I Remember - Program - #2004 - Bayfield & the apostle islands

HE'LL SHARE STORIES OF BAYFIELD AND THE APOSTLE ISLANDS FROM HIS BOOK "THIS SUPERIOR PLACE." AUTHOR DENNIS MCCANN RETURNS AS MY SPECIAL GUEST NEXT ON "I REMEMBER." >> HI, I'M JIM PECK. WELCOME TO "I REMEMBER." JOINING ME AGAIN TONIGHT IS DENNIS MCCANN. AS AN AUTHOR AND FORMER NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST, HE'S WRITTEN ABOUT HIS TRAVEL ADVENTURES THROUGHOUT WISCONSIN AND THE MIDWEST. HIS LATEST BOOK IS ABOUT A PLACE IN THE NORTHERN PART OF OUR STATE THAT HE FINDS VERY SXEBIAL. LET'S TAKE A LOOK. >> THE BOOK IS CALLED "THIS SUPERIOR PLACE, STORIES OF BAYFIELD AND THE APOSTLE ISLANDS." FOR THIS ADVENTURE, AUTHOR DENNIS MCCANN TAKES US TO THE NORTHERN TIP OF WISCONSIN. LOCATED ON LAKE SUPERIOR, AMERICAN INDIANS LIVED THERE LONG BEFORE ANY EUROPEANS ARRIVED. MCCANN EXPLAINS HOW MADELINE ISLAND CAME TO BE NAMED AFTER AN OJIBWE WOMAN AND WHY THE OJIBWE CONSIDER IT THEIR SPIRITUAL HOME. THE SCENIC ISLANDS OF THIS GREAT LAKES AREA ARE HIGHLIGHTED FOR THEIR GREAT GEOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE, AS WELL AS BEAUTY. THE STORIES IN THE BOOK RANGE FROM THE HISTORICAL TO THE MODERN DAY. THE CITY OF BAYFIELD WAS FOUNDED BY HENRY MOWER RICE IN THE 1850'S. MCCANN NOTES THAT EFFORTS TO ATTRACT NEW SETTLERS PROBABLY DOWNPLAYED THE SEVERE WINTER SEASON. WITH PLENTIFUL NORTHERN FORESTS, A LOGGING INDUSTRY TOOK HOLD■ç DURING THE LUMBER ERA. ANOTHER VALUABLE RESOURCE WAS SANDSTONE, AND THE QUARRIES SENT SHIPMENTS OF BROWNSTONE TO CITIES AROUND THE COUNTRY. AND MANY, OF COURSE, CHOSE FISHING AS A WAY TO MAKE THEIR LIVING. THE AREA WAS VERY ATTRACTIVE TO TOURISTS IN THE PAST, AND MOST CERTAINLY IS A DESTINATION TODAY. THE CHAMPION FOR A NATIONAL PARK WAS *** NELSON. THROUGH HIS EFFORTS, THE APOSTLE ISLANDS NATIONAL LAKESHORE WAS CREATED IN 1970, PRESERVING 21 ISLANDS AND 12 MILES ALONG THE MAINLAND FOR ALL. >> I'VE GOT TO READ THIS, BECAUSE THIS IS GOING TO MAKE EVERYBODY WANT TO GO UP TO WHERE YOU LIVE. LET THE SUMMER SUN COME AND WARM THE BLUE WATER OF CHEQUAMEGON BAY. LET THE BRIE SUN DANCE ON THE SURFACE OF THE WATER, WHILE SAILBOATS RIDE THE BREEZES AND THIS IS STILL THE PLACE THAT■ç PROMPTED THE FIRST RECORDED VISITORS TO COMMENT ON ITS WINSOME WAYS. IT IS THEN AND NOW A SUPERIOR PLACE. >> WOW. >> I COULDN'T HAVE SAID THAT BETTER. >> IN ALL MY TRAVELS, NO ONE OFFERED ME WHITE FISHERIES. >> I -- WHITE FISH LIVERS. >> IT'S A SPECIALTY. >> IT'S AN ODDITY, AT SOME LEVELS. YEARS AGO, ONE OF THE CHEFS CAME UP WITH THE IDEA, A VALUE-ADDED APPROACH BY USING THE LIVERS AND FRIED AND SAUTEED THEM WITH ONIONS AND BREADING AND A LOT OF PEOPLE LOVE THEM. >> ARE YOU ONE OF THEM. >> I DO ENJOY THEM. MY WIFE THINKS OF LIVERS AS A FILTER ORGAN AND WON'T EAT THEM. >> ALL THOSE YEARS, YOUR MOTHER TOLD YOU TO EAT THE LIVER AND YOU■ç FIND OUT YEARS LATER IT'S THE WORST THING TO PUT IN YOUR BODY. THEY DON'T TASTE FISHY. >> NO, NOT IF THEY'RE PREPARED RIGHT. CHICKEN LIVERS IS A COMPARISON. >> ARE THERE STILL WHITEFISH IN THE WATERS. >> ABSOLUTELY. WHITE FISH IS THE BIGGEST FISH IN THE FISHERY UP THERE. >> EVEN NOW. >> YES, WHITE FISH AND LAKE TROUT ARE THE TWO BIGGEST THE PEOPLE GO AFTER. STILL A HERRING RUN IN THE FALL, BUT THOSE ARE THE TWO MAJOR FISHES. >> HERRING RUN IS PHENOMENAL. >> IT USED TO BE BIGGER THAN IT IS, EVEN TODAY. I JUST TOOK A TOUR OF A FISH HOUSE AND REALIZED THE OTHER DAY HOW BIG IT STILL IS AND IN NOVEMBER, THERE'S