2012 Looking Back

Wheeling around the dunes

By Chris Olson Of The Enterprise staff

Anyone who visited Leelanau County during the summer months from 1938-78 likely took a ride in a Dunesmobile, a motorized excursion into what is now know as Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore offered by Louis Warnes and his family.

According to information provided by the Empire Area History Museum, Warnes modified his family car with large tires to drive in the “sand area” his family owned in 1935. The idea appealed to a lot of folks, so he started offering tours.

By 1938, Warnes had the Sleeping Bear Dunes Wagon Dunes Ride up and running. From the end of May to the end of the fall color season you could catch a ride on 13½ mile loop on a hard-pack road from the bottom of the Sleeping Bear Dunes to the top and back.

Daniel “Boone” Harriger of Empire and Charlie Bennett, originally of Glen Haven but now of Frankfort, spent many summers working for Warnes on his dune rides.

Bennett said he was already familiar with Sleeping Bear dunes as he spent his summers at the family home near Glen Haven. He enjoyed driving his beach buggy up and down the dunes.

“I was going to apply to work for the car ferries that ran out of Manistee,” he said. “I had stopped by the old Empire Bar, now the Village Inn, for lunch and met up with Boone Harriger.”

Warnes saw Bennett and Harriger, and heard Bennett say he was applying for a job. Warnes had his foreman offer him a job.

“Louis, he knew my family,” Bennett said. “The supervisor he came over and said ‘Louis wants to know if you want to go work for him.’ That was all it took for me,” he said.

Bennett and Harriger worked together to build his first beach buggy.

At the time Bennett lived on Niagara Street in Empire, in the last house on the right-hand side before you get to the village’s Lake Michigan beach.

NED PLOWMAN is driving this happy group of people in one of Louis Warnes’ 1938 Sleeping Bear Dunesmobiles.

Photo by Fred Dickinson

“Charlie would drive all over there,” Harriger said. “On the beach, on the sand, on the dunes. You could do that then, it wasn’t against the law.”

Harriger said he started working with the dunes ride after he married Warnes’ niece Marion.

“She always worked at the dune ride, so I got a job there, too,” he said.

A typical work day for Harriger and his fellow drivers was to first make sure the road was in good shape, then perform maintenance on the dunes ride vehicles.

“At noon, I’d go take a shower, put on a fresh set of clothes, then drive until the end of the sunlight,” he said.

The Warnes family has a long history of providing tours in what is now the dune climb area off M-109 in Glen Arbor Township.

“Before they had cars, Louis and Marion offered horse riding tours on the dunes,” Marion Harriger said.

“The tour would start at the store, then they would ride up to the top of Mother Bear, go across the top of the dunes, then come down what is now the dune climb, and head back to the store.

“They usually did two or three trips a day with the horses.”

The vehicle he drove most was truck No. 31, a modified 1965 Ford pick-up.

(Concluded on Page 2)

LOUIS AND MARION Warnes ran their Sleeping Bear Scenic Dune Rides business from this spot in front of their general store in Glen Haven for at least 40 years.

Some things you can’t do anymore, at least legally Not to sound like a fuddy-duddy, but things just aren’t the same in Leelanau County.

There was a time when you could dip smelt in the Carp River. If you were thirsty you could get a pop from a genuine soda fountain. If the mood struck, you could load up a group of friends in the back of your pick-up truck and take them for a ride.

Most of these things you can’t do anymore. It’s legal for people ages 18 and older to ride in the back of pick-ups.

But smelt runs are largely a thing of the past in Leelanau County, and the soda fountains and dune rides are long gone.

A little snip-it on each subject follows. Enjoy the look back.

*** Smelt dipping in the Carp (Leland) River You can still head out and catch smelt on inland lakes, including Lake Leelanau, and many ice fishermen do. But there was a time when smelt, a freshwater sardine-like fish, ran in sufficient numbers that hundreds of anglers would gather each spring to fill their buckets.

Smelt, it seemed, were found all over, from the mouth of tiny Belanger Creek in Suttons Bay Township to large venues such as the mouths of Crystal River in Glen Arbor and the Leland River at Fishtown.

There were so many of the little fishies that Carlson’s Fish Market in Fishtown would host a smelt fry each spring.

“Those smelt fries at Carlson’s were

a big event,” said Wendy VerSnyder, a life-long Leland Township resident. Her husband, Jim, has worked at Carlson’s in different capacities over the last 40 years. Dark clouds of the tiny fish once attempted to make their way from Lake Michigan over the Leland dam.

Theories abound as to why the smelt population took such a dip, and it may be that a combination of changes in the Lake Michigan watershed conspired to reduce smelt populations. Smelt are still prevalent in Lake Leelanau, although large catches are rarely reported.

You’ll still find a few die-hard smelt dippers in Fishtown toward the end of April, lights beaming into the Leland River with hopes of a resurrection of smelt runs of the past. They may be

rewarded with the sighting of a couple stragglers or even a good pull — but, as for now, smelt dipping in Leelanau County is more a thing to the past than a way to fill the freezer. *** Getting a good, ol’ fashion soda pop at a soda fountain The traditional soda fountains of old are also long gone. As recently as the late 1960s you stop in Empire or Suttons Bay and get an old fashion root beer through the magic combination of soda water from a fountain and flavoring syrups. David Taghon, keeper of all things historic in Empire, said Marshall’s Drugs was where Empire residents went to quench their soda thirsts.

(Concluded on Page 2)

Thanks to our sponsors Looking Back over the yesteryears includes a big thank you to those who have supported this special section.

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Becky Thatcher Designs, 14 Bonek Agency, 10 Boskydel Vineyard, 12 Bunting’s Market, 14 Cedar Auto Repair, 7 Cedar Tavern, 15 Cherryland Electric, 9 Cox’s Piano Service, 5 Deerings, 5 Devette & Ford Insurance, 14

Dorsey’s on Glen Lake, 2 Excel Rehabilitation, 15 Fischer’s Happy Hour, 5 Forget Me Not Florist, 14 Fountain Point Resort, 4 Gabe’s Country Market, 12 Kal Excavating, 11 Kiss Carpet, 2 LaCross Horse Logging, 3 Leelanau Cheese, 13

Life Story Funeral Home, 4 Lil Bo Pub & Grill, 7 Lima Bean, 7 Manitou Marine, 14 Maple City Health & Fitness, 12 MC Short Stop, 14 Northern Lumber, 3 Northport Bay Boat Yard, 6 Northwood Kitchens, 14 Penning Group, 3

Riverfront Pizza, 14 Salon Chenneaux, 7 Seeco Contracting, 10 Shady Trails Camp, 13 St. Mary, 10 Stander Marine, 16 Tampico, 5 Trend Window & Door, 12 Van’s Garage, 5 Yarn Shop, 12

Page 2, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Wheeling around the dunes Continued from Page 1 “I believe it’s one of the trucks used by the Grosvenors out on S. Manitou Island,” Harriger said.

Driving on the dune, especially up on top, provided a new experience every day.

“It was gorgeous, the views,” Harriger said. “Every day the view was something different. Being cloud cover, bright sunlight, overcast, even rainy, the perspective was always a little different.”

Bennett said he and Ned Plowman of Empire built Warnes’ first dunes ride truck.

“It was a three-door International Travel-All with a crew cab,” he said.

On the first dunesmobiles they took off the windshields as part of the modifications.

“We learned pretty quick it was a better idea to keep the windshields on, with all that sand blowing around,” Bennett said.

Changes came when the dunes area became a state park. Instead of driving all over the dunes, Bennett said the state required Warnes put in a road and that all the tours stay on the road. When the entire area became federal property in the early 1970s, Bennett said Warnes knew the end was near.

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CHARLIE BENNETT spent many hours in the summer running his “beach buggy” all over the beach and dunes near Empire and what is now the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. guys sure speeded up the process.”

Harriger said Warnes was a demanding, but fair boss.

“He made sure things were safe, and you had to keep your car clean,” he said. “He was fanatical about maintenance. If you had a problem with a car, you heard a grinding or squeak, you were expected to take it back to the garage immediately.”

Warnes also paid a fair wage for the time. And he gave out tips to his employees.

“He would always say ‘Now, don’t say anything about this to anyone’ and he would give you tip. He did it in a way where you could tell he wanted you to feel special,” Harriger said.

Dunesmobile DVD available soon Would you like to know more about the history of the Sleeping Bear Dunesmobiles?

David Taghon, one of the founders of the Empire Area History Museum and Empire Historical Society, is finishing work on a 38-minute digital video disc (DVD) history of the dunesmobile.

Taghon said he is recording the audio tracks this week and hopes to have the DVDs ready to go before the end of March. More information about where you will be able to see or get a copy of the DVD will provided when the project is complete.

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“I worked for Louis right up until about a year before it closed,” he said. “I hated to see it go. It wasn’t hurting anything. It wasn’t a thrill ride, it was a scenic ride. We drove nice and slow.”

By 1978 the rides were shut down as the National Park Service (NPS) banned driving on the dunes for ecological reasons.

Bennett was glad to see the NPS did incorporate part of the Warnes' road system in with the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive.

“The original superintendent, he wanted to take all of that out,” he said.

Harriger said Warnes was strict about making sure his dune rides did not harm the sand dunes or the surrounding area.

“We were very careful where we went. When we drove down by the beach, we never went into the water.” he said. “I think we were doomed after a group of guys came up from down Detroit way with their dune buggies.”

They destroyed the area, Harriger recalled.

“They went out on the beach by Otter Creek, tore south towards this sand bowl area, and just tore it up,” he said. “I know the park service was leaning towards banning driving on the dunes anyway, but those

Some things you can’t do anymore Continued from Page 1 “They had a genuine malt maker,” he said. “Gale and Zita Marshall owned the drug store. It’s located where Tiffany’s Ice Cream Shop is now.”

The building that houses Roman Wheel Pizza was the location for Suttons Bay’s soda fountain. As technology improved and society’s tastes changed, the old soda fountains have disappeared. Now you can get close to the same taste and flavor through a single dispensing hose at a restaurant or bar.

