A Sign, No Wine, A Sunset, and Our First Quest Guest

Methodist Episcopal Church

Date Visited:  July 3, 2019

Stop:  #19

Not every quest involves wine, and this was one of those times.  Actually, it was not much of a quest – we had passed this particular historical marker hundreds of times over the years – but it was an opportunity to “officially” check this marker off our list.  We were enjoying some downtime before the 4^th of July weekend when I suggested that we take a drive into Caseville and visit this marker.  My wife suggested that while we were at it, we could stop at the Caseville Beach and watch the sunset.  So, we talked our son, David, into tagging along and off we went.

The marker in question is located at the north end of downtown Caseville, a small town near the tip of the Thumb situated at the mouth of the Pigeon River on the shores of Saginaw Bay.  Caseville is a popular summer vacation place and is best known for its Cheeseburger in Caseville festival in August, which started as a 3-day festival in 1999 and now spans 10 days each year.  Caseville was first settled in 1836 by Reuben Dodge.  It was first called the Pigeon River Settlement, and then Port Elizabeth (there is a popular restaurant downtown that is known by this name) and Elizabethtown, named after the wife of William Rattle, who worked as an agent for the biggest landowner in the area at that time, Leonard Case.  The town’s major industry was lumber, but also was known for ship building and salt manufacturing.

Francis Crawford became a major landowner in 1856 when he purchased 20,000 acres from Leonard Case.  That same year, the community became known as Caseville.  It’s first post office opened in January, 1863, and Francis Crawford became the first postmaster.  In 1896, Caseville was incorporated as a village and in 2010, it became a city.  It’s population (as of 2017) is 735 – which probably grows 10 times that during Cheeseburger week!!! 

Caseville is a lot of fun during the summer months and attracts thousands of tourists.  It was dealt a blow a couple years ago when the popular bar and restaurant, the Riverside, burned to the ground on the eve of that year’s Cheeseburger festival.  Never rebuilt, tourists today are limited to just a couple of hangouts, one of which is the Bluewater Inn.  Caseville is also home to the Thumb Brewery and the Wooded Lot, a sports bar located on the south end of town.  There are a couple of popular stores that draw in souvenir seekers.  On the north end of town is a large RV campground and a community park with a natural amphitheater that hosts live bands at various festivals throughout the summer.  And of course, there is the beautiful Caseville beach, which draws hundreds of sunbathers and swimmers every day.

Situated amongst the RV park and the beach and the vacant lot that was once the Riverside is the Methodist Episcopal Church of Caseville, on the northwest corner of Riverside Drive and Port Austin Road.  The Church was dedicated on November 15, 1874, six years after the Reverend Manasseh Hickey and 12 other settlers organized the church.  The church is known for its 70-foot-tall Gothic spire that serves as a landmark for sailors on Saginaw Bay.  The Historical Marker describes the many phases the church has undergone over the years.  David was a good sport and joined Kathy and I in our selfie with the sign.  He is not a history fan, nor a wine fan, but it was great to have him come along with us, and he really enjoyed himself.

After taking our fair share of photos of the church, the three of us headed to the Caseville beach to catch the sunset.  It was a perfect night to catch a spectacular sunset.  With Charity Island off in the horizon, everyone on the beach that day was treated to a magnificent sunset, with hundreds of vibrant colors streaking the sky off to the west.  Between the three of us, we must have taken well over 100 pictures.  It was truly one of the prettiest sunsets we have ever witnessed up there.  As the sun settled below the horizon, we began our trek back to the car.  It turned out to be a fun quest, even without the wine, because we got to see a great sunset, and we got to share our quest with our son, the first time we had a guest join our quest.

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