When the First Michigan Infantry mustered into federal service on May 1, 1861, just two weeks after the fall of Fort Sumter heralded civil war, President Abraham Lincoln is said to have breathed, "Thank God for Michigan."

It was not Michigan's manpower alone that helped preserve the Union.  According to Thomas Friggens, a regional manager with the Michigan Historical Center, "its iron ore resources fueled industrial might that saved a nation." 

"President and Mrs. Lincoln" - portrayed by Fred and Bonnie Priebe of Belleville, Mich. - will be among a distinguished group of speakers, actors and musicians when the Michigan Iron Industry Museum presents a full schedule of Civil War-related programs on Saturday, Aug. 1, and Sunday, Aug. 2.  The two-day special event - "Iron Ore and the Civil War" - will combine a living-history encampment, demonstrations, period music, children's games and dramatic performances.

The museum is located at 73 Forge Road in Negaunee Township opposite the Negaunee cemetery.  Admission is free; however, donations are welcomed to help support museum education programs.

"From cannons, costumes and demonstrations, to music, actors and kids' games, ‘Iron Ore and the Civil War' is sure to appeal to all manner of Civil War buff," said Friggens.

New to the program this year, "Now ... From the White House" will simulate a presidential press conference in which the audience can participate by asking several prepared questions about the Lincolns' life in the nation's capital.  "President and Mrs. Lincoln" will share information about their sons' antics in the White House, difficulties with generals and Cabinet officials, the election campaign of 1864 and much more.  

Highlighting the weekend event will be Battery D, 1st Michigan Light Artillery, a Civil War-era living history group.  Recreating the volunteer artillery unit organized at White Pigeon, Mich., in 1861, the group will interpret army life of the period, demonstrating artillery and small-arms drills, period cooking and soldiers' pastimes. 

A detachment of Company E, 17th Michigan Infantry will also take part while other re-enactors will interpret civilian life on the periphery of the army camps.  Their combined encampment will feature tents, a full-scale artillery piece, authentically reproduced costumes, cooking gear and other period artifacts.

Kids of all ages can try their hand at 19th-century children's activities or just watch as costumed youth from the museum's student auxiliary - "The Future Historians" - demonstrate croquet, snap-apple, hoop and stick, stilts and blind man's buff.

The sounds of the 1860s will mingle with the smell of wood fires, "Johnny cake" and black powder when the Ishpeming string band "Homegrown Strings" captures the poignancy, patriotism and humor of music from the Civil War era with renditions ranging from Stephen Foster's "Hard Times" to "Just Before the Battle, Mother" and "Goober Peas."  For more than a dozen years, the group has delighted Upper Peninsula audiences with their musicianship, harmonious vocals and an endearing stage presence.  Its musical arrangements include the bass, violin, mandolin, banjo, guitar and trademark hammer dulcimer.

"Michigan's contribution to the war effort was impressive," Friggens said.  "Ninety thousand Michiganians - 50 percent of the state's military-age male population - went to war.  Over 14,000 died."

From 1861 to 1865, Upper Peninsula iron mines, including Negaunee's Jackson Mine and Ishpeming's Lake Superior Mine, set production records that fueled the industrial growth of the North as wartime manufacturing expanded to meet the needs of the military, the civilian population and international trade. 

But, the war also brought new challenges to the Marquette Iron Range.  "As a nation," Marquette's Lake Superior News and Mining Journal noted in 1862, "we are consuming more iron than at any former period. ... The difficulty is not now demand or price, but labor - the war has so thinned us out that the men are not left to carry on the mining and manufacture of the country as the agents wish." 

By war's end, despite labor shortages at the mines, Michigan had catapulted from an agrarian economy to industrial prominence.  On Aug. 1-2, "Iron Ore and the Civil War" will commemorate that proud regional heritage.

The Michigan Iron Industry Museum is one of 11 nationally accredited museums administered by the Michigan Historical Center, a public non-profit agency of the Department of History, Arts and Libraries.  It overlooks the site of the Carp River Forge, a pioneer industrial site listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  The recently expanded museum, including a new museum store, is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  For more information call (906) 475-7857 or visit online at www.michigan.gov/ironindustrymuseum.

The Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL) is dedicated to enriching quality of life and strengthening the economy by providing access to information, preserving and promoting Michigan's heritage and fostering cultural creativity.  In addition to the Michigan Historical Center, HAL includes the Library of Michigan, the Mackinac Island State Park Commission and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. To learn more, visit www.michigan.gov/hal.

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