History of St. Helen Michigan – From Logging Boom to Beautiful Lakeside Village (1870-1940) – Video
Learn how St. Helen, Michigan transformed from a bustling lumber town into a peaceful lake community and even the boyhood home of Charlton Heston.
Category: History
Our best Michigan history posts are found below.
Short History of Camp Custer Michigan – Eye-opening Views of a Boot Camp, Hospital, and Military Legacy (1917 – 1968)
The history of Camp Custer Michigan begins in 1917, when farmland near Battle Creek became a massive Army training center. Its soldiers, nurses, hospitals, and barracks shaped two world wars and left a lasting mark on the region.
Brief History of Ortonville Michigan – The depot, the mill, and the day the rails failed (1890-1940)
Ortonville’s early 1900s video show a working Main Street, a depot on the Detroit United Railway line, and a hotel called the Yolande House. A federal crash report from 1929 adds the hard edge: progress came fast, and it came with risk for local riders.
Surprising History of Farmington Michigan – From Frontier Village to Thriving City (1820 – 1940)
The history of Farmington Michigan from 1890 to 1940 tracks a town shaped by farming, rail travel, fires, and steady civic growth along Grand River Avenue.
When Port Austin Made Coaster Craft Scooters & Flying Scot Bikes
One small factory on the edge of Michigan’s Port Austin made Coaster Craft scooters, toy wagons and Flying Scot bikes for almost 20 years.
Today the building hosts arts and craftsmen booths and has a bicycle repair shop.
Downtown Port Huron’s Bank Corner, Then and Now
Huron Avenue in Port Huron is captured here in the streetcar era — rails in the street, a web of overhead wires, and a busy downtown corner anchored by a “National Bank Building.” The Library of Congress notes that a Neo-Classical …
Port Huron Ferries on the Black River 1911 – Getting to Sarnia Before the Bridge – Video
Before bridges spanned the St. Clair River, the Port Huron ferry carried thousands across the border. Three wooden steamers tell the story of a risky, vital crossing.
History of Belleville Michigan – A Day in 1910 Shaped by Trains, Mills, and Main Street
In 1910, Belleville, Michigan ran on schedules, not nostalgia. This feature examines daily life before Belleville Lake, when trains, mills, schools, and Main Street defined how the town worked.