Downtown Ishpeming

Navy retiree Rich Devlin took the empty Butler Theater and has brought many attractions here, from sandwich shop to farmers' market.

Downtown Ishpeming developed as a very prosperous retailing center serving many miners and other CCI employees. Cliffs Shaft, historically Cleveland Cliff's most important mine, was right in town. Many white-collar managers, doctors, and mining captains lived on "Strawberry Hill," directly north of downtown and the library. They had an easy walk to the mine. Tunnels connected the homes of some mining captains with the mines they supervised. Ishpeming retailing was so robust, and there were so many Jewish small business owners, that Temple Beth Shalom was located in Ishpeming, not in Marquette.
     Central Ishpeming declined dramatically, starting in the 1960s. First, there was the general decline of U.P. employment. Decades ago other mines in the West had gone into production. Young people left the U.P. for jobs in lower Michigan. Families became smaller. The population dropped from 9,500 in 1940 to more like 6,500 today.
Having the cast and crew of the hit movie "Anatomy of a Murder" based here in 1959 meant so much because times were already hard at that time. To have so many big stars in town, eating in restaurants, showing up in church, lifted local spirits and put Marquette County on the map. The people's favorite: Eve Arden of the TV sit-com "Our Miss Brooks."
     Then the M-28/U.S 41 bypass took highway traffic away from Division street downtown. The railroad was relocated on an embankment south of the highway, blocking the town from view.
     Cliffs Shaft Mine, the last active underground mine, closed in 1967. Today it's a minng museum. A lot of ore is still there, but the mine was abandoned because as the mine went deeper, many operating costs went up. It cost more to lift ore to the surface, pump out water, and move miners. It was cheaper to mine low-grade ores in open pits and turn ore into easily shipped taconite pellets.
     Here are some downtown highlights, arranged for a SHORT WALKING TOUR. From U.S. 41, come south into town on Third Street by turning between the Ski Hall of Fame and the Holiday station. Just before Third Street ends, turn right onto Pearl and park in the lot at First Street. Then walk west (away from Third Street) to Main. Turn left to see the two antique shops, then go south on Main down to Division.

♦ MAIN STREET ANTIQUE MALL. 121 S. Main at Pearl, 1 block north of Division. Here in this bright, airy corner space, preservationist and antiques lover David Aeh has arranged the stock of some 10 dealers into interesting vignettes and theme areas. Among other things, on the second floor are the mid-century/retro section, the clothing and accessories boutique, and the garden room, with wicker, bistro sets, garden sculpture, tools, and more. The camp/cottage/guys department, including primitives and tools, is in the basement. There's much more variety and quality here than in most U.P. malls because dealers buy in many states: Florida, Arizona, Hawaii, Montana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Lower Michigan, and Ohio. (906) 486-868o. Winter hours: Wed-Fri 10:30-5, Sat 10:30 to 4. Late spring, early fall: also Mon 10:30-5. Mem.-Labor Day Mon-Sat 9-5. Wheelchair-accessible: main floor, not restroom.

♦ BUTLER THEATRE. 119 South Main. Sandwich shop, art gallery, eclectic bookstore, coffeehouse, sweetshop, small organic food store, and sometime farmers' market—they're all here in this small historic movie theater. Navy retiree Rich Devlin, who grew up on a northern Wisconsin resort, has indulged his interests in good bulk foods and more. It's an avocation—he doesn't depend on the income. He found out about Ishpeming and its distinctive, "insanely low cost of living" on the internet and bought a house. Then he started buying by mail his favorite unusual coffees and teas. Soon he was in business. There's WiFi internet and plenty of room to spread out. Often there are sourdough, limpa, and other breads for under $1.50 a loaf—kind of a loss leader to entice salt-of-the-earth local people to come in and shop. On summer Thursdays from noon to 5 it's a regular farmers' market. The art gallery features mainly hand-made functional things like teapots and rolling pins. Musicians play on occasional evenings. About the Butler Theater, built in 1915: around 1950 Twentieth-Century Fox gave the Butler a mid-century look, with Art Deco sconces and floral motifs. The stenciled paint scheme is still here, but each repainting has made it less detailed. The repainted floor (black and gray with accents of yellow and red) reflects the 1950s floor.
     "Anatomy of a Murder" premiered here in 1959. Many stars made the long trip to Ishpeming out of pure generosity. They weren't required to attend.
     The Butler functioned as a theater longer than most, until multiplexes killed it off in the 1990s. Eventually antiques dealer David Aeh (now next door) bought the building.

♦ WILDERNESS SPORTS. Main at Division. This widely known downtown outdoors store covers the gamut of local sports, enjoyed by its experienced staff, male and female: hunting, fishing, ice fishing, archery, downhill and cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and more. Wilderness is a good source of local fishing and hunting information. Fishing gear includes fly-fishing ties made by local anglers. Shotguns, muzzle-loaders—all kinds of firearms are here. Functional outdoor wear goes from traditional to fashion-forward. Wilderness offers cross-country ski and snowshoe rentals. Mon-Fri 8:30-8, Sat & Sun 9-5. (906) 485-4565. Wheelchair access: one step. No steps on Division St. side door.

♦ ISHPEMING CITY HALL. 100 East Division at Main. This unusual structure with its chunky medieval tower exemplifies the strong forms, round arches, and muscular stonework favored by the great H. H. Richardson in his gutsy, American version of Romanesque Revival architecture. It was designed by Marquette architect Demetrius Charlton and erected in 1890-1891, when the Marquette Range was a very important source of the nation's iron ore. Buildings in provincial places are seldom so bold.

