Mrs Birch goes Blond

As the fall colors change so has Mrs Birch changed her hair style

Outhouses on Bear Island Lake

When we were young our parents would take us to the cabin, I remember going to Lake St. Mary’s (Grand Lake) and the resort, Windy Point. Each cabin there had a path and an outhouse. Nancy went to their family’s cabin on Lake Amnicon, just south of Superior WI, which had an outhouse. Our cabin has hot and cold running water complete with full bath and separate shower.

The South Shore of Bear Island Lake was developed in the early 1950’s. All the lots were at that time government lease lots. An individual would pick out an available lot and lease it for up to 99 years. The rate of the lease would be paid annually to the US Forestry Service. (This is our understanding) Taxes were assessed in line with the value of the cabin and improvements; paid to the county as real estate. In the early years there were no building codes, no electricity, and the road was mostly a rut. As time went on road improvements made and utility lines ran service to the area. In the early years all the cabins had an ice box, pitcher pump for water, and an outhouse including a path which would lead to it. It was usually back off the lake some distance. There are still some rustic cabins with working outhouses. This past week we walked the shore and took pictures of a few of them. Here are four of them; can you pick out the matching interiors?