2016 Building Demolition

Just a pile of rubble.  That is what you'll find at the southeast corner of East Grand River and South Collins Street.

A few years back, this building was operated as Hill's Sporting Goods.  After Frank Hill's passing, the building went into further decline and sat unused.  Makes me wonder what this lot will become, now owned by Ion Electric.

For a bit of history, in 1875, this lot was owned by A.W. Cooper.  He was a local druggist.  Following is a plat map showing his ownership in the upper left hand corner:

Eventually the building (the one just demolished) was built on this corner lot and used as a gas station/restaurant.  Some of that history can be found in my history book, "The Fowlerville Chronicles."  

Following is a picture from 1973 when Dan Eldridge owned the building and used it for a gas station/towing business:

When I get word of what's to become of the lot, I'll post it here.

1938 Mrs. Carrie Miner

Following is a short little front-page article I found in a June, 1938, issue of The Fowlerville Review.

This might seem like an odd little article to post here but I have a couple reasons.  

~~When we moved to this community in 1998 (looking at 18 years ago now), one of the first comments to greet us while shopping in a local store was the owner's comment that "you have to live here 50 years before you can say you're from Fowlerville."

My, did those words stick with me.  Pretty obvious, since I'm writing about them 18 years from whence they were mentioned.  Those words rankled me and, to tell you the truth, made me feel quite unwelcomed.  

But I persevered.  I joined organizations such as Rotary and Fowlerville Business Association, opened an embroidery business which I operate to this day, and am currently serving as the Board President for the Fowlerville District Library Board.  Plus, I've researched and compiled two local history books (which I self-published) and quite possibly might now as much or more than some of the old-timers.

True to those words, though, I tend to comment my hometown is Lansing and leave it at that.  Funny how things feel sometimes.

~~The second reason is because I've recently signed a contract with a traditional publishing company for my second historical fiction novel.  My first one, "Juniper and Anise," came out in December, 2014, and I've had a blast with that one.  I'm not sure when the second one will be released as we are deep in the editing process.  The working title for that one is "Tilly Loves Johnny."  

My point for telling you this?  My main character, Tilly, is married to Johnny Miner.  There is no real Johnny Miner, as this is a work of fiction, but I always liked the clear, concise surname when I came across it in my research.  The Miner family had various enterprises around time, especially during the early 1900s, one in particular being a dry goods store.

My Mr. Miner does something completely different but I love this connection, especially since I found this article while looking for something else.

Enjoy,

1916 Oyster Advertisement

The other evening, while being served some clam chowder, the conversation turned to other fish and seafood, such as oysters.  I mentioned how, in the early 1900s, oysters and canned fish were commonly found in mid-Michigan.  Quite often, lunchrooms advertised specials for oyster meals and some early benefit meals (fundraisers) were oyster-feasts.

I came across this ad from Copeland and Griffin in The Fowlerville Review, January 5, 1916, issue--a hundred years ago.