Manistee ( ') is a city in the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. Located in southwestern Manistee County, it is part of the northwestern Lower Peninsula. Manistee is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Manistee County, and its population was 6,259 at the 2020 census. This makes Manistee the fifth-largest city in Northern Michigan. Manistee is located on an isthmus between Manistee Lake and

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...

, with the Manistee River bisecting the city as it flows west to the latter. Manistee is located along US 31, one of the major trunkline highways of the state.

Etymology

The name "Manistee" is from an

Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...

word first applied to the principal river of the county. The derivation is not certain, but it may be from ''ministigweyaa'', "river with islands at its mouth". Other sources claim that it was an Ojibwe term meaning "spirit of the woods".

History

In 1751, a Jesuit mission was established in Manistee. Missionaries visited Manistee in the early 19th century, and a Jesuit mission house is known to have been located on the northwest shore of Manistee Lake in 1826. In 1832, a group of traders from

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

built a log house up the Manistee River. However, they were soon driven off by the Odawa nation. The first white settlement and sawmill was built there in 1841. In 1830 the village of Manistee was one of about 15 Odawa (

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

) villages along the shore of Lake Michigan. Much of the Manistee River Valley, including Manistee itself, was designated as an Odawa Reservation from 1836 to 1848. The first permanent Euro-American settlement was made on April 16, 1841, when John Stronach and his son, Adam Stronach, arrived at the mouth of the Manistee River in a

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

loaded with fifteen men and equipment, and established a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

In 1846, the town was named "Manistee"; it was made part of Ottawa County, whose county offices were away at Grand Haven. After a series of new counties were organized, by 1855 Manistee was part of a large Manistee County that also included modern-day

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

and Missaukee counties. Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell, Manistee's first lawyer, moved there in 1860 and remained there until his death in 1917. Ramsdell owned the first hardware store in the city, and was responsible for the construction of a bridge across the Manistee River. On October 8, 1871, the town was practically destroyed by fire; on the same day that the Peshtigo Fire, the Great Chicago Fire, and fires in Port Huron and

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

occurred, the Great Michigan Fire burned Manistee. Manistee was incorporated as a city in 1882.

21st century

In 2000, Manistee made national headlines after a local jury convicted a woman for expressing to her mother near a

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

family in a restaurant her wish that immigrants would learn English; the judge described it as "insulting conduct" consisting of "

fighting words Fighting words are spoken words intended to provoke a retaliatory act of violence against the speaker. In United States constitutional law, the term describes words that inflict injury or would tend to incite an immediate breach of the peace. ...

", an offense that was punishable under a local ordinance. Allegations appeared of improper procedure and irregularities in the court records. Two years later (November 1, 2002) and after the defendant spent four nights in jail, the conviction was overturned by the state Court of Appeals.

Geography

Manistee is in southwestern Manistee County in northern Michigan, bordered to the west by

and to the east by Manistee Lake. The Manistee River connects the two lakes, cutting through the middle of the city. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, Manistee has a total area of , of which are land and , or 27.6%, are water. Neighboring and nearby communities include Parkdale to the northeast, Eastlake to the east, and Filer City, Oak Hill, and Stronach to the southeast. The townships that border Manistee are Filer to the south, Stronach to the southeast, and Manistee to the east and northeast. U.S. Route 31 passes through the center of Manistee as Cypress Street. The highway leads northeast to Traverse City and south to the outskirts of Ludington. M-55 intersects US 31 in Parkdale, just east of Manistee, and leads east to

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

. At the mouth of the Manistee River are the Manistee Pierhead lights (north and south piers) that were built in 1873, and replaced in 1927.

Climate

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 6,226 people, 2,816 households, and 1,614 families residing in the city. The population as of 2013 is 6117. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 3,599 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 91.5%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.5%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 3.8% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 3.4% of the population. There were 2,816 households, of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.1% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.7% were non-families. 36.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.82. The median age in the city was 43.6 years. 21.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.9% were from 25 to 44; 30.1% were from 45 to 64; and 18% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.5% male and 51.5% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,586 people, 2,912 households, and 1,729 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,426 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.9%

, 0.3%

, 1.4% Native American, 0.5% Asian, nil%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.0% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 2.2% of the population. There were 2,912 households, out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.8% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.6% were non-families. 35.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 24.0% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 19.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $30,351, and the median income for a family was $41,816. Males had a median income of $35,347 versus $20,102 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $16,810. About 6.9% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 13.2% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.

