Copper Thread Genealogy & Research

Copper Thread Genealogy & Research Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Copper Thread Genealogy & Research, Genealogist, Houghton, MI.

✨ Copper Country genealogist and researcher - specializing in family tree creation, historical storytelling, and creating one-of-a-kind family history mementos.

Hope everyone and their kids/grandkids had a great first day of school! What Copper Country school did you graduate from...
09/08/2026

Hope everyone and their kids/grandkids had a great first day of school! What Copper Country school did you graduate from? (and share the year if you're brave!) ✏

Pictured: Jeffers High School 1979 Homecoming Court 👑

09/07/2026

Hidden deep in the Porcupine Mountains, Nonesuch is one of Michigan’s most fascinating ghost towns. Little remains of the community today except crumbling remains of buildings and some evidence of mining.

Have you ever visited the Nonesuch ruins? ⛏️

Sources include: Bruce Johanson, “The Nonesuch,” The County Historian; Ellis W. Courter, Michigan’s Copper Country; the Michigan Tech Archives; the Ontonagon County Historical Society; and the Alpha-Mastodon Historical Society.

Bosch B**r ad from the 1910s 🍻 “Drink our Superior Stock B**r and the world will look brighter to you.”from The Daily Mi...
09/04/2026

Bosch B**r ad from the 1910s 🍻

“Drink our Superior Stock B**r and the world will look brighter to you.”

from The Daily Mining Gazette, MTU archives

I’ve had a few people ask whether there is a way to support the local history research I share here, so I’ve created a P...
09/03/2026

I’ve had a few people ask whether there is a way to support the local history research I share here, so I’ve created a PayPal link. Newspaper and genealogy subscriptions, research and record fees, archive visits, and gas for trips around the Copper Country can add up quickly.
There is absolutely no pressure or expectation. Reading, commenting, and sharing my posts already helps tremendously! But if you enjoy my work and would like to help cover some of the costs, any amount would be sincerely appreciated.

➡Find the PayPal link in the comments.

Thank you for following along and caring about Copper Country history!
And since I recently reintroduced myself, I figured I should also introduce three of my occasional research assistants. Their salaries are paid primarily in snacks. 😂

Johnson’s Coral Inn Restaurant, Copper Harbor, MI. Postcard from 1971.➡️Anyone know which restaurant this is today? 🇩🇪
09/02/2026

Johnson’s Coral Inn Restaurant, Copper Harbor, MI. Postcard from 1971.

➡️Anyone know which restaurant this is today? 🇩🇪

Interested in joining the Copper Country Genealogy Club? Read below! 👇The first step in creating a club is to make a bun...
08/29/2026

Interested in joining the Copper Country Genealogy Club? Read below! 👇

The first step in creating a club is to make a bunch of decisions! There will be a small organizational meeting for anyone who is interested in helping work out some of the basic structure of the group, including things like meeting format and frequency, membership, activities, and other logistics.

The conference room at the Portage Lake District Library in Houghton has been reserved for:

Thursday, September 17
6:00–7:30 p.m.

With so much interest in the club, space at the organizational meeting will be limited to the first 15 people who respond. If you would like to attend, please send me a message or email to RSVP.

The conference room has a limit of 16 people, so this meeting is not intended to include everyone who expressed interest in the club. There is absolutely no need to attend this meeting in order to participate in the club or become a member. The first regular club meeting will be held at a later date, most likely in October.

Attending the organizational meeting does not mean you are signing yourself up for an officer or leadership position! It is simply an opportunity for those who are interested to help make some of the early decisions about how the club will operate.

If anyone would like to keep the conversation going after 7:30, we can also head over to Beviamo or the Library for tea, a drink, or just some more informal conversation.

I am really looking forward to getting the club started and meeting you all! If you would like to attend the September 17 organizational meeting, remember to please send me a message here on Facebook, or an email to [email protected]. ✨

Photo is "Al and Roehms at Cliff Mine (women in grass). [Two women sit in the grass along with a baby playing with a teddy bear, a teenage girl and a young boy. A wagon with the name "Ryan's Livery" is parked next to a house with a very long porch.]" by J.T. Reeder, MTU Archives and Copper Country Historical Collections, MS042-029-999-C-142E

I have had a few people inquire recently: just who is running this page? 😂 My name is Lucy Granroth, and I am a one-woma...
08/28/2026

I have had a few people inquire recently: just who is running this page? 😂 My name is Lucy Granroth, and I am a one-woman show. I have been doing genealogical research for over a decade. I grew up in Hancock, went to Finlandia, and have spent most of my life in the Copper Country. I also spent a few years living in Spokane, WA, where I earned an MA in Literature and Writing from Eastern Washington University.

What started as a hobby became a more serious idea around a year ago. I opened Copper Thread Genealogy on Halloween in 2025 (coming up on year soon!). Being able to spend my days learning more about the Copper Country, its history and its people, has been an amazing experience.

Current projects I’m working on are organizing the Copper Country Genealogy Club, client family tree projects, creating a presentation for the Ontonagon County Historical Society in October, and collecting leads for my idea of creating a series of memoirs for Copper Country old-timers. ⛏️

Any questions? Just ask ⬇️

(Photo is me a few years ago at the John Keats house in London).

I’m looking for a few of the Copper Country’s oldest residents! I’d love to interview some true local old-timers who are...
08/26/2026

I’m looking for a few of the Copper Country’s oldest residents! I’d love to interview some true local old-timers who are in their 90s or 100s about their lives and memories of the Copper Country, then do a little research and put together a short memoir for them and their family.
There is no charge for this. I just think these stories are worth preserving. I am willing to travel within Houghton, Keweenaw, or Ontonagon counties to visit them wherever they are comfortable. This would require several interviews over several weeks, so please keep that in mind when suggesting a loved one.
If you know someone who might be a good fit, please send me a message or share this with their family!
Pictured: some of the Houghton High School Class of 1943.

This very early photo of Hancock and Houghton shows the first wooden bridge across the canal, built in 1875. “Vessel pas...
08/25/2026

This very early photo of Hancock and Houghton shows the first wooden bridge across the canal, built in 1875. “Vessel passage was through a swing bridge on the north end of the structure.” It was replaced in 1895. The photo would have been taken somewhere near the bottom of Tezcuco street in Hancock. 🌊

From Houghton County Historical Society via Uplink.

08/23/2026

Big Annie has been a BIG topic lately because of her statue unveiling in Calumet. Many know about her hard work during the miners’ strike, but what about the rest of her life? Learn more about this inspirational woman in our new blog entry. Link in comments ✨

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Houghton, MI

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