Once a bustling industrial community that manufactured charcoal pig iron between 1867 and 1891, Fayette offers visitors the unmatched serenity of a Lake Michigan harbor, white cliffs and verdant forests. This well-preserved museum village recalls another time when it was a noisy, dirty company town with an immigrant population that shared daily hardships, joys and sorrows.

Named after Fayette Brown, the Jackson Iron Company agent who chose the site, Fayette was once one of the Upper Peninsula's most productive iron-smelting operations. Located on the Garden Peninsula at Snail Shell Harbor, Fayette grew up after the Civil War around two blast furnaces, a large dock and several charcoal kilns.

Nearly 500 residents-many emigrating from Canada, the British Isles and northern Europe-lived in and near the town. During 24 years of operation, Fayette's blast furnaces produced a total of 229,288 tons of iron, using local hardwood forests for fuel and quarrying limestone from the bluffs to purify the iron ore. When the charcoal iron market began to decline, the Jackson Iron Company closed its Fayette smelting operation in 1891.

This historic site is located in Fayette Historic State Park and interpreted in cooperation with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Attractions include:

• 20 historic buildings (furnace complex, town hall, hotel, company office and workers' homes)
• Museum exhibits
• Outdoor walking tour and scenic overlooks
• Modern visitor center
• Scheduled guided tours mid-June through August
• A branch of the Michigan Historical Museum Store
• Camping, picnicking and swimming are available in the park

Go to:

• Fayette Historic Townsite visitor information
• Fayette Historic Townsite area information

Visit the "Kids at Fayette," an online minitour of an exhibit in one of the site's historic structures.

Updated 03/11/2008

Michigan Historical Center, Department of History, Arts and Libraries
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