Spring Dinner
This dinner is held on the last Wednesday of May before Memorial Day each year. All members are invited to enjoy a night of food and fellowship. Each dinner features a special guest speaker or an exciting presentation about the history of Pentwater or the surrounding area. Past topics have included: Armistice Day, Icebreaker Ships and Songs of Lake Michigan.
Community-Wide Garage Sale
The Pentwater Historical Society Museum participates in the Community-Wide Garage Sale each year. PHS takes donations of any kind, so do your spring cleaning and forget about the hassle of setting up and pricing and leave it to PHS! Drop off your gently loved treasures to the PHS and we will do the rest! All proceeds go to the upkeep and maintenance of the Museum. The Community-Wide Garage Sale occurs each year in early June. (Please note: We do not accept couches, pillows, bed linens, or clothes.)
Homecoming Parade
Join the Pentwater Historical Society in the annual Homecoming Parade! Be a part of the design team, walking team, or cheer from the crowd! The Annual Homecoming Parade occurs the second weekend in August.
Summer Dinner
This dinner is held the fourth Wednesday of August before Labor Day each year. All members are invited to enjoy a night of food and fellowship. Each dinner features a special guest speaker or an exciting presentation about the history of Pentwater or the surrounding area. Past events have included: Pure Michigan, SS Jarvis Lord Shipwreck and Shipwrecks of the Great Lakes.
Walking Tour – Historic Pentwater and its Architecture
Join a free 90-minute guided walking tour of picturesque Pentwater, led by architectural historians. They will point out the varied architectural styles as well as recount early inhabitants & stories for homes and buildings in Pentwater, many of which date back to the
1860s. The tour starts and ends at the Pentwater Historical Society Museum (1st and Rutledge) and takes in the beauty of the historic homes on Pentwater’s quaint residential streets. We also walk by civic and commercial buildings and sites representing the spirited history of the small village that began as an 1850s lumbering settlement.
History Cruise
Our most scenic tour, the History Cruise takes place on the same watercraft that is used for taxi services and sunset cruises. Enjoy an hour on the water with our docent. Learn about the sites of various businesses and events that took place along the shoreline. See it all from the lake point of view. The cost is $10, required to cover the watercraft operating expenses. The one-hour tour departs from the water taxi dock at 3 rd street and the lakeshore. See the Pentwater Water Taxi page on Facebook for the latest information on how to purchase tickets in advance to reserve your seat(s). Walk-ups are welcome if there is room.
History on the Green
A seated narrative is available on the Village Green. The Village Green is the geographical center of much of the history you will hear. With a central view of the most memorable locations in and around Pentwater – the channel, Lake Michigan, Pentwater Lake, and the downtown area – you will enjoy the stories about the people and events near the lakes, up and down Hancock Street, and the surrounding areas. This one-hour, free session will meet near the pavilion. Feel free to bring a chair, or metal folding chairs will be provided.
History on Hancock
Take a stroll down Hancock Street exploring the earliest days of our village through the
millennium. Hear the stories and see the places where it all happened. To keep our youngest
participants engaged we offer a pictorial scavenger hunt for budding historians age 12 and
under. Let them match the photographic evidence to the proper location and story! The one-
hour, free tour departs from the Municipal Marina parking lot at Hancock & 6th St., and finishes at Hancock and 1st St.
How many shipwrecks lie off Pentwater?
Over forty shipwrecks have occurred along Pentwater beaches. None were more tragic than the 1940 Armistice Day sinkings, which drowned 59 Great Lakes sailors. On that black night in November, a storm with sustained winds of 80 mph, and gusts exceeding 110 mph, caught three massive steel lake freighters just off Pentwater.
The two largest, the Anna C. Minch and Wm. B. Davoc, sank with all hands. Nearby, a third freighter, the Novadoc, with 17 of its crew still aboard, was being slowly pounded to pieces by waves estimated to have reached 30 feet in height. Local fishermen carried out the rescue of the Novadoc crew and became national heroes. The Pentwater Historical Society museum has a collection of artifacts commemorating the storm and rescue