Even before it was named in 1671, St. Ignace was a key part of Michigan history. Before Fr. Jacques Marquette and the Jesuits arrived in the Straits of Mackinac, St. Ignace had a large Native American settlement. With the arrival of the French, fur trading became an important industry. St. Ignace became the county seat in 1882. By the mid-1800s, fishing, shipping, manufacturing, and lumbering were a crucial part of St. Ignace activity. As these industries died down, tourism increased. The area was appealing to tourists for its natural beauty and its fresh air; many came for relief from hay fever and asthma. Initially travelers arrived by ship and train. Ferryboats were important in transporting visitors and goods because of the primitive road system. With its natural harbor, St. Ignace was within easy reach of other Great Lakes ports. With the completion of the Mackinac Bridge in 1957, travel to St. Ignace became much easier. St. Ignace is often referred to as the "Gateway to the Upper Peninsula."
Title: St. Ignace History Book a Pleasure
Author: Patty Cronan Brooks
Publisher: The St. Ignace News
Date: 1/15/2009
Since Cindy Patten at the St. Ignace Public Library tells me I am the first person to order the St. Ignace history book, "Images of America, St. Ignace," I feel moved to write and encourage others to order this book.
My husband and I have thoroughly enjoyed the book over and over again. I purchased it at the All-class Reunion this summer (class of 1968) and enjoyed getting into it on the plane back to Phoenix. It is still on the stand next to my husband's favorite chair, so we can take a look often. My husband is a retired history teacher, so of course it is fun for him, too.
Although he is from Oregon, and his heart is there in the summer, he loves to visit the Mackinac Straits with me. He reads the history parts of the paper with me, too. His first trip to "town" with me was spent seeing a lot of the historical sites. We still do some of that on every trip to Michigan, which lately has been every summer.
If you have not taken a look at this book - on display at the library - please do. You will enjoy what it has for you. There is something for all of you in this book, a great idea to show off our town. My heart is still there, too, even though I left 40 years ago.
My dad is featured in the book in a photo I had never seen before. What a nice surprise. You may have the same experience, but you won't know that until you visit Cindy and take a look at this book. Happy reading.
Patty Cronan Brooks
Scottsdale, Arizona
Editor's note: The library has sold more than 400 of the books since it went on sale October 30.
Title: St. Ignace History Book a Pleasure
Author: Patty Cronan Brooks
Publisher: The St. Ignace News
Date: 1/15/2009
Since Cindy Patten at the St. Ignace Public Library tells me I am the first person to order the St. Ignace history book, "Images of America, St. Ignace," I feel moved to write and encourage others to order this book.
My husband and I have thoroughly enjoyed the book over and over again. I purchased it at the All-class Reunion this summer (class of 1968) and enjoyed getting into it on the plane back to Phoenix. It is still on the stand next to my husband's favorite chair, so we can take a look often. My husband is a retired history teacher, so of course it is fun for him, too.
Although he is from Oregon, and his heart is there in the summer, he loves to visit the Mackinac Straits with me. He reads the history parts of the paper with me, too. His first trip to "town" with me was spent seeing a lot of the historical sites. We still do some of that on every trip to Michigan, which lately has been every summer.
If you have not taken a look at this book - on display at the library - please do. You will enjoy what it has for you. There is something for all of you in this book, a great idea to show off our town. My heart is still there, too, even though I left 40 years ago.
My dad is featured in the book in a photo I had never seen before. What a nice surprise. You may have the same experience, but you won't know that until you visit Cindy and take a look at this book. Happy reading.
Patty Cronan Brooks
Scottsdale, Arizona
Editor's note: The library has sold more than 400 of the books since it went on sale October 30.
Title: St. Ignace Book Depicts History in Photos
Author: Karen Gould
Publisher: The St. Ignace News
Date: 10/30/2008
A map dating to 1717 and the first 19 private land claims shown on an 1828 land survey are just two of more than 220 photographs and sketches in a new pictorial history book, "St. Ignace," that is available this week.
The book will be introduced at an open house at the St. Ignace Public Library Wednesday, October 29, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The open house was originally scheduled for Thursday evening, October 30.
Spanning more than 100 years, the photographs were collected by a group of local volunteers with the aid of the Michilimackinac Historical Society. The photographs, many of which have not been published before, came from local families and organizations, including Mackinac State Historic Parks, the City of St. Ignace, Mackinac Bridge Authority, Michilimackinac Historical Society, Mackinac County, U.S. Coast Guard, and the library.
"It was great to see all these people step up not only to offer all these photos to us, but also to provide such valuable information on the history of St. Ignace," said Ryan Schlehuber, who worked on collecting, scanning, and identifying the pictures. Also working on the sixmonth project were Cindy Patten, Ollie Boynton, Judy Gross, Hart Plumstead, Margaret Peacock, and Linda and John Monville. They were assisted by Judi Engle, Barbara Mullins-Zimmerman, and Patti Boynton.
The softcover, 127-page book offers a view of the history of this area that began with a large Native American settlement, became a fur trading center for the French, and was later a booming town with commercial fishing, railroads, sawmills, and tourism.
The 1915 cover photograph offers a rare glimpse inside one of the town's former establishments, the Snyder House, a 25-room hotel, bar, and restaurant.
The publisher, Arcadia Publishing of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, contacted librarian Ms. Patten with the idea to print the book and she found volunteers to help gather information and photographs, which were scanned at The St. Ignace News.
Volunteers on the project say the work took longer than expected, although they learned a great deal about the town.
Gathering information for the book, said Ms. Gross, gave her a good feel for how the town was set up, where everything was located, and that it was all within walking distance for people.
"I knew this," said Ms. Patten, "but it did not hit me hard until this project, on what a boom town St. Ignace was. Seeing all the pictures made me realize what a booming place this was."
After getting a survey of the first land claims from the Mackinac County Equalization Department, she also learned that St. Ignace is one of the few communities where the original private claim number still appears on abstracts and legal descriptions.
"It was just a very interesting project," agreed volunteer Ollie Boynton, who found articles in old newspapers a helpful resource.
The most difficult part of the work was identifying photographs, he said. Some photographs were so old no one was available to identify the people pictured. Often, he said, residents would give the volunteers leads and ideas so the research could continue.
Mr. Schlehuber agreed.
"Each photograph seemed like its own little book," he said, "which was loaded with a bunch of history."
The book will be available to purchase at the open house at a cost of $19.99. Those interested also can purchase a copy of the book in St. Ignace at Book World, The Gold Mine, and St. Ignace Chamber of Commerce. It also will be available for purchase at First Edition Books in Brevort and on the Internet at Amazon.
Royalties from the book, about 8% of each sale, will be donated to the St. Ignace Public Library.
