Original Ford Garage Photos Donated to Clare County Historical Society

The photos on the left had been circulating for many years and were somewhat low-quality scans with odd colors I suspected were not original but part of the scanning process. There was some excitement when the originals were donated to the Clare County Historical Society by the family of Bernie Hampton. Hampton ran Ford sales and services garages in Harrison and Clare in the early part of the 1900s. The originals scanned in high resolution allow us to see great details. Hampton is the main behind the counter in the bottom photo and the man on the right in the top photo.

Note the beams in the top photo, they are still in the building now owned by the City of Harrison as the Venue on Main. Venue on Main is a kitchen/business incubator and venue space available for businesses and individuals to rent. The beams are one of the only remaining architectural details visible in the building from the Ford Garage era.

-Editor, Angela Kellogg-Henry