How SheVegas Was Born
Every city has a nickname. Some are earned, some are imposed, and some are fought over. Sheboygan's is SheVegas — and it didn't come from a marketing firm, a city hall press release, or a chamber of commerce brainstorming session. It came from a liquor store on South 26th Street, a group of skeptical friends, and a photojournalist who decided his hometown deserved better coverage than it was getting.
The Setting
Sheboygan in the mid-2000s: one newspaper, one radio station, no TV news. A tourist town on Lake Michigan with 50,000 people and zero accountability journalism. City council meetings went uncovered. Development deals happened in back rooms. The armory was rotting. The quarry was fenced off. And nobody was asking why.
I had just come back from the University of Iowa with an MFA in journalism, a camera, and a belief that local politics mattered more than presidential horse races. I also had a problem: I needed a name for what I was building.
The Name
I heard somebody say "SheVegas" once. I think it was at a bar, maybe on the radio — the kind of thing that floats around a town before the internet catches it. It had that ring to it. Fun, a little absurd, unmistakably Sheboygan.
My buddies hated it. They said it sounded like a gay porn site. They suggested alternatives:
- Stupid Sheboygan People — direct, but not exactly inviting
- SheBaghdad — topical for 2005, but grim
- Kingsburia — a reference to the north side, too narrow
I went with SheVegas. Not because it was safe. Because it was memorable. Because in a town with no news coverage, you needed something that stuck in people's heads.
"When I launched SheVegas my buddies said it sounded like a gay porn site and suggested I call my site: 'Stupid Sheboygan People.' SheBaghdad and Kingsburia almost made the cut, but, SheVegas Baby!"
What Happened Next
SheVegas.com launched as a blog. I covered city council meetings nobody else attended. I photographed aldermen at 10 PM on Tuesday nights. I published documents the city didn't want seen. I made local politics the talk of the town.
The results, looking back:
- Eight mayoral candidates at the peak — the most competitive race in Sheboygan history
- The Armory is still standing (it was slated for demolition)
- Quarry Beach was opened to the public for a summer
- A "bloggers casino rumor" dominated the most spirited election cycle the city had seen
- The local newspaper was forced to start covering city government seriously
And the name? It stuck. Today, if you search "SheVegas," you don't get Las Vegas travel deals. You get Sheboygan. The nickname outlived the blog, the controversies, and the skeptics.
The Video
What SheVegas Means Now
SheVegas isn't just a nickname anymore. It's three sites with three jobs:
- shevegas.com — The permanent archive. Intergalactic. Longevity, knowledge, communication.
- shevegas.org — The daily civic explainer. Stateless. Each story is a sub-site generated on the fly.
- sheboyganite — This site. The funnel. Everything Sheboygan, for people from Sheboygan.
The mission hasn't changed: information must be free. Original source documents and verified first-hand accounts come before anyone's spin, including mine. Fun with a purpose. Purpose means longevity, motion, better futures, and teaching people how their own city works.
SheVegas Baby.
Source Documents
- 📄 Mike Brunette — Medium profile, Sep 30, 2016
- 📄 SheVegas.com — Current archive landing page, 2026
- 🎥 Video, added Aug 20, 2026
Timeline
- Mid-2000s"SheVegas" heard in casual use around Sheboygan; origin uncertain
- ~2005SheVegas.com launched by Mike Brunette from South 26th Street
- 2007-2010Peak SheVegas civic impact: 8 mayoral candidates, Armory saved, Quarry opened
- 2016"Today SheVegas is the most common nickname for Sheboygan" — documented by founder
- 2026SheVegas restructured as trio: shevegas.com (archive), shevegas.org (civic), sheboyganite (identity)
Related
Browse the full archive at shevegas.com · Daily civic coverage at shevegas.org · Submit a tip or primary source