or across the lake to do it.
In 1851 the county was attached to Oceana, county seat at Middlesex,
and in 1853 to Grand Traverse county, to which it remained until the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


371


spring of 1855 when it was organized and raised to the honorable dignity of local sovereignty. Upon the organization of Manistee county
it was divided into three townships: First, the inevitable Manistee;
secondly, Stronach, after the first white settler; and thirdly, Brown,
after Henry L. Brown, who was largely instrumental in securing the
organization of the new county.
It was late in 1854 that a meeting was held at Manistee settlement
to see about getting the county organized. The legislature was in session, or about to convene, and Lucius H. Patterson, then of Grand Rapids, was the representative in the legislature. There were present at
the meeting D. L. Filer, Joseph Smith, L. G. Smith, H. L. Brown, H.
S. Udell, the Finans and a few others. After discussion of the advantages of an organization a resolution was passed requesting Mr. Patterson to do all in his power to secure the organization of Manistee
county. The resolution was communicated to Mr. Patterson and he secured the passage of the bill organizing Manistee as a separate county.
The first election in Manistee county was held on the first Monday
of April, 1855, and resulted in the election of the following ticket:
Sheriff-Sam Potter.
Clerk and register-H. S. Udell.
Judge of probate-H. L. Brown.
Treasurer-Joe Smith.
Prosecuting attorney-H. L. Brown.
At this election the total number of votes cast in the whole county
was 136.   D. L. Filer ran against Udell and received 62 votes to
Udell's 71.
The next county election occurred at the presidential election of
1856, when the following officers were elected: Sheriff, E. W. Secor,
177 votes; clerk and register, D. L. Filer; probate judge, J. F. Chase,
170 votes; treasurer, Joe Smith; prosecuting attorney, H. L. Brown.
At this election W. T. Thorp ran against D. L. Filer for clerk and
register, receiving 33 votes. For representative Perry Hannah received
the whole vote, 194. For state senator, Thos. W. Ferry received 188
votes to one for I. V. Harris. For congress, D. C. Leach received 184
votes to 12 for Flavius J. Littlejohn.
In April, 1855, the first board of supervisors of Manistee county
met at the house of Wm. Magill. Andrew C. Sherwood was chairman
and Henry S. Udell was clerk.
The county machinery and politics were now in complete working
order.
As to the name Manistee, the Centennial address of General B. M.
Cutcheon, from which much of the pioneer history is also collated, throws
some clear light upon the subject: "The late A. S. Wordsworth, formerly assistant superintendent of the Michigan Geological Survey, who
was one of the first white men to visit the Manistee river, and who was
familiar with the Indian tongue, stated that he had it from the early
Indians that the name signified 'The spirit of the wood.' Whether this
be true or not, we prefer to believe it so. It is stated that this name
came to be applied to the stream in the following manner: Upon the




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ORIGINAL SITE OF MANISTEE




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


373


high lands about the sources of the Manistee stands, for ages has stood
a dense forest of pines and henmlocks, and the constant sough of the
breeze though these forests produces a constant murmur, which the
untutored Indians attributed to 'the spirit of the woods,' which they
supposed dwelt about the sources of this stream; and hence the name.
"But we fear that the spirit has departed. His realm has at last
been invaded by sturdy axe men and lumbering camps, and the scream
of the locomotive drowns the voice of 'the spirit of the woods,' and soon
no man standing on the banks of the Manistee, shall be able to say,
with the poet:
"These are the forests primevalThe whispering pines and the hemlocks."
"But the name will abide when we are sleeping by the side of
these ever flowing waters and our sleep will be lulli-byed by the unceasing murmur of the 'spirit of the woods.'
"The name Manistee from being applied to the river came in time
to be also applied to the territory adjacent, to the lake near its mouth
and the city on its banks, so that we have Manistee river, town, county,
lake and city.'
PIONEER IIISTORY
It is impossible to establish the fact in proof but there is little doubt
at the present time that Father Jacques Marquette was the first white
man who ever looked upon the pine-clad hills of Manistee or dipped
his oar in the waters of the beautiful Manistee river. About two hundred and thirty-six years ago, with his Indian guides, he camped on
the bank of the pretty stream and the first Christian song and prayer
to break the stillness of these primeval solitudes was the morning and
evening devotion of Father Marquette.
After the visit of Father Marquette, Manistee was lost sight of for
more than a hundred and fifty years. Undoubtedly the Jesuit inissionaries occasionally visited here and adventurous fur traders made
pilgrimages to it.
The first authentic fact comes down to 1830. About that time one
of the Campeau family. a French trader from Grand Rapids, made
visits to this point to traffic with the Indians. The Chippewas then
chiefly inhabited the Manistee valley. In 1832 a party of men from
Massachusetts landed here and with boats proceeded up the river too
section 36, town 22 north of range 14 west, where they commenced to.
get out square timber to build a dam and block-house. They had completed their block-house and had the timber for the dam prepared when
the Indians assembled and by menaces compelled them to desist.
The party were obliged to abandon the block-house which was very
substantially built and was standing until a number of years ago.
When John Canfield reached that locality in 1849 it was already known
as the "old house" and has born that appellation ever since. The whole




374


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


region was one vast forest and at a very early day this old block-house
was taken possession of by a gang of counterfeiters and there for some
time they plied their trade.
JUSTICE WADSWORTH VISITS "MANISTEE"
About 1832 the Manistee Reservation was set apart for the Chippewas, and in 1836, A. S. Wadsworth, then a justice of the peace having jurisdiction from Grand Rapids to the British domains, holding
his seat of justice at Grand Rapids, visited the Manistee with Campeau,
the Indian trader. He found the Indians camped near the mouth of
the river holding high carnival upon the occasion of the wedding of
one of their distinguished members to one of the belles of the day. A
large bough house had been prepared for the wedding dance and a
feast of dog for refreshment. It was a very warm night in the summer and the whiskey obtained from the traders flowed freely. Mr.
Wadsworth attempted to retire to private life, but was prevented by
the mosquitoes which had selected him as their feast. He was advised
by an old squaw to annoint his face and hands with rancid sturgeon
oil, which he did and in a short time was sleeping serenely, oblivious
of song, dance and mosquitoes. After a time he was awakened by
something snuffling around his nose and opened his eyes to find that
a huge black bear was licking the sturgeon grease from his face. His
first alarm was modified on finding that the bear was tame and harmless.
In the fall of 1840 John Stronach of Berrien county, Michigan, and
his brother Joseph Stronach, of Muskegon, coasted along the shore in a
small sail boat until they arrived at the mouth of the Manistee. They
were met by a party of Chippewas who treated them cordially and gave
them information about the county. Hiring a company of the Indians
to take them in their canoes, they explored the Manistee until they
came to an ancient "jam" of logs, flood wood and fallen trees, but finding no good place for a dam they returned and explored the Little
River called by the Indians "Mamoosa" or "dog river." After locating a point for a mill site they set sail and returned to Muskegon.
The following spring John Stronach with his son Adam chartered
the schooner "Thornton" of St. Joe to convey them and their machinery supplies to the Manistee, They arrived at the mouth of the river
on the 16th of April, 1841, and from that day dates the permanent
white settlement of Manistee county. They found it impossible to enter the river on account of the shallowness of the water, there being
not to exceed three feet on the average between Lake Michigan and
Manistee lake. Unable to enter the stream they constructed a pine
raft, bound together with cross pieces and wedges. This raft they
towed with the yawl to and from the vessel, until the cargo, except the
cattle, was landed; the cattle they threw overboard and all but one
swam safely to shore. They found the yawl boat of the wrecked "Anadogge" and this they used to tow their raft loaded with machinery




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


375


and supplies to the head of the little lake, and up the Mamoosa or "Little Dog" to the site of the Stronach mills. A camp was built, a road
cut, a dam constructed, and by the close of 1841, the first sawmill that
ever startled the silence of these unbroken forests was ready for operations. With Stronachs came a force of laborers to the number of fifteen
and these were the first inhabitants of Manistee county.
When the Chippewas found that the Stronachs had evidently come
to stay, they seemed to repent of their former friendliness, and while
building operations were progressing on the dam and mill, a party of
them made quite hostile demonstrations. The Indians soon discovered


LOGGING IN MANISTEE COUNTY


that the "pale-faced" lumbermen were not easily frightened, so turned
about and demanded whiskey. Fortunately, the kegs were buried in
the sand at the mouth of the river. The Indians then began war-like
demonstrations, when old Mr. Stronach invited them to his boarding
shanty, gave them all they could eat and then opened a barrel of pork
and divided it among them and so concluded a treaty of peace.
SETTLERS PRIOR TO 1850
Among the earlier settlers that followed the original Stronachs was
Joseph Stronach who dammed Portage creek and built a watermill
there. The first sawmill built within what is now Manistee City was
erected by James and Adam Stronach on lot 2, section 1, town 21 and
17, and was afterward known as the "Humble" mill, from Joseph
Humble who owned and operated it. It was burned many years ago.
Next after this was the Joseph Smith mill built near the site of the




376


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


old gang mill of Cushman, Calkins & Company, on the north side. Next
came the Bachelor mill on the point of the outlet of Manistee lake on
the south side.
Soon after 1841 came Joseph Smith and between that and 1849 arrived William Ward, John Canfield, Roswell Canfield, Samuel Potter,
Owen Finan and brother, Michael Finan, James O'Connell, H. L. Brown,
from whom Brown town is named, and who was the first town clerk
of Manistee town and the first prosecuting attorney of Manistee county;
together with a few others.
It was in 1849 that John Canfield, with his father Roswell, located
at Manistee. They took up land near the mouth of the river and commenced the erection of a steam mill. At this time the leading business men were the Stronachs, Joseph Smith, H. L. Brown and Wheeler
& Son, by whom Mr. Canfield was employed. In 1852 came H. S. Udell
who went into the employ of John Canfield. The mills then in operation were the Stronach mill, Joe Smith's mill, the Bachelor mill and
Canfield's two mills at the mouth.
THE LAST CHIPPEWA CHIEF
In 1849 the Indian reservation in the valley of the Manistee river
was thrown open to settlement and its lands placed on sale. It embraced a fine tract of pine land on both sides of the river, twenty-two
miles east and west and six in width, extending as far up the valley
as section 4, range 12 west. The story runs that when the surveyors
of the early thirties requested instruction from the government as to
the shape and extent of the reservation they were told to do as old
Kawaxicum, the last chief of the Manistee Chippewas, should direct.
The venerable chief's idea in extending it so far east was for the purpose of including the "old house."
Although the tribal relations of the Chippewas were thus practically broken up by the treaty of 1849 by their reservation lands were
thrown open to the whites, the Indian settlements on the point of land
where the Sand's mill is situated and near East lake remained for many
years after. Kawaxicum, the Chippewa chief, lived in these localities
until his death in the middle nineties. He was born in the Manistee
valley and is said to have been one hundred and twenty years old when
he died. For years before passing away, wrinkled, feeble and blind,
he was led about the streets of Manistee by his few remaining kindred,
or lingered in the little Indian settlements which were all left to him
of his former wide influence and authority.
GROWTH OF SCHOOL SYSTEM
In 1852 the population of Manistee county numbered but two hundred persons, its only settlements being at the mouth of the river, a
little hamlet about each of the mills and the settlement at old Stronach.
Lumber was then absolute monarch of the region, and naturally the first
schools were organized for the benefit of lumbermen's children in the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


377


vicinity of the sawmills. In 1852 Mrs. Parsons is said to have taught
the first school near Canfield's mill, at the mouth of the river, and she
was paid chiefly by the liberality of Mr. Canfield himself. In 1854 a
schoolhouse was built on the northwest corner of Spruce and First
streets, where the first public school was established. It was a plain,
unpainted one room building with crude interior furnishings, such as
may still be seen in some remote country districts. A row of pine
board benches ran along the inner walls with open desks in front. Attached to these was another row of seats without desks, for the smaller
children, who were thus always kept within easy annoying distance of
the older pupils occupying the back seats. Movable benches without
arms or backs were used for recitation purposes. Some of Manistee's
well-known citizens taught in this building. The first teacher of this
pioneer public school was a Miss Clark.
But notwithstanding the fact that a private school had meanwhile
been established near the present site of A. 0. Wheeler's residence,
the little schoolhouse at last became inadequate and on May 10, 1865,
a public meeting was held for the purpose of selecting a location for
a new building. The present site of the Central school was chosen
and a four-room brick building ordered built. The contract for its
construction was afterward let to T. J. Ramsdell, who completed it in
1866. School opened in the new building in 1867 with D. Carleton as
principal. At that time it was thought that this building would accommodate the children of the entire city for many years, but in 1870 it
was necessary to double its capacity by the addition of four more rooms
and supplementary schools were established in the First and Third
wards. A year later a single room building was erected in the Fourth
ward near the foot of Reitz's hill. Charles Hurd was then superintendent. The erection of the ward schools followed closely the incorporation of the city on March 15, 1869.
Manistee school children are now thoroughly accommodated in seven
well constructed buildings, the educational system being under the
supervision of Superintendent S. W. Baker. The Central building is
attended by 239 pupils in the high school courses and 206 in the grammar grades. The average attendance at the Union school is 407; First
ward, 148; Third ward, 193; Fourth ward, 331; Fifth ward, 190. The
total daily average attendance in the Manistee schools is 1,714; number
of teachers, 75, and value of school property, $140,000.
1854-5, A GREAT ERA
The years 1854 and 1855 meant much to Manistee county. The sand
bar at the mouth of the river had become so obtrusive as to prevent
vessels from entering the harbor, and all the lumber distined for shipment had first to be loaded on to rafts, which was both a tedious and
unbusiness-like process. So the lumbermen got together in 1854 and
put the job of cutting the bar into the hands of Samuel Potter. And
it was done, under his supervision. A ditch was dug across the spit
or tongue of land lying north of the present north pier and on which




378


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the lighthouse stands and a close row of spiles was driven across the
channel of the stream and the water forced into the new channel,
which was soon cut to sufficient depth. The same day the schooner,
"Gen. Wayne," entered through the new channel and by piering with
slabs, a considerable depth of water was obtained. As tugs were unknown at Manistee at that time, even after the bar was removed the
lumber vessels to be loaded had to be towed up the river by means of
oxen or horses.
The great event of 1855 was the coming of the first mails to Manistee.
Previous to that year all mail matter was directed to Grand Haven
and brought to Manistee by vessels which might be sailing to that
point; or letters were even sent first to Milwaukee before securing transportation to Manistee. But as better mail service was established about
the time that the county was organized in 1855.
MANISTEE CHURCHES
In 1860 the Methodists founded the first Protestant church society in Manistee, although there had been preaching for nearly two
years. In the year named Rev. N. M. Steele established the First
Methodist Episcopal church with five members, but a building was
not completed until 1863, under the pastorate of Rev. H. H. Bement.
The present edifice was erected in the early eighties.
The First Congregational church was organized with ten members,
in an old schoolhouse, on July 20, 1862, under the direction of Rev.
George Thompson, a missionary lately returned from the west coast
of Africa. Rev. J. M. McLairi was the first regular pastor. The first
church building was completed in the autumn of 1866, and the present
structure in December, 1892.
The German Evangelical Lutheran church was organized in 1867
and the Danish Lutheran in 1869.
St. Mary's Catholic church was originally composed of all the
Catholics of Manistee, but as its congregation increased it was separated
into organizations comprising the Poles, Irish and Germans. The first
St. Mary's church was a little frame building on the north side of the
river, and the first resident pastor Rev. Henry H. Meuffels, who had
been sent by Bishop Borgess to found the society. Father Meuffels
was succeeded in 1873 by Rev. M. Willigan, under whose leadership
the church edifice, which was burned in 1911, was erected.
In September, 1881, Rev. Father Callaert was appointed to succeed Father Willigan. The Catholic congregation had now grown to
such proportions that St. Mary's church could not accommodate all
who came to worship, and in 1884 a separation of the Polish people
was granted by Bishop Richter, resulting in the founding of St. Joseph's
Polish Catholic church.
Again after a few years the St. Mary's congregation had outgrown
the capacity of the church, and after repeated urgent requests another
separation was granted, and on Tuesday, January 24, 1888, the papers
formally dividing the congregation were signed by the committees ap



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


379


pointed for the purpose. This division gave birth to the Church of the
Guardian Angels, the corner stone of axhose new church was laid in
September, 1890.
There are several strong Lutheran churches in Manistee, and most
of them long-established.  The German Evangelical Lutheran church
was organized in 1867; Danish Lutheran in 1869; Norwegian Lutheran,
1874; St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran, 1881; Swedish Lutheran, 1884
and St. Petri German Evangelical Lutheran in 1898. A Scandinavian
M. E. church was established in 1878 and Swedish Mission in 1882.
The Unitarians organized a church in 1884, and erected a building
in 1886.
Of the twenty churches now in Manistee the Lutherans support six,
the Congregationalists four, Roman Catholics three and Methodists two;
the other denominations represented are: Episcopalians, Unitarians
and Christian Scientists, and there are churches designated as North
Side Mission and Swedish Evangelical Mission.
MANISTEE IN THE SIXTIES
Soon after Manistee gave birth to her first churches, she was stirred
by the upheaval of the Civil war, and the noble part played by the
county therein has already been described. In 1864, while the war was
at its height, Manistee was visited by her first great fire, which came out
of the woods just south of the village and burned through to the river,
destroying thousands of dollars worth of property. On the same day
the fire caught in the upper part of the village and the old county jail
was burned to the ground.
At the close of the war there were only the three original townships in the county-Manistee, Stronach and Brown. In 1865 Bear
Lake was added; in 1867 Onekama and Pleasanton; in 1869 Manistee
City, Filer and Marilla; in 1870 Springdale and Arcadia. Those were
flush times in Manistee. Lumber brought high prices. The influx of
population was immense. The demand for labor was correspondingly
great.
Three hundred buildings of various grades went up in Manistee
in the year 1867. The population doubled twice between 1866 and
1870, and this prosperity continued almost unabated until the great
fire of 1871.
The first serious drawback was by the fire of 1869. Christmas night
that year, the Tyson House, the finest hotel Manistee ever had was
burned and all the rest of the block, from what is now the city bank
to the old Tyson & Sweet store. The loss was about $100,000; the
place of the Tyson House has never been filled, and that fire was a serious, and permanent drawback to the prosperity of the young city.
NOTED VANDERPOOL-FIELD CASE
Another notable event of that year was the Vanderpool-Field tragedy. These two young men came to Manistee in the fall of 1868 and




380


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


started a little banking house. On Sunday, September 5, 1869, they
settled and went into the bank together. Field was never seen again.
Thirteen days later his body was cast ashore at Frankfort, with two
ghastly wounds in the head. Vanderpool was arrested, tried by a jury
of his peers and convicted after a month's trial, sentenced to state
prison for life, conveyed to Jackson and incarcerated. No sooner was
the prison door closed upon him than from some source there went
forth an influence to agitate the question of his release and a new trial.
Says General Cutcheon in this connection: "In every city, town,
and hamlet, on every corners, in every schoolhouse and church, in corner
groceries and barrooms they were retrying Vanderpool.   The press
teemed with it; it was talked at weddings, funerals and on the cars.
Never did such a mania seize the people of the entire state of Michigan
as the Vanderpool case. The prison door swung open and a new trial
was granted, which resulted in the disagreement of the jury.  Still
another trial was given, this time in Barry county, and a jury was
found that turned him out into the larger prison of the world. The
Vanderpool case became the most celebrated nisi prius case ever tried
in the state of Michigan and lived long in the memory of the people
of Manistee."
*THE FIRE OF 1871
Before the excitement and notoriety attending the Vanderpool trial
had fully subsided another event occurred at once more momentous
and more terrible, which made the name of Manistee familiar not
only through the United States but even brought it to the attention of
people on the other side of the Atlantic. It was the great fire of 1871.
This has become the great date in Manistee, and all events are divided
into two classes, as they long were in Chicago-"before the fire" and
'after the fire."
The summer of 1871 had been fearfully dry and hot and the woods
were like a mass of tinder. The wooden buildings and sawdust streets
of Manistee were as combustible as a powder magazine. Sunday, October
8th, came, with a strong, dry, hot wind out of the south, and a breathless oppression was in the air.
On the fatal Sunday the fire alarm sounded at about 9 A. M., and
the fire department hastened with the steamer to the vicinity of Gifford and Ruddock's mills in the Fourth ward, where an old chopping
was burning furiously and threatening destruction to that part of the
town. By the most unwearied efforts, continued all day, the fire was
subdued and that part of the town was saved.
About dark the engine returned to its quarters. It was scarcely
housed, however, when the wind which had been blowing heavy all
day rose to a gale. At about 2 o'clock P. M., while the fire in the Fourth
ward was raging, an alarm whistle was heard from the east side of
MTanistee lake and through the thick smoke it was discovered that the
*This account was taken from General Cutcheon's centennial address.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


381


large steam mill of Magill & Canfield. on Blackbird island, was in
flames. In an incredibly short space of time, mill, boarding house,
stables, shops, docks and lumber were consumed.
As soon as darkness began to close in a lurid light appeared in the
southwest on the shore of Lake 1Michigan, showing that the pine woods
that line the shore were on fire. About 9:30 P. M. just as people were
returning from evening services the fire alarm again sounded, and
every one now was on the alert, for the wind was blowing a fierce gale.
Instantly a red angry glare lighted up the western sky near the mouth
of the river. The fire department rushed to the rescue. At the mouth
were located the large mills and tug interests of John Canfield, with
boarding-house and about twenty-five or thirty dwellings. On the beach
several acres were covered with pine sawdust highly inflammable. Along
the river near the piers were piled several hundred cords of dry pine
slabs-fuel for tugs.
Down from the circling hills on the lake shore swept the flames,
and the burning sawdust whirled by the gale in fiery clouds filled the
air. Hundreds of cords of dry, pitchy slabs sent up great columns of
red flames that swayed in the air lake mighty banners of fire, swept
across the Manistee two hundred feet wide and almost instantly licked
up the government lighthouse situated one hundred and fifty feet from
the north bank of the river.
A large fleet of vessels, wind-bound, lay opposite Canfield's mill.
with four tugs, including the three large barges of Tyson and Robinson and the great steam tug "Bismark."    Now commenced a furious
effort to remove the vessels and barges. The wild puffing and screaming of tugs and hoarse hallooing of sailors, the loud roaring and cracking of the flames, the awe-stricken faces of the gathered multitude,
luridly lighted, made up a scene never to be forgotten or adequately
described. The efforts of the firemen were in vain-the engine became
disabled and the flames swept all before them. But now a new source
of terror arose. A bright light came up out of the south directly in
the rear of the town, and the fierce gale bearing it on directly toward
the doomed city. Those who resided in that part of the town rushed to
the new scene of danger, the full extent of which few comprehended.
The fire had originated two miles south of the city, on the lake shore.
It first came upon the farm of L. G. Smith, -w;hich it devoured. Eighty
rods north the extensive farm and dairy of E. W. Secor shared the
same fate, with all its barns and forage. Another quarter of a mile,
and the large farm buildings of R. C. Peters were quickly annihilated.
Here the column of fire divided, the left hand branch keeping to the
lake shore hills, and coming in at the mouth; the other taking a northeasterly course and coming in directly south of the town, as before described. Here a small band of determined men, fighting with the
energy of despair to protect their homes, kept it at bay till past midnight. But all was vain-at 12:30 o'clock the gale became a tornado,
hurling great clouds of sparks, cinders, burning bark and rotten wood
through the air in a terrific, fiery storm.
Every man now fled to his own house. The fire came roaring on




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HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


383


through the dead hemlocks south of the blocks included between Maple
and Oak streets in the Second ward. The flames leaped to the summit
of the great hemlocks, seventy, eighty or ninety feet high, and threw
out great flags of fire against the lurid heavens. The scene was grand
and terrible beyond description. To those whose homes and dear ones
and all were in the track of fire, it was heart rending. Then came a
deluge of fire like that rained on the cities of the plain. The wooden
town, the sawdust streets, the stumpy vacant lots, the pine-clad hills
north of the river, all burst into a sea of flame, made furious by a most
fearful gale of wind.
On toward the river and the lake spread the tempest of fire. Men,
women, and children, in night clothes, half clothed or fully clothedsome bareheaded, on foot, in wagons, on horseback, fled for their lives.
It was pandemonium on earth. Families were separated, husbands, wives,
parents and children. Everything went down before the storm-dwellings with their home-treasures, mills with their machinery, stores and
their stocks, warehouses and their contents, the fine bridge at the foot
of Maple street, vessels and their cargoes, all mingled in common ruin.
From Fifth street, half a mile south of the river, to Cushman &
Calkin's mill half a mile north of the bridge, and from the foot of Oak
street eastward to Tyson & Robinson's mill at the outlet of Manistee
lake, three-fourths of a mile, was one surging sea of fire. The steam
fire engine burned in the street where it stood, the men and horses
barely escaping with their lives.
About 3 o'clock the wind abated, but the work of ruin was complete. When Monday morning's sun glared red and lurid through the
heavy masses of smoke, where had stood Manistee it beheld a scene
scarcely to be described. In the First ward three buildings remained
-the Catholic church, the ward schoolhouse and a small dwellingand also some small fishing shanties near the mouth of the river. The
Third ward was swept clean except a few buildings near Manistee
lake. In the Second ward the six platted blocks lying between Oak
and Maple streets and about thirty buildings near the mouth were
swept away.   The Fourth ward escaped nearly untouched, the fine
residence of J. L. Taylor, formerly that of M. Englemann, situated in
the very corner of the ward, being the only one burned.
The buildings were built mostly of wooden foundations, and their
very  sites were scarcely  distinguishable.  Buildings, foundations,
fences, sidewalks, trees, shrubbery, everything were mowed close to the
surface of the earth, and the grass was burned out by the roots.
"Of the splendid exhibition of sympathy that came in the relief
contributions I cannot speak here," says General Cutcheon in narrating the tale, as an eye-witness. "It cheered many a downcast heart
to the battle anew, and it was 'the single touch of nature that makes
the whole world kin.' The years 1872 and 1873 were chiefly occupied
in rebuilding. The larger share of a city had to be reconstructed, and
the people addressed themselves to the task with brave hearts."




84           HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
AFTER THE FIRE
Like those of Chicago, and other fire-swept cities. the buildings constiruted during the after years were of better material and finer architectulre than their predecessors, and Manistee took on a more metropolitan air. Pretty houses were built, shade and fruit trees planted,
private grounds made attractive.   An iron bridge across the river
repllced the one burned and every enterprise seemed to start fromi a
=  7
X      - =- = =.      = =
PRESENT-DAY MANISTEE FROM THE RIVER
more secure foundation. In 1872 telegraphic communication was also
estalflished witlh the outside world-a great step forward.
GENERAL ADVANCE
Froml that year to the present time the advance has been steady,
lbut so many elements and incidents have contributed to it that they
can be but briefly noted. In 1878 Manistee county's courthouse was
completed. In 1880 Charles Rietz & Brothers, who at that time operated
a sawmill on Manistee lake and had been drilling for oil, put down an
experimental salt well on the Rietz mill property. In 1881. after drilling to a depth of 2,000 feet, a strata of rock-salt twenty-five feet in
thickness was found, which gave assurance that salt could be produced
in paying quantities. Thomas Percy came into the rock-salt field a little later. and Manistee developed into one of the greatest salt-producing
cities in the world.
Tn 1879 a life saving station was established in lManistee and in




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


385


1880 came the telephone exchange. The Flint & Pere Marquette railroad extended its line to that point in 1881; the Holly system of water
works was installed in 1883; in 1886 the Central school building was
burned and rebuilt, and in 1888 the fire department became possessors
of its present headquarters. It was in 1888 also that Manistee introduced the free delivery feature of the postal service, and about the same
time the Manistee & Northeastern railroad gave the city additional
facilities for transportation and communication. A little later followed
the building of the Manistee & Grand Rapids railroad, another enterprise fostered by local money and local brains.
All lines of business and manufacture have developed continuously,
or the railroads would not have been encouraged to make connections.
The municipal departments have also shared in the general progress.
CITY AND COUNTY OF THE PRESENT
One of the most pronounced advantages which Manistee presents
as a commercial and industrial center is in the excellence of its harbor.
As noted by one of the numerous publications put forth by the city's
enterprising board of trade: "The city has an essentially romantic
and picturesque location between Lake Michigan and Manistee lake,
the latter constituting an inner harbor four miles long with a depth
from 30 to 60 feet. Here is afforded space for the commerce of a
city of a million people. Every foot of the upper harbor and practically all of the channel connecting it with Lake Michigan, is bordered
by rails, and both halves of the city are belted by tracks.
"The harbor has at least ten miles of deep water shore line and
the railroad trackage adapted to industrial needs in and about the city
is approximately twenty miles. The fourteen foot channel is soon to
be dredged to admit vessels drawing eighteen feet of water, and the
government contemplates spending $700,000 in protecting the entrance
to the harbor."
The Manistee Board of Trade is especially organized to furnish the
public with reliable local data, and most of the statements which follow are based upon its authority.
The vessel tonnage owned in Manistee amounts to 18,887 tons, all
in modern steam craft, a larger tonnage than is owned at any other
Lake Michigan port except Chicago and Milwaukee. The value of these
vessels is $1,030,000. In the year 1908, the latest for which statistics
are available, 2,116 vessels entered and cleared the port of Manistee,
and their combined tonnage was 1,130,280. These vessels brought to
Manistee miscellaneous cargoes amounting to 50,904 tons, and took
away 377,180 tons of merchandise, chief of which was salt amounting
to 1,653,491 barrels.
Manistee's primary resources are four. First is her inexhaustible
supply of brine from pure salt deposits underlying this region. Manistee produces 2,100,000 barrels of salt per annum, and has been the
greatest salt producing center in the country for many years. 1,791
men are employed in the salt and lumber industry. One of Manistee's
Vol. 1-25




386


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


salt plants is the largest in the world with a capacity of 4,200 barrels
per day.
Brine is the source also of chemicals of value, especially bleaching
soda, and with the advent of a cheap and abundant electric current,
assured in a short time by the development of the water power of the
Manistee river, M\anistee is certain to become the greatest chemical
center in the country. The reduction of sodium chloride by electricity
is a recent discovery, but is fully proved.
Manistee brine is also a truly wonderful remedial agency, effecting
cures of rheumatism and all blood diseases far more successfully than
any other mineral water. In two establishments treatment is afforded
by brine baths-at MAercy sanatorium, a public institution under the
- -A
COURT HOUSE, MANISTEE
management of the Sisters of Mercy, and at Briny Inn, which is both
a sanatorium of note and a first-class commercial hotel.
In timber Manistee will forever maintain her present ascendency
among Michigan cities. There yet remains two billion feet of timber
of all kinds available to the great sawmills of Manistee. The fact that
the refuse from the timber is employed to produce salt gives the logs
a higher value in the Manistee market than elsewhere, and accounts
for the construction of railroads for 100 miles and more to bring these
forest products to Manistee, where they are converted into lumber,
shingles, flooring, furniture, and so forth. The present annual output
of lumber and shingles is 138,000,000 feet lumber and 28,000,000 shingles.
A great Manistee resource soon to be added to existing wealth is
the power of the Manistee river, which is capable of producing 40,000
horsepower. Half of this stupendous power is controlled by an electric company which has been awarded a franchise for the construction
of seven dams in Manistee county under the binding provision that the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


387


resulting power is to be marketed at a lower price in this county than
elsewhere. The first dam is soon to be constructed. The Manistee river
is the greatest of Michigan rivers as yet unharnessed.
Manistee is centrally located in the great Western Michigan fruit
belt, which is becoming from year to year the most prosperous agricultural region between the Rocky mountains and the Appalachian range.
The protection afforded fruit by Lake Michigan extends for a number
of miles inland. The northern portion of the fruit belt has points of
advantage in being held back in the spring when there is danger of
injury from frosts.  Thirty-four per cent of Manistee county's area
was in cultivated farms at the time of the 1904 census and the remainder is being taken up speedily.   This year 100,000 fruit trees
were set out in Manistee county. Daily steamer shipments to the country's great central market, with a trip of but a few hours in a low temperature and without dust and vibration, make ideal conditions for the
fruit grower.
Manistee's manufactures at present embrace salt, lumber, shingles,
furniture, machinery of all kinds, railroad equipment, shoes, saws, candy,
cooperage machinery, flour, brick, tanned hides, beer, wagons, logging
wheels, watches, shirts, oils, tower clocks, steam pumps, salt-making
nachinery, boilers, sawmill machinery and equipment, and so forth.
Three banks do business in Manistee, the national, state savings,
and private systems of banking being exemplified. Their combined
resources as shown by recent official reports are $3,686,670.67 and their
deposits are $2,693,383.11. Savings deposits alone amount to $725,000.
The First National Bank, of which Thomas J. Ramsdell is president
and George A. Dunham vice-president and cashier, was organized in
1882 and has a capital of $100,000 and a surplus of $50,000. The
Manistee County Savings Bank was organized in 1891, has a capital
of $50,000, surplus and undivided profits amounting to $65,000, and
the following officers: E. G. Filer, president; Joseph Kirster, vice-president and W. J. Gregory, cashier.
Manistee, while pre-eminently an industrial city, is at the same time
a natural resort city, and the center of a beautiful and enticing region,
one of exquisite lakes and lovely rivers, one where the Northern Michigan summer makes a veritable paradise. In Manistee county are a
number of beautiful and well equipped resorts-Onekama, Bear Lake,
Arcadia, and others. Citizens of Milwaukee and Chicago can send
their families to Manistee and Onekama and spend Sunday with them,
returning to Milwaukee and Chicago in time for business on Monday
morning, these being the farthest points north where this can be done.
The fourth great primary resource of Manistee is her thrifty, law
abiding, orderly, intelligent citizenship. Manistee is a hive of workers. Every laboring man owns his home. In no other American city
is there so small a percentage of rented houses. In no other city is
there more respect for law and order. Strikes are unknown. There is
less need for policing than in other cities and the same may be said
for Manistee county, which has not had a murder trial in a dozen
years, and averages but four or five divorces per annum.




388


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Of public institutions the federal building now under construction
will soon stand first. It is to cost $90,000 and is of renaissance type and
of perfect proportions.. It will be completed toward the close of the
year 1910.
The handsome city library is rightly a source of pride. It cost
$35,000 for the building alone. The city appropriates $4,500 annually
for its maintenance, and it has been the recipient of numerous gifts,
the greatest being one of $5,000 cash.
Manistee's pavements are far better than those of most cities of
twice her size. There 4.04 miles of bitulithic pavement, 3.5 miles
of macadam and 1.25 miles of tarviated macadam. There is a trunk
line of pavement from one end of the city to the other, and unpaved
streets are kept in model condition at all times.
Manistee county has been a leader among Michigan counties in road
construction, the truest index to progress in civilization. It now has
over 50 miles of stone and gravel roads reaching from the city to the
best farming lands and all the villages and trading centers.
Transportation in the city and from the city to three contiguous
suburbs is by electric railroad, and by ferry lines to another suburb.
The city maintains a professional fire department, housed in a handsome and well equipped building, with two outlying hose stations. At
the central station is a new $5.000 steam fire engine, a modern chemical engine, and all other needed apparatus.
Manistee's water supply is from wells. It is healthful and adequate
to fire protection. Under municipal ownership Manistee's water department has paid all but $30,000 of the $130,000 original cost, has extended
the mains, bettered the service, increased the number of wells, and
materially reduced the price of water to private consumers. Manistee
people appreciate this success, and while very few meters are used, the
consumption per capita is about half what prevails in other cities, the
people being educated to an economical use of water, something which
is impossible except under municipal ownership.
The city government embraces some of the advantages of recent
experience in municipal work. Civil service rules obtain among the
city employes, and the fire and police departments are controlled by a
citizen board acting without pay. A board of five members without
salaries controls the city library. A board of five ladies supervise the
city's parks and exert a helpful influence toward the artistic movement
of the city. Five citizens manage the water department, and three
salaried officials do the assessing. The city employs a physician as
health officer and provides him with a sanitary inspector. A veterinarian serves the city as milk inspector, having jurisdiction over all the
herds. wherever located, that contribute to Manistee's milk supply.
Manistee also enjoys the advantages of a good Carnegie library, established in 1903.
Every well known fraternal order is represented in Manistee, there
being over forty lodges. The Elks have a large building representing
an investment of more than $40,000. the Knights of Pythias have the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


389


finest quarters in Michigan, and a Masonic Temple has just been completed (1911) at a cost of $40,000.
Among the city's social advantages should be mentioned Orchard
Beach, a park located on beautiful hills bordering Lake Michigan, from
which the coast line is visible for twenty miles both north and south.
This park is considered the most charming on Lake Michigan.
Another park of nine acres overlooks the upper harbor. The city
is spending money liberally to make this park worthy and to enhance
its great natural attractiveness.
COPEMISH, BEAR LAKE AND ONEKAMA
The only incorporated villages of the county are Copemish, Bear
Lake and Onekama, ranging from three to five hundred in population.
The last named, the oldest, was settled about 1880. It lies on the northern shore of Portage lake and on the line of the Manistee & Northeastern road. The government has made it a harbor of refuge by constructing a channel from Lake Michigan.
Copemish was incorporated as a village in 1891 and is a station on
the Manistee & Northeastern and the Ann Arbor roads. It has a bank
and a weekly paper, four churches and a good school, and represents
a population of about five hundred.
Bear Lake, incorporated in 1903, is about the same size, has two
newspapers and a bank, as well as several churches. It is on the lake
from which it takes its name, has no railway connection, but stage communication with Norwalk and MAanistee.




CHAPTER XVI


MASON COUNTY
SOIL PRODUCTS AND GENERAL RESOURCES-POPULATION AND PROPERTY[MASON COUNTY AND IER GODFATHER-MEMORIES OF FATHER MAkRQUETTE-CITY OF LUDINGTON FOUNDED-A GREAT TRANSPORTATION
SYSTEM-INDUSTRIES AND FINANCES-CIVIC AND SOCIAL-SCOTTVILLE,
CUSTER AND FOUNTAIN.
In the days when pine was king of Northern Michigan, Mason
county was one of that monarch's most powerful provinces. With the
cutting away of the pineries and the decline of the industry and trade
for the past twenty years, this section of the state has shared' in the
general transformation of the northern country. All her prosperity
and strength are no longer centered in one field, but are diversified and
immeasurably increased to meet the demands of broader and more
complex communities. Both lumber and salt are still important articles of Mason county manufactures and form large elements in her
shipments and channels of trade. But her manufactories are also working up the hardwoods of the state into furniture; she has plants for
the manufacture of wooden ware, as well as lumber and planing mills,
and she turns out various complex mechanisms from a match to a gasoline engine.
SOIL PRODUCTS AND GENERAL PROSPERITY
The chief strength of the modern prosperity of Mason county, however. is drawn from her fertile soil. She crowns the stretch of peach
country which lies along the eastern Michigan shore. The peach is
the king of fruits in Mason county, as the apple is supreme farther
north. This luscious fruit is plentifully grown throughout the county,
some of the finest orchards being near Scottville and Custer in its central sections. Crawfords and Peachblows are particularly prolific, large
and select. Apples. currants, strawberries, raspberries and cherries
do well. but it is mainly the long-continued and fine yield of the peach
orchards which has given Mason county so high a position in the horticultural world, and founded a large and profitable canning industry.
The benefit is mutual, as the fruit growers are yearly adding to their
acreage and output with the establishment of new canning factories
whose product goes to far-distant markets. Ludington, with its thorough facilities of transportation by lake and land, is the chief shipping
point for all the products of the soil, whether in the raw or worked into
manufactured form. The result is that the tonnage of the port of
390




r


[Courtesy Western Michigan Development Bureau]
AN AVERAGE CROP OF MASON COUNTY PEACHES




392


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIG1AN


Ludington is exceeded on Lake Michigan only by Chicago and Milwaukee. In general agriculture the county ranks high, its rich sand
loams being productive and stable.
Stock raising and dairying are also being adopted by progressive
agriculturists who are succeeding well. The county is also a favored
region for summer resorters, and it is estimated that from ten to fifteen
thousand people spend their vacations at the beautiful resorts, which
are within easy access of Ludington. Pleasure seekers, farmers and
business men have easy access to all sections of the county not accommodated by railroad through substantial highways of crushed stone
and gravel, which, through the system of state rewards, are being yearly
extended and improved.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY
Before presenting the tabulated statement of AMason county's increase of population according to the national census figures, it should
be stated that the cities of Ludington and Scottville have enterprising
boards of trade which have pooled their issues with the general public
and formed the Mason County Improvement Association-a live body
largely responsible for the marked progress of recent years.


Civil Divisions
Amber  township............................
Branch  township...........................
Custer township, including Custer village......
Custer village...........................
Eden   township.............................
Freesoil  township...........................
Grant  township............................
Hamlin  township...........................
Logan  township.............................
Ludington   City............................
W ard  1................................
W ard   2.................................
W ard   3.................................
W ard   4.................................
W ard   5.................................
M eade  township.............................
Pere  Marquette  township....................
Riverton  township...........................
Scottville  City.............................
W ard   1.................................
W ard   2..............................
Sheridan  township..........................
Sherman  township...........................
Summit  township...........................
Victory  township...........................


