A New View of City Hall

The recent demolition on Washington Avenue has given us the opportunity of seeing the south side of City Hall from a new perspective. This view has seldom been available since the building was built from 1894-7. The tower is shown on the Sanborn fire insurence maps to be 167 feet tall. Visitors can go about 2/3 the way up the tower where they can see the Zilwaukee Bridge on I-75. This is a favorite on the tours offered to school children by the Bay County Historical Museum which is located directly behind City Hall in this view.

Making Local History

 

Mary Lydia Doe was a key figure in the suffrage movement in Michigan from 1880 to 1900.  She lived at 922 N. Monroe in Bay City close to May Stocking Knaggs, who had a house not more than a few blocks away. 

 

She, like May, was president of the Equal Suffrage Association.  She was chosen at the founding meeting in Flint in 1884. 

She was a member of the Bay City School Board  in 1890-91 when it was very unusual for a woman to hold office. She was the second vice president of the Michigan Federation of Labor.

 

This is only a beginning of the achievements of this remarkable woman.

Toxic ash seepage discovered at Consumer’s Energy dump from Karn-Weadock plant.

In Bay City, where the state’s largest electricity provider, Consumer’s Power, has its Karn-Weadock coal-fired plant, and where it has applied to build an additional coal power plant, seepage from an ash dump has contaminated the nearby Saginaw Bay.

According to the Bay City Times, the pollution only became widely known in fall of 2008, when an environmental group researching Consumers Energy’s plans for a new plant discovered state DEQ records detailing seepage of arsenic, boron and lithium in excess of state standards.

Saginaw DEQ officials were unavailable to speak with Michigan Messenger.

“We don’t need coal to live. We do need water. For the short-term use of coal we are threatening essential resources.”

Terry L. Walkington, supervisor of the DEQ Waste and Hazardous Materials Division in Bay City recently told the Bay City Times that mercury, a toxin that is bioaccumulative and affects brain development, has been found outside the landfill at levels that exceed state standards.

As in Lansing, power company officials in Bay City plan a multimillion-dollar slurry wall around the dump to limit seepage of toxins.

Sprague of the Sierra Club said that the migration of toxins from coal ash dumps should be considered as the state evaluates the several pending proposals for new coal plants.

“All the ‘clean coal’ rhetoric means is taking pollutants from the air stream and putting pollutants in the landfill where there is a greater chance for pollutants to leach into water,” Sprague said.

“We don’t need coal to live. We do need water. For the short-term use of coal we are threatening essential resources.”

http://michiganmessenger.com/11691/coal-ash-dumps-a-time-bomb-for-michigan-water-environmentalists-say

Tags: clean coal, bay city, karn-weadock, mercury, saginaw bay, michigan messenger

Powered by Qumana

James O'Roarke

 

James J. O'Roarke was a hero of the South Pacific who was killed by friendly fire on Bougainville after winning a Silver Star on Guadalcanal. Part of his story is told in a book called Orchids in the Mud.

Eric Jylha and the Bay County Historical Society

Eric has been publishing newsletters on historical topics and items of interest for the community for the last few months. I find them very useful for keeping me up to date on items of interest. I think you will find them useful too. Please click on the link to check the newsletters out.

Detroit News Article on Defoe Shipbuilding

The Bay City boy who became a major shipbuilder

By Vivian M. Baulch / The Detroit News Online

      Harry J. Defoe was born in Bay City Sept. 2, 1875, son of a Great Lakes sailor, Joseph DeFoe, and nephew to a local boat builder, John DeFoe. As a boy Harry liked to whittle toy sail and tug boats and float them in the Saginaw River. As a teenager he built working steamboats from wood and scraps of metal.

http://info.detnews.com/redesign/history/story/historytemplate.cfm?id=2&CFID=12177038&CFTOKEN=61148313

      Harry became a teacher and even served as a school principal but his heart was focused on the river and its vessels.

      In 1905 Harry founded The DeFoe Boat & Motor Works along with his brother, Frederic, a New York lawyer, and his brother-in-law George H. Whitehouse, a fish wholesaler.

      Harry designed boats, selling full size patterns similiar to women's dress patterns. He also built the boats in his shipyard on the river at 5th Street. The U.S. military noticed and in 1917 the Navy ordered five torpedo chasers with Winton gasoline engines, followed by an order for eight 98-foot steel harbor mine planters. These were steam vessels with heavy derricks.

