Almanac

Join the Leelanau Historical Society for a virtual program featuring Chris Roxburgh’s pictorial journey of diving Leelanau’s waters. Chris Roxburgh grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan and has combined his love of adventure, diving, and photography, to share with us what lies at the bottom of the lake.

About the Photographer
Chris Roxburgh, a renowned underwater photographer and author, has gained widespread recognition for his exceptional work capturing shipwrecks in the Great Lakes region. His remarkable photography and environmental efforts have been featured on local and national news platforms multiple times. He is the author of the highly acclaimed hardcover nonfiction book “Leelanau Underwater,” which has become the top-selling book in Northern Michigan. This book vividly showcases the shipwrecks in his hometown of The Manitou Passage, situated in Leelanau County, Michigan. Chris’s impressive work has been featured in several prominent publications, including the History Channel, Outside magazine, and The Smithsonian, among others, as he continues to document shipwrecks throughout the Great Lakes region. In addition to his artistic accomplishments, he is actively working to raise awareness about the growing problem of plastics pollution in the Great Lakes, and he is a passionate advocate for preserving and protecting our precious waters.

A favorite stop during Sleighbell Weekend, the Old Kirke Museum's red doors will welcome you once again to view trees decorated in the Christmas traditions of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway while enjoying a coffee and pepperkaker or two at our Scandinavian Christmas Open House, Saturday & Sunday, December 2 & 3, from 11am to 2pm. We'll have more tiny towns to view and model trains rollin' down the tracks in the lower exhibit hall so come and celebrate an old fashioned Christmas season with us. We'll be open every Saturday from 11-2 in December and will add some weekdays after Christmas this year!

“Ukrainian Christmas Traditions” will be presented by Matthew Jason on Thursday, December 14th, at 4:00 pm as part of the Benzie Area Historical Society’s Benzonia Academy Lecture Series. The lecture will take place in person at the First Congregational Church of Benzonia, live on Zoom, and recorded for later viewing on the Historical Society’s website, www.benziemuseum.org.

Matt Jason has been a history and social studies teacher for over twenty years. During his four years in Ukraine, he came to have a profound respect for its people and their long history. He looks forward to sharing what he learned and experienced about Christmas in Ukraine.

Admission is by donation; $ 5 is the recommended amount.
To learn more about the November 9th 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 favorite stop during Sleighbell Weekend, the Old Kirke Museum's red doors will welcome you once again to view trees decorated in the Christmas traditions of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway while enjoying a coffee and pepperkaker or two at our Scandinavian Christmas Open House, Saturday & Sunday, December 2 & 3, from 11am to 2pm. We'll have more tiny towns to view and model trains rollin' down the tracks in the lower exhibit hall so come and celebrate an old fashioned Christmas season with us. We'll be open every Saturday from 11-2 in December and will add some weekdays after Christmas this year!

A favorite stop during Sleighbell Weekend, the Old Kirke Museum's red doors will welcome you once again to view trees decorated in the Christmas traditions of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway while enjoying a coffee and pepperkaker or two at our Scandinavian Christmas Open House, Saturday & Sunday, December 2 & 3, from 11am to 2pm. We'll have more tiny towns to view and model trains rollin' down the tracks in the lower exhibit hall so come and celebrate an old fashioned Christmas season with us. We'll be open every Saturday from 11-2 in December and will add some weekdays after Christmas this year!

A favorite stop during Sleighbell Weekend, the Old Kirke Museum's red doors will welcome you once again to view trees decorated in the Christmas traditions of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway while enjoying a coffee and pepperkaker or two at our Scandinavian Christmas Open House, Saturday & Sunday, December 2 & 3, from 11am to 2pm. We'll have more tiny towns to view and model trains rollin' down the tracks in the lower exhibit hall so come and celebrate an old fashioned Christmas season with us. We'll be open every Saturday from 11-2 in December and will add some weekdays after Christmas this year!

A favorite stop during Sleighbell Weekend, the Old Kirke Museum's red doors will welcome you once again to view trees decorated in the Christmas traditions of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway while enjoying a coffee and pepperkaker or two at our Scandinavian Christmas Open House, Saturday & Sunday, December 2 & 3, from 11am to 2pm. We'll have more tiny towns to view and model trains rollin' down the tracks in the lower exhibit hall so come and celebrate an old fashioned Christmas season with us. We'll be open every Saturday from 11-2 in December and will add some weekdays after Christmas this year!

Join us March 2-3, 2024, from 10 am-3 pm for Maple Sugaring Days, a maple sugaring event at the Lakeshore. Come experience the sugaring process through time. Start your adventure by traveling back in time at the Dechow Farm. Learn the history of maple sugaring from the Anishinaabe, then travel through to the present day at the Olsen Farm. End your adventure by sampling warm syrup or making maple taffy.
For more information, visit https://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/maple-sugaring-days.htm

The fun includes: a guided hike, a visit to a historic sugar shack, sap boiling demonstrations, kid's activities, and maple syrup sampling.

All programs are free with a valid park entrance pass. Passes may be purchased at the Phillip A. Hart Visitor Center in Empire, Michigan, and cost $25 (per vehicle) for seven days, $45 for an annual Sleeping Bear Dunes pass, or $80 (or less) for the America the Beautiful - National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands pass series.

Join us March 2-3, 2024, from 10 am-3 pm for Maple Sugaring Days, a maple sugaring event at the Lakeshore. Come experience the sugaring process through time. Start your adventure by traveling back in time at the Dechow Farm. Learn the history of maple sugaring from the Anishinaabe, then travel through to the present day at the Olsen Farm. End your adventure by sampling warm syrup or making maple taffy.
For more information, visit https://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/maple-sugaring-days.htm

The fun includes: a guided hike, a visit to a historic sugar shack, sap boiling demonstrations, kid's activities, and maple syrup sampling.

All programs are free with a valid park entrance pass. Passes may be purchased at the Phillip A. Hart Visitor Center in Empire, Michigan, and cost $25 (per vehicle) for seven days, $45 for an annual Sleeping Bear Dunes pass, or $80 (or less) for the America the Beautiful - National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands pass series.

A favorite stop during Sleighbell Weekend, the Old Kirke Museum's red doors will welcome you once again to view trees decorated in the Christmas traditions of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway while enjoying a coffee and pepperkaker or two at our Scandinavian Christmas Open House, Saturday & Sunday, December 2 & 3, from 11am to 2pm. We'll have more tiny towns to view and model trains rollin' down the tracks in the lower exhibit hall so come and celebrate an old fashioned Christmas season with us. We'll be open every Saturday from 11-2 in December and will add some weekdays after Christmas this year!