Marquette was founded by Amos Harlow and his expedition leader Peter White. The city was originally named Worcester (pronounced WOOS ter; the “or” spoken like the “oo” in book), after Amos Harlow’s hometown, Worcester, Massachusetts. It is now named for the French explorer Jacques Marquette. Marquette has always been a shipping port for hematite ores and now enriched iron ore pellets from nearby mines and pelletizing plants. The city includes several small islands (principally Middle Island, Gull Island, Lover’s Island, Presque Isle Pt. Rocks, White Rocks, Ripley Rock, and Picnic Rocks) in Lake Superior. The Marquette Underwater Preserve lies immediately offshore. A regional medical center, Marquette General Hospital, serving much of the Upper Peninsula is located in the city. Marquette Mountain, used for skiing, is located in the city, as is the majority of the land of Marquette Branch Prison. Trowbridge Park (an unincorporated part of Marquette Township) is located to the west, and Marquette Township to the northwest of the city.

Marquette is home to the largest wooden dome in the world, the Superior Dome. Northern Michigan University owns the facility and holds its home football games there. The dome also hosts numerous private and public events which draw in thousands from around the region.The area in and around the city is the legendary home of the Marquette Monster, which is depicted at the top of the Old City Hall plaque.

South of the city, K.I. Sawyer AFB, was an important Air Force installation during the Cold War, host to B-52H bombers and KC-135 tankers of the Strategic Air Command, as well as a fighter interceptor squadron. The base closed in September 1995, and is now home to the county’s Sawyer International Airport. In 2004, President George W. Bush made a campaign stop in Marquette, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to visit Michigan’s 

References: Retreived from (https://downtownmarquette.org/history-of-downtown/)