Heritage of Mackinac Island Barns Preserved in Renovations

The David Levy family hosted a lecture at their newly restored cottage, Craig Mawr, on the East Bluff. The talk, given by off-Island equestrian Carol Ley, was for the Island's riding horse set. This is the second summer that the Levy family has gone to the trouble and effort to experience riding and horse ownership on Mackinac. They’ve already begun their own Mackinac horse tales.

The family really seems to be enjoying having their horses in their own backyard. They’ve worked hard to have it right. The restoration package of Craig Mawr also included definite plans to revert the cottage's barn back to the functional structure as it was intended to be used. The barn remains a barn.

The David Levy family has restored Craig Mawr and maintained the historic barn.

There are still functional working cottage barns on Mackinac, but there is a difference. The Levy family now joins the Stingels, Rauschs, Youngs, Bankards, and Barrs that have original working barns that have had "million dollar face-lifts" along with their cottages. However, and this is important, the old barns still house horses, saddles, hay, grain, and usually one or two original pieces of tack or carriages. Most importantly, these barns, especially the Levy barn, have a Mackinac heritage as important as the cottage they belong to. Barn preservation is important, especially for this Island.

Walking has always been a great pastime on Mackinac. I encourage our readers, out for a morning or evening stroll, to take a look not only at the century-old cottages, but their barns, or envision the small little lean-to barns that once upon a time were on Market Street. You will note how few remaining structures stand.

Summer cottages on the East Bluff as a whole have never been as "grand" as their counterparts on the West Bluff. They are, however, unique. One of the most outstanding is Craig Mawr, which was built in 1890 for the Walsh family. Its original owners and the following concurrent owners (the Cochrane family by 1905) all enjoyed the Mackinac summer sports - lawn tennis, horses, and golf. Jack Cochrane was a notable regular and fabulous golfer at Wawashkamo. His horses were quite nice, too (that's an understatement). In fact, Craig Mawr has always been and still is an understatement in taste. It is quietly commanding and relaxed.

The barn of Craig Mawr is the largest and most impressive of any on the East Bluff and by original design could rival any of Mackinac's west cottage barns. It is approximately 1,400 square feet in size and has room for five horses. The Levys fashioned two roomy box stalls and three standing stalls, leaving the original pillared dividers and wall feeders. Even the old carriage whip racks and brass hooks haven’t been changed. Everything, though, has been upgraded and strengthened. Perhaps the only real new additions are the overhead fans and the automatic individual waterers.

Currently the family has two horses, Brandy, a 20-something Appaloosa cross, and Faith, a nice chestnut Quarter horse that is six. Downstate, Ann and her daughters board the horses, and take advantage and ride in the winter.

Craig Mawr's barn is built on dry ground, and when it was being restored it was further helped by new layers of crushed limestone for drainage, and heavy hardwood flooring with spacers for additional drainage and air. The barn is blessed with central open front and rear sliding barn doors, there are high windows above the stalls that open outward, plenty of light coming in from the large original windows, and a central air duct. This feature, which I thought was a feed shoot, is actually the epitome of "proper stable construction" circa 1916. When you’re in the barn, it feels timeless, like a barn; it’s airy, light, and dry. You can smell the hay and leather.

The Levys have added an outdoor paddock for turnouts. It has adequate room for the animals, as well as a slant for runoff. Layers of sand and rubber matting were incorporated for footing. There are three carriages that came with Craig Mawr cottage and those are being renovated, like the barn. I’m sure when they come back to the Island they will be in full running order, proper and well done.

Candice Dunnigan is an active member of the American Equestrian Association, the Waterloo Hunt, and the Mackinac Island Horsemen’s Association. Seasonally she resides at Donnybrook and Easterly Cottage.