Ironwood is a city in Gogebic County

Gogebic County, Michigan

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 17,370 people, 7,425 households, and 4,581 families residing in the county. The population density was 16 people per square mile . There were 10,839 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

, about 18 miles (29 km) south of Lake Superior

Lake Superior

Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...

. The population was 6,293 at the 2000 census. The city is on US 2

U.S. Route 2

U.S. Route 2 is an east–west U.S. Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected by various roadways in southern Canada...

 and is situated opposite the Montreal River

Montreal River (Wisconsin-Michigan)

The Montreal River is a river flowing to Lake Superior in northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in the United States. It is approximately 40 miles long and drains approximately 270 square miles in a forested region. For most of its length, the river's course is used to define a...

 from Hurley, Wisconsin

Hurley, Wisconsin

Hurley is a city in and the county seat of Iron County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,818 at the 2000 census. It is directly across the Montreal River from Ironwood, Michigan.-History:...

. It is the westernmost city in Michigan, situated on the same line of longitude (90.2 degrees West) as St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

.

While originally an iron mining town, the area is now known for its downhill skiing resorts, including Big Powderhorn, Blackjack, Indianhead, Mount Zion and Whitecap as well as its cross country skiing at the Wolverine Nordic Trail System.

Ironwood is home of the "World's Tallest Indian" : a 52 ft (15.8 m) fiberglass statue of tribal leader Hiawatha

Hiawatha

Hiawatha was a legendary Native American leader and founder of the Iroquois confederacy...

.

The city is at the south end of Ironwood Township

Ironwood Township, Michigan

Ironwood Township is a charter township of Gogebic County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,330 at the 2000 census. Ironwood Township is the home of Gogebic Community College, as well as the Gogebic/Iron County airport....

, but is administratively autonomous.
The town of Ironwood was settled in the spring of 1885.