Albert Norris purchases the land from the State of Michigan.
On 3 August 1863, Albert, of Leelanau County, purchased 53 acres of land in Section 28 from the State of Michigan.67
In February 1864 Albert bought 40 acres of land adjoining his brother John’s property on the east side of Cedar Lake. After the war he cleared the property and set up a brickyard that produced 400,000 bricks a year.68
Starting in the 1870s, several lumber barons turned their attention towards what is now Green Lake Township. Within decades, Interlochen, Michigan had two railways, a factory, a mill, and all the amenities one would expect to find in a proper town.
It wasn’t long before the lush natural resources of the area began to dry up. The once-dense “green gold” forests of virgin pines were now vast plains of stumps and dirt. Businesses closed, workers moved on, and the city’s fate seemed all but sealed—destined to go the way of countless lumber towns before it.
Deforestation would have been the end if it hadn’t been for area entrepreneurs, who had the foresight and ingenuity to pivot the town’s appeal from timber into tourism.
In the 1800s, early American conservationists such as President Theodore Roosevelt, naturalist John Muir, and author Henry David Thoreau helped kindle a nationwide interest in preserving wilderness areas for public use and recreation.
Seeing the potential of this trend, The Buckley & Douglas Lumber Company spared 200 acres of untouched forests along the shores of Interlochen’s two twin lakes: Duck Lake (originally known as Lake Wahbekaness) and Green Lake (originally Lake Wahbekanetta). The result was Pine Park, a public retreat boasting virgin forests and pristine lakes.
Visitors began flocking to the region during the warmer months to camp, fish, boat, and escape the heat of the crowded cities. The railways that once moved lumber now brought vacationers to and from northern Michigan.
Starting in the 1870s, several lumber barons turned their attention towards what is now Green Lake Township. Within decades, Interlochen, Michigan had two railways, a factory, a mill, and all the amenities one would expect to find in a proper town.
It wasn’t long before the lush natural resources of the area began to dry up. The once-dense “green gold” forests of virgin pines were now vast plains of stumps and dirt. Businesses closed, workers moved on, and the city’s fate seemed all but sealed—destined to go the way of countless lumber towns before it.
Deforestation would have been the end if it hadn’t been for area entrepreneurs, who had the foresight and ingenuity to pivot the town’s appeal from timber into tourism.
In the 1800s, early American conservationists such as President Theodore Roosevelt, naturalist John Muir, and author Henry David Thoreau helped kindle a nationwide interest in preserving wilderness areas for public use and recreation.
Seeing the potential of this trend, The Buckley & Douglas Lumber Company spared 200 acres of untouched forests along the shores of Interlochen’s two twin lakes: Duck Lake (originally known as Lake Wahbekaness) and Green Lake (originally Lake Wahbekanetta). The result was Pine Park, a public retreat boasting virgin forests and pristine lakes.
Visitors began flocking to the region during the warmer months to camp, fish, boat, and escape the heat of the crowded cities. The railways that once moved lumber now brought vacationers to and from northern Michigan.