The culmination of my undergraduate career in geology consisted of spending three weeks studying in the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I was immediately fascinated by the history of the area. As soon as I returned, I scoured libraries and used bookstores for books about geology, exploration, and settlement of the Western U.P. Here was a whole new collection waiting to be started - books that relate the personal stories of the pioneers, prospectors, and early settlers of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

The U.P. was settled far earlier than it would have been had mineral wealth not been discovered. This area was far removed from the nearest settlements. Its only link to “civilization,” was the Great Lakes waterway, which was completely cut off during the winter months. The isolation and mix of native and ethnic settlers created a region with a unique cultural heritage.

It is amazing that the landscape of sculptured rocks and broken ridges described by early settlers over 100 years ago are still there. The vegetation has been changed substantially in some places, but these landmarks provide a wonderful aid to visualize how wilderness looked and felt to Michigan’s early pioneers. And more poignantly, to realize those places where whole towns of people lived and died are reclaimed by forests, with only overgrown cemeteries to stand as a reminder of their existence. The histories preserved in these books serve as a reminder of how short life is and reminds us from whence we came.

Since I began this collection, interest in the subject has dramatically increased as evidenced by the creation of the Michigan Iron Mining Museum in Negaunee and the Keweenaw National Park. Recently, books have been published highlighting the social aspects of the mining districts of the U.P., for example, Larry Lankton authored Beyond the Boundaries, a book devoted to summarizing the feel of pioneer life in the Upper Peninsula in the third quarter of the 19th century. The growing interest in preserving the Upper Peninsula’s cultural heritage has affirmed my choice to search out and preserve the pioneer voice.

Because of my interest in geology, my collection begins with the period of exploration and settlement in the early 1800s and ends around 1930 when the mines were in decline. This was an interesting time. Mineral wealth was discovered. Prospectors flooded over the wilderness. Towns were formed around the mines that developed. Protestant and Catholic missionaries were anxious to convert the Native population. As towns grew, immigrants were hired from around the world to work in the mines. Strong cultural and community identities were created each with a rich history.

My collection includes travel logs, biographies and autobiographies, local histories; and, personal memoirs and reminiscences of explorers, loggers, miners, preachers, schoolteachers, and writers. I augment my collection with travel guides, Native American narratives, and ethnic social history.

Agassiz, Louis. Lake Superior: Its Physical Character, Vegetation and Animals, compared with those of other and similar regions. Boston: Gould, Kendall and Lincoln, 1850.

Louis Agassiz arrived in the United States in 1846, appointed professor of geology and zoology at Harvard University. He lead an expedition of students, physicians, and interested amateurs to lake superior in the summer of 1848. The book is presented in two parts; the first being an engaging travel narrative by J. Elliot Cabot and the second by Louis Agassiz describing the natural history of the Lake Superior region.

Agassiz, G.R. ed. Letters and Recollections of Alexander Agassiz with a Sketch of His Life and Work. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1913.

Alexander Agassiz was instructed by his father-in-law to take over as superintendent at the fledgling Calumet and Hecla mining companies in the Keweenaw Peninsula. His letters reveal his thoughts about the people and location in which he found himself.

Brewster, Edwin Tenney. Josiah Dwight Whitney Life and Letters. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1909.

Josiah Whitney was a geologist that may best be remembered for his geological surveys of California. However early in his career he examined and reported on the mineral region of Lake Superior. This biography includes numerous letters that express the emotions behind his work and life while in the Lake Superior region.

Budge, J. The Practical Miner's Guide. London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1845.

I have included this book because it is inscribed “Wm. W. Spaulding Ontonagon Lake Superior Oct. 12 1847.” William Spaulding was one of the first settlers in the town of Ontonagon. He was a prospector, and local mining expert. His opinions of mine values appear in many early mining company reports.

Disturnell, John. Lake Superior Guide. Philadelphia: J. Disturnell, 1872.

The book describes objects of interest and places of resort as well as accounts of iron and copper mines. This is one of a few travel guides published by John Disturnell. The book includes travel distances and short descriptions of various town situated on Lake Superior. The steam ship and rail road travel advertisements are particularly interesting.

Dorson, Richard M. Bloodstoppers & Bearwalkers Folk Traditions of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Cambridge: Harvard University Press 1952

This book is a collection of folk traditions collected from the elders of the diverse ethnic groups in Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Included are Native American, European and Local groups divided by trade (Townsfolk, lumber jacks, miners etc.)

Drier, Roy W. Copper Country Tales Vol.1 A Compendium of Fact, Fiction and Poetry. Calumet, Michigan: Roy W. Drier, 1967.

This book contains an interesting compilation of personal diary entries, and recollections of life in the Keweenaw in the mid-to-late 1800’s.

Frimodig, David Mac. Keweenaw Character The Foundation of Michigan Copper Country. Lake Linden, Michigan: John H. Forster Press, 1990.

