Heritage Village & Festival

The Shoen Log Cabin was built in 1860 and located west of Crystal. It was donated by the Shoen Family and assembled at Heritage Village in 1987. The Cabin was taken down and each log marked so it could be rebuilt at the Village.

The Doctor's House and moving funds were donated by John Bookwalter. It was moved from Stanton in 2000 by the William House Moving Co. A doctor’s office is replicated in this home. It was renovated and decorated by volunteers. During pioneer days the doctors often saw patients in their home office or made house calls.

The Gaffield School was built in 1904 and located south of Amble. It was donated by David and Phyllis Larsen and moved to Heritage Village in 1986. Wood or coal was used to fuel a large heating stove. One teacher taught all the children from beginners through eighth grade.

The McBride Depot was located in McBride. Frank and June Parr donated the depot and funded its’ move to the Village. Rollaway Movers accomplished the movement in 1995. The railroad came through in 1877 and erected the depot near McBride’s Mill on the Detroit, Lansing, Northern line. The Pere Marquette ran through McBride for many years.

The Sap House was established in 2024 to support The Sugar Bush at Montcalm Community College. The Sap House provides a valuable resource to support MCC coursework in agriculture, anthropology, business, chemistry, environmental sciences, history and marketing.

The Stumping Machine was donated to Heritage Village by Howard Petersen in 1992. It is a steelyard machine. The machine pulled stumps by use of pulleys and a cable fastened to the tripod of large poles. A team of horses or a yoke of oxen provided the power to pull the stumps.

Dell's Barbershop was also an annex to the Entrican Rural School and donated by Ruby and Gene Jeppesen. It was moved to the Village in 2001, renovated and furnished in 2002, by volunteers.

The Edmore Jail was used in the late 1800’s and was located in Edmore. It was donated to Heritage Village by the town of Edmore and moved in 1992. During the lumbering days it was used mostly to hold boisterous drunks. When sober they would return to the saloons and repeat the cycle until their money was gone.

Sidney General Store was built by Lem and Charles Fish around 1908 and located in Sidney. It was donated to Heritage Village by Earl and Mary Beth Christensen and moved to the Village in 1989. The Fish family owned and operated the store for some time and lived in the upstairs apartment.

The Village Church is a replica of early churches built in the area. Brown Construction Co. of Carson City began construction of the foundation, framework and roof in fall 2004. Volunteers installed the siding, insulation and all the interior finish work. Brooks Electric provided the wiring. The final inspection was done in July 2005.

The Sidney Town Hall was built in the late 1800’s. It was donated by Sidney State Bank and moved to Heritage Village in 1989. Town Halls were used for voting, political meetings, weddings and community gatherings. The town crier would ring a bell to announce the opening of the polls for voting.

The Print Shop is a replica of a small-town newspaper office where the local paper was printed. It was built by volunteers in 2003. Early papers provided news, advertising, and other notices such as auction sales, etc. The shop equipment was donated by James H. Reid and facilitated by Clyde Pritchard of C & C Printing in Stanton in 2002.

The Blacksmith Shop was built in 2002 from salvaged lumber from a building originally located in Howard City and donated by Vern and Kyle Crater. Volunteers razed the building and rebuilt it as a shop at the Village. It is equipped with a forge, an anvil and “Smithy” tools.

Belle's Hat Shoppe was originally an annex to the Entrican Rural School. It was donated by Gene and Ruby Jeppesen. In 1998 it was moved to the Village by volunteers who also renovated and furnished it in 2001.

The Children's Playhouse is the location for children’s activities during the Heritage Festival. Members Shannon Neumann-Kilduff and Tom Learmont acquired a grant from the Greenville Community Foundation for construction of the playhouse in 2011. Old-fashioned games and crafts are featured here during the festival.

The Caboose was originally owned by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad. The company donated it to the Montcalm Intermediate School District which, in turn, donated it to Heritage Village. It was moved to the Village in 1995 by West Shore Service, Inc. movers. Based upon its design, it is believed to have been built about 1915.

The Water Tower was located in Sheridan. It was dismantled and reconstructed at the Village. Instructor Larry Yaw and students from the Montcalm Area Career Center welding class rebuilt it and set the base in 1995. Water towers were placed near rail tracks and supplied water for the train steam engines.

The Bandstand was donated by the Montcalm Area Master Gardener Association. It was built by Bowen Construction Co. in 2000. Most towns had a bandstand which was a focal point for celebrations and political orations. Today it is a gathering place for traditional music and entertainment during the festival and is the scene of an occasional wedding.

The Steam Switch Engine #7456, class o-18-a, Type 0-6-0, weighing 174,000 pounds was built in 1920. The tender weighing 130,000 pounds holds 5,500 gallons of water and 9 tons of coal. The engine and tender made their last run in 1950. They were purchased for $41,000 and moved to the Village in 2000 by West Shore Service, Inc.

The Village Cemetery was made in 1994 as a memorial to pioneers. The “foot stone” marker was used to mark the foot of the grave. No actual burials are here.

The Gift Shop offers T-shirts, hats and other souvenir items.

The Storage Barn houses some of the antique machinery at Heritage Village. The three-sided barn was built in 2011.

The Ehle Barn was originally located in Sheridan. This mortise and tenon barn was owned by Merle Ehle and was donated to the village by Mr. Ehle’s granddaughter, Tammy DuVall. Leonard Schrock of Vickeryville and his crew dismantled and reconstructed the barn at the Village in late 2006.

The Thorland Ice House was built by Stan and Irvin Jorgensen between 1923 and 1928 and was located on the family farm near Greenville. The farm was later sold to the Thorlands. The ice house was donated and moved to Heritage Village in 1992 by John Thorland. Ice blocks were cut from lakes and stored in sawdust.

The Tool Shed was built at Heritage Village in 1992 by Hansen Construction Co. The building materials were donated by Clarence and Harriet Olson. It is a replica of a farm storage area that holds a collection of “old” tools that were used in the farming industry.

The Trebian Orchard was planted at Heritage Village in 1993. It was donated by Orville Trebian and has vintage trees. Pioneers planted apple trees, lilac bushes and gardens as soon as they were settled.

The Maintenance of Way handcar house, also called a section shed, housed motorized handcars (speeders), regular handcars and trailers. The long-tongued trailers hauled rail sections and equipment for repairs. Section workers (gandy-dancers) stored their spike hammers, wrenches, other tools and fuel in the M-O-W. It was built by volunteers in 2003.

The Pavilion was planned by Fred Ehle and built by Clark Construction Co. in 1998. It was built to provide a sheltered picnic area for visitors to the Village. In early times they were enclosed and used for family outings and dances.

Rush Dairy was located in Sheridan. The milk bottling equipment was donated by Alvin Rush from the original Rush Dairy. The Veteran’s Memorial Fund Committee donated the funds for the material for the building which was built by volunteers in 1995. Years ago, milk was bottled and then delivered by horse and wagon to town customers.