7 Towns In The Great Lakes That Transport You to the Past

The largest freshwater lake systems in North America—Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and Lake Superior—make up the Great Lakes region. In states like Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio, as well as the Canadian province of Ontario, the lakes have been integral to people's lives and histories in many of its small towns along their coasts. You will be transported to the past as you explore Bayfield's maritime heritage, Mackinac Island's landmark forts, Oscoda's logging past, Bay Village's attractions centered on its first settlers, Port Clinton's historic lighthouse, Tobermory's natural wonders of the Bruce Peninsula, and Niagara-on-the-Lake's striking 19th-century architecture.

Bayfield, Wisconsin

Bayfield in Wisconsin is one of the best Great Lakes towns that will transport you to the past. Visit the local museums to discover more about the community's rich maritime heritage, shaped by its location on Lake Superior. The Bayfield Maritime Museum offers a walk down memory lane from early summer to late fall, where you may learn about the region's history of shipwrecks, lighthouses, and commercial fishing.

Explore the Bayfield Heritage Association's displays, which include a reproduction of a traditional Anishinaabe canoe, an antique Bayfield city prison, a Ray Cahill barbershop, and a Bayfield model train, to travel back in time. Stay at the Old Rittenhouse Inn, Wisconsin's original bed and breakfast, to get the most out of your visit to the historic town. Old Rittenhouse's sister inn, the landmark Le Chateau, is also on the grounds.

Mackinac Island, Michigan

Mackinac Island, located in Lake Huron between the Upper and Lower peninsulas of Michigan, is a destination that promises an exciting historical experience. The town is renowned for its extensive history, which you can discover by visiting the Mackinac Island State Park, the country's second national park.

Fort Mackinac and Fort Holmes are landmarks located within the park. Explore Mackinac Island life during the fur trade era by taking a tour of the Biddle House. The Richard & Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum, the American Fur Co. Store & Dr. Beaumont Museum, the McGulpin House, and the Benjamin Blacksmith Shop are other places of significance.

Oscoda, Michigan

Oscoda is a small Great Lakes community in Michigan on Lake Huron at the mouth of the Au Sable River. The Lumberman's Monument, a 14-foot-tall bronze structure honoring the early loggers in Michigan in the eastern part of the Huron-Manistee National Forests area, is a historical highlight.

At the nearby visitors center, which is open from May through October, you can use a crosscut saw to cut a wooden cookie, climb through a log jam, or learn about the life of a lumberjack. The Wurtsmith Air Force Base, a United States Air Force base operated from 1923 to 1993, is another iconic part of Oscoda's history. The Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport, which features an aviation museum with relics, military memorabilia, and multiple aircraft displays, is a living reminder of its past.

Bay Village, Ohio

Bay Village in Ohio is a town on Lake Erie and a western suburb of Cleveland, rich in early colonial history. Visit Cahoon Memorial Park, a 115-acre park south of Lake Erie, home to numerous historic treasures, to discover more about its past. The Cahoon family was the first to settle in the Bay Village region permanently in 1810.

The Cahoon family's home, Rose Hill, was preserved and converted into the Rose Hill Museum within the park. Because it transports you from the early 1800s to the Victorian era, the museum, run by the Bay Village Historical Society, is worth a visit even if it's only open seasonally from April through December. The park's other sites include the previous Bay Village Community House, once the Cahoon barn, a Cahoon cabin replica, and the Reuben Osborn house.

Port Clinton, Ohio

The famous Ohio town of Port Clinton is home to miles of breathtaking Lake Erie coastline. Above all, though, its rich past is worth discovering. Built in 1896, the Port Clinton Lighthouse is one of its most recognizable monuments. Located in Waterworks Park, the restored lighthouse remained active for 56 years, as it was decommissioned in 1952.

Today, open public tours of the famous lighthouse are available from Memorial Day to Labor Day on Saturday afternoons. To commemorate its rich maritime history, Port Clinton also holds the Port Clinton Lighthouse & Maritime Festival every year. To learn more about the town's past, stay at the historic Island House Hotel, a boutique hotel constructed in the late 1800s.

Tobermory, Ontario

The Niagara Escarpment, a 450-mile stretch of stratified sedimentary rocks deposited more than 400 million years ago, encircles Tobermory, a Lake Huron town at the top of the Bruce Peninsula. The St Edmunds and Peninsula Museum, accessible in the early summer and late fall, offers more information about the region's geography and history. Because of the many shipwrecks in the area, scuba diving has become a well-liked vacation pastime in Tobermory.

Flowerpot Island in Georgian Bay and two neighboring national parks—the Bruce Peninsula National Park and Fathom Five National Marine Park, Canada's first national marine conservation park—are also located in Tobermory.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

Located at the Niagara River's mouth, on the shores of Lake Ontario, Niagara-on-the-Lake is one of the most intriguing historic towns in the Great Lakes. The town still has the atmosphere of the Victorian era and the attractiveness of the 19th century. Constructed in the early 1800s, St. Mark's Church is an Anglican church that remains open today.

Numerous tombstones from that era can be found in the churchyard of St. Marks, the town's first cemetery. The St. Vincent de Paul Church, the oldest Catholic church in Ontario still in use for worship, is another iconic structure in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Learn about the region's rich history at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum. It may surprise you to hear that Niagara-on-the-Lake was the first capital of Upper Canada and a battleground during the War of 1812.

Discover These Historic Towns In The Great Lakes

These seven towns in the Great Lakes region add touches of historical charm to North America's well-known chain of freshwater lakes. Whether you are interested in visiting Bay Village in Ohio to learn more about the Cahoons, the area's first settlers, or exploring Niagara-on-the-Lake to see many historic buildings and structures, including the oldest Catholic church in Ontario, find communities that will transport you to the past.