Marquette, Michigan

Marquette, Michigan
Marquette skyline from Marquette Mountain
Lower Harbor Ore Dock
Downtown Marquette
Nickname(s): 
"Queen City (of the North)", "MQT"
Coordinates: 46°32′37″N 87°23′44″W / 46.54361°N 87.39556°W / 46.54361; -87.39556
CountryUnited States
StateMichigan
CountyMarquette
Settled1844
Incorporated1849 (village)
1871 (city)
Named afterJacques Marquette
Government
  TypeCity commission
  MayorSally Davis
  ManagerKaren Kovacs
Area
  City
19.40 sq mi (50.24 km2)
  Land11.34 sq mi (29.36 km2)
  Water8.06 sq mi (20.87 km2)
Elevation
633 ft (203 m)
Population
 (2020)
  City
20,629
  Density1,819.62/sq mi (702.55/km2)
  Metro
67,077
Time zoneUTC−5 (EST)
  Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP code(s)
49855
Area code906
FIPS code26-51900
GNIS feature ID0631600
Websitemarquettemi.gov

Marquette (/mɑːrˈkɛt/ mar-KET) is the county seat of Marquette County and the largest city in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, United States. Located on the shores of Lake Superior, Marquette is a major port known primarily for shipping iron ore from the Marquette Iron Range. The city is partially surrounded by Marquette Township, but the two are administered autonomously.

Marquette is named after Jacques Marquette, a French Jesuit missionary who had explored the Great Lakes region. Marquette had a population of 20,629 at the 2020 census, making it the largest city in Michigan north of the Tri-Cities. Marquette is also the third-largest American city on Lake Superior, behind Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. Marquette's urban area extends south toward the community of Harvey and west toward Negaunee and Ishpeming, at the base of the Huron Mountains.

Marquette is the home of Northern Michigan University (NMU), a four-year public university. NMU's athletic teams are nicknamed the Wildcats and compete primarily in the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). The men's ice hockey team, which competes in the NCAA Division I Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA), won the Division I national championship in 1991.