Location: Missaukee Junction, MI

Missaukee Junction was a location on the Grand Rapids & Indiana railroad where the Missaukee Branch left the main line going east towards Lake City and Falmouth. The location was settled about 1876. [MPN]

Photo info: Top, an early view of the Missaukee Junction depot. The diverging track appears to be the Missaukee Branch. [CMUL]. 2nd photo, the Christmas tree loading site at North Cadillac, on the Cadillac & Lake City Railroad on Thanksgiving Day in 1971. [Greg Bunce]  Greg notes that when the Michigan Northern took over the Penn Central line from Grand Rapids to Mackinaw City, they continued to haul Christmas trees. "Conrail would send us all their junk cars from the rip track for loading. Doors missing, holes in the roof. As long as the safety appliances worked they were OK for loading trees. A variety of cars from various predecessor roads were used, Pennsylvania, NYC, Erie, Erie Lackawanna, Lehigh Valley, etc."

Notes

Additional Information: North Cadillac was the siding that the Cadillac & Lake City put in just to the east of US-131. They built a station there for loading of passengers. Since Missaukee Junction's wye was gone by that time, they needed a way to run around the cars. North Cadillac was not "North Yard" which was the name of the PRR/PC/MIGN yard.  [Greg Bunce]

Time Line

1885. May. 500,000 shingles owned by W.W. Cummer & Company at Missaukee Junction were destroyed by fire. [NWM-1885-0520]

1912. Alone and with one portion of his body paralyzed, GR&I operator C.E. Northway succeeded in extinguishing the blazing roof of his shanty at Missaukee Junction, saving the building. Northway is learning to be left handed and his long service for the company secured him a job as soon as he could walk, following a stroke. [LDP-1912-0724]

Industry

• W.W. Cummer & Company - forest products - 1885