MICHIGAN TRAVEL TIPS
FROM
THE HOLOGLOBE PRESS
(The 14th Edition)by
Victor Edward Swanson,
Publisherwww.hologlobepress.com
RULES OF USE
The reports and stories contained on this Web page have been put together with information taken from "The Victor Swanson Fabulous Files of Places to See in Michigan and Wisconsin" and with information obtained from operators and staffers of tourist attractions and from press releases, Web sites, and other sources. The reports and stories are provided as a public service by Victor Swanson and The Hologlobe Press. Almost all persons and entities, such as staffers of radio stations, may freely use the materials; neither AAA Michigan nor any employee of AAA Michigan may use, distribute, download, transmit, copy, or duplicate any of the material presented on this page in any way or through any means.
- - - Travel Thoughts for Everyone - - -
Pick any city or town in the state of Michigan, except, maybe, Swanson, which is a place in Menominee County of the Upper Peninsula and is nothing more than a place that is listed on some maps. (By the way, I have no ties or any relation to Swanson (Michigan), which truly exists, at least on some maps.) To get to any other place on a vacation drive from that place you have chosen and have in mind, you will probably drive or ride in some type of car or pickup truck or van or SUV. For any type of car or pickup truck or van or SUV to get somewhere, it has to be mechanically sound (or at least relatively mechanically sound), so if you wish to get somewhere, your vehicle has to be at least relatively mechanically sound. To have a vehicle that is at least relatively mechanically sound, you have to have a vehicle that has fuel lines and brake lines that have no defects, such as leaks. (By the way, when a vehicle is not completely mechanically sound and is only at least relatively mechanically sound, it might have parts that are not like new, such as parts that can be found on a vehicle that has been driven 80,000 miles and yet work well enough, such as piston rings, which do wear through use.)
Between the time I published Michigan Travel Tips #13 and I published this edition of Michigan Travel Tips, I was involved with three vehicles that had what I will call the "vapors." I discovered that one vehicle that I drive had a return vapor line that had broken, so I quickly repaired the problem. The pickup truck of a friend of mine was not running properly, and I found that the sending unit for the front tank had a severely rusted piece of tubing (the pickup truck has two fuel tanks), and gasoline was leaking out and gasoline had destroyed the plastic structure of the connector that gets connected to the sending unit. An elderly woman, who lives down the street from me, said that she was smelling gasoline around her car, so I looked over the car and found some steel gasoline line was rusted and gasoline was leaking out. The three "vapor" problems no longer exist. While I was working on the car of the elderly neighbor, I discovered that brake fluid was leaking from the brake caliper for the front passenger-side wheel/tire. (The woman was unaware of the leak.) I took off the wheel/tire that was associated with the leaking brake caliper. I disconnected the caliper unit from the rubber brake line, and what I found was whoever had done her brakes last had done an improper repair--The person had not put a brass washer between the caliper and the rubber brake line. I fixed the problem, and, by the way, it cost 75 cents to make the repair.
No matter how new or old your vehicle is and before you take a vacation trip in it, I recommend you look it over to see that it does not have any damaged brake line or fuel line and does not have any problems that are the result of a mechanic who did not do work properly. I should make clear that I am not a mechanic by trade, but I have made repairs on, for example, vehicles of mine and vehicles of my father for decades, and from time to time, I help friends, so do not think I have a repair shop somewhere, maybe at Swanson, or do work at a repair shop somewhere.Swanson is located about 23 miles north of Menominee, which is at the southern end of Menominee County, and I would recommend you see things at Menominee before you ever think about seeing what is at Swanson. Menominee is in Menominee County of the Upper Peninsula; Menominee County is the southern-most county in the Upper Peninsula. At Menominee is the Menominee County Historical Museum, which is at 904 Eleventh Avenue, and the museum is housed within a historic church or, really, a building that was formerly used as a church, which has stained-glass windows that were made in Germany, and, this year, the Menominee County Historical Museum will be open every day from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and, usually, the open hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays and from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sundays (and all the times are Central Daylight Time), and some things that you can see at the museum are real Native American artifacts. At the north side of Menominee is John Henes County Park, which has hiking trails and a bathing-beach area, and, farther south, near the south end of Menominee is a smaller park, Tourist Park, which is near the marina, and a little farther south is Ann Arbor Park, and all the parks mentioned are along Lake Michigan--or, officially, Green Bay, which is part of Lake Michigan. The library at Menominee is called Spies Library. And at Menominee is Menominee North Pierhead Light Station. If you wish, you can go looking for one of the several "Michigan Historical Markers" that are in Menominee County, and one of the markers that you could go looking for is the "Chappee Rapids Marker," which is located along County Road 581 (or River Road) about five miles west of Menominee, and the marker notes that "Stanislaus Chaput, a French-Canadian fur trader sometimes called Louis Chappee, became the first settler at the mouth of the Menominee River in the early 1800s...." If you need information about places to see in Michigan, stop in at the Welcome Center at Menominee, which is open during the morning and afternoon and is run by the state of Michigan, and the Welcome Center is a place at which you can get, for instance, a free map of Michigan, which does happen to show the location of Swanson.
