The weekly intelligencer., 1897-04-10

Glcc Es-OEslia3rEc Village.
within q few mics of the corpora
ton line Of Toledo lies the site of u
lost village, which was pcopied not long
ago by several hundred souls. Its eX-
IS ence is almost forgotten, and only
few OF the oldest Inhabitants are able
TO indicate even vaguely where the town
once stood. The blue waters of Lake
Erie ripple over town lots and building
lots which, it was hoped, would some
day bring great wealth to the project
ors of the village.
a few miles north of Toledo, Ten
mile creek, dignitied by geographers
with the name of Ottawa river, marks
the boundary on the lake front between
Ohio and Michigan. On the north bank
of the stream, Just within Monroe coun-
tv. Mich, is the site of'what once was
the town of HaIre 1t was not IL hamlet,
such as is gradually formed around a
few fishing shanties when n country
is young, but n town that was created
by hundreds of colonists. When Havre
! was laid out it was the only place that
was more than a mere settlement be-
tween Monroe. Mich, and historic old
Maumcc. o. Toledo was only Il name,
for when the colonists landed, in 1896,
this city was just a year old, and its
future growth was highly problemat-
icaI. 1t was situated II miles from the
island that marks the western end of
the lake. while IIavre, situated to the
north of Gard island, was practically
on the broad highway of waters.
The coIonists were brought to the site
of the town by the steamer Superior
from Buffalo. 1t is probable that this
steamer was the first craft other than
an Indian canoe that had ever ventured
into the channel between Gard island
and the mainland. Many of the colon
lists of Havre were French, and they
named the new town after the famous
port in their mother country. Denis
NORM, whose descendants still live on
the water front near the old town site,
laid out the streets with his plow and
helped to grade the location of the
principal buildings. Old Peter Trevick,
who is still living in Vienna, Mich,
also helped to build the town. Houses
rose rapidly. a firstrate church was
built, and stores out of all proportion
to the business of that day, and a CON-
modious tavern was erected. In short,
within two years from the time the
first colonists landed, 500 houses had
been built along the water front, and
the little steamer that piled between
Detroit, Monroe and Maumee found
profitable trading at Havre.
Then came the cataclysm. Old Lake
Erie began slowly to rise. The town
was only few feet above the level of
4
1t was at first thought that it was only
Il remarkable stage of high water. But
the water came over the sills of the
doors nearest the lake, and slowly but
surely rose higher and higher. House
after house was invaded, and the pretty
little creek mouth gradually widened
until it was nearly n mile across. On the
water came until the floors in the high
est portion of the town stood four feet
deep in the water. The people were,
of course, badly frightened. With
everything that could float, they hur-
ried TO the highest spot on the main
lard and waited for the end. Finding
after day or two that the waters had
apparently ceased TO rise, they returned
and took away all the property that
could be moved by the old-fashioned
canoes. which were an indispensable
adjunct TO every French trapper's out
fit. The boats were rowed right into
the houses. and when it came to trans
porting the barrels of good liquor with
which the tavern taproom was stocked,
there was many u poor Frenchmap who
had as opportunity of drinking better
spirits Elan ne bad ever tasted before.
In fact, the whole settlement had about
as memorable Il drunk as this part of
the country had ever seen.
Then came what is still remembered
as the big winter. Tenmile creek was
frozen to it's bottom. and the snow
was very deep. The founders of IIavre,
who had encamped along the water
front against the day when the waters
should recede and they should come
into their own again, were forced by
the inclemept weather to hunt for new
homes. Monroe received many of them,
and other towns and the ADJACENT farms
absorbed the rest of the villagers. The
waters never went back, and the fol-
lowing spring there was great sale
of the towns buildings. They went
cheap, and the settlers came from miles
were raised before the ice had gone out
of the creek, and were hauled away
by OK teams while the ground WIS still
in good condition for shedding. Only
few of the houses were left. near the
village site. and the only one that can
now be identified is occupied by yOpng
Trevick, and stands over a mile from
where it was first built. The great
tavern was taken bodily to Vienna,
Mich, where it stood for years. Even
the pioneer steamer was broken up, and
to-day some of her planllsare built into
the house Of Levi NORM, whose uncle
plowed the street lines of Havre. All
that is left of Havre is few piles that
can still be seen rotting in Fenmiie
creek.
Whether the water Of Lake Erie actu-
ally rose, or whether the land about the
town site sank, is question. Certainly |
no other port on western Lake Erie
has any record of such an increase
in it's waters; and 1t is argued by those
who believe that the waters rose that |
the effect would not have been So nos |
ticeable at any other point as at IIavre,
on account OF the low level of its town
site. Whatever the cause, the waters |
are high above its streets, and many a
fine pike and black bass has been taken
on tie site of the old to4VH, although few |
Of the many fishers from Toledo who
visit Tenmiie creek are familiar with
the story of the town beneath its sur
face.-N. y. Sun.
Every man believes that he devoteS
great deal of intelligent attention to
his work, while others play half the
tjuie-Atchison Globe.