• Sunday-What'sUP January 11 - 09:25 pm

What a contrast to see Henry Ford's sawmill in the 1930's compared to the 70's. This was one of the items explored in one of our "Day in History" installments this week, with our thanks to Clyde Elmblad for researching the pictures on his informative website HighWay41North.com. We will plan to have a Pasty Cameo with more details later, but in the meantime here is a pretty good overview of the operation in Pequaming.

Today's contrasting views are very timely, in light of the attention the auto industry has been getting lately with plummeting sales. Just like the mining industry's rise and fall here in the U.P., it is inevitable that time and change will bring about the decline in just about every aspect of human endeavor. That downturn appears to be in the works for Detroit. Many of the miners who became jobless here in the U.P. actually moved downstate to become autoworkers. We would be especially interested to hear from anyone who has been affected by the crises in both of these industries.

Thanks for stopping by Pasty Central. Have a good week :o)

Good morning everyone. 7 degrees and cloudy here in Houghton. Have a great day.

One of these days, I am going to cruise (on the Goldwing) to Pequaming. I've heard that it is very nice drive. Sometimes I stay at the Best Western - Barage (a nice hotel) that is located directly across the bay from Pequaming.

Alex, I've been to Pequaming (on a Goldwing) and it's a neat place and a nice ride!!

I am going to go there some day also. I am going to go a lot of places some day.

The housing industry is what has been affected so badly here in MN. Mr. Deb's shoulder injury is almost a blessing (if you can say that) in disguise, as the company he worked for has laid off nearly everybody. He's an electrician and there's just no work to be found. At least he's getting a paycheck out of it. So sad. We can only hope things turn around soon.

Thanks Laurie...that is what I have heard in the past. Now, it is definitely on my to-do list of rides.

Any recent photos of what the sawmill looks like today? We took a small tour there 4 years ago. I know they have done some preservation efforts in the past, just not sure just what was targeted.

On Christmas Eve, while taking care of my mother-in-law, I met
a very kind young woman (mid 30s?--young for me anyway).
She, her husband and children and in-laws brought a complete
dinner to my mother-in-law's--a neighborly tradition they had
established a few years ago to bring cheer to their elderly
neighbors. Over the course of the dinner, we got to talking.
When she learned that I was preparing to join my family for a
few days in the UP, she commented on the ironies of life. It
turned out her family, originally from Calumet, had left the UP
after the mines had ceased to operate, and moved to the LP to
work in the automotive industry. She had recently lost her job as
a casualty of the automotive crisis. Her family still misses the
UP.

On another note, I'll have to talk to my father. I'm pretty sure
we had relatives who worked and lived in Pequaming "back in
the day."

Loved today's pictures and following the links, which led to other links & I could be here all day! Pequaming is just around the corner from my cottage. If any of you make the trip out there, also check out Pte. Abbaye, Mt. Arvon and my favorite falls in the whole U.P.: Silver River Falls (not the one in the Keweenaw).