Leland, Michigan
Encyclopedia
Leland is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state
of Michigan
. It was the county seat
of Leelanau County
from 1883 to 2008, when a new government center was completed in Suttons Bay Township
, closer to the county's geographic center.
Leland is located in Leland Township
, which provides local government services. It is on M-22
at the mouth of the Leland River
(also known as the Carp River) on Lake Michigan
.
Leland is the departure point for ferry service to both North
and South Manitou
Islands. The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
is nearby and Traverse City
is about 25 miles to the southeast.
villages on the Leelanau Peninsula
. Where the Leland (Carp) River flows into Lake Michigan, there was a natural fish ladder
which was a traditional Native American fishing grounds. The settlement was called Mishi-me-go-bing, meaning "the place where canoes run up into the river to land, because they have no harbor" or alternatively Che-ma-go-bing or Chi-mak-a-ping.
White settlers, who began arriving in the 1830s, also took advantage of the location as a fishing settlement. White settlement increased after Antoine Manseau, with his son Antoine Jr., and John Miller, built a dam and sawmill on the river in 1854. Construction of the dam raised the water level 12 feet and what had been three natural lakes in the river all became a single lake now known as Lake Leelanau
(and is navigable all the way to the community of Cedar, about 10 miles inland). The settlers built wooden docks, which allowed steamers and schooners to transport new settlers and supplies.
From 1870 to 1884 the Leland Lake Superior Iron Co. operated an iron smelter north of the river mouth, supplied with ore from the Upper Peninsula and charcoal made from local maple and beech timber; the charcoal was produced in fourteen beehive kilns near the smelting furnace, which produced up to 40 tons of iron per day. In 1884 the plant was sold to the Leland Lumber Co. which operated a saw mill on the site. Other sawmills and shingle mills operated in Leland during the years 1885-1900.
As early as 1880, commercial fishermen sailed out of the harbor to catch trout and whitefish, building wooden shacks where they processed their catch and serviced their fleet. Up to eight powered tugs once sailed out of "Fishtown," as the buildings came to be known. Today, the historic fishing settlement and two fish tugs, Joy and Janice Sue, are owned by a non-profit organization, Fishtown Preservation Society. Fishtown is home to a working fishery and a thriving charter fishing business. The riverfront is lined by a boardwalk and quaint shacks that have been converted into tourist shops.
Around 1900, wealthy individuals from Chicago, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and other Midwestern industrial centers began to visit Leland and build summer cottages, arriving by Lake Michigan passenger steamer or by Lake Leelanau steamer from the railhead near Traverse City. This led to the construction of resort hotels, and the growth of Leland as a summer resort.
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"....
. It was the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Leelanau County
Leelanau County, Michigan
-History:The county's name is said to be a Native American word meaning "delight of life", but it is a neologism made up by Indian agent and ethnographer Henry Schoolcraft, who sometimes gave the name "Leelinau" to Native American women in his tales. He created many faux Indian place names in...
from 1883 to 2008, when a new government center was completed in Suttons Bay Township
Suttons Bay Township, Michigan
Suttons Bay Township is a civil township of Leelanau County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,982 at the 2000 census. The village of Suttons Bay is located within the township...
, closer to the county's geographic center.
Leland is located in Leland Township
Leland Township, Michigan
Leland Township is a civil township of Leelanau County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the early 2000s, the unincorporated community of Leland, which lies totally within the township, was the county seat of Leelanau County...
, which provides local government services. It is on M-22
M-22 (Michigan highway)
M-22 is a state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan. It is long and follows the Lake Michigan shoreline of the Leelanau Peninsula, making up a portion of the Lake Michigan Circle Tour. It also passes through the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore...
at the mouth of the Leland River
Leland River
The Leland River is a short river in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located in the unincorporated community of Leland, the river is about one-mile long and connects Lake Leelanau with Lake Michigan, winding past historic Fishtown, a dam and two restaurants. The dam was built in 1854 and it raised...
(also known as the Carp River) on 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...
.
Leland is the departure point for ferry service to both North
North Manitou Island
North Manitou Island is located in Lake Michigan, approximately west-northwest of Leland, Michigan. It is nearly eight miles long and over four miles wide, with of shoreline. It has a land area of 57.876 km² and has no population...
and South Manitou
South Manitou Island
South Manitou Island is located in Lake Michigan, approximately west of Leland, Michigan. It is part of Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The uninhabited island is in land area and can be accessed by a ferry service from Leland...
Islands. The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is a United States National Lakeshore located along the northwest coast of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan in Leelanau County and Benzie County....
is nearby and Traverse City
Traverse City, Michigan
Traverse City is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was 14,674 at the 2010 census, with 143,372 in the Traverse...
is about 25 miles to the southeast.
