Irish Hills Towers facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Irish Hills Towers
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 Location in Michigan
Location in the United States
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| Location | 8433 West U.S. Highway 12, Cambridge Township, Michigan |
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| Built | 1924 |
| NRHP reference No. | 07000380 |
| Added to NRHP | May 2, 2007 |
The Irish Hills Towers are two tall wooden towers in Michigan. You can find them in a pretty area called the Irish Hills, specifically in Cambridge Township. These towers are special because they were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007, which means they are important historical landmarks.
The Story of the Irish Hills Towers
Back in the early 1920s, a company called the Michigan Observation Company wanted to build tall platforms. Their goal was to attract tourists to places with great views. They looked for high spots in southern Michigan.
They found a good spot in the Irish Hills. Part of this land belonged to a farmer named Edward Kelly. He didn't want to sell his land. But the farmer next door, Thomas Brighton, agreed to sell his part. So, the company started building the first tower, called the Irish Hills Observatory.
A Towering Competition
The new Irish Hills Observatory opened in September 1924. Many people came to see the beautiful views from the tower.
Edward Kelly, the farmer who didn't sell his land, wasn't happy. He decided to build his own tower! By November 1924, his tower was finished. It was just a few feet away from the first tower and even a bit taller.
The Michigan Observation Company then added more height to their tower. They called it the Original Irish Hills Tower. Kelly then added more height to his tower, which was painted gray. This made both towers the same height.
The company told Kelly that if he kept trying to make his tower taller, they would build a huge metal tower. This would make his efforts useless. So, Kelly gave up on making his tower taller. Instead, he focused on getting more visitors to his "Gray" tower.
The Towers Today
The two towers were rivals for many years. But in the 1950s, a man named Frank Lamping bought both of them. He connected them with a gift shop at the bottom.
They closed for a short time in the late 1960s. Then, in 1972, Allen Good fixed them up. He gave them new viewing platforms. After this, they looked almost exactly alike.
The Irish Hills Towers closed to visitors in 2000. In 2013, the local government said the towers were unsafe. The Irish Hills Historical Society started working to save them. They even had to take down the very tops of the towers to make them safer.
As of 2017, people are still working to restore these historic towers.
