~ WALLOON LAKE GENERAL STORE
AND
MERRILL COTTAGE/SUNSET LODGE ~
_________________________________________________________________________
The Renwick Building in 2023
AND
MERRILL COTTAGE/SUNSET LODGE ~
_________________________________________________________________________
The Renwick Building in 2023
Please do not copy the photos on this site, many of which have been submitted by private individuals...
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.
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.
Walloon Lake resident Dawn Sarasin is providing photos of the construction of the Renwick Building to be posted at the bottom of this same web page in a slideshow format; continuously to be updated. Scroll to the bottom of this web page to Click on PLAY in the upper corner of main photo to view the slideshow. Then, check back periodically to view the progress.
~ Ransom General Store and Sunset Lodge ~
Alfred E. Hass sold the Koneta store to W.H. Ransom who owned it in the photo below.
Next, the building sold to Wilson & Lot, before it sold to L.A. Spalding.
Next, the building sold to Wilson & Lot, before it sold to L.A. Spalding.
Picturesque Walloon published in 1911 has the following point of interest to tourists on page 55: RANSOM'S GENERAL STORE. Groceries, provisions, drugs and family medicines; fresh and salt meats and fish. We cater to your wants. W. H. Ransom. Walloon Lake, Mich.
AFTER-1907 ~ POST-Fire
(Photo Below)
(Photo Below)
Photo Below: When this undated photo was taken, the Walloon Lake Post Office was located inside the W.H. Ransom General Merchandise Store. The pointy roofed building next door, which eventually became the post office for several years, at that time had signage of "Cleaning and Pressing".
Accompanying text for the above photo stated: "The W.H. Ransom General Store was located about where the present general store is located. The little building on the left was moved across the street and is still used as the Betty's Close [sic ~ Clothes] Closet. In the past it was also the post office, and when this picture was taken, a cleaners." The little building had also been known as a gift shop called "Inch & Foot". Ransom sold the store in 1926 to Mssrs. Wilson and Lot. They sold the store to L.A. Spalding in 1928. Mr. Spalding sold the store to his son-in-law Ross Renwick in 1946. In 1963 Ross Renwick sold it to Village Development Corporation. It had sold again by 1970, to Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Schack who lost the building to fire in 1972. In 2013 this property, with a new one-story building, is the Walloon Village General Store and Deli owned by Calvin and Linda Penfold. UPDATE: In 2022 the Penfold's closed their general store. Property owner Jonathan Borisch had the building razed, and announced plans for a future complex titled "The Renwick Building" for 2023.
The Koneta sign in the photo below graced the side of the W.H. Ransom General Store in the photo above. The Koneta had housed a bowling alley, and a billard parlor at one time... and the building had also been moved from one side of the railroad tracks to the other... even though the building was very, very large. The building was moved after the 1907 Fire in the Village of Walloon Lake... moved to make room for the new depot, and the train tracks, all of which was a benefit to the community. Mr. Ransom purchased the general store in 1909. The pointy roofed little building which had rested behind the Koneta in PRE-1907, was situated beside the Koneta/Ransom building after the 1907 Fire.

The 6 July 1910 Petoskey Evening News stated: "The Koneta has been purchased by the manager of Sunset Lodge and now occupies a place beside the hotel, Mr. Ransom having moved his grocery store into the building which allows a great deal more room than was possible in the old structure. In addition to the grocery department, the owner will run a meat market and soda fountain, and the bowling alleys will be available this year." The Walloon Lake Post Office sign no longer hung on the Koneta store as it had when it was the Ransom store.
PRE-1907 ~ PRE-Fire
(Photos Below)
Photo Below: The New Walloon Hotel stood to the left of the dock.
Directly behind the dock was the Koneta Grocery before it was moved to the farther right side of the depot.
Picturesque Walloon published 1911 described on page 54, the Sunset Lodge:
"A home-like place to stop; very conveniently located in a grove near the bath house, at water's edge. Furnished rooms, single or en suite, for light housekeeping; cottages for rent. W.H. Ransom. Prop., Walloon Lake, Mich." (Sunset Lodge was located in the photo below on the front right.)
