History:

When the white man first came in 1844 about 150 Indians lived in the northwest portion of what now is the City of Greenville. The Indians were mostly Ojibways, Ottawas and Potawatomies. Many trails criss crossed the area.  Most important of these were what the white man designated as the Saginaw-Pentwater Trail and the UP River Trail. As the name indicates, the Saginaw-Pentwater Trail ran in a fairly straight line across the State between these two points. The UP River Trail ran from Lyons and Ionia to Turk lake and Lakeview, and on into the north.

Many of the immigrants in those early days were from Denmark and brought with them their ethics for hard work and hard play, and a respect for the land that continues to this day. In recognition of those early pioneers, Greenville celebrates – on the third full weekend every August – the Danish Festival. There are more than 50,000 visitors who attend the festival every year to partake of Danish food, watch the Grand Dansk Parade, mingle among the hundreds of arts and crafts booths and become (by official Mayoral proclamation) a “Dane for a Day.”