The Ojibwa Indians called Grand Marais Kitchi-bitobig, which meant ("great pond"). The name seemed to make some sense as the community sits on Lake Superior's south shore.
French explorers and traders arrived as early as 1619 and supposedly dubbed the area Grand Marais, which meant "great marsh", even though there is no marsh in the area. There is debate as to whether the name is a mistake in perception or a cartographer's mistake, but the name stuck.
The first permanent European settler arrived in 1861 when Peter Barbeau established a trading post here.
Increased maritime traffic at Grand Marais from trapping and the lumbering industry led to Federal approval for the Army Corp of Engineers to start a major harbor improvement project in 1881 to build and deepen a channel for commercial traffic and to create a harbor of refuge at Grand Marais.
Work continued over the next decade as the Army Corps built a 5,770-foot timber pier across the bay to a dredged channel on the western shore. By the end of the 1880s, and after spending more than $250,000, two protective piers flanked a channel dredged to 40 feet deep.
Most of the lumber at Grand Marais was gone by 1884. The town's lumber mill closed, population declined, and the remaining residents turned to fishing to support themselves.
Maritime traffic remained relatively strong, especially after the Manistique Railroad came to Grand Marais, making it easier to transport lumber from forests in the region to the port for shipping elsewhere. The mill reopened after enlarging and expanding.
Congress appropriated $15,000 to place a light tower and fog bell at Grand Marias in 1895.
The fog bell and mechanism came from nearby Point Iroquois lighthouse, as the station there upgraded to a steam -whistle system. The Grand Marais light with its Fresnel lens sat atop a 34-foot-tall tower on a skeletal frame bolted to the pier.
Using the old Point Iroquois fog bell and the lack of a keepers' dwelling at Grand Marias helped the project come in under budge, so Congress approved a request to use the extra money for a rear range light at Grand Marais.
Construction of a life-saving station at Grand Marais gained approval in 1898.
Money came through to extend the west pier an additional 612 feet and to move the lighthouse further out on the pier in 1904.
In 1908, Congress appropriated $5,000 to build a keeper's dwelling at Grand Marias after repeated requests from the Lighthouse Board. The keepers previously lived in a shamefully shabby shanty on the pier constructed from scrap materials by the first lighthouse keeper.
Maritime traffic at Grand Marais experienced a steep decline as lumbering and commercial fishing declined from the 1910s on. While it remained the only harbor of refuge between Marquette and Sault St. Marie, the commercial importance of Grand Marais also declined after the construction of the MacArthur Lock at Sault St. Marie.
The Coast Guard took over the life-saving station in 1938, and they took over light keeping duties during World War II.
The Army Corps of Engineers quit maintaining the breakwater at Grand Marias during the 1940s, and harbor filled with sand as the wooden breakwater deteriorated. The harbor became much shallower, allowing only smaller vessels to enter the harbor with ease.
The Coast Guard deactivated their Grand Marais station in 1981.The National Park Service now owns it and uses it as a ranger station for the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.
The Grand Marais Historical Society acquired the light keepers' dwelling in 1984, restored it and now operates it as a museum during the summer.
Today maritime traffic at Grand Marais primarily consists of pleasure boats. Tourists visiting the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore often visit town and the harbor reportedly draws many fishers in spring and fall for the plentiful Coho, steelhead and whitefish caught here.
We dropped by the harbor on a quiet week day in early June to see the front range light on the pier and the light keepers' dwelling.
We had no company beyond a lone fisher sitting on the pier near the lighthouse. The museum wasn't open because of budget cutbacks delaying many recreational and park site openings this season.
It is visiting on dreary days like this, though, that can give you a little sense of just how isolated this harbor can be.
Want to learn more about Grand Marais and its maritime history? Check out Grand Marais (Images of America) by the Grand Marais Historical Society or Lake Superior's Shipwreck Coast: A Survey of Maritime Accidents from Whitefish Bay's Point Iroquois to Grand Marais, Michigan by Frederick Stonehouse.
© Dominique King 2013 All rights reserved
I have been to Grand Marais many times in June & July. You failed to mention the many large sail boats that stop for overnights to rest & gather supplies in Grand Marais in the Harbor. It is not only a utilitarian exercise but a beautiful site to behold at both sunset & sunrise. The people I meet coming & going are from all over the world & are friendly & more then happy to talk about where they have been & where they are headed in their adventures. this is one aspect of Grand Marais that could have been uncovered in your story had you left the harbor & gone into any shop in town & talked to a local towns person. Afterall, I'm from Minneapolis & I know this story about Grand Marais. Part of the great Midwest.
Posted by: Diane Reid | November 13, 2013 at 08:57 AM
Hi Diane-Thanks for stopping by!
I'm well aware of the sail boats and over night visitors who frequent the harbor at Grand Marais in the warmer and busier days of the summer. I'm sure many others are familiar with this story as well. But the story that interested me here was the history and the story about the quieter side of the harbor that we found during this visit on a cold and dreary day. It's a quiet side you don't always see in the high summer season, and I wanted to share that with people.
Posted by: Dominique King | November 13, 2013 at 09:21 AM