The following article was published in the Summer 2024 edition of the
Michigan Garden Club’s Thru the Garden Gate newsletter

​​“Petoskey is so pretty!”…I am often told when asked where I live. However,
Petoskey was not always pretty. It has a natural beauty, but from 1840-1910 the
logging industry stripped Northern Michigan of conifers and hardwood trees. The
leftover branches and stumps became tinder for terrible fires in the region. The harbor
was a busy industrial area with mills, shops, and ships delivering goods and tourists,
as well as coal-burning trains coming into the depot near the shoreline continuously.
The Bear River, which  flows into the bay in Petoskey, had multiple gristmills and
sawmills along it. Along the  shoreline was a major limestone quarry. It was a smokey,
noisy, congested commercial area. 

In 1934, a group of residents formed the Petoskey Garden Club, later adding the
more inclusive “Area” to its name, and now known as the Petoskey Area Garden Club
(PAGC).  Their mission was to restore Petoskey’s beauty. They encouraged
homeowners to plant trees, flowers, and gardens, and urged businesses to install and
plant flower  boxes in front of their stores. 

Gradually, the landscapes improved. The limestone quarry became a park (Bayfront
Park) with a cascading waterfall that added to the beauty of the area. In 1990, PAGC
bought landscape boulders, installed and planted two large beds near the waterfall
complete with irrigation. The  floral beds have mostly been perennials, with annuals
added for splashes of color. This location has been a cherished photo location for
graduations, engagements, and weddings. 

The old railway depot at the waterfront is now the Little Traverse Historical Museum, 
and PAGC has a large, beautiful bed there. The bulk of it is flowering perennials
with  borders of bulbs blooming in spring and annuals planted in June. 

Moving inland from the marina area, one comes to the downtown and Pennsylvania 
Park. This park is the significant gathering place of our city where concerts, art fairs, 
picnics, and dog walking are constant. It is the social and aesthetic center with green
lawns and towering trees to shade in the summer heat.  

In 1973, the City Council proposed removing the historical railroad tracks and turning 
Pennsylvania Park into a parking lot! The members of PAGC vigorously objected to
that idea. In April of that year, PAGC headed a petition drive for a city charter
amendment  banning the use, sale, or lease of parks without a vote of the citizens. On
June 8, 1973,  PAGC member Barbara Waters filed the petition which allowed the issue

to be put on the ballot. Throughout the summer and fall PAGC and other like-minded
organizations informed voters of the importance of the issue. In November, the
amendment was voted in, and Ms. Waters was elected mayor of Petoskey, the first
female mayor.  Pennsylvania Park was saved as well as the other parks in Petoskey in
this notable action taken by PAGC. 

Pennsylvania Park has several floral beds planted and maintained by PAGC. The
club constructed the lovely white Gazebo with a copper roof, and planted the beds 
surrounding it for their 50th Anniversary in 1984. The Gazebo is a focal point of the park
and is often used for concerts, city celebrations, and photography. For PAGC’s 80th
Anniversary, the Gazebo was restored, got a fresh coat of paint and new plantings 
around it. The club also installed a Blue Star Memorial in 2014 with colorful annuals 
planted each year. 

The 50th Anniversary in 1984 was a pivotal time for PAGC members as they reflected 
on their past accomplishments, as well as focusing on future projects. To fund the 
future, they launched a huge fund-raising endeavor that raised $100,000. Eventually,
those funds were placed in the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation, 
where they have grown each year. All expenses needed for PAGC projects
and plantings come from the interest generated by the foundation funds. 

PAGC also plants and maintains beds at the North and South entrances to the city, and 
a large, diverse City Center bed at the corner of Mitchell and Howard Streets. On the 
walkway of the Bear River Recreational Park, we have a Monarch Way Station.
Planted  in 2008, this garden attracts Monarch and other butterflies and pollinators. The
club also funds 24 baskets each summer that are hung on posts above the Mitchell
Street  Bridge. Automatic watering and feeding hoses were added in 2022. 

For the past seven years, PAGC has been developing ideas and plans for a children’s 
garden. We were advised early on by Deborah Kinney, designer of MSU’s Children’s 
Garden, to focus our garden on what makes our community unique. We thought of the 
lakes, dunes, forests, native plants, and the Indigenous people who first lived and still 
live here. Partnering with the landscape architectural firm of Beckett & Raeder, the Little 
Traverse Bay Band of Odawa, and the City of Petoskey Department of Parks & 
Recreation, this project is now part of the city’s Master Plan. It will be called
Kitigaan Children’s Garden (“Kitigaan" meaning “children” in the Odawa language),
focusing on  the native plants and the culture of the Odawa. It will be a place where
children can  play, climb, explore, plant, and learn. It will be located in Arlington Park
(2.5 acres),  overlooking Little Traverse Bay, and adjacent to the ancient path that the
Odawa and other tribes traveled between Mackinaw City and Grand Rapids. 

2024 is the 90th Anniversary year of PAGC. This Kitigaan Garden will express the
same  commitment to the community that the Garden Club founders and members
through the years have made: “…to promote love of gardening, floral and landscape
design,  and civic and environmental responsibility.” Petoskey Area Garden Club is

beginning to  raise matching funds to augment what the city can obtain through
municipal grants for  this new project.

The future is exciting and bright for the Petoskey Area Garden Club as its
members continue their mission. Visit petoskeygarden.club for more information.

​

Article submitted by Jane Schneider, PAGC President, 2023 & 2024