SWS - Williamsburg on the C&NM (C&O) Traditional Geocache

^{Photo courtesy of RRHX (michiganrailroads.com), Alan Loftis collection.}
Williamsburg Pere Marquette depot, ~1910.

This cache is hidden on the former railroad grade, now property of the Michigan Department of Natural resources. The property at the parking coordinates is owned by the Whitewater Towhship.

Williamsburg:

A settlement first known as Mill Creek was established in 1856, about 1/4 mile north of its current location. The pioneers were William and Martha Langworthy, Edward and Millie Cox, Michael and Lizzie Gay, C. Truman and Laura Scofield, all from from New York State. Prior to any roads or railroads, supplies and goods came by boat on Elk and Skegemog Lakes, then were transported cross country. A post office with the name Dunbar, named for its first postmaster, opened on March 29^th, 1867. It was renamed Williamsburgh on June 18^th, 1869, then shortened to Williamsburg on June 23^rd, 1894.

When the railroad was constructed, the settlement moved to its current location and a station was constructed.

At the end if the 19^th century, Williamsburg had a population of about 250. The village consisted of a general store and saw mill, a grocery store, a grist mill, a drug store and a small school, Methodist church, and a fish hatchery, in addition to the post office and railroad station. Townspeople included the township clerk, a physician, various construction tradesmen, a blacksmith and a justice of the peace. By 1907, the population had grown to 300 and a hardware store and the Hotel Vinton had been built. Telephone service had also been established

^{Photo courtesy of RRHX (michiganrailroads.com), Alan Loftis Collection}
Williamsburg from the west, on Old M-72.

Railroad:

The rail line through Williamsburg was was constructed in 1891-92 from Traverse City as the Chicago and North Michigan Railroad, a wholly owned (paper) subsidiary of the Chicago and West Michigan Railroad. The line reached Williamsburg on January 3^rd, 1892 and was opened to Bay View on July 17^th. It was operated from the start as part of the C&WM. A branch from Williamsburg to Elk Rapids was also opened on was opened January 3^rd, 1892.

In 1899, the C&WM, the Flint & Pere Marquette and the Detroit, Grand Rapids & Western were merged into the Pere Marquette Railroad, which began operations on January 1st, 1900. The PM became part of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad in 1947. The C&O became part of the Chessie System in 1973, but retained its identity.

The branch to Elk Rapids was abandoned in 1979. The C&O stopped operations on the line in 1981 and abandoned the Petoskey Subdivision on February 20th, 1982, one hundred years after arriving in Williamsburg. This reduction in size was due to the creation of CSX Transportation. A portion of the line from Grawn, through Traverse City, to Willimasburg and another portion from Charlevoix to Bay View were purchased by the State of Michigan and operated by the Michigan Northern Railroad until the late 1980s. The portion from Grawn to Williamsburg is still in service as the part of the Great Lakes Central Railroad, although the Grawn portion hasn't been used in some time.

^{Standard Atlas of Grand Traverse County, Michigan, G.A. Ogle & Co., 1908, courtesy of UofM Digital Library}
1908 plat showing the PM main running across the plat and the Elk Rapids branch running north out of Williamsburg.

Sources:

• Chicago and West Michigan Railroad
• Pere Marquette Railroad
• Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad
• RRHX: Williamsburg
• RRHX: Michigan Railroad History Home Page: Railroad History of Michigan
• Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1877, R.L. Polk & Co.
• Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1897, R.L. Polk & Co.
• Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1907, R.L. Polk & Co.
• Seeking Michigan - Base Map of Kalkaska County (1927).
• Whitewater Township Historical Society.
• Michigan Place Names, Walter Romig, © 1986 Wayne State University Press
• Michigan Railroads and Railroad Companies, Graydon M. Meints © 1992, Michigan State University Press
• Michigan Railroad Liness, Graydon M. Meints © 2005, Michigan State University Press