Leland (Michigan)

Leelanau County

26-26089

Leland is a small town ( UNINCORPORATE community ) in the U.S. state of Michigan within the Leland Township in Leelanau County.

History

Leland was built on the territory of one of the largest Ottawa villages on the Leelanau Peninsula. At the mouth of the Leland River into Lake Michigan, there was a natural fish ladder, which was a traditional place to fish for the Native Americans.

The settlement was called Mishi -me- go- bing or Che -ma -go- bing and Chi - mak -a- ping.

For the white settlers who arrived from the 1830s, was the abundance of fish the area just as beneficial. The white settlement intensified after Antoine Manseau and his son Antoine Jr. and John Miller in 1854 a dam and a sawmill on the river built. Construction of the dam raised the water level by more than 3.5 m, from three natural lakes as was a single lake, now known as Lake Leelanau ( the navigable up to the municipality of Cedar, about 10 miles inland ). The settlers built wooden docks, which allowed steamboats and schooners to transport new settlers and material.

The city today

There are two fishing businesses and a thriving charter fishing business.

Leland has three beaches, a small harbor from which daily ferries to the South and operate North Manitou Iceland, a small " Fishtown ", where you can buy smoked salmon and other fresh fish products, a hotel, several restaurants, several small shops, houses, a large sports center, a sailing club and a golf course.

Accessibility

Leland is an hour from Traverse City and about 8 hours by car from Chicago.

• Location in Michigan
• Location in North America
• Leelanau County
• County Seat in Michigan