Native American History Links Past to Present and People with the LandAccording to traditions and historical evidence, Whitefish Bay is part of the central Anishinabeg (Ojibwe or Chippewa) homeland in the Great Lakes. Members of the nearby Bay . . . — — Map (db m154414) HM
Ice-Age glaciers covered the Whitefish Bay Area for thousands of years and left behind a complex mosaic of sand, gravel and clay. Following the last glacier's retreat about 10,000 years ago, water and wind shaped these deposits into the landscape of . . . — — Map (db m154413) HM
When the first French traders and missionaries arrived in the 1600s, the Native American Tribe called Ojibwe or Chippewa lived along the Bay. They referred to themselves in their native language as Anishinabeg, which translates as "Original People." . . . — — Map (db m154415) HM
This point of land is the historic battleground where the westward invasion by the Iroquois Indians was halted by the victorious Chippewa.
Off the point colorful French-Canadian voyageurs paddled canoes heavily laden with furs. The 18th century . . . — — Map (db m4452) HM
Unlike more remote or isolated stations surrounded by water, life at Point Iroquois included many land-based activities and contacts with neighbors. Lighthouse Service rules and regulations strongly encouraged self-sufficiency through the use of . . . — — Map (db m154409) HM
Side One:
Located where the St. Mary’s River enters Lake Huron from Lake Superior, DeTour Passage separates the Upper Peninsula from Drummond Island. It has long been a choke point for Great Lakes shipping. Anticipating increased traffic as a . . . — — Map (db m70781) HM
Anchor from the SS M.M. Drake
on loan from the State of
Michigan. The Drake (constructed
in 1882) was a wooden steam barge
that towed consorts loaded with
coal and iron ore on the Great
Lakes. The Drake sank on
October 6, 1901 . . . — — Map (db m214015) HM
In memory of
Donald "Bud” Monk
Math Teacher & Principal
1948-1979
"He knew every brick in this school"
Original School Bell from Porcupine School in Whitefish Township 1942 — — Map (db m214014) HM
Once a thriving hub of pine lumbering, Emerson is now a fishing hamlet. Just one mile south of the mouth of the Tahquamenon River (immortalized in Longfellows poem “Hiawatha”), this settlement overlooks picturesque Whitefish Bay. The village was . . . — — Map (db m213408) HM
Whitefish Point has been called the graveyard of Lake Superior. Since navigation began on Lake Superior there has been approximately 550 wrecks. More vessels were lost in the Whitefish Point area than any other part of Lake Superior. There are three . . . — — Map (db m198451) HM
This post office opened just six years after Whitefish Point was settled in 1871 as a landing for the then-abundant lumber supplies and as a commercial fishery. Permanent residents received their mail from Sault Ste. Marie. During the summer . . . — — Map (db m213445) HM
This light, the oldest active on Lake Superior, began operating in 1849, though the present tower was constructed later. Early a stopping place for Indians, voyageurs, and Jesuit missionaries, the point marks a course change for ore boats and other . . . — — Map (db m40054) HM
In 1849 the Whitefish Point lighthouse was put into service. Soon after the township was organized in 1888, lumber towns such as Emerson and Shelldrake emerged at the mouth of the Tahquamenon and Shelldrake rivers. Paradise was established in . . . — — Map (db m214012) HM
This statue depicts the Chippewa legend of two young brothers who flee their wicked mother who is pursuing them with the intent to kill them. When they reach the north shore of the St. Mary's Rapids they are met by a crane. Who after hearing . . . — — Map (db m213641) HM
This statue is an exact replica of the original which stands in the Capitoline Museum of Rome, Italy. The statue depicts the Roman legend of twin sons of a vestal virgin. Romulus and Remus, who were abandoned by their mother to die. They were . . . — — Map (db m213635) HM
It is impossible on a panel this size to give a comprehensive sample of the types of vessels that have plied the St. Marys River over the centuries. This one features larger boats of the last 150 years.
The Wilfred Sykes, launched in 1949, . . . — — Map (db m214150) HM
1,000 Feet Long · Launched 1981
Halfway there!
You have now made it approximately halfway. Think of how far you have already walked and imagine being a deckhand responsible for painting or shoveling the deck of a boat 1,000 feet long and 105 . . . — — Map (db m224380) HM
1,004 Feet Long · Launched 1978
Do they go to the Atlantic Ocean?
Footers cannot go beyond Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. The locks in the Welland Canal, bypassing Niagara Falls to connect Lakes Erie and Ontario, cannot take vessels over 740 . . . — — Map (db m224379) HM
Anishinaabek oral history relates that long ago Gchi-Manito (Creator) sent a bird to make its abode on the earth. This bird, Ajiijaak, (crane) circled the land and saw the abundance of Adikameg (whitefish) and after coming to rest on Wadjiwong (a . . . — — Map (db m214152) HM
Sault Ste. Mire, including the campus of Lake Superior State University is steeped in a rich history originating as a natural gathering place for Native Peoples who refer to the Sault Rapids area as "Bahweting."
