History

Located within the Straits of Mackinac, Mackinac Island has been among the nation’s most celebrated holiday destinations since the late Victorian era. People from across the Midwest flocked to the island for its temperate weather and reclusive environment. In order to safeguard its rustic charm, many of the island's permanent residents passed legislation prohibiting vehicles onto the island. This ordinance is still in effect today, which helps to preserve Mackinac Island’s historical character. But before Mackinac Island became an internationally renowned vacation retreat, it once was home to traveling bands of the Anishinaabe. They specifically thought of the island to be scared, believing that the Great Spirit inhabited it following the end of a cataclysmic flood. Indeed, archeologists have since located all kinds of native artifacts along the coastline, including fishhooks, arrowheads, and other items. (Burial mounds for ancient chieftains have even been discovered around the area in recent years, too.) While records regarding the first European to arrive at Mackinac Island are scant, some historians speculate that it was Jean Nicolet during his journey to modern-day Wisconsin in the 17th century. Priest Claude Dablon then arrived several decades later to establish a short-lived mission on Mackinac Island. Jacques Marquette eventually replaced him in 1671, who decided to relocate the facility to St. Ignace. Nevertheless, a small fur trading outpost emerged on Mackinac Island, as the nearby Straits of Mackinac became an important nexus in French Canada.

Mackinac Island fell under British control during the late 18th century. Major Patrick Sinclair specifically landed during the American Revolutionary War and built a citadel called “Fort Mackinac.” Despite its imposing nature, Fort Mackinac was never attacked during the conflict. In fact, the British eventually surrendered the base to the nascent United States military at the end of the war! However, the British kept their desire to control Fort Mackinac and attempted to seize it outright at the start of the War of 1812. Indeed, the Royal Army managed to surprise the American garrison on-site amid a quick invasion of Mackinac Island. Looking to solidify their hold over the citadel, the British developed another base—Fort George—on the heights behind Fort Mackinac. American commanders yearned to take Mackinac Island and launched their own counteroffensive in 1814. The battle failed with the Americans’ second-in-command, Major Andrew Hunter Holmes, killed in the ensuing gunfight. Mackinac Island ultimately returned to the United States via the Treaty of Ghent, which concluded the war. In its wake, an influential population of Native American and French-speaking fur traders soon moved into the area, giving it a unique identity that was to last for decades. John Jacob Astor even located his American Fur Company on the island, which helped him amass an incredible fortune. The military presence was finally removed when Fort Mackinac closed permanently at the height of the Gilded Age.

Mackinac Island then started to become a popular tourist destination once the federal government made the area a national park during the 1870s. Word quickly spread of the island’s bucolic tranquility, inspiring many from across the Midwest to come and experience its charm. Soon enough, charters were ferrying guests out to Mackinac Island every year, making the site one of the most active places in the Great Lakes. A few transportation companies built a variety of hotels—including Grand Hotel—throughout the remainder of the 19th century, as well. But Mackinac Island was also gradually dotted with quaint seasonal cottages that wealthy industrialists had constructed to serve as their private retreats. As soon as the island reverted to the status of a state park in the 1890s, the newly empowered Mackinac Island State Park Commission took great pains to limit any future real estate developments. Thanks to the legislation, the commission’s actions have since guaranteed that Mackinac Island’s iconic serenity has remained largely untouched well into the present. The island has since preserved its status as one of America’s top vacation destinations, hosting thousands of people every year. Indeed, the island has hosted all kinds of illustrious guests, from Hollywood celebrities to sitting U.S. Presidents. Cultural heritage travelers have particularly enjoyed visiting the island regularly due to the many unique historical landmarks located in the vicinity. The attraction that those guests have found to be the most fascinating is the retired Fort Mackinac, which exists today as a museum open to public exploration.

In the 1880s, the representatives of the Mackinac Island Hotel Company began constructing a brilliant hotel on Mackinac Island that would capitalize upon the nation’s growing desire for recreational travel. The group subsequently hired the Detroit-based architectural firm, Mason and Rice, to design the project, although Charles Caskey and his brother-in-law—Alphonse Howe—directly oversaw the project. When construction concluded a year later, the building debuted with 286 outstanding accommodations. Grand Hotel’s original owners later installed additional wings to the hotel in 1897 and 1912, which greatly increased the number of facilities located on-site. Among the buildings constructed around that time are a Superintendent’s Residence, a Carpenter’s Shop, a Powerhouse, a stable for 50 horses, and the Grand Hotel’s West Wing. Grand Hotel has since experienced a series of extensive renovations that have sought to modernize it, while also preserving its rich historical ambiance. The Musser family specifically added several new additions in 1987, such as the Woodfill Conference Center and the Cupola Bar. Special boutique shops appeared a few years later in the mid-1990s, like Astor’s Hair Salon, Rebecca’s, Margaret’s Garden, and Grand Hotel & Co., Fine Jewelry. The Mussers also developed a series of suites named in honor of prominent former First Ladies, such as Lady Bird Johnson, Nancy Reagan, and Barbara Bush. (Those suites were then joined by The Jacqueline Kennedy Suite and The Laura Bush Suite during the 2000s.) The construction of this suite coincided with the addition of some 60 other guestrooms, which raised the total number of accommodations at the hotel to 393.

