First Friday
Come join us this Friday, April 5 from 5-8pm for First Friday. Volunteer Curators Bonnie Schaaf & Paula Trout will be sharing with visitors how the museum's vintage clothing collection is cared for and a few of the newly unearthed treasures held in the collection will be on display for visitors to see. Some of the clothes date back to the 1860s! The First Friday event is FREE from 5-8pm only. Light refreshments will be served.
Nature's Architect: How Trail Creek Sculpted Michigan City's Shoreline
Join us at the Lubeznik Center for the Arts in Michigan City, IN, USA for an exciting event that explores the fascinating story of how Trail Creek shaped our beloved city's shoreline.
Discover the tenacious forces of nature that have influenced Michigan City's landscape over time. From the gentle currents of Trail Creek to the acrual of sand along Sheridan Beach, this event will take you on a journey through the natural history of Indiana's coast.
This video essay was made possible through funding from Indiana Humanities, the Lake Michigan Coastal Program, and NIPSCO.
Don't miss this opportunity to delve into the secrets of Michigan City's shoreline and gain a new appreciation for the incredible forces that have shaped our home.
Reserve your seat here:
http://bit.ly/47sKCBR
Date: Sunday, Janury 28, 2024
Time: 4:00pm - 5:00pm
Cost: $0
Location: Lubeznik Center for the Arts (101 W 2nd St, Michigan City, IN 46360)
Creators: Greg Coulter (Producer, Writer), Ryan Mieczyslaw Juszkiewicz (Filmmaker), Josh McIntyre (Archivist)
The Lincoln Roadshow - A Statewide Tour of Indiana
Chris Allen, Executive Director of the Lincoln Special project, will give a special presentation celebrating Abraham Lincoln’s boyhood in Indiana and the funeral train that carried his body to rest in Springfield, IL. This program will take place on Saturday January 6, 2024 at 2:00Pm (CST) at the Michigan City Public Library, 100 E 4th St. in downtown Michigan City. Lincoln’s funeral train stopped at the depot in Michigan City May 1, 1865 where a large crowd of mourning citizens gathered to greet it.
Allen is touring Indiana to create awareness of Lincoln’s legacy and of the importance of remembering the events surrounding the special train that carried his body to its final resting place. Allen is raising support for “Of tears and Iron” a film that he is creating to memorialize the events of that rail journey.
According to Allen, Lincoln’s funeral train, dubbed the “Lincoln Special“ , travelled 1,6544 miles from Washington D.C. to Springfield. Millions turned out along the route to pay homage to their fallen leader. The people of Michigan City played a prominent role in that historic journey.
This program will be of interest to students of Lincoln, fans of the history of early rail travel and history buffs in general.
Join us on January 6th for a look at the Legacy of one of the most prominent Presidents in U.S. History and the role that Indiana, Michigan City, and the railroads played in honoring him after his untimely death.
Michigan City Historical Society Annual Meeting
We will be having our annual meeting Saturday, December 2 at 10am CST at the Barker Mansion. 631 Washington Street in Michigan City. The meeting will be held in the lower level of the mansion. Guest speaker will be LaPorte County Historian Bruce Johnson.
This meeting is open to the public. For any questions, please call the museum at 219-872-6133 or email contact@mchistorical.org
First Friday Christmas Scavenger Hunt
Join us for a Christmas scavenger hunt at the Old Lighthouse Museum on First Friday, December 1 from 5-8pm CST. The scavenger hunt is for all ages. Find the Christmas ornaments hidden throughout the museum and win small prizes!
Light refreshments will be served.
This event is free & open to the public.
First Friday Photo Scavenger Hunt
Join us for a photo scavenger hunt at the Old Lighthouse Museum on First Friday, October 6 from 5-8pm CT. The scavenger hunt is for all ages. We will have 2 categories for youth & adults. We photographed items on display throughout the museum. Find those items and win small prizes!
Light refreshments will be served.
This event is free & open to the public.
Ice Cream Social
Join us on the grounds of Michigan City’s own Old Lighthouse Museum on Sunday August 20, 2023 for an Old Fashioned Ice Cream Social.
Stroll the grounds of the museum, enjoy children’s games, and listen to the summer sounds of the 60’s as you enjoy a cool ice-cream treat.
Visit our gift shop to find Michigan City themed items such as T-shirts, mugs, magnets, postcards, books, and many other items created by local artists!
