Olsen house, farmsteads in Port Oneida district, deserve to be preserved

By Susan Pocklington
Sun contributor
“We’ve been driving by this house for 20 years…we love it,” beams one woman who couldn’t be older than 35. A gentleman positions his tripod in front of the orange poppies blooming in the side yard. He grins at me and pauses. “I’ve taken many trips out here and have several photographs of this farm,” he explains with an air of accomplishment as he continues to adjust his camera angle. Laced with sentiment, these are comments I hear often, now that the public is coming through the doors of the restored Charles and Hattie Olsen house on M-22, which opened on July 2. The thrill of finally stepping inside this house that has quietly and stoically sat vacant through too many seasons is obvious.

Somehow this clapboard house with the signature sunburst design at the top has touched people over the years, and they feel a secret kinship with it. It’s “their house” some remark rather proudly. Perhaps its location on a well-traveled road has made it one of the most well known farms in the Port Oneida historic community. Even though the main farmhouse and barn are all that have “survived” of this once-thriving farm that included a house for Grandma and numerous outbuildings, it has retained its charm to passersby.
Standing near the entrance to Port Oneida with mature maple trees flanking each side of the road, the house now welcomes visitors in to tell the story of Port Oneida settlers through displays of historic photos and maps. It boasts of restored oak floors and trim, and original flour and sugar bins in the pantry. Ornate woodwork with glass cabinets dividing the front rooms showcases beautiful craftsmanship.
Yet, in addition to the architecture and restoration that we appreciate, now there seems to be an even greater purpose for this house — to be the voice that pleads to save its neighbors — the Kelderhouse, Burfiend and Basch farms, to name a few; those on North and South Manitou Island, and more distant historic buildings and landscapes south of Empire, all part of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. There is much to be done.
In all, there are 369 historic structures in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore that qualify for, or are already listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They tell the story of our pioneer, maritime, logging and tourism past. Of Port Oneida’s 18 farmsteads, historians have called it the only intact agricultural community in the Midwest and perhaps the nation, in public ownership. That’s impressive. The non-profit organization, Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear was organized in 1998 to help Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in the massive undertaking to save these historic treasures that are in our backyard.
The restoration of the Olsen house, which was completed with funding from two grants written by Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear, is one example of projects accomplished directly or indirectly through this partnership. PHSB is now the adaptive-use partner for the Olsen house, which includes maintaining the building. Fortunately, other farms have been or may potentially be adopted by other non-profit partners. Under a new management team, the Park is actively doing what it can, and has been successful in competing for funds from National Park resources for several stabilization and restoration projects. Still, they don’t have enough time or money to do it alone.
Looking beyond the freshly painted walls of the Olsen house you will see buildings in need of repair, like the Martin Basch granary whose skeletal east wall leans toward the foundation of a building now gone, or the collapsed porch roof at the Theodore Beck farm on South Manitou. Seven buildings in the Park were either lost or sustained considerable deterioration just this year. Winters are still harsh here, and once they’re gone, they’re gone.
Perhaps the Olsen house never knew how many friends it had. I suspect that each farm is someone’s favorite. But I’ve come to understand that people do care about these places. A few years out of college when I worked at The Leelanau School, I used to ski past Thoreson farm and sigh despairingly over the empty, weatherworn buildings, sad that they could be lost over time. What is it about these farmsteads that evoke such sentiment? We like their beauty. We like their reminders of times past. We like the peace that comes when you walk their meadows. Let us hope that the Olsen house speaks through its new family, Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear, and will draw to it folks with hands ready to repair and pockets willing to give so that these conduits to our past — barns, farmhouses, corn cribs, lighthouses, log cabins, meadows and inns that tell of Great Lakes history — are not lost.
I heard a different comment the other day. There was a knock on the door. “I used to live in this house … I really did,” the woman said, head lowered, and voice quivering. She was a granddaughter of Hattie and Charles, in town from California for her sister’s memorial service. Together we walked through the house and grounds, her eyes brightening as she saw her childhood home restored as a place where the history of Port Oneida and surrounding farms would be told. I think she felt that peace I mentioned, as her face seemed more tranquil when she left. She promised to send pictures too; maybe there’ll be one of Hattie’s garden with the orange poppies. Come visit the Olsen house and let it tell you her stories.
Located on M-22 about 3 miles north of Glen Arbor, the Olsen House is open Tuesday – Saturday from 11-4 and Sunday from 1:30 – 4 through August, with Fall hours yet to be determined. For more information about Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear, call 334-6103. Susan Pocklington is the Administrative Coordinator for Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear.