Presque Isle County ( ) is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

Lower Peninsula The Lower Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Lower Michigan – is the larger, southern and less elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; the other being the Upper Peninsula, which is separated by the S ...

of the

U.S. State In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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, ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,982. 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 ...

is Rogers City. The county was authorized by State legislation on April 1, 1840, but the county government was not established until 1871. The government was reorganized in 1875. The name is an

anglicisation Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

of the French word ''presqu'île'' or ''presque-isle'', which means a specific kind of

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

with a very narrow

isthmus An isthmus (; : isthmuses or isthmi) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea count ...

or connection to another

landform A landform is a land feature on the solid surface of the Earth or other planetary body. They may be natural or may be anthropogenic (caused or influenced by human activity). Landforms together make up a given terrain, and their arrangement ...

, denominated a "

presque-isle Presque-isle (from the French ''presqu'île'', meaning ''almost island'') is a geographical term denoting a piece of land which is closer to being an island than most peninsulas because of its being joined to the mainland by an extremely narr ...

", i. e., literally "almost an island". A large part of Presque Isle Township consists of that peninsula, with

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is shared on the north and east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the south and west by the U.S. state of Michigan. The name of the lake is derived from early French ex ...

on the east, Grand Lake on the west, and narrow strips of land connecting it to the mainland at the north and south ends. The community of Presque Isle is near the center of this peninsula.

History

Early Native Americans living in the area were

nomadic Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the population of nomadic pa ...

, using the land as hunting grounds. To them the land between the Ocqueoc and Swan Rivers was

sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

ground. The name "Presque Isle" was given to the area by French

fur traders The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mos ...

who portaged over the strip of land that attaches Presque Isle to the mainland. Early

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development (music), the process by which thematic material is reshaped * Photographic development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting * Development hell, when a proje ...

of the area was delayed because it lacked a navigable river. The Ocqueoc River was Presque Isle's largest river yet was shallow and crooked, and had many

rapids Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep stream gradient, gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Flow, gradient, constriction, and obstacles are four factors that are needed for a rapid t ...

. In the spring of 1839 a

surveying Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the land, terrestrial Plane (mathematics), two-dimensional or Three-dimensional space#In Euclidean geometry, three-dimensional positions of Point (geom ...

party, contracted by the State of Michigan, reported that the land of this area was worthless. This further discouraged development until the 1860s when the Crawford family settled into a quiet

cove A cove is a small bay or coastal inlet. They usually have narrow, restricted entrances, are often circular or oval, and are often situated within a larger bay. Small, narrow, sheltered bays, inlets, creek (tidal), creeks, or recesses in a coast ...

of Lake Huron, south of modern Rogers City. They intended to develop a stone

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mining, open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock (geology), rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some juri ...

, but found the stone too flaky to be used as building material. Turning to

lumbering Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks

, they sold the wood to

steamers Steamer may refer to: Transportation * Steamboat, smaller, insular boat on lakes and rivers * Steamship, ocean-faring ship * Screw steamer, steamboat or ship that uses "screws" (propellers) * Steam yacht, luxury or commercial yacht * Paddle st ...

traveling the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

. In 1868 W. E. Rogers, an

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

officer, organized a surveying party to Presque Isle, with Albert Molitor as

supervisor A supervisor, or lead, (also known as foreman, boss, overseer, facilitator, monitor, area coordinator, line-manager or sometimes gaffer) is the job title of a lower-level management position and role that is primarily based on authority over la ...

. Seeing the vast

forests A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological functio ...

, they attempted to purchase Crawford's Quarry but were refused. They formed the Molitor-Rogers Company and purchased the land at the future site of Rogers City. The following year a large party of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and Polish immigrants arrived and settled in the area. The Molitor-Rogers Company built 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 ...

, store, boarding house, and

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

shop. Only the Company supplied the small city. After a difficult winter in 1870–71, the community began to thrive. The county's original

settler A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a Human settlement, settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among ...

s were lumbermen, fishermen, and farmers. In 1907 a

mining engineer Mining engineering is the extraction of minerals from the ground. It is associated with many other disciplines, such as mineral processing, exploration, excavation, geology, metallurgy, geotechnical engineering and surveying. A mining engineer m ...

