June 14th, 1861

Mr. Jas W. Topping

Genessee, Ill.

Dear Sir:

     About the Lot 75 you spoke of in your letter, all these lots lay now as they did when you were here, a perfect windfall, not cleared, the timber mostly down and so thick the hogs or cattle cant get through. Mr Smith owes you a balance on Lot 75 and he has paid $47.50 on it which is all it is worth now, but Smith is owing me and he is poorer than Job’s turkey. I want to get something from Smith and I will make you an offer for Lot 75 and pay back to Smith the amount he has paid on it which would be right if not legal as he has forfeited all claims on it. I will give you ten dollars good money or twenty dollars ill money for a good deed to said lot.

     Times are dull here and our village begins to look dilapidated. Erskines are here keeping tavern and so is Vancamp in opposition to them. Thomsons and Oldfields are all here yet. Tom Thomson and Henry Oldfield are married. John Thomson and Campbells are carrying on the fishing business and doing well. Sam Coppernoll is our Capt. yet when we need one. He is doing well and trading yet. Robert Munford has gone to White Rock and is trading for me. Please write.

     Respectfully yours,

April 8th, 1862

Mr. Robert W. Irvine, County Clerk

Lexington, Michigan

Dear Sir:

     The following are the names of the officers elected at the annual election

April 7, 1862

          Supervisor: James Erskine

          Clerk :  U. Raymond

          Treasurer:  O.W. Lewis

          Justice of Peace:  H.G. Wheeler

          Highway Comm. :  Simon Miller

          School Inspector:  J.S. Thomson

          Constables:  Duncan McRae 

                                      Chas Sheldon  

                                      Edw Hill             

                                      Saml Boddy

April 30th,  1862

Mr L.M. Skidmore

Detroit, Michigan

Dear Sir:

The vessel “Hattie Gill” has been here but the wind was not fair and the captain would not wait. If he had waited eight hours the wind was fair. I want you to send something else after my shingles or let me get something to ship on. That boat cant carry anything worth while and the captain cant be depended on. If I send some bags on the steamer “Huron” will you send me some meal? The clerk will call and see you. Write me about the vessel.                                                                      Respectfully yours, U. Raymond

    

November 23rd, 1864

Mr. Geo Presley

Cleveland, Ohio

Dear Sir:

Yours of the 19th inst at hand enclosing draft for my endorsement. I was not aware that I was required to sign with ink. I had no pen at hand when I got the draft and am sorry to put you to so much bother.

Election is over. Our town gave 132 majority for “Old Abe” and the copperheads don’t show their heads now and we don’t hear of “Little Mackerel”.

Our people are well as usual and we Michiganders have quite a touch of winter, but we have plenty to eat, drink and wear and are about as happy as we expect to be in this good world.

Respectfully yours,

         U. Raymond

March 7th, 1865

Mr. M.J. Mills

Dear Sir;

I am informed that you own Lot #46 (A.W. Hands plat) in our village, buying it from Wm Vancamp. I own lot 45 and occupy it with my store. My lot is seven rods north and south and runs to the lake shore. Now when Vancamp built his store, he built it too far south by four feet, a mistake I presume, for I did not find it at the time but found it so when we had a surveyor finding lines. In 1856 I talked to Vancamp about it and I made out a deed but he never took it and presumed on my good nature. I own the lot adjoining yours on the north (47). Now I propose to take no advantage of you. I will sell you the lot on the north and the other four feet for $100. There is a small barn on this lot. Or I will sell you just the four feet. What is the least you will take for your lot?

     Respectfully yours

     U. Raymond

February 20th, 1867

Port Sanilac is the best place for gill net fishing on the lake shore. Last year there were ten companies fishing here, with a rig of about one hundred nets each, and a hundred nets I am told will stretch about five miles making a total of about fifty miles of nets.

 Whitefish and trout are principally caught, sometimes a few pickerel and occasionally a sturgeon or “old hoss” as the fishermen say. There was packed in ice and shipped south, mostly to Cleveland, Ohio, last year, one hundred and seventeen tons of fresh fish. And there was salted and shipped, 2332 half barrels of whitefish and trout, worth in the aggregate about $30,000.

