| Cadillac, Michigan |
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OVERVIEW Although European explorers and traders visited the area since the 1700s, permanent white settlement did not begin until much later. Initial settlements were connected with the logging industry. Cadillac was originally called Clam Lake and was incorporated as a village in 1874. It changed its name and incorporated as the city of Cadillac three years later in 1877, named after Antoine Laumet De La Mothe, Sieur De Cadillac , a Frenchman who made the first permanent settlement at Detroit in 1701. Many early settlers were Swedish and two of Cadillac's sister cities are Mölnlycke , Sweden , and Rovaniemi , Finland . Cadillac was also home to the Michigan Iron Works Company, which manufactured Shay Locomotive s for a short time in the early 1880s. The 1,150 acre Lake Cadillac is entirely within the city limits, and some claim it is the largest lake entirely in any city in the United States . The larger, 2,580 acre Lake Mitchell is nearby on the west side of the city, with 1,760 feet of shoreline within the city's municipal boundary. The lakes were connected by a stream which was replaced in 1873 by the Clam Lake Canal . Lake Cadillac was formerly known as ''Little Clam Lake'', while Lake Mitchell was ''Big Clam Lake''. Lake Mitchell was renamed for George A. Mitchell , a railroad executive in the 1870s. The canal was featured on Ripley's Believe It Or Not in the 1970s because in winter the canal freezes before the lakes and then after the lakes freeze, the canal thaws and remains unfrozen for the rest of the winter. Although it is illegal to attempt to use a snowmobile to cross the open water on the canal, some individuals occasionally try to do so. Since the decline of the logging industry, tourism become the main industry in Cadillac. However, manufacturing now rivals tourism as the main industry in the city. Cadillac has achieved recognition throughout Michigan as a leader in the growth of industrial development. Industries include the manufacture of pleasure boats, automotive parts, water well components, vacuum cleaners, and rubber products. But year-round tourism is still a mainstay of the local economy. In the summer tourists come for the boating, fishing, hiking, mountain biking and camping. In the fall they come for the hunting and color tours. The winter is possibly the busiest season of all as motels are packed with downhill skiers, cross-country skiers, ice-fishers, snow-shoers and most of all snowmobilers. The North American Snowmobile Festival (NASF) is held on frozen Lake Cadillac every winter. Cadillac sits on the eastern edge of the Manistee National Forest and the surrounding area is heavily wooded with mixed hardwood and conifer forests. The main agricultural industry in the area is Christmas Tree Farming . In fact, Cadillac was chosen in 1988 to donate the Christmas tree to sit on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington D.C. Thirsty's, a gas station on M-55 right outside of Cadillac's city limits, was the home of Samantha or "Sam The Bear" from the 1970s through the late 1990s when Sam died of old age. Sam was the only Brown Bear in captivity in the US, at the time, to hibernate naturally. Sam lived in a large cage in front of the gas station and was lovingly fed ice cream cones by tourists every summer. In October 1975 the rock group KISS played a free concert at Cadillac's Veterans Memorial Stadium. They played the concert to honor the Cadillac High School football team. In previous years, the team had compiled a record of sixteen consecutive victories. But the 1974 squad opened the season with two losses. The assistant coach, Jeff Neff, an English teacher and rock'n'roll fan, thought to inspire the team by playing KISS music in the locker room. He also connected the team's game plan, K-I-S-S or "Keep It Simple Stupid", with the band. The team went on to win seven straight games and their conference co-championship. After learning of their association with the team's success, the band decided to visit the school and play for the homecoming game. {Link without Title} . Based on a single, limited study involving twenty people, some people have labelled Cadillac as one of three "hot spots" for Lou Gehrig's Disease in the US. However, the study made no attempt to ascertain the occurrence of the disease in other parts of the state, or elsewhere in the country. The study was designed to examine the possible occurrence of the disease due to genetic influences. {Link without Title} The occurrence of the disease within the city limits of Cadillac is reportedly over 100 times the normal rate. The cause of the abnormally large occurrence of the disease in Cadillac is as of yet unknown. GEOGRAPHY According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has a total area of 22.3 Km&2 (8.6 Mi&2 ). 17.7 km&2 (6.8 mi&2) of it is land and 4.6 km&2 (1.8 mi&2) of it is water. The total area is 20.70% water. DEMOGRAPHICS As of the Census 2 of 2000, there were 10,000 people, 4,118 households, and 2,577 families residing in the city. The Population Density was 566.1/km&2 (1,466.0/mi&2). There were 4,466 housing units at an average density of 252.8/km&2 (654.7/mi&2). The racial makeup of the city was 96.55% White , 0.21% Black or African American , 0.92% Native American , 0.63% Asian , 0.03% Pacific Islander , 0.28% from Other Races , and 1.38% from two or more races. 1.18% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 4,118 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.9% were Married Couples living together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.96. In the city the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,899, and the median income for a family was $36,825. Males had a median income of $29,773 versus $21,283 for females. The Per Capita Income for the city was $16,801. 13.7% of the population and 10.9% of families were below the Poverty Line . 15.4% of those under the age of 18 and 13.3% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. COLLEGES EXTERNAL LINKS |
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