FREE admission to the Old Lighthouse Museum from 12-4pm Central Time. The Ice Cream Social will be held from 1-2pm.
We would like to thank Dee Haddad at Lake Life Social for all of her help!
www.lakelifesocialweddingsandevents.com
50th Anniversary Gala & S.S. Eastland Memorial
Join us on Saturday, July 22 at 10:45AM - 4:00PM CT at Michigan City’s Old Lighthouse Museum as we celebrate our 50th anniversary!
The day will begin with a fanfare performed by the Michigan City Municipal Band followed by a memorial service and the laying of a wreath in Trail Creek, by members of the Michigan City US Coast Guard Station, to honor the 844 lives lost on the S.S. Eastland when it capsized in the Chicago River on July 24, 1915.
Guest speakers will tell the story of the Eastland and recount the history of the old lighthouse at the mouth of Trail Creek. After a short program honoring those who maintained the light for many years and the volunteers who have preserved the lighthouse for over 50 years, the Old Lighthouse Museum will be open free of charge until 4pm.
This event will be held on the Old Lighthouse Museum grounds located at 100 Heisman Harbor Road and is open to the public with no entry fee. Limited parking is available at the Old Lighthouse Museum & Millennium Plaza. Additional parking is available at Washington Park Beach with a $15 entry fee unless you have a parking sticker.
See our newly restored Eastland Memorial. Each anchor chain link represents the 844 passengers who lost their lives on the Eastland. The Old Lighthouse Museum Michigan City Historical Society would like to thank the Stimley family & crew for their contributions towards the remodel of the Eastland Memorial.
We are also pleased to announce that author and former Curator/Director of Michigan City's Old Lighthouse Musuem, Patricia Gruse Harris, will join us at our 50th anniversary celebration on July 22nd, from 10:30am - 12:30pm to sign her new book, "Keepers of the Michigan City Light ''. This new book shares the stories of all of the lighthouse keepers and assistant keepers who kept our light burning from 1837 until 1940. The book will also be available in our gift shop.
For more information, please email us at contact@mchistorical.org or by phone at (219) 872-6133.
Old Lighthouse Museum Fundraiser Cruise
Mark your calendars for a special event this summer. The Michigan City Historical Society/Old Lighthouse Museum and Captain Vic’s Harbor Country Adventures will host a fundraiser Cruise on beautiful Lake Michigan aboard the Emita II.
Boarding starts at 3:30pm CT. The boat will leave at 4pm and we will cruise the lake until 6:00pm. There will be live entertainment by Steve and Mary E., Hors D’oeuvres and a cash bar. Tickets are $50.00 and proceeds will be used by the museum for celebrating the 50th anniversary of our Old Lighthouse Museum.
Join your friends from the old lighthouse and Captain Vic on this Harbor Country Adventure and help us make this 50th anniversary of the museum a memorable year for all.Ages 21+ only.
Tickets can be purchased at the Old Lighthouse Museum. Wed-Sun from 1-4pm CT. If you would like to purchase your tickets at another time, please contact the office at 219-872-6133 or email contact@mchistorical.org.
Tickets are non-refundable. All ticket sales benefit the Old Lighthouse Museum.
Please visit Harbor Country Adventures for more general boat tour information.
LaPorte County Symphony Orchestra Quartet
Location:
Old Lighthouse Museum
100 Heisman Harbor Road
Michigan City, IN 46360
Featuring members of the LaPorte County Symphony Orchestra
Carrie Ann Carlson - Violin I
Olivia Muller - Violin II
Will Muller - Viola
Morgan Sleeper - Cello
First Friday: HBD Harriet Colfax
Join us for our monthly First Friday event.
Monthly theme TBD
Annual Meeting with Guest Speaker Kay Westhues
Join us to celebrate a year of successes!
Our Annual Meeting is a time for us to report back to our members on our programs and initiatives over the year. Please join us for this special event!
Folklorist Kay Westhues will present on "Communal Places and Neglected Spaces: Exploring Indiana’s Roadside Springs." See below for more information. Her presentation is made possible with support from Indiana Humanities.
9:30am - Doors open
10:00am - Opening Remarks and a Year in Review
10:30am - Kay Westhues presents: Communal Places and Neglected Spaces: Exploring Indiana’s Roadside Springs
11:30am - Business Meeting (Election of Officers, etc)
When: November 19, 2022
Where: Krueger Memorial Hall (Liberty Trail, Michigan City)
Who's Invited: Everyone!
