Welcome to General Squier Memorial Park. This is 80 acres donated to the county by General George Owen Squier in 1936 and accepted by a vote of the people. The park is on the National and State Historic registers for General Squier’s accomplishments in the U.S. military. The park is mostly wooded (60 acres), and consists of a 3-acre sledding hill, 1 mile of nature trails, picnic pavilions, a renovated historic mill, a small water park with two large water slides, a three-season historic hall for activities, sand volleyball, horseshoe pits, and two new playgrounds.
In 1840, the Maynard Brothers built the first flouring mill in the township near this site. The mill was extensively used until 1870, when it burned. In 1871, they rebuilt the mill at this site. By the turn of the century, the mill had begun deteriorating. However, in 1917, Dryden native Major General George Owen Squier purchased the mill and a surrounding tract of 200 acres. Squier had plans to develop the property into a summer home and into a public park - what he referred to as a free "Country Club for Country People". Squier refurbished the mill and built Forest Hall and a cottage in 1917, and added a two-story wooden lookout tower and tea house in 1920.
Squier opened his Dryden Community Country Club in 1918, with no charge for admission. He built his own cottage on the site in 1920, and although he maintained homes in Washington DC and St Petersburg Florida, he returned to Dryden each summer. Over the years, he added other recreational equipment to the park. Squier died in 1934, and his sister, Mary Squier Park, deeded the property to Lapeer County. The property was renamed in Squier's honor and continues to this day as a free recreational facility, which now includes a waterpark situated next to the old mill.
He served America through the U.S. Army signal corps during the Spanish-American War, the Philippine Insurrection, and World War I. His career was highlighted by major discoveries and inventions in mechanics and the communications field, most notably the telegraph and telephone systems. In 1897 he was firing canons and detonating mines by remote control; he used photography and electromagnetism to measure the velocity of artillery shells; and he established Army laboratories at Fort Monmouth for radio and at Langley Field, Va. for aviation.
in order to clame this find, please send me what side of the stone monument is the placque on and who was it dedicated by.
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.