The 2008 History Tour was held on August 16th, 2008.  We had approximately 150 people in attendance, split evenly between a morning program and an afternoon program.  We had a beautiful Northern Michigan day, not too hot and not too cold and Little Traverse Bay was the perfect shade of blue.

There is a book and a DVD from the tour. The book contains information, documents and photos pertaining to the subjects of the tour. The DVD contains the actor's presentation at the gravesites. The book is available at $17.00 each and the DVD costs $10.00 each. There is a $7.50 charge for shipping and items are subject to applicable sales tax. Use the Contact Us page for information.  If you would like to be placed on a mailing list for future tours please contact us.

Kim Parr

Kim is the Director of the Crocker House Museum in Macomb County (near Detroit). 

Kim teaches on the history of grieving and many other related subjects.  It is said that 'those who forget history are condemned to repeat it'.  Many of the old ways of grieving seem silly

to us today - but maybe the old, strange ways are better than trying not to grieve at all.

Kim takes a difficult subject and makes it interesting, allowing the listeners to think through the different ways of dealing with one of life's promises - death.  We thank her for being an important part of our 2008 tour.

Andrew Porter  1816-1899

Mr. Porter and his wife were the first white family in Petoskey, coming in June of 1852.  Mr. Porter was a missionary to the Indians and wore many other 'hats' of responsibility.  The Porters sacrificed much to come here, only one of their children lived past the age of ten but they loved Petoskey and they loved the Indians that were here when the Porters stepped on shore.

James Bartlett 1819-1908

Mr. Bartlett was a cobbler by profession but he also was a man that was willing to pay a cost for his beliefs.  Before the Civil War he was a contemporary of John Brown (Harper's Ferry).  Mr. Bartlett, his father (also James) and a number of other men rescued a man that had been captured by slave traders in an effort to get him to safety and freedom.  The Bartletts and the other men were put in jail for an extended period of time but they would not admit to doing wrong.  Their desire to see all people free took precedence over their own desire to be freed from jail.

William Curtis and Frances Pailthorp

William Curtis (1842-1913), a prominent banker and businessman, talks with one of his 'customers', young Frances Pailthorp (1879-1968).  It seems as young Fanny had tried to cash a 'check' for 3 cents at Mr. Curtis's bank.  She had seen her father get money from the bank so she thought she would try something similar for herself and her two brothers.  Mr. Curtis gave her the 3 cents (from his own pocket, not from the bank's money) and walked Fanny home.

Mr. Curtis came on the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad's first train into Petoskey.  A few years later he and his family returned and purchased Petoskey's first bank.  He was successful in banking, timber and cattle ranches in other parts of the nation but he and his wife Mary called Petoskey their home.  They profited from their business ventures in this new village but left their mark in the generous donations to local government and to individuals who needed a kindly banker to help them get their start in this new land.

C.B. Henika (1837-1909)

A Civil War veteran, Charles Burgoyne Henika traveled to Northern Michigan by foot from Ohio.  He, along with so many others, had heard of the wonderful farmland in Resort Township and so he decided to walk to Petoskey to see for himself.  He was not the only person that walked here, spending days and weeks, traveling along paths to wend their way to 'God's Country' - the land of the Million Dollar Sunsets.

He gave up on the idea of farming and decided to be a furniture maker instead.  It was common in that era for the one that made furniture to also make caskets and Mr. Henika was no exception.  After having crafted caskets for various families he saw a need for a funeral director in the new town (there were none north of Cadillac - 100 miles away).  He decided he might as well fill the position himself so he ventured into a new business which lasted for thirty years after his passing.

Dr. William Little and Annie DeVitt Little Kirkland

Dr. Little (1842-1875) came to Petoskey as its first doctor at the age of 31.  He had practiced in other communities but decided to make Petoskey his home.  In his positon of supervisor of the village called Bear River he purchased the property for a new cemetery.  It is ironic that he became the first burial in the cemetery, dying at the age of 33.  To read the history of Dr. Little and his impact on Petoskey, it is hard to believe that he only lived here for two years.  He packed a lot of life and service into those two short years.

Annie Little Kirkland (1844-1923) was Dr. Little's wife and after he died she married Thomas Kirkland (1820-1899).  After Dr. Little's death she served as postmistress, sometimes sleeping with the mail because of the cash that was to be taken to Grand Rapids on the next train.  Later she organized the "Home Benevolent Society" to help take care of families struggling to live through the harsh winters.  She rests between her two husbands, William and Thomas, overlooking the community she had worked so hard to build.

C.J. and Frances Pailthorp

Charles James Pailthorp (1847-1948) came to Petoskey in 1875 after graduating from the University of Michigan with a law degree.  He was 27 years old at the time.  He served as Prosecuting Attorney and as a representative to the State legislature.  In 1891 the Governor appointed him as Judge of the Circuit Court.  He argued his last case before the Michigan Supreme Court in 1940 at the age of 92!  And he won!  He lived to the age of 100 and rests now overlooking Little Traverse Bay.

His daughter, Frances V. Pailthorp, was an accomplished artist and an art teacher at Petoskey's High School.  At that time many teachers moved from job to job in an effort to make a living.  Frances bucked the trend and taught here for 46 years.  "Fanny" as she was affectionately called was a favorite of her students - her name brings a smile to their faces yet today.  She rests near her mother and father on the Pailthorp family lot.

H.O. Rose (1830-1911)

Hiram Obed Rose left upstate New York with his family to come to Coldwater, Michigan and the age of four.  He left the printing business in Coldwater to try his hand at gold mining during the California Gold Rush.  He eventually returned to Michigan settling near Traverse City to enter into business there.  In 1875 he started into business in Petoskey by purchasing a sawmill.  Over the years he mined limestone for the production of cement and owned a merchandise store.  He built one of Petoskey’s famous hotels, the Arlington House and was its first village president, presiding over the building of a water works and an electrical plant.  In 1882 he and another man built the Opera House which claimed Mark Twain as its most famous entertainer.

It is said that we stand on the shoulders of those that have gone before us.  If that is true it certainly can be said that every resident of Petoskey stands squarely on the shoulders of Hiram Obed Rose.  It is hard to imagine a Petoskey without him.

Nathan Jarman (1841-1928)

Nathan “Deacon” Jarman came here to be only the third white family in this new settlement.  He married James Bartlett’s daughter (the cobbler and abolitionist) and moved to Bear River to help Andrew Porter carve a new community out of the wilderness. 

He was appointed the Assistant Poor Commissioner for the township.   He also was a real estate agent and a city councilman in addition to farming. 

Although he worked with Andrew Porter, a Presbyterian missionary, Mr. Jarman was a charter member of a new Baptist church which eventually became what is now Parr Memorial Baptist Church. 

He began the Antrim Lime Company with his two sons, David and Will, which was just across the street from the cemetery.  Greenwood Cemetery now owns the house that was built by David Jarman.