Two century-old log properties on Mackinac Island are for sale, but they are in markedly different condition.
One is a restored estate along Lake Huron, listed for $6.5 million. The other is an unfinished $400,000 log cabin that has been partially gutted and is being sold as is.
Both properties date to the early 1900s and are owned by the Ware family, which also owns Mission Point Resort on Mackinac Island, according to listing agent Brad Conkey of Mackinac Straits Realty Group.
The listings provide a look at two very different stages of restoring older properties on the island, where construction presents challenges not typically encountered on the mainland.
Silver Birches
Silver Birches with about 10,000 square feet of living space between a main lodge and two
guest cottages has undergone an extensive restoration. The property has a total of eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms.
The Adirondack-style lodge has log construction, cedar shingled upper stories and large porches. The estate, at 4082 M-185 on the island’s northeast shoreline, was constructed between 1906 and 1912 and originally developed as a guest lodge and cottage compound, according to the listing. Over the years, it has served as a resort lodge, seasonal retreat, rental property and summer camp.
Silver Birches has been listed on Michigan’s State Register of Historic Sites since 1982.
The Ware family acquired Silver Birches before an extensive restoration began in 2013. Conkey said the property was in poor condition at the time, with many of the logs decayed.
Conkey said the work included restoring the main lodge and guest cottages and updating infrastructure. The approximately 8,000 square foot main lodge now has six bedrooms, an elevator and accessibility features. Two guest cottages account for more than 2,000 additional square feet.
Log cabin remains unfinished
The $400,000 property, at 3884 M-185 in the Point Aux Pins area near the north end of Mackinac Island, remains unfinished.
Built around 1900, the log cabin has three bedrooms, one and a half bathrooms and has 1,846 square feet on 2.57 acres of leased land, according to the listing.
Previous owners began renovating the property, removing old electrical, plumbing, and plaster walls from the interior.
Conkey said the Ware family acquired the property while Silver Birches was being restored. The family installed new roofs and extended a water line to the property but did not complete the renovation.
Restoring property on Mackinac Island
Mackinac Island sits in Lake Huron between Michigan’s Upper and Lower peninsulas, just east of the Mackinac Bridge. Construction and restoration on the island come with unusual logistics.
Motor vehicles are generally prohibited, with limited exceptions, and people primarily travel by bicycle, horse and horse drawn carriage. Building materials and other supplies also have to make their way from the ferry docks to properties without the conventional truck traffic used on the mainland.
Conkey knows those logistics firsthand. He built his own home on Mackinac Island and said navigating construction there comes down in part to understanding how things get done on the island, from getting materials off the freight dock to moving them to a building site.
Brendel Clark writes about real estate and other topics for the Detroit Free Press. Contact her at bclark@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 2 century-old Mackinac Island properties for sale. What each offers