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Communal Places and Neglected Spaces: Exploring Indiana’s Roadside Springs
Roadside springs are sites where geography, history, and public health intersect. Before municipal water systems were available, these public commons resources provided travelers and those in need with free access to water. Some springs have been flowing over a century and have played a central role in western colonization. Kay’s talk will examine several historic springs in Indiana, by sharing oral histories, photographs, and archival research. She explores why some springs still function as communal spaces for water gathering, while others have fallen out of our collective memory. In the process, she addresses issues of water access and environmental justice.
Kay Westhues is a folklorist and artist who is interested in examining the ways in which rural tradition and history are interpreted and transformed in the present day. Her research interests include environmentalism and water rights, the public commons, oral history, and the cultural significance of place.
Lighthouses: An Introduction from A to Z
Lighthouses were yesterday’s vitally important navigational beacons. Today they may be seen as nostalgic reminders of a simpler time. Or, do we hold a romanticized view of these majestic towers? What continues to draw us to these majestic towers?
This class will explore key inventions of the period such as the Fresnel Lens and Argand Lamp, various types of lighthouse architecture as well as the people (and animals) who kept them then and continue to keep them now. Interesting facts, such as where the keeper went potty, and amazing trivia (what’s a pharologist?) will also be covered in this highly interactive, photo filled class.
Classes will be held at the Michigan City Senior Center (2 On the Lake). Registration includes a copy of the course textbook, The Lighthouse Primer. Members of the Historical Society and members of the Senior Center are welcome to register for the 10:30am class for $15 (including textbook). Non-members can register for the 1:00pm class for $40. Register in advance for this 6 week class.
Secret Northwest Indiana: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure with Author Joseph Pete
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
First Friday: At the Bend in Trail Creek
One of the most important artifacts at the Old Lighthouse Museum isn’t in our building: it’s Trail Creek. The creek is named after the native people used the creek as a navigational aid centuries before the construction of the lighthouse. Here, native people following the Potawatomi Trail knew to turn inland on their journey to trading posts along the St Joseph River. Newcomers from the Atlantic coast established a town where the creek flows into Lake Michigan with the intent on building a harbor in the 1830s.
Join us for this First Friday event as we take a deep dive into the environmental history of Trail Creek and the people who make their home along its banks.
Free admission, refreshments, and beer & wine (21+)
Members Only: Model Makers
Michigan City Historical Society Members are invited to join us for this exclusive event. Your membership contribution allows the Michigan City Historical Society to continue to tell the story of Hoosiers living on Lake Michigan. Thanks to supporters like you, we are able to continue to operate the Old Lighthouse Museum, conduct research requests, preserve history, and provide educational outreach to over 600 students each year.
At this special Members Only event, you are invited to join us for a glass of wine, some refreshments, and the company of other Historical Society members. Local model makers Tom Suhs and Alan Jenny will speak about the models thy have created for the Old Lighthouse Museum.
As an added benefit, members are invited to look through a small pile of books we are deaccessing. By deaccessing these books, we are creating space not only for a little breathing room, but also space for more up-to-date books for research and reference.
Keepers of the Michigan City Light
Learn more about the six men and two women who served as Keepers of the Michigan City Light from 1837 to 1904.
This digital exhibit was created by the Michigan City Historical Society and Old Lighthouse Museum to celebrate National Lighthouse Day on Sunday, August 7. While the museum is closed for the Great Lakes Grand Prix, you can still celebrate Michigan City’s lighthouses and the six men and two women who kept the light.
Access Keepers of the Michigan City Light here:
https://arcg.is/1H94Ly0
The Dockside Market
Swing by the Dockside Artisan Market Sundays between 10am and 2pm to enjoy local arts and music. Make plans to join us on Sundays for this great event. Over 30 vendors, live music, Bloody Mary’s and Mimosas. All this in the beautiful setting of Millennium Plaza in Michigan City.
The Old Lighthouse Museum is extending its hours to be open to visitors during the market: 10am to 4pm. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for youth ages 5-13, and toddlers and Historical Society members are free.
First Friday: Art at the OLM
Join us July 1 from 5:00pm to 8:00pm to learn more about the art on display in our permanent exhibits. Many people associate the Old Lighthouse Museum with historical exhibits, but the art in our collection is timeless. Highlights include William Nelson's paintings of local dunes, Erwin F Graf's model ships, and who could forget about those enchanting witch balls.