Da Yoopers (Ishpeming, MI)

We are now in Ishpeming, MI near Marquette.  This is the upper peninsula called UP and the people are called Yoopers and even have their own dialect with a lot of da vs. the etc.

We are staying at Country Village RV Park which is part of a larger resort complex; hotel, theater, shopping, etc.  The RV park is behind the majority of the facilities and backs up to the woods.  Sites are large and there is more than ample space between sites for elbow room and some sense of space.  Overall it is a pretty nice RV park and we would stay here again if we every make it this way.



I think the trees around the park are white birch .



Wednesday

Linda wanted to stop here as her grandmother emigrated from Sweden to Ishpeming with some of her family.  Later she moved to California.  The winters here would convince most to head for warmer climates. They were miners in Sweden and when the mines closed many of the people came to America and Ishpeming in particular as it is iron mine country.

This morning we went to the local library for Linda to see what she could find on any of the ancestors.  About the only thing she came across was the address of two of the grandmother's siblings.  We drove past the place but it had certainly been remodeled since the 1890s and looked like many in the neighborhood, old but somewhat updated with newer siding etc.

One of the local attractions is the Yoopers Tourist Trap that has a gift shop and a rock shop.  Like most we stopped in to take pictures and Linda bought a UP (upper peninsula) Christmas ornament.

They don't have a hidden agenda, all they want is your money and for you to move on.  They were very friendly about it though.

About 20'+ up the yellow pole was a sign that indicated the record snowfall in Marquette County.

Linda preparing to enter the gift shop aka THE TRAP!

There is also a Yoopers music/comedy group that has recorded 14 albums.  Needless to say they are called "Da Yoopers"

Thursday

The first thing on the agenda today was to visit the local quilt shop so off we went.

Talking to the owner of the quilt shop Linda learned that the local Bethany Lutheran Church had records of the people back more than 100 years.  She said that if her Grandmother had emigrated from Sweden to Ishpeming that church would more than likely have the records.  We stopped by the church but the woman who takes care of the records wasn't there. Linda left a phone message with her and we hope to make contact.

The little quilt shop was fun to visit, run by a local couple.  The store contains over 1600 bolts of fabric and has a good selection of patterns and notions for quilting.  The owners were very helpful, not only with items in the store, but local lore as well.  When I mentioned I'd like to see a little sunshine they commented that they were very happy to see the rain.  They, like California, have been very dry and the rivers low, which does not make for good fishing, don't ya know!!

Next we went to the Cliffs Shaft Iron Mine Museum and took their tour.  In front of the museum there were 4-5 gray haired men that were sitting on a bench.  When we approached they welcomed us and one of them took us into the museum and got us on a tour that had just started.  All of the men were retired miners that knew the history and methods inside and out.  The tour takes you through the tunnels between shafts and into various shops that support the mines.  You can't go into the actual mine as it is now flooded with water.

This is the rebuilt shaft tower made of concrete after the original wooden tower burned.

This is the modern replacement shaft tower and the shaft goes down 1330'.  The building itself, constructed of concrete and stone was erected in 1887.

The tour which lasted about one hour and the museum were quite interesting.

Now that we have been Yoopered we will move on to St. Ignace, MI tomorrow.  Still in Yooperland.