Museum at Harsha House

The Museum at Harsha House is located at 103 State Street in downtown Charlevoix, Michigan.  It features different exhibitions all year round.

The house was built in 1892 by Charlevoix businessman and community leader Horace Harsha. Granddaughter Ann Harsha donated the Victorian style house to the Charlevoix Historical Society in 1979 to be used as a museum. The Harsha House is a Michigan State Historic Site.

The first Bob Miles Charlevoix book was published by the Society in 1976. Proceeds from this publication provided funds to build an addition to house the growing collection of photos and artifacts donated by members of the community. 

 

 

Exhibits at Harsha House for the year are:

• The City on Three Lakes, A Maritime History of Charlevoix
• How Pine River Became Charlevoix: 1721-1879

Harsha House Museum attractions include:

• 3 Victorian Period Rooms
• Over 10,000 Historic Photos & Negatives
• Ernest Hemingway’s original marriage license with first wife Hadley Richardson
• The 3 1/2 order Fresnel lens from the Gray’s Reef light north of Beaver Island
• An eight-foot tall, 200 story Petoskey Stone tower made for the Bicentennial of 1976
• A 1920s working player piano
• Local Historical Artifacts on Display
• Local Oral History Collection, Family History Collection, and research materials

Museum Exhibit Hours are from Noon to 4 p.m. Please refer to the below schedule for days of operation.

January through March:  Thurs. – Sat.
April & May:  Wed. – Sat.
June:  Tues. – Sat.
July & August: Mon. – Sat.
September – End of Year: Tues. – Sat.

(Hours are Subject to Change)

The museum is staffed Monday through Saturday from 10:00am to 4:00pm. Call for special appointments during fall, winter and spring hours. Phone: 231-547-0373 . Leave a message; a Curator will return your call.

Restoration:

Our capital campaign, Embrace.Preserve.Cherish. started in 2017 and raised over $400,000 through June of 2022.    Thank you to all our donors!   Funding has  allowed us to complete the following projects:

Exterior repairs including a new roof, wood shakes, gable fascias, sheathing and masonry were completed at the Museum at Harsha House in 2017.  All wood trim was repainted in summer 2018 in vibrant colors reminiscent of the 1890s era in which the house was built.  The new color scheme highlights the beautiful architectural details of this Victorian house.

To make a donation, select the Donate button from the home page or visit Charlevoix County Community Foundation at http://www.c3f.org  and click the ‘Giving’ tab and choose the Charlevoix Historical Society Preservation Fund.

Museum Store:

The online Museum Store has a variety of quality items pertaining to Charlevoix history. Museum store items can be mailed. Shipping & handling fees extra.