Built for Fun

In the early 20th Century, a growing cluster of attractions developed beside Walled Lake as automobiles and highways brought large numbers of city dwellers seeking entertainment beyond the lake's earlier appeal for fishing, swimming, and boating. Beginning in 1919, local entrepreneurs built boathouses, bathhouses, docks, cabins, and campgrounds. By the mid-1920s, local life included Detroiters dancing at music halls, powerboats on the lake, and people riding a huge waterslide into the water. For decades, Walled Lake remained popular for music and dancing at Walled Lake Casino and for thrill rides at Walled Lake Amusement Park. The first silent movies in the area were shown in the Cenaqua Shores Dance Pavilion in the early 1920s.

Novi, Michigan · United States