Huey Real Estate, LLC
1-800 SEE-HUEY
PO Box 146
Marquette, MI 49855
p: 906-228-8889
f: 906-228-3831
e: huey@upwaterfront.com | | |
Our About the UP section is designed to help you learn more about history, culture, daily life and of course the amazing opportunities for outdoor recreation in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
You can use the map below as a jumping off point for your exploration of the UP. It links to brief articles and photos posted here you can use the controls to zoom in or out and also
click to view the larger map from Google (new window). If you have the free Google Earth program, you can visit the map in Google Earth. We've designed this to be something you can explore, so be sure to click photos to see them larger and to keep checking back as we'll be constantly adding to these pages!
 Ishpeming is known for its rich history, beautiful surroundings, and the birth of organized skiing in the United States - it is now home to the National Ski Hall of Fame. Ishpeming serves to this day as the Upper Peninsula operations headquarters for Cleveland-Cliffs Iron, which was one of the country's biggest iron-mining companies for decades. The Cliffs Shaft Mine site, a Michigan state historical site, is the location of one of the most productive of the area's underground iron ore mines. Although the mines were closed in 1969, the shaft buildings dominate Ishpeming's skyline.
In the winter the area is known for its 1200 foot iced toboggan slide, nearby luge run, and Suicide Hill Ski Jump. Ishpeming's local area offers recreation for all seasons, one of which is Jasper Knob, the worlds largest gemstone which is composed completely of jaspilite. Jaspilite is rock made of bands of bright red jasper, alternating with bands of specular hematite.
Ishpeming links:
Wikipedia - Ishpeming
View Ishpeming
 Escanaba has rich resources and natural beauty that make is a regional hub for Michigan's south central Upper Peninsula. The area is renowned for its beaches and water activities and its proximity to lighthouses, waterfalls, the Fayette Historic Townsite and Kitchitikipi - the Big Springs in the Palms Book State Park.
Escanaba links:
City of Escanaba
Wikipedia - Escanaba
View Escanaba
The Munising area was originally inhabited by Ojibwa who used the area as a summer camping ground. After the first exploration by Europeans, Grand Island soon became a fur-trading outpost, and later a steamship fueling station. In 1895 construction began on the town of Munising. It wasn't until the 1870s that a iron blast furnace was built, attracting permanent settlers to the area. Sawmills, a tannery, and the Munising Woodenware Company led to greater development in the area.
 Munising sits on the edge of a beautiful bay with the thick forested hills of the Hiawatha National Forestproviding shelter behind. Grand Island sits just beyond the harbor while the Picture Rocks National Lakeshore lies along the coast to the east. The Lake Superior waters around Grand Island and Munising are home to the Alger Underwater Preserve which protects eight major wrecks.
Munising links:
Munising Visitors Bureau Inc
City of Munising
Munising
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Champion was first settled by French-Canadian lumberjacks and miners from Cornwall. By 1900 new immigrants, Scandinavians, Germans, Italians, Irish, and Finns had settled the area. Champion soon became a vital railroad, mining, logging, and farming center.
In 1912 a cave-in struck Champion. A hole one hundred feet deep and three hundred feet wide was formed, which destroyed several homes. The cave-in caused the Champion Mine to collapse and was subsequently shut down for good. By that time the mine had brought up over 4 million tons or iron ore.
Champion links:
Champion
Van Riper State Park
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 Big Bay was founded as a company-built sawmill town, tucked between the Huron Mountains and Lake Superior. In 1943 after a brief recession the mill was bought and reopened by Henry Ford. Like many other of Henry Ford's model towns it was pretty but unprofitable and soon closed. Big Bay is neighbored by the Huron Mountain Club, a vast fenced off fishing and hunting retreat and wilderness area owned by extremely wealthy families, most of whom made their money in the 19th century, including the Ford family. Big Bay is most famously known for being the location of both the book and the movie of Anatomy of a Murder.
Big Bay is also the western trailhead of the Hiawatha Water Trail, and near unusual Jacobsville sandstone formations under the waters of Lake Superior that rise up to become cliffs.
 Located on the shores of Lake Michigamme, Michigamme draws visitors into what is now a quaint mining town with proximity to the Craig Lake State Park and Van Riper State Park. When first settled Michigamme served as a hub between several mines operating in the area. The Michigamee Mine, located just northeast of the village on Mt. Shasta, produced almost a million tons of iron ore before it shut down in 1900. Henry Ford started another boom in the 1920s when he opened the Imperial Mine one mile to the west of Michigamme, in a place still called Imperial Heights. Like many of his Upper Peninsula locations, it was never a money-maker. It closed in the 1930s.
Michigamme links:
Michigamme
Craig Lake State Park
Van Riper State Park
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Neqaunee was founded by The Jackson Iron Company in 1846. Today Negaunee is a safe, friendly community that is home to the Michigan Iron Industry Museum, the historic Vista Theatre, and the Negaunee Historical Museum. Due to the large population of miners and mine managers the village is both plain and stately. The village celebrates its heritage with the mid winter Heikki Lunta Winterfest and the mid-summer Pioneer Days.
Negaunee links:
City of Negaunee
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 Republic is a charming town in the Southwestern corner of Marquette county and is known as a year-round playground. Forests are crisscrossed with trails running alongside with rivers and lakes, much of which is the Escanaba River State Forest. Republic is made up of two small town centers separated by the huge, open-pit iron mine that now serves as a year-round visitor attraction with interpretive panels.
Republic link:
Republic, Michigan
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 The Marquette area was first settled by Ojibwa Indians who came into contact with french explorer and Jesuit missionary in 1669. Although the area had been officially "discovered" by the French, and the harbor was used for rest, fishing, and transport for both the French voyagers and the Ojibwa, it was not until the discovery of iron ore in the mid 1800s that the are was settled. In 1849 iron ore was discovered in the area, and the Marquette Iron Company promptly founded the village of Iron Bay on September 14, 1849, to provide settlement opportunities for workers. The village was later renamed New Worcester. A second mining company came to the area in the form of the Cleveland-Cliffs Company. The Cleveland-Cliffs Company outlasted the Marquette Iron Company and renamed the town Marquette. The village was platted in 1854, incorporated as a village in 1859 and as a city in 1871. The city of Marquette began as a shipping port for hematite ores and to this day continues to serve as a port for enriched iron pellets from nearby mines. In 1899 Northern Normal School, a teacher's college, was founded in Marquette. The college is now know as Northern Michigan University. During the Cold War the Marquette area was home to the K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base which was host to B-52H bombers and KC-135 tankers of the strategic air command. The base was closed in September of 1995 and now serves as the area's airport.
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.
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Disclaimer
The information presented in this web site is and by nature will likely always be a "work in progress" subject to errors, omissions and revision. It is intended as a primer for those interested in buying U.P. real estate and contains personal observations and opinions with which others may disagree. It was obtained from sources deemed reliable, but is not warranted by Dick Huey or Huey Real Estate.
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