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Picture: Chopping down a tree of cork pine in the forest divine.
This is very much a work in progress!
The ancient pine tree . . . tall, wild, and free.
The logging of the majestic white pine tree along the ancient Mattawan or Huron River—
The logging of Michigan’s famous cork pine—on what is now the Cass River—
Was once a greatly rewarding business on this pristine waterway.
When the fur trade, which seemed to have endless, was finally over and had seen its day—
The logging of the Cass River soon came into play.
As the early days of trading furs came to its ultimate end,
The loggers, shanty boys, and lumbermen began their work along the river's bend.
Fur trading and logging were juxtapose—.
To the fur trade, logging put an end or close,
Within fifty years, the great forests would be gone forever,
On the great stretches of land along the Cass River.
The fur trade required a unbroken woodland--
It needed the swamps, the driftwood-locked streams, and the ancient Indian trail.
The work of the logger transformed the land.
It cleared the streams and swamps and removed the valuable pine timber on nearly every hill and dale.
The work of the logger put an end to the fur trade.
When the logger and lumberman had cut down the last of the pine forest . . .
The work of lumberman also was done—new jobs would be overlaid.
New work would be hard-pressed—
New ventures would be sought in earnest.
When the logger removed the last of the pine wood,
The finale of the forest only then would appear.
Only then was the impact fully understood.
Many people held that the Cass River's majestic Cork Pine—
Would always be here with immense branches waving—
However, in the end, the logger would lay down the trees supine.
Then the land would be ready for farming.
The land became conquered and won.
Changed was the landscape in every way.
Changed would be this glittering land of Michigan near the Saginaw Bay.
The primitive forests of the Cass River would be gone.
Only, left would be a tale or song!
Henry Dodge once wrote about those lumbering days of old,
When the pine trees towered above the logger's shanty or lodge!
By Henry Dodge
When fall winds blow and fakes of snow fall on the mountain pass.
Our thoughts will wander back once more along the River Cass.
To logging camps on riverbanks and all the snow and cold,
And, shanty men who cut the pine in lumbering days of old.
Those famous pines of olden time, the best that ever grew,
Their ranks went down were swept away before the lumber crew.
The crash profound that jarred the ground when great trees met their doom.
Their logs were cut to feed the mills beyond the river’s boom.
Those logging men were heroes then who worked amid the pine.
Sunlight was short, but days were long, in eighteen sixty-nine.
At morning call for breakfast, all the stars were shining bright.
The moon it shone to guide their steps when they came in at night.
The creak of sleigh before ‘twas day strange echoes would entice,
As logs rolled down the banking ground and landed on the ice.
The cook ruled all in spring or fall—was monarch of his line,
Prune pie and hash were dainties then—way back in sixty-nine.
When April days and sun’s bright rays made streams seem all alive,
Shoepacs were shed and boots were calked to go upon the drive.
When banks were broke and logs afloat, we heard the songs once more.
Of men upon the lazy bend who kept the logs from shore.
In rain or snow the logs must go, the drive kept on its way.
The peavey men were on the job from dawn ‘til close of day.
Oft wet and cold, those men of old few comforts ever saw.
They took the drive down to the mills that lined the Saginaw.
Those drivers true that once we knew: where are they all today?
The last drive down, their work was done, and soon they passed away.
But few today know of the way they faced the storm and cold,
And, worked in camps, and drove the logs in lumbering days of old.
Native People, traders, and soldiers met for the signing of the 1819 Saginaw Treaty
Two
parties signed the Saginaw Treaty
of 1819.
Native People and Michigan Territorial Governor Lewis Cass.
The signing put new light on the Saginaw's and its forests evergreen—
After the treaty, the Mattawan or Huron River became known as the Cass.
In 1819, the Ottawa and Chippewa of the Rivers Rifle and Flint,
And the Rivers Tittibawassee, Shiawassee, Saginaw—and Cass,
Put their signatures in ink and print,
And in doing so they started a national land sprint.
After the War of 1812, land speculation was seen throughout the nation.
After 1819, local Native American's were required to live on many a reservation.
After 1819, the Saginaw's would go up for public sale on a grand scale.
In 1837, Michigan became a state and another treaty was signed.
This time many local Native Americans were moved to a western reserve.
There were a few, however, who in the Saginaw's remained.
After 1837, local Native People were separated from their valuable land.
Only a few were allowed to remain at a Tittabawassee River Reserve.
Not much more could they demand.
The Saginaw Treaty of 1819 they signed at the trading post of Louis Campeau.
The parties with the help of rum made their marks to the treaty.
They signed not far above the Island Crow.
Soldiers, Native, and traders met under a large pinewood canopy.
With their pledge, the future they would embrace.
Not long after, surveyors the land would draw and trace.
During the treaty, the leading negotiator was Louis Campeau.
He was Saginaw’s foremost trader who had great ability.
The Campeau family was from Detroit.
Louis Campeau was an employee of Uncle Joseph Campeau.
Joseph was the leading merchant and land owner in Detroit,
Which had been Michigan's great fur trading city.
Louis Campeau was a gifted negotiator.
This early family had been on every Saginaw river.
The Campeau’s were the best then in the fur trade.
They also make brandy at the Detroit stockade.
They knew every part of the Saginaw and Grand River woodlands.
They knew all the Native bands.
The first Native People in Saginaw were not the Ottawa and Chippewa.
The earliest inhabitants were the Pottawatomee, Sauk, and Fox.
They were the Fire Nation, the People of the Outlet, and Renards who traversed the native locks.
In the mid-1600's, westward they were pushed by the Iroquois.
Later, the region would be occupied by the Ottawa and Chippewa.
It was the enchanted of the Native man, woman, girl and boy.
The Thumb of Michigan was then the great pine woods.
It was the place of the great pine dugout, or pirogue, that carried Native goods.
The pine was soft and pearled.
This was the great woods were majestic trees in the heavens teetered and swirled.
In the mid and late 1800's, the wood would be logged at mills.
The lumber from Saginaw would put money in the tills.
The merits of Cass River pine would ring.
Cass River pine would be used in many a building.
The logging of the dense pine forest would be soon hard pressed.
In 1821, the U. S. Government built Fort Saginaw,
which was located the Saginaw River’s
west bank,
Located near Louis Campeau's trading post, it was made from the forest and logs hewed into many a plank.
The next year, their goal, was to built a road from Detroit to the Flint River.
Onward the road would go to Saginaw to eventually bring in the pioneer and logger.
Indian unrest over the Treaty of 1819 created tension that was not unforeseen.
This also required the presence of soldiers in the the Saginaw pinelands evergreen.
During the winter of 1822/23, the Fort Saginaw detachment began to to cut the Saginaw Road.
The road was to be built to carry a substantial load.
They blazed the pathway along the Old Saginaw Indian Trail.
In some places the road would be made of wooden rail.
The road was built from Detroit to Pontiac and then on to the Grand Traverse or Flint.
They blazed it quickly and roughly.
Soon they were able to carry supplies on the road on horseback at a sprint—
The road would eventually end at Saginaw and its natural quay.
When the job was done in 1823, the soldiers went on to Wisconsin and Milwaukee.
Some people said the troops were ordered out of the Saginaw Valley,
Because the land was filled with "fever and ague” more likely.
But, really it was because their job was done.
Also, because of the their presence, many Native People to Western Reservations had gone.
The land now seemed ready for settler and lumberman,
As the Erie Canal was just then opened and bringing people to Michigan.
However, there was a staunch saying on the East Coast,
Which was also repeated in the mountains of Appalachia.
The Great Lakes and Michigan were the roast.
They said that Michigan was a pariah.
Don’t go to Michigan,
That land of ill;
The Territory of Michigan
Meant still,
The land of fever, cold, and chill.
The Algonquin word Michigan meant "Great Water".
This was the land of the great inland mariner.
However, on the East Coast, Michigan still meant “The Land of Misery”.
Notwithstanding, after 1824, access to the region did improve.
In 1824, on the east bank of the Saginaw River a trading post was established by the American Fur Company,
The trading post then competed with Louis Campeau, and eventually to Western Michigan he would move.
The American Fur Company established itself on the east side of the Saginaw River.
There it was very successful in trading for fur.
Before the Saginaw Treaty of 1819, the Cass River had been called the Upper Huron or the Mattawan.
Near the American Fur Company, the Saginaw Trail ran south along the east side of the Saginaw River.
Then it went east along the Cass River.
At the Great Bend in the Cass River, the trail divided with one branch crossing south over the Mattwan.
The eastern branch of the trail went along the Cass River's along its north bank.
Where the Saginaw Trail crossed the Cass River, it went on to Flint.
The Cass River was known for its running water that sparkled with a glint.
The land to the west and northwest of Old Fort Saginaw was open, level, and dank.
It was wet prairieland in which one's foot sank.
In 1824, the American Fur Company, also established a trading post on the Cass River.
It was located at the Great Bend where the Saginaw Trail crossed the river.
Here a scow, a dugout, and small cabin were built.
Here in the spring and early summer the air at night filled with midge.
Both the south and north side of the river formed a high ridge.
In 1824, only a few thousand Native People lived near Old Fort Saginaw,
Along with a few fur traders that one could count on one’s hand.
Until 1835—only Native People and traders lived in the area around Old Fort Saginaw.
It was their custom to advertised the place as unhealthy.