      DeFoe expanded his yard buying and after the war began to build yachts, including the 90-foot yacht which later became famous as the "Honey Fitz," so named by President John F. Kennedy after his grandfather, one-time mayor of Boston. Another well-know owner of a Defoe yacht was Ralph Evinrude who made outboard motors.

      During Prohibition Harry got a contract for 15 wooden, 400-horsepower speed boats used by racers like Detroit's Gar Wood, not to mention local rumrunner. Charles Kettering wanted his with self-starters. When DeFoe declined, Kettering said, "Give me two men and I'll make it self-starting tonight." DeFoe got the message and began making his boats with starters.

      When the Depression hit, the government tried to rescue the industry and DeFoe benefited with orders for Coast Guard vessels, a Detroit River mail boat, and a few other projects.

      The advent of World War brought and end to the depression and more government contracts.

      DeFoe invented the "upside down and rollover" method of shipbuilding. In the "roll over" a big cradle, the exact size and shape of the ship, was built bottom side up. Welders attached the steel to the skeleton eliminating difficult overhead welding and reducing man-hours by 90 percent. Then the vessel was flipped upright for its completion.

      Defoe built 58 sub-chasers faster than the Navy could deliver the powerplants. By the end of the war the firm had built in addition to the sub-chasers 47 infantry landing craft, 17 destroyer escorts, 10 freight and ammunition carriers, nine high-speed troop transports, four rescue tugs and three harbor tugs.

Tags: Harry Defoe, Defoe Shipbuilding, Bay City, Saginaw River

Powered by Qumana

Trolley to Depart Bay City Scene

It is very unfortunate that the difficult economic situation in public transportation has spilled over into Bay City's historical tours. Hundreds of people have learned about Bay City architecture and the achievements of residents from Anne Edison Taylor, who was the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel to William Clements, the donor of the Clements Library on the campus of the University of Michigan. The trolley's festive appearance has added to the holiday spirit of many city events. Hopefully, some solution can be found that will preserve this service for the community.

CLEWS Your Home for Historic True Crime: Michigan and the Death Penalty—A Brief and Horrible Experience

 

Between the Simmons and the Fitzpatrick cases, Michiganders developed a sour taste for the death penalty, and in 1847, Michigan became the first state in the Union--indeed, by some accounts, the first democracy in the English-speaking world--to abolish the death penalty.

Simmons was not the last man hanged in Michigan, though the authorities would have had it that way. In 1938, the federal government hanged a bank robber by the name of Tony Chebatoris for killing a bystander during a holdup in Midland. Then Governor Frank Murphy begged President Roosevelt to move Chebatoris's execution out of state, but the federal authorities insisted on hanging him in Michigan.

To this day, the ghosts of Stephen Simmons and Patrick Fitzpatrick still haunt the state, and there is never any serious talk about bringing the death penalty to Michigan.

The trial of Tony Chebatoris took place in the Federal Court House in Bay City, Michigan.

CLEWS Your Home for Historic True Crime: Michigan and the Death Penalty—A Brief and Horrible Experience

Washington Theater Program for Oct.29, 1911

 

This is a program from the Washington Theater located on Washington and Sixth Street in Bay City Michigan. It is for October 29, 1911.

Picasa Web Albums - SayHiThere - Washington Th... - scan0004.jpg

Picasa Web Albums - SayHiThere - Washington Th... - scan0005.jpg

Picasa Web Albums - SayHiThere - Washington Th... - scan0006.jpg

Picasa Web Albums - SayHiThere - Washington Th... - scan0007.jpg

Seaman's Cemetery looked like This

Seaman's Cemetary in 2005

The friends of Pine Ridge have been doing a great job of correcting situations like this that existed just three years ago in Pine Ridge Cemetery. Much of the brush has been cut and an effort has been made to find the lot lines and paths that marked the design of this part of the memorial at one time.

