All About Saugatuck and Douglas
Kid's Guide By Nicole
Saugatuck and Douglas are fun places to visit
and have a lot of history behind them. These wonderful towns
are located on the edge of Lake Michigan. Holland and Grand Rapids
are close to these towns. Saugatuck has the population of 1,050
people, and the population of Douglas has 1,241 people. The total
population of these two towns is 2,291. Some super awesome things
to do are The Dune Rides, climbing Mt. Baldhead, and swimming
at the beach. Saugatuck and Douglas' exciting history and amazing
beauty makes then perfect places to visit.
A very long while ago, near the 1700's, Native
Americans lived around here. They were form the Potawatami, Ogibawaw,
and Ottawa tribes. The Native Americans moved with the seasons
to find food. Before leaving Saugatuck, they would have The Roasting
of the White Dog Ceremony at the top of Mount Baldhead. The Native
Americans lived in the area before the white settlers pushed
them off their land.
William G. Buttler and his wife Mary were the
first white settlers in Saugatuck. They came from Hartford, Connecticut
in 1830 by boat and raft and landed by what is now Coral Gables.
Mr. Buttler built the first log cabin and started the first trading
post when they got to Saugatuck. Later he sold land to Mr. Hoffman,
Mr. Mason and Mr. Griffith which are all names of the streets
now. The first name the town had before it was called Saugatuck
was Kalamazoo, then Newark and then it was named Saugatuck. Saugatuck
is an Indian term for the mouth of the river. After that, lots
of different things have happened.
The area's industry has changed along the years.
The first way to make money in Saugatuck was trading with the
Native Americans that led to the tannery business, which began
in 1834. In Singapore, after trading, the lumbering started due
to the large amount of trees and closeness to the lake. The legendary
town became buried when the selfish lumberers cut down all the
trees that protected the city. The ship building, fruit farming
and basket making business followed until the town depended on
the people who came and spent their money in the 1870's.
Today, Saugatuck and Douglas are fabulous places
to visit. People are attracted to these towns because of the
shops, galleries and all the fun things to do. I think some of
the best places to visit are the Art Galleries, The Star of Saugatuck,
and Kilwins. There is awesome history about these two attraction
towns and they are great, relaxing, and peaceful places to enjoy!!!
Previous | Top
of Page | Index | Next |