This copper sculpture was created . . . — — Map (db m214251) HM
Built in 1939, Brady Hall was a US Army
barracks when the campus was still
Fort Brady. The building is named in
honor of Major General Hugh Brady,
who first established Fort Brady along
the St. Mary's River in 1822. The
barracks were converted . . . — — Map (db m213628) HM
This building, formerly headquarters of Fort Brady, is named Brown Hall in honor of Edward J. Brown. At the time of his retirement in August, 1971, Mr. Brown compiled the longest service on what is now this campus. He started with the Post Engineer, . . . — — Map (db m214250) HM
1,000 Feet Long · Launched 1980
Do they lock through often?
Footers make regular runs between loading docks on Lake Superior and the harbors large enough to serve them on the lower lakes. Most are through the locks about every three days, . . . — — Map (db m224382) HM
This Richardsonian Romanesque church was erected in 1892-93 according to plans by Bay City architect Dillon P. Clark. It is one of several builldings in the city constructed of red "canal rubble" sandstone discarded during a power canal . . . — — Map (db m213409) HM
Chippewa County Court House has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior
1877 — — Map (db m213645) HM
The Chippewa County Courthouse, a part of which can be seen when looking east down the walkway, has been in continuous use since it was constructed in 1877, making it the oldest operational courthouse in Michigan. Designed by John Scott, it is an . . . — — Map (db m214226) HM
In honor and remembrance of those who served in the armed forces of the United States
Korea
Raymond W. Anderson • Wesley A. Anderson • Raymond J. Bedore • William A. Bunner • Lucien J. Bourque Jr. • Albert J. Dumback • Ronald A. Earl • . . . — — Map (db m214223) WM
Dedicated to those who gave their lives in World War II in the cause of all freedoms
Aikens Russell C. ·
Allen George S. ·
Ames Charles W. ·
Anderson, John C. ·
Armstrong, Clyde ·
Atkins, Floyd ·
Barber William · . ·
Barrus George . . . — — Map (db m214173) WM
The row houses were built between 1900-1903 to house commissioned officers and their families when the Lake Superior State University campus was still serving as US Army Fort Brady. Over the years, the buildings have housed campus faculty, staff and . . . — — Map (db m214242) HM
The man-made power canal that bisects the city of Sault Ste. Marie was constructed from 1898 to 1902. The flow of water from the upper St. Mary's river through the canal still generates electricity at the Edison Sault hydroelectric plant, also . . . — — Map (db m214229) HM
The Weitzel Lock was the first at the Sault to fill and empty the lock chamber using valves built into the floor. The easier State Lock moved water through opening in the gates creating turbulence in the chamber. The churning waters in the lock made . . . — — Map (db m214168) HM
This was the scene in Sault Ste. Marie about 1910 looking
north up Ashmun Street toward Spruce Street from this
kiosk location. Ashmun street was not yet paved and
utility poles lined its edges. Trolley cars and horse drawn
vehicles provided . . . — — Map (db m213634) HM
By the mid-1830s, there were at least two hotels on Water Street. One, known for a time as the Van Anden House and later as the Chippewa House, was on the southeast corner of Water and present day Ashmun streets. The other eventually became the . . . — — Map (db m214154) HM
Built in 1893, East Hall is one of 19
remaining Fort Brady buildings left on
campus. It was originally the Fort Brady
jail and guardhouse. After the fort closed
in 1946, the building was renamed
East Hall and housed the music program
at . . . — — Map (db m213463) HM
The row houses were built between
1900-1903 to house commissioned officers
and their families when the Lake Superior
State University campus was still serving
as US Army Fort Brady. Over the years,
the buildings have housed campus . . . — — Map (db m213631) HM
Appointed Indian agent in 1822, Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (1793-1864) requested that the government provide a suitable structure to house the agency. Obed Wait, designer of Michigan's territorial capitol in Detroit, directed the construction of this . . . — — Map (db m213411) HM
In memory of the first Mission Church the first building erected in the north country on or near this spot by Father James Marquette S.J. Year 1668 — — Map (db m214290) HM
The treaty Lewis Cass accomplished in 1820, cleared the way for the U.S. Army to install a post at the Sault. Consequently, Secretary of War John C. Calhoun ordered a battalion of the 2nd U.S. Infantry, composed of 250 men and 17 officers, commanded . . . — — Map (db m214149) HM
On July 6, 1822, a battalion of American troops under Col. Hugh Brady reached the Sault, thereby reconfirming the assertion of American authority over this region made by Lewis Cass in 1820. Fort Brady was built here by year's end. The French and . . . — — Map (db m213413) HM
American troops arrived in Sault Ste. Marie in the summer of 1822 to establish a fort by provision of the Treaty Lewis Cass signed here in 1820. The fort signaled the end of the long French and British occupation of the territory. The fort was . . . — — Map (db m214151) HM
Chase S. Osborn was a man whose lifetime presents an extraordinary legacy of activities and accomplishments. He served as Governor of Michigan during 1911-1912, the only man from the Upper Peninsula to do so in the State's first 150 years. Author, . . . — — Map (db m224369) HM
In 1845, the Independence became the first steam vessel on Lake Superior.
