L'Anse Township Park
The history of the L’Anse area dates back to the 1660s when French explorers first passed through the area, but much of the recorded history starts in the 1800s with the first fur trading posts. Pierre ‘Peter’ Crebassa was born in 1805 or 1807 in Manitoba, Canada, and explored the rugged wilderness of the Upper Peninsula starting in 1828, eventually making a home in L’Anse after his work with the American Fur Company brought him to the area. His trading post was in the present-day position of L’Anse Township Park, but we’re still a few centuries before that.
After arriving in L’Anse in 1837, Crebassa was the reason for Bishop Baraga’s first visit to L’Anse. He said that there was an ‘old Chief named Penanshi’ who used to come and see him on Sundays and ask him to read and explain stories from the Bible to him. He said the Chief asked if he could get a priest to come to L’Anse, so Crebassa wrote to Father Baraga every year until he finally agreed to come in 1943. He came in June and stayed for several weeks, baptizing dozens of people and setting up a mission there. The story likely didn’t go exactly like this, but this is how it was recounted by Crebassa in 1898 in the L’Anse Sentinel.
Other missionaries came to L’Anse later, and Crebassa died on April 25, 1898. He was the L’Anse Postmaster for years, starting in 1852.
Crebassa’s original trading post and the home of Bishop Baraga’s first mission would later become a township park, which is pictured here. The park is located inside the L’Anse Indian Reservation, which is a part of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community.
At the park, you’ll find campsites, a playground, a horseshoe pit, bathrooms, and other amenities like pavilions, a dog park, hiking trails, a gazebo by the water, and a small dock on the Keweenaw Bay.
The L’Anse Township Park and Campground campsites don’t have much privacy; however, the view of the Keweenaw Bay from the campground is unparalleled. A large monument marks the site of the first trading post in the area. The tablet on the monument reads, “This monument marks the site of the first trading post established for the American Fur Trading Company by Peter Crebassa in 1837. This tablet was presented by the students of L’Anse Township Schools National Youth Administration, 1938.”
Though the park isn’t as water-centric as L’Anse Waterfront Park and isn’t as action-packed as the waterfalls on the Falls River, this is a splendid place to relax and unwind.
Whether you’re looking for a place to camp for a few nights, want to stretch your legs and let the dog run for a while, or need a place to have a picnic with family and friends, L’Anse Township Park and Campground is the place for you!
