While exploring, I noticed a large dirt mound. The mound looked a bit out of place. But I wanted to get a better look. So I climbed to the top of the mount. I noticed a ceramic square vent pipe coming out of the top. The pipe was an old form of drainage tile that farmers used.

So, I looked a bit further and found a doorway. The shelter had cement/cinder block walls. It was about 8'x8'x8'. The cinder blocks were covered with about 1-2 feet of dirt. The door extended out the front.

The entire shelter looked like a big grass/dirt igloo.

Do you think it was an old trappers shack? Seems like a lot of work to haul in blocks and concrete but it wouldn't be that hard before the motor ban.

Probably was a trapper shack. No artifacts or other clues to help decide what it was? Any idea on the age of it or if it is still used at all?
Cool find!

The door was extended like an igloo. Part of that "tube" had fallen in.

The inside of the shelter was full of old sheet metal. Maybge some sort of summer auxially shelter.

No sign of use for at least 10-20 years.

Sounds cool, pics?

Could it have been a root cellar or ice house for a resort that had been removed?

quote Ragged: "Sounds cool, pics? "

Here they are...

I took the last shot while holding the camera inside the door. I was a bit too creeped out to actually climb into the shelter...

quote inspector13: "
Could it have been a root cellar or ice house for a resort that had been removed?


"

+1

That looks a lot like the root cellar my grandparents had on the farm. Maybe the Kerfoots or the people at the Chick-Wauk museum would know. Do you have a location?

very cool and interesting pics thanks. i'm with inspector13 think'n ice house.

Good eye! I probably would have paddled right past that. Root cellar makes lots of sense.

ya that looks a lot like what my grandfathers ice house use to look like

Good eye is right! I love finding old structures. I found one trapper's cabin at the end of a narrow winding river and it still had drying racks, which was cool. I just wrote a book where a trapper's cabin plays a big role.

was it inside or outside the bw? cool find

It was a little ways south of Lake Missinabi, which is north of Chapleau, which is in Ontario a ways north of Sudbury. I found another one that you had to crawl to enter. The socks were still on the line and there were lots of old cans that were rusted.

Good eye and a fun find. Mysteries...

That is no simple shelter. I'd guess trappers, maybe seasonal but they were spending decent time there.

That's pretty cool.

Very cool

Way to pay attention to the details to find that. Thanks for the pictures. I'd still lean toward a trapper. Heck, someone may have actually lived out of it. Never know. Definitely check with the museum.

quote inspector13: "
Could it have been a root cellar or ice house for a resort that had been removed?"

That's the most likely answer.
They were very common, many years ago.

Did you find any letters in there addressed to Trygve?

The piping visible near the front entrance appears to be metal, what type and to what purpose? These clues might give some idea of how old it is and what the useage was.

Great stuff! Thx for sharing.

Pretty interesting. What a great artifact to come across. Thanks for showing the photos.

Well, a trapper's cabin is a romantic idea, but it would have to be one crazy trapper to build a concrete bunker and bury it under 1 to 2 feet of dirt for a cabin.

Most likely a root cellar, used to keep vegetables during the winter. The other possibility is an ice house, but it doesn't really look like it would hold much ice. I always thought they were above ground, but I don't know for sure.

I have seen root cellars in the north woods before. I know logging camps used them sometimes.

quote marsonite: "Well, a trapper's cabin is a romantic idea, but it would have to be one crazy trapper to build a concrete bunker and bury it under 1 to 2 feet of dirt for a cabin.


Most likely a root cellar, used to keep vegetables during the winter. The other possibility is an ice house, but it doesn't really look like it would hold much ice. I always thought they were above ground, but I don't know for sure.


I have seen root cellars in the north woods before. I know logging camps used them sometimes. "

So loggers eat canned vegetables and trappers don't? Must have been a pretty small camp if that's all the bigger it was.

quote inspector13: "
That looks a lot like the root cellar my grandparents had on the farm. Maybe the Kerfoots or the people at the Chick-Wauk museum would know. Do you have a location?"

inspector, based on your recommendation, I contacted the Chick-Wauk museum. Here is there reply:



From your pictures, I can’t tell if you’re on the north or south shore of Seagull, but my educated guess is that you stumbled onto the remains of one of the resorts that used to be on the western part of Seagull Lake. Before the Thye-Blatnik Act of 1948, there were two resorts (Wildwood and Windigo Point) and several cabins in the part of Seagull Lake now in the BWCAW. In early 1950s, these structures were removed (many were just moved down the lake – for example, Wildwood Lodge became Sea Island Lodge) but there is still evidence of these businesses and structures if you look closely enough. I believe there is a campsite in the general vicinity of Wildwood Lodge on the north side of Seagull, because there are still domesticated tea roses blooming on that campsite.

