Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By ZACHARY MARANO
The Iron County Heritage Festival, a series of events that aim to tell the full story of the Wisconsin county from past to present, starts on Friday and will continue through Aug. 14.
The first event is appropriately an open house at the Iron County Historical Museum on 303 Iron St. in Hurley from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday. According to travelwisconsin.com, the museum offers “three floors of intriguing, nostalgic and educational exhibits – including logging, mining, farming, weaving, clothing, home furnishings and an interesting library.” Admission is free during the open house, but the historical society will be accepting donations.
Also on Friday, there will be a “two-person scramble” golf tournament sponsored by the Hurley Quarterback Club at the Eagle Bluff Golf Course in Hurley starting at 11 a.m. and a Highline Corporation Open House from 1-3 p.m., with tours at 2 p.m.
On July 30, the Hurley Education Foundation will be introducing new inductees into their list of distinguished Hurley K-12 alumni and friends at 10 a.m. in the school auditorium followed by a Hurley Quarterback Club induction ceremony at noon in the same location. The ceremonies will be preceded by an open house from 8-10 a.m. featuring a complimentary breakfast, school tours by the National Honor Society and the grand opening of the school’s new science lab.
The official kickoff of the heritage festival will be the Silver Street parade, which happens after the Hurley Education Foundation events at the school. The parade will feature the usual flair of marching bands, parade floats and emergency vehicles. The parade will line up at 1 p.m. on July 30 and starts at 2 p.m. For more details, call the Hurley Chamber of Commerce at 715-208-0902.
Some graduating classes from Hurley are returning to the hometown with floats in the parade. An all-class reunion will be held from 4-9 p.m. at the Iron County Memorial Building in Hurley.
One of the most popular Heritage Festival events is Mercer Loon Day. The local holiday features a craft show all around Mercer from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 3 that will have over 250 vendors this year, live music, raffles and a loon calling contest. On Aug. 2, there will also a “Night Before Loon Day” street dance in front of the town hall with live music by the band In the Groove.
The Iron County Fair will be held from Aug. 4-7 at the Iron County Fair Grounds in Saxon. The fair has its own series of events including carnival rides, horse events, music, food and exhibits. For a full list, see ironcountyfairwi.net/schedule.
After being cancelled in 2021 because of safety concerns with the COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin’s oldest marathon, the Paavo Nurmi, is returning for its 52nd year. Named after the Olympic long-distance runner from Finland, the marathon includes four categories: a marathon, half marathon, two-person relay and five-person relay. The marathons, relays and a new “bike the Paavo” event will all start in the town Upson on State Highway 77 from 6:45-7 a.m. on Aug. 13.
Registration for the Paavo Nurmi Marathon will be open online and in-person at Hurley K-12 from 3-7 p.m. on Aug. 12, where there will also be a spaghetti fundraiser for the Hurley American Legion. A special dedication including music, entertainment and a torch lighting will be held at the trailhead in downtown Hurley at 7 on the same day.
On Aug. 13, the last day of the festival, there will a pig and corn roast at Midway Bar in Butternut from 4-7 p.m. with a raffle fundraiser for the Turtle Flambeau Flowage Association. There will also be a corn roast at the Springstead Town Hall in Park Falls from noon to 6 p.m. on the same day.