There’s nothing more fascinating than taking a look back in time and exploring what life was like here in the Great Lakes State during decades past. While it’s impossible to know which photos of Michigan are truly the first ever taken, we’ve gathered up a handful of captures that offer a unique glimpse into our state’s history.

1. This picturesque scene from 1910 shows the Hotel Leelanau in Omena. Can't you just imagine the memories that were made here?
Flickr/upnorthmemories
2. In 1919, residents of Muskegon rioted to protest a raise in streetcar fares from six to seven cents. This photo captures the chaotic aftermath.
Flickr/Brandon Bartoszek
3. An unfamiliar sight to today's eyes: the Roach Fruit and Vegetable Canning Factory in Scottville, photographed sometime in the mid-1800s.
Flickr/upnorthmemories
4. Did you attend Michigan State University? We're sure you weren't a student when these faculty members, pictured on campus in 1890, taught at MSU.
Flickr/Derek
5. Edsel and Henry Ford make their way through Highland Park in the Fifteen Millionth Ford, 1919. This very car can now be seen at the Henry Ford Museum.
Flickr/William Creswell
6. Well, here's something you certainly don't see every day: an oxen sled team ventures through the streets of downtown Gobles in 1900.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
7. Are you familiar with the town of Watervliet? Here's how it looked way back in the 1890s. We're sure there have been plenty of changes since then.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057

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8. Residents of the town of Lawrence pose outside a tavern in this fascinating photo from 1879. Talk about a blast from the past!
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
9. Michigan's history within the railway industry is long and fascinating. Here's an early capture of the Allegan Railroad Depot in 1880.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
10. Michigan's beautiful freshwater has always been a major draw. This photo shows two boats making their way through the Straits of Mackinac in 1905.
Flickr/Ross
11. U.S. soldiers from Camp Custer make their way down Woodward Avenue in Detroit during a parade to encourage enlistment, circa 1917.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
12. Can you imagine navigating Michigan winters without snow tires and closed car windows? This snowy scene shows Berrien Springs in 1878.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
13. The Kalamazoo Stage Coach makes its way through the streets of Plainwell in 1865.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
14. Members of the House of David, a Benton Harbor-based religious society, pose with one of the group's bands in 1915.
Flickr/FotoGuy 49057
15. Two ladies brave the cold to get some shoveling done in the town of Ida, 1915. Every Michigander knows the struggle!
Flickr/Daniel Bickel

What do you think of these fascinating photos? Do you have any family photographs from way back when? We’d love to hear your memories and thoughts in the comments section below!

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