~ WALLOON LAKE BOATS, DOCKS AND BOATHOUSES ~
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Most posted items will enlarge by "clicking" on them.
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just come back and visit the site often to view the photos.
The design and compilation of the text and photos on this site are copyrighted 2014.
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If anyone can identify anyone in the photos, or identify the surroundings in the photos,
or add any additional information, please let me know. ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
or add any additional information, please let me know. ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
Whether hoping to go fishing, or for a boat ride, the Charlevoix County website, has posted a listing of "Public and Private Facilities" which include "Quasi-public lands including lands owned by the Little Traverse Conservancy and the Walloon Lake Trust" as well as Bay Township parcels. These parcels do offer some limited public access to Walloon Lake.
A Beautiful Boat Trip
On
Walloon Lake
(The Lake Lucerne of America)
On
Walloon Lake
(The Lake Lucerne of America)
Photo Below: Garfield Winsor and his boat the "Suzel" that one could hire for Walloon Lake trips
~ ICEBOAT~
~ STEAMBOATS ~
"Steamers met the trains as they came in five or six times daily and took the people wherever they were going on the lake. The FIRST one put into service in connection with the railroad was called the Walloon. It was an old canal boat remodeled and hauled in from Petoksey on three flat cars. They backed the cars out onto the dock as far as they could and then pushed the boat off in the water with the engine. It was a double-decker and would carry 75 people. Some of the other wood-burning steamers were the Magic owned by the Olds at Fort Wayne camp. This had the fame of being the FIRST one on the lake. They used it to steam up the lake to the Keeler farm once a week for their butter, cream, eggs and buttermilk. The Varda, owned by Mr. Camburn. A little later Captain Camburn brought in the Tempest and the Outing. The Tourist was on the lake between the years of 1905 and 1908. Its captain was C.E, Mills." ~ Mildred Burns, longtime Walloon Lake resident
1895 > Articles Below:
It was great entertainment to ride the train from Petoskey to Bear Lake (Later Walloon Lake)
and then to ride
the steamer named "Walloon".
It was great entertainment to ride the train from Petoskey to Bear Lake (Later Walloon Lake)
and then to ride
the steamer named "Walloon".
Photo Below: Accompanying text stated: "Village of Walloon Lake 1901-1903. Back about the time of Hemingway [Ernest] visiting the Walloon Lake area for the summer, it was a boom town according to this picture from the turn of the century. Notice the long docks that allowed the boats with deep drafts to get near the shore at the village. Also notice the road was dirt that eventually became M-75. The New Walloon Hotel was in its prime, taking guests for the summer months while the boats took passengers all over the lake to the many cottages."
A granddaughter of William Henry Olds (born 1867) wrote for her relatives about the steamer 'Magic' on Walloon Lake near the Olds Camp on the Main Basin of the lake... now Camp Michigania: "I forgot to say 'in the early days there were no gasoline motor boats so the camp had a wood burning steamer named the Magic' [noted in the framed advertisement posted a few pictures above]- they had an engineer who each morning saw that the boat was loaded with wood and ready for any emergency. Each family on the place had their own fishing boats with a live box in the center - row boats- sail boats, but the steamer everyone used to go fishing - the men would tie their fishing boats on the back of the steamer and the Magic would take them any place on the lake they wanted to fish then go back in the afternoon and pick them up at the different places they had wanted to stop. We had a big live box on the side of our dock and Frank would see that all the fish that belonged to our men were put in our live box so that was always well stocked with fish - then Frank would go out in the morning and get the fish for our breakfast - clean them and Eliza would cook them - so corn bread and fish was a typical Walloon breakfast. The fishing was wonderful in those days - gasoline motors came in when you boys were young. We, of course, had no automobiles - nor electricity nor fuel oil - we used wood to cook with in the kitchen and kerosene lamps for lighting - no telephones nor anything like that - it was wonderful never-the-less we thought and I wonder many times how we escaped burning the place down but the Good Lord took care of us and He always will I am sure - My Nobel (your grandfather and Maribel's Father) was the pilot of the steamer until he was grown up and could not spend all summer at the lake, then had to relinquish that job to someone else - but still took it over when he was there -"
[It is interesting to think that in the early years, people could not just hop into their fishing boats and go anywhere on Walloon Lake to fish... but, that would have been an impossibility without gas powered motors. The fisherman would not have wanted to have to row his boat all day to get to another arm of Walloon Lake to fish. Consequently, the steamer Magic performed as a taxi for the fisherman's rowboat.
Any logs that were hauled on ice across the lake toward Olds' Sawmill or to be floated down Walloon Lake's outlet of Bear River, that happened to break through, often became waterlogged on one end. The log then sank on that end, with the other end lying near the surface, thus becoming a "deadhead" and a danger for the boats on the lake. ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster]
[It is interesting to think that in the early years, people could not just hop into their fishing boats and go anywhere on Walloon Lake to fish... but, that would have been an impossibility without gas powered motors. The fisherman would not have wanted to have to row his boat all day to get to another arm of Walloon Lake to fish. Consequently, the steamer Magic performed as a taxi for the fisherman's rowboat.
Any logs that were hauled on ice across the lake toward Olds' Sawmill or to be floated down Walloon Lake's outlet of Bear River, that happened to break through, often became waterlogged on one end. The log then sank on that end, with the other end lying near the surface, thus becoming a "deadhead" and a danger for the boats on the lake. ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster]
~ Walloon Lake Steamer Map for Bear Lake Summer Resort ~
(Precious; one of kind map known to exist)
Photo Above: The map titled "Bear Lake Summer Resort" was inscribed by one of Walloon Lake's boat Captains, C.H. Camburn, to Clarence Hemingway, the father of famous author Ernest Hemingway. The map shows all of the official steamer stops on the lake, with each resort, as well as the public docks, marked on the map of Walloon Lake with a circled number. The numbers in the squares surrounding Walloon Lake are section numbers of the five townships that border the lake. The lake itself is labeled as Walloon Lake which had previously been named Bear Lake. [Notice the photo description of the steamer "The Tempest" below with the captain's name as Mr. Camburn, as mentioned above.] Mr. Camburn also owned the steamboat "Varda".
After purchasing lakefront property from Henry Bacon, the Hemingway Family built their family cottage Windemere which was completed in November of 1899. Ernest Hemingway's parents Dr. Clarence and Grace Hall Hemingway with their children Marcelline, Ursula, Madelaine "Sunny", Carol, Ernest, and Leicester all enjoyed living in the Walloon Lake cottage of Windemere. For the Hemingway Family to reach their cottage from their Chicago home, they traveled on Lake Michigan to Harbor Springs, where the family took a train to "The Foot" of Walloon Lake. At "The Foot" the Hemingway Family boarded one of the Walloon Lake steamers to be delivered to Windemere… thus, the interest of the map showing the regular steamer stops on Walloon Lake. The Steamer Stop where the Hemingway Family debarked was Bacon's Landing, close by to their Windemere Cottage.
After purchasing lakefront property from Henry Bacon, the Hemingway Family built their family cottage Windemere which was completed in November of 1899. Ernest Hemingway's parents Dr. Clarence and Grace Hall Hemingway with their children Marcelline, Ursula, Madelaine "Sunny", Carol, Ernest, and Leicester all enjoyed living in the Walloon Lake cottage of Windemere. For the Hemingway Family to reach their cottage from their Chicago home, they traveled on Lake Michigan to Harbor Springs, where the family took a train to "The Foot" of Walloon Lake. At "The Foot" the Hemingway Family boarded one of the Walloon Lake steamers to be delivered to Windemere… thus, the interest of the map showing the regular steamer stops on Walloon Lake. The Steamer Stop where the Hemingway Family debarked was Bacon's Landing, close by to their Windemere Cottage.
Photo Below:
Ursula Hemingway paddling her own canoe in 1917
Ursula Hemingway paddling her own canoe in 1917
The photo above and the photos in the slideshow below were preserved by Ernest Hemingway's mother Grace Hall Hemingway in one of her family scrapbooks that have been digitized by Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University. To view the slideshow below of boats, docks, and boathouses click PLAY in the upper left corner.
Another source stated that Mr. Camburn owned both Walloon Lake steamboats Varda and Tempest.
~ Steamer Tourist ~
A Passenger Boat
(The Grove Hotel was the terminus of the route of the Steamer Tourist.)
1902 Article Below:
The Steamer Tourist, owned and captained by George E. Mills of Petoskey,
began making regular trips around Walloon Lake some time ago.
The Steamer Tourist, owned and captained by George E. Mills of Petoskey,
began making regular trips around Walloon Lake some time ago.
~ Marriage Ceremony performed on the upper deck of steamer Tourist ~
1910
1910
Three Photos Below: My grandparents and family took an overnight through-train from central Indiana. At the Petoskey train station, they changed to what I always heard referred to as the “dummy train” which went out to Walloon Lake village, at the foot of the lake. Then they loaded all their trunks onto one of the steamer boats, such as the Tourist. It took them to the Lake Grove Hotel dock, then onto a boardwalk to their first cottage, about the 7th cottage north of the Lake Grove Hotel. After 1907, they got off at the Baer’s Den Hotel dock and again walked on a boardwalk to their newly built cottage, the 5th cottage south of the Baer’s Den Hotel. (The Baer’s Den Hotel burned down in 1925, but the Lake Grove Hotel operated into the 1960s.) In those days, the social life centered around the hotel communities. Sunday dinner was usually served and attended by many of the “cottagers” followed by visiting and games for the kids. Once a week, the hotel would take the men to town shopping for groceries and other necessities-usually an all day trip by horse and wagon. The women had occasional tea parties for their friends, who all dressed up in their best. The ladies always had on long dresses and the little girls, even when playing, wore dresses.