1910   1900
964   1,062
409    614
1,287  1,254
277    269
815    782
1,162  1,112
673    569
345    293
282
9,132  7,166
1,767
1,832....
1,603....
1,809....
2,121....
87....
845    965
1,456  1,488
891    554
454
437
587    461
1,259  1,026
568    486
1,070  1,053


1890
1,036
319
1,140
579
878
301
85
7,517
944
1,203
147
349
550
508
658


Totals..................................21,832   18,885   16,385




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICIIIGAN


393


According to the figures of the last assessment concluded throughout
the county in the spring of 1911, the total acreage of what is termed
"farm lands" is 304.241. The entire area of the county is placed at
320.640 acres, and land actually in farms, at 133.777 acres. As equalized by the county board of supervisors, the total value of real estate is
$5,959,135 and of personal property, $1,288,330; grand total, $7,247,465.
Of this amount Ludington is credited with $2,168,460 in real estate and
$887,710 personal property, and Scottville with $235,780 in real estate
and $120,750 personal property.
MASON COUNTY AND HER GODFATHER
Mason county was organized by an act of the legislature approved
February 13, 1855, the portion relating to it reading as follows: "The
people of the state of Michigan enact: Section 2-The county of Mason
shall be organized and shall comprise townships 17, 18, 19 and 20 north,
of each of the ranges numbered 15, 16, 17 and 18 west; and the unorganized counties of Lake and Osceola are hereby attached to said
county of Mason for judicial purposes."
Mason county was named in honor of Stevens T. Mason, the last
territorial and the first state governor of Michigan; appointed to succeed his father as secretary of the territory and acting governor in 1831
and elected governor in 1835. He was known as the "boy governor,"
as he was in years although not in maturity of judgment, brilliancy
of mind, or steadfastness of purpose. In view of the fact that he had
not yet arrived at his twentieth year when he succeeded his father,
in 1831, as secretary of the territory and acting governor, there was
much opposition in the United States senate to the confirmation of
his appointment by President Jackson. But he was confirmed, it being
evident that the people of Michigan were generally in favor of "giving the boy a chance."  Although he was soon succeeded by George
B. Porter, a Pennsylvania lawyer, during the short period in which
he was acting governor he conducted himself with dignity and good
judgment. In 1834 Governor Porter died of cholera and Mr. Mason
again acted as governor of the territory, being such during the exciting boundary dispute between Michigan and Ohio, which he handled
with vim and vigor. He was supported by his home constituency, and,
although the president removed him from office, his course was sustained by the popular verdict in his election as first governor of the
state in 1835. Heman's "History of Michigan" thus speaks of the
brilliant, warm, honorable, and lovable man whom Mason county has
delighted to honor: "The young governor never lost his popularity
with the people. They loved his generous nature and believed in his
honesty and integrity. During the years in which he was discharging
his many official duties he had been a close student and long before the
close of his official career as governor he had become a member of the
Detroit bar. In 1841, he removed to New York City to engage in the
practice of his profession. A bright future seemed to be opening before him when he died suddenly on the 4th of January, 1843. having




GOVERNOR STEVENS T. MASON
[From oil painting in State Capitol]




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


395


contracted scarlet fever while attending a literary gathering with Washington Irving at Staten island. Imposing funeral and memorial services were held at Detroit upon the receipt of the news of his death.
It was a service in which all the departments of the state government
took part and which was indicative of sentiments that were genuine
and sincere.
"For long years Governor Mason's mortal remains rested in an
obscure cemetery in the city of New York. With passing years came
a better understanding of the man and his work and the legislature
of 1905 appointed a commission to superintended the removal of the
remains to Michigan soil. On June 4th of that year, amid civic and
military honors, they were deposited in Capital Park, Detroit, the
interment being in the very foundation of the capitol of the territory
and first state government. In due time the spot will be marked by a
monument of Miichigan's appreciation and regard for her first governor,
who although a boy in years, was a man in the loyalty and fidelity with
which he served her interests."
MEMORIES OF FATHER MARQUETTE
Mason county is most fertile in memories of Father Marquette,
venerated by the Ottawas and Chippewas of the region so long as they
haunted the MIichigan shores as their patron saint. Its largest river,
which comes up from the south and southeast fertilizes a large tract
of the southern townships and finally expands into a splendid harbor
around which is built the city of Ludington-this, formerly clad with
dense pineries, is the Pere Marquette river; the harbor is Lake Marquette and the city itself was Pere Marquette until forty years ago.
No admirer of Michigan's progress will forget the Pere Marquette railroad, of which Ludington is the lake terminus and the strongest connecting link between the state, the lake ports and the northwest.
More than all else which has been mentioned connecting the prosperity of the present with the crudeness and struggles of the past by
the personality of Father Marquette-his revered grave at the mouth
of the beautiful stream, which bore his name and wherein his remains
first reposed, kept alive the memory of the entire region and finally
when the ambitious white sought the site of a future city he instinctively
turned toward that sheltered and deep harbor into which emptied the
waters of the forest-clad river.
Fortunately, a record of the various visits made to the site of
Father Marquette's first burial place has been made by R. H. Elsworth,
who has collected the information from many sources and published
it in the invaluable volumes issued as "Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections," in 1897. "The death and burial of Jacques Marquette, the French missionary and explorer, nearly two and a quarter
centuries ago," he says, "made the river's banks, one of which serves
as the site for the present city of Ludington, historic ground. According to the Jesuit Relations, the black-robed father, who was weakened
by disease and exposure, perceived one morning, while being paddled




396


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


in a canoe toward the mission of St. Ignatius at Michilimackinac 'the
mouth of a river with an eminence on its bank' and selected the place
as that of his last repose. A landing was effected and a hut erected.
'Feeling that he had but a little while to live he made a last effort,
clasped his hands and with his eyes fixed sweetly on his crucifix he
pronounced aloud his profession of faith and thanked the Divine Majesty
for the immense favor he bestowed upon him in allowing him to die
in the Society of Jesus, to die in it as a missionary of Jesus Christ and,
above all, to die in a wretched cabin, amid the forests, destitute of all
human aid.' The burial was in accordance with the wishes of the
father, a large cross being raised to serve as a mark for the grave. Two
years later the place was again visited by the followers of Marquette;
the remains were exhumed and taken to St. Ignace. But the soil made
historic by being the missionary's death bed did not lose its interest.
The Indian, the Frenchman, and the Englishman remembered the spot
and did it in honor in the succeeding centuries.
"The place was visited in 1721 by Pierre Francis Xavier de Charlevoix, who was in North America at the order of the King of France.
He entered the river of Father Marquette 'in order to examine whether
what he had been told of it was true.' A letter then written to a
friend in France, besides furnishing a geographical description of the
locality, says 'I have not been able to learn, or else I have forgotten
the name this river formerly bore, but at this day the Indians call it
the River of the Black Robe, for thus the Indians term the Jesuits. The
French call it Father Marquette's river and never fail to call upon him
when they are in any danger on Lake Michigan. Several of them have
affirmed that they believe themselves indebted to his intercession for
having escaped very great dangers.'
"Ninety-seven years later the place was visited by another white
man-Gurdon S. Hubbard. He says that while coasting from Mackinaw to Chicago he saw a cross of red cedar near the head of the Marquette river which marked the burial place of Marquette. The cross
which was held in veneration by the voyagers was reset whenever neeessary. He also states that for the several years following he saw the
cross as he passed along the coast.
"Again in 1821, three years after Hubbard's visit, Gabriel Richard
of Detroit, one of the most important characters in the early history
of Michigan, visited the Pere Marquette river. He was accompanied
by a party of Indians from Harbor Springs. He also gives a description of the place which tallies with those given by subsequent explorers who are yet alive. A week was spent by Richard at the river.
Among other things he erected a cross at the spot where, according to
the Indians, a former one had stood, and with his penknife he engraved
it with Marquette's name and the date of his death."
The Rev. Gabriel Richard mentioned, was one of the remarkable
figures of the Catholic church in its missionary work throughout the
new Northwest of the early nineteenth century, and really one of the
striking figures of his times. He it was who in 1823 erected the wooden
cross on the spot where Father Marquette died and accorded that great




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


397


and noble priest of the Catholic church and of God a tardy local recognition of his martyrdom. Hon. Thomas A. E. Weadock read a paper
on Father Richard's extraordinary life and achievements before the
United States Catholic Historical Society on February 28, 1892, showing how immeasurably his labors transcended the local field of Detroit,
despite the fact that he was pastor of St. Anne's church there from
1798 to 1832. "Father Richard's life," said the author of the paper,
"affords material for a volume, but the limits of this paper forbid more
than an outline sketch of a man who, born of a good family in France
emigrated to America to fill a professor's chair in St. Mary's College,
Baltimore, then became a zealous missionary among the Indian and
half-breed settlements in distant Illinois and Michigan; who set up the
first printing press west of the Alleghanies; who was so patriotic in
his adopted land that he was made a prisoner of war by the British
general at Detroit after Hull's surrender; who was vice president and
held six professorships in the University of Michigan; the associate of
Lewis Cass; and who was the only Catholic priest who ever sat in the
congress of the United States."
Although the labors of Father Richard as a regular missionary
ceased in 1798, he seems to have frequently visited the scenes of his
earlier labors. As the parish register shows he was at Mackinac on
June 3, 1799, and extended his visits to L'Arbre Croche, in the Grand
Traverse region at that time, as well as in August, 1821. Again in
1823 he visited many of the missions on the northern and western
shores of Michigan and while thus engaged was conducted by Indians
to the spot where Father Marquette died-a locality which they had
marked and held sacred for nearly a century and a half. There, as
stated, Father Richard erected a crude wooden cross, carving thereon
with his penknife "Father John Marquette died here 9th May, 1675."
Father Richard was a victim of the terrible cholera scourge which
swept over Detroit and to many other localities in the northwest during
the year 1832.
CITY OF LUDINGTON FOUNDED
French voyageurs and British and American trappers and traders
visited the mouth of the Pere Marquette river and assisted the devotees of Father Marquette's memory to make its commercial advantages
evident and familiar. About 1851 a few permanent settlers arrived
and in a few years several little sawmills were grouped around the
harbor of Lake Marquette and a short distance inland. But the settlement was not sufficient to warrant the recording of the plat named
Pere Marquette until September 10, 1867. It was never chartered as
a village, but in 1873 the state legislature granted it a city charter and
it was rechristened by its present name in honor of James Ludington,
who, with Nelson Ludington of Menominee and Harrison Ludington
of Milwaukee, was a strong member of a noted family of lumber kings.
In the following year the western division of the Flint & Pere Marquette Railroad was completed from Saginaw to Ludington, which from




:9 H


HIISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


that time assumed metropolitan aspirations and spirit. Ludington was
te-li  a rude lhut bustling lumber town of some two thousand people,
with streets of sand or saw dust, dotted here and there with stumps
and trees.
This also was the period of the ascendancy of Captain Eber B. Ward,
whom few will deny the credit of being the founder of modern Ludington. He has been fitly pronounced "one of the most enterprising,
energetic and broad-minded business operators in a period whose abiding glories were its marvelous business men. It was these men who
brought to the fore. expanded and utilized and distributed the diversi

COURT HOUSE. LUDINGTON


fied and matchless resources of Michigan. Among them all Eber B.
Ward stood preeminent. Beginning life as the humble servant of his
prosperous uncle, his energy and genius for great undertakings made
him the leading ship owner on the greatest waterways of the globe.
lie vwas identified as president and for years of its infantile embarrassments guided the troublous affairs of the Flint & Pere Marquette railway, upholding it by the strength of his credit and associations. He
was also largely interested in railways west of the Mississippi river
and was the largest pine land owner in all the vast pine region of these
north-central states. The immense mills at Ludington were built by
him. He also built large mills at Toledo and dealt extensively in the
hardwoods of Ohio. The methods by which some of our largest sawmills are now supplied with stocks from distant shores are the result
of his costly but unregretted experiments."




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


399


rThe lumnler barons of the Ward and Ludington days settled upon
the improvemllent of the harbor as the one great work to be advanced
in forwarding the commnercial destiny of the city and that idea has
been largely kept in mind to the present. Its public men have never
forgotten to keep the Ludington harbor before congress with the result that the government has already spent over $1.000.000 upon dredging, docking and other improvements.
A GREAT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
These efforts and accomplishments have been the prime means of
organizing an unrivaled fleet of gigantic steel ferries which connect the


WEST LUDINiTON AVENUE IN 1869


great railway systems of Michigan (through the Pere Marquette lines)
with those of Wisconsin across the lake. These boats, formerly operated
by the Pere Marquette Steamship Company, are now under the ownership and management of the Pere Marquette Railroad, and comprise
six steel ear-ferries of 30-car capacity, each giving a constant moving
capacity of 180 standard freight cars, so scheduled as to permit transit
of 500 cars per day, 15,000 cars per month, 180,000 cars per year.
Connections are made in Wisconsin-at Milwaukee, with the Chicago,
Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway, at Manitowoc with the Chicago &
Northwestern and Wisconsin Central railways, and at Kewaunee with
the Green Bay & Western Railway.     The passenger accommodations
on these great car-ferries are also so ample and luxurious that the system has long been called "The Railroad on the Lakes."




400


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


This system rightly claims to have solved the vexatious problem to
producers and shippers as to how it was possible to exchange unbroken
shipments over Lake Michigan between the producing sections of the
northwest and eastern markets, as well as to send by the most direct
route the products of Michigan's soil and factories to waiting markets
on and beyond the western shores of the lake.
To route by rail via Chicago, while avoiding the breaking of cargo,
entailed a delay in the crowded yards, equalling in loss of time the
makeshift alternative of railing to Milwaukee, unloading and loading
to ship across by boat, and repeating the operation on the other shore.
The freight yards of Chicago are the clearing-house of western traffic
-for nine months of the year so congested that shipments meet delays
no less certain of occurrence than uncertain of ending.
To break cargo for lake shipment brought with it scarcely less of
delay and infinitely more opportunities for breakage, error and loss.
By either method, northwestern shippage was a history of damaged
consignments, delayed receipts, and cancelled orders. To obviate this.
the Pere Marquette Company's daring system   of car-ferriage was
evolved and put into successful operation. Loaded cars are taken from
their trains, and run with cargoes intact into the great boats specially
designed for this use. With a straighter course than any railroad,
they are rushed across the lake, coupled without delay to waiting trains
and, with a saving of over one hundred and seventy-five miles of travel
are sent on their way to rejoice the hearts of shippers, buyers and consumers. Not only is Ludington harbor the home of this splendid fleet
of freight and passenger boats, but into its land-locked waters ply the
great steamers of every important line of the Great Lakes region.
INDUSTRIES AND FINANCES
As an industrial center Ludington has the distinction of possessing
the Stearns Salt and Lumber Company, which operates one of the largest salt works in the country with a daily capacity of 7,500 barrels;
the largest manufactory of game boards and tables in the world, conducted by the Carrom-Archarena Company; the Star Watch Case factory. one of the leading enterprises of the kind in the United States;
a grain elevator with a capacity of 75,000 bushels and a large fruit
canning factory; and the Tubbs -Manufactory Company, whose large
plant turns out wood type and printers' wood furniture. Not far from
one thousand hands are employed by these leading industries of the city.
The growth of Ludington industrially is largely attributed to the
cheap electricity which its factories have been able to secure through
the plant of the Stearns Lighting and Power Company. The company
was able to do this from the fact that it obtained double service from
its steaml plant which first operated the generators to manufacture electricity and then was used to evaporate the salt. Thus electricity became
almost a by-product and could be sold cheaply to outside plants, with
the result that it virtually crowded out of Ludington all other kinds





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1-;:B:::_,,,,
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HIGH SCHOOL AND PUBLIC LIBRARY, LUDINGTON


Vol. 1-26




402


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of power. By this means, also, the city became a well-lighted conmmunity.
Ludington's two banks are the First National and the State. The
First National Bank originated in the private firm of James Blain &
Son whose business was started in 1872. After two years they were
succeeded by the firm of Blain & Ely, consisting of Charles Blain and
H. B. Ely, who continued doing a general banking business until succeeded by the Ludington State Bank in 1880, which was in turn succeeded by the present organization chartered in 1882 with a capital
of $50,000. Its first officers were George W. Roby, president; Thomas
R. Lyon, vice president, and George N. Stray, cashier. The present
building was erected in 1887, and the capital increased to $100,000 in
1893. In 1911 the officers consisted of J. S. Stearns, president; James
Foley, vice president and W. L. Hammond, cashier. Its resources
amounted to $946,000; surplus and undivided profits, $51,000.
The present Ludington State Bank was established August 1, 1901,
and has at present a capital of $100,000, surplus and undivided profits
amounting to $115,000 and the following officers: C. G. Wing, president; W. A. Cartier, vice president, and C. Hagerman, cashier. It has
branches in the Fourth ward of Ludington, with A. W. Newberg as
manager, and at Fountain and Custer, Mason county.
CIVIC AND SOCIAL
Ludington owns its system of water works which distributes an
abundance of good water. It has from eight to ten miles of well paved
streets and forty miles of cement sidewalks; gas, both for fuel and domestic use; two fine telephone systems; an efficient fire department;
a good public library and a public school system of which she has every
cause to be proud. The buildings comprise a magnificent Central or
High school costing $75,000 and five ward schools which would bring
the total value of property devoted to educational purposes up to
$190,000. Fifty-seven teachers are employed and the average attendance at the five main schools are as follows: Central, 156; Lake View,
299; Longfellow, 346; Luther H. Foster, 386; Pere Marquette, 291.
The two rural schools, Wing and Jones, have a combined attendance of
48. Total 1,526. Among the twenty churches which are established in
Ludington are numbered representatives of the Baptist, Catholic, Congregational. Episcopal, Danish and German Lutheran, Methodist, Norwegian Baptist, Presbyterian and Swedish Lutheran denominations.
The residence districts of Ludington are homelike and attractive
and embrace several pretty parks. but the favorite places of resort for
summer visitors who come to the city, and citizens who seek an outing,
are the Epworth Assembly grounds six miles north on Lake Michigan,
and Hamlin Lake. two miles inland. The Ludington & Northern Railroad is the popular mode of conveyance to these restful localities. The
assembly grounds consist of some 200 acres of diversified land which
has been under process of beautifying for sixteen years. The buildings
embrace a spacious assembly hall and large hotel and over three hun



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


403


dred cottages, while the facilities for visitors provide for all sorts of
outdoor amusements, including boating, bathing, fishing, golf and tennis.
The Hamlin lake region is a great play ground, resorters thither
perhaps being a little more unconventional than those who frequent
the Epworth Assembly grounds. There are several large and finely
equipped hotels on the shores of the lake, one of the most popular being Bugg House!
SCOTTVILLE, CUSTER AND FOUNTAIN
Scottville is a growing little city of about nine hundred people,
originally settled in 1876; incorporated as a village in 1889 and as a
city in 1907. Nine miles east of Ludington on the Pere Marquette
Railroad and the Pere Marquette river, it is the center of trade for a
fertile country which produces fruit, grain and potatoes. Around
Scottville is also a good dairy district so that it ships both butter and
cheese. A grain elevator and a grist and lumber mill add to the business like appearance of the place. A graded school, well built water
works and a substantial bank are also evidences of its thrift and progress. Through their boards of trade Scottville and Ludington pull together most harmoniously for the general good of Mason county.
Custer, twelve miles east of Ludington on the Pere Marquette Railroad and river, was incorporated as a village in 1895. It has about
three hundred people, a bank, several stores, a small manufactory of
wooden bowls, a graded school and two churches.
Fountain, about the same size but unincorporated, is on the Pere
Marquette line twenty-five miles northeast of Ludington. Like Custer
it is accommodated by a branch of the State Bank of Ludington and
has a fair trade with the surrounding country.




CHAPTER XVII


WEXFORD COUNTY
CIVIL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES-BUILDING OF THE STATE ROAD-FIRST
SETTLERS AND INSTITUTIONS-THE COUNTY AND COUNTY SEATSEARLY HISTORY OF CADILLAC-VILLAGE AND CITY CORPORATIONSDEATH OF GEORGE A. MITCHELL-THE PRESENT CITY-M5ANTONHARRIETTA-SHERMAN —MESICK, BUCKLEY, BOON AND YUMA.
One of the most progressive counties in Northern Michigan, Wexford is practically only about forty years old, for prior to 1869 about
all there was to it was the little settlement of Sherman, near which
were a grist mill and a sawmill, with a number of settlers further to
the east in the town of Colfax; the State road running from Northport
in Grand Traverse bay to Newaygo county through almost unbroken
forests and crossing the Manistee river near Sherman; and the skeleton
of a county body centering also in Sherman and loosely put together
in 1869. In 1872 the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad passed through
the county, leaving Clam Lake and Manton villages and other evidences
of hope, confidence and growth in its wake. From that year the solid
and sustained life of Wexford county really commences, and very early
in her history there were evidences of an awakening to the possibilities
of her responsive soil and to the fact that it was destined to produce
far more than pine and hardwood forests.
The first agricultural fair was held at Sherman in October, 1874,
and a very creditable display was made in vegetables, hay and grain,
but owing to the newness of the country the only fruit shown was a
plate of grapes grown by H. J. Carpenter. The first inowing machine
brought into Wexford county was purchased by Jerome Bartley in the
summer of 1876. Prior to that time all the hay and grain raised in
the county had been cut with the scythe and the cradle. Such facts
as these are adduced to illustrate the "newness" of Wexford county
and prove the rapid and substantial nature of her progress.
CIVIL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES
Before going further into the history of the county, it seems best
to have a general foreground of its present civil and physical body, the
former feature being well presented in the last statistics of population
compiled by the United States census bureau.
404




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


405


Civil Divisions                            1910
Antioch township, including part of Sherman
village.............................   640
Sherman village (part of).............     110
Total for Sherman village in Antioch,
Hanover, Springville & Wexford twps.     260
Boon township, including part of Harrietta
village............................  1,153
Harrietta village (part of).............   269
Total for Harrietta village in Boon and
Slagle  township.....................  336
Cadillac  city.............................  8,375
W ard   1...............................  2,533
W ard  2...............................  2,446
W ard  3...............................  2,005
W ard   4...............................  1,391
Cedar Creek township, including    Manton
village.....................       2,129
Manton village.................          1,069
Cherry Grove township......................   481
Clam Lake township.................           954
Colfax township.................              754
Greenwood township.................    432
Hanover township, including Buckley village
and part of Sherman village.........    812
Buckley village.................           464
Sherman village (part of)..............     45
Haring township.................              418
Henderson township.................           253
Liberty township.................             370
Selma township.................               823
Slagle township, including part of Harrietta
village.................             486
Harrietta village (part of).............    67
South Branch township...................      380
Springville township, including Mesick village
and part of Sherman village.........  1,390
Mesick village.................        510
Sherman village (part of)..............     81
Wexford township, including part of Sherman
village.....................         919
Sherman village (part of)..............     24
Totals...................... 20,769


1900    1890
657     470
146     125
427....
955     764
357     335


419
5,997
*...
1,937
895
417
1,009
678
375
477
166
322
208
423
446


335
4,461
*...
1,603
661
216
881
463
197
209
96
319
138
274
242
176
306....


460
62
310


1,244
66


930    559
49     38
16,945 11,278


Wexford county is composed of sixteen surveyed townships, 576
sections of 640 acres each, or a total of 368,640 acres. Of the total it
is estimated that 118,927 acres are already in farms and fruit lands




S


GROWING PEAS FOR SEED IN WEXFORD COUNTY




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


407


and that fully 200,000 more are available for agricultural purposes.
This is not an exaggerated statement: "One of the most remarkable
features of our county is the uniformity of the soil, which is a warm,
responsive, sandy loam, usually underlaid with clay at varying depths.
As a result of the diverse hardwood forests there has accumulated several inches of rich leaf mold which has aided in making a soil which is
fertile, loose, porous, easy to work, never bakes, never bogs, needs no
draining and holds moisture. Soil of this type, combined with our
climate, forces all vegetation to a wonderful degree, and, while the
growing season is about two weeks later, and about ten days shorter,
than in Ohio and Indiana, all crops mature more quickly, and developing faster, they have a quality and tone and flavor that is far superior.
Farms can be seen in this area which have been steadily cultivated for
thirty years without a pound of fertilizer, and are still producing two
or three tons of clover to the acre, two to four hundred bushels of potatoes, twenty to thirty bushels of wheat and eighty to one hundred
and fifty baskets (on the cob) of corn to the acre. Native, as it were,
to this soil are all of the northern fruits and berries, vegetables, seeds,
vines, grains, grasses, and clover and alfalfa do especially well. Out
of eighty Michigan counties, Wexford stands eleventh in the matter
of good roads."  Cadillac and Hobart in the southeast, Manton in the
east, Buckley in the north, Henrietta and Boone in the center and
Mesick in the west, are all surrounded by a productive and prosperous
agricultural community.
Although well watered, Wexford county is not so generally supplied
with lakes and streams as some of the sections of Northern Michigan
in the Grand Traverse and Huron regions. Big and Little Clam lakes
in the southeast are its largest bodies of water, although there are many
other smaller lakes, all of which probably cover ten sections of the
county. Its most important river is the Manistee which enters the
county about a mile south of the northeast corner, running thence
nearly west about eight miles when it turns to the southwest, leaving
the county about two miles north of the center of the west line. Pine
river, one of the largest branches of the Manistee, runs for several
miles through the southwest corner of the county, and there are many
fine creeks in other sections which afford excellent mill sites and assist
in watering the country.
In general, the surface of the county may be characterized as rolling. There are large tracts, however, that are level or only gently undulating, while in some of the townships there are hills that are worthy
of the name.
BUILDING OF THE STATE ROAD
During the years 1836 and 1837 the United States surveyors had
reached the territory now known as Wexford county, in their preliminary or township line survey, but it was not until the year 1840 that
a name was given to that part of the state'known as townships 21. 22.
23 and 24 north, of ranges 9, 10. 11 and 12 west. The first name to




408


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


this territory was Kautawabet, supposed to have been an Indian name,
but it was afterwards discovered that the name had no particular sig.
nificance and in 1843 it was changed to Wexford, in response to a
strong Irish element which was in legislative evidence and which created names for Antrimi and Emmet counties as well.
"It was some twelve or fifteen years after the township lines had
been established before the government found time to divide the townships into sections," says Wheeler's "History of Wexford County."
"This work would doubtless have been done sooner had there been any
demand for the land, but no one then would have taken land in Wexford county as a gift, while on the prairies, in states farther west, it
was difficult to make surveys fast enough to meet the demands of the
constantly flowing stream of people from the east. Soon after the
section lines had been run an effort was made to secure the building of
a state road through from Muskegon or Newaygo counties (the settlements in these counties being then the most northerly on the south
side of the 'Big Woods') to the new settlement opening up around the
shores of the Grand Traverse bay. This effort was crowned with success when the legislature of 1857 passed an act authorizing the construction of a state road to be called the Muskegon, Grand Traverse
and Northport State Road. This name was afterwards changed and
when the road was finally built it was known as the Newaygo and
Northport State Road. Not much was done toward the construction
of this road until 1860."
As the opening up of Wexford county was chiefly due to the survey
of the state road through its dense forests space in this history cannot
be better utilized than by reproducing extracts from a letter written
by Perry Hannah, one of the fathers of the Grand Traverse region:
"In the winter of 1853-4," he says. "I made by first trip to the 'outside' world on snow-shoes. Soon after the first of January, 1854, I left
Traverse City, when there was hardly a single house outside the limits
of the city to Grand Rapids. The snow was plump three feet deep,
light as feathers, and not a single step could be taken without the Indian snow shoes. I furnished myself with two Indian packers for carrying supplies. It took six days to make the trip from here to Grand
Rapids. The first settlement we reached was Big Rapids, some five or
six miles this side of the forks of the Muskegon river.
"'The wolves got on our track before the first night's camping. They
were not troublesome to us in the least until we had made our camp
fires in the evening; then a tremendous howl was set up and continued
during the whole night. We were not in the least troubled as to their
contact with us, but they broke up our sleep. As soon as we left our
camp in the morning they followed us and picked up any scraps that
might be left. They continued with us till we were out of the woods.
"There was not a single sign of a trail of any kind to travel by,
which compelled us to constantly use our compass, as very little sunshine can be seen at that season of the year beneath the thick timber
that then shrouded the whole country. This was the most tedious journey I ever experienced in the early days of Grand Traverse.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


409


"In the winter of 1856-7 I was a member of the state legislature.
When the legislature adjourned, early in the spring, some of the members came and shook hands with me and said 'I suppose you have to
go on to your home all the way by stage.' This was very amusing to
me, coming from state legislators, when I knew that my trip had to
be made 'afoot and alone' through the long woods.
"In 1857 I was appointed one of the commissioners to assist in the
work of laying out a state road to be called the Muskegon, Grand Traverse and Northport State Road. Before we started the survey on the
line, I concluded it would be a good move to have the route looked out,
so I engaged a hardy old pioneer and hunter to go from Traverse City
south and look over the line through Wexford county. After being absent for some ten days he returned, and in answer to my questions
regarding the feasibility of the line his reply was. 'First rate, it could
not be better. I tell you, Mr. Hannah, if we get a settler through to
Grand Traverse on that line we will be sure of him. By golly! them
hills, they be awful big, and they all slope this way, and the settler
that gets there will never go back over those hills.' While the hills over
the state road are pretty 'tall' the old hunter got a pretty poor impression on his first trip from the state-road point of view. Today we
consider that Wexford county is not all hills, but is, much of it, the
best land we have in the state.
"Next is a little incident in building our bridge over the Manistee
river. George W. Bryant, who lived in our village, had located the
land where the bridge was to cross the river. I had let the contract
to Godfrey Grelick, a sturdy old German, to build the bridge. Mr.
Bryant notified Mr. Grelick that in building the bridge over the Manistee river he must not cut a single tree on his land. The old German,
meeting him on the street of our village one day, told Mr. Bryant in
very emphatic language 'If you come where we do make dot bridge and
I see one tree grow on top your heat, by golley! I cut him off.' It is
needless to say that Mr. Bryant's land furnished all the timber of
that bridge.
"What a wonderful change in the last fifty years in Grand Traverse and Wexford counties. Traverse City today has a population of
twelve thousand, and the Newaygo and Northport state road is lined
with many beautiful farms."
FIRST SETTLERS AND INSTITUTIONS
The making of this state road progressed very slowly and was not
opened through Wexford county until 1863, the bridge mentioned by
Mr. Hannah being completed in the following year. This was the direct
cause for the coming of Wexford county's first settler, B. W. Hall, who
for several years prior to 1863 had been in Newaygo county. He located in what is now Hanover township. Its first permanent and "leading citizen" was Dr. John Perry who, in the spring of 1863, located
on the northwest quarter of section 6, town 23 north of range 11 west
and there built a log house for a family home. His homestead became




410


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


a part of the Sherman village site. Dr. Perry, the first physician and
the second postmaster in the county, died in 1875.
Closely following Dr. Perry were Robert Myhill, and Aaron Baker,
who settled in what is now Springville. In June of the same year,
1863, Lewis Cornell, Elon Cornell, James Wart and William Masters
selected lands in Wexford, and in the following fall brought on their
families, forming the nucleus of what has since been known as the Cornell settlement. Mr. Masters was the first postmaster and opened a
store and boarding house-none other short of Traverse City.
When the summer of 1864 closed there were some twenty families
in the county, nearly all living within two miles of the state road. In
the spring of 1865 the settlement of what is now Sherman received
numerous additions, some coming by boat and some overland. During
the summer of 1865 an arrangement was made by which Jacob York,
one of the new comers who had a horse and wagon, made weekly trips
to Traverse City to take out and bring in the mail for the settlement,
and also to such errands and bring in such light articles of merchandise or freight as he could in his light wagon. By common consent
the house of William Masters, on the state road, was chosen as the
place for leaving and receiving letters and parcels, and his house soon
came to be called the "postoffice."  Later in the year Mr. Masters was
appointed postmaster and a mail sack was furnished in which to carry
the mail, but the settlers had to pay Mr. York for his services for a
year before the postoffice department would consent to establish a mail
route to the new settlement.
The first school house built in Wexford county was made of logs
and was situated near the county line between Wexford and Grand
Traverse counties. It was put up by volunteer work on the part of
those interested in having a school, and the first teacher, Zylphia Harper, was paid under the old system of rate bill, for as yet there was
not even a township or school district organization in the county. This
school house was, a few years later, the scene of the first law suit ever
held in Wexford county. It was a case of assault and battery between
Jay J. Copley and Myron Baldwin and grew out of the holding of the
second caucus in Wexford county. The case was presided over by I.
U. Davis, one of the justices of the peace elected at the first township
election held in the county.
The first sawmill was built by John H. Wheeler in the summer of
1866 near what is called Wheeler creek about two and one half miles
northeast of the village of Sherman. It was the first frame building
in the county. The following year Mr. Wheeler and J. J. Copley each
built a frame house, the first in the county.
Lewis J. Clark, who died in 1877, was the pioneer business man of
Sherman, coming to the town corners in 1867. The next year he built
the first frame building where Sherman now stands. He occupied this
building with a store until 1871 when he retired from business. The
postoffice of Sherman was established in 1868 with John Perry as postmaster. In 1869 L. J. Clark was appointed postmaster and the postoffice was moved into his store.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


411


After the settlers began to raise grain an important question arose
-how to use this grain to the best advantage for the benefit of themselves and their families. The nearest grist mill was at Traverse City,
twenty-six miles distant. In 1868 Oren Fletcher purchased land near
Sherman and erected the first flouring mill in Wexford county. Thus
commenced the settlement of the problem.
In 1867 the first settlement in the town of Colfax was made, the
first settlers being Charles Soper and Mr. Lameraux. The first house
erected within the territory first comprising Colfax was built by Charles
Soper, and the first, and for several weeks the only white women residing therein were Mrs. Soper and her daughter, Mrs. Warner. During
the summer and fall quite a number settled in the western part if the
town, and before the year had elapsed the whole territory now comlprising Colfax was well settled up by a thriving, enterprising people
The settlement from its very commencement was known as Unionville, from the fact that more than nine-tenths of the male inhabitants
at that time had served in the Union armies during the Civil war. Another reason for the name was the unity of feeling among the settlers
at that time. When the town was organized the name was changed to
Colfax.
THE COUNTY AND COUNTY SEATS
In 1840 that portion of the state embraced in towns 21, 22, 23 and
24 north, of ranges 9, 10, 11 and 12 west was laid off as a separate county
and designated by the name of Kautawaubet. In 1843 the name was
changed to Wexford.
Wexford county, up to the year 1866, was attached to the township
of Brown, of Manistee county, for assessment and judicial purposes.
At the annual meeting of the board of supervisors of Manistee county
in 1866 the whole county of Wexford was organized into a new township, to be known by the name of Wexford. It was ordered that the
first election should be held on the first Monday of April in 1867, when
a full set of township officers should be elected. Previous to this time
none of the numerous voters in the county had cast a ballot since they
had resided in the county.
Civil and political matters continued to depend upon Manistee until March 30, 1869, when the state legislature passed an act enabling
the voters to organize an independent government. This act divided
the county into four townships-Colfax, Hanover, Springville and Wexford, and Missaukee county was attached to it for municipal and judicial purposes. The county seat was fixed in township 24 north, range
12 west, "at or near Manistee bridge," and the commissioners appointed
to locate it were H. J. Devoe, I. U. Davis and E. C. Dayhuff. At the
first election held April 5, 1869, 129 votes were polled, and the following chosen as officers: Harrison H. Skinner, sheriff; John H. Wheeler,
county treasurer; Leroy P. Champenois, county clerk and register of
deeds: Isaac N. Carpenter. judge of probate; 0. H. Miller, prosecuting




412


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


attorney; C. Northrup, superintendent of schools; R. S. McLain, surveyor.
At a special meeting of the board of supervisors held in January,
1870, the matter of building a court house was decided upon, and a
committee appointed whose duty it was to advertise for sealed bids
for its erection in accordance with plans and specifications prepared by
William Holdsworth, Sr., of Traverse City, the cost not to exceed five
thousand dollars, exclusive of the foundation which was under a separate contract. J. H. Wheeler was the successful bidder for the court
house job and the preparatory work was entered upon at once. One
great reason why the work of building a court house was begun so
soon after the county was organized was the fact that the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad was already pushing its line northward and it
was feared that unless some building was erected for county purposes
some town might spring up along the line of the railway which would
be a successful rival of the settlement "at Manistee bridge." It was
thought that by erecting a $5,000 court house and jail, not to be used
for any but county purposes, that the seat of justice would be "spiked"
down at Sherman. As will be seen, these plans were of little avail.
During the summer of 1870, while the frame of the court house was
being erected and enclosed, the county officers performed their duties
at their residences. Two or three other houses also went up. Mr. Clark
made an addition to his store and the village grew apace. The first
session of the circuit court was held in a little log hotel kept by Sylvester Clark.
At the annual meeting the board of supervisors in 1871 a resolution
was passed authorizing the superintendents of poor to purchase a poor
farm on section 16, in what is now Antioch township. This was done
and the following summer a large two-story building was erected in
which to care for such unfortunates as might become a county charge.
But all this time the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad had been
steadily creeping up through the wilderness from the south and Sherman might have seen the handwriting on the wall when, in 1871, George
A. Mitchell platted the village of Clam Lake in anticipation of the iron
horse which snorted through the eastern sections of Wexford county
in the following year, leaving the county seat far to the west on the
old state road.
At the annual meeting of the board of supervisors in that very year,
1872, Chauncey Hollister. supervisor from Clam lake township, introduced a resolution to remove the county seat from Sherman to the village of Clam Lake. This resolution was defeated by a vote of four yeas
to five nays. Not daunted by this defeat, Mr. Hollister renewed his
efforts at the January meeting of the board in 1873, but the result was
more disastrous than before, there being but three votes for the resolution to six against.
In 1872, with the building of the railroads, Manton, or Cedar creek
as it was at first known, was placed on the county map, and in June,
1876, the county board was equally divided on propositions to move the
county seat either to Manton or the village of Clam Lake.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


413


When it became known, some time in March, 1877, that the village
of Clam Lake had been transformed into a city under the name of Cadillac, and that after the first Monday in April she would have three
members on the board of supervisors, steps were at once taken to checkmate this new scheme for the removal of the county seat. An effort
was even made to fix the seat of justice in the territorial center of the
county as far removed from the railroad as Sherman.
Space forbids an attempt to go into the details attending the ceaseless contentions between the old county seat and the new aspirants, the
villages of Clam Lake and Manton; but on the seventeenth resolution
for a change which had been offered in the board the supervisors voted
in favor of Manton at their meeting in October, 1881. By the organization of six new townships, however, Cadillac secured the upper hand,
and in the April election of 1882 the people voted, by 1,363 to 636, to
move the county seat thither, and there it has remained.
Probably these words of an old citizen express the common-sense
view of the situation on the county seat question: "For many years
following the removal of the county seat from Manton to Cadillac there
remained a bitter feeling on the part of those who had 'loved and lost,'
and even yet there occasionally crops out a tinge of this bitterness, but
nearly all parts of the county have come to realize that the present
location is the proper one and the most convenient for the majority of
those whose business calls them to the county seat."
EARLY HISTORY OF CADILLAC
The first clearings in the forest which presaged the rising of the future village of Clam Lake and city of Cadillac were made for the camps
which were used in the construction of the Grand Rapids & Indiana
Railroad through the county in 1871-2. In March, 1871, Messrs. Holbrook & May started a store in a little log building on the eastern shore
of Little Clam lake, the first permanent structure of any kind to be
erected on the present site of Cadillac. The same gentlemen afterward
built a two-story store on the corner of Mason and Mitchell streets in
which they conducted a thriving business for a number of years.
Colonel J. C. Hudnutt was the civil engineer in active charge of
the railroad survey, and when he received orders from his superiors to
swing around the eastern end of Little Clam lake, instead of passing
between the two lakes as was first intended, he rightly concluded that
a town would arise at that point. Being a forehanded man, he acted
accordingly. In the words of John H. Wheeler who was personally
cognizant of the incident which he relates: "With this idea in view,
he decided to buy any or all land bordering on the eastern shore of
the lake and for this purpose he started for the government land office,
then located at Traverse City, in the fall of 1871. to ascertain what
there was in that locality that could be purchased. The only road to
Traverse City then was the State road running through Sherman and
as the stage was the only conveyance it took two days to make the trip




414


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


from the northern end of the railroad, which was then just this side
of Big Rapids, to the land office.
"The Colonel stopped over night in Sherman and in conversation
with some of the business men of that village casually remarked that
he was on his way to the United States land office 'to buy a city.' I.
H. Mequeston, one of Sherman's first merchants, boarded at the hotel,
and overhearing this remark of the Colonel's adroitly drew out the facts
that the 'city' was yet in embryo, but that it was to be built on the
eastern shore of the Little Clam lake. So while the Colonel was enjoying a much-needed night's rest, Mr. Maqueston started for Traverse City, where he arrived in the middle of the night. How he found
the residence of the register of the land office, or how much he gave
him to leave his warm bed and go to the land office at that unseemly
hour of the night, will probably always remain a mystery, as both have
been dead for many years, but certain it is that when Colonel Hudnutt
reached the land office the next day he discovered that government lots
1, 3 and 5 of section 4, in Clam Lake township, or rather what is now
Clam Lake township, had been sold to L. J. Clark and I. H. Maqueston,
of Sherman. This was the land upon which the original village of
Clam Lake was platted."
Not long after Maqueston & Clark, of Sherman, became proprietors
of the land on Little Clam lake which was to be the village site, George
A. Mitchell, an Indiana merchant and an old soldier who was thereafter
to become identified with every leading movement in her advancement,
in his travels through this new country noted the advantages of the
location from a business and lumbering standpoint. He therefore
bought the land and in October, 1871, a few months before the railroads reached the locality, platted the village of Clam Lake. In January, 1872, a postoffice was established with John S. McLain as postmaster; the stage thus being set for the grand entry of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad. Six months after Mr. Mitchell started the village of Clam Lake his wife paid him a visit. and thus describes her
journey and what she found at the end of it: "It was in March, 1872,
I accepted Mr. Mitchell's invitation to visit Clam Lake (now Cadillac),
it being then about six months old. We took the G. R. & I. road at
Kendallville, Ind., came to Grand Rapids and remained over night, as
Mr. Mitchell had business to attend to. Next morning resumed our
journey. and as there was but one coach for the passengers it was soon
crowded full of men, but few women, and the further we came the less
in number. We passed through a new rough-looking country, and after leaving Reed City there were no clearings, just the track through
a wilderness of tall pines. After much jolting about we reached Clam
Lake, tired and hungry. There were two places where food and lodging could be had, one a log house near where the sash and blind factory
now stands, the other also a log structure, but larger, stood just north
of McAdie & Co.'s. foundry, fronting on Lake street, and was called
the "Mlason House.'  There were very few divisions on the first floor,
one sleeping room and the kitchen, the remainder was used for general
purposes. Across one end was a long table with benches for seats, where




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


415


food was served, always the best the town afforded. On the upper
floor a small room was partitioned off for Mr. Mitchell, the remainder
of the floor being occupied by beds.
"'There were the usual buildings that start a town, the general store,
blacksmith shop and postoffice, with plenty of energy. My first visit
was limited to a few days on account of the accommodations, but as
the town grew rapidly, better accommodations could be found, and I
enjoyed spending several weeks with MIr. Mitchell, particularly in the
summer. Finally, in December, 1876, we decided to make Cadillac our
home."
VILLAGE AND CITY CORPORATIONS
Two years after the village of Clam Lake was platted by Mr. Mitchell, the voters living within the tract decided to be incorporated.
This action was taken April 15, 1874, and the circuit judge according
to law issued on order declaring the village duly incorporated. The
first election, May 11th of that year, resulted in the selection of J.
Shackleton for president of the village board, David A. Rice clerk, and
L. 0. Harris, F. W. Hector, Daniel McCoy, George Holbrook, A. N.
McCarthy and J. W. Cobbs, trustees. Two months afterwards the supreme court declared the general law under which the incorporation
was effected to be unconstitutional and these officers were therefore
thrown out of office; but in the following winter the legislature incorporated the village and they were virtually reinstated.
In the winter of 1877 efforts were made to get a city charter under
the name of "City of Cadillac" and an act was introduced in the state
legislature for that purpose. So skillfully was this work done that
Wexford county had a city within its boundaries before half a dozen of
the citizens, outside of those living in the village of Clam Lake, knew it.
The first city election was held on the first Monday of April, 1877, at
which the following officers were elected: Mayor, George A. Mitchell;
marshal, Horton Crandell; clerk, Lorenzo Ballou; treasurer, D. F. Comstock; collector, Horton Crandell; street commissioner, Charles Cole;
school inspectors, Levi O. Harris, three years, Jacob Cummer, two
years, Charles M. Ayer, one year; justices of the peace, H. N. Green,
four years, E. F. Sawyer, three years, J. B. Rosevelt, two years, Robert
Christensen, one year; aldermen at large, M. J. Bond, two years, D.
W. Peck, one year.
The act of municipal incorporation provided for dividing the city
into three wards (now four) and giving to each ward a supervisor,
who, of course, was a member of the county board of supervisors, thus
giving to the township of Clam Lake a representation of four on the
board, one from the town and three from the city that was within the
limits of the town, except a little strip that was taken from the township
of Haring. There were only about six or seven hundred people in the
new city, the school census for the previous year showing but three
hundred and fifty children of school age in the entire township of
Clam Lake, including the village. But the city of Cadillac had her