As “Mac” states in the dedication, the book is “a composite of private memories of several hundred folks whose common ancestral pride has kept the people of Copper Country yesterdays in sharp focus.”

Gilman, Chandler Robbins. Life on the Lakes: Being Tales and Sketches collected during a Trip to the Pictured Rocks of Lake Superior. New York: George Dearborn, 1836.

The book (in two volumes) details a trip from New York to the Pictured Rocks region of what is now the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The books detail lake travel by steamer and schooner, and includes descriptions of settlements at Albany, Toronto, Detroit, Mackinaw, Detour, Chicago (the author estimated the population of Chicago to be 2500), and Peoria. The author also includes descriptions of scenery including: Grand Marais, Grand Island, Pictured Rocks, Grand Sable. A good portion of the narrative describes, somewhat partially, Native American customs and lifestyles, including several Chippewa legends collected by Henry Schoolcraft. Wright Howes indicates in his book U.S.iana that this book has been ascribed by some to the author Charles Lanman.

Hawes, A.H.The Grafted Bud: The Memoir of Angelica Irene Hawes. Boston: Massachusetts Sabbath School Society, 1853?

This book was written as a catharsis for a mother who has lost an adopted child. Mrs. A.H. Hawes recounts the event leading up to finding the child, her short life of a few years. However, many of these events chronicle life in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan and Lake Superior region in the last half of the 1840’s. This is the earliest pioneer description that I have found for this region of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. A fascinating read.

Houghton, Douglass. Second Annual Report of the State Geologist of the State of Michigan. Detroit, John S. Bagg, 1839. (3rd) Annual Report of the State Geologist House of Representatives No. 8, 1840, (4th) Annual Report of the State Geologist House of Representatives No. 27, 1841.

This book as a compilation of State Geologist’s reports for the years 1839 through 1841. Each report contains A report from Douglass Houghton, the first state geologist of Michigan, as well as reports from the various members of the exploration party. The 1841 report in particular relates to the Upper Peninsula and documents the presence of copper deposits in the Keweenaw Peninsula. This report sparked a rush in prospectors to what was to become the “Copper Country.” Two of these reports are signed by the author.

Jackman, S.W., Freeman, J.F., Carter, J.L., Rickard, D.S, ed.American Voyageur: The Journal of David Bates Douglass. Marquette: Northern Michigan University Press, 1969.

David Bates Douglass was a member of the 1820 Lewis Cass Expedition to find the source of the Mississippi River. The purpose of the expedition was political and scientific. Lewis Cass was to acquire Indian lands, promote friendships with the natives, secure trade as well as map the region and study the natural resources. Henry R. Schoolcraft published the official results of the expedition. David Bates Douglass was on the faculty at West Point Military Academy but was released to serve as an engineer on the expedition.

Lankton, Larry. Beyond the Boundaries Life and Landscape at the Lake Superior Copper Mines 1840- 1875. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994.

Larry Lankton a historian at Michigan Technological University, recognized the isolation within the beautiful backdrop of the Keweenaw Peninsula and is the first person to collect and publish the pioneers feelings about travel, work, woods, and especially winter.

Lanman, Charles. A Summer in the Wilderness: Embracing a Canoe Voyage up the Mississippi and Around Lake Superior. New York and Philadelphia: Appleton, 1847.

This volume provides nice early descriptions of the sights and sound of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan including: descriptions of the shore lines, lives of the voyagers, the pleasures of food in the wilderness and sleeping under a blanket of stars, collecting agates, Native American fishing at Sault Ste Marie, and northern lights. Here is are romantic descriptions of the wilderness before the “tide of civilization which is sweeping to the remote north”

Lanman, James H. History of Michigan. New York: E. French, 1839.

This early history of the State of Michigan provides a nice summary of the early French exploration of the upper peninsula as well as fur trade activities. The book also provides a wonderful historical summary of Michigan history and gives perspective to the shift in Upper Peninsula travel from the exploitation of animal fur to the exploitation of minerals and timber.

Lukkarila, Nick, et. al. Around the Bluff and through the Years. Iron Mountain, Michigan: The Ralph W. Secord Press, 1986.

This book is a local history of Greenland township, Ontonagon County Michigan which includes the mining towns of Greenland and Mass City. The book has chapters on the general history, post offices, schools, logging, railroads, social-communist movement, temperance societies, etc.

Mason, Philip P., Hobart, Henry. Copper Country Journal, The Diary of a Schoolmaster, 1863-64. Detroit, Michigan: Wayne State University Press, 1991.

The book contains a wonderful description of early mining life by a pioneer schoolmaster.

Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society. Michigan Pioneer Collection vol. 1-40 +2 volume index, 1874-1915.