A CLOTHES SEASON FOR TROUT AND WHITE FISH, SO THEY USE THAT TO GO AFTER THE HERRING, WHICH ARE THE MOST, I GUESS, PLENTIFUL AT THAT TIME, AND THEY WILL BRING IN BOATS, JUST FILLED WITH WHITE -- WITH HERRING, BRING THEM IN, PACK AND SHIP ALL OVER THE WORLD, THEY'LL SHIP THE ROE TO EUROPE■ç FOR HERRING CAVIAR OR HERRING ROE. IT'S STILL IN DEMAND. >> YOU WRITE ABOUT THIS IN YOUR BOOK, A SUPERIOR PLACE, THAT AT ONE POINT, I THINK IT WAS DURING THE WAR, SO MANY PEOPLE WERE GONE, THAT THEY WERE HAULING KIDS OUT OF SCHOOL. >> WHY THAT WAS AT THE PEAK OF WHAT AT THE USED TO CALL THE HERRING RUN AND THEY'D HAVE BOATS GOING OUT AND THEY WOULD BE SO HEAVY COMING IN, THEY WOULD BE RIGHT DOWN TO THE THE WHATTER LEVEL. >> WOW. >> AND ALL THE MEN WERE GONE, SO THEY WOULD CLOSE SCHOOL, ALL THE WOMEN IN TOWN, ALL THE KIDS FROM THE HIGH SCHOOL WOULD COME AND PACK THE FISH, BECAUSE IT HAD TO BE PACKED AND SALTED AND SHIPPED RIGHT AWAY, AND SO IT WAS VERY LABOR INTENSIVE, AND A VERY BUSY TIME AND THEY SAID IT WAS AFTER THE FISHING WAS DONE, THEN THE AROMA WOULD LAST UNTIL CHRISTMAS, ANOTHER FISHERMAN POINTED OUT THAT IT ALSO PAID FOR CHRISTMAS, SO IT WAS IMPORTANT. >> VERY GOOD. SO THERE WAS CASH IN THE POCKET TEND OF THIS. >> ABSOLUTELY. >> KIDS MUST HAVE LOVED IT. >> YOU COULD MAKE A DOLLAR A DAY PACKING FISH. >> THAT WAS GOOD MONEY. >> YES. >> EVEN IF YOU'RE■ç A KID AND GETTING OUT OF SCHOOL. >> THAT'S RIGHT. >> WHEN DID FISHING BECOME A BIG THING UP THERE IN THAT INDUSTRY. >> BAYFIELD HAD A SERIES OF BOOMS AND BUSTS AND FISHING SORT OF FOLLOWED SEVERAL OTHER BOOMS, AND TOOK OFF PROBABLY IN THE LATE 1800'S, VERY LARGE GROUP OF FISHERMEN CAME OVER FROM TWO RIVERS, AND ESTABLISHED THEIR FISHING CAMPS ON THE ISLANDS, AND THEY HAD BEEN FISHING THERE EVER SINCE, AND IT REALLY PEAKED IN THE 1950'S OR SO, COMMERCIAL FISHING WAS JUST A HUGE INDUSTRY, 70, 80 BOATS PERHAPS WOULD GO OUT EVERY DAY. >> WOW. >> THEY WOULD LIVE OUT ON THE ISLANDS DURING THE SUMMER, ESTABLISH FISH CAMPS AND BOATS WOULD AND PICK UP THE CATCH, BUT THE FISHERMEN WOULD STAY OUT THERE WITH THEIR FAMILIES AND OF COURSE, OVERPRODUCTION TOOK ITS TOLES. COMMERCIAL FISHING IS STILL BIG AND THERE IS STILL COMMERCIAL FISHING ON A SMALLER AND MORE■ç REGULATED SCALE. >> WHO WERE THOSE FISHERMEN? YOU SAID THEY CAME FROM TWO RIVERS, BUT I ASSUME THEY CAME FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE FIRST. >> A LOT OF THE ORIGINAL ONES WERE FRENCH CANADIAN AND THE OJIBWE FISHED BEFORE ALL OF THAT AND THEN IN THE LATE 1800'S, THEY STARTED TO COME FROM SCANDINAVIA, ESPECIALLY FROM NORWAY AND IT WAS TYPICAL OF IMMIGRATION IN THE UNITED STATES, THEY CAME TO A PLACE THAT LOOK LIKE THE PLACE THEY HAD LEFT AND IF THEY CAME FROM COASTAL NORWAY, THEY CAME TO BAYFIELD AND IT LOOKED LIKE HOME AND THEY FOUND FISHING THAT LOOKED FAMILIAR AS WELL. >> HOW DID THEY GET TO BAYFIELD, I FIGURE THEY CAME TO NEW YORK, AND THEN HOW DID THEY HEAR ABOUT BAYFIELD OUT IN THE COUNTRY. >> THERE'S ONE OLD FISHERMEN TOLD A JOKE ABOUT HOW WHEN THEY GOT TO NEW YORK, THEY WOULD SAY THEY'RE FROM NORWAY AND FISHED, AND THEY WOULD SAY OH, AND PIN A BOOT FISHERIES TAG ON THEIR BACK, AND SEND THEM OFF TO BAYFIELD. MORE THAN LIKELY IT WAS BECAUSE OF FAMILY CONNECTIONS, THEY KNEW OTHERS CAME TO BAYFIELD.