lobbied the Michigan Legislature for help. The state ultimately allocated $60,000 in 1917 to purchase the property, and the newly acquired parkland was dedicated as The Pines, later renamed Interlochen State Park, the first state park organized by the state of Michigan (Mackinac Island was originally a national park before becoming Michigan's first state park in 1895). In 1928, the National High School Orchestra Camp was founded by Joseph E. Maddy just south of Interlochen, and evolved to become Interlochen Center for the Arts, which includes a summer camp as well as a fine arts boarding high school and public radio station. The camp has expanded to both sides of J. Maddy Parkway (previously designated as a highway, M-137, in 1930 but decommissioned in 2020,), and enveloped the entire village of Wylie. By the late 20th century, the railroads that brought students, vacationers, and lumber through Interlochen, had been removed. The north-south M&NE railroad was removed in 1934, and the west-east C&WM railroad (Pere Marquette Railway after 1899) removed in 1982. The area remains a popular vacation spot, with hiking, fishing, camping, boating, swimming, cross country skiing, and snowmobiling the most popular activities. The community of Interlochen was listed as a newly organized census-designated place for the 2010 census, meaning it now has officially defined boundaries and population statistics for the first time. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and (2.36%) is water. Interlochen is located within the Betsie River watershed. Public education Interlochen is zoned within the Traverse City Area Public Schools district (TCAPS). The nearest public high school is Traverse City West Senior High School. Prior to 2016, elementary school students were able to attend Interlochen Elementary School, part of TCAPS. With the closure of that school, the nearest public elementary schools are Blair Elementary School near Grawn, and Silver Lake Elementary School and Westwoods Elementary School near Traverse City. Media Interlochen is home to 88.7 WIAA, which is run by the Interlochen Center for the Arts and operates as Northern Michigan's National Public Radio affiliate. Transportation Major highways runs west–east through the northern portion of the community. , known now as J. Maddy Parkway, is a former state highway that was commissioned from 1930 to 2020. Public transportation Interlochen is served by Traverse City's public transportation system, the Bay Area Transportation Authority (BATA) which