Oh, I wonder if you thought about choosing Mayville as your place from which to start a vacation trip when you were told through the first paragraph of this edition of Michigan Travel Tips to pick a place. Mayville is a town in Tuscola County, which is one of the counties in the Lower Peninsula. It seems very likely to me you did not choose Mayville. Through this edition of Michigan Travel Tips, I have information for you about the "Mayville Area Museum of History and Genealogy," information that I recently received from Frank Franzel and the other guys and gals of the museum and that will give you an idea of what it is and when it will be open this season. This year, the Mayville Area Museum of History and Genealogy will be open on certain days from the Memorial Day weekend (May 27, 28, 29, and 30) and the Labor Day weekend (September 2, 3, 4, and 5), which are two vacation times tied to national holidays, and the "certain days" are Fridays and Saturdays, and the open hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. This place is really made up of four main buildings--a railroad depot, a school house, a log cabin, and a "founders building," which you will see along Ohmer Road (or M-24) at Mayville (officially, at 2124 Ohmer Road or 2124 M-24). The school house is in the process of being restored or restoration work is underway at the school house, and around this museum complex, you will see flower beds and herb beds. The museum complex will be open during three special flea markets scheduled for this year, which are on May 20 and 21, July 15 and 16, and September 16 and 17, and, on September 17, you will find that Mayfield is the site of a seventh annual car show.
And here is new news for you. In Michigan Travel Tips #11, I mentioned the Arab American National Museum and Cultural Center was soon going to be opened in Dearborn (of Wayne County of the Lower Peninsula). I can now report that the Arab American National Museum and Cultural Center is indeed open or that it is something new to see in Michigan; it was opened on schedule--on May 5. I have nothing more to say about the Arab American National Museum and Cultural Center now, since I have not seen it, even from the outside--maybe, by passing by it while driving on Michigan Avenue or while riding my ten-speed bicycle on one of the sidewalks along Michigan Avenue. Certainly, it must have much more to see than Swanson, Michigan, has.
So! Have I sold you on not seeing Swanson anytime soon? It seems, though, I should note that near Swanson is a lake called Swanson Lake. Attached to Swanson Lake is Swanson Creek.
Your travel tips are:
John Henes County Park, Menominee, Menominee County, the Upper Peninsula.
The Mayfield Area Museum of History and Genealogy, Mayfield, Tuscola County, the Lower Peninsula.
The Menominee County Historical Museum, Menominee, Menominee County, the Upper Peninsula.
Your special news announcement covers:
The Arab American National Museum and Cultural Center, Dearborn, Wayne County, the Lower Peninsula.
- - - Public Service Copy for Broadcasters (four pieces) - - -
Number One:
It's time to begin a "Hologlobe Press Mini-Tour." Envision
you're standing on the grounds of the Mayfield Area Museum of
History and Genealogy--at Mayfield, which is in the Thumb of
the Lower Peninsula. See a railroad depot, a log cabin, and a
school house, which is in the process of being restored, and see
flower and herb beds. Yes, much on display is related to the
history of Mayfield, as you should expect for a small-town
museum. Of course, the railroad items can appeal to everyone--
from children to adults. Go inside the depot to start your tour. The
Mayfield Area Museum of History and Genealogy is open from the
Memorial Day Weekend through the Labor Day Weekend, and the
hours are from ten to four on Fridays and Saturdays. While you
tour this museum, don't miss any little things, and ask about the
flea markets scheduled for July 15th and 16th and September 16th
and 17th. And enjoy your safe traveling to Mayfield!
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Number Two:
All cars and other types of vehicles have to be inspected for
problems or potential problems from time to time, and a good time
to look over a car or other type of vehicle registered in Michigan
is in the spring. If you are a do-it-youselfer, the publisher of The
Hologlobe Press urges you to examine your car or other type of
vehicle soon for problems or potential problems with the brake-line
system and the fuel-line system. Both systems can use steel
tubing, which can rust, and rubber hose, which can crack. If you
have a tiny leak in the brake system, such as at a caliper, the brake
system can suck in air, and that can compromise the usefulness
of the brake system, and a leaking fuel system can waste fuel and,
maybe, lead to a fire. Of course, if a car or other type of vehicle is
only a few years old, bad steel line or rubber hose should not be a
problem, but it is good to look over all lines anyway to enjoy safe
traveling in Michigan.
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Number Three:
Menominee is one of those places of Michigan where it is easy
to find buildings and things because it is mostly made up of
north-south roads and east-west roads. Eleventh Avenue is an
east-west road, and at 904 Eleventh Avenue is the Menominee
County Historical Museum, which is easily found between Ninth
Street and Tenth Street, which are north-south roads. This year,
that museum will open each day during what is called the "summer
tourist season," which runs from the Memorial Day Weekend to
the Labor Day Weekend. Henes Park Drive is an east-west road
at the north end of town, and at the east end of Henes Park Drive
is John Henes County Park, and that park has hiking trails, a beach,
and even a tiny zoo-like area. Of course, to easily find buildings
and things at Menominee, you have to find Menominee. Grab a
map! Look at the southern-most point of the Upper Peninsula.
That's Menominee and a place to see in Michigan.
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Number Four:
The "summer tourist season" in Michigan is regarded as that
time from the Memorial Day Weekend through the Labor Day
Weekend, and that is only when some tourist attractions of
Michigan are open. Historic Charlton Park, which is at Hastings
of Barry County of the Lower Peninsula, is one such place. The
name of Historic Charlton Park might make a person think the
place is a park with swings and such, but it is really a place with
historic buildings and other things from the late nineteenth century
and early twentieth century. Another place that is only open to
regular tours in the summer is the Grand Army of the Republic
Hall, which is at Marshall of Calhoun County of the Lower
Peninsula, and, officially, that place, which has artifacts from a
number of wars, is only open on Saturdays in June, July, and
August from one to four. The Hologlobe Press reminds you, while
you make plans about places to see on trips, think about places
that are only open in summer.
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- - - Contact Information - - -
The Hologlobe Press
Postal Box 5455
Dearborn, Michigan 48128-0455
The United States of Americacopyright c. 2005
File date: 10 May 2005
To see the next edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #15
To see the previous edition of Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel #13
To see the catalog page for Michigan Travel Tips,
click on: Travel
To go to the main page of The Hologlobe Press,
click on: www.hologlobepress.com
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