Marquette — Rising up and out of the frozen slush (one part salt, one part snow, one part soil) is a grand dome adorned with what appear to be, from a distance, defensive spikes. It’s UFO-like, or perhaps tropical fruit-like. The massive spiked dome towers over the campus of Northern Michigan University in Marquette. Without windows, flags, or any other kind of identifying information, it’s a curious structure viewed from afar.
Only once I arrived in the parking lot, stepped out onto the ice-ridden concrete, and looked across the walkway at the otherworldly structure did I realize the spikes were actually vents and the dome wasn’t an extra-terrestrial ship or government experiment. It was the Superior Dome.
Slinking through a long bank of open doors were college students, families, and couples. Curious about to what lies beyond the portal, I wandered across the way and through the passage into the mysterious, foreboding structure. Inside were backpacks set along a concrete ledge built into the wall. Winter boots and coats too. Setting my overcoat down, I started wandering down the concrete path running along the wall and around the perimeter of the dome. Joggers passed every few minutes. Parents walked with kids in strollers. Some older folks walked together talking about whatever it is older folks like to talk about.
About halfway around the dome the walking path opened up and I was able to finally gaze upon the entirety of the dome’s interior. In the center of the structure is Northern Michigan University’s football field, on which the Northern Michigan University’s female lacrosse team was currently playing. The girls team practiced, running back and forth, calling out to one another under the watchful eye of massive wooden beams stretching all the way up to the top and center of the warm climate-controlled environment. In the enormous space the voices from the field were quiet and small, the squeak of sneakers on the feet of joggers and walkers behind me were just audible to my ears.
The Superior Dome is, unsurprisingly, the largest wooden dome on God’s green earth. Coming in at 14 stories tall, containing 5.1 acres under its roof, able to withstand 80 mph winds and 60 pounds per square foot of snow, it’s an incredible feat of modern engineering. Since 1991, the behemoth has provided space for Northern Michigan University athletics as well as a place for anyone to walk and get a little exercise in the gloomy depths of winter.
The dome was commissioned and made reality by the Herculean figure of Dominic Jacobetti. Known as the Godfather of the U.P. and holding the record for longest-serving Michigan State Representative, Jacobetti was the U.P.’s defender and a indefatigable force of nature.
It was Jacobetti’s relentless advocacy—including, but not limited to, repeatedly threatening to secede from the state if not granted required funds—that led to the State of Michigan eventually funding all $21.8 million required in Phase 1, the overwhelming bulk of all costs involved with building the grand dome of the North.
The dome is wooden because, well, of course it is. If you are going to build a massive dome in the Upper Peninsula, a place full of far more forest than metal, it’s only natural that the dome be made of something equally organic and completely complementary. Though the wood itself didn’t come from the U.P.—it’s made of Douglas Fir from the Pacific Northwest—it still feels just right. Wood is wood after all.
The aesthetic truth is that the exposed wood beams towering over the track and field are really quite nice. Most of these kinds of athletic domes feel pretty cold and clinical. Metal has a tendency to do that. The Superior Dome doesn’t feel like that. The exposed wood adds a homey, cabin-y, and very Northern feeling. Yes, of course the concrete is cold and the track is fake turf, but the wood is real and organic, and it’s a distinct and unique element that makes the Superior Dome the Superior Dome. Aesthetically it’s a great thing, and the dome feels warmer because of it.
I should also note that the shade of the Superior Dome’s exterior is a lovely complementary choice for the environment as well. Plain, natural tan. Though the dome is unmistakable and impossible to hide, the fact that its color is so muted and unassuming is a thoughtful choice.
A last unique thing about the Superior Dome is actually the first thing I noticed right after walking in. There are no lockers or any place for you to keep your things if you are just visiting to walk around the track. If there was a massive theft problem this probably wouldn’t be the accepted policy. But there obviously isn’t a massive problem, and people can just leave their things where they want, and this is a very unique thing.
When was the last time you left your bag and your coat in a public place and went walking for an hour without checking on it? Have you ever done that? Maybe not.
If one lives in a place that makes it impossible to run, play, or practice outside for a punishing amount of the year, one’s choices are to either leave or get creative. That’s part of the story of Northern settlement. Adaptation to the brutal environment, ingenuity, and a stubborn refusal to be beaten or bested by winter in all its terror.
The Superior Dome is, without question, Northern excellence.
O.W. Root is a writer based in Northern Michigan, with a focus on nature, food, style, and culture. Follow him on X @owroot.
