Michigan

Episode 26: Bigfoot in Michigan

/ Samantha Engel / Leave a comment

This week, Samantha and Aaron begin their exploration of the bigfoot phenomenon! After laying a solid framework, featuring discussions on the nature of bigfoot and a history of bigfoot in the 20th/21st centuries, they look at Bigfoot sightings in Michigan. They share audio clips, discuss video sightings, and talk about stick formations left in the woods. Join Samantha and Aaron for this first (yes there will be more) adventure with everyone’s favorite cryptid.

Time Stamps

ABBA- 0:32
Meeting Bigfoot- 4:46
Flesh and Blood Creature- 9:51
Wide Open Spaces- 13:13
Supernatural Bigfoot- 19:26
Patterson Gimlin Film- 25:35
BFRO- 30:44
Finding Bigfoot- 35:35
Midway Break- 38:17
Vocalizations- 41:19
Sightings- 53:43
Rock Throwing and A Bit of Woo- 58:50
Stick Formations- 1:05:07
Criticisms and Pranks- 1:08:00
Wrap-Up- 1:14:51

Continue the Investigation!

Check out the video of Bigfoot crossing the river here.

You can find more encounters on the BRFO website.

This Midland Daily News article contains the write-up of the Menominee sighting, as well as the Finding Bigfoot clip.

The Detroit Free Press article we referenced throughout the article can be found here.

The eagle cam video can be found here.

If you’re interested in diving into conversations about the nature of bigfoot, we recommend picking up Where the Footprints End volumes 1 and 2 by Timothy Renner and Joshua Cutchin.

Get them from Amazon and help support the show! (Volume 1) (Volume 2)

And if you’re interested in taking a deep dive into the Patterson Gimlin film check out the 6-part series Astonishing Legends did on the topic. They also have an episode with Micah Hanks on the history of bigfoot as a flesh and blood creature. Find them here.

Episode 24: The Michigan Relics

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In the 1890s, James Scotford discovered a series of ancient artifacts in Michigan’s Montcalm County that could cause a reevaluation of the way human history was understood…if they were authentic. Join Aaron and Samantha as they share the saga of the Michigan relics. From the Hopewell Indians to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, this episode brings together archaeology, fraud, museums, and a touch of Indiana Jones (minus the Nazis). 

Time Stamps

Big Themes- 3:04
The Initial Discovery- 12:50
Early Debate- 13:40
Daniel Soper- 19:03
Tools and Tempered Copper- 23:14
Midway Break- 26:29
Confirming the Book of Mormon- 32:46
James Tallmadge- 36:33
Finding the Answers- 41:02
Why Should We Care?- 48:16

  • Daniel Soper (right) and Alpheus Scoby (left) Image courtesy of the Michigan History Center
  • “Relic” box Image courtesy of the Michigan History Center
  • James Talmage ca. 1895 Image Courtesy of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections of Brigham Young University
  • “Relic” tablet Image courtesy of Michigan History Center

Further Reading

Samantha and Aaron relied heavily on this article from Brigham Young University.

The article from Brigham Young University about the tools used to make the relics can be found here.

Learn more about Hopewell Culture here.

You can find images of the Norton Mounds in Grand Rapids here.

Episode 23: Tales of Melon Heads

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Is there a group of small humanoids with bulbous heads living in the woods near Saugatuck, Michigan…and Cleveland, Ohio…and Newtown, Connecticut? Aaron and Samantha have a theory, so join our hosts as they investigate doctors without first names, buildings that may or may not have existed, and speak to the evils of turning those with medical conditions into monsters. Aaron and Sam get a bit angry this time. 

Time Stamps

Intro- 2:50
Michigan Melon Heads Overview- 4:22
The Felt Mansion and Junction Insane Asylum- 8:31
A Few More Issues- 12:15
Midway Break- 16:45
Melon Heads in Ohio- 30:40
And Now Connecticut…Really?- 43:25
Closing Thoughts and Lots of Concerns- 49:44

  • Image courtesy of The Grand Haven Tribune
  • This “Melon Heads” sketch is found all over the internet related to all three melon head stories. Image courtesy of wwmt.com

Further Readings

A bulk of our Michigan and Ohio research came from the the Weird Michigan and Weird Ohio books.

Find more information on the Felt Mansion here.

The New England Historical Society’s page on the Melon Heads can be found here.

Episode 22: Swamp Gas and UFOs

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This time on Great Lakes Lore, Samantha and Aaron tackle their first modern UFO case. They’ll introduce the broader topic of UFO sightings and the government response to them in the 1950s and 1960s and then dive into looking at the 1966 wave of sightings in southeast Michigan that garnered national attention and led, eventually, to huge changes in how the US military dealt with UFOs.

Read J. Allen Hynek’s final Blue Book Report on the sighting here!