Taghon said having a soda fountain in your town back in the 1950s and 60s was like having a candy store, a miller’s or a tobacco shop.

“It was a part of small town life that I’m afraid you just don’t see anymore,” he said.

In Northport, Gene Dame’s store included a soda fountain, and was the place to hang out. Larry and Mary Frank of Northport have lived in Northport since 1949.

“It was here when we got here, so I don’t know how long it was around,” Mark Frank said. *** Riding around in the bed of a pick-up truck Marian Harriger of Empire said this was, and still is, a fun thing to do with a group of friends.

“We did it all the time,” she said.

“These days if you got a group of young people together, put them in the back of a pick-up truck, then went two-tracking, you would probably get pulled over.”

While it was probably never a great idea to throw a group of kids looking for fun into the bed of a truck before speeding off, it was legal.

Until March 28, 2001, that is. That’s when the an amendment to Public Act 300 of 1949 prohibited people under 18 years old from riding in the bed of a pick up on a public road at a speed greater than 15 miles per hour.

There are exceptions for kids, however, such as if the pickup is part of a parade, is being as part of a farm or construction business, or is being driven on private property.

If you’re 18 or older, you can still pile into the back of a pickup and head down the road.

So they you are folks, just a few of the options no longer available in Leelanau County.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Section 3, Page 3

School consolidations to save money a thing of the past

By Amy Hubbell Of The Enterprise staff

AFTER FAILED consolidation votes in the 1960s, the old Northport School was razed in the 1970s and replaced with a new K-12 facility nearby. three years for operations, which would replace the existing millage in each district?

• Shall voters pay one mill for 11 years to pay for the indebtedness of Leland Public School? At that time the district owed $30,000 on past bond issues.

• If consolidated, will the district pay Leland’s bond off?

All voters in the three districts were asked the first two questions. The last two were only put to voters in Northport and Suttons Bay. This time, the issue passed in both Northport and Suttons Bay, but failed in Leland, 265-195.

“It might have been more like Glen Lake, with all the different districts,” said Probst, now 82 years old. “At the time, Suttons Bay was starting to grow. For them it was consolidate or add on.”

After the issue failed, Northport and Suttons Bay proceeded to build, new facilities. Northport’s was just west of the old school on the hill and Suttons Bay, to the south off Elm Street.

It would be 25 more years before the issue would again be raised. *** By 1989, growing enrollment was putting the squeeze on Leland Public School, particularly at the elementary level and it was time for school officials to look to their neighbors.

Suttons Bay was in the midst of a $7.9 million construction project which included renovations of and additions to the elementary school and a second building to serve as a middle school. This was to complement a $5 million high school being built to the south of the existing school complex in an area previously occupied by a strawberry field.

Given Suttons Bay’s ongoing project, Leland first considered a $1.7 million building project with two options — construction of a new elementary school offsite or the addition of four classrooms onto the south wing of the elementary school.

But before proceeding on their own, Leland officials approached Northport about future needs of both districts.

Northport had ample space for its students, however, officials and teachers believed that greater curricular offerings would be available to students if the two districts became one.

The plan, developed over a series of meetings, was to maintain elementary schools at each home district; use existing space at Northport to house grades 6, 7 and 8 and build a new high school.

“Pros” and “cons” identified at the time were as follows: • “Pros” — Curriculum offerings for high school students would be enhanced (more offerings); instructional time for middle school students would increase from 50 to 90 minutes per day.

• “Cons” — travel time extended by

20 to 25 minutes per day. The longest ride of the day then was 65 minutes in Leland and 45 minutes, Northport.

On March 12, 1990, the people spoke on three questions: • Consolidation of Leland and Northport; • 9.2236-mills for operation of the new district.

• Combine the debt retirement of both districts to $1,570,000, with $935,00 of that assigned to Leland.

Interestingly, voters in the Northport School district approved all three questions: 400-256, 389-267 and 382275.

Leland voters turned down the questions: 544-300, 549-292 and 551287.

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assume the bonded indebtedness of Leland, estimated at about $80,000?

Those who favored consolidation said the broader program was needed and would not cost much more than what was then being paid.

Opponents maintained that even with consolidation, the school would not have a large enough student body to provide the planned services. They also said that cost would be too excessive and that students were receiving a quality education under the existing program.

The May 30, 1963, headline heralded the results of the election, Reject Merger Proposal in All Three Districts.

Only 41 percent of the voters supported the consolidation in Northport and Suttons Bay. Support was even weaker at Leland, where the consolidation question garnered less than one-quarter of the vote.

Had the consolidation come to pass, the new high school (grades 9-12) would have had 320 students: 76 in Leland; 96 in Northport and 149 from Suttons Bay. The total of all three districts totals 1,003: 256 at Leland; 311 in Northport and 436 from Suttons Bay. *** Although consolidation had been discussed by the three districts over the previous 15 years, it was the first time the question went before voters.

It wouldn’t be the last.

Northport and Suttons Bay continued talks over the next 18 months and by December 1964, had agreed to go to the polls for a second time on March 27, 1965.

Suttons Bay students were crowded into the the old stone school and Northport School, located at the site that now the school playground, was “badly in need of repair.”

Leland, at that time, the smallest of the three schools and had adequate space. However, school officials expressed interest in being part of the second election.

Voters were asked: • Shall the districts consolidate?

• Shall voters pay three mills for

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With financial issues facing county school districts, some residents have questioned the need for four individual school districts.

Some have gone as far as questioning why they haven’t considered consolidation.

Well, they have — on numerous occasions. Most recently, as 1990 when voters in the Leland and Northport school districts agreed to go it alone rather than join forces.

But a quarter century earlier there was an opportunity for three of the four county schools to consolidate.

The effort was turned down twice within a two-year period.

Kendall Probst of Northport was on the Northport Board of Education when the schools looked at joining forces in the early 1960s.

“The assumption was that we’d built a central high school somewhere near Lake Leelanau,” said Probst, who later went on to drive bus for 25 years for the school district.

Enterprise archives shed light on the effort. The first mention of a merger of school districts appeared on the front page of the March 7, 1963 paper.

The process was explained under a headline reading Will Seek Merger Vote in 3 School Districts: “Boards of education and citizens advisory group from Northport, Suttons Bay and Leland voted unanimously … to petition for a vote to merge the three school district and to call a combined meeting of the school boards to set a day for the vote.”

State law at the time required approval of the county superintendent of schools and the state superintendent of public instruction before an election was set.

Merger plans called for a central high school with a separate elementary school in each community. The plan suggested using Leland school with some alterations as an elementary school, Suttons Bay high school as an elementary school and building a new elementary school in Northport.

There would also be construction of a new central high school.

Between March and the May 27 election time was spent developing ballot language and coming up with a new joint curriculum which was different from what was being offered at that time. Back then, the criticism was that schools focused too much on the needs of those planning on attending college. The new curriculum called for a “much broader” educational program geared toward students who planned to go into “secretarial work, the trades or service businesses.”

Officials from the three districts held informational meetings to explain the ballot questions which were: • Should the three districts be consolidated?

• Do the taxpayers agree to pay one additional mill for 13 years to cover the indebtedness of Leland Public School?

• Should the consolidated district

Page 4, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Nuns once played a pivotal role in Catholic education

Sisters who served St. Mary Sr. Jacinta Belanger* Sr. Jeanette Belanger* Sr. Cletus Brow* Sr. Dominica Bussey — cloistered Dominican Sisters of the Perpetual Rosary Sr. Frederica Bussey* Sr. Tinita Cordes* Sr. Agnes Flohe* Sr. Laurita Flohe* Sr. Pius Flohe* Sr. Alice Gauthier* Sr. Clotilda Gauthier* Sr. Mary Richard Gauthier * Sr. Jeanette Marie Grant —Holy Spirit Sisters Sr. Augustina Hahnenberg — Little Sisters of the Poor Sr. Marie Therese Harp* Sr. Albina Hominga * Sr. Mary Bertha Hominga — Adrian Dominican Sr. Thomasine Hominga — Sister of Sr. Joseph Sr. David Therese Korson* Sr. Lydia Korson* Sr. Mary Guy Korson* Sr. Bernadette LaBonte — Carmelite Sisters Sr. Dorothea Morio* Sr. Helen Morio•• Sr. Eloise Mosier* Sr. Brenda O’Brien * Sr. Wilfrida Perrault* Sr. Anna Plamondon* Sr. Dominic Marie Plamondon * Sr. Dorothy Plamondon* Sr. Edward Plamondon* Sr. Rose Mary Plamondon* Sr. Eileen Popp* Sr. Gilbert Popp* Sr. Joseph Ann Popp Sr. Thomas Bernard Richard* Sr. Ann Louise Schaub* Sr. Geneva Marie Schaub* Sr. Linus Schaub* Sr. Louis Therese Schaub* Sr. Ludger Schaub* Sr. Ottila Schaub* Sr. Paul Schaub* Sr. Sara VanRaalte * Dominican Sisters, Marywood, Grand Rapids •• First sister from St. Mary Parish — From Eagle Sound, anniversary edition 1887-1987

DOMINICAN SISTERS played a huge role in the early days of St. Mary School in Lake Leelanau.

Pictured from left are birth sisters Sr. Eileen, Sr. Cecelia and Sr. Joseph Ann Popp, one of two sets of three sisters to commit to the religious life.

“Charged with the slaying at Isadore, the housekeeper was alleged to have made a confession, giving jealousy as the motive for the crime,” author Mardi Link wrote, quoting The New York Times in her book about the incident called Isadore’s Secret: Sin, Murder, and Confession in Northern Michigan.

Though the housekeeper claimed innocence in court, the prosecution set up a table in front of the jury at the old wooden courthouse in Leland and lay the nun’s bones on it. The housekeeper was convicted but later granted clemency by the governor.

No one in the community talks about the sister who died there more than 100 years ago. However, Sr. Janina’s story lives on with Link’s book, the play The Runner Stumbles and movie with the same name.

