The Decline of Precious Things

When Places Pass Away

Courtesy of the Library of Congress, John Margolies Collection

I live in a small town in southeast Michigan. By midwestern standards, the town is ancient, being slightly more than two hundred years old. Our roots can be traced back to a lodging house built by our founder. The building began life as a stopover on the road from Toledo to Detroit, at a time when that trip was long and treacherous. Our founder’s fortune grew and he built a…