• Sunday-What'sUP February 13 - 12:12 pm

I ran across these 2 postcards from the collection of my late friend Rudy Bylkas, who I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. Besides being an accomplished amateur photographer, he was also a collector of Michigan postcards. The first one was taken around the corner from Still Waters in Calumet, which is at the corner of Mine and Elm Street. Of course, Still Waters wasn't there back when this scene was live. The other postcard entitled "Winter at Calumet, Mich" is from the same period (30's? 40's?)

Stuck to the back of these two postcards was a shot taken by Rudy himself, with "Winter '51-'52" scribbled on the back. Quite a contrast in modes of transportation :o)

Old postcards seem to capture life and times of of our ancestors so vividly!! I just love to read what may have been written on them as well - love to add to my collection too. Thanks for sharing the memories today.

It's nice to look at old postcards and pictures
now and then. Parents, Grandparents, they didn't
have it so good then as WE DO NOW. Modern luxuries, COMPUTERS, plenty of food to go around.
We should all be THANKFUL for what we have today.
Take Care, have a great day, enjoy the sunshine!!!

I want to wish my Mom, Salome, a very happy birthday. She was born 85 years ago today in Mohawk. She is the daughter of two Cornish immigrants. Love you Mom, you're the BEST!!

Also, I always look forward to the Shoebox Memories. These pics are great.

Great pictures this morning. It just blows my mind how much snow you all get up there. When it melts do you get alot of flooding?

Those were the days. Mom and Dad were from near there and have pictures of us kids in the 50s. Brrr--that Norse wind blows, my brother would say. But we never refused a sleigh ride at the Godparent's home in Washburn, WI.

The rotary plow in the photo above was one that I can remember being used around the Copper Country in the 1930s.
It was a V plow with a blower on either side, pushed along slowly by a crawler, track type tractor, Probably a "Holt".
It didn't throw the snow very far by todays standards, but notice in the photo how high the snow is blown. We would see them after a big blizzard, opening the snow blocked roads that the wheel driven V plows coudn't do.

Thanks, Daryl, for pics of the Winter Carnival.
They are great! Some of us just don't have the time to get out there to look at them.

Good Morning!

Neat pics, great information, Thanks, Gus LL!
Yes, GW- Houghton, We all MUST be thankful! We have so much in our lives, it's too easy to take it all for granted. Unless, like some of us you remember when you were a kid doing the family wash with a wringer washer and hanging the clothes in the sauna dressing room in winter!! Stuff like that- make you really appreciate every load of wash you do in your automatic machine!

LOVE that picture of the little kid in the Box-sled? 'Snow' cute, I think I'll call it!

I temember my younger sisters in the 1940s, being pulled on a sled sitting in a box like that in today's picture. By the time the baby came alone, the folks had acuired a little cutter. There was a wooden frame around the side and back of the sled. I was envious. I was too big to have the luxury of a "chair" on the sled that i rode on. Mine was self-powered.

We walked to Washington and Calumet high school that way from Pine St along the C&H railroad tracks--where your gazebo and flower garden are now charlie-not many kids rode the busses in the 40s and 50s--and we had to walk home at noon for lunch--was nice if you left later for school--the early birds broke trail on the paths--made for easier walking-think tamarack hill kids had the longest walk--mabe thats why so many quit school--lol

This brings new meaning to the expression ' When I was a boy I had to walk through 6 feet of snow, both ways, to get to school! '.

So will you believe me now when I tell you this?

TS,
Yes, I too walked from way down on Waterworks St to Calumet High back in the late 30's and early 40's and had to walk home for lunch. Funny, the way time flies now, we always got back to school on time. I remember the year of 1978-'79 when we had a bad storm on Thanksgiving and Waterworks Street was closed for one month due to the "hills" of snow between the openings between the houses. Our house was being remodled by a man named John Sornsen, of Laurium, and he had to come by bus and carry the lumber up and down those "hills".

Correction:
It was the winter of 1937-'38. Ho hum----?

