Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Michigan’s Logging Era.

                             Michigan’s Logging Era.

It's Tidbit Tuesday here at Stitches Thru Time and Michele Morris is here to share some tidbits about Michigan's logging era.

Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, the logging industry in Michigan and other mid-west states began to explode with activity. The Civil War had ended and the United States entered into a time of growth and prosperity.


With growth comes the need for building materials and the Michigan white pine was a perfect fit for the that need. The trees grow tall, straight, and close together, therefore are basically branch-less until close to the top.

The logging industry ushered in a time of great wealth for a select few and provided steady, though backbreaking, employment for thousands of others. Farmers, army deserters, and any other man who needed work would travel from one logging camp to another in search of good paying work. They each received a week’s wage, a place to sleep, though cold and bug infested, and two meals a day. Vinegar pie was a favorite among the men.
 



Vinegar Pie: (Recipe from Hartwick Pines State Park in Grayling Michigan)
One pie shell
½ cup of white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup flour
Dash of nutmeg to taste
¼ cup butter
2 eggs
3 Tbsp of vinegar *
1 cup of water **
In a large bowl, blend white, brown sugar, flour, and nutmeg, with fingers until no lumps remain. Stir in vinegar, eggs, butter, and water until well mixed. Pour into pie shell and bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

*Try different variety of vinegars. Distilled white may give a pecan pie flavor. Apple cider may give an apple flavor. Both would be historical adaptations.
** Original recipe calls for 1 cup of water, but Hartwick Pines State Park has found that the pie comes out a little soupy. We have adjusted the amount to ½ cup of water and the pie seems to be much better.


Shanty boys, river hogs, and fellers, as the loggers, river workers, and tree cutters named themselves, put their lives on the line every day. By most accounts, loggers had a bond with each other, a brotherhood. They counted on their co-workers to do their job correctly to keep one another other safe. The crew worked as one to get the logs cut, hauled, stacked, and finally in the spring floated down the river.

It only took less than a half of century to clear-cut most of the white pine in the lower peninsula of Michigan. The resulting devastation on the land and wildlife can still be felt, almost two hundred years later. Very few stands of white pines are left. Hartwick Pines State park in Graying, Michigan has one of the oldest.


Do you know how to tell the difference between a white pine and other pines?


(The above pictures are from Hartwick Pines State Park in Grayling, Michigan. They have a beautiful historic museum and information center. If you're ever in the area stop in, the tour guides are a wealth of information.)


15 comments:

  1. I do love the smell of pine, but I doubt I could tell the different types apart. Very interesting thank you.

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    1. I love pine smells too! It's just such a cozy, Christmas aroma. :) Thank you for the comment.

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  2. I took a botany class in college. Thought it would be an easy elective - NOT! But I can actually identify many different trees including the various pines. Thanks for your post. Very interesting!

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    1. You're so welcome. I'm glad you enjoyed it! Oooo, walking through the woods is one thing, but a college botany class? Doesn't sound as fun as the walk. Thanks for commenting!

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  3. Vinegar pie? That sounds like it would be awful, but sometimes I'm amazed at the ingredients of the best tasting dishes. Have you tried it?

    I'm with you, Mary. I love the pine smell, but I could never look at a slab of wood and tell you what type it was.

    Amber Schamel

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    1. I'm surprised, Amber. Most people I've met can at least tell if something is made of cedar. :) I think I love that smell more than pine. :)

      Michele, I'd also love to know if you've tried the recipe you provided. :)

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    2. I agree! Vinegar pie doesn't sound very appealing. But the guide who shared the recipe said it tastes similar to Jeff Davis pie, and I love that! I plan on giving it a try someday! :) I'll let you know how it goes!

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  4. Thank you for sharing this history, Michele, as well as the recipe. I'm not sure about vinegar pie either, Amber, but we won't really know until we try it! :) I hope to visit the beautiful state of Michigan one day. I will certainly add Hartwick Pines State Park to my must visit list when I do.

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    1. Thank you so much for the comment! Michigan is one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited.

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  5. Wow! What an interesting post, Michele! Thanks for sharing. I've never had vinegar pie but it doesn't sound too awful. :)

    As for pine, I can tell the difference between the short-needle pine trees in the north and the long-needle ones in the south. There's lodge-pole pines too. I love me some trees. :)

    Thanks again for this tidbit. :)

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    1. I'm so glad you enjoyed the post! Thanks, Crystal!

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  6. Hi Michele, I live in Michigan but I didn't know very much about the loggers or about vinegar pie. Hartwick Pines is a pretty area. We always pass it on our way further north. Thanks for the interesting info and photos!

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  7. It's amazing how we can devastate the environment. Thanks for the historical tidbits.

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  8. I love the logging stories from my home state of Michigan. Can't get enough of them, it seems. One of my faves is Serena Miller's THE MEASURE OF KATIE CALLOWAY - wow was it touching. Jody Hedlund from our ACFW GREAT LAKES CHAPTER has also written a story about the logging industry - Historical Romance as well. GOOD STUFF in each of those books - Our state is RICH in state preserved woodlands and the scenery is amazing . Thanks so much for bringing this great historical part of Michigan to STT, Michele! Hugs,

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  9. I imagine vinegar pie is a lot like buttermilk pie and it's good! We used to have a sawmill here in Mississippi and I can tell the difference between hardwoods...not so much pine as we didn't cut pine.

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