This cache is located west of the former grade of the Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore Railroad, near the former village of Spoonville. The cache is hidden on rural road right-of-way. There are near by houses so, please avoid night caching.
Site of the Spoonville Trestle & Swing Bridge, October 2014.
The former village of Spoonville was a flag station on the Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore Railroad. The settlement began in 1856 when settler John Spoon constructed a sawmill on the banks of Crockery Creek. Many workers for the mill and John's farm arrived and built houses of their own, establishing and expanding the village. In 1871, the C&MLS began constructing a line from Waverly to Nunica. Spoonville was the decided location for crossing the Grand River. That year, a wooden trestle and swing bridge was constructed at the site. A small depot was constructed, as was a spur to the Spoon & Becker Sawmill. Soon daily trains were stopping at Spoonville, loading lumber from the Spoon & Becker lumber yard.
While in it's hey day, the town was home to a company store, saloon, lumber yard, pony barn, blacksmith, chapel, office building, ship building docks, and daily mail delivery. After the lumber was cleared, business at Spoonville turned to agriculture. Dan Spoon held the first successful farm operation at this site. The property was home to a large farm with many cattle and the largest barn in the county. The farm operated for many years but, after Mr. Spoon passed away, ownership of the farm changed hands multiple times and it eventually closed. During the Great Depression, many buildings at Spoonville were moved or demolished. Today, the village is nothing more than a memory as none of the original buildings remain.
Village of Spoonville, Crockery Township 1876.
The Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore
The Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore Railroad was chartered in 1869 and built north from New Buffalo to St. Joseph, opening on February 1st, 1870. The line was extended to Grand Junction in northern Van Buren County on February 28th, 1871, and through Waverly (outside Holland) to Nunica by June 30th, 1871. At Nunica, the line connected with the track that had been built in 1870 from Muskegon to Nunica. The C&MLS was in competition with the Michigan Lake Shore Railroad, already operating a line between Allegan, through Holland to Muskegon by 1870. In 1876 the C&MLS went into receivership and reorganized as the Chicago & West Michigan Railroad. In 1881 the C&WM , along with three other lines, including the Grand Haven Railroad(formerly the Michigan Lake Shore) reorganized as the Chicago & West Michigan Railway. This left the C&WM Ry with two lines between Holland and Muskegon, The C&MLS line was superfluous and Waverly to Fruitport was abandoned by the end of 1881. The abandonment was very secretive, and spawned a few law suits from lumber companies that the line had served. On a Sunday in 1881, a C&MLS locomotive ran from Fruitport to Waverly, picking up tracks and ties. This left many small towns along the line in economical shock, and left them to be abandoned.
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