"A home-like place to stop; very conveniently located in a grove near the bath house, at water's edge. Furnished rooms, single or en suite, for light housekeeping; cottages for rent. W.H. Ransom. Prop., Walloon Lake, Mich." (Sunset Lodge was located in the photo below on the front right.)
~ L.A. Spalding General Store and Merrill Cottage/Sunset Lodge ~
"After many years in business there, Ransom sold out and Mr. L.A. Spalding bought the store and ran it for a long time. Vergene’s [the author James C. Whitfield, Sr.'s, wife] nephew had been staying with us for a year or so and got to know Mr. Spalding and Mrs. Spalding, their daughter, Lucile and her younger brother Russel. There was also an older brother, a medical doctor in northern Indiana. Ross Renwick, Vergene’s nephew dated Lucile for some time and finally they were married in the local Community Church, which had formerly been the United Brethren. Finally Ross bought the store and the ‘Sunset Lodge’ next to it which had been a rooming house in days gone by. Ross and Lucile ran the store for quite a few years, finally selling out to a local group of business men and resorters. Some years after it had been sold, some frustrated kid set fire to it, and then we had no store at all as Fred Shepard had died long before. [Fred Shepard had run the other general store across from the Renwick's store.] During the time when Mr. Spalding and Ross ran the store its soda fountain provided us kids a source of enjoyment. It was a distinct treat for us to drop in there for a soda or especially an ice cream sundae, chocolate preferred as Mrs. Spalding made all the chocolate syrup used, and was it ever delicious!!! That part of the store was often frequented by adults, too, on a hot day. The store itself took on a different aspect, eliminating all of its hardware stock and concentrating on foodstuffs and magazines and papers. Still, it was a distinct loss to the small community when the old store burned, although at the time nearly everyone had cars and could easily go to Boyne City or Petoskey for needed items."
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
~ James C. Whitfield, Sr.
Photo Below Left: The building on the left was the general store, and the building on the right was originally the Merrill Cottage.
Next it became the Sunset Lodge, when in 1908 W.H. Ransom purchased it, and renamed it.
Later, it became the home of the Spalding Family and their descendants, the Renwick Family.
Next it became the Sunset Lodge, when in 1908 W.H. Ransom purchased it, and renamed it.
Later, it became the home of the Spalding Family and their descendants, the Renwick Family.
The Merrill Cottage was built by R.T. Merrill in 1903. It had the ideal location being so close to the railroad depot, the general store, lake for fishing, and the beach for entertainment. Mr. Ransom bought the Merrill Cottage in 1908 and renamed it Sunset Lodge at that time, and hired Orval Winkler to manage the lodge.
~ Ross V. Renwick General Store ~
Ross Renwick [photo above left], along with wife Lucile Spalding Renwick [photo above right], owned the general store from 1946 to 1963
which gave their children Varn and Rosemary [photo below left]
the opportunities for ice cream treats straight from the soda fountain bar [photo below right].
which gave their children Varn and Rosemary [photo below left]
the opportunities for ice cream treats straight from the soda fountain bar [photo below right].
Ross V. Renwick sold the general store to a local corporation in 1963, after which Harvey Schach purchased it in 1971.
In 1972, the store burned and, then was rebuilt into the one story structure which exists in 2013.
In 1972, the store burned and, then was rebuilt into the one story structure which exists in 2013.
Photo Above: The building in the background was originally built in 1903 as the Merrill Cottage, with the Merrill name also attached to the boat works on the lakeside. Then in 1908, W.H. Ransom, the owner of the general store next door, bought the Merrill Cottage, and renamed it Sunset Lodge. Next, L.A. Spalding bought the property.