♦ ANDRIACCHI'S. 312 West Division, 2 blocks west of Main—a side trip. Andriacchi's (pronounced ANN-dree-AHK-ee's) is a trip back in time to a classic Italian grocery catering to immigrant miners. Proprietor Josefa (joe-SEFF-uh) Andriacchi gave up her job as a telephone engineer to come back home, be with her father, and reopen the grocery store started by her grandfather Dominic in 1896. He ran it until his death in 1956. Its tin ceilings and wood floors now show a lot of history and use. All has been kept as a tribute to her family: the tin ceiling, wood floors showing real history, the meat-cutter, old lighting and counter, wood crates for olive oil, and more. Josefa's aunt Teresa worked here all her life. When she died in March 2000 and the store closed, Josefa was inspired—perhaps compelled—to reopen it, which she did in October, 2001.
     Here Josefa has assembled quality Italian foods that can be hard to come by along with other foods from around the world: Danish cheese, Spanish and Italian chocolates, Italian coffees, especially good cappicola (Italian spiced ham), provolone, and salami—all of which can be sampled. There are locally made crafts and an international variety of sweets and snacks, including American penny candy by the pound. Made-to-order sandwiches are quite a hit.
Customers appreciate Josefa herself—generous and never reluctant to voice her strongly held opinions. She's happy to tell interested visitors about Ishpeming past and present. Open Mon-Wed and Fri 10-6, Thurs 10-4, Sat 9-3:30. (906) 486-4331. Wheelchair access: one step.

♦ ISHPEMING FIREHOUSE AND POLICE STATION at 100 South Lake. Another interesting building off the beaten path is this classic early 20th-century fire station, recently restored. It has an enormous tower for drying hoses. From Main at Division, go west on Division two blocks to Lake Street. (Andriacchi's is a few doors west of that). Then take Lake north to Front, Front northeast to Main.

♦ "OLD ISH." 100 block of South Main next to Peninsula Bank. A founding father of Ishpeming donated this statue of a stereotypical Indian brave to the city. It's set in a tiny park with benches. Old Ish has become a beloved symbol, along with the obelisks of Cliffs Shaft mine.

♦ CONGRESS LOUNGE & PIZZAS. 106 North Main. If it's four o'clock when your walk is over, this local touchstone and repository of Ishpeming history will be open for business. The photos on the walls — of local sports heroes, John Voelker and Anatomy of a Murder, and more — tell a lot about Ishpeming. Open daily, 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. (906) 486-4233. Wheelchair-accessible.

♦ THE ROCK BARN. 212 Front Street at Main. Another entrance is on Hematite. This striking, big fieldstone building was erected right by the railroad tracks in 1893. It served as a dry-goods distribution center for the prosperous mining towns of the Marquette Range. The stone interior walls, distressed wood floors, and second-story timber-frame ceiling create a dramatic space.

♦ ISHPEMING CARNEGIE PUBLIC LIBRARY. 317 North Main at Barnum. This library is as beautiful as it was when finished in 1904. Carnegie libraries were part of steel tycoon and monopolist Andrew Carnegie's late-life program of giving back to the people for generations to come. A hundred years later, most Carnegie libraries have expanded and abandoned their original entrances and orientation to be able to incorporate vastly larger collections, computers, and handicap access requirements.
     The beautiful Ishpeming library's limited site means its original architecture remains intact because it has not been able to expand or add a handicap entrance. (An architecturally sensitive handicap entrance is being planned. The high school library is wheelchair-accessible and open some evenings for the general public.) Visit the library's web site, uplibraries.org then "Ishpeming," for a good look at the reading room's big round-arched windows and handsome woodwork, and the stained-glass skylight over the circulation desk. Even better, see for yourself.
Don't miss the various art works, including a lively sculpture of an Italian wine harvest and a portrait of the late John Voelker, author of Anatomy of a Murder and Trout Madness and a lifelong library patron. He credited this library in part for nurturing his childhood love of books. In retirement, his outings often included a trip to the library, followed by a cribbage game and a few drinks at the nearby Rainbow Bar at 120 Canda. From October through April there's a free puppet show in the lower-level children's room Saturday afternoons at 2. (906) 486-4381. Library hours: Mon & Tues 9-5, Wed & Thurs 9-7, Fri 9-5, Sat 10-3. Children's room hours: Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri 1-5, Wed 1-7, Sat 11-3. Closed Sat in summer. No wheelchair access yet. Five steps.

♦ THE MATHER INN. 107 Canda at Main facing the diagonal of the former railroad track. Opened in 1932, this impressive colonial brick hotel replaced a Victorian-era hotel destroyed by fire. Cleveland Cliffs Iron and its president, William Gwinn Mather, helped fund the new hotel to house CCI's business associates and its visiting Cleveland staff. A Boston architect designed it in the tasteful, cautious Colonial Revival style favored by Henry Ford and by countless college campuses. In Buildings of Michigan, Kathryn Eckert describes its pine-paneled main lobby and large fireplace, its sunken dining room, men's clubroom, and rock garden. Warren Manning, a leading landscape architect of the day, did the landscape plan. The Mather Inn was home base for the cast of Anatomy of a Murder.
     New owners have done a lot of work on the Mather Inn, in hopes of launching it as a mixed-use project with luxury apartments upstairs, meeting rooms, banquet facilities, and possibly a restaurant in the fondly remembered tap room. See Mather Inn.

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