Celebrating Michigan's Log Cabins

Now,  I know there are many more historic log cabins around the state of Michigan than what I have in this post.  I just have not gotten around to visiting very many.  What I have visited I have here.  My criteria to be placed in this post is the cabins must be at least 100 years old as of this writing and built here in Michigan.  So,  yes,  I do plan to continuously add to this as I venture out for future past visits.

This is only the beginning...

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I have to wonder,  how many Passion for the Past readers associate log cabins with Michigan?

Normally,  folk tend to think of Virginia,  Kentucky,  Tennessee,  or a similar eastern or southern state...or even out west in Wyoming,  the Dakotas,  or Montana...when they think of these log homes.  Well,  contrary to popular belief,  Michigan was a top state/territory for log cabins back in the pioneer days.  In fact,  the oldest surviving cabin still standing in the state was built in 1780 on Mackinac Island.  And as of this writing,  there are 105 other cabins still standing in this state!

I plan to add whichever I may come across here as I see them.

And yet,  Michigan isn’t a state where outsiders  - or even most locals! - usually associate with log cabins.  But the 18th and 19th century settlers who marveled at the pine and cedar forest they found here,  however,  started a long,  proud cabin-home building tradition.  In fact,  Michigan is the only state that holds a yearly festival to honor its pioneer log cabin dwellings,  which takes place each year on the last Sunday in June.

So I thought we'd visit a few of the cabins that are not too far from where I live in metro-Detroit.

Let's begin with:

Crossroads Historic Village
The Salter Log House was built in Dearborn Township,  Michigan in 1830.  The cabin
was owned by John and Elizabeth Salter,  farming immigrants from Prussia  (modern
day Germany)  and was originally located about a quarter of a mile from the family farm of Henry Ford.  The Salters had no children and practiced a plain and frugal life.
As a boy,  Henry Ford would visit John Salter and listen to his stories. He refereed to
Mr.  Salter as a  "hermit philosopher."
In 1929,  it was restored at Greenfield Village.  Its final location,  however, 
is now historic Crossroads Village near Flint,  arriving there in 1995.
My information from Greenfield Village states this cabin was built about 1830, 
but Crossroads Village says it was built in 1840.
These are my friends Andy & Sue standing in the doorway.

  I am so glad Crossroads accepted the cabin - it fits in perfectly there.

 

A jump now to mid-Michigan,  to Owosso - - - 

Owosso,  Michigan~

This one room log cabin,  built by Elias Comstock in 1836,  was the first permanent 

residence in the settlement that became Owosso. 

Over the years,  the Comstock’s made frame additions and added a long front porch to the cabin.  The cabin itself became hidden inside the walls of the living room.  In 1920,  the Standard Oil Company purchased the Comstock property and began to tear down the house and discovered the primitive log cabin preserved within its walls. 

The 1836 Comstock Cabin

Through the efforts of the Shiawassee County chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution,   the cabin was moved and preserved as a museum.  The cabin was later moved again to Bentley Park,  then moved once more to its current site in 1969 as a project of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Owosso.

Now let's take a trip to Port Huron,  Michigan:

Port Huron,  Michigan~
This former home of  the Conrad Kammer family was built in what is now roughly
in the general area of  Casco Township and Adair in the late 1850s,  which is actually
closer to what is now New Baltimore than Port Huron. 
(Port Huron Museum) 

In 1981,  Paul Nellis bought the cabin,  which by now had been covered up with clapboard siding.  When Nellis began to tear down what he thought was a regular house in order to build a new one,  he discovered the log cabin underneath.  Rather than destroy it,  he donated it to the Port Huron Museum,  where it now sits.

Wow---two of these original cabins discovered and preserved much in the same manner - both nearly lost to history!

And both are now in a public park setting.
Here is the other side of  the 1850s Conrad Kammer cabin~

We'll head a little farther north to Port Sanilac:

Sanilac County Historical Village
After the Great Fire of 1881,  which destroyed a good portion of the remaining timber
in the Thumb Area of Michigan,  many stalwart residents were quick to rebuild.  Henry Patten and his sons,  James and Elias,  built this little cabin from the trees left standing
on their land near the long-forgotten settlement of Banner,  four miles west of Deckerville.  Some of those trees exhibited charring from the inferno.

