The Ghost Town of Laurel: Sanilac County, Michigan

The lost community of Laurel sits quietly on the border of Elmer & Elk Townships, Sanilac County, at the intersection of Melvin Rd. and Marlette Rd.

Laurel had a post office inside Lester J. Billings' store. Billings was the first postmaster when the post office opened in 1891. It closed in 1905. There was also a grocery/general store (owned by Robert Drysdale), a blacksmith, church, schoolhouse, and a few other businesses.

The community had no bank, so all their money matters had to be taken to nearby Sanilac Center.

Every one of those businesses are sadly long-gone. All that remains of the old community is the awesome old church and one-room schoolhouse (SEE PHOTOS BELOW).

Heading west out of Laurel on Marlette Road, you’ll come across a few old abandoned farmhouses, mixed in with current residences, reminding everyone what this little community may have been – or what it could have been - all those years ago.

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