The Walker Tavern is a historic structure located at 11710

U.S. Route 12 U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States Numbered Highways, United States highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90) an ...

in Cambridge Township in northwesternmost

Lenawee County Lenawee County ( ') is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 99,423. The county seat is Adrian. The county was created in 1822, from territory partitioned from Monroe County. Its g ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. It was designated as a Michigan Historic Site on February 19, 1958, and was later the county's first property added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on January 25, 1971. The structure was incorporated into the

Cambridge Junction Historic State Park Cambridge Junction Historic State Park is a historic preservation area located three miles south of Brooklyn in Cambridge Township, Michigan. The state park is the site of Walker Tavern, a major stopping place for stagecoaches traveling between ...

and continues to serve as a museum and venue for various events.

History

This structure was built as a modest

farmhouse FarmHouse (FH) is a social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity founded at the University of Missouri on April 15, 1905. It became a national organization in 1921. Today FarmHouse has 33 active chapters and four associate ch ...

around 1832 by an unknown architect in the style of

Federal architecture Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was heavily based on the works of Andrea Palladio with several inn ...

. It was built at the important intersection of the former

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(U.S Route 12) and the Monroe Pike ( M-50). At some point, Calvin Snell began operating the building as a tavern for travelers along the road. In about 1838, Sylvester and Lucy Walker moved from New York State and likely began leasing the inn and tavern from Snell. In 1842, the Walkers purchased the tavern, renaming it the Walker Tavern. In addition to a tavern, it also served as an

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

for travelers from Monroe en route from

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

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— a stagecoach trip that once took five days. Famous guests included

Daniel Webster Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress and served as the U.S. Secretary of State under Presidents William Henry Harrison, ...

and

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonist and Indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

. The structure served a variety of purposes, including a meeting place for religious and political gatherings. Walker operated the tavern until about 1853, when he constructed a similar establishment, S. Walker's Hotel, across the street. In 1865, the older Walker Tavern was purchased by Francis A. Dewey. In 1921, Frederic Hewitt purchased the tavern and converted it into a museum. In 1965, the Walker Tavern was sold to the Michigan DNR, and it underwent several alterations during a restoration process.

Description

The Walker Tavern is a two-story frame structure, sided with whitewood clapboard, and located on a low rise of ground. It is framed with hand-hewn white oak timbers about eight inches square. A basement of fieldstone extends under about half the building. The original portion of the tavern measures approximately 36 feet by 18 feet, and three major additions were made to the rear of the original structure, extending its depth.

References

External links

Walker Tavern Historic Site
- official site {{National Register of Historic Places listings in Lenawee County, Michigan Houses in Lenawee County, Michigan Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Federal architecture in Michigan Museums in Lenawee County, Michigan Museums established in 1921 Houses completed in 1832 Michigan State Historic Sites in Lenawee County Taverns in Michigan 1921 establishments in Michigan Historic house museums in Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Lenawee County, Michigan Drinking establishments on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan