Ironwood, Michigan

Ironwood is a city in Gogebic County in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan, about 18 miles (29 km) south of Lake Superior. It is the westernmost city in Michigan and sits on the same line of longitude as Clinton, Iowa and St. Louis, Missouri. The city is located on US Highway 2 across the Montreal River from Hurley, Wisconsin.

Originally an iron mining town, Ironwood is now famous for its downhill skiing resorts, such as Big Powderhorn, Snowriver, Mount Zion, and Whitecap. It is also a great place for cross-country skiing thanks to the Wolverine Nordic Trail System and the ABR Nordic Center.

One of the city's most interesting sights is the "World's Tallest Indian," a 52-foot (15.8-meter) fiberglass statue of the tribal leader Hiawatha. The population was 5,045 at the 2020 census, down from 5,387 at the 2010 census.

History

Ironwood was settled in the spring of 1885. It became a village in 1887 and a city on April 8, 1889. Many people moved to Ironwood for jobs in the mines and lumber works, coming from places like England, Finland, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Sweden.

In 1887, a big fire damaged half of the business area, but the buildings were rebuilt. Ironwood grew quickly, with its population passing 7,500 by 1890 and reaching 10,000 by 1900. The city was named to honor a worker for the railroad, James Wood, and also because of a common tree in the area called ironwood.

Geography and climate

Ironwood is a city in Michigan with a total area of 6.42 square miles (16.63 km²), and it is all land. It is one of the snowiest places in Michigan, receiving an average of 188.2 inches (4.78 m) of snow each season. The deepest snow recorded was 71 inches (1.80 m) on February 23, 1904.

Demographics

2020 census

According to the 2020 census, Ironwood had a population of 5,045 people. The average age was 47.5 years, with 16.4% of residents being under 18 and 24.8% being 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were about 100 males, and for every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were about 99 males aged 18 and over.

Most people, about 95.8%, lived in urban areas, while 4.2% lived in rural areas. There were 2,462 households, with 19.3% having children under 18. About 34.2% were married couples, 26.8% had a male householder without a spouse, and 29.6% had a female householder without a spouse. Around 42% of households were made up of individuals, and 17.5% had someone living alone who was 65 or older.

There were 3,063 housing units, with 19.6% being empty. The rate of empty homes owned by people was 2.8%, and the rate of empty rental homes was 9.5%.

2010 census

In 2010, Ironwood had 5,387 people living there, with 2,520 households and 1,408 families. The population density was 839.1 people per square mile. There were 3,175 housing units, with an average of 494.5 per square mile. The racial makeup was 96% White, 0.5% African American, 1.1% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people made up 1.2% of the population.

Of the households, 23.8% had children under 18, 38.5% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder without a husband, 5.1% had a male householder without a wife, and 44.1% were not families. About 38.5% of households were made up of individuals, and 17% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.09, and the average family size was 2.72.

The median age was 45.5 years. About 19.3% were under 18, 8.6% were between 18 and 24, 21.7% were from 25 to 44, 28.7% were from 45 to 64, and 21.7% were 65 or older. The gender makeup was 48.1% male and 51.9% female.

2000 census

In the year 2000, Ironwood had 6,293 people, 2,841 households, and 1,625 families. The population density was 960.3 people per square mile. There were 3,349 housing units, with an average of 511 per square mile. The racial makeup was 97.52% White, 0.10% African American, 0.72% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.14% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people made up 0.83% of the population.

The ancestral background of the people included 24.7% Finnish, 17% German, 14.8% Italian, 12.6% Polish, 10.4% English, and 9.5% Swedish.

There were 2,841 households, with 24.9% having children under 18. About 42.4% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder without a husband, and 42.8% were not families. Around 37.9% of households were made up of individuals, and 20.8% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.16, and the average family size was 2.84.

The ages of the people were spread out, with 22.2% under 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 24.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 89 males, and for every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 86 males.

The median income for a household was $23,502, and for a family, it was $30,349. Males earned a median income of $26,992, while females earned $21,184. The per capita income was $14,131. About 17% of families and 18.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.2% of those under 18 and 12.4% of those 65 or older.

Culture

Ironwood has two theaters: Theatre North for community shows and the Historic Ironwood Theatre, which hosts local, regional, and national performances and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Bethany Ann Hellen Studios holds dance recitals and sends dancers to competitions.

