Jennings has been called “One of the Largest Michigan Towns to become a Ghost Town”, but it's more of a 'shadow town'. All the old businesses have left along with most of the people, but the downtown blocks are still prevalent and there are a good handful of residents.
Briefly, Jennings was created as a logging town in 1883 by Austin and William Mitchell, who proceeded to call this new community “Mitchell” after their lumber company.
They built a number of mills on the shores of Crooked Lake, and soon the town began to rapidly flourish. With an influx of new residents and lumber employees, it was beneficial to have a post office. When they finally got one in 1890, it was re-named “Jennings” after politician William Jennings Bryan; the name change was necessary to avoid confusion with another 'Mitchell' in Antrim County.