■ç >> AND WHITE FISH WAS THE FIRST BIG COMMERCIAL? >> YES, WHITE FISH HAS ALWAYS BEEN A POPULAR, BUT THERE'S OTHER SPECIES AS WELL, WHITE FISH, HERRING AND LAKE TROUT ARE THE BIG THREE. >> THE WHITE FISH GOT PRETTY WELL OVERFISHED, AND THEY WENT TO TROUT, RIGHT? >> YES. WELL, TROUT ALSO GOT DECIMATED. THE PREDATOR, THE SEA LAMPREY, THAT'S WHAT THE POPULATION TOOK A DIP, PEOPLE MOVED AWAY. SO THERE IS STILL FISHING AND AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE HERITAGE, BUT NOT AT THE SCALE IT USED TO BE. >> I DIDN'T REALIZE UNTIL I READ YOUR BOOK HOW GEOLOGICALLY OLD THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY WAS. >> GEOLOGY IS NOT MY STRONG SUIT, SO I HAD TO CURB HEAVILY ON THAT FROM PEOPLE WHO KNOW IT BETTER. BUT YOU KNOW, IF YOU'VE NEVER BEEN TO THE APOSTLE ISLANDS AND HAVE SEEN THE CLIFFS THAT HAVE BEEN WORKED ON, YOU KNOW, FOR AGES, UP■ç KNOW, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS, OR MORE, BY WATER, IT'S DONE A MARVELOUS JOB OF CREATING THESE SANDSTONE BLUFFS AND THESE MAGNIFICENT CAVES THAT PEOPLE LOVE TO GO INTO. SUMMER OR WINTER, AND SO THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT SO POPULAR WITH VISITORS WHO CAN GO OUT AND TANK A THREE HOUR BOAT RIDE AROUND THE ISLAND AND SEE THEM ALL AND NOT HAVE TO EVEN PADDLE A CANOE TO GET TO THEM. >> BUT YOU CAN PADDLE OR KAYAK. >> YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFUL, IT'S VERY DANGEROUS. WHAT HAPPENS IS THE PEOPLE WILL HEAD OUT ON CALM WATER AND LAKE SUPERIOR WILL GET IN ONE OF ITS MOODS. AND THEY TYPICALLY ADVISE FIRST TIMERS TO GO WITH A GUIDE WHO WILL HELP THEM. EVEN SO, EVERY OTHER YEAR OR SO SOMEBODY GETS LOST AND IT'S ALWAYS A TRAGEDY. >> THAT'S A VERY, VERY DANGEROUS LAKE AND WE TALKED ABOUT THE WRECK OF THE EDMUND FITZGERALD AND ALL SORTS OF SHIPS THAT WENT DOWN THERE. >> I VOLUNTEER AT THE BAYFIELD MARITIME MUSEUM, WHICH IS A WONDERFUL PLACE, AND PEOPLE DO COME IN AND THEY■ç ENJOY THE SHIPWRECK STORIES AND THERE ARE MANY OF THEM, BECAUSE THE LITTLE LAKE IS JUST ONE OF THE OLD FISHERMAN COINED THE PHRASE, THE LAKE IS THE BOSS AND IT'S A POPULAR T-SHIRT WITH VISITORS AND I HAVE ONE BECAUSE IT'S REALLY TRUE. THAT YOU CAN MAKE ALL SORTS OF PLANS AND HEAD OUT, BUT THE LAKE CAN CHANGE IN A REAL HURRY, THE WIND CAN CHANGE, ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN, AND IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING OUT THERE, WE SIT AND WATCH SAILBOATS OUT THERE SOMETIMES, WHERE CONDITIONS CHANGE IN A HURRY AND YOUR TO KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING TO GET BACK IN AND SAFELY. >> IT'S HUGE, FIRST OF ALL, ENORMOUS BODY OF WATER. >> IT IS. AND WHERE WE ARE AT THE END OF THE LAKE, SHELTERED BY THE ISLANDS, IS A LITTLE BIT MORE PROTECTED TAN THE OPEN WATER. -- THAN THE OPEN WATER, BUT FROM OUR HOUSE, WE CAN ALWAYS TELL WHEN IT'S REALLY BAD ON THE OTHER SIDE OF MADELINE ISLAND, BECAUSE SOME OF THE BIG THOUSAND FOOTERS WILL COME IN BEHIND THE ISLAND FOR THE PROTECTION IT AFFORDS, SO YOU CAN SEE IF THERE'S REALLY A BIG STORM OUT ON THE LAKE, LOOK FOR ONE OF THE BIG LAKERS TO COME IN. >> AND THEY'LL SNEAK OVER SO THEY'RE COVERED FROM THE WIND AS WELL. >> SOME OF THEM WILL SIT FOR A DAY OR TWO AND WAIT IT'S STORMS. >> YOU MENTIONED SHIP WRECKS. THERE ARE A COUPLE OF FAMOUS SHIP WRECKS. I'M THINKING OF THE SHIP LUCERNE. >> THE LUCERNE, RIGHT. >> IT'S ONE OF THE MORE FAMOUS BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT ACCOUNTS OF HOW THE STORM CAME IN ON THEM. EVERYBODY IS FAMILIAR WITH THE EDMUND FITZGERALD, IT'S ONE OF MANY, MANY SHIP WRECKS. THE LUCERNE IS INTERESTING BECAUSE, IN AN EFFORTS TO SAVE THEMSELVES, THE CREW CLIMBED THE