Michigan Week

Explore the following resources about Michigan all year-long, but especially during Michigan Week. That's usually during the second or third week of May each year. One recent theme is Great Lakes, Great Traditions: Celebrating Michigan's Heritage.

According to the Mission Statement for Michigan Week, this week-long celebration is to inspire people - at the local level - to embrace, explore and celebrate the history, resources and opportunities that set Michigan apart as an ideal state in which to work, play and thrive. The following is just a sampling of our rich Michigan collection here at the Canton Public Library. Be sure to come and browse our other titles regarding our great state!

Fun Facts About Michigan

Awesome Almanac: Michigan by Annette Newcomb: Fun facts about Michigan are included in this easy to read book. Features information on Michigan history, sports, famous people and more.

Michigan Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities & Other Offbeat Stuff by Colleen Burcar with Gene Taylor: Includes fun and quirky stories of interesting Michigan residents and places.

Michigan Trivia compiled by Ernie & Jill Couch: Did you know that 60,000 automobiles were registered in Michigan in 1913? Or did you know that Michigan become part of the Indian Territory in 1800? Find out more facts about the Great Lakes State in this fun book.

Mich-Again's Day by Gary W. Barfnecht: Written in a monthly format, this book includes a Michigan fact, first or famous person's birthday for each day of the year.

Michigan Reference Books

Need some information regarding Michigan for a school report? These Michigan references are the place to start your research.

Facts About the States by Joseph Nathan Kane: Includes information regarding all 50 states, such as facts about geography and climate, historical dates, demography and government.

State Names, Seals, Flags and Symbols: A Historical Guide by Benjamin F. Shearer: This book includes information about all 50 states, with information about legal holidays, fairs and festivals, universities, professional sports teams and more.

Michigan Manual: Published biennially by the Legislative Service Bureau of Michigan, this is a comprehensive reference book about the state of Michigan. Includes a wealth of information regarding Michigan history, constitutional development, government organization and institutions.

Michigan Place Names by Walter Romig: Did you ever wonder how the cities of Colon and Hell got their peculiar names? Read this book and find out the story behind hundreds of Michigan cities and town names.

Michigan Flora and Fauna

Michigan Mammals by Rollin H. Baker: An excellent resource regarding mammals residing in Michigan. Features detailed information for each animal, including descriptions, measurements, habitat and behavior.

Michigan Wildflowers by Helen V. Smith: A comprehensive, illustrated volume of 483 species of Michigan wildflowers.

Michigan Trees: A Guide to the Trees of Michigan and the Great Lakes Region by Burton V. Barnes and Warren H. Wagner, Jr.: A detailed encyclopedia regarding the various trees of Michigan.

National Geographic Field Guide to Birds: Michigan edited by Jonathan Alderfer: A guide to the identification of birds native to Michigan.

Natural Wonders of Michigan: Exploring Wild and Scenic Places by Tom Carney: This book, part travel book and part nature guide, illumines the beauty of Michigan in all parts of the state.

Public Gardens of Michigan by Miriam Easton Rutz: This book, complete with dozens of photographs, captures the beauty of many of the public gardens across the state, such as the Frederick Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids and the Nichols Arboretum in Ann Arbor.

Michigan Travel and Tourism

Check out the Special Multimedia Collection, Family Travel Activities in Michigan, for a comprehensive look at traveling in The Great Lakes State!

If you're interested in touring lighthouses in the Great Lakes, check our Lighthouses of the United States Special Multimedia Collection. It includes resources about lighthouses in Michigan.

Michigan History

For additional information regarding Michigan history, be sure to see the Special Multimedia Collections, A Historical Tour of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and Detroit History.

Michigan: A History of the Great Lakes State by Bruce A. Rubenstein: This comprehensive book covers the history of the Great Lakes state with an emphasis on the diverse people who have inhabited it over the centuries. A bibilography is included.

Michigan Historic Cemeteries Preservation Guide by Gregg King: This award winning book was written by a Canton resident. It is the only guide written specifically for the conservation and preservation of Michigan cemeteries.