They would say to outsiders, "It is good only for muskrats and beavers".
They would describe land as swampland, mostly.
They told this tale to keep out settlers and land speculators.
However, as time went on, the truth came out.
The land along the ridges of the Cass River was a great pineland,
And, the lowlands would produce excellent farms with out doubt.
Much of the northern part of the Thumb near Saginaw Bay was wet prairieland,
Which when drained would yield dark black soil that was excellent for farming.
The land was exciting and promising.
A dark emerald trail ran along the north bank of the Cass . . .
Here stood great cork pines . . . 6 feet wide and 150 feet or more in height.
They were indeed a beautiful sight,
There along the quite woodland pass.
Looking at the tops of the towering pine would unbalanced one's stance.
Trees with massive branches in the sky would bound, warp, twist, and weave.
Only the Native People and the fur traders saw the pines dance,
Before the pine was gone—on lumbering eve.
The massive roots from pine trees in the ground would lift, sigh, and heave.
About Old Fort Saginaw—within a couple of miles of the river,
The infrequent traveler saw only an occasional island of large beautiful timber.
But, back, in the interior, back from Old Fort Saginaw along the dazzling Cass River,
Were great magical stands of timber.
Those who first ventured here saw a grand sight that would cause hopes in their hearts to amass—
Here along the elevated banks of the Cass.
Canoeing along the Saginaw River left the traveler with the impression—
That the interior of the Saginaw's and the Thumb of Michigan was but quagmire.
To the outside world, that was the presentation.
However, the Saginaw River was much different than the Cass—.
Later, the Saginaw mills would sing and ring out the news,
That the forests were first-class,
And, that the beauty was beyond poetic muse.
The Native People and early Indian traders knew—
They were lucky to have had the opportunity to view,
The forest when it was fresh and new.
They saw the soaring cork pine . . . untouched and rough.
They knew that seeing it itself was enough.
The magical cork pine trees that withstood time with ease.
The pines that would have been enough just to see waving in the breeze.
The secret beauty of Michigan's Thumb was known by only a few.
Here there was a great forest of hemlock, tamarack, and pine.
At the foot of the trees was stillnes as white clouds passed above in a sky of blue.
Primordial was the forest.
At the foot of the trees, the air was quite and at rest.
Only near the tops of the trees would the wind turn, sound, and wine.
Only at the tops of the trees would the wind interlock out of reach.
This massive pineland stretched from the Saginaw's to Lake Huron's sandy beach.
Only Native People and a handful of fur traders knew the pine and hemlock,
The interior—the trees that stood tall without support or crutch.
The trees danced and sang in the wind from Saginaw to White Rock.
One's mind and soul they would touch.
Only occasionally would a windfall leave but brush and grass,
Along the vast stretches of the woodland along the Cass.
In the 1820’s, the federal government surveyed the land about Saginaw.
These first maps unjustly portrayed the area.
The 1820's maps and notes were of false value, but to correct them initially nothing was done.
The surveyors took advantage of the ignorance of those in Washington.
They sided with the Saginaw Native People and traders and their circumstance.
The surveyors had drawn the maps from a room in Saginaw from hearsay without giving the woods a glance.
Supported by the surveyors the East Coast notion that Saginaw was a wetland stayed in the minds of investors.
The vast lands of the Saginaw—were isolated, and without rebuttal everyone accepted the word of the surveyors.
For a long time, their depiction that the Saginaw's were only a wetland was not investigated.
People who would have wanted to settle the area were deterred.
Eventually, however, the maps became known as frauds that the surveyor's had produced.
New through surveys came into demand,
As the original surveys conveyed an inaccurate description of the land.
The survey and notes were inconsistent and flawed.
Incorrectly, drawn were the townships,
And, the public learning this became appalled.
It became known that thee surveyors had not set foot within the townships—
But, had recorded hearsay on their drawings and note slips.
The surveyors had devised the maps from cozy rooms at Old Fort Saginaw.
The maps and notes claimed that the Saginaw River could not be navigated.
They in their paper work and scrawl had lied.
They had wrote that many a township was filled with wind-falls, stagnant stream, ponds, and marsh—
It was a dismal theme that they wrote about Saginaw,
And, said the land was wet and very harsh,
Mostly filled with wood that was low grade and tamarack marsh.
When the false plats were discovered—new surveyor's were sent.
Also, many additional first time maps were also ordered,
And, into the actual woods a group of new surveyors went.
The new surveys were done by 1835.
The new maps and notes conveyed,
That logging, farming, and settling would thrive.
The new plats were widely put on display.
Now the world knew the Saginaw's were bountiful in every way.
Notes showed that land of Tuscola was exceptionally timbered with fertile soil.
The surveys showed that quality timber and valuable farmlands filled the land.
Now the Saginaw's seem fit to meet the woodman's toil.
Within two years, Michigan entered statehood.
I was becoming the tale that Tuscola and Saginaw had the best of land.
The Saginaw's were now advertised as the ultimate pinewood.
Here was the best of Michigan's hill and dale.
Some of the best lands of Michigan and the Saginaw's were now up for sale.
In the mid-1830’s, the United States made money for investment easily available,
Which greatly aided the development of Michigan.
Money for purchasing and investing in land became widely accessible.
New federal legislations made speculating a profitable venture particularly in Michigan.
Land sold many times over as demand was rising.
Michigan woodlands became astir,
As purchasing pinelands became an exceptional investment for one’s career.
The Saginaw forests were now available to meet the woodsman's axe.
However, mill technology was now yet advanced to the point needed.
It would yet take the development of new milling methods for the logging era to reach a climax.
Also, the many of the rivers were naturally dammed.
The Cass River had one large point that was severely jammed.
The Cass River would be won,
When the removal of the drift-wood was done.
The Saginaw River shores were filled with beach, oak, ash, and basswood,
And, also was butternut, hickory, and black walnut.
By 1835, the Cass River's treasures were understood.
The land contained much more then the Indian's wigwam or hut.
The river held vast quantities cork pine with a grain that was yellow or flush.
Enormous timber lined the river,
Which was bursting with woodland life that was full and lush.
Enormous emerald trees lined the land near the Cass River.
.The land was filled with trees called fir.
Within a few years, down the stream would flow and tumble cork pine timber,
Huge, gigantic, logs . . . that floated easily.
Each spring the logs would go on to the mills of Saginaw City.
The logs would float rolling, spinning down.
The trees of renown, onward would flow.
The cork pine of the Cass River would be talked about in every Mid-west town.
Cork pine, also called pumpkin pine, was soft, clear, light wood that worked well—
With it as a building material, our country's growth would excel.
The Cass River luster, the lofty white pine . . . beyond the dam.
Many superlatives may be mustered to define its quality.
The wood built many a city.
With the removal of the jetsam Cass River dam,
The wealth of the Cass would be noted on many a telegram.
In the Saginaw's in the 1820’s and 30's, fur traders had harvested nearly the last pelt—
Westward many went as the end of the fur trade was deeply felt.
In the 1830's, the gazetteers advertised Michigan’s "new" potential as it neared statehood.
The arrival of the loggers and pioneers was plainly understood,
Soon to market would come Michigan's superiority wood.
However, it was not until the early-1840s,
That Edmond Perry would remove the Cass River dam and free it for navigation.
Only then would logs run down the river with ease.
Each spring to Saginaw would go large rafts of logs and lumber for construction.
In the mid-30's, the William's Mill, Saginaw's first mill, was built.
The1820s and 1930's were a time for road building, surveying, and speculating.
The 1840s, were a time of hard work and the removal of dams as the economy was down swung and atilt.
In the 1850's, with a better economy and mill technology, timber with the crack of the axe was falling,
And, down the Cass River rafts of logs were running.
The pit saw was not adequate for Saginaw.
In the 1830's, millers
mostly used hand pit saws to cut logs they got out of the woods.
With hand-operated pit saws, sawyers worked above and below a log to cut it into mill goods.
With a great deal of effort, up and down they pushed and pulled the saw blade.
Sawing wood in this manner went on very slowly.
In cutting lumber, hooking the saw blade to a turning water mill was found to be a great aid.
A mill with a water wheel supplied much more power to the saw.
Also, hauling the lumber goods to other sites was very costly.
A steam engine would be used in the first mill in Saginaw.
The pit saw was not effective for a mill.
It was only efficient for consumer's who lived near the sawmill.
Lumber cut this way was not profitable for entrepreneurs.
In the early years, the rise of the mill industry in Saginaw,
Was linked to Ephraim and Gardner Williams who were fur traders.
They initially worked for the American Fur Company in Saginaw.
They had obtained knowledge of the land and also obtained money as fur traders.
With money in the bank and knowledge of the area, the Williams' Brothers erected Saginaw's first mill in 1836.
Oliver Williams, their father, was also a resident of Saginaw.
When describing the skills of the family, one would say they had a wonderful mix.
With help from financier Norman Little, their Uncle Harvey Williams built the first sawmill in Saginaw.
In Detroit, Harvey Williams was an iron forge owner.
In 1834, as a speculator, he came to Saginaw and Mid-Michigan,
It was his goal to exploit the Saginaw woods and the local timber.
Harvey had a dazzling plan to build the first steam mill in Michigan.
Harvey quickly acquired the steam engine from “Walk in the Water” Lake Erie's first Steam boat.
