A Little History of
Seney, Michigan
in the Upper Peninsula
Seney, MI started out as a little settlement located by
the
tracks of the Duluth, South Shore, and Atlantic railroad, that
ran
from St. Ignace, MI to Marquette, MI in about 1881.
The train stopped at Seney to load and unload passengers
who
wanted to travel the footpath north to the harbor town of
Grand
Marais, MI, located on Lake Superior.
Some say the town was named for one of the contractors on
the
railroad as were some of the nearby villages.
The Upper Peninsula was a vast forest of white pine, so in
1882
the Alger, Smith Company began logging and other companies
soon
followed. Seney was suddenly the center of the logging industry and
this little hamlet abruptly grew to become a thriving
town of around 3000 people, and many more when the lumberjacks
came
in from the 15 or more nearby camps.
Much of the town was built up on 6 foot cedar posts because
of
the swampy land and the depth of the snow. There were about
21
saloons, 10 hotels, a church, drug stores, meat markets,
general
merchandise stores, a jewelry store, other businesses, and
several
hundred houses.
The quiet little village of Seney was now a roaring lumber
town
and had become notorious. The cemetery, Boot Hill, was located
just
south of Seney, where the tall pines still stand guard over the
long
gone loggers.
Logging was conducted during the winter as it was easier
to
move the logs on sleds or with big wheels because of the deep
snow.
The sleds and big wheels were pulled by oxen, mules, or
horses.
The logs were moved to the Fox River and piled up until
the
spring thaw and then they traveled down the river to Manistique
where
they were sent to the saw-mills. Much of this wood was used to
build
homes in the midwest. Some wood was also hauled to Grand Marais
and
sent to England. This boom lasted for about 15 years.
During this time, Seney was plagued by fires and the pines
were
logged so the loggers and shopkeepers soon followed the big pines
to
new camps. There were two major forest fires, in 1891 and 1895,
but
Seney never totally burned to the ground.
Other towns grew and Seney became an almost abandoned
village.
The population dropped to about 300 and is now a very
pleasant
village with outstanding recreational facilities for all
seasons.
Information on the History of Seney courtesy of Al Seccia,
Seney
Country Inn.
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