Houghton County
Click on the sites below and explore Houghton County!
A.E. Seaman Mineral Museum
The A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum at the Michigan Technological University is the official mineral museum of the State of Michigan and one of the best in the U.S. A charter Heritage Site of the Keeweenaw National Historical Park, the museum is world renowned for its premier collection of Lake Superior copper district minerals, especially crystallized copper, silver, calcite and datolite. These are complemented by many superb specimens from North America and around the world. Since its inception in 1902, the museum has been devoted to mineral science education and exhibition of fine mineral specimens. Some 5,500 are currently on display, and the museum's collection now totals over 26,000 specimens. Thus, the museum plays a unique role in interpreting Michigan's mineral heritage by continually adding new specimens and creating exciting exhibits and programs.
Additional Information
Location: On the campus of Michigan Technological University in Houghton, 5th floor of Electrical Engineering Resources Center Building.
View MapFor more information contact the museum at (906) 487-2572 or see www.museum.mtu.edu
Chassell Heritage Center
Visitors will find a fascinating glimpse of the old lumbermill town of Chassell and rediscover the old fishing village of Portage Entry in a Chassell Township Timeline Exhibit showcasing prehistoric times through the Depression. The first European visitors to the Keweenaw area made their way by water and passed through historic Portage Entry. Large steamers once made their way into Pike Bay to load out thousands of board feet of lumber. The Friends of Fashion have made the Heritage Center their home and maintain a vintage clothing exhibition that changes annually. The collection includes outstanding examples of apparel dating from as early as the 1860s. The group gives historic fashion show performances both at the Center and throughout the area.
Additional Information
Location: 42373 N. Hancock St., Chassell. One block West of Hwy 41, seven miles South of Houghton, in the old Chassell School elementary building.
View MapHours: July - Aug on Tuesdays 1 - 4pm and Thursdays 4 - 7pm. Please contact (906)523-1155 for more information.
Copper Range Historical Museum
The CRHS, founded in 1988, has as its objective to preserve the historical heritage of the mines and the surrounding communities. Atlantic Mine, South Range, Baltic, Trimountain, Painesdale, Winona, Toivola, Donken, Redridge, Beacon Hill, Edgemere, and Freda. In 1900 the village of South Range was the commercial center for the local population. Our mission is to help create a sense of life during the copper mining era. The CRHS Museum was opened on June 30, 1993, in the former South Range State Bank Building built in early 1900.
Additional Information
Location: Right on M-26, South of Houghton (6.5 miles) on the Main Street in South Range across from the South Range Community Building.
View MapHours: Monday - Saturday, 1:00pm - 4:00pm in July and August and 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm Tuesday - Saturday in June, September and until mid October. Please contact (906) 482-6125 for more information. https://www.pasty.com/crhm
Coppertown Mining Museum
The Coppertown museum is an introduction to the fascinating story of the Copper Country and America's first real mining boom. The tools and techniques of mining advanced considerably over the period that copper was mined here, and Coppertown traces this evolution. The exhibits tell the story of the mine and miners, as well as the communities they helped develop.
Additional Information
Location: Turn West off US41 (Calumet Avenue) onto Red Jacket Road toward downtown Calumet.
View MapPlease call (906) 337-4354 for more information.
The Finnish-American National Historical Archive and Museum
In 1896, Finnish immigrants established Finlandia University (Suomi College) to educate their youth, provide seminary training for Lutheran pastors, and preserve Finnish culture and language in their new homeland. Opened in 1990, the Finnish American National Historical Archive and Museum (FANHAM) formerly the Finnish American Heritage Center, houses an art gallery, museum, theater, the offices of the Finnish American Reporter and the nation's largest collection of Finnish American culture and history.
Additional Information
Location: Take US 41 to Quincy St. The FANHAM is located at the corner of Quincy Street and Ryan Street. Street address: 435 Quincy Street, Hancock.
View MapPlease contact (906) 487-7302 or (906) 487-7347 for more information.
F.J. McLain State Park
One of the most beautiful parks in Michigan. A fine base to visit local attractions, such as abandoned shaft houses, tram cars, "poor rock" piles, and ghost towns. The park is a cooperating site with the Keweenaw National Historic Park which has preserved relics from the days when "Copper was King!" Activities within the park include fishing, windsurfing, berry picking, beach combing, and rock hounding. Sunsets are spectacular and the view of the lighthouse is magnificent.
Additional Information
Location: 10 miles North of Hancock on M-203; 9 miles West of Calumet on M-203.
View MapPlease contact (906) 482-0278 for more information.
Historic Calumet
A village rich with history and architecture, Calumet is one of the focal points of the Keweenaw National Historical Park. At the height of the mining period, Calumet bustled with commerce and a rich mix of immigrant groups. Red Jacket, as it was originally called, was developed on land provided by the C & H Mining Company. The commercial architecture of the village, along with the architecture of the C & H Industrial core, provide a fitting reminder of this busy time. Visit the Coppertown Mining Museum for an overview of the C & H story, take a tour of the historic Calumet Theater and the Upper Peninsula Firefighters Memorial Museum or stroll along the streets to admire the rich architecture and history of this once thriving mining community.
Additional Information
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Location: Take US 41 North to Calumet, turn on Red Jacket Rd.
View Map Please contact (906) 337-4579 for more information.
