In the postwar era of Michigan’s Thumb, family vacations often meant packing into the car and heading to the shoreline. Long before Airbnbs and highway motels, small family-run operations like the Grindstone Grill and Cottages offered travelers a clean room, a hot meal, and a place to launch a boat.

This now-archived photo, labeled “Grindstone Grill and Cottages Grindstone City, Mich.”, is part of the David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography at the University of Michigan’s William L. Clements Library. It shows a neat row of guest cottages and a white concrete block building marked “Grindstone Grill,” complete with striped awning and gravel parking.

Located five miles east of Port Austin along the original US-25, the business catered to summer visitors arriving by car. A period advertisement touts “plate dinners, light lunches, cottages, and a boat livery,” positioning the grill as more than a roadside stop — it was a full-service operation for vacationers.

Roadside Culture in the Thumb

This site reflects a mid-20th century trend across the Great Lakes: small cottage courts and grill stops designed for the growing class of motorists. With a Port Austin telephone exchange (“6374”) listed on the ad, it’s clear the Grindstone Grill operated during the 1950s, when the Thumb’s shoreline was dotted with similar family-run establishments.

Tourists came for fishing, boating, and lake breezes. For many, these businesses were a gateway to summer memories on Lake Huron. It was common for such operations to offer multiple services — lodging, food, and recreational rentals — maximizing revenue during a short peak season.

Grindstone City’s Shift from Industry to Tourism

Grindstone City was originally founded around the sandstone quarries that gave the village its name. By the time the Grindstone Grill opened, the quarry industry had slowed, and tourism was beginning to fill the gap. What remained was a quiet village with deep historical roots and a growing interest from vacationers.

The cottages behind the grill suggest weeklong rentals, and the mention of a boat livery implies the area was popular with anglers. Families driving up from Detroit or Saginaw would have found this a quiet, affordable escape with direct access to Lake Huron.

What Remains Today?

Like many roadside businesses of its kind, it eventually changed hands is now under different ownership. closed. However, this photograph preserves a visual record of a moment in time — one where Michigan’s Thumb served as a laid-back vacation destination long before it was “discovered” by regional tourism campaigns.

This slice of Americana reminds us that the Thumb was once full of family-owned places that thrived during the golden age of car travel. The Grindstone Grill and its tidy cottages offered simple comforts, good food, and a front-row seat to Michigan’s shoreline.

Sources

“Grindstone Grill And Cottages Grindstone City, Mich.” David V. Tinder Collection of Michigan Photography, William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/t/tinder/x-22925/tinder-rppc-045849. Accessed April 9, 2025.