L.A. Spalding's granddaughter Rosemary Renwick James (daughter of Ross and Lucile Spalding Renwick) wrote the following in November of 2013: " From my mother's birth in 1906, in Gregory, MI, down near Ann Arbor, to 1928, the Spaldings lived in Gregory, Perry, Ovid, and WL. Grandpa was a banker in Perry but owned groceries in the other places. Mom graduated from Ovid HS in 1924 and Albion College in 1928. They immediately moved to Walloon Lake. During the four years Mom was in college, at some point Grandpa and Grandma bought this apartment building in Detroit, lived in one of the apartments, and managed it. Somehow, he and Ransom connected and they traded properties and as soon as Mom was out of college, they moved. She told me once that in her last weeks at Albion, she talked to one of her profs about moving up north and getting a teaching job there or staying downstate. He tried to convince her to stay downstate, saying she would have better opportunities, but she felt her parents needed her, so she came with them. Her older brother, Wendell, was probably in or nearly finished with medical school at Ann Arbor at that time, but Uncle Russell, who was 6 years younger than Mom, moved up north, and spent some (all?) of his high school years at Petoskey High School. Uncle Russell and Stan Kellogg, the noted Petoskey ceramic artist, were good friends. Our venerable old ping-pong table was Uncle Russell's school shop project.
The Walloon Lake property started at the fence between the park and us and went to the north side of the store. Do you remember the extent of our mowed back yard, back to the swampy area? I don't know exactly how far we went back toward Burt Burns' property but we met somewhere along there. All together, there were 3.5 acres, I believe. Store, icehouse (separate building behind store), garage, woodshed, old post office, and the house. The addition to the back end of the store was a storeroom. In my day, it was always filled with empty cardboard boxes that Dad's stock came in. I think Grandma took in roomers one year but that was all she wanted to do. One time I think she put up some summer peoples' help who needed a place to stay. Up over the store were three apartments which were rented, but before my time. So, from 1928 to 1946, my grandparents ran the store. Mom worked there in the summers, but taught in either Clarion, Walloon Lake or Boyne City in the winters. An interesting sidebar about pre-union teaching days, sometimes she would take the whole winter off and go to Florida with her parents, when she was teaching in Boyne City. She also rented rooms in Boyne City in the winters sometimes so she would not have to do the drive everyday or live in the house alone when her parents were gone. Do you remember the old Sunnyside Restaurant in Boyne City? Another restaurant was beside it, and I guess that is where she and a lot of her cronies ate many meals. When she taught at the Walloon Lake school, up by Jensen Road, Uncle Russell would go up early in the morning in the winter to build the fire to get the place somewhat warmed up before school started. Mayme Scroggie taught some or all of the time Mom did there; Mom had 5-8 grades and Mayme taught the younger kids, and as Mom said, "I never got a kid who couldn't read!"
In the late 1930's, Dad came to live with Whitfields. I have heard that Dad was the choir director at the church and Mom played the piano, and I also heard they met at the store so take your pick. Probably it was not too hard to realize a new person was in Walloon Lake! They married in 1940 and then lived in Cadillac MI; remember on the same street [Bremer] as that first house Kelly and Scott lived in?; Prudenville, and Saginaw, during WWII when my dad worked at Saginaw Steering Gear doing some drafting. It was a war related job. He had worked in grocery stores and even managed one or two in Illinois prior to coming to Walloon Lake, and I guess owning his own store was something he had always wanted to do. So, after the war, I guess Grandpa wanted to retire and the Renwicks bought the store. We moved in in April, when I was 3 months old. I do not know if Grandpa and Grandma stayed with us that first summer, after returning from their place in Florida, or if they had the place on West Mitchell in Petoskey right away. My grandma died of breast cancer in 1952 and Grandpa moved in with us in 1958. He died in 1968.
This summer, I found an old ledger Grandpa had kept through several stores, including Walloon Lake. He made many personal comments and entries, as well as business entries, and had a brief sentence or two about the trade between him and Ransom."
L.A. Spalding's granddaughter Rosemary Renwick James (daughter of Ross and Lucile Spalding Renwick) wrote the following in November of 2013: " From my mother's birth in 1906, in Gregory, MI, down near Ann Arbor, to 1928, the Spaldings lived in Gregory, Perry, Ovid, and WL. Grandpa was a banker in Perry but owned groceries in the other places. Mom graduated from Ovid HS in 1924 and Albion College in 1928. They immediately moved to Walloon Lake. During the four years Mom was in college, at some point Grandpa and Grandma bought this apartment building in Detroit, lived in one of the apartments, and managed it. Somehow, he and Ransom connected and they traded properties and as soon as Mom was out of college, they moved. She told me once that in her last weeks at Albion, she talked to one of her profs about moving up north and getting a teaching job there or staying downstate. He tried to convince her to stay downstate, saying she would have better opportunities, but she felt her parents needed her, so she came with them. Her older brother, Wendell, was probably in or nearly finished with medical school at Ann Arbor at that time, but Uncle Russell, who was 6 years younger than Mom, moved up north, and spent some (all?) of his high school years at Petoskey High School. Uncle Russell and Stan Kellogg, the noted Petoskey ceramic artist, were good friends. Our venerable old ping-pong table was Uncle Russell's school shop project.
