Historic Places Archives - Page 2 of 15

Cambridge Junction

At the corner of the Old Chicago Road (U.S. 12) and the La Plaisance Pike (M-50) in Michigan’s Irish Hills, is Cambridge Junction Historic State Park / Walker Tavern Historic Site. The site contains a modest, one-and-a-half-story farmhouse that has sat on its original site for nearly two centuries. Built about 1832, the white clapboard Walker Tavern is perched atop of a small bluff overlooking U.S. 12. It originally was only a few footsteps off the “Old Sauk” Native American trail, which became U.S. 12 and was the main route for connecting Detroit and Chicago. The tavern quickly became a gathering place where travelers making the grueling five-day trip could rest, enjoy a meal or stay the night. The Michigan History Center has operated the tavern as a historic site since 1965.

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The Douglas House

Posted on May 3, 2024 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places .

The Small town of Lovells sits along the North Branch of the AuSable River between Grayling and Lewiston. A stones throw away, or more like a fishing cast away, from the river is a brown lodge with yellow trim. The historic building was originally built by Thomas E. Douglas and named the Douglas House. He constructed a sawmill and general store in the logging community of Lovells around 1898. He erected a new store in 1903 after fire destroyed the first one, and in 1916 he built a hotel addition named the Douglas House. Electricity generated in his mill illuminated the twenty guest rooms and lavish common spaces. From the beginning, the hotel headquartered the North Branch Outing Club, a popular sportsmen’s club, which drew members like Henry and Edsel Ford, John and Horace Dodge, and Charles Nash. Douglas’s daughter, Margaret, ran the hotel until 1971. She continued to live in the Douglas House until 1991.

In 1996 the property reopened as a bed and breakfast, continuing to provide lodging to hunting and fishing enthusiasts. In 2001 the Douglas House was designated a state historic site by the state of Michigan, and In 2002 it was listed is on the national register of Historic Places. The North Branch Outing Club still offers world class fly fishing guides.

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The Old Van Buren Township Hall

Posted on May 1, 2024 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, Iconic Buildings .

This brick building stands in Downtown Belleville east of Ypsilanti. Van Buren Township was organized out of Huron Township by an act of the Legislative Council of the Territory of Michigan in 1835. Township business was conducted from homes until this building was completed in 1875. The original plans called for a one-story structure; however, shortly after construction began, the local Grange offered to pay for a second story to be used for its meetings. In a special election, township voters accepted the proposal. As the Grange declined in popularity, the second floor became a community meeting hall. For a short time during the 1930s, the basement served as a jail. In 1952 the Grange relinquished its portion to the township. The building served as the township hall until 1959.

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The Tunnel Explosion

Posted on December 11, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, people .

On December 11, 1971 an explosion ripped through a tunnel being constructed under Lake Huron. 21 men were killed instantly and one worker died ten months later. The tunnel was being dug under Lake Huron for a new water source for Detroit. The tunnel stretched out 5 miles from the shore near Fort Gratiot a few miles north of Port Huron. During the digging the crew struck a pocket of methane gas and was ignited by a spark.

A memorial stands in Fort Gratiot County Park and bears the names of the 22 men that died that tragic December day. The tragedy resulted in stronger mining safety regulations and enforcement. It was one of the deadliest industrial accidents in Michigan history. The project was eventually completed and supplied and the 80 miles of water mains supply Detroit with 400 million gallons of water per day.

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Camp Pori

Posted on December 8, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, upper peninsula .

deep in the Ottawa National Forest on the west side of the Upper Peninsula is the location of Camp Pori. It was a CCC camp during the depression and then used as a prisoner of war camp during World War II. After the war the camp was used by Michigan Tech as a training ground for its forestry students. The camp closed in 1954 and all of the buildings were removed. The only thing remaining is a sign. Nothing from the camp stands today, but sometimes it is more about the journey then the destination. It is a nice drive through the forest to see this historic sites location.

