Community Calendar

Let's celebrate Michigan's 189th Birthday!

Join us for a slice of cake and make a birthday card to wish Michigan a happy birthday! TADL will gather all the cards made and send them to Governor Whitmer to show how much love we have here for our beautiful state.

The goal of the Traverse Area Historical Society is to share local history of Traverse City and the Grand Traverse region. This month Postcards: Little Pieces of History, Artistry, and Humanity.

RHAPSODY in BLUE headlines the Traverse City Philharmonic's celebration of 250 years of independence alongside masterpieces by America’s greatest composers.

Feel the energy of Bernstein’s West Side Story Dances, ride the wild rhythms of Copland’s Buckaroo Holiday, and experience history in the making with the Michigan Premiere of Rhapsody in Red, White, and Blue—a brand-new work composed especially for our guest pianist, Jeffrey Biegel, as the perfect companion to Gershwin’s classic.

Students and 1st timers, call for 50% off! 231-947-7120 Or email info@tcphil.org

Monday, January 19th, 2026 at The Commongrounds Building (414 E. Eighth St.) Traverse City, MI. From 10am-8pm

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Voices Carry Forward: The Deep History of Spoken Word and Oral Traditions.
FREE Community Event: Music, Poetry, Art, Community, FREE LUNCH.

Free Tickets for Evening Show at thealluvion.org

Families stop in after school to make a peace dove in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Receive one free book per family.

"The Barn Raisers" tells the fascinating and true story of America's vintage barns and the mysterious men who built them. Barns were constructed by farmer-craftsmen, professional builders who moved from job to job, and even architects like Frank Lloyd Wright. What do barn settings, styles, and building materials tell us about the people who built them, and the life they lived? "The Barn Raisers" examines barns through the lens of architecture and paints a cinematic portrait of an enduring cultural icon. Insightful interviews with barn owners, historians, architects, artists, and preservationists are combined with "country cathedrals" in Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Michigan to tell this uniquely American story.

Runtime: 54 minutes

Watch this film in the middle of our photo exhibit of Michigan's heritage barns - including one from Grand Traverse County! (Thank you to the Michigan Barn Preservation Network for making this film and exhibit possible.)

Why are we so divided?

Why do Americans living in the city and the country experience politics as a battle between “us” and “them”?

In Rural Versus Urban: The Growing Divide That Threatens Democracy, co-authors Suzanne Mettler and Trevor Brown write that America’s deep political division now pervades every state in our country.

Event Details
Doors open at 1:30 p.m. with live music, and the conversation begins at 2 p.m. This event includes a Q&A session and an author signing immediately following in the lobby.

Content Rating

Unless otherwise noted, NWS events are designed for adult audiences and may not be suitable for children.

“The History of Crystal Highlands.”
Presented by: Anne Rogers
Thursday, February 12, 2026, 4 pm
Where: Mills Community House & ZOOM

High on a glacial moraine above Crystal Lake’s north shore is Crystal Highlands, a community that celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2025. In the early part of the 20th century, after the logging era, orchards and farms were established in the cut-over lands. In the early 1970s, Jim Kelly and Jack French acquired 550 acres of farmland with a vision to create a resort community while preserving the area's ecology. This is the story of that community.

Presenter: Anne Rogers

Anne is a volunteer in the Benzie Area Historical Society Archives. Born in Southern Indiana, she spent her childhood summers on the north shore of Crystal Lake, with happy memories of weekly visits to the library right here in the Mills Community House. She has been roaming the trails in Crystal Highlands since its inception and still lives there today. After rewarding careers at The Dow Chemical Company in Midland and Cargill in Minneapolis, Anne is happily retired and volunteers at the Benzie Area Historical Society Archive and the Piping Plover team in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

This presentation is part of the Benzie Area Historical Society’s Benzonia Academy Lecture Series, held on the second Thursday of each month. Admission is by donation, and the recommended donation is $5.

To learn more about the February 12th lecture, visit the Benzie Area Historical Society’s website, benziemuseum.org, Instagram, or Facebook page; call the Museum at (231) 882-5539; or email info@benziemuseum.org.

A Guided Winter Trek, Hot Cocoa, and a Flavor of History in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Discover Port Oneida’s past on snow-covered paths with your history guide. Your adventure begins and ends at the historic Olsen House where after a gentle trek, you will gather in the kitchen for a hot cocoa bar with all the fixings, and warm cookies, using Hattie Olsen’s own recipe. Visit this cozy, charming home during the winter season and get a unique snowy view of the Olsen farmstead and surrounding landscapes.

If conditions do not allow for snowshoeing, we will take a winter hike. Bring your own snowshoes and a change of shoes for inside the Olsen House.

This event is for adults and children over 12. This is a free event and donations are welcome. Registration is requested so we can prepare enough cocoa and bake enough cookies!

Friday June 19th, 9am-5pm
Saturday June 20th, 9am-3pm
Admission $10
Lunch available to purchase on site

150 Modern & Traditional quilts
Quilts are professionally judged in multiple categories
Viewer's Choice quilt - vote for your favorite!
Vendors
Member's Boutique
Special Exhibits by our community service groups
Traditional quilt turning presentations

Special quilt raffle - tickets $5.00