Accommodations and Food

Established in 1835, The National House Inn (102 Parkview, 269/781-7374, www.nationalhouseinn.com [1], $85–160 d) is the oldest operating inn in the state. This former stagecoach stop along the Chicago Road once served as a station on the Underground Railroad. Guest rooms range from the elegant Victorian-style Ketchum Suite to smaller, pleasant country-style rooms with folk art portraits on the walls. A tip: The old road in front of the inn is now a busy intersection. Ask for a room overlooking the garden if you desire peace and quiet.

Your best budget bet is the Arbor Inn (15435 W. Michigan Ave., 269/781-7772, www.arborinnmarshall.com [2], $45–69 d), a comfortable hotel with an outdoor pool, situated along a strip of fast-food restaurants beyond the historic downtown.

For cheap eats, head to Louie’s Bakery (144 W. Michigan Ave., 269/781-3542, 5:30 a.m.–5 p.m. Mon.–Fri., 5:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. Sat.), the kind of old-fashioned bakery you might remember from childhood, with gooey cakes, pies, and sweet rolls galore.

Wayne and Marjorie Cornwell introduced their first turkey sandwich at a county fair over 40 years ago. Today, their campy, country-style restaurant and turkey farm just north of Marshall [3] is known as Cornwell’s Turkeyville U.S.A. (18935 15-1/2 Mile Rd., 269/781-4293, www.turkeyville.com [4], 11 a.m.–8 p.m. daily, $4–9). The menu includes everything from a classic buttered turkey sandwich to a piled-high turkey Reuben to a turkey stir-fry. An adjacent 170-seat dinner theater presents afternoon and evening performances of family favorites.