Michigan City in LaPorte County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Millennium Plaza
Photographed by Craig Doda, June 14, 2019
1. Millennium Plaza Marker
Erected 2000 by City of Michigan City.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Parks & Recreational Areas • Science & Medicine.
Location. 41° 43.375′ N, 86° 54.293′ W. Marker is in Michigan City, Indiana, in LaPorte County. It is on Franklin Street 0.1 miles south of Lake Shore Drive, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 100 Franklin St, Michigan City IN 46360, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Northern Indiana, specifically on the Indiana Dunes and Lake Michigan Shore, and in Greater South Bend. It is also in the American Midwest, on the Great Lakes, and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Washington Park Historic District (a few steps from this marker); Roger J. McKee Memorial Fountain (within shouting distance of this marker); Michigan City Civil War Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); Hoosier Slide (within shouting distance of this marker); S. S. Eastland Disaster
this page online
Also see . . . History of the Michigan City Smith Brothers Factory. From the "LaPorte County History" Facebook page posted 8/18/2015
To keep up with demand, a second factory was built in Michigan City. Sixty tons of Smith Brothers Cough Drops could be produced there in one day. The Smith Brothers Michigan City Plant closed in 1959.(Submitted on April 9, 2025, by Lou Donkle of Valparaiso, Indiana.)
Additional commentary.
1. Dates of Michigan City Smith Brothers Factory Operation
Source: NWITimes.com article published 3/10/2025 by Joseph S. Pete
Summary: Factory built 1921, closed 1959, demolished 1966.
Millennium Fountain is located on the site of the Smith Brothers Cough Drop Factory, which is commemorated with a historical marker at the site. Founded in Poughkeepsie, New York in the 19th century, the company made cough drops and cough syrup at a plant it opened near the lakefront in Michigan
Photographed by Trevor L Whited, July 10, 2022
2. Millennium Plaza Marker
The Scottish immigrant James Smith ran a restaurant in New York and got into the cough drop business after a customer gave him a recipe for a candied cough medicine, according to the Indiana State Archives. He made a batch in the kitchen and started selling the couch drops out of a bowl. Eventually, his sons William and Andrew started to package and sell the cough drops under the brand name Smith Brothers with a logo featuring their bearded faces.
They made several different flavors of cough drops and cough syrup, including cherry, wild cherry and menthol.
The Michigan City plant produced up to 60 tons of cough drops a day before it closed in 1959. The brand carried on with production moving to Chicago. Michigan City demolished the plant in 1966.
— Submitted April 9, 2025, by Lou Donkle of Valparaiso, Indiana.
Photographed by Lou Donkle
3. Smith Brothers Michigan City Plant - Credit: LaPorte County Historical Society
Credits. This page was last revised on April 14, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 26, 2020, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. This page has been viewed 602 times since then and 40 times this year. Last updated on April 13, 2025, by Lou Donkle of Valparaiso, Indiana. Photos: 1. submitted on December 26, 2020, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. 2. submitted on July 9, 2022, by Trevor L Whited of Kokomo, Indiana. 3. submitted on April 9, 2025, by Lou Donkle of Valparaiso, Indiana. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
