Follow along with my photo essay describing the brief history of a quaint Lake Michigan beach community called Pier Cove in Southwest Michigan and a recent development at Pier Cove Beach during an unusual March meltdown.
History of a Quaint Lake Michigan Beach Community called Pier Cove
The Southwestern Lake Michigan shoreline forms a long steep curve inland at the point of Pier Cove where a small creek empties into the big lake. In the early 1800’s, Pier Cove’s ravines and plateaus bordering the creek flourished with white pine, beech, hemlock and maple trees. By the 1840’s, lumber was in great demand prompting the construction of a steam sawmill and wood shop downstream. The timber there helped support the build-up of Chicago and Milwaukee. Adding to the lumber demands before the advent of big coal markets, the hardwoods were also used to provide cord woods as the major power source in steam driven vessels navigating on Lake Michigan.
The wood shop was later made into a grist mill for grinding both flour and feed which was powered by the small creek. A secondary product in demand was tanbark derived from the area’s hemlock trees used to yield leather. Accordingly, in the 1850’s a tanning mill was also built along the creek turning out fancy leather works.
Two piers were constructed at opposite sides of the creek and the bustling small community hosted a major distribution point! Ships departed daily until the late 1860’s when the lumber supply began to dwindle from heavy harvesting, including from the demands to rebuild Chicago after the devastating fire of 1871. Soon, competition from a new railroad line through the nearby village of Fennville surpassed the need for the waterway port. Pier Cove’s prosperity phased out; however, in the 1880’s, peaches and other fruit became a major shipping commodity and the site revived the village’s economy!
In 1892, 8000 baskets of peaches were shipped in one day. Tragically, in 1899 a freeze killed much of the local harvest and shipping was reduced to passenger traffic. By 1919, both piers were destroyed from ice and storms, never to be restored again.
O.C. Simonds, the last owner of the Pier Cove large plot of the creek valley, planted many unusual plants and the area became quite well known by naturalists for its many varieties of trillium. The land currently has been declared a nature and wildlife sanctuary!
A Tale of the First Settler
In the early 1800’s, before the area was settled by European Americans, Pottawatomie Native Americans were the main people living off the land. At that point in time, fur trading practices had long been established as the local Pottawatomie had always been very friendly and accommodating toward the tradesmen. The very first European’s to take root and settle down in the area were the Crawford’s who witnessed a terrain thick with white pines as far as the eye could see.
One particular humorous story documented about the new settlers, the Crawfords, describes how the family toiled to cut down the trees and grub out the land in order to plant their corn, wheat and vegetables. But sometimes they got lost in the forest; even their cow got lost trying to find its way home when it was time to be milked and fed. One particular occasion happened when a band of Pottawatomie Native Americans nearby allowed the Crawford’s to camp out in their village while they looked for their lost cow! They were fed by the friendly tribe and a kind Native American woman even sewn them each a pair of moccasins.
The Winter Meltdown and Pier Cove Beach Today
Amazingly, the first photo below was taken only a few days after the photo that follows at Lake Michigan’s Pier Cove Beach demonstrating the rapid snow meltdown caused by an unusual March warm-up. The last surviving snow mound had once reached approximately 25 feet high covered with a top layer of white snow and ice. It was part of the solid ice sheet called the ice shelf which dominates over Lake Michigan’s shorelines during winter months. Looking at the first photo below we can see the last surviving snow mound was colored brown due to layers of frozen sand exposed during the unusual early March meltdown.
Left: Photo of Lake Michigan ice shelf beginning stages of the meltdown at Pier Cove Beach after a harsh winter! Right: Photo of Pier Cove Creek flowing parallel along the Lake Michigan shoreline after the snowmelt!
The ice shelf will sometimes force the creek to run parallel to the shore before it empties into the lake. The photos above were taken several years ago after a harsh winter where the ice shelft was quite extensive. Later during the spring and summer, the creek will often change route where it flows into the big lake.
Pier Cove Creek banks melting ice and Pier Cove Creek banks frozen sand sculptures!
What Wonders Lie on Pier Cove Beach after the Snowmelt?
Photographs of rocks and beach stones often go unappreciated so I have included several favorites in this photo review shown below. Rocks, clamshells, beach glass and fossils are much more accessible for discovery on the beaches of Pier Cove compared to other beaches in the area, such as the popular tourist site of Oval Beach! It’s a phenomenon seen especially in the spring when rivers of melting snow rush by, erasing the sand off the many hidden treasures.
Beach Stones found on Pier Cove Beach after the snow melt! My Beach Stone Photo Gallery
What Beauties Lie on the Creekbed after the Snowmelt?
The photos below show sparkling clear water rushing over beach stones settled upon Pier Cove Creek’s sandy bottom resulting from melting snow running off the steep ravines bordering the creek through Pier Cove Forest Sanctuary. The creek, which no longer supports transportation of the former industries, has been taken over by the ensuing forest.
Cool driftwood settles along Pier Cove Creek and Pier Cove Beach! Often there will be large tree trunks washed up by the power of Lake Michigan currents or floated in from downstream. I snapped a few photos of some larger pieces and one of the many birdhouses I have made with the thousands of smaller pieces we find!
Sunset after the Snowmelt at Pier Cove Beach
I’ve been lucky with sunsets. One day while I was literally standing in the shallows of the creek admiring smooth dried rocks lying on the wet sand, two deer came strolling by. One stopped for just a second before she saw me and ran off. But her fawn didn’t. I had just enough time to adjust my camera and push the shutter button at the last second. I was in such a hurry and didn’t know if I held the camera steady enough to get a clear shot. I’m so pleased it turned out to be a perfect silhouette with a backdrop of glimmering water and a pink colored sky! I believe it’s a sign for good things to come and nature’s spirit casting her light on us all!
My Lake Michigan Sunset Photo Gallery
Under the Setting Sun
Sun no longer high in the sky
Past midday on a downward slide
Under the golden radiance
Souls rush to catch a glimpse
And arrest the passing moments
Of the Sun’s intensifying tints
Within body’s yearning to unwind
The splendor inspires soul’s confined
To merge with the miraculous light
Encompassing a love unmatched in this temporary life
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