Tucked along the Lake Michigan shoreline within the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore lies the charming village of Glen Haven and the surrounding lands once owned and developed by David Henry (DH) Day. Day was a man whose vision, entrepreneurship, and enduring legacy continue to shape the landscape and spirit of northern Michigan.
In 1857 C. C. McCarty built a sawmill and inn on the beach that would become Glen Haven but was originally called Sleeping Bearville, according to the National Park Service. McCarty expanded the operation by adding a sawmill on Little Glen Lake where tugboats could bring in lumber. The development eventually slowed due to the settlers leaving to fight in the Civil War.
Years later, when DH Day arrived in Glen Haven in 1878 as a young businessman, the village was still a modest lumber port with great potential. Recognizing the region’s natural resources and strategic location on the Manitou Passage, Day quickly became an instrumental figure in Glen Haven’s growth.
