This high school, featuring the library shown above, received honors for its design in 1959. Gordon Cornwell was the architect of the building. Which school is it?
Category Archives: Mystery Photo
Time for a treasure hunt! Can you guess where this photograph, related to a historical story in the Grand Traverse Region, was taken? Come back for next month’s issue and check your answer!
Ready to submit a mystery photo from your community? Send it to the editors of the Journal at gtjeditor@tadl.org. Remember to include the answer to your photograph in your email!
You didn’t miss it! Reader identifies the ornamentation on Hannah Lay Building
What downtown Traverse City building features this beautiful ornamentation?
Thanks to reader Charlene, we have our answer!:
“The building at the NE corner of Front and Union…the old Hannah & Lay Mercantile building.”
The building was erected in 1884. Its construction was covered heavily by the newspaper at the time, the Grand Traverse Herald. If you are interested in reading more about it, copies of the newspaper are available in print and microfilm at Traverse Area District Library, thanks in large part to the recent donation of archival materials made by the History Center of Traverse City.
Readers Still in the Dark about the Park Place Beacon
The Park Place cannot turn off its Beacon Light without permission of the Federal Government. Why is this?
Although we had several excellent guesses, no reader got the right answer! The Park Place Beacon is a registered Coast Guard Lighthouse. As such, you cannot turn off the light without its permission.
Ornamentation from the 19th century- Did you miss it?
What downtown Traverse City building features this beautiful ornamentation?
Park Place Beacon at Night: Can you turn it off for good?
The Park Place cannot turn off its Beacon Light without permission of the Federal Government. Why is this?
Peacock Identified as Mystery Bird
Thanks to Christopher and other readers, we have our answer for the December Mystery Photo! Fulton Park housed the peacock population of Traverse City during the winter months. During the summer, they occupied more pleasant surroundings by the bay near downtown.
Fulton Park is located on Carter Road just outside the city limits in Leelanau county. A building on the property once housed an exotic, gorgeous bird that made outrageous squawks near Clinch Park, downtown. Name that bird!
Readers Solve Railroad Marker Mystery
Dear readers, this marker is placed near the railroad tracks, close to the Woodmere Branch of Traverse Area District Library. What does that mysterious “W” stand for? And who should pay attention to it?
Here’s your clue: Your editors believe this to be rather antiquated, and feel that the “W” might be better replaced with a “H” for modern times.
Readers Rebecca and Robert hit the right notes with their answers! Indeed, the “W” on this marker stands for “Whistle,” which has been replaced on modern railroads with horns (and why we suggest the “H” needs to replace the “W” on these markers). Read Robert’s full explanation here:
“This is a whistle post that notifies the engineer that there is a road crossing where the whistle/now horn should be blown. Two longs, a short and a long blast of the whistle or horn/s is the Federally required law to inform people that a train is coming and they should be prepared to stop short of the crossing. Nowadays there are quiet zones in some localities that forbid the blowing of the whistle or horn/horns at crossings. In this case, the crossings are well protected by flashers and gates to keep motorists from crossing when a train is coming.”
Our readers are simply brilliant! Thanks, Rebecca and Robert!
Name that Mystery Bird
Fulton Park is located on Carter Road just outside the city limits in Leelanau county. A building on the property once housed an exotic, gorgeous bird that made outrageous squawks near Clinch Park, downtown. Name that bird!
Mysterious Manhole Cover Proves Easily Solved
Congratulations to our good friend and contributor Dr. Stacey Daniels, author of The Comedy of Crystal Lake, who provided your editors with the answer to the September Mystery Photo!:
The question was easy to answer: http://traversehistory.org/tours/historical-timeline/
- 1923 Michigan Bell bought out Citizens Telephone Company
- 1874 Michigan Bell telephone line comes to T.C. from Charlevoix (Our editors question this date, since Bell’s invention dates from 1877)
But did you know the following?
“In 1877, the American Bell Telephone Company, named after Alexander Graham Bell, opened the first telephone exchange in New Haven, Connecticut. Within a few years local exchange companies were established in every major city in the United States. Use of the Bell System name initially referred to those early telephone franchises and eventually comprised all telephone companies owned by American Telephone & Telegraph, referred to internally as Bell Operating Companies, or ‘BOCs’.” ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_System)
The telephone didn’t come to Benzie County until after Archibald Jones lowered Crystal Lake in 1873, according to History of Benzie County Michigan, The Traverse Region (H.R. Page & Co., 1884, p. 288-298).
“…and telephone lines, daily mails and other conveniences are in operation (as of 1884)”.
Regards, Stacy
“W,” a Marker of Mystery
Dear readers, this marker is placed near the railroad tracks, close to the Woodmere Branch of Traverse Area District Library. What does that mysterious “W” stand for? And who should pay attention to it?
Here’s your clue: Your editors believe this to be rather antiquated, and feel that the “W” might be better replaced with a “H” for modern times.