A Grand Celebration

It's a big deal to celebrate a 125th anniversary, you might even receive an official proclamation:

July 8 through July 14, 2012: Grand Hotel Week WHEREAS, established in 1887, the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island continues to be one of America's premier vacation destinations; and, WHEREAS, in 1957, the Michigan Historical Association designated the Grand Hotel as a state historical building and in 1989, the U.S. Department of Interior designated it a national historic landmark; and, WHEREAS, known for world-class hospitality and its 660-foot front porch, the world's longest, the Grand Hotel and its staff enjoy more than 130,000 overnight guests each season, and have hosted five U.S. presidents; and, WHEREAS, during this week, we join with the Woodfill and Musser families and all of the Great Lakes State in recognizing and celebrating the 125th anniversary of the Grand Hotel; we encourage Michigan citizens and visitors alike to visit this true, Pure Michigan attraction; NOW, THEREFORE, I, Rick Snyder, governor of Michigan, do hereby proclaim Sunday, July 8 through Saturday, July 14, 2012 as Grand Hotel Week in Michigan.

And when you're Grand Hotel, you really need to celebrate in a "Grand" way, starting with a birthday cake - 125 foot long birthday cake!

Not only was it dramatic and beautiful - it tasted great too!

There's a new barn on Mackinac, a joint venture between Grand Hotel and Mackinac Island Carriage Tours.

It will provide living accommodations for the big Percheron's that pull Grand's omnibuses, as well as the high stepping Hackney's.

In addition, it houses a beautiful collection of vintage horse drawn vehicles of all types, as well as large assortment of horse related items.

It was dedicated on Thursday and a large crowd was treated to a wonderful tour and reception.

And then there was the fireworks - the production company had promised a show like no other in Northern Michigan, and they definitely delivered on their promise - it was simply spectacular!

The grand finale of the celebration was the Governor's Gala on Saturday evening:

A brief but heavy rain shower tried to interfere with the cocktail reception, but Grand employees know how to improvise - the party went on!

A six course dinner was next, with some brief comments from several former Governor's, as well as members of the Musser family.

 

Grand Hotel is a rare and wonderful thing - 125 years old, built of Michigan white pine, still standing and being used for it's original intended purpose - there's very few businesses that can say that.

There's only one known original room key in existence - and I was able to touch it - truly touching history.

Here's to Grand: may she last at least another 125 years and may I last to be at the 150th anniversary!