Echo

Neighbors at war

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By Eric Freedman

Jennifer Cook initially got along amicably with her neighbors in rural Bartholomew County, Indiana. But that relationship went downhill when the neighbors, Brian and Katrina Brumley, bought a Great Pyrenees puppy to protect their poultry, goats, miniature horse and miniature donkey from coyotes, foxes and bobcats, according to legal documents in Cook’s unsuccessful appeal of her stalking conviction for harassing the Brumleys with recorded animal noises. The dog, which reached 130 pounds, sometimes broke free of its restraints, ran loose, defecated in Cook’s yard and barked while confined, but it didn’t bite anyone or act aggressively, the Indiana Court of Appeals said in a recent opinion. “In an effort to muffle the barking, the Brumleys tried moving the dog to various areas on the property farther from Cook’s house,” the court said. To no avail.

Echo

Disappearing history: Sites dropped from National Register of Historic Places

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The once-honored Beechwood Store in Iron River Township, the Flint Brewing Co., the shipwrecked schooner Alvin Clark in Menominee, the Fenton Seminary and the majestic Grand Riviera Theater in Detroit have all disappeared from the prestigious National Register of Historic Places. The National Park Service recently removed their recognition because they’ve been demolished, no longer retain their historic integrity and cannot convey their historic significance, the State Historic Preservation Office says.

Echo

What drives farmers to join farmers markets?

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New farmers markets in low-income, urban areas of Michigan face challenges in recruiting and retaining vendors, a new study finds. Farmers motivated by their love of gardening or the desire to build community are least likely to drop out of those urban markets, the study concludes.

Art

Mobsters in the vacationlands

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From crime boss and occasional visitor “Scarface” Al Capone to the Upper Peninsula’s own Public Enemy #1, John “Red” Hamilton, Up North has historic ties to organized crime and the baddies who used the area as a playground.