This cache is near the Lewiston Grade of the Michigan Central Railroad on land owned by the State of Michigan.
Train load of skiers arrives on the MC in the thirties. The Lewiston Branch started about half a mile distant.
The first rail line to reach Grayling was the Jackson, Lansing and Saginaw Railroad, in 1873, and was already under lease to the Michigan Central Railroad. The line was completed that year as far as Gaylord and extended to Macinaw City in 1881.
In 1892, lumber interests in nort-heasten Crawford County and in southern Montmorency County prompted the JL&S to construct a branch line to Lewiston. This line was built as the Grayling, Twin Lakes and Northeastern Railroad. Both the J&LS and the GTL&N were operated by the MC. In Grayling, the GTL&N used the JL&S depot, pictured above.
MC in the Grayling area.
Once the timber was harvested, there was little reason for the GTL&N to exist, although it did survive well into the 20th century. The MC formally merged both the J&LS and the GTL&N into the parent company on July 13th, 1901. The J&LS becane the Lewiston Branch. On February 2nd, 1930, the MC was leased by its parent company, the New York Central Railroad. On October 10th, the Lewiston Branch was abandoned.
Today, much of the grade can be driven northeast to Lewiston but some parts are no longer passable, some being blocked by the Michigan National Guard. The original J&LS line through Grayling is still active as far as Gaylord, being operated by the Great Lakes Central Railroad>. The Grayling Depot is now the home of the Crawford County Historical Museum, a really nice place to visit.
Sources:
Michigan Central Railroad
RRHX: Home Page
Michigan Railroads & Railroad Companies, Meints, Graydon M. Michigan State University Press, © 1992.
Michigan Railroad Lines, Meints, Graydon M. Michigan State University Press, © 2005.
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