Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1876-06-07

and the lower ports, as the Colum-
bia was taken off the route some
time before, but near the latter
part of the summer of 1864, the
propeller Genesee Chief began to
make regular trips between Alpena
and Detroit, and thus inaugurated
a regular steamboat communication
during the season of navigation.
Among the passengers who came
up on the Chief on one of her early
trips, were a number of ladies, who
at present are residents of this city.
One of the ladies was the fortunate
possessor of keg of beer, and
wishing to have a social time, she
invited some of the other lady pas
sengers to join with her and spend
an hour or so in friendly sort of
manner. The invited guests eager
ly accepted, and when they were
all assembled, the word was given
for the expected keg of beer to be
brought up. But alas some thirs-
ty mortal had discovered the keg
sometime before and had drank all
the contents, thus leaving the ex-
pectant ones beerless. There was
no social gathering that evening,
and each of the guests betook her
self to her stateroom to mourn over
the great affliction.
There were no doctors in Alpena
at that time, and when one of the
boys was so unfortunate as to get
mangled by the saw, he was forced
to go below in order to get his
wounds properly dressed. We
remember one person who had the
misfortune to have all the fingers
taken off his hand by the edger
saw. The wound was dressed as
well as possible by some of the
townsmen, and then the unfortunate
man was placed aboard sail boat
and taken over to Thunder Bay
Island, and put aboard the first
steamer that passed. AS soon as
he got to Detroit, his hand received
the first surgical treatment since
the time of the accident.
One day as we were working on
the lumber pile in front of Fletch-
er's mill (now Folkert & Butter
field's), we were much surprised
to see a gentlemen in an officers
uniform step on the lumber pile
and commence showing the boards
aboad vessel that was being load
ed. Mr.. Geo. N. Fletcher was
scaling. The officer worked short
time and soon after set up sign
with j. B. Tuttle marked upon it.
OF the mills built during the
year 1865, Mr.. Geo. F. Lewis in
his history of Alpena says as fol-
lows: ain 1865 the Harrington
steam saw mill, the largest and
best in the Alpena district, was
built; the steam mill above the
dam owned by B. II. Campbell &
Co.. large water mill five miles
up the river, owned by H. Broad
well; another large water mill two
miles above the latter, owned by J.
Trowbridge & Brothers, who built
a steam saw mill on the bay the
same year, and L. NJ. Mason & Co.
completed the first water mill COM
menced by Lockwood in 1858, put
ting in mulay saw, two shingle
and one lath machines"
Some changes have taken place
since Mr.. Lewis wrote the above.
The Harrington mill is now owned |
by Hilliard, Churchill Il Co., and !
still continues to be the best, and
among other improvements intro
duced by the present firm is their
furnace for burning slabs and other
mill refuse. The water mills of
Broadwell and Trowbridge have not
been running for some time, and
the steam mill built by Trowbridge
on the bay shore has disappeared
entirely.
During 1865 the following act was
passed by the State Legislature
SEc.-1. That there shall be laid
out and established, by the commits
sioners to be appointed by the
Governor, upon the most direct
and a1aOihla ponfa hasnor tba ,,Io 900