The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Helena Township was organized in 1865 following a division of Milton Township. The township was named for Helena M. Thayer, a member of the first family to settle along the southern shore of Clam Lake, now known as Torch Lake. Thayer Lake within the township is also named for the family.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Be one of the first
Start Helena’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Helena’s history is told.
0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people close to Helena
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By decade
Helena, decade by decade
Before
2000
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your albumNational Register of Historic Places
Nothing in Helena is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Helena has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Antrim County Courthouse in Kearney, 6.2 miles away.
Helena and the nearest listed places
Dashed line = Helena. Tap a dot.
Closest to Helena
How a place gets listed
1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Antrim County Courthouse’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Helena?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Helena’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old placeNational Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons
Then & now
When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.