Arriving below the falls in 1845, the 105 foot long vessel was hauled out of the water and portaged nearly a mile around the falls and re-launched above the rapids.
The . . . — — Map (db m214167) HM
When American troops arrived in 1822 to establish a
fort, the soldiers built a mill race, which ran from above
the rapids to a mill located near the present Osborn-
Portage intersection, with the water returning to the river
at approximately . . . — — Map (db m214165) HM
This water tower was constructed in 1894 with a base of native sandstone that supports a brick top section covering a 364,000 gallon steel tank. As a vital component of the water system of the City of Sault St.e Marie, this community landmark was . . . — — Map (db m213456) HM
Built in 1899 this building housed the local office of the Weather Bureau. From here, they monitored conditions, made forecasts and hand delivered weather reports to passing vessels.
Ship-to-shore radio made it less important to have a . . . — — Map (db m214170) HM
The row houses were built between 1900-1903 to house commissioned officers and their families when the Lake Superior State University campus was still serving as US Army Fort Brady. Over the years, the buildings have housed campus faculty, staff and . . . — — Map (db m214234) HM
The maritime professionals who sail the ships on the Great Lakes are celebrating the 100th anniversary of their fraternal organization, the I. M. S. A. whose purpose is stated in the Association's constitution, "The purpose of this association's . . . — — Map (db m214171) HM
James Norris, a great supporter of hockey, is regarded as one of the founders of the modern game. Canadian born, he moved to the United States around the turn of the century. Though an extremely successful businessman, he always practiced his love . . . — — Map (db m214252) HM
James R. Barker
1,004 feet long. Launched in 1976
How big is a 1000 foot-long boat?
Imagine yourself standing at the stern of one of these boats.
Following the arrows walk from the stern to bow and learn more about each of the thirteen . . . — — Map (db m224384) HM
Former home and trading post
of the
John Johnston Family
second oldest building in the northwest
built in 1795 - 96
Here in 1824,
Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, historian
married Jane,
daughter of Johnston
and his O'Jibway Indian . . . — — Map (db m213416) HM
A native of Ireland and a Protestant, John Johnston (1762-1828) arrived on the Lake Superior frontier in the early 1790s. He married the daughter of a powerful Chippewa chief and settled here in 1793. Johnston's knowledge of the Chippewa and the . . . — — Map (db m213414) HM
In 1946 the State of Michigan assumed control of New Fort Brady, and presented it to the Michigan College of Mining and Technology, now Michigan Technological University. The Houghton based school, forced to expand by the enrollment of returning . . . — — Map (db m213421) HM
The row houses were built between 1900-1903 to house commissioned officers and their families when the Lake Superior State University campus was still serving as US Army Fort Brady. Over the years, the buildings have housed campus faculty, staff and . . . — — Map (db m214239) HM
This Shinto Torii, presented by
Chase S. Osborn in 1905, was one
of his many gifts meant to bring a
bit of the outside world to
Sault Ste. Marie.
In Japan, the Torii serves as a
formal gate marking the entrance
to special or sacred places. . . . — — Map (db m213654) HM
Several Methodist ministers were active in missionary work in the "Soo" area in the 1830s. John Sunday, an Indian preacher from Canada, began mission work in the Indian settlement at the Sault Ste. Marie Rapids around 1831. The Reverend John . . . — — Map (db m213422) HM
On August 25, 1840, United States Deputy Surveyor, Wm. A. Burt, established at this point the north end of the principal meridian from which all land in Michigan is surveyed. — — Map (db m198456) HM
When Sault Ste. Marie expanded and its canal was widened, the riverfront site of Fort Brady was abandoned for a higher, more strategic site selected by General Philip Sheridan. Work began in 1886, and the new fort was opened in 1893. From this . . . — — Map (db m213444) HM
On this site Old Fort Brady
First U.S. Army post in Michigan's upper peninsula was established in 1822
Colonel Hugh Brady, Second U.S. Infantry Commanding — — Map (db m214163) HM
The row houses were built between 1900-1903 to house commissioned officers and their families when the Lake Superior State University campus was still serving as US Army Fort Brady. Over the years, the buildings have housed campus faculty, staff and . . . — — Map (db m214231) HM
Walk along Water Street and you will cross the stage where many of the events of Sault Ste. Marie's early history played out.
