Williamsburg is an unincorporated community in Grand Traverse County, Michigan. This county has 27 listed ghost towns! Lake Skegemog is part of the Elk River Chain of Lakes, a 75-mile-long (121 km) waterway consisting of 14 lakes and connecting rivers which empty into Lake Michigan. The lake’s primarily inflow is from Torch Lake and it is connected at the west to Elk Lake, and through Elk Lake, water outflows through the Elk River into the East Arm of the Grand Traverse Bay, itself a bay of Lake Michigan.
The lake contains many stumps and logs in it which provides a nice living area for many species of fish.
There is evidence that three different cultures of people have lived in this area since 10,500 BC, especially on Skegemog Point in Lake Skegemog and Elk Lake. Records show that a branch of the Algonquin people, known as the Mascoutin, lived in the area until around 1630s and later, the area was home to Odawa and Ojibwe peoples.
In 1856, three families from Monroe County, New York, settled the area, and called it Mill Creek. In 1867, the community was given a post office, named Dunbar, after its first postmaster. The post office was renamed to Williamsburgh in 1869, and the “h” was later dropped in 1894.[5]
Geography
Williamsburg is located in the northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The community lies about 8 miles (13 km) south of Elk Rapids, about 10 miles (16 km) east of Traverse City, and about 12 miles (19 km) west of Kalkaska.