In the 1970's,  the cabin was donated by Donald Medcoff and his mother,  Margaret.  Four generations of their family had resided in the log structure after the Patten family had moved on.  A Michigan State Bicentennial Grant aided in the funding to relocate and restore the Banner log cabin.  Volunteer George Lawson was the project manager.

During one of our Civil War reenactments,  we helped to bring the cabin to life.

This is just about as mid-19th century as one can be!

The little building is furnished with donated antique items that would have typically been found in an 1880's-era settler's cabin.

And let's go a bit farther north still,  to Bay City.

The Meyer Log Cabin near Veterans Memorial Park in Bay City.

Unfortunately,  I didn't really take any pictures of the cabin,  though Ben Franklin
did a talk upon the front porch  (above),  as did Paul Revere  (who is portrayed by
none other than yours truly in the below pic. 

Looks like the cabin needs a bit of work,  which I am certain will happen.

Now,  I have two separate bits of information about this cabin.

I was told that Leon Tromblé,  is regarded as the first settler within the limits of Bay County, and he settled in an area which would become Bay City.  In 1831,  he built the log cabin on the east bank of the Saginaw River.  The cabin was completed in 1837 by Joseph Tromblé,  Leon's brother.  In 1981 it was moved to Veteran's Park.  It is now owned, maintained,  managed,  and primarily used by the Bay County Historical Society.

Other information says the cabin was built in 1860 by Henry Christian and Johanna Meyer,  and remained in the Meyer family until 1957.  According to this site it was moved to the park in 1986.

Hmmm...at least it's agreed upon that it was built in the mid-19th century.
I will find out which is the correct story and present it here.

Perhaps with a better photo.

So now we'll skip to a cabin I know very well,  for four or five times a year the 18th century  "me"  calls the Waterloo Cabin  "home."  There is a small group of us colonial living historians who have used the following cabin as an 18th century frontier log home.

Now,  in truthfulness,  this is not an 18th century cabin.  Rather,  it was built in the 1840s.

And its representation brings the history of this area of Michigan sort of full circle.

Here is a photo taken of the 1840s Waterloo Cabin during our 18th century
summer excursion.

When the first European settlers settled this part of Michigan,  they built a log cabin to live in.  Families traveling west often erected a cabin to live in while settling in and pulling their lives together.  During their tenure inside the cabin they could begin farming the land,  perhaps build a shelter for their horses and whatever livestock they may have,  and then,  after a number of years,  build their more permanent farm home.

Brian Dewey,  the Waterloo Historical Society president,  was on
hand to teach the cabin's history,  as were their trained volunteer
staff,  while a few of us who practice the art of living history gave
a lesson on everyday life of those who lived in
historic cabins such as this.
A Charlotte Bauer pic

We know that Johannea Siebold,  who settled this land back in 1844,  either already had or built such a cabin on this property in which he planned to farm.  In fact,  it was built right on the spot where the dining room now sits in the house.  So when the opportunity came along for the Waterloo Historical Society to obtain a 19th century log cabin,  standing only 17 miles away,  they grabbed it with both hands.  The logs were numbered as it was taken apart and shipped to the Waterloo property for it to be reconstructed by the fall of that Bicentennial year of 1976.   

Inside a few of us would be stationed to speak to the public as they came through.
In this photo we have Brian,  who is the president of the Waterloo Historical Society, 
his wife on the left,  and another reenactor  (who's name I never got)  on the right.

In the picture below you can see that it was a rare occasion for me to wear my 1860s clothing,  which only occurs a few times a year any more  (compared to over a decade ago when it would be nearly 20 times a year). 

I tend to be more comfortable in my 1760s/1770s clothing.