Besides this item of fish, there was shipped from here last year, 4090 cords of tan bark, 50,853 cedar posts, 8,000 telegraph poles, two million four hundred and sixty thousands shingles (2,460,000), 1392 cords of wood, 3,000 half fish barrels and 64,300 hoops amounting in value to about $56,000.00.

The country, west and north of us is settling fast, with hardy, industrious pioneers who are felling the forest and hewing out homes for themselves.

The soil is generally good and produces the best of wheat, oats, peas, buckwheat, rye, and potatoes. Corn is not so profitable, but the small eight rowed kind grows well and ripens. Fruit does well here, both apples and peaches grow and bear well, also plums and cherries and the smaller fruits such as berries of most kinds. Now reader you must bear in mind that 15 to 20 years ago, this village and all the country for miles around was an unbroken wilderness.

March  2nd, 1870

It has been a busy time for teaming, there is any amount of wood, bark, logs and hoops brought in. The sleighing is the very best and all that have teaming to do are taking advantage of it.

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H.G. Wheeler has a splendid looking fish boat well along.

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Our enterprising townsman, Dr. J.M. Loop made the round trip to Port Huron and back and got home before night. A very good drive with one horse, 66 miles a day, yesterday the 1st, inst.

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Thomsons checkerboard-a splendid institution.

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Reminisence-Some time about the first of June 1852, when I was occupying the small shop I first built here as a store.

One warm, still morning Todd and I were standing outside near the door, there came up a large, fleshy or fat man. He had come from Lexington, afoot & alone, on the beach and along on the bank through the woods and brush for there was no road cut through then. He was sweating and steaming and inquired for Breckenridge mill. Todd pointed out the path north up the shore and he went on.

But about two hours after we were surprised to see him coming back, red in the face and almost tuckered out, looking like the tail end of a fisherman. We asked him if he had found the mill. He looked daggers at us and piped out, “No, I have been walking for two hours and haven’t found any place.”

 We set him going again and he got through or at least he didn’t come back.

U. Raymond

March 3rd, 1870

Will someone tell us what has become of our salt well? How deep is the hole? We are individually interested in the enterprise to the amount of one hundred dollars, and we want the satisfaction of paying in our money and seeing the thing put through. If I am not mistaken, I am honored with an honorary office, viz, Vice President. The duties of said vice president was to act in the absence of the president. The president has not been absent, consequently it did not devolve upon me to act. Henry Oldfield was elected president and accepted the office. Why doesn’t he act? Why not call a meeting of the directors and all others interested? Is it possible we have been digging a salt well with our mouths? Another instance of being fooled, Talk is cheap.

Where is our enterprising fellow citizen, Joseph Moore? He was apparently zealous in the cause, but I presume his interest has evaporated. The president was the largest shareholder. He went in to the tune of $500.00, a very good start, but he might as well have said $5,000,000 as long as it was to end in wind.

We think it would be a good thing for the salt well diggers or borers in Port Sanilac to row up Salt River and mind and keep their mouths shut.

Friday, March 4th, 1870

A daily record of current events

 We now have the best sleighing we have had this winter.

 Mr Jacob Sharpe of Forester was here today with a fractious horse. He tried to go west but no go. He wheeled towards Horatio Wright’s hotel and he went like a scared cat, what he wanted or what he got we know not.

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Editor Times-I had the good fortune to be present last Tuesday evening at the Young Mens Literary Association of Port Sanilac and with permission I will spread before your readers my comments and observations on all that I saw.

The name Young Mens is a misnomer. The majority of the members are middle aged men.

Mr Uri Raymond called the meeting to order at 8 o’clock and the Sec. read the proceedings of the last meeting and there were a number of essays read, some good and some otherwise.

