Iron County Homestead Complex

Homesteaders began to arrive in the Iron County area about 1877, when Iron County was still part of Marquette County, and the greatest settlement occurred from 1880 to 1895. The buildings in this homestead complex were originally located throughout the county and include the Soderquist Barn and Sheds, built in 1890 in Bates Township; the Puotinen Barn, about 1900, in the Amasa area; the Beechwood Cabin, about 1890, in the Beechwood area; the Log Toilet, about 1935, in the South Brule area; the Irvine Playhouse, about 1935, in Iron River; the Koski Cabin, about 1913, in the South Brule area; the Maki Sauna, about 1900, in the Beechwood area; and the Peterson Log Building, about 1890, in the Bates area. Beginning in the early 1970s, high school students dismantled these structures, local loggers transferred the logs to the museum grounds, and students reassembled them for the homestead complex.

Caspian, Michigan · United States