Captain Henry Bundy – Seafaring Evangelist

Posted on March 27, 2016March 28, 2016

Capt. Henry Bundy (1826 – 1906), Photo
Courtesy Sue Baar

The sailor evangelist, Henry Bundy, was a frequent visitor to Manistique and other nearby ports. He preached both from the deck of his ship and from the pulpit of local churches. His arrival each summer was eagerly anticipated by the citizens of Manistique and Schoolcraft County

Henry Bundy was born in London, England in 1826 to impoverished parents. He was an incorrigible youth who roamed the city streets, refusing to engage in any schooling. By age 10, the boy was completely beyond his parents’ control. Not knowing what to do, they bound their rebellious son for seven years as an apprentice to the captain of the Abel Gower, a three-masted, 313 ton merchant ship. Read More...

Goodwillie Bros. Box Factory (1907-1922)

Posted on March 20, 2016March 20, 2016

The Goodwillie Box Factory on Manistique’s west side.

Robert Walter Goodwillie was born on March 13, 1850 in Chicago, Illinois. He was the oldest of six children born to David and Cecelia Goodwillie. David Goodwillie was the proprietor of a box factory in Chicago where Robert and his younger brother James found employment and learned the business.

In about 1873, while still residing in Chicago, Goodwillie married Pennsylvania native, Agnes Jones. At least three children were born to this union including Grace. Lillian and Agnes. In 1889, Goodwillie, in partnership with his brother James, opened a box factory in Wausau, Wisconsin, which employed 70 men and produced 6,000 wooden boxes per day. By 1892, the box factory had expanded and employed approximately 220 men. Read More...

George Nicholson – White Marble Lime Co. (1889-1928)

Posted on March 7, 2016March 7, 2016

The Marblehead lime kilns were erected in 1891.

Pioneer Manistique industrialist George Nicholson was born on February 8, 1852 in Hartford, Wisconsin, the fourth child in a sibling group of five. His parents, George Nicholson Sr. and Fannie White, were natives of Ireland, having settled first in New York before moving west to Wisconsin. As a young man, George Nicholson Jr. attended business school in Appleton, Wisconsin. His first venture into the world of commerce came in Graysville, Wisconsin, where he operated a general merchandise store. After relocating to Chilton, Wisconsin, he opened a clothing and dry goods store and also had interest in a grain elevator. Read More...

The Trouble with Cows – 1897

Posted on March 1, 2016March 1, 2016

Early photo of cows running free on Manistique’s West side

During the 1880s and 90s cattle were allowed to roam free in the city of Manistique. The Schoolcraft County Pioneer commented on the issue as early as June of 1884: “We hear a little trouble brewing in the county over the fact that cattle are allowed to run at large. Three years ago the Board of Supervisors voted to suspend the provisions of the cattle restraining law in this county; whether they have done anything since about it we have not found out but presume it remains the same.” Read More...