Roshambo
A loved ol’ time smoke spot seems to have answered the eternal question fought over for centuries… How in the hell does paper beat rock?…
Half-way rock, Michigan early 1900’s
Before the turn of the century, the journey between the city of Lansing and the campus of the Michigan Agricultural College was a brutal walk down a long usually muddy dirt path.
Halfway down the dusty road there was a resting spot, one enjoyed at great length by many a tired traveler. A large bolder that became known as the “Half-way Rock” being well, half-way.
The original half-way stone sat right where the modern day eastbound lanes of Michigan Avenue meet Kipling Boulevard.
A sanctuary to sit and rest, the stone became a hangout spot to weary souls traveling the road to recharge but also something much more… A answer…
Half-way stone, Michigan early 1900’s
Sometime in the 1800’s, a traveler eating a snack of cherries on top of the rock, dropped a single seed down a crevice in the middle of the half-way stone.
A determined cherry tree sprouted from the tiny crack taking root underneath the mighty bolder.
The little cherry tree eventually showed natures power splitting the massive stone in half, forever answering the question for all those defeated warriors, paper indeed beats rock…
Half-way rock, on Road (now Michigan ave) half-way between the campus of Michigan Agricultural College to Lansing, Michigan early 1900’s
In 1924 Half-way rock made way to modern building during a widening of Michigan Ave. The largest piece was saved and moved on the front lawn of M.A.C’s Union Memorial Building.
A cherry tree was planted next to the new resting stone for all to remember the tale of when paper beat rock…
Half-way stone on the lawn of the Union Building on the Michigan Agricultural College campus
“When half the toilsome way was passed, we rested by the stone
Within whose cleft a cherry pit had taken root and grown;
The cleft was not so very wide; just half an inch or so;
The little tree scarce touched its side some forty years ago.”
by Frank Hodgman, in a 1898 poem about Half-way Rock
Half-way stone plaque on the lawn of the Union Building on the Michigan Agricultural College campus