~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
Photo Below:
After arriving by boat, the ladies had occasional tea parties as noted in Barbara Smith's
above description...
After arriving by boat, the ladies had occasional tea parties as noted in Barbara Smith's
above description...
According to the book Resort Township Remembers on page 147: "The first steamer on Walloon Lake was owned by Philo French and held about 20 passengers." It was replaced by the Walloon which was a little larger. It makes sense, however, that the G.R. & I. Railroad company brought the Tourist boat to Walloon Lake in 1893 when the railroad was doing everything it could to promote the use of its railroad. The Tourist, 82 feet long, with an upper deck and a lower deck, was heavily used by railroad passengers who debarked at the Village of Walloon Lake and needed transportation to their cottage or resort on Walloon Lake. The open upper deck sometimes had Roy Brown's 14-piece band playing for the entertainment of all. Captain Holloway was in command of the steamer when it was called the Walloon. At first the canal boat was named the Walloon, even before the name of the lake was changed to Walloon Lake, but in 1904 the name had been changed to the Tourist, by the time when it was sold to L. Bert Cole. Captain Mills the previous owner had drowned (August 1904 Article Below Middle). In 1909 the boat was sold to Philip Middleditch and "Doc" Calkins.
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Resort Township Remembers on page 147 stated: "Mills was handicapped by rheumatism in his limbs and although he helped the rest to safety, his strength failed, and the other boat was not able to reach him in time to rescue him. People were shocked at the loss of his good man. After his death the boat line was sold to L. Bert Cole who changed the name off the Walloon to Tourist." This information seems different from the timely article above of Mills' death which stated the boats were already named Tourist and Outing.
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In a 6 July 1910 Petoskey Evening News article it stated: "The steamer Tourist, under the new ownership of Philip Middleditch and son, has been making regular trips for some time, and is giving great satisfaction. The new state laws are strictly adhered to in the management of the boat, and the little steamer will answer all requirements. It has been undergoing considerable repairs during the past few months and now makes a better appearance than ever. The crew consists of Arthur W. Kay, captain; Philip Middleditch, Jr., purser; Walter W. Calkins, first mate; Ray Weller, engineer."
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Photo Below Right description from this photo on a McCune-Dickinson, Inc. calendar: "The passenger Steamer "Tourist" first owned by Captain Mills, who died in 1904; then by a Mr. Cole and Phillip Middleditch of Petoskey. The boat was run on the beach and abandoned in the early 1920s." [See salvage photos of the Tourist farther below on this same web page.]
Captain Phillip Middleditch died in a hospital in Ann Arbor 29 September 1930 after suffering for about 12 years from tuberculosis contracted while in war training in France. This information was in a news article from the 30 September 1930 Petoskey Evening News.
Photo Below: Accompanying text stated: "The Tourist [about 82 feet long] a boat which delivered summer residents to cottages around Walloon Lake. According to Jim Coplas, there was a slot machine on board to entertain the guests while they were delivered around the lake."
In the 3 July 1913 issue of The Petoskey Record Page 2 mention was made of the steamer Tourist:
"The steamer Tourist sunk to the bottom of Walloon Lake on Friday morning,
but has been repaired and is again at work."
Photo Below: Accompanying text stated: "Raising the Tourist was a big project after the boat sank at the dock in Walloon Lake near the turn of the century. The boat carried freight and passengers all over the lake as they went from the train depot to the homes around the lake."
Photo Below The Steamer "Tourist II"
According to the Illustrated Souvenir Guide of Northern Michigan Resorts on page 41: "WALLOON LAKE STEAMER LINE. Steamers 'Tourist' and 'Outing' connect with all G.R.. & I Trains. Round trips daily. Stopping at all the Resorts on the Lake. Special Excursion Trip every afternoon around the lake. Boat can be chartered by private parties. L.B. COLE, Owner and Manager, Petoskey Mich."
Postcard Below: Outing and Tourist at Steamboat Landing at The Foot
Photos Above and Below: Travelers were waiting under the shelter on the dock,
for either a boat, or a train... the tracks ran right to the water.
for either a boat, or a train... the tracks ran right to the water.
"When we first came to Walloon there were two boats on the lake which were used to take passengers and freight around the lake to the various hotels. They were the ‘Tourist’ and the ‘Outing’, both steamboats. They were both owned by a man named Winsor who lived in an old ramshackle two-story house where Bill Gratsch’s brick cottages now stand. Old man Winsor’s two grown sons helped him run the boats and keep them in repair. There had been quite a lot of lumbering done around the lake and some of the logs had become water-logged and sunk, so it was not unusual for those boats to run onto a ‘dead-head’, breaking or bending its shaft or propeller, in which case one of the boys would then have to get into his bathing suit, get into the water and dive down and do the job. When one boat was laid up they would use the other. The ‘Tourist’ was a good sized boat for that lake, about thirty five feet long, had a large cabin and pilot house, while the ‘Outing’ was a much smaller boat with a small cabin and pilot house. The passage of time and hard usage finally caught up with both boats and they both had to be junked. The ‘Outing’ was pulled up close to shore just south of Eagle Island where she lay for many years and her hull could be seen there until just recently. The ‘Tourist’ I lost track of and I don’t remember what became of her. That was in the hey day of the hotels when there were some ten or fifteen hotels scattered around the lake. Families came and stayed two weeks or all summer and no one had cars to take them to other places, so they would stay in one place after arriving. There was the ‘New Walloon Hotel’, ‘Fern Cottage Hotel’, ‘Mizer Hotel’, ‘Belding’s Hotel’, ‘Indian Garden Hotel’, and ‘Sunset Lodge’. There may be a few more that I’ve forgotten.
...Old Mrs. Winsor sometimes chased us from her property when we ran across its boundary. Her ‘Winsor Castle’ was her castle even if it did set in what most people would call a swamp. Even in the middle of summer the yard was always wet and they’d have to put planks up to their door to walk on to keep their feet dry. At the demise of the ‘Tourist’ and the ‘Outing’ another boat was bought and it came in to Walloon on two flat cars. It was the ‘Rapid Transit’ and was a used boat about thirty feet long and was powered by a diesel engine. That was a sight for us kids watching a crew of men unload that big boat from those flat cars. The GR&I had brought it in and parked it just behind the station and quite handy to the road and the big concrete walk in front of the ‘New Walloon’. It came off the cars bow first after the men built up a temporary platform for it and then it was rolled off and down along the concrete walk using planks and rollers. It was fun watching them and considering what would be done next. The ‘Rapid Transit’ had a short life on our lake as many of the hotels had closed and much of the transportation was by then being done by car, so it was sold and taken off the lake." [In 2014 a Winsor Street still exists at The Foot of Walloon Lake.]
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
Previous to Mr. Winsor owning the "Tourist" and the "Outing", he owned the steamer "Wenona". The "Wenona" eventually purposely was sunk along the shoreline by Eagle Island as was the "Tourist". Mr. Breithaupt and Mr. Tatro salvaged portions of the "Tourist".
The 1953 photos below show Mr. Charles Breithaupt salvaging the "Tourist".
The 1953 photos below show Mr. Charles Breithaupt salvaging the "Tourist".
The Tourist had its final resting place where it was partly sunk near the shore of
Eagle Island in Lily Pad Bay after being condemned by inspectors about 1914/15.
Eagle Island in Lily Pad Bay after being condemned by inspectors about 1914/15.
Another steamer, one of the last to arrive on Walloon Lake in 1919, was "The Rapid Transit" managed by C. Hamper. It was out of service before 1928. By 1928 steamers were no longer running Walloon Lake, coinciding with the cessation of the railroad running to the Village of Walloon Lake.
Article Below:
Walloon Lake's Mrs. Singer's "The Dorothy" was a 33 foot passenger launch
purchased by Mr. A. Lewis to be placed on Otsego Lake.
Walloon Lake's Mrs. Singer's "The Dorothy" was a 33 foot passenger launch
purchased by Mr. A. Lewis to be placed on Otsego Lake.
Many Charlevoix County residents are familiar with the story of Amelia Martin (married Kaden) who along with her family made their way from an early 1870s Petoskey, Michigan, train out into the wilderness of Chandler Township, the neighboring township to Walloon Lake's Melrose Township. The book about Amelia Martin, Little Mossback Amelia, tells of her many adventures of living as a pioneer in Northern Michigan. One such adventure was described on page 54 in the chapter titled "When Little Mossback Amelia Managed a Picnic". "Five miles from their wilderness cabin was Walloon Lake, now a summer resort. Then it [Walloon Lake] was a solitude of wild beauty, where flowers bloomed along the shore and deer went down to drink the crystal water." On page 57 is a drawing of the day of their picnic, of Amelia, her father and siblings, along with a Steamboat Captain who had been a friend to Amelia's father. They stood beside the Walloon Lake shore with a steamer boat named "Swallow" at the dock. Amelia's spoken wish to the captain was to take a steamboat ride on the lake, or to ride in a canoe, or even just to see an Indian paddle a canoe on Walloon Lake. The captain explained that the steamship "Swallow" was his, so he gladly took them for a ride while "Amelia believed she must be in fairyland as they steamed on and on past exquisite scenery, seven miles to the end of that enchanting lake, and back again."
Most of Little Mossback Amelia's adventures took place in Chandler Township, with many of those associated adventures chronicled on the Chandler Township Charlevoix County Michigan Memories website.
Most of Little Mossback Amelia's adventures took place in Chandler Township, with many of those associated adventures chronicled on the Chandler Township Charlevoix County Michigan Memories website.
Page 120 in Inland Lakes of Michigan By Irving Day Scott originally published in 1921
described Walloon Lake and its many boats.
described Walloon Lake and its many boats.
