Mackinaw City is one of Michigan’s most popular destinations, with visitors coming each year to check out the shops, visit the lighthouse, head over to Mackinac Island, or relax on Lake Huron. Native Americans were here many years before the first European visitors came in the 1600s, and before the first settlement here in the early 1700s. There is a lot of history to take in when visiting Mackinaw City, and just down the road from downtown you can visit the Mackinaw Area Historical Society Heritage Village to learn more. Heritage Village is home to a handful of well-preserved historical buildings, a network of trails, and frequent public events. We have visited Mackinaw City many, many times over the years but had yet to visit Heritage Village before this year. Today we will look at our recent visit and what you can expect to find if you decide to check it out.

Visitors can drive through the collection of historic buildings on a dirt road, or can park and then walk around. There are plaques in front of the buildings that feature historic photos and a look at the history of each one. Some of these buildings are open to the public on select days in the summer when MAHS staff and volunteers are present. Let’s take a look at what we saw, starting with the school:

The Freedom School dates back to the 1880s and according to the sign it used to stand near what is now Mill Creek Park on U.S. 23. This one room schoolhouse served the area until the 1930s, and it required extensive restoration when it was moved here in 2007. Visiting school groups can now take a step back in time when they tour the Freedom School.

Next up is the Pest House, a quarantine facility that was used to isolate those afflicted with diptheria, cholera, or smallpox.

The General Store has been re-created to look as it would have in the 1880s. There are many artifacts like an old piano and a 1922 truck, and this serves as the welcome center.

Around the corner from the store is the Heritage Chapel. This was the Zion Lutheran Church in Brutus that served from the 1890s to 1960s. It has been carefully restored and can now hold up to 80 people for weddings or other events.

Rounding the loop drive from the chapel, you next come across the Cope Icehouse, which was used to store ice that had been harvested from Carp Lake in the winter. Next to the icehouse is the re-created Stimpson Homestead. This is meant to look like an 1880s farmhouse that stood a few miles south of Mackinaw City. You can read the information sign in front of the house to learn more about how the Stimpson family was involved in building and furnishing this house.

The drive next passes the Grebe Tool Shanty, a shed made of panels that were bolted together for easy disassembly and reconstruction.

The Detweiler Log Cabin is up next and is one of the most impressive structures at Heritage Village. Like the church, it came from Brutus. It was built in the 1880s and helps show a contrast between those who could build nicer homes like the Stimpson one, while others had to build theirs with locally sourced logs. A community garden sits next to the house.

After checking out all of the historic buildings we still had plenty of time to spend on the trails. The “Art Trail” begins to the right of the icehouse, and winds through some beautiful woods before looping back out behind a horse pasture and then finishing by the Detweiler Log Cabin.

Across from the Freedom School you will find the start of the May Woods Trails. Maps are posted, and a small building here has spots to record your bird and plant observations, see examples of what others have found on the property, and even cards so you can play Bingo!

The main trail goes north-south, with six different spur trails that all connect (Deer Trail, Mesic Forest Trail, Pine Trail, Birch Trail, Boreal Forest Trail, South Boundary Trail). We spent some time here and encountered only two other people while covering most of the trails.

On the trails you will pass by a Plank House, which was a dwelling with a first floor living area and a loft for sleeping. Near here there are a few informational plaques about Native Americans in the area, as well as a Medicine Wheel and a waganogan (a temporary winter lodge).

Another point of interest along the trail is a large rock. From here you have a good view of most of the village, including the sawmill. This is a great place to visit for anyone that likes history or hiking, and it’s too bad that it took us so long to discover that this village was just a short drive away from downtown Mackinaw City!

To get to the Mackinaw Area Historical Society Heritage Village from downtown Mackinaw City (intersection of S. Nicolet St. and W. Central Ave.), head west on Central Ave. for about two miles. Heritage Village is located across Wilderness Park Dr. from Headlands International Dark Sky Park, and just down the road from the historic McGulpin Point Lighthouse. You can enter from either W. Central Ave. or Wilderness Park Dr. There are many signs in the area to help direct you.