CHAPTER 4
The research undertaken on Cheboygan broadly reflects the themes identified
in the literature reviewed in Chapter 1. As Meinig (1999; 1993) suggests,
however, change is not determined by environmental factors alone. Places
such as Duncan City and Singapore, for example, became ghost towns when the
lumber industry declined, despite their location near rivers and lakes (Turner,
2000; Catton, 1976). The research, therefore, seems to suggest that
it is how these “agents of change” (Meinig, 1999: p1) have interacted or been
managed that are the key to change in Cheboygan. Consequently, this
chapter will identify the ‘agents of change’ that have influenced Cheboygan’s
development and then compare them with similar cites in the American West.
Settlement of Cheboygan:
Although the Cheboygan area was initially settled in the 1770s, it wasn’t
until 75 years later that a permanent settlement was established (Olson &
Turner, 1989). The proximity of the Cheboygan River and Lake Huron certainly
influenced the site of the settlement (See Appendix 7), but without the expansion
northwards of the lumber industry, there would have been little or no reason
to settle at all. The growth of the lumber industry was driven by an
increased demand for timber, improved transportation and access to new markets
(Dunbar & May, 1970; Meinig, 1993). Consequently, the conditions
that led to the permanent settlement of Cheboygan were not only established
well before 1844, but were the result of decisions taken many miles away.
Cheboygan, like many other settlements in the Mid-West, was established with
“profit-taking rather than home-making” as the primary motivation (Meinig,
1993: p259).
19th Century Development:
Cheboygan enjoyed rapid growth as a centre for the lumber industry and was
the location of many associated trades and businesses (See Figure 18).
Cheboygan’s growing economic, political and administrative importance, particularly
after 1856 when it became the County Seat, made it a strong candidate for
harbour dredging and the railroad. As the local historian (See Appendix
7) pointed out:
“The Federal government came in
and dredged the Cheboygan River… This took away trade, and consequently importance,
from… Duncan City… This brought people into Cheboygan and it became a service
community”
By the end of the 19th Century, Cheboygan was “Hub City” and the “centre
for most all Northern Michigan land and water transportation” (Olson &
Turner, 1989: p3), as well as a County Seat, service centre and a place of
recreation. In other words, Cheboygan was no longer a “paper town” (Lingerman,
ibid) and had more than just the lumber industry to support its existence.
During the 19th Century, the forces of change were predominantly economic,
with the growth of the lumber industry and railroad expansion the primary
agents of change (Meinig, 1993; Dunbar & May, 1970).
20th Century Development:
Cheboygan’s development during the 20th Century was due to a wide variety
of economic, social and cultural forces and as with other communities that
grew up to exploit natural resources, “the forces of change are not likely
to subside when the project is done” (Nelson, 2001: p398). Consequently,
when the lumber industry left Cheboygan, it did not become a ghost town.
Instead, the lumber industry was replaced by the tourist industry. The railroad
companies attempted to replace their ailing freight business with a passenger
service by building resort hotels and advertising the north as a holiday destination
(Dunbar & May, 1970; Catton, 1976). As the region’s transport hub
and service centre, Cheboygan was well placed to take advantage of the growing
ability and desire of people to escape Michigan’s industrial centres for
a holiday in the wilderness (Dunbar & May, 1970; See Appendix 7).
In the same way that the lumber industry justified the extension of the railroad
northwards, the tourist industry was used to justify north-south highways
and the building of the Mackinac Bridge (Dunbar & May, 1970). Despite
an attempt to get the highway to go through Cheboygan, the route was placed
7 miles to the west (See Appendix 7). As with the location of the railroads,
the decision was taken outside of Cheboygan for economic reasons. The
local historian (See Appendix 7) suggests that:
“They placed it for economic reasons
– and of course, they wanted the shortest route to the Straits of Mackinac,
which is about 7 miles west of Cheboygan”
In retrospect, the decision may have helped Cheboygan by ensuring that the
city remained primarily a service centre and did not become a seasonal tourist
town like Mackinaw City or Indian River. Lingerman (1980) and Nelson
(2001) have noted that the latter part of the 20th Century has been marked
by a migratory trend away from the large cities towards the small towns and
that “quality of life, proximity to family, and other non-economic motivations
now enter into the decision making frameworks for many firms” (Nelson, 2001:
p396). In other words, ‘home making’ has become as least as important
as ‘profit taking’.
Into the 21st Century:
Today, the main agents of change in Cheboygan are the city government and
the Chamber of Commerce, both of which want to improve both the way the City
looks and feels about itself. Change in the wider world continues to
affect Cheboygan too. The growth of car use, convenience shopping, increased
disposable income and more leisure time have all contributed to change in
Cheboygan. The growth of out of town shopping has seen the traditional
Main Street businesses replaced by specialty stores (See Figure 14) such
as the Dairy Queen, which attracts both locals and visitors to the Downtown
area (See Figure 21).