A Drive Down Memory Lane: The Named State and Federal Highways of Michigan by LeRoy Barnett: This book reacquaints the reader with the approximately 250 people and groups that were immortalized-recently or decades ago-on the travel maps of this state by having their names assigned to our most significant lanes of traffic.

Traveling Through Time: A Guide to Michigan's Historical Markers by Laura Rose Ashlee: A guidebook for Michigan historical markers arranged alphabetically within county chapters and indexed by personal names and subjects.

Michigan: A History by Bruce Catton: Written in 1976 as part of The States and The Nation series for the country's bicentennial, this book captures the spirit and attitude of Michigan--its residents and pioneers--as well as any and better than most titles. A Petoskey native and Pulitzer Prize winner, Catton also wrote Waiting for the Morning Train, a personal account of his early years growing up in Northern Michigan.

Fort Pontchartrain at Detroit: A Guide to the Daily Lives of Fur Trade and Military Personnel, Settlers and Missionaries at French Posts by Timothy J. Kent: Sent by King Louis XIV, Cadillac had been ordered to establish Fort Pontchartrain at Detroit as the new center of fur trade and military power in the interior regions. This detailed reference book, regarding every aspect of the fort, will appeal to enthusiasts of the fur trade era, early military life, and Native lifestyles.

Retrieving Michigan's Buried Past: The Archaeology of the Great Lakes State by John. R. Halsey: Comprised of 13 chapters contributed by distinguished archaeologists, the book not only covers the full range of prehistoric occupations in the state but also gives extensive coverage of the archaeology of Michigan from the time of the first European exploration to the dawn of the 20th century.

Atlas of Great Lakes Indian History by Helen Hornbeck Tanner: A historic view of the Native American tribes that inhabited the Great Lakes region from about 1640 to 1871.

Archways to our Past: Michigan's Historic Highway Bridges (Videocassette): This documentary highlights many of Michigan's historic highway bridges and the people who built them.

Michigan Places

There are many more books regarding cities, towns and townships in Michigan in our Michigan History section. Be sure to browse our shelves!

Michigan Shadow Towns by Gene Scott: Many of the original towns in Michigan were stops along the railroads that crisscrossed the state. Some of these towns still exist, but many of them are extremely small “shadows” of themselves. This book highlights the interesting histories of these bygone places.

Snapshots: A Saugatuck Album by James Schmiechen and William Kemperman: Published in conjunction with the exhibition "Snapshots: A Saugatuck Album," this book was sponsored by the Saugatuck-Douglas Historical Society at the Saugatuck-Douglas Historical Museum and highlights the the history of this western Michigan town.

Idlewild: The Black Eden of Michigan by Ronald J. Stephens: Once referred to as the Black Eden of Michigan, Idlewild was considered the premiere African-American resort community in the country. Find out more about its unique past in this book.

Mackinac Island: A 600-Year History (Videocassette): Chronicles the history of Mackinac Island from before European settlement until the year 2000.

Michigan People

Discovering the Peoples of Michigan series published by Michigan State University Press: This is an interesting series of books published in 2001 and 2002, covering nearly a dozen of the state's 75 ethnic groups.

Soapy: A Biography of G. Mennen Williams by Thomas J. Noer: A complete biography of G. Mennen "Soapy" Williams (1911-1988), former governor of Michigan, who was reelected five times and served as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs under the Kennedy and Johnson administrations.

The Most Dangerous Man in Detroit: Walter Reuther and the Fate of American Labor by Nelson Lichtenstein: In addition to being a biography, this book is also a history of the United Auto Workers union, and of the labor movement during a period when great success laid seeds for later weakness and isolation.

Open the Door: The Life and Music of Betty Carter by William R. Bauer: The first full-length biography on this influential jazz singer follows her life from her childhood in Detroit to her rise to jazz stardom.

Michigan Governors: Their Life Stories by Willah Weddon: Biographies of the governors of Michigan, from the first, Stephens T. Mason, to John Engler.

