1946 Map of Fortune Lakes

About this map

The Iron County Forest Reserve anchors this mid-century look at Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where the landscape is defined by a dense network of glacial lakes and mining-era industrial footprints. The transition from active resource extraction to public recreation is evident at Bewabic Park on the shores of First Lake, part of the larger Fortune Lakes chain. The map details the scattered residential patterns characteristic of the region's mining history, notably at New Bristol Location and Dunn Location, which served as worker settlements. Transportation corridors are well-established, with the Milwaukee St Paul and Pacific and Chicago and Northwestern railroads cutting through the terrain to connect remote outposts like Pentoga to regional markets. Numerous water bodies, including the sprawling Chicagon Lake and smaller basins like Mastodon Lake, illustrate the complex drainage patterns feeding into Fortune Creek and Alpha Creek.