The Walloon Lake property started at the fence between the park and us and went to the north side of the store. Do you remember the extent of our mowed back yard, back to the swampy area? I don't know exactly how far we went back toward Burt Burns' property but we met somewhere along there. All together, there were 3.5 acres, I believe. Store, icehouse (separate building behind store), garage, woodshed, old post office, and the house. The addition to the back end of the store was a storeroom. In my day, it was always filled with empty cardboard boxes that Dad's stock came in. I think Grandma took in roomers one year but that was all she wanted to do. One time I think she put up some summer peoples' help who needed a place to stay. Up over the store were three apartments which were rented, but before my time. So, from 1928 to 1946, my grandparents ran the store. Mom worked there in the summers, but taught in either Clarion, Walloon Lake or Boyne City in the winters. An interesting sidebar about pre-union teaching days, sometimes she would take the whole winter off and go to Florida with her parents, when she was teaching in Boyne City. She also rented rooms in Boyne City in the winters sometimes so she would not have to do the drive everyday or live in the house alone when her parents were gone. Do you remember the old Sunnyside Restaurant in Boyne City? Another restaurant was beside it, and I guess that is where she and a lot of her cronies ate many meals. When she taught at the Walloon Lake school, up by Jensen Road, Uncle Russell would go up early in the morning in the winter to build the fire to get the place somewhat warmed up before school started. Mayme Scroggie taught some or all of the time Mom did there; Mom had 5-8 grades and Mayme taught the younger kids, and as Mom said, "I never got a kid who couldn't read!"
In the late 1930's, Dad came to live with Whitfields. I have heard that Dad was the choir director at the church and Mom played the piano, and I also heard they met at the store so take your pick. Probably it was not too hard to realize a new person was in Walloon Lake! They married in 1940 and then lived in Cadillac MI; remember on the same street [Bremer] as that first house Kelly and Scott lived in?; Prudenville, and Saginaw, during WWII when my dad worked at Saginaw Steering Gear doing some drafting. It was a war related job. He had worked in grocery stores and even managed one or two in Illinois prior to coming to Walloon Lake, and I guess owning his own store was something he had always wanted to do. So, after the war, I guess Grandpa wanted to retire and the Renwicks bought the store. We moved in in April, when I was 3 months old. I do not know if Grandpa and Grandma stayed with us that first summer, after returning from their place in Florida, or if they had the place on West Mitchell in Petoskey right away. My grandma died of breast cancer in 1952 and Grandpa moved in with us in 1958. He died in 1968.
This summer, I found an old ledger Grandpa had kept through several stores, including Walloon Lake. He made many personal comments and entries, as well as business entries, and had a brief sentence or two about the trade between him and Ransom."
1972
~ Walloon Village General Store Burned ~
~ Walloon Village General Store Burned ~
Photo Below: The big old general store burned September 1972. It was rebuilt by its owners Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Schack, as a modern, fire resistant building "rising on the ashes of the one that burned". The buildings on this site have an interesting history. The original wood frame structure burned about 1906, along with William Grund's adjoining store. At that time it was owned by W.H. Ransom, with Alfred Hass, Sr. having been an owner for a short time. Mr. Ransom moved on to his burned-out site, a large two story frame building known as the "Koneta" with a bowling alley and confectionery store then located on the same east side of the street, and somewhat north. The business continued to be known as Ransom's General Store until he sold it in 1926 to Mr. Wilson and Mr. Lot of Detroit. In 1928 Mr. Spalding purchased the store and operated it until his son-in-law Ross Renwick purchased it. Mr. Renwick sold in 1963 to Village Development Corporation, and in 1971 Mr. and Mrs. Schach purchased the Village General Store from the Corporation. It was under the Schack ownership that the building burned.
