History

The history of Bay Harbor is starts long ago when horses and trains were the prevalent means of transportation. Back then, like now, it took a few people with a dream and the ability to see a task through that brought Bay Harbor to the pinnacle of resorts today.

Back in 1874 the first hotel on the rugged coast line of Little Traverse Bay was erected. The hotel housed 150 guests, however many more filled trains to arrive at the site dubbed, "The million Dollar Sunset".  It didn't take long for the owner of the hotel, Dr. Little, to realize that he hadn't enough room for everyone. Tourists and entrepreneurs alike wanted to know more about this tiny neck of the woods.

At this same time a friend of Dr. Little's, Mr. Rose, worked on building a dock large enough to fit the barges that would steam up and down the lake carrying people and goods to and from the Petoskey area. Here Mr. Rose built a kiln that burned the limestone that was embedded in the shoreline property of what is now Bay Harbor. This limestone quarry is exactly where the Inn at Bay Harbor rests now.

Through the years and into the present, many millions of tourists have flocked to these shores to view the sunset and surround themselves in the natural beauty of what makes Bay Harbor so unique.