1886 Celebration Planned Saturday at Mackinaw City Pest House Site

The Mackinaw Area Historical Society is celebrating the grand opening of the Pest House and Infirmary Saturday, July 1, with free interpretive tours, plus vintage baseball games and the appearance of the 5th Michigan Regiment Band. The Pest House is the first historical building in the Historic Village and the celebration will be carried out in the style of 1886.

The band will play at the opening ceremony and during the baseball games and, between games, band members will explain their historic music, uniforms, and instruments.

The opening ceremony will be at 11 a.m. and will feature a country doctor and his nurse telling the story of how the building was used long ago. The young daughter of a patient will show her diary.

Other events include a pig roast from noon to 1:30 p.m., old-fashioned games for children and adults, and an oldtime politician discussing the issues of the day and getting a tongue-lashing from a suffragette.

Using equipment and rules from the 1880s, the Grayling Swampers will play the Mackinaw City Boys at noon and the Ludington Mariners will play one of the earlier teams at 2 p.m.

Admission is $2 per adult, free for children under 10. The pig roast meal will be $6 and other food, refreshments, and concession items will carry a small additional charge, some even at 1886 prices.

To get to Historic Village, take Central Avenue west until it dead ends on Wilderness Park Drive. Turn south (left) and proceed 1/3 mile to the Historic Village sign on the left and the dirt road entrance.