Putting The Locals In Locals: Lake Leelanau Restaurant Partners With Historical Society to Tell Tales

Did you know Lake Leelanau native Emelia Schaub was Michigan’s first female prosecutor?

Well, if you settle in for Emelia’s Prosecutor Poppers at Locals Lake Leelanau (bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers with cream cheese, served with a side of barbecue sauce) you might be curious enough to ask your server or scan the QR code on the menu.

Schaub (1891-1986) served 12 years as Leelanau County prosecutor, among other notable achievements. She also was the first woman in the United States to successfully defend a person accused of murder, which she did about a year after graduating law school, and was a key force in the eventual official recognition of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. 

So how did she get tied to those poppers? You can thank Kim Kelderhouse, executive director of the Leelanau Historical Society & Museum, who thought the heat of those poppers would be a perfect match for Schaub’s personality.

“She was a trailblazing woman, not only for Leelanau County, but for the entire state,” Kelderhouse tells The Ticker. “I've always heard little stories about her, and she was a powerhouse. In colloquial speech these days, sometimes we might call her ‘spicy.’”

Kelderhouse assisted Locals owner Tony West in his quest to name as many of his menu items as possible about historical people, places or events in Lake Leelanau. West opened his doors in May of 2025 and has made history and tradition a big part of his establishment.

“The whole concept of the restaurant name Locals was that I wanted to incorporate the vision and the story of locals around the area and just highlight some of the really cool, old school features in Lake Leelanau as a whole,” West tells The Ticker. “It was inspiring for me to try to connect to the history and do something a little bit different."

West leaned on Kelderhouse and the team at the historical society for old photos and other items to use throughout the restaurant, and to help him determine names that would get customers intrigued and interested in local history.

The partnership serves both parties. It adds a cool twist to West’s eatery, and it hopefully drives traffic to the museum, which is not far away in Leland.

“We sat down with him, looked through photos, talked through some of his ideas, fact checked a few things," Kelderhouse says. "And in apreciation of that, Tony offered to put this QR code on the menu that would link back to our website where we could give the story behind the menu item names and tell people that, ‘Hey, we've got a museum. Come visit us.’”

It’s also a fantastic way to get more people involved in history, a subject that can be stuffy and stodgy for some people – unless you find a way to make it fun.

“It just inspires people to dig a little deeper, get curious,” Kelderhouse says. “Finding creative ways to collaborate like this makes (history) more accessible, makes it fun and makes us human.”

Photo inset: Emelia Schaub.