Manitowoc’s reputation as one of the Midwest’s best tourist and recreation spots is no surprise considering the wealth of natural beauty and facilities available. The weather is accommodating year round, making the area ideal for campers and adventurers. Water lovers and boaters can charter a craft through licensed firms at the city’s marinas and explore the majesty of Lake Michigan. Anglers can return to the inland sea for the big one that got away or test their skills in local streams and rivers that are teeming with fish.

The Manitowoc County Planning and Park Commission maintains four inland lakes (Carstens, English, Gass, and Hartlaub) southwest of the city, that have fishing piers, boat ramps, and trailer parking. English Lake is the deepest in the county and has picnic facilities as well.

Northwest of Two Rivers is a two-acre public access to West Twin River that also has boating and picnic facilities.

Sportsmen, hunters, and wildlife enthusiasts will find plenty of opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors among the region’s thousands of acres of natural woodlands and campgrounds. Point Beach State Forest is 2,900 acres of forested land that borders on six miles of sandy Lake Michigan beach just north of Two Rivers.

The Rawley Point lighthouse is a major draw, as are the 130 campsites with full amenities and conveniences. The forest is criss-crossed with miles of hiking, cross-country skiing, and snowmobile trails.

Camp Sinawa Nature and Recreational Area, located on Pigeon Lake, is 265 beautiful acres that offers the best of the great outdoors and watersports activities.

Nature enthusiasts will enjoy the Woodland Dunes Nature Center, which is a haven for wildlife and has educational programs and hiking trails just west of Two Rivers.

Eleven beautiful city parks, well-maintained and landscaped by the Manitowoc Parks and Recreation Department, offer programs and recreational activities in softball, baseball, tennis and track. The department also holds various special community events throughout the year at the Municipal Athletic Field, and oversees operations at the Municipal Pool and beaches. The Lincoln Park Zoo is home to many birds and animals native to the North Woods and admission is free.

Two Rivers also has a top-notch Parks and Recreation Department that operates community service programs, special events and recreation fields and the Senior Center. Neshotah, Zander and Lakeshore community parks have sheltered pavilions for group outings in Two Rivers.

Slicers and duffers can work on their game at Manitowoc’s fine public golf courses including; Autumn Ridge, Eastwin Valley, Fairview, and Meadow Links. Fox Hills Golf Resort and Conference Center is Wisconsin’s largest course with 45 championship holes in nearby Mishicot. Branch River Country Club has a private, 18-hole course, as does the Elks Lodge along Lake Michigan.

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Manitowoc’s cultural calender is filled year-round with entertaining programs and events that present great opportunities for cultural enrichment and growth. The downtown Capitol Civic Centre, referred to as the ‘Jewel on the Lakeshore,’ is the gathering place for more than 70,000 each year. Once a movie house, the theatre was renovated and reopened in 1987. It regularly presents local, regional and nationally recognized musical talent and Broadway theatre on tour.

The Manitowoc County Ice Center, located on the County Expo grounds, is open for skating from October through March. During the remainder of the year, the 23,700 sq. ft. of dry floor space and bleacher seating for 3,000 people is used for various activities. The Expo grounds also hosts various shows, stock car racing and the County Fair in August.

The Historic Forst Inn in downtown Tisch Mills is a bed and breakfast inn that offers delightful theatre performances throughout the year.

Music is an integral element of the deeply-rooted and diverse cultural heritage of Manitowoc and Two Rivers residents who join together in a number of clubs and organizations. Some of these are the Clipper City Chordsmen, The Lakeshore Wind Ensemble, Music for Tots (Silver Lake College) and the Manitowoc Symphony Orchestra.

The visual arts community in Manitowoc is as strong as ever due to the influence of the Rahr-West Art Museum. Originally a late 19th century mansion, the Museum regularly mounts special themed exhibits and shows in celebration of the visual arts. The annual ‘Christmas in the Mansion’ runs from November through early January. The Rahr-West also has a permanent collection of 19th century American paintings and furniture, and international carvings, porcelains, and other pieces that have enabled it to emerge as a renown cultural center in the upper Midwest.

Kidzarts, the Lakeshore’s family theatre, provides creativity workshops and live theatrical performances for children, by children. The Summer Youth Art Program at Silver Lake College is open to all elementary and middle school students.

Another of the more active and visible artists’ groups is the Lakeshore Palettiers.

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The homes of Manitowoc reflect its years of tradition and stady progress. Various residential designs in may sizes sprawl about the pastoral landscape proudly displaying homeowner's tastes. The community features charming retreats that offer panoramic vistas of the surrounding landscape with its rolling hillsides, majestic bluffs overlooking the majesty of Lake Michigan and quiet pastoral retreats. Sturdy dwellings echo the community's pioneer heritage. Beatifully restored Victorian manors and turn-of-the-century mansion abound, exuding Old-World grace while seamlessly blending with neighboring contemporary masterpieces.

Careful planning has given the city a solid sense of residential unity by cleverly combining traditional properties with future developments to ensure ample elbow room for all. The housing market in Manitowoc County is active and offers a wide selection in may price ranges. There are stylish condos overlooking the lakefront as well. The best of peaceful community living awaits in manitowoc where the median home price is in the low 100's. Loving the American Dream is an affordable realty in Manitowoc County. Further information is available from the Manitowoc County Board of Realtors, 793-1024.

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The Manitowoc area schools are committed to excellence in the process of preparing students to meet the educational challenges of the twenty-first century. By focusing the curriculum, learning environment and staff development to meet the community’s needs, student’s educational goals are realized in a quality learning environment. The city’s educational community includes: numerous day care facilities, thirteen licensed schools for pre-kindergarten toddlers, two Montessori schools and the YMCA. The public school system has six elementary schools, Washington and Wilson Junior High Schools, and Lincoln Senior High School. There are programs and classes devoted to special educational needs as well.

Two Rivers has four elementary and middle schools and high school students attend Washington High School. There are numerous other elementary, middle, junior, and senior high schools along with some very fine private schools throughout Manitowoc county.

Private schools in Manitowoc County include numerous Catholic, Christian and Lutheran schools. Students pursuing higher educational goals have a wide variety of excellent options available to them. There are many campuses of major universities easily reachable within an hour’s drive. Lakeshore Technical College in Cleveland, WI, has business, industrial, and quality improvement training.

The prestigious University of Wisconsin system has a campus in Manitowoc for freshmen and sophomores, while Silver Lake College, run by the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity, is a four-year college offering Bachelor’s and Masters’ degrees.

Also near the Manitowoc/Two Rivers area are Lakeland College in Sheboygan, and University of Wisconsin campuses in Green Bay, Oshkosh, and Sheboygan.

Accessing needed resources and information in Manitowoc County is facilitated through the many libraries interspersed throughout. The Lester Public Library serves residents in Two Rivers, the Kiel and Manitowoc Public Libraries are excellent aids to readers in Manitowoc, while Lakeshore Technical College, the U of W - Manitowoc, and Silver Lake College in Manitowoc all have substantial libraries as well. With many educational opportunities available, Manitowoc’s students have a bright future ahead.

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