Michigamme Steamer Comes Home, a presentation given at the Marquette Regional History Center by Van Kosky Wednesday night, retold the incredible tale of the horse-drawn steam fire engine that captured the attention and imagination of the community it served.

After several devastating fires that ravaged the newly formed village of Michigamme, and a few failed attempts to control each blaze with inadequate machines, the community board finally voted to purchase “the most advanced design” of firefighting equipment available. In 1900 the community of Michigamme, with a population approaching 1,200 people, bought a horse-drawn steam fire engine.

“They didn’t need a steamer as large as they would need one in Chicago or Los Angeles or anywhere that had skyscrapers,” Van Kosky said. “There was nothing taller than two stories in Michigamme in 1900, so they decided, ‘We don’t need a big one, we need a fancy one.'”

According to Van Kosky’s 2009 “Michigan History Magazine” article, Michigamme chose the $3,500 Metropolitan model from the American Fire Engine Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio. The machine could pump 300 gallons of water a minute and featured nickel-plated furnishings, decorative pinstripes and elegant scrollwork that needed to be pulled by at least two draft horses. A cast nameplate that read “MICHIGAMME” crowded its smokestack.

Van Kosky

After almost 30 years of service in 1928, the town purchased a gasoline engine Ford AA fire truck to replace the need for horses.

“Glorified pickup truck is what it is,” Van Kosky called it. “Inevitably, steamers were scrapped, junked, given to small towns.”

However, even with this replacement, the steamer continued to be used, being towed behind the pickup as a secondary unit. It wasn’t until 1952 that it was officially retired.

“By 1952, they bought yet another better, bigger, fire truck and that was pretty much the death nail to the steamer,” Van Kosky said.

It became a show pony, only taken out for parades and special occasions. Then in 1962 an “unbidden fellow” came to Michigamme after hearing about the old equipment and offered to buy the pickup and apparatus for $1,100.

“He gave them $1,000 for the steamer and $100 for the truck,” he said. “That was the end of them as far as the people of Michigamme knew.”

However, the story doesn’t end there, as “many valued the steamer and its historic beauty, setting off a multi-decade search and effort to bring it home,” he said.

In the late 1970s, Charlie Gardner and John Leaf joined the volunteer Michigamme fire department and heard all these stories about different fires and incidents involving the steam fire engine. Their interest evolved into a hunt to find and get the piece back.

“But nobody knew who they had sold it to. They didn’t know the guy’s name, they didn’t know where he was from, except that he came up from the Lower Peninsula,” Van Kosky said.

For 20 years Gardner and Leaf looked for the steamer, but it wasn’t until the year 2000 that they would get a good tip. Leaf connected with a Jackson resident who restored antique fire apparatus, and this connection led him to a book that listed the Michigamme steamer and identified its owner. However, the Tawas City collector had passed away and his estate was embroiled in a legal dispute that prevented Leaf and Gardner from buying the steamer directly.

In 2004 a court order placed the collection up for auction. A delegation from Michigamme arrived with $12,000 in hand and a $60,000 interest-free loan. The group pleaded with auction attendees to refrain from bidding against them. Many decided to support their mission, even contributing to their mission financially. However, not all were sympathetic to the delegation. A Colorado man outbid and took the steamer for $140,000 after Michigamme dropped out at $139,000. The new owner took the steamer south to Arizona, intending to display it in a future theme park venture. The delegation, feeling defeated, returned north to Michigamme.

Incredibly, in 2007, the small town of Michigamme with a population 377 residents got one more chance to bring the beloved steamer home. After the Arizona park failed to be realized, the steamer was placed up for auction again. Gardner and Leaf came together with all those who had been instrumental in raising funds before and were able to secure the steamer for $150,000. After a 45-year absence, the Michigamme steamer came home.

“They finally prevailed and that’s what makes this story so neat,” Van Kosky said.

The steamer is currently in the care of the Michigamme Historical Museum, which is open from Memorial Day through the end of September. It is located at 110 W. Main St. For more information, visit http://www.michigammetownship.com/michigamme-museum.

Corey Kelly can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 243.