"Walloon Lake is one of the most popular in the State. It is of sufficient size to warrant a large fleet of motor boats, and the irregular shore line lessens the fetch of the waves that would otherwise become of dangerous size during storms and sudden 'blows'."
3 Rescued from Boat Explosion on Walloon Lake
~ 1963 ~
~ 1963 ~
5 Year Old Hurt in Walloon Boat Crash
~ 1963 ~
Delta Queen ~ Owned by Bert Burns
(Built in 1963)
(Built in 1963)
Photo Below: By about 1928 all of the wood powered steamers were gone from Walloon Lake,
except perhaps the Delta Queen owned by Burt Burns.
except perhaps the Delta Queen owned by Burt Burns.
Photo Below Right: Whistle was located on top of roof...
Below: Burt Burns' Delta Queen still puttin' along...
Burt Burns bought his Paddle Wheel Pontoon Boat at an old logging camp in the U.P. where he found an old steam engine that had been used for powering the saw mill. He adapted this engine to the boat, made a paddle wheel out of old steel rods and wood paddles and fashioned the boiler himself. One summer he took my son Rick Steele, and me (Bob Steele) along on an all day voyage around the entire lake–early morning until late at night. We used a big quantity of wood that trip. Another interesting cruise we took once in a while was going up School Creek at the tip of the North Arm nearly reaching Willams Road. This long distance ride was only possible in a pontoon boat with paddle wheel drive because it had an extremely shallow draft, getting back out possible by simple reversing–with no possibility of turning around in that narrow creek. ~ Bob and Carlie Steel, January 2020
Photo Below: Merrill's Boat Livery featuring both the Tourist and the Outing
Merrill Boats
1901
1901
The 6 July 1910 Petoskey Evening News left advertisement stated: "Many noticeable changes have taken place in Merrill's boat house, one of the principal ones being the addition of several new slides for launches. Business opened here this year better than ever before and gives promise of an exceptionally good season. Seven men are kept constantly at work getting launches ready for visitors as soon as they arrive, and orders are continually pouring in. In addition to having boats for sale, Mr. Merrill will have a fine line of launches for rent, as well as two large party launches with licensed men to handle them. A full line of motor boat supplies will be kept constantly on hand.
1910 Photo Below: Watching boat races from Merrill's Boat Livery on Walloon Lake
7 July 1910 ~ Petoskey Evening News article below tells of Merril Boat Company's boat work happenings...
Two Obituaries Below for Ransom T. Merrill:
Ransom T. Merrill died 21 October 1940.
Ransom's wife France M. "Wager" Merrill passed 30 August 1937.
Leon Loyst Merrill, the son of Mr. and Mrs. R.T. Merrill passed away 2 November 1938.
Ransom T. Merrill died 21 October 1940.
Ransom's wife France M. "Wager" Merrill passed 30 August 1937.
Leon Loyst Merrill, the son of Mr. and Mrs. R.T. Merrill passed away 2 November 1938.
~ Sailing ~
Resort Township Remembers gave the following "Sketch of Organization" of the Walloon Yacht Club: On invitation of the Walloon Lake Country Club a meeting was held at the club house September 1st, 1907 which resulted in organizing the WALLOON YACHT CLUB.
"It was the consensus of the meeting that the persons there present be charter members of the club and that the payment of one dollar entitled each one to membership for one year; and as a matter of record the following gentlemen constitute the Charter Membership"... with about 34 names listed. Officers elected were Commodore Fred C. Adams [see photo below], Vice-Commodore Arthur G. Nulsen, Secretary and Treasurer Zene Y. Smith.
"It was the consensus of the meeting that the persons there present be charter members of the club and that the payment of one dollar entitled each one to membership for one year; and as a matter of record the following gentlemen constitute the Charter Membership"... with about 34 names listed. Officers elected were Commodore Fred C. Adams [see photo below], Vice-Commodore Arthur G. Nulsen, Secretary and Treasurer Zene Y. Smith.
Mrs. Grace Hemingway, mother of Ernest Hemingway, had preserved this photo below in her family album which has been digitized by Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University labeled as: "Commodore Adams settling a dispute at the races August 1913." The next photo below was labeled: "Races in the West Arm 1913 ~ Vice Commodore Nulson in the 'Missouri.'" The photo collection next below (also of Mrs. Hemingway's photos) shows the Walloon Lake Yacht Club race pictures still from August 1913.
Obituary Below: Herbert Miller was a charter member of the Walloon Lake Yacht Club which was organized in 1907. He was also a boat builder and did boat maintenance on Walloon Lake at Miller's Landing for many years.
1909 ~ "That first summer one of Dad’s brothers, Uncle Mal was spending his vacation with us and took it upon himself to sweep off the front porch every morning right after breakfast. At that particular time Dad was in Chicago catching up on his patients’ problems. One day we got a telegram from him saying he was coming up that week-end, bringing with him an old friend, a Rear Admiral Singer (retired) of the US Navy. He had met the Admiral years ago when Dad as a young clerk and pharmacist in Dad’s Uncle Tom’s drug store. The Admiral lived in New Orleans and whenever he came to Chicago he would stay at the Auditorium Hotel and would drop in to the drug store just around the corner and would always ask to have Dad wait on him. And, when Dad became a nose and throat specialist he often gave him treatments. That was quite a momentous week, but I don’t remember that we traipsed over to Clarion, but met them at the dummy [train] when it got in. The motor boat races were being held that week and when the race committee learned that we had a real Rear Admiral staying with us they lost no time in inviting Dad and his guest to officiate as judges. The races were to be held in the afternoon and Dad and the Admiral were still at the breakfast table in the afternoon enjoying Auntie Mame’s cooking. Both of them had come to the table in their shirt sleeves as Mother had urged Admiral Singer to 'make yourself at home', an unusual offer he seldom heard. Mother had excused herself and had gone into the guest room intending to make up the Admiral’s bed, but when she looked inside here was the Admiral’s beautiful full dress coat laid out on the bed without a wrinkle. She was afraid to touch it so called Auntie Mame in to see it too. Uncle Mal happened to be passing by out to do the porch and Mother also showed him that marvelous coat. Mother went back into the dining room and the next thing she knew here came Uncle Mal, all of his skinny 135 pounds wearing the Admiral’s coat with a large pillow stuffed inside and his broom over his shoulder singing, 'I’m the admiral of the King’s naveee' all done with Uncle Mal’s well-known straight face. Mother was aghast, wondering what the Admiral would say, but he and Dad were doubled up with laughter seeing that woebegone character in that outfit.
The races were held that afternoon and Uncle Mal took our two judges out to the big raft anchored off Master’s dock in the “Jimmie W”, and they did their officiating. Dad had never officiated at a race before but it was old hat to the Admiral who enjoyed it all. A few days after the boat races I was up in the woods behind the house when I heard the tin whistle Mother used to call me home. What could she want of me at this early hour, about 9 o’clock? I hurried home to find that Clayt Bixby with his dray had left a big wooden box of express for me. That was, of course a most unusual occurrence for little old me to get a a large box sent by express. I was all curiosity and lost no time in getting my screw driver and forcing the lid off---to find inside---a LARGE toy wind-up boat. It is about 18” long, with a passenger cabin and a pilot house on top of that and two masts with guy ropes. There were also several paper mache passengers and a captain and a big key for winding it up. I spent the rest of the morning rigging the masts and wondering who could have sent me such a wonderful present. Finally Mother suggested that I thank Admiral Singer for it which I did very profusely. Up to that time it was undoubtedly the finest present I had ever been given. It gave me many hours of pleasure and I always thought kindly of the giver. The name of the boat was “St. Louis” painted across the stern. I was eager to sail it but the lake had to be smooth or it would be swamped. When fully wound up it would run in circles for a good twenty minutes. I made a special shelf for it and had it ensconced on a wall in my bedroom. Once the large key for winding it was lost and I had quite a time locating something to take its place, but Virginia Cowles found the key in the sand the next year. One of the kids in our group had been playing with it. But that wasn’t all. When we got back to Chicago I found that Admiral Singer had gone to a hardware store down town and had them send me a complete tool chest with tools to 5324 Jefferson Avenue. The chest I had for many years, but the tools were nearly all gone. That was my first introduction to tools and showed how much Admiral Singer had enjoyed his visit where her was treated as one of the family, an experience he seldom found."
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
The races were held that afternoon and Uncle Mal took our two judges out to the big raft anchored off Master’s dock in the “Jimmie W”, and they did their officiating. Dad had never officiated at a race before but it was old hat to the Admiral who enjoyed it all. A few days after the boat races I was up in the woods behind the house when I heard the tin whistle Mother used to call me home. What could she want of me at this early hour, about 9 o’clock? I hurried home to find that Clayt Bixby with his dray had left a big wooden box of express for me. That was, of course a most unusual occurrence for little old me to get a a large box sent by express. I was all curiosity and lost no time in getting my screw driver and forcing the lid off---to find inside---a LARGE toy wind-up boat. It is about 18” long, with a passenger cabin and a pilot house on top of that and two masts with guy ropes. There were also several paper mache passengers and a captain and a big key for winding it up. I spent the rest of the morning rigging the masts and wondering who could have sent me such a wonderful present. Finally Mother suggested that I thank Admiral Singer for it which I did very profusely. Up to that time it was undoubtedly the finest present I had ever been given. It gave me many hours of pleasure and I always thought kindly of the giver. The name of the boat was “St. Louis” painted across the stern. I was eager to sail it but the lake had to be smooth or it would be swamped. When fully wound up it would run in circles for a good twenty minutes. I made a special shelf for it and had it ensconced on a wall in my bedroom. Once the large key for winding it was lost and I had quite a time locating something to take its place, but Virginia Cowles found the key in the sand the next year. One of the kids in our group had been playing with it. But that wasn’t all. When we got back to Chicago I found that Admiral Singer had gone to a hardware store down town and had them send me a complete tool chest with tools to 5324 Jefferson Avenue. The chest I had for many years, but the tools were nearly all gone. That was my first introduction to tools and showed how much Admiral Singer had enjoyed his visit where her was treated as one of the family, an experience he seldom found."
