SHELLDRAKE
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SHELLDRAKE |
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NAME: Shelldrake COUNTY: Chippewa ROADS: 2WD GRID: 2 CLIMATE: Cold, snowy winters; warm summers BEST TIME TO VISIT: Late Spring to early Fall |
COMMENTS:
Located down a dirt track off M-123 (paved),which runs north to Whitefish Point from Paradise; it is on private property and permission to visit should be obtained from the owner [check with Enviro Industries, located 3.2 mi N of Paradise on the east side of the road]. REMAINS: A number of former residences, which have been re-habbed as hunting cabins, for rent during hunting season. There are also extensive ruins of the wharves and piers at the lakefront. |
| Shelldrake was founded in the late 1890s as a lumber town; its mills handled the timber being harvested in the many lumber camps west of the site, which delivered the logs to the mills via the Betsy River. Shelldrake (named after the ducks, which are common in the area) was one of the most prosperous towns in the UP for many years, but a fire destroyed the mills in 1910. Although other businesses survived for a while, the population (which was nearly 500 for a while) began to move away; the post office closed in 1922, and the remaining buildings have changed hands numerous times as various owners have tried to convert them to other uses. Submitted by: Kurt Wenner |
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