Michigan Rogues, Desperados and Cut-Throats: A Gallery of 19th Century Miscreants by Tom Powers: Interested in reading about the shady characters that used to inhabit frontier Michigan? Then this is the book for you! Read about the killers, crooks, thieves, and a remarkable assortment of other tragic, lawless and laughable characters washed through the streets of Michigan cities around the state.

Michigan Cooking

Ships of the Great Lakes Cookbook by Paula K. McKenna: This book, complete with recipes from Great Lakes ships of every type, also includes interesting histories of the ships as well as biographical information regarding their chefs.

Celebrating 300 years of Detroit Cooking, 1701 to 2001 edited by Marguerite J. Humes: In commemoration of Detroit's 300th birthday, the Detroit Historical Society Guild compiled this cookbook. Included are recipes from Pre-European Native Americans, to ones written for modern kitchens. Interesting facts and photos of Detroit complement the text.

Walnut Pickles and Watermelon Cake: A Century of Michigan Cooking by Larry B. and Priscilla Massie: An eclectic collection of recipes, dating from the early 1900's to the 1990's, including snacks, vegetables, meats, sweets and more.

Michigan Fiction

The Narrows by Alexander Irvine: Jared helps make golems for the war effort at Henry Ford's top-secret plant in Detroit, but he'd like nothing more than to follow those golems to war in Europe. However, what he finds at home is as sinister as any overseas enemy.

Ursula, Under by Ingrid Hill: In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, a dangerous rescue effort draws the ears and eyes of the entire country. A two-and-a-half-year-old girl has fallen down a mine shaft. It is as if all hope for life on the planet is bound up in the rescue of this little girl, the first and only child of a young woman of Finnish extraction and her Chinese-American husband.

Saul and Patsy by Charles Baxter: Saul and Patsy are college sweehearts who settle in Michigan and have to cope with the demands and prejudices of the residents of their small town.

The Burning of Rachel Hayes by Douglas Allyn: David Westbrook is a troubled veterinarian who has moved to a small town in northern Michigan to start a new life. However, things become complicated after discovering the body of a woman burned in the Great Fire of 1871 when mysterious fires and accidents begin to happen.

North Branch by Jeff Mann: One rainy night on a Michigan highway, Ben Marshall is the first to arrive at a traffic accident. What he finds will change the direction of his life completely, and make for an exciting novel.

The Table by Matthew Waynee: A gritty, honest novel about the struggles and achievements of Polish immigrants in the lumber town of Bay City, Michigan.

Shadow Play: A Novel by Charles Baxter: Set in Michigan, a decent man, having made a "devil's bargain," finds himself on that precarious border between personal love and social responsibility.

A Cold Day in Paradise by Steve Hamilton: Winner of the 1999 Edgar Award for Best First Mystery Novel, this on the edge-of-your-seat thriller is set in the bitter cold winter of the Michigan's Upper Peninsula. If you enjoy this novel, be sure to read the other titles in this series, including the most recent, Winter of the Wolf Moon.

Magazines

Michigan History: Published by the Michigan Historical Center, Department of History, Arts and Libraries, this bi-annual publication features articles regarding Michigan's rich history. Also includes book reviews and travel tips.

AAA Living: Interested in traveling in Michigan? Be sure to check out this Automobile Club of Michigan magazine. Featuring articles on various Michigan destinations, it also includes information regarding restaurants and lodging.

The Michigan Historical Review: This semi-annual scholarly journal, published by Michigan State University Press, features book reviews and articles regarding various topics in Michigan history.

Michigan Out-of-Doors: Michigan Out-of-Doors is the official monthly publication of the Michigan United Conservation Clubs. It features articles regarding outdoor sports such as hunting and fishing.

Websites

Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries: Check out this site for a complete list of events planned to celebrate the great state of Michigan. Also, make sure you see the description of the Michigan Historical Museum System and the exhibits you can find around the state.

Rearview Mirror: This is a series of feature articles published by the Detroit News, especially about unique moments in Detroit history.

This Special Multimedia Collection last updated on July 13, 2007.