Early in Traverse City's history, most of its able-bodied men were employed at the Hannah, Lay & Co sawmill. As a "fringe benefit," workers were allowed to help themselves to all the scrap lumber (or slabs) they wanted. Soon an entire neighborhood of…
Hannah Lay sawmill on Grand Traverse Bay with the Boardman River in the foreground. Logs are banked and in the river. This was a steam powered mill with wood scraps providing the fuel for the boiler. The tall rocket shaped item is the sawdust…
Black and white photograph of the walking bridge over the Boardman River at Hannah Park. (Note the sluceway used to float logs to the sawmill downstream after the installation of the Hannah Lay Grist mill dam just up stream.)
Black and white photograph in poor condition of Traverse City around 1860 to 1863. Notation on photograph says the image was captured while the photographer was standing on Front Street, downtown Traverse City, looking north towards Grand Traverse…
Black and white photograph of the overview of the waterfront, Boardman River, We-Que-Tong Club and the Hannah Lay Sawmill. Picture taken from a railroad water tower.