History of Fort Recovery

 

History of Fort Recovery

(Editor’s Note: The excerpt was taken from "The Battle on the Banks of the Wabash -- The Battle of Fort Recovery 1794" written by Fort Recovery’s elementary principal Nancy Knapke)

Two very significant battles in American history took place in Fort Recovery: the first in 1791 on the banks of the Wabash when Arthur St. Clair suffered a disastrous defeat at the hands of 1,000 to 1,500 Indian warriors; the second in 1794 when Mad Anthony Wayne’s men successfully defended the fort against a relentless, two day onslaught of 2,000+ Indians who were under the command of Little Turtle and Blue Jacket. This last battle led to the signing of the Treaty of Greenville in 1795.

After the Revolutionary War many citizens of the 13 states began to come across the Appalachian Mountains to settle the rich lands of the Northwest Territory. The Native Americans greatly resented this intrusion onto their land and proceeded to employ every measure possible to frighten the settlers back to the East. Hearing the pleas for protections coming from the Northwest Territory, President Washington sent General Harmar and the small American army to "teach the Indians a lesson."

The general and his army were the ones to be surprised and embarrassed. After Harmar’s humiliating loss, Arthur St. Clair was put in charge of raising an army and finding a way to make the Ohio Country safe for settlement by the white man. He was an appropriate choice since he had military leadership experience during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War and because he was very familiar with the Northwest Territory, having served as its first governor.

With this army Arthur St. Clair began his journey up through the Northwest Territory in the fall of 1791. Since the army was proceeding through virgin forest land, the progress was very slow. With hatchets and axes, the army proceeded to cut a road from Fort Washington (Cincinnati) to the north. St. Clair believed that if a series of forts were built through this territory, the mere presence of the forts would encourage the Indians to behave.

It was on November 3, 1791, that St. Clair’s American Army arrived on the banks of the Wabash River thinking that it was the St. Mary's River. Although everyone was aware that there was much Indiana activity about the area, the tired and demoralized men pitched camp without erecting any kind of fortifications.

Early the next morning, the Indians attacked in numbers never anticipated. The Kentucky militiamen who were to be the first line of defense, were rendered helpless at the sight of the war painted faces and the sound of blood curdling cries as the Indian warriors swooped down upon them. Not only did the militia not hold their line of defense, but they totally threw the artillerymen into a state of confusion as they rushed across the river and straight into the artillery camp. The militia had hopes of finding safety within the main body of the army.

Within one hour’s time, the Indians had the American Army totally surrounded and within three hours, 900 to 1,200 soldiers lay dead or mortally wounded. It was obvious from the beginning that it would be an impossible victory for the army, but because they were surrounded, retreat was impossible. Finally, Colonel Darke lead a charge which drove a wedge through the Indian army and enabled those soldiers and civilians who were able to escape down the road to Fort Jefferson. General St. Clair did survive the battle -- even though he had four horses shot out from under him. Major General Richard Butler and many other officers lost their lives during the battle.

Mad Anthony Wayne was appointed by Washington to succeed St. Clair as the Commander-in-Chief of the army. Wayne made it clear from the outset that he was in charge and that he would have an army of 2,600 well trained, disciplined men....

On June 30, 1794, a combined Native American Army of over 2,000 warriors, under the command of Little Turtle of the Miamis and Blue Jacket of the Shawnees, made a frontal attack upon the fort. Around the outside of the fort were camped 100 sharpshooters under the command of Major McMahan. Before McMahan and his men could be safely worked within the protective walls of the fort, the Major and 50 of his men were killed. But the addition of the 50 surviving riflemen to the garrison of 200+ soldiers within the fort proved to be instrumental to the defense of Fort Recovery.

Following the attack on the morning of June 30, a two day battle ensued. The obvious difference between the circumstances of this battle and that of 1791 was the presence of the fort. Although the odds in the second battle were much worse as compared to St. Clair’s defeat, the structure of the fort gave the soldiers the protection they needed to successfully defend themselves. As a result, after two days of bloody battle the Indian confederation gave up their assault on Fort Recovery.

Modern historians recognize the significance of the battle in Fort Recovery. It was the 1794 battle that "broke the back of Indian resistance and lead the way to the signing of the Treaty of Greenville and to the opening up the Northwest Territory for settlement by the white man."

History of Fort Recovery

Logs from the 1870's and 1880's on the Cass River

Facebook | My Photos - Mobile Uploads

This is a typical log from Michigan's logging era that was recently found submerged in the Cass River near Vassar, Michigan. The Vassar Historical Society has built this shelter near their new museum on North Main Street where the log can be viewed at anytime.