I A




MITCHELL STREET AND BOAT CLUB HOUSE, CADILLAC




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


417


eyes set on the county seat and argued that she would have a better
chance to secure it as a city than as a village. As we have seen she
realized this ambition within five years, after several hard campaigns
against Sherman and Manton.
DEATH OF GEORGE A. MITCHELL
The year following her incorporation as a city, Cadillac mourned
the accidental death of her founder and steadfast friend, George A.
Mitchell. Although a city, the place was yet in its infancy and the
main streets were incumbered with the stumps from which the pine
trees had been cut. Mr. Mitchell had a shingle mill at that time on
Pine street, and while returning to his home from the mill on August
5, 1878, he was thrown from his buggy, his head striking against a
stump by the roadside, rendering him unconscious and causing his
death, from concussion of the brain, three days later. He died on the
8th of August, and his death was a severe blow to the community. He
was a very public-spirited man, having donated sites for the different
churches in the village and giving liberally of his means toward the
erection of religious edifices. When the War of the Rebellion commenced he was given the appointment of paymaster. He proved such
a competent and energetic official that when the war closed he had
risen to the rank of brevet lieutenant colonel. During his services in
this position he received and paid out millions of dollars for the government, and it was said of him that his accounts always balanced to
a cent. It had been one of his greater desires to see the county seat
located at Clam Lake and he had reserved block "F" of the original
plat for such purpose, but his death came nearly four years before the
change was made.
When the county seat was removed to Cadillac in 1882, the second
story of the building then owned by Fred S. Kieldsen was rented for
county offices and court room. This building stood on the site now occupied by the city hall. The county continued to occupy the second
floor until 1887, when it rented the second floor of the Laber & Cornwell building, which it occupied for several years. When the Masonic
fraternity decided to erect a temple in Cadillac a committee was appointed to confer with the board of supervisors with a view to having
the second story of their proposed building fitted especially for the use
of the county, provided the county would contract to rent it for a
period of ten years at a rental to be agreed upon between the contracting parties. This arrangement was carried out, and in March, 1890,
the county moved into its new quarters, where it has remained until
the present time. The new quarters consisted of a large court room,
a commodious supervisor's room, a suite of three rooms for the clerk
and register of deeds, two rooms for the prosecuting attorney and one
each for the judge of probate, sheriff, treasurer and superintendent
of the poor. One or two attempts have been made to have the board of
supervisors pass a resolution submitting to the people the question of
bonding the county house, but without success.
Vol. I-2T




418


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


THE PRESENT CITY
Cadillac has been twice reincorporated as a city-in 1885 and 1895
-and is divided into four wards. She is now a well built, progressive
municipality of about nine thousand people and, as seen by the census
figures already published, has nearly doubled her population within
the past twenty years. She has long ago outgrown the status of a
crude lumber city, but, as the events of her progress have proven, it
was her good fortune to have around her both forests of soft and hard
wood; for as the pine gave out her manufacturers learned the use and
value of the hard woods. Gradually her industries in this line increased in bulk and variety and the territory from which the raw material was drawn greatly expanded. But Cadillac learned her first lessons in the manufacture of hardwoods when the supply was at her
_K_
CADILLAC CITY LIBRARY
doors. These products now include not only lumber, but more finished
articles such as cooperage, furniture, woodenware, veneer, flooring, last
blocks, handles and carriage stock. An outgrowth of her hardwood industries also appears in the form of plants devoted to the manufacture
of wood alcohol, acetate of lime and other chemicals. Charcoal and
pig iron are in the list, as well as potash and cement blocks, not omitting the plants found in every growing modern community which manufacture flour, which saw and plane lumber, make boilers and turn out
other necessities of present-day activities. As the city has a large outside trade and is the center of a very productive agricultural district,
the fact is readily explained that the freight credited to Cadillac constitutes about one-fourth the total receipts of the Grand Rapids & Indiana road north of Grand Rapids. The Ann Arbor road also adds her




It


CADILLAC 'S FIRST SCHOOL Housr IN SUMMl.,,ER AND WINTER




4;20


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


facilities of convenient shipment and transportation. The business of
the city is financially handled through two good banks, of which the
Cadillac State Bank with a capital of $100,000 is the oldest and largest.
The Cadillac State bank was the outgrowth of the private institution
started by D. A. Blodgett & Company in 1883. The first one was established by D. F. Comstock in 1876. In 1895 Mr. Blodgett withdrew
from business in Cadillac and it was then that the Cadillac State Bank
was organized.
As a corporation Cadillac possesses most excellent systems of water
supply, electric lighting, fire protection and public education. Her
first system of water works was inaugurated by H. N. Green in 1878.
The mains laid at that time were of wood bound with iron, the largest
having only six inch bore for water. In 1893 a franchise was granted
to W\. W. Cummer to furnish a water supply for thirty years. The
wooden mains were then replaced with iron pipes, the largest of which
are twelve inches in diameter, and the entire system reconstructed along
modern lines.
About the time that Mr. Cumnmer secured the water franchise he
established an electric light plant, using the same building that contained the pumping outfit for his dynamos. In 1902 a gas company
was organized and mains laid in the principal streets of the city. Gas
is furnished for heating as well as lighting. So that the citizens can
pay their money and take their choice either of gas or electricity.
The schools of Cadillac had their origin in the little class which met
in a log building owned by Mosser & White in the spring of 1872. A
fractional district had been organized from parts of Clam Lake and
Haring townships, and in June of that year a small building had been
erected on the square donated by Mr. Mitchell for school purposes.
The census taken in September, 1872. gave the number of children of
school age at one hundred and twenty-five. A larger building was
erected in 1876 and in 1890 the present Central school was completed,
replacing the one built in 1881 which had been destroyed by fire. Besides the Central there are now four good school buildings for the accommodation of the different wards.
The Methodist and Presbyterians of Cadillac erected church buildings in 1873; the Swedish Evangelical church was established in 1874;
the Free Methodists organized in 1875; a Baptist society was formed
in 1876: St. Ann's Catholic church was founded in 1881; the Congregational and Swedish Mission churches opened in 1882; the Swedish
Baptist in 1883 and the German Evangelical Lutheran in 1884. Later
forces for religion and morality which have entered the local field are
represented by the Seventh Day Adventists, Christian Scientists and
Salvation Army.
MANTON
There appears to have been a village plat of Cedar Creek laid out
before 1872 and including the site of Manton, but it was not recorded
until after the railroad plat of Manton. The first settlers came in with
the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, in 1872, but the plat was not
made a matter of record until 1874.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


421


Ezra Harger and George Manton were the first persons to see the
advantage of having a village at this point, having reached that point
on a prospecting trip in the summer of 1872. Mr. Harger purchased
twenty acres of land and put up the first building in the place, which
he filled with merchandise in the fall. William Meares also became interested in the place during the same fall and both he and Mr. Manton put up store buildings before the winter set in. Mr. Manton was
a shoemaker by trade, and his stock of goods was mostly in that line,
and he also had a shop in the rear end of the store for making and repairing footwear. The next year a saw-mill was erected and a hotel.
The first religious service held in the new village was held in the
railroad depot by the station agent, H. Brandenburg, in the winter of
1872-3. Mr. Brandenburg was a Methodist and during the summer
of 1873 organized a class of eighteen members. He was appointed local
preacher in August of that year.
The first school building in the village was erected in 1873. A term
of school had previously been taught in a private dwelling house by
Mrs. O. J. Golden.
Early in this year a postoffice had been established with 0. P. Carver
as first postmaster.
So rapidly did the settlement grow that in 1877 it was supporting
three good hotels and five general stores and had two sawmills in operation. In that year it was incorporated as a village, and held its first
local election in the following February.
During the past twenty years Manton has nearly doubled in population, its inhabitants at the present time numbering some eleven hundred. The village has some of the best agricultural lands in the state
around it and is a brisk trading center owning its own electric and
water works and having wide and well-paved streets; a substantial
bank, pretty opera house, $16,000 Union school, township library, two
sawmills, stave and flour mills. a pickle factory, last block mill and a
goodly array of business houses. The religion and morals of the community are also well conserved through the activities of four churches.
HARRIETTA
The village of Harrietta was platted in April, 1889, by the Ashleys,
who were building the Toledo & Ann Arbor Railroad. Gaston and
Campbell platted an addition in April, 1890, and a year later the Ogden addition was platted. The first "boom" the town had was upon
the arrival of Gaston and Campbell, who built a sawmill and manufacturing establishment for the purpose of making novelties from the
hardwood with which the village was surrounded. They bought expensive machinery and quite large tracts of land and started out with
every prospect of success, but the hard times overtook them and failure
followed. Other more substantial enterprises came in later, and the
place has largely recovered.
The village was incorporated in 1891 under the name of Gaston,
which so grated on the nerves of the Ann Arbor Railroad that its officials threatened to discontinue the station unless a return was made to




422


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the more euphonious Harrietta. Accordingly, in 1893, the legislature
rechristened it Harrietta. The village lies in both Boon and Slagle
townships-the larger part in the former. It has an up-to-date graded
school, a substantial bank and is the center of a fair country trade.
SHERMAN
The old county seat and village of Sherman corners on Antioch,
Hanover, Springville and Wexford townships, a portion of her site being-in each, but her total population is less than three hundred. The
early history of the settlement has already been given. In 1869 the
site was platted by Sanford Gasser as the village of Sherman, which
at that time comprised one house and one store, the latter kept by
Lewis J. Clark. "Dr." John Perry also lived near by.
In January, 1870, the first effort looking to the organization of a
church society was made. Presiding Elder Boynton, of the Methodist
Episcopal church, visited Sherman, accompanied by Rev. Mr. Cayton,
a Methodist minister living in Grand Traverse county, and perfected
arrangements for preaching services every alternate Sunday, which
were to be conducted by Mr. Cayton. At first these meetings were held
at the home of L. P. Champenois, and later at the Maqueston hall until the school house was built in the fall of 1871, when that was used
for church purposes. Soon after Mr. Cayton entered upon his work
the first sacramental service in Wexford county was held at the home
of H. B. Sturtevant, the only communicants being Mr. Sturtevant, his
wife Rhoda and T. A. Ferguson. At the Methodist Episcopal conference held in the fall of 1870, Rev. A. L. Thurston, who had located a
homestead in Thorp (now Selma) township, was designated as "supply" for the church work at Sherman and held regular meetings there,
unless prevented by the inclemency of the weather. His home was
about sixteen miles from Sherman and it was no easy task to cover the
distance upon such roads or trails, as existed at that time, especially
in the winter months.
In 1869 Hon. T. A. Ferguson, the first lawyer in the county, settled
here and built a house. His first suit was held before Isaac N. Carpenter, Esq. The first term of the circuit court was held in August, 1869,
Hon. J. G. Ramsdell on the bench.
In 1870 the village plat was purchased by Mr. Sanford Gasser. In
1872 the court house and jail were built, and the various interests of a
business community began to gather. During this year Lewis J. Clark
built the pioneer drug store and occupied it a short time. William
Mears was also one of the early merchants of the place.
But the fortunes of Sherman commenced to decline when the Grand
Rapids & Indiana line passed far to the east of her through the county,
in 1872, and another hard blow was dealt when she lost the county seat
to Cadillac ten years later. She was chartered as a village in 1887 that
it might be possible to issue bonds for the purpose of securing connection with the Ann Arbor road which was then being pushed from Harrietta, Wexford county, to Frankfort. Benzie county. Although the
village was chartered, an election held in May, 1887, and the bonds is



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


423


sued, owing to a decision of the state supreme court, it was found difficult to negotiate them and they were returned to the village authorities. The result was the expected spur was never built from the main
line, but instead the village and railroad station of Mesiek was established which has served to cut into the trade which would otherwise
have centered at Sherman.
MESICK, BUCKLEY, BOON AND YUMA
The village of Mesick, on the Ann Arbor road, a few miles southwest of Sherman, was platted in February, 1890. It was incorporated
in 1902. its first election being held on the 5th of March, the following
officers being chosen: R. M. Harry, president; F. E. Rice, clerk; W.
W. Galloway, treasurer, and B. C. Halstead, assessor. As stated, it is
quite a shipping point, as it provides railroad and banking accommodations for much of the adjacent country. Mesiek has the Springville
township library, and there are four churches established in the midst
of her people.
Buckley, on the Manistee & Northeastern railroad, in the northern
part of the county, is of still later birth, its act of incorporation as a
village dating from 1907. It is the center of a good country trade and
provides the farmers and fruit-raisers of quite a district with banking
accommodations. The lumber, planing, shingle and feed mills at Buckley also add to her local importance, while her four churches indicate
the prevailing tone of her citizens.
Boon in the southern part of the county, and Yuma in the western,
both stations on the Ann Arbor line, were platted respectively in 1889
and 1893.




CHAPTER XVIII


MISSAUKEE AND KALKASKA
MAISSAUKEE COUNTY-PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL —POPULATION AND PROPERTY-ORGANIC —FIRST EVENTS, PERSONS AND TIINGS-LAKE CITY
— MABAIN AND OTHER CENTERS —KALKASKA COUNTY-STATISTICSFIRST  SETTLERS AND POLITICIANS-COUNTY     ORGANIZATION —KALKASKA. THE COUNTY SEAT —BOARDMAN.
MIissaukee is one of the central counties of Northern Michigan, east
of Wexford. It is chiefly drained by the head streams of the Muskegon
river and a branch of the Manistee, which rises a few miles northeast
of Lake City, the county seat, and runs northwest into the parent river.
Although Missaukee county lies east of the trunk lines of the Grand
Rapids & Indiana and the Ann Arbor railroads, its chief centers of
population are well provided with transportation facilities, and raisers
of produce. fruit and grain crops have no trouble in reaching good
markets. Lake City, Jennings. Missaukee and other stations rely upon
the eastern b)ranch of the Grand Rapids & Indiana, which runs from
AMissaukee Junction. Wexford county, to Missaukee, this county; a
spur from the Missaukee branch running south to Falmouth, the old,ounty seat, and east to Ardis. McBain and Lucas, the former the
largest village outside of Lake City, are in the southwestern part of
the county on the Ann Arbor line, while Stratford, near the northern
county line. is a station on the Kalkaska branch of the Pere Marquette
Railroad, which pushes down from the northwest.
PRODUCTS OF TIIE SOIL
AMissaukee county haIs an area of three hundred and sixty-two thousand two hundred and forty acres of land, some one hundred and
twelve thousand of which is in farms, and another two hundred thousand
acres available for fruit raising and general farming. Its northwestern
and southwestern portions are generally rolling and the soil somewhat
sandy and gravelly-especially well adapted to the raising of fruit,
corn and potatoes. The central and eastern portions are generally
level. with heavier clay loam soil. more adapted to raising wheat, hay
and such crops. That, of course, is the rule, but one can find the
various kinds of soil, from heavy clay and black muck, to light, sandy
soil. Wheat, oats, peas. beans, rye, barley, buckwheat, clover and timo424




SNIV'II 9Nl'lIOU dO AILONllOr) lnaljLnVAtnJ \'






426


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


thy, alfalfa, cucumbers (there are two salting stations in the county);
potatoes, sugar beets, celery and all kinds of root crops; apples, plums,
(herries. pears, peaches and all kinds of small fruit; all are raised in
Missaukee county, the profits realized from the crops depending almost
entirely on personal effort and aptitude.    The favorable conditions
are there. and the good farmer, gardener or fruit-raiser will do well.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY
As judged from the standpoint of population, also, Missaukee county
is well-to-do, and has been advancing more rapidly than many of the.
other interior counties of Northern Michigan.     The national census
figures show her population at the end of the last three decades.


Civil Divisions


1910    1900     1890


Aetna  township...........................  631
Bloomfield township.......................  390
Butterfield township......................  323
Caldwell township........................   687
Clam  Union  township...................... 1,381
Enterprise township......................  174
Forest  township.........................  389
Lake township, including a part of Lake City
village.............................  1,405
Lake  City  (part  of)....................  6
Total for Lake City village in Lake and
Reeder  townships...................  740
McBain city.........................    546
Ward  1...........................  251
W ard  2..........................  129
Ward 3..........................     166
Norwich  township........................  695
Pioneer township........................   196
Reeder township, including part of Lake City
village............................  1,335
Lake City village (part of).............  734
Richland  township....................... 1,187
Riverside  township........................  841
West Branch  township.....................  426
Total.................................10,606


384
284
221
708
987
285
1,099
10
816
709


169
159
405
678
193
636
663


789      441
263      154


1,439
806
1,052
773
315
9,308


832
663
534
617
230
5,048


The assessed valuation of property in the county, made in 1911,
amounts to $2,120,310 in real estate and $436,177 in personal property.
ORGANIC
Missaukee county was first attached to Manistee and then to Wexfoid. when the latter was organized in 1869; it did not form an inde



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


427


pendent body, civil and political, until 1871. Prior to the latter year
settlement had been scarce and spasmodic.
The enabling act of the legislature provided that the county seat
should, for three years, be located at Falmouth, or Pinhook as the
settlement of a few houses was then called. When the vote for reloca.
tion was polled on June 3, 1873, it was found that the rival settlement
on the northeast shore of Round lake had won by 131 to 95. One vote
was cast for "center of county."
FIRST EVENTS, PERSONS AND THINGS
One of the best general sketches of pioneer times in Missaukee
(county was prepared by Mrs. Mary Reeder and read as a paper, in
1902, before the old settlers' reunion of that vear. The Reeder family
was the third to permanently settle in the county, in the fall of 1868,
and the township which embraces most of Lake City was named in its
honor. Washington and William Reeder, Canadians and brothers,
were leading merchants of the county seat from the early seventies to
1888, when they became successful agriculturists. From the paper
mentioned, prepared by Mrs. Mary Reeder, are collated the salient
facts comprising the county 's early history:
"The first survey in the county was made by W. L. Coffinberry,
about 1853 to 1856. The first and second homesteads in the county
were taken by A. B. Clark and Laird, who abandoned their claims
before final proof. The third was taken by H. A. Ferris, who made
final proof but never actually resided on it, and sold it soon afterward. W. Richardson was the first who made a permanent home in
the county, the date of his claim being December 27, 1867. William
J. Morey also homesteaded his land during the same month.
" The first recorded election was held April 3, 1861, for justice of the
supreme court and other state offices; forty-one votes were cast, all
republican. Of the first election of county officers, the records in the
county clerk's office tell nothing. All that can be ascertained is that
some time in the spring of 1871 a special election was held at which
the following officers were chosen: John Vogel, judge of probate;
Gillis McBain, sheriff; E. W. Watson, clerk and register; Ira Van
Meter, treasurer; A. Stout, surveyor. The circuit judge, T. J. Ramsdell of Traverse City, appointed L. H. Gage of Traverse City, prosecuting attorney for this county, there being no attorney within its
limits.
"The first board of supervisors met at the Perley farm, about two
miles northeast of Falmouth (Pinhook), on June 6, 1871. Those present were William J. Morey of Pioneer, James White of Quilna (now
known as Caldwell and Bloomfield; the name was changed to Caldwell
a year or two later), Daniel Reeder of Reeder, John Vogel of Clam
Union, and Henry Van Meter of Riverside. Mr. Reeder was elected
chairman. The salaries of county officers were fixed by this board as
follows: Clerk, $500; treasurer, $250; prosecuting attorney, $200;
judge of probate, $100; sheriff, $100. At this session the Osceola Outline of IHersey, was designated as the official paper of the county.




428


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


"Thle first general election on record was held in November, 1872,
during the Grant and Greeley campaign. There were one hundred and
nineteen national ballots polled, Grant receiving one hundred and eleven
and Greeley eight. On the county ticket John Vogel was reelected
probate judge, Otto Schaap sheriff, M. D. Richardson clerk and register,
Washington Reeder treasurer, Arlington C. Lewis prosecuting attorney,
B. C. Bonnell surveyor, and Thomas T. Caldwell and Addison T. Smith
coroners.
"The first birth that occurred in the county was a daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. John Vogel; the second, Etta, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
M. D. Richardson. was born March 28, 1870. The first marriage was
John Cavanaugh and Miss Caroline Van Meter, on March 1, 1871,
solemnized by the Rev. W. Richardson. The first death that occurred
was that of Albert Ric-hardson, March 21, 1870.
"The first physician was Dr. Moorehouse of Falmouth, and the first
resident attorney, A. C. Lewis; both moved to California.
"The first road was built in the fall of 1867, from the Watson farm
to Falmouth, by a Mr. McDonald; Oscar Noble constructed the first
state road through the county. the Houghton Lake state road.
"The first logging camp in the county was built by W. Windson
in 1865, on section 34. town 21. north range 6 west, on the bank of the
Clam river two miles below Vogel Center. The first pole logging road
was built by Paul Lux in 1877, running from section 35, town 23-7, to
the head of the West branch, or what is known as the Gerish dam.
It was operated during the spring and summer of 1878 and brought
three million five hundred thousand feet of logs to the West branch.
"The first railroad for running logs was built by Watson Brothers.
Tomn Simpson also built one about the same time in 1876-7, the rails
being part iron and part wood. One road ran from the No. 2 farm on
the Butterfield to the main Muskegon river. The others ran to the
Clam. The first passenger road was completed in December, 1885, by
Mr. Cunmmner of Cadillac. In the spring of 1890 the Missaukee branch
of the Grand Rapids & Indiana was extended to Lake City.
'The first saw and shingle mill in the county was built by Pearly,
Palmer & Company in the winter of 1871-2. The first grist mill was
erected at Falmouth. The first hotel was also built at Falmouth in
1871 and was managed by John Cavanaugh. Indians had occupied
the land long before white people settled here, but John Green and
John Wagan were the first who located in the county in late years.
The first deer. bear or wolves were killed by a man named Hicks in 1866.
"A temporary courthouse was built at Falmouth in 1871. In 1873
a courthouse and jail were built at Lake City and in 1883 a new courthouse was erected at a cost of $10,000. The new jail was erected in
1886 at a cost of something over $7,000.
"The first sermon was preached at Lake City in January, 1874, by
John R. Robinson. a half-breed Indian. The agricultural society held
their first fair in the year 1880 in Lake City, south of the house now
owned by William J. Morey. Since then it has been held on the
grounds purchased by the society.
"The nearest markets long ago, were Hersey (Osceola county), on




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


429


the south and Traverse City on the north. The first postoffice was at
the home of Daniel Reeder at Reeder (now Lake City), in the spring
of 1872, )but mail used to be brought to the settlers in the county by
those who mlade long trips for provisions, the settlers coming for their
malil \when ttie trains returned. The mail averaged perhaps one every
t\\ o months.
'The first store w\as built by John Ko'opian in October, 1869, it
}being a log liouse-residelnce and store combined. In 1879 he built a
stoie t at Falinouth."
LAKE CITY
Tlhe settlement f'oirierly known as Reeder was incorporated as a
xillage, under the name of Lake City, in 1887. It is now a pretty
place of nearly eight hundred people. Lake City is a leading receiving
and shipping station on the Grand Rapids & Indiana line, the produc(tiois of tle surrounldlin  country being largely confined to potatoes


[ISSAIUKEE COUrNTY COURT HOUSE. LAKE CITY


and 'ruit. Its i(lndustries are a glove factory, and flour and saw mills.
The Lake City State Bank is capitalized at $20,000, while the Missaukee
County iBank (not incorporated) has a capital of $10,000.      As the
county seat and1  a place which enjoys an especially healthful location.
Lake City has long added to its other attractions and advantages. It
is lighted by electricity and has also a good system of waterworks. Its
churlchl(es include Catholic, Free Methodist, Methodist, Presbyterian and
Ulnited Brethren, and its Union school is well deserving of the hearty
support it receives. Of the higher departments of the village system




430


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of public education the high school has an enrolment of eighty-two
pupils and the County Normal of twenty. Grammar, intermediate and
primary grades embrace the remainder of the village pupils, whose
total enrolment is two hundred and eighty-two.
MCBIAIN AND OTHER CENTERS
McBain was incorporated under a village government in 1893, and
as a city in 1907. It is a place of less than six hundred people, on the
Ann Arbor Railroad, ten miles south of Lake City, the county seat.
MelBain city is in a fertile district in the southwestern part of the
county. Among its industries are a flour mill and a pickle factory,
and it is the center of quite a trade in produce and live stock.
Falmouth, twelve miles southeast of Lake City, on a small spur of
the Missaukee branch of the Grand Rapids & Indiana line, is chiefly
of interest from its associations as the first county seat and the earliest
settlement. There is a good country around it and the settlement itself
claims a creamery and a saw and grist mill. It is a banking point for
a considerable district and has somewhat of a trade in agricultural
implements with the farmers of the vicinity.
Jennings, seven miles west of Lake City, on the Missaukee branch
of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad, was first settled in 1881. It
is quite a busy place, being the headquarters of Mitchell Brothers, large
lumber business and the site of a substantial plant for the manufacture of wood alcohol.
Lucas is also a postoffice and small settlement. It is located on the
Ann Arbor Railroad. in the southwestern part of the county, four
miles west of Bain City, and has a good produce country upon which
to draw.
KALKASKA COUNTY
Kalkaska is one of the counties of northwestern Michigan included
in the Grand Traverse region. Torch and Round lakes extend into its
northwestern sections; its northern and western townships give rise
to the head streams of the Boardman and Rapid rivers, which flow
into the West arm of Grand Traverse bay, and the Manistee river has
its origin in several small lakes in the northeast. In other words, the
general surface features of Kalkaska consist of a main central plateau
extending from northeast to southwest through the geographical center
of the county, forming a watershed which divides the Manistee valley
slope on the southeast from the Boardman and Rapid river valleys on
the northwest.
The entire county, with very rare exceptions, is well watered by
streams, originating from  springs of clear and cold water.  These
streams literally swarm with speckled trout, which afford the most
delicious food and rare sport for the leisure hours. There are also
numerous small lakes, clear and deep, fringed with dense foliage, and
concealing within their waters an abundance of pickerel, bass and other
varieties of fish.




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432


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


"The tmain central plateau," says an article on Kalkaska county
lately published by the Western Michigan Development Bureau, "wvas
originally heavily tilmbered with sugar maple, beech, elm, basswood,
birch and other woods which here grew in great luxuriance, forming
some of the finest and most beautiful forests to be found on the continent. The soil here varies from a loose but very fertile sandy or gravelly
loam to heavy clay-the former being best adapted to cultivated crops,
and the latter to hay and pasturage, although both grass and grains,
as well as potatoes and all sorts of vegetables, apples, pears, cherries,
plums and small fruits, grow abundantly on either soil. The same soils
prevail in nearly the entire northern half of the county. The Boardman valley. w hich is but just beginning to receive attention, is of a
POTATO GROWING IN KALKASKA COUNTY
rich. dark mluck. well adapted to the raising of celery and all kinds of
garden truck.
"There are in this county many thousands of acres of cut-over
hardwood lands of the very best quality for agricultural purposes.
offering the greatest possible inducement to persons of small means
who desire to obtain homes of their own. Many of these lands are
within a few miles of the best markets, and are on, or within a short
distance of. the most excellent county roads for which this county is
justly famtous, being one of the pioneer counties in the work of county
road-building. '
To such advantages, provided by nature, man has made a great
addition in the building of railways through the settled portions of
t}he county. These include virtually its western half. Kalkaska, the
county seat, northwest of the center and, by far its largest village, is
at the crossing of the Grand Rapids & Indiana and the Pere Marquette
railroads-the former giving an outlet to the markets of the south and
north and the later to the Grand Traverse region. Prior to the building of the Grand Rapids & Indiana. Kalkaska county had been roughly
placed in communication xwith that region and the Manistee valley by




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                    433
means of a state road and a more local highway running from Kalkaska,
the county seat, to Torch river, where travelers, during the open season,
could sometimes connect with steamers bound for Grand Traverse bay.
Boardman, the only village in the county besides Kalkaska, is in
the southwestern section on the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad.
COUNTY STATISTICS
With a statement of these general facts, the reader is presented with
the table of statistics showing Kalkaska's increase in population during
the past twenty years, by townships and villages:
Civil Divisions                            1910    1900     1890
Boardman township, including Boardman village................................1,240   857      740
Boardman  village.......................  524  298
Clearwater township....................... 878  882  542
Cold  Springs  township......................  545  270      137
Excelsior township......................... 773    438      339
Garfield township.......................... 278  262  181
Kalkaska township, including Kalkaska village.1,829  1,727  1,542
Kalkaska  village........................1,415  1,304  1,161
Oliver  township...........................  222  152      131
Orange township........................... 534  591  383
Rapid River township....................... 616  657   549
Springfield  township.......................  535  602     285
W ilson  township..........................  319  409      148
Township  25,  range  5......................  34    73
Township  25,  range  6......................  95   133
Township  26,  range  5......................  74    14
'ownship  27,  range  5......................       28
Township  28,  range  5......................  125   38
Total..................................8,097   7,133   5,160
The area of Kalkaska county is 364,800 acres; land in farms, 67,731
acres; available for fruit raising and general farming, 200,000 acres.
FIRST SETTLERS AND PQLITICIANS
The first settler in Kalkaska county was William  Copeland, who
located in what is now the town of Clearwater, in the fall of 1855.
For twelve years Mr. Copeland and wife were the only permanent
residents of the county. About the time Mr. Copeland located there
a dam was built on Barker creek, but the parties did not build a mill,
and did not become residents of the county. Mr. Copeland was near
the Grand Traverse county line and had neighbors in that direction,
but in his own county he was the monarch of all he surveyed.
Rapid River was the first town organized in what is now Kalkaska
Vol. 1-28




434


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


county, the year being 1868. There were then only a few settlers in
the county, but they vere desirous of voting at the presidential election. The territory was then attached to Antrim county and the distance to the nearest voting place was so great that some would be deprived of their rights of franchise. Therefore Norman Ross, then a
resident of what is now Clearwater township, circulated a petition to
the Antrim board of supervisors for the organization of a town to be
Nalled Rapid River. The first town election was held at the house of
S. A. Rice, in what is now Rapid River and nineteen votes were cast.
II. U. Hill had been elected justice of the peace at the spring election
land Norman Ross was elected first supervisor. The day following was
the presidential election and the voting place was at the house of Norman Ross. Fifteen votes were cast at that election-a falling off of
four. Having had a taste of politics, when the Grand Rapids & Indiana
Railroad commenced to loom up from the south, Kalkaska county girded
up her loins and struck out for independence from Antrim, for home
rule.
COUNTY ORGANIZATION
Kalkaska county was successively attached to Grand Traverse and
Antrim counties, being a portion of the latter until civil organization,
under an act of the legislature approved January 27, 1871. Crawford
county, then unorganized, was attached to Kalkaska for municipal and
judicial purposes. The act further provided that Joseph B. Haviland,
Charles H. Estes and Morris Mahan should be the commissioners to
locate the county seat during the year 1873; failing which, it was to
be located by the board of supervisors and county clerk. Under its
provisions the county officers were elected in the following April, the
first meeting of the board of supervisors on the 25th of that month,
held at the schoolhouse in District No. 1 of Round Lake, being attended
by A. T. Kellogg of that township, H. U. Hill of Rapid River and A.
XW Jones of Kaska.
On July 14, 1873, the commissioners named met and located the
county seat at Kalkaska, where it has remained. Although cars were
not yet running regularly over the Grand Rapids & Indiana as far as
Kalkaska, a village had been platted during the previous winter and
the road had been pushed through the county.
KALKASKA, THE COUNTY SEAT
In the spring of 1872, A. A. Abbott, then living at decatur, Van
Buren county, Michigan, started out to find a suitable location for a
mill and village site. The Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad was finished and trains running as far as Cadillac and work on the grade was
being prosecuted as far as Walton, Grand Traverse county, near the
Kalkaska county line. Mr. Abbott visited the present site of Kalkaska
and was favorably impressed with the location. The county had been
organized but the county seat had not then been located. He reasoned
that a village at this point, being on the line of the railroad and near




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


435


the center of the county, would probably become the county seat; and
his reasoning was correct. The north branch of the Boardman afforded
a desirable location for a mill site, and he therefore made a purchase
of one thousand acres of land of the railroad company, Hannah, Lay
& Co. and Dexter & Noble. He remained there until August and then
returned to Decatur to complete his arrangements for beginning work.
Before starting on his prospecting tour Mr. Abbott had arranged with
R. L. Thompson, then living at Grand Junction, to join him in the
enterprise, should he find a satisfactory location.
In October, 1872, Messrs. Abbott and Thompson arrived upon the
site of their operations with men to begin work. Trees were cut down
and a log house built for a boarding house. After work was well under
way, Mr. Thompson went back after teams and tools necessary for lumbering, and returned with them in December. Work was pushed forward on the mill and sometime in February it commenced running.
Mr. Thompson owned and operated the mill, the site and lands belonged
to the firm of H. S. Buskirk & Company.
During the winter Mr. Buskirk sold his interest to 0. S. Abbott,
brother of A. A. Abbott, and the style of the firm was changed to 0. S.
Abbott & Company. The business at Kalkaska, however, was transacted
by A. A. Abbott, who remained upon the ground and became a resident of the place, carrying on lumbering operations, there for several
years. Mr. Thompson operated the mill about a year when he sold it
and took up a homestead on section 36, in what is now the town of
Kalkaska.
During the winter of 1873 Mr. Abbott platted two hundred and
forty acres lying upon both sides of the railroad, and commenced selling
village lots. At the same time the mill was building, Charles E. Whitney built a log house which he finished in February and opened as as
hotel called the Kalkaska House. As spring opened a number of
settlers arrived and erected houses and stores.  Saloons especially
flourished at that time. They were mainly supported by the construction gang of the railroad, and as the work passed through the village
the liquor business declined. In the spring of 1873, five saloons were
in full blast, but by July of that year, when the new railroad town
was made the county seat and the grading was far advanced toward
the northern boundary, the traffic had so fallen away as to speak well
for the habits of the permanent settlers.
Irregular preaching had already been conducted in the young town,
but the Congregationalists have the honor of forming the first permanent society at Kalkaska in December, 1874. This, as well as all
other local events, was being duly recorded by the Kalkaskaiain, which
had been established since early spring.
A school district had been organized in 1873 to include the future
county seat, and later the proprietor of the village site offered the board
an acre of ground for school purposes. A good frame building was
finished thereon in November, 1874; so that both education and religion
obtained a firm foothold very early in local history.
In 1883 a new courthouse replaced the old one of 1873-4, its cost
being about $20,000, and in 1884 a substantial building was completed
for a Union school.




1,.I


SAMPLE OF FINE COUNTY ROAD: EXCELSIOR AND KALKASKA TURNPIKE




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


437


Kalkaska was incorporated as a village in 1887 and has shown a
steady growth. Situated on the North Boardman river and at the
junction of the Grand Rapids & Indiana and Pere Marquette railroads,
it enjoys the double advantage of fine water power and adequate facilities for the transportation of the various products of its factories and
of the agricultural country of which it is the natural and actual center.
Among its industries are cant hook works, cement brick works, saw,
grist and planing mills, and a maple syrup factory. The shipments
of Kalkaska include ginseng, potatoes and other farm products, as well
as the output of these plants. It is also a convenient banking point
largely through the facilities of the Kalkaska County Savings Bank,
with its capital of $20,000.
The county seat provides convenient buildings for the courts and
official business of the county, and is altogether a comfortable and
attractive village in which to reside. Its streets and structures are
lighted by electricity, while well constructed waterworks are installed,
operated under the Holly system. School and church advantages are
what they should be, the Baptists, Congregationalists, Methodists and
Disciples having organizations.
BOARDMAN
In 1871 Orange A. Row located in what is now Orange township,
in the southwestern part of the county, and got into communication
with Hamilton Stone, a friend and lumberman of Ovid, southern Michigan. Mr. Row told Mr. Stone of a tract of eighty acres of land lying
near the crossing of the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad and the south
branch of the Boardman river. The line of the railroad was at the
time fixed, Mr. Stone found a better water power than he had anticipated, and soon after the railway company platted the town that gentleman proposed it. In the fall of 1874, accompanied by several others,
he located at Boardman to commence operations. As the railroad was
then running he brought some lumber from below and his men soon had
erected a rough shanty-the first building on the village site. The
depot and a boarding house-the Boardman River House-were finished before winter set in, and early in 1875 a man named Thomas
Wasson moved a portable sawmill from Mancelona to the new lumber
and railroad town. A postoffice was also established at the depot and
a schoolhouse built, both during 1875.
Boardman seems to have taken a new start in the early eighties,
when large steam sawmills were built by J. L. Quinby of Grand Rapids,
and M. B. Farrin & Company of Cincinnati. Mr. Stone also largely
improved its water power.
The village received its charter of incorporation in 1890, and is
now a pretty place of over five hundred people, lighted by electricity
and provided with other conveniences which make it pleasant for residence. It has a creamery, cement block works, handle manufactory, and
saw and flour mills, which, with a good school and several churches,
give it substantial standing as a place of business and an intelligent
and moral community.




CHAPTER XIX


CHEBOYGAN COUNTY
WATERWAYS AND THEIR INFLUENCE-SOIL AND ITS PRODUCTS-TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES-POPIULATION AND PROPERTY-COUNTY ORGANIZATION-FIRST SETTLEMENTS-FOUNDING OF CHEBOYGAN —CHURCHES
— MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT CONTINUED-IMPROVEMENTS OF WATERWAYS —DUNCAN BECOMES CHEBOYGAN-THE CITY OF CHEBOYGANAWOLVERINE —M[ACKINAW CITY-TOWER.
Cheboygan county, which includes the northernmost territory in
Northern Michigan south of the straits of Mackinac, is washed for forty
miles by that grand connecting link of the Great Lakes and Huron to
the east. Cheboygan river and its main tributary, the Black, bind together a fine chain of inland lakes which occupy much of the northern
districts of the county. Black lake, in the east, is the reservoir of the
river by that name; Indian river connects the largest of the lakes,
Mullet and Burt; Pigeon river flows through half the county into the
southern end of Mullet lake and Sturgeon river virtually parallels that
stream, emptying into Indian river at the little village by that name.
Wolverine, the largest village in the county, lies well toward the southwestern boundary, at the forks of Sturgeon river. The southern part
of Cheboygan county is thickly veined with streams and small lakes,
making its entire territory, stretching forty miles north and south and
twenty-four east and west, a thoroughly watered country; it is estimated that it has a water surface of more than one hundred and fifty
thousand acres.
WATERrWAYS AND THEIR INFLUENCE
This striking feature of Cheboygan county well merits more extended notice, for her waterways are the greatest of her natural advantages. As stated Cheboygan river is the outlet of the chain of lakes
extending. with their connecting streams, for a hundred miles into the
interior and adjoining counties. Toward the southwest the system culminates in Crooked lake, Emmet county, and thus Cheboygan has been
placed in direct water communication with Petoskey and the entire
summer resort region of Little Traverse bay. At a distance of about
three fourths of a mile from its mouth, the flow of the river is arrested
by a damn which affords an excellent water-power. Locks prevent obstruction to navigation. About three miles above the dam is the june438




II__ ___ _ ____ __ ____ ____


L


\
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I  I II


SCENES ALONG CHEBOYGAN'S INLAND WATERWAYS
1. Fishing at Indian River. 2. Tow Boat Black Lake. 3. Summner Boating. 4. Wading. 5. Ice Boating.
Boating. 6. A Pleasant Corner.




440


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


tion of the Cheboygan and Black rivers. The river banks are high
with a sloping ascent. The soil is a mixture of gravel and clay, the latter predominating. Thrifty crops and a vigorous growth of timber
give evidence of its fertility. Ascending Black river in a southeast direction about twelve miles Black lake is found, a body of water about
ten miles in length and six miles wide. Its eastern shore is within
seven miles of Hammond's bay or Lake Huron.
Near Black lake is Long lake, which empties into Black river. Its
waters contain a great abundance of fish, affording the finest of angling.
Ascending the Cheboygan river about four miles above the junction,
the broad expanse of Mullet lake appears in view. It is a most beautiful sheet of water, about twelve miles in length and five miles wide.
Its waters are of crystal clearness and abound with fish. The shores
ascend gradually, and beyond are successive rises of ground. At the
head of this lake is the entrance to Indian river, which is three miles
in length and, as mentioned, forms the connection between Mullet and
Burt lakes. The latter is twelve miles in length and six miles wide.
It receives as tributaries Maple and Crooked rivers. Crooked river
proceeds from a lake of the same name which in turn receives a river
which takes its rise within about a mile of Little Traverse bay. Tributary to these lakes are several rivers from the south which drain a
water-shed which embraces Otsego, Montmorency, Cheboygan and a
part of Emmet counties. This entire system of waterways, which nature has so lavishly decked with beauty, is alive with man's creations
designed to give pleasure and restore vitality to the tired workers of
the world. We call them "summer resorters;" and they pour forth
from Cheboygan both through the great exterior lakes and the sparkling chain of interior bodies, pearls of a necklace strung along Cheboygan, Black, Indian and Crooked rivers.
The climatic influence of the great bodies of water along its northern shores and this matwork of inland lakes and rivers is such that
Chebyogan county usually escapes the late frosts of spring and the
early ones of fall, preventing the blighting of fruit blossoms and insuring the maturity of potatoes and garden produce. Its snow falls
are characteristically clean, dry and abundant, and serve as a protecting blanket for latent vegetation of all kinds. Seldom is winter-killed
grain heard of, and clover and grass emerge from their thick covering
green and vigorous in the spring. Winter after winter passes without
the ground freezing under the snow, which also assists in moving logs,
lumber and produce throughout the winter season.
SOIL AND ITS PRODUCTS
The soils of Cheboygan county range from a gravelly loam to the
rich clay of the hardwood lands, which bear such fine growths of beech,
maple, basswood and elm. The surface is gently rolling, self-draining,
seldom overflowing, and, from the nature of the soil, holding moisture
like a sponge. The well-watered and porous soiL bircing air clear
warm days of spring and summer, and cool nights, are advantages in
fruit-raising which have made Cheboygan a banner county of North



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


441


ern Michigan. It is truly the home of the "Big Red Apple."  Besides
the fine, well-kept orchards around the city of Cheboygan there are
many scattered throughout the county. At Indian river, Wolverine and
Black river and in Wilmot, Benton, Munro and Nunda townships the
apple is king. The pioneer and perhaps most extensive apple grower
in the county is Dr. A. M. Gerow, whose orchards are four miles from
Chehoygan. Little or no attention was paid to fruit culture until about
a dozen years ago, but the progress since then has been steady and
rapid, especially in apple-raising.  Pears, cherries, strawberries and
plums are thriving crops, and climate and soil are particularly adapted
to the growing of pears. Several of the most prominent seed firms in
the country annually contract with the farmers of Cheboygan county
CORN IN CHEBOYGAN COUNTY
to raise thousands of bushels of field and garden peas for seed. The
pea canning industry has also been stimulated, one factory in the city
of Cheboygan with a capacity of 100,000 cans daily paying thousands
of dollars to raisers annually, while another seed house distributes $60,000 to the farmers of the county. Cheboygan is no exception to the
general rule that the lake-shore counties of Northern Michigan are
prolific potato-producers. and that every product of the vine, from the
cucumber to the pumpkin, is thoroughly at home and flourishes like
a hardy family. Even corn is raised with profit.
TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES
The county is unusually fortunate in its transportation facilities.
Its shape is that of rather a narrow parrallelogram, traversed from north
to south by the Michigan Central and the Detroit & Mackinac railways.
These lines, in connection with the conveniences provided by the interior waterways so thoroughly cover the subject that it is claimed no




[Courtesy Weistern Michigan Development Thireaui


HARVES,,,TING TTIE BIGM RED APPLE




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


443


point can be found in the county which is farther than ten miles from
some means of transportation. The city of Cheboygan, in which is
centered the commerce of the county, is one of the important meetingplaces in Northern Michigan of transportation by land and water.
There are many fine harbors on the Michigan shore, but hers is the only
good one on Lake Huron north of Alpena, and hers is the main comnercial and passenger gateway between northeastern Michigan and the
Upper Peninsula. The great bulk of the industries is also centered in
the city of Cheboygan. whose population is over a third of that of the
entire county.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY
To complete this general picture of Cheboygan county we present
its table of population based on the national census enumeration of
1910, and the acreage of the different townships and value of real and
personal property as equalized by the county board of supervisors.


