Open: 2nd Sundays & 3rd Fridays, 1-4 pm
Closed: Holiday weekends and when a GWBHS program is elsewhere.
** Please check event locations carefully and check this page for the latest updates. **
**GWBHS has a new Open House schedule May – August 2025!**
Open: 2nd Sundays and 3rd Fridays, 1-4 pm
Apple Island Kayak Adventure
Thursday, August 14, 2025, 5:30-8:30 pm
($7 for residents/$9 for non-residents)
Discover the fun of kayaking Orchard Lake with West Bloomfield School District’s (WBSD) Apple Island as our exploration destination. Before paddling back, we will hike the historic island with a WBP naturalist and a Greater West Bloomfield Historical Society (GWBHS) docent. This trip is for intermediate paddlers with their watercraft and life jacket. Program made possible through WBSD & WBP partnerships. Register through wbparks.org.
Open House
Friday, August 15, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Permanent exhibits interpret local area history and culture.
Pine Lake Marina Tour
Thursday, September 11, 2025, 6-7 pm
($8 for residents / $10 for non-residents)
Pine Lake Marina, 3599 Orchard Lake Road
Gather at Pine Lake Marina for historical information about the longtime marina, water taxis, the camp on Pine Lake, and trolley transportation with Ron Gay, Ron Hodess & Brian Golden. We’ll walk to the nearby Interurban railway bed. Register through wbparks.org.
Apple Island Tours
Sunday, September 14, 2025, 10 am-3:30 pm
(Bus driver break from 12-12:30 pm)
Self-paced guided tours of WBSD’s Apple Island. 3:30 pm is last departure. Details at gwbhs.org/apple-island-tours.
Open House
Friday, September 19, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Permanent exhibits interpret local area history and culture.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day Open House
Sunday, October 12, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Indigenous peoples are known to have lived in West Bloomfield at the time of the first official survey in 1817. Come learn more about them!
Open House
Friday, October 17, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Permanent exhibits interpret local area history and culture.
Orchard Lake Nature Sanctuary Autumn Nature Walk
Sunday, October 19, 2025, 2-3 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Nature Sanctuary, 4700 Pontiac Trail
Join naturalist Carol Fink for a walk through rolling terrain and explore seasonal autumn beauty. Sponsored with Orchard Lake Nature Sanctuary.
Heroes Appreciation Breakfast
Tuesday, November 4, 2025, 9-10:30 am
West Bloomfield Middle School, 6000 Orchard Lake Road
Visit GWBHS at the annual Heroes Appreciation Breakfast and see our historical military memorabilia exhibit! Register through wbparks.org.
WWI Polar Bears Memorabilia & GWBHS Military Collection Open House
Sunday, November 9, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Did any of your relatives fight Russians at the close of WWI? Thousands of Michiganders did. The Polar Bear Expedition is not hidden history, but few people know – find out more at this Open House! Share or donate your family military memories and objects.
Presentation – Handwriting: Landscape of the Mind
Tuesday, November 11, 2025, 1-2 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
WB Library Main Meeting Room, 4600 Walnut Lake Road
Ruth Holmes, CDE, is a professional handwriting and document examiner whose forensic and personnel consulting firm, Pentec, Inc., in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, advises individual, legal, and corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. She provides a graphic understanding of handwriting and what it means for your life.
Open House
Friday, November 21, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Permanent exhibits interpret local area history and culture.
Vintage Games Open House
Sunday, December 14, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Learn about The Strong’s National Toy Hall of Fame and its recent inductees! Play with some vintage games and toys.
Open House
Friday, December 19, 2025, 1-4 pm
(Free admission, donations appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Permanent exhibits interpret local area history and culture.
Monthly Open Houses
2nd Sundays & 3rd Fridays, 1-4 pm
(Free Admission, Donations Appreciated)
Orchard Lake Museum, 3951 Orchard Lake Road
Enjoy temporary and permanent exhibits interpreting area history and culture. Occasionally guest presenters share their interests.