- Date
- 1962-01
- Kind
- Weather
- Where
- Beaver Island
- Participants
- Vernon Fitzpatrick (reporter) · Don Welke (participant) · Joseph L. “Bud” McDonough (participant)
- Along road
- Airport Road · King's Highway
- Eras
- Modern era
- Concepts
- environmentcommunity
- Within
- Beaver Island
Summary
The February 1962 Beaver Beacon describes January as a month of severe snow and drifting. It reports a January high of 36°F, a low of 0°F, 18 days with snow, an eight-inch snowfall on January 7, and 22.8 inches of ground accumulation. Drifts blocked the road to Willie Schmidt’s farm, crews worked on the airport road day and night, and access near the lighthouse was interrupted.
The report also describes local workarounds: a path was plowed from Father Louis’s residence, Don Welke left a car on King’s Highway and used a tractor to reach his farm, and Bud McDonough helped relay cars. It warns that Charlevoix and Harbor Springs airports could have different operating conditions.
Evidence and limits
These measurements and transport details are preserved as a contemporary newspaper account. The issue does not supply a weather-station log, complete road-closure dates, or an airport operations record.
Sources
- Reports January temperatures, 18 days of snow, an eight-inch snowfall on January 7, 22.8 inches of ground accumulation, blocked farm roads, deep drifts, airport-road work, and interruptions to roads near the lighthouse. It is a community report, not a calibrated weather-station series or road log.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1962-02_Beaver-Beacon
- The held six-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1962-02_Beaver-Beacon
Added 1 August 2026 · revised 3 August 2026. Recent changes
Cite this article
Beaver Island Archive, “January 1962 snow and drifting isolate parts of Beaver Island”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/events/beaver-island-january-weather-and-snow-emergency-1962/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, February 1962, “Weather.” (and 1 further source listed on the page).
Last revised 2026-08-03. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.
BibTeX for “January 1962 snow and drifting isolate parts of Beaver Island”RIS for “January 1962 snow and drifting isolate parts of Beaver Island”