In 1852, Ontonagon County was created.

It was not until March 1,1863 when Abraham Lincoln signed into law an act that created the "Military Road" that travel was possible to Ontonagon, but only in the winter because the road was too muddy in the spring...

In those earliest years of Michigan's county organizations, Ontonagan County extended west to the Montreal River on the Wisconsin border and included two townships - Ontonagon and Pewabic. Pewabic included the present townships of Carp Lake, Matchwood, Bergland, and all of present Gogebic County. Bessemer's origins are traced back to Ontonagon County.

In 1882, a few log cabins were built. The first frame building in Bessemer was the Dolan House constructed in 1883 by Bingham and Perrin. It was a railroad boarding house operated by Pat Dolan. The Dolan house of logs was one of the first built on what is now East Mary Street. Bessemer was a heavily timbered region which would later lead to the lumber industry. Mining began in 1883.

"In 1883, the Chicago and Northwestern Railway reached Watersmeet and with the discovery of ore in the western part of Gogebic County decided to extend its line west to Bessemer rather than north to Ontonagon. The railroad reached Bessemer in the summer of 1884."

By 1884, the Milwaukee Lake Shore and Western Railroad (later the Chicago and Northwestern) was being built from Antigo, WI to Ashland, WI by way of the new mines. The railroad company platted the town of Bessemer in 1884. The President of the railroad named the town in honor of Sir Henry Bessemer, who discovered the smelting process which bears his name. It was in 1884 that the first shipment of iron ore from the entire Gogebic Range was shipped from this site, then the Colby Mine.

By 1885 a boom was on in the city and people began to filter into Bessemer in increasing numbers.Mining was the major industry and as more mines were developed, nearly every home boarded men. Some homes had as many as 21 men at a time and a hired girl helped cook, clean, wash the miners clothes, and make their lunch pails. The miner was paid from $1.05 to $2.00 per day, the hired girl was paid $8.00 per month.

Conditions in the mines were dangerous and unsanitary. There was no electricity and early miners wore a candle in their hats for light. Mules were used to haul the ore out and kept in the mines so long that they would go blind.

The railroad was finished to Ashland and ore from the Colby open pit mine was hauled by horse teams to the railroad line by the First and Last Chance Saloon which is the present corner of old County Road and Fourth Street. Here it was dumped into railroad cars and shipped to the Ashland ore docks. The first mining accident on the Gogebic Range occurred at the Colby mine in 1885 when Herman Rubert, his son, and William Rowe were killed instantly by a cave-in.

Reverend D.S. Banks, a Presbyterian minister, was the first clergyman in Bessemer. He held the first church services here on November 29, 1885. Father Hennesy, a Roman Catholic priest, arrived in 1886, and Reverend Philip Price, a Methodist minister, came in 1887. The first church service was held in 1885 by Rev. D. S. Banks a Presbyterian minister, and Rev. Father Hennesy, a Roman Catholic priest, arrived in 1886.

Miners were usually paid in gold which caused frequent robberies. This was a problem since the Sheriff was in the county seat in Ontonagon miles away. Communication was difficult. Thus, by 1887, Bessemer was a wide open town with fifty saloons and with little regard for the law. Almost all of the early settlers were young people who were husky and were not afraid of hard work and privation. First came a group of mixed Americans, surveyors, prospectors who laid bare the iron ore deposits. Then came the miners. The Cornish, Irish, Scandinavian, French Canadian, and Polish. The latter were mainly railroad workers, also Finns and a few Jews.

The first meeting of the Gogebic County Board of Supervisors was held in April of 1887. As much as there was no county court house building, the offices and meeting places were on the second story of the new Home Block in the city on Bessemer. Eventually, in 1888, a courthouse and a jail were built out of Lake Superior brownstone.

The population of Bessemer, Michigan in 1888 was 5, 876. The town which was later incorporated as a city in 1889 was named after Sir Henry Bessemer who had been the inventor of a iron and steel manufacturing process.

Bessemer has had three different types of government since its founding. From 1884 to 1887 it was a part of Bessemer Township. From 1887 to 1889, Bessemer was a village. During the heated election in 1887 on the location of the county seat, Bessemer voted four times its population, while Ironwood polled three times as many votes as its population. In March 1887, 360 voting members assembled and voted to organize the village of Bessemer. In he same year Gogebic County was officially created by the Michigan Legislature. Also in the year Bessemer and Ironwood called an election to see which city would be the county seat and also have the Court House. Ironwood secured the support of the railroad workers and people in Watersmeet. When Bessemer pioneers Paul Rutiman, Sr. and Joe Pecard found out about this, they plotted to change Ironwood's plan. Ironwood men traveling to Bessemer to vote were made drunk and the train did not stop at the voting site. Ironwood lost and Bessemer gained the county seat. This began a rivalry between the two cities that sill has not ended even today. The site selected to build the court house was the cemetery, as a result bodies were removed to the new cemetery Hillcrest. One far sighted individual suggested that the court house be built of stone rather that wood.

In 1888, there were two newspapers, the Pick and Axe, and The Spirit: and two railroads, the Milwaukee Lake Shore & Western, and the Wisconsin Central.

In 1889, Bessemer was incorporated as a city. C.M. Ross was its first mayor.

The first fire department in Bessemer was operated in part on a competitive basis. When the fire occurred, an alarm was sounded. The first person to arrive at the fire hall with a team of horses was given the job of pulling the wagon to the fire. In 1889, a fire swept through Bessemer. Had it not been for the help of bucket brigades from Ironwood and Hurley the entire town would have been destroyed.

By 1890, Bessemer, built close to the Colby mine, had 48 saloons, 18 boarding houses, 15 hotels, 5 restaurants, 3 grocery stores, 3 photographers, 2 jewelers, 2 newspapers, 3 doctors, and 6 lawyers.

The courthouse was enlarged in 1915, and the same structure is still in daily use by the county officers and supervisors. A new jail was completed on May 8, 1965.

In 1966 the last mine in Bessemer, the Peterson Mine was closed. Many left the area to work in car factories in Kenosha, and the local economy underwent a serious decline. Stability has returned to the area as many of these jobs have been replaced with jobs in the service industry, health care, and small manufacturing.

Today the City of Bessemer's industries are mainly logging & lumbering and tourism. Four season sports helps it to continue to grow.

The City of Bessemer where the Gogebic County Sheriff Department is located is the county seat of Gogebic County. Its population in 1990 according to the U.S. Census was 2,272 people.

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LITTLE KNOWN FACTS ABOUT THE BESSEMER AREA