A UFO Primer- 3:45
Sightings and Reporting- 9:51
NICAP and the Robertson Panel- 13:05
Project Blue Book and J. Allen Hynek- 15:22
The Dexter and Hillsdale Sightings- 22:09
Midway Break- 34:38
The Investigation- 39:17
The Findings- 45:26
The Reaction- 49:30
The Consequences- 52:43
Questions and Wrapping Up- 55:57

  • Sketch by Dexter police officer David Severance. Image courtesy of the Bentley Library.
  • Cartoon sent to Ann Arbor News Editor by a 1966 reader. Image courtesy of the Bentley Library.
  • Letter from 14-year-old Gregory Gulyas. Image courtesy of the Bentley Library.
  • Image Courtesy of the Bentley Library

Episode 20: The Rattle Run Murder

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What happens when a bloody torso is found in a small Michigan church in 1909? With no immediate identification of the body, no apparent motive for the crime, and mysterious rumors in town, investigators threw out numerous hypotheses and put out BOLOs in surrounding states and Canada. And, while this crime does end with a confession, the reasons for it are still a mystery. Check out this week’s episode to hear Samantha and Aaron share the story of the Rattle Run Murder and come up with a few hypotheses of their own! 

Time Stamps:

A Body in the Church!- 2:38
Suspicions Arise- 7:17
A Blood Sacrifice- 14:43
But Where’s the Reverend?- 18:14
Midway Break- 21:46
A Letter from John Elder- 27:14
Newspaper Reactions- 32:55
Possible Motives- 35:37
Sam and Aaron Hot Takes- 41:58

For a complete transcription of one of the confession letters, see the Lost in Michigan website here.

Episode 17: Le Nain Rouge

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Does a small red demon roam the streets of Detroit, Michigan? Probably not! In this episode, Samantha and Aaron dive into the story of the Nain Rouge. The creature first appeared in an 1880s tale on the history of Detroit as the foil to Antoine Laumet de la Mothe Cadillac, and today the creature is taunted and chased out of the city in an annual parade called La Marche du Nain Rouge. Was the story of the Nain Rouge fact? Should we chase the “red devil” out of Detroit? Listen to this episode and find out!

Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, Image courtesy of detroithistorical.org
Le Nain Rouge at La Marche du Nain Rouge, Image courtesy of Detroit Metro Times
Marie Caroline Watson Hamlin’s Grave, image found on findagrave.org. Hamlin is buried in the Mount Elliot Cemetery in Detroit.
Sign for the Detroit Dwarf beer by Detroit Brewing Company

Intro- 00:14
Settling Michigan and the Scoundrel Cadillac- 02:43
The Hamlin Narrative- 07:20
Hamlin’s History- 15:07
Charles Montgomery Skinner- 17:30
Other Appearances- 19:24
Midway Break- 24:04
Lutin- 28:55
Puckwudgies!- 32:00
La Marche du Nain Rouge- 36:00
Stop the Nain Shame!- 38:08
What Do We Do With It All?- 41:25

Further Reading:
Legends of Le Detroit (Overview with link to book)
Detroit Metro Times Article
Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac
Wayne State University Project
Charles Montgomery Skinner’s Myths and Legends of Our Own Land

Episode 13: The Haunting History of Mackinac Island

/ Samantha Engel / Leave a comment

Some places accumulate stories more readily than others and Mackinac Island is just that place. With thousands of years of history and deep spiritual connections, this 4.3 square mile island is oozing with stories demanding our attention. In this episode, Samantha and Aaron are joined by Claire Herhold, a public historian who spent six seasons working on the island, to dive into this rich and diverse history. We’re positive you’ll find the true history far more interesting than some of the ghost stories folks have made up over the years. 

You can find Claire on Instagram and TikTok @clairherhold!

As you may have seen around our social media, our Patreon is now live! Cheeso Media, which produces Great Lakes Lore and The Saucer Life has launched a Patreon, which will give subscribers additional material for each show, every month! Two shows for the price of one! You can find it at patreon.com/cheesomedia.

Timestamps
Introductions- 0:01:14
A Brief History- 0:04:34
Forts and War- 0:06:50
Natural Landmarks and Legends- 0:26:23
Break- 0:37:37
Mission House Boarding School- 0:39:21
Tourism- 0:46:52
The Drowning Pool- 1:00:35
Magdalaine LaFramboise- 1:07:17
The Problem with (some) Ghost Stories- 1:11:05
Postscript- 1:26:42

Further Reading
Mackinac State Historic Parks
Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau
Grand Hotel History
On Boarding Schools

Episode 12: Mystery Airships

/ AG / 2 Comments

Aaron and Samantha travel back to the nineteenth century to explore the mystery airships that were spotted throughout the country in 1896/97. What started as a trio of lights above Sacramento, California, grew to reported sightings of actual ships that moved from the west coast to the Great Plains and into the Great Lakes States. Samantha and Aaron look at various sightings, possible explanations, and touch on the history of aviation. Fasten your seatbelts, it’s a wild ride.

Time Stamps
The Gilded Age- 1:10
California-8:25
Wisconsin- 12:34
Midway Break- 22:08
Michigan- 29:35
Lanark, Illinois- 39:10
Aurora, Texas- 49:42
The History of Aviation- 53:30
Wrap-Up and Outro- 56:30

Episode 1: The Dudgeon Swamp Mystery

/ greatlakeslore / 4 Comments

In our inaugural episode, the Great Lakes Lore team will be diving into the sources and exploring the deaths of a father and son in rural, 1920s West Michigan. The Dudgeon family moved to White Cloud, Michigan in 1905 and, less than twenty years later three members of the family were convicted of murder. Were they guilty or were the locals out to get the new folks in town? 
A special thanks to the folks at The October Project for bringing together many of the primary sources we used in our research. You can find Meda’s handwritten account of her husband’s death there, as well as more pictures and the history by Harry Spooner that we reference.