Rogers City Presque Isle Co MI

HISTORY OF ROGERS CITY POST OFFICE Contributed by Paul Petosky In the winter of 1868-69, William E. Rogers, Albert Molitor and Frederick Denny Larke came to the area to lumber. Albert Molitor built a cabin, dock and a mill on the shore, just to the north by Lake Huron. Rogers City was named for William E. Rogers, who owned all the land on which the village was laid out by his partner, Albert Molitor. With several name changes over the years - the Rogers City Post Office was originally established as Roger's Mills on September 23, 1870 with Albert Molitor as its first postmaster. When the lumbering industry began to slow down in the area during the early teens -- Michigan Limestone and Chemical Company was founded in 1910, and production started in 1912 for mining limestone and shipping it to factories using the Great Lakes ore carriers. As the Calcite Plant grew, so did the area around Rogers City. Michigan Limestone operations still remains a major employer in the area. Owned for many years by U. S. Steel, Michigan Limestone is now a division of Oglebay Norton, Inc. It is the world's largest open pit limestone quarry. The Port of Calcite, is one of the largest shipping ports on the Great Lakes. The freighter, SS Carl D. Bradley, home port at Rogers City, sank in Lake Michigan on November 18, 1958. There were two survivors while 33 lost their lives. 26 of the deceased were from Rogers City, with the others from nearby towns. 50th anniversary memorial activities took place in 2008. Presque Isle County was created on April 1, 1840 (organized in 1871; and reorganized in 1875) and was formed from Mackinac County. Rogers City is the county seat for Presque Isle County. Dedication of the Presque Isle County Airport took place on June 29, 1935. Rogers City was incorporated as a village in 1877 and a city in 1944. Postmasters and Officers-In-Charge that have served at the Rogers City, MI Post Office are listed as follows: Originally established as ROGER'S MILL on September 23, 1870 Albert Molitor...............September 23, 1870 Name changed to ROGERS CITY on January 19, 1872 Albert Molitor...............January 19, 1872 Frederic D. Larke.........September 27, 1875 Herman Hoeft...............February 20, 1877 Henry C. Clothier..........March 1, 1880 Herman Hoeft...............August 11, 1882 Louis Bruder................December 15, 1885 Frederic D. Larke.........June 20, 1889 James Erskine.............June 28, 1893 Name changed to ROGERS on January 22, 1895 Frank J. Sommer, Jr....January 22, 1895 Frederic D. Larke, Sr....February 21, 1898 Frederic D. Larke, Jr....June 13, 1910 Henry J. Klee................January 31, 1914 Frank J. Adams............June 30, 1923 Name changed to ROGERS CITY on September 30, 1924 Frank J. Adams............September 30, 1924 William H. Whiteley.......July 1, 1931 Theodore C. Bruning....January 7, 1932 Charles A. Vogelheim....May 30, 1936 Lawrence D. Larke.........June 30, 1942 Mrs. Dorothy E. Boutin..September 30, 1957 Lindsay T. Hawkins........April 28, 1961 Alaine Benic...................January 20, 1984 James E. Johnston........April 14, 1984 Paul R. Peters.................January 27, 1995 Susanne M. Kelly............March 30, 2001 Robert W. Gross.............November 27, 2001 John P. Parkinson..........May 30, 2002 Annette M. Koss.............August 10, 2002 Robert W. Gross.............July 15, 2003 Dennis A. Downie............November 13, 2004 to present The Rogers City Post Office is located at 188 North Third Street and uses zip code 49779. Inside the lobby of the Rogers City Post Office you'll find a beautiul oil on canvas mural done by James Calder, titled "Harbor at Rogers City," and was installed on September 26, 1941. Mural photo taken on Rogers City Post Office July 27, 2010 by Dennis Downie