Gills Rock is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 located on Highway 42

Highway 42 (Wisconsin)

State Trunk Highway 42 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs north–south in northeast Wisconsin from Northport's ferry dock to Sheboygan....

 at the northern tip of the Door Peninsula

Door Peninsula

The Door Peninsula is a peninsula in eastern Wisconsin, separating the southern part of the Green Bay from Lake Michigan. The peninsula begins in northern Brown and Kewaunee counties and proceeds northeast to include all of Door County. It is the western portion of the Niagara Escarpment. Well...

 in Door County

Door County, Wisconsin

Door County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 27,961. Its county seat is Sturgeon Bay. Door County is a popular vacation and tourist destination, especially for residents of Wisconsin and Illinois....

, Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is within the town of Liberty Grove

Liberty Grove, Wisconsin

Liberty Grove is a town in Door County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,858 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated communities of Ellison Bay, Gills Rock, North Bay, Northport, and Rowleys Bay are in Liberty Grove.-Geography:...

 and was formerly known as Hedgehog Harbor.

History

The area was named for Elias Gill, a local 19th century landowner.

Gills Rock has a strong history and tradition of commercial fishing, which continues to this day. The Door County Maritime Museum is located there. The area is also popular with scuba divers

Scuba diving

Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....

 who explore the many shipwrecks in and around Death's Door, the narrow straight connecting Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 to Green Bay, also known as Porte des Morts

Porte des Morts

Porte des Morts, also known as Porte des Mortes, the Door of Death, and Death's Door is a strait linking Lake Michigan and Green Bay between the northern tip of the peninsula of Door County, Wisconsin and a group of islands historically known as the Potawatomi Islands and dominated by Washington...

. The Pilot Island Light is located on Pilot Island near Gills Rock.

Gills Rock is also the departure point of a passenger-only ferry to Washington Island

Washington Island

The name Washington Island refers to:*Washington Island , the largest of the islands that make up the Town of Washington in Door County, Wisconsin*Washington Island in Keweenaw County, Michigan...

.

In popular culture

The town is the birthplace of fictional character Gwen Raiden from the TV series Angel

Angel (TV series)

Angel is an American television series, a spin-off of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series was created by Buffys creator, Joss Whedon, in collaboration with David Greenwalt, and first aired on October 5, 1999...

.

External links

• Google Maps - Aerial View
• Door County Chamber of Commerce - General Information