Industry

In its heyday, Manistee was home to a booming logging industry. In the late 19th century, Manistee was one of the leading shingle manufacturing cities in the world, with over 30 shingle mills on the Manistee river at one time. During the lumber boom of the 1880s, Manistee was the headquarters of its own railroad, the Manistee and North-Eastern, and had more millionaires per capita than anywhere else in the United States. Manistee is also associated with the

salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

industry. Manistee is now the home of three factories on Lake Manistee; Packaging Corporation of America, Morton Salt, and Martin Marietta. For this reason, Manistee is known as the "Salt City". The town is also a local favorite for tourism and fishing.

Media

Manistee is home to a radio station, WMTE-FM (101.5), and was previously home to the now-defunct WMTE (1340 AM). The ''Ludington Daily News,'' ''Manistee News Advocate'' and '' Traverse City Record-Eagle'' cover the Manistee area and distribute daily newspapers in the city. Formerly distributing newspapers in Manistee included the ''Bear Lake Beacon'', the ''Copemish Courier'', the ''Manistee Advocate'', the ''Manistee Daily Advocate'' (which became the ''Manistee News Advocate''), the ''Manistee Daily News'', the ''Manistee Democrat'', and the ''Onekama Lake Breeze''. Manistee is home to 10 West Studios which produces full-length motion pictures. Notable movies include: ''What If...'', starring Kevin Sorbo and John Ratzenberger filmed in Manistee, ''Jerusalem Countdown'' featuring Randy Travis,

Stacy Keach Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor, active in theatre, film and television since the 1960s. Keach first distinguished himself in Off-Broadway productions and remains a prominent figure in American theatre across his ...

and Lee Majors, '' Mickey Matson and the Copperhead Conspiracy'' starring Christopher Lloyd and Ernie Hudson, and '' God Bless the Broken Road'' starring

Jordin Sparks Jordin Sparks (born December 22, 1989) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame in 2007 after winning the American Idol (season 6), sixth season of ''American Idol'' at age 17, becoming the youngest winner in the series' history. He ...

and Lindsay Pulsipher

Area activities

* Orchard Beach State Park is approximately 2 miles north of Manistee. * Little River Casino Resort is approximately 5 miles northeast of Manistee. * Manistee National Golf Resort is approximately 2 miles south of Manistee. * Manistee Golf and Country Club was established in 1901 and is located within the city of Manistee. * There are three public beaches, Fifth Avenue Beach with the small man-made lake next to Fifth Avenue Beach and First Street Beach, located respectively north and south of the harbor entrance on the shore of Lake Michigan.

Local events and attractions

Manistee has museums, an opera house, and recurring events. These include: * Arcadia Area Historical Museum * Armory Youth Project * Brethren Heritage Museum * Kaleva Bottle House Museum also known as the John J. Makinen Bottle House * Kaleva Train Depot Museum * Lake Bluff Bird Sanctuary (Michigan Audubon Society) * Manistee Art Institute * Manistee County Historical Museum * Manistee Fire Hall * Manistee National Forest Festival * Marilla Historical Museum * Our Savior's Historical Museum * Ramsdell Theatre, home to the Manistee Civic Players. and the Manistee Art Institute. * Riverwalk, of

Victoriana Victoriana is a term used to refer to material culture related to the Victorian period (1837–1901). It often refers to decorative objects, but can also describe a variety of artifacts from the era including graphic design, publications, ph ...

and scenic river views. * Page Road * , a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

* Victorian Manistee Tours * Victorian Sleighbell Parade and Old Christmas Weekend * Historic Vogue Theatre built in 1938, having

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

Art Moderne Streamline Moderne is an international style of Art Deco architecture and design that emerged in the 1930s. Inspired by Aerodynamics, aerodynamic design, it emphasized curving forms, long horizontal lines, and sometimes nautical elements. In indu ...

design elements, and considered to be notable. * Waterworks Building

Retail

Manistee has a historic downtown with many original buildings from the Victorian era. The entire Downtown District is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. There are a good variety of retail stores in Manistee, many of which are locally owned and operated.

Government and infrastructure

The Michigan Department of Corrections Oaks Correctional Facility is in Manistee Township, near Manistee.Oaks Correctional Facility (ECF)
" '' Michigan Department of Corrections''. Retrieved on August 10, 2010.

Recreation

* Over 40 charter fishing boats operate on Lake Michigan from Manistee County ports. * Fishing in the Manistee River can yield salmon and steelhead. * Because a large portion of the county is public land, hunting is popular. * Filmmaker

Michael Moore Michael Francis Moore is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and author. Moore's work frequently addresses various Social issue, social, political, and economic topics. He first became publicly known for his award-winning debut ...

visited Manistee in February 2011 to support the restoration of the Vogue Theatre in downtown Manistee.