W.A. Mills read an essay on the moral and physical effects of tea and tobacco. He expressed the utmost contempt, irrespective of sex, for those who use either or both of these exhilarating agents. He declared positively, that he never would form a matrimonial alliance, offensive or defensive with a female who used tea or tobacco in any form. He assured his hearers, that the time was rapidly nearing when the tobacco sot and the patron of the teapot would alike be rebuked by public sentiment. This essay produced a profound sensation among the audience.

I understand this gentleman was the leading one organizing the society and it is mainly owing to his punctuality in attending its meetings and his liberality in contributing to the treasury that the society owes its prosperity and its assured success and permanency.

 J. Thomson read an essay on the theory of checker playing. He stoutly maintained that it is one of the best institutions there is for weaning young men from vicious habits and sinful desires. He claims as long as the mind was concentrated on the board it would keep his satanic majesty at bay on the principle that an idle head is the devils workshop. This gentlemens views seemed to meet with the hearty approval of the younger members of the association.

Joe Loomis read a brief essay on calves and their proper food. He maintained with much positiveness and exceptional logic that sweet milk was good for calves till they got their wisdom teeth, after that beef tea was recommended. There were some at the meeting that doubted the scientific truthfulness of his conclusions, but the society voted him a vote of thanks lucid, luminous, elucidation of this the most practical of subjects. In our humble opinion his ideas were the farthest removed from fancy and could not be considered by the candidates as at all vealy, on the contrary the ideas were most seductively beefy.

 Saml Coppernoll read a scientific on wind, but there was nothing in his manner of presenting it that could be construed as being either windy or sassy. He made some very good points. One was that wind or atmospheric air can be improved for purposes of breathing by confining it in closed rooms and at the same time heating the rooms with air tight stoves. He advised sextons to close the doors and windows of churches after the dismissal of the congregation and to keep them closed til the next service. He stated it to be his experience & observations that congregations that worship in churches kept in this way are more pius and reverential. We have not seen three fourths of a congregation at the same time with their heads bowed towards the preacher and their eyes closed, which may always be taken as a sure indication of reverence, humility and devotion. Where churches are ventilated after the common method, the congregations are restless, bright and ill at ease.

George Parker read an essay on the rules laid down in books to govern societies. The object of the essay was to show the fewer the rules the better the society. He advocates the largest liberty and declares the slavish adhesion to rules was the main reason why so many societies failed. He said with truth that if every member would put himself in his deportment in all his relations to the society to which he belonged the society would be sure to prosper. Mr. Parker takes a deep interest in the society and was the leading spirit in its organizing.

Henry Oldfield has been known to the society for his punctuality in attending its regular meetings. He read a short essay on a new plan of transmitting news which he thinks will eventually supercede Morses discovery. His essay made a favorable impression on all.

J.F. read an essay on the relation that the liquor traffic and tobacco bears to the moral and intellectual progress of the race. He took the ground that tobacco and liquor give physical force which is the basis of moral and intellectual progress among men. He declared that the more tobacco a man smoked the more energy he would manifest. He observed that those who used tobacco set everything by accomplishing and that they almost invariably overlooked the proprieties of life. There are men who use tobacco who will puff smoke into a ladies face and squirt tobacco juice on her carpet, and never see anything wrong in it so intent are they in generating force. They are the more forceable people of the community. This gentlemans essay was a failure. The society would not lose anything if this gentleman should withdraw.

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Lots of wood, hoops, logs, bark is coming in. Wood is worth $2.25 a cord. Hoops $5.00 a thousand, Logs and bark $4.00 a cord.

We had the pleasure of seeing the phisog of our old friend John Simons of Lexington. He was on a trip for furs and skins. He says furs are scarce.

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Our band would scarcely be excused

Even as a band of raw beginners

All mercy now must be refused

To such a set of croaking sinners.

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Trade is getting more brisk. We have sold one jackknife today, to a French man.

 Notice-The man that breaks up bark about 9 or 10 o’clock at night is watched, so old chap, be cautious. Or young chap, look out, for there is a most miserable jail in Lexington, not fit for a respectable pig pen, so take care or your barking will get you into a tight place.

