Michigan has some beautiful Queen Anne Victorian-style houses and the Heather House is one of the finest in the state. Located in Marine City on Main Street it looks out at the St. Clare River watching the enormous steel freighters passing by. Construction of the home was finished in 1885 by retired ship’s captain William
This old brick schoolhouse stands alongside the road south of Ludington. The stone above the door reads: School District No. 3 1913 Summit Tp. It looks as if it has been a while since pupils were taught in this century-old building, But I am thinking it has not been abandoned since it has a new
In the Timbers Recreation Area on North Long Lake Road about 10 miles west of Traverse City sits this beautiful old brown barn. The area’s approximately 240 acres are open to hikers, but it once belonged to a family that owned one of America’s iconic brands. The Timbers was a resort on Long Lake when
John J. Makinen, Sr., (1871 – 1942) built this house in the small town of Kaleva using over 60,000 pop bottles, most of which came from his business, the Northwestern Bottling Works. The bottles were laid on their sides with the bottom ends to the exterior. A native of Finland, Makinen moved to the area
This barn-like building was a carriage house built by the Bonine family. It stands across the street from a large house they built not far from Vandalia. The Bonines were instrumental in helping slaves searching for freedom along the Underground Railroad. Underground Railroad Society of Cass County (URSCC) Purchased the home and carriage house in
Sault Ste. Marie is the oldest city in Michigan and it is no surprise that one of the oldest courthouses in the Great Lakes State can be found there. The Chippewa County Courthouse was built in 1877. The Second Empire building was constructed with limestone from Drummond Island and trimmed in red sandstone extracted from
In downtown Albion along the north branch of the Kalamazoo River at Reiger Park is a Michigan historical marker telling the story of the first Mother’s Day in Michigan. I visited the park in late fall and I have been waiting until the right day for this post. I am sure you can figure out
North of Alpena on the east side of Grand Lake is the small town of Presque Isle. If you have ever traveled through the town you may have seen this log cabin that sit’s near the road. It has an interesting story to tell on the historical marker that stands next to it. In 1858,
This beautiful old house built by Issac Cappon stands near downtown Holland. He was born in 1830 in the Netherlands and came to the United States when he was 17 years old. he came to Michigan’s Holland Colony in 1848. Here he worked as a laborer in a local tannery. With his experience working in
This little red schoolhouse was built in 1874. It served the Number 2 Chippewa School District. It stands in the parking lot among Shepherd’s high, middle, and elementary schools. It is now used as a museum by the historical society. I like that it is near the modern school to remind kids of days gone
