Grand Rapids was my bonus level in Michigan. I had only planned to visit Flint, Ann Arbor, Detroit, and Lansing on the trip, but efficiency won the day. Former president Gerald Ford was born and grew up in Grand Rapids, his presidential library and grave site has price space on the waterfront. The rapids that the city was named after has a fish ladder installed on one side.
Other sights include the Grand Rapids Public Museum, Grand Rapids Art Museum, and a historic downtown area. Frank Lloyd Wright’s May House was built in the 1900s for Meyer S. May, the son of the founder of A. May and Sons clothing store. May was the first to hang clothes in a store on Batts hangers, those clippy ones.
Speaking of furniture, Grand Rapids thriving furniture industry began in 1837 when William Haldane opened a cabinet shop. Throughout the 19th century, more furniture crafters went to Grand Rapids. By the 1880s, Grand Rapids became the go-to city for furniture in the US and even attracted foreign buyers.
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