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
~ Regatta Best Ever ~
Article Below: William Loughlin sold his sailboat business to Ted McCutcheon.
The Sail Magazine 2007 article "The Test of Time", gives a brief history of the Walloon Yacht Club's history, beginning as follows: "Although powerboat racing dominated the first two decades of Walloon Yacht Club’s 100-year history, it is sailboat racing that has withstood Walloon Lake’s test of time. The first recorded sailboat racing on Michigan’s Walloon Lake occurred in 1909 [note that the officiating of the sailboat racing occurred in 1909 in James C. Whitfield, Sr.'s, story above], though the powerboat racing club had been formed in 1907. Serious sailboat racing under the Universal Rule on Walloon Lake began in 1926." The article talks about the 17s which were perfected by Ted McCutcheon Sr. who has a long history with boats in the Northern Michigan region, especially in the Walloon Lake area where he lived. His son Ted McCutcheon Jr. also has celebrity with building boats... smaller sizes however, of model boats.
Ted McCutcheon Sr. bought his sailboat business, including the 17s, in 1938 from Bill Loughlin as written in the article noted above. The Snipe was on Walloon Lake by the middle of the 1930s. By the 1970s Sunfish were beginning to race on Walloon Lake. In the photo below, people watched from Masters Boat Works as the Snipes and 17s were ready to begin a race.
Ted McCutcheon Sr. advanced the 17s on Walloon Lake, so that on mynorth.com Carrie Tebeau on 5 August 2014 has written an article titled "Northern Michigan Sailing on Walloon Lake with Historic '17s''. The article highlighted:
17s by the numbers
17: The number of square meters in the sails.
1934: The year the first 17 was built in Walloon Village.
42: The number of Walloon 17s, including both old wooden models and newer fiberglass versions.
20: The number of racing 17s the club hopes to see on the lake by 2020.
8: The number of racing 17s in 2013.
20: The approximate number of 17 races each summer.
1907: The year the Walloon Lake Yacht Club was formed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In a 29 March 2016 Petoskey News Review small article under an accompanying photo, it was explained that... "Irish Boat Shop, with locations in Harbor Springs and Charlevoix, has been supportive of [Walloon Lake Yacht Club] club efforts to resurrect and rejuvenate the classic '17 Square Meter' fleet on Walloon Lake. Along with supporting the the club's racing program, Irish Boat Shop has been involved in, and remains busy with, repair and restoration of several of the older '17 Square Meter' boats."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Picturesque Walloon published 1911 described on page 54, Merrill's Boat Livery:
"Largest launch livery in the north. New and modern launches of size and capacity to suit the occasion. Manufacturer of high grade motor boats. Estimates and specifications furnished and references given. Everything in launch suppliers. Large bath house in connection. R.T. Merrill, Prop., Walloon Lake, Mich."
When Ted McCutcheon Jr. was trying to figure out the approximate dates of the two photos below, he stated: "I can't tell you the exact year of either Walloon photo. However, the photo that shows the start of a race would have been about 1950 as 1) none of the power boats at Masters' dock is of the more modern style that came out about 1953 and 2) in the right foreground you can see that the footings for Masters' building were already there. I can remember them being poured, but do not recall the exact year."
Photo/Text Below: TWINS Ann and Mary Beeler hoist the sail on their TWIN hull Lear Cat Sailracer
Around the time of the early 1960s when the Walloon Lake Yacht Club rented the back half of The Sail Inn, Will Splan had been hired by the yacht club to monitor visitors (often young people) and to clean the club area, and also to start the races for the Walloon Lake Yacht Club. Will was a wood shop teacher for Petoskey School District at the time.
The text with this 1959 newspaper photo below right stated: "These happy faces left to right are Marilyn Bush, Bruce Bishop, Barb Behan, Dave Stauffer, and Bill Cummings. Bill won the Victory Cup and the End of the Lake Race. Bruce Bishop placed third for the year in the snipe 'B' Series."
1959 ~ Text with the above newspaper photo: "Oh, it was nothing.... really nothing at all! It says here that these four distinguished looking people had just won the 17 fleet race on West Arm Day. From left to right are: Mrs. John Limbocker, Dick Lotspiech, Derek Limbocker, and Derek's father John Limbocker."
A 2 June 2014 Northern Express article titled
"The Only One in the World Walloon Lake Sails Its Own Way" by Bekah Klarr,
tells the interesting story of the "17" sailboat on Walloon Lake, pioneered by Ted McCutcheon, Sr.
2016
"The Only One in the World Walloon Lake Sails Its Own Way" by Bekah Klarr,
tells the interesting story of the "17" sailboat on Walloon Lake, pioneered by Ted McCutcheon, Sr.
2016
# 10 on Display at the entry to The Foot
The 17 SQ Meter sail boat welcomes everyone to the "HOME OF THE 17 SQ METER"!
During the 2022 Lofts of Walloon Construction, the "17 Square Meter" sailboat was
removed and stored for safekeeping.
Two 23 May 2023 Photos Below: The "17 Square Meter" foundation was being fortified, and readied,
for the sail boat's return.
removed and stored for safekeeping.
Two 23 May 2023 Photos Below: The "17 Square Meter" foundation was being fortified, and readied,
for the sail boat's return.
~ Wrapped and Ready for a Walloon Lake Winter ~
(Three Photos Below photographed and submitted by Dawn Sarasin)
(Three Photos Below photographed and submitted by Dawn Sarasin)
A Celebration of the 17
Written and Submitted 24 November 2023 by Lauren Macintyre, long time Wallooner...
Written and Submitted 24 November 2023 by Lauren Macintyre, long time Wallooner...
"Northern Michigan Sailing on Walloon Lake with Historic '17s'"
was first featured in the July 2014 issue of Traverse Northern Michigan's Magazine.
The article intertwines beautiful photos of today's '17s', with the history of the unique crafts.
Walloon Lake Docks and Boats
Picturesque Walloon published 1911 described on page 54, Merrill's Boat Livery:
"Largest launch livery in the north. New and modern launches of size and capacity to suit the occasion. Manufacturer of high grade motor boats. Estimates and specifications furnished and references given. Everything in launch suppliers. Large bath house in connection. R.T. Merrill, Prop., Walloon Lake, Mich."
"Largest launch livery in the north. New and modern launches of size and capacity to suit the occasion. Manufacturer of high grade motor boats. Estimates and specifications furnished and references given. Everything in launch suppliers. Large bath house in connection. R.T. Merrill, Prop., Walloon Lake, Mich."
Photo Below: Accompanying text stated: "Things were booming when this picture was taken at Walloon Lake back in 1912. The docks in the foreground belong to the Boat Manufacturing Company which was owned by Walt Masters and A.E. Hass. Currently, this looks like dock that belongs to Si's Marina which is located at the foot of the lake. Vacationers would use the docks and boats to get to their cottages around the lake instead of the roads used today."
Photo Below: The Hoosier was owned by Paul Taylor, a young banker from Huntington Indiana.
Docks have always been an important part of boating for The Foot at Walloon Lake. The Walloon Lake Yacht Club Association which rented the lakeside of the the Starr's Sail-Inn Grill in the early 1960s always had a dock for their young people, or for patrons of the restaurant, or other local businesses to use. For the many marinas, docks were a necessity. In 2013, Jonathan and Matt Borisch who have helped to rebuild, and rejuvenate the Village of Walloon Lake have installed a massive dock system to accommodate the many boaters of the entire lake who come to patronize the businesses at The Foot.
Photo Below: Dock At The Foot With The North Shore In The Background
Photo Above: Marina docks and the Fern Hotel AKA Fern Cottage
Photo Below: Docks At The Foot With The North Shore In The Background
“I should mention the three of four boats that lined our shore and which belonged to our neighbors. First there was our boat, the ‘Jimmie W’ [in the photo above] about the last to be built of that design. One of the first was the ‘Newcastle’ owned by O.C. Saffel and later there was one owned by Dr. Frank Bolser who several years later bought the Kerwood cottage next to us, and last was the ‘Urbana” owned by W.I. Saffel who lived next to his brother, O.C. So there we had four boats in a row, all identical, all built by the Merrill Boat Works in an old shed at the foot of the lake back in the swamp back of the Post Office. They each had a two cylinder 6HP engine built by the ‘Eclipse Machine Shop’ in Mancelona. They were twenty feet long with five foot beam and were all built on the same pattern. They were all sturdy boats and with that heavy two cylinder engine it would have taken more than Walloon could dish out in the way of a storm to turn them over, in fact at one time we had five adults standing on the combing of our boat without its even coming close to shipping water. They were round bottom craft with prominent keels which made them difficult to turn. Many times Dad just about ran that boat up on shore trying to turn to come into the boathouse. That engine was located in the middle of the boat, but Mother insisted on having the steering wheel on the combing up front. You could turn it with the steering wheel, but the minute you let go of it to turn around and shut off the engine the rudder would straighten out and the boat would go straight ahead. Dad liked to go fishing and would always return steering the ‘Jimmie W’ at an angle instead of coming straight in, but the minute he’d reach back to shut off the engine, letting go of the steering wheel that rudder would straighten itself out and we’d hear a loud BANG!!! as it hit the dock along with some choice language. Eventually I solved that problem by wiring up a small switch just under the wheel so that you could shut off the engine without having to release the steering wheel. That worked swell for years, but after a time the engine developed some carbon in its cylinders which would get hot and pre-ignite so no amount of switching would stop it. I found that clapping my hand over the carburetor intake would choke and stop it, but I caught HELL for putting in that switch when the carbon was the culprit. There was also a tool and batter box on the left side of the engine and that was my usual seat when running the engine.