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 An instance of absentmindedness-Not many years ago Mr W.S. Allen, well know to most of us started off one morning to get his horses shod. He tramped off and went to Mr Thomsons blacksmith shop, went in and in his gruff way said, “Mr Thomson, I want to get my horses shod.” Thomson said “Well bring them in,” and not till then did Allen discover that he had left his horses at home. About that time it is said there was some tall talking.

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 A good way to improve your mind is to sit around Thomsons checkerboard. Never read nor study, Oh, no.

Saturday, March 5th, 1870

A respectable lie, Sir. Pray, what do you mean?

Why, the term in itself is a plain contradiction.

A lie is a lie and deserves no respect

But merciless judgement and speedy conviction

It springs from corruption, servile and mean

 An evil conception, a cowards invention

And whether direct or simply implied

Has taught but deceit for its end and intention.

 

Ah, yes, very well. So good morals would teach

But facts are the most stubborn things in existence

And they tend to show that great lies win respect

And hold their position with wondrous persistence

Of small lies, the white lies, the lies feebly told

The world will condemn in both spirit and letter

But the great, bloated lies will be held in respect

And the larger and older the lie is the better.

 

A respectable lie from a popular man

On a popular subject, never taxes endurance

And the pure gold, but unpopular truth

Is often refused for the brass of assurance.

You may dare all the laws of the land to defy

And bear to the truth the most shameless relation

But never attack a respectable lie

If you value a name or a good reputation.

 

A lie well established and hoary with age

Resists the assaults of bold seceder

While he is accounted the greatest of saints

Who silences reason and follows the leader

Whenever a mortal has dared to be wise

And seize upon truth, the souls Magna Carta

He always has won from the lovers of lies

The name of a fool or the fate of a martyr.

 

There are popular lies and political lies

And lies that stick fast between buying and selling

And lies of politeness, conventional lies

Which scarcely are considered as such in the telling

There are lies of sheer malice and slanderous lies

From those who delight to peck filth like a pigeon

But the oldest and far most respectable lies

Are those that are told in the name of religion.

By J.T.

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A country bumpkin has been giving the citizens of Port Sanilac much occasion for alarm. The biped referred to promenaded the principle streets today indulging in the most disgusting profanity. The juveniles of the village will no doubt emulate his efforts. Profanity is not a whit more respectable and is even more objectionable than theft. The morals and the purity of the young are blunted by it.

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All sorts-Sweet home, living in a confectionary store.

People about the village who don seedy garments ought to be transplanted to a more fertile soil.

 A lady gave this reason for not knowing the color of her ministers eyes, “When he prays he shuts his own eyes and when he preaches he shuts mine.”

Few men would attempt to dry damp gunpowder in a kitchen stove. A man in Canada did and his afflicted family would be glad of any information as to his whereabouts.

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 A hint-If this hint be acted upon the result will be satisfactory all around. If you owe but a shingle dollar go and pay it. When there is so little money we should keep it moving around lively.

Jim owed us, we owed Bill and Bill owed Jim. Jim got mad because we made him pay one morning last week but we paid Bill and Bill paid Jim and Jim went to bed that night as happy as a clam with just as much money as he had in the morning and three men out of debt.

March 12th, 1870

Almost a fire-Last Friday morning about six oclock A.M. as Mr Saml Coppernoll was going to his store, when passing H. Sullivans blacksmith shop he discovered smoke and looking in he saw the north side on fire, just commencing to blaze up and luckily he had a pail of water in his hand which he dashed on the fire where it had burned through the side, and then gave the alarm and in a few minutes the fire was extinguished. A very narrow escape.

The above lucky escape from being cleaned all out by fire should warn us in time. There was some talk about having a reservoir made last summer somewhere between Erskines and Vancamps stores but it all ended in talk as the most of our projects do.

We want for our protection a good large cistern or reservoir located where it will be most advantageous and accommodate the largest number, for mutual protection in case of fire anywhere about the corners. Thomsons have one in their cellar for self protection but it is not large enough for anything but their own use.

We not only want a good reservoir but we want a good force plan and a sufficient length of hose to reach any reasonable distance. The whole thing would cost about $250 or $300. We cant spend that amount of money or even double that amount for any better purpose.