Rebuilding it in Detroit, he shipped it to Saginaw.
Around the Thumb of Michigan in a sailboat it would float.
The William's brother's built their mill on the east side of Saginaw.
In 1836, the economy was good.
It was the William's family ambition to cut from the Tittabawasse wood.
To a pit saw, Harvey connected the steam engine.
When done he watched it sputter and spin.
The William's Mill on Saginaw's east bank whined, sputtered, and sawed.
Opposite Old Fort Saginaw, it twirled and clanked.
In 12 hours of daylight, the mill yielded 2,000 feet of lumber slowly and clumsily.
With modification the steam engine, also, powered a gristmill and ground Indian corn, quickly.
Internal improvements in 1835 included the upgrading Saginaw Road.
Saginaw Road was expanded 200 feet wide.
The traffic to Saginaw from Detroit, Pontiac, and Flint and locally began to thrive.
Make of dirt it could not yet be considered a good road.
One needed a heavy wagon to travel over it.
The road was roughly constructed.
However, people on horseback could quickly travel over it.
From Detroit to Pontiac it progressed easily.
Above Pontiac, it works its way to the Village of Flint and onward drudgedly.
The only road between Detroit and Saginaw, it would support a sturdy wagon.
Above Flint Rapids, it lost its strength—Above the rapids was a boggy spell that was much worked on.
Flint was home to early fur trader Jacob Smith.
Who after the War of 1812 settle there in a log cabin.
A friend to Native People, Jacob was a blacksmith.
At the Flint Rapids, Jacob Smith ran a mill, ferry, and inn.
Jacob Smith also operated a trading post that served his Native kin.
Internal improvements in Saginaw and Flint,
Aided the development of this local Michigan neighborhood.
Opportunity began to shine with a rainbow tint.
Just before Michigan entered statehood,
In 1826, Saginaw Road—which followed the Old Indian Trail,
In 1826, it was surveyed as a 100 foot wide road.
Enthusiasm for improving the road, however, would pale.
In 1833, when money was again available, Saginaw Road was widened above Flint,
Which was by then John Todd's abode.
By 1834, Saginaw Road was extended 5 miles north of Flint, where the swamps were filled with dyke.
The cost was $100 after the work was completed.
.....
Later, Saginaw Road became the Detroit and Saginaw Turnpike.
It brought to the region lumberman, logger, and settler.
It was the Old Trail of the Native American,
And, his next of kin the fur trader.
The best way to travel in early Michigan.
Was the path made by the Native American.
The members of the Williams family were fur traders, blacksmiths, and lumbermen, later.
They originally obtained logs from the Tittabawasse River,
Because the float sum dams presented a problem on the Cass River.
They knew, however, that the Cass River contained the best quality timber or wood.
They would have gone to the Cass if they could.
The woods about Saginaw were now a astir,
As white pine logs same down the Tittabawasse River.
Plats or surveys of the Cass River—Tuscola
were complete in 1835.
Speculators used the plats and notes as a formula that drew them to the best land that sold per acre at $1.25.
The most premium and valuable lands were those that were most accessible and were pine timbered—
The bests of tracts were the lots near the main rivers,
Lots with huge, tall, clear pine that could easily be harvested and transported.
These were also tracts where a town might be developed.
Onward the speculators went to Saginaw's rivers.
Valued tracts were pinelands within 1 mile of the river.
These were the most prized of the woodlands.
Timber here could dragged, stacked, and in the spring rolled into the river.
In 1835, when the surveying was done, purchasing commenced for the woodlands.
Many large beautiful tracts were sold or gone, quickly.
However, logging did not commence as the Cass River as the driftwood dams needed removal.
The Cass Rive dam would only be clear upon state financing and approval,
Then, the timber wealth of the Cass would move down the river rapidly.
From 1835-36, the economy in the United States and Michigan was booming.
In 1837, Michigan became a state.
As people came to Michigan, money and credit were expanding and flowing,
The opportunities in Michigan were rated first rate.
President Andrew Jackson had taken funds from the Federal Bank and deposited the in state an private banks.
Michigan's development was greatly effected,
As money into the new projects were invested.
Money became easily available to which many debtors gave great thanks.
In his move, President Jackson inflated money,
And, the United State Government was soon out of debt.
Jackson had made money cheap to relieve the federal debt.
The result was a great effect on the economy.
Money was cheap, plentiful, and obtained, easily,
But, eventually the economy entered a depression,
That was caused by inflation.
Cheap money that was easily acquired caused prices to rise and inflate,
Just as Michigan was becoming a state.
Debts eventually became due.
And, the people who could afford to pay the debts were few.
The debt of the United State was essentially transferred to the private sector.
As people paid off their debts with cheaper and cheaper money,
Prices rose as the speculator borrow larger sums of money, recklessly.
The debt of the private sector grew larger and larger.
The United States land offices also accepted “Wildcat Bank Notes” from banks that were private.
As much as he could, the speculator borrowed.
Many bought pineland as a bet.
As debts soon became due and needed to be settled, bankruptcy for many was ahead.
Many timber investors came to Michigan from New York, Vermont, and Maine,
Along with a actual settlers, Charles Merrill also came Michigan from Maine.
After investing in pineland near Port Huron,
Merrill later purchased land in the Tuscola, Michigan.
In the 1830's, large boat loads of people and goods moved along the Erie Canal.
They were often destined for Michigan.
People coming to Detroit and Saginaw used the Erie Canal.
In 1835, Douglas Houghton was the supervisor of the surveys on the Cass River.
In exchange for a fee, he acquired large tracts of land.
Houghton acquired 2,555 acres on a creek that was named for him, which ran into the river,
Which was mostly timberland.
The name of the Houghton Creek was later changed to Evergreen.
Many tracts of land along the lower reaches of the Cass River,
Became the scene for pine or land lookers who often came in the fall.
Tracts below the driftwood dam were then the best of all.
During the mid-1830’s, everyone wanted good land.
It was traded as good as money.
In Michigan, Detroit had the only United States Office for selling land.
In 1836, the federal government opened another office in Flint.
The buying, selling, and registering of the local land was zealously done in Flint,
Sales and traffic to Flint grew quickly,
Sales including many a cork pine stand.
In 1835, the United States had completed the plats and notes for the Cass River—
The first sales of land in Tuscola was on the 20th of October.
At the Detroit and later Flint Office, tracts of land "sold" were marked with an “S”.
Looking out land with maps and notes was much like a game of chess.
Plat notes written by the surveyor listed types of trees, quality of the soil, wetness, and distances.
The notes were the best source of information for a land looker.
Use of the plats and notes improved one's chances.
The notes made the best use of the buyers finances.
A buyers often hired a looker to find land.
Once the looker reviewed the maps and notes,
He hiked or rode by horseback to a desired pine stand.
He wanted to confirm his hopes.
If it was suitable, the pine looker would then go back to Flint.
The buyer would make the purchase by draft, bank note, silver, or gold.
After registering the purchase in Flint the transaction would be recorded in Washington D. C. as sold.
Before 1833, Presidents of the United States signed land patents.
No President signed a land patient for Tuscola.
After 1833, the President's Secretary signed patents.
Presidentially signed patients are found mostly for land in Saginaw.
By the mid-1830's, Michigan was over run with speculators,
Who hoped to resell the land in a short time.
The James McCormick home in Flint was then filled with investors,
Who slept on field or straw beds hoping to buy land the was prime.
As time went on, the price of land and money was on an upward climb.
Seculators slept on straw field beds next a stone fireplace,
Many hoping to acquired tracts along the Cass and Tittabawassee.
Buying and selling went on at a feverish pace.
It turned into a short land spree.
Near Houghton Creek, Gardner and Ephraim Williams purchased excellent tracts.
The tracts were located opposite the creek on the north side of the Cass River.
Later, they sold the tracts to the American Fur Company who was their former employer.
A quick turn over of money was often the design.
Everything for a while seemed great and fine.
Everyone was buying tracts of cork pine.
The landscape around and about Houghton Creek,
Was dense with huge, cork pine . . . trees that were magnificent.
Each pine had a giant, lofty peak,
That would hold the visitor's minds in wonderment,
Ten miles down the Cass River was the Indian reservation.
Just above the reservation was the dam of driftwood,
Which would be Saginaw and Tuscola's point of separation.
Packed with ancient frames of dead wood,
The dam was a dividing point and had for ages firmly stood.
The float wood had to be removed.
It was a block to prosperity.
Many other points in the river also needed to be cleared.
But, the Tuscola Dam was the major lock on any opportunity.
Vast pinelands laid above the float wood dam.
Above the dam, the timber was spread along gravel ridges wide and narrow,
That fell to the streams and river where the bass, sturgeon, walleye, and pike swam.
In Tuscola, between 1835/37, Abel Millington, Douglas Houghton, and James Fraser purchased land,
The tracts were located on the north side of the Cass River just above the dam wreckage;
Daniel Haynes; Russell Hurd; Dennis Harrison, and Seth Huston also purchased considerable land.
James Bettner, Zenas Bassett, William and Charles Carroll also purchased acreage,
That was located on the south side of the Cass River just below the drift wood jam.
South of the Cass River on Perry Creek, William Chapin was a large land owner.
Noah Graves, John Richardson, and Alfred Tivy were above the dam.
