Michigan. What Happen to America’s Second National Park?
I first came across the story of Mackinaw Island when I was working on an academic article that examined standards used in designating U.S. national park areas. Pronounced Mak-a-naw, the 11.3 square meter island is located within Lake Huron and at the eastern edge of a strait that separates Michigan’s Upper Peninsula from its larger section to the south. It came as a surprise that this tiny place became America’s second national park just three years after Yellowstone (1872). Today Mackinaw Island is no longer part of the U.S. National Park System. So why was it selected as a national park and for what reason was it later de-designated?
Mackinaw Island was created 13,000 years ago by melting glaciers that also formed the U.S. Great Lakes. Native Americans who first visited found a landscape of bogs, marshes, and coniferous forests with spruce, cedar, balsam fir, and birch trees. The island’s name comes from the Ojibwe word for “big turtle.” The Odawa people used the island as a sacred gathering place and burial site. French-Canadian trader Jean Nicolet was the first European to visit in 1634 and soon after, the island became a fur trading outpost. The British took control after the French-Indian War. To protect British economic interests, British Army Major Patrick Sinclair supervised the construction of Ft. Mackinaw in 1780 on a high bluff overlooking the harbor. A larger area that includes the island came under U.S. control through the 1783 Treaty of Paris. Mackinaw Island was the site of two War of 1812 battles. The first involved a contingent of British and Native American forces that landed on the northwest part of the island in 1812 at what is now called British Landing. Believing they were surrounded, the American garrison quickly surrendered. In a second battle, American forces attempting to retake the island were defeated. The 1815 Treaty of Ghent returned the island and surrounding areas to American control. Following the U.S. Civil War, Mackinaw Island was used as a summer resort. Recognizing its popularity, U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant designated the island as a national park in 1875 under the supervision of the U.S. Army. Although the island remained a popular vacation destination, its scenic grandeur didn’t compare with other newly established national parks such as Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Sequoia. In 1895, Michigan’s governor asked the federal government to transfer the park to state supervision and later, a portion of Mackinaw Island became Michigan’s first state park.
Opening its doors in 1887, the island’s magnificent Grand Hotel attracted visitors including Mark Twain and Thomas Edison. Today, guests and their luggage are still transported from the ferry dock by horse-drawn carriage. Most imposing is the hotel’s 200-meter porch, billed as longest in the world. Visitors relaxing in one of the porch’s white rocking chairs can look down at the tea garden and a large swimming pool framed by sparkling lake water in the distance. Noted in Travel and Leisure Magazine as among the top 100 hotels in the world, the Grand has been featured in movies such as “This Time for Keeps” (1947) starring Jimmy Durante and Esther Williams and “Somewhere in Time” (1980) featuring Jane Seymour and Christopher Reeves. Today, the island has about 580 permanent residents and a summer population that swells with the arrival of hundreds of seasonal employees. Among its distinctions, Mackinaw is home to Michigan’s oldest golf course and the longest continuously operating grocery store, Doud’s Market, established in 1884.
We purchased tickets for our ferry ride to the island through Shepler’s. Established in 1945 by World War II veteran William Shepler, Shepler’s Ferry Service linked two sides of the Straits of Mackinaw until the Mackinaw Bridge was completed in 1957. Subsequently, Shepler continued providing transport to other locations including Mackinaw Island. We boarded in St. Ignace for the 30-minute ride. Disembarking at a pier, we walked a short distance into town and lunch at a restaurant on Main Street.
With few exceptions, motorized vehicles such as trucks and automobiles are not allowed on the island. Instead, people and goods are transported by wagons and horse-drawn carriages. Following its perimeter but not completely encircling the island, M185 is the only highway in the U.S. where cars are forbidden. Along Lake Shore Drive and West Bluff Road we passed attractive wood houses, some featuring cupboard siding, circular turrets, and inviting covered porches. The wide range of architectural styles included Greek Revival, Victorian, Colonial, and Federalist with many houses surrounded by flower gardens and immaculate lawns.
A short walk up a hill from town is Fort Mackinaw, a former British and American military outpost that is considered among the best-preserved fortifications of the Revolutionary period. Among its buildings are the soldier’s barracks, commissary, post schoolhouse, post hospital, and officer’s quarters. After touring the fort, we followed a paved road to Arch Rock, a natural limestone formation that sits 45 meters above the surface of Lake Huron. Returning to the vicinity of the fort, we walked down a hill to Somewhere in Time Gazebo, built for the movie of the same name. Nearby is the governor’s summer residence, a 650 square meter house with eleven bedrooms and ten bathrooms. Returning to town, we bought ice cream at a small shop on one end of the Grand Hotel. The entrance to the hotel was blocked by a staff member who explained that persons who are not guests must pay to see the porch and hotel. My companions and I debated if it was worth $12 each. After deciding to pay the fee we spent the next hour relaxing on the porch and exploring lower levels of the hotel lobby. Afterwards we climbed a staircase to the Cupola Bar located at the top of the hotel where we ordered drinks. The view was spectacular.
If you are interested in learning more about U.S. locations proposed as national parks, please see my article: Proposals, Abolishments, and Changing Standards for U.S. National Parks (© 1991 Phi Alpha Theta, National History Honor Society).