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

from New York, H. H. Hindshaw, visited Crawford's Quarry and found it to be rich in

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

. Following this discovery, the Michigan Limestone and Chemical Company of Calcite, Michigan was founded. The company purchased at Calcite, the new name for Crawford's Quarry. Needing a means of shipping their product, the Bradley Transportation Company was formed. The company is known in the area for being the chief business, employing a significant portion of the residents. One of the darker aspects of the county's history involved the loss of one of the Bradley Transportation Company's cargo ships, the ''Carl D. Bradley'', which sank on Lake Michigan during a windstorm in November 1958, taking 33 lives, 28 of whom resided in Presque Isle County (23 were from Rogers City, three were from Onaway, and two were from Posen or Metz Township). Today the world's largest limestone processing plant is in Rogers City, which is also a major Great Lakes port. This is the best

natural harbor A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

on Lake Huron between

Port Huron Port Huron is a city in and seat of government of St. Clair County, Michigan, United States. The population was 28,983 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the west by Port Huron Township, but the two are administered autonomously. Por ...

and

Mackinaw City Mackinaw City ( ) is a village at the northernmost point of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, United States. Divided between Cheboygan and Emmet counties, Mackinaw City is located at the southern end of the Mackinac Bridge, which carries Interst ...

Geography

According to the

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

, the county has an area of , of which is land and (74%) is water. Although Presque Isle County is on Michigan's Lower Peninsula, it is considered to be part of

Northern Michigan Northern Michigan (also known as Northern Lower Michigan and colloquially within Michigan as "Up North") is a region of the U.S. state of Michigan. The region, which is distinct from the more northerly Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Upper Peninsul ...

Geographic features

* Ocqueoc Falls * Sacred Rock

Lakes

* Grand Lake (Presque Isle, Michigan) * Long Lake (Preque Isle, Michigan) * Black Lake * Sunken Lake * Tomahawk Creek Flood *

Rainy Lake Rainy Lake ( French: '; Ojibwe: ') is a freshwater lake with a surface area of that straddles the border between the United States and Canada. The Rainy River issues from the west side of the lake. Today it is harnessed to make hydroelectricit ...

* Ocqueoc Lake

Adjacent counties

By land * Alpena County (southeast) * Montmorency County (southwest) *

Cheboygan County Cheboygan County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,579. The county seat is Cheboygan. The county boundaries were set off in 1840, with land partitioned from Michilimackinac County. ...

(west) By water *

Mackinac County Mackinac County ( , ) is a County (United States), county in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 10,834. The county seat is St. Ignace, Michigan, St. Ignace. F ...

(northwest) * Chippewa County (north) *

Manitoulin District Manitoulin District is a district in Northeastern Ontario within the Canadian province of Ontario. It was created in 1888 from part of the Algoma District. The district seat is in Gore Bay. It comprises Manitoulin Island primarily, as well as a ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada (east)

Communities

Cities

* Onaway * Rogers City (county seat)

Villages

* Millersburg * Posen

Civil townships

* Allis Township * Bearinger Township * Belknap Township * Bismarck Township * Case Township * Krakow Township * Metz Township * Moltke Township * North Allis Township * Ocqueoc Township * Posen Township * Presque Isle Township * Pulawski Township * Rogers Township

Census-designated place

* Presque Isle Harbor

Other unincorporated communities

Hawks Hawks are bird of prey, birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are very widely distributed and are found on all continents, except Antarctica. The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks, and othe ...

* Leroy * Liske * Manitou Beach *

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

Demographics

At the 2000 United States census, of 2000, there were 14,411 people, 6,155 households, and 4,203 families residing in the county. In 2020, there were 12,982 people in the county. As of 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $31,656, and the median income for a family was $37,426. Males had a median income of $31,275 versus $20,625 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 county was $17,363. About 6.80% of families and 10.30% 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 13.10% of those under age 18 and 9.20% of those over age 64.

Government

Voters in Presque Isle County have generally favored Republican Party nominees. Since 1884, the Republican nominee has garnered the county's vote 72% of the time (26 of 36 elections). The county government operates the

jail A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are imprisoned under the authority of the state, usually as punishment for various cr ...

, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, records deeds, mortgages, and

vital records Vital records are records of life events kept under governmental authority, including birth certificates, marriage licenses (or marriage certificates), separation agreements, divorce certificates or divorce party and death certificates. In some j ...

