Sharing Personal History One Life at a Time

Author: tappingroots (page 1 of 1)

McMorran and Davidson: Seventh & Lapeer

Active Lounge Front
Source:  708 Lapeer Avenue, Port Huron, Michigan, point2homes.com

Last weekend I was browsing the internet looking at commercial real estate properties in the Port Huron area.  I came across an advertisement for the sale of the property at 708 Lapeer Avenue.  This property tugs at my heart because I know it was built in 1891 by Henry McMorran and Wilbur F. Davidson.  Two capitalists who have captivated my attention for the past few years.  Having researched the life of Henry McMorran for almost four years, I feel a kinship with him and this building.  When it popped up in my search, I felt the need to share what I have learned about this building over the years.

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A Christmas Feeling

A few ideas for a Christmas blog have been gnawing at me for the past few weeks, but with the hustle and bustle of Christmas preparation, writing time has been limited.  Today, I took my son to see the new “Grinch” movie.  I guess you could say the “green” guy swelled my heart three sizes, causing those Christmas thoughts to meander around in my head again.   Which led to the creation of this blog post, despite the fact I am under a time crunch today.  I guess some things they just got to come out of you one way or another.

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The McMorran Dock

HM.Grocery.Receipt
Image:  Henry McMorran receipt, circa 1876. Source:  John Stillson Probate File

In life we all get our start somewhere.  In most instances, that start begins with experiences and connections we share with people.  Henry McMorran’s start is no exception.  As I discussed in an earlier blog, Henry worked for W.H.B. Dowling as a clerk until his business closed in 1860.  During the Civil War period from 1861 to 1865, Henry went to work as a clerk for two men, John Stillson, who was engaged in the lumbering and mail stage business in Brockway & Port Huron, and Myron Williams, who is known for having been heavily involved in the lumbering and vessel building trade in the Marysville area with his son-in-law, Nelson Mills, starting in 1850.  In 1862, Myron sold his interest in the lumber mills to Nelson and focused entirely on his vessel business.

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The “Henry McMorran”

 

Articles of Association

The Port Huron and Northwestern Railway Company

In March of 1878, D.B. Harrington, John P. Sanborn, Henry Howard, Fred L. Wells, Charles A. Ward, William Hartsuff, James Beard, Henry McMorran, Silas S. Ballentine, Peter B. Sanborn and Charles R. Brown, came together to form the Port Huron and Northwestern Railway Company.  They formed the company to construct a railroad with a gauge of three feet that would travel in the city of Port Huron and through a portion of St. Clair, Sanilac, and Huron counties to the village of Port Austin.  Each member held 100 shares in the railroad, except D.B. Harrington; he held 110 shares.

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Those of Us Who Try…. DO: Part II

There was more to R.C. Mudge than just making paper garments.  He enjoyed music, acting, and giving to those less fortunate than himself.  In 1889, he printed a piece of piano sheet music titled “The Paper Vest Gallop” composed by J.E. Fancher from the sulphite paper used to make his paper garments.  He gave out free copies to anyone in the Port Huron community who requested one.  At the time, the cost of a piece of sheet music was 50 cents.  Today, that would equate to $12.50.  The sheet music survives and is part of the Lester S. Levy Sheet Music Collection at the John Hopkins Sheridan Libraries & University Museums archive.  In addition to printing off and giving out free music, Mudge was praised many times by the Port Huron community for donating paper blankets to the Port Huron Hospital and Home Association and paper vests to local mail carriers.

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Those of Us Who Try……DO. Part I

Sometimes an idea is sparked by a simple thought, a notion, or a gesture that stays with us.  We let it mull around in our minds for a while, keep it close, and when the time is right we put it to use in our physical world.  These kinds of ideas mass produced by all of us contribute to our personal experiences and essentially create and dictate the world we live in.  Other times, it is almost like the form of an idea runs quickly across our consciousness and is filtered out.  Gone.  Was it a missed opportunity for exploitation?  Doubtful.  I like to think that ideas that brushstroke our consciousness are in fact faulty thoughts gone astray that our mind was supposed to weed out and dispose of in the trash receptacle space of our unconscious mind.  But who knows?  All I do know is we are lucky creatures to have the intellect that we do and the physical means to share it.  When I read or hear a personal story that entails an idea that take hold, grows, and shapes our world or someone’s individual life path, I love to share it. So here we go……

I recently came across a fella by the name of R.C. Mudge who lived in Detroit in the late 1880’s.  In his youth, he loved to attend parties in the hopes of meeting a special young lady.  In the winter months, his walks to those parties were cold ones.  On one particularly cold night, he decided to put some newspaper underneath his coat for insulation.  What he found out was that it served as a good insulator.

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Young Henry

Life is a journey
(Source:  Ready to Change Life Coaching Blog, 2014)

We have all heard the expression “Life is a Journey”. As we progress through our lives, this sentiment truly begins to morph from a mere saying into a true feeling.   During my examination of Henry McMorran’s life, this feeling of journey and the passing of time holds steady in me.  The process of putting together the pieces and parts of a person’s life from an historical perspective makes me personally reflect on my own life and serves up a large slice of inspiration pie.

I wanted to take a moment this week to reflect on the boyhood of Henry McMorran.  There is not much information written about him as a young man, but if one looks close enough you can catch a glimpse of Henry’s youth contained within the odds and ends of what is available.  It is a view that must be pieced together but well worth the research effort.

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McMorran’s “Digs” in Washington

Henry G. McMorran served as the US Congressional Representative for the 7th Congressional District of Michigan from 1903-1913 (United States, Congress, n.d.).  While in Washington, he and his family frequently took up residence at The Portland located in the Thomas Circle neighborhood. (The Port Huron Daily Times, 1909 & Detroit Free Press, 1912).

The Portland, circa 1924 (Source: DeFerrari, J., 2016, Streets of Washington Blog)
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Mary L. Botsford in her own words.

writing

preservation-of-records

As far back as I can recall, I have always been captivated by stories about real people.  As an adult, I naturally gravitated towards genealogy.  Over the course of the past year, I’ve ventured into personal history writing.  What I found to be true in my quest to understand my family history is that we all have a personal history to tell.  

The proof of our existence can be found in the documentation we generate and keep.  Personal history is about more then sharing history just to share it.  It includes an individual’s thoughts and experiences along their life’s journey.  Personal source materials can include, but are not limited to, photographs, newspaper stories, letters, business records, vital records, tax filings, real estate records, estate planning documents, journals, blog posts, social media posts, etc.  The list could go on and on depending on the person. These resources are like puzzle pieces that come together and breathe life into people and families from the past.  Of course, personal records should be preserved over time to capture a personal history.  But in the case where personal papers are not preserved, there is always hope for personal history writers to find documented resources of personal value in public or private record depositories. I wanted to share this post with you to highlight the value of personal record preservation.

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