If you love exploring the Upper Peninsula or reading about its unique places, I hope you will take a look at my new book LOST IN MICHIGAN’S UPPER PENINSULA available on Amazon HERE

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Presque Isle Lodge

Posted on August 25, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places .

Lumberman Newell A. Eddy, Sr.and his wife Marianna purchased the land around where the Lodge sits for their personal recreational use. The land was purchased in several transactions from 1908 to 1913. With the Construction of US-23 tourists began visiting the area. The Eddy’s son, Newell A. Eddy Jr. who also vacationed at the property constructed a lodge in 1920. Eddy also built the knotty pine furniture within the Lodge, with the help of area craftsmen. After the opening of the Lodge, Eddy established the “Habitant Shops of Presque Isle Lodge,” which constructed similar furniture for guests. The shop first operated from the Presque Isle Lodge property, but by 1922 had moved to Bay City.

Newell A. Eddy Jr. died in 1940 and his family sold the Lodge in 1944. The lodge, placed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2008. It is an example of rustic architecture popular in Michigan in the first half of the twentieth century. During this time Michigans lumber industry became a leading manufacturer of rustic-styled, board-and-batten siding, and rough-hewn logs. The historic lodge still operates to this day.

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The Hidden Log Cabin Church

Posted on July 31, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Churches, Historic Places .

The steeple for St Lorenz Church towers over the town of Frankenmuth. An old graveyard sits across the street from the church and is the final resting place of some of the towns earliest residents. In the back of the graveyard is a building constructed out of logs. It is a recreation of the original log cabin St Lorenz Church dedicated on Christmas Day in 1846. The original church was built by 15 German immigrants who came to the area in 1845. The settlers named the “colony” Frankenmuth, by combining the name of their home region, Franconia, with mut, the German word for courage.

P.S. I live and was raised in nearby Saginaw and have visited Frankenmuth many times. I just recently seen this old log building behind the graveyard. It reminds me that no mater how much I explore Michigan there is still more locations and stories to find.

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Bay Furnace

Posted on July 28, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, upper peninsula .

Bay Furnace Campground sits west of Christmas off M-28. Here you will find the ruins of an old iron smelting furnace that gives the campground its name. There is a parking area along the driveway to the campground that has a short trail that leads to the ruins. They were built in the 1870s and were part of the town of Onota. The town burned down in 1877, and all that remains is the stone furnace. Not only is it an interesting historic site to check out, but it has a great view of Lake Superior.

If you love exploring the Upper Peninsula I hope you will take a look at my new book Lost In Michigan’s Upper Peninsula available on Amazon HERE

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The Sacred Rock

Posted on June 28, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Benchmarks, Historic Places .

Along the shoreline of Lake Huron is the Sacred Rock and it is huge. It’s about 20 feet long and 8 feet wide and 4 feet tall out of the sand. The Native American tribes used the rock as a boundary marker to separate two tribes hunting grounds. Legend has it that the two tribes chiefs argued over the hunting ground and Kitchie Manitou, the Great Spirit, dropped the massive boulder on the two chiefs to keep the tribes from going to war. It is said that when it rains the blood from the two chiefs underneath it weeps out of the rock. The rock is about a mile north of P.H. Hoeft State Park near Rogers City in front of private cabins. You can hike along the shoreline to the rock from the state park.

besides being a historic landmark the rock has a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers mark secured to the top of it. The top of it is a little scuffed up and I can only assume the wind was pushing the ice from Lake Huron across it.

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The Gordon Beach Inn

Posted on June 16, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Historic Places, Iconic Buildings .

This historic inn stands in the southwest corner of Michigan in the town of Union Pier. It is nestled among the trees and summer vacation homes not far from Lake Michigan. The historical marker standing next to it reads:

Built in 1924 by Louis and Lena Gordon, and expanded four years later, Gordon Beach Inn was the centerpiece of the Jewish resort subdivision of the same name. The Gordons operated the inn for a decade before losing it in the Great Depression. Robert Miller, an African American and a former Chicago alderman, purchased the property in the 1960s as Gordon Beach was integrating. The inn was restored in 1991 to its 1920s appearance.

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