Ghost Tour...Mackinac Island

After Alyssa and I had a fabulous dinner at Yankee Rebel Tavern we hiked back UP killer hill to retrieve Mike from the Boy Scout Barracks so he could accompany us on our Haunted History Tour with Rob from Haunts of Mackinac.Because Mackinac Island was a sacred place to the native Americans, and the battles fought here during the war of 1812, it is rich in folklore and also tragedy which lends itself to being a paranormal hot spot. Since my first "ghost tour" in Charleston, I have become hooked on these, not because I want to have the bejesus scared out of me by a ghost, but rather I just really enjoy strolling along and being told stories of the folks that used to roam these same streets and hear about their lives. I prefer to think of them as very short biographies that have you sitting on the edge of your seat! No, I have never experienced anything "paranormal" ON a ghost tour.  

 The tour began at 9pm sharp downtown led by Rob. Now, I'm not sure just anyone could lead these tours, and I have been fortunate enough to always have an awesome guide. Rob was a fantastic storyteller who would always close his stories with this evil laugh and just leave you begging for another story! I really shouldn't describe it as a "story'. The folks were real, the events are factual, odd things have happened to some which leaves a door for interpretation wide open. We would get the facts, hear of the odd things, and  we left to believe what we wanted. Here we are in front of the Murray Hotel listening to the tale of the murder of Frances Lacey from the summer of 1960.

It is a walking tour, but the distance covered is only a mile. Ending at Mission Point Resort. The stops are usually only a few hundred feet from each other and the pace is moderate with stops in front of the "haunting". We had about 35 folks on our tour of all age groups and no one had any issues keeping up...of course it seems like you walk faster as the tour goes on because you just can't wait to get to the next stop to hear the story!
Here we are approaching Fort Mackinac to hear the tale of a very public  argument between Corporal Hugh Flinn and Private James Brown on December 5, 1828.  Private Brown had the last word by saying "God knows which one of us will
 live the longest!". The day concluded in the dining  hall when Brown's rifle "accidentally?" discharged  mortally wounding Flinn. Was it truly an accident?  A military court found him guilty and he was hung February 1, 1830. There are several accounts of   hearing bullets, and of paranormal activity at this location. Could it be the ghosts of one of these
 two men?

Of the two dozen plus tales we were told in the 90 minute walk, I think my favorite tale was that of Madeline La Framboise! Madeline was born in 1780 to French fur trader Jean Baptiste Marcotte and the daughter of an Ottawa Chief, Marie Nekesh. She was raised primarily amongst her mother's tribe and in her early teens married wed fur trader Joseph La Framboise. At 15 she gave birth to daughter Josette, who would later marry Benjamin K. Pierce (commander of Fort Mackinac and brother of U.S. President Franklin Pierce) and also a son Joseph. The young family had a successful fur trading business throughout the western and northern areas of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. In the very early 1800's, Madeline's husband, Joesph, was killed by an Ottawa native, White Ox,  at one of their trading posts over a dispute about not supplying White Ox with liqueur. Now Madeline had become quite the savvy businesswoman and continued the legacy of her husbands fur trading business on her own. She became extremely successful, and attained profits 5-10 times that of her competitors, one of which being John Jacob Astor. She eventually sold her lucrative business to Astor in 1818 and returned to her home on Mackinac Island, now known as the Harbor View Inn. Throughout her life she was very active in St. Anne's Church, adjacent to her home. in exchange for her spiritual and financial devotion to the church and to the education of the inhabitants, her only wish was to be buried under the alter of St. Anne's Church, which she was. A few decades ago, the church underwent some renovations and her burial site under the alter, along with daughter Josette and grandchild, was disturbed and interred elsewhere. Shortly after this, the church began to experience difficulty with the new electrical wiring. Time and time again, electricians would come to the Island, find no obvious cause, get it working, only to have it reoccur after they left. Was it because Madeline's grave was disturbed and her wishes disregarded? Someone finally began asking questions and the remains were located and re interred in a corner of the courtyard of the church. Since then, St. Anne's has had no problems with their electrical system. Coincidence? Regardless, I loved hearing the story of  this incredible Metis woman and her life!

All too soon, it was 10:45 and storytime was over. We begged to hear "just one more", and were treated to a few short encores of tales from the past. I will definitely book another walk with them when the opportunity presents!