Both the Chamber of Commerce and the City Manager talk about attracting
people to Cheboygan through “a good quality of life” (See Appendices 8 and
9). Hatch describes this desire for local improvement as “boosterism”
(1979: p54) and tied to the “notion of progress” (Hatch, ibid). The
rivers and lakes are no longer just a means to exploit and ship natural resources.
Instead, they are themselves a resource to be exploited to attract new residents
and businesses. As Cheboygan’s Chief Executive suggests:
· The
aim is to make Cheboygan an even nicer place to live, improve the quality
of life in the area and to attract business.
The development of recreational opportunities along the river, the new Marina
(See Figure 22) and the Streetscape Project are all designed to make Cheboygan
a desirable place to live.
Cheboygan’s experience is not unique, however, and many small towns and
cities whose economies were “tied to natural resources such as timber, minerals,
and open space for agriculture” (Nelson, 2001: p395) are today experiencing
similar challenges (Hatch, 1979; Hise, 2001).
Change in the American West:
Nelson suggests that the American West is in a transitional period driven
by changed “migration patterns, technological developments, and altered human-land
relationships” (Nelson, 2001: p395). For more than a Century, the West
provided much of the nation’s cattle, timber and minerals (Fulton & Shigley,
2001). As with Michigan, profit was the primary motive behind many settlements
(Hatch, 1979; Dunbar & May, 1970) and the region is littered with ghost
towns, abandoned “once the resources were gone or the economic motivation
for extracting them ended” (Fulton & Shigley, 2001: p6). Today,
the region’s extractive industries are in decline and many small, rural communities
have to change to survive.
Bishop in California exemplifies the challenges faced by small towns.
Originally, established as an “economic machine” (Fulton & Shigley, 2001:
p7) to mine tungsten, gold and silver, the town now relies upon mountain bikers
and rock climbers. Where Cheboygan has benefited from its rivers and
lakes and nearby Mackinac Island, Bishop has similarly taken advantage of
natural attractions at Lake Tahoe, Yosemite National Park and Las Vegas.
In other words, both Cities have employed a strategy that is place based and
exploits “proximity, history, and beauty rather than lumber and ore” (Fulton
& Shigley, 2001: p7). Tourism, however, has not been able to replace
all the jobs that were lost and many are low paying and seasonal in nature
(See Appendix 7; Fulton & Shigley, 2001). Like Cheboygan, cities
in the West have attempted to solve this problem by trying to attract a variety
of industries and create a diversified industrial base (Nelson, 2001; Hise,
2001). Salmon in Idaho, originally a lumber and gold town, has benefited
both from summer tourism and by attracting a new Call Centre to the town.
Quality of life and a strong education system were among the factors that
attracted the company to Salmon (Fulton & Shigley, 2001).
Cheboygan’s Streetscape and Marina projects are designed to attract visitors
and businesses to the city (See Appendix 9). A similar project was undertaken
in Nevada City in California during the late 1960s. The city prohibited
the alteration of pre-World War 2 structures in the downtown and created
a ‘historic district’. Nevada City also used its “experienced work
force, a high quality public school system… and local cultural and recreational
amenities” (Fulton & Shigley, 2001: p7) as selling points. Similarly,
Cheboygan is using its Opera House, County Show and recreational facilities
as attractions for business. In Nevada City, the strategy not only created
a tourist industry, but also induced growth when visitors later decided to
bring businesses there. One such company was the Grass Valley Group,
which employed 1400 people in the 1980s (Fulton & Shigley, 2001).
The role of local government and Chambers of Commerce in both planning and
managing change is also important. Hatch suggests that the concept of
progress was a “fundamental ingredient of the beliefs of homesteaders and
other settlers on the American frontier in the 19th Century” (1979: p54).
In Starkey, a small city in California, the Chamber of Commerce was a key
instrument in the programs that aimed to “improve transportation, induce population
growth, encourage trade with home town businesses, and foster home town loyalty”
(Hatch, 1979: p54). In Cheboygan, the Area Chamber of Commerce plays
a similar role in promoting the City to the outside world and works closely
with the City government (See Appendices 8 & 9; Cheboygan Area Chamber
of Commerce, 2001a, 2001b). Hatch (1979) also points out the importance
of community events and organisations. In Cheboygan, the County Show,
Art Festival and Opera House all help to reinforce the city’s self-image
as a “community-spirited and active town” (Hatch, 1979: p59). Although,
as Larry Burkhardt of the Nevada County Economic Resource Council suggests,
“you have to have the product, and the product is the community itself” (Cited
in Fulton & Shigley, 2001: p7), there is also a need for an organisation
to plan and manage the marketing campaign.
Cheboygan’s experience of change is not unique and many cities in the American
West and elsewhere are facing similar challenges. Despite differences
in location, history and economic background, these cities have used similar
strategies to solve their economic problems and to manage change.