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St. Ignace Mission

In 1671 the mission of St. Ignace was established so that the Christian message could be brought to several thousand Indians living on this shore. The founder was Father Jacques Marquette, the...

In 1671 the mission of St. Ignace was established so that the Christian message could be brought to several thousand Indians living on this shore. The founder was Father Jacques Marquette, the...

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Michigan Grayling/Michigan Grayling

Although fishermen had been catching this fish in such rivers as the Manistee, Pere Marquette, and Au Sable for some years, its classification as true grayling came only in 1864. The thrill of...

Although fishermen had been catching this fish in such rivers as the Manistee, Pere Marquette, and Au Sable for some years, its classification as true grayling came only in 1864. The thrill...

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Indian Lake Cemetery

Indian Lake Cemetery has been in use since the 1840s and contains the remains of many of the earliest settlers of Silver Creek Township. Many of the community's first funerals were held in a log...

Indian Lake Cemetery has been in use since the 1840s and contains the remains of many of the earliest settlers of Silver Creek Township. Many of the community's first funerals were held in a log...

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David Simmons House

A native of Ontario County, New York, David Simmons moved to this area around 1827. Here he farmed, eventually acquiring 156 acres of land. He built this Greek Revival house around 1843. It...

A native of Ontario County, New York, David Simmons moved to this area around 1827. Here he farmed, eventually acquiring 156 acres of land. He built this Greek Revival house around 1843....

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Suomi College / Old Main

In the 1880s large numbers of Finns immigrated to Hancock to labor in the copper and lumber industries. One immigrant, mission pastor J. K. Nikander of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of...

In the 1880s large numbers of Finns immigrated to Hancock to labor in the copper and lumber industries. One immigrant, mission pastor J. K. Nikander of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of...

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The Underground Railroad

Vandalia, prior to the Civil War, was the junction of two important “lines” of the “Underground Railroad.” Slaves fleeing through Indiana and Illinois came to Cass County, where Quakers and others...

Vandalia, prior to the Civil War, was the junction of two important “lines” of the “Underground Railroad.” Slaves fleeing through Indiana and Illinois came to Cass County, where Quakers and others...

  • michigan
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Omer Masonic Hall

This church-like white frame structure with its graceful cupola was built in 1890 as the second Arenac County Courthouse. The first courthouse on this site burned the previous year. Omer had been...

This church-like white frame structure with its graceful cupola was built in 1890 as the second Arenac County Courthouse. The first courthouse on this site burned the previous year. Omer had...

  • michigan
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First Presbyterian Church

The Reverend Charles G. Clarke of Washtenaw County led eleven people in organizing the First Presbyterian Church in Unadilla on February 4, 1837. It was the township’s first religious society. The...

The Reverend Charles G. Clarke of Washtenaw County led eleven people in organizing the First Presbyterian Church in Unadilla on February 4, 1837. It was the township’s first religious society. The...

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Thompson / Christmas Tree Ship

The Delta Lumber Company of Detroit, headed by E. L. Thompson, platted the village of Thompson in 1888. Seven different lumber companies ran the mill in the village. By 1907 the population had...

The Delta Lumber Company of Detroit, headed by E. L. Thompson, platted the village of Thompson in 1888. Seven different lumber companies ran the mill in the village. By 1907 the population...

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Council Point / Pontiac's Council

On April 27, 1763, Obwandiyag, an Odawa who was also called Pontiac, assembled a council of warriors from various tribes near this site. He urged them to fight to maintain control of their land...

On April 27, 1763, Obwandiyag, an Odawa who was also called Pontiac, assembled a council of warriors from various tribes near this site. He urged them to fight to maintain control of their land...

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Fort St. Joseph

Built near here in 1686 by the French explorer Duluth, this fort was the second white settlement in lower Michigan. This post guarded the upper end of the vital waterway joining Lake Erie and Lake...

Built near here in 1686 by the French explorer Duluth, this fort was the second white settlement in lower Michigan. This post guarded the upper end of the vital waterway joining Lake Erie and...

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George Armstrong Custer / "Sighting the Enemy"

Raised in Monroe, George Armstrong Custer graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1861. In 1863 he became a brigadier general and commanded the Michigan Cavalry...

Raised in Monroe, George Armstrong Custer graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1861. In 1863 he became a brigadier general and commanded the Michigan Cavalry...

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Sport

The tug Sport, one of the nation’s earliest steel-hulled vessels, was built for lumber and steel entrepreneur Eber Brock Ward in 1873 by the Wyandotte Iron Ship Building Works in Wyandotte,...

The tug Sport, one of the nation’s earliest steel- hulled vessels, was built for lumber and steel entrepreneur Eber Brock Ward in 1873 by the Wyandotte Iron Ship Building Works in...

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Theodore H. Roethke Childhood Home / Theodore H. Roethke

Distinguished poet Theodore Roethke (1908-1963) was born in Saginaw and grew up in this house. The house was built around 1911 for his parents, Otto and Helen Roethke. Otto’s brother Carl lived in...

Distinguished poet Theodore Roethke (1908-1963) was born in Saginaw and grew up in this house. The house was built around 1911 for his parents, Otto and Helen Roethke. Otto’s brother Carl lived...

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Pioneer House

The Pioneer House opened in the early 1870s as a boardinghouse for lumbermen. Beginning as a 1 ½ -story building, it underwent three major renovations between 1885 and 1936 evolving into a hotel...

The Pioneer House opened in the early 1870s as a boardinghouse for lumbermen. Beginning as a 1 ½ -story building, it underwent three major renovations between 1885 and 1936 evolving into a hotel...

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The Northernmost Point of Lake Michigan

About a mile west of here is the northernmost point of Lake Michigan. This geographical location is of historical importance because the act of Congress which created the territory of Michigan in...

About a mile west of here is the northernmost point of Lake Michigan. This geographical location is of historical importance because the act of Congress which created the territory of Michigan in...

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Howell Carnegie Library / Howell Carnegie Library

The Howell library originated as the Ladies Library Association in 1875. That year, the ladies began offering books for lending. The need for spacious, permanent quarters grew, and in 1902, for...

The Howell library originated as the Ladies Library Association in 1875. That year, the ladies began offering books for lending. The need for spacious, permanent quarters grew, and in 1902, for...

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First State Prison

This was the original site of Michigan’s first state prison, approved by the legislature in 1838. A temporary wooden prison, enclosed by a fence of tamarack poles, was built on sixty acres donated...

This was the original site of Michigan’s first state prison, approved by the legislature in 1838. A temporary wooden prison, enclosed by a fence of tamarack poles, was built on sixty acres...

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Michigan School for the Blind / Administration Building

Michigan began educating the blind in 1859 at Flint’s Michigan Asylum. In 1879 the legislature established the Michigan School for the Blind, which opened here on September 29, 1880, with...

Michigan began educating the blind in 1859 at Flint’s Michigan Asylum. In 1879 the legislature established the Michigan School for the Blind, which opened here on September 29, 1880,...

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Mount Hope Cemetery

Mount Hope Cemetery opened as Lansing's new city cemetery in June 1874 on what was formerly the John Miller Farm. Between 1874 and 1881 the city vacated the Lansing City Cemetery, located on the...

Mount Hope Cemetery opened as Lansing's new city cemetery in June 1874 on what was formerly the John Miller Farm. Between 1874 and 1881 the city vacated the Lansing City Cemetery, located on...

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