Vintage Photos of Traverse City, Michigan: 1890s-1952

It was in 1881 that Traverse City was incorporated as a village. The area was first settled in the summer of 1847 and became a city in 1895. But it was in 1881 when the town became "official".

There are plenty of reasons to roadtrip to Traverse City. I've been there quite a few times, a couple of them were to check out some haunted locations. And they are plentiful.

One of the places I checked out was Bower's Harbor Inn, now known as the Mission Table Inn. I had heard about a haunting there and nothing was really happening...until one of the employees showed me the stockroom...and a few items started flying off the shelves.

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I have no complaints about Traverse City food, either. I can't remember the name of the restaurant, but one of 'em on the bay had prime rib...when my order came, it covered the whole plate! I mean, this was one monster slice of beef.

Among the hundreds of things to do in Traverse City, there's:
The Cherry Festival
The Old Asylum
The Opera House
The Hippie Tree
Fishing
Boating
The Music House Museum
The Torch Lake Monster
The Old Town Playhouse

Not to mention camping, great scenery, shopping, and tons of history. Speaking of which, in the photo gallery below, you'll see the old Traverse City – the people, the clothes, the way of life - depicted in 40 vintage photos, that range from the 1890s-1952.