••• Sr. Mary Edward Plamondon, a Lake Leelanau native and nearly 70-year member of the Dominican order, died in January. For many represented a bygone era in the church.

At the age of 10, Plamondon began helping her mother care for altars at St. Mary. After graduating from the Catholic school in Lake Leelanau, she stayed at home, helped her parents, did book work and sacristy work for her pastor, Father Neubaker, and assisted older townspeople.

In February, 1943 Plamondon entered the congregation at Marywood in Grand Rapids. That September, she received the habit and the name of

Sister Mary Edward of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus.

She taught primarily first and second grades at numerous schools in Grand Rapids and throughout the Diocese of Gaylord, including her alma mater in Lake Leelanau, where she served as principal for four years.

When she taught in Gaylord, the school burned. A picture in the local newspaper showed her leading her first graders to safety.

Plamondon came home to Lake Leelanau in 1983 to care for her ailing mother, who died at the age of 100, and then stayed to care for her sister. She remained a volunteer with the parish ministry, serving as a home visitor, sacristan and pastor’s assistant in numerous capacities. At the time, she resided in her family’s yellow-colored

home on M-204 across from Dick’s Pour House, within walking distance to the Parish.

Sr. Mary Edward was easily recognized by her habit, which many religious woman stopped wearing in the 1970s and 1980. Asked once why she continued to wear the habit, she replied, “I worked long and hard to earn the right to wear it and I’m not going to stop now.”

Indeed, when securing a passport for a trip to Rome with the late John Suelzer and his wife, Maureen and David and Dorothy Couturier of Lake Leelanau, sister refused to remove her veil saying, “Absolutely not. This is who I am.”

The pinnacle of the experience for Plamondon was a personal audience with Pope John Paul II.

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The recent passing of Lake Leelanau native Sr. Mary Edward Plamondon got us thinking about the role Catholic nuns have played on the Leelanau Peninsula over the years.

The most well known nun, Sister Mary Janina, was the Felican nun who disappeared from Holy Rosary Church near Cedar. But there were others, like Sister Mary Edward, who were known for their unshaken faith and their efforts to educate children in the teachings of the Church. The following is glimpse of the work of sisters of all different orders and their efforts over the years and their contributions to life in Leelanau.

Three Benedictine sisters arrived at St. Mary in 1887 to staff a combined day-boarding school on the Narrows of Lake Leelanau where the four Rs and music were stressed.

The early history of the sisters is recorded in Eagle Sound, anniversary edition, 1887-1987.

“In the fall of 1887 Mother Benedicta, a cousin of the Schaubs from Chicago, sent Father Bauer three of her ablest Benedictine nuns to staff his school: Sister Florentine, the tiny superior with the prima dona voice; Sister Lucy and Sister Clara.”

These sisters worked hard sanding, varnishing, and painting the first school building to get it ready for its first class.

The next year the three nuns were replaced by Dominican Sisters from Grand Rapids, the order of sisters the bishop had chosen for the staffing of religious schools in the diocese.

Assigned to St. Mary Provemont were Mother Superior Sister Mary Nicholas Philpoot, Sister Mary Francis Bradly and Sister Aloysius Miller. The first

two were from the mother house in New York and chose to return there, while Sister Aloysius “Minne” Miller of Port Austin (in the Thumb) was assigned with the Provincialate at Holy Angels in Traverse City, the convent at St. Francis.

Interesting, after Catholic students transferred from the public school to St. Mary, there was only one pupil left.

Local officials made an arrangement in which the parochial school would provide instruction for non-Catholic pupils. However, the pupils would be excused from religion classes.

Eighty-eight year-old Theresa F. Schaub of Lake Leelanau attended St. Mary from kindergarten through 12th grade and graduated in 1941.

“The first building was old and wooden with no bathrooms,” said Schaub, adding there were two outhouses behind the school. “When I was in third grade, Sr. Josefa left the room for 10 minutes one day. I asked my mother and she said Sr. Josefa was probably in the bathroom.”

The nuns didn’t have all the technology available to in the classroom today.

They taught phonics and arithmetic with flashcards and tablets.

“Sr. Francis Agnes taught us how to read,” Schaub said.

She remembers the sisters as women to be respected. “We didn’t chat with them,” Schaub said.

However, she never remembers the sisters using corporal punishment.

“I never saw that,” Schaub said. “We knew we were to keep still. Whispering was taboo. There wasn’t much talking with classmates.”

Although the 1941 St. Mary alumna does remember there being efforts to recruit girls for the religious life, there were two families from the Lake Leelanau community who each had three birth sisters become nuns. The were three Korson sisters: Sr. Peter Mary (Rosemarie Korson), Sr. Mary Lydia (Mary Korson) and Sr. David Therese (Therese Korson). The others, Sr. Eileen, Sr. Cecelia and Sr. Joseph Ann, were all members of the Popp family. In 1970, the Dominicans withdrew from the high school which continued with all lay staff until 1982 when one Sister Lynn Tilson joined the staff to teach science, religion and coach girls’ basketball and softball.

With her departure in 1986, St. Mary has had a completely lay staff.

••• The other sister of note was Sister Mary Janina, a Felican nun whose disappearance and murder has been the subject of book, stage and screen.

The nun taught at Holy Rosary School near Cedar until one day in August 1907 when she disappeared.

For the next 10 years parishioners, law enforcement, her priest and others searched for her without success.

However, when a new priest decided to tear down the old wooden church and replace it with a brick one, the nun's bones were found buried in the basement. The convent housekeeper was arrested for the crime which caused a sensation in the Catholic Church and in the courts as well.

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By Amy Hubbell Of The Enterprise staff

Section 3, Page 5

Cox’s Piano Service

Romney’s mother campaigned for dad here 50 years ago Mitt Romney has been campaigning in Michigan.

Fifty years ago, his mom was campaigning for his father.

In Leelanau County.

“Mrs. Romney To Visit At Empire Town Hall” read the headline in the Enterprise above a short article, with her picture, on page eight.

George Romney was the Republican candidate seeking to become Michigan’s governor in 1962, and Lenore Romney was traveling all around the state on his behalf.

“The charming 52-year-old grandmother has been actively campaigning in recent weeks and expects to visit all of the state’s 83 counties before election,” the newspaper reported.

George Romney, who resigned as Chairman of American Motors to run for governor, defeated incumbent John Swainson that year.

Swainson had been Lt. Governor under G. Mennen Williams, who “retired” from the governor’s office after being elected six times.

Williams, in his trademark bow tie, seemed to be everywhere in Michigan during his long tenure.

When Suttons Bay observed its centennial, he called a square dance there.

Williams was first elected governor in 1948, when he decisively beat the Republican incumbent, Kim Sigler.

“Soapy” Williams was a colorful governor, but the dapper, outspoken

LENORE ROMNEY

G. MENNEN WILLIAMS arrives in Detroit via commercial flight from Washington in October, 1962. Note the “trademark” bow tie.

Photo by Jim Brinkman

Sigler was perhaps even more so.

“I am very grateful to the voters of Michigan who kicked me out of office,” he said, several years after his defeat. “It is so pleasant to be able to talk only with the people who you enjoy, instead of all the fatheads… I am having the happiest time of my life watching all the political gyrations without being part of them.”

An avid aviator, some commentators said he “flew off into the sunset” after losing to Williams.

Sigler was often seen in Leelanau County, since he had a cottage at Leland.

After retiring as governor, Williams was appointed Assistant Secretary of State for Africa.

“One night in the early 1960s, a startled Secretary of State Dean Rusk nearly choked on a cookie when he entered the State Department’s rooftop dining room and saw robed African diplomats swirling around Williams as he called square dances,” Glen Arbor author George Weeks tells us in his book, Stewards of the State. “Williams said square dancing ‘helps break the ice’ in diplomacy and politics — where he started using it in his first campaign,” Weeks added.

Williams was appointed by John F. Kennedy, whose stature steadily grew after his untimely death.

Even President Kennedy’s endorsement, however, was not enough to put John Swainson over the top in his reelection bid for governor in 1962.

Michigan voters decided they’d “Let George do it.”

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Page 6, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Empire native tried a lot of cases

GLENN AYLSWORTH is shown in his graduation picture from the Detroit College of Law.

Glenn Aylsworth is an old-time Leelanau County attorney, who still has a license to practice law.

At 87, the Solon Township man no longer takes cases, but he does referrals.

The former county probate judge and prosecuting attorney says he’s “bored” living on his 40-acre farm and playing with a few “toys” he’s collected. But the Empire native stays abreast of the ever-changing laws.

“Being an attorney is an honorable profession … it was back then and is today,” said Aylsworth, looking back at more than five decades of lawyer work.

“You hear a lot of jokes about them ... but they are not true.”

Aylsworth, who says he’s “one of the luckiest men” in the state and perhaps the nation, served two years (1943-45) as a cadet in the U.S. Army Air Corps, a forerunner to the U.S. Air Force. He studied at the University of Cincinnati and Ferris Institute under the G.I. Bill.

He first job was as teacher and coach in the Ellsworth Public School District

STATE SUPREME Court Justice Talbot Smith, left, swears in Glenn Aylsworth as probate judge of Leelanau County in May 1956.

Capital punishment with some electricity was sought in the 1880s Crime coverage in the Leelanau Enterprise has changed dramatically through the years. Following are a few excerpts from past editions.

Jan. 14, 1886 The Grand Traverse Herald is in favor of capital punishment, but wants electricity, or some kindred element employed in this state to enable redhanded murderers to shuffle off to the mortal coil expeditiously and painlessly. If the murderers themselves were only as humane as brother Bates seems to be, instead of packing their victims in sacks and throwing them into the river, cremating them in their own houses and chopping off their heads with razors, etc., they might be entitled to the benefit of this theory; but as it is otherwise, we think the old-fashioned hanging process is good enough.

May 13, 1886 Charles Pepegway was arrested on Tuesday for participating in the robbery of Donaldson’s saloon, Northport, last winter, and in default of bail was committed to jail by Justice W.F. Gill.

