NCMHC Newsletter January 1, 2015

Quarterly Issue
January 2015
Newaygo County History
Newsletter of the Newaygo County Museum and Heritage Center
White Cloud’s “Goat Man”
At the turn of the century, two rail lines crossed in White Cloud, and it was
customary for the trains to stop at that point for lunch. Always on hand to meet
the trains was William James McGogan, a little man with a big black moustache.
Winter Hours
Research Room
Wed: Noon - 4:00 pm
Thur: by appointment
Includes: local history of townships,
plat books, computers holding digital
copies of old newspapers,
access to ancestry.com
and more!
Exhibit Gallery
Closed for the Winter
Looking forward…
2015 Season Opening April 1, 2015
Open House
11:00 am - 7:00 pm
Save the Date!
2nd Annual
Antique Appraisal Fair
Saturday, May 2nd, 2015
A resident of White Cloud since 1892, Billy, as he was called, had lost the use of
his legs in 1909, and shortly thereafter conceived the idea of having a team of
goats pull him around in a cart. Soon, he was selling five-cent post cards of
himself and his cart. Passengers often felt sorry for the poor little man with the
crippled legs, and as they climbed back on the train would speculate about how
the picturesque man had become paralyzed.
Locals had heard whispers of “chickens” and “buckshot” shortly after Billy had
become paralyzed. However, times were pretty hard for many pioneer families,
what with the loss of the great lumbering industry and jobs were mighty scarce.
If those whispered words did hold any truth, well, Billy had paid, and White
Cloud would keep his secret.
Six months after he began
selling the post cards, he
began selling popcorn, too.
Soon he added cigars and
chewing gum to his
offerings. After one of his
goats died, Billy continued
with just the single goat for
a number of years.
During the days of the
Sunday excursion trains, his
family told of him selling 14
bushels of popped corn in a day. One year, by his own count, he had melted 600
pounds of butter to pour over the popped corn.
Billy managed to practically support himself for over 24 years by selling his
wares from the black boxes attached to his quaint cart. After his remaining goat
died, he obtained a Shetland pony and continued his sales. This pony pulled him
as he sold his goods just three days before his death on August 3rd, 1934.
The White Cloud Eagle put his obituary on the front page wherein it stated that
“Billy was better known throughout the country than any other man in White
Cloud.” “He was 81 years, five months, and two days of age.”
- Sources: The obituary of William McGogan and a
story written by Martha Evans.
Quarterly Issue
Newaygo County History
Did you know…
January 2015
after the Civil War, townships in Newaygo County were named after these Union Heroes?
Abraham Lincoln
Ulysses S. Grant
William T. Sherman
Philip H. Sheridan
How Well Do You Know Newaygo County?
Map of Newaygo County
Match numbers on the Map to the
correct Township name
Number
Township
Number
Township
Lincoln
Ashland
Big Prairie
Beaver
Sherman
Dayton
Garfield
Bridgeton
Grant
Lilley
Troy
Everett
Barton
Norwich
Croton
Wilcox
Goodwell
Ensley
Monroe
Home
Denver
Sheridan
Brooks
Merrill
!2
Quarterly Issue
Newaygo County History
Newaygo County’s Last
Panther…?
by A.L. Spooner
In Pioneer days the large tawny feline, Felis Concolar,
better known as puma, mountain lion or panther, ranged
from the Appalachian Mountains southward to the
swamps of Florida and from Texas to the western states.
Michigan was not its regular habitat, but by nature it is a
roamer and there are many instances of it being sighted
or killed in this state.
One such instance occurred in Newaygo County, and
there is no doubt that the animal that terrified some of
the pioneers and what was finally killed near Newaygo
was a panther.
One day about dusk in 1874, William E. Gould and his
sister Carrie were walking from the Tindall farm, south
of Fremont Lake, to their home in the Brookside area.
As they were climbing
the long incline on the
north side of the
heavily timbered
ridge, what was
known afterwards as
Panther Hill, they
discovered some
animal was following
them.
When they
stopped, it stopped
Terrified, they started
to run again and they
could hear it plainly
as it took long leaps
parallel to their path. This continued until they finally
reached home. Screams were heard that night from the
hill that sounded like a women in distress, but were
pronounced that of a panther by some who had heard
them before.
The panther stayed in the region several weeks, being
heard and seen by several people.
One evening Mrs. John Grant, who lived about two miles
east of the hill, was just laying her baby in its cradle in
January 2015
front of a low window when she saw the animal
crouching before the window and lashing its tail. Mrs.
Grant quickly jerked the window shade down and,
seizing the baby, ran into another room and closed the
door.
