Protect our History

Recently, I have had the same conversation with many different people. That conversation is all about watching after our Heritage and Natural resources. Not just ignoring bad behaviour while out on the Trails, or in a Historical setting.

One of the biggest things destroying Haven Hill, besides the years of neglect from the State DNR, is Vandalism of all sorts. I am not just talking about Punks, spray painting the Carriage House or Pump House. I mean stuff like crawling on the roof of the Carriage House to cut away the copper flashing around the Fireplace for scrapping money.

Then there are the the Metal Detector people. It is illegal to use these devices absolutely anywhere on the state designated Historical areas. Which means the entire Hill-top and surround hill-sides +. These people digging up even door hinges that were hand-made for all the different Doors at the Estate, are just plain STEALING from all of us.

DO NOT HESITATE to report thieves and Criminals like these. Take their pictures, and maybe walk back to the Parking lot and take down their license plate numbers. These criminals that are stealing from all of us, including our children and future generations, deserve Jail time. Their thinking only includes themselves, and no one else. That is how they should be treated in return.

If we all do not watch out for our Historical places and special grounds, there will be nothing left for others. DO NOT be afraid to report these people. They are quickly destroying many of the Historically unique places at Haven Hill. And then there will be nothing.

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Haven Hill Natural area HIKE scheduled

On March 17th, the Haven Hill Project, along with Hiking Michigan, will be doing an expanded Hike of the haven Hill area at Highland recreation area. The Hike will cover most of the Haven Hill designated natural area, located north of haven Hill lake. The lake created when Edsel Ford dammed the small creek in the area.

The Hike will circle through the many unique environments of the Natural area, and then head south into the rarely seen or used, Ford Private nature Trails. These private nature trails where created by the Ford family for the private use by the family and guests to the haven Hill Lodge. Wooden staircases embedded into hillsides, Benches overlooking Ornamental Ponds and many unique waterway Bridges dot this very interesting Nature Trails area of the Park.

The Hike will also circle back through the Lodge and Carriage house section of Haven Hill, to give everyone a well rounded view and idea of a major portion of the Edsel Ford estate at Haven Hill.

Come out and join us for this extended afternoon of Nature and Historical Hiking at Haven Hill, Highland Recreation area. Hikers will meet at the Circle Parking area and head to the haven Hill lake Dam, to begin the afternoons Hiking experience. Hope to see you all starting at 12pm, Saturday, 3/17/12 at Highland Recreation area.

You can download a detailed Flyer for this Hike here: HAVEN HILL AREA HIKE

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FINALLY……New Maps and Book to be released

We will be announcing the release of some very special Maps for Haven Hill and the entire Ford Estate. This special edition maps will be released in varied sizes and printed on Archival, heavy stock papers. Years worth of mapping, research and GPSing went into these special maps.

In the next month, we will also be releasing a paperback version and hopefully the hardcover version of our COMPLETE HISTORY book of Haven Hill. Various politics and silliness has delayed the release of this already complete and published book. We will have more details announcements shortly, on both the various Maps and Book release. Stay tuned.

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Best Exploring Time at the Estate

The Fall season is the very best of times to explore the Edsel Ford Estate at Haven Hill. With the ground cover dieing back and the foliage falling away, much that was hidden by the summers growth is now reveled.

Sign posts, foundations, fence lines and old structures appear almost out of no where with the leaves falling. So download a updated Map from the HAVEN HILL PROJECT web site, do a little studying, and then wait a bit as the leaves start to fall. Then head out to the Estate and do some of the best historical exploring you will experience in almost any place in Michigan.

This is also a great time to hike the Natural Area loop, around Haven Hill lake. Edsel Ford did much around the Dam area at the lake, so keep your eyes open for signs of family activity there. Look for Hiking Michigan to sponsor another Fall HISTORY HIKE this year again. Sometime in October there will be announcements. This is a Fall Tour you should not miss.

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Spring Flowers Blooming

Great time to head out to Haven Hill at Highland Recreation area. The Natural area’s main trail, around the north side of the Dam is starting to come into bloom with the many wild flowers and plants that grow there. The many different habitats mean there are many different kinds of plants and flowers in this part of the Park.