Here you see Charlotte and I wearing our 1860s clothing.
We both now also enjoy traveling back to the 18th century, 
especially in this cabin!
A Brian Dewey Pic

Though the statewide celebration of Michigan's official Log Cabin Day takes place on the last Sunday in June,  the Waterloo Historical Society participates for the entire weekend,  calling it the  “Blacksmiths,  Soldiers,  and Log Cabin Weekend,”  encompassing more 19th century history than only log cabins:

"A weekend of historical reenactments,  featuring a blacksmith festival,  a Civil War encampment,  and more.  Also,  guided tours of the 10-room farmhouse.  Sunday only:  activities to celebrate Log Cabin Day."

I participated for the first time in 2022 and enjoyed the heck out of it!  And so did the modern interested-in-history public who came a-visiting in droves.  

Here I am with long-time Waterloo Volunteer , Amanda.
I remember when Amanda was a newbie to the museum world over
10 years ago when we used to reenact inside the house near this cabin.
I am so glad she stuck with it.

Working on a patch quilt in the warm summer air.

Since it was a hot summer day on this  “Blacksmiths,  Soldiers,  and Log Cabin Weekend,”  I felt  wearing my linen clothing worked best.

Charlotte was there with me and she and I spent most of our time inside the cabin,  telling its history in relation to the farm as we heard from Brian,  as well as speaking to the younger ones - usually pre-teens - about what their lives would had been like had they lived in an 1860s cabin.

I know if you are a follower of this Passion for the Past blog you probably recognize this cabin as our 18th century Frontier Cabin:

Yep - it the very same one we use for our colonial excursions!
Because cabins did not greatly change from the 18th century to the 19th century,
it is easy to modify it to either one and still be historically accurate.

This whole  “Blacksmiths,  Soldiers,  and Log Cabin Weekend,”  ties history all together.

During the American Civil War,  soldiers would oftentimes congregate and camp in and around citizen's property.  And that's part of what is shown during this special weekend at Waterloo Farms.

Imagine looking out your window only to see soldiers
have requisitioned some of your property for their camps.

The Civil War soldiers pitched their camps all around the cabin.

There were also re-enactors portraying the Civil War era,  including both soldier and civilian.

It was not a reenactment with a battle or anything,  but they did fire off cannons and their muskets throughout the day.  

I clicked the camera shutter just a hair after the explosion!

Leisure activities while in camp in between battles included writing letters home.  Soldiers were prolific letter writers and wrote at every opportunity.  It was the only way for them to communicate with loved ones and inform the home folks of their condition and where they were. 

The lucky soldiers who received a letter from home often read and re-read them many times.  Packages from home contained baked goods,  new socks or shirts,  underwear,  and often soap,  towels,  combs,  and toothbrushes. 

Free time was also spent in card games,  reading,  pitching horseshoes,  or team sports.  

Or,  perhaps,  just spending time with your friends.

Now let's visit with the blacksmiths.

Moving about the Waterloo Farm complex,  a festival atmosphere was the order of the day.  Some purists may scoff at such an atmosphere,  but this was not a reenactment
per se.  Rather,  it was more of a celebration of Michigan's past in its various
19th century forms and ways.

This is a weekend to remember the every man and woman - those who,  without the vim and vigor of the more famous,  eked out a life for themselves and their families,  and in doing so,  helped to build America's greatness.  One such occupation that truly helped to build America was the blacksmith.

The Michigan Artist Blacksmith Association members were there to demonstrate their skills at the fixed forge built inside the historical complex as well as at their own portable forges placed throughout the farmland area.  

Most of the blacksmith’s work was done in his personal forge in which scalding bars 

of iron were hammered with heavy sledges to fashion the iron into various shapes.

The Blacksmith was an essential merchant and craftsman in any early American town,  and continued in that vein through the early part of the 20th century.  He made indispensable items such as horseshoes,  pots,  pans,  and nails.  Blacksmiths  made numerous goods for farmers including axes,  plowshares,  cowbells,  and hoes.  They also made hammers,  candleholders,  tools,  files,  locks,  fireplace racks,  and anvils.  Shovels,  hoes,  scythes and sickles.

During this event there were also a few blacksmiths
who worked under the shade of their tent.

Besides the blacksmiths,  there was also a broom maker:

It was interesting to watch such a fascinating craft.

My friend Doug caned chairs.

Although it centered on the 19th century,  an 18th century doctor was on
hand to teach on early medicine and health care.

