Road Trip Anyone...1905 Ghost Town/Nuggett shooting -UP, Mi

makton

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Mar 5, 2008
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I have access to a Ghost Town that was started in May, 1905 and at it's peak had 600 residents.
"1905 a 4 room school house was built for the 43 school age children in the town"(The last class had 10 kids in 1927). "By September, 1906, 50 houses were built and more were needed". These are a couple of excerpts from a book I have of the town including numerous pics and maps of the town.

This property has been owned by my in-laws since 1984 and he has never given anyone permission to hunt. Also, close to the property are two gold mines and a few homesteads pre 1900's. Another excerpt from the book..."Strewn around the ??? mine now can be seen large white chunks of the quartz that were laboriously dug by hand" The shafts of the mine have been flooded. I've never prospected or gone nuggett shooting but this sounds like a good place to start.

I did post a few of the finds I had back in July which included an 1892 pat'd lock. The challenge in July was grass about 4' high.

I am trying to put together a few other(4 or 5) MD'ers for a weekend road trip this Fall. It's about a 7 hour trip from Chicago but it's not too often when you have a chance to coin/relic and nuggett hunt in the same weekend. It would be nice if someone had experience around a mine or ghost towns as I have only been MD'ng since April so I have a lot to learn. This is also copper and silver country so you just never know what you will find.

I am trying to get out to the T'net hunt this weekend so if anyone is interested, I'll have the book/maps and pics with me and we can talk.

Twistidd, if you read this I know you had an interest if timing works out plus you have been coin slaying lately with that M6 maybe you can give me some pointers on mine.

Makton/Todd
 

bomber

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lets get more info.....sounds good tho :thumbsup:
 

watercrosser

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Apr 5, 2007
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Hello, Are you talking about a ghost town, mine? in
Upper Mi. If you are, I live in Ontonagon MI. I would love to meet you and to go exploring a new site. I retired to this area 10 years ago, and I have metal detected here for 8 years. And have explored many mine sites. So I think that I would be helpful with the experience with the ground mineralization problems that you will have with your detectors. So much copper in the ground they will make you dig allover and find nothing. Anyway my phone # is 906-884-6746 call me anytime, there is not much time before the snow. Hope to hear from you Tom.
 

treasurefiend

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Mar 17, 2008
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Sounds good to me!!! :thumbsup:
 

tmanfromtexas

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Mar 12, 2006
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I could seriously consider going on a major road trip. Hell i just drove to memphis and back in a weekend so this wouldnt be to bad. Is there any place to stay as in hotels etc? We could leave Friday afternoon, hunt all day Saturday and drive back Sunday. GOIO???? you ready for a road trip? :icon_pirat: TMAN...
 

Lowbatts

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Hey Makton, set a date and if it's UP you may get a big crowd. Will the in-laws mind? Did you have a set party size? How's the weather up there gonna hold in the coming weeks? I'd love to hit it with you but it might be a bit far out for me.
 

twistidd

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Hmmm...Makton, I'll have to see. After this weekend, I've got a pretty full plate ahead of me regarding work and other errands. I'm going to be up in Minnesota next weekend (not this weekend), and after that, I doubt I can score more than one consecutive day to get out. Finals are coming up, too. Let me know if you're going to get something together and I'll let you know what's up, but I might have to skip this one, which sucks, because that sounds really good. Man.

Hey Mak, thanks for the invite. I still insist we get out with the M6's. I probably won't be swinging mine on sunday, figured I'd just be a tour guide, besides, this day is for all of you guys, I'm out there almost every week, lol.


Joe
 

watercrosser

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Apr 5, 2007
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Hello, I've lived in the U.P. for about 11 years, If you guys are going to do this trip, the rule is, Your safe until Halloween weekend. After that we get some snow. It usually doesn't stay on the ground long. Then the snow and ice will be hit and miss for a couple of weeks. The deer season opens on the 15 th. The first week it gets real cold, the second week almost always, heavy snow and it stays. So you don't have much time. I have already said that I will go on this trip. I metal detect almost everyday up here, very interesting and beautiful this time of the year. If you like copper nuggets bring some big buckets. I do real well on old silver coins also. I have found tiny traces of gold, with my pan and my litlle sluse box. I am retired so I do this a the time, and love it! Hope to see and meet a few of you guys,and girls sometime Tom
 

mikewaz

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May 9, 2008
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Hi Todd!

Nice gabbing with you on Sunday. Did you come up with anything yet for a date or do you already have a full house? I'm not sure I could do it in the next few weeks because of work, but who knows?

Spring sounds real good to me if you're gonna head back up there then. that way I can go nuts thinking about
it all winter.

PM me any info you can on the town and I'll see what kind of history, etc... I can dig up. I love research.

Mike
 

bomber

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looks like we've got two road trips happening,Todds and the arrowhead trip.give us something to think about during the upcoming frozen months
 

thompy

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Feb 19, 2005
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well did you guys head up. just read another article on Loma were during the Kaufman reign, they would suprise each other for their birthdays, well she ordered a rail car of TNT and had it all blown at the same time to start a lock system that they wanted, so their friends from Chiago could park their boat near their Private train depot, I dont understand why they didn't just dock in superior, that is the reason for the dams near the polo field, the DNR shut the project down. another short story is she was from Illinois [accent] and while constructing the mansion she ordered a car load of tarpaper from Marquette, well the man on the other end of the phone started to question her, she cut him off stating she new what she was talking about, well the Kaufman's were a little surprised when a train car load of toilet paper showed up ;D
 

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makton

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Mar 5, 2008
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Re: Road Trip Anyone...UPDATE - Spring Hunt

Hey everyone,
I talked to another MD'er who hunted the UP this last weekend and he confirms what my in-laws are saying and that's the grass and weeds are dying off but the open areas are still 4 feet high so it looks like the Spring hunt will work best.
I am headed up for 5 or 6 days over Thanksgiving so I'll do some recon with pics/vids and hopefully some silvers.

Happy Hunting this Fall everyone!!!

Todd
 

Lowbatts

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Hey Todd, sounds like a plan as it's gotta be getting snowy up there. Let us know how the trip goes!
 

mikewaz

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May 9, 2008
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Good luck up there Todd.
I'll be thinking about what you're doing up there while I'm stuffing myself with turkey.

Are you gonna be deer hunting too while your up there? Thanksgiving's usually a good time
to be out there.
Mike

PS. Don't forget your longjohns ;D
 

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makton

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Mike,
The only shooting I'll be doing is coins. I will have my hands on a lot of bullets as my last trip up there I dug about a 100 of them.

Todd
 

mikewaz

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Make sure you wear your orange while your out. It can get pretty hairy out there on Thanksgiving.
Looking forward to your report when you get back.
Drive safe!
Mike
 

bomber

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i've got copies of the book if anybody wants
 

mikewaz

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Hi Bomber,
I just got a message from Todd about the book and I'd like a copy. Just have to figure out how to hook up.
Mike
 

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