Located within Benzie County, the city sits upon the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Betsie River.

Father Jacques Marquette, one of the first Jesuit missionaries to the Great Lakes Indians, may have died and been buried in Frankfort in May 1675.

Very limited and inexact records make the death site a matter of considerable debate among historians.

In 1855 a schooner owned by George W. Tifft of Cleveland was caught in a gale on Lake Michigan and driven before the wind.

Imagine the surprise of Captain Snow when he found a previously little-known river outlet and harbor which provided a safe refuge.

In 1859 a company from Detroit owned by Ransom Gardiner, George S. Frost, and others purchased the Tifft lands and commenced development of Frankfort within the year.

In September, Louis A. Doby moved to the area as agent of the developers with John H. Adams to oversee the work.

He built a large home for his family, but his dwelling also served the fledgling community as a hotel and for religious and political meetings.

The second lot, also at the west end of Forest Avenue, was purchased by Dr. Alonzo J. Slyfield, who served for 22 years as keeper of the Point Betsie Light House.

By 1867 the United States government recognized the importance of Aux Becs Scies harbor and commenced improvements.

Doby's work from 1859 had completely disappeared and a channel was dredged at the south end of the strip of land dividing the two lakes.

Among the other early settlers were Jacob and Charles Voorhies, J.B. Delbridge, Dr. T. Harvey, and J.B. Collins who opened his drug store in 1869.

In 1873, the United States Lighthouse Service established the first pier head light to mark the entrance.

In 1934, as the United States Coast Guard, this station was moved to large new quarters on the Frankfort side of the channel.

Following another election in 1894, the county seat returned to the community and a large school building was converted to a courthouse.

Although the matter was frequently debated the county seat remained in Frankfort until 1908 when citizens voted to move it to an abandoned church in the Village of Honor.

In October 1873, the citizens of Frankfort unanimously petitioned the circuit court to become a village under a new act of the State Legislature.

In 1885 the citizens petitioned the State Legislature in the normal fashion and the incorporated village of Frankfort was established by Local Act No.

[13] It is highly recommended by a report in The New York Times as a starting point for bicycling, whether for a day trip or longer.