Pere Marquette Railroad Round House, New Buffalo, Mi

The deserted building next to the New Buffalo Railroad Museum is a roundhouse for the Pete Marquette Railroad. It was built between 1919 and 1920.. It was originally a 16 stall semi circular facility used to service, repair and turn steam locomotives.

The massive train yard in New Buffalo closed in 1947. The round house was abandoned in 1984. Today only 3 of the brick stalls survive. Briefly commercial businesses rented these.

The original turntable mechanism that spun train engines was relocated to a different site.

Lehmans Brewery and Farmhouse 204 Red Trail North, Buchanan, MI

Lehmans is an active tap room, winery, and restaurant in Buchanan, MI It is a historically designated 12,000 square feet facility that originally functioned as a core engineering ard testing laboratory for the Clark equipment Company.. In 2023, it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places

The building was designed for functionality. There were wide single pain glass windows on both sides to provide lighting for the workers.

Steve Lecklider purchased the building in 2016 to expand his his family’s farm business (Lehman as Orchard)

3 Oaks Public Library 3 N. Elm 3 Oaks, MI

The Historic E.K. Warren building was originally in 1905 as the headquarters of of the E.K. Warren

Featherbone Company from 1905 to 1926. The building style was Romanesque Reviva. The architect was George Maher.

Features of the building

Arched Entrances

Heavy round arch doorways

Coarsely finished contrasting stone blocks

Massive structures

Thick looking walls give the builder a permanent feel

Towers and turrets frame the main facade

Prominent conical

l

Starbucks Coffee building is located at 116 North Whittaker New Buffalo, MI

This building was constructed in 1935. It is a 2 story commercial property.

Early Commercial History 1940’s to 196o’s

A and P grocery moved in the building in 1941 It served as the town grocery hub until 1946 when it closed.

Northlland Hardware Store.in Januaery, 1946. Lewis Siegel bought the property. By November, 1946, he operated the hardware with his partner Atkinson. Siegel sold the business in 1952. The business continued operating until the 1960’s!

Zinc Collar Pad Company 304 Oak Street, Buchanan, Michigan

This was a notable 19th Century manufacturing business formed in 1870 to produce an innovative zinc lined pads for horse harnesses that prevents neck and shoulder chaffing.

History and Invention

The Invention. Dexter Curtis invented the zinc lined horse collar pad in 1870 to solve the common issue of draft hose neck and shoulder chaffing.

Early Partnership

Curtis teamed up with George Richards and Henry Gilman to form the firm Curtis, Gilman, and Richards to release the the first popular horse pad

Company Growth The firm was renamed the Zinc Collar Pad Company in 1871. The booming business used over 400,000 pound of zinc in 2 years.

The original factory burned down in 1874.

The partners rebuilt the brick structure at the South Oak Street location. It was built as a 2 story red brick structure.

The 1875 Zinc Collar Pad Company never experienced a permanent closure of its physical doors all at one.,but rather transitioned through distinct stages of industrial relocation, residential use, and ultimate vacancy.

Timeline of Buildings Transitions

1913 (Factory Relocation) The Zinc Collar Pad Company outgrew the Oak Street facility and moved its operations to a larger on Main Street. ( The company itself went defunct by 1927 due to declining post World War Ireland for horse collars)

1914 to late 1990s (Apartment conversions). After the factory relocated, the building was sold to local business partners who converted the building into 4 residential apartments. It served as an apartment building for 80 years.

1998 (Final Vacancy). The building officially became vacant around 1998. It has empty ever since

Pears Mill 115 S. Oak Street Buchanan, Michigan

This mill was built between 1857 and 1858. It is a wood framed structure. It is the only surviving mill of the thirteen water powered mills that operated on McCoy Creek.

Pears Mill was originally built and used as a water powered flour mill to grind wheat and grain for local farmers. It was in continuous commercial operation for 126 years running from its construction in 1857 until it closed in 1983.

Over its active life it passed through several individual owners, business partnerships, and agriculture cooperatives.

The early pioneers (1857–1864)

William Beach owned the initial plot of land where construction started

William Haunting built the mil!. He operated it during its most profitable early years turning it into the largest industry in Beaten County by 1860

Ross, Pears and Clark. Beach sold the Mill to this investment trio in 1863.

The namesake era (1864-1933)

Rough and Pears in 1864 purchased the mill

Rough Brothers an L.P. Fox taken over by David’s brothers in partnership with local operator L.P. Fox

Woomer and House/J.M. Sheldon The Mill went through minor transitional owners and experienced a six year shut down due to an estate and title dispute.

Pears-East Grain Company The Pears family legacy line red acquired corporate interest in the mill running it up until the Great Depression

Fulton First National Bank Building 201 East Front Street Buchanan, MI

This building was built in 1866 by John Ross and Thomas R. Fulton to house the original banking enterprise before it succeeded to the First National Bank. This building is a stop on the architectural heritage Walking tour of Buchanan.

The building style is Italianate

Features of Italianate style

Tall Windows

Arched window tops

Cast iron or stone trim

Flat roog

First National Bank

First National Bank

Russel Goodrich First InnKeeper, New Buffalo,Mi

Russe

Russel Goodrich was an early New Buffalo settler. In 1836, he established the area’s first inn . The site is where Casey’s Bar and Grill is currently located. The building was a rough hewn wood frame or log structure.

. It was built strictly for utility to house pioneer families. There was a rustic communal dining area, basic sleep quarters heated by a central fire place, and an.outside stable for horsers.