A Look at the Forgotten Town of Lum, Michigan

Call it a lost town, a vanishing town...or even a ghost town if you wish. Either way, a visit to the Lapeer County village of Lum is sure to provide you with a few decent photos, thanks to a few old storefronts still standing in the downtown area.

Lum was founded in Michigan’s Thumb in 1884, with the intention of being named ‘Arcade Center’. Thanks to resident Wallace Huntley, the village got its current name. Wallace had served in the military under Colonel Charles Lum, a Detroiter who spent time serving during the Civil War in the 10th Michigan Infantry, a/k/a the Detroit Light Guards. Evidently, Wallace was so impressed with the Colonel, he suggested the village carry his name.

The Pontiac, Oxford & Northern Railroad (later Grand Trunk Western) was laid thru town in 1884, bringing much needed business to Lum. Soon, Lum exploded with businesses: bank, creamery, general store, grain elevator, hardware store, hotel, mill, pickle plant, post office, saloon, schoolhouse, town hall, train depot and a good number of other shops and stores. Driving thru town now, it’s quite a difference from the busy hub it once was.

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Many empty store buildings were transported to the nearby village of King's Mill, where some of them still exist.

After eighty years, the post office closed in 1964, marking the end-of-growth for Lum.

One favorite Lum story, according to Ron Harsen via Lapeer Area View, about his grandfather’s attempt to supply Lum with electricity; he got “tired of working by lantern light so he purchased a generator and sold the surplus electricity to his neighbors. It ran for a prescribed time every day because Frank developed an automatic shutoff by bolting a wind-up alarm clock to a shelf and hooking a string to the key. When it went off the key would turn, pulling the string and shutting off the engine. He would extend the time to accommodate Masonic or church meetings. Many meetings came to an abrupt halt when the lights went out.”

Now scroll down and see downtown Lum as it is today.