This year’s Log Cabin Day took place on Sunday, June 30, and the annual event celebrated all things related to Old Mission Peninsula history.
The historic Hessler Log Cabin and Mission Point Lighthouse at the end of Center Road/M37 were open for tours, as was the Dougherty House on Mission Road, which recently opened to the public as a museum.
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Hosted by the Old Mission Peninsula Historical Society and the Peter Dougherty Society, the event also featured vintage crafts such as chair caning, quilt-making, rug-hooking and more, as well as era-specific music and children’s games.
Old Mission resident Brendan Keenan was also on hand with his blacksmithing display. It’s always fun to see a spoon or other tool being crafted as it was back in the day.
Brendan’s mom is Mary Keenan, who many will recall was a beloved TCAPS art teacher (and my art teacher at Old Mission Peninsula School).
Poet, author and Civil War bard Jim Ribby was also on hand to tell stories about the Civil War and days of yore.
If you haven’t been to the Peter Dougherty Home in a while, check it out at the next available opportunity. As reported previously, the Peter Dougherty Society has spent many years restoring the home and adding furnishings, many of them original artifacts from when Presbyterian missionary Peter Dougherty built the home in 1842.
The Dougherty House, the first frame house built between Mackinac Island and Grand Rapids, also includes a summer kitchen and ice house out back.
The Dougherty House and property recently opened as a museum to the public. Click here if you’d like to volunteer to be a docent. It’s a great way to meet your neighbors and learn more about the history of the Old Mission Peninsula.
At the Dougherty House, you can also view a vintage quilt from Connie Sargent’s Gilmore Family archives with squares featuring Old Mission Peninsula families. Look for more about this amazing quilt upcoming in Old Mission Gazette.
Check out a few more photos from Log Cabin Day 2019, and be sure and check out these historic locales throughout the summer. Click here for Dougherty House summer hours.
A NOTE FROM JANE: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers like the New York Times and Los Angeles Times, and magazines like Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So of course, I started my own newspaper. Because the Gazette is mainly reader-supported, I hope you'll consider tossing a few bucks my way if I mention your event, your business, your organization or your news item, or if you simply love reading about what's happening on the Old Mission Peninsula. Check out the donation page here. Thank you so much for your support. -jb
[…] Organizing “Log Cabin Day” each year, which attracts hundreds of people to tour Mission Point Lighthouse, the Hessler Log Home and the Dougherty Home. The event also includes historical music, crafts, games, storytelling and more. Check out some photos from this year’s Log Cabin Day here. […]
[…] Hosted by the Old Mission Peninsula Historical Society, Log Cabin Day always includes a range of fun and educational activities and tours at the Hessler Log Cabin, Mission Point Lighthouse, Dougherty Mission House and Mission Church. Check out photos of last year’s event here. […]
[…] the traditional crafters and demonstrations we’ve enjoyed in previous years (see 2019 photos here), this year’s event will be expanded and held at a variety of locations, including the […]
[…] Stay tuned to the Gazette for more info on that, and see pics from the 2019 Log Cabin Day here and last year’s Harvesting History event […]