Dec. 26, 2008

Mackinaw City, Mich. - The fall and winter of 2008 saw the release of four publications by Mackinac State Historic Parks (MSHP), adding to its already extensive publications list. MSHP is known for writing and publishing books and vignettes depicting life in the Straits of Mackinac region from past to present, including topics such as its two historic military forts, the region's fur trading past and Mackinac Island's rich history of fudge.

Edge of Empire: Documents of Michilimackinac, 1671-1716, published jointly by MSHP and Michigan State University Press, was released in December. Edge of Empire, hardcover and 192 pages, provides both an overview and an intensely detailed look at Michilimackinac at a very specific period of history. The introduction offers an overview of the French fur trade and Michilimackinac's role in the trade network. The body of the book is comprised of 61 French-language documents, now translated into English. Collected from archives in France, Canada and the United States, the documents identify many of the people involved in the trade and reveal a great deal about the personal and professional relations among people who traded. They also clearly reveal the process by which trade was carried out, including the roles of both Native Americans and women. At the same time, the documents open a window into French colonial society in New France. Many of the documents, enhanced by informative annotations, are being published in English translation for the first time. The book is priced at $39.95.

The book was translated by Joseph L. Peyser and edited by Peyser and Jose Antonio Brandao, with a foreword written by retired MSHP Deputy Director David A. Armour. The late Peyser was professor emeritus of French at Indiana University South Bend. He translated a large corpus of French language documents, held by MSHP, and authored numerous works on the Great Lakes region and its earliest inhabitants. Brandao, a professor of history at Western Michigan University, is the author or co-author of numerous books and articles on the French and Indians in the Great Lakes region. He is also co-director of the French Michilimackinac Research Project, of which the translated documents in this volume are a part.

Mackinac Treasures: The Museum Collections of Mackinac State Historic Parks by MSHP Chief Curator Steven C. Brisson was released in late fall. Perfect for the coffee table, this 166-page hardcover book beautifully displays the great treasures from Mackinac State Historic Parks' collection. The crisp, color photographs of paintings, decorative arts and everyday objects - including a sampling of maps from the Jahn Map Collection, the Gilbert Collection of Native American objects from the 1854 Treaty of LaPointe and rare Grand Hotel china - are visual treasures that anyone now can enjoy. Commentary and photo descriptions provide revealing information sure to pique interest. It is priced at $32.95.

Brisson received a B.A. in history from Northern Michigan University and an M.A. in history museum studies from the Cooperstown Graduate Program. In 1996 he accepted the position of curator of collections for MSHP and was appointed chief curator in 2004.

Two additional publications recently joined the extensive Mackinac History series of illustrated vignettes. Readers can ride the waves of history by discovering the evolution of railway ferries on the Great Lakes in the colorful, 15-page vignette Wood, Steel, and Ice: The History of the Straits of Mackinac Railway Ferries by Brian S. Jaeschke. With masterful text and vivid images, Jaeschke takes the reader on a voyage through the uncharted territory of railway ferry transportation and ice breaking on the Great Lakes.

Jaeschke, MSHP registrar, wrote his masters thesis on the history of Great Lakes ferries and the many trips they under took to break ice in the Great Lakes, including in the Straits of Mackinac. During an internship at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, he worked on the restored bow engine of the Chief Wawatam, a vessel featured in this vignette. He received an M.A. in maritime studies from East Carolina University.

Experience Mackinac filmmaking at its best with Moviemaking at Mackinac by Patricia A. Majher, a vignette featuring all movies - acclaimed and not - filmed on Mackinac Island, from This Time for Keeps starring Esther Williams to Somewhere in Time starring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeve. Since the advent of the filmmaking industry, many movies have used Mackinac Island as a backdrop, and this 15-page vignette features many of these timeless movies and accompanying photos taken during filming.

Majher is the assistant director of the Michigan Women's Historical Center and Hall of Fame in Lansing.

Vignettes are priced at $3.77 each.

To purchase these publications, contact Mackinac State Historic Parks at (231) 436-4100. Mackinac Associates members receive a 15-percent discount. Contact Diane Dombroski at the number above for more information on membership.

Mackinac State Historic Parks, a pure Michigan family of living history museums and parks in northern Michigan's Straits of Mackinac, is an agency within the Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries. Its sites - which are accredited by the American Association of Museums - include Fort Mackinac, Mackinac Island State Park and Historic Downtown on Mackinac Island, and Colonial Michilimackinac, Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City. Mackinac State Historic Parks is governed by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, established in 1895 to protect, preserve and present the parks' rich historic and natural resources for the education and recreation of future generations. Visitor information is available at (231) 436-4100 or on the Web at www.MackinacParks.com.

Read more press releases from the Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL).