Apple Blossom Trail

Established in 1994, the Apple Blossom Trail runs along the Iron River from Caspian north to the RV/Trailer Park, with a walking trail continuing to Nanaimo Park, linking the area of Caspian, Stambaugh, and Iron River and passing a series of historic mine sites. At the south end, the Caspian Mine, now the Iron County Museum, includes 22 buildings, and its 1920 headframe is the oldest in the county and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Visible along the trail are the Caspian Mine; Dober No. 1, Dober No. 2, and Duff; Hiawatha No. 2 and the later Isabella Pit; Hiawatha No. 1; Chatham; Iron River, also known as the Stambaugh and Riverton Group; Wickwire; Sheridan; and Delta. In 1851 Harvey Mellen found iron ore outcroppings at the foot of Stambaugh Bluff. In 1878 D.C. MacKinnon, who came with W.H. Selden, is credited with discovering ore at the Nanaimo and Sheridan mines in Iron River and in Spring Valley, now Caspian. Selden found ore in Stambaugh near Mellen's discovery and opened the Iron River Mine, also known as the Riverton Group, which originally included the Isabella, the Chatham, and Hiawatha No. 1. The Riverton was the oldest and largest producer on the trail, producing 5,881,550 tons of ore, and Hiawatha No. 1 shipped another 8,502,729 tons. Iron County shipped a total of 208,345,852 tons of ore, with the last ore shipped in 1978 and railroad service ending in 1981.

Caspian, Michigan · United States