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Diamond Lake Post Office was established on Dec. 22, 1881 and was located at the West Michigan Lumber Co. on Diamond Lake. James L. Alexander was the first Postmaster. The office was discontinued on June 25, 1895, with Mrs. F. Smith as Postmaster. In Sept. or Oct. of 1895 the Fremont Times Newspaper had an article about Diamond Lake called "One Got Away." "Uncle Sam Lost a Post office up in the Wilds of Newaygo County. The Diamond Lake Post office has been found. It has been missing since last March, but it was only a few days ago that a vigilant and argues-eyed government discovered that it was short one of its 65,000 fourth-class post offices. At one time the Diamond Lake was a brisk lumbering town in Newaygo County. It is a deserted village now. The owls hoot in its lonely cabins and its streets are nearly as deserted as a prohibition caucus in the Ninth ward. Mike Harlan, the Postmaster and merchant at Diamond Lake, was one of the old guard He was one of the last to abandon faith in the town's future. Mr. Harlan hung on until last spring in a desultory way and one day he went down to Woodville and bought a store. As he was packing up to move, Mr. Harlan happened to think of his duties as a federal officeholder. He rubbed his left ear thoughtfully some moments and then said to his clerk: "I don't know, but we ought to do something with this post office. Maybe Mr. Cleveland will want it again." "I don't believe he will around here," said the clerk rather gloomily. "Well, he may. If a man is going to run for a third term he can't have too many post offices. If there was anybody around here to look after it, I don't know but I'd write him to come and get his office." "I don 't believe the law allows a postmaster to leave an office lying around that way, " the clerk replied. "Well," said Mr. Harlan, somewhat annoyed, "what in thunder do they expect me to do with it? I can't trundle the blamed old office all around the country with me. Woodville has got one post office now and if I take this one down there and open her up the competition will simply kill both of them. I guess I'll load the outfit on the wagon and take it down to the White Cloud office and then if anyone ever wants to take the job of postofficing around here again they'll know where to find the layout." So the entire equipment was taken to White Cloud Post Office and dumped down in one comer, and that was the charming informal manner in which the Diamond Lake Post Office was discontinued. A few days ago post office Inspector Mack was coming down the Chicago & West Michigan railroad on an official tour and asked the conductor to let him off at Diamond Lake. "We don't stop there anymore," said the conductor blandly; "the town's moved away. "Well, I've got to get off there somehow and inspect the post office," insisted Mr. Mack. "Post office moved away, too," said the conductor stolidly. "It has?" gasped the inspector. "Certainly; there hasn't been any post office there since last spring." Mr. Mack looked at his official list of offices to be inspected and then leaned helplessly back in his seat and said "Well, I'll be dummed." Of course these may not be the exact words he used, but they convey the idea. When the train arrived at White Cloud, Mr. Mack went to the Merton House and said rather weirdly to the proprietor: "Do you suppose you could lend me a lantern, I've lost a post office somewhere, and I feel as though I ought to go up the line and look for it." "What post office have you lost?" asked the proprietor sympathetically. "Diamond Lake." "Oh," said the hotel man in a relieved tone. "Why, I can send you a man who can put his hand on the Diamond Lake Post Office in the dark." So the landlord sent for the deputy postmaster of White Cloud and the gentleman took Mr. Mack over to the office and showed him where the Diamond Lake Post Office was piled up in one comer. He also held the lantern until Mr. Mack had carefully satisfied himself that the resigning postmaster had not left any dead letters in the boxes to spoil on the government's hands. - G.R. Press." By 1898 the lumbering industry had practically disappeared. The land had been cleared into farms. Several new post offices were established this year to give service to these agricultural communities. After the West Michigan Lumber Company finished cutting the timber around Diamond Lake and closed the mill, Manasses D. Schmucker bought the property and succeeded in having the post office re-established on Jan 11, 1898, under the name of Diamond Loch, with Manasses D. Schmucker as Postmaster. Later Dr. Pechuman of Chicago purchased the big farm of the West Michigan Company and established a resort on the lake. A spot along the lake of exceptional beauty reminded him of a scene in Helen Hunt Jackson's book, Ramona, and he succeeded in 1904 in having the name of the post office changed to Ramona in spite of protests from most of the older residents. Andrew Foss was the Postmaster when the office closed on Nov. 30,1933, with the patrons being served by rural route #5 from White Cloud. |