Civil Divisions
Aloha township.........................
Beaugrand  township.....................
Benton   township.........................
Burt  township...........................
Cheboygan  city...........................
W ard   1...............................
W ard   2...............................
W ard   3...............................
W ard   4...............................
W ard  5..............................
Ellis  township............................
Forest township, including Tower village.....
Tow er  village..........................
Grant  township...........................
Hebron  township.........................
Inverness  township........................
Koehler  township.........................
M[ackinaw township, including part of Mackinaw   City  village....................
Mackinaw City village (part of)............
Total for Mackinaw City village in Mackinaw
township, Cheboygan county, and Carp
Lake township, Emmet county........
M entor  township..........................
M unro  township..........................
Nunda township. including part of Wolverine
village.............................
Wolverine village (part of)..............
Total for Wolverine village in Nunda and Wilmot  townships......................


1910   1900    1890


332
446
1,011
557
6,859
282
2,373
1,356
1,934
914
341
1,064
545
462
394
1,647
433


506
1,063
404
6,489
326
622
542
379
1,589


332
770
376
6,235......
159
161
459
207
1,153


706     606     475
571     466     333
697     564     333
425     463     391
543     418     254
1,238     967     581
765........


794




444          HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Civil Divisions                           1910    1900   1890
Tuscarora township.......................    650     711    380
W alker  township..........................  153.......
Waverly  township.........................  321     115     53
Wilmot township. including part of Wolverine
village.............................  290     316....
Wolverine village  (part of)..............  29....
Totals...............................  17,872  15,516  11,986
Value of
Civil Divisions                           Acreage       Property
Aloha.................................  1,750,231    $   99,800
Beaugrand.............................  1,531,383         85,415
Benton................................  3,525,001      281,270
Burt.................................. 2,309,255  261,254
Ellis.......................         2,174,100        117,230
Forest................................  2,070,240      160,570
Grant.................................  1,632,913       137,030
Hebron................................  2.036,261        106,045
Inverness..............................  2,054,123      780,176
Koehler.............................. 2,513,609      165,650
Mackinaw..............................  5,647,745       517,320
Maple  Grove...........................  1,654,005       56,370
Mentor................................ 2,228,926         207,760
Mfunro..............................   1,821,279      181,815
Nunda.................................  4,118,209       241,830
Tuscarora.............................  1,580,860       204,390
Walker................................  2,141,152        180,940
Waverly............................... 2,740,363  194,760
W ilmot................................  2,293,610      235,685
Cheboygan  City................................      2351,970
First  W ard.................................        53,945
Second  W ard................................       337,490
Third  W ard.................................       435,555
Fourth  W ard...............................        973,775
Fifth Ward.................................           551,205
Totals..............................  45,823,265  $6,527,180
COUNTY ORGANIZATION
In the year 1840 all that portion of the state lying north of the line
between towns 36 and 37 north, and east of the line between ranges 4
and 5 west was laid off as the county of Cheboygan and attached to
Mackinac county for judicial purposes. In the same year all that portion of the state in towns 33, 34, 35 and 36 north, ranges 1 east and 1,
2 and 3 west, was laid off as a separate county to be known and des



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


445


ignated as the county of Wyandot, and attached to Mackinac county
for judicial purposes.
When Cheboygan was laid off from Mackinac, in 1840, Messrs. Burt
and Mullet came into the new country to make the surveys for the
state. They accomplished the work by 1843 and left their names
stamped on the beautiful lakes which give a charm and commercial
value to the county.
As to the name Cheboygan-we pass over the play upon the word
(She-boy-a-gan) and the story of the old Indian chief who wished
for a he-boy-and adopt the most reasonable derivation, which is from
COURT HOUSE AND JAIL IN 1850
the Chippewa word Cha-boia-gan, signifying a place of entrance, a
portage, or harbor; referring to the mouth of the Cheboygan river
which was a favorite harbor of refuge for Indians and whites alike,
who sought shelter behind Bois Blanc island from the fierce winds
which swept over Lake Huron.
Some of the pioneers insisted the word was always pronounced by
the Indians Che-pog-an, meaning pipe; others that it is a corruption
of Che-boy-ganning, the place of the wild rice fields; but the more
common acceptation of its derivation is that of a portage or harbor.
In the year 1849 the county of Cheboygan was organized by the
legislature into a township by that name, and in 1850, by an act of legislature, the name of the town was changed to that of Inverness.
In the year 1853 the counties of Cheboygan and Wyandotte were
consolidated and organized into one county under the former name,
and so much of range 4 west as had been included in Cheboygan county




446


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICtIGAN


was detached from    the same and annexed to Emmet.         The act under
which the county was organized is as follows:
"Section 1. The people of the state of Michigan enact that the counties of
Cheboygan and Wyandot shall be organized in one county by the name of Cheboygan, and the inhabitants thereof entitled to all the rights, privileges, and immunities to which by law the inhabitants of other organized counties are entitled.
"Sec. 2. There shall be elected in the county of Cheboygan on the first Tuesday of May next, all the several county officers to which by law the said county is
entitled, and said election and the canvass shall in all respects be conducted and
held in the manner prescribed by law for holding elections and canvasses for county
and state officers: Provided, that the canvass shall be held in the village of Duncan,
in said county, on the Monday next following said election; and said county officers
shall be immediately qualified and enter upon the duties of their respective offices,
and their several terms of office shall expire at the same time they would have
expired had they been elected at the last general election; and provided further,
that until such county officers are elected and qualified, the proper officers of the
county of Mackinac shall perform all the duties appertaining to the officers of said
county of Cheboygan, in the same manner as though this act had not passed.
"See. 3. The board of canvassers of said county, under this act, shall consist
of the presiding inspector of each township therein, who shall organize by appointing
one of their number chairman, and another secretary of the board, and shall thereupon proceed to discharge all the duties of a board of county canvassers as in
ordinary cases of elections for county and state officers.
"Sec. 4. The county of Cheboygan shall have concurrent jurisdiction upon
the Lake Huron, and Thunder and Saginaw bays, with the other counties contiguous
thereto.
"Sec. 6. The county seat of Cheboygan county is hereby fixed and established
at the village of Duncan on Cheboygan river in said county.
"Sec. 7. The counties of Presque Isle, Alpena, Montmorency, Otsego, Crawford,
Oscodo, Alcona, Iosco, Ogemaw, and Roscommon are hereby attached to the county
of Cheboygan for judicial and municipal purposes.
"Sec. 8. This act shall take effect immediately.
' Approved Jan. 29, 1853."
This act is quoted verbatim     to illustrate that Cheboygan county
is the father of northeastern Michigan.
FIRST SETTLEMENTS
It goes without saying that the locality comprising the present village of Mackinaw City was old as a settlement before the villages of
Duncan or Cheboygan were ever dreamed of. But the place commenced
to decline when the fort was moved to the island and had been virtually deserted for many years when the first settlers commenced to
erect their fishing huts. their cooper shops, boat yards and sawmills
at the mouth of the Cheboygan river. At that time-in the late forties
-the sole relic of the days when Mackinaw          was the center of life
and trade was itself a ruin. Reference is made to the little gristmill,
the first within Cheboygan county, which was located on the south
shore east on old Mackinaw on Douseman's creek.         It was built by the
American Fur Company, afterward bought by Michael Douseman of
Mackinac island, and ceased running in 1839.




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[Courtesy "Cheboygan Demrcciat"]
PooR IHOUSE


COURT HOUSE, 1898


COUNTY JAIL




418


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


FOUNDING OF CHEBOYGAN
In the spring of 1844, Jacob Sammons left Chicago and came to
Mackinac island, which was still the headquarters of enterprising
traders and craftsmen who were looking for locations in this remote
northern land. Mr. Sammons was a cooper by trade, owned a sail
scow and, within the succeeding few months, decided that among all
the localities which he had visited the mouth of the Cheboygan offered
the best outlook for a cooper shop. From Rev. W. H. Ware's "Centennial History of Cheboygan County" it is learned that Mr. Sammons remained at Mackinac island until the autumn of 1844 when he came over
to Cheboygan and put up a shanty on what is now Water street. Upon
the return of the scow to Mackinac for supplies it brought over Alexander McLeod, who built a log house twelve feet square, thus giving
Cheboygan county two residences.   In the following spring, that
of 1845. Mr. Sammons brought over his family and afterward
built a little cooper shop near his house. He employed M. W.
Horne and several others to assist him in making fish barrels, the
first of which were put together by Mr. Horne. The latter became the
first village marshal of Duncan; but that is going too far in the story.
The year 1846 was full of events for Cheboygan; for during that
year the first mail route (dog trains) in the county was established
from Saginaw to the Soo, via Cheboygan, which had just been named
as Duncan postoffice from J. W. Duncan, a new arrival and enterprising sawmill man. This gave Duncan a fixed place in the geography of
the country.
In the winter of 1847-8 Jacob Sammons and Peter McKinley erected
the first steam sawmill in the county at the mouth of the river on the
west side. It was operated for a number of years, but the mills at Duncan
bay on the other side of the Cheboygan river were more prosperous
and around them grew the village which, in 1853, was named in the act
of county organization as the seat of justice.
The first ship carpenter was John Vincent, who located soon after
Mr. Sammons. He built the first vessel which was a sloop-rigged scow,
called at that time the "Elizabeth," constructed in 1847 for Alexander
McLeod & Company for use in constructing the dam up near the water
mill, which had been completed by that firm during the previous year.
The next was a schooner-built scow, named the "D. R. Holt," length
eighty-four feet keel, twenty-two and one-half feet beam and six feet
hold, constructed in 1848, also by John Vincent, for A. and R. McLeod
Company. Its first cargo was twenty-eight cords of stone from Cheneaux
for Waugoshance light-house.
In the same year the first schoolhouse was built on M. W. Horne's
land, what is now the northeast corner of Main and Pine, and the class
of twelve scholars which met there was taught by Miss Harriet McLeod.
The first village thoroughfare was Main street, which was laid out
in the year 1850. The road prior to that time ran near the river,
about where the Benton House, Fountain House, M. W. Horne's residence and Bullen & Nelson's store were subsequently located, and
thence to the water mill.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


449


The first steamboat touching at Cheboygan was the "Stockman,"
in 1851. About the same time it brought over a pleasure party from
Mackinac island and landed at Duncan. The first steamboat that entered the Cheboygan river was the "Columbia," Captain Pratt, in
1851. It ran from Sault Ste. Marie to Green Bay. It brought three
cows, one for M. W. Home and two for MI. Metivier. These were
the first cows in the county.
As already mentioned, the first mill built here was erected by A. and
R. McLeod, in 1846-47. This was the water mill which stood above
the mill afterward erected by W. & A. McArthur. These gentlemen
built a dam and secured large tracts of land and planned for extensive lumbering operations. They also built the docks at Duncan bay.
In 1850, the McLeods were succeeded by the firm of J. W. Duncan
& Company. The upright saws in the water mill were changed to
muley saws and a siding mill added to the main building. In 1853 a
large mill was completed at Duncan. In 1854 Mr. Duncan died, after
a year or two the estate went into court, business operations ceased and
during the succeeding nine years the property was idle. This was such
a blow to all progress at and near the mouth of the Cheboygan river
that the outlook was indeed dark, and nothing occurred for nearly a
decade to a warrant a hope that a commercial, business and industrial
center might be built up in that locality. But it was not in the order
of historic happenings that such natural advantages as were there assembled should go to waste.
From 1850 to Mr. Duncan's death in 1854 was a period of great activity in the life of the village of Duncan and the settlement at the mouth
of the river. In the year first named J. W. Duncan & Company obtained control of the property around the bay, which had been docked
and otherwise improved by the MeLeods. In 1851 the first lighthouse
was constructed, situated on the mainland about a mile and a half
from Duncan and opposite the south point of Bois Blanc island. It
marked the east entrance into the south channel of the straits of Mackinac, which at that point are three miles wide, and at once emphasized
the importance of the locality as one of the most secure harbors of
refuge for the lake marine. From that time the steamboats commenced to touch at Cheboygan.
In 1852 a road was cut for a tramway to connect the settlement
which had grown up around the water mill and the dam with the village of Duncan around the bay. It united the two sections of the
embryo Cheboygan. In the following year, as has been seen, the county
of Cheboygan was organized with Duncan as the county seat. Then
came a period of stagnation, enlivened only by such incidents as the
building of a wharf by Jacob Sammons and Lorenzo Wheelock. in
1855, on the river above First street; the transfer of the land office
from Flint to Duncan in the same year, and the erection of another
mill near the first one in 1860. The building material for the latter
was composed of stones taken from the ruins of the old Dousman mill
near Mackinaw.


Vol. 1-29




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


CHURCHES
The first religious services in Cheboygan county were held in 1852
by a little band of Catholics who said mass under the ministration of
Rev. A. D. J. Piret in the house owned by Charles Bellant which stood
on what is now the southwest corner of Third and Water streets.
Father Piret was then a resident of Mackinac island. There were
then but four or five families at the mouth of the Cheboygan and a
number of single young men who worked in the sawmill. A chapel
was erected in 1856.   This was the commencement of St. MAary's
church.
The First Methodist church of Cheboygan was organized in 1868,
although services had been held as early as 1860 in the first schoolhouse of the county. These were the commencement of Protestant activities.
The Congregationalists held their first services in the fall of 1871
and organized a church in July, 1872, with twenty members and Rev.
J. L. Maile as pastor. The Episcopalians organized in October, 1878;
the Baptists in August, 1880 and the Lutherans in the fall of 1881.
Cheboygan has now ten churches including two Catholic, St. MAary's
and St. Lawrence; German Lutheran, St. Thomas; Methodist and Baptist.
MMATERIAL DEVELOPMENT CONTINUED
In 1865 the mill property on Duncan bay was purchased of the
Duncan estate by a number of outside capitalists and about 1871 the
tract was divided, the western part being laid off in village lots and
improvements pushed also in the milling section. Duncan had been
made a port of entry in 1866.
The first tug to enter Cheboygan river was the "Frank C. Ferro,"
owned by Charles Bellant, in the year 1867. It carried passengers as
well as towed vessels. It was the first boat to go above the locks, to
Vorce & Barker's mill, in 1870, and then returned, and was the first
tug belonging to a resident of this county.
The first steamboat connection made regularly with Cheboygan was
the side-wheel steamer "Marine City," in 1869. It sailed then between
Cleveland, Detroit and Mackinac island, touching at Cheboygan each
way.
IMPROVEMENTS OF WATERWAYS
The works by which the interior system of waterways was made
accessible to the outside world were commenced by the Cheboygan
Slack Water Navigation Company in 1868 and completed in 1869.
They consist of a canal eighteen feet wide and eighty feet long with a
lift of nine feet. In 1870 the first tugs entered the lakes-the "Hattie
D. Hoyt" plowed the waters of Mullet lake and the "Bismarek" stirred
up Burt lake.
It was soon found that something more was necessary than to enable boats to enter the lakes, and enterprising citizens of Cheboygan




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1. SECOND WARD HOSE HOUSE 2. CITY HALL 3. THIRD WARD HOSE HOUSE        4. WATER WORKS




452


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


and Emmet counties pooled their issues to improve the navigation of
the entire inland system. The initiation and progress of this movement,
so important to Cheboygan county especially, are described in Ware's
"Centennial History."  "In April, 1874," says that publication, "Mr.
Frank M. Sammons conceived the idea of carrying the mail through
Cheboygan river, Indian river and Burt lake, to a point in Crooked
river near the state road. In September of that year, he went up to
the mouth of Indian river with a span of horses and four men (two
whites and two Indians) and ploughed and scraped the bar going
into Burt lake, working in water at places from sixteen inches to
three feet deep, and made a channel through which the tug 'Maud Sammons' passed into Burt lake, carrying supplies for lumber camps.
Finding the enterprise of conveying the mail through this route too
much to accomplish single-handed, he suggested to William McArthur
the advisability of attempting inland navigation on a broader scale.
As a result of this suggestion, Messrs. McArthur, Smith and Company and Thompson Smith decided in 1874 to make an attempt to secure it. They expended labor at the entrance of Burt lake in forming
the piers to the amount of about $3,500. The undertaking being found
rather too large for private means, no work was done in 1875. This
project culminated finally in August, 1875, in the idea of securing the
aid of the state by means of appropriation of swamp lands. Through
the persistent energy of the Northern Tribune several public meetings
of the citizens were held, at which measures were adopted resulting in
a preliminary survey being made and a delegation going to Lansing,
who laid the matter before the board of control of state swamp lands.
A survey was ordered by the state board in October, 1875. In Deeember the board made an appropriation of $20,000 in swamp lands
to do the work. Contracts for doing the work were let in February,
1876, to F. M. Sammons, David Smith and 0. B. Green. The route
opened for navigation is between Lake Huron, at Cheboygan, through
Cheboygan river, Mullet lake, Indian river, Burt lake, Crooked river
and Crooked lake, making a distance of about forty-five miles. The
depth of water to be obtained is five and a half feet into Burt lake
and five feet into Crooked lake. Active operations were commenced
on the work June 25, 1876. William Chandler was appointed local
c(omlmissioner. and the work is rapidly progressing toward completion
under his supervision.
"Watts S. Humphrey, recently there practicing as a disciple of Ike
Walton, has kindly furnished the following information as to the
progress of the work up to date of September 6, 1876: 'The dredging
at the head of Indian river was completed on Tuesday last, September
6th. The pile driver, with a raft in tow loaded with about 27,000 feet
of lumber and timber, besides a quantity of nails, iron, etc., for constructing the piers, reached Crooked lake on Saturday night, and the
first pile was driven on Monday morning at 7 o'clock. The piles go
through about eight feet of marl and then strike into good hard bottom. making a splendid foundation.'
"The little tug run by Capt. Andrews, and formerly belonging to
Petoskey. made her first through trip from the head of Crooked lake




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


453


to Cheboygan, starting from the head of Crooked lake at nine o'clock
in the morning, and making several stops on the way, she arrived at
John F. lMcDonald's at half-past seven in the evening. She brought
with her quite a number of passengers from Petoskey, among whom
were three gentlemen from Milwaukee, prospecting and looking over
the country with a view to locate somewhere in the vicinity. A photographer was also among the passengers, sent up in the interests of
thie Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad, to take views of the lakes and
rivers through which the route passes.  This tug can make the trip
troml the head of Crooked lake to Indian river in three hours. The
'Mlinnie Sutton' has run from the latter named place to Cheboygan
in the night in two hours and twelve minutes. When the route is complete(l tlie 'Minnie Sutton' can make the round trip in eleven hours.'
AT THE CHEBOYGAN DocKS
''"It is expected that the improvement will be completed sometime
this season. To Mr. Chandler great credit is due for pushing this important imatter to such a successful issue. The parties concerned in
the operations are as follows: W. Chandler, the local commissioner in
charge of the works; 0. B. Green, of Chicago, contractor for dredging
throughout; George J. Dorr, his agent, superintending it, and doing
the work liberally, exceeding the depth the contract calls for; F. M.
Sammons has the contract for the piling and gravel work. He has the
contract also for removing the obstructions in the rivers on the route.
David Smith has the contract for the timber or carpenter work; Col.
R. C. Duryea is the engineer in charge."
The first systematic attempt to improve the inland waterway from
Lake Huron almost to Lake Michigan was thus made and the work was
accomplished in the late seventies. Since then other improvements
have been pushed from time to time with the object of so increasing
the capacity of the rivers and lakes included in the system that large




454


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


craft can make Crooked lake and bring Cheboygan within seven miles
of Petoskey and in direct communication with the railways of the Grand
Traverse region. At the present time, through government appropriations, Cheboygan river has a continuous channel eight feet deep and
fifty wide, and comparatively large passenger steamers and freight boats
have easy access to a stretch of sixty miles of country which gratifies
the eye and practical expectations of tourist and farmer alike.
DUNCAN BECOMES CHEBOYGAN
In 1870 the name of Duncan postoffice was changed to Cheboygan,
C. A. Brace being at that time postmaster. During the same year,
in June, the government engineers commenced the harbor improvements to enable steamers and vessels navigating the lakes to approach
the village through Cheboygan river.
In 1871, by special act of legislature, fractional sections 26, 30, 31
and 32. in fractional township 38 north, of range 1 west, was constituted
a village. The first charter election in the village was held May 9,
1871, at which time 115 votes were case. The first officers were as follows: President, W. P. Maiden, 'M. D.; recorder, H. H. Kezar; trustees,
Ward B. McArthur, David Smith. Paul R. Woodward, James N. Reiley,
Charles Bellant, Ephraim Nelson; treasurer, Lorenzo Backus; assessor,
S. Legault; marshal, Peter Paquin, who served for two months, then
resigned, and M. W. Horne was appointed for and served the balance
of the term.
The year of Cheboygan's incorporation as a village also witnessed
the building of its first planing mill by Kemp & Long on Main street.
In 1873 Perry & Watson opened its first foundry, on Main above Pine
street, the first article which they produced being a forty-horse power engine. A Union brick schoolhouse was built the same year on Pine
street west of Huron.
THE CITY OF CHIEBOYGAN
In 1875 Cheboygan was reincorporated under the general law of
1873, but as portions of the act had been declared unconstitutional the
village returned to its original charter. It was reincorporated in 1877,
under the general law of 1875, and became a city in 1889. The Michigan Central and the Grand Rapids & Indiana railways had been completed to Mackinaw City in 1881 and 1882 respectively, so that Cheboy-,gan herself had a free outlet for her shipments by land as well as by
water. At about the same time the village established a small pumping station, around which gradually, under the city government, developed a fine water works plant. As her water system stands today
which, with ten miles of mains and 116,000 horsepower, could not be
duplicated for $160,000.
Cheboygan 's present system of city schools was established under
the provisions of the municipal charter granted by the legislature in
1889. Eight buildings are occupied by the schools, the largest and
finest of which is the High school. Some thirty teachers are employed




456


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


to 200 men, fully $150,000 is distributed in the community. This sum
includes wages and salaries for maintaining the plant, the cutting of
spruce and pulp wood for the raw material, taxes paid on the local property and money expended on repairs, feed for horses and many other
incidentals. From fifty to sixty tons of paper are daily manufactured.
The concern is capitalized at $500,000. The plant covers forty acres
of ground and all its buildings are in direct communication with the
Michigan Central and Detroit & Mackinac railroads through a system
of side-tracks which cover its yard. Print paper for newspapers is
the sole article of manufacture. In connection with the paper plant,
however, is a sulphite mill with a daily capacity of from thirty to forty
tons.
The Pfister & Vogel Leather Company, whose headquarters are in
Milwaukee, operate a tannery at Cheboygan which is one of the most
extensive industries of the kind in the west. Its force of men averages
one hundred and fifty, to whom fully $75,000 is annually paid in
wages and salaries, and another $100,000 is distributed in the county
for the purchase of the 14,000 or 15,000 cords of hemlock bark required in the tanning processes. The Pfister & Vogel tannery at Cheboygan was founded in 1892, covers a site of twenty-five acres and includes thirty buildings. The company also owns a large tract of grass
land adjoining the tannery grounds proper.
Cheboygan has a number of large lumber companies, of which the
Olds concern represents one of the first and most successful. In 1904
the Olds Cheboygan Lumber Company purchased the property of the
old Cheboygan Lumber Company, which was established over thirty
years ago with a mile and a half of dockage along the river and a daily
capacity of 100,000 feet of lumber, its yards present one of the busiest
sections of Cheboygan. About one hundred and twenty-five men are
usually employed. Besides the dockage, tramways and water and land
area embraced in the yards of the Cheboygan Lumber Company, its
property includes some 40,000 acres of timber land scattered through
Northern Michigan.
The Cheboygan Brewing and Malting Company, which went into
operation under its present management in 1905, is also one of the
city's leading industries.
Mention is also due of the importance of the fishing industry. Without referring to special houses, it is sufficient to state that Cheboygan
is still one of the largest fishing stations on the lakes, and that the
annual product of this branch of industry is about 150,000 boxes valued
at $100,000.
The two leading banks of the city are the First National and the
Cheboygan County Savings. The origin of the former is traced to
G. V. D. Rollo, who came to Cheboygan from Cincinnati in the spring
of 1875, and engaged in the banking business. W. F. De Puy was associated with him until some time in 1878, and the style of the firm was
C. V. D. Rollo & Company, until Mr. De Puy sold out, when it was
changed to Rollo & Hitchcock. In February, 1882, that firm was succeeded by the Cheboygan Banking Company, which, during the same
year, was reorganized as the First National Bank of Cheboygan, with




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


455


and the enrolment is about 1,500. The city is also the seat of the fine
county normal school.
Nine miles from Cheboygan on Black river is the plant which supplies the electric light to illuminate her streets and many of the residence districts, besides furnishing power to not a few of her manufactories. The dam, works and conveying system were completed in
1898. In 1904 the Cheboygan Gas Light Company was organized, so
that electricity and gas are both available for lighting or heating purposes.
Cheboygan has no Carnegie library, but one which is supported
by its own tax payers and by a fund derived from penal fines. It was
b.?


CHEBOYGAN 'S HIGH SCHOOL


established some thirty years ago largely through the efforts and influence of Dr. Arthur YM. Gerow, first president of the library association. The collection comprises about 7,000 well-selected volumes,
and the reading room is thoroughly stocked with standard newspapers
and magazines. The Cheboygan public library is a continuous educator as well as pleasure to its people of all ages and conditions.
The tastefully equipped City Opera House, in the City Hall, is
a real credit to the corporation and its projectors.
The industries of Cheboygan have already been noted in a general
way. It remains to specifically mention several of her leading manufactories.
The Cheboygan Paper Company was organized in January, 1902,
and through the operations of its great plant which employs from 150




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


457


a capital of $50,000. Its first president was John W. McGuine; William McArthur, vice-president; Charles R. Smith, secretary, and George
F. Reynolds, cashier, being the other officers. Jacob J. Post, who was
one of the original directors, is now president; Arthur M. Gerow, vicepresident, and Arthur W. Ramsey, cashier.
The Cheboygan County Savings Bank is also an institution of long
and stable standing. It is capitalized at $50,000, and its officials and
directors are connected with the city's leading industries and business
houses.
WOLVERINE
This growing village of between eight and nine hundred people is
situated at the forks of the Sturgeon river, in the southern part of
the county, and is one of the best stations on the Michigan Central
railroad in Northern Michigan. It was platted in 1881 and was mentioned at the time as follows: "The location is a most excellent one,
being on the railroad, on Sturgeon river at the junction of the west
branch with the main river and in the midst of some of the best farming land in the county. The new village is called Torry, and is in
the township of Tuscarora, and situated in section 6, town 33 north, of
range 2 west, on land owned by Daniel McKillop. It was platted by
John M. Sanborne, a surveyor of Otsego county, and as platted consists of seven blocks. "
Since the foregoing was written, Nunda and Wilmot townships have
been created and the village of Torry (which lies in both of these townships) has been rechristened Wolverine.
The village of Wolverine was incorporated in April, 1903. It is
twenty-eight miles south of Cheboygan, has a good graded Union school
and is represented in the religious field by the Congregationalists,
Catholics and Methodists. Wolverine 's industries comprise two sawmills, shingle and planing mill and veneer and cooperage stock works.
She has two well-managed banks and is the center of a productive and
progressive country.
MACKINAW CITY
The village of Mackinaw City stands upon historic ground, and
the events which gave this point a conspicuous place in history have
been narrated upon preceding pages. The village as a reality is of
recent growth, but as a projected enterprise dates back to the early
years of progress in Northern Michigan. In the year 1857, Edgar
Conkling and Asbury M. Searles as trustees of the proprietors of Mackinaw lands inaugurated a movement for building up a business center
upon the south shore of the straits.
After vigorous but unsuccessful efforts to found a city, Mr. Conkling became convinced that the project was matured at too early a
time. The time had not arrived for extending railway lines to this
point, and without railway connection a business center of any importance is impossible.  Mr. Conkling, however, never lost faith in




458


HISTORY OF' NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the ultimate success of his enterprise, and after waiting and watching nearly a quarter of a century died in December, 1881, a few days
before the Mackinaw division of the Michigan Central was completed
to this point. In July of the following year the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad also reached Mackinaw City, and in December, 1882,
the village was incorporated by the county board of supervisors as
"Mackinaw   City."  Although still a village, it is incorporated as
Mackinaw City; it was reincorporated in April, 1883, but has always
maintained its unique status as "the village of Mackinaw City."
Mackinaw City is sixteen miles northwest of Cheboygan on the
two railroads mentioned, at the extremity of the Southern Peninsula
of Michigan and hemmed in by historic memories and beautiful and
romantic surroundings. It is charming as a summer resort and place
of rest, has good schools and hotels, is lighted by electricity, and is a
neat, mellow old village. Its only article of trade and export is fish,
the shipments of which are still considerable.
TOWER
Tower is comparatively a new village on Black river and the Detroit & Mackinac line, twenty-eight miles south of Cheboygan. It was
incorporated in 1906, has now about six hundred people and the
nucleus of industrial advancement. An electric light and power plant.
a well organized Union school and a substantial bank give Tower a good
standing in the community, and it has also, to fall back upon, a handle
factory and saw, stave, heading, lath and shingle mills.
STATIONS AND POSTOFFICES
Indian River and Topinabee are stations on the Michigan Central
line. postofflees and centers for summer tourists of the inland-lakes
regions, the former on Indian river near the southern end of Burt
lake andl the latter (Topinabee) on the southwestern shores of Mullet
lake. The site of Indian River was settled as early as 1876, and that
of Topinabee in 1880. Weadock, in the northwestern part of the
country nine miles from Chehoygan, is the center of a good fruit and
farming country. It has banking facilities and a small sawmill is in
operation.




CHAPTER XX


ALPENA COUNTY
POPULATION AND PROPERTY-FIRST SURVEYS AND SETTLERS-DAVID D.
OLIVER REAPPEARS-VILLAGE OF FREMONT BORN-ORGANIZATION OF
THE COUNTY-A TURNING POINT-FIRST YEARS AS A CITY-WATER
AND LIGHT-SCHOOLS AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS-RELIGIOUS-INDUSTRIES
AND BANKS-OUTSIDE OF ALPENA CITY.
The great water systems of northeastern Michigan are strung along
the valleys of the Cheboygan and Thunder Bay rivers which approach
within a few miles of each other in the northwestern part of Montmerency county. In that locality originate the north branch of Thunder
Bay river and Canada creek, an affluent of Black river, but the systems
of waterways which pour their floods from the south and west into the
northwestern extremity of Lake Huron and those which gather from
Presque Isle county in the north, Montmorency in the west and Alcona
in the south, push their way through their thousand channels in Alpena
county and make their grand exit into Thunder bay-these imposing
systems of northeastern Michigan are radically different. The Cheboygan system is composed of lakes as its most striking feature; that of
Alpena county of rivers and streams. While the Thunder Bay river
drains four hundred square miles of territory, Hubbard is the only
lake of any size which it can claim as a reservoir; and that is in Alcona
county. The only lakes worthy of the name in Alpena county are
Devil's lake, in the eastern part, but not incllded in the Thunder Bay
river system, and Long lake, also an independent body, which extends
for about half its area into Presque Isle county.
Alpena county has an area of about 1,440 square miles and contains approximately 391,680 acres, including not only the mainland
but all the islands in Thunder bay. The surface, which is gently rolling, descends a little to the south and east. The timber which originally covered a great portion of the country, and which is by no means
exhausted, comprises pine, hemlock, beech, cedar, balsam, white and
black birch, black ash, maple, elm, poplar and spruce. The clearing
away of many square miles of timber by which many of the leading
industries of the county have been established and developed has also
assisted farmers, fruit-raisers and stockmen. The soil, which is generally a light sandy loam, is favorable to all kinds of fruits and roots.
but her record as an agricultural county chiefly rests on her success
as a potato and strawberry section. Cheboygan county in famous as
459




460


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the homtie of the big red apple; so should Alpena county be known as
the garden of the sweet red strawberry.
Alpena county is also fortunate in its great deposits of limestone
and cement; the former insuring, with characteristic enterprise and
forethought, a system of good roads, and the latter the founding and
progress of a leading industry. The advantages of good roads are too
well known to be reviewed. It is enough in this special connection to
say that the city of Alpena is now connected with Long lake and several minor lakes of the interior by first-class macadamized highwaysan invalluable enc1ouragement to travelers, tourists and those seeking
"KATY-DID" IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN PINERY
homiies in tlhe countv not in direct connection with the Detroit & Mackinac railroad.
POPULATION AND PROPERTY
The citv of Alpena, the only large center of population in the
county. is built around the mouth of Thunday Bay river and is one of
the leading ports of Northern Michigan. having not only a safe doorway to Lake Huron in its fine harbor on Thunder bay, by generous
means of transportation through the Detroit and Mackinac railroads.
Its industries founded on its soft and hardwood timber, its cement, its
fisheries and the home demands of its people, with all these advantages
of distribution and intercomnunication. have made Alpena not only a
growing city, but one which has largely absorbed the population and
wealth of the county.  This statement is forcibly illustrated by the
figures collated by the United States census enumerators in 1910 and
by the county authorities in 1911.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


461


Civil Divisions


1910   1900    1890


Alpena  city...............................12,706
W ard   1.................................  1,625
W ard  2.................................  1,722
W ard  3.................................  3,684
W ard  4.................................  1,260
W ard  5..............................  1,827
W ard  6.................................   2,588
Alpena  township........................  928
Green  township............................  758
Long  Rapids  township...................... 1,312
Maple  Ridge  township......................  761
Ossineke  Township.........................  1,000
Sanborn  township..........................  847
W ilson  township............................  1,653


11,802....
1,173
670
1,243
783
587
542
1,454


11,283
1,115
436
817
598
132
204
996


Totals..................................19,965   18,254   15,581


The total number of acres and assessed valuation of the townships
and city of Alpena, as fixed by the assessors and equalized by the board
of supervisors, are as follows:


Civil Divisions
Alpena.................................
Green..................................
Long  Rapids............................
Maple  Ridge............................
Ossineke................................
Sanborn................................
W ilson.................................
City of Alpena..........................


Acres
62,399.45
48,895.39
62,669.31
30,131.39
62,225.25
26,357.91
46,825.54


Valuation
$ 334,300
235,000
329,300
138,900
250,000
135,500
308,000
4,269,000
$6,000,000


Totals..........................   339,504.24


FIRST SURVEYS AND SETTLERS
From the time the first government surveys were made in Alpena
county in 1839 until a civil organization was effected in 1857 comprises
a period of preliminaries, or the real epoch of the pioneer. It was in
the spring of the former year that the surveyors first entered the territory now included by Alpena county and they all agreed that the
country was worthless; that the government would never realize enough
from the sale of the lands to pay for the surveying. Lewis Clason, one
of the surveyors, was so confident of this, that he said to his party
of helpers, "I will give any of you a good, warranty deed of any township of land that we have surveyed for your wages and will bind myself to purchase the land of the government for you should it ever become saleable. Not one of the party would accept Mr. Clason's offer




462


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


-not even David D. Oliver, the young civil engineer and lumberman
from Grand Haven, who was of the party and within a few years thereafter was to become one of the leading figures in the development of
the Thunder Bay region.
In the year 1840 Northern Michigan was parceled out into various
unorganized counties of which Alpena was one and attached to old
Mackinac county for judicial purposes. It was originally named after
An-a-ma-kee, or Thunder, an old chief of the Thunder bay band of Indians. In the spring of the same year, 1840, the surveyor general of
the state contracted with Sylvester Sibley, Henry Brevoort and Henry
Mullet to survey about half of Alpena county, as well as Cheboygan
and Presque Isle counties. This second surveying party left Detroit
early in the spring of 1840 on the steamer "Madison" for Presque isle.
Near the Thunder river they discovered the site of a house that had
been burned, some square timber and excavation for a mill race. Upon
subsequent inquiry, they were told that Michael Douseman, of Mackinaw. with other parties from the state of New York, had, some time
prior, attempted to build a sawmill at that place and had been driven.away by the Indians.
DAVID D. OLIVER REAPPEARS
It was late in the fall of 1840 that the surveyors finished their work
and returned to Presque Isle on their way to Detroit. For nearly five
years thereafter Mr. Oliver continued his surveying in various parts of
the country and also his studies in natural history. The government
lands in Alpena and adjoining counties were offered for sale in 1843
and on the 18th of September, in the following year, Mr. Oliver landed
at the mouth of Thunder Bay river not to purchase but to study the
animals of the region. From that time until the 20th of May following
he did not see the face of a white man, nor hear the crack of any rifle
but his own. On coming down the river to its mouth in the spring he
found Washington Jay, his wife and daughter, and a man named William Dagget, who had moved there late in the fall from Thunder Bay
island, for the purpose of making some barrel staves for fish barrels.
They built a log house near what is now Second and River streets, and
cut timber and made staves on the present site of Alpena. This was the
second house built on the site of the city by white men, and Mrs. Jay
and her daughter Emma were, in all probability, the first white women
that had ever visited the place. They were certainly the first to live
there.
In September, 1844, Jonathan Burtch and Anson Eldred purchased
two pieces of land at the mouth of Devil river, that tract being the first
bought of the United States in Alpena county; the patents were issued
in 1844. They erected a water mill on Devil river, with two upright
sash saws, driven by two old fashioned flutter-wheels, and cut eight
thousand feet of lumber in twenty-four hours. This was the first sawmill
erected in Alpena county. In 1845 Mr. Burtch located forty acres
more at Devil river and Mr. Eldred two fractions on Thunder Bay
river.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


463


In the spring of that year Mr. Oliver reappeared on the scene as
a settler. Ite had collected one hundred and nine marten skins and
other valuable furs in the course of the winter's trapping, which he
sold in Detroit at about two dollars and fifty cents apiece, or to be
more precise for a lump sum of two hundred and eighty dollars in silver
and two hundred and eighty dollars in paper money. With the proceeds he purchased a stock of goods, took them to Thunder Bay island,
and there built and opened the first store in Alpena county.
Thunder Bay island had now grown to be a large fishing station,
numbering thirty-one fishing boats and one hundred and sixty persons,
whose catch of fish in 1846 was a little over twelve thousand barrels.
In the summer of 1847 Mr. Oliver purchased the Devil river mill property of Jonathan Burtch, and moved thither late in the fall of the same
year. Mr. Oliver, in fact, was the first merchant, first productive lumberman, first county surveyor, first probate judge and until his death
was of all the early pioneers foremost in the hearts of the people at
large. His name is also well preserved in his "Centennial History of
Alpena County," from which many of the early incidents here narrated are gathered.
In later years the affections of city and county were divided between
Mr. Oliver and Daniel Carter, the latter locating in the Thunday bay
region some ten years after Mr. Oliver's coming, but becoming identified
from the first with the founding and advancement of the city. Mr. Carter came to the Thunder bay region in the summer of 1853, in coinpany with George N. Fletcher, a St. Clair lumberman, to look over the
pine lands in that locality. Mr. Fletcher returned after a few weeks,
leaving Mr. Carter to continue the investigation. The visit resulted
in his permanent settlement. Mr. Carter came on a steamboat to Black
river island and got over to what is now Alpena on a sail boat. He
found here an old man named Walter Scott and wife, who were living
in a shanty. Scott's house and an old cooper shop standing near the
river were the only buildings worthy of the name in that locality.
There was a little board building standing on what is now River street
which Mr. Scott had built for a saloon when he found there was a prospect of people coming thither to settle. When Mr. Carter brought his
family in November, 1856, the building was a mere shell and innocent of
a window or pretense of one. But Mr. Carter fixed it up and it became
not only the family home but was the hotel of this region. Often it was
filled to overflowing, but its guests always found a good bed and a tempting meal. There was a small clearing around the house, which was the
family and hotel garden; tle rest of Alpena was covered with trees and
brush. The Carters had no neighbors until the following summer, when
the family of James Irvin arrived.
In 1858 Mr. Carter was appointed postmaster and held the office
until 1861. He followed land hunting until 1862 when his health failed,
and he had to give it up. He then followed fishing about three years.
In 1860 he built a house on the lot afterward occupied by his residence
and which at that time was in the woods. In 1857 he was appointed
supervisor and held the office fourteen years. He was one of the prime
movers in getting the county organized and took a leading part in its




464


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


affairs. He was justice of the peace several years. He built ten miles
of the state road in Montmorency county, which he finished in 1882.
Daniel Carter continued to reside in Alpena until his death January 13,
1897, in his eighty-fourth year.
James K. Lockwood, of Port Huron, was another lumberman who
became associated with George N. Fletcher in the purchase of pinelands
in the Thunder bay region. In 1855, having already secured pine lands
in this vicinity, they purchased 450 acres of land lying upon both sides
of Thunder Bay river, and bordering on Thunder bay. They made
the purchase of Erastus Baily of Wisconsin, and the price paid was
fifteen dollars per acre. Mr. Lockwood soon after formed a partnership
with John S. Minor, and sold an interest to J. Oldfield. Mr. Fletcher
retained his one-half interest. This purchase was made for the purpose
of getting sites on the river, in order to build mills to cut their pine.
In the fall of 1856 Mr. Fletcher again visited the site of Alpena.
After 1859 his home was in Detroit, but no individual contributed so
much to the upbuilding of the place and the region as George N.
Fletcher. Although not continuously "on the ground," as his interests
were both large and much extended, his money and enterprise first
opened the channels of trade at Thunder bay and were potent in making
Alpena a real city. His money and counsel were behind the first sawmill, and in 1858 he was active in the construction of the dam. The
ultimate success in improving Alpena harbor was due to him; he was the
leader in opening up the salt deposits and mineral springs, while the
water works, telephone, electric lights-everything which spelled advancement to the city-always had a hearty friend and helper in him.
He never failed, further, to have alert personal representatives-often
relatives-to carry out his plans. Mr. Fletcher died on November 5,
1899. aged eighty-six. As stated by a friend and admirer "the founder
of Alpena and about the most widely known man in Northern Michigan. Also the founder of many of Alpena's permanent industries.
He erected the Fletcher house in 1871-2, and has to his credit two pulp
mills and the paper mill, besides many other industries."
Mr. Lockwood, on the other hand, stayed closely by the work in hand.
In connection with the manufacture of lumber he took a leading part in
laying out the town which he made his headquarters and in 1862
brought his family to reside at Alpena. He was supervisor, member
of the state legislature, founder and president of the Alpena Harbor
Company, organizer of the Alpena & Southwestern Railroad Company,
president of the County Agricultural Society, founder of local churches
and schools, and a friend and helper of the city and the county who was
heart-to-heart with all their activities and ambitions. He died at Putin-Bay, Ohio, July 9, 1882, in his sixty-fourth year.
These four-David Oliver, Daniel Carter, George N. Fletcher and
James K. Lockwood-were the strong characters which laid the foundation for the future of the Thunder bay region and especially of Alpena city.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


