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Docents' Guide to the Douglas Exhibition 1995

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28-page photocopy of a draft "Docents' Guide to the Exhibition." The exhibition referred to was various called "Village to Shore Celebrating Douglas 1870-1995" and "Douglas: The Village of Friendliness — 1995." The guide was likely written by Jim Schmiechen and designed by Ken Carls.
cover page
Sample page OCR scanned text of the document - may include sneaky scanning errors.; DOCENTS’ GUIDE TO THE DOUGLAS EXHIBITION (WORKING COPY) 20 MAY 1995 JIM SCHMIECHEN, CURATOR JANE UNDERWOOD and MARY MASON, VOLUNTEER COORDINATORS ON THE SOUTH SHORE OF LAKE KALAMAZOO: BEGINNINGS The first known settlers on the south shore of Lake Kalamazoo were Pottawatomi and Ottawas who, for many generations, had come south each winter from their summer quarters in northern Michigan. These native Americans hunted and trapped and conducted their annual spring celebration and other rituals on nearby Mt Baldhead. In 1822 fur traders established a post about a mile upriver from Douglas and the first settlers of European extraction came to Allegan county in 1830. From its very beginnings Douglas was composed people of varied ethnic backgrounds. The first permanent settlers to inhabit the south side of Lake Kalamazoo were the R. A. McDonalds and the William Scovills who in 1846 purchased the land which is now St. Peter's Church hill and then built and occupied a farmstead on the southeast side of Douglas. The real founder of the village, however, was Jonathan Wade, a bankrupt mill owner from Singapore, who with his brother Nelson purchased land and built a saw mill and boarding house at what came to be known as

2022.88.31

This draft text brought the museum's docents up to speed on Douglas history. The guide's language is friendly, accessible and pleasantly readable. It is labeled as a working copy and contains factual errors. Topics covered include the first settlers/pioneers, the building and population boom in the 1870s, the origin of the name Douglas, the lumber economy, tanning, peaches, basket factory, tourism and resorting, the Douglas Union School, the Douglas Hospital, Dutcher Lodge and churches. The guide includes profiles of the following people and their families: Jonathan and Nelson Wade, Michael B. Spencer, Robert McDonald, Homer Manvel, William Dutcher, Dr. Asa C. Goodrich, Daniel Gerber, Dyer C. Putnam, David Wiley, Joshua Weed, John Kirby and Sara Gill Kirby The text contains errors. Douglas peach farmer David Wiley is cited as inventor of anti-cutworm tin tree belts - this may be the invention of Edwin House of Saugatuck. Three copies of the guide exist. One copy is in the folder about the 1995 museum exhibit.

SDHC Exhibits1835 Logging and Lumbering1870 Fruit growing, farming, agriculture1875 Basket factories1880 Tourism steamship era -19301900 Lakeshore communityEducation and schoolsHospitals, medical care and doctors

Winthers, Sally

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Found in Collection

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164 General local history

Wade, Jonathan 1808-1868Dutcher, William Fuller 1800-1861Wade, NelsonSpencer, Michael B. 1820-1891McDonald, Robert 1820-1889Manvel, HomerPutnam, Dyer Conger Sr. 1843-1894Wiley, David W. 1837-1927Kirby, John 1829-1882Kirby, Sarah M. (Gill) 1861-1951Dutcher Lodge building 1867-Kirby House/Community Hospital before 1960Douglas Union School 1866-Douglas, City of the Village of

02/08/2023

06/01/2025