Drummond Township, Michigan
Drummond Township (/ˈdrʌmənd/ DRUH-mənd), which comprises Drummond Island, is a civil township of Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 973 at the 2020 census.
Drummond Township, Michigan Drummond Island | |
|---|---|
View of Big Shoal Cove, near the southeastern end of Drummond Island | |
Location within Chippewa County | |
Drummond Township Location within the state of Michigan | |
| Coordinates: 46°00′00″N 83°40′00″W / 46.00000°N 83.66667°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| County | Chippewa |
| Government | |
| • Supervisor | Chad Cameron |
| Area | |
| • Total | 249.0 sq mi (644.9 km2) |
| • Land | 128.9 sq mi (333.9 km2) |
| • Water | 120.1 sq mi (311.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 741 ft (247 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total | 973 |
| • Density | 8/sq mi (3.2/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code(s) | 49726 (Drummond Island) |
| Area code | 906 |
| FIPS code | 26-23080[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1626193[2] |
Drummond Island is the seventh-largest lake island in the world. With an area of 347 km2 (134 sq mi), it is also the third-largest lake island in Lake Huron, behind Manitoulin and St. Joseph, and the fifth-largest island in the contiguous United States, behind Long Island, Padre Island, Isle Royale and Whidbey Island.[3] M-134 extends from the mainland to run through the western portion of the island, connecting with the mainland via the Drummond Island Ferry, which runs between the island and DeTour Village.
On the east side of Drummond Island, the Canada–United States border passes through the False Detour Channel. On the other side of that channel, the Canadian Cockburn Island separates Drummond from Manitoulin Island.
History edit
The township and island are named after Gordon Drummond, the first Canadian-born officer to command the military and the civil government of British Canada. As Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, Drummond distinguished himself on the Niagara front in the War of 1812 and later became Governor-General and Administrator of Canada.[4] The Ojibwe name for the island is Bootaagan-minising (syncope as Bootaagan-mnising[5] recorded as "Potagannissing"),[6] meaning "at the Mill Island".[5]
The history of Drummond Island dates back centuries, but more recent history of the past 200 years relates to the British occupation of the island during and after the War of 1812. The island was the last British outpost on American soil following the Treaty of Ghent (1814). On October 6, 1828, orders were sent out from Quebec that the post would be handed over, and the island was officially occupied by United States on November 14, 1828.[7] Drummond Island is the only island in the Manitoulin Island chain which is part of the United States. Drummond Island was originally recorded by Americans as First Manitoulin Island and Drummond's Island.[3]
Border on the Great Lakes edit
British and American negotiators to the 1814 Treaty of Ghent ended the War of 1812 by offering no territorial concessions to either side, but returned to those boundaries set by the Treaty of Paris of 1783. To resolve territorial claims that had precipitated the war, negotiators at Ghent established a process whereby commissioners would survey the boundary to determine the borders envisioned in the original treaty.
Beginning in August 1820, two teams of surveyors, including British explorer and cartographer David Thompson, mapped the area of St. Joseph Island, Drummond Island, and Lesser and Greater Manitou Islands (today Cockburn and Manitoulin islands). Mapping this corner of Lake Huron was a challenge given that little was known about the shores and depths of the channels between the islands. The agent for the United States survey team, Major Joseph Delafield, complained, "No map that I have seen has any truth as it respects the position of Drummond's or the other islands about St. Marys. We entered this bay without a pilot, but are told we cannot proceed up river without one."[8]
Based on the surveys taken in the summers of 1820 and 1821, and guided by the commission's two principles that the boundary would not divide islands and that the number of islands would be apportioned equally between the two countries,[8] in November and December 1821, commissioners agreed to grant St. Joseph Island and Cockburn Island to Canada and Drummond Island, which lies between them, to the United States.[8]
Geography edit
According to the US Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 249.0 square miles (644.9 km2), of which 128.9 square miles (333.9 km2) is land and 120.1 square miles (311.0 km2), or 48.23%, is water.[9] The island is dominated by forest, with cliffs on the eastern side, which are part of the Niagara Escarpment.
Most of the island, approximately 2⁄3, is state land owned by the state of Michigan.[10] The island hosts a rare environment known as alvar, a grassy limestone plain found only in a few places worldwide.[11]
Drummond Township is one of only seven municipalities in the state of Michigan to consist entirely of islands, including Grosse Ile Township, St. James Township, Bois Blanc Township, Mackinac Island, Peaine Township, and Sugar Island Township.
Major highway edit
- M-134 is the sole highway serving the island. The Drummond Island Ferry connects M-134 to the island from DeTour Village. West of there, M-134 parallels the shore of Lake Huron, until it meets I-75 near St. Ignace. It is one of three state trunkline highways on islands in Michigan; the others being M-154 on Harsens Island, and M-185 on Mackinac Island.
Climate edit
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Communities edit
- Drummond is an unincorporated community on Potagannissing Bay on the northwest side of the island at 46°01′12″N 83°43′52″W / 46.02000°N 83.73111°W.[13] M-134 ends south of the community.
- Johnswood is an unincorporated community on the NE shore of Scammon Cove, near the SW part of Drummond Island.
Demographics edit
In 2020, the township had a population of 973.
See also edit
- List of populated islands of the Great Lakes
- Jasper conglomerate (Drummond Island puddingstone)
- Niagara Escarpment
- Gordon Drummond
- War of 1812
- Drummond Island Airport
References edit
- ^ "U.S. Census website". US Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Drummond Township, Michigan
- ^ a b "Drummond, Island". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ "Drummond Island, Michigan". Retrieved October 5, 2012.
- ^ a b Freelang Ojibwe Dictionary
- ^ Bamford, Don; Paul Carroll (2009). Four Years on the Great Lakes, 1813-1816: The Journal of Lieutenant David Wingfield, Royal Navy. Natural Heritage Books - The Dundurn Group. p. 259. ISBN 978-1-55488-393-6. Retrieved December 17, 2013.
- ^ "Michigan History: The first residents of Drummond Island". July 3, 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
- ^ a b c Carroll, Francis M. (Fall 2004). "The Search for the Canadian-American boundary along the Michigan frontier, 1819-1827: The Boundary Commissions under Articles Six and Seven of the Treaty of Ghent". Michigan Historical Review. 30 (2): 77–104. doi:10.2307/20174082. JSTOR 20174082.
- ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Drummond Island township, Chippewa County MI". US Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
- ^ Michigan Department of Natural Resources (April 18, 2016). Drummond Island (PDF) (Map). [c. 1:202,752]. Lansing: Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
- ^ Bailey, Betty (n.d.). . Drummond Island Tourism Association. Archived from the original on November 19, 2016.
- ^ "NASA Earth Observations Data Set Index". NASA. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Drummond, Michigan
External links edit
- Drummond Township, Michigan
- Drummond Island Tourism Association
- Kelley, J.G., (2009) Drummond Island Puddingstone. Drummond Island Tourism Association, Drummond Island, Michigan.