History
Leland is built on the site of one of the oldest and largest OttawaOttawa (tribe)
The Odawa or Ottawa, said to mean "traders," are a Native American and First Nations people. They are one of the Anishinaabeg, related to but distinct from the Ojibwe nation. Their original homelands are located on Manitoulin Island, near the northern shores of Lake Huron, on the Bruce Peninsula in...
villages on the Leelanau Peninsula
Leelanau Peninsula
The Leelanau Peninsula is a peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan that extends about from the Lower Peninsula of Michigan into Lake Michigan. Leelanau County encompasses the entire peninsula. It is often referred to as the "little finger" of the mitten-shaped lower peninsula.Sleeping Bear Dunes...
. Where the Leland (Carp) River flows into Lake Michigan, there was a natural fish ladder
Fish ladder
A fish ladder, also known as a fishway, fish pass or fish steps, is a structure on or around artificial barriers to facilitate diadromous fishes' natural migration. Most fishways enable fish to pass around the barriers by swimming and leaping up a series of relatively low steps into the waters on...
which was a traditional Native American fishing grounds. The settlement was called Mishi-me-go-bing, meaning "the place where canoes run up into the river to land, because they have no harbor" or alternatively Che-ma-go-bing or Chi-mak-a-ping.
White settlers, who began arriving in the 1830s, also took advantage of the location as a fishing settlement. White settlement increased after Antoine Manseau, with his son Antoine Jr., and John Miller, built a dam and sawmill on the river in 1854. Construction of the dam raised the water level 12 feet and what had been three natural lakes in the river all became a single lake now known as Lake Leelanau
Lake Leelanau
Lake Leelanau lies in the Leelanau Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The entire lake -- which includes two bodies of water, usually referred to as North Lake Leelanau and South Lake Leelanau -- covers about and lies within Leelanau County...
(and is navigable all the way to the community of Cedar, about 10 miles inland). The settlers built wooden docks, which allowed steamers and schooners to transport new settlers and supplies.
From 1870 to 1884 the Leland Lake Superior Iron Co. operated an iron smelter north of the river mouth, supplied with ore from the Upper Peninsula and charcoal made from local maple and beech timber; the charcoal was produced in fourteen beehive kilns near the smelting furnace, which produced up to 40 tons of iron per day. In 1884 the plant was sold to the Leland Lumber Co. which operated a saw mill on the site. Other sawmills and shingle mills operated in Leland during the years 1885-1900.
As early as 1880, commercial fishermen sailed out of the harbor to catch trout and whitefish, building wooden shacks where they processed their catch and serviced their fleet. Up to eight powered tugs once sailed out of "Fishtown," as the buildings came to be known. Today, the historic fishing settlement and two fish tugs, Joy and Janice Sue, are owned by a non-profit organization, Fishtown Preservation Society. Fishtown is home to a working fishery and a thriving charter fishing business. The riverfront is lined by a boardwalk and quaint shacks that have been converted into tourist shops.
Around 1900, wealthy individuals from Chicago, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and other Midwestern industrial centers began to visit Leland and build summer cottages, arriving by Lake Michigan passenger steamer or by Lake Leelanau steamer from the railhead near Traverse City. This led to the construction of resort hotels, and the growth of Leland as a summer resort.
Notable permanent and summer residents
- Tim AllenTim AllenTim Allen is an American comedian, actor, voice-over artist, and entertainer, known for his role in the sitcom Home Improvement...
, comedian, actor - The Ball BrothersBall BrothersThe Ball brothers were the founders of the Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing Business which eventually became Ball Corporation. They greatly improved the quality of life of Muncie, Indiana through their philanthropy and business. They were instrumental in the creation of Ball State University, and...
, industrialists and philanthropists - Charles BennisonCharles BennisonCharles Ellsworth Bennison, Jr. is 15th bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania.-Education and family:Bennison was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 30, 1943, and was baptized at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Hastings, Minnesota, on December 24, 1943. His father, Charles E...
, Episcopal bishop of PennsylvaniaEpiscopal Diocese of PennsylvaniaThe Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America encompassing the counties of Philadelphia, Montgomery, Bucks, Chester and Delaware in the state of Pennsylvania.... - Walter Truman Best, aka Edward Maro (1869-1908), magician
- John Elder Blackledge (1891-1961), magician
- Barbara Ninde ByfieldBarbara Ninde ByfieldBarbara Ninde Byfield was an American authoress and illustrator.-Bibliography:...
(1930-1988), author, illustrator - Mark ClarkMark Wayne ClarkMark Wayne Clark was an American general during World War II and the Korean War and was the youngest lieutenant general in the U.S. Army...