There were many boats on the lake then, but not as many as there are now, but to my mind they were a lot more glamorous and exciting. There was the ‘Hoosier’ which was owned by Paul Taylor, a young banker from Huntington Indiana, a very likable person. He passed away many years ago, but he was quite popular. Us kids often ran out of wherever we were when the Hoosier was sighted coming down the lake. It threw a great fan of spray and that was most exciting. Then there was the ‘Muncie Meteor’ belonging to Otto Frenzel. It, too, was a fast boat and we kids were always interested in seeing it come dashing down the lake or admiring it at the dock. It was the first mahogany hull on the lake, a beautiful boat. The Randall family also had a fancy boat, built out of walnut, I believe, and it was quite fast, too. But my favorite was the boat owned by the Siddons Brothers up in the west arm. It was long, about thirty feet and not over three feet in width, quite tippy but it was a sight to see it cutting the water with practically no spray and very little wake. It won some races, but we didn’t see it often as the Siddons lived way up in the west arm and only came down to the foot occasionally. That was the extent of the boats I recall, the big ones, but Heinie Grund had a big, one lunger tub, the ‘Magic’ which he sometimes rented out. Several summers he rented it to the Spindlers, a large family with lots of kids and later rented it to Dr. Ford of whom I’ll tell later.
One boat I really should mention was the one owned by the Cowles, our next door neighbors. It was a most unconventional hull shaped like an arrow, rounded in the stern and with a perfectly flat bottom at the stern. Originally it had a two cylinder engine somewhat bigger than our 6HP, but one summer Mr. Cowles had a three cylinder used airplane engine shipped up and he and Roy Brown spent hours installing it in the old ‘Pauline’. It had copper water jackets which gave them a lot of trouble leaking and they tinkered with that engine nearly all summer up until the races were to start. They’d take it out for trials and we’d hear it coming from way up the lake. They didn’t use any muffler, those three cylinders were vented straight up and it was the racketiest thing on the lake. The noise on shore was deafening. Then the day of the races came and Cowles, himself ran the ‘Pauline’. I can’t remember whether he won or not, but that boat rounded the judge’s float and headed for home. Cowles was deathly sick from the noise, vibration and smell of the castor oil the engine required and he was in bed the next day. Mother hated the racket ad wasn’t the least bit sorry for him.
To get back to the ‘Hoosier’ all us kids and some adults, too, turned out to watch Paul Taylor drive the big boat over to the Beck cottage across the lake where he picked up his bride to be and brought her over to the Taylor cottage where they were married. Paul was the first resorter to have a car at Walloon and to keep it in his garage all winter jacked up on blocks."
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
There were many boats on the lake then, but not as many as there are now, but to my mind they were a lot more glamorous and exciting. There was the ‘Hoosier’ which was owned by Paul Taylor, a young banker from Huntington Indiana, a very likable person. He passed away many years ago, but he was quite popular. Us kids often ran out of wherever we were when the Hoosier was sighted coming down the lake. It threw a great fan of spray and that was most exciting. Then there was the ‘Muncie Meteor’ belonging to Otto Frenzel. It, too, was a fast boat and we kids were always interested in seeing it come dashing down the lake or admiring it at the dock. It was the first mahogany hull on the lake, a beautiful boat. The Randall family also had a fancy boat, built out of walnut, I believe, and it was quite fast, too. But my favorite was the boat owned by the Siddons Brothers up in the west arm. It was long, about thirty feet and not over three feet in width, quite tippy but it was a sight to see it cutting the water with practically no spray and very little wake. It won some races, but we didn’t see it often as the Siddons lived way up in the west arm and only came down to the foot occasionally. That was the extent of the boats I recall, the big ones, but Heinie Grund had a big, one lunger tub, the ‘Magic’ which he sometimes rented out. Several summers he rented it to the Spindlers, a large family with lots of kids and later rented it to Dr. Ford of whom I’ll tell later.
One boat I really should mention was the one owned by the Cowles, our next door neighbors. It was a most unconventional hull shaped like an arrow, rounded in the stern and with a perfectly flat bottom at the stern. Originally it had a two cylinder engine somewhat bigger than our 6HP, but one summer Mr. Cowles had a three cylinder used airplane engine shipped up and he and Roy Brown spent hours installing it in the old ‘Pauline’. It had copper water jackets which gave them a lot of trouble leaking and they tinkered with that engine nearly all summer up until the races were to start. They’d take it out for trials and we’d hear it coming from way up the lake. They didn’t use any muffler, those three cylinders were vented straight up and it was the racketiest thing on the lake. The noise on shore was deafening. Then the day of the races came and Cowles, himself ran the ‘Pauline’. I can’t remember whether he won or not, but that boat rounded the judge’s float and headed for home. Cowles was deathly sick from the noise, vibration and smell of the castor oil the engine required and he was in bed the next day. Mother hated the racket ad wasn’t the least bit sorry for him.
To get back to the ‘Hoosier’ all us kids and some adults, too, turned out to watch Paul Taylor drive the big boat over to the Beck cottage across the lake where he picked up his bride to be and brought her over to the Taylor cottage where they were married. Paul was the first resorter to have a car at Walloon and to keep it in his garage all winter jacked up on blocks."
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
The motor boats of Walloon Lake were named by their proud owners:
Bessetta ~ Mr. & Mrs. R.E. McCarthy
Beulah B. ~ A.M. Daggett (brother to Henry Daggett for whom Camp Daggett was named)
The Brothers ~ Dr. Walden
Miss Charlie Lou ~ Phil and Barbara Ice Smith
Chickasaw I ~ The Nickey Family
Enid ~ Enid Jarrett Heideman's Family
Fritz ~ Jack & Julius Dick
Hoosier ~ Paul Taylor
The Ida Kate ~ P.E. Carhart
Juanita ~ Dr. John Parsons Family
Jimmie W. ~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
Katherine ~ George Robinson
Katherine ~ Morsches/Call Family
Lavinea B ~ Built by Walter Masters Sr. & Alfred Hass Sr. (1908 ~ 1910)
The Navajo ~ R.N. Navin
Oklahoma ~ William Johnstone
Onward ~ William and Walter Siddons (Brothers)
Pauline ~ Warren Cowels
The Sneak ~ Siddons Brothers (After Onward)
Suzei ~ A.W. Barnum of Chicago
Teddy M
Virginia B. ~ C.K. Talbott
The Urbana ~ W.I. Staffel
Waneta ~ Charles Mayer
1908 ~ A funny thing happened while we were still at the [Mizer] hotel. Heinie Grund operated a boat livery and repair shop in a large two-story boat house right in front of the Mizer close to the shore. A man and his wife were staying at the hotel and soon after their arrival they decided to rent a boat from Heinie to go fishing in. He was a small man, about 135 pounds, but his wife was a good 200. The boat they got was the usual 16 footer with a one lung engine in the middle. Heinie was there on the dock showing husband how to run the engine, wifie insisted on sitting in the bow and they pushed off and started the engine---only the boat wouldn’t go anywhere. Heine stood there waving his arms and shouting something, but the engine noise drowned out his shouting. There was the boat with its propeller half out of the water and whizzing away while heavy in the bow wondered why the scenery was standing still. Finally hubby stopped the engine to hear Heinie hollering, “Get in the stern!” They paddled back to the dock and there the over-stuffed madam got in the stern, nearly sinking the boat, but they then started out with no more exposed propeller. That was a funny sight and Heinie nearly died laughing when he thought of it. I don’t believe they caught any fish.
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr. |
Photo Below: Boats docked at Hayne's Boat Livery and the New Walloon in the background...
Photos/Articles Below: Merrill & Mizar Eclipse Boat Works
1903 Articles Below: "Merrill & Mizer have a force of men hard at work turning out those excellent and swift launches. Nothing on water, you know, safer than a Merill-mizer gasoline launch" AND "C.J. Mizer, manager of the Eclipse Boat Works, reports that their row boat and launch business is increasing so rapidly that they are unable to fill their orders." Could the Mizer photo above of the boat in front of the Mizer cottage [FIRST cottage on the North Shore] be one of C.J. Mizer's own making?
Photo Below: Charles Mizer in his boat in front of the Mizer Hotel which was out of the picture range. In the background is "The New Walloon" hotel and
the A.E. Hass grocery store (on the far right in the photo).
the A.E. Hass grocery store (on the far right in the photo).
The boat motor advertisement below left was from the January 1912 Motor Boating magazine
which is very interesting to peruse in total.
The ad lists F.B. McKercher of Walloon Lake, Mich. as a Representative.
The advertisement below right was from the September 1925 Motor Boating magazine,
and presents an endorsement from Mr. D.A. Cawthra about the motor which can be installed by Masters at Walloon Lake.
I wonder if a connection exists between the F.B. McKercher of Walloon Lake
in the Reynolds January 1912 Motor Boating magazine above with the McKercher Residence
on the South Arm of Walloon Lake Mich. photo below? ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
in the Reynolds January 1912 Motor Boating magazine above with the McKercher Residence
on the South Arm of Walloon Lake Mich. photo below? ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
Canoes and Rowboats and Paddleboards
1890 Photo Below: The rowers were at the Walloon Lake bathing beach featuring
the bridge traversing the mouth of the Bear River.
the bridge traversing the mouth of the Bear River.