, administers

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...

regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget and has limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions – police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance etc. – are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Elected officials

Prosecuting Attorney A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible ...

: Kenneth A. Radzibon *

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

: Joseph Brewbaker *

County Clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keepin ...

: Ann Marie Main * County Treasurer: Bridget LaLonde *

Register of Deeds Recorder of deeds or deeds registry is a government office tasked with maintaining public records and documents, especially records relating to real estate ownership that provide persons other than the owner of a property with real rights ove ...

: Vicky Kowalewsky *

Drain Commissioner A drain commissioner is an elected official in county government of the U.S. state of Michigan who is responsible for planning, developing and maintaining surface water drainage systems under Public Act 40 of 1956. In counties with a population und ...

: Robert G. Macomber * County Surveyor: Norman J. Quaine Jr. as of June 2021

Historical markers

There are ten recognized Michigan historical markers in the county: * Bearinger Union School * Burnham's Landing * Elowsky Mill * Forty Mile Point Lighthouse / Graveyard of Ships * Lake Huron * The Metz Fire * Old Presque Isle Lighthouse * Presque Isle Electric Cooperative Monument * Presque Isle Light Station * World's Largest Limestone Quarry

Media

Newspapers

* The '' Alpena News'' is the daily newspaper of record for much of the northeastern

. * The '' Presque Isle County Advance'' is the weekly newspaper of Presque Isle County.

Television

The following television stations broadcast in Presque Isle County: * Channel 4: WTOM-TV "TV 7&4" (

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

) ( Cheboygan; satellite of

WPBN-TV WPBN-TV (channel 7) and WTOM-TV (channel 4) are television stations licensed respectively to Traverse City and Cheboygan, Michigan, United States, serving as the NBC affiliates for the northern Lower and eastern Upper peninsulas of Michigan ...

, Traverse City) * Channel 6: WCML "CMU Public Television" (

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

) ( Alpena; satellite of WCMU-TV, Mount Pleasant) * Channel 8: WGTQ "ABC 29&8" (

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

) (

Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie may refer to: People * Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, a Native American tribe in Michigan Places * Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada ** Sault Ste. Marie (federal electoral district), a Canadian federal electora ...

; satellite of WGTU, Traverse City) * Channel 10: WWUP-TV "9&10 News" (

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

) (Sault Ste. Marie; satellite of

WWTV WWTV (channel 9) and WWUP-TV (channel 10) are television stations licensed respectively to Cadillac and Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States, serving as the CBS affiliates for the northern Lower and eastern Upper peninsulas of Michiga ...

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 ...

) * Channel 11:

WBKB-TV WBKB-TV (channel 11) is a television station in Alpena, Michigan, United States, affiliated with CBS, NBC, American Broadcasting Company, ABC, Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox and MyNetworkTV. Owned by Morgan Murphy Media, the station maintains st ...

"Channel 11 News" (CBS) (Alpena) * Channel 45: WFUP "Fox 32" (

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

) ( Vanderbilt; satellite of WFQX-TV Cadillac).

Radio

The following radio stations can be heard in Rogers City ;FM ;AM ;NOAA Weather Radio

NOAA Weather Radio NOAA Weather Radio (NWR), also known as NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards, is an automated 24-hour network of Very high frequency, VHF Frequency modulation, FM weather radio stations in the United States which broadcast weather information direct ...

can be heard on 162.550 MHz (Call Sign KIG83, Alpena)

Transportation

Air

There is one county-owned airport in Presque Isle County, providing access to

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

: * Presque Isle County Airport – located SW of Rogers City The nearest commercial airline airports are Alpena County Regional Airport near Alpena, and

Cherry Capital Airport Cherry Capital Airport is a Commercial aviation, commercial and general aviation airport located in Traverse City, Michigan, United States. The airport is located southeast of the central business district of Traverse City. The airport is FAA ...

''Cherry Capital Airport'' airnav.com
/ref> near ( Traverse City).

Major highways

* * * * * * *

Footnotes

References

External links

Presque Isle County website
Presque Isle County website
Enchanted forest
''Enchanted forest'', Northern Michigan source for information, calendars etc. * {{Coord, 45.32, -83.46, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MI_source:UScensus1990 Michigan counties 1875 establishments in Michigan Populated places established in 1875