MAST, SEVERAL MEMBERS OF THE CREW, AND TIED THEMSELVES TO THE TOP OF THE MAST AND WHEN THE SHIPWRECK WAS FOUND, THEY WERE STILL ENCASED IN ICE AT THE TOP OF THE MAST, SO%J OBVIOUSLY, IT DID NOT WORK. >> AND THE OTHER ONE, THE SEVONA. >> THE SEVONA AND WAS IT SIX OR SEVEN MEN LOST THEIR LIVES IN ShP &C&& THERE WAS A RESCUE ATTEMPT. IT ADDS TO THE LIGHTHOUSE LORE, BECAUSE PEOPLE GO OUT AND TRY TO SAVE ANYBODY THEY CAN WHEN THE SHIP WRECKS TOOK PLACE. THIS WOULD BE IN THE 1800'S, NOT RECENTLY. >> AND THERE ARE STORIES ABOUT THEY COULD TAKE THIS MANY, BUT THEY COULDN'T TAKE THE OTHERS, AND PEOPLE JUST DON'T LEAVE US. >> RIGHT. RIGHT. AND HOLLERING, RIGHT, EXACTLY. ENTIRE BOOKS HAVE BEEN WRITTEN ABOUT SOME OF THE SHIP WRECKS, AND EVERY -- THE FALL, DURING THE LIGHTHOUSE FESTIVAL, PEOPLE GO OUT AND GET SOLVE THOSE STORIES TOLD AGAIN. THERE'S CERTAIN FASCINATION WITH ALL OF THAT STUFF THAT OTHER PEOPLE'S TRAGEDIES ARE INTERESTING, 100 YEARS LATER. >> OK. AND THEY'RE SOMETHING ABOUT A SHIPWRECK THAT EVEN IT MAY HAVE LUMBER, MAY HAVE CHRISTMAS TREES, ONE OF THE FAMOUS -- BUT WE ALWAYS THINK OF BURIED TREASURE AN EVEN THOUGH THAT DOESN'T EXIST, THERE'S SOMETHING VERY ROMANTIC ABOUT A SHIPWRECK. >> RIGHT. ALTHOUGH SOMETIMES WHENç I SIT LATE IN THE YEAR AND LOOK OUT AT THE LAKE AND IT'S THROWING A TANTRUM, YOU THINK WHY WOULD PEOPLE CHALLENGE IT, BUT THEY WERE MAKING A LIVING. TIPPERMEN HAD TO GO OUT IN THAT WEATHER TOO. >> THERE MUST HAVE BEEN A TIME, IT JUST OCCURRED TO ME, THAT THERE WERE NO LIGHTHOUSES AND SOMEBODY DECIDED TO BUILD A LIGHTHOUSE. WHEN DID THE LIGHTHOUSES START HITTING IN. >> I TOLD YOU NOT TO ASK ME DATES. IN THE EARLY 1800'S, WHEN AT THE STARTED AND THEY WERE CRUDER LIED HOUSES AND THEY IMPROVED, THE APOSTLE ISLANDS, I FORGET THE FINAL NUMBER, BUT RIGHT NOW, THERE ARE STILL SIX THAT PEOPLE CAN GO AND VISIT. >> THEY'RE NOT WORKING. >> MOST OF THEM ARE STILL WORKING. THEY'RE STILL SHIPPING UP THERE. >> WOW. >> BUT THERE'S NO LIGHTHOUSE KEEPERS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT AND MORE OFTEN THE LIGHTS WOULD JUST BE ON A LIGHT STATION, NOT NECESSARILY THE OLD FRENEL LENS. >> WHAT WAS LIFE LIO■■ FOR A LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER? >> LONELY, FIRST OF ALL. YOU'RE ON AN ISLAND, YOUR WIFE MIGHT NOT LIKE TO BE THERE. YOU MIGHT HAVE A FEUD WITH THE ASSISTANT KEEPER, AS I WROTE ABOUT IN ONE OF THE CASES THERE. BUT THEY DIDN'T GET ALONG, BUT THEY'RE LIVING IN THE SAME HOUSE ON THE SAME ISLAND, AND FINALLY ONE HAD TO LEAVE THAT. IT WAS AS LONELY AND HARD A LIFE AS YOU WOULD EXPECT, BUT THE THINK I'M ALWAYS IMPRESSED WITH IN THE STORIES IS MOST OF THOSE LIVES WERE HARD. ONE THE POINTS I MAKE AT THE MARITIME MUSEUM, YOU LOOK AT THE FANCY SAILBOATS AND SPEED BOATS AND YOU TRY TO SHOW THEM IN THE MUSEUM HOW TOUGH IT USED TO BE WHEN THE WATER WAS MORE OF A WORKPLACE. YOU HAD TO GO OUT IN THE FISHING BOATS, PEOPLE LIVING OUT ON THE ISLANDS. THEY HAD TO LOG THE ISLANDS AND BRING ALL THE LUMBER IN. >> IT WAS JUST -- >> WERE THE APOSTLE ISLANDS LOGGED? >> ABSOLUTELY. >> THEY SEEM SO PRISTINE. >> THAT'S WHAT FOOLS A A LOT OF PEOPLE. TJe2■ DECLARE THE *** NELSON WILDERNESS, OVER 90% OF IT, BUT THAT'S NOT ORIGINAL. THE FIRST TIME THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE CAME UP TO LOOK AT THE AREA TO SEE IF IT WAS SUITABLE FOR A NATIONAL PARK, THE INSPECTOR LOOKED AT IT AND SAID YOU'RE NOT READY, BECAUSE THEY HAD BEEN LOGGED OFF. ONCE THE MAINLANDS HAD BEEN LOGGED