After James C. Whitfield, Sr.'s parents took him on a short train trip to WA-YA-GA-MUG to see ‘The Indian Play Hiawatha in the Land of the Ojibways’ James was inspired to build a canoe like he had seen the Indians used in the play:
“A few days later I got some boards, battened them together, hacking them into the shape of a double ended boat with my hatchet. That would be the bottom. Next I went up into the swampy woods back of our cottage where I cut a number of saplings about six feet long. These would be the ribs. I nailed them to the bottom letting some two feet extend over each side. Next I got two twelve foot poles about two inches at the big end. These I laid with the small end of one alongside the big end of the other, boring a hole at a slant in each big end, forcing the small end of one into the big end of the other. This was to be the gun’ell [sic gunnel] or top edge of the canoe. The ribs which were already nailed to the bottom were now bent up and nailed to the inside of the gun’ell. Now I was all ready for the birch bark which I intended using as I’d seen some dead or downed birches which I could rob of their bark. But my folks, seeing how long and hard I had worked so far on this project, took pity on me and said they thought I should use canvas as it would be more durable. Dad willingly donated $5 with which I went to Petoskey where I had Scattergood Brothers sew together edge to edge two twelve foot pieces of heavy canvas. So, that made one piece twelve feet by six ft. I laid the canvas on the upturned boat and tacked both sides to the gun’ell and tucked the ends inside. The first coat of paint just soaked right into the canvas so it became necessary to apply another coat, white for the outside and grey for the inside. I waited impatiently for a couple of days for the paint to dry and in the meantime I painted the name on the front, the ‘MI KA-NU’, that being the name of the canoe the boys in Ernest Thompson Seton’s book I had been reading. I could hardly wait for a good day to launch the MI KA-NU but the day finally arrived. So, I took the boat, followed by the whole family and some young neighbors besides, down to be launched. The spot I picked for the try-out was the shallow water between our boathouse and O.C.’s. My, but that thing was tippy and I got in very gingerly, kneeling in it on the bottom. I took the paddle and gave one big stroke with it, but the bow scooted around at a right angle making me lose my balance. To right myself I put my hand on the gun’ll but that only tipped lower and went under water, dumping me out with all my clothes on. It didn’t take me long to go into the bathhouse and change into my bathing suit and try canoeing again. I had learned how to keep my balance and never got dumped out again. The single paddle propulsion was for the birds and I found that using short paddles, one in each hand worked much better. I got two wide cedar shingles and whittled a handle in the thick end and, with an extra one for a spare, I could get along much better. I had that canoe for years and did considerable exploring with it, going up the south arm and north arm creeks and scouting along close to shore, but there got to be so many holes in the canvas that I finally had to relegate it to the dump. It was a wonderful toy and I got many compliments on it as I was just twelve years old at the time.
I got nearly as much fun out of the MI-KA-NU that I built, myself as I did out of the rowboat Mrs. Lillian Sanders ordered for me one fall. Ranse Merrill built it for me that winter and it was all ready, shining with its paint and varnish the next summer. Needless to say that was a very long winter for me to wait before I could get back to the lake and see that row boat. It was a dandy and fully lived up to my expectations. I soon learned to row and joined with the rest of the kids along our line, most of whose folks owned row boats. There was one game we used to play with those boats and that was what we called ‘Post Man’. It took two kids in each boat, one to row and the other in the stern to be the ‘Post Man’. Each would collect an arm full of short blocks of wood or sticks, then we would row from one dock to the next backing the boat in to each dock where the ‘Post Man’ would drop off one of the blocks, then we’d go to the next dock. There was no point in the game, but it was fun and developed muscles without our knowing it.
My folks were never lavish with money for me to buy tools or material and what money I did get I never blew it on something I didn’t need or use, but on my next venture they helped out enormously. After rowing my rowboat around for many years I got it into my head to motorize it, as I had noticed several other boats that size had been done. I heard that some young fellow up the lake by the name of Elliot had a 3/4HP for sale which he had taken out of his boat which he was junking. That was just what I wanted, so after some consultations with Heinie Grund, Roy Brown and others my plans were made and I talked with my folks about my idea. After all, it wasn’t a new rowboat any more, it being about five or six years old. Mother and Dad said I could go at the job of motorizing the boat and gave me the $5 Elliot wanted for the engine which was a quite old one, but still good. The understanding was that if it didn’t run I could bring it back, but I was confident that I could make it go as it had been running before. Roy suggested that I get old Al Ely to help me as he was a good carpenter and had had much experience in motorizing boats, and he was not working at the time. So, I went to see Al, who was an old bachelor, probably in his seventies, short and quite deaf. He lived alone in a tin-sided house next to what is now Ver Viles’ storage building. Al was a very shy and retiring person but we got along very well. I arranged with him to do most of the work and got Clayt Bixby to haul the boat up to Al’s house on his dray as that was where Al had his tools. We started in and it took us a full week as we had to make two thick cross beams and lag them to the keel for the motor to set on, besides drilling a hole through the keel for the shaft and attach a skeg to the bottom of the keel to protect the propeller and to hold the lower end of the rudder. I went to Petoskey where I had Bill Holden in McCabe’s tin shop make a galvanized iron gas tank which I fastened to the side of the boat a little higher than the engine. Poor old Al. One afternoon while finishing up on the boat I asked him a question, but he didn’t answer. I layed it to his deafness, but a minute later when I looked at him he was on his knees, all bent over. I looked again and he didn’t seem just right. He had dropped his tool and just stayed in that position. I was plenty scared as I’d never seen anyone in an epileptic seizure before. I didn’t know what to do---so I did nothing. I didn’t touch him nor say anything to him later about his trouble when he came to ten minutes later. I’m very glad I didn’t as someone said that if anyone mentioned him having epilepsy, Al would never speak to that person again. As I say, poor old Al. That only happened once, but from that I could understand the reason for his shyness besides his deafness. He was a good conscientious worker and we got along fine. When the job was finished I had Clayt come, we loaded the boat into his dray and hauled it home where we launched it. That made a fine little boat and I got many years use out of it, and how proud I was taking the folks out for rides in it...
...When I became old enough to run my motorized rowboat myself I would often persuade my folks to let me sleep out in it overnight. I’d put some boards between the center seat and the front seat, get some old, nearly worn out comforters for a cover. I already had a canvas bag for a mattress filled with dry grass. I’d take my boat out to the middle of the lake where I’d drop anchor, get settled in my bed and count the stars until I fell asleep. No one was ever out on the lake after dark so I had no fear of getting run into. However, one morning I awoke to feel the boat bumping something slightly and when I fully woke I found that my anchor rope had broken and I was hitting the shore down in front of the New Walloon Hotel."
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
Photo Below: About 1938 L>R: John Scully, George Scully, and George's brother Chase Scully.
Photo/Text Below:
Ted McCutcheon and employee Miles Starr put the finishing touches on one of the 12-foot boats
made by the McCutcheon's Boat Works at the Village at Walloon Lake.
Ted McCutcheon and employee Miles Starr put the finishing touches on one of the 12-foot boats
made by the McCutcheon's Boat Works at the Village at Walloon Lake.
Only guys are in the photo above because the girls' division in the 1953 race was cancelled
when illness broke up one of the only two teams entered.
when illness broke up one of the only two teams entered.
~ Bear River Canoe Champs ~
1958
1958
~ Bear River Canoe Champs ~
1965
1965
1965 Articles and Cup Photos Above: The precious Kellogg Studio Trophy Cup was purchased in 2023 from a Pellston Antique Store whose dealer said he had found it in an Indian River Estate Sale. Walloon Lake’s boat builder Ted McCutcheon helped to organize the Bear River Canoe Races, beginning in 1951. The race which ran from Walloon Lake’s Bear River outlet at The Foot to the Standish Bridge (near the OLD, now razed, Petoskey stadium) location for the “Pros”. A race for Amateurs for boys and girls with various divisions, had a shorter course, starting at the Waubmeme bridge south of Petoskey. This particular trophy cup was labeled for the “1965 Girls Third Prize”. The 17 May 1965 Petoskey News Review reported the race results. Interestingly, the entire Girl’s Division had only ONE entry; thus one winner so this Kellogg Trophy Cup would never have been claimed by an actual third place winner for whom the cup was labeled. The 13 May 1952 news photo/text described the Stanley Kellogg cups that always were given to the winning canoeists.
~ Bear River Canoe Champs ~
1968
1968
Three Photos Below: My dad bought his grandchildren a small row boat. Scott was three years old at the time and when you would ask him something, the answer was ‘no’, but if he wanted to say yes he put a ‘k’ on the end of no. Therefore, the row boat was named ‘Nooo-k’. My dad would take Scott and Deby on rides, not at the same time though; they had to take turns… when they were older my dad bought a ski board for his six grandchildren. It looked like two skis from the back, but the two formed just one rounded piece in the front. This ski board lasted through that generation and on to our grandchildren’s. My oh my, the hours spent getting them all up on the ski board and how many times a day they all begged for more. The parents all wanted their kid to have the record for going at the youngest age. ~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
In 1976, Phil and I purchased a new boat: a yellow Chris Craft ski boat. How we all loved it and enjoyed driving it and taking long rides around the lake, going to the foot for an ice cream treat or warm breakfast tools. Sometimes we would take a trip to play in the park at Walloon Lake village.
~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
1966 Article and Photo/Text Below:
The Foot's Masters' Marina built the African Queenie to go on a Journey into an African Jungle River.
Click HERE to access additional information about the C.E. Wilson Family on the South Arm.
The Foot's Masters' Marina built the African Queenie to go on a Journey into an African Jungle River.
Click HERE to access additional information about the C.E. Wilson Family on the South Arm.
Photo Below: Petoskey's Dr. Dean Burns' Old Town Canoe
hangs from the ceiling of a Pellston store called "Good with Wood."
The paddles have his name carved on them. The original 1939 order accompanies the canoe.
Photo Below: The original 1939 order accompanies the canoe which had belonged to Dr. Dean Burns.
