News History & Fun in Michigan
We find the best YouTub videos about Michigan’s Thumb and catalog them here for education and reference.
Ortonville’s early 1900s video show a working Main Street, a depot on the Detroit United Railway line, and a hotel called the Yolande House. A federal crash report from 1929 adds the hard edge: progress came fast, and it came with risk for local riders.
Two Michigan Central freight trains met head-on at Denmark Junction in 1916, shattering a quiet night north of Vassar. Vintage photos and reports capture the moment when steel, steam, and fate collided on rural rails.
Downtown Detroit, circa 1949. The Barlum Hotel looms over Cadillac Square as buses circle the park and workers head toward the courthouse blocks. The bold wall sign faces Barlum Tower—now Cadillac Tower—built in 1927 during the city’s vertical building boom. This view likely sits a block east of Woodward Avenue, long considered Detroit’s spine. The scene is brisk, noisy, and confident, an everyday moment before the hotel’s later conversion to Cadillac Square Apartments.
Romeo’s Main Street, likely early 1900s. Two horse-drawn vehicles pause as flags wave. A sign on the coach at right claims it was the first carriage built in Macomb County, circa 1844. The claim is proud, if approximate. Romeo, about 30 miles north of Detroit, later became known for the Michigan Peach Festival, launched in 1931.
Linkville, a small unincorporated village in Michigan, thrived between 1890 and 1930 as a farming community and key railroad stop. However, post office closures and improved transportation led to its decline, leaving St. Paul Lutheran Church as its enduring landmark.
Polly Ann Railroad history still runs under your feet. Follow the 100-mile route from Pontiac to Caseville, meet the depot towns, and see how freight and mail shaped daily life.
The history of Harbor Springs Michigan traces a rare continuity from Odawa settlement to steamship resort town. This story explains how culture, commerce, and community shaped one of the Great Lakes’ most enduring places.
Saugatuck, Michigan reinvented itself in the early 1900s, trading sawmills for steamships, dance halls, and beach tourism. This is how a small harbor town became a Midwest summer destination.
