Northport and Omena have diverse and exciting histories
Native American tribes, missionaries, government officials, adventurous settlers and those seeking timber to harvest from the rich northern Michigan woods all are part of the history of our area... and part of it's current day story as well.
Northport traces its recorded history to 1849 when the town was formally organized as a village. Just a few years later, town founders began an aggressive campaign to sell land, bringing an influx of new people to the area.
The recorded history of the village of Omena started in 1852 when the Rev. Peter Doherty established the Omena
Presbyterian Church. By 1858 a post office had been established in the young village.
Throughout the history of the area members of native tribes and immigrants both played important roles in shaping our community. Their legacy is found in the names of our streets and roads and the occasional reference by locals to certain geographic areas of the township as the Bohemian settlement, the Swedish settlement and the Norwegian settlement.
Agriculture, tourism, sailing, fishing and hunting have been part of the Northport Omena area for generations and remain important to the local culture and economy today.