Also, purchases were made on the side of the Cass River,
By Theodore Romeyn, Amos Chaffee, and Martin and William Miller.
Bettner, Bassett, and the Carroll's had a distinct advantage.
Their properties laid on Dead Creek whose outlet or mouth was below Tuscola Dam.
The stream would allow them to bypassed the wreckage.
Their logs were "gotten out" earlier.
The sales were recorded at the Flint Federal Land Office with coin or bill.
Before 1837, all types of money were acceptable.
Just above Tuscola Dam, Hurd and Harrison would build Tuscola's first sawmill,
It was an uncomplicated building that included a bed and table.
The story of the mill has nearly became a fable.
Story about Carroll's.
And, Bridgeport.
A bank note from Washtenaw
Bank notes helped found Saginaw!
Michigan entered statehood
in 1837, which was the year
that ended land speculation.
“The Panic of 1837” greatly effected the Saginaw's and Michigan.
Previously, everyone had been interested in land ownership.
The year 1837 was the day after a New Year’s Party.
The country would plunge into a depression under Washington's and nation’s leadership,
Which made money easy to get and expanded the economy.
The year 1837 led a trail to insolvency.
The Native treaties were signed, and the surveying of Michigan was over.
Almost everyone had speculated.
Eventually, prices were too high and no one could find a buyer.
The leveraged speculator couldn’t hold on to their holdings for very long.
They bought on credit, and the notes became due.
Many fell into arrears headlong.
The pinelands they could not be harvested as hew as financial portfolios came up for review.
The number of bankruptcies brought a downturn in the economy,
And,speculation came to a halt in 1837.
Recession set in, which seriously effected the country,
Which set into delay the logging of the Cass River by lumbermen.
The euphoria of cheap, easy money had plunged the country's spirit into a depression.
Workman who were employed at high wages lost jobs and security,
As the nation went into a cavernous recession.
An new era had begun of melancholy.
Bank notes and paper money once as good as gold,
Were soon considered worthless.
Now not at any price could they be sold.
Banks that had issued that type of money became gold-less, silverless, and coin-less,
Many banks were insolvent and over extended.
In the Saginaw’s and the surrounding area wood shingles became the hard currency to which people turned.
During the depression, many of Saginaw's early inhabitants were devastated.
Many of it's speculators were ruined.
People "new" to Saginaw went “out the backdoor”.
To escape the woodland, they traveled southward along Saginaw Trail.
The Saginaw's they would deplore,
As their loses were a sad tale.
Saginaw City became nearly desolate.
The development of the region stood at a standstill by 1838.
For many everything was gone.
For many hard work and desperation was their song.
The fall of the country into an economic crash,
The remoteness of the Saginaw Mill,
The lack of secondary roads, the lack of gold and silver cash,
And, the lack of demand lumber from any mill,
Put the interests of logging at bay.
For at 10 long years the situation would stay that way.
A few trappers, hunters, and speculators would remained in Saginaw,
But the cost of harvesting the timber no one could defray.
Nearly everyone left Saginaw.
In 1846/47 the Cass River would begin its hay-day,
Which would be started by Curtis Emerson.
By selling liquor in Detroit, he would make it through the depression.
His financial skills and workman's knowledge the cost would pay.
But just after 1837, money was in short supply and not to be extended.
People would have to wait 10 years to see prosperity.
The economy caused pine timber not to be harvested.
Another factor that limited mill work was technology:
The William's Mill needed updating with innovative machinery.
By the 1840's, the William’s Mill yet operated by pitsaw.
It could not hanle large quantities of timber,
That were available in the region of Saginaw.
In the early 1840's, Saginaw mill technology was slow and dawdled.
Saginaw was not then a major milling and exporting center.
Also, Saginaw was not financially and politically organized.
Another obstacle were the dam in the Cass River.
Hard work needed to be done to make things better.
Tuscola's
first loggers came in 1835 from Niagara, New York, to Michigan.
Noah Beach, William Miller, Ashahel Colt, Dennis Harrison. and Nathan Baker,
Were the members of the group that came that winter.
The leader of the group was Harrison,
Who was a carpenter and builder very familiar with the qualities of wood,
Particularly pine timber.
Michigan had not yet entered statehood.
After arriving in Detroit, they went to the Kalamazoo River.
Finding nothing suitable, Harrison and Beach hiked through the forest to the Saginaw River.
At Bridgeport on the Cass River lived a brother-in-law of Beach,
Who worked for the Northern Fur Company.
The best tracts of timber were just a few miles out of their reach.
To the Bend in the River Cass headed the small party.
Reaching Saginaw, the tramped seven miles up the Cass River.
They followed the Saginaw Trail,
And, stopped at the point where the road crossed the river.
They were in hopes of a promising tale.
They want eventually to find an excellent sale.
Noah Beach upon arriving at the the Cass River's Great Bend,
Decided to settle, there.
Harrison continued hiking several more miles up beyond the bend.
Up past the Old Reservation of Otusson, to find a place elsewhere.
Above the driftwood dam, he found an excellent mill creek,
And, and find and of pine timber.
The place was below Millington Creek,
Along the Cass River.
Here Harrison determined to develop a milling center.
The creek he selected for the mill,
Would latter be called Perry's Creek.
It was an excellent site for a water saw mill.
At this spot, he determined a living he would eke.
Creek water fall from a nearby ridge,
And, would provide sufficient power.
Here also over the Cass River could be built a bridge.
The pinelands were superior,
And, the mill site of a high caliber.
On October 24, 1835,
Harrison purchased a pine tract above the dam.
Harrison was driven by considerable self-drive.
And, wrote up his plans for the site in a mental diagram.
This was the first sale of land for improvement in Tuscola County.
Tuscola County had not yet been formed,
So, the tract was registered under Saginaw County.
The land sale was recorded,
And, next a town was planned.
.Harrison returned to Lewiston, New York, where he formed an investment company.
In Lewiston, Ebenezer Perry and Russell L. Hurd agreed to the enterprise.
An investment of $450 would arise,
The Pioneering Company.
It was their plan to built a sawmill and start a town.
The pine from the surrounding forest,
They wanted to cut down,
And, as people entered the area, they would sell them lumber that was the best.
The money from sales they would reinvest.
They though as people came in, the lumber would quickly be sold,
And, the area would soon be settled.
They hoped that as the land was cleared,
As farmland, it would quickly be sold.
They had not planned an outside market for the lumber,
Such was as Saginaw City.
Because any wood that was manufactured into lumber.
Would have to be portaged at a high cost, certainly,
Over, the driftwood dam in the river.
If the dam were gone, their plans would greatly prosper.
The Pioneering Company engaged,
Chandler Haddock, Charles Haynes, and Edwin Ellis to fitting out and build a mill.
They would also do other work as much required.
Their work is remembered still.
They home in the beginning of December with oxen and covered wagon.
They headed for the Tuscola and the Cass River.
Well supplied were they with necessary provision.
They headed out for the land of pine wood fir.
They headed out to a land that was indeed much more wilder.
On a cold night in mid-February,
They reached their destination,
A bit weary.
Everywhere they looked was an almost impenetrable without habitation.
It was an unbroken forest with Flint, the nearest village,
Twenty miles away.
The next morning, they arose with courage they're work to engage.
Their spirit increased from day to day.
The building of Tuscola's first mill was on its way.
The Flint Post Office was 10 miles away to the south.
There was little communication.
The first thing they did was to secure food for the oxen.
They drew hay from the forest a distance of 10 miles, which they located by word of mouth..
It was hard work and then came the construction of lodging.
Russell L. Hurd was with the group.
They built a shelter from the cold, which around them was raging.
The log cabin was 12 by 20 feet and allowed them to rest and recoup.
It was a good winter cabin for the small troup.
These four were the pioneers of Tuscola.
Four years later a school house was built.
Ebenezer W. Davis was considered the first permanent settler of the area.
His name would be on many a local historical quilt.
Davis was an avid hunter.
By September 1837, Dennis Harrison began to movement with his family to the new settlement.
After they left Lewiston, they were in Detroit a week later.
Detroit was then a muddy little village that was on the Saginaw assent.
Not a single dry walk was then found in the town, which was very evident.
In Detroit, they stayed with a teacher from their home town, Lewiston.
Who conducted a hotel.
In Detroit, they rested for a short spell,
Then onward they went, again.
They came upon a light wagon, which they hailed.
The driver could only five them a short ride because of the road's condition,
And, then to walking they were again compelled.
Finally, beyond Flint, they reached Pine Run,
Where they passed the night in contemplation..
In Pine Run, they stayed with Russell Hurd who also had just settled.
From pine Run, they had 12 miles to go through a wild forest.
Following a section line, at the Tuscola cabin they finally arrived.
They finished their journey at sunset and took a good rest.
Ebenezer W. Perry was a partner.
Perry had guided the Harrison's to the Tuscola mill that day and stayed the night.
At the Tuscola cabin near the Cass River.
Perry was very polite,
And, to the newly arriving settlers, he was a welcome sight.
Ebenezer W. Davis arrived in June 1836.
Ebenezer W. Perry had arrived about the same time.
Soon arrived a number of people of a mix.
Dennis Harrison, Jarvis Freeman, and Lovira Hart came in due time.
John Miller settled in 1839, and 5 years came others arrived.
Because it served only the local community,
At the mill, very little lumber was fabricated.
