The Bay City, Michigan, YWCA camp began as a small gathering of 65 women during the summer of 1916 at a rental cottage in Killarney. The second site, selected two years later, was on Aplin Beach near Saginaw Bay. In 1924, the YWCA purchased the Camp Maqua property in Hale, on the shores of Loon Lake, with a solitary farmhouse, and numerous cabins were then completed. After the YWCA sold the property to a private owner in 1979, it was subdivided into 10 parcels. In 1987, the Baker/Starks families purchased the lodge and 14 acres. Ten families continue to keep the spirit of Maqua alive through an association dedicated to retaining the historical integrity of the land and remaining buildings.
