Roadside Attractions at Brighton Hill and Kelly's Knoll

Roadside Attractions at Brighton Hill and Kelly's Knoll. . , Automobiles and the promise of paved roads , brought opportunity to the Irish Hills. In the 1920s, anticipating change, two long-time neighbors erected competing observation towers to attract visitors to the spectacular views of area lakes and hills. The towers spawned a thriving mix of roadside attractions that included inns, a campground, restaurants, dance halls, a picnic grove, a small zoo, carnival rides and a golf course. It wasn't until 1957 that the towers' ownership was unified, and eight years later a bridge connected their tops. It was claimed that 10 lakes could be seen from atop the towers., Postcard view of Brighton Hill in its heyday, about 1932 to 1938. The Original Tower is to the east (at left in the photo). Postcard image courtesy of the Brooklyn Exponent., Sightseers crowd the top of the Gray Tower, as seen from the Original Tower Photo courtesy of the Brooklyn Exponent., This view to the south from the towers includes carnival rides, the dance hall and the golf course, about 1932-1938. Photo courtesy of the Lenawee County Historical Society., Looking west from the towers, the new road cut through hills and straightens curves on the route between Detroit and Chicago, about 1925. Photo courtesy of the Brooklyn Exponent., Same view looking west from the towers of two buses on the paved Chicago Road, late 1930s Photo courtesy of the Brooklyn Exponent., Ham's Barbecue and the north gas station, about 1930. In 1931 the out was destroyed by fire, and was replaced by a larger Ham's Restaurant. Note the carnival attractions competing for tourist attention, Photo courtesy of the Lanawee County Historical Society., You Autoknow , The road circled around the south side of the hill before the new road cut into the hill's north slope in 1924.