BY JENNIFER WEINGART
The Michigan Historical Center has approved four new historical markers for the state. Anyone who has travelled in Michigan has probably seen the green and gold signs, but what does it take to get one of these markers?
The cast aluminum markers are used to commemorate places and people that were significant to Michigan history.
People in a community that see a need for one of these markers send in an application to the Michigan Historical Commission. If the commission approves the application, the community moves on to writing the text that will appear on the sign.
Sandra Clark, Director of the Michigan Historical Center, said the markers can be about anything, or anyone historically significant.
"Some of them are about people who have done significant things in Michigan some of them are about events, some of them are about buildings, some about places, so its a wide variety and we're looking for things that mean something to the state or to a local community." Clark said.
One of the markers recently approved is for the Holy Cross Catholic Church on Beaver Island.
The church was consecrated by Father Frederic Baraga, who was the travelling preacher for the Upper Peninsula and the Northern Lower Peninsula. Services in the church were given in Gaelic for the immigrant Irish community until the 1890's.
Now that the text has been approved, the respective communities will purchase the markers and they will be placed and dedicated.