A wonderful research tool for anyone interested in the early pioneer history of Michigan. Each volume contains wonderful reminiscences of pioneer life. The index is one of the most complete I have found in any compilation. Any name mentioned in the text of a volume is referenced in the indexes. This makes the set equally valuable for researching family or local histories.

Oliphaunt, Laurence. Minnesota and the Far West. Edinburgh: William Blackwood & Sons, 1855.

Many of the 19th century mid-west travel books cover geographic areas defined by the mode of transportation available at the time, that is river and lake travel. Consequently, books rarely are concerned with a particular state. This book is no different. Part I is devoted to travels in Canada, Part II is devoted to the south shore of Lake Superior, and Part III is devoted to Minnesota. The description of the author’s anticipation of coming out of the wilderness to stop at Sault Ste. Marie coupled with his disappointment at the paltry development at the site was quite amusing. Certainly there are few places in the United States where I could travel and still feel this disappointment.

Pitezel, John H. Lights and Shades of Missionary Life: Containing Travels, Sketches, Incidents, and Missionary Efforts During Nine Years Spent in the Region of Lake Superior. Cincinnati: Printed At The Western Book Concern, 1857.

John Pitzel was a Methodist minister that spent nine years as a missionary in the wilderness of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in the 1840’s and early 1850’s. Though his base of operations was in current day L’Anse, his work took him across the U.P. He was a contemporary and rival of the catholic missionary Baraga whose catholic mission was across Keweenaw bay at the current city of the same name. Unlike the many travel logs that may contain only a few pages on the Upper Peninsula, this entire book is concerned with day-to-day travels and hardships of life in the wilderness of upper Michigan.

Pumpelly, Raphael. My Reminiscences. New York: Henry Holt and Co., 1918.

Raphael Pumpelly was a geologist who traveled extensively exploring the mining regions of the world. He conducted a geological survey of the copper region of Lake Superior that was published as the second part of the first volume of the geological survey of Michigan. When the canal was built at Sault Ste. Marie the private company that built the canal was paid in land. Raphael Pumpelly was hired to help what was to become St. Marys Mineral Land Company prospect for lands rich in mineral resources. Consequently he discovered the Gogebic Iron Range and greatly benefited the company and himself. This book is filled with his adventures in Upper Michigan and around the world.

Rezek, Rev. Antoine Ivan. History of the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette containing A full and accurate account of the development of the Catholic Church in Upper Michigan. Houghton, Michigan, 1906.

This two-volume set details the history of the churches in virtually all of the towns in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Pictures and biographies of the most influential priests are included as well as pictures of many of the churches. In mining towns there were many ethnic groups and each had their own church - many of these are pictured. Because churches lay in the heart of their communities the photos commonly provide a glimpse of towns as well.

Robinson, Orrin W. Early Days of the Lake Superior. Houghton, MI: The Mining Gazette, 1938.

Orrin Robinson moved to the Copper Country in 1854 at the age of twenty and stayed until his death in 1925. He worked as a miner, lumber company owner, and was the Lieutenant Governor of Michigan from 1899-1903. Orrin wrote short articles for the local news papers and gave talks. Topics of the articles include early copper mining, winter travel, food shortages, early missionaries and lumber stories. This is a great first hand account of early pioneer life.

Rowse, A.L. The Cousin Jacks: The Cornish in America. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1969.

The Cornish were the first immigrants to come to Michigan to mine copper and iron. They have a rich mining heritage. Many of the mining terms used in the U.P. are derived from the Cornish. The pasty- a food ubiquitous with the Upper Peninsula, is Cornish. This book outlines their accomplishments in America.

Rydholm, C. Fred. Superior Heartland A Backwoods History. Privately Published by C. Fred Rydholm, 1989.

Fred Rydholm was a school teacher in the Marquette area that had an obsession for the history, lore, and culture of the upper peninsula. In his massive 1598 page two volume set, he rambles through in conversational tone minute details of the backwoods history of Marquette county. Much of his prose are quite rambling and are infused with side details at every turn. Small stories flow into one another like a river and never seem to end; still it is a very readable book.

St. John, John. A True Description of the Lake Superior Country. William H. Graham: New York, 1846.

This book was written to provide information to the wave of prospectors traveling to the Keweenaw Peninsula in search of copper. The author discusses what clothes and equipment should be packed and not packed. Because the northlands can only be accessed by boat, careful attention is made to describe rivers, coasts, bays, harbors, island and other points of reference. Active mining claims as were as mining techniques are also reviewed.

Interestingly this book was part of a large number of volumes of Americana stolen from University Libraries across the country by Stephen C. Blumberg. Between the late 1970s and early 1990s he had stolen 23,000 volumes from nearly 300 research and academic libraries in 45 states. The FBI caught Mr. Blumberg, and with the help of the Alumni Memorial Library of Creighton University, was able return most of the books to their rightful owners. Less than 1000 remained unclaimed. These remaining titles were released to Alumni Memorial Library of Creighton University who sold them to a board member of the Friends of the Omaha Public Library. This board member began selling them in a booth at a local antique mall until they were “discovered” by an Illinois dealer in Americana and put up for auction in Cincinnati in September 1999.

