County note shelf
Charlevoix County Porch Notes
Stories, practical details, outdoor places, tax quirks, and local history connected to Charlevoix County. This shelf has 4 practical notes and 13 local stories.
17 notes
Read the county shelf
- History and cultureBoyne CityBoyne City is a lively Lake Charlevoix town with a working downtown, lumber history, and the National Morel Mushroom Festival.
- OutdoorsBoyne Mountain and Boyne FallsBoyne Mountain makes Boyne Valley Township and Boyne Falls a four-season ski, golf, waterpark, and resort-property area.
- History and cultureA Self-Taught Builder Made Two Dozen "Hobbit Houses" Out of Beach BouldersIn Charlevoix, self-taught builder Earl Young spent some fifty years making about thirty curving, boulder-walled 'Mushroom Houses' that exist nowhere else on Earth.
- History and cultureHigh Island: perched dunes and a working-island pastHigh Island is 3,495 acres of state wildlife land west of Beaver Island, with perched dunes, sensitive habitat, Odawa fishing history, and remnants of a House of David work camp.
- History and cultureBeaver IslandBeaver Island is a remote Lake Michigan island with Strangite history, Irish roots, and a very different kind of property-buying rhythm.
- History and cultureCharlevoix the BeautifulCharlevoix the Beautiful is a premium resort town between Lake Michigan, Round Lake, and Lake Charlevoix.
- History and cultureEast JordanEast Jordan is a working Lake Charlevoix town shaped by the Jordan River, EJ, and the Breezeway.
- History and cultureWalloon Lake and Hemingway countryWalloon Lake's clear water, old resort cottages, and Hemingway history shape Melrose and Bay townships.
- OutdoorsThat Pretty Beach Rock Is a 350-Million-Year-Old CoralMichigan's state stone is a fossil — a 350-million-year-old coral reef you can pick up on a Lake Michigan beach, as long as you take less than 25 pounds.
- Money and taxesNo city income tax in Charlevoix CountyCharlevoix County's three cities do not levy a local city income tax.
- History and cultureBeaver Island and James Strang's Self-Crowned KingdomJames Strang was crowned king of his religious community on Beaver Island in 1850. He was not a recognized sovereign, but his authority shaped the island.
- OutdoorsMorels: Michigan's Secret-Spot Spring RitualEach spring, Michigan's woods fill with secretive hunters chasing the honeycombed morel — and the towns that throw festivals for it.
- OutdoorsThe quieter corners: Norwood, Wilson, Hudson, and ChandlerCharlevoix County's quieter inland townships offer woods, farmland, small lakes, and larger rural parcels away from the resort-town core.
- OutdoorsLake CharlevoixLake Charlevoix anchors summer life, boating, fishing, and waterfront buying across seven Charlevoix County townships.
- Home and propertyWell and septic in Charlevoix CountyCharlevoix County township buyers should expect wells and septic systems, with buyer-beware septic checks outside municipal utilities.
- Money and taxesBuying in a township? Watch for special assessments on top of your taxesMichigan township buyers should check for special assessments that can add separate road, sewer, water, lighting, sidewalk, or drain charges.
- Money and taxesIn Michigan, you get two property-tax bills a year — not oneMost Michigan property owners get separate summer and winter tax bills, with local rules deciding what lands on each bill.