Map of proposed state of Superior, indicating areas consistently included (darker), and those included less commonly (lighter).

The State of Superior (or State of Ontonagon) is a proposed "51st state" that would be created by the secession of the Upper Peninsula from the rest of Michigan, named for adjacent Lake Superior. Some proposals would also incorporate territory from the northern Lower Peninsula, northern Wisconsin, and even Minnesota. The proposals are spurred by cultural differences, geographic separation from Lower Michigan, and a belief that the problems of the "Superior Region" are ignored by distant state governments. When the Northwest Territory was being organized by the fledgling U.S. government, Thomas Jefferson proposed a state which he named Sylvania, including the Upper Peninsula and territory that is now northern Wisconsin and northeastern Minnesota.[1] The idea has gained serious attention at times, but faces substantial practical obstacles.

Issues

The Upper Peninsula is separated from the Lower Peninsula by the Straits of Mackinac, and was not included in initial proposals to form the state of Michigan, but rather added by the federal government in the settlement of the Toledo War with Ohio.[2][3] The Lower Peninsula developed an economy based on agriculture and manufacturing, while the Upper Peninsula's became based on forestry and mining. Travel between the two peninsulas remained difficult (especially in winter),[4] and the people of the Upper Peninsula developed a distinct cultural identity as "Yoopers" (derived from "U.P.-ers"). Later, as the mining industry declined, Yoopers came to feel that their concerns were ignored by the state government, which was dominated by the populous cities of southern Lower Michigan.[5]

The construction of the Mackinac Bridge in 1957 created a direct highway connection to the rest of the state, and tourism by Lower Michigan residents has grown substantially, creating greater economic and social connection.[2] Secession from Michigan would require approval from the state legislature, and there is little support for it in the Lower Peninsula. There are also questions about Superior's viability as a separate state. The region receives a large amount of funding from the Michigan government based on tax revenue from the Lower Peninsula.[2] If it were just the Upper Peninsula, it would have a smaller population than any other state, with its 311,361 residents representing only 60 percent of Wyoming's population.[6][7] It would rank 40th in land area, slightly larger than Maryland.[8][9] Its most populous city, Marquette, has a population of about 21,000; currently, the smallest city that is the largest of its state is Burlington, Vermont, with 43,000 people.

History

The state of Michigan was admitted to the Union in 1837, incorporating both the Upper and Lower Peninsulas. Efforts for the U.P. to secede and form a new state date to 1858, when a convention was held in Ontonagon, Michigan, for the purpose of combining the Upper Peninsula, northern Wisconsin, and northeast Minnesota into a new state to be called either Superior or Ontonagon.[10] At the time, The New York Times editorialized:

Unless Congress should interpose objections, which cannot reasonably be apprehended, we see no cause why the new "State of Ontonagon" should not speedily take her place as an independent member of the union.[11]

In 1897, another proposal for creating a state of Superior included areas in the Upper Peninsula along with portions of Wisconsin.[12]

In 1959, following the statehood of Alaska and Hawaii, Ironwood, Michigan resident Ted Albert sued for "divorce" between the two peninsulas.[3][13]

In 1962, an Upper Peninsula Independence Association was founded to advocate for the formation of a state of Superior. A secession bill was submitted to the Michigan Legislature, and 20,000 petition signatures were collected—36,000 short of the number needed—for a ballot referendum on separation.[14]

Efforts continued into the mid-1970s (one bumper sticker suggested naming the 51st state "North Michigan"), when residents of the Upper Peninsula and northern Wisconsin, each resentful of perceived tax drains and other slights from their downstate cousins, and fears that environmental regulations would harm their economies, worked together to pursue the desired legislation.[15][2] Several prominent legislators, including Upper Peninsula politician Dominic Jacobetti, attempted enacting such legislation in the 1970s, with no success.[16]

Some support for statehood still exists in the region,[17] although no organized movement was active as of 2012.[18]

References

  1. ^ Trinklein, Michael J. (2010). Lost States: True Stories of Texlahoma, Transylvania, and Other States That Never Made It. Quirk Books. ISBN 978-1-59474-410-5.
  2. ^ a b c d Freedman, Eric. "Remembering the UP's break-away movement". City Pulse. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Michigans Superior Notion". thegreatlakespilot.com. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  4. ^ Murphy, Tim. "A 51st State In…Michigan?". Mother Jones. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  5. ^ Drew, Riley (July 5, 2017). "A Case for a New State: The State of Superior". Medium. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  6. ^ "Population". State of Wyoming. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
  7. ^ Magnaghi, Russell (2007). "Understanding Two Centuries of Census Data of Michigan's Upper Peninsula" (PDF). Northern Michigan University. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
  8. ^ "Michigan's Upper Peninsula" (PDF). Lake Superior Community Partnership. February 2014. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
  9. ^ "States: Ranked by Size & Population". Stately Knowledge: Facts about the United States. ipl2. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
  10. ^ "New state convention". Superior Chronicle. August 3, 1858. p. 3.
  11. ^ "A New State: Ontonagon". The New York Times. April 6, 1858. p. 4.
  12. ^ "The State of Superior". The Washington Post. October 3, 1897. p. 6.
  13. ^ Cox, Bruce K. (2010). Ted & Superior: Ted Albert & the 51st State of Superior. Wakefield, Michigan: Agogeebic Press LLC. ISBN 978-0-9822390-0-1.
  14. ^ Binder, David (September 14, 1995). "Upper Peninsula Journal: Yes, They're Yoopers, and Proud of It". The New York Times. p. A16.
  15. ^ "51st State". NBC Evening News. August 8, 1975. Retrieved November 6, 2006.
  16. ^ "The Dominic J. Jacobetti Collection". Northern Michigan University Archives. Retrieved August 18, 2011.
  17. ^ "The U.P. a State of Its Own?". Upper Michigan's Source. Negaunee, MI: WLUC-TV. May 1, 2012. Archived from the original on July 24, 2015.
  18. ^ "51st state? Yoopers Are Talking Up Secession from Michigan Again". Detroit Free Press. May 6, 2012.

Further reading

  • Carter, James L. (1980). Superior: A State for the North Country. Marquette, MI: Pilot Press. ISBN 99947-59-02-7.
  • Cox, Bruce K. (2009). Ted & Superior: Ted Albert & the 51st State of Superior. Wakefield, MI: Agogeebic Press. ISBN 978-0-9822390-0-1.

External links

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