The Rough and Rocky Road to Statehood
Michigan’s first constitutional convention began on May 11, 1835.
A leisurely Look at Michigan’s stories and traditions from yesterday to yesteryear.
Michigan’s first constitutional convention began on May 11, 1835.
The tradition of the trout opener continues this Saturday, as sportsmen and sportswomen head North to don waders and cast fly rods into Northern Michigan’s pristine rivers.
Marion “Babe” Weyant of Lansing, Michigan loved airplanes. Pilots called her “Babe,” certainly a name that evoked her youth and petite stature, but failed to capture her determination.
Dr. Pearl Kendrick (1890-1980) and Dr. Grace Eldering (1900-1988) developed the first successful whooping cough vaccine in 1938. It virtually eliminated all fatalities from the disease.
These women are in the midst of a sit-down strike against their employer – the Farm Crest Bakery of Detroit. It is February 1937, and sit-down strikes have become “all the rage!”
Businesses were difficult to start and maintain in nineteenth century Michigan, especially if you were black. No matter the barriers, Willaim and Wallace Goodridge thrived under the pressure and created the state’s first minority owned photography business.
Fugitive slaves Adam and Sarah Crosswhite seemed to have found sanctuary in Marshall, Michigan. Then, in January 1847, four slave catchers arrived from Kentucky.
The date is February 22, 1906. The large crowd is watching a dog sled race through Ishpeming, Michigan. The race is well attended, but it’s not the week’s only attraction.
Michiganians find inventive ways to enjoy winter. This photo provides an example.
Did you ever wonder about life in an old-time lumber camp? “I worked like the dickens,” recalled one old lumberjack, “but I didn’t think anything of it.”