One day as William Tindall was coming home from
town, the panther crossed the road near the Frank Palmer
place. It had killed some stock between Brookside and
Newaygo. Mr. Tindall was a noted hunter whose life had
been spent on the frontiers of Ohio and Indiana.
He trailed the animal for three days, camping in the open
two nights, but a thaw come on, melting the snow and
causing him to lose the track.
Some time later dogs treed the panther and it was killed
by an old hunter from Newaygo. It measured nine feet
from the tip of his nose to the end of his tail.
The William Tindall mentioned came to the Fremont
vicinity in 1868 and lived here until his death in 1911, at
the age of 91.
Central Hotel
A good place to stop
WHEN
IN WHITE CLOUD
Rooms 75c Meals 40c
-Bath in Connection-
LUNCHES
Any time you wish to eat please try our Lunch Counter
Short Orders . . . . . . . . . . 25c
Lunch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5c up
Oyster Stew . . . . . . . . . . . 10c
Soup and Crackers . . . . . .10c
ALBERT STEELE, Prop.
White Cloud Michigan
-February 2, 1922 White Cloud Eagle
Do you know…
about the Pioneer Cemetery out on Fox Drive, down a lonely, dusty two-track?
!3
Quarterly Issue
Newaygo County History
January 2015
“How Jugville Got Its Name”
If you travel west and south of White Cloud towards Robinson Lake, as
you approach the corner of 12th Street and Bingham you will see a sign
which reads, “Welcome to Jugville.” The story of Jugville is in fact a
chapter from the life of the late Ernest Jack Sharpsteen.
You know you’re from Newaygo County when…
•
you know several people who have
hit a deer more than once.
•
‘drive your tractor to school day’ is
an annual event.
•
you often switch from “heat” to “A/
C” in the same day.
•
you can drive 65 mph through 2 feet
of snow during a raging blizzard,
without flinching.
As an adult, Ernie performed both in the circus as a clown and in
vaudeville as an actor and writer. In 1931 he retired to the land he had
purchased at Robinson Lake. It was there that he began developing his
idea for a resort. It was around this same time that he shortened his last
name to “Sharpe.”
•
you see people wearing camouflage
at social events (including weddings).
•
you install security lights on your
house and garage and leave both
unlocked.
Soon he began writing poetry under the pen name “Newaygo Newt.”
The verses were well loved and became so popular that they were
published weekly in both The
Grand Rapids Herald and the
White Cloud Eagle.
His
poetry also appeared in the
Saturday Evening Post and
Collier’s magazines.
•
you carry jumper cables in your car
and your girlfriend knows how to use
them.
•
you design your kid’s Halloween
costume to fit over a snowsuit.
•
driving is better in the winter because
the potholes are filled with snow.
•
you know all 4 seasons:
almost
winter, winter, still winter and road
construction.
•
Koffee Kuppe is a place to eat not
just something you drink out of.
•
your idea of creative landscaping is a
statue of a deer next to your blue
spruce.
•
down south to you means Grand
Rapids.
•
you hear people talk about being a
Gerber baby.
•
your neighbor throws a party to
celebrate his new pole barn.
Earnest was born July 8, 1888 in Kent County, Michigan, to
Washington Irving Sharpsteen and Amelia (Anderson) Sharpsteen.
Earnest eventually gained fame by writing rhyming verses he dubbed
“Backwoods Philosophy” under the pen name “Newaygo Newt.”
During visits by his uncle, Jack Squires, Ernest would become lost in
the great tales of his Uncle’s adventures as a scout for Kit Carson.
Uncle Jack’s stories so thrilled the young Ernest that he took on “Jack”
as his middle name and aspired to a similar life of story-telling.
One of his vaudeville friends
sent Ernie a big, green jug to
display at his resort. Upon
seeing the jug, other friends
began adding similar jugs,
too, and soon he had a whole
collection of jugs. Ernie’s
collection grew so large that
the jugs had to be displayed
outside, so he used them to
line his driveway. Ernie began
to call his place “The Green
Jug Resort.” Before long the
whole area came to be known
as “Jugville!”
Ernest Sharpsteen died in 1976, leaving his estate, including the rights
to his poetry and books, to the White Cloud Library.
- adapted from Robert Auw’s book “Yesterday”
!4
Quarterly Issue
Newaygo County History
January 2015
RR Corner
-found in the February 14, 1902 edition of the Hesperia Union Newspaper
Township
Ere I fold the yellow pages
Let me once more read her rhyme,
Traced amid a fair cheek’s blushes
In the heart of childhood’s clime’
There! I put away my treasure
With the bright sun sinking low;
For the valentine I cherish
Binds me to the long ago.
