Folklore is graced with a fantastical flavor, which makes it so interesting, whether that be Zeus throwing lightning bolts at frightened peasantry, or Johnny Appleseed walking clear across the country to keep fruit alive in the hearts of the American people.
Folklore is often far-fetched—and can strain credulity—but it remains magical and joyous, and revealing, nonetheless. Oftentimes, folklore brings with it the revelation of history, community, and memory. In other words, folklore tells us about the world around us and tries to answer the why question about all the things we don’t understand.
The Paulding Light in Michigan is a folkloric tale that is actually rife in all three qualities of history, community, and memory, even though its scientific explanation has more to do with optical illusion than ghosts and spirits. Today, we are going to look into the strange light(s) in Paulding to examine its roots and why it fits within the realm of folklore.
Where is Paulding?
Paulding, MI, is located in the Upper Peninsula of the great mitten state. If you live in Michigan, then you know the U.P. feels like its own little world due to sociological and economical differences between its population and the population of the Lower Peninsula. Rural vs urban and all that.
Pure Michigan writes that Paulding is a “tiny place” that is located in the “Ottawa National Forest” that was once a “busy sawmill town surrounded by logging activity” (Michigan). It is a place where “Power lines and a service road cut straight through the trees as far back as the hills will let you see…” (Mitten). You can certainly get lost there (as you can with most of the U.P.), and the sounds of nature in an untapped world are oftentimes sobering….and a little scary.
Folklore lives and breathes in these areas, whether it be Bigfoot in Ogemaw County, the Dogman in Wessex County, or the lights in Paulding.
History of the Paulding Light
In this rural location, the ghostly light has appeared time and time again to mystify and enamor the population of the small town. The light appears in a valley near Robbins Pond Road and seemingly weaves and bobs through the air at a power line break in the trees.
While the initial discovery of the light was in 1966 by a group of students, the foundational stories of the (often nightly) light seem to suggest older roots. As with most folklore, we have multiple stories explaining why something exists or why a particular event happens. The Paulding Light is no different.
In one story, a brakeman dies attempting to stop a train from hitting railway cars along the track, and this story of sadness is one rife in folklore. Lost love, sacrifice, or a miscarriage of justice fills the belly of these tales. According to the Detroit Free Press, this is the “official” legend of the Paulding Light, but the stories explaining what people are actually seeing do not end there:
In another story, a mail carrier’s spirit haunts the valley, while yet another suggests that it’s an Indian spirit dancing on the power lines. More supernatural theories suggest another story of loss.
“Some claim it’s the distraught spirit of a grandparent looking for a lost grandchild with a lantern that needs constant relighting, the reason the light seems to come and go” (Carlisle).
Regardless of what it is, the Paulding Light fits within the realm of maintaining historical and communal value to individuals and citizens in any given area. In other words, no matter what story one believes, whether that be of a brakeman or a grieving grandparent, the Paulding Light fits a historical narrative for a small community. It addresses the town’s history and the reverence that the community pays homage to in the modern era. In other words, oral storytellers can tell passersby about the railway that ran through Paulding, or about how Native Americans once thrived in the area.
Possible explanations
For the skeptical, the Paulding Light is nothing more than an anomaly caused by optical and photonic illusions. PhD students at the Michigan Technological University used a variety of tests to conclude that the lights were reflections from passing cars.
Students “created the light themselves” by driving a vehicle along US-45, where “Its passage correlated exactly with Paulding Light appearances” (Goodrich).
Jeremy Bos, one of the researchers at Michigan Tech studying the Paulding Light, said, ““The whole goal wasn’t to rain on anybody’s parade … We have myths and fables and they’re valuable to us as humans and there’s no reason the Paulding light can’t be one of those…”
History is important and so is folklore. No matter if there is a logical or empirical explanation for any phenomenon, there are roots to explanation and justification that tie into cultural understanding. That is, we learn from each other, and about society, through the stories we tell.
Conclusion
Bos’s attempts to answer questions about the Paulding Light were met with both positive and negative statements from the population—but there is a reason for both attitudes. Folklore is a powerful tool of explanation and when it has entered our brains to provide some “truth” whether factual or not, we gravitate to this understanding as a means of liberation from ignorance.
Stories of a brakeman dying to save a train cart explain not only the Paulding Light, itself, but also how death extends into life—no sacrifice is left unseen. In the case of Paulding, folklore keeps the history of the community alive (logging and lumber) and provides the population with a meaningful mystery that explains their identity and themselves to the world.
Works Cited
- Carlisle, John. “Mysterious light draws thrill seekers up to a U.P. Forest.” Detroit Free Press. Sept. 4, 2016. Web: https://www.freep.com/story/news/columnists/john-carlisle/2016/09/04/mysterious-paulding-light-upper-peninsula-michigan/89275134/
- Goodrich, Marcia. “Just in time for Halloween: Michigan Tech Students Solve the Mystery of the Paulding Light.” Michigan Tech. Michigan Technological Institute. Oct. 28, 2010. Web: https://www.mtu.edu/news/2010/10/just-time-for-halloween-michigan-tech-students-solve-mystery-paulding-light.html
- Mitten, Awesome. “Michigan Urban Legends to Tell Around the Campfire.” Pure Michigan | Official Travel & Tourism Website for Michigan, 26 July 2022, michigan.org/article/trip-idea/michigan-urban-legends-tell-around-campfire.
- “Paulding.” Pure Michigan. Michigan.org. Web: https://www.michigan.org/city/paulding
