Door Peninsula
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The Door Peninsula is a peninsula in eastern Wisconsin, separating the southern part of the Bay of Green Bay from Lake Michigan. The peninsula begins in northern Brown and Kewaunee counties and proceeds north to include the bulk of Door County. Well known for its cherry and apple orchards, the Door Peninsula is a popular tourism destination. With the 1882 completion of the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal, the northern half of the peninsula became an island.
Limestone outcroppings, part of the Niagara Escarpment, are visible on both shores of the peninsula, but are larger and more prominent on the Green Bay side. Progressions of dunes have created much of the rest of the shoreline, especially on the easterly side. Flora along the shore provides clear evidence of plant succession. The middle of the peninsula is mostly flat, cultivated land. Beyond the northern tip of the peninsula are a procession of islands, largest of which is Washington Island. The partially submerged ridge extends further north, becoming the Garden Peninsula in Upper Michigan.
History
Archealogical evidence shows habitation of the peninsula and its islands by several different Native American groups. Two locations on the peninsula claim to be the landing site of French explorer Jean Nicolet in 1634, who was searching for a water route through North America to Asia: Horseshoe Island and Red Banks, which is about 7 miles north of what is now Green Bay. Nicolet is remembered in Wisconsin lore for having mistaken the Ho-Chunk Indians for Asians and celebrating, believing he had reached the Far East.The name of the peninsula and the county comes from the name of a route between Green Bay and Lake Michigan. Humans, whether Native Americans, early explorers, or American ship captains, have been well aware of the dangerous water passage that lies between the Door Peninsula and Washington Island, connecting the bay to the rest of Lake Michigan. This small strait, now littered with shipwrecks, earned the French name Porte des Mort Passage: in English, "Death's Door Passage".
External links
- [Door County tourism information] from TravelWisconsin.com
- [Door County Chamber of Commerce]
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