The snow certainly adds an interesting look to the houses in Laurium this time of year. It makes them resemble the gingerbread houses that many folks build during the Christmas season. Barb Bouwkamp took a walk up and down Tamarack Street in Laurium and captured a few of these interesting architectural masterpieces.

The first one may be recognizable by many of you, it's the Laurium Manor Inn Bed and Breakfast. Plenty of history in this beautiful 1908 mansion from the copper mining days here in the Keweenaw.

The next few photos are just some of the homes along the street that Barb found interesting for the colors, roof lines, porches, turrets and unique designs. I'm guessing that a few of these are probably historic old homes, too. They really don't make them like this much anymore.

The second to the last photo is where Barb calls home, at least for the winter months when she's not out at Big Traverse walking the shoreline there. It's neat how she captured the snow gently falling in the shot, too.

In the last photo, you can see what our Yooper village crews have to do to find important things like fire hydrants during the snowy winter months here UP North. Note the stick attached to the hydrant, so when it is completely buried by snow, the firemen and village workers will still be able to locate it in case of an emergency. You'll also see similar markers with reflective tape on country roads in the area, marking where the edge of the road is for the plow drivers and other travelers. When the snow gets deeper, us Yoopers adapt.

Great pictures of some great looking houses. Looks like the antebellum South after a snowstorm.
After a storm there is a lot of snow between the sidewalk and your front door Barb

Decades ago, we did a tour of the Laurium Manor Inn.
What a fascinating piece of history! What a tour!
Fabulous stuff...I'm so happy to see these beautiful
old homes kept is such phenomenal shape!

Gorgeous homes which show off their beautiful lines in the pristine snow!

Maybe someone can take some night time pictures of homes decorated with Christmas lights against the snow.

You guys are sure getting buried. I hope it stops
some time soon. How's Santa gonna find chimneys.

Good point Deb! The chimneys may be the only thing left showing above the drifts........ and how does he know which family they belong to?

It's a conundrum for sure. Poor Santa ;-)