The Walloon Village General Store & Deli with the parking lot prepared to pave,
during the time of the village transformation going on with the Borisch Properties.
during the time of the village transformation going on with the Borisch Properties.
The Walloon Village General Store & Deli was decorated for the Christmas Season,
as was the new Johan's Pastries store located beside the general store.
Johan's Bakery chain added two locations in 2013.
as was the new Johan's Pastries store located beside the general store.
Johan's Bakery chain added two locations in 2013.
Employees of The Walloon Village General Store ~ Over the Years
Kim Coates
Phyllis Cotanche Susie Cotanche Lyons Norma Hull Calvin Penfold Linda Penfold Dawn Sarasin Ida Mae Sarasin Matthew Urman |
Last Day of Business (Labor Day)
5 September 2022
5 September 2022
The Razing of the Walloon Village General Store
11 October 2022
11 October 2022
Click PLAY in the upper left corner to view the slideshow below of photos taken 11 October 2022 and submitted by Walloon's own Dawn Sarasin. The photos below show the razing of the Walloon Lake General Store, owned for the last 39 years by Dawn's sister Linda and her husband Calvin Penfold of nearby Chandler Hill area in Chandler Township. They are retiring from the general store business. Jonathan Borisch, long-time Walloon resident, and recent accomplished developer of the village, is proceeding with the razing of the general store, and has plans for redeveloping the property.
Dawn Sarasin's photos in the slideshow below have added to the preservation of The Foot's history. She also has various photos available for sale in the village's newest store 50 Mile Market. Those available photos are more nature themed. 50 Mile Market updates through Facebook.
Dawn Sarasin's photos in the slideshow below have added to the preservation of The Foot's history. She also has various photos available for sale in the village's newest store 50 Mile Market. Those available photos are more nature themed. 50 Mile Market updates through Facebook.
Photo Below:
On 11 October 2022, photographer Dawn Sarasin stopped by the razing site later in the day when cleanup was mostly complete...
even the little flat roofed old post office building, as shown in the above photo, was gone.
That little building also had served as Johan's Bakery followed by Tommy's Boat Sales Office.
On 11 October 2022, photographer Dawn Sarasin stopped by the razing site later in the day when cleanup was mostly complete...
even the little flat roofed old post office building, as shown in the above photo, was gone.
That little building also had served as Johan's Bakery followed by Tommy's Boat Sales Office.
When Calvin and Linda Penfold owned the Walloon Village General Store and Deli, the store was known for many delectable treats and delightful services. One service to be missed at the general store by the many successful Northern Michigan hunters is the deer processing business. That business will carry on nearby on top of Chandler Hill in the new Penfold deer processing location. Their Facebook page tells the story of their new business name:
Ida's Kitchen.
"For those who don't know, our name is a nod to Linda's mom Ida Mae Sarasin. When Ida Mae started working at the store alongside Linda she began referring to the back of the store as "the kitchen". Most employees at that time knew the back as the meat department, but she argued that it was the kitchen.
It didn't take long before Ida was the queen of the kitchen. She started baking pies, cookies and bread most days by 6am and was in charge of making lunch Monday-Friday.
Calvin and Linda eventually had a small "Ida's Kitchen" sign made that hung in the deli until we closed the store on September 5, 2022. We also started putting "Ida's Kitchen" on the aprons. The sign will go up again in our new kitchen and the aprons will be there too. When we started talking about a name for our new deer processing shop, it didn't take us long to settle on Ida's Kitchen/Commercial Kitchen."
Photo Below in their early business days: Ida Mae Sarasin, Dawn Sarasin, Linda and Calvin Penfold with their son Joe.
Ida's Kitchen.
"For those who don't know, our name is a nod to Linda's mom Ida Mae Sarasin. When Ida Mae started working at the store alongside Linda she began referring to the back of the store as "the kitchen". Most employees at that time knew the back as the meat department, but she argued that it was the kitchen.
