page_title: Belle Isle Park (Michigan)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Belle Isle Park (Michigan) / History
caption_attribution_description: English: One of Argonne's famous white deer makes a rare appearance on a misty morning. Visitors to Argonne National Laboratory are sometimes startled by the white deer roaming the site and occasionally speculate on the nature of the experiment that produced their unusual coloring. But the deer are perfectly normal fallow deer (Dama dama), a naturally light-colored species native to North Africa, Europe and parts of Asia. There are about 40 on the Argonne site. Today’s herd began with eight or nine white deer that Gustav Freund, inventor of “skinless” casings for hot dogs, received or purchased from Chicago clothier Maurice L. Rothschild.
context_page_description: Belle Isle Park, known simply as Belle Isle, is a 982-acre island park in Detroit, Michigan, developed in the late 19th century. It consists of Belle Isle, an island in the Detroit River, as well as several surrounding islets. The U.S.-Canada border is in the channel south of Belle Isle such that the island is not in Canada.
  Owned by the city of Detroit, Belle Isle is managed as a state park by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources through a 30-year lease initiated in 2013; it was previously a city park. Belle Isle Park is the largest city-owned island park in the United States, and Belle Isle is the third largest island in the Detroit River, after Grosse Ile and Fighting Island. It is connected to mainland Detroit by the MacArthur Bridge.
  Belle Isle Park is home to the Belle Isle Aquarium, the Belle Isle Conservatory, the Belle Isle Nature Center, the James Scott Memorial Fountain, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, a municipal golf course, a half-mile swimming beach, and numerous other monuments and attractions. It is also the site of a Coast Guard station. The Detroit Yacht Club is located on an adjacent island, connected to Belle Isle by a bridge.
context_section_description: The island was settled by French colonists in the 18th century, who named it Île aux Cochons (Hog Island). They allowed their livestock free range on the island.
  Following his victory in the War of 1812, American General Alexander Macomb, Jr. was assigned to this region and owned the island as his estate. He was later appointed as Commanding General of the US Army. A monument to him was erected in the Washington Boulevard Historic District in downtown Detroit.
  On July 4, 1845, a historic picnic party was held on the island; attendees decided to change its name to "Belle Isle" in honor of Miss Isabelle Cass, daughter of Governor (General) Lewis Cass. The name Belle Isle (an archaic spelling of Belle Île) means "beautiful island" in French.
  The city planned to develop the island as a park, and hired prominent American urban park designer Frederick Law Olmsted in the 1880s to design it. He is known for his design of Central Park in New York City. But only some elements of his design were completed.
  The 1908 Belle Isle Casino building is not used as a gambling facility; rather, it serves for occasional public events. Highlights of Belle Isle include a botanical garden and the Belle Isle Conservatory (1904). Both the conservatory and the adjacent aquarium were designed by Detroit architect Albert Kahn, who designed Cadillac Place and the Ford Rouge Factory, now recognized as city and national landmarks.
  One night in 1908, Byron Carter of Cartercar stopped to help a stranded motorist on Belle Isle. When he cranked her Cadillac, it kicked back and broke his jaw. Complications from the injury resulted in his contracting pneumonia and he died. Henry Leland, founder of Cadillac Motors, said that "The Cadillac car will kill no more men if we can help it". He hired Charles Kettering, who established Delco and developed the electric self-starter. This soon became standard on all automobiles.
  Architect Cass Gilbert designed Belle Isle's James Scott Memorial Fountain, completed in 1925. Gilbert's other works include the United States Supreme Court Building in Washington, DC. William Livingstone Memorial Light, the only marble lighthouse in the United States, is located on the east end of the island, and features sumptuous materials and architecture. It was named for the president of the Lakes Carriers Association, who advocated safety and navigational improvements in Great Lakes shipping.
  During World War II, the US military used the island park for training. They also staged a re-enactment of the invasion of a Pacific island invasion by the Navy and Marine Corps. The island was temporarily renamed Bella Jima, and Detroiters witnessed an island invasion without the bloodshed. This event was conducted after the successful US invasion of Iwo Jima.
  At one time, the island housed a canoe concession, which provided rental canoes and stored private ones. Canoe riders often stopped at the nearby Remick Band Shell, which hosted regular concerts from 1950 to 1980. The band shell replaced an earlier facility and provided more amenities for performers and audience members. It was constructed at a cost of $150,000 and was named for resident Jerome H. Remick, who owned the world's largest music publishing house at the time.
  The Detroit Boat Club operated rented facilities on the island from 1902 until 1996. The marina and building are currently closed, and only rowing activities are still conducted at that location. The Belle Isle Golf Course opened in 1922. The Detroit Yacht Club building dates to 1923 and still houses an active private sailing club; it also offers swimming and other country club amenities. The Activities Building was the site of a restaurant. The Flynn Pavilion (1949) was designed by Eero Saarinen and used for ice skating rental.
  A ferry service to the island existed from 1840–1957, although the bridge was completed to the island in 1923. Riding stables were housed in an 1863 market building that was relocated from Detroit to the island in the 1890s. The building was disassembled and stored by Greenfield Village in the 2000s. The
caption: Many fallow deer including the "white" variety were formerly widespread on the island
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