We have a great book about the history of Seagull Lake in our library called “Ki-osh-kons: People, Places, and Stories of Sea Gull Lake” which was self-published by Janna Webster a few years back. When you’re in the area next, swing by the museum and give it a skim – it’s a pretty fascinating look at the “old timers” of Seagull Lake. I’ve attached a map from the book which shows property locations on Seagull Lake which might help you identify what you found, or at least what property it might have been part of.

As to the purpose of the structure you found, I can only guess. It seems likely that it could be a root cellar; it also might have just been a shed that resort/cabin owners used to store their extra “stuff.”

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Kind regards,
Ada Igoe

The structure was near the Wildwood Lodge.

quote Mad_Angler: "The structure was near the Wildwood Lodge."

Cool info! Thanks! You should upload the map they sent, I would love to see it!

quote Ragged: "

quote Mad_Angler: "The structure was near the Wildwood Lodge."

Cool info! Thanks! You should upload the map they sent, I would love to see it! "

I tried to upload it. But it is a pdf and would not upload...

quote Mad_Angler: "

I tried to upload it. But it is a pdf and would not upload..."

Use a snipping tool or screen shot to save the image as a JPG?

If not feel free to send it to me and I'll figure out a way!

quote Ragged: "

quote marsonite: "Well, a trapper's cabin is a romantic idea, but it would have to be one crazy trapper to build a concrete bunker and bury it under 1 to 2 feet of dirt for a cabin.



Most likely a root cellar, used to keep vegetables during the winter. The other possibility is an ice house, but it doesn't really look like it would hold much ice. I always thought they were above ground, but I don't know for sure.



I have seen root cellars in the north woods before. I know logging camps used them sometimes. "

So loggers eat canned vegetables and trappers don't? Must have been a pretty small camp if that's all the bigger it was.


"

Obviously we will never know exactly what it was unless someone goes in and finds more clues. Why wouldn't a trapper build a below ground shelter? That's some pretty good insulation in the winter. Probably warmer than an old crappy wood shack. I don't think it was for ice. I doubt someone would have used concrete for ice. I can see it being a root cellar now that I know it may have been part of a resort. But why would it be so close to the water? I think a root cellar would be made farther away from the water. I doubt they made anything permanant out of concrete like that for a logging camp.
I'm sticking with a trapper. Someone made it strong to last a long time and they covered it with dirt so that it wouldn't be found after everyone was kicked out of the area. Just an off the wall thought.
Oh well. Could have been a root cellar.

Great stuff Mad Angler!

I love these articles about the past History of Quetico-Superior. The follow up information from the Chick-Wauk Museum is also interesting. I look forward to seeing the map.

Thanks for sharing the pictures and information of your find.

Hans Solo

I would really doubt it was a trapper. Way too much time and investment for a small operation like a lone trapper. Now if there was a history of trappers using concrete for structure maybe but I don't think I have ever heard of or seen a concrete trappers cabin.

Most likely part of the resort. One other thing to think about would be to see if there were any CCC camps in the area. Some resorts were the result of abandoned CCC camps.

How about this:

quote Mad_Angler: "How about this:

"

Great! Thanks! Been through Seagull so many times on the quest for those Alpine Walleyes, start to take it for granted, kind of cool to have this map and be able to add a new view of the landscape even if its just in my head!

Very interesting - thanks for posting the map!

Nice hump...a little paint, a couple of throw pillows. Thank you for sharing, great pics....the history of the BWCA is exciting. That igloo style was made to last with the cinder & cement. Thinking its from a resort, not trappers, but I know shinola about trappers. Maybe these were high roller trappers with their fancy cement blocks. Those metal sheets look like old shelving with the rivet holes-if thats what they are-standard with a root cellar. I am thinking it was a root cellar not just a shed, with the igloo shape & narrow opening...otherwise it might have a bigger door on there.

mad_angler thanks for doing some extra work on the info super cool stuff, been through or camped on seagull 20X. history is cool !

I put them together for a little easier viewing of the map and key at the same time, thanks again!

