Buried Under the Sand: the Ghost Town of Singapore, Michigan

A few articles have been written about the ghost town buried under the sand dunes on the western shore of Lake Michigan.....Singapore.

Sometimes spelled “Singapoor”, the town is located near Saugatuck where the Kalamazoo River empties out in Allegan County. What surprises me about this buried town is that it doesn't seem anyone has gotten around to excavate to find the parts of the town that is buried. What's the holdup?

Supposedly, underground are the remains of two hotels, a few general stores, a bank, three mills and Michigan’s very first schoolhouse. If these could be excavated and preserved – AND LEFT RIGHT WHERE THEY ARE – what an attraction this would be, kinda like Fayette in the Upper Peninsula. With nobody doing any digs, it makes me wonder if there really is anything there at all.

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So what happened? In 1836, Singapore began as a lumber export town. A 40-day blizzard in 1842 practically wiped out Singapore, but the townsfolk were saved by a nearby shipwreck that had enough food for the remaining townspeople to survive.

In 1871, a fire wiped out nearby Holland. The blaze hit Singapore, and the residents all split as the fire practically destroyed all the town's timber, which was their main source of economy.

The Lake Michigan winds never let up, all throughout the years: winter, summer, you name it – until the remaining buildings in Singapore became completely buried, forming the sand dunes currently on the site.

The Singapore name lives on with local businesses using that name as part of their company titles.

Next time you walk along the Kalamazoo River north of Saugatuck, you are strolling over a mostly-forgotten town, just a number of feet beneath you.