Nyona DiAnne (Casbon) Rickel 

My grandfather, John Shaffer, and grandmother Bessie [Van Fossan] Shaffer, originally pitched a tent and began clearing land on this lake when there were no other buildings. They often told us about how the wolves would come up to the campfire and howl at night in front of their tent. The old house which burned several years ago was our home most of our early years although my parents, Veron and Nyona [Shaffer] Casbon, had a home in Plymouth. We still spent most of our first 18 years or so at this lake and attended Fulton school until our high school years.

My grandparents, along with Louis Chevrolet and William H. Faust, sold lots and built cottages around the lake. My mother was born July 24, 1915. The lake was formerly known as North Mud Lake. My grandfather felt that with that name it would be difficult to attract business. In 1925 the lake was renamed Nyona Lake by Louis Chevrolet [founder of the Chevrolet Motor Company] after my mother Nyona.

In the early years of Shaffer's Park the 16 cottages on the side of the lake that they built were rented for $75-$250 per year. Most of the same people kept these cottages for many years. Besides the restaurant, there was a bathhouse, concession stand which sold candy, cigarettes, fishing tackle, pop, popcorn, etc. There were approximately 12-20 row boats that were rented by the hour or by the day. A dance hall was on the opposite side of the road in the 30's- 40's. In the 1940's-50's free movies were on the property on Wednesday and Sunday evenings. People brought blankets or lawn chairs to sit on to watch movies, which attracted a huge crowd.