Tower Museum Shares New Views of History
By Bernie Nguyen

Paige Harrington of Gaylord at the Mission Point Tower Museum with St. Mary's Cathedral School.

The once-abandoned tower at Mission Point Resort's Activities Center has undergone major renovation, seven years of restructuring to meet building codes, and a vast aesthetic facelift to transform itself into the Mission Point Tower Museum, eight floors of murals, photographs, models and artifacts that chronicle the history of Mission Point Resort and the Straits of Mackinac.

The experience begins with a photographic exhibit of "Somewhere In Time," starring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve, some of which was filmed at the resort. Above it are displays depicting the construction of the buildings that now comprise the resort, built by Moral Re-Armament (or MRA) after WWII and used as the organization's summer world headquarters until the late 1960s, although MRA maintained a presence on the Island until 1970.

The fourth floor is dedicated to the history of MRA, with photographs, timelines, and fact sheets detailing the organization's goals, missions, and accomplishments while on the Island. The centerpiece of this display is an impressive, floorto ceiling mural depicting influential world leaders who joined MRA in its efforts to mend the damage of the war. It once was displayed at the Great Hall, now the registration lobby of Mission Point Resort.

The Mission Point Tower Museum includes one floor dedicated to Moral ReArmament, which built the Mission Point facility.

"These are the actual murals from Moral Re-Armament," said Pat Driscoll, director of activities at the hotel. "It's amazing that someone had the foresight to preserve it."

Ms. Driscoll said that one of the MRA display's most important aspect is the memory of the people it describes, some who return to the Island and view the display with nostalgia and affection.

The museum itself, Ms. Driscoll explained, serves as an important commemoration of the role that the facility has played on the Island.

"Every time I come up, I still see something I haven't noticed before," she said. "What better way to do something for the guests, residents, and visitors than to give them a history of the Island and the freighters and the property itself?"

Brian and Stacy Hamilton of Greentown, Indiana, visit the Tower Museum.

The other floors of the museum detail the nautical history of the Straits of Mackinac, including a large display about the enormous freighters that cruise the Great Lakes, an eerie exhibit lit with an underwater-green glow on Great Lakes shipwrecks, a detailed display on the building of the Mackinac Bridge, and a section on Great Lakes lighthouses. Each area is cleanly designed, with artifacts and photographs to depict the marine background of the Island's location in the Straits of Mackinac.

The museum opened late in the season last year, and Ms. Driscoll said the response thus far has been very enthusiastic.

"The tower is certainly a great amenity for our guests, but is also an attraction for other Island guests," said Dave Sanderson, the hotel's general manager. The Tower Museum experience "culminates in spectacular views of Mackinac Island, Round Island, the Straits, and the resort itself."

It offers, he said, historical perspectives that previously were not available on the Island.

Ms. Driscoll said that one of the tower's strongest features is its location and height, the beauty of its views displayed to full advantage by tall windows. It is perfect, she said, for group events, like corporate cocktail parties, small wedding receptions, and school groups. She is in the process of creating a Tower Museum trivia hunt for students.

Tickets to the museum are $5 for adults and $3 for children.