Did You Know There Was Once a Little Town Here?
It’s just a countryside railroad crossing with a few homes, that not many realize it was once an actual town. It’s Beitner, in Grand Traverse County.
It began when William Beitner built a sawmill along the Boardman River in 1878. That same year it was given a railroad station along the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad.
In 1880, a post office became necessary; it was transferred in 1883 and called Keystone, but re-established as Beitner in 1893...it closed in 1895.
The sawmill shut down operations in 1904, and without the lumber industry, Beitner failed to progress. It is now considered one of Michigan’s ‘forgotten’ ghost towns, although there are enough things in the area to remind us: Beitner Park, Beitner Canoe Launch, and Beitner Road.
Scroll down and see some photos in the gallery below.