“I have seen many projects for building a railroad from Port Huron to Bay City since 1860 and have taken part in nearly all of them,” said Henry B. McMorran, ex-congressman and pioneer business man of the Tunnel City, “but they all fell by the wayside for one reason or another until Handy Bros. came along and put a road through the Thumb territory which has now almost reached Port Huron and I confidently expect to live to see it connect our city with yours.”
Mr. McMorran was one of a delegation of five Port Huron people who made a trip of inspection over the Detroit, Bay City & Western railroad yesterday, the others being Messrs. J. B. Sperry, Wm. Canham, F. R. Watson and F. E. Beard. They left Port Huron yesterday morning and were met at Yale by Thos. Handy and Chas. W. Handy and conveyed by automobile to Peck, the present eastern terminus of the D., B. C. & W., where a special train awaited to bring them to Bay City. The party stopped at Sandusky for luncheon and reached Bay City about 3 o’clock. After a short automobile trip about the city they went to the Wenonah, where they were met by a dozen or more members of the Board of Commerce. Headed by President Sovereign and where dinner was served at which Mr. Sovereign presided during which the project of extending the road to Port Huron was discussed.
The present eastern terminus of the road is within 28 miles of Port Huron and Handy Bros. have made a proposition to the people of the Tunnel City for the extension to their city as the terminus of the road. It was for the purpose of making a report on this proposition that the Port Huron delegation made a trip over the road yesterday and they all said that they were surprised at the evidence of prosperity seen in all the towns along the line of the new railroad and delighted at the prospect of having Bay City and these smaller towns connected by rail directly with their city. The Port Huron delegation left for their home over the Pere Marquette at 5:15.
In discussing the extensions of their road yesterday T. L. Handy said that he believed its rails would be in Port Huron before the close of the present year, and that there is also under consideration the extending of the line south to Detroit.