Grand Traverse County is located at the base of two bays separated by a peninsula on Lake Michigan . Indians originally named the area "Omeena," which probably meant, "the point beyond", but in the late 1830's French explorers described the nine mile trail that ran along the Old Mission Peninsula as being "La Grande Traverse", or an awful long distance.   Grand Traverse County is located on the mitt right between the pinky and ring finger in the northwestern Lower peninsula . Grand Traverses' county seat is Traverse City and was first settled in the 1850's by William Boardman, who, with his son established a Lumber Mill near the mouth of the river which is now named after him. Traverse City quickly developed during the lumber boom, due to it's accessibility to shipping on Lake Michigan . In 1852 a man by the name of Peter Dougherty, who was a Presbyterian missionary, planted cherry trees on Old Mission Peninsula . To every ones surprise, the cherry trees flourished, it turns out lake Michigan tempers the Arctic winds in the winter and cools the orchards in the summer. Today, the U. S. cherry industry produces more than 650 million pounds of tart and sweet cherries each year and Michigan grows about 75 percent of the tart cherry crop. Traverse City is recognized as a world leader in cherry production and is even nicknamed the Cherry Capitol of the World. Every summer since 1926 Traverse City celebrates the National Cherry Festival which boasts an attendance of over a half million people for the eight day event.   Today Grand Traverse is primarily a vacation community sought for not only its beautiful Lake Michigan coastline, but also the many lakes and forests that are all over the county.

Grand Traverse County Websites and Locations of Interest

http://www.infomi.com/county/grandtraverse/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Traverse_County%2C_Michigan