The Best Stories, Sites and Fun From Around the Great Lakes State.
by Newaygo, Michigan, rose from towering pines and devastating fire to thrive on cement, hydropower, and oil. Its river carried industry and survival through generations.
by At the northern edge of Little Bay de Noc stands Gladstone, Michigan. This small Upper Peninsula town played a much larger role in Michigan’s industrial rise than its size suggests. …
by Leonard, Michigan history is filled with unexpected turns for a town that began as a rail stop in northern Oakland County. Built by farmers, merchants, and railroad visionaries, Leonard quickly …
by Tucked into the rolling countryside of Lapeer County, Metamora, Michigan is a village where the past feels remarkably close. Between its preserved railroad depot, early storefronts, and lakeside summer camps, …
by Step back to Northport Michigan between 1900–1940. These rare photos capture a town alive with cherry canneries, freight docks, and summer resorts—built on water, work, and change.
by Clarkston, Michigan grew from a mill town into a cherished lakeside retreat. With historic inns, Main Street charm, and deep roots, it remains a vivid reminder of small-town life in southeast Michigan.
by A look back at Hubbard Lake Michigan in the early 1900s, where fishing, steamboats, and rustic cottages created a summer retreat that lives on in vintage photos and local lore.
by Campau Trading Post, built in 1815, was the first permanent white settlement in Michigan’s Saginaw Valley. It became the center of fur trading, diplomacy with Native tribes, and the site of the 1819 Treaty of Saginaw that ceded over 6 million acres of land.
by The Port Huron Statement was more than a manifesto—it sparked the SDS movement and helped define 1960s student activism. Written on the shores of Lake Huron, its call for participatory democracy still resonates.
by In September 1894, a wildfire in Minnesota blanketed Michigan in smoke. Ships froze in place, trains stopped, and residents feared Judgment Day. Learn how one of the deadliest U.S. fires impacted Michigan in terrifying and little-known ways.
