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Trip through time

Book about Humboldt, Beacon, Champion offers detailed glimpse of people, area

Pictured above are pages from “Glimpses of a Century in the Wabik Area,”an 800-page, two-volume tome with over 1,000 photos documenting all aspects of life in the area, starting with their pre-Civil War establishments, which was put together and published by the Champion, Beacon, Humboldt Historical Society. (Journal photos by Amy Grigas)

HUMBOLDT — Marquette County, like much of the Upper Peninsula, was a prime location for both mining and logging during the mid-to-late 19th century.

But as those industries progressed, how did those early settlers get minerals and lumber from their place of origin to a place they could be processed? How did people live and get the necessities needed to make a life in what many considered a harsh, barren land? How did they communicate with the outside world?

Those are just a few of the questions for which a new two-volume book published by the Champion, Beacon, Humboldt Historical Society provides some answers.

CBHHS members Don and Sharon Mikkola spent several years delving into the history of the three communities and the surrounding areas and have come up with “Glimpses of a Century in the Wabik Area,”an 800-page, two-volume tome with over 1,000 photos documenting all aspects of life in the area, starting with their pre-Civil War establishments.

Wabik, according to the book’s cover, is a Native American term describing a “narrows” that had been applied in the area “in relation to the early east-west foot trails passing through their region.”

The book details how people worked, played and lived in the three municipalities from their infancy, to a population growth of nearly 4,000 people until near present day.

For example, letters and other correspondence in the late 1830s came via “Railroad Post Office Cars,” which provided for faster delivery because it was sorted en route, the authors noted: “Further, in regions where there were no stops at some stations, the RPO’s had a hook arm able to snatch a leather (or canvas) pouch of outgoing mail from a track-side mail crane and a clerk would kick a pouch of mail for the post office out the door.”

The authors also noted residents could even tell time by some of the trains that came through the area.

“For much of the time, people could send their clocks and watches by certain trains No. 1, No. 4, etc. when they blew their whistle for the Wabik crossing near the Humboldt-Champion Township line or for the highway crossing at the west edge of town, as well as other places. Despite the railroad being in the valley at Champion, the sounds could be heard through much of Beacon,” the book reads.

The railroad intersection caused the area to be a railroad center, the book states, with three depots and a tower at Wabik to control rail traffic.

The book is not only about industry and transportation, it details the lives of people who lived in the area, including notable residents like Dr. Paul Van Riper, who spent more than seven decades providing medical care to residents of western Marquette County.

“In retrospect, how should one view the life and work of Dr. Paul Van Riper who served our small local communities as a general practitioner of medicine for nearly seven decades?” the authors ask. “He spent very little time away from Beacon and was effectively on call 24/7 throughout the year. During the first decade, his baptism into the practice was replete with a wide range of medical problems from deadly injuries suffered by individuals and groups to epidemics of diseases, many of which had no effective treatment at the time.”

Other aspects of life in the three communities over a century ago included fraternal organizations, religion, schools, recreation, sports, area veterans, fires and fire protection, farming and businesses.

CBHHS will have a special sale of the book from 4 to 6 p.m. following the society’s meeting on Dec. 3 at the Humboldt Township Hall. The CBHHS meeting will be open to the public, and will be held at 2 p.m. that day at the hall.

Books can be purchased through the mail by sending a $45 check or money order to CBHHS, P.O. Box 2, Champion, MI 49814. The historical society can be reached directly by calling 906-458-0624.

Lisa Bowers can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 242. Her email address is lbowers@miningjournal.net.

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