Madeline Island

Lagoon in the interior of Madeline Island in summer, 2005. It is primarily a wildlife refuge

Madeline Island is an island of the U.S. state of Wisconsin located in Lake Superior approximately two miles northeast of Bayfield, Wisconsin, and connected to that town seasonally by a 20 minute ferry ride or an ice road. It is the largest of the Apostle Islands, although it is not included within the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. It is the only island in the Apostle Island chain open to commercial development.

The major industry on Madeline Island is summertime tourism. Cars aren’t used often on the island and walking or riding bicycles, which are available to rent, are the encouraged forms of transportation. There are many campsites within the National State Park on the Island, though as demand is high and reservations are required, many of the spots are reserved months in advance. The Island is renowned for its beautiful beaches of Lake Superior, though the water doesn’t warm up much so swimming is a little chilly but it cools you off on hot summer days. There is also a skate park. Kayaks and canoes are also available to rent and provide an opportunity to explore some of the underwater caves and hollows of the cliff faces.

Madeline Island is the traditional spiritual center of the Lake Superior Chippewa, and was one of the earliest settlements in the area. An Anishinaabe legend says that Great Spirit Gitche Manitou told the people to travel west to the place where the "food grows upon the water", which led them to the wild rice that grew in the marshes in nearby Chequamegon Bay. Madeline Island was also the home of Chief Buffalo, who was instrumental in resisting the efforts of the U.S. Government to remove the Chippewa and in securing permanent reservations under the Treaty of La Pointe of 1854 that remain today. The bulk of the Ojibway on Madeline Island resettled to the Bad River Reservation east of Ashland, however, Chief Buffalo was granted a tract for his family on the mainland just west of Madeline Island in what is now known as the Red Cliff Indian Reservation. The island was originally called Mooningwanekaaning ("The Home of the Golden Breasted Woodpecker"). The first white settlers were French fur traders, who in 1693 established the fort that eventually became the community of La Pointe. In the 19th century La Pointe became the site of an important post of the American Fur Company under Michel Cadotte whose wife Ikwesewe (Madeline) is the island's namesake. The island's fur trading history has been preserved in the Madeline Island Historical Museum.

Madeline Island was named after Madeline Cadotte. Madeline Island has been home to Native Americans and fur traders. Madeline Island has been civilized around 400 years. To learn more about the History of Madeline Island you can visit the Madeline Island Historical Preservation Association. There is also many other historical places you may want to visit including the Old Fort Marker, The Indian Burial Grounds, and The Madeline Island Marker.

The unincorporated community of La Pointe, which is the main settlement within the town of La Pointe, is located on the southwestern tip of the island, with Grant’s Point being the southeastern most point. Aside from its proximity to the federally managed National Lakeshore, Madeline Island also contains the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources's Big Bay State Park, a 2,350-acre (9.5 km²) park on the south-central shore of the island. It is sometimes called Eagles' Nest for the bald eagles that make their nests in the tall pine trees on the cliffs. It encloses a large lagoon and a unique bog/dune ecosystem. There is another, smaller park on the island called Big Bay Town Park that is closer to town, offers camping, and is free to the public. It has access to the longest beach on the island, and adjoins the state park. With help from the summer's sun, the surface water temperature in the sheltered bay can rise to 70 °F (21 °C) while the water just off shore might remain a frigid 50 degrees.

The island itself is fourteen miles (21 km) long and three miles (5 km) wide. It is the only developed island of all the Apostle islands, although there are lighthouses on many of the islands and small, preserved fishing communities on a few (such as Stockton Island, Raspberry Island and Manitou Island). The 2000 U.S. Census reported the permanent population of the island as two hundred forty-six, which does not include seasonal residents. Madeline island has a school that educates children through 5th grade. Middle and high school-age children attend school in Bayfield.

The island is a popular vacation spot for people from all over the Midwest. The golf club sports a course designed by Robert Trent Jones that features double greens.

Approaching Madeline Island by ferry

The island can be reached only by ferry during the summer months; in the winter, ice usually becomes too thick for ferry traffic. The last ferry runs of the season are typically in mid- to late January, though in recent years the ferry has run well into February, and in 2006 ran the entire winter. When ice conditions allow, the "ice road" officially opens to vehicle traffic from Bayfield across the frozen surface to Madeline Island. The ice road is traditionally marked by Christmas trees and is officially an extension of County Highway H. If ice is too thin for automobile traffic, but too thick for ferry traffic, access to the island is by airplane, snowmobile and windsled only. The windsled often operates in early winter and spring.

On the eastern end of the island is an exclave of the Bad River Indian Reservation of approximately 195 acres (0.79 km²).

Madeline Island offers plenty of sight-seeing, activities, history to learn, and is located in the heart of Lake Superior, one of The Great Lakes. Madeline island has a unique community and is a fun vacation spot. Madeline Island is the largest of the Apostle Islands, and is one of the only ones with commercial development. To learn more about Madeline Island, plan a trip there or visit their website.

See also

• La Pointe, Wisconsin
• La Pointe (community), Wisconsin
• Big Bay State Park
• Populated islands of the Great Lakes
• List of islands of the United States
• Islands of the Great Lakes
• French Island and Washington Island, other populated islands in Wisconsin

External links

• Madeline Island Chamber of Commerce
• Madeline Island from Wisconsin Historical Society
• Madeline Island Ferry Line
• Big Bay State Park