Best Web Design in Frankfort, MI (2026)

Web Design for Frankfort, Michigan

Frankfort is a scenic Lake Michigan harbor town in Benzie County, sitting where the Betsie River empties into the lake through a natural harbor framed by dunes and bluffs. Once a booming lumber, resort, and railroad car-ferry port, it launched the world's first open-water railroad car ferry crossing in 1892 and hosted the short-lived luxury Royal Frontenac Hotel. Today it is a four-season tourist town guarded by the Point Betsie Lighthouse, one of the most-photographed lighthouses in America and the last staffed light on Lake Michigan.

AppWT serves Frankfort and the surrounding Michigan area from Livonia, Michigan.

About Frankfort

Also known as. Gateway to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. A four-season destination (town-arch slogan). Historically 'Aux Becs Scies' (the French/early name for the Betsie area).

History. In 1675, Jesuit explorer Father Jacques Marquette is said to have died and been buried near the mouth of the Betsie River; the site is marked by a plaque, though the exact location remains disputed. Joseph Oliver, the first known settler, purchased 14 acres in 1852. A Detroit company led by Ransom Gardiner and George S. Frost began developing the townsite in 1859 after investor interest in Aux Becs Scies (now Betsie) Lake. A post office was established in 1860, and in 1867 the federal government began improving the harbor, which saw up to ten vessels arrive daily. Construction of the Point Betsie Lighthouse began in 1854, was completed in 1858, and the light entered service in 1859; it is the oldest building in Benzie County. Incorporated as a village in 1885 and became a city (fifth class) on March 11, 1935, by a vote of 229 to 127. The railroad-owned Royal Frontenac Hotel opened January 1, 1902 and drew 1,200 rail visitors within a month, then burned down January 12, 1912. Ann Arbor Railroad car ferries ran from the Frankfort-Elberta harbor for 90 years until 1982; the first cross-lake car ferry, Ann Arbor No. 1, sailed on November 27, 1892.

Local economy. Founded on lumbering and its natural harbor, then a rail and resort hub. For 90 years (1892-1982) the Frankfort-Elberta harbor was a major Ann Arbor Railroad car-ferry port linking Michigan to Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula. Now driven by four-season tourism: beaches and boating in summer, plus nearby Crystal Mountain ski resort and Interlochen Center for the Arts. Sport fishing is a big draw, with heavy spring and fall coho and salmon runs off the Frankfort piers. Downtown supports galleries, specialty shops, antiquing, and waterfront restaurants along Betsie Lake.

Culture and community. The Garden Theater, built in 1923 and restored beginning in 2008, hosts the Frankfort Film Festival each October, the Frankfort48 Film Contest, and the Live at The Garden concert series. The Frankfort Fall Festival in October features pumpkin carving, hayrides, and local food. The 22-mile Betsie Valley Trail runs from Frankfort and Elberta through Beulah to Thompsonville, popular with cyclists and walkers. The New York Times has recommended the area for bicycling, reflecting its outdoor-recreation identity. Proximity to the Interlochen Center for the Arts ties the town into northern Michigan's arts and music scene.

What makes Frankfort distinct. The world's first railroad car ferry to cross a wide expanse of open water departed the Frankfort-Elberta harbor on November 27, 1892 (Ann Arbor No. 1). Point Betsie was the last staffed lighthouse on Lake Michigan, operated by keepers for 106 years until it was automated in 1983. Father Marquette may be buried near Frankfort, one of several contested Michigan sites claiming the explorer's 1675 death. The modern Great Lakes salmon fishery was born just up the shore at the Platte River in Benzie County, where coho were ceremonially released from a golden bucket on April 2, 1966. The opulent Royal Frontenac Hotel lasted only a decade, opening in 1902 and burning in 1912. Frankfort Harbor froze completely over in February 1994, a notable event for the ice-bound port.

Frankfort Landmarks and Local Life

• Point Betsie Lighthouse - north of town at the southern entrance to the Manitou Passage, one of America's most photographed lighthouses and the most-visited attraction in Benzie County
• Frankfort's breakwater piers and pierhead light at the Betsie River channel into Lake Michigan.
• The historic Garden Theater (1923) downtown.
• Betsie Lake harbor and the downtown waterfront.
• The plaque memorializing Father Marquette's reputed 1675 death and burial site.
• The former Ann Arbor Railroad car-ferry dock area (in adjacent Elberta) and the Betsie Valley Trail.

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