leading up to the holidays. In addition to its German architecture and year-round Christmas celebrations, Frankenmuth is also known for its two impressive indoor heated water parks, famous chicken dinners, riverboat cruises, horse-drawn carriages, and a history museum. Flowers bloom in tasteful landscapes fronting stores and adding pops of color and beauty in decorated courtyards, most prevalent along South Main Street with its specialty stores and boutiques. I pass chocolatiers and fudge makers, and shops selling frozen bananas, sugar-powdered beignets, and gobs of ice cream. Gift shops hawk Frankenmuth T-shirts and Bavarian-themed souvenirs. At the Taffy Kitchen, employee Ashton Edie runs a machine stretching a mound of strawberry taffy. “What this does is help aerate it, giving it a nice chewy texture that it’s known for,” he explains. “I just finished adding all the flavors and colors, and this makes it uniform throughout.” The Frankenmuth Historical Museum outlines how the original 15 missionaries braved stormy seas on their voyage from their native Franconia region of Bavaria and then steamers to Michigan after arriving in New
Family style dinner at Zehnder’s of Frankenmuth restaurant
York. Their goal was to lend support to other German settlers and to introduce the Native Americans to the missionaries’ Lutheranism. A replica of the settler’s first log church stands on its original site along with the two church bells they brought with them. “They came here to spread the word of God,” explains Brooke Bronner, the Director of Marketing with the Frankenmuth Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB). “They liked the region for farming and milling.” The Historical Museum features life-sized exhibits of how they lived in log cabins along with artifacts including rusted kitchen pans, axes, saws, and other household wares. How did Frankenmuth become a Christmas Mecca? It all started with resident Wallace John Bronner’s love of the holiday’s old-world traditions based on his German roots. As a teenager, he started a sign painting business in the basement of his parents’ house, later crafting Christmas panels and decorations, and opening his first store in 1954. The growth of his business eventually led to the building of the current store that stands today, with subsequent expansions resulting in a showroom the size of one and a half football fields.
Inside, rows of decorated Christmas trees sparkle, many illuminated by some of the store’s 100,000 twinkling
Inside Bronner’s CHRISTmas Wonderland
SPARKLING FRANKENMUTH
COAST TO COAST MAGAZINE SPRING 2026 | 19
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