Bay City Downtown Historic District

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

From the record

“The Bay City Downtown Historic District is a primarily commercial historic district, located in Bay City, Michigan and roughly bounded by the Saginaw River, Second Street, Adam Street, and Center Avenue. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.”
Wikipedia article Bay City Downtown Historic District, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 16 National Register listings published here for Bay County · listed in 1985 · category: District.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

Address. Roughly bounded by Saginaw River, Second and Adam Sts. and Center Ave., Bay City, 48708
When was it listed? September 1985
Category. district
City. Bay City city
National Register reference number. 85002338 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

45 since 2018

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 45 fires within 5 miles of Bay City Downtown Historic District between 2018 and 2020, burning about 46 acres in total. 12 started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	17
Equipment and vehicle use	16
Natural	12

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
28 September 2018	Equipment and vehicle use	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	BAY CITY FIRE/RESCUE 0003908 - 2018
18 September 2019	Equipment and vehicle use	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	BAY CITY FIRE/RESCUE 0010824 - 2019
13 September 2018	Natural	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	MONITOR TOWNSHIP FD 920 - 2018
31 August 2019	Equipment and vehicle use	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	MONITOR TOWNSHIP FD 792 - 2019
30 August 2020	Equipment and vehicle use	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	MONITOR TOWNSHIP FD 684 - 2020
30 August 2020	Natural	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	MONITOR TOWNSHIP FD 688 - 2020
29 August 2019	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	MONITOR TOWNSHIP FD 785 - 2019
14 August 2019	Natural	1.0 acres	Michigan Department of Natural Resources	HAMPTON TOWNSHIP FD 0000769 - 2019

Every fire recorded in Bay County

Mines and quarries near this property

5 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 5 workings within 5 miles of Bay City Downtown Historic District: 3 prospects, 1 past producer, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Clay, Stone. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status
Aetna	Stone	Producer
Central Coal Mine Shale Prospect	Clay	Prospect
Ed Twinning Clay Pit	Clay	Past Producer
Mich Coal&Mining Co Shale Prospect	Clay	Prospect
Winona Coal Co Shale Prospect	Clay	Prospect

Every working recorded in Bay County

Storms near this property

60 of 72 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Bay City, the town this property stands in, in 72 storm reports between 1993 and 2023: 53 thunderstorm wind, 13 hail, 3 lightning, 2 tornado. The reports record 2 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
July 1999	Hail	Bay City	2 hurt	no account filed
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$1,000,000	no account filed
June 1996	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$400,000	no account filed
July 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$90,000	no account filed
October 2001	Tornado (F1)	Bay City	$60,000	A tornado touched down 3.5 miles east of the town of Munger. The tornado struck a farmstead on Briggs Road. Property damage from the tornado included, complete destruction of a small barn and garage, a grain silo being lifted off its foundation, and minor damage to the siding and front porch of the main house. The tornado then moved northeast into Tuscola County.
June 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$50,000	Numerous trees and wires reported down through the county.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$40,000	County police reported trees and power lines down all over Bay city. A large tree branch also landed on a car on the south side of the city. Siding was blown off houses across the north side of the city, along with fences blown down.
September 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$25,000	Law enforcement reported that several large trees were blown down and that several garage doors were blown in due to thunderstorm winds.
July 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$20,000	A thunderstorm wind gust snapped a tree in half. Four private hangers at James Clements Airport also sustained damage.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$8,000	Law enforcement reported large tree branches down at Lincoln ave and 5th Street. There were also reports of numerous wires down and a couple of blown transformers across the Bay City area.
August 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$7,000	A tree was downed in Bay City, and large limbs were downed in Bay City and near Essexville. A spotter estimated 60 mph winds just east of Essexville.
July 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$6,000	Several large trees were blown down. One tree fell onto the roof of a home. Another tree fell onto a parked Asto van.
July 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$3,000	Very large tree branches blown down, damaging a home.
September 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$3,000	Several trees fell down onto power lines.
October 2006	Lightning	Bay City	$3,000	Lightning struck a home. Firefighters reported smoke in the roofline area of the house. Property damage was roughly estimated at $3K.
May 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$2,000	Law enforcement reported wires down.
June 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$1,000	Thunderstorm winds blew several trees down and knocked a porch wall down.
July 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	$1,000	no account filed
July 2022	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Central dispatch reported 20 to 30 trees blown down across Bay City.
August 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Multiple trees and wires reported down in Bay City.
August 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Trees were reported down.
July 2020	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Numerous trees and power lines reported down.
June 2020	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Several reports of trees down.
October 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A tree was reported blown down.
August 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Trees and powerlines reported down.
November 2015	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Numerous trees and power lines reported blown down.
July 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A spotter estimated a 60 mph thunderstorm wind gust.
July 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Numerous six inch diamter tree limbs reported down.
July 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Several small trees blow down.
June 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Large tree limbs and wires were reported down.
July 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A tree was reported down.
June 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Large tree limbs were reported blown down.
June 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Trees reported down at Marquette and Truman Parkway.
May 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A state park official reported a large tree down.
June 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Road Commission reported a tree down on a road.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Law enforcement reported a tree down across the westbound lane of Wheeler Road at 3 Mile Road.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Law enforcement reported a tree and wire down on the road at the intersection of Douglas Drive and Boy Scout Road.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Law enforcement reported a tree down.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Law enforcement reported a tree down.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Central dispatch reported trees blown down in Bay City.
June 2005	Lightning	Bay City	-	Lightning struck substation on 26th Street.
June 2005	Lightning	Bay City	-	One home suffered some damage from lightning on Stark Road off South Euclid Avenue.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Trees were reported blown down.
July 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Siding was blown off a building, as well as trees reported down.
June 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A trained weather spotter reported large tree limbs down.
August 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Local law enforcement reported trees and power lines blown down.
June 2003	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Law enforcement reported a large tree blown down.
August 2003	Tornado (F0)	Bay City	-	A cold air funnel briefly touched down on 25th street. The tornado moved a garage 2 feet and destroyed 2 sheds.
April 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A trained weather spotter reported an estimated wind gust to 60 MPH at the intersection of I-75 and M84.
July 2001	Dust Devil	Bay City	-	Path Length was 1/4 mile. It tossed lawn chairs and downed tents.
September 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Several trees and power lines blown down.
August 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Several large limbs blown down.
July 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A few trees, large limbs, and power lines were downed by thunderstorm wind gusts in Bay City. Lightning struck two male golfers at the Twin Oaks Golf Course about nine miles southwest of Bay City. One of the men suffered severe burns on his right leg. In addition, a small child was hit by lightning in Bay City. At least one home caught fire as a result of a lightning strike.
June 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	Strong thunderstorm wind gusts snapped off tree limbs which brought down power lines in Bay City.
August 1993	Thunderstorm Wind	Bay City	-	A few large trees were blown down by gusty thunderstorm winds. A large oak tree was blown down, and strong thunderstorm winds took down all the power lines in the 900 block of South Ottillia St.
April 2020	Hail	Bay City	-	no account filed
July 2016	Hail	Bay City	-	no account filed
July 2016	Hail	Bay City	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Bay City	-	no account filed
June 2011	Hail	Bay City	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Bay County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Property	Distance	Listed
Pere Marquette Railroad Depot, Bay City Station	0.2 miles	1982
Bay County Building	0.2 miles	1982
Bay City Masonic Temple	0.3 miles	2016
City Hall	0.5 miles	1975
Midland Street Commercial District	0.5 miles	1982
Sage Library	0.8 miles	1979

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 85002338 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia article	Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Bay County	All 16 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.