Hessler Log Cabin Collection

Dublin Core

Title

Subject

Old Mission Peninsula (Mich.)

Log Cabins

Preservation and Restoration

Description

Joseph Hessler (also spelled Hesler or Hestler), a farmer and fisherman, moved with his wife, Mary, from Canada to Old Mission Peninsula in the mid-1800s. They built a simple one-room cabin around 1856, made of hand-hewn pine logs, some 18 inches thick. The 22x16-foot cabin, with a 6-foot ceiling and sleeping loft, served as their home for about ten years. After the Hesslers moved, the cabin was used for various purposes, including housing migrant workers and livestock. By the early 1990s, it was in poor condition and scheduled for demolition to make way for a subdivision (south of Center Road and Wilson Road corner). A group of volunteers, including members of the Old Mission Women's Club, Friends of the Old Mission Library, Peninsula PTO, the Township Board, and the newly formed Old Mission Peninsula Historical Society, worked together to save and relocate the cabin to Mission Point Lighthouse park. Over five years (1992-1997), they restored it to its original condition. This collection captures photos depicting the volunteers and the various steps in the preservation process. This historically significant furnished cabin is now viewed by thousands of visitors each year at its current location at the park.