The Ora Labora Experiment by Florence McKinnon Gwinn
by The Ora Labora Experiment is an excerpt from a common historical document that has been scanned and re-published numerous times on the Internet from the …
by Category: History
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.
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Ora Labora Michigan – A Little Colony in the Wilderness – Part 1
by Ora Labora known as “Christian German Agricultural and Benevolent Society of Ora et Labora” (Pray and Work), where it’s parishioners could combine work with prayer, and live according to the Methodist Church Discipline. Founded in 1862 on Michigan’s Wild Fowl Bay, the colony disappeared in 1867
20 of Henry Ford’s Village Industries Sought Diversification
by Henry Ford established a series of twenty village industry plants in Michigan and other states where Ford Motor’s had a presence. He started acquiring and building the small factories in 1919 until 1944, primarily in southeastern Michigan.
The Huron County Poor Farm – 60 years of Service
by The Huron County Poor Farm was built due to the 1830 Michigan law directing each county to build a poor house. It was on 200 acres located west of Bad Axe.
It operated until the start of Social Security in 1937.
Ora Labora 1863 – A Lost Colony in Michigan’s North – Part 2
by Part II of the Ora Labora story outlines the summer of 1863. Building is rapid and progress exciting in Michigan’s north. But the looming effect of the Civil War is about to impact this fledgling German religious colony’s effort to bring their culture and traditions to the Great Lakes wilderness.
Michigan Prohibition – 16 Years Of Bootlegging At Huron’s Whiskey Harbor
by On the eastern edge of Michigan’s Thumb lies a lonely and very rocky cove on the shore of Lake Huron. The remote area sits on a layer of limestone that makes it hard to build on so it remains undeveloped to this day. It’s hard to imagine that this beautiful remote setting was the site for criminal activity during the time of Michigan Prohibition for over 12 years.
Ora Labora Colony – A Lost Community in Michigan’s North – Part 3
by Part III of the Ora Labora story brings us to 1864. The rapid growth of the colony was costly and the society needs funds to grow. It was time for drastic measures. The raging war in the south was turning in the North’s favor and the colony was on borrowed time until the draft took effect.
Ora Labora Colony- Lost in Michigan’s North – Part 4
by Part IV of the Ora Labora starts during Christmas 1864. The Colonies funds and provisions are low and its leader Emil Baur is begging his benefactors for loans to make it through the winter. With the war in its closing days the colonist are hopeful that a risky new venture will be profitable.