July 17, 1890 “A most brutal stabbing or slashing affair took place at Provemont on the evening of July the 4th. James Langhray, while engaged in a free fist to fist fight with another party was pounced upon by one Johnson; who coming up from behind, slashed him in the back to the extent of just 12 inches in length. The knife entered high up between the shoulder blades, on the right of the spinal column, and plowed its way down to the small of the back.

Situated as it was, though quite deep in part of its course, the wound was fortunately not dangerous. That wine, you know, was at the bottom of the whole business. We are farther informed that a settlement was made between Langhray and Johnson by which the whole thing

was to be hushed up. It will be understood that two actions always line in a case of this nature, one civil and one criminal. The civil action would be for Mr. Langhray’s benefit to indemnify him — and which action alone he has authority to settle; while the criminal action, which still stands, is to satisfy an outraged people whose peace has been broken and minds shocked by such a scandalous behavior. This, we understand is not Mr. Johnson’s first attempt to do violence, and the good people of Leelanau County will hardly rest contented till he has been brought to justice. Oh! Law and justice, where are ye?

Sept. 1, 1892 “An affair that has caused quite a little excitement in the county occurred in the township of Empire on the evening of Aug. 22. Someone placed an explosive supposed to be a gas pipe filled with powder on the stoop of Mrs. Agnew’s residence and it exploded in the early part of the night. The occupants of the house were awakened by the explosion. It blew a large hole in the floor of the stoop and racked the house some.

It is supposed to be an attempt at the life of Martha Mahn, a school ma’am boarding at Mrs. Agnew’s. Miss Mahn has sworn out a complaint against Wm. and Robt. Plant father and son charging them with an assault with intent to kill and murder. The accused were brought before Justice Barton by Sheriff Herrington and under sheriff Ellis. They pleaded not guilty and asked for an examination. Prosecuting Attorney McKercher appeared for the People and Attorney Dayton for the defendants. the day for examination was set for Monday Aug. 5. Bail was fixed at $500 while the defendants failed to give and are now in jail.

Aug. 14, 1919 Frank Pollick, Maple City farmer, who was shot last Monday night by Jesse Cook, a neighbor farmer, is still alive at the General Hospital at Traverse City, but little hope is held for his recovery.

He lies at the point of death with a bullet lodged in his brain, and in the meantime Cook is being held here in jail, the charge against him dependent upon the outcome of Pollick’s condition.

April 1, 1948 (An editorial.)

Two weeks ago three Leelanau County youths, aged 17 to 19, bought liquor from a middle-aged Leelanau County man, got drunk went on a wild night ride, chopped up some fish coops.

Sheriff Bob White very properly arrested them. They’ve been in the Beulah jail ever since.

Sheriff White was bothered about where the boys got their liquor. So he investigated, arrested the man who furnished the drinks, convicted him in justice court.

Is the man in jail? Goodness no! He merely paid a fine of $38.35 and walked out, scot-free. That’s not Bob White’s fault. It’s the Michigan law.

A drunken youth who chops up a coop is guilty of a felony, which is the educated word for a serious crime.

The man who got the youth drunk is guilty only of a misdemeanor, which is lawyer-talk for a small misdeed, in the same class, in the law’s eyes, with running a traffic light.

We think that the man who furnished the liquor is a thousand times more guilty than the lads who drank it. We think that the law should be changed.

How about it, Senator Milliken?

How about it, Representative Anderson? Why not get busy on it ... right now?

in 1950. Aylsworth taught one year there before going to the Lincoln Park District as a teacher, counselor and class sponsor in 1951.

At Lincoln Park, Aylsworth worked some nights at the Ford Motor Co. He also continued taking classes at night, getting his law degree at the Detroit College of Law. Before Aylsworth officially passed the state bar exam, Empire Public Schools hired him to be superintendent of schools.

While still serving as the superintendent in May of 1956, Aylsworth was appointed probate judge in Leelanau County by Gov. G. Mennen Williams.

Aylsworth said he was bored as the probate judge because at that time he handled only estates and juveniles, however, the parents took care of the juveniles. So he ran for county prosecutor and won in 1957, where he served for 16 years.

“I wanted to be a trial attorney,” Aylsworth recalled. “And I knew if I was prosecutor that there would be trial work.

“There were 11 townships and I think I took all of them.”

The prosecutor’s job at that time was part-time and paid only $3,000 annually.

“It was less than what I was getting as superintendent, but it was something I loved,” he said.

Aylsworth launched his career with one law book. He didn’t have copy machines, the internet and other resources available to lawyers today.

He often carried a legal pad with him on drives home to make notes for jury summations.

Alysworth said there were only 17 attorneys in Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties when he started practicing law. He also recalls burning the midnight oil a lot as court was in session at various venues, like town halls and church basements.

“I remember going til 10 or 11 p.m. at night trying cases,” he said.

In the early years, judges made their own calendars and “you had better be there,” Aylsworth said.

Although Aylsworth believes the laws of the land, the expanded laws on drunk driving and murders has led to a lot of not guilty pleas and plea bargains.

“Back in the day, there was no plea bargains. If somebody was picked up for drunk driving, we tried them,” he said. “Now you’ve got drunk driving while impaired and open intoxicants, etc.

“And you have degrees of murder.

Everyone goes in and pleads not guilty because they know their chances of reducing the charge is going to come around.”

As a prosecutor, Aylsworth said he never prosecuted anyone “that I knew in my mind was not guilty.”

He said it’s one of the duties of the prosecutor and he’s often thought about sending some of today’s prosecutors the duties.

Aylsworth was prosecuting without the luxury of DNA. “We didn’t have those tests, but I think they’re good,” he said.

Aylsworth said for every one hour of being in court, he spent four or five preparing to go to court.

“I knew there was no substitution for preparation and if I wasn’t prepared, I would not try a case,” he said. “I knew the other guy’s case as well as I knew my own.

“If I had to, I could flip over and try his case and win.”

Aylsworth said some attorneys just don’t do their homework.

“There are some smart attorneys out there and there as some that disappoint me when they go into court unprepared,” he said.

Aylsworth said the pay was nothing like lawyers get today.

“There were some cases that you knew you were not going to get paid for, but they deserved representation,” (Concluded on Page 7)

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Thursday, March 1, 2012

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Section 3, Page 7

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GLENN AYLSWORTH, 87, of Solon Township still has a license to practice law. Aylsworth shows off the Nov. 8, 1960 General Election ballot, one of his campaign ads for prosecuting attorney and his probate judge appointment document from Gov. G. Mennen Williams in May 1956.

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GLENN AYLSWORTH poses with Leelanau County Sheriff Frederick Buehrer outside the courthouse in Leland in the 1970s. and when called back in, the judge charged the jury and then added “But take it easy on him (the defendant).”

• A judge once asked a defendant who was charged with spearing whether he was pleading guilty or not. When the defendant said not guilty, the judge said, “That will be $25. I said judge you can’t do that. He said OK, $5.”

• One time a juror knew him but the other attorney didn’t discover that until

the judge asked how many miles she had driven. “Glenn, how many miles is it?” She asked.

• When a defendant asked for a lawyer, a justice of the peace once told him “Let’s think about this. What can an attorney do that I can’t do for you.”

• A county superintendent of schools once asked Aylsworth to write an opinion and then said he didn’t want his opinion but “don’t tell anybody.”

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he said. “And I got lot of free fruits, loaves of bread and cookies.”

Aylsworth said it made him feel good when his name and telephone number was hanging on a board next to the home phone of clients, right up there with the doctors.

“You don’t see that any more,” he said.

Back in the early days, lawyers were not allowed to advertise their services.

Aylsworth went back to being a fulltime attorney when he lost a bid for circuit judge.

He did consider a run for district court judge, too, but did not.

“It would have been an easier out than practicing law,” Aylsworth said.

Aylsworth had one case go all the way to the Michigan Supreme Court and he won it in 1971.

He represented Antrim County’s Bryce Petrie, who eventually won his write-in candidacy over the incumbent.

The case involved the lower courts throwing out ballots from the general election on Nov. 5, 1968 where Petrie’s name was not written out correctly.

Aylsworth said he never let a defendant take the stand if he said he was guilty because perjury usually was a “greater offense” than what his client had been charged with.

Alysworth, who wrote his first deed for $7.50, said he didn’t get rich being a lawyer.

“People were good to me,” he said.

“And I always had enough money for a motor home and to support my family.”

Aylsworth said there were many light moments in sessions. For example: • One judge failed to charge the jury

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Page 8, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

E OLD

We asked the Empire Heritage Museum, the Leelanau H some old and significant pictures f These oldies but goodies depict some of Leelanau Additionally, some of the photos they provided are d

STILL G SOME GIRLS have fun walking the shoreline along Lake Leelanau in 1896. The girls had to watch their steps as the shorleline was full of logs and other debris.

Courtesy of the Leelanau Historical Society

TWO STEAMERS rest at the dock in a circa 1905 photo. This dock was in front of the current Omena Beach. The Great Lakes steamers S. S Missouri, S. S. Manitou, and S. S. Puritan regularly docked in Omena.

Courtesy of the Omena Historical Society

JOHN DUNN, left, and Cliff Harris, are shown playing cards around 1950. study of mankind at a specific moment long before the complicated lives we taken in one of their homes.

History In The Making

Painting of the former Leelanau Enterprise building Fishtown, circa 1952

by Kathryn Keillor

Thank you, Leelanau County, for making the Leelanau Enterprise your newspaper since 1877.

NORWAY TOWN, a mill town, is shown nestled along the shore of Lake Michigan with the homes being built on mill property. About a dozen homes were built here about 1892 with mostly Norwegian immigrants here to work in the Empire Lumber Company. The village boasted of a water pump at one end of town and the American flag on the other. A dance hall was a major feature of the village as several of the residents were musically inclined. The residents did all their shopping “uptown” in the village of Empire. Norway town faded away about 1917 after the mill complex burned to the ground.

Courtesy of Empire Heritage Museum

Thursday, March 1, 2012

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Section 3, Page 9

DIES F

History Society and the Omena Historical Society for from the past, and they delivered. u County’s unique places, going back to the 1800s. dispersed in other parts of this Looking Back section.

