Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-09-18
VISITORS TO MACK|NAC
Twenty Thousand People on the
Island This Summer.
FINE PLACE FOR FISHING
Headquarters for the American Fur
Company.
DECLINE OF GREAT INDUSTRY
Controversy Over the Conduct of
Michael Dousman-Massacre by
the Followers of Pontiac.
DECLINE OF GREAT INDUSTRY
BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence of The Star and the Chicago
Record Herald.

September II, 1907.
The season lust closed at Macknac Is
land has been very successful. There has
been a larger number of visitors than ever
before. The fourteen hotels which accom-
modate $500 guests and the thirty boarding
houses. which accommodate about $50 have
all been filled. Only one or two cottages
have been unoccupied. and Mr.. Arnold, who
IS agent for all the steamship companies
and railways. saws that there have been
at least 10000 people here. and 10. 900 pieces
of baggage were handled during the season.
An average of twentv-four sleeping cars
a day have arrived and departed during
the season, and ten passenger steamship
lines have furnished connections with De-
troit. Cleveland. Buffalo. Chicago and Du-
luth. Across the straits are the Les Che
neaux. or Snow Islands. d large archIpel-
ago. which affords one of the finest fishing
grounds on the continent. Boats go over
every morning and return every night, and
these also have been patronzed by I'M
usual numbers of people. The fishing has
been good since early spring.
The regular population of the island is
about 700 % per cent of whom are French
Canadian. descendants of the old trappers.
hunters. fishermen and voyageurs: and 10
per cent half-breed Ottawas. Chippcwas
and Ojibway Indians. leaving about 35 per
house keepers. merchants and mocha MICS.
The fishing industry Is not important as
1t used to be. 1t Is controlled by trust
with headquarters in Chicago and the fish
caught In this neighbOrhood are shipped
from Mackinaw City and st. Ignace.
Early Days on Maekinac.
Life in Mackinac today is very different
from what it used to be in the time OF the
fur hunters and the fishermen, although
the island Is not nearly so important as 1t
was then. A good description OF those days
can be found in a charming story called
Anne" by Constance Fenimore Woolson,
who used to visit relative among the mill
tary families at the fort, and got her ma
terial from the gasslp of the Oldest inhabit-
ants.
The American Fur Company. which made
its headquarters at Mackinac, was organ
lied in 1909 in New York, with a capital of
million dollars. and John Jacob Astor
was president and principal shareholder. In
1911 he bought out the Mackinac Fur Com
pany and It's headquarters here. His agency
is now hotel much enlarged and modern
led but all of the original building has
been preserved. The big room where the
furs used to be stored Is now used as ball
room. The ancient scales upon which the
furs were weighed still hang from beam:
an ancient desk which was used by the book
/ keeper, a rude ietter-press which was in
vented by Thomas Jefferson and set of
account books are shown to inquisitive tour
lists. At one time Mr.. Astor had a force
of several hundred men engaged here, and
among them was the late Guerdon s. hub
bard of Chicago, who worked for five years
for the late Mr.. Matthews, the agent OF the
company, at salary of $12O a year and
board.
were employed by the fur company or were
dependent upon it. Three four Thousand
hunters, trappers and traders used to come
in during the spring months from as far
10 mo n q n on fha at q md
the Ohio river on the south, bringing their
catches. which were unpacked, counted,
sorted. appraised and paid for. The furs
were then repacked, pressed and shipped
by lake to New York via Buffalo. The furs
We're sable, marten, mink, otter, beaver.
fox. bear. buffalo, wolverine, badger. lynx.
raccoon. muskrat. wildcat. moose. deer and
elk. and almost every other variety. When
the hunters received their pay Mackinac
| Island a lively place. The company
| did its best to keep liquor from Its en-
p!oyes. but there was great deal of fight
ing and carouSing. 1t htted out Its
voyageurs as rapidly possible and sent
them away into the wilderness. The late
Maj John H. kinZie in charge of the
retail store of the company for many years
The fur company continued operations un
Ill 1872, when the civilization of the coun-
| try. the competition OF the Hudson Bay
Company and other reasons made its bust
ness Improbable. Its fleet of sailing YES
sells, buildings and other property passed
into the hands of fishermen who made
Mackinac Island their headquarters until a
few years ago. AS early 1924 quantities
| of whitefish and trout, sailed and packed
| in barrels, were shipped to Buffalo and
| Chicago for points east and west, and the
| trade increased until, in 1865. ii reached a
maximum of more than 2JO.EO barrels val
| ued at more than million dollars. Macki-
| nae Island controlled the catch for a radius
| of a hundred and fifty miles and more, but
| that business also has departed. and the
| only business of the people is the en-
tertainment of summer visitors.
| The Summer Visitors.