General Information: Visitors to Pine Grove will tour the 1845 Greek Revival home of former Michigan Governor Moses Wisner, related outbuildings such as the root cellar, summer kitchen, smokehouse, and privy, the grove and gardens, the 1865 Drayton Plains one room school, and the Pioneer Museum, featuring artifacts from our rural past. Tours generally last 1.5 to 2 hours and are conducted by costumed docents who are happy to share
The Oakland History Center at Pine Grove is a 5 acre campus located north of downtown Pontiac on Cesar Chavez Avenue. We are just south of the former Wisner Elementary, now home to Lee Contracting. “Pine Grove” is the name given to the property by its most prominent owner, Moses Wisner. The History Center is the home of the Oakland County Pioneer and Historical Society, which has been in existence
The Pioneer Museum is housed in the lower level of the Carriage House. The collection includes tools and farm implements from the 1800s to early 1900s, and is a tribute to the early pioneer settlers of Oakland County who made their own tools and knew nothing about mass production. The Museum showcases its artifacts through bright, inviting displays and in a companion brochure describing the exhibits.
Built around 1865, the Drayton Plains one room school was located at the corner of Monroe Avenue and Sashabaw Road in Drayton Plains, and was in use until 1920. In 1965, the schoolhouse was donated to the Society by Leonard Coates, and moved to the Wisner property at that time. Restored to the late 1800’s era, the schoolhouse reflects pioneer schooling complete with school benches, a wood burning stove and textbooks
One of the main attractions for visitors to Pine Grove is the Greek Revival-Style mansion (pictured above) of former Governor Moses Wisner. Wisner came to Oakland County from New York, as many early settlers did, and in 1845, moved, with his family, onto a parcel of land on what was then known as the “Saginaw Trail.” The property contained a small brick house, built ca. 1845, a grove full
The Society is located at Pine Grove, the former estate of Governor Moses Wisner. Today, Pine Grove consists of 4 1/2 acres of land, the Wisner mansion and several out-buildings, including a summer kitchen, outhouse, smokehouse and root cellar. In addition to the outbuildings, there is the Drayton Plains One Room School House and the Carriage House, which is home to the Research Library, office and the Pioneer Museum.