mileage
62 NEW BUFFALO station, West Washington and South Whittaker
Streets. Elevation approximately 660. The New Buffalo AMTRAK station will be relocated soon to a more downtown location,
from which it will serve the Chicago-Detroit trains, and will no longer serve the Pere Marquette. The city was named by Captain
Wessel D. Whittaker, whose boat, the Post Boy, ran aground on the rocky shores of Lake Michigan in the area. Whittaker was able
to save his crew after that incident, and he returned to his home in New Buffalo, New York. he then came back to Michigan in
1835 with a few investors, and started the city. New Buffalo was incorporated in 1836. The city today is known for having
the largest marina in the State of Michigan, and its downtown streets are lined with unique specialty stores, shops, and art galleries. It remains a tourist destination in southwest Michigan.
63.5 Cross over the AMTRAK-owned
line which the Chicago-Detroit and Chicago-Port Huron trains use. We will be continuing north on the CSX line along the shore
of lake Michigan, We are following Interstate 94 on the right (eastbound).
65 Cross Galien River.
65.5 Pass through Union Pier. Notice the many lakeside cottages
and development along the Red Arrow Highway, which is adjacent to the railroad on the left (eastbound). The Red Arrow Highway
was named after the 32nd National Guard Division from Michigan and Wisconsin, who fought bravely in both World Wars I and II. During WW II, the 32nd Division was the first to go overseas after Pearl Harbor. The insignia of these troops was a red arrow,
and in 1953, portions of U.S. 12 in Michigan and U.S. 32 in Wisconsin were dedicated as the “Red Arrow Highway.”
67 Pass through Lakeside, as we are now traversing the lake Border Moraine; however, it is difficult to discern the boundaries between
the Calumet Lake Plain and the Lake Border Moraine from the train.
70 Pass through Harbert as we continue to traverse the relatively flat Lake Border Moraine.
72 Pass beneath Interstate 94 and pass through the small town of Sawyer.
74 To the west (left if eastbound), the sand hills of Warren Dunes State Park are visible across Interstate 94 and the Red Arrow Highway. The Warren Dunes comprise 1950 acres, and offer camping, hiking, and wintertime cross-country skiing. They formed very similarly
to the Ogden Dunes in Indiana which we passed earlier (see MP 34 above), The warren Dunes are also a well-known hang-gliding
locality, as gliders take off from the 240-ft high Tower Hill in Warren Dunes.
76.5 Pass through Bridgman, and get another excellent view of Warren Dunes State Park to the west (left if eastbound). The town was
named after George C. Bridgman, a co-owner of the Charlotteville Lumber Company, an early business in town. For a while the
town was named Charlotteville, after Charlotte, the owner’s wife. The town was originally called Plummer’s Pier. The lumber
industry is gone from the Bridgman area; however, the area is still an important tourist area, primarily because of Warren Dunes,
and its well-known beaches, Warren Dunes and Weko Beach, on Lake Michigan.
Bridgman is the home of the Cook Energy Information Center, which includes a rotating 26-ft model of the nearby Cook Nuclear Power
Plant, and exhibits and programs featuring the roles of nuclear power and electricity. There are also nature trails from the
Energy Center into Warren Dunes.
78.5 Pass through Livingston. Off to the west,
nestled amongst the dunes, the towers of Cook Nuclear Plant may be visible (?) (see MP 76.5 above). We are still traversing
the Lake Border Moraine.
79 Railroad siding on the left (eastbound)
leads to Cook Nuclear Plant.
81 Between the railroad and Grand Mere
Lakes on the left (eastbound), the edge of the Lake Border Moraine may be discerned if you look closely. The lakes are located
on the Calumet Lake Plain.
82 Pass through Stevensville. Stevensville
was incorporated in 1893, and platted by Thomas Stevens, an early landowner. Stevens donated the right-of-way for the railroad
over which you are traveling. The town abounds in antique shops, art galleries, and unique restaurants, as do many other resort
towns in southwestern Michigan.
83.5 Pass beneath Interstate 94 again. To the
west (left if eastbound), the ridges visible in the distance are the Lake Border Moraine, which is located directly adjacent to Lake
Michigan in this area. We have left the dune belts associated with the Lake Border Moraine and Calumet Lake Plain.
86 Pass through Shoreham. This small residential town was founded by Englishman William Ducker.
87 Pass beneath Red Arrow Highway (see MP 65.5 above). Lake Michigan now comes into view on the left (eastbound).
89 ST. JOSEPH-BENTON HARBOR station, 410½ Vine Street, St. Joseph. Elevation approximately 600. St. Joseph was named after
the St. Joseph River, which was named after a patron saint of Canada. The city was originally named Saranac, after a ship, then
later renamed Newburyport. In 1833, it was given its current name of St. Joseph. The city’s Fort Miami was built in 1679
by the Marquis de Lafayette. St, Joseph was incorporated as a village in 1834, and a city in 1891, and is now the county seat
of Berrien County. Like other cities in the area, the downtown area contains many gift and specialty shops.