Only enough, and a bit more, was cut for the then isolated community.
The floatwood dam so filled the Cass Rivers down the river lumber could not be transported.
Over the floatwood dam, Indian canoes had been drawn and a path had formed.
Trees 4 to 8 inches in diameter grew upon the barrier.
Six weeks after Dennis Harrison and his family arrived,
A steamboat having their household goods reached the Saginaw River.
Upon the arrival a canon was discharged
Which was heard within 30 miles.
It announced the ship's disembarkment.
At Tuscola Village, 2 men and 3 boys then left for Saginaw in 2 files.
After portaging the dam, down the Cass River in 2 dugouts they went.
For goods they were sent.
.
Below Tuscola Village the river was full of float timber.
Dugouts were drawn around the obstruction.
Goods were carried, rolled, or dragged over the barrier.
To local people the dam created many an objection.
In reality only the last 3 miles to Saginaw was perfectly clear.
A 50 feet boat could carry goods to that point.
Three miles up the Cass River.
The dugouts rowed down stream passed the Great Bend to the meeting point..
It was just above the place called Green Point.
the goods to the two scows.
At the last obstruction, the three boys waited.
They tended the and looked after the dugouts.
They spent that November night alone, but soon wolves approached.
Fortunately the 2 men then arrived at the dugouts.
They load the crude vessels with food and goods that were much in need.
With poles and oars, they started up the Cass River in the morning.
In 1 day, they made 5 miles, at a good speed.
They slept under a large elm that evening.
After 3 hours, a heavy clap of thunder reported that a storm was beginning.
They had expected to reach home by night.
They had no food with the exception of a few potatoes.
They had dug them from a patch of an unknown owner near their camp site.
Tired and hungry, they arrived home with soaked clothes.
In the following days, with an axe and earnest blows,
They made a useful clearing and soon a home was established.
They cut and burned the heavy forest so that the farmland would expose.
They also hunted,
And, trapped.
In the woods, there was plenty of game such as elk, moose, bear, wolves, and wild cats.
Fishers or black cat, some wild turkeys, and along the river otters, minks, and musk rats
There were plenty of raccoons.
There was opportunity to cut hay on the old fields cleared by the Indians.
Hay was also available in the open prairies.
The streams and river were full of catfish,
Rock and green bass, pickerel pike, and sturgeon.
They often speared the fish.
In one night, they speared 25 sturgeon.
In 1837, a dozen, or so, people obtained land in Tuscola.
All were at the lower end of the river near Millington Creek,
And, the new Village of Tuscola..
Just below Millington Creek was the mill on Perry's Creek.
Shingles, beams, and boards, were made at the mill.
Which supplied an emergent local need;
Soon, Ebenezer Perry purchased the right to the mill.
Perry wanted to succeed.
The piles of lumber grew around his mill.
To dislodge the dam below Tuscola Village, it seemed only Perry had the means and will.
Perry began to use lumber wagon's to go around, the massive, driftwood dams.
With the removed of the dam, Perry would have more opportunities.
The Cass River needed to be cleared of the dams.
When done, Perry would be able to market his lumber in Saginaw and Lower Saginaw Cities.
There was incentive:
The lumber at Perry’s Mill was the best of quality.
It demanded the highest prices in Saginaw for those who were selective.
With the dam gone, the Cass River could transport lumber economically.
Rafts of logs and lumber could reach Saginaw and Lower Saginaw quickly.
The supply logs from the Cass River was immense,
But, the dam bunged the way.
The cost to breakout the dam would be a great expense.
The State of Michigan finally decided to pay.
The State offered $1,000 to anyone who would remove the wreckage.
This was make the region operate or profitably.
It would also aid the growth of Tuscola and Tuscola Village.
From the obstruction, the river would be free.
It would be done publicly.
The value of a navigable river was great to Tuscola and Perry's Mill,
His workman could work extra hours to clear the dead-wood,
And, people could be hired, cheaply, extra jobs to fill.
The government had money that was clearly understood.
There were jobs in the area of Tuscola Village,
And, to a great extent,
The payment of a good wage.
Meant the enormous river impediment,
Would be broken out and be forever absent.
Along the one hundred twenty mile length of the Cass River, large amounts of wood,
Over the ages had accumulated by troublesome wafts,
But, the foremost obstacle was in the Tuscola Village neighborhood,
Which prevented the transporting of logs and rafts.
The five dams below the mill left by the ages.
Formed a awful foreboding mound
But, created a village and passages.
Below and above the obstruction . . . it was tramped ground,
And, ancient nourishing flora and fauna everywhere did abound.
Best in position to clear the dam was Ebenezer Perry,
To clear the dams of wood—
He salvaged much of the debris for cutting at Perry's Mill to where it was easily to carry.
Though it took months, finally Perry created a canal through a block of driftwood
And, now, through it, he glided rafts of lumber and logs.
The profit he made, itself, paid the expense of the canal.
And, with additional money, he gradually removed the other timbered clogs
This was the starting gun that opened the priceless Cass River arboreal,
"Increase the local productivity" became part of all the common local dialogues.
The Cass River’s vast stores of prized wood.
Was, now, unfasten to large scale logging,
Open was the river, streams, and wood.
Many to the Cass River forests would soon be hiking.
The story of the soaring pumpkin pine that line every Tuscola quay,
Within a few years, was on everyone's lips,
In Chicago, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Detroit, and Albany.
The great scattering pines lay along the Cass River in huge lush strips.
These great pines were plunging into the Cass River and forming log rafts or ships.
With the opening of the Cass River—
Logging began on a scale fabulous,
Now, down, came on the timber—
The first shipment from Perry’s Mill built Saginaw’s Webster House.
Seeing the quality of the joists, beams, and studs people earnestly sought fortune.
The imposing Cass was now opened,
The land of elevated pine, bear, panther, wolf, and raccoon,
It was, at the moment, unwrapped, uncovered.
The grand gate to logging the Cass River was unlocked.
Emerson's Mill
In East Saginaw or Bona Vista. It is legendary, still.
The economy embarked to recover,
People started to invest in equipment,
And, for the Saginaw infrastructure.
The was central to its developement.
By 1845, Cromwell, Barney, and James Fraser,
Built a water-powered sawmill in the Kawkawlin River just in from Saginaw Bay.
In 1846 Cromwell, Hopkins, and Pomeroy at the mouth of the Saginaw River,
Built a steam-powered mill in Lower Saginaw, which operated during the day.
Now, until the soaring forests were spent, logging was here . . . to stay.
Prices for lumber began to rise.
In the 1840’s, demand rose for timber products in the United States,
As Eastern forests were being depleted and becoming minute in size.
The Upper Cass River by 1848,
Had its opening logging camp.
The Cass River, the Saginaw River, and the Great Lakes,
Make it easy to transport logs from a diminutive camp,
Logs could roll down the Cass River to mills in great wakes.
To Chicago, Detroit, and Albany markets Cass River and pine were namesakes.
Saginaw Road, also, now, would supply “the logging settler”,
Who for winter logging and summer farming, they could, now, economically arrive.
As each year passed, costs fell to lop timber,
Milling technology and infrastructure improved, which would cause the area to come alive.
In 1845, James McCormick and Sons erected a second sawmill in Portsmouth.
Which was also called Lower Saginaw.
And, was near the Saginaw Bay and Saginaw River's mouth.
That year, the first load of lumber, was released with local hip and awe.
It was conveyed on the “Conneaut” to Detroit from Saginaw.
From the Upper Cass River, above Perry’s Mill, the leading rafts of logs went down,
In the spring freshnet of 1847.
Destined for Emerson’s Mill in East Saginaw, it was far and wide renown.
Emerson was born in Norwich, Vermont, in 1810.
Familiar with the operation of a mill,
He came to Detroit, Michigan, in 1836 where he made malt liquor.
In July 1847, for $6,000, Curtis Emerson the Old William’s Mill.
Emerson, also, had an interest in the copper and iron mines along Lake Superior.
Emerson was all his life a firm bachelor.
Emerson named the ground around the mill Buena Vista.
In honor of General Taylor’s victory over Santa Anna in 1847,
The name came from the Texan city of Buena Vista.
Much more to come. Work in progress.
There is much here to be written.
A military land warrant was the most used exchange medium
Used to buy pinelands by the lumberman in Michigan's Thumb
Between 1850 and the Panic
of 1857,
Cass River and the Saginaw's plunged into pineland speculation
As a result of Washington and Michigan legislation.
But it ended with the panic of 1857.
During the 1850’s, the foremost pineland of Cass River was purchased.
Along the upper bounds of Perry, Goodwin, and Millington Creeks,
To the southwestern part of Tuscola County
Which included the sizable Sucker and White Creeks.
Which were in southeastern par of the County,
The land sold for many a different fee.
The Swamp Act of 1850
In Tuscola County as other areas of Michigan,
Washington and Michigan laws hastened purchases of pineland.
The laws, also, stimulated settlement in Michigan.
The 1850 Congressional Swamp Act transferred 6,000,000 acres of land.
To the State of Michigan to be sold.
The lands were typified as swampland but often contained pine.
For $1.25 per acre, swampland tracts were sold,
Under this act many deeds individuals and corporation would sign.
It helped the public and private financial bottom line.
Swampland was given to lumberman or logger,
Often for a very small fee.
If they built public roads that could be used to transport logs or lumber.
