Pere Marquette Lodge
1940-2015
The birth story of Pere Marquette Lodge is the story of a country in turmoil in a time when 1/4th of the population was out of work. In 1932, Americans placed their bets on the New York Governor, Franklin D. Roosevelt, by electing him as the President of a country in the throes of the Great Depression. His plan? To plant some trees…
Roosevelt planned to fight the Great Depression by bringing together two wasted resources: young men and land. He proposed to recruit thousands of unemployed young men, enroll them in a peacetime army, and send them into battle against destruction and erosion of our natural resources. It was a radical idea but before the Civilian Conservation Corps ended, over three million young men engaged in a massive salvage operation described as the most popular experiment of the New Deal. And it was during this time and by these young men that the Lodge was built.
With its vaulted ceilings and massive wooden pillars, the Lodge is a masterpiece erected by young men with a new purpose. This young, inexperienced $30-a-month labor battalion met and exceeded all expectations. Today the Lodge stands as an impressive reminder of a challenging time in America’s history and the power of the human spirit.
Thank you for your patronage and support over the last 75 years!