OFF, THEY LOOKED OUT AND SAW THERE'S STILL A WHOLE LOT OF GOOD HARDWOOD AND PINE OUT IN THE ISLANDS AND YOU CAN DO IT EASILY WITH A BOAT. IT'S NOT LIKE WHERE YOU HAVE TO RUN THEM DOWN RIVERS IN THE SPRING. HERE HE COULD LOAD THEM ON TO BOATS, SO THEY WERE EASILY TRANSPORTED. AS LATE AS THE 1950'S, THE LULLABYE FURNITURE COMPANY FROM STEVENS POINT WAS STILL LOGGING ON SOME OF THE ISLANDS, I THINK OUTER WAS THEIR MAIN ONE. AND THEY WERE MAKING BABY FURNITURE OUT OF WOOD FROM THE APOSTLE ISLANDS. THERE WERE PEOPLE IN THE BOOK WHO PROBABLY GREW UP IN AN APOSTLE ISLAND CRIP BEFORE THEY CAME TO THE APOSTLE ISLANDS. >> WHAT KIND OF■ç WOOD WERE THEY SHIPPING IS. >> INITIALLY, IT WAS WHITE PINE, WHICH WAS ALWAYS THE CASE IN NORTHERN WISCONSIN. THE PLAINS STATES NEEDED WHITE PINE TO BUILD THE HOUSES, IT WAS AS SIMPLE AS THAT. TANNERIES IN MILWAUKEE NEEDED HEMLOCKS ALL THE TIME, THAT BECAME VALUABLE. THEN THE HARDWOODS HAD ALL SORTS OF USES AS WELL. RAILROAD TIES, YOU KNOW, YOU NEED THE MILLIONS OF RAILROAD TIES TO REACH THE WEST COAST, SO THEY HAD TO GO TO STATES THAT HAD LUMBER AND NOT ALL OF THEM DID. IF YOU'RE GOING ACROSS KANSAS, YOU -- >> YOU WERE IN BIG TROUBLE LOOKING FOR WOOD. >> SO THERE WERE LOTS OF USES FOR THE WOOD. >> HOW DID THE APOSTLE ISLANDS GET THEIR NAME. >> THE MOST COMMON EXPLANATION IS THE FRENCH LIKES TO NAME THINGS AFTER RELIGIOUS IMAGES. THERE'S NOT 12 EYE LANDS, THERE ARE -- ISLANDS, THERE ARE 22. >> THERE ARE 14 TEAMS IN THE BIG LEAGUE. >> THAT'S THE POINT I MAKE. WE'RE NOT GOING TO LAUGH AT THEIR MATH. THE INDIVIDUAL■ç ISLANDS HAVE WN DIFFERENT NAMES THROUGH THE YEARS. SOME HAVE CHANGED AND SOME HAVE JUST LASTED. SOME OF THE OLD TIMERS WILL USE THE OLD NAMES OF CERTAIN ISLANDS, BECAUSE IT'S OUT OF HABIT. THERE WAS ONCE AN EFFORT TO, INSTEAD OF NAMING THEM THE APOSTLE ISLANDS, THEY WANTED TO CALL THEM THE FEDERATED ISLANDS AND EACH WOULD BE NAMED AFTER A STATE. I THINK MADELINE WOULD HAVE BEEN VIRGINIA ISLANDS, BUT THAT DIDN'T TAKE HOLD. THERE'S STILL A MICHIGAN ISLAND BUT FOR THE MOST PART, THERE'S A WHOLE VARIED LIST OF NAMES. >> DIDN'T ONE OF THE ISLANDS TRY TO CHANGE ITS NAME, WAS IT CORNUCOPIA THAT WANTED TO BE CALLED SOMETHING ELSE. >> THAT'S A COMMUNITY ON THE MAINLAND, UP THE ROAD FROM BAYFIELD. WONDERFUL FISHING COMMUNITY, IF YOU'RE NAMED AFTER THE HORN OF PLENTY, THAT'S JUST A BEAUTIFUL THING, BUT SOMEBODY PROPOSED THAT THEY CHANGE THE NAME OF THE TOWN TO NORTH POLE, AND THAT WASN'T ALLOWED BY THE POST OFFICE, AND I'M GRAD IT WASN'T, BECAUSE CORNUCOPIA IS A WONDERFUL NAME. >> I THINK THERE'S A NORTH POLE SOMEWHERE ELSE. >> I'M SURE THERE IS. YES.■ç >> BUT I LIKE CORNUCOPIA,. >> CORNUCOPIA IS -- THEIR CLAIM TO FAME, THEY HAVE THE NORTHERNMOST POST OFFICE IN WISCONSIN. >> OH, REALLY. >> IT'S A SMALL CLAIM. >> YOU BUT NONETHELESS -- >> YOU WORK WITH WHAT GEOGRAPHY GIVES YOU. >> WHO WAS HER MIT WILSON? >> HER MIT WILSON WAS A MAN TO TRIED TO MAKE A NAME FOR HIMSELF ON MADELINE ISLAND AND LOST A FIGHT AND HE DECLARED HE WOULDN'T LIVE ON THE ISLAND WHERE HE WAS BESTED AND HE WAS KNOWN AS A HERMIT, IT'S HERMIT ISLAND AND HERMIT GREW VEGETABLES AND WOULD COME TO TOWN OCCASIONALLY. LOT OF LEGENDS ABOUT HIM, NONE TRUE, BUT THERE IS SOME THOUGHT HE BURIED A FORTUNE AND PEOPLE HAVE PERIODICALLY GONE TO LOOK FOR IT. >> I THINK THAT LEGEND EXTENDS TO VIRTUALLY EVERY TOWN IN AMERICA. >> ABSOLUTELY. ABSOLUTELY. >> IT'S ALWAYS SOMEBODY THAT BURIED A FORTUNE. >> AND THERE'S ALL A TAVERN WHERE AL CAPONE SAT ON A BAR STOOL. >> OR GEORGE WASHINGTON SLEPT.