MACKINAW CITY -- Layers of dirt are dumped into a sifter to find little pieces of Emmet County history. These student archaelogists from Central Michigan University have been discovering artifacts that are unveling the past of the McGulpin Point Lighthouse.
"We find quite a lot of interesting things to tell us a little bit about what they were eating, maybe some of the hobbies that Mr. Davenport, the Lighthouse inkeeper, and also I'm interested enough some of the toys of the children played with," Central Michigan University Professor Dr. Sarah Surface-Evans said.
The Davenport family lived on this land for nearly 30 years in the late 1800s. The original barn that sat next to the house has been gone for decades. The county wants to build a replica of the barn, but they need to know its story first.
"By having this information we can add to that story, we can add to the displays in the museum that would be part of the light house," Dr. Surface-Evans said.
There are seven students who are working on this project through the end of the week. After they are done, they will explore other Emmet County sites. Which includes Heritage Village and Headlands International Dark Sky park. The students believe that discovering the history behind these landmarks is important to future generations.
"Preserving a lighthouse is preserving hundreds and thousands of years, there's the ancient lighthouse of Alexandria and this is not so very different. Different time. Different place. Same human story," CMU student SK Haase said.
