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Please add profiles of those who were born, lived or died in Crawford County, Michigan.
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The county is named for Col. William Crawford,[6] a Revolutionary War officer captured by Native Americans near Sandusky, Ohio and burned at the stake in 1792. Created by the Michigan Legislature as Shawono County in 1840, before being renamed in 1843 as Crawford County. "Shawono" was derived from an Ojibwe word, zhaawanong, meaning "from the south". The area was administered by other Michigan counties before 1879 when the county government was organized.
Due to the location in rural northern Michigan, Crawford County's greatest economic growth occurred in the 1800s when lumbering clear-cut most of the extensive forests of Norway pine, birch, maple, beech and hemlock. With the trees gone, tourism became the center of the economy. In the 1870s Crawford County became a popular destination for recreational fishing. The Michigan grayling, found in the Au Sable River, first gained the attention of anglers. The Crawford County Avalanche began publishing a weekly paper in 1879. Their first edition featured a fishing story on the front-page. By the end of the century, the grayling species vanished due to a combination of overfishing, river degradation due to logging, and the impact of human-introduced brown trout. The Au Sable River of today boasts large populations of brown and rainbow trout and remains a premiere trout fishing area in both Michigan and the nation.
A 1912 text, A History of Northern Michigan and its people by Perry F. Powers & Harry Gordner Cutler describes Crawford County: The topography is rolling hills but not so steep as to impede farm equipment. The Au Sable River, along with its tributaries, traverse the entire county, providing water and locations for ranching livestock. It also presents an opportunity for superb trout fishing. On the western county line is a natural reservoir that forms the Manistee River. Transportation is primarily provided by the Michigan Central railroad. The Detroit & Charlevoix railroad has track to Frederic, Michigan to the northwest. Half of the land is the county is a gravel loam soil which can produce standard crops. Thousands of acres of clear-cut old growth pine in Crawford County is available to settle. Potatoes, clover and root crops will thrive in this soil. Growing clover seed has become recognized as a “money crop”. Fruit trees are becoming a popular choice with apples being prolific and flavorful. “Plains” soil supports native grasses which stockmen are using for profitable sheep and cattle ranches throughout the county. There are few swamps and lowlands, all along narrow strips beside waterways, which can be productive with proper drainage.[9] Over a hundred years ago, people journeyed "up north" for rest, recreation and their health. Hunting has always been popular, and for wild game, large tracts of second-growth timber on land originally clear-cut provide better food and protection than the original forests did. Deer populations are stable despite the hundreds that are taken every year by settlers and sportsmen.
The Grayling Winter Sports Park (GWSP) was opened in 1929. It started as a toboggan run that grew into Michigan's first ski resort. Following the popular 1932 Winter Olympics, Grayling constructed a 66-foot ski jump in 1934. A few years later, a Winter Carnival was started that included a parade, ice sculpture competition, a Snow Queen pageant. The park's popularity increased to the point where a "Snow Train" was established to bring skiers to Grayling from across the state. Transportation from Lodges in Grayling to the park was provided by flat-bed trucks. Groomed trails were provided for Cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.
The Cass City Chronicle noted in March 1941, "Due to generous support of the federal park service, state conservation department, and Civilian Conservation Corps, Grayling offers today the finest public toboggan set-up in the entire United States, and this isn’t paid ballyhoo. Six steel slides are the only ones of their kind anywhere not excluding Lake Placid or Sun Valley (Idaho). Two ski tows have been in operation; next season there will be three."
The Crawford County operated the GWSP into the late 1960’s when Fred Bear, owner of Bear Archery, and other local businessmen assumed operational control. It was renamed, Bear Mountain and they attempted to create a commercial ski area to compete with resorts further north. A legal challenge in 1973 resulted in a judgement giving control back to the county, which has been operated since then as Hanson Hills Recreation Area by the Grayling Recreation Authority.
In 1913, lumber baron Rasmus Hanson donated 147,000 acres of harvested timberland to the state of Michigan for military training. Most of the land is situated in Crawford County, with parcels in Kalkaska and Otsego counties. Troops first began training at Camp Grayling in 1914. It is the primary training facility for the Michigan National Guard and is the largest National Guard training facility in the United States.
Edward Hartwick graduated from Grayling High School in 1888 and received an appointment to West Point in 1889. Four years later he graduated with high honors and was assigned to the 4th Cavalry. He soon transferred to the 9th Cavalry, known as the Buffalo Soldiers on the western frontier. With the advent of the Spanish–American War, his unit was sent to Cuba where he participated in the Battle of San Juan Hill. At wars end, he returned to Grayling and married Karen Bessie Michelson, then resigned his commission nine months later. He engaged in the banking and lumber business, prospered, and later moved to Detroit. When the United States entered World War I, he volunteered for service at age 46 and was commissioned an Army Major. After just a few months in France, he contracted Meningitis and died. In 1927, Karen Michelson Hartwick purchased 8,000 acres including the last 85 acres of virgin old growth pine forest in Michigan's lower peninsula and donated it to the state of Michigan to honor her husband. Hartwick Pines State Park is the largest state park in the lower peninsula.
Adjacent Counties
- Otsego County
- Montmorency County
- Oscoda County
- Ogemaw County
- Roscommon County
- Missaukee County
- Antrim County
- Kalkaska County
Cities, Townships & Communities
- Babbits Resort
- Beaver Creek
- Bucks
- Collens Landing
- Danish Landing
- Deerhart Valley
- Deward
- Eldorado
- Five Corners
- Forebush Corner
- Frederic
- Grayling (County Seat)
- Ishaward
- Lake Margrethe
- Louis Cabin Landing
- Lovells
- Maple Forest
- McIntyre Landing
- Pere Cheney
- Rasmus
- Skyline Village
- South Branch
- Wildwood
Links
Huron National Forest (part)
Michigan Family History Network
Crawford County Historical Society
