Ontonagon county is located in the northwest corner of Michigan 's Upper Peninsula . Some say the county was named for the river that the Indians called "Nantounagon". In Ojibwa the word "onagon" means "dish" or "bowl." One theory is the name Nantounagon was used to describe the River at Lake Superior that has the bowl-like shaped mouth, another theory says a young Indian girl was washing dishes at the mouth of the river and had a bowl swept away by the current. The county is Ontonagon and it's believed the name was originally discovered written on a Jesuit map in 1672. The county grew quickly when Copper was discovered in the late 1700's which included the "Ontonagon Boulder," which today can be seen at the Smithsonian.   This one rock weighs 3,702 and contains over a ton of pure metal. Word traveled quickly and the copper boom peaked in 1850 and in 1880 the boom was over.   The area quickly rebounded when they began harvesting another natural resource, the vast white pines.   A fire in 1896 wiped out the entire town and its largest producer the Diamond Match Company (which shows why you shouldn't play with matches). The county seat of Ontonagon has the same name and is located at the mouth of the Ontonagon River . Many consider this the "Gateway" to the Porcupine Mountains . The Porcupine Mountains State Park contains over 24 waterfalls including the Presque Isle Falls and Lake of the Clouds, that may not be as big as tahquamanon falls but many say they are more impressive. With dozens of rivers and inland lakes, the Lake Superior coastline, and acres upon acres of wilderness Ontonagon County is a very important part of Outdoor Michigan.

Ontonagon County Websites and Locations of Interest

http://www.ontonagonmi.com/ - Ontonagon County

http://www.ontonagon-telephone.com/company/history.htm - Ontonagon County Telephone Company