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Toledo, Saginaw and Muskegon Stations

Anyway, when I first started collecting photos of the TS&M depots I noticed quite a variation. When the TS&M was built in 1887-88 it went through 23 towns and villages. It built basically two types of depots, one style for the smaller less important towns and another for the larger towns. The least important places were only marked with a sign, these were Eureka Place, Halls, and Hines Crossing. Sheffield and Reeds had a boxcar body for a depot.
The two types of depots looked a lot alike, gable roofs, board and batten siding. The smaller depots are represented by Gooding. By the time the photo was taken, a freight addition had been added. Unlike most small depots Gooding was a train order office. Depots like this were built at Ola, Pompei, Vickeryville, Millers, Lincoln Lake, Evans, Gooding, Harrisburg, Slocum, and Moorland.

The larger stations were built the same as Sheridan only the length changed. These were built at Perrinton, Middleton, Carson City, Sheridan, Greenville, Cedar Springs, and Sparta.

Because Butternut and Harvard were built later in 1888 they were slightly different, having one window on the passenger end and a operators bay and were longer. Here is a photo of Butternut's depot, Harvard was 16' wide instead of Butternut's 12'.

The first depot to change was Pompei, in 1900 it was moved across the road to the east and a freight house and operators bay was added.

In 1912 the Butternut depot was moved across the tracks to the south side of the tracks and a new depot was built on the north side. In 1914 a similar depot was built at Vickeryville.

Depot 2

In 1912 the Butternut depot was moved across the tracks to the south side of the tracks and a new depot was built on the north side. In 1914 a similar depot was built at Vickeryville.

In 1916 a new depot was built at Perrinton to a new style. About this time a depot of this style was also built at Sheridan. The milk shed was built in 1892.

Perrinton depot 2

What about Muskegon? Well they didn't have a depot on the TS&M until 1909 when the Grand Trunk built a brick depot, see below. This depot was replaced in 1930 when the GTW moved the Flint depot to Muskgegon.

Muskegon depot

The Grand Trunks' replacement of the Perrinton, Butternut, Sheridan, and Vickeryville depots has always puzzled me. At first I thought they had burned down, buildings used to burn down a lot. But four buildings in that same area in about four years time, an arsonist on the loose? Then I found a photo of Butternut with both depots!

In this photo looking east, the old depot (or a shorter version of it) is on the south side of the tracks. On the north side of the tracks and between the elevator and the boxcars is the roof of the new depot. As for why Butternut had a nicer depot than all the other towns, it could be because of its proximity to Crystal and Crystal Lake. That dosen't explain why Vickeryville also received a new depot.

This photo of the Vickeryville depot was taken in 1917 as part of the TS&M's valuation report.
In the late 1940's and 50's the Butternut agent would split time between the two depots. The agent would report to Vickeyville at 8:30am and work until 11:15am and go to the Butternut depot by 11:30am. They would then leave the Butternut depot at 3:30pm and go back to the Vickeryville depot at 3:45pm and lockup at 5:30pm. This went on until the Butternut and Vickeryville depots were closed between 1958 and 1960.

Here is Butternut in 1967, the depot would have stood just to the right of the photographer was standing.
Anyone out there with a photo of the Turkey Trail please post it. TN

Cedar Springs, Mich. Tom Parker Collection

Tom Parker Collection

Cedar Springs Historical Museum Collection