When Mason an Rice first began designing the Grand Hotel at the height of the Gilded Age, they specifically used Queen-Anne-style architecture as the main source of their inspiration. A successor to Eastlake architecture, Queen Anne itself became a widely popular architectural style at the height of the Gilded Age. Named in honor of 18th-century British monarch, Queen Anne, the architectural form started in England before migrating to the United States. Yet, its name is misleading, as it actually borrowed its design principles from buildings constructed during the Renaissance. While the appearance of Queen Anne-style buildings may differ considerably, they are all united by several common features. For instance, they are typically asymmetrical in nature, and are built with some combination of stone, brick, and wood. Those buildings also feature a large wrap-around porch, as well as a couple of polygonal towers. Those towers may also be accompanied by turrets along the corners of a building’s exterior façade. Queen Anne structures also have pitched, gabled roofs made with irregular shapes and patterns. Intricate wood carvings are a common sight throughout their layout, too, and are often designed in such a way to resemble different objects like an illusion. Clapboard paneling and half-timbering are a few other forms of woodworking that are regularly found somewhere within a Queen Anne-style structure. Grand Hotel today stands as a brilliant example of preserved Queen Anne-style architecture of the age. In fact, its architectural appearance and integrity played a major role in the U.S. Department of the Interior’s decision to have it designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark.

But Grand Hotel also showcased elements of Colonial Revivalism when it first debuted, too. Colonial Revival architecture today is perhaps the most widely used building form in the entire United States. It reached its zenith at the height of the Gilded Age, where countless Americans turned to the aesthetic to celebrate what they feared was America’s disappearing past. The movement came about in the aftermath of the Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, in which people from across the country traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to commemorate the American Revolution. Many of the exhibitors chose to display cultural representations of 18th-century America, encouraging millions of people across the country to preserve the nation’s history. Architects were among those inspired, who looked to revitalize the design principles of colonial English and Dutch homes. This gradually gave way to a larger embrace of Georgian and Federal-style architecture, which focused exclusively on the country’s formative years. As such, structures built in the style of Colonial Revival architecture featured such components as pilasters, brickwork, and modest, double-hung windows. Symmetrical designs defined Colonial Revival-style façades, anchored by a central, pedimented front door and simplistic portico. Gable roofs typically topped the buildings, although hipped and gambrel forms were used, as well. This building remained immensely popular for years until largely petering out in the late-20th century. Nevertheless, architects today still rely upon Colonial Revival architecture, using the form to construct all kinds of residential buildings and commercial complexes.

• Thomas Edison, inventor known for such inventions as the motion picture camera and the light bulb.
• Mark Twain, author known for writing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
• Jimmy Durante, comedian known for his roles in The Great Rupert and It Happened in Brooklyn.
• Esther Williams, actress known for her roles in Million Dollar Mermaid and Bathing Beauty.
• Christopher Plummer, actor known for his roles in movies like Beginners, The Insiders, and The Sound of Music.
• Christopher Reeves, actor best remembered for his role as Superman in the 1978 film of the same name.
• Jane Seymour, actress best known for her roles in Live and Let Die and Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman.
• Arnold Palmer, winner of seven major golf championships that include the PGA Championship and the Masters Tournament. 
• Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th President of the United States (1885 – 1889; 1893 – 1897)
• Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States (1901 – 1909)
• Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States (1932 – 1945)
• Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States (1945 – 1953)
• Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States (1953 – 1961), and Supreme Allied Commander Europe during World War II.
• John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States (1961 – 1963)
• Gerald Ford, 38th President of the United States (1974 – 1977)
• Jimmy Carter, 39th President of the United States (1977 – 1981)
• George H.W. Bush, 41st President of the United States (1989 – 1993)
• Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States (1993 – 2001)

• This Time For Keeps (1947)
• Somewhere in Time (1980)