South Manitou Island Cemetery

Many former island residents populate the cemetery.

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Some of South Manitou's earliest residents rest eternally in this small cemetery located in the island's interior. A visit here reveals the hardships of life on this remote island. The graves of the Sheridan family-Aaron, Julia, and their son-serve as a reminder of the danger of working and living on Lake Michigan; the family tragically lost their lives in a boating accident. Unexpected history is discovered in the story of Private Andrew T. Burdick-he served in northern Russia at the end of World War I. Here, too visitors learn something about the resilience of islanders. Bertha Peth, beloved by the island children, lived on South Manitou nearly all of her adult life and was known to many as the "Island Queen." Many more untold stories of life on South Manitou Island lay here, waiting for discovery.
The South Manitou Island cemetery is open to the public.

The Sheridan Family

Aaron and Julia Sheridan were both born in New York. They began their married life together on March 21, 1865 in DeKalb, Illinois. Aaron, a wounded Civil War veteran, became Keeper of the South Manitou Island light in 1866. He and Julia started a family on the island, eventually having six sons! After the new 104 foot lighthouse tower was constructed, the Lighthouse Service appointed Julia as the very first Assistant Keeper, making her the only woman to officially serve at the South Manitou Island light. The Sheridan's also owned eighty acres of land on the island near Lake Florence, where they had a small farm.

Unfortunately, tragedy struck the Sheridan family in March of 1878, Julia, Aaron and their youngest son Robert were returning to the island when their boat capsized. All three drowned. The five other Sheridan children went to live with their grandparents in Illinois. Aaron and Julia had lived and worked at the lighthouse for twelve years. Lyman Sheridan, Aaron's cousin, succeeded him as light keeper. Today, descendants of Aaron and Julia often visit the island and work as volunteers. In 2006, the family placed grave stones for Julia, Aaron, and Robert in the island cemetery.

Andrew T. Burdick

Andrew T. Burdick was born on South Manitou Island on November 23, 1889. His parents, Andrew Putnam Burdick and Sarah Ellen Kitchen had been married since 1874. Andrew had six older siblings, five of whom survived to adulthood. His father was a farmer and he and his brothers worked on the farm and went to school at the island's one-room school house. Andrew's oldest brother, James Putnam, worked his way up the ranks at the South Manitou Island lighthouse as a Second Assistant, First Assistant, and eventually the longest-serving Keeper. His brother William also worked as Second and First Assistant. Andrew's father passed away in January 1917, leaving him the head of household on the farm. Later that year in June, Andrew registered for the draft. His draft card reveals that he was unmarried, working as a farmer, and supporting his widowed mother. He described himself as short and of medium build with blue eyes and light hair.

The United States entered World War I in the spring of 1917. Private Andrew Burdick served in Company B of the 339th Regiment in the U.S. Army's 85th Division. The 85th Division headed to Camp Custer near Battle Creek, Michigan during the summer of 1918 to complete their training before departing for England. Once in England, the men of the 339th were issued Russian weapons and set sail for Archangel, Russia; their mission was unclear-originally, they were only meant to guard military stores. However, their role became much more complicated. While sailing for Archangel, an outbreak of Spanish Influenza had occurred on two out of the three transport ships. When the 339th arrived in Archangel on September 4, 1918, over a hundred men were seriously ill. Andrew Burdick died just fifteen days later on September 19, 1918 of disease at the age of twenty eight. The fall of 1918 marked the start of the worldwide influenza epidemic that claimed the lives of over fifty million people-more than died in World War I.

Andrew Burdick's regiment went on to become actively engaged in fighting the Bolsheviks, who had overthrown the Russian Czar the previous year. Fighting actually continued past the end of World War I on November 11, 1918. The men of the 85th division became known as the "Polar Bears" because of the long winter they spent fighting Bolshevik troops. American troops were not withdrawn from northern Russia until June 1919 and finally returned to Detroit in July. Andrew Burdick was one of over two hundred casualties during the nine months the Polar Bears spent in Russia. He was eventually laid to rest on his peaceful island home.

Bertha Peth

Bertha Peth immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1881 with her parents when she was about seven years old. At some point in the early 1890s, she came to South Manitou Island to work-some people that knew her wrote that Bertha came with a visiting family as a nursemaid for their children; others stated that she was hired by a family on the island. In 1893, at the age of nineteen, she married island farmer John Hutzler in Chicago, Illinois. By 1900, the couple had one child, a son named Stanley. Tragically, Bertha and John lost their son when he was just two years old. He died in Chicago in 1901 after twenty days of illness, possibly of leukemia. Back on the island, rumors began to circulate about the cause of his death and about Bertha. In 1904, John filed for divorce which was granted the following year. Bertha may have stayed in Chicago for a time after the death of her son and divorce, but by 1920 she had returned and was living in a house in the village on South Manitou.

From the 1920s through the 1940s, Bertha lived in her house in the village and supported herself in a number of ways. She operated a small store from her home, collected and sold wild ginseng, and may have done laundry for the men at the nearby U.S. Coast Guard Station. Former islanders wrote that she and John Hutzler may have helped each other even after they divorced-she baked bread for him and he chopped wood for her. Children that grew up during that time on the island later shared very fond memories of Bertha. Former islanders, like Ronald Rosie, described her as being "always at a trot" as she walked around the island, looking for ginseng. Ronald's friend, John Tobin said that he thought the world of Bertha and described her as very motherly, even though she was something of a character. He also mentioned that she "always had candy." Visiting her small store to pick out candy and gum was a treat for school children and many returned to visit her as adults, even after moving off of the island.
According to an article from a Benzie County newspaper published in Charles M. Anderson's memoir of his childhood on the island, Bertha left South Manitou when she was eighty-two. She had injured her eye and the U.S. Coast Guard transported her to the hospital in Frankfort. She then moved into a nursing home on the mainland. Apparently, Bertha had once spent a period of over twenty years on South Manitou without leaving-earning her the nickname of "Queen of the Island." Bertha died in 1953. Her story is still well known by many who visit South Manitou today.

Ronald W. Riker

Ronald Riker arrived on South Manitou Island with his parents, Ed and Esther, and his two older brothers in 1953 when he was just a year and half old. His parents had been hired by William Boals of the Lee Island Company, a group that purchased several farms on the island in the late 1940s and attempted to start a resort business. In addition to tourism, the Lee Island Company also continued some farming and started a small Hereford cattle operation. The Rikers came to work as tenant farmers and raise cattle, but also ran tours of the island for summer visitors. At one point, they were the only year-round residents living on South Manitou.

When the Riker boys got older, they attended school and lived on the mainland during the school year with their mother, returning to the island in the summer time. Tragically during the summer of 1967, sixteen year old Ronald drowned while exploring the wreck of the Fransisco Morazon with friends. Ed and Esther Riker continued to work for the Lee Island Company until South Manitou Island became a part of the newly-established Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. In 1972, they were the last permanent residents to leave the island. In 2005, Ed and Esther were buried near Ronald in the island cemetery.