Sports

The Manistee Saints are a semi-professional baseball team that have called Manistee home since 1934. Their home games are at Rietz Park in Manistee. Formerly, the Manistee Colts and the Manistee Champs played in the Michigan State League, a

minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

league. There are many golf courses located around the city of Manistee. * Manistee National Golf and Resort * Manistee Country Club * Fox Hills Golf Course * Wolf River Golf Park * Fawn Crest Golf Course * Arcadia Bluffs Golf Course * Crystal Mountain * Caberfae Peaks Ski & Golf Resort There are also two ski resorts near the city of Manistee. * Crystal Mountain (30 miles North) * Caberfae Peaks Ski & Golf Resort (36 miles East) There are many disc golf courses, mountain biking trails, and

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

trails all over Manistee County and in the city of Manistee.

Schools

Currently operating

Elementary * James Madison Elementary (DayCare, Pre-School, K), Manistee Area Public Schools * Thomas Jefferson Elementary (1-2), Manistee Area Public Schools * Trinity Lutheran School (K-8), Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod Private School Secondary * Casman Alternative Academy (7-12), Provides an alternative education for those in Manistee County and surrounding areas. * Manistee Middle/High School (6-12), Manistee Area Public Schools, Class B/Division 3 ; Division 5 (Football) in sports All grades * Manistee Catholic Central School (K-12), Roman Catholic private school, Class D/Division 4 ; Division 8 (Football)

Temporary closed for maintenance

Elementary * John F. Kennedy Elementary (Location of Former Middle School) (3-5), Manistee Area Public Schools

Formerly operating

Elementary * George Washington Elementary (K-6), Manistee Area Public Schools * Abraham Lincoln Elementary (K-6), Manistee Area Public Schools * John F. Kennedy Elementary (Parkdale Location) (4-6), Manistee Area Public Schools Secondary * Guardian Angels Schools (7-12), Catholic Church School * St. Joseph Schools (K-12), Catholic Church School * Newland Academy (6-12), School (Type Unknown) (formerly "Lake Bluff Academy") Unknown * Tomaszewski Country School (K-8), School (One Room Country School)Closed 1959/60 Students moved to Parkdale School * Union School (?-?), School (Type Unknown) * Woodrow Wilson Elementary (?-?), Manistee Area Public Schools

Transportation

* Manistee is served by Manistee County Blacker Airport (IATA: MBL, ICAO: KMBL, FAA LID: MBL), approximately northeast of the city. Starting in May 2012, Cape Air offered non-stop scheduled flights to and from Chicago Midway International Airport. By 2023, Cape Air was flying out of Chicago’s O’Hare, and had codesharing or interline agreements with other carriers including American and United. * traverses the heart of Manistee, running southerly toward Scottville and Muskegon and northerly toward Bear Lake and Traverse City. * begins northeast of Manistee * begins northeast of Manistee and proceeds easterly across the Lower Peninsula to Tawas City. * is a former state trunkline that used to run from US 31 on the city line of Manistee and Parkdale within Manistee Township to Orchard State Park. It was decommissioned in 2003. * Great Lakes Central Railroad provides rail service to industries in Manistee.

Notable people

* Robert R. Blacker, Canadian-born politician and lumber baron * Dave Campbell, baseball player and sportscaster * Byron M. Cutcheon,

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

veteran and winner of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

, congressman, attorney, and postmaster * Fred W. Green,

governor of Michigan The governor of Michigan is the head of government of the U.S. state of Michigan. The current governor is Gretchen Whitmer, a member of the Democratic Party, who was inaugurated on January 1, 2019, as the state's 49th governor. She was re-ele ...

, 1927–1931 * Nels Johnson and his business of Century tower clocks * James Earl Jones, actor; first began acting at the Ramsdell Theatre in Manistee * Edward Kozlowski, Polish-American priest, later Bishop of Milwaukee * Michael J. Malik Sr., developer * Harry W. Musselwhite, politician and newspaper publisher * Harriet Quimby, first licensed American woman aviator; born in nearby Arcadia Township * Olaf Swenson, fur trader, adventurer, and author * George W. Tennant, cook, Antarctic explorer * Toni Trucks, actor; first began acting at the Ramsdell Theatre in Manistee * Robert Pershing Wadlow, the world's tallest man in medical history; died at the Hotel Chippewa in Manistee on July 15, 1940.

References

External links

*
Manistee County convention and business bureau, with links to local events and attractions
* {{Authority control Cities in Manistee County, Michigan County seats in Michigan Michigan populated places on Lake Michigan Populated places established in 1841 1841 establishments in Michigan Michigan placenames of Native American origin