The Pere Marquette Rail-Trail (PMRT) is a rail trail in

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

occupying a abandoned CSX railroad corridor in Midland County and Isabella County that was once part of the Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad. In 1874, the tracks stretched from Ludington to

Flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...

, transporting supplies to the timber industry in southern Michigan's mills. It is currently a Michigan Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame trail.

History

In the late 1980s, William C. Gibson and Paul D. Pounders worked with the County of Midland's Parks and Recreation Department and were at the forefront of the creation of the trail. The trail is named after the Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad, named after

Jacques Marquette Jacques Marquette S.J. (June 1, 1637 – May 18, 1675), sometimes known as Père Marquette or James Marquette, was a French Jesuit missionary who founded Michigan's first European settlement, Sault Sainte Marie, and later founded Saint Ign ...

, a French Jesuit

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

who founded Michigan's first European settlement at Sault Ste. Marie. ''Père'' is the French word for father; ergo, Father Marquette. The first portion of the trail opened in June 1993. This portion was almost wholly contained in the city of Midland and started at The Tridge.

Location

References

External links

Midland County Parks and Recreation: Pere Marquette Rail-Trail
* ttp://www.lmb.org/pmrt/about.htm Description of the rail trailbr>Michigan State University: Pere Marquette Rail-Trail Research Study YouTube Video: "Virtual Bike Ride: Pere Marquette Rail-Trail"
{{MichiganTrails Rail trails in Michigan Protected areas of Midland County, Michigan Midland, Michigan Protected areas of Isabella County, Michigan CSX Transportation Protected areas established in 1993 1993 establishments in Michigan

History

Location

See also

References

External links