GOODIES ANDERSON’S STORE, circa 1920, was a thriving business in Omena. The building is currently the Tamarack Gallery. Note the old gas pump, left, in front of the store.

Courtesy of the Omena Historical Society

Empire Area Heritage Group director Dave Taghon calls the photo a “great e all live today.” Both Dunn and Harris were Empire natives. The photo was

THE WILCE bungalow with one of the Wilce family cars in the driveway. This beautiful home still stands overlooking what was once the Empire Lumber Co. where the village park is today. The home was built about 1911.

Courtesy of Empire Heritage Museum

Courtesy of Empire Heritage Museum

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Page 10, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

WINTER ICE often trapped vessels plying Lake Michigan for days and weeks at a time and sometimes even crushed and sank them.

Despite appearances, however, the S.S. Missouri, seen above, is in no danger. The ship’s heavy steel hull was specifically designed for late season navigation.

Photo courtesy Orson W. Peck

Ice jams once clogged big lake

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ly opened after three weeks of solid ice.

“Clarence Nash, in the fishtub Sambo, went out at 8 p.m. and got through about midnight. He found that the mailboat had been forced on top of the ice flow by the pressure of the ice, and was unable to move. With three other fishermen in the Sambo, Roy Bucker, Clarence Carlson, and Gordon Carlson, Nash was able to get Tracy and his passengers off the flow.

The channnel was still broken open so that both boats returned to Leland in safety.

“Norman Price, in the Nu Deal, had been the first Leland man to go out in the afternoon, but had become stuck in the ice and had to return. Earlier rescue attempts had also been made by the Coast Guard life boats from Frankfort and South Manitou.”

The story concluded with this paragraph: “Ice in Lake Michigan has been treacherous this year, and the local fishermen have not set many nets.

Last week five boats from Northport were caught in ice off the bay there and returned with bad gashes in the sides. Crews worked valiantly bailing the boats before shore could be reached.”

For Gerri Brunet, however, the winter of 1945-46 brought a life-changing benefit. While on the island, she met her future husband, Hank, who after serving in the Coast Guard during World War II continued his career on South Manitou Island. In fact, he was likely one of those Coast Guard personnel who attempted to free Grosvenor from the ice jam.

The Brunets were married in August, 1946. Gerri may have faithfully abided her father’s direction not to break her teaching contract, but she did not return to South Manitou to teach the following fall.

Ice floes continued to plug the Manitou Passage well into the 20th century. Consider this headline from the Feb. 27, 1958, edition of the Enterprise: “Ice Forms Giant Trap For Leland Fish Tugs.” The subhead continued, “Ice Mass Imprisons, Smashes Helpless Boats as Community Stands Night-Long Watch.”

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It’s been so long since ice floes jammed Lake Michigan off the Leelanau Peninsula that many residents — maybe even most residents — don’t know that it was once part of a standard winter.

But for winters on end during a different era, ice jammed the Manitou Passage, isolating the agrarian communities on north and south Manitou islands for months.

The Leelanau Enterprise often reported about ice situations, including one account carried in the March 30, 1933 edition. It was the lead story, and carried headlines of “North Manitou Island Gets Its First Mail In 12 Days.”

Decades ago mail service to the islands was provided by Tracy Grosvenor; now Manitou Island Transit Company, still partially-owned by the Grosvenor family, provides ferry service to the National Park Serviceowned islands.

Tracy Grosvenor took his job of connecting the islands to the mainland very seriously, to the point of risking his life to deliver the mail.

“North Manitou Island received its first mail yesterday in twelve days,” the Enterprise story read. “The last previous trip had been on Friday, March 17.

“Drift ice, which has hampered the passage of the mailboat since early February, prevented it from reaching either Leland or Glen Haven last week. Up to that time, Tracy Grosvenor had been able to reach Glen Haven one or more times a week, and the mail was then transferred by truck to Leland.

“On Monday, the mailboat left the island and started for Glen Haven, only to be blocked by an ice barrier near the North Manitou Lighthouse.

Conditions did not improve and yesterday, in desperation, with the islanders anxious for their mail and with certain types of supplies running low, Grosvenor set out and took an entirely new course. he went around the north end of North Manitou, down the west side of South Manitou, and finally arrived at Glen Haven after covering about 30 miles of water.

“The boat left North Manitou at 10:30 and made Glen Haven at 3:00.

Leaving there at 4:00 with a big load of mail and supplies, Grosvenor arrived at his home port about 9:00 in the evening.

“This is perhaps the longest route ever taken by the mail between Leland and North Manitou Island. Adding the distance from Glen Haven to Leland to the water voyage, the mail traveled approximately 50 miles.

“While this was the first time in 12 days that the Islanders had received mail, it was only a week since mail had left the island, an airplane having carried it to Traverse City on Wednesday of last week.”

Island life continued to be isolated — too isolated, in fact, for the likes of present Empire resident Gerri Brunet.

She took a job as a teacher on South Manitou Island in the fall of 1945,

and soon found that she missed the company of the mainland. She would ride with Tracy Grosvenor across the Manitou Passage as often as possible until ice flows cut her off.

“I was not prepared for the winter, and didn’t realize I was going to be suspended there because of the ice,” Brunet said. “When I found out how hard it was, I wanted to quit and come home but my father wouldn’t let me quit. He said, ‘You signed a contract.’”

Supplies were some times a concern after a winter of depletion, she recalled. It seemed like everyone on the island would gather when Grosvenor’s boat would deliver mail, eager to hear news from friends and relatives.

That same winter, the Leelanau Enterprise carried an account of how Grosvenor had run into trouble on his mail run.

The March 7, 1946, edition’s lead headline proclaimed, “Tracy Grosvenor Rescued on Way to Manitous.”

The subhead read, “Ice Bound For 10 Hours in Manitou Passage.”

The story needs no editing as it drew readers into a drama that had unfolded off the shoreline of the Leelanau Peninsula. Somehow, the editor managed to get the story on the front page that same afternoon. Of course, it was the lead story.

“While the people of Leland stood along the icy shores of Lake Michigan during the long dark hours of Tuesday night, Tracy Grosvenor in his mailboat, was rescued at 1:15 a.m.

Wednesday, after a valiant effort on the part of Leland fishermen in their boats to plow through the shifty pack ice in the Manitou passage between the mainland and North Manitou Island.

“Tracy Grosvenor, veteran captain of the Manitou Mailboat, and lifeline between the mainland and the isolated Manitou islands, left Leland Tuesday, shortly afternoon, bound with provisions and mail for the islands. About two o’clock, after being two hours en route, his boat was stuck in the ice pack as the wind shifted and closed the narrow passageway that had final-

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By Alan Campbell Of The Enterprise staff

Thursday, March 1, 2012

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Section 3, Page 11

Lake Michigan commercial fishing isn’t what is used to be

By Eric Carlson Of The Enterprise staff

GEORGE COOK shows off Lake Michigan sturgeon he caught. It was 6-foot-1 inches tall and weighed 135 pounds.

the Enterprise reported.

Problems with botulism eventually faded. However, yet another challenge to the commercial fishery emerged — the State of Michigan’s decision to emphasize sport fishing over commercial fishing by stocking the lakes with salmon.

“The diversity (of species) helped,” longtime Leland fisherman Bill Carlson said in a 2007 “oral history” interview with a Fishtown Preservation Society researcher.

“What was happening were management changes,” Carlson said. “It was the priority of what the State of Michigan was trying to accomplish.

They wanted to get the highest economic value from their fishery, and sport fishing was the way to do that. So

New species of fish, tagged eel caught Reprinted from the Leelanau Enterprise, Jan. 24, 1952 Nets of Leland commercial fishermen this week turned up a new species of fish and a tagged lamprey eel.

Henry Steffens and Leo Stallman Tuesday took from their next a fish about nine inches long which none of the fishermen could identify.

It has a bluish green coloration along the back and a row of sharp spines along the belly, Stan Lievense, district fisheries supervisor, from the description, identified it almost positively as alewife.

This species, plentiful along the Atlantic seaboard, has turned up twice before in Lake Michigan.

The alewife, a member of the herring family, has little food value. “It is bad news,” Lievense said. “If the alewives are coming into lake Michigan.”

Lester and Gordon Carlson, with Louis Steffens, found the tagged lamprey. Its tags had hooked on the next. They are to send the tags to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Washington, D.C. for a reward. The government is checking migratory habits of the eel and probably will send a letter with the reward stating when and where the eel was tagged.

On the profit side of the ledger, chub fishing, which furnishes most of the volume, is improving.

they worked on trying to curtail the commercial fishery and save the fish for the sport fishery.”

But in the 1970’s alewives emerged again, once more threatening both the sport fishery and the commercial fishery.

“There was a situation when the alewives got very abundant in the late 70’s before the salmon really started having an effect on the populations,” Carlson said in the 2007 interview.

“When some of the stocks were fluctuating, there was a situation with the chub population where it looked like it was going to collapse. That probably had quite a bit to do with pesticides…

“But, I think the biggest influence (during the 1970’s) was governmental influence, either through regulations or changing regulations for the commercial fishery,” Carlson said.

Indeed, the biggest governmental change in the 1970’s resulted from efforts by American Indian groups and individuals in the State of Michigan who were reasserting fishing rights they claimed in the Great Lakes under the 1836 Treaty of Washington.

The situation manifested itself locally when Art Duhamel, a member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, began to test Indian fishing treaty rights in Grand Traverse Bay. In 1979, a decision by U.S. District Judge Noel Fox upheld treaty fishing rights for the tribe – and tribal fishermen have come to dominate the commercial fishing scene since then.

“These days, I guess I catch more fish than just about anyone,” said tribal fisherman Bill “Bear” Fowler, who operates fishing tugs out of Leland and Peshawbestown.

“But I’m the new guy in the business. I learned how to fish from Ed and Cindy John who were among the first tribal members to take up commercial fishing after the big court decisions in the 1970’s,” Fowler said in a phone interview this month.

