Historically speaking
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EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first of a two-part series on this topic. The second part with be published on April 22.
By KAREN KASPER
Ishpeming Historical
Society and the Cliffs
Shaft Mine Museum
ISHPEMING -- In late January 1936, the Chicago and Northwestern Railway had an interesting proposition for the citizens of Ishpeming. The railway wanted to develop winter sports tourism in the Upper Peninsula.
A successful program already existed in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area and the railway was eager to find other venues. In addition, a program in Petosky had already been running for a number of years and was bringing in much needed tourist dollars to that area.
S.R. Elliott was quick to reply to the proposition. While there were plenty of winter sports in the area, there was no program to entice visitors from Milwaukee and Chicago to visit the Ishpeming area.
"I do not have to tell you anything about Ishpeming and The Mather Inn but I am confident you will agree with me that if a winter sports area in Eagle River can be made successful, it should be even more so in Ishpeming. As you probably know, The Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Company and Mr. W.G. Mather are the principal stockholders in The Mather Inn and we are anxious to make it a success financially." (S.R. Elliott, February 29th, 1936)
S.R. Elliott was quick to get the Ishpeming Industrial Association involved and Stephen H. Collick, sent him a letter. "Your letter received today, giving details of your interest in the work of the Ishpeming Industrial Association, in the matter of creating interest in tourist traffic to our city, as well as in the making of our city a resort center.
This is very pleasing, I assure you. As per our telephone conversation of Saturday, I wish to again advise you that it will be greatly appreciated by all of us.
In this connection may I advise you that at our last meeting we provided for the appointment of a committee to carry on the work started in connection with the Winter Frolic events just concluded. It will be the duty of this committee to arrange complete details for the year-round entertainments of our guests and visitors. It is generally admitted, I think, that this has been neglected locally in the past years. Now that we have our splendid Mather Inn, we should provide entertainment and facilities that will bring to our city our share of the tourist traffic we are entitled to." (S.H. Collick, March 3, 1936)
From the railway Mr. Miller responded first. "My early association with the Ishpeming district suggests with the proper local setup to take care of those going there for winter sports, there are possibilities of many visitors, and of course your splendid hotel, the Mather Inn, will be quite a part of the attraction." (Miller, March 3, 1936)
The winter months were slow and not very profitable for the Mather Inn as there was little tourist traffic to rely on. By 1936 the Mather Inn was operating in the black and even issuing small dividends each year, but more could be done to increase revenues. Winter sports tourism was an attractive prospect.
Another letter from the railway. "The idea of winter sports seems to have taken on new life this last winter all over the country and attracted thousands of new followers.
To get closer to home, we have done exceptionally well to Eagle River and Phelps territory this last winter, the business showing an increase of over 100% as compared with last year. There seems room for an expansion of the territory and facilities and I believer that communities as well as the railways should make plans where they can capitalize on the development of winter sports." (R. Thompson, March 27, 1936)
Next to get involved was the Upper Peninsula Development Bureau.
"The Development Bureau at its mid-winter annual meeting by unanimous resolution placed itself on record as believing that the time has come for the people of the Upper Peninsula to capitalize upon a properly coordinated and effectively advertised series of winter sports evets.
The 1935 season was noted for successful winter sports frolics at various Upper Peninsula towns, such as: Menominee, Escanaba, Iron Mountain, Ironwood, Sault Ste Marie, Munising, Houghton, Ishpeming, etc. For the most part, these events were crowded into a two-week period. This made it difficult for professional contestants from the outside to participate in all these evets, it made it difficult for our Upper Peninsula citizens to attend all the events and comparatively little effort was made to attract the thousands of possible winter visitors who would come to this region, either as spectators or amateur participants in winter sports frolics." (Upper Peninsula Development Bureau, April 17, 1936)
As a result of all this interest in developing winter sports tourism, a meeting was scheduled for May 7, 1936 to be held at the Mather Inn in Ishpeming. But that's the subject for the next Historically Speaking column.
The letters used in this column were taken from the Mather Inn records collection housed at the Central Upper Peninsula and Northern Michigan University Archives, housed at Northern Michigan University.