Impressive photos, and quite a contrast to the paltry few feet we've had this season. Mom tells me of when her mother was a child in Dearborn in the 1890s and had to walk three miles every day to school with her older brothers. In the winter they would walk the train tracks since these were always clear and safer than the roads, and her brother would each take a hand and pull her at great speeds along the path. Mom couldn't say what they did when a train came along, but in Dearborn I guess the drifts were never too deep for them to scramble out of the way. Dangerous doings, indeed! Grandma's Dad died when he ran his early Model T into a trolley car in Detroit.

Back in the 1950's, my uncle drove one of those plows for Houghton County. We lived in Calumet Township and on Saturday mornings he would stop at our house and pick me up for a ride. He drove one of those big V plows with double wings. I got to push the lever to raise the plow for railroad tracks et. What a thrill for a 10/12 year old. Never happen today, with all of the legalities and lawyers around.

Roy TN- you got that right! Everyone is "sue"
happy in todays world! You even look at someone
the wrong way, look out!!!

I love all of the winter scenes. I can only imagine what it would be like to have all of that snow. We don't get much at any one time around here and even if we do (we've had three 8+ inch snowfalls this winter) it never lasts. I love the "it snowed, so what" feeling that your pictures give - life goes on, and its even possible to embrace the differences of winter. I get so tired of people always complaining about winter. Winter happens - enjoy it. Spring always gets here after a few months then we can enjoy its beauty too.
I really enjoyed the snow carnival pictures too. Its unbelievable what the students can accomplish, especially considering the stretch of warmer weather they had to contend with. Congratulations to all.
Thanks for letting me rant. Keep up the good work.

I am also a collector of post cards...I only collect cards from the Traverse City area...so many pictures so little time

Happy Sunday to all... The Winter Carnival pictures are Great. I have one question maybe someone can answer for me... How do I put a picture here? I have an old postcard from Electric Park and one of my Great grandparents home in Calumet in 1917? Also a newer? one of the same home in 1985. Sorry do not have street address and my dear mom has been gone for 8 yrs. now. Thanks for any help.. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Looks familiar. We walked from Sacred Heart School in Laurium to Seventh St. in Calumet 4 times a day.Remember one incident when walking down Calumet Avenue towards Red Jacket Road.The rotary plow had been on the Avenue a couple of days before and squared up the banks and they were at least 5 feet tall. Then we got a mild spell with rain and freezing rain and it was like walking on an indoor ice rink with frozen walls. Some memories. Sure enjoy these Sunday pictures. Please keep it up.

Ellen,

Try this and see if it works. Scan your pic and save to word documents, and exit/close out of that program. Open a new word document and click on 'Insert', from that list, click on 'from file', and find the pic you scanned and saved.

After the pic is inserted on the word document, left click on your pic/word document and 'copy'/highlight the pic and right click on your most and click on 'copy'

Left click on 'Add a message' and then right click on your mouse, and click on 'paste'...your pic should appear in the Add A Message box.

This one brings back memories. The photo of the old snow blower looks like one that was used in Laurium during the late 30's and early 40's. It was called "Snow King" or "Snow Go" and whenever we kids heard it coming down our street, we would climb the banks and lay belly down and cover our faces and let the blown snow cover us up.The driver usually could not see us because the blown snow obstructed his side view. Looking back on this it was a really dumb thing to do huh? But then we didn't have electronic devices to play with for excitement, we went out and did the "real thing"

Roy in Tn.Remember it well.My grandfather lived next door to you.He was an engineer for C&H,he would pick me up and I would ride to the round-house on board a steam locomotive.I would even get to blow the whistle at crossing.Never happen today!!