“I’m glad to see that the Fishtown Preservation Society is still fishing, too,” Fowler added, “and I hope they continue to do well.”

As for the future of commercial fishing in Leelanau County — the tribe is certain to continue playing a

major role, as is the Fishtown Preservation Society.

“But the lakes have never been very stable, and the rules keep changing too,” said Brian Price, executive director of the Leelanau Conservancy.

In the 1970’s and 1980’s Price worked as a commercial fisherman out of Leland saw many changes in just that short period of history.

“It’s never really been too much about overfishing, but more about

toxins, invasive species and a changing regulatory system,” Price said.

“As for the future, I would guess that environmental changes could have the biggest impact.

“Whitefish, for example, need to spend part of the year under the cover of ice,” Price said. “But we haven’t seen much ice in the past few years and — with global warming — I can guarantee you that commercial fishing in Leelanau County will only continue to change.”

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Few things have changed in Leelanau County more often than the prospects for commercial fishing.

Over the years, a long-feared “demise” of commercial fishing in Lake Michigan waters surrounding Leelanau County has been announced in the pages of the Leelanau Enterprise and in other venues. Nonetheless, commercial fishing persists today — albeit in a dramatically different form than in years past.

Of course, Native Americans were the first to earn a living by fishing in Leelanau County. By the mid-1800’s, though, European settlers began fishing from places that are now devoid of most commercial fishing, including Northport, Suttons Bay and Glen Haven.

Today, the only commercial fishing that takes place in Suttons Bay and its vicinity is done by tribal fisherman, most of them based in Peshawbestown.

In fact, tribal commercial fishermen ply their trade throughout northern Lake Michigan and routinely operate from Leland and Northport as well.

These days, virtually the only nontribal commercial fishing is done out of Leland by the Fishtown Preservation Society which operate the tugs Joy and Janice Sue. Although non-tribal commercial fishing began in the mid 1800’s, it reached its heyday during the early 1900’s with many ups and downs between then and now. Many of those ups and downs were caused by biology – including the invasion of exotic species in the lake, and certain diseases that were introduced to the fishery.

Still other big changes that threatened to “end” commercial fishing in Leelanau County stemmed from political and regulatory changes over the years.

Before local commercial fishermen began targeting chubs and whitefish, native stocks of lake trout comprised one of the biggest fisheries in Lake Michigan. However, introduction of the non-native sea lamprey into Lake Michigan through manmade locks and shipping canals in the late 1800’s threatened to decimate commercial fishing. Indeed, by around 1940, according to a historic Michigan Department of Natural Resources report, most lake trout were gone.

“By the late 1940’s, the sea lamprey and overfishing had devastated the Lake Michigan fishery, and commercial fishing came to a near standstill,” according to a report produced by the Fishtown Preservation Society.

The next invader in Lake Michigan was the alewife, believed to have been introduced to the Great Lakes in 1949 from the Atlantic Ocean. By 1952, fishermen in Leelanau County were beginning to notice the alewife as well as the continued presence of sea lamprey despite well-developed efforts to control the sea lampreys. (See accompanying except from the Jan. 24, 1952 edition of the Enterprise).

The alewives depleted food sources for other fish and sometimes achieved such high numbers in the 1960’s that piles of the fish would wash up on beaches to rot, stink, and have a negative impact on another economic engine for Leelanau County, tourism.

Another set of events that locals at the time thought would “end” commercial fishing in Leelanau County was a nationwide botulism scare in the 1960’s.

The January 16, 1964, edition of the Enterprise reported that local fishermen were following very closely a study on botulism conducted by the U.S. Public Health Service. At the time, some 16 people throughout the nation had died after they ate smoked fish infected with botulism.

“The market for smoked fish virtually disappeared and sales of fresh fish dropped sharply,” according to an Enterprise report. “Local fishermen were drastically affected. The chubs which they shipped fresh to processing plants for smoking comprised about 98-percent or more of their business,” according to the article.

“Since the botulism scare in October (1963), they have ceased operations, except for an occasional try for perch,”

Page 12, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Fleet of ships vanished over time

By Jim Brinkman Special to the Enterprise

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AFTER A century underwater and half buried in silt, the Alvin Clark was very well preserved. Built in 1846, it was the world’s oldest cargo vessel. It is seen above, after salvage, at Menominee, Mich. and Rosabelle were often to be found on ship’s bows and transoms.

It was not uncommon for a captain to own his own ship and an event could suggest a name.

In 1875, before the schooner being built for him at Lorain, Ohio, was completed, Captain Henry Kelly’s son drowned in the Black River. In tribute and in the boy’s memory, the ship was named Our Son. During the next 55 years, ownership changed half-a-dozen times, but the name never did.

Some lake vessels were given amusing names like “Nanny Goat” or “Handy Andy.”

Eventually, more prosaic names prevailed. Names such as Manistique, Marquette, and Northern No. 1, built for service between Northport and the Upper Peninsula, became commonplace.

The Ann Arbor No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 all steamed through Leelanau waters for decades and the last coal burning steamship, the Badger, was proceeded by the Pere Marquette 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22.

When the first Pere Marquette 18 sank suddenly in Lake Michigan in 1910 Esten Bahle, of Suttons Bay, was nearly drowned during rescue operations. The ship was replaced by a “new” P.M. No. 18 (II), despite the belief of some sailors that it was bad luck to carry forward the name of a lost ship.

DANGER AND SHELTER Great Lakes storms, particularly late

in the year, are notorious and have sunk many a vessel. In the heyday of the sailing ships, Leelanau County offered a most welcome shelter.

“With rough weather, most of the vessels in the vicinity steered for the protection of South Manitou’s harbor,” Myron Vent writes in his book, South Manitou Island. “Estimates of vessels sheltered there at any one time have reached a figure of close to one hundred,” he continues, adding that “the harbor at times appeared like a forest of masts.”

It’s impossible to say how many hundreds of vessels were thus saved from the elements but we know that dozens of others were lost, just in Leelanau’s restless waters alone.

Those that lie in water thirty or more feet deep can be largely intact, but, those lost at a lesser depth, like the Jennie and Annie, are continuously battered and torn apart until the “shipwreck” is little more than a collection of beams, planks and spikes.

Remnants of a once proud ship may be buried in sand, uncovered and then (Concluded on Page 13)

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It was the “Great White Fleet.”

No, not the naval vessels President Teddy Roosevelt sent around the world over 100 years ago, but the vanished fleet of sailing ships that were once a mainstay of Great Lakes commerce.

Despite the 19th century advent of the steamship, the number of schooners and other commercial sailing craft continued to increase following the Civil War until, by the late 1870s, there were over a thousand of them on the lakes.

A number of them ended their days in Leelanau County — the victims of storm, groundings, and other mishaps.

Occasionally, pieces of wreckage will wash up on shore, as was the case at the Sleeping Bear Dunes just a few weeks ago.

Hull remnants of what some believe is the schooner Jennie and Annie, pounded to pieces in a mid November gale in 1872, were discovered on the Lake Michigan beach within the boundaries of the National Park.

The Jennie and Annie was scarcely 10 years old at the time, having been built by John Kelderhouse at Buffalo, N.Y., in 1863.

If the name Kelderhouse sounds familiar, it is because Thomas Kelderhouse, a pioneer Leelanau settler, is credited with founding Port Oneida.

Although he himself was a shipowner to a limited extent, Thomas’ brother John, who remained in New York State after also “scouting” this area, was the real ship owner of the family.

During the second half of the 19th Century, John Kelderhouse owned, solely or partly, literally dozens of vessels on the Great Lakes.

“The Buffalo Kelderhouses were sort of an earlier counterpart of the Cleveland Steinbrenners when it came to ships,” says Steve Harold, a recognized Great Lakes history authority.

“Thomas Kelderhouse, by settling in Northwest Michigan, was sort of the ‘stray’ of the family.”

Harold, incidentally, doubts the recently discovered wreckage is what some others think it is, but didn’t wish to attribute it to any other specific vessel either.

The two Kelderhouse brothers had sisters — Jennie and Annie — who provided the lost schooner with its name.

And even if part of the old schooner doesn’t constitute the recently discovered wreckage, it was, indeed, lost at Sleeping Bear.

Unlike most other vessels lost around Leelanau’s shores, this sailing ship had a solid local connection.

WHAT’S IN A NAME While 20th Century lake ships have traditionally been named after “Captains of Industry” (such as J. Pierpont Morgan and Frank Rockefeller), those of the 19th Century frequently were reflective of an era where ownership was often that of an individual or family as opposed to a corporation.

Women’s names, such as Alice M. Gill, Lucia A. Simpson, Minnehaha

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Thursday, March 1, 2012

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Section 3, Page 13

Fleet of ships vanished over time Continued from Page 12

A HUGE ship is docked at Leland.

and were sympathetic, but the over riding problem of continued preservation of the ship remained.

The International Register of Historic Ships (1985) made note of the importance of the Alvin Clark, with considerable space devoted to it.

“History & Significance: Oldest intact merchant vessel in North America. Oldest intact, unrestored, ship of any type in North America.”

Impressive, but it was also noted that “deterioration has been accelerating recently, and what was an intact mid-19th century sailing vessel in 1969 may be reduced to debris in a few years.”

For lack of money for preservation the Clark did continue to deteriorate, and it was finally bulldozed into oblivion — a sad fate for a once proud vessel that, for a few years at least, had served to illustrate the nature of seaborne commerce in an earlier era.

An era of iron men and wooden ships.

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Although this event was the official “main billing,” according to the Green Bay Press Gazette’s edition of the following day, a crowd of at least 10,000 (same estimates ran as high as 30,000) was really there to get a glimpse of the historic ship, which had been towed to the municipal marina for the Blessing.

“The ship was the showpiece of the day, but the owners didn’t make any money,” the newspaper reported.

Later, docked on the riverfront in Menominee, visitors were allowed to board the ship, and walk its 140 yearold decks for $2 each.

But there were never enough of them.

Frank Hoffman never made a profit on the Clark, but that wasn’t his intention, anyway. He simply wanted all to enjoy this historic treasure.

But his dream steadily became more and more of a nightmare.

A LOSING BATTLE Nearly ten years after successfully raising the Clark and never taking in enough money to properly maintain it, Hoffman announced he was willing to relinquish ownership. But there were no takers.

Even though the ship had been declared a “national historic treasure” among other designations, no person, state or municipality was willing to take it on.

Local groups in Grand Haven and Muskegon expressed an interest in the Clark, but nothing concrete materialized.

Hoffman became increasingly exasperated.

He had already mortgaged and double mortgaged his home, but the ship, despite the help of friends and benefactors (most notably Marinette Marine), had soaked up money like a sponge since the beginning.

“The tragedy is that not one single person in government has come down to take a look at her,” the Grand Rapids Press reported him as saying in its edition of March 20, 1978.

At one point, Hoffman was so totally frustrated he tried to burn up the Clark. Local authorities understood,

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water in her hull and her rigging partly carried away she was towed into port.

She was docked at the shipyards at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, on December 3, 1935, when she was destroyed by a fire that claimed a number of vessels.

“A once proud Queen of the white winged sailing ships found her final resting place,” marine historians Art and Lucy Frederickson later wrote.

HISTORY UNCOVERED: THE ALVIN CLARK In the summer of 1864, while bound for Oconto, Wis., and a load of lumber, the empty brigantine, Alvin Clark, was struck by a squall and sank, taking half her crew with her.

The hatches were not secure and, when the ship suddenly listed, water poured in before corrective action could be taken and the 18 year-old vessel went right to the bottom.

There was immediately talk of salvage, but it never happened, and the Clark remained in over a hundred feet of water.

Perhaps, technically, it shouldn’t be called a shipwreck, since it hadn’t been seriously damaged. It was simply a sunken ship.

And so it remained – for 105 years.

No one had planned it, but the Alvin Clark, was a true time capsule with plenty of artifacts aboard. Then, with the passage of a century, all the other commercial sailing craft disappeared.

The entire “Great White Fleet” was gone. The steel steamers, given time, had swept all of them from the lakes.

Imagine the surprise of Frank Hoffman, a scuba diver, when he discovered the Clark while trying to recover valuable nets lost by commercial fishermen. The lost nets had snagged on the rigging of the old sailing ship.

This was late in 1967 and from that point, Frank Hoffman’s life would never be the same.

He was able to secure possession of the Clark and he dreamed of not merely recovering artifacts aboard it, but to raise the entire ship.

Two years later, after 3000 dives by himself and others, plus financial assistance (his own money was all spent), the Clark was raised from the bottom of Green Bay and taken to Menominee, Michigan.

There it was billed as the “Mystery Ship” and, as an attraction, it was hoped fees paid by visitors would at least cover expenses.

“Mystery Ship” was a moniker supplied early on by a newsman – before the Clark’s identity had been properly determined.

The discovery and recovery of the Clark thrilled historians.

“This is a true treasure of the Great Lakes,” Howard Chapelle, Senior Historian of the Smithsonian wrote.

“Your recovery of the schooner is of far greater importance than a few gold coins and a hull fragment from some supposed 'treasure ship.' In your find we will now be able to put together in great part the real, work-a-day craft of the past.”

Initially, at least, people did come to see the old ship – particularly when it made its “public debut” at Menominee’s annual Blessing of the Fleet on August 3, 1969.

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buried again. And the remains do not always stay in one place. The site of a “shipwreck” can change from time to time.

Because of the volume of lake commerce and the number of craft involved, lifesaving stations were established in the county on North and South Manitou islands and on the mainland (near Glen Haven) as well.

The United States Lifesaving Service, as well as the U.S. Lighthouse Service, were later absorbed into the Coast Guard, but today, partly because of technology and fewer ships, there is no longer a Coast Guard presence in Leelanau.

The last crew, stationed at North Manitou Shoals Light, was removed over 30 years ago.

THE FLEET’S NATURE A vast sailing fleet, despite competing steam vessels, developed upon the Great Lakes for a number of reasons.

One was the availability of suitable material. Forest products — for hulls, decks and masts — were quite abundant and many men (particularly Scandinavian immigrants) in the 19th century, knew how to work with it.

A “shipyard” was not necessarily required for the construction of a vessel.

They could be, and were, constructed in literally dozens of waterfront sites.

The schooner O.M. Nelson, for example, was constructed at Suttons Bay. Most of the commercial sailing craft on the Great Lakes were schooners.

The sails did not necessitate the large crews other vessels demanded. The crew could consist of as few as only six or seven men and there were no fuel costs. Despite a smaller capacity and inability to follow a rigid schedule, the schooners could — and did — compete with steamships.

The knowledgeable, skilled sailors needed, were regionally available.

Captain John Roen, who built Leland’s lakefront harbor (although he was unable to free the Francisco Morozan at South Manitou Island several years earlier) was but one of them.

He could only speak Norwegian when he arrived in the U.S. But all of these men spoke the universal language of The Sea. It has often been noted that they were “iron men sailing wooden ships.”

SLIPPING AWAY In 1900, there were still dozens of sailing ships on the Great Lakes, but these were to all but vanish in the next 30 some years.

On October 31, 1921, the Ann Arbor No. 4, operating in the middle of Lake Michigan, happened across the inverted hull of an old schooner. The ship’s second officer, O.B. Olson, could, it was said, recognize “anything carrying canvas.”

And, it appears, indeed he could.

“She is the Rosabelle out of Benton Harbor,” he said.

The two master had left High Island with a load of lumber and 600 bushels of potatoes, but heavy weather intervened and the entire crew perished when the boat capsized.

The House of David, based at Benton Harbor, had purchased the schooner a few years earlier to replace its lost steamer, the Rising Sun. The remnants of the Rising Sun, which grounded because of a navigational error, are still to be found at Leelanau’s Pyramid Point.

In September, 1930, the now 55 year-old schooner Our Son also succumbed to Lake Michigan. But this time, happily, the entire crew was removed by a passing steamer before the venerable ship disappeared beneath the waves forever.

A year earlier, in the summer of 1929, the schooner Lucia Simpson, which had once hauled lumber from Empire, narrowly escaped the same fate that befell the other two sailing ships. She was caught in a squall off Algoma, Wisconsin. With four feet of

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

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Page 14, Section 3

A LONG line of Native Americans stand outside the historic Kateri Tekakwitha Catholic Church in Peshawbestown.

Courtesy of the Leelanau Historical Society

Indians seek compensation for treaties – 50 years ago

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government at a meeting of Unit 2 of the NMOA at Peshawbestown Saturday afternoon.

The Indians are seeking compensation for 25,000 square miles of land cededed by them to the federal government in 1836 for which they claim they received 16.8 cents an acre rather than the $1.25 they were promised.

The suit was started in 1948 and about 6,000 Michigan Indians, including some in Leelanau County, stand to receive compensation.

Dominic said all evidence is in on the 1821 case involving land below Grand River owned by by Chippewa, Ottawa and Pottawatamies and that certain local Ottawas who could trace their ancestry back to owners of that land could be eligible for compensation.

Final evidence should be in on the 1836 case involving northern land from Grand River to Lake Superior by September at which time a value trial will probably be held. The northern land involves some 12½ to 13 million acres, Dominic said.

Saturday’s meeting, which starts at 2 p.m., will feature dances by an Indian troup from Kewadin. A picnic will be held and during the business session officers of Unit 2 will be selected.

The meeting is being held before the annual tribal council at Emmett County Fairgrounds on June 23, which will be attended by representatives from the entire state.

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Thursday, March 1, 2012

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Section 3, Page 15

Carp Lake was the 1882 fishing hot spot

NAPOLEON BELANGER, left, hooked this big northern pike which weighed in at 13 pounds and measured 36 inches long on Monday, Dec. 31, 1962 on the north basin of Lake Leelanau. Belanger’s son, Ed, on right, gave his father an assist in landing the lunker. The anglers didn’t have a gaff so Napoleon had to maneuver the fish to the surface so Ed could grab it behind the gills and swoop it up out of the water.

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lage pond and creek.

Frank Hahnenberg, with a can of worms, pulled seven speckled trout of Houdek. They averaged from 9 to 12 inches in length. Lloyd and Roy Gibson of Leland waited until Sunday to start their season on Houdek. Lloyd landed a 12 inch brook on a Russian spoon, and Roy got two on worms.

Robert Gain of Suttons Bay decided Saturday to wait for a better day on the streams, so he went to Northport and came back with a string of perch.

Smelt dippers report that their prey is beginning to disappear, except on Shalda creek. The run was later there last year, too.

The perch season is at its height and a large percentage of fishermen are taking fish off Leland and Northport piers.

April 22, 1949 Ira H. Bartlett, Michigan deer investigator from the state conservation department, Lansing, told sportsman at the smelt supper in Leland Saturday night that something must be done immediately to cut down the size of deer herds in Leelanau County. He estimated that there are at least six thousand in this area right now, an average of 20 per square mile.

Bartlett recommended a regular buck season with a controlled season for does and fawns starting two weeks afterwards. Under this system the Conservation Department would estimate early this summer how many deer should be taken and grant only a corresponding number of antlerless hunting permits to be affixed to regular licenses. If the number of hunters applying for this special stamp were too great, the stamps would be distributed by lot. ... (Conservation officer) Leon Cluff reported that Cedar swamp was dangerously over-browsed last winter, and that another season with as much snow and cold would bring about wide-spread starvation.

Everett DeLong of Northport, treasurer of the Michigan Cherry Commission, spoke for Leelanau fruit growers and farmers, reporting extensive deer damage to young orchards, including his own.

At the close of discussions, an impromptu show of hands from the 65 sportsmen present, representing clubs from Empire, Cedar, Lake Ann, Glen Arbor, and Northport, revealed that there was almost unanimous approval of a controlled season.

Jan. 17, 1952 The Leelanau County Board of Supervisors, at the request of sportsmen, resort operators and some orchardists, went on record Wednesday, by resolution, as being opposed to any further special deer seasons here. ...

