EDITOR’S NOTE: Superiorland Yesterdays is prepared by the reference desk staff at Peter White Public Library.

30 years ago

August 9, 1993 – MACKINAC ISLAND – The air is aflutter with the more than 200 colorful creatures that make Michigan’s only butterfly zoo a unique tourist attraction. About 25 species flit about the nectar-rich snapdragons, marigolds and other flowers in the Mackinac Island greenhouse created by Doug Beardsley. The former florist started phasing out his flower business three years ago when it became increasingly difficult to make a profit. “So when some guy said, ‘Hey, why don’t you raise butterflies,’ I jumped on the idea,” Beardsley said. “But can you imagine trying to get a bank to loan money for something like this?” Beardsley said he has invested thousands of dollars to create a butterfly environment, complete with a greenhouse that can stand up to the worst winters in the straits of Mackinac. Butterfly houses have been popular for centuries in East Asia and for decades in England and Europe, but they are relatively new in the United States, Beardsley said in Tuesday’s Detroit News. His partner, Bill Hill of Naples, Fla., is one of the principal butterfly raisers in the nation. Hill said there are butterfly houses in Florida, Ohio, Georgia and several in California. Almost all the butterflies at the Mackinac Island facility are North American species, such as the zebra long wing, tropical queen and the monarch. This winter, Beardsley said he will go to the South American tropics to acquire more exotic species.

60 years ago

August 9, 1963 – MARQUETTE – Marquette’s fire department was called out twice yesterday, but neither call resulted in any serious damage. At 4:52 yesterday afternoon, firemen were summoned to Honor Camp Road, Harvey, where some boxes in back of an Our Own Bakeries, Inc., truck caught fire. Firemen said some children playing with a burning stick had shoved it into one of the cardboard boxes in the truck, causing the boxes to burn. The blaze had been extinguished before firemen arrived. Firemen were also called out at 12:23 yesterday afternoon to Baraga Ave., where an oil-burning hot water heater became overheated. Firemen said the unit became overheated due to an excess amount of soot collecting in it. Firemen stood by until the heater cooled off. Nothing was used.