HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
Explore the Village
Step back in time and experience the buildings that first shaped Sanilac County. From Victorian homes and one-room schoolhouses to barns, cabins, and railroad history, each structure tells a story of the people who built the community.
A Walk Through Local History
The Historic Village brings together buildings that once stood across Sanilac County. Some reflect prosperity and permanence. Others represent the practical realities of farm life, trade, transportation, and community gathering.
As you move through the grounds, you’ll see how daily life evolved. Education took place in a single room. Goods arrived by rail and lake. Families built homes by hand. Agriculture replaced forests. Industry rose and faded. Each structure captures a specific moment in that progression.
The Loop-Harrison Mansion
Built by Dr. Joseph Loop and his wife Jane between 1872–1875, this two-and-a-half-story Victorian home was lived in by three generations. It was deeded to the Historical Society in 1964 by Capt. Stanley Harrison, and today it features Loop family furnishings plus shipwreck items, military relics, and a genealogy collection. Learn more >>
Platt’s General Store
Dating to the early 1900s, Platt’s General Store recreates the feel of a turn-of-the-century small-town marketplace. The space functions as both an exhibit and a gift shop, displaying vintage merchandise, a classic cash register, and the original Argyle, Michigan postal unit. Over the years the structure served as a bank, feed store, barbershop, and storage facility before being relocated to museum grounds in the late 1980s.
Carriage Barn
Although original to the property, the Carriage Barn is an amalgamation of several historic barns constructed with timbers and boards more than 100 years old. One of the most notable sources was Matthew’s Farm in Worth Township. Inside, visitors will find Dr. Loop’s buggy, a horse-powered treadmill once used to operate farm machinery, a collection of period farm implements, and a lightning rod salvaged from Matthew’s Farm.
Dairy Museum
One of the few structures original to the Loop family farm, this small red building began as a chicken feed storage facility. Today it serves as a tribute to Sanilac County’s dairy industry, which for decades held the distinction of being the leading milk-producing county in Michigan. Exhibits highlight the tools, equipment, and agricultural heritage that shaped the region’s economy.
Banner Cabin
After the Great Thumb Fire of 1881, Henry Patten and his sons built this cabin from the trees left standing on their land near the long-forgotten settlement of Banner, located four miles west of Deckerville. Donated in the 1970s as the first addition to the museum grounds, the cabin is furnished with donated antiques typical of an 1800s settler’s home and offers an authentic look at post-fire pioneer life.
Huckins Schoolhouse
Constructed in 1847 on Huckins family property near the southeast corner of Peck and Wildcat Roads in Lexington Township, this white clapboard schoolhouse educated local children for approximately one hundred years. Relocated to the museum in 1996 and reopened in 2002, it remains the oldest standing school building in Sanilac County. The interior reflects an 1880s classroom, complete with period furnishings.
Village Church
For more than 150 years, this building stood quietly just west of downtown Forestville. It began as a general store, later operated as a saloon, and around 1911 was transformed into a community church when a steeple was added. Purchased in 2003 by the Potts family and later donated to the museum, the church was moved to the grounds in 2006 and has since been carefully restored.
Train Depot
Originally built in 1883, the Deckerville Train Station served as a stop on the Port Huron and North Western Railroad, a narrow-gauge line constructed through Michigan’s Thumb to support the lumber industry. After private preservation efforts, the depot was donated to the museum in 2008. Visitors can explore railroad artifacts, historical maps, interpretive storyboards, display cases, and a recreated Station Agent’s Office.
Troop Train
Built in 1942 at the Pullman Factory in Detroit, this Troop Kitchen Car prepared meals for servicemen during World War II. Many local men worked at the Pullman Factory while their families maintained farms at home. The car contains one of only two surviving army range wood and coal stoves in the country. On May 31, 2022, the rail car made its final journey to the museum grounds behind the Deckerville Train Depot. Restoration and revitalization efforts are ongoing.
Hearse Shed
Originally located on West Main Street in Port Sanilac and owned by Gustavus Schlichting, the Hearse Shed was donated to the museum in the early 2000s. Designed with double doors on both ends, the structure allowed a horse-drawn hearse to be pulled straight through from either direction. Inside is a historic hearse that belonged to Carman Funeral Homes. Motion-sensor lighting allows visitors to view it through the window even after hours.
Barn Theatre
The Barn Theatre occupies the original 1872 barn on the Loop-Harrison property. After the property changed hands in 1964, the barn was leased in 1980 to the Port Sanilac Arts Council and adapted into a live stage theatre. In 1995, the Historical Society purchased the structure. Today, it remains an active performance venue hosting summer productions and community events. Learn more >>
Houndtown Cabin
This log cabin, constructed with chink and mortar, once served as a residence, later as storage, and eventually as a chicken coop. Originally located in Burgitville, also known as Houndtown, about three and a half miles east of Deckerville, it was moved to the museum in 1984 and formally donated in 2009. The cabin now houses the museum’s Native American artifact collection.
Blacksmith Shop
Known for years as the Red Garage, this building was constructed by the Harrison family in the 1940s. It was once used to store Stanley Harrison’s automobile and Ford tractor. Relocated behind the carriage barn in 2005, it has since been converted into a blacksmith shop complete with a forge and anvil, representing an essential rural trade.
Hunting and Fishing Cabin
In 1937, teenage William Alexander Wright Jr. built this small log cabin in the woods of his family’s property in Sanilac Township. Donated in 2007 and dedicated in 2011, the refurbished cabin now serves as a repository for local hunting, trapping, and sport-fishing history, preserving artifacts and memorabilia from generations of outdoor tradition.
Ward Cottage
Although property records date back to 1852, the original one-room hunting cabin was constructed around 1920. Between 1930 and 1950, additions included an underground bathroom, kitchen, two small bedrooms, and an enclosed porch. Donated in 2005 by Sarah Ward and her mother Grace Frassrand, the cottage reflects the gradual modernization of rural living in the early twentieth century.
Aitken House
Built in 1852 during a time when Port Sanilac was known as Bark Shanty Point, the Aitken House is one of the oldest homes in the village. When it became available in October 2021, community members rallied to raise funds to preserve it. The home was moved to museum grounds on September 29, 2022, and restoration and revitalization work continues.
Privy
The original brick privy was constructed over a wooden frame and contained three rooms. One room served the family, another accommodated guests, and the third functioned as a smokehouse for curing meats. A fire eventually destroyed the structure, and a two-room replacement was built without the smokehouse. A long exterior door housed the removable waste box, which was pulled out by horses and emptied and washed in a field.
Decker Log Barn
Believed to be the oldest log structure in Sanilac County and possibly among the oldest remaining in Michigan, the Decker Log Barn predates the great fires of 1871 and 1881. Some believe it was built by Charles Decker, founder of Deckerville, while others suggest it existed before his arrival in 1840. Donated by the Richard Harter family, whose property once belonged to Decker, the barn now stands preserved on museum grounds.
