Tawas To Harrisville To Rogers City To Cheboygen

Cheboygen, Michigan

May 30, 2022

After a restless night in Tawas (I was the only camper at Walmart), I spent the morning at a lakeside park in town. As the morning went on, more people showed up such that by early afternoon the place was hopping — people on the beach, kids throwing baseball, some men fishing from the shore and even some polar bears in the water.

Tawas‘ Main Street was decorated for Memorial Day — I took these photos as the sun came out from behind the morning clouds.

The Tawas Beach on Lake “Hear-on”

What color kayak do you want??

US 23 runs alongside Lake Huron, in many places north of Tawas, no more than 50 yards from the water. Very cool.

And speaking of cool, when I was driving by the water the thermometer in Hi Ho Silver read between 59 and 62 degrees. When US 23 went inland — no more than a mile or so from the lake — the thermometer read between 70 and 75 degrees.

You could really imagine being at the ocean (except that this is fresh water). In many places the water was that Caribbean torquoise blue.

(The ocean is blue because water absorbs colors in the red part of the light spectrum. Like a filter, this leaves behind colors in the blue part of the light spectrum for us to see. The ocean may also take on green, red, or other hues as light bounces off of floating sediments and particles in the water.)

North of Harrisville is quite rural — I was thinking “remote” might be a better word. There are some houses along the lake though not many. I thought this photo captured the emptiness well.

A lighthouse!!

This morning (May 30) in Cheboygan.

Cheboygan (/ʃɛˈbɔɪɡən/ shi-BOY-gən), as of the 2010 census, the city population was 4,876 and is the county seat of Cheboygan County.

The name of the city shares the name of the county and probably has its origin from the Cheboygan River, although the precise meaning is no longer known. It may have come from an Ojibwe word zhaabonigan meaning "sewing needle". Alternatively, the origin may have been "Chabwegan," meaning "a place of ore."[6][7]

The city is at the mouth of the Cheboygan Riveron Lake Huron. U.S. Highway 23 (US 23) connects with Interstate 75 (I-75) at Mackinaw City and the Mackinac Bridge, about 15 miles (24 km) to the northwest. Rogers City is about 41 miles (66 km) to the southeast. M-27 runs south from the city along the north shore of Mullett Lake to I-75 at Indian River about 18 miles (29 km) to the southwest. M-33 runs due south along the east shore of Mullett Lake to M-68about 20 miles (32 km) to the south.

HistoryEdit

On this 1876 map, Duncan City is shown as a separate city east of Cheboygan in Cheboygan County.

Cheboygan was originally an Ojibwe settlement. In 1844, Jacob Sammons, a cooper from Fort Mackinac, chose the old native camping ground (then called "Shabwegan") as the site for his cabin. He recruited other settlers, and a post office named "Duncan" was established in 1846. It was made the county seat in 1853.

Duncan or Duncan City was given a post office in 1850 as a result of the building of sawmills in this area. Duncan was made the county seat in 1853 and the location of the federal land office in 1855. The county seat shifted to Cheboygan in about 1870. Later Duncan was included within the expanded boundaries of Cheboygan.

The area became known as Cheboygan in 1870. It was incorporated as a village in 1871. Rail maps in 1876 show planned rail service for Cheboygan, but due to various setbacks, rail did not arrive there until 1881. There was a theater built in town in 1877.

Cheboygan was incorporated as a city (versus a village) in 1889.

In approximately 1890, Cheboygan became the home port for ferryboats to nearby Bois Blanc, an island in the Straits of Mackinac. The Kristen D is a ferry which operates between Cheboygan and Bois Blanc Island. Early in the 20th century, it was home to the pioneering brass era cycle-carmaker, Flagler.

In 1944, Cheboygan became the home port of the former U.S. Coast Guard cutter and icebreaker Mackinaw, serving from 1944 to 2006. Beginning in 2006, the port continued this role as the home dock of the new Mackinaw, a successor cutter.

Geography

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 4,867 people, 2,025 households, and 1,164 families residing in the city. The population density was 715.7 inhabitants per square mile (276.3/km2). There were 2,415 housing units at an average density of 355.1 per square mile (137.1/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 90.8% White, 1.0% African American, 4.6% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.2% of the population.

There were 2,025 households, of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.7% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.5% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.84.

The median age in the city was 40.8 years. 22.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.6% were from 25 to 44; 26% were from 45 to 64; and 19% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

Media

The city and county are served by a daily newspaper, the Cheboygan Daily Tribune. A television station, WTOM-TV, is licensed to Cheboygan and maintains broadcast facilities along US Highway 23 south of the city, but this station operates as a satellite, with programming originating from parent station WPBN-TV in Traverse City.

Transportation

State trunklinesEdit

• US 23

• M-27

• M-33

• I-75 is about 10 miles (16 km) away, but the city is listed as a destination for four interchanges

County-designated highways

• C-64

• C-66

• F-05

Trails

• North Central State Trail

• North Eastern State Trail

Bus

• Indian Trails provides daily intercity bus service between St. Ignace and Bay City, Michigan. This route doubles as the Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach service for the area.

Notable people

• George M. Humphrey, 55th United States Secretary of the Treasury

• Debbie Massey, golfer. Winner of three LPGATour events

• Scott Sigler, 1988 graduate of CAHS. Contemporary American author of science fiction and horror.