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A selfish man-Philip McCormack lives 3 or 4 miles west and is well known to most of us. A few days since he was coming in with a load of wood on his sleighs. He usually drives a very good span of horses. Now our friend Mac is partially blind in one or both of his eyes and no doubt he was planning as he was driving along thinking he had the road all to himself, of how he might pinch or squeeze a few dollars out of some poor fellow that had been working for him. Or wishing that the winter be long and hard that he might sell his surplus hay at a good big price. Or perhaps he was not thinking at all which I think is most likely.

 At any rate he was brought to his senses by running down hill and into or against another load of wood behind an ox team owned by John Kelly. One of Mac’s horses got his foot badly mashed or broke so that it was thought best to kill him (the horse). And now our well to do and thrifty Mac is trying to make Kelly pay for his horse that he himself drove against the load of wood.

Mac is an Irishman and none the worse for that, but he is a small hearted, small souled man, if he is a man. He wants everything to point to himself. If he buys anything he wants to get it for half price and if he has anything to sell, he wants double what it is worth. We suppose such men are made to fill some chink in creation but we don’t know where it should be.

March 14th, 1870

What is going on-

Sunday: Preaching twice, in the morning at ten thirty and in the evening at seven oclock, alternately in the Congregational & Methodist churches. Rev. Danl Berney for the Congregationalist and Rev.  A.J. Harding for the Methodist. Also Sunday school at 12 oclock every Sunday in the Congregational church. Known as the Union         S.S. under the management of Saml Coppernoll. Also Sabbath School in the Methodist church commencing at 2:30 oclock P.M. 

                                    U. Raymond, Superintendent.

Monday: Social held by the Congregational society every Monday evening.

Tuesday: Blue lodge meets at 45 Lake St every once in a while but always on Tuesday evening, once in 2,3, or 4 weeks but which we say not. Also the young mens literary society meets every Tuesday evening over Raymond and Campbells store.

 Wednesday: Prayer meeting at Congregational Church, commencing at 7 P.M.  Also social by Methodist society.

 Thursday: Prayer meeting at the Methodist church commencing at 7:30 P.M.

 Friday: Good Templars Lodge meets at their rooms to transact business in their line.

Saturday: School don’t keep and the boys have a good time generally.

March 15th, 1870

 We have heard a little about town meeting. It is rumored that there will be four tickets in the field this spring.

1st a Republican, 2nd a Democrat, 3rd a Temperance, 4th Dutch ticket.

 We think that if the Republican and Temperance parties will unite and nominate a good temperance ticket it would be sensible and also stand some chance of success, but if the Republicans of our town will not support a good straight temperance ticket they will deserve to be beaten and that is not all, they will be laid out to consider their ways.

 Mr. Wm Spedding is a sound temperance man of fair ability. He would accept the nomination if he could get it.

We are not of them that think there is no good outside of our own party. Nor that any political party is all good. The Democrats have a bad record on the war question, but who knows but they have repented of their wickedness, but we are forced to confess that there is little evidence of it by their works or the company they keep.

Why is it that 9/10ths of all the whiskey shops are run by Democrats? Why is it that a large majority of the intemperate or actual drunkards are Democrats? Why is it that most of the illiterate Irish just over from the old sod, that never had a vote and know nothing about our government, are Democrats?

Obadiah W. Lewis, our supervisor for the year past, a man of good character and of good standing in the community and a well to do farmer-a Republican in party-he attended the regular Republican caucus last spring, called by the regular township committee and because he failed to get the nomination in the regular caucus of his own party, he bolted and went to the Democrat caucus and they knowing that they could not elect a candidate of their own stripe, gave poor Lewis the nomination he wanted and with the Democrat vote and the sore headed Republicans vote he was elected to the office of supervisor.

We think that was a shabby move on Lewis. Sold himself for what? A petty town office. Shame on the man that will dirty his own vest.

March 29th, 1870

Mr Editor:

 It is a soft time. Nature is at work relieving the earth of her very heavy burden of snow. We are glad to see it. Yet the mud that must necessarily follow is not a thing of delight to us nor has it ever been.

