HISTORY

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Harsen's Island is situated in the St. Clair River. It is named for
Jacob Harsen who
bought the island from Chippewa
Indians in 1797. He was a native of Holland who came to eastern Michigan
after first settling in New York, Harsen is the island's namesake.
The St. Clair River links the upper and lower Great Lakes. It was
named by French explorers on August 12, 1679 in honor of Sainte
Claire of Assisi whose feast day fell on that date - the date these
explorers sailed the Griffin on Lake St. Clair. This was the first
sailing ship to sail on the Great Lakes. It is one of the
world's great marine highways. In the 1700s canoes used this
waterway to trade furs. In the 1800s Sam and Eber Brock Ward
built ships in nearby Marine City, Michigan that navigated the St.
Clair River to transport immigrants. In the 1900s freighters
transported iron ore, copper, grain and other goods through these
waterways. Today the river is still used to transport people and
products. It is used for sport and relaxation.
Tashmoo Park opened on Harsen's Island in 1897. Harsen's
Island was considered the jewel of the St. Clair River and offered
several luxurious hotels. and visitors traveled there from
Detroit on the Tashmoo steamship.
Over the years generations of families have lived on the island or
been regular summer visitors to the island.
The St. Clair Region in 1815
See Historic Photos
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More Early History of
the Island
The Harsen Family
Indian Medicine Dance and Feast
Chippewa Indians
Early Island Families
Harsen House
Early Ships Built on Harsen's Island
Sheriffs
of St. Clair County
Clerks of
St. Clair County
Treasurers of St. Clair County
Surveyors of St. Clair County
Prosecuting Attorneys of St.
Clair County
Registers of Deeds of St. Clair
County
Circuit Court Commissioners of St. Clair County
Coroners of St. Clair County
Population of St. Clair County - 1830 to 1910
Representatives of St. Clair County
Senators of St. Clair County
Soldiers of the Spanish
American War - St. Clair County
Civil War Soldiers from St. Clair County
1830 Census - St.
Clair County
Congressmen of St. Clair County
St. Clair Flats School Records - 1904 - 1918
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