Lumberman's Monument
Encyclopedia
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
along the Au Sable River
Au Sable River (Michigan)
The Au Sable River in Michigan runs approximately through the northern Lower Peninsula, through the towns of Grayling and Mio, and enters Lake Huron at Oscoda. It is considered one of the best brown trout fisheries east of the Rockies and has been designated a blue ribbon trout stream by the...
within Huron-Manistee National Forests
Huron-Manistee National Forests
The Huron-Manistee National Forests are two national forests combined in 1945 for administration purposes and which comprise of public lands, including of wetlands, extending across the northern lower peninsula of Michigan. The Huron-Manistee National Forests provide recreation opportunities...
. Access to the park is on River Road, which intersects M-65
M-65 (Michigan highway)
M-65 is a state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan. The highway runs between termini on US Highway 23 near Omer and Rogers City in the northeastern Lower Peninsula of the state. M-65 runs inland through several small communities in the region, passing through forests and fields along...
west of Tawas City, Michigan
Tawas City, Michigan
Tawas City is a city along Lake Huron in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 2,005. It is the county seat of Iosco County...
. Monument Road, from East Tawas
East Tawas, Michigan
East Tawas is a city in Iosco County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,951 at the 2000 census.-Geography:*According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water....
, also leads directly to the monument. The monument is part of the River Road Scenic Byway
River Road Scenic Byway
The River Road is a National Scenic Byway in the US state of Michigan. This byway follows M-65 and River Road; it extends eastward into the Huron National Forest and ends in the historic community of Oscoda near Lake Huron. The road parallels the historic Riviere aux Sable...
, a 22 miles (35.4 km) drive between Oscoda
Oscoda, Michigan
Oscoda is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Michigan located on the northern side of the Au Sable River where it enters Lake Huron. The community of Au Sable is on the other side of the river. Oscoda is in Oscoda Township in Iosco County, and not in Oscoda County, which is to the...
and South Branch that runs parallel with the beautiful Au Sable River
Au Sable River (Michigan)
The Au Sable River in Michigan runs approximately through the northern Lower Peninsula, through the towns of Grayling and Mio, and enters Lake Huron at Oscoda. It is considered one of the best brown trout fisheries east of the Rockies and has been designated a blue ribbon trout stream by the...
. It is a designated National Scenic Byway
National Scenic Byway
A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for its archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and/or scenic qualities. The program was established by Congress in 1991 to preserve and protect the nation's scenic but often...
.
The area
The monument is located within the eastern part of the Huron-Manistee National ForestsHuron-Manistee National Forests
The Huron-Manistee National Forests are two national forests combined in 1945 for administration purposes and which comprise of public lands, including of wetlands, extending across the northern lower peninsula of Michigan. The Huron-Manistee National Forests provide recreation opportunities...
area. The nearest settlements are Tawas City and East Tawas 11 miles (17.7 km) to the south, Au Sable
Au Sable, Michigan
Au Sable is an unincorporated community in Au Sable Township of Iosco County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the southern side of Au Sable River where is enters Lake Huron. The community of Oscoda is on the other side of the river. Au Sable is a census-designated place for...
and Oscoda
Oscoda, Michigan
Oscoda is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Michigan located on the northern side of the Au Sable River where it enters Lake Huron. The community of Au Sable is on the other side of the river. Oscoda is in Oscoda Township in Iosco County, and not in Oscoda County, which is to the...
15 miles (24.1 km) to the east and Hale 11 miles (17.7 km) to the southwest. In the late 19th century, the area was heavily logged for timber that was used in building houses and factories. After the logging industry settled down, much of the area was repopulated with trees, which is the forest we see today.
Park facilities
Access to the park is granted year round and free of charge. The visitor's center and other facilities are staffed between May and October. Pathways are lined with exhibits with descriptive signs allowing visitors to learn about the history of the logging industry in Michigan. The monument overlooks the Cooke Pond Dam and Horseshoe Island on the Au Sable river which was a major logging thoroughfare.Logging history
The monument is located in a forest that was heavily logged in the second half of the 19th century. The white pineEastern White Pine
Pinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...
that made up much of the forest. It was in high demand nationwide for housing, ships, and other manufacturing. During the winter, Sawyer
Lumberjack
A lumberjack is a worker in the logging industry who performs the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to a bygone era when hand tools were used in harvesting trees principally from virgin forest...
s cut down the trees and swampers trimmed them. The logs were then loaded onto sleds and pulled to the nearest riverbank by horses or oxen, over paths in the ice, and dumped down stream towards the sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
. Loggers downstream had to deal with log jams on a regular basis. Once the logs finally reached the sawmill, they were cut into boards for use in manufacturing buildings like houses and factories.
Michigan is filled with lumbering towns (E.g., Grayling
Grayling, Michigan
Grayling is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Crawford County. The population was 1,952 at the 2000 census. Grayling takes its name from the Grayling fish that was once prevalent in its lakes and streams....
, Manistee
Manistee, Michigan
Manistee is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 6,586. It is the county seat of Manistee County. The name "Manistee" is from an Ojibwe word first applied to the principal river of the county. The derivation is not certain, but it may be from...
, Muskegon
Muskegon, Michigan
Muskegon is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 38,401. The city is the county seat of Muskegon County...
and Alpena
Alpena, Michigan
Alpena is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Alpena County. It is considered to be part of Northern Michigan. The Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is located in the city. The population was 10,483 at the 2010 census...
, and their now forgotten ghost towns (E.g., Alcona and Killmaster -- now Gustin Township, Michigan
Gustin Township, Michigan
Gustin Township is a civil township of Alcona County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 832 at the 2000 census.- Communities :...
, and the 25 ghost towns in Benzie County).
The "Lumbermen Monument" sculpture is a work of Robert Aitken
Robert Ingersoll Aitken
Robert Ingersoll Aitken was an American sculptor.Born in San Francisco, California, Aitken studied there at the Mark Hopkins Institute of Art with Douglas Tilden. From 1901 until 1904 he was an instructor at the Institute. In 1904 he moved to Paris where he continued his studies...
. "On one corner you may notice the words ‘Aitken Fecit’, meaning Aitken made it. Fecit coming from a Latin verb meaning ‘to make’."
See also
- Hartwick Pines State ParkHartwick Pines State ParkHartwick Pines State Park is a 9,672 acre State Park in the US state of Michigan, located in Crawford County near Grayling and Interstate 75. It is the third largest state park on Michigan's Lower Peninsula and the state's fifth-biggest park overall...
and - Interlochen State ParkInterlochen State ParkInterlochen State Park is the State of Michigan's first officially recognized state park. Situated between two freshwater lakes , it is a popular camping destination. It was established by the Michigan Legislature in 1917; $60,000 was paid for the land...
for the two remaining stands of virgin Eastern White PineEastern White PinePinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...
in the Lower Peninsula. - Michigan logging wheelsMichigan logging wheelsMichigan logging wheels, also known as big wheels, high wheels, logging wheels, logger wheels, lumbering wheels, bummer carts, katydids or nibs, are a type of skidder. It extended the season in which the logging industry could extract timber from the North Woods of Michigan, by removing the need...
External links
- Huron-Manistee National Forest
- Lumberman's Monument at the U.S. Forest Service
- River Road Scenic Byway at America's Byways.
- Occupational Monuments, Lumberman's Monument at waymarking.com