In this episode of End of the Road in Michigan, we take you back to the early 1900s, when Saugatuck transformed from a quiet lumber town into a vibrant summer retreat for Chicago’s city dwellers. You’ll hear how steamships, interurban trains, and hand-cranked ferries brought thousands to this lakeshore village.

We revisit the days of the Big Pavilion, where electric lights lit up the harbor and music echoed across the water, and follow vacationers over Mt. Baldhead to the soft sands of Oval Beach.

This episode also explores Saugatuck’s artistic legacy, with the founding of the Ox-Bow Summer School of Painting, and uncovers local stories — including Prohibition-era intrigue and the town’s growing reputation as a welcoming, creative community.

It’s a story of reinvention, leisure, and the rhythms of summer that still echo today.

A production of Thumbwind Publications