The logmarks on the ends of this log have yet to be identified but are clearly visible.

Shipwreck Explorers Discover HMS Ontario - 1780 British Warship in Lake Ontario - Shipwreck World

Shipwreck Explorers Discover HMS Ontario - 1780 British Warship in Lake Ontario - Shipwreck World

The Lakes give up their own

The HMS Ontario is the type of wreck that appears only in movies but this time we seem to have the real thing. The pictures are beautiful. It may be like stepping on that ship in 1780 on the day it left Fort Niagara.

1780 British warship found in Lake Ontario - Science- msnbc.com

 

1780 British warship found in Lake Ontario

Intact 80-foot sloop is oldest ever found in the Great Lakes

This image shows the decoratively carved scroll bow stem of the sunken 228-year-old British warship HMS Ontario, a British warship built in1780 that has been discovered in deep water off the southern shore of Lake Ontario.

1780 British warship found in Lake Ontario - Science- msnbc.com

 

This has to be one of the biggest finds for history of the American Revolution in this decade. The video they plan to make should knock your socks off.

Technorati Tags: HMS Ontario,British Navy,American Revolution

MHAL - Bay

 

MHAL - Bay

This list of the newspapers published in Bay City is extensive. Many papers are listed but no library source to read them is given. This makes the site a good place to start but with a very long journey ahead.

Saginaw Valley Logging

Logs at Red Keg

This is what twenty-five mill feet of logs looks like

Wenonah Park with a view of the Sage Mill

This view from Wenonah Park to the West Side must come from after 1908. The Sage Mill buildings can still be seen in the background eventhough the mill had closed in 1892.

North American Comet Catastrophe 10,900 BC Part 1

This may be the end of a view of the populating of the Americas.  Now, the truth of this event from outer space has to be established and the truth of whether that was an end to the Clovis people now believed to have originated in Europe or whether they merged with the new arrivals from Asia to become Native Americans has to be discovered. 

 

 

Investigations of a buried layer at sites from California to Belgium reveal materials that include metallic microspherules, carbon spherules, nanodiamonds, fullerenes, charcoal, and soot. The layer's composition may indicate that a massive body, possibly a comet, exploded in the atmosphere over the Laurentide Ice Sheet 12,900 years ago. The timing coincides with a great die-off of mammoths and other North American megafauna and the onset of a period of cooling in Northern Europe and elsewhere known as the Younger Dryas Event. The American Clovis culture appears to have been dramatically effected, even terminated, at this same time. Speakers will discuss numerous lines of evidence contributing to the impact hypothesis. The nature and frequency of this new kind of impact event could have major implications for our understanding of extinctions and climate change. (less)

 

Technorati Tags: Clovis Point,Younger Dryas,Comet

Discovery Channel :: News - Archaeology :: Study: Comet Wiped Out First Americans

 

May 30, 2007 — A large extraterrestrial object exploded over the heads of the first Americans about 13,000 years ago, wiping them out and making big mammals and other prehistoric creatures disappear, according to a new U.S. study.

Presented last week at the American Geophysical Union meeting in Acapulco, Mexico, the controversial research proposes that the extraterrestrial blast triggered a catastrophic millennium-long cold spell.

The dramatic climate change would have been the major cause for the sudden disappearance of mammoths throughout much of Europe and America and the demise of the Clovis people, the New World's most sophisticated hunters.

"The impact occurred precisely when the megafauna suddenly disappeared from North America. The Earth, which was warming from the last ice age, was plunged suddenly into a 1,000-year period of cooling known as the Younger Dryas," nuclear scientist Richard Firestone of Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in California, told Discovery News.

Discovery Channel :: News - Archaeology :: Study: Comet Wiped Out First Americans

 

The History Channel has a program, Journey to 10,000 BC, which presents all this material along with the view that the Americas were populated from both Europe and Asia.  The program shows the relationship of Clovis points to those done in Spain.  It also speaks about the meeting of humans from Europe and Asia and of the possible results.  These groups merged and became the Folsom People. 

 

Technorati Tags: Younger Dryas,Clovis Point,Folsom Point,Megafauna

Mackinac in 1837