'Little Michigan' - Carved into the Ground in the 1930s

In Montmorency County is a little patch of land alongside County Road 612, about six miles east of Lewiston.

Embedded on this patch of land is a carving of the state of Michigan, complete with the Great Lakes...well, except for Lake Ontario.

This roadside oddity has been around since the 1930s, when one of Michigan’s Civilian Conservation Corps camps was operating: Camp Lunden, to be exact.

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The men at these camps lived in tents and took care of the land: planting new trees, removing waste and brush, putting out fires, taking care of the creeks, rivers and streams and making the land beautiful.

During the men’s downtime, they took it upon themselves to make this little landmark along the road: a mini-version of the state of Michigan, completed with four of our five Great Lakes.

The camps began in 1933, and in 1936 Camp Lunden closed down, but it is still listed if you search Google Maps. There is some kind of building on the property, and the carving of Michigan is a little ways to the left.

There is a marker to help you locate it as you travel County Road 612, but don’t blink. It’s a pretty cool place to take a drone and to get a selfie of yourself next to it...or standing in the state.

Photos are in the gallery below!