Today I go behind the scenes to show what I saw while reviewing the digital map around White Pigeon, Michigan.
Screen captures come from Excel 2007. Minor edits made using MS Paint.
Other images are sourced as noted.
TL;DR
- Introduction
- Fun with Maps
6. New Paris, IN
5. Bristol, IN
4. Goshen, IN
3. Midway, IN
2. Constantine, MI
1. White Pigeon, MI - More Fun with Maps
Introduction
While David Guardia and the uncanny Manny Rey ride momentarily through Michigan en route to South Bend, Indiana, they pass through first Sturgis and then White Pigeon.
Along the way, he must have been looking at digital (or even paper) maps.
What was he looking at? What caught his eye? What surprises did he find?
While I can't answer those questions for him, I can answer them for myself.
In our physical offline world, the trip to STURGIS would have been shorter and more efficient (not to mention cheaper) had David Guardia used some navigational aid, be it GPS, a Viking Sunstone, or an uncanny co-pilot. It also would have been a much more boring ride for him (and for us as readers).
Maps are a vital part of The GHAWG Universe, both for me as storyteller and for the characters. As much as I want to have scenes take place at certain locations, the ultimate decider is THE MAP: If the location doesn't make sense for the story, then I can't use it for that story. On the other hand, the map may show me a location I hadn't considered before but makes perfect sense both for utility and symbolism.
While reviewing digital maps, there are times I find locations which get me scratching my head and scruff, get me laughing, or even get me wondering "WTF is this??" This post features what I discovered a couple of pages west of Defiance, Ohio.
Fun with Maps
As with earlier editions of Fun With Maps, a few places on the map
… I had known about over the years;
… are better known by their more famous alternatives; and
… I just hadn't expected at all.
As the story unfolds, David Guardia and co-pilot Manny Rey ride together through Michigan (briefly), Indiana, and Illinois.
Here are the discoveries I made in this section of the ride featuring South Bend, Indiana:
Just to remind myself that this map shows parts of Michigan and Indiana, I added the labels MICHIGAN and INDIANA. Then I highlighted 6 locations. I added the label Sturgis, MI ▬►► for reference. Here are the 6 locations in reverse order of interest:
6. New Paris, IN
New Bavaria, Ohio was named to honor Bavaria. Was New Paris was named to honor Paris, France? It was not.
New Paris, Indiana was named after New Paris, Ohio. Was New Paris, Ohio named after Paris, France? It was not. Instead,it was named after Paris, Kentucky, since the founders of New Paris, Ohio lived in the vicinity of the town in Kentucky.
5. Bristol, IN
Bristol reminds me of many things: world headquarters for sports television network ESPN in the state of Connecticut; the Big Pharma company Bristo Meyers Squibb; the NASCAR racetrack in Tennessee (Bristol Motor Speedway).
Unlike New Paris above, Bristol was named in honor of its namesake city in England.
4. Goshen, IN
Goshen is the area in Egypt where the Hebrews lived as slaves before they made their Exodus from Egypt under leadership of Moses. Goshen is also a place name for many towns and villages in the United States; one is in New York State, which I only know about because of bus trips I made during the 1990s.
As with many places with this name, Goshen, Indiana was named after the Land of Goshen in Egypt. Moses freed the Hebrews from slavery, but 4 centuries earlier they were invited to live in Egypt by the pharaoh who promoted Joseph to a misterial position after he sucessfully interpreted his dreams of plenty and famine.
3. Midway, IN
The Battle of Midway in the Pacific Theater of World War II comes to my mind first when I see the word Midway. What else comes to my mind? "The Monsters of the Midway," a nickname acquired by the Chicago Bears of the National Football League.
Not much information is available regarding the origin of this place name. Even the Wikipedia stub page for the Midway in Concord Township in Elkhart County provided minimal data. The Wikipedia disambiguation page shows 6 places named Midway just in the state of Indiana. However, Midway is usually given to a place located halfway between two other, more important, places.
2. Constantine, MI
Emperor Constantine, the Roman emperor who gave Christianity legal status as a religion, comes to mind; as does the city once called Constantinople (known today as Istanbul). John Constantine is a blond comic book character whose stories focus on the supernatural, and brunet actor Keanu Reeves plays him on the big screen.
Constantine, Michigan was first settled in 1820, and in 1837 it acquired incorporated status. It was in 1835 when businessman and lawyer Niles F. Smith named the town after the Roman Emperor, Constantine the Great.
1. White Pigeon, MI
All I know about White Pigeon, Michigan comes from the zapfic entry I wrote based on a hasty read of the digital map I made back on 2023-April-26. That's when I thought it was part of Indiana; it's only in recent days that I discovered it's actually in Michigan (along with Sturgis).
The village of White Pigeon, Michigan was named to honor Wahbememe, Chief of the Potawatomi tribe. According to legend,
while at a gathering of chiefs in Detroit, Wahbememe heard plans to attack the settlement. A friend to the settlers, the chief ran almost 150 miles to the settlement to warn them. After running that long distance he collapsed and soon died from exhaustion. His remains are buried in town, and the site is part of the National Register of Historic
More Fun with Maps
Now that David Guardia had visited a Sturgis (and not THE STURGIS), he and the uncanny Manny Rey return to Indiana for their next stop of note: South Bend, Indiana.
Where else in Indiana will David Guardia find himself? What other notable people will he find there? How does his ride further unfold?
Let's find out together as I continue my research and we have more fun with maps.
As more posts in this series are published, they will be added to the pinned post "GHAWGnav: Navigating The GHAWG Universe". Thanks for taking time to see how this part of The GHAWG Universe is being built.
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[!!]See you next time for another edition of Fun with Maps!
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