Download one of the maps from the web site and take a journey around Haven Hill lake and enjoy the Spring blooms. Circle back through the ruins at Haven Hill Lodge. It is much easier to see and understand the Estate at this time of year, due to the lack of thick tree cover and ground foliage. A wonderful way to spend a Spring afternoon.

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Latest in series of Haven Hill new Videos

Here is the first in a series of 4 new Haven Hill videos. This first video is an overview of the Estate and it’s main structures and features. There are many new pictures and recent video clips, as well as new detailed maps.

The next video in this series will be exclusively on the Ford Historic Nature Trails. This area of the Estate was developed by Edsel and landscape architect Jens Jensen, as a private nature trails system, for the Ford family and friends. Bridges, benches, ornamental  ponds, structures and all the wonderful things that make up a beautiful nature area as this.

We suggest that you download our newly updated Estate maps from the web site, and go exploring for yourself. The combination of history and nature combined at the Estate is as joy for almost everyone.

Our new Explorer Estate and Park maps will be available next week. These 13″ x 19″ maps are printed on archival paper and show just how the Estate was in 1930 at it’s hay-day. These two maps are different from the free maps that you can download from the web site at this moment. They contain every detail, road, building and feature at the Ford Estate in 1930. We guarantee you have never seen anything like these maps.

So…..get out to Highland State Recreation Area and discover the wonder of what once was the Edsel & Eleanor Ford Estate. There is no place in Michigan quite like it.

Downlo0ad a Trails map of the Estate and state designated Natural area at the park. TRAILS & ESTATE MAP

Download a map of Haven Hill and the locations of the various structures and features that made up the Ford Estate.  MAP OF THE HAVEN HILL ESTATE

Read a two page excerpt from the upcoming Book about the Estate and the history of the area starting from the 1600s and running to the present day.  HISTORY SHEETS

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Anytime is a Good time

The HAVEN HILL area at Highland State Recreation area is always a beautiful place to wander. Every season has it’s own feel and look. The old Ford Estate takes on a new look in the winter snows. The Haven Hill Natural area has a whole new feel to it as you walk the trails.

The animal population is diverse and healthy in the Natural area. Wandering around this section of the Park you will see much activity. Look for animal tracks and the many signs of activity along the trails.

Up on Haven Hill, the Ford Estate is always an amazing place to visit. The winter snows only further intrigue one to explore and wonder just how things where almost 90 years ago when the Estate was a bussling place.

Stop in to the web site and download a Map of the trails and Ford Estate at Haven Hill, and spend a wonderful afternoon exploring nature and history together.

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Very Busy

With the HAVEN HILL book to be released, weather-proof maps, pamphlets and History papers, there has been little time for any new field work or even much posting. All the final details are being finished in a mass release of many different informational media about the Haven Hill estate at Highland State Recreation area.

It has been two year now, of hundreds of exploration miles through out the Estate. Countless hours scouring over various archives around town, and endless hours editing text and hundred of photos for these many upcoming releases.

I hope it will have been worth the wait when everyone gets a chance to see the results of such extensive investigations, research, study and writings about the Ford family and their estate at Haven Hill. We will start releasing many of our projects very shortly, and the excitement here at our workshop and studio is electric. Stay tuned for the first announcements, right here on our Blog.

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How it was at HAVEN HILL

Slowly now, we have been doing renderings of all the structures at the Haven Hill Estate, the way they where in their hey-day. By using old photos, descriptions and physical examinations, we have been able to do colored drawings of these wonderful buildings. We are completing the Carriage House at this time and are almost done with the Farm houses/Horse Barn as well. The Lodge has been completed, along with most of the Gatehouse and Green Barn. The Pool and Tennis courts are next.

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Those fine details

While looking over some old Ford family photos, we have been concentrating not on just what is in the foreground of these pictures, but what is in the back round, and the subtleties of everything going on in that picture.

Looking at a family photo taken of Edsel, Eleanor, the children and Edsel’s mom Clara, we noticed something very endearing. Josephine, Edsel’s only daughter, was standing to the left of her fathers Edsel. She has a two-hand clasp of her Dad’s hand and is looking up at him, and not at the camera. You can see the admiration and love just oozing from Josephine, for her father, Edsel.

It has been these types of observations of the many photos we have studied, that make much of this tedious research a great pleasure.

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