Montague — When weather apps and meteorologists fail—a common frustration with the state’s bipolar weather—Michiganders can head out to Montague to check the weather for themselves on the world’s largest weathervane.
Standing 40 feet tall, this weathervane holds the world record. Located on the corner of Dowling and Water Streets, the monument is not only statuesque but functional.
Weathervanes, often shaped like arrows, have a heavier tail with a lighter, pointed front. The Montague weathervane is no exception. When the Michigan winds blow, they push the wider part of the vane, and the arrow points in the direction the wind is coming from. The direction the arrow is pointing can predict a lot about the weather.
While north and south winds deal with temperatures, east and west winds predict the quality of the day. When the arrow is pointing north, it indicates a northern wind, which often suggests colder temperatures.
Not surprisingly, southern winds predict warmer temperatures. What is interesting, however, is that an easterly wind is often related to stormy weather, while westerly winds bring calm weather.
The weathervane was constructed in 1984, weighing 4,300 pounds and stretching over 26 feet long, and celebrated its 40th anniversary last year. At the top of the weathervane is a ship, commemorating a vessel named Ella Ellenwood, docked in White Lake.
The Ella Ellenwood was built in 1869 in East Saginaw, and one fateful night, carrying maple edgings and shingles, the ship ran ashore just north of Milwaukee after a rough storm on Lake Michigan.
Yet, the very next spring, the boat’s name plate washed ashore 60 miles away from the boat’s resting place, to White Lake, the same lake where she was originally docked. To commemorate the ship, the metal replica was placed on top of the weathervane.
Across the street sits the Weathervane Inn, named after the iconic roadside stop. This corner of Montague claims the fame of the weathervane unabashedly.
While weathervanes today are more often used as decoration rather than functional weather predictors, and the invention of phones and modern technology puts weather forecasts at your fingertips, these simple instruments still can partially predict the weather using wind—one of the many variables meteorologists use when creating the forecast.
Whether or not Michiganders should switch out weather apps for a weathervane is up to them, but the Montague monument remains a point of pride for the city and a symbol of Michigan’s maritime history.
Kamden Mulder is a reporting fellow for Michigan Enjoyer.
