Mamajuda Island

Mamajuda Island
Geography
The Mama Juda Lighthouse from a 1910 postcard
Mamajuda Island
Location	Detroit River
Coordinates	42°11′32″N 83°08′10″W / 42.19222°N 83.13611°W / 42.19222; -83.13611Coordinates: 42°11′32″N 83°08′10″W / 42.19222°N 83.13611°W / 42.19222; -83.13611
Administration
United States
State	Michigan
County	Wayne County
Township	Grosse Ile Township
Demographics
Population	Uninhabited

Mamajuda Island /mɑːməˈdʒuːdə/, sometimes identified as Mama Juda Island, is an American island in the Detroit River. It is located just east of the northern tip of Grosse Ile (Hennepin Point) and about 500 feet (152 m) west of the Canada–United States border. The island is part of Grosse Ile Township in Wayne County, Michigan.^[1] It is the smallest of all charted islands in the Detroit River.

Location of Mamajuda Island within the Detroit River

The former 30-acre (12 ha) island has since been lost due to erosion. Only a very small portion of it, consisting of a few boulders, appears above water during times of low water levels.^[2] Because of that, the island has no definitive size and cannot be used for any purposes. The island does not appear on many maps anymore, but it can be seen on some of the most precise online maps.^[3] The island is part of the much larger Mamajuda Island Shoal, which runs along the east coast of Grosse Ile. The shoal is about 3–8 feet (0.9–2.4 m) beneath the surface and runs all the way to Grassy Island.^[4] The area, including Mamajuda Island, has since become part of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge.^[5]

The island was originally named after an American Indian woman who regularly camped on the island during fishing season.^[2] In 1849, the Mama Juda Lighthouse was built on the island, and the lighthouse keeper and his family were the island's only inhabitants. The lighthouse itself was rebuilt in 1866.^[6] However, the loose composition of the island was subject to slow erosion that eventually washed away the lighthouse in 1950. The whole island itself disappeared by 1960, and only a few boulders from the former island periodically protrude above the surface.^[2] However, because of the underlying shoal, the area can pose a hazard for boating in the area, especially for large lake freighters that regularly travel within close proximity.

References

↑ Buttle and Tuttle Ltd (2000–2008). "Wayne County islands place names: Mamajuda Island". Retrieved December 25, 2009.
1 2 3 Biggs, Jerry (Oct 2000). "Mission to Mama". Retrieved December 25, 2009.
↑ Google Maps (2009). "Google Maps: Mamajuda Island". Retrieved December 25, 2009.
↑ Hamilton, Sam D. (9 Aug 2001). "Fish and Wildlife Service: Federal Register" (PDF). Retrieved December 25, 2009.
↑ U.S Environmental Protection Agency (2009). "Detroit River-Western Lake Erie Basin Indicator Project". Retrieved December 25, 2009.
↑ About the Great Lakes (2009). "Lighthouse Design and Construction". Retrieved December 25, 2009.

Lighthouses in Michigan

Northern Upper Peninsula	Au Sable Big Bay Point Copper Harbor Copper Harbor Front Range Crisp Point Eagle Harbor Eagle Harbor Range Lights Eagle River Fourteen Mile Point Grand Island East Channel Grand Island Harbor Rear Range Grand Island North Grand Marais Range Lights Granite Island Gull Rock Huron Island Isle Royale Manitou Island Marquette Breakwater Outer Marquette Harbor Mendota (Bete Grise) Munising Front Range Munising Rear Range Ontonagon Ontonagon Harbor West Breakwater Portage River (Jacobsville) Passage Island Rock Harbor Rock of Ages Sand Hills Sand Point Light (Baraga) St. Martin Island Stannard Rock Thunder Bay Island Whitefish Point

Southern Upper Peninsula	DeTour Reef Lansing Shoals Manistique East Breakwater Martin Reef Menominee Pier Minneapolis Shoal Naubinway Island Peninsula Point Poverty Island Sand Point Seul Choix Squaw Island St. Martin Island

St. Mary's River	Frying Pan Island Pipe Island Point Iroquois Round Island Light (St. Mary's River) Six Mile Point Range Rear Winter Point Range Front

Portage River/Ship Canal	Keweenaw Waterway Lower Entrance Keweenaw Waterway Upper Entrance Portage Lake Rouleau Point Range Front and Rear Lights

Straits of Mackinac	Bois Blanc McGulpin Point Old Mackinac Point Round Island Round Island Passage St. Helena Island

Western Lower Peninsula	Beaver Island Harbor Beaver Island Head Big Sable Point Cedar River Charlevoix Charlevoix South Pier Frankfort Frankfort South Range Grand Haven North Pierhead Grand Haven South Pierhead Entrance Grand Haven South Pierhead Inner Grand Traverse Grays Reef Holland Harbor Ile Aux Galets Little Sable Point Little Traverse Ludington Manistee Pierhead Manning Memorial Mission Point Mission Point (1933) Muskegon Breakwater Muskegon Pier North Manitou Shoal Pentwater North Pierhead Pentwater South Pierhead Point Betsie Portage Lake South Fox Island South Haven South Manitou Island St. Joseph North Pier Inner St. Joseph North Pier Outer South Manitou Island Waugoshance White River White Shoal

Eastern Lower Peninsula	Alpena Caseville Harbor Charity Island Cheboygan Crib Cheboygan River Front Range DeTour Reef Detroit River Fort Gratiot Forty Mile Point Fourteen Foot Shoal Gibraltar Gravelly Shoal Harbor Beach Lake St. Clair Mariners Memorial Middle Island Miller Memorial New Presque Isle Old Presque Isle Peche Island Rear Range Poe Reef Pointe aux Barques Port Austin Port Sanilac Saginaw Bay Saginaw River Rear Range Spectacle Reef St. Clair Flats Front and Rear Range Light Sturgeon Point Tawas Point Thunder Bay Island Tri-Centennial Light of Detroit William Livingstone Memorial Windmill Point

Historical (lost) lights	Au Sable North Pierhead Belle Isle Clinton River Ecorse Ecorse Range Rear Gibraltar Grassy Island Grassy Island North Channel Range Lights Grassy Island South Channel Range Lights Grosse Ile North Channel Range Lights Grosse Ile South Channel Range Lights Harwood Point East Range Front Kalamazoo River Mama Juda Mama Juda Range Front Manistee Main Middle Lake George Monroe Pier New Buffalo North Manitou Island Saginaw Bay Sand Beach North Entrance East Squaw Point St. Mary's River Lower Range Front Vidal Shoals Channel Range Front and Rear Lights Windmill Point Range Front and Rear Lights

Related	Lightship Huron List of lifesaving stations in Michigan

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