Marquette, Michigan

Having traveled along the north shore of Lake Superior on our road trip through North-West Ontario, we decided to return home via the south shore by driving through Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan, stopping to spend two nights in Marquette, Michigan.

Marquette has plenty of beautiful old heritage buildings.  The City Hall, built in 1894, is made of red brick and sandstone, has intricate detailing reminiscent of Toronto's Old City Hall.  It includes classical Greek, Roman, French and Italian Renaissance influences.  The office building that used to be the Marquette County Savings Bank has a rounded turret with a clock tower at the top.  The former First National Bank and Trust Co is now occupied by Wells Fargo Bank.  This white limestone building with Romanesque columns has a gorgeous interior with high ceilings, marble walls and counters and bronze teller station grilles.  Too bad they did not allow photos of the interior.  The Victorian styled Hotel Janzen with a gabled tower that features a circular window and an open porch across the front, is now used as a half-way house. The Marquette visitor's bureau provides a glossy booklet that describes 49 historical buildings and sites and provides maps for several self guided walking tours.

 We stayed at the Landmark Inn, which was restored in 1982 to reflect the designs of the original 1930 Northland Hotel, including marble staircase, brass railings and chandeliers.  Famous guests of the original hotel included Amelia Earhart, Abbott and Costello, Louis Armstrong, and Jimmy Stewart while he filmed the movie "Anatomy of Murder".   The "Lilac" room on the 6th floor is reported to be haunted.  Luckily we had an uneventful stay on the 4th floor.

A stroll down Ridge Street provided a view of many huge, gorgeous grand old mansions with unique roofs, turrets and towers, porches and windows.

 Downtown Marquette has some interesting shops including Donkers Restaurant and Candy store which has old styled booths, stools and soda fountains.  It is located next to an old styled movie theatre that is currently being restored.   Bingo must be big in this area to warrant a store specializing in bingo supplies.  Harbour Square Farmers Market sells local cherry products including a delicious chocolate cherry sauce, jalopeno cherry salsa and tart cherry juice.  I liked the brightly painted bike racks in the shape of a bicycle with a forest scene imbedded in the back wheel.

Marquette has a pretty harbour and lakeshore with a road (appropriately named Lakeshore Boulevard) and bike path that hug the shores of Lake Superior, ending up at Presque Isle Park.  Prominently displayed overlooking the harbour is the old bronze fire bell that used to warn citizens of a fire up until the 1950s.   The WWII Silent Service memorial submarine sitting in a park by the Maritime Museum is a tribute to the captain who warned of the approach of Japanese battle fleet in time for US forces to defend the attack.

 An old abandoned ore dock sits in the waterfront at downtown Marquette.  It was replaced by a larger one that was built in Presque Isle Harbour, which is the shipping point for iron ore from the Marquette County mines.  Railway cars drive over the top of the dock and drop their loads of ore into containers below. Large lake freighter ships then sail up beside the dock to retrieve the ore for transportation.  It is considered a tourist attraction to watch this process take place, and the visitor's bureau keeps track of the schedules.  Unfortunately there was no ship scheduled to arrive on the day we were there.

Presque Isle Park is found at the northern tip of Marquette and is a lovely place for biking, walking, hiking through forest trails, or swimming on the various beaches.  A breakwater with a lighthouse at the end attempts to protect the shores from the huge waves that could develop during storms.  Although a delightful walk on a calm day, the breakwater could be dangerous in inclement weather, as attested by the shrine to two young men who drowned there after being swept away by the high waves.

We watched a play called "The Mouse That Roared" at the Lake Superior Theatre, which performs on a stage built in a working boat house.  We didn't realize when we bought the tickets that the actors were actually a part of children's theatre group who ranged from about age 13 down to possibly a 3 year-old playing the titular mouse.  This cute little girl roared with great aplomb!  Although we found it difficult to hear them at times since many of them spoke with what sounded like a youthful lisp, we were impressed by how many lines these children were able to memorize and deliver more or less flawlessly.  The staging was also quite professional, using drapery to hide and show different parts of the sets, and utilizing the overhead ramps and balconies of the boathouse very effectively.

Although we stayed 2 days in Marquette, there was so much to do and see that we easily could have remained another day.   I would have liked to rent bike and explore the bike trails, or spend a day on the beach.  This beautiful little city is worth a visit if you are anywhere in the area.