Thank you mad angler. I'm looking forward to putting this map to use.

quote shock: ... history is cool !"

I especially like the note on the map about the toll road from Seagull to Saganaga...

Very cool beans!!!

I always find this sort of thing incredibly fascinating. Thanks for taking the time to post and doing the research too.

For those that may be interested. Here is an old thread discussing other abandoned cabins.

And, Cool spots in canoe country

quote missmolly: "Good eye is right! I love finding old structures. I found one trapper's cabin at the end of a narrow winding river and it still had drying racks, which was cool. I just wrote a book where a trapper's cabin plays a big role."

missmolly...where can I find your writing?

quote h20: "

quote missmolly: "Good eye is right! I love finding old structures. I found one trapper's cabin at the end of a narrow winding river and it still had drying racks, which was cool. I just wrote a book where a trapper's cabin plays a big role."

missmolly...where can I find your writing?"

id like to know too

quote h20: "

quote missmolly: "Good eye is right! I love finding old structures. I found one trapper's cabin at the end of a narrow winding river and it still had drying racks, which was cool. I just wrote a book where a trapper's cabin plays a big role."

missmolly...where can I find your writing?"

This manuscript is still on my desktop. I write 50-60 magazine articles every year, which might not sound like much, but many require four to eight interviews, some of those interviewees are people with polysyllabic titles, and betitled people are slippery as newts dipped in corn oil, so I write stuff I want to write and it just sits, such as the trapper's cabin novel and another. Plus, I'm on the lecture circuit, which mostly means being sausage-stuffed into a car or a plane and when I get home, submitting a manuscript, which is complicated, is the last thing I want to do.

The BWCA plays a part in the trapper's cabin novel thanks to you guys. If I sell it, I'll let you know.

P.S. - I've written some outdoor/fishing articles, but no more because joining vocation and avocation sucks the bliss out of the latter. If you want a couple I wrote for Gray's Sporting Journal, provide your email and I'll share them.

There is a root cellar just like that on the adjoining property to my own. The vent is largely to reduce moisture within, as canning lids rust quite easily. It was likely built close to the lake, as that was where there was good ground to build one. Also, they likely hauled sand or gravel from a nearby beach for the concrete.

There is a mound sort of like that on LLC...when we peeked in the doorway it was full of old fuel containers.

I would guess that it's a root cellar, or possibly a boat house due to the proximity to the shore and Wildwood Lodge Resort.

There is a recent book titled Getting The Wilderness In You by William Sanderson. That same map of Seagull is in it, along with a bit of information about the people that used live on Seagull. And much information about Rolf Skrien, a relative of mine that moved to Seagull Lake after WWII, and later started the Way Of The Wilderness Resort, and starred in some Hamns Beer adds.

This was an amazing find! Thanks for sharing!

Very cool.
The stuff I dream of !

quote Mad_Angler: "While exploring, I noticed a large dirt mound. The mound looked a bit out of place. But I wanted to get a better look. So I climbed to the top of the mount. I noticed a ceramic square vent pipe coming out of the top. The pipe was an old form of drainage tile that farmers used.

So, I looked a bit further and found a doorway. The shelter had cement/cinder block walls. It was about 8'x8'x8'. The cinder blocks were covered with about 1-2 feet of dirt. The door extended out the front.

The entire shelter looked like a big grass/dirt igloo.

Do you think it was an old trappers shack? Seems like a lot of work to haul in blocks and concrete but it wouldn't be that hard before the motor ban."

I don't see concrete or cinder block in any of those pictures. Looks instead more like the old slip form construction. The builders would set two sided forms usually 2' or 3' tall around the perimeter of the floor. Fill the forms with concrete and rock. Once the concrete cured the forms were broke loose and raised to the top of the first pour. The process was repeated till the walls were at the desired height. I didn't look close at the ceiling but would guess that it is probably a concrete cast type construction. Since the concrete could be made from sand right on site, this was a very practical way to build in areas were there were no roads. Many old barns and basements of this style are still around and in excellent condition.

Bruceye,

Nice observation and information. Looking at the pictures, you seeem to be correct. You can even see somewhat separate levels that would be made each time the boards are moved up.

Loggers use bunkers like that to store their explosives.

Is that roof concrete?
That doesn't look like a trappers cabin to me.

Looks alike a root cellar to me that the forest service destroy just enough of it to make it unusable seen this type of destruction in other so call wilderness areas.