Piece of the Past
Extraordinary Homes: Landmark Edition
By Beth Anne Piehl
Photography by G. Randall Goss
We are all the keepers of history. Decades and centuries from now, will the modern houses of today stand up against the structures that have transcended eras, those that are noted in national archives for their historic and architectural significance? Will a home of this generation carry historical implications because any of us lived there? Time will tell, as it always does. It’s speaking, still, around Northern Michigan, in some of the area’s most historic homes.
The owners: The Mainlands, Arlington Avenue, Petoskey
Year built: 1882 approx.
Ernest and Judy Mainland have one of Petoskey’s most panoramic views from their home along Arlington Avenue. It had to be that way for Hiram O. Rose more than a century ago, so he could look out over his gracious Arlington Hotel and his limestone mining operation along Petoskey’s waterfront.
Rose is considered one of Petoskey’s “founding fathers,” an entrepreneur who dammed a nearby river to sell water to the steam trains and who owned the length of lakeshore from near the current Petoskey City Hall all the way to Bay View.
“When he arrived here and saw the limestone quarry, he said, ‘Money,’” said Ernie, a gregarious and well-known Petoskey figure himself. “He made plaster, which is made from limestone.”
“That,” he emphasizes, pointing out his front windows and down toward the waterfront, “was his quarry.”
Judy and Ernie like to say their home is decorated in “early attic,” and it has loads of historic charm and stories inside the century-plus-old walls.
The home is adjacent to the East Mitchell Historic District (see sidebar), but perhaps because its address is Arlington, it’s not included in the district. Its history, however, is equally impressive. It was occupied by Rose and his family from approximately 1883 to 1946. At that time, the John H. Perry family, of Perry Oil, purchased it, changed the address from Rose Street to Arlington, and added a front entrance room.
Early on, a fire had destroyed much of the original Italian Renaissance house, and it was rebuilt on much of the same foundation with more Victorian features. The Perry family modernized the exterior of the home in the mid-1940s, though the interior lines remain in tact. “The Perrys probably did the most renovation to the house,” Judy said.
In 1993, the Mainlands bought the property and remodeled some rooms inside, including tearing out walls to create one large open living space, rather than keeping the two existing parlors that flanked the main doorway. Improvements such as lightening the wall color from dark green to cream, converting an upper level bedroom into a large closet and bathroom space off the master bedroom and a kitchen makeover added modern touches to the classic home that still has its original door hinges, fireplaces — and stories to tell.
“What this house has is the old, original details,” Judy said. “We updated it, but we kept the old character.”
Additional Information
Who was Hiram Rose? He was the first to plat the village of what is now Petoskey in August 1874 and is considered one of Petoskey’s founding fathers. He developed the Michigan Lime Co. and built the first railway (wooden rails) to Bay View. He was also elected the first president of Petoskey, initiating the first water system and building the first electric light plant. He also built the stately Arlington Hotel, which rivaled the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, in front of his home. He died in 1911.
Who was John Perry? An equally significant Petoskey entrepreneur was Perry, who owned and operated a car dealership downtown. His Perry Oil Co. became a distributor for Mobil Oil products in 1934. He served as Petoskey’s mayor from 1944-50, and during his tenure the city purchased 25 acres of waterfront for $25,000. He lived in the house from 1946 until his death in 1993, when it was sold to its third owners, the Mainlands.