■ç MADELINE ISLAND HAS AN INTERESTING HISTORY. >> MADELINE WAS THE CENTER OF THE FUR TRADE, EARLY ON IN THE 1600'S. THE CHIPPEWA HAD MADE THEIR HOME THERE, THE OJIBWE PEOPLE, AND IT WAS A VERY SPECIAL PLACE TO THEM. THE ISLANDS OF THE RED BREASTED WOOD ***, AND THEN ALONG GAME THE FRENCH CANADIANS AND THE FUR TRADE WAS THERE. JOHN JAY AS TORE HAD ITS FUR COMPANY THERE. IT WAS A LARGE ISLAND COMING TO EVERYBODY ACCESSIBLE BY TRADE. THEY HAD TRADING POSTS AND ONE OF THE FRENCH TRADERS MARRIED AN INDIAN WOMAN, THE DAUGHTER OF CHIEF WHITE CRANE, AND SO HER AMERICAN NAME, HER RELIGIOUS, WHEN SHE WAS BAPTIZED, HER NAME WAS CHANGED TO MADELINE AND SO THEY NAMED THE ISLAND AFTER HER. IT'S A WONDERFUL LITTLE LOVE STORY. >> IT IS. >> YES. >> AND BAYFIELD IS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL■ç NAME, I MEAN, YOU THINK OF THE BAY, IS THAT WHY IT WAS NAMED THAT? >> NOT AT ALL. >> OH, REALLY. >> YEAH, THAT WOULD I CAN MA -- MAKE SENSE, BECAUSE WE HAVE THE BEAUTIFUL BAY AND A LOT OF AGRICULTURE UP THERE SURPRISES PEOPLE, BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY NAMED AFTER HENRY BAYFIELD, THE FIRST BRITISH NAVAL PERSON TO COME AND SURVEY THAT PART OF THE LAKE. >> HE NEVER ACTUALLY SAW THE TOWN THAT WAS NAMED AFTER HIM. >> SERIOUSLY. >> IT WAS NAMED FOR HIM BY HIS FRIEND, HENRY RICE, WHO WROTE HIM A LETTER AND HE LATER WROTE BACK AND THANKED HIM FOR THE GREAT HONOR AND SAID I CAN'T IMAGINE WHEN I CAMPED THERE THIS WOULD P A, BUT HE LENT HIS NAME AND IT IS A WONDERFUL NAME. >> YOU MENTIONED AGRICULTURE AND YOU'RE RIGHT, I WAS SURPRISED TO FIND OUT THERE WAS A LOT OF AGRICULTURE. SOMEHOW, I DON'T PUT THAT TOGETHER WITH A BUNCH OF ISLANDS. >> AGAIN, YOU CREDIT THE LAKE FOR THAT, BECAUSE THE LAKE ACHES A LONG TIME TO WARM DURING THE SUMMER, BUT WITH IT GETS WARM IN THE SUMMER, IT STAYS WARM THROUGH THE FALL AND IT PREVENTS AN EARLY■ç FROST, SO THEY KEPT THIS LITTLE MICROCLIMATE UP ON THE TOP OF THE BLUFFS, OVERLOOKING THE LAKE. THERE'S PROBABLY 10 OR 12 ORCHARDS UP THERE RIGHT NOW AND RIGHT NOW, WE'RE IN BERRY SEASON, STARTS IN JULY, USUALLY BY THE 4th OF JULY, YOU HAVE FRESH BAYFIELD STRAWBERRIES. BLACKBERRIES, CHERRY, BLUEBERRIES HAVE A NICE LONG AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER,. >> AND THEN BLACKBERRIES. >> WELL, BLACKBERRIES ARE THERE ALL THE TIME. WE HAD ONE IN OUR YARD TWO DAYS AGO. THEY JUST PASS THROUGH. >> I WOULDN'T BOTHER THEM. >> BUT THE BIG THING IN THE ORCHARD IS APPLES AND BAYFIELD IS KNOWN FOR THE APPLE FESTIVAL. >> YOU'VE GOT A GREAT PICTURE IN THE BOOK OF COWS ON MAIN STREET. >> YES. YES. I DON'T EXACTLY KNOW THE REASON FOR THIS. UNLESS IT WAS JUST THE LAZINESS OF EARLY HOMEOWNERS, BUT COWS ALWAYS WOULD ROAM THE DOWNTOWN STREETS AND THEY PRETTY■ç MUCH D THE RIGHT-OF-WAY, JUST BECAUSE THEY WERE LARGE COWS. >> A COUPLE THOUSAND POUNDS. >> BURR THEY WILL BOTHER PEOPLE DOWNTOWN ON THE STREETS, SIDE DOWN ON THE SIDEWALK AND THE WOMEN WOULD HAVE TO STEP OVER WITH THEIR SKIRTS. >> AMONG THEIR LEAVINGS. >> YES, RIGHT. SO THERE WERE A LOT OF ISSUES WITH COWS. ONE OF THE MORE FAMOUS STORIES IS INTEREST WAS A WOODEN -- IS THERE WAS A WOODEN BRIDGE AND MRS. JELINEK LED HER COWS OVER THE BRIDGE AND THEY WERE NO SOONER OFFER THE BRIDGE COLLAPSED AND IT WAS AN IMPORTANT BRIDGE CONNECTING THE TWO NEIGHBORHOODS, SWEDE HILL AND CATHOLIC HILL AS THEY CALLED THE AREAS, SO THEY TOOK A LONG TIME BUT FINALLY BUILT A PERMANENT IRON