-T.C. Harbaugh, in Ohio Farmer
Answers to Township Puzzle
Number
Bending o’er the crumpled pages
I can see a vision fair,
And a form from out the shadows
Seems to seek my easy chair;
Ah! a hand my boyhood cherished
Strikes the chords of love, and, lo!
Quick my old heart thrills with music
Crowned with thoughts of long ago.
The Pere Marquette operated over trackage stretching from Buffalo, New
York to Chicago, and from Bay View (Petoskey) Michigan to Toledo,
Ohio, with trackage in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Ontario. In addition
to its strictly rail operations, the Pere Marquette also operated railway car
ferries on the Detroit and St. Clair rivers, and a fleet of car ferries from
Ludington across Lake Michigan to Milwaukee, Kewaunee and
Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Nearly all of the trackage CSX operates in
Michigan today is former Pere Marquette trackage.
- from Newaygo County History and Biographies Volume I
and the Pere Marquette Historical Society, Inc. website
Township
Ashland
Beaver
Dayton
Bridgeton
Lilley
Everett
Norwich
Wilcox
Ensley
Home
Sheridan
Merrill
Sunny links there are that bind us
To the fair and storied past,
Though the cruel years would leave us
To the mercy of the blast;
So the valentine she sent me
Lends to life a sacred glow,
And my heart repeats the verses
Written in its long ago.
The Traverse City Branch began at Grand Rapids and went northward
through Ashland Center, Grant, Newaygo, White Cloud, Diamond Loch,
Otia, Brookings, Bitely, Lilley and north to Traverse City. The Big Rapids
Branch started in Muskegon, moving northeast through Big Rapids
Junction, Reeman, Fremont, Wooster, Ryerson, White Cloud, Fields,
Woodville, Lumberton, Hungerford, Big Rapids and south to Ionia.
Number
22
5
13
21
2
15
8
11
24
3
17
6
You can hardly read the verses
By the childish fingers traced,
Years that have forever vanished
Have the gentle lines erased;
But in memory’s beauteous gardens,
Still the flowers of youth time blow,
And I still repeat the verses
Penned -so long- so long ago.
In 1899, there were two major lines originally owned by the Chicago and
West Michigan Railroad. These lines were owned by the Pere Marquette
Railroad by 1907 and included the Traverse City Branch (which later was
C&O) and the Big Rapids Branch, which in modern days was used as a
power line route for an electric company.
Lincoln
Big Prairie
Sherman
Garfield
Grant
Troy
Barton
Croton
Goodwell
Monroe
Denver
Brooks
Little faces that have vanished,
Little hands we see no more,
Seem to come to us unbidden
From beyond the misty shore;
And the valentine I cherish,
Old, and quaint and torn, you know
Is to me the sweetest chapter
Found in life’s fair long ago.
Newaygo County still has
one line of railroad running
through it, whereas in its
early days, there were
spider webs of rail trails.
The lumber camps necessitated the need for more and more trails which
provided the fastest means of transporting large amounts of lumber out of
the camps. The first railroad in the county was the Grand Rapids,
Newaygo and Lake Shore.
10
16
14
18
23
1
2
20
12
7
9
19
Here it is, its precious pages, Yellowed by the hand of time,
Yet it takes me gently backward To the gates of childhood’s clime;
And I catch a glimpse of Eden
Through the softly falling snow,
As I read the simple verses
Written in the long ago.
!5
Quarterly Issue
Newaygo County History
January 2015
Middle and High School Students Visit the NCMHC
We were pleased to have Newaygo 5th grade teachers ask to visit the Museum and Heritage Center with their students on
Veteran’s Day, Tuesday, November 11. A three-part program was prepared, and groups of ten students heard presentations
by three speakers in three subject areas; the Military Room,
the role of Native Americans in the military; and the
responsibilities of citizenship in front of a display about the
Constitution prepared by the Daughters of the American
Revolution.
The same week a high school history teacher requested to visit
with his students. Within three days our education team had
prepared a “What-do-you-know-about” tour. Students were
invited to share what they knew about local history as they
explored early Native American life, including Rice Lake as a
food source, and construction of their homes and clothing.
The students also took a comparative look at artifacts
from the Civil War, WWI, WWII, Vietnam, and the Gulf
War in a thought provoking review of those conflicts and
their outcomes. Their curiosity prompted great questions
on both topics, and several of the students expressed an
interest in volunteering during the summer.
We were happy that the teachers had initiated these visits.