 I see that not only is the winter rushing down hill in Sanilac Township but some men are forsaking principal and only asking the interest and by so doing are turning to everything that will help them to this interest. That interest, Mr Editor seems to be an earnest desire to obtain an office. I refer, sir, to the office of supervisor.

 Where is the honor? Is it in the associations one must-excuse me, not must, but does keep to gain friends to secure votes. One would think by the career of some men in the political field that this was true.

 This is therefore to what I refer in the above, water does run down hill, because it cant help it. Men who become everything, Good Templars, beer drinkers, F---M----s or just what the company is that they are in to gain an office. God pity them, and even this is a draught on the Deities kindness. This political dishonesty is enough to cause the heavens to turn black.                                                   Dark Side

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Mr. Editor:

 Ours is a democratic country. We the people have the right to assemble in primary meetings and nominate for office any one we wish to. And then we have the privilege of voting for whoever we want in office. As far as our township matters go we are strictly democrated, but farther than that-but there hangs a tale.

March 30th, 1870

Editor Times:

I went, saw and was disgusted. And what man of purity and dignity was not thus effected. The great unwashed met in caucus, yesterday, in this village, in Vancamps store and accomplished (in their view) something extraordinary. It would take the pencil of a Hogarth to do justice to the crowd and their queer antics.

There were a great variety of faces in the motley crowd, but among them very few that a sweet child or a pure woman would like to kiss. The esthetic and intellectual qualities we must confess were not in the ascendancy on the contrary the animal and selfish reigned supreme.

The few who controlled, engineered and worked the machine on that memorable occasion at Vancamps, ignored every rule and precedent that should be observed at such meetings. As for the voters, they went it blind. Some singular facts have come to light since the dispersion of this perverse and notoriously corrupt gathering, known to scientists as belonging to the whiskey ring or species. One office seeker, who had been begging for votes for the last two or three weeks received a set back that almost knocked him in two. He has not recovered from the effect of it yet and perhaps it would prove fatal were he not hopeful of getting a nomination in the so-called prohibition caucus, that is to meet on Friday afternoon. One of the curious incidents is that the brother of the above named office seeker voted against him and for a brother mason.

The caucus might have been called a Masonic caucus with propriety. The leading masons, belonging to the lodge of this village, were nominated for three principal offices in the township and their brethren voted for them to a man. The whole thing looks as if it were concocted in the Masonic lodge. It may be called a Masonic conspiracy. The friends of justice and progress should labor to defeat this ticket. The whole thing is a piece of miserable meanness. The men who lead in this farce deserve the contempt and derision of all men.                                                                                        Justice

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A republican township committee,

Lewis, Maskell and H.O. the gritty

Of sterling good stuff

Were appointed a trio for said committee

 

Reformers and heroes cannot always agree

As to the best means to set the slave free

So O.W.L. and H.O. both pugnacious you know

Each, his own boat is bound to row.

 

A caucus by each was duly called

O.W.L. with the democrats and masons pulled

H.O., he hung off till the kawkass

Was called, then appeared, like an ass.

 

Out of my office and go where you please

Or I will make a bow-wow and kick up a breeze

W.A.M. and John C. and our Wm Spedding

Were offely scared and left in a jiffy.

 

Two tickets have been duly gotten up

Showing wisdom and courage and right good pluck

Lewis, Spedding, Sullivan, Van and Hunter

All eager for office, I mean bread and butter.

 

Did you ever see a dorg without a tale?

Or a fence without a rale?

A town board without a head?

Or a fat goose, poorly fed?

 

It is a damage to poor Van

As all he gets of the grist is the bran,

Of Lewis, that cant be said

For he looks fat and well fed.

 

A temperance ticket for sure,

Only on the tail one whiskey Wetmore

But brother Good Templars go it strong

For I want to be elected, right or wrong

 

Let trickery and policy go to darkness and night

Be honest, be manly and dare to do right

Be men of principle, steadfast and true

And exemplify your profession, what ever you do.