BRIDGE THAT STILL STANDS TODAY AND IT'S ONLY USED NOW FOR PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC. >> NO COWS. >> WELL, AS A MATTER OF FACT, THERE'S A FUND RAISER LATER THIS MONTHS, FOR THE BAYFIELD HISTORICAL SOCIETY, BHA, AND■ç S PART OF THAT, THEY'RE GOING TO SERVE TEA AND DRINKS UP ON THE IRON BRIDGE AND THE STORY IS THAT THERE WILL BE COWS IN ATTENDANCE, MAKE IT HISTORICALLY CORRECT. >> AND I HOPE THERE WILL BE HAY. IS IT EASY TO GET AROUND IN THAT PART OF THE STATE? >> YES. IT WASN'T IF THE -- IN THE BEGINNING, BAYFIELD WAS FOUNDED IN 1856 AND IT WAS PRETTY MUCH THE END OF THE KNOWN WORLD AT THAT TIME IN TERMS OF WISCONSIN, BECAUSE IT'S RIGHT UP ON THE VERY EDGE. THERE WERE NO ROADS, AND YOU COULD ONLY REACH IT BY WATER, BECAUSE THERE WASN'T RAILROAD FOR 27 OR 28 YEARS, SO WHEN YOU CAN ONLY GET THERE BY WATER AND ONLY WHEN THE WATER IS OPEN FROM ICE, IT LIMITED GROWTH IF A BIG WAY FOR QUITE A WHILE. BUT IT DIDN'T STOP THE EARLY FOUNDERS FROM HAVING THESE DREAMS, BAYFIELD WOULD BE A CITY TO RIVAL CHICAGO OR SUPERIOR, BECAUSE IT HAD THIS GREAT NATURAL HARBOR, AND THEY HAD WONDERFUL DREAMS WHEN THEY BEGAN IT IN 1850. >> THOSE ARE SOME DREAMS.■ç >> BIG DREAMS AND THEN THE PANIC OF 1857, SO ONE YEAR LATER, THEY WERE SCRATCHING FOR SOMETHING TO FILL UP THE TOWN. >> IT IS A GREAT HARBOR. >> IT IS A REALLY NICE HARBOR AND EXTREMELY POPULAR TODAY WITH SAILORS, RECREATIONAL SAILORS. THERE ARE PROBABLY A DOZEN MARINAS FROM CORNUCOPIA DOWN THROUGH ASHLAND AND THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF SAILBOATS, POWER BOATS, AND ALSO, KAYAKERS. >> YOU DO A HUGE REGATTA UP THERE, A RACE. >> BAYFIELD RACE WEEK IS A BIG RACE WEEK, RIGHT. IT'S A BIG THING IN JULY AND IT'S A MINNEAPOLIS-BASED SAILING CLUB THAT STARTED IT, BECAUSE MAINLY OF THE SAILORS WHO COME UP ARE FROM THE TWIN CITIES. THAT'S THE LARGEST -- IT'S THE LARGEST FEEDER OF TOURISTS AND VISITORS, AND SO THEY HAVE A WEEK OF SAILING ON THE LAKE AROUND THE ISLANDS, VERY COLORFUL, THEY GET 25 BOATS OUT THERE WITH THEIR SPENCERS, GO RIGHT BY THE HOUSE AND YOU HARRY POTTNAPPING,AILS■ YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO CALL THEM SHEETS, NOT SAILS, YOU CAN TELL I DON'T SAIL. IT'S VERY FUN TO WATCH, AND HAVING THAT LIFE IN TOWN AT NIGHT IS ALSO GOOD. >> AND IT ACTUALLY GOES FOR -- WHAT IS THE -- OH, I'M GOING TO USE THE WRONG TERM, BUT THERE'S SOMETHING, A CIRCUIT, A SPECIAL -- >> THE BAYFIELD TRIANGLE. THERE'S THREE BARS DOWNTOWN THAT ARE POPULAR WITH THE SAILORS, AND SOME OF THEM DO GET LOST IN THE BAYFIELD TRIANGLE. >> I SEE. WHAT ATTRACTED YOU TO IT BY THE WAY DENNIS, YOU'VE BEEN AROUND THE MIDWEST FOR SO LONG. >> YEAH. I ACTUALLY DEDICATE THE BOOK TO MY WIFE AND OUR FRIEND JUDY, WHO MORE THAN 30 YEARS AGO TOLD US ABOUT THIS PLACE AND SHE WAS GOING UP THERE FOR A WEEK ON MADELINE ISLAND AND SAID WHY DON'T YOU COME UP, WE DROVE ALL THE WAY UP, NOT UPPED STANDING WHAT WE WERE DOING UP THERE AND RENTED A PLACE IF BAYFIELD AND CAUGHT THE FERRY TO MADELINE ISLAND AND MET HER ON THE PIER OF THE PLACE SHE WAS STAYING AND WE ORDERED A GLASS OF■ç WINE AND WATCHED THE SUN SET OVER THE MAINLAND AND WE SAID WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL OUR LIFE, SO WE STARTED GOING UP PAD LINE ISLAND HAS ONE OF THE GREAT 4th OF JULYS ANYWHERE IN THE COUNTRY, REALLY LITTLE HOMETOWN AFFAIR, THAT HAS BECOME HUGELY POPULAR, AND SO I WENT UP THE NEXT YEAR TO WRITE ABOUT THAT, AND I'VE ONLY MISSED ONE PARADE IN MORE THAN 