Traverse City's Old Mission Peninsula for History Buffs

By MIKE NORTON
Of the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau


Old Mission Peninsula

The Old Mission General Store

Ready for a lovely drive? Then it’s time to explore the Old Mission Peninsula, where the history of this region really began. Head east on M-37 and follow it when it turns north; you’ll be driving along the spine of this narrow glacial peninsula that separates the east and west arms of Grand Traverse Bay. Once you leave the shoreline with its elegant homes and cottages, you enter a zone of fruit orchards and vineyards – a reminder that this is also the birthplace of Traverse City’s famous fruit-growing industry.

Tucked into a secluded harbor 18 miles from Traverse City, the village of Old Mission seems frozen in time. It was founded in 1839 as a joint venture by leaders of the local Ottawa Indian tribe and a wiry Presbyterian minister named Peter Dougherty, and was a kind of social experiment: a small colony of teachers, artisans and farmers – Indians and non-Indians alike – who lived and worked side by side in this idyllic spot at the water’s edge. Some of its original structures are still standing (including the broad frame mission house built by Dougherty and his Indian neighbors in 1842) and have the look and feel of museum pieces -- except that they’re still being used.

A glimpse into the past -- and penny candy -- at the Old Mission General Store
From the eclectic Old Mission General Store, which sells everything from ice cream cones to coonskin caps, visitors can stroll down Mission Road past Dougherty’s mission headquarters and the village schoolhouse (now a private residence) to the trim Old Mission Inn, the oldest continuously-operated hotel in the region. Owners Bruce and Angie Jensen have done extensive research on the history of the 1839 hotel, and love to share their knowledge with visitors. Just north of the inn is the village’s New England-style congregational church with its tall white spire, and the broad white beach where the intrepid Dougherty first stepped ashore.

Three miles to the north you’ll find the Old Mission Lighthouse, built in 1870 to warn ships away from the rocky shoals of Old Mission Point. The simple frame structure sits on a low bluff above a wide public beach, where a sign informs visitors that they’re standing on the 45th Parallel, exactly halfway between the equator and the North Pole. The lighthouse is open for tours, and is surrounded by acres of public shoreline with miles of trails for hiking, cycling and cross-country skiing.

To learn more about the history of Traverse City, and for help with lodging, dining and other year-round fun, call the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-TRAVERSE or visit their Web site at http://www.traversecity.com/