Sawyer, Alvah L. A History of the Northern Peninsula of Michigan and its People. The Lewis Publishing Company, 1911.

This is a three volume set that outlines Native American history, European settlement history including political, mining, lumbering, agriculture. The last two volumes of set are devoted to biographies.

Schoolcraft, Henry Rowe. Algic Researches, Comprising Inquiries Respecting the mental characteristics of the North American Indians : First Series, Indian Tales and Legend. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1839.

A collection of stories and legends from the Ojibway of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan as interpreted by Henry Schoolcraft. Although I have a complete two-volume set of this title, I particularly enjoy an orphaned second volume, which is inscribed as follows:
“To Miss Jane Susan Anna Schoolcraft from her affectionate father, as a premium for improvement in her studies, awarded after her examination, at home, during the August vacation of 1839. Michilimackinac August 6, 1839”

Schoolcraft, Henry Rowe. Narrative of an Expedition through the Upper Mississippi to Itasca Lake, the Actual Source of this River. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1834.

Henry Schoolcraft, unable to reach the source of the Mississippi River during the 1820 expedition, has another chance. The war department, through Lewis Cass, asked Schoolcraft to try and settle a long lasting dispute between the Sioux and Chippewa in the region west of the Great Lakes. The narrative discusses many aspects of native tribes’ culture and language.

Interestingly, Schoolcraft chose a 21-year-old doctor with a geology background, Douglass Houghton, to be the expedition mineralogist. Douglas Houghton would later become Michigan’s first state geologist.

Schoolcraft, Henry Rowe. Narrative Journal of Travels Through the Northwest Regions of the United States Extending from Detroit through the Great Chain of American Lakes to the Sources of the Mississippi River in the Year 1820. Albany: E & E Hosford, 1821.

This journey of exploration was promoted and organized by Lewis Cass the Territorial Governor of Michigan and approved by the Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun. The goals of the mission were to: examine the state of the Indian tribes residing in the area including procurement of the Straits of St. Mary’s, Prairie Du Chen, and Green Bay; examine the copper mines of Lake Superior purchasing the land if possible; and ascertain the strength of the British fur trade in the region.

Henry Schoolcraft, the author of the travel narrative, was chosen as the geologist and mineralogist of the expedition. The expedition begins in Detroit and travels to Michilimackinac, Sault de St. Marie, across the south shore of Lake Superior to the Ontonagon River, Fond du Lac and on to the sources of the Mississippi River.

Stephenson, Isaac. Recollections of a Long Life, 1829-1915. Chicago: Privately Printed, 1915.

Isaac Stephenson was in the lumbering trade and followed its fortunes as the forests were cut in northern Wisconsin and northern Michigan. He chronicles the history of logging as it swept up the Escanaba and Menominee Rivers in the 1840’s. Mr. Stephenson provides an interesting perspective; that of a man forging a career in wilderness. Many travel narratives are produced at the end of a journey that was arranged for that very purpose. This history is refreshingly from the perspective a man not trying to be overtly entertaining or “sell” you on his point of view.

Swinton, Alma W. I Married a Doctor; Life in Ontonagon, Michigan, from 1900 to 1919. Marquette, Michigan, 1965.

Alma Swinton recounts her life in the mining town of Ontonagon and covers such aspects of school, entertainment, transportation and town history.

Thayer, George Washington. From Vermont to Lake Superior in 1845. The Old Residents Association of the Grand River Valley, Grand Rapids: Western Michigan Printing Co., 1902.

George Thayer outlines his remembrances of a trip with Douglass Houghton, Michigan’s first geologist, to survey the upper peninsula of Michigan. This Narrative was delivered before the “old resident’s association of the Grand River Valley,” on June 26, 1902 and was also printed in the Michigan Pioneer Collections, Vol. 30, page 549-566.

Todd, Arthur Cecil. The Cornish Miner in America the contribution to the mining history of the United States by emigrant Cornish Miners. Cornwall: D. Bradford Barton Ltd. and California: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 1967.

Written a few years before the book by Rowse of the same subject, discusses the feelings, contributions, and plight of Cornish immigrants in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan .

Vance, Maurice M. Charles Richard Van Hise Scientist Progressive. Madison: The State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1960.

Charles Van Hise was the first Ph D. to graduate from the University of Wisconsin. He was an authority on Lake Superior geology and wrote some definitive scientific monographs on the area. This book in the way of biography provides insight and context for his accomplishments.

David Piotrowski receives his First Place certificate from judge Shirley Sliker