Boathouses and Docks
"It’s now time to tell about our boathouses. To begin with they were all built on planks nailed to the studs and the studs were made longer at the outer end where the planks laid on the lake bottom. the boathouses were all portable affairs and were laboriously rolled out into the water every spring and pulled even more laboriously back out of the water in the fall as the winter’s ice exerted a tremendous pressure on anything left in. Finally someone devised the idea of building concrete piers in the lake where the boathouse could set permanently safe from the ice. O.C. Saffle was the first to have his boathouse arranged in this manner. A large plank form was built in the water and the bottom was shoveled out for about eighteen inches. Then mixed concrete was poured into the form until the top was some eighteen inches above the lake level. Reinforcing in the form of regular number 9 wire had been added as the concrete had been poured in. The gravel for the concrete had been hauled in by plank wagons and dumped alongside the road behind its cottage. Bardwell was again the contractor for these four units and he built a platform out form the eight-foot bank in front of the cottage and another plank platform on the beach below. The upper platform had the ‘mixer’ which was a three foot steel cylinder about six feet long and which had a one inch pipe running through it acting as an axis. There was a crank on the pipe at the upper end and the mixer had its shore end a foot lower than the crank or “land” end. One man turned the crank as another shoveled gravel and the proper amount of dry cement into the mixer as it was being turned. The mix fell out of the bottom end and lit on the lower platform where another man added water and shoveled it all into a wheelbarrow and dumped it into the forms.
That was just nuts for me as where there was work being done I must get in and ‘help’. I had a little red wagon the folks had bought for me several years previously so I sacrificed a wheel off of it to make myself a pint-sized wheelbarrow. It would hold not more than three good shovels full of gravel, but with that I began helping the regular workers, bringing my huge additions of gravel from the pile out back down to the platform. I even took to riding with Ed Buckley when he drove the team up to the gravel pit over toward Clarion and helped load the wagon with my little shovel. Ed even let me drive the team down from the pit once with a log chain wrapped around one of the rear wheels to act as a brake. Of course, those horses could have driven themselves but I know my presence was much more effective. I didn’t have anything to do with actually dumping the cement into the forms but I added my minuscule bit. After the cement had set and the forms had been removed the boathouse was rolled back on its new foundation after the studs which had been under water were sawed off to make it set level. With our boathouse more studs and siding were added which made the whole things eight feet longer in order to provide a bath house. That was fine as I ultimately confiscated it as my ‘work shop’. The original inscription still remained on the wall just as O.C. had written it when the building was first built---; ‘This Boathouse was built by H.E. Bardwell August ??1909’. That information was there until Peirce tore it down years later and made it into a smaller shed. O.C. was the first to have one of these concrete slips for his ‘Newcastle’, then W.I. had to follow suit and we had ours built the following year. The house next door to the east was owned by that time by Dr. Bolser, a retired veterinarian from Newcastle, Indiana also and he had the cement pier job, too."
~James C. Whitfield, Sr.
That was just nuts for me as where there was work being done I must get in and ‘help’. I had a little red wagon the folks had bought for me several years previously so I sacrificed a wheel off of it to make myself a pint-sized wheelbarrow. It would hold not more than three good shovels full of gravel, but with that I began helping the regular workers, bringing my huge additions of gravel from the pile out back down to the platform. I even took to riding with Ed Buckley when he drove the team up to the gravel pit over toward Clarion and helped load the wagon with my little shovel. Ed even let me drive the team down from the pit once with a log chain wrapped around one of the rear wheels to act as a brake. Of course, those horses could have driven themselves but I know my presence was much more effective. I didn’t have anything to do with actually dumping the cement into the forms but I added my minuscule bit. After the cement had set and the forms had been removed the boathouse was rolled back on its new foundation after the studs which had been under water were sawed off to make it set level. With our boathouse more studs and siding were added which made the whole things eight feet longer in order to provide a bath house. That was fine as I ultimately confiscated it as my ‘work shop’. The original inscription still remained on the wall just as O.C. had written it when the building was first built---; ‘This Boathouse was built by H.E. Bardwell August ??1909’. That information was there until Peirce tore it down years later and made it into a smaller shed. O.C. was the first to have one of these concrete slips for his ‘Newcastle’, then W.I. had to follow suit and we had ours built the following year. The house next door to the east was owned by that time by Dr. Bolser, a retired veterinarian from Newcastle, Indiana also and he had the cement pier job, too."
~James C. Whitfield, Sr.
Note Mr. Ratliff's boat house and flag in the photo below:
My grandparents had a “woodie” Chris Craft that was nice to drive. We all enjoyed its pleasures for hours. One day my cousin Nancy had taken friends visiting from Middletown, Indiana, for a long ride, docked it beautifully, came inside the cottage for a short 20-minutes, looked out and saw the Chris Craft sinking. My granddad (then about 70) called someone at the foot of the lake to come and get it and said that was the end of his boat ownership. I think he was really scared because is might have happened when we all were in it.
My dad was a fisherman, so he preferred to own a fishing boat. He did have a powerful motor on it to take us on the ski board. I always wanted a canoe, and my brother Dick liked sailboats. However, we were happy to have any kind of a boat. It was great just getting out on the water.
Mr. Ratliff and Navy Captain Adams had the only two docks that had boat houses. Both were green and the only covered ones on the West Arm of the lake. The boats stayed in the water and were tied on both sides of the boat house. They could ride the waves that way. One year when I was about 13, George Depew only put out about half of Mr. Ratliff's dock, enough so they could go swimming. The other sections of dock were stacked in their front yard. I swam down that way one day. Mr. Ratliff was on his porch so I called to him and asked him what he was going to do with the dock. He said, "George Depew is going to chop it up and haul it away." I asked him if he would sell it to me. He then told me I could have it and he wouldn't have to pay George to haul it away. I hurried home to get Dick to help me. I now had five sections of dock. Yes, I knew what we were going to do with it. When my granddad realized what we were up to, he wanted to hear the whole story. I told him, and then he told me: no way could I go "begging" to our neighbors. So had to go talk to Mr. Ratliff again and tell him my granddad's point of view. Mr. Ratliff said, "Okay. I'll sell it to you for $1." I ran home and got my $1 and we had a deal. My granddad had cooled down by that time, and Dick and I pushed the dock and its cradles into the lake and floated them home. We immediately, with the help and supervision of my dad, made our dock two sections longer and added three sections on to make a deck at the end. I had seen a few decks on docks at the foot of the lake, but I do believe our deck was the first on the West Arm. I was so proud of all this - a real high in my life. Now most people have a deck at the end of their docks. It was really nice for playing and sunbathing and having lunch on the dock. ~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
My grandparents had a “woodie” Chris Craft that was nice to drive. We all enjoyed its pleasures for hours. One day my cousin Nancy had taken friends visiting from Middletown, Indiana, for a long ride, docked it beautifully, came inside the cottage for a short 20-minutes, looked out and saw the Chris Craft sinking. My granddad (then about 70) called someone at the foot of the lake to come and get it and said that was the end of his boat ownership. I think he was really scared because is might have happened when we all were in it.
My dad was a fisherman, so he preferred to own a fishing boat. He did have a powerful motor on it to take us on the ski board. I always wanted a canoe, and my brother Dick liked sailboats. However, we were happy to have any kind of a boat. It was great just getting out on the water.
Mr. Ratliff and Navy Captain Adams had the only two docks that had boat houses. Both were green and the only covered ones on the West Arm of the lake. The boats stayed in the water and were tied on both sides of the boat house. They could ride the waves that way. One year when I was about 13, George Depew only put out about half of Mr. Ratliff's dock, enough so they could go swimming. The other sections of dock were stacked in their front yard. I swam down that way one day. Mr. Ratliff was on his porch so I called to him and asked him what he was going to do with the dock. He said, "George Depew is going to chop it up and haul it away." I asked him if he would sell it to me. He then told me I could have it and he wouldn't have to pay George to haul it away. I hurried home to get Dick to help me. I now had five sections of dock. Yes, I knew what we were going to do with it. When my granddad realized what we were up to, he wanted to hear the whole story. I told him, and then he told me: no way could I go "begging" to our neighbors. So had to go talk to Mr. Ratliff again and tell him my granddad's point of view. Mr. Ratliff said, "Okay. I'll sell it to you for $1." I ran home and got my $1 and we had a deal. My granddad had cooled down by that time, and Dick and I pushed the dock and its cradles into the lake and floated them home. We immediately, with the help and supervision of my dad, made our dock two sections longer and added three sections on to make a deck at the end. I had seen a few decks on docks at the foot of the lake, but I do believe our deck was the first on the West Arm. I was so proud of all this - a real high in my life. Now most people have a deck at the end of their docks. It was really nice for playing and sunbathing and having lunch on the dock. ~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
Our docks were put out by family members or by George Depew. They had sections of docks that rested on board cradles which held heavy rocks from the lake. Bad storms toppled these sometimes. We had to change which side of the dock our boats were tied to when the wind changed. I can remember several times in the middle of the night our granddad asked us to get our bathing suits on and go out and change the boat. My dad or granddad stood on the dock holding the rope, while the two of us got in the water and pushed the back of the boat around to the other side. It did take the two of us to do that in the waves. We were 8-12 years old when we did this. It was kind of fun and exciting but hard to do and we were usually cold.
Dick and I had an old section of dock and two long sticks-one of us on each end of the dock section. It became our raft, and away we would go. Mother gave us points each way to stay between. We had fun, fun, fun doing that for hours on end. I also made many sand cakes on our dock and iced them with foam on the shore. Dick and I had buckets and made sand castles along the shore.
~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
Dick and I had an old section of dock and two long sticks-one of us on each end of the dock section. It became our raft, and away we would go. Mother gave us points each way to stay between. We had fun, fun, fun doing that for hours on end. I also made many sand cakes on our dock and iced them with foam on the shore. Dick and I had buckets and made sand castles along the shore.
