 |
| wooden roof shingles |
2,086 miles
In 1882, a
railroad station was built here for the Detroit, Mackinac and Marquette
Railroad, and the place was named "Jeromeville" after David H.
Jerome, then the governor of Michigan (1881–1883). In 1887, a post office was established, and
the place was renamed Shingleton for the local shingle mill.
 |
| utility poles |
Over the
years, different forest products have been made here, including eight-foot
railroad ties of beech and maple, 50-foot red pine telephone poles, and fine maple
boards for furniture-makers. Mill owners
here, like others in the U.P., as finding it harder and harder to get good
quality logs from mature trees over 60 years old.
 |
| CCC work camp |
 |
| conservation workers |
In 1979 the old wooden
barracks were replaced with modern block buildings.
In 1996 the
prison camp population was 350. Overcrowding
in the prison system had forced Camp Cusino to take more violent prisoners,
unbeknownst to area residents. One violent prisoner escaped, invaded a home,
killed the resident, and stole a car. After
that, concertina/razor wire was added to camp fences, and work crews in nearby
public recreation areas were discontinued.
In 1997 the prison camp was placed under the jurisdiction of the Alger
Maximum Correctional Facility, and the Corrections Conservation Prison Camp
Program, was officially disbanded. Camp
Cusino was closed in 2009.
 |
| Cusino Wildlife Research Station wolf tracks |
While the
creation of the original work camps seems like a practical solution to several
problems, the people of Shingleton could be excused for resenting the use of
their land as a dumping ground for anti-social Michiganders.
In 1954 Clarence
Iverson began building his snowshoes for lumberjacks and Michigan park rangers
who work in the forest through the winter.
The purpose of snowshoes, originally designed by Native Americans, is
simple: reduce expended energy by walking on top of the snow, not through it.
Iverson claims that his designs provide maximum weight distribution for optimum
flotation.
The Iverson workshop
uses premium Michigan white ash, full grain rawhides, and pure copper hardware
to craft the snowshoes. Workers take
long strips of white ash, steam them to increase their flexibility, bend them
around a form, and dry them in a kiln overnight. The labor-intensive job
includes hand-lacing with traditional rawhide or more durable neoprene.
Visitors used to be able to see snowshoes being made, but insurance liability
caused Iverson's to discontinue the tours. Iverson’s makes 17 models of snowshoes for
different purposes & in different sizes.
Workers will advise prospective snowshoers which shoes best suit their
size, weight, and purpose, including high performance racing snowshoes. Yes, of course, someone had to try racing on
these slow, delicate, snow-walkers.
Iverson’s
also explain, via its website, the functional advantages of their traditional
designs and materials, in contrast with high-tech metal snowshoes.
Rustic,
snowshoe-style furniture, fishnets, clocks, and stained glass --- and
Adirondack chairs --- are also made on site, sometimes finished by other
craftsmen. A full line is displayed in their own retail shop. There's an online catalog and a list of other retailers
who carry their products. I wonder
whether those snowshoe light sconces seen at Da Yooper Tourist Trap in
Ishpeming were Iverson products. It
seems not. It also seems that Iverson’s
has sold out of most of their stock this winter, so business looks good.
info: Wikipedia.com
images: http://www.pasty.com/
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