Houghton County Historical Museum
The Houghton County Historical Museum was is housed in the beautifully preserved Main Mill Office of Calumet and Hecla Mining Company. On the Museum campus, the visitor can take a train ride on an operational narrow gauge railroad that takes the rider back in time to when the Torch Lake shore was the place where the riches of C&H Quincy, and other mines were converted by mills to metal concentrates. Today, the Historical Museum Campus includes 1/4 mile railroad, eight historic buildings, and two gift shops on 15 acres along the shore of Torch Lake.
Additional Information
Location: 53150 Highway M-26, Lake Linden.
View MapPlease contact (906) 296-4121 or visit our website at www.houghtonhistory.org for more information.
Jacobsville Lighthouse
An example of traditional architectural style, the Jacobsville Lighthouse's conical brick tower with white stucco exterior is attached to a schoolhouse style keepers house. The lighthouse was build in 1869 and marked the Lower entry canal to the Portage River in the Keweenaw waterway. The use as a lighthouse was discontinued in 1919 when a new lighthouse was build on the Keweenaw Lower Entry Pier. From 1958 to 2004 the lighthouse served as a private residence. In 2005, Mike and Cheri Ditty, along with one of their sons and his wife, Bill and Becky Ditty restored the Lighthouse and opened it to the public as a bed and breakfast. A visit to the Jacobsville Lighthouse will give you a glimpse of 19th century life of seaside commerce on the shore of Lake Superior, the largest of the Midwest's inland seas. Enjoy an overnight stay in a picturesque and historic lakefront landmark or stop by and tour the tower on Sundays 12-2 or by appointment if you call ahead.
Additional Information
Location: Cross bridge for Houghton, Michigan to Hancock side, take a right on M-26, go to Lake Linden. At Lake Linden, turn right on 9th Street, this also becomes Bootjack Road. In about 8 miles you come to a "Y" in the road at Dreamland, go to left, this is Red Rock Road. Go down this road until it has another "Y". At this point go straight ahead on Jacobs Street. This street is about a city block long and the Lighthouse is at the end.
View MapStop by and tour the tower on Sundays 12-2 or by appointment if you call ahead. For more information or lodging reservations, contact www.jacobsvillelighthouse.com or (906) 523-4137.
Joseph Bosch Building & Lindell Chocolate Shoppe
The Lindell Chocolate Shoppe takes the traveler back to the late 1800's to a time of general merchandise stores and the first candy and confectionary manufacturers in the Midwest. On the National Register of Historic Places, the interior of the Lindell Chocolate Shoppe has remained virtually the same since the 1920's.
Additional Information
Location: 15 miles Northeast of Houghton on M-26 at 300 Calumet Avenue in Lake Linden.
View MapFor more information contact the shoppe at 906-296-8083 or e-mail at info@lindellchocolateshoppe.net. Visit their website at https://www.lindellchocolateshoppe.net
Laurium Manor Inn
Built in 1908 for a partner in the Calumet & Arizona Mining Company. Captain Thomas H. Hoatson was the owner of several Keweenaw Mining properties. He was also president of several banks and a railroad. This 13,000 square foot mansion contains 45 rooms. Some of the unique features include - gilded elephant leather wall coverings, hand-painted room size mural in the den, stained glass windows, hand-painted and silver leaf covered dome ceiling in the parlor, and a 1300 square foot ballroom on the third floor. Laurium Manor will leave you with an unforgettable glimpse of the wealth that was common in the Copper Country at the turn of the twentieth century.
Additional Information
Location: North from Houghton on US 41 to Calumet. Turn right on M-26, go straight 9 blocks to Tamarack St. Turn right, one half block on the left.
View MapPlease contact (906) 337-2549 for more information, or visit https://www.LauriumManorInn.com
Quincy Mine Historic Site and Underground Tour
Located within the Keweenaw National Historical Park Quincy Unit, this site interprets the story of the Quincy Mining Company, one of the first commercially successful and longest operating mines in the Keweenaw. Here you can see the largest steam hoist in the world, view the No. Two Shafthouse (9,260 ft. deep,) explore the mine's surface area, and ride a passenger cog rail tram to an underground tour that gives a first-hand view of the mine's operation. The tour goes one half mile into the mine intersecting the 7th level. One of 92 levels, the 7th was worked into expansive voids in the late 1850s.
Additional Information
Location: Just North of Hancock on US 41.
View MapPlease contact (906) 482-3101 for more information.
Painesdale Mine and Shaft
Painesdale Mine & Shaft is the name of the non-profit corporation dedicated to the preservation and restoration of Champion #4 Shaft Rockhouse and surrounding mining structures. Champion #4 Shaft Rockhouse is the oldest shaft rockhouse standing in the Keweenaw. Of the once extensive Copper Range Company mines, Champion #4 is the only shafthouse left to tell the story of one of the Keweenaw's greatest mining companies. It is unique in its design, built in the time when hand labor and brute force were used to move mountains. Champion #4 tells the story of several generations of miners, those men that lived and died blasting, tramming, hoisting, and crushing the copper rock. By preserving this shafthouse the story of those men, their sacrifices, their labor and their accomplishments will be preserved.
Additional Information
Location: From M-26 in Painesdale - turn onto Hubbard Street, follow approximately 1/2 mile. From Chassell/Painesdale Road turn onto Mineshaft Road along rock piles.
View MapPlease call (906) 482-6642 or (906) 482-1568 or e-mail: dlpindral@hotmail.com for more information. Tours of the shafthouse, hoist building and captains office are available upon request.
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Site by collaboration of Upper Peninsula Heritage Trail Network and the Beaumier Heritage Center
Hosted by Academic Information Services at Northern Michigan University