Argyle Township near Snover in Sanilac County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

John M. Cole and his wife Susan Seder Cole

John M. Cole and Susan Seder Cole, Homesteaders image. Click for full size.

Photo in the collection of Velma Jean Etherington

1. John M. Cole and Susan Seder Cole, Homesteaders

Inscription. In loving memory of John M. Cole and his wife Susan Seder Cole, pioneer settlers who homesteaded this farm in 1866 and started this cemetery by finding and burying victims of the Forest Fire Sept 5, 1881. He was a Union soldier, serving in 61st New York Volunteers Infantry, Company E. 8th Michigan Cavalry, Company G.

Erected by their children, most of whom were born on this farm 40 rods south of this point. William - J • John - M Jr. • Mary - E • Jennie - M • Caroline - E • Harriet - B • Lucy - A • Nelson - J • Melvin - R • Ella - J • George - A • James - F • Myrtle - M • Winfred - J

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Disasters • Settlements & Settlers • War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is September 5, 1881.

Location. 43° 34.584′ N, 82° 52.607′ W. Marker is near Snover, Michigan, in Sanilac County. It is in Argyle Township. It is on Wheatland Road 0.7 miles north of Argyle Road, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 4740 Wheatland Rd, Ubly MI 48475, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Michigan’s Thumb

and in one of the Lake Huron Shore counties. It is also in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Native Plants (approx. 9 miles away); Sanilac Petroglyphs (approx. 9 miles away);

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

Sanilac Petroglyphs Park Geneology (approx. 9.1 miles away); Archaeology (approx. 9.1 miles away); Ezhibiigaadek Asia (approx. 9.1 miles away); Citizens Bank Block (approx. 9.6 miles away); Sanilac County Veterans Memorial (approx. 10.9 miles away); Sanilac County World War Memorial (approx. 11 miles away).

Also see . . . How Michigan's Great Fire of 1881 launched American Red Cross disaster relief. 2023 article by Frank Witsil in the Detroit Free Press. Excerpt:

“It is estimated that 500 souls perished and that fully 5,000 are homeless and many without shelter,” the Free Press reported on Sept. 9, 1881, with a "partial list of the sufferers" that took up much of the front page. "People here are doing all in their power to allay their distress, but they require assistance from the outside."

The fires, which came after one that swept through the same areas a decade before, destroyed an estimated 1,480 barns, 1,520 dwellings and 51 schools, according to a University of Michigan history of the disaster. They also forced thousands to receive public and private aid.

(Submitted on April 25, 2025.)

Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 1, 2025, by Velma Jean Etherington of Concho, Arizona. This page has been viewed 300 times since then and 22 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on March 1, 2025, by Velma Jean Etherington of Concho, Arizona. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.

Editor’s want-list for this marker. Contemporary photographs of the marker and its surroundings • Can you help?