MARINETTE

city, seat (1879) of Marinette county, northeastern Wisconsin, U.S., port of entry at the mouth of the Menominee River, opposite Menominee, Mich., on Green Bay of Lake Michigan. A trading post established in 1795 by Stanislaus Chappu, an American Fur Company agent, formed the nucleus of the original settlement, which was named for Marinette Chevalier, the daughter of a Menominee Indian chief, who married William Farnsworth, a noted fur trader of the 1820s. Logging was the main occupation, but after about 1900 it gave way to diversified manufacturing. Principal products include chemicals and wood, paper, and auto parts. A Great Lakes port, the city is in the Near North resort area and is known for its smelt fishing. A centre of the University of Wisconsin is located there. Inc. 1887. Pop. (1990) 11,843.