The lumberman could use these road to skid logs without penality.
The 1850 Swamp Act,
Promoted the sale of pineland,
The 1850 Swamp Act,
Was the first act the encouraged the sales timberland.
Consequent to the act, tracts of pineland by loggers were manned.
Saint Mary’s Falls Ship Canal Company Act--1852
Congress created the Saint Mary's Falls Company.
In 1852, two years later,
Many an unsold government acre,
Was selected by the company,
As part of the the company grant.
In 1855, White Creek, which empties into the Cass River,
Had tracts selected by the company under the grant.
Many of the lands selected had good timber,
And, would be resold to lumberman who would the land clear.
Military Land Grants
An 1852 act made military land warrants assignable.
Which meant that a veteran could sell his or her warrant.
For a lumbermen, buying warrants to purchase land was very profitable,
Many veterans of the War of 1812 sold lumberman their warrant.
The Lumberman was always in search of a war veteran!
Speculators and lumberman wanted to buy land at the lowest cost.
This was often guaranteed by buying a warrant from a veteran.
Purchasing warrens was a way to assure profits would not be lost.
Warrants were usually purchased in the summer before the winter frost.
Much of the best land along the Cass or its tributaries,
Lumberman bought with military land warrants.
Land was purchased with ease
Costs were reduce with warrants,
And, the number a speculator could use was unlimited.
Much of the pineland along the Cass River,
Lumbermen purchased with warrants assigned,
At $1.00 to $0.125 and acre.
This had a large impact on Cass River’s future.
Buying warrants often meant that lumbermen,
Or, his agent had to go out east where most veterans lived.
There they advertised for warrants from former servicemen.
Lumberman David Ward went to Boston where warrants he purchased
James Ketchum who acquired pineland,
Near on the Cass and along Sucker Creek.
Used land warrants to buy the land.
In the mid-1850's, warrant buying found its peak,
And, for lumberman warrants were especially unique.
Graduation Act of 1854
The Graduation Act of 1854 gave land to settlers
For as little as $0.125 per acre.
Before the act, most the arriving settlers,
Purchased land for $1.25 per acre.
Land sold gradually reduced first to $0.75 per acre.
The Graduation Act of 1854 was actual settlement,
And, was used only by an authentic settler.
However, an employee of a winter lumber encampment,
Might use the act because during the summer he or she was a farmer.
Some employees of lumberman would settle land,
But, actually only took the pine off from it.
Then once good for farming, the employee sold the land,
To someone who would actually farm it.
While lumbermen didn’t directly use the Graduation Act,
The person using often was a winter camp worker.
There was an incentive provided by the act,
For the pioneer to farm in the summer,
Then to work in a lumber camp in the winter.
Most pioneers cleared their homestead by logging,
Which was a good way to make extra money.
When their land was logged, they turned to farming.
Working in the lumberman’s log shanty,
They made enough to be property owners.
Winter camp work was the largest source of income
Along the early Cass River for nearly every settler.
On the Cass River, during 1850's, people had more than one income,
People along the Cass River in the 1850's, had less to overcome.
Grants to Rail Roads
In 1856, Congress created additional land acts.
It authorized land grants to many a rail company,
Who proposed to build a rail system and lay tracts.
Michigan gave away nearly 4,000,000, quickly.
Most of it was timber and mineral lands.
The rail system was valuable in Michigan,
Especially, for the northlands.
These grants were not important for local lumberman.
But, the rails would be used to haul lumber for the lumberman.
Road and Bridge Grants
Grants were often given to lumberman,
To build a public road
That cause also be used as a logging road.
This was a very common practice for the lumberman.
James L. Ketchum developed many a road,
Probably with favors from the State of Michigan.
In Wells Township, he built Dayton Road,
He used it to haul logs, which was his initial plan.
Many roads near Centreville, now Caro, he began.
Townsend North, who founded Vassar,
Obtained a grant for 3,000 acres of land,
To build a bridge across the Cass River,
At Bridgeport once known as the Great Bend.
By trade, North was a carpenter.
He used the grant to obtain pineland tracts,
Which were located a couple of miles north of Vassar.
Tuscola's development was aided greatly by these acts.
Between the public and private sector, they were great pacts.
A river hog,
Who down the Cass River,
Pushed many a log.
To mills along the Saginaw River.
In April 1850,
The Senate and House of Michigan enacted,
The Cass River Navigation Company.
It was ceremoniously created.
It should have the capability
To sue and be sued in court,
And, also had the the ability,
To answer and bring complaints in court.
The company received congressional support.
The early Cass River Navigation Company,
Had the right to purchase land along the Cass River,
And, the right to construct dam, canal, slack water, or quay,
Making navigable the Cass River,
And, also, its creeks or streams.
Rights stretched from the mouth of the Cass River,
In it western extremes,
Where the Cass River entered Saginaw River in Saginaw County,
Eastward to the Forks of Cass River and the east line of Tuscola County.
The early Cass River Navigation Company,
Had the right to use, lease, rent, or sell,
Waterpower created by dam, canal, slack water, or quay.
The State of Michigan also would compel,
The company to allow the passage of boat or watercraft,
Along the length of the Cass River,
Including logs that were linked into a raft
Through any canal, lock, or slack water,
On payment of toll set by Michigan's legislature.
Pascal Richardson, Lovia Hart, and Orrin A. Gibbs of Tuscola County,
Were designated as directors of the company,
Along with Loren C. Miles and James Fraser of Saginaw County
Capital of the Cass River Navigation Company
Was set not to exceed $100,000.
These men were required to keep the Cass River clear of waft.
They elected a president from their group of woodland scholars.
Their purpose was to make the Cass River navigable for the log raft,
Scow, or other water craft.
February 1863
The act incorporating the Cass River Navigation Company,
In 1863, was amended by the State of Michigan.
The new directors of the company,
Responsible for Cass River Navigation,
Were Townsend North, who live in Vassar,
Joseph Coleman, and James L. Ketchum, the latter lived in East Saginaw.
Also, appointed was Thomas Foster,
Who may have lived in Centerville in the County of Tuscola.
John H. Richardson and William H. Harrison of the Village of Tuscola,
The Cass River needed to be free of obstacles,
For the logs, wanigans, and scows to navigate.
Many a note,
The surveyor wrote,
Which was by the pine looker,
To find the best stands near the river.
In the 1840’s, 50’s, and even into the 60's,
Speculators competed for valuable pineland property on the Cass River.
Many purchased a number of lots with great trees.
The price under the 1850 Swamp Act was $1.25 per acre.
Shrewd lumbermen often hired pine lookers,
Who located timber for them and estimated the yield.
Walking to the woods, pine lookers,
Acquainted themselves with the terrain and forests in the field.
They were the progenitors,
Of the work of the loggers.
The experienced, adept, pine looker,
Knew the locations of the best pine stands,
Which, at first, were near the Cass River.
Most economical tracts were river or creek strands.
Strips close to the river went first.
Then those along the major creeks were investigated,
Tracts distant from the River were initially considered the worst,
Because the logs on these sections could not easily be moved,
They were the one's last purchased.
Hauling distance to the banking grounds at the river,
Or, a major creek or stream,
Was the most important consideration for the pine looker.
Early operations demanded that the river or a large stream
Be located within a mile of the stand.
Pine lookers, surveyors, and lumberman who charted the Cass River,
Also, knew the best sites for future settlement—the best land.
Many early logging camps developed into towns, later,
Areas that were first located by a pine looker.
A person who looked out pine, L. Marble.
In 1854, was at the head of the Cass River.
His pine look out rates were very reasonable.
Mr. Marble was good at pricing lots on the river.
Lands that were taken for pine yielded,
From 150,00 to 1, 000,000 board foot to 80 acres or a lot.
In 1854, many large pine bodies within two miles of the river, he located.
Cork pine logs sold $5.00 to $8.00 per thousand deliver at the banking spot,
Cass River cork pine timber yielded from ¼ to ½ clear stuff without a knot.
Sapling pine sold from $3.50 to $4.00 per thousand,
And, did not yield a great amount of clear timber,
Sapling pine was located on wet swampland,
And, produced the best common lumber.
The cost to log those lands for labor and supplies,
Was from $1.25 to $2.00 per thousand,
From 40 to 60 miles away, camps drew their supplies.
The most common price for second handed pineland,
Was $6.00 per acre but varied from $2.00 to $30.00 per acre for timberland.
Land was sometimes sold for lower prices by men,
Who had looked out the pineland,
They would quickly reinvest their money, again.
$5.00 per thousand,
Was the going price to saw,
Large quantities of pine timber,
Downriver at the mills in Saginaw.
Water mills on the Cass River charged $4.00 to saw lumber.
With not much custom work being done, there.
In Saginaw, in 1854, 22 steam mills were operating.
And, as many more were under construction,
Day and night the mills were sawing.
Four water mills on the Cass River were competition.
The chance of finding government pineland on the Cass,
By 1854 was not good as in other places.
Because since about 1850, mostly looked out was the Cass.
But, still it was a wilderness.
With many cork pine trees that were priceless.
There had never was a systematic course pursued,
In looking out the pines of the Cass.
For that reason, it was gone over often, and reviewed.
By 1854, virgin pineland to be bought was at the forks of the Upper Cass.
The going cost to ship lumber,
From Saginaw to Albany was $7.00.
