Remembering the May 18, 1927 Bath School bombing

Media coverage of various school shootings and bombins in recent years would lead one to believe that this is a recent phenomenon. America's first school bombing occurred in the small town of Bath, Michigan at approximately 8:45 a.m. on May 18, 1927. A series of dynamite and pyrotol (military surplus explosive used by farmers for blowing stumps) were wired to a battery and timer which blew away the north wing of the Bath Consolidated School killing thirty-eight children and three adults. The perpetrator was Andrew Kehoe, school board treasurer and local farmer who also worked on various electrical issues and other technical problems at the school from time to time. Shortly after the timed explosion at the school, Andrew Kehoe blew up his farm and burned his wife in the ensuing fire/explosions. He then drove his truck loaded with more explosives to the disaster at the school. For whatever reason, the school superintendent was his nemesis and upon pulling up to the school he called out to the superintendent, Emory Huyck. Huyck went over to Kehoe's truck and Kehoe shot into the load of explosives in his truck instantly killing him and Huyck.

The why of the Bath School Disaster vanished into the ether when Kehoe's truck exploded. No one knows the exact reason for this horrible tragedy. Some say it was for the simple fact that Kehoe didn't like paying higher taxes to support the school. The only person who knew for sure was Andrew Kehoe and the only message he left was a board attached to a fence on his farm. The message on the board read, "Criminals are made, not born." Apparently meaning that someone or something made Kehoe into the type of person who would perpetrate such a cowardly act.

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For More information on the Bath School Disaster:

Books: Bath Massacre: America's First School Bombing Life Is Fragile: One Girls Story of the Bath School Disaster

Websites: http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~bauerle/disaster.htm http://daggy.name/tbsd/

New life for the McGulpin Point Lighthouse

A few years back my wife and headed west out of Mackinaw City in search of the McGulpin Point Lighthouse. I had heard from someone that it was located west of town on private property. Being a lighthouse hound (specifically Michigan lighthouses) I went to see what was left of the old light. It wasn't difficult at all to find the lighthouse. You just take Lakeside Drive out west of Mackinaw City and then veer off on Wenniway Drive. The remains of the old lighthouse were north of where Wenniway Drive makes a sharp turn south. It looked more like a house than a lighthouse without the distinguishing turret containing the lantern.

Last July the lighthouse was purchased by Emmett County from the private owner. A new lantern and railing were put on the old lighthouse last week. A special lighting ceremony will take place on May 30th and the lighthouse and grounds will be open to the public this summer.

Get more information on the History of The McGulpin Point Lighthouse.

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Mackinac State Historic Parks are opening this week

Summer must be just around the corner because several of the Mackinac State Parks are opening this week. Historic Mill Creek and Colonial Michilimackinac opened up this morning. Fort Mackinac on Mackinac Island opens up tomorrow, May 5 and Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse in Mackinaw City opens next Monday, May 11th. Discounts are available for groups of 12 people or more and you can also purchase a combination ticket that lets you pick three of the four Mackinac State Historic Parks for $23 for adults. Watch this video for a quick look at the Mackinac State Historic Parks -

How fast is your home internet connection?

I ask this question because my "high-speed" internet service has been down for over three weeks now. It was a wireless service that used an antenna on our roof to connect with a tower about two miles away. The service promised speeds of up to 1 MB for upload and download. I never came close to those speeds in the 4+ years of using the service. Trouble is, until recently it was our only option for high-speed internet. Thankfully, my internet service provider was kind enough to have a dial-up connection I could use as a backup so all is not lost. I just can't believe how truly horrible the internet is using dial-up. I thought my "high-speed" connection was slow. Hoo-boy, was I wrong!

Our power company is rolling out a new program that uses existing power lines to transmit broadband. They've hit some glitches already in cooperation with the phone company (Verizon) whom they are getting the T1 connections through. I hope this becomes a workable solution as it seems to be the best hope yet for those living rurally to get high-speed internet access.

My internet service provider is just starting to rollout DSL and I got bumped up the line due to the fact that my "high-speed" connection has been down for three weeks. Hopefully it will be up and running by the weekend. I can't take much more of dial-up.

This brings me to this week's poll question. I really want to know what speed folks are surfing the net at from home. Please take a second and answer the poll.

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The music behind the Pure Michigan ads

I noticed that a lot of you have visited this blog looking for information about the music that plays in the background of the Pure Michigan ad campaign. A quick bit of research and reading some of the video comments on YouTube solved this little mystery. The music is "Main Titles" from the motion picture, The Cider House Rules, and is composed by Rachel Portman. The whole soundtrack is filled with hauntingly beautiful music and now I picture the Pure Michigan commercials whenever I hear it.

Oh, and for those who might not know - actor and comedian Tim Allen provides the voiceover for the commercials.

Enjoy one of my favorites, "Trailhead" -