North Manitou Island

Cottage Row: A North Manitou Island Community

By Stacie / February 15, 2026 / Comments Off on Cottage Row: A North Manitou Island Community

Cottage Row article first published in Historical Society of Michigan, Michigan History Magazine, July/Aug 2022 Cottage Row: A Haven for Summer Rest and Relaxation Imagine a perfect summer day on the shores of Lake Michigan, far from the city, at your family cottage surrounded by the cottages of your friends. What could be better? That…

Exploring Lumbering Sites on North Manitou

By Stacie / December 11, 2025 / Comments Off on Exploring Lumbering Sites on North Manitou

Part 3: Exploring Lumbering Sites of Crescent and Davenport Camps Remembering Crescent with Billy and Karen Rosa. Featuring Billy and Karen Rosa, authors of Remembering Crescent: Logging and Life on North Manitou Island. Join us to tour locations around Crescent, on the trails, and North to the Davenport Lumber Camp area. Crescent was a lumber…

Remembering Crescent: Logging and Life on North Manitou Island

By Stacie / December 11, 2025 / Comments Off on Remembering Crescent: Logging and Life on North Manitou Island

Billy and Karen Rosa A family history of A.J White who ran the Crescent sawmill, complete with historic photos. This includes descriptions of lumbering in Michigan in the early 1900s, and life on a remote island. 186 Pages, 2024     Purchase Review of the book: The Rosas have created a wonderful volume rich in detail…

Voices of North Manitou: Remembering Crescent

By Stacie / December 11, 2025 / Comments Off on Voices of North Manitou: Remembering Crescent

Voices of North Manitou Authors Billy and Karen Rosa share North Manitou Island history and reflect on the recent trip to Crescent on the island, where the Billy and Karen searched for his grandmother’s home from the early 1900’s. Now in the federally designated wilderness of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, the site of…

Remembering Crescent: North Manitou Island

By Stacie / December 10, 2025 / Comments Off on Remembering Crescent: North Manitou Island

Remembering Crescent with Billy and Karen Rosa, Part 1: Visit to Crescent Featuring Billy and Karen Rosa, authors of Remembering Crescent: Logging and Life on North Manitou Island. Join us for this day trip to North Manitou Island, where authors Billy and Karen search for his grandmother’s home from the early 1900’s. Now in the…

Voices of North Manitou Series: Bob and Sara Zielesch

By Stacie / May 8, 2024 / Comments Off on Voices of North Manitou Series: Bob and Sara Zielesch

Join us for another episode of Voices of North Manitou. Bob and Sara spent many years vacationing on North Manitou Island during the 60s and 70s, and came back as campers in the 90s, and became long-serving volunteers. Step back in time with Bob and Sara on North Manitou Island. Bob’s father was the accountant…

The Women of the Manitou Islands

By Stacie / March 21, 2024 / Comments Off on The Women of the Manitou Islands

This special program was created for the Leelanau Historical Society, honoring the women of the North and South Manitou Islands. Celebrate Women’s History Month by learning about the strong and determined women of the Manitou Islands. The North and South Manitou Islands are places of mystery, with many shuttered old homes and ruins, evidence of…

Tour of Historic Katie Shepard Hotel

By Stacie / August 29, 2023 / Comments Off on Tour of Historic Katie Shepard Hotel

Walk through the Katie Shepard Hotel with me on North Manitou Island! It is normally closed to the public, and this is a great opportunity for you to see inside. Built in 1985, this beautiful building is being lovingly restored. We did our second volunteer trip to North Manitou Island this month, this time with…

Voices of North Mantou: Kevin Mark

By Stacie / May 12, 2023 / Comments Off on Voices of North Mantou: Kevin Mark

Enjoy a virtual visit to North Manitou with Kevin Mark and his stories. We have a new episode of our history series: Voices of North Manitou. This series explores the history of the North Manitou Island in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore through the people who have lived, worked, played, and been a part…

Backcountry Couples

By Stacie / April 28, 2023 / Comments Off on Backcountry Couples

  Watch our guest appearance on Backcountry Couples! One of the great things about the outdoors industry is all the fun people we are able to meet, especially Jonny and Colleen Kuehl. We met them this winter at the Quiet Adventures Symposium, where we were all presenting. They use their platform for education, information, and…