News History & Fun in Michigan
We examine stories and events that shaped the history of the Upper Thumb and Michigan. While we focus on the Thumb region, other Great Lakes historical events are covered. Major events include the lumbering era and the 1871 and 1881 great fires. We cover major pioneers and personalities that shaped the region. To hear many of our best stories, visit and subscribe to our Podcast, “The End of the Road in Michigan.”
Our best Michigan history posts are found below.
In 1885, Graham’s Mill at Lincoln bustled with logs, smoke, and river commerce on Lincoln Lake. Within a generation, the same shore evolved into Epworth Heights, a summer community overlooking Lake Michigan in Mason County, Michigan. This story links lumber mills to steamers and resorts.
In 1911, A. Hirshberg & Son turned a Thumb crossroads into a shopping hub. A postcard shows buggies, brick storefronts and new cloaks on display in Pigeon, Michigan, capturing a village department store at its peak as the automobile age approached.
From Spencer Creek’s mills to a Pere Marquette showpiece depot, Alden, Michigan reinvented itself on the shore of Torch Lake. See how railroads, boats, and one short main street reshaped this small northern Michigan town.
Step onto Third Street in Forestville, Michigan, circa 1910. The N.C. Potter General Store and post office buzzes with families, farm wagons, and mail. A rare glimpse of a Thumb village that survived Michigan’s great fires and stayed on the map
This circa-1916 photograph captures The Ramsey Co. storefront in Port Hope, Michigan. A horse-drawn buggy stands ready outside the clapboard commercial building, offering a glimpse into early Main Street life in the Thumb region during a quieter era.
Step onto Port Sanilac’s main corner in the early 1930s. Platts Drug Store serves medicine, sodas, and gossip as Model A-era cars roll past. A tiny Lake Huron village stands at the edge of big changes.
In July 1910, Detroit built a towering “Welcome” arch over Woodward Avenue for the Elks national convention. For one week, Grand Circus Park turned into a ceremonial gateway for parades, streetcars, and early motorists, offering a vivid snapshot of a rapidly modernizing Motor City.
In the reel image from about 1925, Curwood’s Castle rises behind bare trees along the Shiawassee River. The small stone-and-stucco building looks like something lifted from a European story, yet it stands in Owosso, a mid-Michigan city about 40 miles northeast …
