Heading into a small boutique in the basement of the Traverse City State Asylum, I introduced myself to a shopkeeper, “Hi! I’m Martha, a travel blog writer. What stories can you share about this hospital?” A white puff-ball dog entered the shop and crossed to the counter with determination. The […]
Educational
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“It was a cold snowy day in mid January 1965. We started out just before daylight. The ride was very quiet and long. At times we were in a complete whiteout due to a strong lake effect storm pounding the west coast of Michigan. The heater was on high but […]
Who better to understand mental illness than one who had been seized by authorities and hospitalized five times over a twenty-two year span? Dr. Ferguson led a troubled life of addiction and psychotic breaks. In 1954 he arrived at Traverse City State Hospital, but not as a patient, but rather […]
Have you ever wondered about the Traverse City Asylum? As a youngster we’d drive by it on our way to Lake Leelanau to visit relatives on my mother’s side of the family. As we passed this marker, my mom would share that she had gone to ‘the insane asylum’ every […]
I turned onto 8th street and before me was a HUGE Catholic shrine with marble statues. This stunning display is in the small village of Mio, Michigan. (east of Grayling) There are only 1,884 residents, yet there’s this impressive European structure. I slid my car to the side of the […]
Did you know small aircraft pilots pull their planes manually using a bar hooked to the front of the plane just below the propeller? I hadn’t realized this was part of the process until Da Viking, Chuck, had started taking flying lessons in 2019. After Chuck experienced two helicopter crashes […]
he summer residence of Chase Osborn represents an interesting and complex time. Now, called the Chase Osborn Preserve, it is used by the University of Michigan for natural research. But, the historic value seems to be ignored by the University. Perhaps they had to promise to allow it to fall [...]
How did Raco, Kincheloe and a radar station in Michigan’s upper peninsula work to protect the Soo Locks and our nation? We were intrigued by these sites. We had heard about them from Chuck’s father, Nile Hayden, so Da Viking and I visited these areas in the U.P. to learn […]
Da Viking and I wanted to experience the engineering marvel of the Soo Locks. Traveling by our zodiac, Thor, brought many questions and smiles from the Soo Lock’s Tour Boat. Before the locks were built, ships were skidded or portaged on rolling timbers along road to traverse the twenty-one foot […]
Defending the Soo Locks. In the sleepy wilderness and towns of the Eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan lies the ruins of a retired war machine. . . that had enough destructive power to level 300 major cities. We explore Raco Auxiliary Air Field, 753rd Radar Station and Kincheloe Air Force [...]