Tombstone for a Town.

Tombstone for a Town

The Michigan Chemical Co. plant in downtown St. Louis poisoned the ground and nearby river with a toxic stew. It was finally shut down in 1978 after its cattle feed accidentally killed thousands of animals. But instead of cleaning up the site, the EPA found a large blank tombstone, carved a dire warning into it, and placed it at the fenced-off property. That was in 1982.

Years of effort by the town finally got the the EPA to cap the site, and when the work was completed in October 2013, St. Louis literally paraded the tombstone down Main Street to its new spot outside the town's history museum. Unfortunately, the site is still leaking chemicals, and will continue to do so until it is cleaned up.

Tombstone for a Town

Address:: E. Crawford St., St. Louis, MI
Directions:: Two blocks south of Hwy 46. The tombstone is next to the train station, on the south side of E. Crawford St., just east of its intersection with US Hwy 127 BUS/S. Main St.
Admission:: Free

Nearby Offbeat Places

Mini Mackinac Bridge, St. Louis, MI - 2 mi.

Michigan's Smallest Post Office, Elm Hall, MI - 12 mi.

Two-Story Outhouse, Cedar Lake, MI - 19 mi.

In the region:

R.E. Olds Transportation Museum, Lansing, MI - 47 mi.

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