Petoskey Downtown Historic District
The Petoskey Downtown Historic District is a commercial historic district, roughly bounded by Rose, Division, Michigan, and Petoskey streets in Petoskey, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. History. In the 1850s, both a Presbyterian and a Catholic mission were established near modern-day Petoskey to minister to the Odawa residents of the area. By the 1860s, more European residents moved into Petoskey, and pioneer Hazen Ingalls constructed a dock for shipping and built the first store in what is now downtown Petoskey. In 1874, the Grand Rapids and Indiana  Railroad began service to Petoskey, and the area soon grew immensely. The area already had three hotels by 1875. The village of Petoskey was incorporated in 1879; at that time a number of brick commercial structures began to be constructed in the downtown area. Construction continued through the turn of the century, and construction of small scale commercial structures continued into the 1940s. Description. The Petoskey Downtown Historic District consists of 102 commercial properties and two institutional structures, located along 10 blocks in Petoskey's business district, primarily along East Mitchell and Howard streets. The contributing structures range in date  from 1879 to the 1920s. The old tracks from the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad run diagonally through the district, and open land bordering the track is landscaped as a park. At its north end, the district includes the old Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad Depot and the Perry Hotel, both reminders of the early tourism history of the city. The majority of the structures in the district are commercial in nature, and can be grouped by significant uses and architectural styles: