Remembering Days at School Section Lake

Reading an article on the front page the Morning Sun newspaper about the first African-American settlers in Isabella County made me think about School Section Lake. As a boy our family would travel west of Mt Pleasant thirty five miles or so to the lake. Its a small beautiful lake with a large field stone concession building on the east shore. The building was a house or hotel many, many years ago. However in the 1960's is was a very cool concessions building. Inside they sold Schwann's ice cream treats, popcorn, soda, and candy bars. It was a special occasion to go to the lake, swim for hours, and then enjoy an ice cream sandwich and a soda.

Standing to the south of the concession building was and still is a historical marker. The sign describes the early Black settlers of the area. The text reads that Old Settlers came to the park at School Section Lake each summer for a family reunion.

On one quiet, sunny, summer afternoon I stood facing the lake and closed my eyes. I could hear the voices of the children playing, smell the food cooking on the camp stove, and I could picture the large family gatherings from the early part of the 1900's. I remember that moment like it happened today.

I encourage your to take a journey back in time and visit the oldsettlersreunion.com web site soon. Let me know what you discover on your visit.

Keep informed of other events and opportunities in the Mt Pleasant Michigan area by going to www.mtpleasant.com.