Glen Haven is a restored port village on the shore of Lake Michigan on the

Leelanau Peninsula The Leelanau Peninsula ( ) is a peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan that extends about from the western side of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan into Lake Michigan. Leelanau County encompasses the entire peninsula. It is often referred to ...

within the now Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Attractions include the Lake Michigan beach, a restored General Store and Blacksmith Shop. The unincorporated community is located in Glen Arbor Township.

History

Glen Haven, located on Sleeping Bear Bay, developed as a Lake Michigan deep water port to service shipping traffic with firewood, lumber and other supplies and services. In 1857, Glen Haven, was founded as a settlement called Sleeping Bearville when C. C. McCarty, brother-in-law of Glen Arbor pioneer John E. Fisher, built a saw mill and inn on the beach there. By 1881, there were 11 buildings in the community. Over years the timberline receded away from the shore and steamer firewood became scarce. In 1911, an agent for the Northern Transportation company, David H. Day, was sent to Glen Haven to secure and maintain a source of firewood to feed the boilers of the company's steam ships. He established a lumber mill on a pond between Little Glen Lake and the current National Park sand dune climbing area. Timber was harvested from around the inland lakes and floated to the saw mill for processing. The timber products were brought to the Glen Haven port by a narrow gauge steam locomotive on tracks along the base of sand dunes. The tracks ended on a long dock where the wood products were loaded directly onto ships. (The dock poles can still be seen off the shore) The Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore was authorized by congress on October 21, 1970. The National Park Service (N.P.S.) acquired private properties within and outside the planned park boundary under eminent domain and condemnation court proceedings. Also located in Glen Haven is the former Glen Haven Canning Co. building. This building was first used as a warehouse and later as a cannery for cherries in the 1920s. It has since been restored as the Cannery Boathouse Museum, housing historic small wooden boats used in the Manitou Passage between Glen Haven/Glen Arbor and the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

and South Manitou Islands. The former

M-209 In cryptography, the M-209, designated CSP-1500 by the United States Navy (C-38 by the manufacturer) is a portable, mechanical cipher machine used by the US military primarily in World War II, though it remained in active use through the Korean W ...

, once the shortest state highway in Michigan, extended from M-109 to Sleeping Bear Dunes Road adjacent to the canning factory. (M-209 was turned back to Leelanau County control in 1995 and is no longer a state highway, although many still refer to it by its former route designation today.) To the west along the waterfront, Sleeping Bear Dunes Rd terminates in front of the former U.S. Coast Guard Life Saving Station, now restored as the Sleeping Bear Point Coast Guard Station Maritime Museum. The exhibits focus on the U.S. Life-Saving Service, the

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mul ...

, and

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...

shipping history. In the summer, demonstrations are given of rescue drills and equipment used to fire a rescue line from shore more than to a ship in distress. The Coast Guard lifesaving station was built in 1901 and moved to its present location in 1931 before closing in 1941. The Park Service purchased all of the village by the mid-1970s. The last resident, Carolyn Bumgardner, was evicted through eminent domain in November 2007 after a long battle to keep her property.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is a United States National Lakeshore located along the northwest coast of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan in Leelanau and Benzie counties near Empire, Michigan. The park covers a stretch of Lake Michiga ...

is a

United States National Lakeshore The United States has ten protected areas known as national seashores and three known as national lakeshores, which are public lands operated by the National Park Service (NPS), an agency of the Department of the Interior. National seashores and ...

located on the "little finger" of the lower peninsula of Michigan in Leelanau and Benzie counties. The park covers a stretch of Lake Michigan's eastern coastline, as well as

and

South Manitou Island South Manitou Island ( ) is located in Lake Michigan, approximately west of Leland, Michigan. It is part of Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The uninhabited island is in land area and can be accessed by a ferry ...

s. The park was established primarily for its outstanding natural features, including forests, beaches, dune formations, and ancient glacial phenomena. The Lakeshore also contains many cultural features including the 1871

South Manitou Island Lighthouse South Manitou Island Lighthouse is located on South Manitou Island in Lake Michigan, west of Leland, Michigan. It is in Leelanau County in western Northern Michigan. History This is the third lighthouse built on the island. Construction of th ...

, three former Life-Saving Service/

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

Stations and an extensive rural historic farm district.

Images

Image:Glen Haven General Store 2007.jpg, The D.H. Day General store in Glen Haven File:Glen Haven Michigan Sign M-209 Looking north.jpg, Looking north toward Glen Haven along Glen Haven Road (former M-209) Image:GH boat museum 2007.jpg, Inside the Cannery Boathouse Museum

References

External links

National Park Service slideshow of Glen Haven
{{authority control National Register of Historic Places in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Museums in Leelanau County, Michigan Open-air museums in Michigan Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan 1857 establishments in Michigan Populated places established in 1857 Maritime museums in Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Leelanau County, Michigan

History

Images

See also

References

External links