https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-4jh7r-1209f46

In his UP Colony, Author Phil Bellfy, P.h. D. poses the ultimate question: why has the Upper Peninsula’s vast wealth, nearly unrivaled in the whole of the United States, left the area with poverty nearly unrivaled in the whole of the United States. “Where did the $1.5 billion earned from copper mining, $1 billion from logging, and nearly $4 billion in iron ore go?”

Struck by the contrast between two cities on different sides of the American Canadian border, Bellfy has published an update to his 1980s MA thesis, UP Colony.

It is the story of resource exploitation in Upper Michigan in one of the oldest US cities Sault Sainte Marie. The book was published on its 350th anniversary in 2018.

“Sault Michigan was clearly a city on the decline, while Sault Ontario shared none of the malaise that infected the Michigan half of these “Sister Cities,” Bellfy writes in the new introduction. 

Bellfy grew up in the Detroit suburb of Livonia and moved to Sault Sainte Marie in the fall of 1970. “We were urban Indians growing up in Detroit, but Chippewa County is most native populated East of Mississippi,” he said. “I was exposed to the native community.”

“I was also struck by the raw beauty of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and perhaps, even more struck by the raw beauty of the landscape across the St. Marys River,” he wrote.

However, just around the time of his arrival, all the major industries shut down, and Sault Michigan was little more than a “resource colony” or “Internal Colony” without any residuals left from the mining industries.

“My own personal history adds a lot to my perception of the situation up here,” Bellfy said.

Listen in for a chance to win a signed copy of UP Colony.

Christian authors

This is an updated episode with author Mikel Classen with sound editing by author Erik Bean aka prof. Bean.

Stay tuned for the upcoming Easter episodes with Christian authors Elizabeth Fust “The Hungry Kitten’s Tale” and Lowell’s author Amanda Filkins “Be Still: God’s Grace is Bigger Than Worldly Deceit.”

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-f32qy-11eea36

Digging deep into the past, U.P. author & historian Mikel Classen uncovers hidden stories in his newest release “True Tales- The Forgotten History of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.”

Stories of piracy, lost gold mines, the origin of the Copper Boom, profiles of people of note, Starvation on Isle Royale, and one of the darkest periods of Michigan history, are all True Tales of the early days of the Upper Peninsula Frontier.

“Some subjects I’ve researched over the years as a journalist,” Classen said. “It’s been several years in the making.”

The tales are broken up into moments in U.P. history like Chapter 15- “Peter White: The Founding of Marquette” or the story about a native American woman marooned on Isle Royale with her husband facing starvation.

One story, in particular, captured Classen’s inquisitive mind and set him off on a wild chase across the rugged northern peninsula hunting down the truth to rectify myths. During his research, Classen visited the historical societies in 16 towns.

“The local communities and historians sometimes intentionally buried the stories,” Classen said.

In seven towns, he was able to confirm the unimaginable.

“I was shocked,” he said. “Some things you find out can creep you out.”

Find out what it was by listening to this intriguing episode with a true U.P. expert for a chance to win a signed copy of Classen’s “True Tales.”

Sound editing by author Erik Bean.

Copyright (c) 2022. Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-wte2p-11e9af0

Digging deep into the past, U.P. author & historian Mikel Classen uncovers hidden stories in his newest release “True Tales- The Forgotten History of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.”

Stories of piracy, lost gold mines, the origin of the Copper Boom, profiles of people of note, Starvation on Isle Royale, and one of the darkest periods of Michigan history, are all True Tales of the early days of the Upper Peninsula Frontier.

“Some subjects I’ve researched over the years as a journalist,” Classen said. 

One story, in particular, captured Classen’s inquisitive mind and set him off on a wild chase across the rugged northern peninsula hunting down the truth to rectify myths. During his research, Classen visited the historical societies in 16 towns.

“The local communities and historians sometimes intentionally buried the stories,” Classen said.

In seven towns, he was able to confirm the unimaginable.

“I was shocked,” he said.

Find out what it was by listening to this intriguing episode with a true U.P. expert for a chance to win a signed copy of his “True Tales.”