"Ocha Potter: Time Line of Events in His Life" by Julia Fairchild, 2008

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in every stope and opening until they finally found the men. Two miners caught in the
initial onrush perished. Three men, however, were discovered uninjured in a stope some
distance from the shaft. They had built a fire and were comparatively comfortable, but. because of the time they had remained in the shaft, could not be immediately removed.
(From The Daily Mining Gazette, Jan. 7, 1955 as told by Thomas Wilcox.)
1921. Transferred to Ahmeek Mine where he was superintendent until he retired from
Calumet and Hecla in 1948.
1922. Began serving on the County Road Commission. (Retired Dec. 31,1950.)
1930, Spring. Visited son George who was working as a mining engineer in Northern
Rhodesia. He sailed from New York in May, twenty-four days later arriving in
Capetown, South Africa. From there he went by train to Johannesburg where he met
George. Together they went on to Pretoria, South Africa., Bulawayo in Southern
Rhodesia, north to the Victoria Falls on the Zambesi River, visited the enormously rich
fields of copper in the Belgian Congo, and went on into Northern Rhodesia. At the port of
Beira in Portuguese East Africa they went by boat up the East Coast of Africa, stopping
at Mozambique, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanga, Mombasa in Kenya, Zanzibar, Aden in Arabia
and finally, Suez. From there they took an auto to Cairo where they saw the Pyramids and
the Sphinx on the backs of camels. A train took them to Port Said. A ship took them past
Mount Stromboli in the Mediterranean which happened to be erupting at the time. They
stopped at Genoa, and Milan in Italy, and visited Paris before returning to the U.S. at
New York. The trip from Beira to Genoa took 30 days. By the time Ocha reached New
York, he was very happy to be back in the United States.
1933. Ocha Potter was credited with sowing seeds that would make the Keweenaw
Peninsula a tourist destination. (Detroit Free Press, Sept. 4, 1938, Arthur Jutunen) His
efforts led to:
1. Keweenaw Park Lodge and Golf Club, including guest cottages modeled after
those in Yellowstone National Park
2. Brockway Mountain Drive
3. Lake Shore Drive or M-26.
4. Signage to describe various locations in Keweenaw, also patterned after that
found in Yellowstone.
1934. Ocha became the first president of the Copper Country Vacationist League.
1934, February. Ocha resigned from all government relief work as it related to
Keweenaw Park.
1934. Went on a month's auto tour with Julia to California, studying famous golf courses
and tourist resorts along the way.