Maritime Speaker Series: The Ledge, the Lake, and the Limestone

How the Niagara Escarpment impacted the stone industry and maritime development of Door County

Sturgeon Bay, Wis. (January 23, 2025) – The next presentation of the 2024-2025 Door County Medical Center Maritime Speaker Series will be held both in person and online on Thursday, February 6 at 7pm,featuring The Ledge, the Lake, and the Limestone: How the Niagara Escarpment impacted the stone industry and maritime development of Door County,by Don Mikulic of the Weis Earth Science Museum in Menasha, WI.

During the 19th century, the extensive rock exposures of Door County’s Niagara Escarpment were the primary source of Lake Michigan’s stone construction materials. In the 1830s, the Federal government undertook harbor construction projects on the lake and directed contractors to use the easily accessible stone found along the county’s shores. Without a road or railroad system, the only way to transport this stone was by boat, and for almost one hundred years, Door County stone quarries dominated this maritime industry. By the mid- 1900s, however, Michigan limestone used in the developing Great Lakes steel industry replaced Door County as a source for stone shipped on the Lakes. The remnants of the county’s stone industry can still be seen in its parks and buildings.

Dr. Don Mikulic is a retired Senior Paleontologist from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Urbana, Illinois. His Ph.D. in Geology is from Oregon State University. He is the Curator of the Weis Earth Science Museum in Menasha, WI.

Don has been involved in the Niagara Escarpment Resource Network since its inception. His lifelong research focuses on the Silurian geology and paleontology of Wisconsin and northern Illinois. Don has also researched the history of the region’s lime and stone industry. Along with the late Joanne Kluessendorf, he has written successful Wisconsin-based nominations for the National Historic Landmarks program for the National Park Service and established parks and other geology-related protected sites. Most recently, he was responsible for the designation of the 1st North American Geo-Collection (Greene Collection, UWM) by the International Commission on Geoheritage.

Each Fall, Winter and Spring, the Door County Maritime Museum hosts experts and interesting characters from around the country for the Maritime Speaker Series (presented in partnership with series sponsor the Door County Medical Center). The Maritime Speaker Series offers an assortment of monthly programs – from historical topics to current issues affecting the Great Lakes and the economy that relies on them.

The Door County Medical Center Maritime Speaker Series programs are held the first Thursday of each month, October through May, beginning at 7pm, on the second floor of the Museum in Sturgeon Bay, as well as online. There is no cost to attend; we suggest bringing a donation of a non-perishable food item, or if watching online, we ask you to donate to your local food pantry.

More information, and a link to register for online presentations, is available at https://dcmm.org/seaperch/maritime-speaker-series/.

Remaining 2024-2025 Speaker Series Lineup

March 6: The Anderson Dock, presented by Jeff O’Keefe;
April 3: A Bridge Eye View: Stories from 40 Years of Tending Sturgeon Bay’s Bridges by Sonja Polster with special guest Rose Pipkorn

Additional in-kind support for the Door County Medical Center Maritime Speaker Series is provided by Bridgeport Resort.

For questions about the Maritime Speaker Series, please email Andrea Stromeyer, Educational Programs Coordinator, at astromeyer@dcmm.org.

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