History of the Region

Traverse Bay Line – Photo Courtesy of Steven Kelsch, Grand Traverse Bay, USA, Then and Now There are so many boats out on Omena Bay this summer. Everyone wants to be out on the water it seems. In years past, people also wanted to be out on the water, but few had boats. Instead, they crowded aboard ships like the MANISTIQUE, MARQUETTE, AND NORTHERN NO1, the Northport car ferry docked here at Omena’s Anderson Dock. This was a special charter, passengers only, and plenty of people showed up. The men enjoying their watermelon below are not crew members but migrants,… Read More »

Man-E-Do-Wah-Ba was the last medicine man to live in Leelanau County. Photo Credit: Leelanau Historical Society He was remembered as being a person of more than ordinary ability and a lot of good common sense and practical knowledge. He was respected and revered by the Indians in Ahgosatown and was a welcomed guest among his white neighbors. And he was also a favorite with children as he joked with them and told stories and Indian legends. Man-E-Do-Wah-Ba was the last medicine man to live in Leelanau County and he had one weakness. And this is where the story gets interesting…. Read More »

Although the flag of 1851, the year of the first Fourth of July in Northport, had 31 stars, Sprague mentions thirteen stars. This flag looks home-made and has, as near as I can count, 31 stars. Gathering up in Northport, whether for Fireworks, band concerts, or other celebrations over the Fourth of July, has been a tradition since the very beginning here. According to a 1903 book entitled Sprague’s History of Grand Traverse and Leelanau Counties, on the first 4th of July in 1851 “it was decided that it was proper to hoist the national colors and celebrate ‘Independence Day’.”… Read More »

Local hotel owners created mythical sites for their guests to explore, like Shob-Wah-Sung’s Grave, which drew on the area’s Indian heritage (ca. 1905). – Courtesy of the Omena Historical Society There was once an old Indian Chief, who had a “pipe of peace” that he highly prized. This Peace Pipe, or Calumet, was something to behold. The stem was flat and over three feet long. It was engraved on both sides with strange Indian characters, each character of which had a meaning. The chief had used the pipe many times at the Indian peace councils. In fact, when the United… Read More »

Soon our young people will be heading off to college. It is an exciting time for them, and a time of mixed emotions for their parents. At least we can get them there safely. Headed for College In 1852, it was a different story for Rev. George N. Smith and his wife in Northport. Their son, George had been home schooled, and now was headed to Olivet College with his sister where he would be for the next 6 years. Twice during this time George made the journey from Northport to Grand Rapids or back on foot. Alone. Walking. Carrying… Read More »

There once were three Indian Boarding Schools in Michigan. The last to close was Holy Childhood of Jesus School in Harbor Springs in 1983. They began in the late 19th and mid-20th centuries as a way to force Native American children to be more like white settlers. At the same time providing a basic education. In recent times to remove them from homes where alcoholism and poverty were a problem. There are people who live in our area who were sent to Holy Child in the 1970’s. They still suffer today from the physical and mental abuse received there. Someone… Read More »

If you walk around the side of the little old church in Omena, you come to an overgrown cemetery. And if you look for it, you will see a beautiful little headstone that says, “Frank A. Morgan, Son of J. D. and A. G. Morgan, Died Feb. 16, 1863: Age 9 yrs. 4 mos.”. There is a beautiful little rose carved above Frankie’s name. Who was little Frankie Morgan? In 1852 before Frankie was born, his parents moved here at the same time. Rev. Dougherty moved to Omena with his band of Indians. However, Jessie and Ann settled in Northport… Read More »

This early photo is a Beebe Postcard image from 1915. Meet Storm Cloud Woman, or “Ah-ne-quet-qua”, a resident of Peshawbestown in the early 1900’s and a basketmaker. She sold her baskets at Edward Millers Drug Store in Traverse City. Strange combination, you might say. Drugs and baskets? They both had Omena connections. There is a story there. Not much is known about Ah-Ne-Quet-Qua because she had no English name and was not in the census and there is no death record. I imagine this shed being her workshop and filled with basketmaking fibers of all kinds. In this photo Storm… Read More »

This envelope was postmarked the day after the stamps became valid. As soon as the mail arrived and was sorted, Dr Goodale put on his big overcoat with large pockets on either side. He put the mail to be delivered into the pocket on one side of his coat. As he went out delivering mail to the businesses and residents of the village, he put the letters to be mailed out in the other pocket. In 1853 the mail came from Manistee to Traverse City once a week from “outside”, as the world beyond the horizon of Traverse City was… Read More »

Originally the Hannah, Lay & Company Boarding House, this building was on the SW corner of N. Union and Bay Street. At that time, Dr. Goodale was running it and his 15-year-old daughter, Helen Goodale, was Traverse City’s first schoolteacher (if you do not count the schooner school). This is where Helen lived during that time. – Courtesy Traverse Area District Library. I had thought 15-year-old Helen Goodale, (the daughter of Dr Goodale who delivered the mail from his big pockets) was the schoolmarm in the first non-Indian school the area, but I was wrong. Her little log school, with… Read More »