~ Barbara (Ice) Smith (Lake Grove Road, West Arm)
Two Photos Below: Bright Boathouses on the North Shore in 2017
Two Photos Below:
Joyce Nielson and Rosemary Renwick modeled on a sailboat and a Chris-Craft at The Foot.
Joyce Nielson and Rosemary Renwick modeled on a sailboat and a Chris-Craft at The Foot.
A WAKE
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The Nickey Family had a new boat in 1919 titled the Chickasaw I.
The Chickasaw I. was docked on the North Shore of Walloon Lake, and pictured in the family history on page 31.
The Nickey Family had a new boat in 1919 titled the Chickasaw I.
The Chickasaw I. was docked on the North Shore of Walloon Lake, and pictured in the family history on page 31.
Future launch use will include fee
December 02, 2009|By Brandon Hubbard News-Review Staff Writer
December 02, 2009|By Brandon Hubbard News-Review Staff Writer
MELROSE TOWNSHIP — The Melrose Township Board of Trustees held a special meeting Tuesday night to address any public concerns associated with a new renovated boat launch.
While the meeting was a called to discuss an ordinance for the uses and restrictions of the Melrose Township Launch Facility, an additional document was included for the public: a list of proposed fees for permits to use the boat launch.
According to the proposed permit costs, a daily permit for the general public would cost $6, while commercial users would be required to pay $6 per unit launched.
Residents would also have the option of purchasing an annual permit for $20 and non-residents would be charged $30 yearly.
Melrose Township Supervisor Vern Goodwin said the funds would be collected with the sole purpose of maintaining the launch and its facilities.
"One thing we cannot do with the DNR is collect access revenues," Goodwin said. "If we do, the next year there will have to be an adjustment to the fee schedule (for permits). We will have to look at it from year to year."
Goodwin informed the public at the meeting that there would be ample time to discuss the rates for the launch at the township budget meeting in March before enacting them for 2010.
Much of public discussion Tuesday related to the restrictions included in the ordinance.
In the draft document, the launch would be closed to the public from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.
But one man who lives in the proximity of the launch said he would not have a problem with people launching vehicles late — or early — as long as they were not yelling or causing any disturbance unrelated to a typical launch.
However, the board agreed that they would have to look over the original deed for the renovation to find out whether the time restrictions could be changed. Also prohibited would be the use of the parking lot facility for the launch between the dates of Dec. 15 and April 1.
The public questioned whether the policy would hinder ice fishermen from using the area, but Goodwin said the matter was more related to snow removal and storage for dock area.
"We are not going to haul the dock to the transfer station every year, that's a big dock," Goodwin said. "If we pull that out it will likely be stored in that area. Each piece is about a 1,000 pounds and it has seven pieces."
Following a recent inspection by the Department of Natural Resources, Goodwin estimated the launch is about 80 percent complete and will be complete when the parking lot is paved in the spring.
The proposed costs to use the updated Melrose Township Boat Launch:
Daily permit: $6
Annual resident permit: $20
Annual non-resident permit: $30
Commercial users: $6 per unit launched
*Fees to be finalized in March by the township for 2010.
While the meeting was a called to discuss an ordinance for the uses and restrictions of the Melrose Township Launch Facility, an additional document was included for the public: a list of proposed fees for permits to use the boat launch.
According to the proposed permit costs, a daily permit for the general public would cost $6, while commercial users would be required to pay $6 per unit launched.
Residents would also have the option of purchasing an annual permit for $20 and non-residents would be charged $30 yearly.
Melrose Township Supervisor Vern Goodwin said the funds would be collected with the sole purpose of maintaining the launch and its facilities.
"One thing we cannot do with the DNR is collect access revenues," Goodwin said. "If we do, the next year there will have to be an adjustment to the fee schedule (for permits). We will have to look at it from year to year."
Goodwin informed the public at the meeting that there would be ample time to discuss the rates for the launch at the township budget meeting in March before enacting them for 2010.
Much of public discussion Tuesday related to the restrictions included in the ordinance.
In the draft document, the launch would be closed to the public from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.
But one man who lives in the proximity of the launch said he would not have a problem with people launching vehicles late — or early — as long as they were not yelling or causing any disturbance unrelated to a typical launch.
However, the board agreed that they would have to look over the original deed for the renovation to find out whether the time restrictions could be changed. Also prohibited would be the use of the parking lot facility for the launch between the dates of Dec. 15 and April 1.
The public questioned whether the policy would hinder ice fishermen from using the area, but Goodwin said the matter was more related to snow removal and storage for dock area.
"We are not going to haul the dock to the transfer station every year, that's a big dock," Goodwin said. "If we pull that out it will likely be stored in that area. Each piece is about a 1,000 pounds and it has seven pieces."
Following a recent inspection by the Department of Natural Resources, Goodwin estimated the launch is about 80 percent complete and will be complete when the parking lot is paved in the spring.
The proposed costs to use the updated Melrose Township Boat Launch:
Daily permit: $6
Annual resident permit: $20
Annual non-resident permit: $30
Commercial users: $6 per unit launched
*Fees to be finalized in March by the township for 2010.
Boat school relocates to Walloon village
Ryan Bentley (231) 439-9342 - [email protected] | January 14, 2013
WALLOON LAKE -- A school that teaches boat-building and related subject matter recently cruised to a new home in Walloon Lake village, several miles south of its previous site. The Michigan School of Boat Building & Marine Technology now is based at 4048 M-75, in a 5,000-square-foot building located to the rear of the Walloon Village General Store. Compared to the school's old site in a rural area along U.S. 131 near Petoskey, founder/executive director Dave Lesh believes the Walloon location offers higher visibility and more of a chance to be part of a community.
Ryan Bentley (231) 439-9342 - [email protected] | January 14, 2013
WALLOON LAKE -- A school that teaches boat-building and related subject matter recently cruised to a new home in Walloon Lake village, several miles south of its previous site. The Michigan School of Boat Building & Marine Technology now is based at 4048 M-75, in a 5,000-square-foot building located to the rear of the Walloon Village General Store. Compared to the school's old site in a rural area along U.S. 131 near Petoskey, founder/executive director Dave Lesh believes the Walloon location offers higher visibility and more of a chance to be part of a community.
The dock system, provided by the Borisch Businesses at The Foot,
and shown in the 18 June 2013 photos below, is phenomenal.
(Photos by Karla Howard Buckmaster)
The three photos below of the dock system provided by the Borisch Businesses at The Foot
were taken from inside the Barrel Back Restaurant after a delicious lunch there.
(Photos by Karla Howard Buckmaster)
were taken from inside the Barrel Back Restaurant after a delicious lunch there.
(Photos by Karla Howard Buckmaster)
Dock System in about 1950s
Regarding the above photo of the Foot, Lucia Scully Oelz remembers: "It was pretty much Si's and Master's and Ross's [Ross Renwick's] and the post office in 1950. I especially remember as a kid in the 1950's walking the Path to the Foot and getting an ice cream cone at Ross's wonderful soda fountain and checking out the sailing standings on the board posted outside the store. My grandfather John Scully and my father George Scully were great sailors and it was of great interest to us to find out where our #9 Seventeen stood."
12 June 1959 ~ The Petoskey News Review reported: "Club members (the Petoskey Outboard Club) have put in a public dock and launching ramp on Walloon Lake. Members not only provided the manpower, but all the wood, bolts and other necessities to make the ramp and dock. This work needs a little financial help because the club has a small treasury-so if you use the ramp, and aren't a member of the club, you might put a little cash in the donation box to help carry on this work each year."
2016 Photo Below: Walloon Woodies at the Docks
More of Charles Dawley's remarkable videos and photography can be viewed on
Drone Photography from Charles Dawley "Up North Imaging".
Posted only by Permission from Drone Photographer Charles Dawley, Up North Imaging
Drone Photography from Charles Dawley "Up North Imaging".
Posted only by Permission from Drone Photographer Charles Dawley, Up North Imaging
Click HERE to access a video showing closeup views and descriptions of 2021 Walloon Lake Woodies.
Article Right: It would be interesting to learn if the regatta prizes for 1910 which were postponed until the 1911 season of the Walloon Yacht Club were actually awarded. If so, if anyone knows who were the winners, or would share photos of the awards to be posted on this site, please contact the webmaster... Karla Howard Buckmaster
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1967 ~ Harbor Springs Inherits Shay Boat ~
The Ephraim Shay name most often is associated with trains, with more information about him found on the Chandler Township Michigan Memories web site page about the Cobbs & Mitchell Railroad Inc.
Shay was a pioneer locomotive builder and inventor. The Petoskey News Review reported in their Reviewing the News of 1967 that "There's this strange looking boat, about 1915 vintage and 40 feet long, nestled somewhere among the trees and underbrush of Wilderness State Park north of here [Harbor Springs, about 5 miles from the road... near Sucker Creek]." The boat had been built by Shay as an experiment. Shay was disappointed because the boat's goal was a failure, being he had wanted it to run over waves, but it would run only when it was calm. When the State of Michigan expanded Wilderness Park by buying the previous Shay property which housed the boat, and then owned by a Mr. Woodruff, the state donated the boat to Harbor Springs on a permanent loan basis. While Shay was not good at boat building, a patent on one of the three locomotives designed and built by Shay was purchased by the Lima Engine Works of Lima, Ohio. His locomotives were excellent for hauling logs in the area.
*Additional information (and photos) about Shay's boat "Aha" can be accessed on the Railroad webpage of the Northern Mich~Mash Preserve web site.
*Additional information (and photos) about Shay's boat "Aha" can be accessed on the Railroad webpage of the Northern Mich~Mash Preserve web site.