30 YEARS, ON THE ISLANDS. WE JUST -- THAT'S JUST WHERE WE WERE EVERY 4th OF JULY. >> DO YOU STAY YEAR-ROUND? >> WE DON'T. WE STILL HAVE A PLACE IN MADISON FOR WINTER, THAT'S OUR VERSION OF GOING SOUTH. >> YOU GO SOUTH. RIGHT. >> WHY NOT SAIL YEAR-ROUND? >> I STILL HAVE FAMILY IN SOUTHERN PART OF THE STATE AND SO UNTIL -- AT SOME POINT, THAT MAY HAPPEN, BUT FOR NOW, WE DIVIDE. >> IS THERE -- THERE USED TO BE AN ICE ROAD. DOES THAT STYLIST'S? >> THE ICE -- DOES THAT STILL EXIST? >> THE ISLANDSERS WILL TELL YOU IT'S BETWEEN MADELINE ISLAND■ç D BAYFIELD. THEY ARE MORE EAGER TO USE THE ICE ROAD AND GET OFF THE ISLAND AT WILL. FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVEN'T BEEN THERE, WHAT HAPPENS IS THE FERRY KEEPS RUNNING UNTIL THE ICE GETS TO BE ABOUT 8 OR 10 INCHES THICK, TOO THICK FOR THE FERRY TO KEEP GOING. YOU CAN'T BUST THE ICE ANYMORE. THEN THEY WILL USE A WINDSLED THAT SCOOTS ACROSS THE TOP. >> I'VE SEEN PICTURES OF THAT. >> IT'S LIKE IN THE EVERGLADES, THIS GOES ACROSS THE TOP OF THE ICE, AND WHEN IT'S NOT SAFE TO DRIVE A CAR, THEY CAN RUN THE WINDSLED, BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO GET THE ISLAND KIDS TO SCHOOL IN BAYFIELD, CONSTRUCTION WORKERS, PEOPLE WHO LIVE ON THE ISLAND NEED APPOINTMENTS. >> GET TO A DOCTOR, GROCERY STORE, A RESTAURANT. >> RIGHT. >> GET TO ONE OF THOSE BARS. >> EXACTLY. MADELINE ISLAND HAS A BAR AS WELL. THEY'RE COVERED. >> I SEE. >> THEN IF IT'S DEEMED SAFE ENOUGH AND INSPECTED CLOSELY, HIGHWAY 13 EXTENDS TO MADELINE ISLAND FOR AS LONG AS IT'S SAFE. THIS YEAR, IT OPENED AND THEN IT CLOSED AGAIN AND THEN IT OPENED AGAIN FOR A WHILE.■ç THERE HAVE BEEN TWO YEARS IN THE LAST 10 OR SO, WHERE THE FERRY NEVER QUIT RUNNING. >> REALLY. >> SO YOU CAN TALK ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE, BUT THERE'S STUDIES UP THERE THAT SHOW WINTER IS NOT AS EXCESSIVE AS IT USED TO BE, NOT AS HARSH AS IT USED TO BE, AND IF THE FERRY CAN RUN ALL YEAR AND WE'RE PLAYING GOLF AT THE END OF MARCH IF BAYFIELD, YOU KNOW IT WAS AROUND EASY WINTER. >> THAT'S NOT TOO TERRIBLE. >> WE STILL HAD -- WE GOT A FOOT OF SNOW ON MAY 2 THIS YEAR. >> WHAT IS THE ROUGHLY, AGAIN, NOT TRYING TO PIN YOU DOWN TO A SPECIFIC NUMBER, BUT ROUGHLY, POPULATION IN THE SUMMER AS OPPOSED TO POPULATION IN THE WINTER. >> THE OFFICIAL POPULATION OF BAYFIELD IS 470 PEOPLE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. NOW, A LOT OF THOSE PEOPLE WILL SPEND THE SUMMER AND GO, AND THEN THERE'S THE TOWN OF BAYFIELD AND THE TOWN OF RUSSELL, WHICH INCLUDES THE RED CLIFF RESERVATIONS, I KID ABOUT IT, BUT OUR METRO POPULATION IS 2500. MADELINE ISLAND MIGHT HAVE 200■ç OR 300 THAT STAY YEAR-ROUND AND IN THE SUMMER, IT'S A WHOLE DIFFERENT BALLGAME. THERE ARE THOUSANDS PEOPLE WHO COME UP AND STAY ON THEIR BOATS, SO THEY DON'T NEED A CONDO OR APARTMENT OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. SO IT REALLY BOOMS FROM JULY 1, THROUGH LABOR DAY, AND THEN FALL, WEEKENDS, ARE VERY BUSY AND IT'S GETTING TO BE MORE POPULAR IF WINTER AS WELL. >> I COULD UNDERSTAND THAT. THE BOOK IS WONDERFUL. THIS IS GOING TO MAKE YOU WANT TO MOVE, IT'S CALLED "THIS SUPERIOR PLACE, STORIES OF BAYFIELD AND THE APOSTLE ISLANDS," BY DENNIS MCCANN AND AS ALWAYS, IT'S SUCH A TREAT TO SEE YOU. WHEN YOU COME OFF YOUR BEAUTIFUL ISLAND AND WE GET A CHANCE TO TALK TO YOU. DENNIS, THANKS VERY MUCH FOR BEING WITH US. THANKS FOR BEING WITH US, I HOPE YOU'LL JOIN US NEXT TIME AS WE CONTINUE TO REMEMBER. THANK YOU.