Our interpretive panels along the way will help you understand the important role the St. Marys River played in our . . . — — Map (db m214853) HM
1,013.5 Feet Long · Launched 1981
It's a long way from the bow to the stern of the thirteen-footers on the Great Lakes. The Paul R. Tregurtha is the biggest of them all, giving her the title "Queen of the Great Lakes."
You reached the bow! . . . — — Map (db m224373) HM
Tug & Barge · 1,000 Feet Long · Launched 1973
A 1,000-foot-long tug boat?
The Presque Isle is the only integrated tug/barge footer. It was designed to operate with the smaller crew of a tug boat and the cargo capacity of a footer. After sea . . . — — Map (db m224378) HM
The Marquette was owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Her home port was Duluth, Minnesota. The Marquette was built in 1942 by Equitable Equipment Co. at New Orleans, Louisiana. She measured 103 feet long, 26 feet wide, and 11 . . . — — Map (db m214169) HM
1900-1903 to house commissioned officers
and their families when the Lake Superior
State University campus was still serving
as US Army Fort Brady. Over the years,
the buildings have housed campus faculty,
staff and students, and have served . . . — — Map (db m213632) HM
This city, the oldest in the Midwest, grew up about the mission of Fathers Dablon and Marquette, founded in 1668 on the banks of the rapids through which Lake Superior’s waters commence their long journey seaward. In 1641 Fathers Jogues and . . . — — Map (db m213446) HM
The adjacent building
is the Sault Ste. Marie Indian Agency
built in 1827 by
Henry Rowe Schoolcraft
Author, historian and foremost
authority on American Indian
life, manners and customs.
Here Schoolcraft wrote some of the
books . . . — — Map (db m192400) HM
On this site in 1822-23 a water power Saw Mill the first power manufacturing plant in the north country was built by Fort Brady personnel — — Map (db m214166) HM
On this site in 1668 was built the first permanent wooden structure in what is now the state of Michigan. This was St. Mary's Church erected by the French Jesuit fathers Jacques Marquette and Louis Nicholas to minister to the Ojibwe community. The . . . — — Map (db m214153) HM
St. Marys Falls Canal has been designated a Registered National Historic Landmark Under the provisions of the Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1935 this site possesses exceptional value in commemorating or illustrating the history of the . . . — — Map (db m143700) HM
In 1853, Pope Pius IX separated the Upper Peninsula from the Diocese of Detroit and established a vicariate apostolic. Reverend Frederic Baraga, a missionary from L’Anse, became vicar apostolic and made St. Mary’s Church his headquarters. In 1857 . . . — — Map (db m213449) HM
This statue of St. Mary is placed in this location to reflect the namesake of the St. Marys River and the twin cities of Sault Ste. Marie. It was originally located in the Sisters of Charity Hospital in Detroit for many years and moved to this . . . — — Map (db m214162) HM
1,000 Feet Long · Launched 1972
Why does only one have a forward pilothouse?
The first footer, the Cort, is the only one with a forward pilothouse. The twelve footers that followed placed all accommodations and the pilot house at the stern . . . — — Map (db m224381) HM
This historic three ton anchor was donated to the college in 1969, by the Alumni Association. The anchor came from the V.H. Ketcham, a wooden iron ore freighter, the first vessel operated by Pickings Mather & Co. It was a pioneer, being the first . . . — — Map (db m213462) HM
Though unpretentious, the Elijah B. Allen House at 126 Water Street has nonetheless been significant in Sault and regional history. Built around 1822, it is probably the second oldest house in Sault Ste. Marie after the Johnston House. It was here . . . — — Map (db m214161) HM
To provide a refuge at Sault Ste. Marie for French traders and missionaries, King Louis XV in 1750 ordered Louis de Repentigny to build a fort near what later became Fort Brady. The king also granted 214,000 surrounding acres of land to de . . . — — Map (db m214148) HM
A thick layer of stone holds back the waters of Laker Superior and creates rapids here where the waters of Lake Superior drop 21 feet at the head of the St. Marys River.
Without this layer of stone between Lake Superior and the St. Marys . . . — — Map (db m224367) HM
Erected by the citizenry of Chippewa County in appreciation of the services of their war heroes.
Civil War 1861-1865; Spanish American War 1898-1902; World War 1917-1918 — — Map (db m92742) WM
By the late 1880s, business was booming on Water Street. Railroad lines had come, a water power plant had been constructed at the rapids, and a second lock had been built. Sault Ste. Marie was incorporated as a city in 1887.
After a fire . . . — — Map (db m214159) HM
