St. Helena Island (Michigan)

St. Helena Island is an uninhabited 240 acres (97 ha) island in the Lake Michigan approach to the Straits of Mackinac. The island is located offshore from Gros Cap, Michigan, 10 miles (16 km) west of Mackinac Island in Mackinac County in the U.S. state of Michigan.

From the standpoint of the Great Lakes, the most important fact about St. Helena Island are the shoal waters that extend outward from the small island's southeasternmost point. A hazard to navigation, the shoal inspired the 1873 construction of a 63 feet (19 m) lighthouse and tower. The St. Helena Island Light not only warned boaters away from the shoal, but also guided eastbound vessels toward the narrow Straits of Mackinac. The light station, which now constitutes the island's only remaining constructed buildings, remains as an active aid to navigation as of 2014.

By contrast, the Island's north shore has a natural (albeit shallow) harbor on its north shore. Historically, this embayment provided shelter for both Native Americans and voyageurs, who sought shelter from fierce, foreseeable and notorious southwesterly storms, which would drive waves that gained strength running with the lake's length.

The cold but shallow waters around St. Helena Island create fertile grounds for schools of lake trout and whitefish. During the 1800s, a fishing station operated adjacent to the island harbor. A fishing station, a self-contained community vernacular to the culture of the Upper Great Lakes, was a logistical depot for professional fishermen during the century prior to the development of motorboats and refrigeration. Freshly caught fish from the waters of northeastern Lake Michigan adjacent to St. Helena Island would be rushed by oar or sail back to the fishing station for preservation in salt. Salt fish could be stored and transported in barrels as an exportable commodity.

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