Ellison
Bay was founded in 1866 by Johan Berndt Eliason, who came to America from
Denmark. In 1848, Eliason reached Buffalo, New York, where he bought a sizeable
piece of land in Door County through the U.S. government. The U.S. Land Office
later reported the land belonged to "John Ellison" and that the cove
on the property was called "Ellison Bay".
As
in the past, Mother Nature has something special in store for visitors
traveling north of Sister Bay: a breathtaking vista of Ellison Bay from the
crest of a 200-foot-high escarpment. The sight is particularly beautiful when
fall wears its fancy dress.
Visitors
to Ellison Bay will find numerous potters and other artisans plying their
trade.
Two
schools of Adult Learning call Ellison Bay home. The Savory Spoon Cooking
School is a Hands-On recreational cooking school for students with all skill
levels, and a place for people who are passionate about food. North of
Ellison Bay's quaint business district lies The Clearing, a school of the arts,
literature and ecology. The Clearing's campus is set amid a pristine woodland
high above the shores of Green Bay.
Nearby
Newport State Park, a semi-wilderness area, has within its boundaries secluded
hiking and cross-country ski trails.
Gills
Rock was originally known as "Hedgehog Harbor," the name given it by
Washington Island fisherman and boat builder Amos Lovejoy. In 1855, Lovejoy
decided to winter his sloop on the shores of a cove he liked to fish. Over that
winter, a family of hedgehogs, also known as porcupines, moved on board. When
Lovejoy launched his sloop again in spring, he didn't notice the numerous holes
the hedgehogs had chewed in the hull. The boat began taking on water through
those holes and Lovejoy was forced to abandon the sloop and come ashore. The
cove was "Hedgehog Harbor" until 1870 when it and the settlement on
it were renamed Gills Rock in honor of Elias Gill, a prominent lumberer.
At
the very tip of the Door County peninsula lies Gills Rock, where a strong
tradition of commercial fishing continues today. Gills Rock offers divers the
opportunity to explore the many shipwrecks in and around Death's Door. The Door
County maritime museum houses many artifacts from these wrecks and chronicles
the fishing industry.
Ferries
to Washington Island depart regularly from Gills Rock and nearby Northport
Pier.
Four
miles east of Ellison Bay on the Lake Michigan shore lies Rowleys Bay, the
gateway to the Mink River estuary. The Nature Conservancy shoreline of pristine
wilderness is the home of many rare plants, birds and animal life. The cross on
the shoreline is a replica of one built by Jesuit missionaries in the late
1600's. The bay bears the name of Peter Rowley, who lived there during the
middle 1800's.
For
more information, contact the Top-of-the-Thumb Association (May through
October) at (920) 854-5448.