Editing Gaylord, Michigan (section)

=== 20th century history ===
{{See also|Roman Catholic Diocese of Gaylord#History}}
During the early 20th century, many fires and epidemics swept through the town.

In 1905, a marketing campaign was undertaken to attract outside business investors and new residents to locate in Gaylord. A 38-page photo booklet entitled “Gaylord Illustrated” was published to showcase the many benefits of living in the town.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Gaylord Illustrated |publisher=Herald Printing House |year=1905 |location=Gaylord, Michigan}}</ref> Among the many photographs featured in the booklet were the Otsego County Courthouse and the Dayton Last Block Works. The Dayton Last Block Works was located south and west of downtown Gaylord between the Michigan Central Railroad and U.S. 27. It was bordered on the south by Wisconsin Avenue, and to the north by Third Street. The 14-acre industrial site included 27 buildings, and the owners claimed it to be the largest factory of its kind in world. The company, headquartered in [[Dayton, Ohio]], operated its Gaylord branch from 1895 to 1931.

Otsego County hardwoods were used to produce wooden shoe forms, bowling pins, and golf club heads. One of the original brick buildings still stands on South Otsego Avenue as the Bavarian Office complex.

A second railroad, the Boyne City, Gaylord and Alpena (BC,G&A), reached Gaylord in 1906. This provided east–west rail travel and transportation. The tracks entered Gaylord from Hallock from the northeast. The BC,G&A shared the Michigan Central Railroad depot on Michigan Avenue. Heading east, the tracks paralleled Fourth Street and headed toward the town of [[Sparr, Michigan|Sparr]].

Another important manufacturing venture in Gaylord's past was the Gaylord Motor Car Company. Formed in 1910 by local investors who had dreams of becoming the next [[Detroit]], the company offered four innovative styles designed to compete with other automakers. Approximately 350 cars were produced before the company went bankrupt in 1913. The only known Gaylord car still around was a Gaylord 30 restored by Ivan Polus, a resident of [[Whitefish, Montana]], which was then purchased by the Gaylord 30 Car Committee, who bought it for $20,000, the restored car is on display at the Chamber of Commerce in downtown Gaylord.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Granlund |first=Bill |title=The Rise and Fall of the Gaylord Motor Car Company |url=http://www.otsego.org/ochs/GaylordCar/gaylordcar12232000.htm |access-date=June 19, 2023}}</ref>

In 1921, roads were officially paved downtown Gaylord became a city in 1922. The change from village to city required a vote by town residents. The residents voted in favor 114 to 93, a 21-vote margin. John Hamilton was elected the first mayor of Gaylord. A sewage system was installed in the late 1930s or early 1940s.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |url=http://www.otsego.org/ochs/county_centennial_book/cent_book_1975.htm |title=County Centennial Book |year=1975 |pages=20}}</ref>

Throughout the 20th century Gaylord grew, with summer tourism, winter sports including downhill and cross-country skiing and snowmobiling. In December 1970, a [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Gaylord|Roman Catholic Diocese]] was created by [[Pope Paul VI]], and erected it on July 20, 1971, with [[Edmund Szoka]] becoming the first bishop of the diocese, and named [[St. Mary, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral (Gaylord, Michigan)|St. Mary, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral]] as the cathedral for the diocese, the current bishop is [[Jeffrey Walsh]].<ref name=":1" />