St. Joseph is the home of the Curious Kids’ Museum, which contains exhibits on the area’s fruit industry as well as other hands-on
exhibits for kids. The city is also the home of the Krasl Art center, which contains 3 unique art galleries depicting different
types of art.
Cross the St. Joseph River
as we depart the St. Joseph-Benton Harbor station. Just a few hundred yards upstream, the Paw Paw River joins the St. Joseph.
90 Pass beneath the Red Arrow Highway again, and cross the Paw Paw River.
91 Pass through St. Joseph’s “twin city,” Benton Harbor. Benton Harbor was incorporated as a village in 1866. It was originally
named Brunson Harbor, in honor of Sterne Brunson, one of the founders of the village. Along with Henry Morton and Charles Hull,
Brunson was instrumental in developing a farmer’s market in the area, and also in the development of an early ship canal linking the
St. Joseph River to the bluffs of the new town. In 1865, the name of the city was changed to Benton Harbor in honor of Missouri
Senator Thomas Hart Benton, who helped the new territory of Michigan gain statehood. The town also had several early nicknames,
the most notable being “Bungtown,” since one of the first factories in the area made wooden corks for barrels known as bungs.
91.5 Cross Paw Paw River again.
95 Although indistinguishable from the
train, we are cross an intermorainal area, located between two major Pleistocene-aged end moraines. The surface of the earth
in these intermorainal areas is still composed of unsorted and unstratified glacial till, which was not piled into large hilly end
moraine complexes.
97 Pass beneath Interstate 196 (U.S. 31) and pass
through Riverside.
97.5 Cross Paw Paw River again.
99 The hills to the south (right if eastbound) mark the location of the Valparaiso Moraine. The Valparaiso Moraine is somewhat
older than the Lake Border Moraine, and is much better exposed than the Lake Border Moraine. Whereas the surface of the Lake
Border Moraine is considerably flat and featureless,, the surface expression of the Valparaiso Moraine contains much more relief,
and is considerably hillier than the surface of the Lake Border Moraine. We will be traversing the Valparaiso Moraine and associated
landforms between here and Hudsonville.
100-101 Pass through Coloma. Coloma was originally named Dickerville, after
the bartering done by early merchants in the area. The city was platted by Stephen Gilson, who named the place Coloma after
his home town of Coloma, California. Gilson built the first house in the town in 1834.
Coloma is the home to the Deer Forest, where children can feed deer, and is also an important recreational area, being near the fishing
of the Paw Paw River, and its relative close proximity to Lake Michigan. In 1989, the Coloma/ Watervliet Economic Development
Corporation was founded to service economic development needs of the area.
102 The Paw Paw River flows parallel to the railroad on the north here (left if eastbound). The river valley is likely composed
of Pleistocene-aged outwash deposits.
103 Watervliet. Watervliet was founded
in 1833, and named after a Dutch term meaning “flowing water.” The Sumner-Wheeler sawmill was built when the town was established,
at the present site of Watervliet Paper Company. One of the first merchants was Isaac Moffatt, who opened a store in town in
1836.
Watervliet is the home of Brookside
Park, which offers cross-country skiing in the winter. An ice-sculpting contest is held in town each February, and in July,
the city hosts the annual “Buck Skinners Encampment.”
104 On the left (eastbound)
are the industrial waste ponds from Watervliet Paper Company.
Pass beneath Red Arrow Highway again.
105 Enter VAN BUREN County. The county
was organized in 1837 and named after President Martin Van Buren. The county seat is Paw Paw. The area was originally
inhabited by Potawatomi Indians, and when settlement began, the region was settled largely by Dutch immigrants. The county is
often known as “Michigan’s fruit basket,” and hosts a number of wineries. In the 1860;s, the local grape growers formed a coalition
whereby only one farmer was allowed to bring grapes to the market on any given day. In addition to grapes and wine, Van Buren
County also produces blueberries, peaches, apples, and pears.
108 Hartford. Hartford was incorporated in 1877, and named by its first settler, Ferdino Olds. Olds named the town “Hartland” after his home
town in New York; however, there was already a Hartland in Michigan, so the town’s name was changed to Hartford at the request
of several other early citizens. Metal castings are manufactured in Hartford, and the town is also an agricultural town engaged
in fruit tree production and fruit processing.
We are still traversing the Valparaiso Moraine.
109 Cross the Paw Paw River again.
112 Pass through the small town of McDonald.
114 The flat landscape through which
we are passing most likely contains deposits of glacial outwash, as well as till from the Valparaiso Moraine.
116 BANGOR station, 541 Railroad Street. Elevation approximately 657. This small town was first settled in 1857, and named
after Bangor, Maine, the home town of many of the early settlers. It was organized as a village in 1877. The town manufactures
metal castings, and is also an agricultural center which engages in fruit production. Bangor is in the middle of the Van
Buren County wine country, and a winery tour by train is available from downtown. The nearby Black River offers good salmon
fishing in the fall.
Note the “Bangor Train
Factory” visible at the old depot in the downtown area.
Cross the South Branch of the Black River as we leave Bangor.