North Country History with Rob Burg
Your podcast on the Forest History of the Great Lakes Region. The forests of the Great Lakes have been home to people for centuries and have provided great resources and wealth, shelter, food, and recreation for many. But in the wake of these uses, the region has been environmentally damaged from deforestation, fire, and erosion, and are still recovering to this day. I will be your guide for exploring the forests and sharing stories of the forests and the people who have called them home.
About Rob Burg: Hi! I'm an environmental historian specializing on the forest history of the Great Lakes Region. I am a mostly lifelong Michigan resident and studied at Eastern Michigan University for both my undergraduate degree in History and graduate studies in Historic Preservation. My 35-year professional life has mostly been in history museums, including the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, the Michigan History Museum, and the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer. I began my environmental history career with managing both the Hartwick Pines Logging Museum and the Civilian Conservation Corps Museum for the Michigan History Museum system, directing the Lovells Museum of Trout Fishing History, archivist for the Devereaux Memorial Library in Grayling, Michigan, and as the Interpretive Resources Coordinator for the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer in Grand Island, Nebraska. I am proud that the first person to ever call me an environmental historian was none other than Dr. William Cronon, the dean of American Environmental History.
North Country History with Rob Burg
Recounting my 2025 Podcast Tour
From July 31-August 16 I went on my first official North Country History Podcast Tour to the Northern Lower Peninsula and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Northern Wisconsin, and Northeastern Minnesota. I visited numerous places, learned a lot of new information and met many great people.
In this final episode of the second season of the podcast, I recount my tour, visiting the numerous places that I stopped at. Many of the places that I visited and the information that I learned will be included in Season Three of the podcast, tentatively to be launched in January 2026.
Places that I Visited on the 2025 Podcast Tour
- Frederic Community Library, Frederic Michigan. I presented my "Deward: Michigan's Last Lumber Boomtown" program. https://www.crawfordcolibrary.org/
- Pigeon River Country State Forest https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/places/state-forests/prc https://pigeonriverdiscoverycenter.org/
- Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park https://www.mackinacparks.com/attraction/historic-mill-creek/
- Birch Lodge, Trout Lake, Michigan https://www.birchlodge.com/
- Fiborn Quarry https://mkc.caves.org/preserve_fiborn.html
- Kitch-iti-kipi, "The Big Spring," Palms Book State Park https://www.michigan.gov/recsearch/parks/PalmsBook
- Peshtigo Fire Museum, Peshtigo, Wisconsin https://peshtigofiremuseum.com/
- Cathedral Pines, Chequamegon-Nicolet, National Forest https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/chequamegon-nicolet/recreation/cathedral-pines
- Lumberjack Steam Train and Camp 5 Museum, Laona, Wisconsin https://www.lumberjacksteamtrain.com/
- Pioneer Park Historical Complex, Rhinelander, Wisconsin https://rhinelanderpphc.com/
- St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin https://www.nps.gov/sacn/index.htm
- Snake River Fur Post, Pine City, Minnesota https://www.mnhs.org/furpost
- Hinckley Fire Museum, Hinckley, Minnesota https://hinckleyfiremuseum.com/
- Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post, Mille Lacs, Minnesota https://www.mnhs.org/millelacs
- Forest History Center, Grand Rapids, Minnesota https://www.mnhs.org/foresthistory
- Ely, Minnesota https://www.ely.org/ https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/superior/offices/kawishiwi-ranger-district
- Gooseberry Falls State Park https://www.exploreminnesota.com/profile/gooseberry-falls-state-park/8224
- Drummond Woods, Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/regions/eastern/DrummondWoods/index.shtml
- Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center, Ashland, Wisconsin https://nglvc.org/
- Ottawa National Forest Visitor Center, Watersmeet, Michigan https://www.fs.usda.gov/r09/ottawa/recreation/ottawa-national-forest-visitor-center
Contact Rob Burg and the North Country History with Rob Burg Podcast: rob.northcountryhistory@gmail.com
Support the podcast: https://northcountryhistorywithrobburg.buzzsprout.com/2422296/supporters/new