465


VILLAGE OF FREMONT BORN
In October, 1856, when Samuel Carter got ready to go after his
family who were waiting for him at St. Clair he started for Thunder
Bay island, intending to take the first steamboat which passed that
place. When he arrived at the island he found George N. Fletcher,
J. K. Lockwood, J. S. Minor, E. A. Breakenridge and J. Oldfield, who,
were on their way to the mouth of the Thunder Bay river to survey the
lands there. Mr. Carter joined the party although, being a strong
democrat, he disapproved of the Fremont election flag which had been
voted as the proper thing by Messrs. Fletcher, Lockwood and Breakenridge, republicans. "As soon as the party had landed at the little
clearing near the mouth of the river," says one of the many accounts of
the incident which is pronounced the "advent of politics" into the
Thunder Bay country, "they commenced making preparations for raising their Fremont flag. They cut a good-sized cedar pole, nailed the
flag to the top end of it, and then endeavored to raise the flagstaff and
plant it in the ground so that the emblem of their political faith might
wave defiantly above the newly named village of Fremont. The flagstaff was not very heavy and if it hadn't been election time the party
of Fremonters could easily have set it up right; but being somehow or
other affected by the water they had imbibed, they were unable to manage; so they requested Mr. Carter, who had during this time been looking on, to help them. Mr. Carter refused, declaring that he wasn't
going to help them raise a Fremont flag; and going a little way from
the party sat down and watched the performance. Several times the
Fremonters succeeded in nearly raising the pole, getting it almost up
only to have it tumble down again, but they were determined to succeed, and, after several futile attempts, the Fremont flag waved proudly
above their heads."
ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY
In February, 1857, mainly through the energy and efforts of Mr.
Lockwood, the legislature passed an act organizing the county of
Alpena, the act being approved on the fourteenth of the month. Fremont was named as the county seat. The counties of Alpena, Oscoda,
Montmorency and a portion of Presque Isle were attached to Cheboygan
for judicial purposes.
The first board of supervisors for Alpena county was created by a
special act of the legislature, the members being Daniel Carter, of Fremont, Harvey Harwood, of Thunder Bay island, and D. D. Oliver of
Devil river. They were authorized to act as a board of county canvassers, as well as a board of supervisors and were to hold their offices
until the towns were organized, and to fill any possible vacancy on the
board.
After being notified of their appointment, about the first of June,
1857, the members of the new board met for business and organized by
making Daniel Carter. chairman, and having no county clerk, D. D.
N ol I-3 0




466


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Oliver was made secretary. Mr. Harwood soon moved out of the county
and left the chairman and secretary to have it their own way.
In August, 1857, the schooner "John Minor " sailed into Thunder
Bay river bringing Addison F. Fletcher, who came in the interest of
G. N. Fletcher, and who superintended the construction of a rough
board store, which was located on Water street at or near its junction
with Second street, the schooner having brought the lumber for that
purpose. Mr. Fletcher took an active part in the early affairs of the
county, being the first clerk of both the city and the county. At one
time he owned the best property in the village of Alpena; but he never
had much faith in the large growth of the place.
In September, 1857, Joseph K. Miller came to Fremont, and with
him. a number of other settlers. He was middle aged, well educated,
a good business man, very strict in his habits, a hater of all stimulants
and a Bostonian. Soon after his arrival he was appointed to fill the
vacancy in the board of supervisors, caused by the departure of Harvey
Harwood. With proper technicalities the board then proceeded to
organize the township of Fremont, which comprised Alpena county
proper and all of the territory attached to it for judicial purposes.
On the 4th day of November, 1857, as provided by the organic law,
the first election took place in Alpena county and the township officers
entered upon the duties of their several offices as soon as they could
be qualified, there being -no person in the county who could legally administer the oath of office. The officers elected were as follows:
Sheriff, William R. Bowman; county clerk, A. F. Fletcher; county
treasurer, J. K. Miller; register of deeds, J. K. Miller; county surveyor,
D. D. Oliver; circuit court commissioner, David Plough; coroner, A. F.
Fletcher. At the general election held in November, 1858, the entire
number of votes cast in Alpena county was thirty-five.
The first business of the year 1858 was to secure a postoffice. There
were but few settlers here, but their letters were just as precious to
them as though the population numbered thousands. An office had
been established in Tawas City, and also at Au Sable. The postoffice
was established in January, 1858, with Daniel Carter as first postmaster.
The first mail arrived January 17, 1858, and it was a very important
event to the settlers then in Alpena. The postoffice was known as Fremont; afterward at the request of the citizens, the name was changed
to Alpena, then to Thunder bay, and finally to Alpena again. This name
it still bears, as the postal authorities got tired of so much changing.
The United States mail was in charge of Indians and half breeds on the
route between Bay City and Sault Ste. Marie. The mail was drawn on
a train by three dogs, the course being around the shore, and they
drove up in front of the postoffice kept by Daniel Carter, with much
ceremony. The mail came once a week in winter and in summer the
only chance for the mail to get to Alpena was the good fortune that
some traveler had business below, when the postmaster would give him
an order for the mail. Every person who went in the vicinity of a postoffice where Alpena mail might be lying was supposed to consider himself under solemn obligation to constitute himself the mail carrier.
In 1858 the courthouse was located in the second story of Miller,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


467


Fletcher & Company's store, which stood about on the later site of the
Myers block at the end of the bridge on the corner of Second and Water
streets. It remained there until the new courthouse was built. This
new building was constructed by Deacon Hitchcock, who took the county
bonds and negotiated them on condition that the Congregational church
might have the privilege of using the court room on Sundays. The
building stood near where the Centennial block was afterward built on
Second street. It was completed in 1863 and was destroyed by fire December 12, 1870. Rooms were then fitted up on River street, which
were used until the completion of the more substantial courthouse in
1882.
The people became dissatisfied with the name Fremont-some of
them good Democrats like Mr. Carter-and a petition to the legislature
was followed by action. in February, 1859, which made the county seat
at the mouth of the river, Alpena.
In the preceding fall Lockwood and Minor had inaugurated the first
lumber aperations on Thunder Bay river, and in the spring of 1859
Obed Smith and Harman Chamberlain, of St. Clair county commenced
the work of building the first steam sawmill in Alpena county. They
pushed forward the work with vigor and in August or September of the
same year sawed the first boards. The first work done by this mill was
to cut the logs belonging to the firm of Lockwood & Minor, which work
occupied the balance of the season and part of 1860. Lockwood & Minor
followed in the succeeding year with another steam sawmill and in 1862
with a third. A dam across the river had been constructed by the
Trowbridge brothers in the fall of 1860, so that Alpena, which was
never incorporated as a village, took on the semblance of a very busy
lumber town during Civil war times.
About the year 1863 the Thunder Bay River & Harbor Improvement
Company was organized with a capital of $20,000. James K. Lockwood
was the president. Work was done and about eight feet of water secured when the capital was exhausted. George N. Fletcher then purchased the stock at fifty cents on the dollar, reorganized the company
and expended $50,000. With that expenditure piers were built and a
channel dredged with eleven and one-half feet of water. He then commenced charging tolls as authorized in the charter and continued to do
so about four and one-half years, when the charter was annulled by the
legislature, causing a loss to Mr. Fletcher of about $40,000. Since that
time work has been done by the government and the channel has a depth
sufficient to flpot the deep-draught freight boats of the lakes.
A TURNING POINT
The year 1864 was certainly a turning point in the fortunes of Alpena. At that time there were on the north side of the river the Oldfield and Fletcher mills, Boggs Hotel, two boarding houses, a group
of shabby buildings known as Salt block and about a dozen private
dwelling houses; on the south side, the Lockwood & Minor, Island and
Lester mills and three barn-like stores. When the spirits of the town
were at their lowest ebb, as is so apt to be the fortunes of the individual,




468


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


there came a decided reaction; for from the year 1864 really dates the
commencement of Alpena's substantial growth. In that year Lester,
Long & Company built a steam saw mill on the east side of River street
which run one large circular saw and a lath mill, capacity about two
million feet of lumber and one million pieces of lath employing about
twenty men. They also built a boarding house near the mill. In this
year, although the "Home Mill " belonging to Lockwood & Minor was
destroyed by fire involving a heavy loss to them, it was rebuilt the same
season. The Thunder Bay Dam Company's dam was finished in 1864,
and a large water mill built on the east side of the river by John Oldfield. It employed about forty men. Messrs. Doer & Fairchild erected
a manufactory for making tar and turpentine from pine stumps and
many hundreds of these were made into tar, turpentine and charcoal.
They sold their interest to Martin Minton who, in 1865, built another
factory at Ossineke. The first bridge was built across Thunder Bay
river also in this year.
In 1865 Wm. Jenney and Elisha Harrington built a steam sawmill
which when completed was the largest of its kind in Alpena county, running one gang, one large muley saw and two large circular saws, with
lath machines, edgers, slab saws, etc. They also erected a large boarding house and a few dwellings. This property changed hands and in
1876 belonged to Hilliard, Churchill & Co. In 1864 the Smith & Chamberlain mill was destroyed by fire and rebuilt in the year 1865 on the
same site. In 1876 the property was purchased and belonged to Folkerts & Butterfield.
The First Congregational society of Alpena commenced in 1865 the
erection of a large and beautiful church on the north side of Second
street; a wooden structure costing about $6,000.
Two large hotels were built in this year-1865-one by J. R. Beach,
called the Union Star hotel, and the other by Julius Potvin and known
as the Alpena house.
In 1866 E. P. Campbell & Co. built what was known as the Campbell & Potter mill, located a mile and a half west from the mouth of
Thunder Bay river. At or about this time, G. S. Lester, under the
firm name of C. Thompson & Co., erected a large shingle mill, using the
tramu road and dock of E. P. Campbell & Co. for shipping purposes.
In 1866 two more shingle mills were built, one on the north side of
the river. near the bay, by Thomas Robinson, who introduced the first
planing machine into Alpena county. Prior to this all lumber had to
be dressed by hand and proved very expensive. The other shingle mill
was built by Hopper & Davis on the north side of the river and near
Chisholm street. Both of these were burned, the former in June, 1867,
and the latter is not known.
In 1864 or 1865 the board of supervisors made a contract for clearing Jessie square, and erecting a suitable building for a jail. It was
built on Chisholm street and made of two inch planks, doubled and
fastened with spikes driven close together. It had three or four cells,
two light rooms for prisoners and ample rooms for turnkey and family.
So the building and busy operation of sawmills went on through the
war period and after, one of the largest outside mills being erected by




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


469


David D. Oliver at Ossineke, in 1867. The main building was one hundred and twenty feet long and forty feet wide.
A. F. Fletcher, Comstock and others continued active and in 1868
a new industry was founded. In that year a number of the business
men of Alpena made up a fund to bore for salt, but the arrangements
were made so late in the season of 1868 that navigation closed before
the machinery for drilling could be got up from below, and it had to be
brought through by land. After getting the drill at work, slow progress
was made in consequence of the hardness of the rock and a defective
boiler. After piercing different strata of sand, gravel and boulders, the
operator came to a rock at the depth of thirty feet. The first strata of
rock was limestone, and this was about two feet thick. He then came
to a layer of quartz eighteen feet thick. In this quartz he found a considerable quantity of copper ore. The next was four feet of shale.
Beneath this was three and one-half feet of soap-stone when he again
struck limestone and so on for some 400 feet, when a vein of mineral
water was struck which flowed with great force. In August, 1869, brine
was found at a depth of 1,100 feet, and the work of putting in tubing
commenced. But in May, 1869, the investigation of H. L. Harrison
of East Saginaw and A. F. Fletcher determined the magnetic qualities
of the water, as well as their mineral, and in July, 1872, the Fletcher
House was opened to the public to take advantage of the curative powers
of these waters. Since then many visitors have been attracted to Alpena by her magnetic springs.
The remarkable increase of population for some years after 1864 is
told in the census figures; in the year named the local enumeration gave
Alpena 674 inhabitants, its population in 1870, according to the state
census being 2,756.
FIRST YEARS AS A CITY
As stated, Alpena was never incorporated as a village. It remained
under township organization until the spring of 1871, although an attempt had been made to incorporate as a village in 1863 and as a city in
1868 and 1869. In the meantime, in 1867, Ossineke township had been
organized-the only one outside of Alpena.
In the winter of 1871 the matter of city incorporation was earnestly
presented to the legislature, petitions carrying three hundred names
being presented to that body in March. On the 29th of that month the
act providing for municipal incorporation was approved, and on the
first Monday of the following months were elected Alpena's first city
officers-Seth L. Carpenter, mayor; A. L. Power, treasurer; Donald McRae, comptroller; A. Hopper, recorder. Mr. Carpenter had been a citizen of Alpena since 1868 and had been county clerk the preceding year.
He was a Maine man, a lawyer, able and popular.
One of the first movements of the city government was to organize
a fire department, for, like all lumber towns, Alpena had already been
visited by several disastrous fires. On the 4th of July, 1862, a conflagration had spread from the adjoining pineries and swept through the
settlement taking buildings which it ill could spare, including a par



470


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


tially completed mill of Lockwood & Minor. A worse one had occurred in April, 1863, and in December, 1870, the court house and
other buildings were destroyed. Then came a bad fire in April, 1871,
shortly before the first city election, which swept away many buildings
and turned one hundred people out-of-doors. On the following 19th of
Mlay a meeting of citizens was held to organize a fire department, and
on the 30th the city council passed the ordinance which made it a part
of the municipal government. But the "department" with its one little
steamer, was as an infant in the hands of the great conflagration of
July 12, 1872, which caused a loss of four lives and $200,000 in property.
Sixty-five of the best business houses and dwellings were burned to the
ground. and not a few deaths afterward resulted from injuries received during the terrible and heroic fight with the flames. Other conflagrations have since occurred, but that of July 12, 1872, is still recorded as the great fire.
Prior to 1872 all banking business for Alpena was done in Detroit.
On the 1st of March, 1872, Charles Bewick, Andrew Comstock and William B. Comstock organized the Alpena Banking Company, with A. W.
Comstock as cashier. In April of the same year George L. Maltz and
J. L. Whiting organized The Exchange Bank with Mr. Maltz as cashier.
These banks brought a large amount of currency into the city, supplying the needs of the business men of Alpena and became very important
institutions of the place. A large hotel was erected this season by
George N. Fletcher, under certain arrangements with the people of
Alpena. and called the Fletcher House-mention of which has been
made.
In July. 1873, Daniel Carter donated to the city ten acres of land to
be used as a cemetery, located near the western limits of the city. The
first white person buried in this cemetery was a man by the name of
Peter Duclos, and the first Indian buried there was Pe-na-se-won-a-quot,
son of the old chief Sog-on-e-qua-do.
In 1874 congress appropriated $20,000 for building a lighthouse at
the mouth of Thunder Bay river and also established a life saving station on Thunder Bay island. In 1881 the life-saving station on Middle
island was completed.
WATER AND LIGHT
The first efforts toward the construction of water works were made
in August, 1877, when the common council entered into contract with
W. P. Hanchett to lay a large conducting pipe to the city from the
south branch of the river. In the following October a contract in furtherance of the enterprise was entered into between the city officials and
the Alpena City Water Company. The pump house at the dam and the
entire first system was placed in operation in September, 1879, but it
was not until the fall of 1880 that the water supply was drawn from
the bay. In December. 1886, the new pumping works on Thunder bay
were placed in commission, from which dates the present-day system.
The splendid works now in use, with a pumping capacity of 8,000,000
gallons every twenty-four hours, were completed in 1905 at a cost of




1


HIGH SCHOOL AT ALPENA




472


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


$265,000. The same power which distributes the pure water of Lake
Huron throughout the city also operates the electric dynamos which
supply the one hundred and thirty-one are lights provided for street
illumination.
The Alpena Electric Light Company was organized in September,
1881, and the Alpena Gas Company commenced the erection of the
works on State street four years afterward. In the fall of 1898 the
Electric Light and Water Works Company erected a new power house
at Richardson dam. The latest large step in the business of furnishing
Alpena with light and power was the construction of the dam on Thunder Bay river, in 1909, and the completion of a complete plant in 1910
by the Alpena Power Company. Its chief office at present is to furnish
electric light to offices and business houses.
SCHOOLS AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS
As soon as practicable after the township meeting, held on the 5th
of April, 1858, the school inspectors of the township of Fremont, met
for the purpose of forming a school district, and as much territory
as could be allowed by law was incorporated into School District No.
1. Addison F. Fletcher was elected first school director. Miss Mary
L. Carter was hired to teach the first school in a small cooper shop made
of rough boards which was the best building that could be then obtained
for the purpose.
In 1864 the first district school was completed in the county. It
was located in Alpena and was built by Samuel Boggs. J. B. Tuttle
taught the first school in this house. In 1865 another district school
house was erected on the east side of the river and in 1867 the legislature authorized the building of a union school house. In 1868 a suitable
building was erected, under the supervision of David Plough on ground
donated by S. E. Hitchcock, and it cost the sum of $20,000, when
finished and fenced. Charles T. Brockway was the first superintendent.
The teachers were Mrs. Sutton, Mrs. Stevens, Mrs. Vanlnwegen, Miss
Doane and Miss Barclay.
The city is now supplied with nine public school buildings of strictly
modern construction and equipment. There are also six parochial
schools and a metropolitan business college. The largest and most attractive of the edifices devoted to public education is the Central school
opened to the public in September, 1891. In this are accommodated the
High school proper with twenty-five pupils and the first and second
grammar grades comprising 199. The enrolment in the nine ward
schools was as follows in the first week of the school year: Obed
Smith, 180; Garfield, 118; Lockwood, 163; Franklin, 118; Jefferson,
121; Avery, 185; Baldwin, 91; Cass, 56; Beebe, 25. Total in the Central and ward schools, 1,292. The superintendent of the city schools is
Edward L. Parmenter; principal of high school, H. V. Knight.
At the Central school is also housed the Alpena Public Library, organized in 1873. comprising nearly 5,000 volumes and controlled by the
city board of education.
Of Alpena's public buildings the new $100,000 postoffice is. beyond




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


473


all, the most stately and attractive. The Detroit & Mackinac has also
(fall of 1911) in process of construction one of the most convenient and
elegant depots in Northern Michigan.
A United States fish hatchery is located at Alpena, from which thousands of lake trout and white fish are annually transferred to the great
lakes and interior bodies of water.
RELIGIOUS
In the spring of 1860 the first Sabbath school was organized in Alpena with J. K. Lockwood as superintendent. In the summer of the
same year the Rev. C. G. Bisbee came to Alpena, and soon after took
charge of the Sabbath school as superintendent. He was the first minister of Alpena county.
On the 2d of March, 1862, the First Congregational church of Alpena, was organized, with Rev. C. G. Bisbee as pastor. They held church
in the upper room of a building, on the corner of Second and Water
streets. The Episcopal church (Trinity) was formed in 1864; the Methodists organized into a permanent society in 1867, and about the same
time the Catholics, who had secured property through the efforts of
Bishop Baraga, had erected a church, priest's house and school on Chisholm street; in 1867 the Baptists also organized and the Germans and
Norwegians established themselves in the local religious field before
1880. St. Bernard's Catholic church, a new stone edifice, was dedicated
in April, 1885; Trinty Episcopal in November, 1887; German Baptist,
January, 1888; St. Mary's Catholic, June, 1889; Congregational, December, 1892, as well as the new Baptist church and Presbyterian, January,
1901. And the good work still goes on, the most noteworthy late addition to the churches of the city being the St. Anne's French Catholic
church completed in 1910. With its two massive spires this is one of
the most imposing houses of worship in the city.
INDUSTRIES AND BANKS
In view of the city's present commerce it hardly seems possible that
her first shipment of lumber by rail was made only twenty-four years
ago; yet such is the fact, Fletcher, Pack & Company shipping the initial
car loads to New Baltimore January 16, 1888. This was nearly two
years after the arrival of the first train at Alpena over the Detroit,
Bay City & Alpena railroad, and about the time of the completion of
the depot on Fletcher street.
The manufacturing of cement had already commenced and the first
cement walks just laid, but it was not until the middle nineties that the
pioneer tanneries started up, led by the Taber plant. In 1896 F. W. Gilchrist commenced to manufacture maple flooring, and on January 5,
1899, the first sheet of paper was turned out of the Fletcher mill, which
has developed into one of the largest establishments of the kind in the
country. The Fletcher Paper Company is capitalized at $200,000 and
is controlled by Frank W. Fletcher as president and Allan M. Fletcher
as secretary-worthy descendants of the founder of Alpena.     The
Fletcher mills make sulphite, as well as express and manila paper.




474


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The year 1899 also witnessed the building of the Michigan Veneer
works and the organization of the Alpena Portland Cement Companyin reality the founding of these industries at Alpena-the latter especially one of the chief sources of her manufacturing prosperity.
Another industry which has been a constant source of material
growth since the first settlement of the locality is that founded on the
fisheries of Thunder bay. Their annual output which passes through
the port of Alpena amounts to fully $200,000 and about 200 men depend
upon the industry for their support.
The leading banks of Alpena are the National and Alpena County
Sav ings.  The origin of the Alpena National Bank has already been
note(l in the founding of the Exchange Bank of George L. Maltz &
DETROIT & MACKINAC RAILWAY STATION, ALPENA
(Comip)any in April. 1872. J. P. Whiting, the company. soon withdrew,
and AIr. lMaltz carried the enterprise alone until the bank was chartered
nderc its l)resent name December 7. 1882. Of the original incorporators William 11. Johnson. president, is the only one who has retained
his connection with the institution, four having died and two withdrawj. The first officers elected in December, 1882, were George L.
Maltz. president; Charles W. Richardson, vice president and John C.
Comfort, cashier. Mr. Maltz was succeeded as president by Frank W.
Gilchrist and he by Mir. Johnson, the present incumbent. John C. Confort has been cashier since the organization of the bank under its present
name. Frederick H. Orcutt is vice president. In September, 1911. the
(capital surplus and undivided profits of the Alpena National Bank
amounted to $104,961 and its deposits to $968,446. These figures tell
the story of good management and stability.
The Alpena County Savings Bank. of which Patrick Culligan is
president. has a capital of $100,000 and a surplus of $150,000, and is
conlsidere(d one of the strongest financial institutions in Northern 5Miehigan.
OUTSIDE OF ALPENA CITY
Ossineke, twelve miles south of Alpena on Devil river and the Detroit & 5Mackinac line, is one of the oldest settlements of the county.




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476


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


It was known, in the early years, as Devil river settlement. In 1844
Birtch & Eldridge of Detroit, built a little sawmill at this point-the
pioneer mill on the Huron shore-and in the following year Isaac Wilson and his family located there, Mr. Wilson to operate the mill and
engage in lumbering. The family claims to have constituted the first
permanent household between Bay City and Thunder Bay island, the
latter being occupied by a few fishermen who usually left in the fall
for their homes in Bay City and Detroit. For six weeks the Wilsons
lived in that wilderness alone, but in November a boat crew was driven
ashore at Devil river and the members made their home with the Wilson family during the winter; but settlers did not rush in to occupy the
lands. In the fall of 1847 David D. Oliver purchased the saw mill, which
was still all that was permanent about the settlement, and for years
thereafter he was its leading settler. In 1851 he purchased several
tracts on the river. In 1867 Mr. Oliver built at Ossineke one of the
largest sawmills outside of Alpena, and by 1870 there were a number
of families on the site. But the place did not even fulfil its earlier
promise. and there are now in operation there a sawmill and several
general stores which supply a fair country trade. Ossineke is also quite
a church center.
Hubbard Lake, at the foot of the lake by that name, just within Alpena county, is a few miles southwest of Ossineke upon which it depends
for its shipping facilities. The former has a saw and shingle mill, gets
considerable of the tourists' trade in summer and is the center of a good
live stock and grain country.   It has daily stage connections with
Ossineke.
Dafoe is a small settlement on the Hillman branch of the Detroit &
Mackinac line twelve miles west of Alpena. A sawmill, a few stores
and a prosperous surrounding country are the features of the locality
mainly in evidence.
Flanders is four miles from Dafoe, its nearest shipping point, and
three miles from Hillman, just over the line of Montmorency county,
its closest banking town. There is a sawmill at Flanders and it is in
the center of a district which promises well for the farmer and is still
actively worked by the lumberman.




CHAPTER XXI


PRESQUE ISLE AND MONTMORENCY COUNTIES
STRONG FEATURES OF PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY-LAKES AND STREAMS-PROSAIC FIGURES-INDIAN LORE-INTRODUCTION TO WHITE SETTLERSFOUNDING OF ONAWAY-REMARKABLE GROWTH-ROGERS, THE COUNTY
SEAT-MILIERSBURG-POSEN-MONTGOMERY COUNTY-NATURAL ADVANTAGES-POPULATION AND VILLAGES.
Presque Isle county has over fifty miles of shore line on Lake Huron
and lies between Cheboygan county on the northwest and Alpena county
on the southeast. It was successively attached to Cheboygan and Alpena counties for judicial and civil purposes, as has been noted in preceding pages.
Presque Isle county extends forty-two miles from east to west and
about thirty from north to south. It still contains a large acreage of
hardwood timber, which is being industriously manufactured into lumber, staves and more finished products, and large tracts which have
been cleared of their forests and are ready for the farmer, the fruitraiser and the stockman.
STRONG FEATURES OF PRESQUE ISLE COUNTY
Although the forests of the county are fast disappearing it is still
one of the best wooded districts in Northern Michigan, abounding in
maple, beach, basswood and birch. The soil ranges from the rich clay
of the hardwood lands to the light sandy variety of the pinelands. The
surface is generally rolling. Most sections do not require artificial drainage and can be worked early in the spring or late in the fall. The wild
lands are strong sustainers of cattle and sheep, while the cultivated
and more choice tracts raise abundant crops of clover and alfalfa, as
well as potatoes, turnips, onions and other vegetables, and every variety
of fruit.
Well improved farms are already seen in every direction. The
county is thoroughly watered by numerous streams and lakes, is traversed its narrow way by the Detroit & Mackinac Railroad, and is therefore favored naturally and by its transportation conveniences, as a
livestock and produce country. In fact, one of the largest stock farms
in the state is located at Onaway, its only city and large center of population in the northwestern part of the county. It is destined to progress
477




478


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


in the dairy industries, one of the latest establishments at Onaway being
a large creamery.
The county, especially along the Huron shores, is underlaid by rich
deposits of limestone. There is a large quarry near Rogers, the seat of
justice and the largest village in the county, and great hopes are enLtertained for the new town of Calcite which is expected to be developed on
the strength of the limestone industries. The other incorporated villages of Presque Isle county, to be hereafter described, are Millersburg
and Posen, on the Detroit & Mackinac line, the former in the northwestern and the latter in the southeastern part.
LAKES AND STREAMS
Presque Isle county, with its beautiful lakes and its network of
streams flowing into the headwaters of Cheboygan and Thunder Bay
rivers, or forming little independent systems along the Huron shore; with
its fine stretches of country almost from the pure hand of nature-Presque Isle county, thus endowed by nature, also enjoys those artificial auxiliaries which make it an ideal resort for the sportsman and the hunter
who is after real enjoyment and vitality unmixed with the "frills" of
stiff conventionality. Long lake protrudes from  Alpena county and
stretches half its length of twelve miles in Presque Isle county. It is
from half a mile to two miles in width, with beautiful sandy, gravelly
or rocky shores bordered by wood-covered hills and seared with deep
ravines and still beyond a rich farming country. It is mainly Fed by
subterranean springs and besides its natural stock of pike and pickerel,
and other varieties, the fish hatchery at Alpena annually plants in its
cool waters twelve million black bass, trout and perch. IP the forests
beyond the lake and the inland county at large are the haunts of deer,
bear, fox, partridge and all kinds of game. The lower, or southern
portion of the lake, bordered with grassy banks and lawns, is the favorite section for cottage sites, summer homes and hotels. Grand lake,
about the same size as Long, is wholly within Presque Isle county,
sixteen miles north of Alpena, and about half that distance from the
railroad.  Its shores and the scenery around are more harmonious
than the charms of Long lake and as the region is more isolated the
angler and sportsman are more certain of "results."  Grand lake contains nineteen islands varying in size from  Grand island, two miles
long, to Round island with its acre-area. There are numerous cottages
and inns on the gently sloping shores of Grand lake, those to the east
being most generally occupied. Visitors, who are particularly given
to fishing, are apt to frequent the outlet into Lake Huron, where they
may sometimes get a chance at a big sturgeon venturing thus far from
the deeper waters.
Everywhere in the county are found "fishable" lakes and streams
and "huntable" forests and fields, but among the most notable chain
of lakes is that reached from Millersburg and La Rocque station, or
Hawks postoffice. These include Barnhart lakes, Lake Nettie, Lake
Emma and Drum, May, Shoepac, Lost and Rainy lakes.
Five miles north of Onaway is Black lake, nine miles by five, a




AM


NATURE AND MAN AT PRESQUE ISLE LAKES




480


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


fine body of water whose shores are heavily timbered and backed by
picturesque bluffs. A branch railroad runs to the lake from Onaway,
but the line is mainly used for lumber, fish and other freight. There is
one hotel on Black river a few rods from the lake, and other permanent
accommodations will be provided as tourists learn of the healthful enjoyments to be amassed in this splendid country.
In short, nature has given Presque Isle county one of her most valuable assets in her varied scenery, her clear, pure waters and her ozoneladen and health-giving atmosphere.
PROSAIC FIGURES
Dropping to prosaic figures, the reader may learn from the national
census bureau how Presque Isle county has advanced in actual population for the past twenty years.


Civil Divisions


1910     1900    1890


Allis  township...........................  546
Bearinger  township.......................  244
Belknap  township........................  1,255
Bismarck  township.......................  285
Case township, including Millersburg vil.....  866
Millersburg  village...................  519
Krawkow  township.......................  455
M etz  township...........................  700
Moltke  township.........................  506
North  Allis  township.....................  455
Oequeoe  township........................  397
Onaway  city.............................  2,702
W ard   1.............................  952
W ard  2.............................  1,235
W ard   3.............................  515
Posen township, including Posen village.... 1,296
Posen   village........................  263
Presque  Isle  township....................  105
Pulawski  township.......................  459
Rogers township, including Rogers village...  978
Rogers  village.......................  705
Totals................................11,249


554
198
1,108
273
1,291


223
744
113
246


493     385
571     267
511     465
1,204


1,681
137


],259
219


800     766
544     431
8,821   4,687


In 1911 the county authorities assessed the property of Presque Isle
county for purposes of taxation and fixed upon the following valuation:
Real estate, $2,474,507; personal property, $561,369.
INDIAN LORE
The following, written in 1909 by the late Frederic Denny Larke,
covers the subject so well that it is republished:




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


481


" Presue Isle county has, as far as tradition reaches, always been held
by the aboriginal Indian as sacred ground, or at least that portion of its
shore frontage starting from the mouth of the Waw-waugh-waugh-que-oc
(now spelled Ocqueoc), which empties into Hammond bay, Lake Huron,
sixteen miles north of Rogers, to Swan river, which empties into Lake
Huron four miles south thereof; within the memory of the writer a large
Indian burial ground was well kept up forty years ago at the mouth of
the Ocqueoc, little houses made of smooth lath-like pieces of wood and
})irch bark surmounting the graves; many interesting relies have recently been unearthed there. Ten miles further down the shore towards
Rogers in fact only six miles away from it, exists the Sliding Banks
and Sacred Rock. The Sacred Rock is a huge boulder of conglomerate stone brought down from the Lake Superior country in the glacial period and is as big as a small house; it is deposited at the water's
edge, the Sliding Banks rising above the waters of Lake Huron in the
rear of the Rock something near eighty feet in height; these banks are
composed of clay and sand apparently inter-mixed in such a manner
that the banks are constantly shifting and almost perceptibly sliding
into the lake; even in the writer's time, the Indians coming down the
shore always offered sacrifices of dogs, etc., upon this rock and left other
offerings. The history of the Sacred Rock is this: Ages ago, where the
rock now stands was the boundary line between the hunting grounds of
two Indian tribes; the chief of one was exceedingly aggressive and frequently trespassed upon the preserves of the neighboring tribe, and in so
doing had caused much trouble and bloodshed to follow these incursions;
at last the chiefs of the two tribes met (but otherwise alone) when the
one as usual was trespassing over the border and an altercation ensued
which would probably have again resulted in a bloody war between the
conflicting tribes, but Kitchie Manitou, the Great Spirit, who was up
Lake Superior at the time, became disgusted with both of them, seized
hold of the Sacred Rock and hurled it down, crushing both the chiefs
beneath its immense weight, which was so great that the banks above
the beach have been sliding and trembling ever since-hence the rock
became an object of worship to the Indian races.
" The mouth of Swan river, southeast of Rogers, was also considered
a sacred spot, probably because a tide sets in at intervals every day
and logs or boats launched upon or thrown into the stream will float
against the current of the river; in the writer's time, Indians brought
down an old squaw, who was aged and crippled, and drowned her in
the mouth of Swan river, she appearing to he perfectly contented to
be immolated in this manner, it being, as the writer was led to understand, the usual custom in such cases."
INTRODUCTION TO WTHITE SETTLERS
The outside world -was introduced to the territory embraced by the
present county through the state surveyors who commenced to run
their lines over it in the spring of 1840. David D. Oliver, identified
with Alpena county mere particularly, was one of the party, who thus
describes the opening up of the Presque Isle district: "The writer
Vol. I-31.




482


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


was employed by John Hodgson as an assistant surveyor or compassman. Hodgson had the subdivision of towns 31 and 32 north and from
range 4 east to 87.7 Lake Huron shore. We all had a jolly time on
the boat going up (from Detroit) and were all landed with our supplies at Presque Isle. This was a wooding station for the steamboats
going round the lakes and the only inhabited spot at that time between Mackinaw and Bay City. It was also the first fishing station
on Lake Huron shore north of Saginaw bay. The fishermen used hooks,
seines and gill nets and had considerable trade with the boats in furnishing them with fresh fish. After stopping a few days at Presque
Isle to make arrangements for leaving the supplies and packing them
-which supplies were to be carried on the back of men and horsesthe several parties started for their work." The work referred to was
especially the survey of the lands around the mouth of the Thunder
Bay river to the south, in which Mr. Oliver was engaged for some
time under Mr. Hodgson. "After finishing up the survey work," he
continues, "the party went out to Presque Isle. Here the writer hired
with Sylvester Sibley to help him finish up his surveys. The improvements at Presque Isle were owned by Lemuel Crawford, of Cleveland,
Ohio, and consisted of a dock, store and fr.ime dwelling, a log barn
and a few log shanties. They were all built on Uncle Sam's land
which had not yet been surveyed, and therefore it was thought advisable by those in command that they should be on the best of terms
with the surveyors. As the survey of the harbor and its vicinity was
assigned to the writer, he was treated with very kind regard by the
proprietor and his people. Here the writer made the acquaintance of
Simeon M. Holden, William   Cullings and Robert McMullen.   They
were mechanical geniuses and well calculated to live in and promote
the growth of a new country. Mr. McMullen had the greatest variety
of talent, working when occasion demanded in the blacksmith shop,
carpenter shop, the cooper shop, at boat building and millwriting. Mr.
Holden later moved to Thunder Bay island, where he built the first
frame dwelling in Alpena county in 1846. He was the first permanent settler in the county, his occupation being fishing with gill nets.
After residing on the island a few years, he moved to where Harrisville is now located, where with Crosier Davison he built the first
sawmill in Alcona county. After working the mill a few years, he
sold his interest in the property, and moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan,
where he was murdered and robbed of five hundred dollars.
"It was late in the fall of 1840 when the surveyors finished their
work and returned to Presque Isle on their way home."
Settlement in Presque Isle county was neither rapid nor centered
for many years, the immigration into the Huron country gravitating to
Cheboygan and Alpena on either side of its territory. In 1869 and the
early seventies a number of substantial German settlers located in the
Shore sections, the birth of Rogers, the county seat, being of that period.
About this time Polish settlers also commenced to arrive in considerable
force.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


483


FOUNDING OF ONAWAY
But the county was not started on its modern highway of progress
until the early eighties had come into history and the nucleus of the
city of Onoway appeared as half a dozen houses in a forest clearing.
Among the first to select its site for a home was Thomas E. Shaw, a
man of liberal education then well along toward forty, who had lived in
Michigan since early boyhood and who had been obliged to relinquish
all professional ambitions and seek health in this northern country
of dense forests and pure air and water. 'It was upon his farm which
he located in 1881 that a large part of Onaway was platted. In August,
1882, School District No. 2 was organized. This embraced the site of
the village which was known as Shaw postoffice for years afterward.
Mr. Shaw was the first teacher, lining up a class of seven pupils in the
winter following the organization of the district. He was also the
first hotel keeper and became the first postmaster in 1883. He held
all the township and most of the county officers, founded the stock
farm which has helped make Onaway well known as one of the hustling communities of Northern Michigan, and built up both his health
and his fortunes.
Three years after Mr. Shaw's arrival came Merritt Chandler, a
Michigan lumberman who transferred his operations while still a
young man to Cheboygan county and the northern part of the lower
peninsula. In his explorations for the location of timber lands he
drifted into this part of the state and was so impressed with its advantages that in 1884 he built a residence at Shaw postoffice, around
which had sprung up a little cluster of houses. Mr. Chandler opened
the first general store there, using a part of his residence for the purpose, and in 1886 moved his family into the building. With the growth
of his business he provided a separate building for his store, and from
his enterprise was finally evolved the Onaway Mercantile Company.
In 1879 Mr. Chandler first engaged in the construction of state roads,
his first contract being the section from Petoskey to Presque Isle, seventy
eight miles. In payment for various works of this nature he was
ceded about 40,000 acres of timber lands distributed throughout the
northern countries, but mainly near Onaway. This was the basis of his
large and successful transactions both in hardwood and agricultural
lands which resulted in the founding of Onaway's industrial prosperity and widespread benefit to the entire county. Mr. Chandler's
means and influence were the chief forces which brought the railroad
to Onaway and built its opera house. He also erected the Chandler
House and has been the strong and reliable friend of churches and
schools. To complete the reasons which his friends have always advanced to claim for hinm the title "father of Onaway," he selected the
word from Longfellow's "Hiawatha."    As Onaway means "awake,"
no name could be more appropriate for this brisk little city.
REMARKABLE GROWTH
Onaway was incorporated as a village in 1899 and as a city in 1903.
It has set a mark for rapid growth among the towns of Northern Michi



484


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


ganl anid on titis point, it is only necessary to recall the census figures of
1900(, which gave its population as 1,204, and compare them with the
enuiteratioin of 1910-2,702. The  water works of Onaway were placed
in operation in AMay, 1902, shortly before its municipal incorporation,
and comprise two large reservoirs on a hill in the southwestern portion
of' the eity with a receiving reservoir at its foot, a well-built pumping
station and over two miles of main distributing pipes, and a mile of
minor pipes. The waterworks in themselves constitute a good fire protection, but, in addition. the city has a well-equipped and well-trained
STATE STREET, ONAWAY
voltuiiteer fire departinent. The plant, which also generates electricity,
is owned by the city.
Onaway has two grade schools, the larger-the Central schooleing ereceted in 1899-1900. In 1902 another building was put up in the
sane block. and since then a small ward school has been erected in the
southeast part of the district. Onaway is therefore thoroughly provided
with educational accommodations and the teaching corps of her public
school system is efficient and adequate. There is also a large parochial
school connected with St. Paul's Catholic church, a substantial building
which was dedicated in September, 1911.
Th'e echurehes which have been established at Onaway during the past
twenty-five years include the Baptist, Catholic, Episcopal, Friends,
AMethlodist and Adventist.
Du)e provision is also made for necessary amusements, recreation
and sociability, in the fraternal and benevolent organizations which have
sprung up; in the opera house and two public halls which have been
established.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


485


The material progress of Onaway has been mainly along industrial
lines, and from this point of view she is a solid, pushing little city of
mills and factories.  Most of her manufactories are founded on the
hardwoods of which the county is still too prolific. Her largest plant in
this line is that operated by the American Wood Rim Company, of
which E. J. Lobdell is president, its products being bicycle and automobile steering-wheel rims. The Lobdell & Churchill Manufacturing Company also run an extensive plant for the turning out of hardwood lumber. At Onaway are concerns for the manufacture of shingles, staves,
hoops and cooperage of all kinds; heading and planing mills; flour mills,
creamery, and foundry and machine shops. The city is the trading center for a large district, which also transacts its business through the
Onaway State Savings Bank and the Onaway State Banking Company,
each of which has a eapital of $25,000.
As has been intimated, Onaway realizes a fair item of business from
the summer travel which comes to her doors and passes through them
into the splendid country of lakes and streams in her immediate vicinity. Good judges have pronounced the Black and Rainy rivers as
among the best trout streams in Northern Michigan.
ROGERS, THE COUNTY SEAT
This, the county seat, is a neat, quiet village of about seven hundred
people, incorporated as early as 1877. It has always been the seat of
justice and, as such, been the center of considerable trade and sociability. The Presque Isle County Savings Bank, with $25,000 capital,
provides accommodations in that line. A saw mill and a flour mill are
in operation and both lumber and fish are shipped in small quantities.
Its nearest railway point is Metz, a station on the Detroit & Mackinac
railroad about twelve miles south with which, however, it has daily
stage connections. In and around Rogers are large deposits of cement
and chemical stone.
Trout river flows into Lake Huron one mile north of Rogers and
Swan river into it four miles south; both streams are the haunts of the
gamey rainbow trout which have been planted therein. A dozen little
lakes and streams within an area of ten miles are alive with fish and
small game, while the shore on either side of the city consists of gravelly
and sandy beaches.
A remnant of the Indian race who held full sway in Presque Isle
county until 1868 is now living a few miles west of Rogers on the
Ocqueoc river, and Forty-mile lighthouse and foghorn station are six and
a half miles north.
IILLERSBURG
Millersburg, which dates its incorporation from  1901, is situated
on the Ocqueoc river and the Detroit & Mackinac line, eighteen miles
southwest of Rogers, the county seat, and exactly midway between Alpena and Cheboygan. With a population of over five hundred people,
it has saw, planing, lath and shingle mills, and is somewhat of a ship



486


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICIIGAN


ping station for lumber, ties, posts and poles, grain and produce. A
graded school, a bank and three churches, as well as a number of general stores and business houses, are other local features worthy of mention.
POSEN
Posen, the only other village in Presque Isle county which has been
dignified (1907) by an act of incorporation, has nearly three hundred
people. It has been settled mainly by thrifty Germans and Poles, as
has the surrounding country through which is a sprinkling of thrifty
farms. Posen, with its bank and several small mills, is the trade and
shipping center of a considerable district.
IMONTMORENCY COUNTY
This is one of the interior counties of Northern Michigan whose settlemnent is of coimparatively recent date. Its county seat, Atlanta, is
almost in its geographical center, almost equidistant from its two nearest
railroad points-Hillman in the northeast, the terminus of a branch of
the Detroit & Mackinac railroad, and Lewiston in the extreme southwest, on the Twin Lakes branch of the Michigan Central. The population of the county is less than four thousand, it having increased only
a few hundred within the past ten years.
Montmorency, however, is a beautiful county of lakes and streams,
which are becoming favorite resorts of sportsmen and tourists, who are
seeking for fishing and hunting grounds which are of almost primitive
wildness and productiveness. The lakes are nearly all small and the
streams are the headwaters of the Cheboygan and Thunder Bay rivers,
which almost meet in the vicinity of Valentine, north of the center of the
(coiinty.
NATURAL ADVANTAGES
Montmorency county has the making of a productive agricultural,
horticultural, livestock and dairy district. The soil is of a diversified
clay, mostly of a sandy clay loam, with a clay subsoil that retains the
moisture to a remarkable degree and admits of cultivation from one to
two weeks earlier than the clay soil of other localities. The loamy soil
is warm and rich, producing rapid vegetation, and it is so easily handled
that to a man accustomed to heavy soils it hardly seems like work. The
clay subsoil holds the moisture and with this loamy soil the combination
is a guarantee to raise good crops of anything you undertake. It is
adapted to the cultivation of wheat and corn, rye, barley, oats, peas,
grrasses, potatoes, sugar beets, and the raising of live stock; admits of
cultivation from  April to November, and under no condition does it
become hard as does strictly clay soil.
Any section that will grow large timber can be depended upon for
agriculture and horticulture, provided the climate is favorable. People
coming into this country accustomed to see timber short trunked with




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


487


low branches, are alnazed when they notice the height maple and beech
attain in this region, long bodied with solid timber, and as one rides
along through thousands of acres of lands with heavy stumps showing
the hardy growth of tree life, all past experience proves that such acres
will produce abundantly the most valuable forms of vegetation. Red
clover, white clover and blue grass seem to spring up spontaneously
in tracts, for instance, which have been swept clear of the rankest of
the forest growths.  The region around Lewiston seems especially
favored as a grain and clover district, the corntry near Hillman being


-~a- -~ wg"
-i
 Bg:t
i
L
B
j


A MONTMORENCY COUNTY TROUT STREAM


more thickly wooded. The pea crop is also becoming a factor in the
agricultural wealth of the county. Sheep and angora goats are coming
animals in the livestock industry. With time, Montmorency county
will be a good producer along all the lines of agriculture and
horticulture.
POPULATION AND VILLAGES
In the matter of population progress is shown in the United States
census figures, as follows:


Civil Divisions


1910     1900    1890


Albert  township...........................  882
Avery township............................  182


827      142




488


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Civil Divisions
Briley   township...........................
Hillnan township, including Hillman village..
Hillman village............................
Montmorency  township.....................
Rust  township.............................
Vienna  township...........................


