Name: Winnie McDonough’s 1937–38 honeymoon cottage is moved along King’s Highway in 1997
Start: 1997-07-31
End: 1997-08-01
Location: Beaver Island

Locator map: Beaver Island highlighted within the Beaver Island archipelago — Took place at Beaver IslandLocator plate © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0); depths NOAA; names USGS GNIS. How the plates are drawn.

Event

Dates: 1997-07-31 – 1997-08-01
Kind: Construction
Where: Beaver Island
Eras: Modern era
Concepts: heritageconstructiontransportationcommunitycommunication
Within: Beaver Island

Summary

On July 31, 1997, the former Burke House—built by Lawrence McDonough in 1937–38 as the home he moved into with Winnie—was moved approximately half a mile south along King’s Highway. The house reached its new foundation without reported damage, after a day of jacking, towing, traffic control, and utility- line lifting followed by final placement the next day.

Evidence limits

The Beacon gives a detailed newspaper account but does not identify the new property’s legal address or provide engineering and permitting records.

Sources

Beaver Beacon, September 1997, “Winnie McDonough's Honeymoon Cottage Moves South.”
Reports the half-mile move of the 1937–38 Lawrence McDonough house from King's Highway and Donegal Bay Road, using I-beams, jacks, dollies, a loader, traffic direction, lifted power lines, and a new foundation; the owners found no broken windows, wall damage, or ceiling cracks. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1997-09_Beaver-Beacon
Beaver Beacon, September 1997, held issue PDF, source scan.
The held issue scan confirms the cottage-relocation report.
data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1997-09_Beaver-Beacon

Added 5 August 2026. Recent changes

Cite this article

Beaver Island Archive, “Winnie McDonough’s 1937–38 honeymoon cottage is moved along King’s Highway in 1997”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/events/beaver-island-winnie-mcdonough-honeymoon-cottage-move-1997/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, September 1997, “Winnie McDonough's Honeymoon Cottage Moves South.” (and 1 further source listed on the page).

Last revised 2026-08-05. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.

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