Traverse City

The Anishinaabe — Odawa (Ottawa) and Ojibwe (Chippewa) — have lived around Grand Traverse Bay for centuries. The name comes from French fur traders and voyageurs, who called the open-water crossing at the bay's mouth la grande traverse, "the long crossing". In 1839 the Presbyterian missionary Peter Dougherty set up a mission on the peninsula that still carries the name Old Mission.

The town itself began in the late 1840s as a sawmill on the Boardman River. In 1851 the Chicago firm of Hannah, Lay & Co. bought it, and Perry Hannah, often called the father of Traverse City, built it into a lumber town. The railway arrived in the 1870s, and in 1885 the Northern Michigan Asylum opened on the west side, becoming one of the town's largest employers for a century.

As the forests were cut out, farmers planted fruit, and by the 1920s the area had become a centre of tart cherry growing, celebrated from 1925 with blossom festivals that grew into the National Cherry Festival. Tourism grew alongside it as roads improved and summer visitors came from Detroit and Chicago. The asylum closed in 1989, and its buildings were later restored as the Grand Traverse Commons. Since the 1970s wineries have spread across the peninsulas, and the town has become a year-round regional centre.

Traverse City's identity is bound up with cherries, the bay and the outdoors. The National Cherry Festival in July is the town's great event, and the cherry appears on everything from pies to beer. Summer life centres on the water — sailing, kayaking and swimming off the downtown beaches — and winter on cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and the trails.

The town has a lively arts scene for its size. The restored City Opera House and the State Theatre on Front Street host films, concerts and talks; the Dennos Museum Center is known for its Inuit art; and the Interlochen Center for the Arts, an arts boarding school and summer camp nearby, brings young musicians and performers to the area. Film has a special place: the downtown State Theatre is run by the Traverse City Film Festival, with a year-round programme of films and live performances.

The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians is a federally recognised tribe based on the Leelanau Peninsula, and Anishinaabe culture is part of the region's identity. People here are friendly and informal, and the town's character changes sharply between the busy summer months and the quieter rest of the year.

About 16,000 people live in the city itself and more than 150,000 in the wider area of surrounding counties. Traverse City is the main service centre for northern Lower Michigan, with the region's largest hospital, Munson Medical Center, Northwestern Michigan College, government offices and shopping.

Tourism, healthcare, agriculture and wine are central to the economy, and a growing number of remote workers and retirees have moved to the area. That popularity has a cost: housing is scarce and expensive, and many service workers struggle to find somewhere affordable to live. Summer traffic on the main roads along the bay is a regular complaint.

Life follows the seasons. Summer is crowded and busy, with festivals, boats and visitors; autumn brings the harvest and wine-tasting crowds; winter is quiet, snowy and focused on locals, with skiing and indoor life in the cafés and breweries. Many residents work seasonal jobs and juggle more than one income.

Cherries are everywhere. The area's orchards are known for tart cherries such as the Montmorency, used mainly for pies, jams and preserves; sweet cherries are grown too. Cherry pie, cherry salsa and dried cherries are sold in shops and farm stands, and in July many roadside stands sell fresh fruit straight from the orchard.

Lake Michigan whitefish is the classic local fish, served grilled, broiled or fried, and smoked whitefish spread is a common snack. Leland's Fishtown sells smoked fish from historic fishing shanties. Pasties — pastry turnovers filled with meat and vegetables, brought to Michigan by Cornish miners — are found in northern Michigan too, though they are more strongly linked to the Upper Peninsula.

The Old Mission and Leelanau peninsulas produce cool-climate wines, especially Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris, and their tasting rooms are a major draw. Craft breweries and cider makers have spread through downtown and the countryside, using local hops, apples and cherries. Farm-to-table restaurants make use of the region's fruit, vegetables and fish, and the downtown farmers' market is busy through the growing season.