1910    1900
563     417
834      819
411      253
500     445
470      371
324     355


1890
338
535
177
203


Totals...........................             3,755


3,234   1,487


Ilillman, the largest center of population in Montmorency county,
is a village which was incorporated in 1891, situated, as stated, on the
Hillman branch of the Detroit & Mackinac railway, of which it is the
present terminus. Its natural location is at the junction of Gilchrist
and Brush creeks with the main channel of Thunder Bay river. Hilliman is sixteen miles northeast of Atlanta, the county seat, with which
it is connected by daily stage lines. The village has its own electric
light and power plant, by which several small mills are operated. A
bank and several general stores, with a fair array of residences and
four churches, constitute the main features of the village outlook.
Atlanta itself was incorporated in 1891, but owes its chief standing
to the fact that it is the county seat. It is a quiet little place, its comniunication with the outside world being maintained through daily
stages which run to Hillman, Lewiston, Flanders, Dafoe and Alpena.
Lewiston, on the east shore of East Twin lake, fourteen miles southwest of Atlanta, is a thriving station on the Michigan Central's Twin
Lakes branch, with a fine farming and livestock country around it.
Its graded school, bank, electric light and water plant, well-stocked
general stores and two churches, tell the story of an intelligent, prosI)erous, progressive community.




CHAPTER XXII


OTSEGO AND CRAWFORD COUNTIES
OTSEGO'S IPRODUCTS OF THE SOIL-POPULATION-SETTLEMENT OF THE
COUNTY-OTHER PIONEER ITEMS- GAYLORD-VANDERBILT-CRAWFORD
COUNTY - POPULATION - GRAYLING.
Otsego county occupies the highest lands of the great central plateau
of Northern Michigan, comprising the main watershed which sends the
headwaters of the Cheboygan river toward the north, of the Au Sable
toward the east and the Manistee toward the west. Its area, although
there are only nine organized townships in the county, is equal to fifteen
regular-sized townships.
The Michigan Central runs along through the divide west of the
central part of the country, throwing out a large spur to the southeast
and northwest, and the western townships are further accommodated
by the Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena railroad, the present terminus of
which is the second-named, the county seat. Outside of Gaylord the
only incorporated village is Vanderbilt, in the northern part of the
county; but Elmira, in the northwest, on the Boyne City, Gaylord &
Alpena line, and Johannesburg in the southeast, on the Michigan Central, are growing settlements. Waters, Otsego lake and Salling's, south
of Gaylord, are also stations on the Michigan Central.
OTSEGO'S PRODUCTS OF TIIE SOIL
The soil of Otsego county is fertile and dependable, having been
originally covered by a heavy growth of hardwood, which has been largely
removed by the demands of various industries. On much of the land
placed on the market for farming purposes sufficient timber is left to
go far towarm meeting the purchase price, and many of the farmers
still make considerable money by cutting and hauling wood to nearby
towns.
Otsego county is especially the home of the Michigan potato, and the
position it occupies in the produce markets of the country is largely due
to the farmers of this section of the state. It is no uncommon sight to
see twenty-five hundred bushels of potatoes in one cellar at Gaylord.
As stated by a resident of the county: "Usually the first crop raised
from new land is potatoes and this is done sometimes without even
plowing the ground. After the potato crop has been dug, the ground
is dragged and seeded down. Then two or three crops of hay are taken
489




490


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


ofi. After the expiration of this period nearly every stump can be
pulled with a team, and those too solid to be pulled are dynamited.
So at the end of four years at the longest, the land is free from stumps,
Ihas a good sod to turn under, and is in fine condition to grow any kind
of a crop. Beech and maple stumps are short lived. The first crop of
potatoes will pay for the land many times over. Then follow with two
hay crops, which always bring a good price in this section, and the
larjd can be stumnped at small cost. There are no pine stumps, oak
grubls or hazel brush to contend with in this county."
In a word, virtually all the stump land in Otsego county can be
profitably planted to potatoes, so admirably adapted are both soil and


I ~ ~ `


ENJOY A HOME OF YOUR OWN


climate to their growth, and this, notwithstanding that the digging on
such tracts has to be done by hand instead of by the modern potato
di(gger.
Onions, next to potatoes, are probably the best crop for the Otsego
(ol!,nty farmer, but all roots and vegetables do well. Winter wheat,
oats, clover and alfalfa also do well, and while little has been done in
t'ruit-raising, much of the land will undoubtedly be devoted to orchards
and( berry gardens.
POPULATION
The increase in population in Otsego county, and its present distributioll, are illustrated by figures of the national census bureau:


(ivil Divisions


1910     1900    1890


lagley township, including part of Gaylord village...............................1,420
(Gaylord  village  (part of)................   891
Total for Gaylord village in Bagley and Livingston  townships.................... 1,538
Charlton  township.........................  462
Chester  township..........................  323
orrwith township, including Vanderbilt village. 1,085
Vanderbilt  village.......................  523


1,325     689
766     253


1,561
176
325
1,090


661
149
177
699




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


491


Civil Divisions                            1910     1900    1890
Dover  township...........................  598  354    158
Elmira  township...........................  604   658     561
Haynes  township..........................  296    254     165
Livingston township, including part of Gaylord
village..............................1,361  1,506   1,033
Gaylord village (part of)................. 647    795     408
Otsego  Lake township......................  403   487     641
Totals................................ 6,552  6,175   4,272
SETTLEMENT OF THE COUNTY
The geographical situation of Otsego county, midway between the
Grand Traverse region and the Lake Huron shore, and its physical
location near the headwaters of the Manistee and Au Sable rivers, or
the great east-and-west system of waterways through Northern Michigan-these advantages determined the permanent settlement of this
section of the state. From the first the lake port fixed upon as its eastern
outlet has been Alpena. the terminus of the old state road and the ultimate terminus of its east-and-west railroad line.
The early details of settlement are narrated by William H. Smith,
in the columns of the Otsego County Herald and Times, and are reproduced without comment. He says: "Otsego county in the spring of
1868 was an untrodden wilderness, the permanent home of wild beasts
and the temporary home for three or four months during the winter
of a few trappers, who resorted here for the purpose of trapping mink
and other small fur animals, reported to be very numerous around
the headwaters of the Manistee and Au Sable rivers. In April, 1868,
A. A. Dwight, the pioneer lumberman of this county, fitted out a small
expedition in Almont, Lapeer county, consisting of six men and a foreman, and one yoke of oxen. This crew literally hewed their way to the
borders of what is now known as Crooked lake, along a hunter's trail,
and commenced to open up the forest, building log cabins, etc. It does
not appear from all accounts that a great deal was done in the way of
farming that first season. Of course the difficulties were great and
many, the men were forty miles as the road ran from their base of
supplies, Spencer Creek on Torch lake, and we are informed that much
of their 'toting' was done on the back of an ox. Sometime along towards winter they folded their tent like the Arabs and silently stole
away in disgust, and the settlers at the west end of the route felt sadly
disappointed at the supposed failure of Mr. Dwight to establish a new
rendezvous for needy homesteaders, when in want of a few days work.
"In the spring of 1869, Charles S. Brink arrived with a crew of
fourteen picked men, and that summer, although the wettest summer in
a number of years, there was accomplished the clearing of twenty-five
acres, all of which was put into crops, but early frosts ruined much of
it. In September, 1869, the Torch Lake & Alpena state road was surveyed and extended fronm the farm to the center of section 25-29-3,




492


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


where a camp was established and operations conducted for clearing the
river for log driving in the spring. The difficulties of this undertaking
can be better understood when you are informed that snow began to
fall on the 11th day of October and not only stayed on the ground but
continued to increase in depth every few days. A dam was built at
the outlet of Chubb lake and went out again with the first free head of
water. Towards the close of 1869 the snow was two and one-half feet
on the level and by March 15th there were fifty-two inches of it in the
woods and lumbering was seriously embarassed.
"The supply of the camp was another great task, the new state road
being under construction during the end of 1869 and into 1870 was very
rough and the snow continually falling, teams were hardly able to
supply the camp. I have omitted the fact that about the middle of
November Mrs. Brink arrived at the camp on Chubb creek, after a
most tedious journey along the old hunter's trail in a rickety sleigh, and
all the way through a driving snowstorm. The team giving out about
dark, the party were obliged to seek shelter from the storm in a little
bark wigwam   near a little lake and there to wait until relieved by a
team from the farm about midnight.
"Sometime in May the first log drive started, but as the dam was
inadequate, it only reached a point eight or nine miles below by the
road where the building of another dam was commenced, now called
No. 2. The drive was there abandoned and the crew adjourned to the
first of September next, leaving the mosquitos and flies in peaceable
possession. In the fall of 1870, No. 2 dam was strengthened and Nos.
3 and 4 built and the river cleaned for driving to the big forks of the
Au Sable. During the following winter another stock of logs was added
to those already in the river and in the spring the whole drive was successfully carried through to the mouth of the Au Sable. Lumbering
was again carried on the following winter, 1870-1, the farm at Crooked
lake at the time furnishing a part of the supplies.
"In the fall of 1872 the village of Otsego Lake was established, the
Jackson. Lansing & Saginaw railroad being at the same time under
construction. Buildings were erected and invitations extended to men
of families, under promise of the choice of a building lot, to remove to
Otsego lake and erect dwelling houses or rather cabins. Three parties
availed themselves of the offer and proceeded to build their cabins to
wit: George A. Finch, Adam Assal and Blackford Smalley, the latter
preferring to wait till spring before removing his family.
"The winter of 1872-3 was unusually severe, great hardship was
endured owing to the hasty erection of the cabins. The company's
boarding house was that winter managed by J. M. Groat and family.
On the 2d of February, 1873, an accident which might have resulted
fatally, but miraculously did not, happened by two of the men letting
a large tree fall across the cabin of A. Assal, flattening the roof, the
tree breaking and two of the pieces landing in the center of the table,
which was at the time being set for dinner. The family escaped with
a few slight bruises.
"Lumbering was carried on that winter at Otsego lake by Alfred
Stewart and at Chubb creek by C. S. Brink. About this time the Jack



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


493


son, Lansing & Saginaw railroad was completed as far as track laying
is concerned, to the north line of town 29-3, just to the south side of
tile sink hole and supplies arrived by train.
"A few settlers began to make their appearance with the completion
of the railroad to Gaylord during the summer of 1873, and I think that
Col. Dickinson, William H. Smith and Thos. C. Woodin were of the
numbler. '
OTHER PIONEER ITEMS
The first marriage to take place in Otsego county occurred April
18, 1875. The contracting parties were Miss Alindia W. Martin of
Elmira township, and Samuel H. Livingston of Livingston township.
They were married in Gaylord by Rev. John N. Wilson. The groom
was horn in Scotland and was twenty-nine years of age, and the bride
was a native of Michigan, and was seventeen years of age.
The first birth to be recorded in the county was that of Miss Vieva
S. Parmater, daughter of Dr. N. L. and Violetta Parmater, who was
born October 14, 1874, in Livingston township.
The first mill built in the county was erected at Berryville, by J. U.
Berry, in 1879, and the first threshing machine brought into the county,
in 1878, was owned by E. C. Bussett, of Elmira township. The first
mowing machine was owned by T. C. Worden, C. F. Davis and H. H.
Gilson, in 1886, and the first self-binder used in the county was owned
by A. Kelso of Elmira township, in 1889.
The Agricultural Society of Otsego County was organized in 1881
and its first fair was held in the open air on Courthouse square in Gaylord, in the autumn of that year. The first officers were: President,
J. P. Demarest; vice president, C. C. Mitchell; secretary, A. J. Taylor;
treasurer, Chas. S. Fuller. There were, all told, one hundred and
eighteen entries and $48 paid out in premiums.
GAYLORD
The first settlers located on the present site of Gaylord in 1874, and
the village was incorporated by legislative act in 1881. It was originally
known as Barnes.
The county seat has a population of about sixteen hundred; is the
center of a very productive agricultural country, the seat of a number of flourishing industries, the junction of the Michigan Central and
Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena railroads and altogether a neat, thriving
and substantial village. Among its leading manufactories are the Dayton Last Block Works, which turn hardwood timber into last blocks and
ten pins; the Gaylord Motor Car plant, manufacturers of a utility car
for merchants and farmers; the factory of the Gaylord Manufacturing
company, whose product consists of sleighs and large wheels for use in
the woods; and Jackson, Wylie & Co.'s stave mill. Saw and gristmills,
a foundry and machine shop and other manufactories must be named
before the list is complete. The Gaylord State Savings bank, with a
$25,000 capital, is the chief medium of financial transactions.




494


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Gaylord, as a corporation, owns its waterworks and electric light
plant. It has a modern graded school system of public education and
a central building which cost $27,000. The large brick courthouse is
a credit to the village and the county. Baptist, Catholic, Congregational
and Methodist churches are well established, and the strength of the
secret, social and benevolent societies, which have been organized for
years, is told by the comfortably and attractively furnished halls in
which meet the Masons, Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias. Behind
much of the progress and good fellowship of Gaylord is the Commercial
club, which never tires of "pushing any good thing along."
VANDERBILT
Vanderbilt received its village charter from the state legislature in
1901. It has over five hundred people; is a station on the Michigan
Central, eight miles north of Gaylord, and is the site of a handle manufactory and saw and shingle mills. The country around it is a choice
dairy section, of which it is the center of trade. Its banking facilities
are of the best. The village has a good union school and two churches.
Its streets and houses are lighted by electricity and it is, all-in-all, a
comfortable place in which to live.
CRAWFORD COUNTY
Crawford county comprises the southern portion of the great watershed of Northern Michigan which turns the head streams of the Manistee
and Au Sable rivers toward Lake Huron on the east and Lake Michigan on the west, and the main features of its early settlement are similar t t those of Otsego to the north. The lumbermen made the country
at first and they are still largely in evidence. Originally the greater
part of the county was covered with a heavy growth of white and Norway pine, maple, beech, birch and hemlock.
Crawford county is located in nearly the geographical center of the
north half of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The surface is just
rolling enough to be pleasantly diversified, but rarely hilly so as to
interfere with any kind of farm machinery. The Au Sable river and
tributaries, traverse all parts of the county, offering an abundance of
water, providing fine sites for live-stock ranches and, incidentally, furnishing some of the best trout fishing in Northern Michigan. A few
miles from Grayling, near the west line of the county, is one of the
natural reservoirs, or little lakes, from which issue the headwaters of
the Manistee.
The Michigan Central is the chief iron-way of Crawford county, the
only other line within its bounds being the Detroit & Charlevoix, which
operates about a dozen miles of road from Frederic to the northwest.
Grayling, the county seat, is the only incorporated village.
The soils of nearly one-half of Crawford county are composed of
gravelly loams and will produce every standard crop. They are often
spoken of as beech and maple or hardwood lands, but on much of this
character of soil the original growth was pine. Thousands of acres of




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                    495
these lands are now available for settlers. Another class of soils comprise the sandy loams, from which heavy growths of pine have been
removed and replaced by second growths. Clover, potatoes and all
kinds of root crops thrive therein. The so-called "plains" soil is the
home of the native grasses and the delight of stockmen, who are founding profitable cattle and sheep ranches in many sections of the county.
One feature of the soils of Crawford county is the comparatively small
area of swamp or lowlands, this being almost confined to narrow strips
along the streams, which, with proper drainage, can also be made
productive.
All of the Crawford county soils excepting the light sands are good
potato lands. Clover seed, although it has been raised but a few years
[Courtesy Northeastern Michigan Development Bureau]
ALMOST Too MANY APPLES
in this section, is now generally known as "the money crop."  Fruit
raising is making rapid strides, apples being especially prolific and
finely flavored.
Other features which enter into a proper estimate of Crawford county
are thus set forth in a booklet lately issued by the board of supervisors:
'Two hundred thousand people annually come to Northern Michigan
for health, rest and recreation, and Crawford county receives her share.
The high altitude of the county, on the very crest of the watershed of
the Lower Peninsula, precludes any possibility of malaria and undoubtedly contributes much to the bracing and salubrious quality of the air.
The forests of pine ani other timber undoubtedly do the same. Many
farmers, so unfortunate as to have invalids in their families, have located
here largely because of the climate and have found health for their
people. Here the wonderful health-giving qualities of the climate and




496


4HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


air are assisted by special opportunities for outdoor sport and recreation. The cold, clear spring water of the Au Sable river and tributaries
affor(ds the best brook-trout fishing in the country, and there are also
spring lakes stocked with black bass and other game fish. As far as
wild game is concerned, the great stretches of second-growth timber on
thle cut-over lands, afford better feed and better protection for deer and
other wild game than did the original forests, and they have held their


CRAWFORD COUNTY COURT HOUSE, GRAYLING


own in recent years in spite of the fact that hundreds are annually
shot )by settlers and sportsmen."
POPULATION
Thlie population of the county as shown by the figures of the United
States census bureau for the past three enumerations is as follows:


Civil Divisions


1910    1900     1890


Beaver  Creek  township......................  347
Frederic township..................        770
(rayling township, including Grayling village. 2,087
Grayling  village........................ 1,175
Maple  Forest township......................  471
Soutli  Branch  township.....................  259


316
228
1,716


170
260
1,558


484     316
199     106


Totals.............................,934 2,943  2,962




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


497


GRAYLING
Grayling, the county seat, was settled in 1872 and incorporated as
a village in 1903. It is a neat, well-built, busy place, the center of trade
both of a large produce region and a considerable lumber country.
Located on the main channel of the Au Sable river and at the junction
of the Twin Lakes branch of the Michigan Central with the trunk line,
Grayling has connection with the best lumbering regions of northeastern
Michigan and with the markets of the state north and south. The village conducts its financial operations through the Bank of Grayling,
whose responsibilities are estimated at $500,000. She enjoys thorough
systems of electric lighting and water supply and has a graded and wellorganized union school. Her handsome courthouse, neat opera house;
several churches-the Catholic, Danish Evangelical, Lutheran, Methodist, Episcopal, Presbyterian and Protestant Methodist-and the Grayling Mercy hospital, with its $25,000 building, all stand as evidences
of a substantial, social, moral, charitable and religious community.


Vol. 1- 32.




CHAPTER XXII I


ALCONA COUNTY
PIIYSIC \L ADVANTAGES-POPULATION-THE FIRST SETTLERS-LEADING
FISHERMEN-FOUNDERS OF HARRISVILLE —COUNTY ORGANIZEDEIHARRISVILLE —LINCOLN AND MIKADO.
Alcona is one of the picturesque counties of the Huron shore, whose
greatest development has never extended far inland. Her early settlers
were drawn to her territory because of the promising fisheries along
the shore, while the products of her western timber lands were largely
rafted down Hubbard lake or Wolf creek into the Thunder Bay river
and so on to Alpena, or down Pine and Au Sable rivers to Oscoda.
The eastern portions of the county are undulating and rolling, culminating on the Huron shore in high banks covered with grass and trees.
rlhis natural feature is especially pleasing at Harrisville, the county seat,
nating on the Huron shore in high banks covered with grass and trees.
The natural feature is especially pleasing at Harrisville, the county seat,
which overlooks the lake from a lofty green terrace.  Inland a few
miles are the pretty little hamlets and railroad stations of Lincoln and
Mikado, both also incorporated villages.
PI YSICAL ADVANTAGES
The southern portions of the county are more level than the other
sections, and are watered by the Pine river and its branches, while the
An Sable intersects the western townships. In the northwestern part
of the county are the sources of Wolf creek, an affluent of the south
branch of Thunder Bay river, which has its real source in the deep
waters of Hubbard lake in the northern portion of the county. In a
cluster of five lakes, sometimes called Twin lakes, about seven miles
from Harrisville. rises Pine river. But, although the lakes in Alcona
county are quite numerous. Hubbard is the only one of notable size. It
was named after a Mr. Hubbard. a popular member of the United States
surveying party which first came into this country. It is eight miles
long by four miles broad, surrounded by a well-wooded country.
On the eastern shore, at an elevation commanding a bird's-eye view
of the lake, there has long stood a weird monument of stone called the
"Indian Worship." Tt marks the spot where Se-don-i-ka-to, a chief of
the Chippewas, was said to be buried. It has long been held a sacred
spot by the Indian hunter and trapper, and by white men, too, who
498




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


499


brought offerings of beads and tobacco and left them there, until some
vandal violated it, pulled down the monument and dug up the grave.
Although the country around Hubbard lake is romantic, the shores
of this beautiful body of water are being sprinkled with unique cottages.
It is plentifully stocked with whitefish and its waters teem with bass,
pike, pickerel and perch, while the small streams which empty into it
are noted for trout.
Another noted trout stream is Black river, which enters Lake Huron
in the northeastern part of the county. Its attraction for sportsmen and


NORTH END OF HUBBARD LAKE


summer visitors has been largely responsible for the settlement and
postoffice of Black River.
Alcona county is chiefly indebted to the Detroit & Mackinac Railway
company for her transportation conveniences. Its main line passes
through Greenbush, Harrisville, Alcona, Black River and other Shore
stations, and a branch enters the county a few miles west of the trunk
and runs to Lincoln, while the Au Sable & Northwestern cuts across
the southwestern portion of the county to the northern part of Oscoda.
The county presents a great variety of soil, from the rich, alluvial
and sandy loam of the river valleys and lake regions, to the ordinary
clay and gravel of the hill districts. Up to date the main agricultural
advances have been made in the growing of garden seeds, peas, potatoes,
clover and apples. Thousands of acres of,hardwood and pine cuttings
have, within a few years, been transformed into fine farms and orchards.




500


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


POPULATION
For twenty years the county has been undergoing this transforming
process, which is not conducive to rapid advancement in population. A
study of the statistics of population furnished by the United States
census bureau is illustrative of this statement:


Civil Divisions


1910     1900    1890


Alcona  township.........................  330
Caledonia township........................ 616
Curtis township...............     599
Greenbush township.....................  234
Gustin township. including Lincoln village..... 555
Lincoln village......................... 122
Harrisville  City........................  444
Ward 1............................. 135
W ard  2.............................  133
Ward 3............................  176
Harrisville township....................... 764
Hawes township........................... 304
Haynes township.......................... 651
Mikado township. including Mikado village.... 652
M ikado  village..........................  100
Millen township..................     232
MAitchell township..........................  322
Total..................................5,703


1,039
386
487
245
602


597
190
364
264
697


403      987


852
291
791
410
117
68
5,691


936
973
318
83
5,409


THE FIRST SETTLERS
Thunder Bay island was a wooding station for steamers and a resort
of the fishermen of the Huron region for some time before actual settlement commenced along the shore of the mainland at Alpena, Devil's
River and points further to the south. Isaac Wilson, a "York state"
man, came to Devil River, or Ossineke, in August, 1845, to run the
tiny sawmill which had been built there the previous year by Birtch &
Eldridge of Detroit. He brought with him his wife and infant son,
and his family was the first to make a home on the Huron shore between
Thunder bay and Lower Saginaw bay. During the year of his residence at Devil River. various fishermen received shelter from the lake
storms at his hospitable little log house, and he became known and loved
all through that region.
Among the fishermen of Thunder Bay island who was not forced to
seek port at Devil River was S. M. Holden, also a New Yorker; but
his fishing boat, with himself. Robert McMullen and William Hill, in
the month of September, 1846, was driven by a northwest gale to the
high lands of Au Sable, afterward known as Springport, or South
Ilarrisville. about a mile south of the present city. At that locality.
although MIr. Holden and his men found no friendly shelter, they did
discover a tract abounding in excellent springs and large pine trees,




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


501


the latter especially desirable for fish barrel staves. "Believing that it
might prove good fishing. ground," says Charles P. Reynolds in his history of the county, "Mr. Holden resolved to occupy it. Accordingly he
at once moved his family with six months' provisions and lumber for a
shanty-his family consisting of his wife, two children and Miss Caroline E. Kenyon, his wife's sister. This sudden change of base was
effected on a small trading vessel then plying between Lower Saginaw
(now Bay City) and Thunder Bay island.
"The steamboat 'Detroit,' sailed by Eber B. Ward, made weekly
trips from Detroit to Mackinaw, carrying the United States mail. She
was the first steamboat that visited Alcona county for business, calling
for Mr. Holden's fish in the fall of 1846;-the old boat foundered off
Point Au Banks in deep water. Mr. Holden was successful in his new
fishing station and permanently located at the High Banks, and is therefore entitled to all the honors of being the first actual settler in Alcona
county proper. "
LEADING FISHERMEN
Mr. Holden added cooperage to his fishing business, the abundance
of pine around Springport suggesting the enterprise, which furnished
employment to a number of men who became settlers and assisted to
develop the country. The prosperous outlook at High Banks soon attracted other fishermen; among others, Crosier Davison, an Englishman,
who had resided at Birmingham, near Detroit.
In the fall of 1848 Mr. Davison came to Greenbush, then known as
the Sliding Banks of the Au Sable river. He extended his operations
up the shore, not only in fishing, but in the auxiliaries of the industry,
such as making nets, building docks and manufacturing barrels.
William Hill, a Canadian, had located at the Cove, now Alcona.
His business was also extensive and he was known along the shore as
the Commodore of the Cove. Messrs. Holden, Davison and Hill were
the leaders in the industries which made permanent settlements in what
is now Alcona county. The Harrises were of a somewhat later day.
FOUNDERS OF HARRISVILLE
In 1854 Messrs. Holden and Davison located and purchased the pine
lands and valuable mill privilege at Harrisville, built a small water mill
and commenced the first manufacture of lumber in Alcona county, which
Mr. Holden superintended personally. Mr. Davison closed up the fish
business that he might center his investments in pine lands, whose
rapidly increasing value offered better inducements to him than either
fishing or making lumber.
Already the land hunters were swarming on every stream, and many
were the races to the land office to secure choice tracts. Messrs. Holden
& Davison sold out their mill to Harris & Sons of the state of New
York, the new firm consisting of Benjamin Harris and his sons Levi O.
and Henry H., of East Bloomfield, Ontario county, who were both millwrights and carpenters. The new company had within themselves the
elements of success-integrity of character, genius and capital, and
with such eminent qualifications their success was assured.




502


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


The mechanical genius of Levi O. Harris was soon apparent in
transforming the water mill of one saw into a steam gang and siding
mIill, by using water and steam as motive powers; also by connecting
the reservoir ponds for storing logs with plank shutes for running them
to the mill with cheapness and dispatch. In every department of their
business admirable labor saving inventions were the admiration of all
b}eholders. The village and township were named after this enterprising firm, and a postoffice was established with L. O. Harris as postmaster, which was kept at their store-the first and only one, until 1866,
in the county.
At the death of their father, the sons continued the business with
unflagging energy. They built docks and purchased an interest in the
propeller "Genessee Chief," which made weekly trips between Detroit
and Saginaw. always calling at Harrisville-a great convenience to the
people. They cleared a farm on section 10 and encouraged settlers who
had ventured into agricultural pursuits with many acts of kindness.
To all they were kind, social and genial, and entered into the sports
and amusements of the settlers with an interest that endeared them to
the people, to whom Levi 0. frequently stood as physician, surgeon and
dentist. as well as legal advisor, often ministering to the necessities of
thle sick and needy. Devoting all their energies to the manufacture of
lumber —and both unmarried-it is not very surprising that they did
not seek to develop the country. Why should they clear cedar swamps,
pull stumps, lay out streets or make turnpike roads, in such a wilderness. for others? Their business was the manufactory of their pine
exclusively, intending when that was accomplished to enjoy the proceeds elsewhere.
In 1866 the Harris brothers sold out their extensive business. Levi
(. married and went into banking at Buffalo, New York, and Henry H.
continued the lumber business in Chicago, where he had opened a yard
in the interest of the company.
At this time the Harrises departed from their "village;" the cedar
swamps that bordered the shore of Lake Huron at Harrisville reached
to the water's edge in a dense mass, and the village was a mere notch
cut into it. The roads ran in zig-zag courses like cow paths in the
woods; the large mud holes were corduroyed with logs, but the smaller
ones were left to be shunned or waded through as best suited the convenience and taste of travelers, who seldom had any choice in the
matter. Good roads were made in winter to draw logs to the mill, or
to accommodate the few outside lumbering parties. A scattering few
had commenced to clear farms and found homes, and were nobly battling in the woods back of the swamps and sand hills. A state road had
been surveyed and cut out from Au Sable to Alpena, but it made a
detour west of the village and was practically of little benefit to anyone
in the township. A shabby excuse for a town road ran along the shore
connecting its sparse settlements on which the entire highway traffic
of the county had scarcely made a mark, as many of the settlers carried
their pork and flour on their backs. The mill and docks, with the
store. boarding house and a few rough board houses with stove pipes
for lightning rods, was the "Up-Town" of the village of Harrisville.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


503


"Down Town" was down the shore among the pine stumps and through
the land where the Exchange hotel greeted the travelers and ministered
to man and beast. The population consisted principally of the hands,
mostly single men from Canada and a few fishermen and lumbermen,
according to the weather and the season. Such was Harrisville as it
appeared to an eye-witness in the month of July, 1866.
COUNTY ORGANIZED
In the year 1868, it was determined to effect the organization of
the county and a committee consisting of Geo. L. Colwell, Edward
Chapelle and L. R. Dorr, of Harrisville, William Conklin, of Greenbush,
and E. R. Hayes, of Alcona, were appointed to secure that object at the
forthcoming session of the legislature. Robert White was selected to
attend the legislature, and as a member of the Third house to attend
to the interests of the proposed county. After much delay that object
was effected, and the county of Alcona and the township of Greenbush
were both organized. Harrisville was, of course, named as the seat of
justice. The first election of county officers was held at the old schoolhouse, April 5, 1869, and resulted in the choice of George W. LaChapelle for sheriff, Edward Chapelle for treasurer, George Rutson for clerk,
George Hamilton for register of deeds, J. P. Merchant for circuit court
commissioner and Reuben Z. Roberts for prosecuting attorney and
judge of probate.
The first meeting of the board of supervisors was held at the office
of the county clerk, May 8, 1869, and there were present, Lawrence R.
Dorr supervisor of Harrisville; Elijah R. Haynes, of Alcona; and William Conklin, of Grenbush. Mr. Dorr was elected chairman for the
ensuing year. George Rutson was appointed assessor of the unorganized.
territory of Alcona county, and Messrs. Dorr and Conklin were constituted a committee to select a site for county buildings.
At the same time it was ordered that bonds be issued to the amount
of $3,000 for the purpose of constructing a courthouse. The proposition was submitted to a vote of the electors of the several townships, at
an election held August 31, 1869, and the result was as follows: Alcona
cast fourteen votes, all in favor of the loan; Harrisville polled fortynine, of which forty-eight were for the loan and one against; Greenbush
cast six votes, all for the loan. An additional loan of $3,000 was afterward voted, at an election in April, 1870. The following June the work
was commenced under the superintendence of Joseph Van Buskirk, the
supervisor of Harrisville township, on a lot presented to the county by
Messrs. Weston, Colwell & Company. The plan of this building was
drafted by H. G. Rothwell, which, with the schoolhouse, which were
"admitted by competent judges 'to be in good taste and ornaments to
the village."
In the meantime the successors of the Harris brothers in the lumber
business, Weston, Colwell & company, commenced to improve the roads
of the vicinity, build new docks and breakwaters and do other things
to advance their interests, but which had the obvious effect of furthering the development of Harrisville and the sorrounding country.




504


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


This was also the period when the settlers awoke to the agricultural
possibilities of the region. A few farmers had made good in raising
crops of fine potatoes and other roots and had also met with encouraging results in the raising of forage and some kinds of grain. Most of
the farm clearings were just west of Harrisville. In September, 1866,
the first meetings to encourage agriculture were held in the old schoolhouse and were numerously attended. Out of these gatherings developed
the Alcona County Agricultural society in 1872, the first officers of which
were elected at the courthouse in the following year. Fair grounds
were afterward purchased at Harrisville and suitable buildings erected.
and today the county seat is the center not only of the judicial and
civil affairs of the county, but of its agricultural interests, which have
supplanted those of lumber and fish.
HARRISVILLE
The land composing the site of Harrisville passed from   Harris
Brothers to Weston. Colwell & Company, in 1866, when the former transferred their property and left the country. After the organization of
the county in 1868, the site increased in value and in 1870 the property
was surveyed and platted by H. G. Rothwell. The lumber company
donated the courthouse square and, as stated, Mr. Rothwell drew the
plans for the county buildings and completed them in 1870.
Harrisville was incorporated as a village in 1887 and as a city in
1905. It is a neat little place of about five hundred people, situated on
the main line of the Detroit & Mackinac railway, lighted by electricity
and provided with other modern conveniences. As the county seat it
has a good local trade and is now the center of a country of developing
farms, fruit lands and live-stock ranches. Dairying is also a coming
industry, and in the raising of garden seeds Alcona county is up to the
high grade of northeastern Michigan. A good creamery and large seed
house at Harrisville are evidences of the growth of both industries. At
the county seat are also a roller flour mill, but slight evidence that it
was ever a lumber town of considerable importance. In the vicinity are
a number of trout streams that furnish plenty of sport in the open
season and as the location of the little city is high and attractive, Harrisville is becoming the center of not a little summer travel and trade.
LINCOLN AND MIKADO
These are both stations on a branch of the Detroit & Mackinac railway, which runs a few miles west of the main line. They are also
villages, incorporated in 1907. Lincoln, formerly West Harrisville and
about seven miles west of the county seat, was settled in 1885. It is
still a very small settlement, having a bank, a grist and sawmill, and
being the medium of a fair trade with the adjacent country.    Two
churches are located at this point.
Mikado is twelve miles southwest of Harrisville and comprises a
blnk, several general stores, a cluster of residences and three or four
churches. It is sustained by a good country and an industrious farming community.




[('oultesy Detroit & Mackinac Rallway Company]
TROUT STREAM NEAR HARRISVILLE: ALSO, AN EX-RESIDENT OF IT




CHAPTER XXIV


IOSCO COUNTY
CENSUS FIGURES REVISED BY FIRE-INDUSTRIAL TRANSFORMATIONRIVERS AND LAKES- HISTORY OF AU SABLE-OSCODA VILLAGE-THE
AU SABLE-OSCODA FIRE-TAWAS CITY-EAST TAWAS-WHITTEMORE.
On Tuesday. July 13, 1911, when adjacent forest fires swept away
Oscoda and All Sable, those flourishing twin communities at the mouth
of the Au Sable river. one of the notable conflagrations of Northern
Michigan and the country had to be recorded in history. Of Au Sable
city not a business house remained and only a few small houses hanging on its outskirts. Oscoda's fate was hardly less pitiful; a church, a
schoolhouse and a few substantial buildings were left here, and, what
was better, a strong spirit of hope and determination. At this writing
(September, 1911), Au Sable is virtually a deserted city of ruins;
Oseoda's old site shows a number of new buildings rising, and her
former merchants and manufacturers are revisiting the place and some
of them arranging to rebuild. But the general result of that terrible
fire is to necessitate the reconstruction of losco county as to its present
status: for where, on the 10th of July, 1911, there was a busy, prosperous community of nearly two thousand people (for Oscoda and Au
Sable were really one), on the following day was a square mile or more
of flaming and smoking ruins, with half a dozen families mourning the
loss of dear ones. At the present time the combined population of the
two places will not exceed two hundred.
CENSUS FIGURES REVISED BY FIRE
From the figures of the United States census office compiled in 1910,
and of the county authorities, adopted by the board of supervisors on
June 26, 1911, should therefore be eliminated the facts relating to Au
Sable and Oscoda which are now "past history" in the most forceful
sense of the term.
Civil Divisions                             1910     1900     1890
Alabaster township.................. 533     464      372
An Sable city........................... 648    1,116    4,328
W ard  1.............................  213
W ard  2.............................  335
W ard  3.............................  100
506




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


507


Civil Divisions                              1910
Au  Sable  township.........................  599
Baldwin  township.........................  312
Burleigh township........................ 632
East Tawas city.........................1,452
W ard   1.............................  442
W ard  2.............................  599
W ard   3.............................  411
Grant  township............................  325
Oscoda township, including Oscoda village.....1,130
Oscoda  village..........................  864
Plainfield township........................ 821
Reno township............................    358
Sherman  township.........................  436
Tawas  City.............................1,061
W ard   1.............................  330
W ard  2.............................  472
Ward  3.............................  259
Tawas  township...........................  900
Whittemore city........................ 218
W ard   1.............................  100
W ard   2.............................  118
Wilber township........................... 328
Total.................................9,753


1900     1890
752      170
349      285
743     443
1,736   2,200
287      149 4.
1,349   3,848
1,109    3,593
330      200
364      358
280      168
1,228    1,544
980     805


268
10,246


299
15,224


Townships and Wards                              Equalized Value
Au Sable city, 1st, 2d and 3d wards............$  35,000
Au Sable township..........................  175,000
Alabaster  township.........................  170,000
Baldwin  township..........................  80,000
Burleigh township..........................  150,000
East Tawas, 1st, 2d and 3d wards.............  195,000
Grant  township............................  85,000
Oscoda  township...........................  165,000
Plainfield township.........................  200,000
Reno  township.............................  140,000
Sherman  township......................  125,000
Tawas city, 1st, 2d and 3d wards...........  150,000
Tawas township...........................   200,000
Wilber township...........................   85,000
Whittemore, 1st and 2d wards................  40,000
Total......................................$1,995,000
INDUSTRIAL TRANSFORMATION
The figures as to the changes in the population of Iosco county illustrate the effects of her decline in the lumbering and fishing industries,




508


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


with the cutting away of the forests along the Au Sable, the Tawas and
the Au Gres rivers and the almost equal depleting of the waters of the
upper Saginaw bay and Lake Huron. The forests and the fisheries
have gone, or at least declined to the diminishing point, and agriculture has not advanced with sufficient rapidity to regain the lost ground.
Like other sections of Northern Michigan, however, which formerly
bore dense timber growths, losco county has the vitality and durability
of soil which will eventually make her territory richly productive in
grain, grasses, fruit, vegetables and live stock. Material progress has
already been made in the raising of potatoes, sugar beets and apples,
and in the various lines of dairying. With this growth has come a
considerable trade in agricultural implements.
The manufacture of lumber in the county was almost paralyzed
with the burnincy of Oscoda and Au Sable, although there are still
several mills and factories at East Tawas and Tawas City. Salt is still
an important article of manufacture and shipment, and has been such
for some forty years. The first wells were sunk at East Tawas for
Grant & Son, about 1877, and much of the brine was carried in later
years to Oscoda and Au Sable where it was manufactured into salt.
Thus it became a county industry. But the importance both of lumber
and of salt in the early development of this section of northeastern
Michigan has already been set forth in the general chapter devoted to
these industries.
RIVERS AND LAKES
losco county is bountifully supplied with both lakes and rivers.
The broad and picturesque Au Sable takes its course through its northern districts. A popular and ideal trip for tourists and fishermen is
to follow the river from Grayling, Crawford county, to its mouth at
Oscoda, a distance of two hundred and fifty miles. The Au Sable &
Northwestern railway is within sight of its banks for much of the
distance, during which it passes across the northeastern corner of the
county. At times the river runs between banks two hundred feet high
and at one stretch, for two miles or more, it takes a straight course
through low meadow lands. Rainbow trout are the greatest attraction
for anglers in the Au Sable river.
There are few rivers in Michigan which can furnish greater or more
constant power than the Au Sable, and some twelve miles above its
mouth at the Big Bend, there is now in process of development a great
hydro-electric project. The enterprise, which is being pushed by the
Commonwealth Power company of Jackson, Michigan, involves the
construction of four or five massive dams at that point and a great
plant designed to distribute power and electric light, over a great conducting system, to numerous southern cities including Saginaw, Lansing and Jackson. So there is much more to that stream than its attractions, great though they are.
Van Ettan lake is less than two miles from the mouth of the Au
Sable river. It is about four and a half miles long and a mile wide,
incloses a pretty little island and its wooded shores are dotted with
rustic bungalows.




-IISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


509


At Long Lake station, in the northwestern part of the county, southwest of Au Salle river and on the Rose City division of the Detroit &
M[ackinac railway, is situated the national camping grounds of the
Christian churches, or Disciples of Christ.  The two hundred acres
comprising the grounds not only front Long lake on three sides, but
ecl )race seven tiny lakes.
But the ideal lakes in the county are known as the Tawas chain, and
a1 c reached by g1ood ioads from East Tawas. During the season of


A RUSTIC BUNGALOW


1903 a party of hunters decided they should have a clubhouse to which
they could go for fall shooting in November, also during the summer
months, at any timte, for rest, recuperation, fishing and a care-free life.
The land surrounding the head of Indian lake, nine miles from East
Tawas, was purchased and a large log club house erected; this spot
is at the head of a group of eight lakes. Later, members purchased
land and put up cottages and bungalows; today every foot of land
on the lakes is held )by private individuals.
A short distance southeast of the city limits of East Tawas, on the
shores of Tawas bay, is the finely improved health and pleasure resort
owned by the Detroit & Mackinac railway known as Tawas Beach.
It is a beautiful and diversified tract of woods, cottages, hotels, bathing beaches, pavilions, tennis courts and all the up-to-date conveniences
and luxuries attending out-of-door rest and recreation-all attractions
within walking distance, which are also accessible by a branch of the




SCENES AT TAWAS BEACH
I%




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


511


Detroit & Mackinac road. Tawas City is beautifully situated on the
opposite, or western side of the bay, which is the main water indentation of losco county.
The Tawas river, with its branches, drains the eastern sections of
the county, and empties into the bay through the Tawas chain of
lakes, while the branches of the Au Gres river water its western townships.
HISTORY OF Au SABLE
According to the undisputed narrative of James 0. Whittemore,
who wrote a history of the county in 1868, "the first settlement made
in [osco county was at the mouth of Au Sable river, to which the


CHRISTIAN CHURCH OUTING GROUNDS, LONG LAKE


valuable fisheries attracted attention at a very early day. Some time
previous to 1848 Curtis Emerson, of East Saginaw, and James Eldridge located the land at the mouth of the river, on both sides, covering
the site of the present village plat of Au Sable and also a part of the
property of the Backus brothers, on the north side of the river. BenjanmLin F. Pierce, of Bangor, Bay County, at that time had a trading
post or storehouse which formed the landmark, from which in March,
1849, Eldridge and Emerson set off and divided lots fronting on the
river to resident fishermen and others, who wished to purchase.
"The names of the seven original purchasers were Benjamin F.
Pierce, W. L. D. Little, James E. Smith, Enoch Olmstead, Hulett Duell,




512


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Patrick Perrott and Horace D. Stockman. These lots had from fifty
to one hundred and fifty feet frontage, and ran back at right angles
to the river to the back line of the government subdivision.  Subseqluently, Mr. Alberti was sent to survey and plat the new town, and
it was thought best to lay out the lots parallel with the lines of the
government survey. When this new survey was laid down over the
division lines of purchase which ran northeast and southwest, an innumerable amount of gores, triangles and fractional lots was found,
and a tangled network of lines ensued, which a Philadelphia lawyer
could not unravel. Happily, this plat was not recorded, and in the
spring of 1867, mainly through the judicious efforts of Francis B.
Smith, who owned a large part of the town, a new survey was made,
which left the ancient boundary lines undisturbed and which furnished a much more convenient and accessible arrangement and a better view of the'town from the river.
"The white fish and trout fisheries off the mouth of the Au Sable
river, constituted the main business of the town for many years. Many
thousand barrels were taken which found a ready market in the southerti States, through Cleveland, Sandusky and Cincinnati; the capture
of these required a large fleet of sail craft, and the curing and packing
gave employment to many coopers and other hands.     Thousands of
barrels of salt were required, and thousands of dollars worth of nets
and fishing apparatus as well as large supplies of provisions and clothing for men. The furnishing of these laid the foundation of the fortunes of Felix O'Toole, one of the most prosperous citizens of Au Sable,
whose fine block of stores, crowned with a public hall and Masonic lodge
rooms, forms one of the most conspicuous ornaments of the village.
Sometimes the demand was very great and prices were very high, and
the business was exceedingly profitable. At other times prices would
sink to the lowest mark, inspection would then be unusually severe,
and the profits would be on the minus side of the ledger. Mr. O'Toole
often made large advances to fisherman in the early fall and supplied
them with provisions and clothing for themselves and men during the
fishing season. The age of poetry fell into the night of tradition, and
the prosaic modern era came in, with the first shipment of machinery
for the sawmill of Messrs. Backus & Brother, the pioneers in the lumber business of Au Sable."
The postoffice at Au Sable was first established in 1857. Prior to
that time, the few letters addressed to people at this point were brought
from Tawas City or Bay City. The Tawas City office was established
in 1856. The mail carriers were authorized to get the mail and bring
it to people at Au Sable. The first postmaster was Elijah Grandy, a
fisherman. He kept the office in a small log house, where the O'Toole
block afterward stood.
The first school in Au Sable was taught, in 1864, by a Mrs. H-orr,
who took compassion upon the few children of the settlement and gave
them instruction in a private house.
In 1865 the first schoolhouse was built, the fishermen turning out
on stormy days and helping. It stood on the state road. It was a
primnitive affair. enclosed with hoards nailed up and down. and was




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


513


just high enough inside for Horace Stockman to stand up in without
damage to the top of his head. He was the tallest man in the region
round about Au Sable. The first teacher in the new schoolhouse was
Miss Jennie Doyle, now Mrs. Wm. Mackin, of AuGres.
Life in Au Sable in the early days had but few variations, although
the population was continually changing. The staples of those days
were whiskey and fish, but the citizens had little interest in the fish
except as articles of merchandise. It would be a difficult task indeed
to collect the names of all who at some time occupied a place in the
procession that came or went, as the case might be, between the years
of 1848 and 1870. The fishing grounds there were widely known, and
were sought by scores of men in pursuit of temporary and profitable
occupation. Many came here for a single season and never returned;
some student in pursuit of means to finish an education, or others who,
after a season, settled into permanent and profitable occupations. Then
the lumber industries developed until they completely overshadowed
the fisheries.
Au Sable was incorporated as a village in 1872 and became a city
in 1889.
OSCODA VILLAGE
In 1867 the firm of Smith, Kelley & Dwight, platted a tract of land
which they had recently purchased and named it Oscoda, and in the
following year built the first dock on this part of the lake. During that
year also the Parks mill was built, but it was operated only a short time.
The father of Oscoda was Edward Smith, one of the original owners
of the site, and later of the Gratwick, Smith & Fryer Lumber Company.
The original lots in Oscoda were sold subject to a condition that they
could not be used for the sale of liquor.
In 1872 the village received an accession, by the Loud property
being detached from Au Sable township and attached to Oscoda township. This gave Oscoda two churches, a schoolhouse, and the extensive
lumbering interests of Loud, Gay & Company, the latter of which
proved to be the main source of its growth. Oscoda was incorporated
as a village in 1885 and was operating under its original charter when
it met with the casualty of 1911. The splendid part played by the Loud
brothers in the growth of Oscoda and Au Sable is described in the pages
devoted to the lumbering operations of Northern Michigan.
THE AU SABLE-OSCODA FIRE
The awful conflagration of July 11, 1911, caused a feeling of widespread horror and pity. It is self-evident that the most authentic account of the disaster would be prepared by home authorities, and for
this reason extracts covering its main features are taken from the Oscoda
Press of July 28th following the fire:
"Fire, originating in adjacent forests and from sparks said to have
been thrown by the locomotives of both the Au Sable & Northwestern
and the Detroit & Mackinac railway lines, devastated the twin towns
Vol. 1-33




514


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


of Oscoda and Au Sable and that part of the community known as Au
Sable township, Tuesday, July 11. Business blocks, mills, factories and
residence houses were totally destroyed to the number of about 600.
Firtv lives were lost in the disaster:  Francois Clairinount, an aged
musician; William Batts, yardman at the Hotel Elliott; Samuel Rosenthal, lmer.hant; Jacques Lavoie, box maker, who died of burns received, and an unidentified peddler. Only for the,timely arrival of
the steamer Niko, of the Edward IIines fleet, Captain Meyer, of Tonawanlda, the loss of life would have been appalling.
'Two hundred and eighty persons, most of them women and children, \wetre helnmned in on the lake shore, to which wings of fire had
i                   >        -*      -          -.
i
SITE OF OSCODA AFTER FIRE OF 1911
already spread on the north and south with the van of the conflagration moving down between. All but strong swimmers would undoubtedly have perished had not the boat arrived.
"The forest fire whlich had been burning since the preceding Sunday in the neighborhood of the new chemical plant was the cause of the
burning of two houses in West Au Sable early in the day. Sparks
from the engine of the train known as the "Lincoln Stub" are said
to have been responsible for the fire which burned the H. M. Loud Son's
yards and plant. The big fire which bore down on Oscoda at four in
the afternoon in a great wall of flame, started near the Au Sable and
Northwestern tracks at the Barlow farm.
"Within five minutes twenty houses were ablaze on Main street,
and when it became evident that Oseoda was doomed men ran up and
down urging the women and children to hurry to the Lond Company,
south dock at which the steamer 'Niko' had just arrived.   In the




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


515


meantime residents of 'Shore Town' were flocking to the junction of
the docks at the water's edge. When the first crowd of women and
children reached the boat at the end of the pier, men already on board
were crying to the captain to 'pull out.' Eli Herrick, Peter McPhail
and others of Oscoda and Charles Jahraus of Tawas City, stood by the
lines declaring that they must not be thrown off until all who could
be saved were taken on board."
When the boat left the dock her cabins were on fire fore and aft,
and a disastrous panic was narrowly averted. The refugees could not
be landed at Tawas, on account of the heavy sea, and the boat finally
docked at Bay City.
"With the fire which had entered at the west end early in the day
quenched, Au Sable seemed safe from the devastation under way in
Oscoda, until the wind changed at 7 o'clock.
"Turning, like a horse at the starting line, the flames set a terrific
pace from the north to the south limits, the buildings sloughing before
them as babbit melts and settles in a heated crucible. The inhabitants
scurried before it like a herd of cattle amuck.
"'Out and far on the sands of the shore they ran helter skelter, void
of dignity, all but one. Judge Connine, of the Iosco county circuit, was
the last in retreat. Appearing and disappearing in the front volumes
of smoke, he walked, with an extended stride, but even in the vortex,
dignified. On the sands, in the cold north wind, social caste was lost
and rich and poor huddled together until sunrise in mutual discomfort.
"When the sun rose Wednesday morning there was no one alive
near the scene of the calamity but shuddered at the thought that hundreds of their neighbors had met a fearful death. When nightfall came
and only four bodies had been found a general feeling of relief was
mingling with sorrow for the unfortunate ones."
TAWAS CITY
Hon. Gideon O. Whittemore, formerly prosecuting attorney and
judge of Oakland county, as well as secretary of state, was the founder
of Tawas City, to whose site he came in June, 1854. In June of the
preceding year, as member of a lumber firm, he and his associates made
a visit of exploration to this region, located a tract of about 5,000 acres
of pine land and secured a front of about a mile on Tawas bay, which
then lay in the solitude of nature. On this trip they landed at the
lighthouse on Tawas Point, which had been completed in 1852, and were
hospitably sheltered by Capt. Colin Graham, then keeper. One solitary
hunter with his wife lived at the mouth of Tawas river in a rude
shanty, dividing his time between this point and another hut on Traverse lake, near what is called Sim's creek in memory of him.
The firm of G. O. Whittemore & Company purchased the site of
Tawas City, and erected the first saw mill on the bay in 1854. This
mill formed the nucleus of a small village, which was surveyed and
platted in 1855, and then included the so called Johnson property.
The owners of that tract being absent at that time, the recording of
the plat was neglected until July, 1866, when that portion owned by




516


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the Messrs. Whittemore, embracing some three hundred acres, was resurveyed, platted and recorded. Judge Whittemore, the founder of the
village, spent ten years of an active, useful and honorable life in this
locality prior to his death in June, 1863. He it was who took the proper
measures for opening the losco and Ogemaw state road, which brought
the city into communication with an industrious and thriving class of
settlers who had occupied the timber lands to the west. Lumber mills
were built, the fisheries encouraged, trade with the "back country"
developed, and, perhaps above all, the county seat was fixed and held
at this point.
In February, 1856, losco county was organized, with, provided that
the seat of justice should be located at Ottawas, or Tawas bay. Under
COURT HOUSE AND JAIL, TAWAS CITY
the iltpetus of Judge Whittemore's good work the little lumber settlenment on the bay evolved into Tawas City. Back from the shore, across
the creek, is a tract marked Union Square in the original plat. This
was at first designed for Courthouse Square, but the proprietors of
the village donated the high and pretty grounds overlooking the bay
upon which the wooden courthouse and jail, still occupied, were erected
in 1867. The supervisors and county officers prior to that year had
been accommodated in the second story of the Whittemore store.
The first election for county officers was held on the first Monday in
July, 1857, at which the following officers were elected: Sheriff,
Charles H. Whittemore, (son of Gideon); clerk, James 0. Whittemore,
(another son of Gideon); treasurer, Charles P. Haywood; register,
James 0. Whittemore, prosecuting attorney, Gideon 0. Whittemore;
probate judge, Gideon 0. Whittemore; surveyor, Henry Daggett. Mr.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


517


Haywood failed to qualify as treasurer, and Benjamin F. Pierce was
appointed in his place.
The two townships of Tawas and Au Sable were created by the act
which erected the county and their township elections were held at the
same time as the county election.
The first meeting of the board of supervisors was held November 9,
1857. There were present, Gideon 0. Whittemore, supervisor of the
township of Tawas, and James 0. Whittemore, county clerk. Charles
H. Whittemore was appointed county treasurer to fill a vacancy caused
by the failure of Charles P. Haywood, treasurer elect to file his official
oath and execute the bond required by law.
Thus the county machinery commenced to move, as had Tawas City,
largely through the efforts, good judgment and popularity of the
Whittemore family.
The postoffice established at Tawas City, March 11, 1856, was the
first one between Ray City and Mackinaw, and James 0. Whittemore
was the original incumbent. For several years after the office was first
established, the mails were delivered by sailboat from Bay City in summer, and by Indian carriers with dog sledges during the winter. In
April, 1869, it was made a money order office. The first international
order was issued August 10, 1872.
The first school in Tawas City was taught in 1863, by Miss Graham,
daughter of Capt. Graham, keeper of the lighthouse. The school room
was over the Whittemore store, the only public place of assembling in
the village. In 1868 the village schoolhouse was finished, and cost, with
the furniture, $5,000. The main building was 26x45 feet, and the two
wings, each 16x20 feet. The entire building was two stories in height,
with a belfry. It is situated at the outskirts of the village, on a spot
of high ground near the edge of the woods.
Tawas City was incorporated as a village in 1885 and as a city in
1895. It is at the mouth of the Tawas river on Tawas bay and has
one of the best natural harbors on the shore. The leading industry of
the place is the plant, or the car shops, of the Detroit & Mackinac railway which really stand on the boundary line between East Tawas and
Tawas City. The latter is also a shipping point of some importance
for potatoes and sugar beets; but its mainstay is the fact that it is the
county seat. Its bank is one of the chain controlled by Ealy, McKay
& Company. Tawas City has a good union school and one ward school
attended by over four hundred pupils, and Baptist, Methodist, German Lutheran and Evangelical churches.
EAST TAWAS
East Tawas was founded in 1864 by the lumber firm of Smith, Van
Valkenburg & Company. At that time the timber extended to the ridge,
and from that line to the bay shore, the ground was swampy, filled with
water courses and covered with brush and jack pines.
The firm of Smith, Van Valkenburg & Company, having failed to
acquire title to a site selected at Sand Point, purchased land on Tawas
bay and floated timber for a mile from Sand Point to their new site.




518


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Messrs. Bobst, Locke, Mathers and Lawler were the first to arrive, Mr.
Locke appearing with a yoke of oxen that he had driven from Alabaster, a little settlement on the shore five miles south which had been
growing around the plaster beds opened in that vicinity three years
before.
In June C. F. Adams came up from Alabaster and built a little
shanty where the Walker foundry afterward stood. On July 3d a
shanty for the mill boarding house was completed, and July 4th Mr.
and Mrs. Adams moved into their domicile. Work was begun on a more
commodious boarding house for the mill. Mr. Adams went at work on
timber for the mill, and S. W. Chilson drove piles for the mill foundation. Thus the village of East Tawas had its birth.
In September, 1868, Mr. James O. Whittemore outlined the progress
of the first two years as follows: "The first ground was broken in
July, 1864, by Messrs. Newman and Bobst, of the firm of Smith, Van
Valkenburg & Co., who then commenced the construction of their mill.
At that time the feasibility of building saw mills on the open shore of
Tawas bay was a question subject to doubt. The success of this firm,
however, demonstrated that point completely. Their mill was 50x124
feet, with additions for engine room, etc., and contained two gangs, a
large circular, lath, mill, etc., and had a capacity of 70,000 feet of lumber a day. In 1866 two run of stone were added for grinding feed.
In 1865 they commenced, and finally completed, a very extensive
dock, which serves both for piling lumber and as a boom for rafts and
logs behind it. The dock has front of 1,200 feet with a width of fortyfive feet. and is five hundred feet from the shore, with a pier to connect
with the mill. The logs for the supply of this mill come from the Au
Sable and Rifle rivers, principally. This firm, then known as the East
Tawas Mill Company, had also a large store twenty-six by fifty-nine
feet. which was quite handsomely fitted up with new shelving and
counters, and which also contained the postoffice. Above the store was
located an office and a public hall, about twenty-six by thirty-four feet,
which was used for religious meetings and for the meetings of the East
Tawas Lodge of Good Templars No. 535, containing about sixty members. The business of this company is superintended by George P.
Smith. who is conducting its varied details very successfully.
"The second mill erected was that of Messrs. Adams, Swaney &
Company, from Ohio, in 1867. This mill is of large size and contains
one large circular, edger, etc. This firm have a dock front of about
five hundred feet and obtain their supply of logs principally from the
An Sable river."
The salt industries of East Tawas, as have already been noted,
followed the establishment of her fisheries, her sawmills and lumber
trade, and they, in turn, gave way to more diversified manufactories
which sprung up in response to the demands of a growing, large and
more complex community. Her fishing interests are still large and a
remnant is left of the important lumber manufacture and trade of the
period from 1870 to 1890.
But East Tawas is no longer on the simple plane of a lumber town
and fishing station. The city is a modern, well built and attractive




74 P




1)ETROIT & MACKINAC RAILWAY CAR AND MACHINE SHOPS




520


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


place, and, next to Bay City and Alpena, the most important point
on the Detroit & Mackinac railway. The general offices of that company are divided between Bay City and East Tawas and her extensive
car shops, which employ over one hundred and twenty-five men, stand
on the line which divides the two cities-Tawas and East Tawas. The
superintendent of the shops is C. W. Luce, road master and master mechanic, H. T. Thomas, and assistant to the latter, A. G. Jackson.
East Tawas has a substantial trade with the "back country" and
is one of the leading shipping points on the Detroit & Mackinac line.
A branch of the Ealy, McKay & Company syndicate of banks, of which
John M. Ealy of Caro, Michigan, is president, provides the chief banking facilities of the city.
When East Tawas reached the advanced age of eighteen months,
the people felt that their letters, papers and valentines should receive
the consideration of the postoffice department, to the extent of providing a postoffice. In January, 1866, a petition with one hundred signatures was forwarded to the department, asking for a postoffice. There
were in the village at that time one hundred and fourteen persons, by
a careful and conscientious count. The prayer of the petitioners was
granted and a postoffice established. The first postmaster was Christopher C. Parker, who operated a portable office. He carried the mail
around in his hat or pockets, as happened to be most convenient, and by
so doing was always about the office when the anxious patron inquired
for his mail. It was so to speak, a kind of free delivery system.
A few months after the postoffice was established at East Tawas the
Methodists of the place organized its first religious services under Rev.
Jared Copeland. They were held in a little board shanty near where
the drill house of the East Tawas Salt and Lumber Company was built
a few years later-this tiny building having also been used as the first
school in the spring, that of 1866. St. Joseph's Catholic church originated in 1869; the Evangelical Lutherans organized in 1872; the Congregationalists in 1876 and the Baptists in 1880.
During this period of religious activity and establishment, the public schools of the village were also advancing to meet the demands of
its increasing populace. A Union school was completed in 1869 at a
cost of $5,000.. When the first school was opened three years before
there were one hundred and fourteen persons entitled to attend; in
1883, three hundred and seventy-five pupils were enrolled and in 1911
about five hundred.
East Tawas was incorporated as a village in 1887 and adopted a city
charter in 1895. It has modern systems of electric lighting and water
supply, is well paved and presents a general aspect of substantial advarcement which is not belied by the facts. Methodist, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Episcopal and Baptist churches are well established
for the edification of the permanent populace. and strangers who seek
rest or diversion readily find both, especially in the summer months,
at the beautiful beaches and summer resorts on the shores of Tawas bay.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                    521
WHITTEMORE
Seventeen mills southwest of Tawas City, the county seat, is a small
community of about two hundred people which was incorporated as a
city in 1907; it was never a village. This is Whittemore, a station on
the Prescott division of the Detroit & Mackinac line; the center of a
promising agricultural section in the southwestern part of Iosco county
and the trading place for quite a large district. A saw and planing
mill, creamery and store for the sale of agricultural implements, with
several good general stores and a sprinkling of residences, are features
which may give a general picture of the embryo city.




CHAPTER XXV


OGEMAW AND OSCODA COUNTIES
OGEMAW 'S POPULATION-EARLY SETTLEMENTS OF THE COUNTY-OGEMAW SPRINGS-WEST BRANCH REALLY FOUNDED-INCORPORATED AS
A VILLAGE-BANKS, TRADE AND INDUSTRIES-WEST BRANCH A CITY
-ROSE CITY-PRESCOTT AND LUPTON-OSCODA COUNTY.
Ogemaw county adjoins Iosco on the west and owes its settlement to
its primal forests of pine which crowded along the headwaters of the
Rifle and Tittabawassee rivers. The streams of the former constituted
a network of waterways which covered its central and northern sections and extended to what is now West Branch, while the waters of
the Tittabawassee commenced their long and continuous journey to
Saginaw bay in the present Edwards township, southwestern part of
the county. Ogemaw county has fully fifty charming little lakes within
her limits, but, although of late, they have been attracting not a few
sportsmen and tourists to that region, it was the presence of these
forest-clad streams which flowed toward the older and more settled
region along the Huron shore that brought the first settlers to what is
now Ogemaw county. Today the pine has almost disappeared, as well
as the original forests of maple, beech, basswood, hemlock, ash, elm,
oak, cedar and birch. Lumber mills and hardwood manufactories have
largelv consumed the timber, both soft and hard, but during the years
that these industries have been declining others more diversified, and
therefore more permanent, have been taking their place.
Perhaps no county in the state has so many small lakes and streams
and flowing wells of purest water as Ogemaw which, together with its
great variety and abundance of both wild and cultivated grasses, combine to form an ideal dairy region. Ogemaw Springs, the oldest settlement in the county, derives its name from the prevalence of these sparkling and bubbling springs in that locality; in West Branch alone are
located two hundred flowing wells, while nearly every farm in the
county is. or may be provided with one of these blessings of nature.
Hay and potatoes have been staple crops in Ogemaw county for
years. M.ore recently peas, beans and all kinds of seeds, as well as garden produce for the market, have been added to the wealth of her
soil and the body of her trade. All the cereals and small fruits have
also been cultivated with success. West Branch has been largely benefitted by this progress in all that concerns the farm, garden or orchard.
and the great bulk of all the shipments in the county now consists of
522




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


523


agricultural and live-stock products-whether over the Michigan Central line, which traverses the southwestern and western sections, or the
Rose City division of the Detroit & Mackinac, which is the outlet of
the northeastern townships to the Huron shore.
OGEMAW S POPULATION
If anything the census figures indicate that the farming communities are growing faster than the city centers.


Civil Divisions


1910     1900    1890


Churchill township.................573
Cumming township....................... 556
Edwards township........................ 651
Foster township.......................... 127
Goodar township....................... 497
Hill township.........................     408
Horton township.......................... 338
Klacking township........................ 380
Logan township..........................   372
Richland township.................903
Rose City......................         542
Ward 1..................    175
Ward 2.....................     157
W ard  3.............................  210
Rose  township............................ 960
W est  Branch  city..........................1,276
W ard  1................        443
W ard  2............................. 456
Ward 3....................      377
West  Branch  township.....................1,324
T otals................................8,907


594
673
591
115
'331
358
287
383
236
111


318
197
217
167
97
47
224
291
59
382


1,000     211
1,412   1,302


913
7,765


474
5,583


EARLY SETTLEMENT OF THE COUNTY


The building of the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw railroad into Ogemaw county was the initial act of its real birth. But the main facts constituting the pioneer period of its history were well recorded in the
columns of the West Branch Times over twenty years ago; to the industrial edition of that paper for 1889 the author is indebted for much
which follows relating to the early settlement of the county and the
founding of West Branch.
UTp to 1871 Ogemaw county was a virtual wilderness. From    the
visit of the government surveyors in 1856, until the incoming of the
railroad, the only tenants of her forests were deer, bear and other game,
and an occasional stray hunter or land-seeker. Some tracts of pine were
located, but were too far distant from the base of supplies to permit of
much lumbering until the railroad was built.




524


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


In 1871 the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw Railroad Company completed its line as far as Wells, about fourteen miles south of West
Branch. Four years before, W. H. Edwards had worked his way northwest from the mouth of the Pine river on Saginaw bay, over about
forty miles of road, to the bank of the Tittabawassee. Here he built a
log house and made a small clearing in connection with his lumbering
operations. This house long stood as the oldest in the county.
Along in the sixties Alfred Wright and R. H. Weidman, composing
the firm of Wright & Weidman, took up a large tract of land in Ogemaw
county. In 1871 they commenced lumbering operations, and made
some clearing at what is now the Forest Home Farm. The old log house
was built that year, and it was headquarters for their lumbering business there until Mr. Wright's death in 1873. Mr. Weidman was in Norway, his native land, at that time, and remained there about six years
during which time little progress was made at the farm. In 1880 D.
Wright & Company bought the half interest of the heirs of Alfred
Wright, and the firm was then known as R. H. Weidman & Company.
Mr. Weidman died very suddenly in 1882 and his interest was sold at
auction, Nelson Holland being the purchaser. MIr. Holland sold shortly
after to D. Wright & Company, who developed the property into one
of the finest pieces of agricultural property in the state. Under their
vigorous and wise management, both as farmers and business men, they
founded what, in older countries, would be called a great estate. Forest
Home Farm, as it was popularly called, comprised four hundred acres
of clearing; large and convenient residence and farm buildings, and
accommodations for live stock, poultry and dairy operations, and an
orchard of about one thousand acres, comprising apple, plum, pear and
cherry trees, grape vines and berry patches.
The entire property of the firm, in the eighties, amounted to about
20,000 acres, which comprised some of the most valuable hardwood land
in the county. More than any other firm they pushed the sale of farm
lands in this section. Mr. Hauptman himself was foremost in the formation of a county agricultural society. In their lumbering operations
they furnished employment to many who resided in West Branch, and
more than half the platted village was their property. Finally, they
reserved a considerable strip along the river for manufacturing purposes and donated several sites to induce industrial plants to locate.
Too much credit cannot be given to D. Wright & Company in connection with both the agricultural and industrial development of Ogemaw
county.
It was not until 1872 that actual farmers began to arrive in the
county. In the fall of 1871 John Klacking, Christopher Reetz and
Horace Sherman located homesteads, and they came up and took possession the following spring. William Rose, father of A. S. and Alcibiades
Rose, Scott White, Sherman T. and Decater A. Neal, James Campbell
and George Sherman, were other permanent settlers who came the same
year. They all took up homesteads and most of them afterward became
known as prosperous farmers of the county.
John Regan came to the county in 1872, as foreman of Weidman
& Wright's property, and took up his farm the next year. A. L.




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


525


Cumming and his sons, Louis and A. L., Jr., settled on their farms
in 1873.
Captain S. V. Thomas and Dr. C. L. Nauman arrived in Ogemaw
county in 1872, the former as proprietor of a mill business near Beaver
lake, the latter as secretary of the Ogemaw Lumber Co., with headquarters at Ogemaw Springs. After some experience in the mill business, they both became among the earliest citizens of West Branch.
OGEMAW SPRINGS
At this point a digression is advisable to say a word more particularly about Ogemaw Springs. Although never incorporated as a village, this is the oldest settlement in the county. In the year 1871 the
Ogemaw Lumber Company was organized by a party of Ohio capitalists.
Dr. C. L. Nauman was secretary. A mill was built and business hummed
for a couple of years. The great panic of 1873, which drove so many
firms to the wall, shattered the Ogemaw Lumber Company and the
business was soon transferred to other hands. When the county was
organized in 1876 Ogemaw Springs made an effort for the county
seat, but failed, West Branch having the greater number of supporters.
This decided the fate of the town.
On April 15, 1873, the county of Ogemaw was created by act of
the state legislature, but it was not organized civilly until 1876. After
a close fight between West Branch and Ogemaw Springs, the county
seat was located at the former. At the first county election the following were chosen county officers: Sheriff, W. H. Hosier; clerk, Dr.
C. L. Nauman; treasurer, Edward Washington; register of deeds, Allan
S. Rose; judge of probate, Z. H. Wright; prosecuting attorney, A. P.
Lyon, Bay City; coroners, A. L. Cumming and Zenas H. Wright. The
first board of supervisors consisted of A. L. Cumming of Ogemaw, and
A. E. Pinney of Edwards, the former chairman.
Those pioneer times witnessed some strange scenes in West Branch.
Law and order were almost unknown, and a gang of fifty or a hundred
woodsmen would frequently swoop down upon the place and run things
for a time. But, though disorder prevailed and rows were frequent,
there was a surprising lack of downright crime. Old settlers say that
stealing was unknown. Money was plentiful, wages high and times
prosperous.
The earliest business firms at West Branch were Washington
Brothers, Wells, Stone & Co. and Gustin, Merrill & Co., who sold an
immense quantity of general goods and hardly at starvation profits.
A. S. Rose at Churchill, and Davison Brothers at Damon, early became
rivals of the West Branch merchants, and worked up a large trade
among the settlers and lumbermen.
Ogemaw county has had a steady, healthy growth every year since
its first settlement. The nearest approach to a boom occurred in 1881,
when a number of new stores were built at West Branch, but, though
property advanced considerably in value, it never assumed the attitude of a boom, which is so disastrous to many new towns.




526


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


AVEST BRANCH REALLY FOUNDED
The village of West Branch dates its growth from the organization
of the county in 1876. Up to that time the population consisted of
employes of a hotel, and one small store.
VWhen WVest Branch was made the county seat and the courthouse
constructed, a steady growth began. The nearest approach to a boom
was in 1881, when the town began to push eastward from the railroad.
It was supposed, when the old courthouse was built, that it would become the center of the new town, but the peculiar condition in which
the Wridman & Wright estate was placed by the absence of Mr. WTeidman in Norway, made it impossible to purchase lots on the west side.
The town was bound to grow and when Mr. Ripley opened his lots for
COURT HOUSE AND SHERIFF'S RESIDENCE, WEST BRANCH
sale on the east side, he found ready purchasers. Nearly a dozen blocks
were built in 1881, and the town assumed the appearance of a place
of business.
The fire of February, 1883, wiped out a row of business blocks on
the south side of Houghton avenue, but they were replaced the next
year with better ones. Since then West Branch has suffered from
four or five large fires, those of 1898 and 1900 being especially
destructive.
In 1881 the school population of West Branch was about twentyfive or thirty, and one small school room served to accommodate all the
children who attended. In 1887 a brick and frame edifice was erected
at a cost of $6,000, to accommodate the two hundred and fifty pupils
of the village. This was replaced by the present central or high school




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


527


in 1901, in which one hundred and forty-six scholars receive instruction. There are also two branch schools, the total enrollment in the
grammar grades being four hundred and ninety-four.
In 1880 the first courthouse was erected in West Branch, at a cost
of $10,000. It was a neat wooden building with the jail and the sheriff's
living rooms in the basement. This courthouse was destroyed by fire
in 1887, and the brick structure now occupied was completed in the
following year for $18,000. The jail and sheriff's residence are in a
separate brick building on the Courthouse square. The county poor
farm, consisting of one hundred and twenty acres, is just outside the
city limits.
INCORPORATED AS A VILLAGE
West Branch was incorporated as a village in 1885, and that was
also the year of the organization of the County Agricultural Society
and of the establishment of the first bank at the county seat. M. H.
French sold his interest in the Times during the spring of 1885, and,
in partnership with J. J. Ellis of Ann Arbor, started a small banking
business, under the firm name of Ellis & French. The business grew
and the bank made lots of money. In 1886, Fremont F. French, who
had been conducting musical conventions in different states for a year
or two, grew tired of this kind of life, and settled at West Branch and
obtained an interest in the bank.
BANKS, TRADE AND INDUSTRIES
The Commercial Bank, Tolfree, Livingston & Company, proprietors,
is the oldest existing institution of the kind at West Branch, and was
established by John Tolfree and J. W. Livingston in 1890. Thomas
W Ballantine is still cashier. The capital of the Commercial is $10,000; responsibilities, $500,000.
The Ogemaw County Bank at West Branch is one of the many
owned by Ealy, McKay & Company in eastern and northeastern Michigan. The McKays are managers of the branches at East Tawas, Tawas
City and West Branch, as well as partners in the firm. Robert C. McKay is in charge of the Ogemaw County Bank, which was opened at
West Branch in 1900. Its responsibility is placed at $1,000,000.
William Hisey came to West Branch in the fall of 1883, in response
to a decided demand for a flouring mill.,A small mill, owned and
operated by H. E. Rose, of Rosetown, fourteen miles from West Branch,
could not handle the amount of wheat that was being raised and a
citizens' meeting resolved that there must be a flouring mill in West
Branch. D. Wright & Company donated the site and the mill was
erected-the first one there, although only a partial success. Birdsall
Brothers also put up a planing mill in 1883.
Among the first merchants to come to West Branch was B. Blumenthal, who located in the spring of 1885. He is still there, and for
years has been among its leading merchants.
The city has both a good local trade and is the industrial, financial




528


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


and commercial center of a large interior district. Among her institutions in these fields may be mentioned the Batchelor Timber Company,
whose headquarters are at Saginaw and which operates a saw and planing mill; the West Branch Flour Manufacturing Company, with a
mill on the Rifle river; Jacob E'ck's brewery; A. C. Neilson's creamery,
and last, but perhaps most important of all, the elevators operated by
the Ogemaw Grain and Seed Company and the Evan Seed Company.
WEST BRANCH A CITY
West Branch assumed the dignity of a city government in 1905,
and is worthy of it. It is a neat place, with good prospects, and, as
has been described in detail, has developed into a modern little city.
To further illustrate, it may be stated that her streets and buildings
are lighted by means of an electric plant, situated on the Rifle river
about two miles east, and put in operation during 1901. The city has
a public library, an opera house and Methodist, Catholic and Episcopal
churches.
ROSE CITY
Rose City, formerly Churchill. was incorporated as a city of the
fourth class in 1905. It is a place of over five hundred people, on a
branch of the Rifle river, and is the terminus of a division of the
Detroit & Mackinac Railway, which commences at Emery Junction,
losco county. Rose City is fifteen miles northeast of West Branch,
the county seat, is in the midst of a productive farming country. Its
bank. elevator, creamery, flour mill and general stores; its good school,
electric light plant and churches are a few of the strong points in its
favor.
PRESCOTT AND LUPTON
Prescott dates from 1882, when what was then the Detroit, Bay
City & Alpena Railroad was extended westward into Mills and Richland townships, Ogemaw county. It was named in honor of C. H.
Prescott. a pioneer lumberman who owned a large tract of land in the
vicinity, and is now the terminus of a short branch of the Detroit &
Mackinac Railway.
Lupton, a station and postoffice on the same road, five miles east
of Rose City, was settled in the late eighties, mostly by members of
the Society of Friends. It took its name from Emor Lupton, who,
with his sons, were owners of large tracts of farm, orchard and timber
lands, and made many improvements both as cultivators of their properties and builders of mills.
OSCODA COUNTY
Lying between Alcona county on the east and Crawford county on
the west, Oscoda is in that neutral territory of northeastern Michigan




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


529


which has never had the benefit of railway communication to advance
its interests. The Au Sable & Northwestern Railway crosses its northwestern sections, with Comins as its terminus, but since the burning
of Oscoda and Au Sable at its shore terminus that means of communication with a circumscribed area of the country has been crippled.
The Au Sable river, which crosses Oscoda county from east to west,
throwing out branches in every direction, carries with it not a few
natural advantages which may, in time, be developed to the advantage
of the entire region. It furnishes an abundance of power which is
expected to be utilized at Mio, the county seat, in the furtherance of
various hydro-electric enterprises.
Oscoda is also by nature, a fine clover, seed and dairy county, and
farmers are sparsely settled in various districts, largely near the county
seat or in the vicinity of the Au Sable Railroad to the northeast, or in
the extreme southwest, as near as possible to the line of the Michigan
Central. Much of the well-watered country along the streams of the
Au Sable river is admirably adapted to dairying and sheep raising.
There are no incorporated villages in Oscoda county. Mio, the
seat of justice, was first settled by lumbermen in 1880. It is on the
Au Sable river, a little south of the geographical center of the county,
and fifteen miles southeast of Comins, its nearest railroad point on the
Au Sable & Northwestern line. Its main support is the trade which
naturally centers at the county seat.
From the census figures which have been submitted for the decades
ending 1890, 1900 and 1910, it will be seen that the population has
increased steadily, although not rapidly.                       a
Civil Divisions                            1910    1900    1890
Big Creek township..............           432     349      187
Clinton township.............. 207
Comins township..............              745     681     272
Elmer township..............               396     319     122
Mentor township..............              247     119     607
Total population..............        2,027    1,468   1,188


Vol. I-34




CHAPTER XXVI


GLADWIN AND ARENAC COUNTIES
GLADWIN COUNTY PHYSICALLY-INCREASE IN POPULATION-FIRST SETTLER AND SETTLEMENT-GLADWIN, THE COUNTY SEAT-BEAVERTONARENAC COUNTY-POPULATION IN 1890, 1900 AND 1910-COUNTY
ORGANIZATION- STANDISH, THE COUNTY SEAT - OMER CITY- AU
GRES AND TWINING
Gladwin is one of the newer counties of Northern Michigan in point
of settlement and development. Although the first settlers, most of
them lumbermen, located about 1863 at the forks of the Tobacco and
Cedar rivers, branches of the Tittabawassee, in the southwestern part
of the county at what is now Beaverton, there were few permanent residents even at the organization of the county in 1875. Its continuous
history really dates from that year and period.
GLADWIN COUNTY PHYSICALLY
Gladwin county lies west of Arenac and far enough from Saginaw
bay so that its early settlement depended on the lumber industries
rather than the fisheries or lake commerce. The natural key-note to
its success in that regard was the Tittabawassee river, its main branches,
the Tobacco, Molasses and Sugar rivers, and numerous minor streams.
The first named, so famous for its output of logs in early times, courses
through the central part of the county, north and south-the Molasses
and its tributaries in the eastern part, the Sugar in the northwest and
the Tobacco in the southwest, joining the Tittabawassee at Edenville,
just over the southern line in Midland county.
The Cedar, a rapid, clear stream, rises in Clare county, drains the
western townships, passes through Gladwin, the county seat, and, with
the north, middle and south branches of the Tobacco, forms a junction
at Beaverton, or as it was first known, Grand Forks. This locality was
the gateway for the first settlers of Gladwin county.
The county is also sprinkled with pretty lakes, especially in the
northern part. A few miles from Gladwin is Sage lake, about a mile
either way, and along the line of Gladwin and Ogemaw counties is the
group comprising Indian, Elk, Frost and Campbell lakes, ranging in
size from forty acres to half a section, but all being naturally stocked
with fish and many of them supplied from the state fish hatchery.
Deer and other game also abound in many parts of the county, so that
530




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


531


the fisherman, the hunter and the lover of out-of-doors in general have
constant occupation and enjoyment.
Originally a large portion of Gladwin county was heavily timbered,
but its densest growth has been removed by the axe and saw of the
lumberman. Quite a large amount of forest products is still handled,
albeit the remaining timber is usually worked up into manufactures
rather than shipped away as raw lumber. This clearing away of the
heavy forest growths is to the advantage of the present day agriculturist
and live-stock man, who wish at once to realize from their crops and
stock-and this class are in the heavy majority.
The surface of the county is gently rolling, not enough to interfere
with tilling the soil, but sufficient to give the country, when cleared, a
picturesque appearance and show off the land to excellent advantage.
The soil is clay, sand and gravelly loam, noted for its fertility and the
ease with which it can be worked. Wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, potatoes and all kinds of vegetables flourish, while small fruits of all kinds
are a sure crop. The numerous rivers, creeks and springs throughout
the county furnish an abundance of water for domestic and stock purposes, and guarantee rich forage for live stock.
During the past few years a good deal of attention has been paid
to stock raising in the county and with the most satisfactory results.
Common Hungarian and millet grasses grow luxuriantly, and even that
which grows in the forests furnishes good grazing for stock during
the summer months.
INCREASE IN POPULATION
While the population of Gladwin county for the past twenty years
has not progressed by leaps and bounds, it has been steady, and the
census figures show that it has enjoyed a larger percentage of increase
than most of the counties classed as "interior:"
Civil Divisions                           1910     1900    1890
Beaverton City................ 418
W ard  1.............................  74
W ard  2.............................  199
W ard  3.............................  145
Beaverton township........................ 581     756
Bentley township................. 443              534
Billings  township..........................  270  333    253
Bourret township.......................... 247     156
Buckeye township................ 484      254     385
Butman township................. 720      359     260
Clement township................ 170     101     124
Gladwin  city...........................  988  775     903
Ward 1............................. 337
W ard  2.............................  324
Ward 3................... 185
Ward   4.............................  142




532


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Civil Divisions                            1910     1900    1890
Gladwin  township.........................1,011    732     683
Grout  township...........................  872    713     857
Sage  township.............................  800   568     547
Sherman  township.........................  543    213
Tobacco  township..........................  866  1,070    196
Totals................................ 8,413  6,564    4,208
The people, the trade and the commerce of Gladwin county enjoy
their transportation facilities through the Michigan Central and the
Pere Marquette railroads. The Saginaw Bay & Northwestern division
of the former, running from Pinconning to Gladwin, with spurs to
Estey and Raymonds, is the main dependence, while a branch of the
Pere Marquette coming from the south to Beaverton provides the southwestern section of the county with adequate accommodations.
FIRST SETTLER AND SETTLEMENT
Marvil Secord, whose death occurred in October, 1886, at his old
homestead at the Forks, now Beaverton, was the first settler of Gladwin county. He was then within a few days of his eighty-fifth birthday, vigorous in health and active up to the time of the accident which
was the direct cause of his death. He had spent most of his life in the
woods, but was so popular and straightforward that after he came to
Gladwin county and had passed his eightieth year the lumbermen and
citizens forced him into several offices which he honored.
The Gladwin Counaty Record, to which much credit is given to the
following historical sketch, published an interesting biography of this
interesting old pioneer, from which the author makes liberal extracts.
Mr. Secord was born at Brantford, Ontario, October 16, 1801, and
came to Michigan with his father, mother and family at an early age,
removing from near Hamilton, Canada to Ann Arbor, and thence to
Owosso, Shiawassee county, of which place he was a resident many
years. and where he was married four times. His third wife, who came
with him to Gladwin county, died in 1881, from the effects of a fall
front a bridge upon hard ice. He was thereafter married to a Mrs.
Cyntha Hoffman of Sterling.
Mr. Secord 's early life was spent with his parents in the usual
life of the frontier. When a small lad he accompanied his father into
one of the Indian wars of the northwest, in which he made himself useful in various ways. At Owosso. Shiawassee county, for a long period
he was engaged in conducting on a large scale a gunsmithy and wagon
and carriage shop, upon which business the war and the Jackson wagon
works (which manufactured wagons cheaper than could be done elsewhere) brought disaster. Mr. Secord therefore determined to change
his location, and, with his family, he went from Owosso to St. Charles
by wagon and by steamer "Little Nell" to Saginaw; thence to Midland
upon the then noted steamer <'Belle Seymour.'"




