What do these images have in common?
Well, in both photos, people are on bicycles. But there doesn't seem to be much else in common, right?
It's fairly obvious that the second photo was taken more than a century after the first. But they were taken in the same place--or the same locale, anyway.
I'm talking about Mackinac Island, Michigan. It's in Lake Huron, between the state's Upper and Lower Peninsula.
Motorized vehicles have been banned on the island since 1898. The only exceptions are emergency vehicles (owned by the city that shares the name with the island), motorized wheelchairs and golf carts, which cannot be operated outside of the golf course. Also, snowmobiles are permitted in winter.
In the 2010 Census, the Island had 492 permanent residents. However, during the peak tourist season (summer), there are as many as 15.000 people. Even then, neither visitors nor residents report a sense of being overcrowded.
The Island also boasts the only state highway in the US--M185--where motorized traffic is not allowed. The road circles the island, hugging the shoreline, and thus affords some fine views.
Mackinac has one of the strongest historical preservation movements in the US. As a result, the entire island is designated as a National Historic Landmark. Among the most iconic structures is the Grand Hotel, which featured prominently in two films: This Time For Keeps and Somewhere In Time, which was shot entirely on the island.
Bicycling is said to be the most popular way of getting around the island. Also, people walk a lot, and quite a few roller-skate. All of that human-powered notion is no doubt fueled by the island's most famous product: its fudge.
It's interesting and perhaps ironic that in a state that's synonymous with the automotive industry, there's a place where no cars are allowed. Even more interesting, the now-115-year-old ban began right around the time that the auto industry was beginning.
Well, in both photos, people are on bicycles. But there doesn't seem to be much else in common, right?
It's fairly obvious that the second photo was taken more than a century after the first. But they were taken in the same place--or the same locale, anyway.
I'm talking about Mackinac Island, Michigan. It's in Lake Huron, between the state's Upper and Lower Peninsula.
Motorized vehicles have been banned on the island since 1898. The only exceptions are emergency vehicles (owned by the city that shares the name with the island), motorized wheelchairs and golf carts, which cannot be operated outside of the golf course. Also, snowmobiles are permitted in winter.
In the 2010 Census, the Island had 492 permanent residents. However, during the peak tourist season (summer), there are as many as 15.000 people. Even then, neither visitors nor residents report a sense of being overcrowded.
The Island also boasts the only state highway in the US--M185--where motorized traffic is not allowed. The road circles the island, hugging the shoreline, and thus affords some fine views.
Mackinac has one of the strongest historical preservation movements in the US. As a result, the entire island is designated as a National Historic Landmark. Among the most iconic structures is the Grand Hotel, which featured prominently in two films: This Time For Keeps and Somewhere In Time, which was shot entirely on the island.
Bicycling is said to be the most popular way of getting around the island. Also, people walk a lot, and quite a few roller-skate. All of that human-powered notion is no doubt fueled by the island's most famous product: its fudge.
It's interesting and perhaps ironic that in a state that's synonymous with the automotive industry, there's a place where no cars are allowed. Even more interesting, the now-115-year-old ban began right around the time that the auto industry was beginning.
