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| ON
THE ISLAND |
Historical
Places
- Mormon Print Shop Museum (right)
- Marine Museum
- Toy Museum
- Protar's Home (above)
-
Sunken Ships
- Whiskey Point Lighthouse
- Beaver Head Lighthouse
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Beaver
Island has a fascinating history, from Native American to Mormon to
Irish settlers. Besides visiting the
places mentioned, a great many wonderful books have been
written about the island and its people. Most are available
in bookstores and other shops both on the island and in
Charlevoix.
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| OUR VESSELS |
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M/V
Emerald Isle
BIBCo: 1955 - 1962 |
The original Emerald Isle
was built for the Beaver Island Navigation Co. (now known as Beaver
Island Boat Co.) in 1955. She is 63 feet in length and 25 feet wide. In
1962, she was sold to Arnold Line for use to Mackinaw Island, then sold
to be chartered out of Milwaukee, and then sold to Diamond Jack's
River Tours in 1991 where she now serves as a regularly
chartered vessel, renamed the Diamond Jack.
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M/V Beaver Islander
BIBCo: 1962 - Present |
The Beaver Islander was
built in 1962 by Sturgeon Bay Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. out of
Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and purchased new by the Beaver Island Boat Co.
She is 95 feet in length, 27 feet wide, and draws 8 feet with a top
speed of 13.5 knots and maximum capacity of 200 passengers, 10
vehicles, 2,340 gallons of fuel, and 275 gallons of fresh water. She is
powered by twin 675 hp Cummins diesel main engines and a 50 kW John
Deere powered generator. You can still ride the historic Beaver
Islander on most weekends in the summer. |
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M/V
South
Shore
BIBCo: 1976 - 1997 |
The South Shore was
built in 1945 for the Miller Boat Line in Put-In-Bay and sold to the
Beaver Island Boat Co. in 1976. She served as the 2nd vessel until the
arrival of the M/V Emerald Isle in 1997. She is 60 feet in length and
24 feet wide. In 1997 she was sold to a company at Navy Pier in
Chicago where she is docked and used for office space.
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M/V Emerald
Isle
BIBCo: 1997 - Present |
Our newest and largest vessel yet, the Emerald
Isle was designed by Timothy Graul Marine Design in
Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and was built by Washburn & Doughty
Associates, Inc. In East Boothbay, Maine. She is 130 feet in length, 39
feet wide, and draws 8.5 feet with a top speed of 14.5 knots and
maximum capacity of 298 passengers, 20 vehicles and one heavy truck,
8,800 gallons of fuel, and 500 gallons of fresh water. She is powered
by twin 1500 hp Caterpillar diesel main engines, 200 hp Caterpillar
bowthruster, and twin 100 kW Caterpillar generators. She is handicap
accessible, has in excess of 150 indoor/covered seats, 5 unisex
restrooms, one handicap accessible with baby changing table, fixed
stabilizers, cell phone, power outlets, and food/refreshment vending
machines. |
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| HISTORY OF BEAVER ISLAND |
| Beaver Island is rich in history with historical sites
dating back to 1831. For instance, King James Jesse Strang ruled over
the only kingdom within the United States during his time on Beaver Island. He reigned
from 1847 until his assassination in 1856. The "Northern Islander,"
which was the first newspaper in northern Michigan, was printed on the island in the old log
printing press building. This building now houses the Historical Museum called the Mormon Print Shop Museum. Many remnants of the old log buildings can
still be seen around the island. The Marine Museum houses artifacts representing the commercial
fishing and shipping that has taken place around the Beaver Archipelago.
There are vague
historical references to Beaver Island in the early 1600’s. The first specific
reference was made by Father Francis Xavier de Charlevoix, who explored
the Great Lakes in the early 1720’s. He mentioned that he
passed South into Lake
Michigan and saw a
large island that looked very green. Historians assume this must have
been Beaver Island. Reverend Frederic Baraga came to the Island to bring Christianity to the Indians in
1832. He built the Island’s first church on the North shore. In the
early 1840’s the Northwest Trading Company built a trading post and a
store on Paradise Bay, the harbor on which the village of St. James is
now located.
In 1847, James
Jesse Strang brought his small band of Mormons to Beaver Island. This group had decided to accept Stang’s
leadership instead of that of Brigham Young. By the 1849 enough Mormons
had settled on the Island to establish the town of St. James. Strang had himself crowned King and was the
only king ever crowned in the United States. He was an extremely intelligent man and was
elected to the Michigan State Legislature for two terms. Through
measures sponsored by him, the Civic Government of Northern Michigan
counties were organized for the first time. While Strang was the ruler,
the U.S. government built two lighthouses on the Island, the Beaver Head Lighthouse at the South end
of the island in 1851 and the Harbor Light at Whiskey Point in 1856.
Though he was kind
and good-natured with his followers, Strang treated non-Mormons with
cruelty, taking over their properties through taxation and other
unpleasant measures. This created dissension on the Island. Since Mormons had come to outnumber the
settlers that were there first, the non-Mormons gradually left. Strang
finally aggravated some of his own people by demanding obedience to his
many unjust laws, so his murder was arranged. On June 16,
1856 Strang was shot
by two of the dissenters, while boarding a ship in the harbor. The
ship’s captain had piracy; instead, the “King” was removed to Wisconsin where he died.
In the 15 years
following Strang, Beaver Island became more populated by Irish immigrants,
and their descendants still make up the majority of the islands
population. The first resident priest came in 1860 and in 1869 there
were 79 families on the Island. In 1893, Frederic Parrot (Feodar Protar),
who had emigrated from Estonia, came to Beaver Island as a tourist and remained there the rest of
his life. His self education in medicine enabled him to care for the
sick. He was well loved by the Islanders, and when he died in 1925, a
monument was erected as a memorial to him.
Over thirty fishing
tugs once operated from St. James, taking a million pounds of fish in
the peak years. The fishing industry is almost gone, but many of the
net sheds, boats, stores, company houses, schools, mills, and
farmsteads are still there. As the fishing declined, so did the
population. Records show a population of 1095 in 1910 and only 175 in
1964. The summer population increases when the tourists come for the
relaxation and outdoor activities. The year round population is slowly
increasing and now stands at about 550.
Beaver Island is still beautiful, unhurried and unspoiled.
We welcome you and hope you enjoy your visit to the Emerald Isle.
(History compliments of the Beaver Island
Historical Society)
MORE ON THE HISTORY OF BEAVER ISLAND
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