MARVTIL SECORD, FIRST SETTLER OF GLADWIN COUNTY




534


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Midland at that time was a small hamlet. J. S. Eastman kept a
small trading post on the dock at the lower bridge, and John Larkin
and G. F. Hall were rival landlords. At or about the same time, John
Eastman also kept a store on the site of the present Star Mills.
Mr. Secord here met with an accident, a dog biting one of his
hands so he could not use it. Here, after some persuasion, he hired
two Indians to take himself and family to "Dick's Forks," upwards of
thirty-five miles distant, and after a week's hard journey in a canoe,
they landed at their destination.
The route at that time was an unbroken wilderness. At Edenville.
then generally known as "16," David Burton and Jacob Hagar had
located, and John McMullen opened a lumber headquarters which was
merged into a hotel, near the site of the present Axford House, soOLi
after. A lumberman from Maine named Ledbetter, had commenced
operations in the vicinity of "16," but no logs had been run north of
that locality.
In September. 1861, in the manner narrated, Mr. Secord and
family, consisting of his wife (formerly Mrs. Goodwin, whom he had
married the year before), his daughter Julia, son Seth, and three stepchildren, landed at Dick's Forks, so named from the fact that a man
named Dixon owned the land there, and surveyors had cut the name
on a tree, located at the junction of the Sugar and Tittabawassee, on
section 28, town 19, 1 east. Hunters had reached this point before,
but only a small number. Mrs. Secord, his wife, was the first white
woman, however, who had come to this county. She was a woman of
many noble qualities, intelligent, refined and heroic. Here she assisted
her husband to build up a pleasant home, where during many years,
with his family he was "monarch of all he surveyed," only a small number of settlers penetrating the county for quite a number of years.
The occupation of hunting and trapping, which Mr. Secord followed during the first three years of his residence at Dick's Forks, was
at that time quite lucrative, and he thereby averaged $900 annually
during that period, in one year reaching $1,150. During his second
winter in the woods, while fifteen miles from home, he accidently shot
himself in the ankle, and was carried home on a litter. A doctor was
brought from Midland, but he was unable to extract the ball, which
was never taken out. Mr. Secord related many interesting anecdotes
of his experience in the woods. Dogs brought into the neighborhood
by outside hunters usually came up missing, and 'twas said they had
been caught on Secord's "sharp sticks;" besides many fictitious tales
were told in relation to the old hunter.
In 1863 the pioneer entered the homestead upon which he resided
until death. About that time in the vicinity of the Forks, the first
lumber operations were commenced.   Pearson & Craig, partners, the
former from Buffalo, the latter from Maine, with Sam Sias of Midland,
as foreman, were the first to lumber in that locality. Marsh hay at
this time became a valuable commodity, bringing $40 per ton, and Mr.
record spent the summer season in cutting hay and the winter in
trapping. With assistance of his boys and hired help, he sometimes




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


535


earned $600 per year from the hay, besides quite a snug sum from
trapping.
Mr. Secord was somewhat of a genius in mechanical arts, and at
an early day invented and manufactured a single barreled, muzzle loading gun, with which he shot twice with once loading. This was a
number of years before the famous reloading guns appeared. The old
hunter and farmer was slow to push forward for official positions, but
his popularity with the lumber boys, who were wont to stop at his
place and delighted to do him honor, as well as the cordial feeling held
by many permanent settlers, placed him in the offices of supervisor of
Gladwin township and judge of probate of the county by decisive majorities. These offices he filled when upwards of eighty years of age
with good judgment and clean hands. The deceased was of a hospitable
and generous nature, and thereby made many friends. Although he
had for so many years led the wild life of the woods, he retained a
veneration for sacred subjects and during his last years was not ashamed
to be known as a Christian. It is certainly no discredit to Gladwin
county to acknowledge Marvil Secord as her first settler.
GLADWIN, THE COUNTY SEAT
Prior to the late seventies, the settlements in Gladwin county were
few and far between, the most pretentious being that at the Grand
Forks. But about 1876, after the organization of the county and the
fixing of the seat of justice nearer its territorial center, several settlers
located at the village of Cedar, as Gladwin was first known. Among
the first were Warren T. Johnson, James A. Wright and James A. Ells,
with their families, and even as late as the spring of 1878 theirs were
the only permanent households established on the present site of the
city. To these were soon added the families of Isaac Hanna and C. C.
Fouch.
School District No. 4, which included the present city and territory
as far away as the Van Valkenburg, Busch and McGregor farms, was
organized May 25, 1878, by the school inspectors of Grout and Gladwin
townships. When Gladwin was incorporated as a city in 1893, the
limits of the school districts and the municipality were made uniform.
The first schoolhouse was built by Isaac Hanna in the fall of 1878.
It was a one-room, frame building, sixteen by twenty-four feet, and
fulfilled its purposes until 1883, when a four-room structure replaced
it. Gladwin's third schoolhouse was completed in the winter of 1906,
at a cost of about $25,000. This Central or Union school building is a
two-story brick structure, well built and attractive. The present attendance is thus divided: High school, 91, and grammar grades, 200.
It is interesting to know that the first religious services in what is
now the city of Gladwin, were conducted in the printing office of the
Gladwin County Record, on March 31, 1878, by Rev. I. C. Smallwood.
The first church to be built in the county was the Methodist, at Gladwin, the cornerstone of which was laid May 9, 1883. A few years afterward Presbyterian and Catholic houses of worship were erected. There




536


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


are now in existence Methodist, Catholic, Episcopal, Free Methodist,
and Protestant Episcopal organizations.
Gladwin was incorporated as a village in 1885 and has been a city
since 1893. It is provided with thorough systems of electric lighting
and water distribution and, as has been seen, has all the educational
and religious privileges required by all progressive and moral communities. Its industries and trade partake both of its earlier lumbering
days and its later period of development growing naturally from the
agricultural advancement of the county. This statement is practically
illustrated by the operation at Gladwin of saw, planing and flour mills,


CENTRAL SCHOOL AT GLADWIN


a basket factory, veneer works and grain elevator, and the fact that
the city is quite a receiver and shipper of grain, flour, produce and
live stock. The local trade and outside commerce are moved through
two good banks, and the Michigan Central Railroad furnishes the transportation conveniences.
Gladwin has a substantial and convenient courthouse for transacting
the official business of the county, and since 1910 has been provided
with a secure jail and comfortable sheriff's residence. It has a neat
opera house, a number of well furnished lodge halls, and has made
ample provision both for the maintenance of law and order and the
social enjoyment and educational and religious well-being of its people.
BEAVERTON
As stated, Beaverton was formerly known as Grand Forks, from the
fact that the original lumber camp was located at the middle, north
and south branches of the Tobacco and Cedar rivers. It is nine miles




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


537


south of Gladwin, the county seat, and is the terminus of a spur of the
Pere Marquette road which runs southwest to Coleman, Midland county.
The county board incorporated it as the village of Beaverton in 1896,
and it became a city in 1903.
Beaverton's appearance, with its electric lights, substantial public
school, neat churches and houses, and well-built stores, is attractive
and reassuring as to its present and future prosperity. It has a sawmill, a manufactory of shingles, laths and posts, and a grain elevator.
The same plant which furnishes electric lighting also supplies the city
with good water. One could go far afield in Northern Michigan and
fail to find a pleasanter, busier or more healthful little city than
Beaverton.
ARENAC COUNTY
Three-fourths of tpis county lies in the fertile valley of the Saginaw
and it has a shore line of forty miles on Saginaw bay. Being both the
natural child of the river and the lake, Arenac county has a great
diversity of products, drawn from her soil and her waters of the interior and the coast. The territory is drained by the Au Gres, Rifle
and Pine rivers, which cross the county through its eastern, central
and western, and southern portions, respectively, and empty into upper
Saginaw bay. Bay county, to the south, is drained by the streams
which empty into lower Saginaw bay along its western shores.
The soil of the eastern and southern parts of Arenac county is
for,the most part of a clay or black loam, in the northern part being
more 1lentifully mixed with gravel. The belt of country along the.
Huron shore carries a deep, rich clay loam of unsurpassed richness,
which is particularly well adapted to sugar beets, potatoes, beans, peas,
hay, wheat and corn. The southern part of the county has gained a
wide reputation for its ability to stand long droughts and still yield
bumper crops of sugar beets, beans and grains, the accepted explanation of this welcome fact being that this region is underlaid at a depth
of forty feet with a porous, water-soaked rock, which may be tapped
and yield never-failing springs, or be drawn upon for the nourishment
of surface vegetation by means of the capillary attraction of the soil.
The northern portion of the county is gently rolling, rendering
underdraining in most cases unnecessary. This fact, with the favorable
soil, makes this section the best for fruit-raising. The north side of
the Rifle river is a locality which is probably equal to the best fruit
land in Northern Michigan. Color and flavor are both remarkably
fine. The higher levels of this valley are admirable for the apple,
grape, peach, cherry and plum, while the lower levels, where water is
even more accessible, make the strawberry and raspberry crops certain.
Arenac county promises to develop several workable veins of coal;
its eastern sections along the shore contain valuable beds of gypsum,
and its fisheries along Saginaw  bay are still productive.  Another
source of industry and considerable profit is the cultivation of Norway
poplar trees for timber. Their rapid and solid growth makes the industry one of quick financial returns.




538


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Arenac county is also in line for her share of the patronage from
the summer resorters of the country, and also esteems it her privilege
to offer her own citizens some of the most enjoyable and invigorating
outings to be obtained in the state. In this connection, Point Lookout
and Timber Island on Bay shore, the one convenient to the people of
the eastern part of the county, the other to those of the western part,
are liberally patronized. The fishing, bathing and boating are all excellent. These resorts right at her door make it possible for the poorest


[Colurtesv  noitheastern Michigan Development Bureau]
SPRAYING FRUIT TREES


THREE-YEAR-OLD SPRAYED


citizens to enjoy the delights of camping for a few days or weeks outing and rest without going to the expense of a trip away from home.
Near these resorts at the mouth of the Rifle river there is good duck
shooting, while in the small streams there is trout fishing in abundance.
Partridge and quail are usually found in abundance in the woods during' the open season.
POPULATION IN 1890, 1900 AND 1910
This panoramic view of the county may be here completed by offering the figures collected by the United States Census Bureau in 1890,
1900 and 1910:




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


539


Civil Divisions


1910    1900     1890


Adams township......................  393
Arenac  township..........................  668
Au Gres city....................... 252
Ward 1...................... 120
W ard  2.............................  132
Au  Gres  township..........................  412
Clayton township......................... 834
Deep River township........................ 957
Lincoln township.......................... 794
Mason township, including part of Twining village.......................  853
Twining village (part of)................ 129
Total for Twining village in Mason and
Turner  townships....................  267
Moffat township...........................  361
Omer city.............................  367
W ard  1.............................  100
W ard  2...........................  100
Ward 3...........................    167
Standish  city...........................  828
W ard  1.........................  287
Ward 2............................. 388
W ard  3..........................  153
Turner township, including part of Twining village............................ 985
Twining village (part of)............... 138
Standish  township.......................   1,250
Whitney  township.........................  686
Totals............................... 9,640


378
1,250
132
622
774
816
777
977


222
662
531
646
711
396
399


246      240
829      611


1,274


48


642      334


9,821


5,683


COUNTY ORGANIZATION
On March 2, 1831, the territory included in the following limits was
laid off as the county of Arenac. East of the line between ranges 2
and 3 east, north of the line between townships 16 and 17 north, south
of the line between townships 20 and 21 north, and west to the shores
of Saginaw bay and Lake Huron. By an act of the legislature approved
February 17, 1857, this county was blotted out and reestablished as
the county of Bay. The territory of Bay county at that time contained
but few voters as compared to Saginaw county; its largest area came
from Midland county, particularly from the unorganized county of
Arenac, in which territory at that time, aside from Indians, perhaps
not ten voters resided. In February, 1859, at a special meeting of the
Bay county board, Arenac was erected into a township with Daniel
Williams, N. W. Sillibridge and Daniel Shaw as the board of election
inspectors. The first supervisor chosen was Peter Marksman, but he
resigned and Mi. D. Bourasso served instead. The erection of Arenac




540


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


township occurred about six months after the first meeting of the board
of supervisors of Bay county.
As the years passed and settlers came into the northern sections of
Bay county it became very inconvenient for them to go to Bay City,
or as it was called until 1857 "the village of Lower Saginaw." Accordingly in the winter of 1883 the bill for the organization of the new
county of Arenac passed the legislature and became law. In the previous year the vote of the townships embraced in the proposed county
numbered 548 distributed as follows: Arenac township, 66; Au Gres,
61; Clayton, 67; Deep River, 76; Lincoln, 80; Mason, 37; Moffat, 34;
Standish, 69; Whitney, 58. By the creating act the county of Arenac
was composed of sixteen townships, together with the islands attached
to Whitney and Au Gres townships.
The county seat was temporarily located at Omer, on the Rifle river,
Arenac township. Besides that place, Standish and Sterling were contenders for the honor, Standish being finally selected.
STANDISH, THE COUNTY SEAT
Standish, a city of about eight hundred people, is located in the
southern part of the county, on the middle branch of the Pine river and
the main north-and-south line of the Michigan Central railroad. It is
five miles west of Saginaw bay. Standish became a village in 1893 and
a city in 1903. It has broad, well paved streets lighted by electricity
and carries altogether a general atmosphere of substantial prosperity.
As the county seat it is the natural center of much of the political and
social activity of the county, and is also the center of its education system, for besides its well organized union school of twelve grades it is
the seat of the County Normal. Four or five churches are established
institutions for good. A creditable court house and opera house also
give it standing, to say nothing of the fair grounds of the Arenae
County Agricultural Society which annually attract many exhibitors
and visitors.  A creamery and cheese factory, flour mill, cooperage
works, overall manufactory, brick and tile factory and several prosperous houses dealing in grain, seeds and agricultural implements, as well
as a creditable array of general and retail stores, are partial indications
of the business and industrial activities of the county seat. The State
Bank of Standish, with a capital of $35,000, is a special institution
which adds to the financial stability of the place.
OMER CITY
Omer City, the original county seat of Arenac county, is located
almost in its geographical center, on the Rifle river six miles from
Saginaw bay and on the main line of the Detroit & Mackinac railway.
It was incorporated as a city in 1903, and has a population of nearly
four hundred people. A good Union school, four churches and a variety
of industries, with well stocked retail stores, are features of Omer City
which tell the story of its morality, intelligence and business solidity.
Its manufactories include roller flour mills, saw and stave mills, cream



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN                     541
ery and cheese factory, and a plant for making paving and foundation
brick.
Au GRES AND TWINING
Au Gres, on the branch of the Detroit & Mackinac railway which
runs from the main line at Omer City, is on the Au Gres river a short
distance from Saginaw bay. A place of less than three hundred people,
it was never a village but was incorporated as a city in 1905. It has a
bank, a shingle mill, a cooper shop, a number of general and retail
stores, and is the center of a fair trade.
Twining, of about the same size as Au Gres City, was incorporated
as a village in 1903. It is situated five miles north of Omer City, on
the Detroit & Mackinac line, and has a bank, sawmill and a fair array
of stores. It is also the center of quite an active produce trade.




CHAPTER XXVII


OSCEOLA AND LAKE COUNTIES
PRODUCTS AND POPULATION OF OSCEOLA-HERSEY, THE COUNTY SEATREED CITY VILLAGE —EVART —MARION-TUSTIN AND LEROY —LAKE
COUNTY-POPULATION FROM 1890 TO 1910-ORGANIC AND PIONEER
HISTORY-VILLAGES
Osceola is one of the most prosperous of the central counties of the
southern peninsula of Michigan. From the late sixties, until well
toward the nineties, its territory was virtually given up to the lumber
industries and, in view of the fact that her development in the argricultural industries has scarcely covered twenty years, her progress has
been rapid indeed. Of the 367,247 acres comprising her area, it is
estimated that 204,847 acres are already devoted to farm and grazing
lands, produce and fruit-raising. Fortunately, many of those who accumulated money in the pineries have remained to invest it in these
later and more diversified products of the soil, the permanent profits
from which depend more on patience, skill, scientific knowledge and
protracted labor than did the wealth realized by the pioneer lumbermen from the pineries of Northern Michigan.
PRODUCTS AND POPULATION
The soil, climate, seasons, drainage and other physical conditions
of Osceola county are especially favorable to the raising of potatdes,
hay, clover and beans and the development of the livestock industries.
There are thousands of acres of land yielding extra fine grades of crimson, medium and giant clover, with remarkably large and thrifty
timothy; besides there are large areas of grass, pasture and stock-grazing lands. With plenty of low-priced lands to furnish forage, the
farmers of the county have every incentive to push the dairy interests.
Large crops of white navy, red kidney and other beans are also
raised on contract with business houses, the mixture of sand and loam
in the soil of many tracts being the exact requisite. Of course fruit
farming in Osceola county is in its infancy, although even now her
shipments of apples-Spy, Duchess, Russet and late fall-are considerable. The cereals have all been raised successfully and as an agricultural auxiliary, the raising of poultry, both for eggs and the market, is being profitably conducted.
Efforts along all these lines which have resulted in such substantial
542




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


543


good to the county have been concentrated and encouraged through the
Osceola County Agricultural Society, one of the first organizations of
the kind in the central counties of Northern Michigan, and a sketch
of which is given hereafter.
The figures showing the population of Osceola county at the conclusion
of the past three decades, as presented by the United States census


A FARM HOME IN OSCEOLA COUNTY


bureau, are further illustrative of its present status and continuous
development.


Civil Divisions


1910


Burdell township (including Tustin Village).. 1,183
Tustin Village...................          371
Cedar  township...........................  249
Evart township (including part of Evart
V illage)...........................  1,077
EVart Village (part of).................  411
Total for Evart Village in Evart and
Osceola townships................... 1,386
Hartwick township...............  652
Hersey township including Hersey Village.... 1,064
Hersey Village........................  310
Highland township........................ 1,417
LeRoy township including LeRoy Village..... 1,033
LeRoy  Village.........................  331
Lincoln  township.........................  1,020
Marion township including Marion Village.. 1,562
Marion  Village.........................  767
Middle Branch township............         520
Orient  township..........................  673
Osceola township, including part of Evart
Village............................  1,705
Evart Village  (part of).................  975
Richmond township, including Reed City
V illage.............................  2,855


1900
1,359
303
314


1890
734
336


1,194   1,215
425     432


1,360
540
1,157
327
792
1,312
375
1,250
1,253
741
518
758


1,269
417
908
328
326
1,087
452
1,084
1,042
219
707


1,697   1,550
935     837


3,401   3,064




544


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Civil Divisions                           1910
Reed City village................... 1,690
Rose Lake township......................  704
Sherman township....................     1,451
Sylvan township...................   724


1900
2,051
659
1,002
653


1890
1,776
627
810
504


Totals..............................17,889  17,859  14,630
ItERSEY, THE COUNTY SEAT
In 1840 the towns numbered 17, 18, 19 and 20 north, of ranges 7, 8,
9 and 10 west, were laid off as the county of Unwattin, and its name was


OSCEOLA COUNTY COURT HOUSE, HERSEY


changed to Osceola, in honor of the Seminole chief by that name, by an
act of the legislature approved March 8, 1843. Osceola county was not
organized as an independent civil body until 1867, when the county seat
was established at the locality called Hersey where a few settlers had
settled. The village was incorporated by the legislature in 1875, and is
now a place of about three hundred people. It is located at the confluence of the Hersey and Muskegon rivers on the Pere Marquette railroad. The good water power at that point was its greatest original attraction in the old lumbering days, and a sawmill and large roller flour
mill are still in operation. Hersey has also a well-built electric light
and power plant. With a substantial bank, a modern creamery, a depot
for the sale of agricultural implements, stores thoroughly stocked, and
backed by a promising adjacent country, the county seat has a solid




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


545


standing aside from its official position as the center of the county government. A Union school graded and conducted under the present-day
system and three churches, supported by Congregationalists, Methodists
and those of the German Evangelical faith, stand for the higher life
of the community.
REED CITY VILLAGE
The village of Reed City in the southwestern portion of Osceola
county, at the junction of the Pere Marquette and Grand Rapids & Indiana railroads, is also four miles west of Hersey, the county seat. It is


MAIN STREET, REED CITY


also finely located on the Hersey river, a stream noted for its trout and
grayling, as well as for its excellent water power. The natural advantages of its location and the business judgment of its founders and promoters have made Reed City one of the best interior towns of Northern
Michigan. It was incorporated in 1872. Although the village has a
number of manufactories, its most estensive are those devoted to maple
flooring, the plant operated by William Horner being one of the largest
in the state. The Babcock Grain Company has an elevator and mills,
and does a large portion of the shipping trade in grain, flour and hay.
Another plant worthy of special mention is the Reed City Woolen Mills,
established in 1883, and although they are not extensive they are among
the very few manufactories of their kind in Northern Michigan. Identified with the industries of the village are also a saw and planing mill,
foundry and machine shop.
Two substantial banks make Reed City a financial center for quite
Vol. 1-35




546


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


a stretch of country-the First National, capitalized at $50,000, with
J. W. Parkhurst as president and L. G. Hammond as cashier, and the
Commercial Savings Bank, capital $25,000, president Joseph Gerber
and cashier, Harry Gerber.
The village has a through system of electric lighting and water supplx. The existing plant of the Reed City Light and Power Company
was built in 1910 by an organization of business men, not incorporated,
of which George D. Westover, of Cadillac, is president. It is the second
plant of the kind and is a credit to its originators and builders.
Reed City has also a most creditable Union school whose average attendance is 400-80 in the High school, 150 in the grammar grades and
170 in the primary.
The village has also the good name of being a strong church town,
the Lutherans being especially active and influential. They have two
organizations. The Methodists have three churches, attended by the
English, German and Swedish elements. Besides the Baptists, Catholics and Mennonites are represented by societies which are active and
growing. So that Reed City should be a good village both in which to
live and in which to die.
EVART
Evart is the second village in the county both in size and thrift. It
was first settled in 1871 and incorporated as a village during the foA


EVART PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING


lowing year. It is a progressive little place, bright and clean, with welllaid cement walks, graded and graveled streets, nicely-kept lawns and
two pretty parks. The village owns and operates a good system of water




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


547


works and electric lights, the Evart Light and Power Company having
been recently organized with George A. Burley as president. In the
educational lines, the village supports Union, High and County Normal
schools, and a public library (not Carnegie), while the religious sentiment of the community is represented by Baptist, Catholic, Free Methodist, Methodist and Presbyterian churches. As to Evart's industrial
and commercial establishments, they include a planing mill, foundry
and machine shop, flour roller mills, grain elevator and produce warehouse, tool and grain separator works, creamery, beanery and pickle
factory.
At Evart are also the large and attractive fair grounds of the
Osceola County Agricultural Society. This organization which has
done so much for the entire county was founded at Hersey, in the month
of April, 1875, with L. Swem as president, Henry Gerhardt, treasurer,
and E. J. Raymond, secretary. The first meeting was held at Hersey,
September 29th of that year; in 1877 the fair grounds were located at
Evart, since which the annual meeting of the society and the county
fairs have been held at the latter place. The association has twenty
acres in grounds, a well-graded half mile track, grand stand, halls for
assemblies and general exhibits, and buildings for livestock.
MARION
Marion is a thriving little village on the middle branch of the Muskegon river, and at the junction of the Ann Arbor and Manmstee & Grand
Rapids railroads, it being the eastern terminus of the latter line. It is
in the northeastern part of the county, thirty miles from Hersey, the
county seat; was settled in 1880 and incorporated in 1889. It has a
well-constructed plant for the generation of electric light and power a
mile west of town, where is also located a sawmill, a good bank, a pretty
little opera house, a graded Union school and Catholic and Methodist
churches. The general appearance of the village, with its clean streets,
fully-stocked stores and neat houses, is attractive and reassuring.
TUSTIN AND LEROY
Tustin is a station and pretty village, seventeen miles north of Reed
City at the junction of the Grand Rapids & Indiana with the Manistee
& Grand Rapids railroads. It was settled in 1871 and incorporated in
1893, its business still being largely centered in the shipment of such
lumber products as cedar posts, hardwood logs and hemlock bark. The
village is also the center of a productive hay and potatoe country, in
which articles its merchants are active dealers. The Bank of Tustin
acts as the financial agent for such dealers and shippers, for the local
trade and the farmers in the surrounding country. Tustin has a good
village school and is the center of a considerable religious activity, the
denominations being represented by Methodist, Presbyterian, Swedish
Baptist, Swedish Lutheran and Swedish Mission churches.
Leroy, of about the same size as Tustin, is on the Grand Rapids &
Indiana railroad, twelve miles north of Reed City. It was incorporated




548


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


under the village form of government in 1883. Leroy is the center of a
growing stock and fruit country, whose trade it largely controls. A
steam sawmill and a planing and flour mill are also in operation at that
point. Further, Leroy ships considerable grain, potatoes, wood and tan
bark. It has a bank, a Union school and Baptist, German Evangelical,
Methodist and Swedish Mission churches; so that in all the requirements
of a present day American community it is complete.
LAKE COUNTY
About half of Lake county in the valleys of the Little Manistee and
Pine rivers, in the northern sections, and in the Pere Marquette region
in the south, was originally covered with a dense forest of white pine.
As its territory was one of the latest in Northern Michigan to be stripped
of this rich clothing, the transformation from a lumber to an agricultural, livestock and dairy country has been fairly under way only within the past dozen years. While this process is going on a county may
be considered fortunate if it "holds its own."
Within the past few years the progress of the farming industries of
Lake county has been marked. Wisely, they have largely devoted themselves to the cultivation of alfalfa, clover and other forms of vegetation
which not only lead to the raising of livestock and the encouragement
of dairying, but store nitrogen in the soil, that necessary element for
the growth of the heavier grain and root crops. Red clover has especially reached the point of a standard and profitable crop, and alfalfa
is well on the same way. There is water everywhere in Lake county;
not only is it supplied by the Little Manistee, Pere Marquette and Pine
rivers, with their numerous tributaries, but it is stored in little crystal
lakes distributed through the territory and it gushes from thousands of
springs which, in turn, feed the lakes and streams.
The total area of the county is 368,000 acres, of which 69,794 acres
are already included in the farming sections and 200,000 available for
cultivation. The territory is fortunate in the matter of railroads, as
the MNanistee & Grand Rapids and Pere Marquette run east and west
through the fertile river valleys; while the Grand Rapids and Bay View
line of the Pere Marquette system passes through the county north and
south. Baldwin, the county seat, is at the junction of that division with
the east and west line of the Pere Marquette which crosses the state from
Port Huron to Ludington. Luther, the largest village, is in the eastern
part of the county on the Manistee & Grand Rapids, whose eastern terminus is now Marion, Osceola county.
POPULATION FROM 1890 TO 1910
The foregoing should throw some light on the statistics of population
covering the past twenty years as presented by the United States census
bureau:




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


549


Civil Divisions


1910    1900    1890


Chase  township............................  999
Cherry Valley township.....................  239
Dover  township............................  373
Eden township............................ 103
Elk township............................. 221
Ellsworth township, including part of Luther
village..............................  799
Luther village (part of)................. 226
Total for Luther village in Ellsworth and
Newkirk  townships...................  626
Lake  township.............................  201
Newkirk township, including part of Luther
village..............................  624
Luther village  (part of).................  400
Pinora  township...........................  336
Pleasant Plains township, including Baldwin
and Marlborough villages............. 690
Baldwin  village.........................  502
Marlborough  village.....................  57
Sweet W ater township......................  149
W ebber  township.........................  205
Totals............................... 4,939


1,075
211
396
21
245


1,169
301
303
120
569


1,080   1,949
367    1,084
837    1,084
177      59
811
470
373     890
416     657
343     429
152     162
4,957   6,505


ORGANIC AND PIONEER HISTORY
The original territory was laid off as Aishcum county April 1, 1840,
and consisted of township 17, 18, 19 and 20 north of range 11, 12, 13 and
14 west. On March 8, 1843, the name was changed to Lake county. For
judicial purposes this was first attached to Mason county, then to Newaygo and again to Mason, of which it remained a civil adherent until it
was regularly organized in 1871.
The first settler to come to what is now Lake county was Lorenzo
J. Conklin, who located in the southeast corner in the present Chase
township during the spring of 1863, his homestead entry having been
made February 2d. M. C. King, Jesse Akerman, F. Straup and A.
Fiandt soon followed, locating near Mr. Conklin in the southern part
of the township, and J. M. Foster, R. E. Bigbee, J. Pease and A. Oliver
settled in the northern part. At that time the nearest grist mill was
Croton, Newaygo county, thirty miles south, and the nearest market
for the purchase of supplies was Paris, about fifteen miles.
In 1867 Chase township was attached to Mecosta county and on
April 23d an election for township offices was held at the home of J. M.
Foster-the first election to be held within the present bounds of Lake
county. At the presidential election in the following year the town
cast sixty-four votes. In March, 1869, Chase township was detached
from Mecosta and attached to Osceola. The county seat of the latter
was then at Hersey in the extreme southern part, although many of




550


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the settlers were in favor of Ashton further north and much more conveniently located for the citizens of Chase township. As there seemed
to be no evidence of a compromise on the part of the more thickly settled sections in the south, agitation for a new county became warm.
Two petitions were circulated and presented to the legislature of 1871,
one favoring Green Dell, in Chase township, and the other Bismarck,
northwest /4 northwest 1/ section 4, township 19, range 11 west. Two
tickets were in the field for the first election of county officers and for
determining the "seat of justice," to be held on the first Monday in
April, 1871. The Independents won over the Republicans, carrying
(Green Dell as the county seat and choosing the following: Clerk and
register, David G. Lathrop; judge of probate, J. M. Foster; surveyor.
G. W. Brown; sheriff, George Collier, and coroner, Robert E. Bigbee.
At that time the population of Lake county was 550.
Besides Chase township, during 1871, the first year of county organization, there were created Ellsworth, Pinora and Pleasant Plains
townships, Cherry Valley and Webber were formed in 1872, and Elk
township in 1874.
VILLAGES
Baldwin, the present county seat of Lake county, is a pleasant little
village of five hundred people, conveniently situated in the southern
part at the junction of the two Pere Marquette lines which there cross
at nearly right angles. The village was incorporated in 1887. Its
$10,000 court house is substantial and convenient, its streets are well
paved and lighted by electricity, it has a graded Union school and its
several churches are further evidences of stability and progress. Some
of the finest trout streams in Northern Michigan are near Baldwin,
which is also the location of the fine club house of the Pere Marquette
Railroad Company, and in the open seasons the county seat is quite a
lively center for sportsmen and summer resorters in general.   All
around is a good agricultural country, with the result that Baldwin
is something of a shipper of livestock and potatoes, and is well known
as a large huckleberry market. Consequently, Baldwin has a number
of strong points to make it a comfortable and agreeable place in which
to reside.
Luther, somewhat larger than the county seat, is situated on the
Little Manistee river and the Manistee & Grand Rapids railroad, eighteen miles northeast of Baldwin. It was settled in 1881 and incorporated as a village in 1893. Luther has a good bank (Luther Exchange).
flour and shingle mills, and its well stocked stores indicate a profitable
trade with the adjacent country. Lighted by electricity, provided with
a good water supply, enjoying the advantages of a modern graded
UTnion school, and having in its midst organizations of Methodists, Baptists, Catholics, Christians and Episcopalians to uphold the moral
status of the community-with such material, intellectual and spiritual
influences at work there is abundant cause for the people of Luther
to consider themselves fortunate.




CHAPTER XXVIII


CLARE AND ROSCOMMON
POPULATION OF CLARE COUNTY-SETTLED AND ORGANIZED —CLARE CITY
-HARRISON - FAR WELL - TEMPLE - ROSCOMMON       COUNTY - THE
COUNTY SEAT
Clare county includes the higher altitudes, or watershed of the great
central plateau which is so prominent a physical feature of Northern
Michigan. The head streams and lakes of the Tobacco river, one of the
large northern branches of the Tittabawassee, have their sources in the
eastern, central and southern townships, while the upper waters of the
Muskegon which rise in Missaukee and Roscommon counties to the
north drain the northwestern sections of Clare. As a county it is
therefore an important watershed of both the Saginaw and Muskegon
valleys. It could not be otherwise than a good country for forage
products and livestock, the latter being a growing and profitable industry. Dairying is also on the increase and there are a number of creameries and cheese factories doing a good business. Potatoes, cucumbers
and all kinds of vegetables flourish, Clare City having a pickle salting
station which is quite an industry. Clare county has been largely denuded of its original forests, although sufficient raw material is left to
feed a number of busy mills in the county which manufacture lumber,
shingles, hoops, heading and staves, and several firms have large dealings in railroad ties and telegraph poles.
Tobacco river is the chief source of water power, operating flour,
and saw mills, electrical plants and other establishments at Clare City
and Farwell, in the southern part of the county, and Harrison, the
county seat, a short distance east of the center. Clare City has been
especially benefitted and is one of the busiest manufacturing centers
in the interior of Northern Michigan.
POPULATION AND RAILROADS
The status of Clare county as to population, and its advancement
in this regard since 1890, are shown by the last figures from the United
States census bureau:
Civil Divisions                             1910    1900    1890
Arthur  township...........................  734   500     168
Clare  City.................................1,350  1,326  1,174
W ard  1.............................  214
551




55.


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Civil Divisions
W ard   2.............................
W ard   3.............................
Franklin  township.........................
Freeman  township.........................
Frost  township............................
Garfield  township..........................
Grant  township............................
Greenwood  township.......................
Hamilton  township.........................
Harrison Citv........................
W ard   1.............................
W ard   2.............................
W ard   3.............................
Hatton  township...........................
Hayes  township............................
Lincoln  township..........................
Redding  township..........................
Sheridan  township.........................
Suminerfield  township......................
Surrey township, including Farwell village....
Farwell village..........................
W interfield  township.......................


1910    1900     1890


661
475
131
129
228
425
818
462
501
543
166
149
228
381
262
120
659
934
228
902
522
433


73      545


194
294
848
484
199
647
380
170
585
809
282
1,292
535
277


134
794
259
508
752
535
192
693
147
1,292
584
365


Totals...............................9,240


8,360   7,558


Clare county is furnished with good railway accommodations through
the Pere Marquette and Ann Arbor railroads. Clare City is at the
junction of the main line of the Ann Arbor with a branch of the
Pere Marquette which runs north to Harrison, the county seat, and
thence ten miles beyond to Leota station, near the northern line on
the south bank of the Muskegon river. The Saginaw-Ludington section
of the Pere Marquette passes through the southern and southwestern
portions of the county. Farwell is accommodated by this road and the
main line of the Ann Arbor, at whose junction it is located. The latter
runs northwest, through the western townships, crossing the Muskegon
river at Temple.
SETTLED AND ORGANIZED
The first settlers of Clare county were lumbermen of the Saginaw
valley who took advantage of the fine water power of the Tobacco river
and in the early seventies established camps, built sawmills and coinmenced operations in the pineries at what are now Farwell and Clare
City. The site of the former was occupied by a few settlers in 1870-1.
Clare county, as originally created April 1, 1840, embraeed townships 17, 18, 19 and 20 north of ranges 3, 4, 5 and 6 west. It was then
known as Kaykakee. the name being changed to Clare March 8, 1843.
By le'islative act of February 11, 1859, its territory was attached to Isa



HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


553


bella county for judicial purposes, but it did not become a separate civil
and political body until March 16, 1871, when it was regularly organized
with Farwell as the county seat.
CLARE CITY
This, the largest center of population in Clare county, is a city of
about fourteen hundred people and, as stated, is a leading industrial
town. It was incorporated as a village in 1879 and as a city in 1891.
Clare City is eighteen miles south of Harrison, the county seat, and the
Tobacco river furnishes an abundance of water power for saw, shingle,
planing and flour mills, stave and heading factory and foundry and
machine shop. It also runs the dynamos which generate the electricity and thus light the city; and the water supply is drawn from the
same source. The new city water works are operated through the " tankpressure" system and have a daily capacity of 350,000 gallons.
The country, of which Clare City is the trade center, is progressing
as an agricultural and livestock section of the state. Hay, cattle, wheat
and vegetables represent the leading articles of produce, with the result that Clare City is quite a large shipper of them. There, also, are
a creamery, a pickle salting station, mills which turn out lumber,
shingles and staves, a large knitting factory, flour mills, carriage works
and a foundry and machine shop. The place has two substantial banks.
From another point of view Clare City is prominent-from the viewpoint of the social, educational and religious advantages which its people
enjoy. Two public halls, including a neat opera house, enable its citizens to gather socially and have the benefit of high-grade amusements;
a $25,000 Union schoolhouse is the medium through which the younger
generation is being trained for useful and honorable careers; and Baptist, Catholic, Congregational, Free Methodist, German Lutheran and
Methodist churches enable those of various beliefs to worship according
to the dictates of their own consciences. In other ways too numerous
to mention in this condensed article Clare City is a good place in which
to really live and rear good families.
The founders of Clare City first settled in the forest, which was its
future site, in 1865, and by 1870 had gained such strength in numbers
and confidence that the town was platted. In 1871 the Pere Marquette
railroad extended its road through Clare on the way to Ludington and
ill 1886-7 the Ann Arbor line built through the county on its extension northward. These were the main facts in the local history which
preceded incorporation as a village in 1879 and as a city in 1891.
HARRISON
Harrison, the county seat, is a neat city of between five and six
hundred people, situated on the shore of Budd lake, and, as mentioned,
a station on the branch of the Pere Marquette railroad running from
Clare City to Leota. Its site was first settled in 1879. It was incorporated as a village in 1885 and advanced to cityhood in 1891. With a
solid standing and a fair local trade as the county seat, and situated in
Vol. 1-36




554


HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


the midst of a developing livestock country. Harrison is a stanch, comfortable looking little place. The city has a good plant for supplying
electric light and water, two banks, a Union graded school, an opera
house and four churches-Catholic, Congregational, Methodist and
United Brethren.
FARWELL
What is now the village of Farwell was one of the first settlements
in Clare county, having been founded in 1870 and incorporated in 1879.
It is twenty miles south of Harrison, the county seat; has a population of over five hundred and has within its limits, or in the immediate
vicinity, two saw and shingle mills and a flour and planing mill. A
branch of the Tobacco river flows through the village and could provide water power for many other industries. Farwell has a modern
Union school and the Congregationalist and Methodist represent the
churches.
TEMPLE
This is a station on the Ann Arbor railroad where it crosses the
Muskegon river, twelve miles west of Harrison. It has a shingle, stave
and heading factory and several general stores. Its nearest banking
point is Marion, Osceola county, eight miles to the northwest.
ROSCOMMON COUNTY
The streams which flow into the northeastern shores of Houghton
lake and the western extremity of Lake St. Helen are separated by a
divide of less than a mile, which shed their waters into the valley of the
Muskegon and Lake Michigan on the west and into the Au Sable valley
and Lake Huron on the east. At this apex of the great divide of
Northern Michigan, in the southeastern part of the county, also rises
the northern branches of the Sugar river, an affluent of the Tittibawassee. The great Saginaw valley therefore extends into that section of
Roscommon. Of its three fine lakes, Houghton and Higgins are the
natural reservoirs which supply the Muskegon, and St. Helen lake is
the real birth place of the Au Sable's south branch.
These numerous courses and bodies of pure water and splendid natural drainage, with a sunny, bracing climate, are productive of abundant grass and clover crops and form ideal conditions for stock raising.
In fact, cattle, sheep and hogs, all do well in Roscommon county and
dairies are profitable enterprises. During the past few years much
attention has been given to the growing of clover for its seed and the
results have been most gratifying. The yield of potatoes is often noteworthy, both for quantity and quality, and small fruits do particularly
well, especially the strawberry.
Roscommon county is going ahead in all these lines and no two
forces are to be given a greater share of credit for this progress than the
St. Helen Development Company and the Central Michigan Land




HISTORY OF NORTHERN MICHIGAN


Company. The operations of the former at the town of St. Helen and
in the region surrounding the beautiful lake by that name are of special magnitude. The enterprises of the St. Helen Development Company include four operating or developing camps, a general store, saw
and planing mill, and a hotel and other improvements on Lake St.
Helen. During the seven years of its existence it has sold over eighty
thousand acres of land, located nearly fifty families on their own land,
organized schools and churches, brought to a productive state thousands
of acres, and built more than thirty miles of new roads and eighty miles
of fencing. Over $400,000 is said to have been invested by that company in land and improvements, and the entire county has been benefitted. Both the St. Helen Development Company and the Central Michigan Land Company have given much attention to fruit raising, their
apple orchards and strawberry farms being models. They have especially encouraged the cultivation of small tracts for fruit, vegetable
and poultry farms.
Roscommon county was one of the originators of the industry of
extracting turpentine from pine stumps, and thus has been opened up
an avenue of profit from what had heretofore been a sheer expense to
those clearing the land.
Roscommon, the county seat, is the only village in the county, an
exhibit of whose changes in population for twenty years past is given.
Civil Divisions                            1910     1900    1890
Backus  township...........................  85
Denton  township...........................  76    84      75
Gerrish  township..........................  337   129      66
Higgins township, including Roscommon village..............................  503      584     586
Roscommon village................       425      465     511
Markey  township..........................  197     76      28
Nester township.................... 239         269     159
Richfield township................         401      147      76
Roscommon township................         436      396     176
Totals..............................2,274  1,787  2,033
ROSCOMMON, THE COUNTY SEAT
Roscommon, the county seat, is on the Michigan Central railroad near
the northern line. First settled in 1872 and incorporated in 1882, it is a
neat little village with a good agricultural country around it, of which
it is the trading, banking and shipping center. It has a well-built electric light and water-works plant, telephone service, a State Bank, shingle
mill, several thoroughly-stocked retail stores, a graded Union school and
Congregational, Methodist and Catholic churches. Roscommon has been
the judicial and official seat of the county since it was organized March
20, 1875.








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