Plank Roads in 1850-55

About the Event

Cost: Free

A Pictorial Tour of the Old Grand Rapids to Kalamazoo Plank Road

Prepare yourself for a bone-shaking stagecoach ride down the “old plank road” in West Michigan in 1855. Marty Arnold, your guide, will show both historic and present-day photos and explain what led to a “plank road craze” in Michigan and why the Kalamazoo road was such a boon to the little villages along its 48 mile route. Travelers will learn the evolution of Michigan road building, plank road “etiquette,” how a brisk gypsum trade contributed to its demise and why elephants used the road.

Bio: Marty Arnold was a member of the Grand Rapids Historical Commission and served a term as president. Before retiring she was a freelance journalist, a writing instructor at Aquinas College, a reporter at the Grand Rapids Press and an administrator for several non-profits in Grand Rapids. After retiring, Marty expanded her interest in history to include its indigenous or native plants. She is a Master Naturalist, a citizen scientist for the Michigan Butterfly Network and a member of the Grand Rapids Chapter of Wild Ones. She has published two novels set in West Michigan that delve into the unique natural history of West Michigan. When she’s not writing she is slowly restoring her yard to the way it was during the plank road era.