The resolution charges that the deer herd here has been reduced to the point where it no longer poses a serious threat to farms and orchards, and contends that there has been widespread dissatisfaction among sportsmen, resort operators, and tourists over the special season.

A delegation from Glen Arbor, led

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The outdoor sports has always been considered big news in Leelanau County. Following are some excerpts from past editions of the Leelanau Enterprise.

July 13, 1882 Let it be recorded that Carp Lake stands without a peer among the inland lakes of northern Michigan as a fisherman’s paradise. Black bass, pickerel, mackinaw trout and many other excellent varieties about therein, and they bite with a promptness and zest that makes the sport of fishing there unusually exciting. The lake is reached by a pleasant two hours drive over an excellent road running south west from Northport to Leland, where good staunch row boats can be procured.

May 13, 1886 Suttons Bay. Perry Palmer went fishing a few hours on Saturday afternoon and brought home a string of 35 trout beauties. His brother, 5 years old, caught six of them.

September 1, 1927 Eight cans of bass fry were planted in the north end of Lake Leelanau today.

This means that about thirty thousand young black bass from the state fish hatchery were turned loose to grow up to bite the hooks of future fishermen.

Formerly all bass planting had been done in the southern section of the lake beyond the narrows and that has not been of much benefit to this end. This planting of bass has been sent from the state conservation department at the request of some of the Leland citizens.

Nov. 23, 1933 Leland’s commercial fishermen are somewhat disappointed with the fall run of trout this year. On account of the regulation which forbade them from setting their nets as early as they had in former years, they did not get the benefit of the heaviest part of the run. Then, on Tuesday of last week, when they received permission to put in their nets, a storm prevented it.

Buckler Brothers and Henry Steffens set a few nets late Thursday, but no more were put in the water Saturday.

Since then the boats have been able to get out nearly every day.

The largest single catches recorded were two of about 1,300 pounds each,

by Buckler Bros. and Carlson & Price.

Most of the catches, however, have been well under the thousand mark, tapering down to less than 100.

April 29, 1948 Opening day of trout season in Leelanau County dawned with temperatures of around 59, and an atmosphere dripping from heavy rains Friday night, but the spirits of a legion of sportsmen were not dampened. They went out anyway and some got fish.

First reports were that trout were biting good in Solon and Provemont ponds, but streams, foiled and swollen from showers, refused to yield good early morning catches.

Knowing fishermen soon discovered that wet flies, particularly colored gnats, were what the pond fish wanted for breakfast, while on streams the most tempting morsels seemed to be worms and crawlers.

Everett DeLong of Northport and Elmer Billman of Cedar, two ace men with rod and reel, drew a good string of brookies out of Cedar Run creek. On the same run Stanley Ball of Leland hooked a 21 inch rainbow on a spinner.

Dan Jubele and Warren Stone got their limits early in the day in Northport vil-

Page 16, Section 3

THE LEELANAU ENTERPRISE

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Civil War vet to get grave marker

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Excerpts from past editions of the Leelanau Enterprise: Jan. 14, 1886 Whereas my wife Hannah Bryant has left my bed and board without just cause or provocation, I therefore forbid all persons, harboring or trusting her on my account, as I shall pay no debts of her contracting. — John A. Bryant.

Feb. 18, 1886 As of this writing, Tuesday morning, the lake is filled with floating ice as far as the eye can see.

Feb. 23, 1905 NOTICE: Wanted. A nice young wife, a grass widow or a single woman from 16 to 23 years old. Must be a good housekeeper, a lady with money preferred. Apply at once. Weesley Weese, Leland.

Nov. 17, 1904 Cedar, Nov. 14 — The convent at Isadore, two miles north of Cedar, burned to the ground between 12 and 1 o’clock this morning. The building was valued at $4,000 and the insurance carried was $2,000. The fire is supposed to have been caused by the explosion of a lamp.

The fire was discovered by the sisters themselves, there being three in the building. When they awakened the house was full of smoke and on account of the flames, it was impossible to get to the lower level. One of the sisters jumped from the second story window and aroused a man who works at the convent. He secured a ladder and the other two sisters descended in this manner, one of them suffering severe burns and the sister who jumped from the window to give the alarm was considerably bruised.

There is no fire protection whatever at Isadore and the building, together with its contents was totally destroyed.

A peculiar thing about the fire was that several years ago a new building, which had just been completed at a cost of $2,700 was also destroyed the origin of the fire never being learned.

— Daily Record.

A GRAVESIDE marker will be dedicated for former Northport and Omena postmaster Aaron Barnes Page, a Civil War veteran who was buried in an unmarked grave in 1915.

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Husband lets everyone know his wife went astray in 1886

to Almira H. Dame and had a young son (Charles S. Page).

Aaron Page joined the Illinois Regiment while it was on ProvostGuard duty (equivalent of the military police) in Vicksburg, Miss.

On May 7, 1864 the 72nd Illinois went to Benton, Miss. where they had a short, but deadly fight with Rebels.

Two weeks later, on May 22, 1864, in a desperate charge at Vicksburg, the 72nd Illinois had 130 men killed, wounded or missing “but fighting as bravely as men could fight until the last.” Less than a month later, on July 18, 1864 they again engaged the enemy at Grand Gulf, Miss.

Page’s pension records indicate that in September of 1864, “General Grant issued an order sending all sick soldiers home on a 30 days furlough.

I was sick with dysentery; was given a furlough and sent home.”

On May 3, 1865 Aaron B. Page was discharged for disability and returned home.

During the war, he wrote several letters to his wife. Here is part of what was published in the Oct. 7, 1864 Grand Traverse Herald: • “ … and had I a thousand lives I would sacrifice them all on the altar of my country rather than see our own happy Union destroyed or severed in twain.”

• “ … lovers of liberty, from every clime fighting together side by side, for a common cause, pouring out their blood under the same flag for liberty, will unite in establishing one great nation … ” • “Thank Heaven there are those who still partake of the fire and patriotic zeal of our Revolutionary fathers, and in their hands safely rests the future destiny of this great Republic …”

Aaron Page, the nephew-in-law of Gen. George A. Custer, continued as Omena’s postmaster. He was also a Justice of the Peace, notary public, teacher, nurseryman, and farmer. In 1883, with his health failing, Aaron and Almira moved to Colorado, where he found work as a mine overseer.

“Aaron Page was very patriotic and was proud to have served during the war,” Schoperiay said. “He suffered with illness and pain the rest of his life, and I believe he may have been very poor at the time he passed away.

“He had been living only on his pension late in life and I believe he would be proud to have this headstone.”

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2012

ANNIVERSARY

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4 Generations of Service

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Aaron Barnes Page, an early Northport and Omena settler, will get a Civil War grave marker and official graveside ceremony next month.

“It’s long overdue, and it’s simply the right thing to do,” said Rockford’s Michael J. Page, a cousin four times removed. “Aaron deserves the recognition and honor.”

Descendants of Page, the first Omena and Northport postmaster, will gather April 28 at 11 a.m. at Olinger Crown Hill Cemetery in Wheat Ridge, Colo. to unveil the military headstone that documents Page’s service in the Union Army and his death in Denver.

Page, who died Jan. 22, 1915 at 83 years of age, was lain in an unmarked Colorado grave for 97 years. He died from injuries sustained after being struck by an automobile three days earlier.

“This is the culmination of efforts from many individuals and organizations,” Michael Page said. “I don’t know how many of Aaron’s descendants will attend.

“So far, we have only been able to find a few that are direct descendants.”

Michael Page said he has not found any descendants who live in the Denver area.

“We are continuing to get the word out and hopefully we will have a good representation at the dedication ceremony,” he said. “I know of one descendant that will be there, God willing!”

Michael Page credits Cedar’s Julie Schopieray, a Page family researcher, with documenting the Page gravesite and the fact that it was unmarked.

Much of the documentation to prove that he was a Civil War veteran

comes from the research for the book, “In So Distant a Place as Traverse City: The Northern Michgian Relatives of Elizabeth Bacon Custer,”

by Schopieray.

It was published in 2009 and includes a chapter on Page and his wife Almira Dame Page, the daughter of Joseph Dame, who settled in Northport in 1841.

“If it were not for her work, Aaron would probably still be in an unmarked grave,” Michael Page said.

“She is the one who found him unmarked in a Denver grave.

“And when I read her book and saw that he served in during the Civil War ... and that he was in an unmarked grave ... my eyes widened and I knew immediately that we could correct that.”

Michael Page is a color bearer for the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War Gen. John A. Logan Camp No. 1 in Grand Rapids. The group documents the final resting place of Civil War veterans, their service and that they were honorably discharged before obtaining a headstone from the U.S. Veterans Administration (via an application process).

The group also works with the cemetery and family to hold a graveside dedication ceremony to honor the man and his service.

“I’m very happy to have been part of the process,” Michael Page said.

“After I explained Aaron’s story to the cemetery official, he agreed to accept delivery of the headstone and to waive all costs associated with the installation.”

Records indicate that, after the Civil War, Aaron Page was also a member of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). A graveside ceremony adapted from the 1917 Ceremony of Dedication of the GAR will be used.

The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, Centennial Camp 100 of Denver will preside during the dedication ceremony, assisted by the 1st Colorado Volunteer Infantry and other uniformed military units.

The dedication ceremony is open to the public and is expected to include the reading of proclamations from Jerry DiTullio, Mayor of Wheat Ridge and Michael B. Hancock, Mayor of Denver.

Aaron Page was raised in Grand Rapids and moved to Traverse City in his early 20’s and worked as a surveyor. On Dec. 8, 1863, he enlisted as a private in the 72nd Illinois Infantry, Co. E. He was 32 at the time, married

STAN

By Mike Spencer Of The Enterprise staff

STANDER MARINE, INC. OPEN YEAR ROUND 231-256-9231 111 E. Boulevard Drive • Leland stan st ande an derm de rmar rm arin ar ine@ in e@ho e@ hotm ho tmai tm aill.co ai l.co com m