Cache:
This cache is on county road right of way just east of the former grade crossing of the Pere Marquette Railroad Grand Ledge-Ionia-Howard City branch. This cache replaces GC4E66Z which was muggled one too many times and has been archived.
"Photo courtesy of Michigan Railroad History (RRHX), T.J. Gaffney collection."
Coral, Michigan PM Depot after the turn of the century.
Coral:
The first settlers came to the Coral area in 1857. A small settlement around a sawmill was known as Stumpville. The village was first platted in 1862 by Charles Parker and reportedly given the name of Coral because it was easy to spell. Its primary reason for existence in the early years was to harvest the timber in the area and after, to support farming, mostly for potatoes. The first post office was established on March 22nd, 1869. By 1875, the population had grown to 800. There were several saw and planing mills and lumber dealers operating, multiple general stores and grocers, two physicians, a lawyer, at least one hotel, livery, a school, and a Methodist church. By 1907, the population was down to 500, but the town was still thriving. The timber harvest had given way to agriculture. Sawmills had been replaced by feed mills and the telephone had found the town. A large amount of information is available Coral on MyGenWeb (see references, below).
"Standard Atlas of Montcalm County, Michigan., G.A. Ogle, 1921, c/o UofM Digital Library"
1921 plat map of Coral with the depot shown in blue on the corner of Lincoln and Oak on the back side of the village park.
Detroit, Lansing and Lake Michigan Railroad:
The rail line here was built from Ionia, through Greenville and on to Howard City in 1870-71 by the Detroit, Lansing and Lake Michigan Railroad, formerly the Ionia and Lansing Railroad. The DL&LM was reorganized in 1876 as the Detroit, Lansing and Northern Ralroad The DL&N was again reorganized in 1897 as the Detroit, Grand Rapids and Western. In 1899, it became part of the Pere Marquette Railroad which was operated by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad in 1928 and was incorporated into the C&O in the early 1947. The line between Ionia and Greenville was removed in 1942 and between Greenville and Howard City in 1943. Both Greenville and Howard City were served by alternate PM lines as well as other railroads.
The rail line passed through town SE to NW and crossed main close to the cache and proceeded behind the elevator. It can be seen as it enters and leaves town. The depot was on the current ball field. There was a train wreck in Coral in 1909 when a train bound from Howard City to Greenville was accidentally routed down a siding at the elevator instead of the main.
"Michigan Genealogy on the Web, Montcalm County. Click on the image."
Coral Train derailment, 1909. Train was switched to the wrong track and wound past the end of a siding and straddled Main Street.
Sources:
- Ionia and Lansing Railroad
- Detroit, Lansing and Lake Michigan Railraod
- Detroit, Lansing & Northern Railroad
- Pere Marquette Railroad
- Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad
- RRHX: Coral
- Coral on MyGenWeb
- MiGenWeb: Railroads and Logging, Coral and Trufant
- Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1897, R. L. Polk & Co.
- Michigan Place Names, Walter Romig, Wayne State University Press, © 1986
- Michigan Railroads and Railroad Companies, Graydon M. Meints © 1992, Michigan State University Press
- Michigan Railroad Liness, Graydon M. Meints © 2005, Michigan State University Press
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