Vessels on ports on Lake Huron shipped lumber,
To Detroit, Milwaukee, and Chicago at $3.00.
Those were the prices for the lumber dealer.
The price for a skilled pine looker.
Who knew the woods was from $3.00 to $6.00 per day;
Lumbermen might buy lots at $10.00 to $30.00 from the pine looker.
In 1854, it was a common way,
For the pine looker to take an interest in the land.
For locating good tracts, the pine looker,
Was given 1/4 to 1/3 of the first rate land.
Pine lookers backpacked and were 10 days from settlement,
Maps or plats were sold for $1.00 by the government.
So, many people were looking out land,
It was not a good idea to let land lag any length of time.
In the early 1850’s, military warrants purchased much pineland,
Usually, 80 acres at a time.
Government swampland was just coming into market.
And, sold in 1854 at $0.75 an acre.
The lands on the Cass River were on market.
In the summer of 1854, put at auction at $0.75 per acre.
Some of the swamp lands were very rich with pine—perfect for the logger.
A lumber camp in the Township of Millington
Down Goodwin Creek floats of logs would go,
And, down the creek called Millington.
It was a great spring time show.
After the first shipment of Cass River pine,
From Emerson’s East Saginaw Mill in 1848,
The accounting books of mill had a great bottom line.
Nothing was close to, or equate,
The pine of the Cass River,
After many a grand river drive,
Down streams to the river,
The lumbering trade was fantastic in 1855,
The woods of the Cass River were then alive.
The logging of the Cass River
In the 1850's, reached an extent far beyond dreams
Those not acquainted with the Cass River.
And, its wonderful imposing streams.
Felt the vast pine forests would last forever.
The luxurious forests that lined many a slope
Along that waved in majestic grandeur.
In the 1850's logging went on on a respected scope.
I harbored many a buoyant hope.
The Cass River’s pinelands,
Only slightly felt the invasion of the woodman’s axe.
In 1855, many thousands acres of acres of pineland,
Had not been touched by the axe
Each year after 1847, lumbermen extended the operation,
Inward from the banks of the Cass River—
It was the widely felt expectation,
That there would be no scarcity of white pine timber.
As loggers continued to prepare for the future.
In 1855, numerous substantial sawmills were built,
On the banks of the Saginaw River,
The enthusiasm for logging would not wilt.
New larger mills pushed the drive for the pine timber,
And, bigger, more efficient saw mills,
Lumberman planned for the future.
The Cass River itself, also, had smaller mills.
Superb was the pine the lumbermen took from the Cass River,
Which often was a mile or two from the banks of the river.
Much was untouched within that distance—
And, beyond were vast recesses of indispensable timber.
The lumberman would continue to harvest in persistence
Bringing in success, year after year.
At the start of winter season of 1854
A lumberman would secured teams of oxen, provisions,
And, people for the winter operations.
Expeditions were fitted out from one of the three towns on the River Saginaw—
Old Saginaw City, East Saginaw,
And, Bay Town or Lower Saginaw—
Small burgeoning hamlets along the Cass River,
Such as Heart’s and Vassar were, also, storing up supplies of their own in the woodland.
Shanty boys and teamster,
Under the guidance of someone experience in the woods, called the boss of the woods,
Pressed to the pinelands and built shanties or camps,
In the immediate vicinity of the timber—
Usually within a mile or two of the banks,
Of the Cass River,
Or, a tributary of the river.
The major streams or creeks,
that emptied into the grand old Cass River,
Were the Perry, Millington, Goodwin, Houghton or Evergreen, Sucker, and White Creeks.
was best if the snow was not too deep during winter weather,
But, good, enough, for sledding and
snaking out logs.
Shanty boys with axes who were called
choppers cut down the cork pine tree.
And, buckers sawed the fallen timber
up into suitable length logs,
Skidders drew the logs to the skid
way near a riparian bank or quay.
There the logs were piled tilled the spring floods when the skid way was broken free.
At the skid way, scalers measured the
log,
And, stamped the owner’s name or brand,
Into the end of the log.
That was the law of the land.
As the spring rains came and a flood
took over the stream,
At the skid way, key logs were broken
loose,
Which caused the pile of logs to roll
into the stream.
There the logs down the stream would
sluice.
Sometimes a dam would be used for flooding
to induce.
When the logs reached the Cass River
The were formed up into rafts by river
hogs,
They fastened the logs with ropes to
keep them together.
Onward to the sawmills on the Cass
and Saginaw Rivers, flowed the logs.
Other rivers in Michigan,
Use chains to tie together log rafts,
The use of ropes was done only by the
Cass River lumberman.
That was the type of craftl,
That floated down the Cass River in
the spring . . . the log raft.
Many a derivative stream,
Along the Cass River such as Goodwin
and Sucker Creek,
Used dams that would open a seam,
To controlled the flow of water and
keep the water at a peak
Sufficient enough to drive a log.
Down river where the Cass River met
the Saginaw River,
Over was the work of the skillful river
hog,
Here at the mouth of the Cass River,
Sorters conducted into booms and pens
the logs,
And, then to the mills of Saginaw they
would slowly make their way or slog.
At the mill the logs were drawn up,
Into the sawmill by oxen and machinery,
And, then they were sawed up,
Into the many types of lumber, quickly.
In the fall of 1855, the Cass River winter
camp,
Average sixteen people and six teams,
To the lumber camp,
In the fall, they would set out for the river
and its streams.
To many it was a time to fulfill their dreams.
.
In 1855, each camp required on average,
Fourteen barrels of flour and 12 barrels
of pork—
There were about thirty camps if one
took an average,
Along the Cass River and some worked
as far up as the river’ fork.
The bill for hay for each camp,
For fifteen tons was $15.00,
Which was brought in over a long hike
or tramp.
Shanty-boys made per month about $17.00.
And, teams with teamsters made $80.00
to $85.00.
During the spring, the driving of the
logs ,
Was most costly with river hogs making
per day as much as $3.00.
A wanigan or floating office, storeroom,
and kitchen followed the floating logs,
And, traveled down the river.
The early rafting operation,
On the Cass River, initially
Was under the direction,
Of the Cass River Navigation Company.
Which had control the flow of the river,
judiciously.
During the summer season, mills were
hard at work.
Depending on experience workers in the mills received
per day $1.00 to $2.00.
The job had is misgivings and occasionally quirk.
In 1855, there was an almost unlimited demand for Cass River timber,
Which was rated as the best in the markets of Albany,
Buffalo, Cleveland, and Chicago.
It was sold very quickly.
The greatest portion of lumber went to Chicago.
And, often off on a lumber sloop, Cass River cork pine would first go.
The lumber products of the local mills,
On the grand old Cass River,
Such as Hubinger’s, Perry’s, North’s,
and Heart’s mills,
Initially were rafted down the Cass
River,
To the Saginaw River to Lower Saginaw—now
Bay City,
Where the lumber was shipped on from
there.
Later a railroad would connect the
mills with Saginaw and Bay City.
That was the lumber industry in 1855,
The industry was thriving and very
much alive.
The Tuscola County Mills
Cass River—1855
Perry’s Mill
In the Village of Tuscola, Perry’s
Mill from April 1 to December 1, 1855,
A little over four months, cut 400,000
feet,
On lumber in 1855,
The mill also produced lathe . . .
100,000 feet.
The mill employed three people in 1855.
Watrous Mill
Located in Watrousville,
The mill cut 700,00 feet,
Under the direction of Aaron Watrous,
And, used one upright saw and an edger.
It could saw 5,000 feet,
Of lumber,
In twelve hours.
It employed four people.
Heart’s Mill
Heart’s mill [at Wahjamega] cut 1,000,000
feet with 2 saws and 6 people.
Edmund & North Mill
Located in Vassar, the Edmund & North
Mill cut 1,500,00 feet with 3 saws and 10 people.
It had the highest production of the Cass River Mills.
Richardson’s Mill
The second mill in the Village of Tuscola,
Richardson’s Mill cut 1,100,00 feet with 3 saws and 10 people.
Frankenmuth Mill
The Frankenmuth Mill, also called Hoovener’s, or Hubinger’s, used 1 saw and 4 people to cut 500,00 feet of lumber
In Indianfields Township many of the Roads,
Above are both Lumber and Commons Roads,
February 12, 1855
Early improvements along the Cass River,
Included the construction of roads,
Which were used for hauling logs and lumber.
Coupled with the enactment of the Graduation Act of 1854, these roads,
Also, brought in settlers who purchased land under the Graduation Act.
An appropriation for cutting a road from Watrousville to Lower Saginaw in Bay County,
Was provided by the State of Michigan by an 1855 road act.
Two thousand acres of internal improvement land situate in Tuscola County,
Were appropriated for building the road, entirely.
The 1855 road act appointed a commissioner.
He selected lands to be sold.
Under the appropriation, the lands would be reserved the State Land Commissioner,
And, be quickly sold.
The sale of the lands brought in about $2,000,
To be used for the road construction.
Estimated at a price per acre of $1.00.
With the appropriation
Tuscola’s first major road project was in its creation.
The Vassar and Lower Saginaw Road was let out in 1856.
Col. H. Raymond was the Special Commissioner.
In Vassar, he let out the chopping and clearing of four miles of if in September 1856.
