Tag: Interurban

Brief History of Ortonville Michigan – The depot, the mill, and the day the rails failed (1890-1940)

Posted on February 12, 2026February 23, 2026 by Michael Hardy

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.

Interurban Services in Michigan – 1900s Electric Vechicles Kept Small Towns Going – Video

Posted on June 10, 2025October 5, 2025 by Michael Hardy

Before automobiles, Michigan’s interurban electric railways addressed transportation challenges in small towns, offering reliable, affordable travel and freight services, thus connecting communities, enhancing local economies, and transforming daily life until the rise of cars in the 1920s.

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