Frankenmuth is a city in Saginaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,838 at the 2000 census. The 2009 census estimate places the population at 4,619. The city is located within Frankenmuth Township, but is politically independent. Bronner's Christmas Wonderland, which bills itself as "the World's Largest Christmas Store", is located in Frankenmuth. The most popular nickname is "Muth", but the city is also nicknamed "Little Bavaria"
The city's name is a combination of two words. "Franken" represents the Province of Franconia in the Kingdom of Bavaria home of the Franks where the original settlers were from. The german word "Mut" means courage, thus the city name Frankenmuth means "courage of the Franconians". The area was settled and named in 1845 by conservative Lutheran immigrants from Roßtal area of Franconia (now part of Bavaria) in Germany.[5] The group of settlers left Germany on April 20, 1845 and arriving at Castle Garden seven weeks later. They traveled via canals and the Great Lakes from New York to Detroit and arrived in August 1845. Sailing on the Nelson Smith, the settlers made their way to Saginaw and travelled over land to the present location the city of Frankenmuth. Originally part of Bridgeport Township and later Frankenmuth Township, Frankenmuth became a village in 1904 and finally a city on October 1, 1959.
The nearby villages of Frankenlust, Frankentrost, and Frankenhilf illustrate that the area remained a magnet for other Germans from the same region even after it lost its original purpose as a mission post for the spread of Christianity to the Chippewa tribe.
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