Escanaba, Michigan

Escanaba

Escanaba

Escanaba, commonly shortened to Esky, is a port city in and the county seat of Delta County in the U.S. state of Michigan, located on Little Bay de Noc in the state's Upper Peninsula. The population was 12,450 at the 2020 census, making it the third-largest city in the Upper Peninsula after Marquette and Sault Ste. Marie.

Escanaba, Michigan in United States features restaurants and cafés, hotels and lodging, attractions and museums, shops and services. Townapedia indexed 797 establishments across categories. Population: ~12575.

Quick Facts
Population: 12,575
Elevation: 600.4 ft (183.0 m)
County: Delta County
State: Michigan
Coords: 45.7455707, -87.0647434
Weather
☀️ Weather Now
43.0°F
💨 Wind: 9.4 mph
10-Day Outlook
2025-10-19
☁️
56.8° / 43.0°
2025-10-20
🌧️
57.4° / 36.5°
2025-10-21
⛈️
53.6° / 41.5°
2025-10-22
🌦️
47.1° / 40.5°
2025-10-23
🌦️
46.0° / 37.9°
2025-10-24
☁️
51.6° / 31.8°
2025-10-25
☁️
54.1° / 36.5°
2025-10-26
☁️
56.3° / 45.1°
2025-10-27
☁️
58.5° / 53.2°
2025-10-28
🌦️
61.3° / 55.9°

Local Sites & Resources

Local News

Top 10 Restaurants in Escanaba

Donut Connection

Donut Connection

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Little Caesars

Little Caesars

Cuisine: pizza • Brand: Little Caesars

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Mo's Pub

Mo's Pub

Cuisine: american • Hours: Mo-Su 11:00-22:00; Fr,Sa 11:00-23:00

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Hong King Buffet

Hong King Buffet

Cuisine: chinese

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El Patron Mexican Restaurant

El Patron Mexican Restaurant

Cuisine: mexican

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Delft

Delft

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Hereford & Hops

Hereford & Hops

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Earnie's Irish Pub

Earnie's Irish Pub

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McDonald's

McDonald's

Cuisine: burger • Brand: McDonald's

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Subway

Subway

Cuisine: sandwich • Brand: Subway

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Top 10 Hotels in Escanaba

Econo Lodge

Econo Lodge

Brand: Econo Lodge

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Lincoln Host Motor Inn

Lincoln Host Motor Inn

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Haiwatha Motel

Haiwatha Motel

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Delta Inn Motel

Delta Inn Motel

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Magnuson Grand Pioneer Inn and Suites

Magnuson Grand Pioneer Inn and Suites

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Comfort Suites

Comfort Suites

Brand: Comfort Suites

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Super 8

Super 8

Brand: Super 8

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Americas Best Value Inn

Americas Best Value Inn

Brand: Americas Best Value Inn

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Quality Inn & Suites

Quality Inn & Suites

Brand: Quality Inn & Suites

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Top 10 Businesses in Escanaba

The Store

The Store

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Jim's South Side

Jim's South Side

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Bertrands Awards & Engraving

Bertrands Awards & Engraving

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4-Paws Grooming

4-Paws Grooming

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Jake's Auto

Jake's Auto

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The Golden Comb

The Golden Comb

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Serenty Salon

Serenty Salon

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Sweet Repeats

Sweet Repeats

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Reflections Hair Salon

Reflections Hair Salon

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Delta Vending Services

Delta Vending Services

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Top 10 Attractions in Escanaba

Cornerstone Community Church

Cornerstone Community Church

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Family Life Center

Family Life Center

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Ludington Park Disc Golf

Ludington Park Disc Golf

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Royce Park

Royce Park

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Upper Peninsula State Fair Grounds

Upper Peninsula State Fair Grounds

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Ludington Park

Ludington Park

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Stephenson Park

Stephenson Park

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Rose Park

Rose Park

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Veterans Park

Veterans Park

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Harbor Hideout

Harbor Hideout

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History of Escanaba

Many native tribes have inhabited the area along Green Bay that is today Escanaba, including the Noquet, Potawatomi, Menominee and Ojibwe. "Escanaba" was the name of an Ojibwe village in this area in the early 19th century. The Ojibwa are one of the Anishinaabe, Algonquian-speaking tribes who settled and flourished around the Great Lakes. The word "Escanaba" roughly translates from Ojibwe and other regional Algonquian languages to "land of the red buck", although some people maintain that it refers to "flat rock".

As a European-American settlement, Escanaba was founded in 1863 as a port town by surveyor Eli P. Royce. Early industry was the processing and harvesting of lumber, dominated in this area by Daniel Wells Jr., Jefferson Sinclair, and Nelson Ludington. Ludington later moved his headquarters to Chicago, where he also entered banking. I. Stephenson established a successor lumber company in the area and also became a capitalist.

Before the war, iron ore was being mined from the Marquette Iron Range, which shipped out on barges from Escanaba. By the time of the American Civil War, this port was important to the Union as a shipping point for these ores, in addition to lumber. The Menominee Range and Gogebic Range of Michigan became important for iron ore after the war, in the 1880s. In 1994, Michigan produced about 25% of the iron ore nationally. Initially lumber was still integral to shipbuilding, and supported the construction of houses in cities throughout the developing Midwest. Iron ore supported industrialization, and became part of steel and other industries in the Midwest. As shipping increased, a lighthouse was needed to warn of a sand shoals in Little Bay de Noc, which extended from Sand Point, a sandspit located just south of and adjacent to the harbor area. The United States Lighthouse Service approved construction of the Sand Point Lighthouse at a cost of $11,000. Construction began in the fall of 1867 and was completed in early spring 1868.

Until 2017, Escanaba continued to be an important shipping point for iron ore to other Great Lakes ports, especially south to Chicago and northern Indiana. The local paper mill, for many years owned by Mead Corporation's Publishing Paper Division, was operated by the Verso Corporation until 2022 when it was sold to Billerud. Located on the outskirts of the city alongside the Escanaba River, in 2018 the mill was Escanaba's largest employer.