Eleanor---I was one of the kids that walked the copper range railroad tracks along by the pine st ice rink shack--and came out between Pellagrinis garden and Kivistos house on the way to --Channel-- the swiming hole by calumet dam--before your dad had bought the old boiler house--for his scrap yard

I lived in Laurium from the mid 40's to the mid 50's. I remember the older "vee plow" type snow blower that was used to widen the streets. The snow banks were huge after they were done. That machine was replaced by a "Sno-Go" which was mounted on an Oshkosh four wheel drive truck, just like the machine that was on display at the Delware Mine this past September. I remember the village would come around in the evening to widen the streets, they would have to get people to move their cars so they could complete the job. All of that snow was blown into people's front yards. The banks were so high that no one had to pull any of the blinds in their houses. As kids, we spent many happy hours playing on those high banks and digging tunnels into them. I also remember the big "double wing" plows the county had, they were made by "Walters" and they appeared to be huge to me. The county plowed the Florida Location and then when finished the trucks would come lumbering up Lake Linden Avenue on their way to somewhere else that needed plowing. Those trucks with the double wings could plow the country roads with one pass with both wings down. Seemed like we used to get much more snow back then than now, at least that's the way I remember it.

Ned -- we were a lot shorter back then.

What about scooping out the driveway only to have the plow come RIGHT after you finished? Or scooping out the driveway and making SURE you put the snow on the right side so the plow wouldn't push it all back in again? Didn't really matter...cause when the plow came, it pushed snow in no matter WHERE you piled the last scooping out!

Does anybody know what is that big black vertical streak in the first picture? A smokestack? From where?

John, I was wondering the same thing. If it a smokestack how can it be Mine and Elm?
Dale

nice to see pictures of da old stuff

Thanks for the beautiful pictures, Daryl. I woke up with the flu in St. Ignace, so had to turn around and come back home, so I REALLY appreciate your pictures!

Maija,

Oh no....sorry to hear that you got sick on your trip. That had to have been awful, getting sick so far from home. How in the heck did you manage to drive back home? Definately no fun and bet you were counting every mile.

There is some type of bug going around here too...I have been in pajamas all weekend long, and pushing myself to complete paperwork that is due in two weeks.

Aaaaaaaaaaaah....aaaaaaaaaaaaah...choooooooooo!

HOPE YOU ARE FEELING BETTER, MAIJA :)

I remember the plow driver stopping in the morning while I was waiting for the bus, just to make sure I got on the bus ok..I miss him, was a great great guy.

For some years in the 50's, the Laurium Sno-go had a fixed show chute. As they widened the street, the Sno-go blew the snow in everyone's driveway. If you didn't go out and scoop the snow right away, it hardened like cement. Progress back then was measured by the installation of a moveable chute.

I used to scoop 4 driveways before school and to do that, I started at 5am. I guess the Plow driver took pity (I was pretty small), and he stopped one morning and said, "stand back". He proceeded to drive the village plow (it wasn't a vee plow) through my driveways and didn't leave much to shovel. He then proceeded to ask if I wanted a ride. What kid could pass that up? I rode with him alomost every morning for a couple of hours for two years. Thanks again Louie. I am sure the statue of limitations has passed on such a heinous crime. Growing up in the Yoop was almost like a fairy tale childhood.

As a boy living in Dollar Bay in the 40s, I remember in MAY!!-- when all the green coming out, warm temps. etc., seeing good 5ft. or so high piles of those snowbanks still remaining off the corners of the roads and in the store parking lots!
As for flooding--- not much I think since it is mostly sandy soil in the Keewenaw and most anywhere it is downhill to the big Lake! ---Evidenced by all the falls. Check my Guest Photo Gallery for 2 old photos of Eagle River Falls, one in Nov., and one in April for the flow difference!
All you post card lovers---lots of antique UP/CC postcards in my Gallery also. I'm proud to say Charlie has featured several of mine in the past on "Shoe Box Memories!

roy tn.i remember your uncle butch very well.i lived in the next house from you.paul ms.i remember your grandpa ginty he lived next door to me.yooper stuck in pa.i visited louie this summer we spent three hours talking what agreat guy.

I remember my uncle who grew up in Pelkie telling us that he had to walk 3 miles to school and 3 miles back, uphill both ways! ;o) Those big double-wing plows, we used to call 'em the 'butterfly'. Loved to see them coming from the Sunshine location to Paavola. The noise and the flying snow were a thrill to a little kid! Can it be that long ago?