And then there were the civilians who also showed a bit of home life during war time in the 1860s:

Charlotte,  bent over on the right,  and three others did some weeding of the flax
 that we planted back in May of 1772  (click HERE).
Or,  um,  earlier in the year...lol...

But it's during our 18th century excursions where I feel we bring really bring this old cabin to life.  And it's during these times when I feel I  "work"  with the best living historians - those who know their history and can live the research:

This shows me ready to go hunting while Larissa looks on.
As you can see,  a few of my farm tools stand along the side.
I've always liked this sort of picture,  for it shows life in a way not often
seen in many reenacting photos.

The busy women inside the cabin preparing our meal.
Yes,  it was a period meal prepared right there inside the
cabin and cooked on the hearth.

Slight modification of the way-back background in this picture, 
but,  yes,  spring planting in 1771.
And soon we shall build a proper house!
Bringing history to life...

An appreciation of  cabin life,  whether 18th or 19th century.

Here is the oldest home still standing in Taylor,  Michigan:

Located inside Heritage Park in Taylor,  Michigan.
No,  contrary to what we have here,  this is not a colonial cabin,  but a mid-19th century cabin.

The Log Cabin is Taylor’s oldest existing home.  Built around 1850 and used as a hunting cabin,  the log cabin belonged to several pioneer families of Taylor. 

Originally situated on a 40-acre farm on Pennsylvania Road between Beech Daly and Telegraph,  it was located close to old Indian burial grounds.  Fred Miller donated the cabin in 1985 and it was moved to Heritage Park in 1986.  Various civic organizations and school class groups use the Log Cabin as a meeting place year round.

And,  to end this for now,  we have a cabin that is native to Pennsylvania but was brought over to Michigan  (Greenfield Village)  and restored:  the 1789 McGuffey Log Cabin.

To read about this Pennsylvania cabin that was transplanted to Michigan,  click HERE

.     .     .

Log Cabin Day began in 1987 as part of Michigan’s sesquicentennial  (150th)  celebration of  becoming a state  “to commemorate log cabins and the important role they played in this state’s earliest days,”  according to the Legislature’s joint proclamation.

Discovering,  or re-discovering,  our wonderful and oftentimes forgotten past.

If you are a local - a Michiganian - I highly recommend going out and visiting some of this wonderful Americana.  A day-trip here and there is sometimes all you need,  plus,  besides taking in our wonderful Michigan history,  it gives you the opportunity to check out  (usually)  small-towns,  their dining  (local small-town diners are the best!),  history,  and perhaps an antique store or two.

And I'm sure these small towns,  many of which struggle financially,  appreciate your patronage.  Speaking of which:

many of us donate to saving history,  whether we donate to battlefields,  the historic homes of Washington and Jefferson,  or even to national historic landmarks,  all of which are very important.  But we must not forget our local history,  most of which get very little in the way of finances and are in a constant struggle for survival.  Paying something as simple as the gas or electric bills,  or for even simple maintenance like painting or perhaps a new roof  (okay - a new roof is not so simple,  necessarily),  cannot be done without public donations.  Our local histories are very important,  too,  and must be saved.  So when you are considering a donation to save the battlefields,  please also consider donating to help keep your local historic schoolhouse,  cabin,  or farmhouse going as well.  For once history is gone,  it's gone forever. 

Until next time,  see you in time.

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Now,  I did do a few other Michigan History postings:

To learn about the oldest structures built on Michigan soil still standing,  please click  Hidden History - Welcome to the Michigan Territory:  Visiting the Oldest Buildings Still Standing

To learn about Henry Ford's Greenfield Village preservation,  please click HERE

To read more about historic Crossroads Village,  please click HERE

Thomas Edison grew up in our state and worked for the railroads. HERE is a bit on his adventures in this occupation. 

To learn more about Michigan in the 18th century,  click HERE

To read about Detroit in the 18th and 19th centuries,  click HERE

For a  (mostly)  19th century look at Michigan buildings,  please click HERE

For further reading on 19th century mills,  click HERE

For further reading on 19th century Taverns and Inns,  please click HERE

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