GREAT LAKES HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION

BRIDGEPORT, MI

May 20, 2023: The "Bavarian Belle" docked at Frankenmuth, Michigan We're in Frankenmuth, Michigan; the <i>Bavarian Belle</i> is boarding passengers for its 6:30 PM tour, and I'm rushing across the bridge toward the dock at the north end of the RiverPlace Shops complex before I get left behind. Built in 1981, this charming Victorian-style paddlewheel steamer plied the Mississippi for nearly 20 years before its purchase and restoration by its present owners. Nowadays, it offers pleasant 45-minute sightseeing cruises along the Cass River to summer-season visitors to Michigan's &quot;Little Bavaria&quot;. — May 20, 2023: The "Bavarian Belle" docked at Frankenmuth, Michigan Credit: Carrotflower Productions International

Great Lakes Historical and Educational Association is a non-profit organization based in Bridgeport, Michigan. Established in 1986, the association seeks to preserve and promote the history of the Great Lakes region through educational programs, exhibits, and research.

The organization operates the Great Lakes Maritime Museum, which houses a collection of over 5,000 artifacts related to maritime history. Visitors can explore exhibits on topics such as shipwrecks, lighthouses, and the shipping industry. The museum also offers educational programs for school groups and hosts events throughout the year.

In addition to the museum, the Great Lakes Historical and Educational Association operates the Saginaw River Rear Range Lighthouse, which was built in 1876 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The lighthouse is open for tours during the summer months.

The association also publishes a quarterly newsletter, The Beacon, which provides updates on the organization's activities and news related to Great Lakes history. Membership is open to anyone interested in supporting the mission of the association.

Overall, the Great Lakes Historical and Educational Association plays an important role in preserving and sharing the rich history of the Great Lakes and its impact on the region.

GREAT LAKES HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION is a Historical Societies, Historic Preservation in BRIDGEPORT MI. US MID #8402600680

The museum is classed as HSC (Historical Societies, Historic Preservation). It comes under American Alliance of Museums (AAM) region: Midwest (Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin).

May 19, 2023: Zehnder's and the Bavarian Inn, Frankenmuth, Michigan Facing each other across Main Street at the south end of downtown Frankenmuth, Michigan are Zehnder's <i>(left background)</i> and the Bavarian Inn <i>(right foreground)</i>, two longstanding titans of the local hospitality industry that each represent discrete chapters in the storied saga of the Zehnder family, who more than any other was responsible for putting the town on the tourist map as Michigan's &quot;Little Bavaria&quot;. It all started in 1929, when family patriarch William Zehnder, Sr. purchased the erstwhile Exchange Hotel and renamed it after himself - but it was across the street at the Bavarian Inn (our dinner destination for tonight) where the essential ingredients of today's Frankenmuth tourist experience were born. After a few formative years spent working at Zehnder's under the tutelage of his father and his uncle Ernie, it was William, Jr. who struck out on his own in 1950 with his purchase not only of the old Fischer Hotel across the street, but also the secret recipe for golden fried chicken that had earned previous owner Elmer Fischer considerable renown. Although chicken dinners remained Fischer's biggest draw, business was initially slow - the effect, experts said, of two essentially identical competing businesses operating in the same small town - and Zehnder soon found himself deeply in debt. Rather than throw in the towel, however, he took a gamble on the idea that a larger market was out there, and hatched a plan to help remake Frankenmuth as a regional tourist destination, playing up the Bavarian ancestry of the majority of the townsfolk. In 1958, Zehnder enlisted Chicago-based designer Robert Lederer to help remodel the place in an eye-catching mock-Alpine motif, and upon its reopening, the newly rechristened Bavarian Inn successfully set the town on the trend that endures to this day. The operation has since expanded to the scale of a full-fledged resort, but if all you're after is a family-style meal of fried chicken and/or hearty Teutonic comfort food, the original Inn (or, for that matter, the original Zehnder's across the street, with whom it's engaged in a good-natured rivalry) still serves it up in style.

Contact GREAT LAKES HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION

GREAT LAKES HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION
7510 MOORISH RD
BRIDGEPORT
MI
48722

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GREAT LAKES HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION Information

MID #	8402600680
Name	GREAT LAKES HISTORICAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Alternate Name
Classification	Historical Societies, Historic Preservation, , Midwest
Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN)	382765719
NTEECC
Tax period of the latest return filed (YYYYMM)	201212
INCOME	0
REVENUE	0
LAT/LONG	43.313396, -83.835332
CODES	FIPS State Code: 26 FIPS County Code: 145 US Census Tract: 011702 US Census Block: 1002