southeast

History of the Michigan State Fair

Posted on August 4, 2007 by farlane

State Fair, 1974, photo courtesy Archives of Michigan

The Image of the Month for August 2007 from the Archives of Michigan:

In this 1974 photo, six year-old Jennifer Weise tugs on a Holstein cow’s ear. The animal was one of 8,000 displayed at the Michigan State Fair that year.

Michigan’s first State Fair was held in Detroit in 1849. The Michigan Agricultural Society sponsored and organized the event. The fair moved to Ann Arbor in 1850 and then back to Detroit from 1851-1862. From 1863-1904, it rotated amongst different Michigan cities.

Read the rest of the history of the Michigan State Fairs (there’s also a UP fair) and click for the official sites for the Michigan State Fair (Wednesday, August 22nd through Labor Day, September 3rd, 2007) and the Upper Peninsula State Fair (held August 13th – 19, 2007).

King of the Skies at the Selfridge Airshow

Posted on August 3, 2007August 3, 2007 by Michigan in Pictures

King of the Skies, photo by OtisDude.

According to the Selfridge Airshow web site, this show is Southeast Michigan’s largest free air show and is held every year in late July.

Otis has a few more photos from the air show.

Lost Horizon

Posted on June 20, 2007June 20, 2007 by Michigan in Pictures

Lost Horizon, photo by 1ManWithACamera.

Lake Huron from Caseville, Michigan.

The Shiawassee River

Posted on June 9, 2007June 12, 2007 by Michigan in Pictures

Shiawassee River, photo by naokomc.

Poked around the map of Michigan this morning, looking for a place I hadn’t been. That turned out to be the Shiawassee River. (Shiawassee River slideshow)

The very good (if staggeringly bright yellow) page on the Shiawassee River basin from Shiawassee History says:

The Shiawassee River Basin plays a major role in the mid-Michigan area. Its drainage area is approximately 1,200 square miles and portions of the river touch at least 7 counties.

The river is about 110 miles long and generally flows in a northerly direction, which is one of only two or three in the world. The Flint River, Cass River and Titabawassee River join the Shiawassee just southwest of the City of Saginaw and together form the Saginaw River which drains into the Saginaw Bay.

Shiawassee History also explains that Shiawassee may come from the Chippewa term for straight running river; Shiawassee (straight, or straight ahead) wassee. Then again, you can find other sources saying that the name means “river that twists about”.

The Nature Conservancy has a nice page on the Shiawassee River Watershed and the threats it faces from development pressures.

I’ll link to Wikipedia’s brief entry on the Shiawassee River because it had a link to Headwater Trails proposed Shiawassee River Water Heritage Trail (and in hopes that someone can go there and make the entry better).

Update (6/12/07): I just found the Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy who relate that the Saginaw Bay Watershed is the largest contiguous freshwater coastal wetlands system in the United States, featuring more than 175 inland lakes and about 7,000 miles of rivers and streams that are home to large populations of waterfowl, birds, snakes, turtles, amphibians, and more than 138 endangered or threatened species. They’re having a photo contest too – see the comments for details!

Dairy King.

Posted on June 4, 2007June 4, 2007 by Michigan in Pictures

Dairy King., photo by Arace.

Nothing really left to do but link to a map to Eva’s Dairy cafe of Lake Orion and say “yow!”

The Packard Proving Grounds in Shelby Township

Posted on May 23, 2007 by Michigan in Pictures

Packard Proving Grounds Lodge, photo by Sibylle Basel, Casting Shadow Photography

Sibylle says that photograph is a great art that washes away the dust of every day life. Click the photo above to see more of how she washes the dust away.

The Shelby Township Historical Committee is managing renovations at the Packard Proving Grounds and has some great information and old photos about the site including the text from the front and back of the Michigan Historical Marker:

The Packard Motor Car Company began building a proving ground on this site in 1926. Packard, like its competitors, had previously tested cars on city streets. Architect Albert Kahn designed the principal buildings. By 1929 the complex included the Gate Lodge, warehouses, laboratories, a high-speed test track, and twelve miles of roads simulating the worst conditions of the day. During World War II (1941-1945) Packard built aircraft and marine engines while leasing the grounds to Chrysler for tank testing. Packard ceased production in 1958, and the Ford Motor Company purchased the site in 1961. In 2000 Ford and the Packard Motor Car Foundation began working to preserve the design complex portion of the site.

(back) In 1899 brothers James Ward and William Doud Packard founded the Ohio Automobile Company in Warren, Ohio. In 1902 Detroiter Henry Joy and several other local investors purchased the company, moved it to Detroit and renamed it the Packard Motor Car Company. During the 1920s and 1930s, Packard set the standard for luxury and design. Under the direction of chief engineer Jesse G. Vincent, Packard, known as “America’s Master Motor Builder,” also made advances in aviation technology. Vincent contributed to the development of the Liberty aircraft engine during World War I and predicted the growth of commercial aviation. He considered a proving ground to be essential to high quality.