More than 240 years have passed since wooden sloops brought wild hay to the King’s Cattle on Mackinac Island. During your next visit, scan the watery horizon and imagine the scene from a bygone era. Perhaps you’ll glimpse a broad, white sail billowing in the wind. Or listen closely, and just maybe you’ll hear soft, clanking cowbells as supper makes its way across the Straits of Mackinac.
The clothes our historic interpreters wear are a major part in telling the story of the historic residents of the Straits of Mackinac. A lot of research goes into making these outfits accurate, and here’s a little peek at one of the new outfits you’ll find in Colonial Michilimackinac this summer.
Ongoing research has uncovered another fascinating story at Michilimackinac: the “Unlucky Affair” of Lt. James Hamilton and his stabbing. Intrigued? Learn more:
Most of us have had the experience of moving from one place to another, deciding what to take and what to discard. In the summer of 1781, the residents of Michilimackinac had the same experience.
Ice fishing has been an important part of the Straits for thousands of years, but dramatic scenes of net poles so numerous that they appeared almost as a forest are now nearly forgotten.
Unusual things have been found on Mackinac Island and the Straits of Mackinac over the years. But a walrus skull? That might be the most unusual of all. Read on for the amazing story of how it ended up in the Straits.
The 65th field season of archaeology has wrapped up at Colonial Michilimackinac.
Fort Mackinac benefits from having several items in our collection – a physical representation that our guests see daily that we can translate to the present day. Take hats worn by Fort Mackinac soldiers, for instance.
We’re past the halfway point of the 2023 archaeological field season 0 let’s get an update!