(1896-1984), WW2 general, Citadel president - Karl Detzer (1891-1987), author, biographer of Carl SandburgCarl SandburgCarl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
- John J. GilliganJohn J. GilliganJohn Joyce Gilligan is a American Democratic politician from the state of Ohio who served as a U.S. Representative and the 62nd Governor of Ohio. He is the father of Kathleen Sebelius...
, U.S. representative, governor of Ohio - The Gits Brothers, manufacturers of lubricating devices
- Alisha GlassAlisha GlassAlisha Glass is an American indoor volleyball player. She is 6'0" a setter. Glass is a current member of the United States women's national volleyball team. She played college women's volleyball at Penn State University....
, volleyball player - Leland Burleigh Greenleaf (1904-1978), musical instrument manufacturer, C.G. Conn
- Jim HarrisonJim HarrisonJames "Jim" Harrison is an American author known for his poetry, fiction, essays, reviews, and writings about food. He has been called "a force of nature", and his work has been compared to that of William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway...
, author, township resident from 1968-2002 - Harlan HatcherHarlan HatcherHarlan Henthorne Hatcher served as the eighth President of the University of Michigan from 1951 to 1967.-Biography:...
(1898-1998), University of MichiganUniversity of MichiganThe University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
president - Frank N. Isbey (1899-1971), manager, Michigan State FairMichigan State Fair-History:The first official Michigan State Fair was held in 1849, which is claimed by the state of Michigan to be the oldest state fair in the United States. The first fair was held in Detroit, Michigan. Subsequent fairs were held in other cities until it received its permanent home in 1905 at the...
- Rick Lahmann, pianist, photographer
- Arthur F. LederleArthur F. LederleArthur F. Lederle was a United States federal judge.Born in Leland, Michigan, Lederle graduated from Eastern Michigan College in 1909, and received an LL.B. from Detroit College of Law in 1915, an LL.M. from the University of Detroit School of Law in 1923, and an LL.D. from Wayne State University...
(1887–1972), U.S. federal judge - Linda Lindquist-Bishop, offshore yacht racer
- Alvin Mansfield Owsley (1888-1967), attorney, diplomat
- Emelia SchaubEmelia Christine SchaubEmelia Christine Schaub was Michigan's first elected woman prosecutor, the first woman in the United States to successfully defend a murder trial, and a protector of "the rights and tribal existence of native Americans in northwest Michigan"....
(1891-1995), county prosecutor, first female attorney in Michigan - Kathleen SebeliusKathleen SebeliusKathleen Sebelius is an American politician currently serving as the 21st Secretary of Health and Human Services. She was the second female Governor of Kansas from 2003 to 2009, the Democratic respondent to the 2008 State of the Union address, and chair-emerita of the Democratic Governors...
, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, governor of Kansas, daughter of John J. GilliganJohn J. GilliganJohn Joyce Gilligan is a American Democratic politician from the state of Ohio who served as a U.S. Representative and the 62nd Governor of Ohio. He is the father of Kathleen Sebelius... - Tobin SproutTobin SproutTobin Sprout is an American artist and musician, best known for his contributions as a member of indie rock group Guided by Voices.-History:A self taught musician. From an early age he played with and was a major collaborator to the Dayton, OH band Guided By Voices...
, visual artist, musician (Guided by VoicesGuided by VoicesGuided by Voices is an American indie rock band originating from Dayton, Ohio. Beginning with the band's formation in 1983, it made frequent personnel changes but always maintained the presence of principal songwriter Robert Pollard...
)
Further reading
- Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, Bibliography for Leelanau County
- Bogue, Margaret. Around the Shores of Lake Michigan: A Guide to Historic Sites. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin PressUniversity of Wisconsin PressThe University of Wisconsin Press is a non-profit university press publishing peer-reviewed books and journals. It primarily publishes work by scholars from the global academic community but also serves the citizens of Wisconsin by publishing important books about Wisconsin, the Upper Midwest, and...
, 1985. - Littell, Edmund M. 100 Years in Leelanau. Leland: The Print Shop, 1965.
- Littell, Joseph. Leland: An Historical Sketch. [Indianapolis, IN: Indianapolis Printing Co., 1920].
- Reed, Earl H. The Dune Country. Berrien Springs, MI: Hardscrabble Books, 1979. [Reprint of 1916 Edition].
- Ruchhoft, Robert H. Exploring North Manitou, South Manitou, High and Garden Islands of the Lake Michigan Archipelago. Cincinnati, OH: Pucelle Press, 1991.
- Wood, Mable C. Scooterville, U.S.A. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1962