Station: Au Sable, MI

Au Sable was settled in the 1840's as a fishing and lumber town in northeast Iosco County along Lake Huron. It became a village in 1872 and a city in 1889. The town was burned in 1911 by a forest fire and rebuilt. It surrendered its charter in 1931. [MPN]

Image info: The D&M depot at Au Sable with a freight train in front. [CMUL]

Notes

Au Sable was the lake terminal of the Au Sable and Northwestern railroad which was primarily a forest logging route with many branch lines into Alcona, Oscoda, Ogemaw and Montmorency counties. That road came under Detroit & Mackinac railroad ownership about 1912 and the last lines were abandoned at the beginning of the depression.

The Detroit & Mackinac (now Lake States railway) ran its main line north and south through here and had a station located here.

Time Line

1888. The J. E. Potts Salt and Lumber Company contemplate building a logging railroad from Au Sable to connect with a line of the road owned by them up the Au Sable River. They hope to have the road completed by November 1. Logs will be delivered into the company's boom limits by rail. The company has already all the rolling stock required, having ten locomotives and a full rigged repair shop at their headquarters camp. Passengers will be accommodated from the start. [DFP-1888-0721]

1896. A bill has been introduced in the legislature to remove the Loud and Ferris properties out of the city (to reduce their taxes). The city says that the removal would seriously hurt the it financially as it would leave only residences. The threat of the Louds that they will move their plant if the bill is not passed, the city attorney says is a bluff, as they cannot move their railroad nor their numerous stone buildings. [DFP-1895-0423]

1911: July. Due to a major forest fire which destroyed both Au Sable and Oscoda, the D&M railway got around the towns by running on an old lumber spur, arriving at Alpena around midnight. Flames were running a hundred feet in the air, declared the passengers, and the intense heat scorched the sides of the train and cracked the windows. A special train carrying fire apparatus from Bay City to Alpena in response to a call for help from that City, jumped the track in trying to pass around the two towns and was held until nearly midnight before the track was repaired. [LSJ-1911-0711]

1911. July 12. The towns of Oscoda and AuSable, opposite each other on the AuSable river at its mouth, and having a combined population of 1,800 were completely destroyed by fire Tuesday, but without loss of life. Every house and building in the two towns is reported destroyed.

H.M. Loud's Sons & Co., who with their two saw mills, shingle mills, planing mills, huge cedar yards and lumber yards, were the mainstay of the towns and the heaviest losers - there loss being probably near one million dollars. Congressman Loud, of the Tenth district, whose home is in AuSable, is the leading member of the firm.

The fire originated in a slab yard in Oscoda. The wind was high and inside of 10 minutes the entire yard was ablaze, while the fire was spreading with such rapidity that by night AuSable had been practically destroyed, the flames jumping the river. By night, about 1,800 people were homeless without food and their onlyu possessions the  clothing they wore. 

Early in the evening, the steamer Congo ran into AuSable and her captain readily consented to take on board all the people his boat could accommodate. They were taken to East Tawas. [SAG-1911-0712]

1914. The D&M removes part of the former A&NW main line, west of the bridge in Au Sable, having put a new connection to access the former logging road. 3,540 feet are removed. [DMAR-1915]

Industry

• Au Sable Car Works - (1906 → xxxx) - manufactures railroad cars. Owned by H.M. Loud's Sons Company. [AML-1/13/1906]