It didn't take long before Ida was the queen of the kitchen. She started baking pies, cookies and bread most days by 6am and was in charge of making lunch Monday-Friday.
Calvin and Linda eventually had a small "Ida's Kitchen" sign made that hung in the deli until we closed the store on September 5, 2022. We also started putting "Ida's Kitchen" on the aprons. The sign will go up again in our new kitchen and the aprons will be there too. When we started talking about a name for our new deer processing shop, it didn't take us long to settle on Ida's Kitchen/Commercial Kitchen."
Photo Below in their early business days: Ida Mae Sarasin, Dawn Sarasin, Linda and Calvin Penfold with their son Joe.
ANNOUNCEMENT!
The Renwick Building
Named after previous general store owner Ross Renwick...
Coming Late 2023
(Announced by the Borisch Family)
Two Photos Below
The signage just was "zipped tied" to the location's surrounding fencing today... 6 December 2022.
The Renwick Building
Named after previous general store owner Ross Renwick...
Coming Late 2023
(Announced by the Borisch Family)
Two Photos Below
The signage just was "zipped tied" to the location's surrounding fencing today... 6 December 2022.
Photo Above: In the late 50s and 60s the "general store" belonged to the Renwick Family as the sign reads. Compare the two photos above, so it is seen that the design of the old general store with the front/side porches is very similar to the new design, although the old design was two stories, and the new Renwick Building will be three stories… both flat roofed buildings, with upper floor balconies. Even the bottom side porch roof on the old store has the slightly sloped overhang as on the new design main level porch.
~ Groundbreaking for The Renwick Building ~
19 January 2023
The Renwick was named for Ross Renwick who owned the general store in its early years.
19 January 2023
The Renwick was named for Ross Renwick who owned the general store in its early years.
Below: Local Developer Jon Borisch's welcoming speech, prayer, and plans...
always envisioning the future...
(Project with planned 16 luxury condominiums and a market and retail space on the main level)
Eight private dock slips available for purchase, as well as private parking for residents.
always envisioning the future...
(Project with planned 16 luxury condominiums and a market and retail space on the main level)
Eight private dock slips available for purchase, as well as private parking for residents.
Two Photos Below: Ground Breakers; Steve Saylers with Wolgast Construction, Wally Kidd of Kidd & Leavy Real Estate handling the sales, Linda Penfold previous general store owner, Jonathan Borisch local owner and developer, Joe Teague general store manager, and Kathryn Chaplow interior designer. J. Visser was the architect. Wolgast Corporation will manage the project.
Photo Below: Jonathan Borisch in center observes discussion between
new general store manager Joe Teague and previous general store owner/manager Linda Penfold.
new general store manager Joe Teague and previous general store owner/manager Linda Penfold.
Photo Below: Jonathan Borisch and Eric Schwartzyl from the Wolgast construction company
Planned completion is for early 2024, with the general store hopefully opened in the summer.
Jonathan's son Matthew Borisch will be operating the general store.
More information, including condominium floor plans, may be accessed by clicking HERE.
Jonathan's son Matthew Borisch will be operating the general store.
More information, including condominium floor plans, may be accessed by clicking HERE.
Walloon Lake resident Dawn Sarasin is providing these photos of the construction of the Renwick Building to be posted here as a slideshow, continuously to be updated. Click on PLAY in the upper corner of main photo to view the slideshow, and check back periodically to view the progress.
PRE-Razing/Demoltion and Inside the General Store
9 January 2023: Preparation to pour cement foundation. The orange tarp, placed to keep the winter ground warmer, will go completely across before pouring; making certain of being level.
15 January 2023: Grade beams being built on helical piers; Steel poles were driven down 25 feet with cement poured around those. Next fill dirt between the cement walls will have the cement floors poured over, all the way across the building footprint.
PRE-Razing/Demoltion and Inside the General Store
9 January 2023: Preparation to pour cement foundation. The orange tarp, placed to keep the winter ground warmer, will go completely across before pouring; making certain of being level.
15 January 2023: Grade beams being built on helical piers; Steel poles were driven down 25 feet with cement poured around those. Next fill dirt between the cement walls will have the cement floors poured over, all the way across the building footprint.