The Kneeland/Sachs House

The Kneeland/Sachs House. . , David Kneeland was a major stockholder of the M and H Lumber Co. and the first general manager when the mill opened here in 1892. He was also President of the Lewiston and Southwestern RR. Mill hands built this house for David and the family lived here until 1910. He and his wife Cornelia raised 3 children here but a tragic accident took the youngest, James, when he fell through the ice on East Twin [Lake] and drowned while ice skating. , , At the time, if you owned 500 shares of M and H Co stock, you were entitled to have two lots in town and could have a street named after you and that is how Kneeland Street was first named. In the same manner on the lot just north of here lived Lewis Jensen, for whom the town of Lewiston was named and it is interesting to note that the settlement here was informally referred to as Lewie's Town for many years. , , In 1910 when the pine timber cut was over and the mill largely closed, the family moved back to Grayling and the George Sachs family purchased the home for $425 and lived happily here for 3 generations. , , This part of town was never subjected to the terrible fires closer to the mill that were common, therefore this is an original structure, one of the few remaining. Thanks to power and water pumped from the mill, the house had modern conveniences of electricity and the first kitchen sink with running water. , , In 1995 the Lewiston Historical Society was formed, comprised of 20 members that were keepers of Lewiston pioneer family stories, historical objects, and documents of the founding and settlement. Through the efforts of Thelma King Sawyer, an early President, the Sachs house was generously donated by 3rd generation family members, Sharyn Sachs Sivyer and Mike Sachs, to house the collection and be the forever home to the Historical Society. , , Today the LHS boasts a membership of over 100 and has expanded to include many other collections and historical buildings, in addition to a restoration of the CC Camp Lunden site which features an in-ground scale model of the Great Lakes east of town. , , Donated by the Lewiston DDA in recognition of the Lewiston Area Historical Society , , The Lewiston Heritage Trail is a DDA project funded by private donors with period photos and historical text provided by the Lewiston Area Historical Society.