To learn of their interest in working together was exciting,
as it fit well with our goal to create engaging local history offerings for older students which only the Museum and
Heritage Center can offer, and at the same time help the schools in meeting their curriculum objectives. Gerber Foundation Grant Approved
The Gerber Foundation has approved a grant which will cover transportation costs in 2015 for Newaygo County
elementary schools to visit the Museum and Heritage Center. In 2014, over 90% of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade classes
took advantage of this funding for field trips. We are grateful for this funding which allows many children to learn about
their local history with a very memorable hands-on experience.
Website
www.newaygocountyhistory.org
Facebook
NewaygoCountyMuseum
Queries
[email protected]
!6
Quarterly Issue
Newaygo County History
Newaygo County Museum
and Heritage Center
12 Quarterline Road
PO Box 361
Newaygo MI 49337
231.652.5003
Staff
Roxanne Bassett
Executive Director
[email protected]
Luanne Nelson
Education Coordinator
[email protected]
Diane Rhoads
Collection Manager
[email protected]
Ralph Zimmerman
Volunteer Coordinator
[email protected]
Trustees
Toni Rumsey - President
Lynne Robinson - V. President
Marilyn Dreyer - Secretary
Dave Dougan - Treasurer
Libby Cherin
Joe Maile
Mark Miller
Pam Miller
Gene Reid
James Rynberg
Rick Sharp
Stephanie Zinn
January 2015
Director’s Notes
Dear Friends,
Thank you for making 2014 a turning point! With your assistance, the
Museum and Heritage Center purchased the building at 12 Quarterline,
in downtown Newaygo, and met our goal of raising $8,000 in
operational funding to be matched 50% by the Fremont Area
Community Foundation.
Our volunteers gave time as Trustees, Greeters, Educators, Maintenance
Specialists, Archivists, Researchers, Artifact Recorders, Exhibit
Builders, Oral History Interviewers, Transcriptionists, Seamstresses,
Decorators, Event Planners, Newsletter Editor, and Volunteer
Coordinator, just to name a few. They, along with our part-time staff,
made possible the addition of a new Logging Exhibit, a Research Room,
our first Antique Appraisal Fair, History Celebrations, and expanded
hours for visitors. It is their heart for sharing local history which makes
this place come alive! “THANK YOU” to all of our volunteers!
The Fremont Area Community Foundation, Great Lakes Energy, the
Gerber Foundation, and the Arthur and Virginia Nelsen Fund, all
provided support which has enabled us to improve services and
programming. We thank those responsible for seeing our mission as a
worthy community investment.
Also, thank you to our business friends who have helped us in many,
many ways…time, donations, discounts, materials, and services. We
appreciate your enthusiasm and support!
As we enter 2015, we welcome you to find your place in the mission of
collecting, preserving, and sharing Newaygo County’s history. This
mission is not the responsibility of a few, but of the whole community.
Objects and photos can be interesting in isolation, but it is the stories of
the people attached to them which provide them with the historical
context to carry the past into the future. Ponder your connection to the
history of Newaygo County, and then bring your stories, objects, and
enthusiasm to share with future generations!
Thank you and Happy New Year!
Roxanne
Past Members Please Note: Annual dues have been replaced by “Supporting Membership” donations.
I want to be a supporting member of the Newaygo County Museum and Heritage Center
Please make your check out to: NCMHC
Mail to: PO Box 361, Newaygo MI 49337
Check #________
Enclosed please find my check or money order for: _____$25 _____$50 _____$250 _____$1,000 $_________Other
Name(s): ___________________________________________________________ Phone: _____________________
Address: ___________________________________________________________ State:_______ Zip:___________
You may also donate online with a credit card or PayPal at www.newaygocountyhistory.org
!7
THANK YOU!
Bay Leaf Used and Rare Books
Best Displays/Jessica Lopez
Charlie’s Pub
Choice One Bank
Country View Auctions
Cronk’s Hardware
E & L Log Homes
Freedom Chevrolet
Gene’s Family Market
Gerber/Nestle
Grant Gold Buyers
Graphicus Signs and Designs
Hi-Lites
Independent Bank West Michigan
Life Care Dental
Magic Touch Professional Cleaning
Mark Brock, Coldwell Banker Schmidt Realtors
Mark Miller, Miller & Shepherd Law
Michigan Agricultural Commodities
Midway Party Store and Gas Station
Mike Saum State Farm Inc.
Murphy and Caris
Murray Lumber
Newaygo Family Dental
Osborne’s Gunsmithing
Rocket Marketing
Rosenberg True Value Hardware
Rudert Ins.
Ryan’s Card & Coin Shoppe
Sally’s Restaurant
Sandy’s Harley Davidson
Spectrum Health - Gerber
Steve Rottier
Terry’s Flooring & Finishing
This Old House Antiques and Resale
Times Indicator
Vantage Point Financial
PO Box 361
Newaygo MI 49337