Grand Haven, MI: Pere Marquette Depot and GTW Coaling Tower

(Satellite)

Raymond Storey posted

 

Greg Bunce posted
Grand Haven depot, Winter 1985.
Jim Kelling shared

Dennis DeBruler commented on Jim's share
Sep 2021: https://maps.app.goo.gl/Xszmo5eXDzgNrj3w9

Stan Sienicki posted
GTW Coaling Tower at Grand Haven, MI.

Because of the tree line and the North Bank Trail, it is easy to following the GTW right-of-way west of where it ends in Coopersville. Sometimes a town will move a depot away from the RoW to a park to preserve it. But I doubt if they moved a coaling tower. I searched the RoW on various satellite images several times, but I could not find this tower. With the preserved freight cars and the green park, it should have stuck out like a sore thumb.

Update: I did come across another posting concerning the tower. I found a Train Depot Museum, but I still can't find where in Grand Haven this tower is located. I guess I'm going to have to drive to the museum and ask. The town does have a swing bridge that would also be worth checking out.

Jack Westfall posted

Grand Trunk Western coaling tower.

Grand Haven Michigan

Pere Marquette and GTW cabooses

Rae Zenz posted four photos.

1

2

3, cropped

4

Brian Caswell posted
Shot of the Pere Marquette 1223 in Grand Haven Michigan / 7-17-21
Roger Riblett shared

J.R.Valderas commented on Brian's post
Back in August 2006, the preservation group in charge of PM 1223 and the train display had an ice cream social and the local fire department brought their ladder truck (the tall one) for everyone to see. One of the firefighters came up to me, asking if I was interested in getting a shot of the train from the top of the ladder and I said "are you going to bring the bucket down so I can get up there?" (ladder was fully extended at that time). He said for me to climb up the ladder and I was like "for real?". So that's what I did, getting this view.
I don't remember how tall the ladder was but I never thought I would get this view of Grand Haven on camera back then. I made it up and down the ladder safe (never got in the bucket) but you would think they would have brought the bucket down first to attempt something like this but they looked at me like "you're a newspaper photographer, you'll do what ever it takes to get an angle of view that no one else has" and that's what I did by taking this level of photography to the "Extreme" (without a safety climbing up and down the ladder).

Stephen Hayes posted
What is this building? It’s all made of concrete, even the roof. It’s In A Grand Haven park. The train is just parked there.
[As expected, several comments indicate it was a coaling tower.]
Tim Shanahan shared
[Some in this group, which should know better, called it a sand tower. Some old coaling towers also dispensed sand, but they primarily stored coal.]