In the summer, the Emberlight Festival features famous musicians, Broadway stars, art shows, and independent films. Ironwood is mentioned in Neil Gaiman's book American Gods, and the book Marvin & Me by Rod Stockhaus focuses on the town and its area. Another book, Compassion, Michigan: The Ironwood Stories by Raymond Luczak, was inspired by Ironwood's long history.

Government

Ironwood's city government is made up of a five-member city council. The person who gets the most votes becomes the Mayor. A City Manager handles the daily work and reports to the council at their public meetings every two months.

The city has a public safety department where team members are trained as both police officers and firefighters. This department is the only full-time fire department in the Western Upper Peninsula. It also includes a volunteer fire department that has been around since 1887. Because more people visit the area for tourism, the department has special patrols for snowmobiles in winter and foot patrols in summer.

Education

Ironwood has one high school called Luther L. Wright High School, often called Ironwood High School. The students and teams are known as the "Red Devils," a name that comes from the iron ore miners who used to get covered in red dust. The school has a long-standing rivalry with the high school in the nearby town of Hurley.

Ironwood was once home to the last private high school in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Ironwood Catholic High School closed after the senior class graduated in 1985. The school’s teams were called the "Ramblers," and its yearbook was named "The Loner" because it was the last private school in the area.

Ironwood is also where Gogebic Community College is located.

Communications

Ironwood has one newspaper called the Ironwood Daily Globe.

The city is served by several radio stations, including WJMS (590 AM) with talk and country music, WIMI (99.7 FM) playing classic rock, WUPM (106.9 FM) with top 40 hits, and WHRY (1450 AM) featuring oldies.

Television

Here are the television stations that serve Ironwood from Duluth:

• KDLH 2 (The CW)
• KBJR-DT2 3 (CBS)
• KBJR 6 (NBC)
• WDSE 8 (PBS)
• KBJR-DT3 9 (MyNetworkTV)
• WDIO 10 (ABC)
• WDIO-DT2 10.2 (MeTV)
• KQDS 21 (Fox)
• KQDS-DT2 21.2 (Antenna TV)

Sports

Ironwood is special because it was the only place in the Upper Peninsula to have a professional sports team. The team was called the Gogebic Panthers and they played in the Northwest Football League in 1935 and 1936. In 1935, they had a great season with only one loss, finishing with a record of 6 wins and 1 loss. The team they lost to went on to win the whole league that year. In 1936, the Panthers had an impressive game where they won 6 to 0 against another team.

Transportation

Highways

• US Highway 2 (US 2) goes west to Ashland, Wisconsin and Duluth, Minnesota, and east to St. Ignace, Michigan.
• Business US 2 serves the city of Ironwood.
• M-28 starts near Wakefield and runs east across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to Marquette and then to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
• US 51 ends near Hurley, Wisconsin.
• Wisconsin State Highway 77 (WIS 77) begins just across the border in Hurley and heads southwest.
• County Road 505 (CR 505) goes north through Ironwood Township and past Little Girl's Point County Park on Lake Superior, and south through Erwin Township.
• CR 200 starts at the east end of the city and runs east to Bessemer.
• CR 501 begins at the northwest end of the city and heads north.

Bus service

Indian Trails offers daily bus trips between St. Ignace and Ironwood, and between Ironwood and Duluth, Minnesota. Gogebic County also runs a small public bus system called Gogebic County Transit (LITTLE BLUE BUS).

Airport

Ironwood has the Gogebic–Iron County Airport (IWD), which offers flights to Chicago O'Hare International Airport and Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. The airport is about 7 miles northeast of the city and has a long runway for planes.

Trails

The Iron Belle Trail starts in Ironwood and connects to hiking and biking paths across the state.

Notable people

Ironwood has been home to many interesting people. Raymond Joseph Cannon was a U.S. Representative from Wisconsin and helped defend Shoeless Joe Jackson and others from the Chicago Black Sox. William S. Carlson served as president of several universities, including the University of Delaware, the University of Vermont, the State University of New York, and the University of Toledo. Agnes Charbonneau was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. Renee Louise Ellmers served in the U.S. House of Representatives for North Carolina from 2011 to 2017. Jack Gotta was a player, coach, and general manager in the Canadian Football League. William C. Gribble Jr. was the United States Army Chief of Engineers and started a special tradition for the US Army Corps of Engineers. John Regeczi played football and was a teammate of future president Gerald Ford on the University of Michigan championship teams in 1932 and 1933.