The smokestack was the coal burning in that building for the steam to heat washington and calumet high schools

So if that's the smokestack near the schools, then the photographer is on the west side of Mine street, pointing northeast...right? Basically in the spot where the elementary school stands today. If that's the case then I can't figure out what house that is?

There aren't any houses (and havn't been) any houses along Mine street between the schools and Church St... The only thing on Mine between the school and Church St on Mine is a big old machine shop place that has been there since the 1800's... No houses...?

I'm still confused.... Help ? ? ?

Remove all pencils before using your scanner.

Nice Photoshop, Heikki Reijo, but if you zoom in on the original picture, you can see that those power lines run -in front of- the smoke stack.

I know you're joking, but...a pencil on the glass would cover the plow as well... ;)


Hmmmm.....

The mystery continues!

Wah look at that over 50 tons of torque this big snow plowing riding machine has enough speed and durability to go thru anything.

Could there have been a smoke stack north of elm street on mine? There are ruins of an old mine building half way between elm and pine street between Peters and Karpinens res. across from Golden Horizon Apts. The windows on the house look kind of like my house before the addition was put on, but I don't know if there was a porch across the front like that. Another explanation is that the negative was processed backwards or flipped and then written on. Have to investigate. This would give the right perspective of the stack by where the old Superior Boiler House was or Middle School is now.

Yes, C Rowe, you are right! The negative appears to be flipped, and it is the smokestack next to the school.

Ah ha! It was flipped! Thanks C Rowe and Charlie! Now it makes sense. And now the plow is on the "right" side of the road, too.

So this stack we see has to be the Superior stack. This is not the stack that still remains today. The one that remains today was immediately south of the Superior stack and was the boiler house stack. It is about 2/3 the size of the Superior stack and I'm guessing that the massive Superior stack is obstructing the photographer's view of the smaller boiler house stack in the plow picture.



In this picture, we can see both stacks. It looks like the photographer was on top of Washington School, pointing to the north-northwest.

Does anyone happen to know when the mighty Superior Stack was torn down? The only part of it that remains today is its foundation and a few bricks.

And to answer C Rowe's question about a possible stack between Elm and Pine... There -was- a shaft in the location you describe - the Calumet #5 shaft. There was a small smokestack with it, but quite a ways off to the west of Mine Street. In other words, no...there weren't any stacks -along- Mine between Elm and Pine. :)

Ed,
ROFL...so the mystery of the smoke stack is finally solved.:) Dontcha just hate that when you look at a pic and something doesn't look right/isn't in the right perspective.

The thought that it was in mirror reverse didn't even cross my mind...and it should have, because I scanned a picture recently and for some odd reason, I hit the reverse button on the scanner and didn't realize it, until I the picture was saved. Then I couldn't figure out why the lighthouse was in the 'wrong' location. Duh!

In regard to yooper stuck in PA's excerpt "like a fairy tale childhood." The images of rainbow icicles, snow crystals, infinite formations of melting or freezing snow, water, or ice, integrated with some natural phenomenom, such as plant, animal, or matter as a fragile backdrop, seem to me today a kaliedascope of wonderment I have been unable to shake from my mind. Seemed we would forever run those banks, and jump into the glistening drifts, crack the ice, fall hard and come home soaked. We ran the rock piles, walked the thin ice with glee, snoshoed and jumped swollen creeks for free. God asked Job, "Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?" I have not entered into the treasures, but I have seen where He let some spill out onto the ground. Now I know God set me up to hear his voice, through his creation, as a child. I've never outgrown it, now His voice grows louder still. Streethockey, year round hockey, diggin lost pucks in the bank with your best friend. That snow picture of downtown Calumet after a snow, late at nite, "looks like Dr. Zivago," sums it up for me. These pictures and the comments of people who have been touched by the Voice of the Creator in the U.P. leaves me contemplative, and yearning with tears for more of a connection than is possible. Its like a dream...

Wow....memories of all the snow. I don't miss it at all as I live in balmy Oregon. The winter has been a CA. winter, guess they got someone else's winter? You can have the snow and the cold....I lived with it enough years.