Above is an image of logging operations at Blaney dated March 16, 1908. SCHS photo courtesy Jerry Mattson Collection.

     As a child growing up in Gulliver during the late 1950s and early 60s, our family would often travel via M-77 to Germfask to visit relatives.  This entailed driving past the Blaney Park resort. During the summer, the resort was a bustle of activity.  Cars were parked along the road and in front of all the cabins and places of business.  Drivers had to be alert for pedestrians crossing the highway.   Foursomes were seen strolling along the fairways with their golf carts in tow and walking on the greens of the well-manicured nine-hole golf course. The swimming pool too, was always crowded during the dog days of summer. Read More...

12 x 12 inch granite tile commemorating the former Hancock Lumber Company.

Plans are moving ahead for the new Schoolcraft County Historical Society Museum to be moved to the historical society’s lot on the corner of Deer Street and Weston Avenue.  The former Manistique Lumber Co. Warehouse will be moved and renovated to safely display historical exhibits and artifacts.  The historical society is currently engaged in a capital campaign to raise funds for the museum renovation. The new museum will feature 12” x 12” and 12” x 24” granite tiles which will be placed on the exterior wall of the museum as a memorial to loved ones or to a family business. Examples of the tiles can be seen at the SCHS Museum and Gift Shop located next to Mercado Imports. The cost for the tiles is $375.00 for the 12 x 12 inch tiles and $750.00 for the larger 12 x 24 inch tiles.  Any added artwork cost an additional $200. The Tile Order form can be downloaded here. SCHS Tile Form – LB Read More...

The red sandstone courthouse is seen engulfed in flames in the early morning hours of March 10, 1974. Marcus Bosanic Collection.

     For over 70 years, the stately red sandstone courthouse stood at the center of Manistique’s courthouse square. The picturesque structure was erected in 1903 to replace the wood frame courthouse that burned to the ground in March of 1901, after only 16 years of service. The cost for construction of the sandstone building was $36,767 and was officially accepted for use by the county on July 11, 1902. At the time of the fire, the courthouse was insured for $222,000.

     The 1974 fire broke out late on a Saturday evening and was first reported at 11:05 pm. When firemen inspected the building and reached the third floor, they found a wall in the northeast corner of the building burned and flames were seen shooting from under the roof.  Almost immediately thereafter, heavy smoke drove the firemen from the scene.  The cause of the blaze was never determined. Read More...

The Ekstrom & Nelson Shoe Store circa 1910. SCHS Photo.

     Emil Nelson was born on November 23, 1870 in Erikstad, Sweden. A cobbler by occupation, he immigrated to the United States in 1891 and settled in Manistique. Shortly after his arrival, he opened a shoe shop on Oak Street. Then in 1901, he entered a partnership with Axel Ekstrom, a fellow Swedish immigrant, and together they established the Ekstrom & Nelson Shoe Store on South Cedar Street.

     Axel Carl Ekstrom was born in Karlstad, Sweden on December 7, 1866. He immigrated to the United States in 1882, coming directly to Manistique. He first obtained employment as a janitor at the Lakeside School, a job which he held for about one year.  He also worked for the lumber company for a time as a lather. Prior to his partnership with Emil Nelson, Ekstrom operated a bicycle shop—bicycling being hugely popular in the late nineteenth century. The two men remained in business together from 1901 until 1916. Then, in 1916, the partnership was dissolved for reasons that have been lost to history. Emil Nelson started his own expanded shoe shop, opening Nelson’s Shoe Store just south of the original store on Cedar Street. Ekstrom remained in the retail shoe business until 1921. Then, in 1923 he established the Lakeside Grocery Store which he managed until his death in April of 1934. Read More...