J. M. Edmonds the Special commissioner,
For the Watrousville and Lower Saginaw Road,
Was, also, in Vassar at the same time. A lumberman or logger,
He let out the chopping and clearing of four miles of the road,
Also, called the Watrousville Road.
Vassar and Lower Saginaw Road,
Extended from the junction,
With both of the roads,
Both roads were concurrently under constuction.
The opening of these roads
Greatly increased the growth and prosperity.
Of the region and allow the passage of heavy wagonloads.
And at the same time advanced the interest of Tuscola County,
And, furnishing an additional outlet to market for the vacinity.
In 1856, there was much growth in the population of Watrousville.
It was the time the Watrousville and Lower Saginaw Road was opened,
The old road went from the town of Watrousville.
Over twenty-three miles and striking the Saginaw River in Portsmouth it ended.
From Watrousville wagon teams were hauling timber,
To the quay side town of Portsmouth,
At the rate of one thousand board feet per load of lumber,
From the pine forests of Tuscola to the south.
An increase in the lumbering trade and settlement it would allowth.
February
16, 1857
It was enacted in February 1857,
That two people of Tuscola County be appointed road commissioner,
Of Tuscola County’s town of Vassar . . . J. M. Baldwin,
And, Benjamin A Wood of Watrousville, and, also, James W. Sanborn of St. Clair County was also a commissioner.
The act establishing a road
Between Port Huron, Vassar, and Watrousville.
Sometimes called the Saginaw Road.
Payment would come from a non-resident highway tax, to fill the till,
Which was collected for five more years, still.
In 1857, the legislature of the State of Michigan,
Also, authorized the building of a road,
From Bridgeport to Forrestville [or White Rock], Michigan.
The first wagon over the road,
Was driven by Mr. C. R. Selden who hauled supplies for a lumbering firm.
The work of cutting and clearing out the road was done by E. R., Randall,
And, completed to Ellington over the short term.
With him were T. Blakely, Alexander Belmer, Levi Richards, and Horace Russell.
It traveled along the highlands of the Cass River and a few minor dell.
February
12, 1859
In 1859, and act was enacted that appropriated highway taxes,
For the improvement of the road from Ellington to White Rock.
The lands three miles north of the road were accessed for taxes.
As the lands one mile to the south of the road to Forrestville or White Rock.
The duration of the levy was for three years.
That Martin Watrous of Tuscola County and Louis Bonnel of Huron County,
Were appointed commissioners.
This road would open up the forks of the Cass River, efficiently,
To logging and settlement, and lay the foundation for the development of Cass City.
March 10,
1865
After the Civil War, there was a return to road construction.
In 1865, the State of Michigan,
Enact the more swampland be provided for the drainage and reclamation,
By the development of another road, again.
This road was called the Tuscola and Saginaw Bay State Road.
The road commence at Village of Tuscola and ran thence to Vassar,
It was commonly called Vassar Road.
It would end in Wisner going directly north out of Vassar.
One thousand two hundred eighty aces per mile was appropriated for the road,
Between Saginaw Bay and Little Quanicassee River, and 640 acres per mile elsewhere along the road. .
March 14,
1865
The state legislature,
Appropriated for a road going form Almont in Lapeer County,
To the forks of the Cass River,
Near the eastern border of Tuscola County,
The road went through Marlette,
And, was known as the Almont and Cass River State Road.
The job was let,
And, the road became commonly known as Van Dyke Road.
No pinelands for this road were sold.
March 21,
1865.
Another act in 1865 provided for the drainage and reclamation of swampland,
By means of a common road,
Which went throughout the land,
By the name of the Cass River and Bay City State Road.
Or the Bay City-Forrestville.
It was laid out from the forks of Cass River,
Went north and then west near the northern border of Tuscola County to Unionville.
From there it went on to the Quanicassee River.
And, further to Lower Saginaw or Bay City, which was on the Saginaw River.
Known as the Cass River and Bay City State Road.
The whole construction was secure with an appropriation,
Of 1,280 acres of State Swampland per mile of road,
Between Bay City to Quanicassee.
And, for the balance of the road per each mile 640 acres.
The commissioner was authorized to build a bridge across the Quanicassee,
With an appropriation swampland in the amount of 2,500 acres
This work would go on for years.
The East
Saginaw, Vassar, and Sanilac Plank Road—1866
The East Saginaw, Vassar, and Sanilac Plank Road,
Was by 1866 already commenced.
Twelve miles of the road,
Had by now been completed,
The following season would push it through to thirty-two miles of roadway.
A plank road, also, would soon be built from Centreville, Tuscola County
By way of Watrousville and Van Fleet’s to the East Saginaw, Sanilac, and Vassar Road.
Which would open up a rich and fertile locality.
In 1867, a plank road would go from Tuscola via Hubinger’s to Bridgeport in Saginaw County.
Skidding logs out of the wood,
From the Cass River neighborhod.
There is quite a bit here to be written.
Work in progress.
In 1856, growing in improvements and population was Watrousville.
Just then was opened
The Cass River country by 1871,
Was the most thoroughly drained,
And although the stream still
brought to market the finest of lumber,
Averaging
the greatest percentage of uppers,
The hauling was now mostly from a long distance.
The prospects were that within a year or two,
The stream will be almost profitless for lumbering pruposes.
The attention of lumberman was turning largely to the shore.
Rifle and Augres as well as the Pine Pinconning, and several small streams,
That are brought to the Saginaw River and manufactured by the mills there.
After the platting of may Counties in Southern Lower Michigan, or about
135 to 1835, and just before Michigan became a state, speculators and settlers
flocked to Michigan.
Michigan became a
state in 1837.
The 1830’s were booming.
President Andrew
Jackson took funds from the Bank of the United States, deposited them in state
banks, and increase the flow of money.
Banks freely lent the funds to investors.
President Jackson inflated the valued
of money because the federal government owed a large sums of money to private
individuals and making money plentiful, cheap, and easy to get made it easy
to pay these debts off when money was cheap.
Prices rose as debtors paid off debts with increasingly cheap money.
And, land, railroad, and factory speculators
continued to borrowed larger sums of money recklessly in the State of Michigan
and across the United States.
The good side was that by 1835 the
United State government was out of debt.
The government land offices were accepting “Wildcat Bank Notes” backed
by private banks. Speculators borrowed
as much money as they could borrow.
And, lumber speculators from the along
with potential settlers in the eastern states loaded boats on the Erie Canal
and ships on Lake Erie as bound for the boom in Michigan.
A period of intense speculation continued through the early and mid 1830’s.
Land was traded like money.
Surveyors had completed their surveys in Tuscola County by 1835.
The first entry for title to land in
Tuscola came on October 20, 1835.
Large tracts of land had been granted
to the surveyor general Douglas Houghton in Tuscola mostly along Houghton Creek.
The United States at first only had
an office located in Detroit but by October 1836 one was opened in Flint.
The Flint office began the registion
of land sales in Tuscola.
Prospective buyers obtained maps in Flint that showed available land.
Tracts at the office already sold were
marked with an “S”. Notes written
by the surveyor often served as the best source of information on the quality
of the land for logging.
Things like soi quality, wetness, and
types of trees weer also noted.
Often the buyer, or a hire pine looker, tramped or rode by horseback
on some occasion, to the plot of land and inspected it.
If it was suitable, they went back
to Flint and made the purchase—often by silver, gold, bank notes, or draft.
After the transaction was recorded in Washington, the buyer received
a “Patient.” The patient
transferred ownership. Before 1833
the President of the United State signed patients.
Since the lower Cass River was not surveyed until 1835, no one who purchased
land here had a patient signed
by the President. After 1833 secretaries
of the President signed land all patients.
Michigan was over-run with people and
speculators. The home of James
McCormick in Flint was often crowed with speculators who often slept on “field
beds,” of straw laying in front of the stone fireplace.
His home at times was filled with from ten to fifteen men hoping to invest
in tracts of land.
The arrival of the first lumberman
to Tuscola County occurred in October 1835.
A handful of New York speculators from
Lewiston, New York, departed for the Michigan Territory.
The group was made up of Noah Beach, William Miller, Ashahel Colt, Nathan
Baker, and Dennis Harrison. Harrison
was a builder and knew about the qualities of timber.
After arriving in Detroit, they first
went to the Kalamzoo River. Finding
nothing suitable Beach and Harrison, hiked through the forest to Saginaw where
Beach had a brother-in-law who worked for the Northern Fur Company.
From this person’s valuable knowledge of the best tracts of timber, Beach
tramped seven miles up the Saginaw and Cass River and located a site in the
current town of Bridgeport in which he determine to settle there.
Harrison continued hiking several more
miles further up the Cass River.
He had an excellent judgement of timber qualities and mill sites and
found a superb location for a sawmill where two modest streams entered the Cass
River. The steams were a prerequisite
for a mill. The pine lands were
impressive.
Harrison went to the Flint Land Office
and October 24, 1835, purchased the tract, which was the first sale of land
for permanent improvement in Tuscola County.
Harrison returned to Lewiston, New
York, where he formed an investment company with Ebenezer Perry and R. L. Hurd.
It began with $450 of capital land called itself the Pioneering Company.
They determined to erect a sawmill on the tract of land, cut the pine
from the surrounding woods on the tract, and manufacture rough lumber for the
local area as new settlers came in and for the Saginaw market.
Land speculation climaxed in 1836.
