Lake People

While the Great Lakes region is best known for the large bodies of water that define its geography and the rust belt cities that line their shores, smaller lakes and the communities that form around them also play an important role in determining the character of the region. Like much of the U.S., these communities are rapidly changing, and gentrifying as quaint cottages and country homes are replaced by McMansions and sprawling estates. Corey Lake, a small Michigan lake located midway between Chicago and Detroit, is one such community. Lake People documents a few of the families whose stories are linked to the lake and the historic homes and rustic cottages they still own, some of whose history on the lake goes back five generations. The aesthetic of these lake houses feels both familiar and increasingly exotic with exposed wood, stone fireplaces, and nautical décor lending a sense of nostalgia to the present.