List of Michigan state parks
This is a list of Michigan state parks and related protected areas under the jurisdiction or owned by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Parks and Recreation Division. A total of 104 state parks, state recreation areas and trail state parks currently exist along with eight other sites as well as 16 state harbors on the Great Lakes. While the Parks and Recreation Division directly manages the large majority of the parks in the system, a few are either jointly-managed with other agencies or are leased to other governmental entities, either temporarily or on an ongoing basis. Michigan's 103 state parks and recreation areas cover with 14,100 campsites in 142 campgrounds and over of trails. The state parks and recreation areas statewide collectively saw more than 26 million visits in 2016.
History
Michigan's state parks system was started in 1919. Three Michigan state parks pre-date the creation of the park system in 1919: Mackinac Island State Park, Michilimackinac State Park and Interlochen State Park.Mackinac Island State Park was created in 1895. It had served as the nation's second national park for two decades beginning in 1875. In 1909, Michilimackinac State Park was created in nearby Mackinaw City. Both of these parks, along with Historic Mill Creek State Park are under the jurisdiction of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission.
Interlochen State Park was purchased by the Michigan Legislature in 1917 and was the first public park to be transferred to the Michigan State Park Commission in 1920. Because Mackinac Island State Park was a federal gift with its own commission and jurisdiction, for those reasons some choose to not consider it the first state park even though it predates Interlochen State Park by nearly 25 years.
Since 1919, 33 additional state park units have been decommissioned for varied reasons. The majority of these former state park units, 16, were transferred to counties or cities and are still local parks today. Four of the former units were incorporated into Michigan's two National Lakeshores when were created in the 1960s and 70s, while five others were removed and reverted into surrounding state lands. Four of the units were incorporated into larger state recreation areas in the 1940s in the Greater Detroit area, although one of those recreation areas is now a local park. Two of the former state park units are now state forest campgrounds and another two units existed on state lands which were sold to private interests and closed.
Additional DNR facilities
DNR operates 746 boat launches on of designated public water access sites. It also operates 16 "harbors of refuge" as well as providing support for the other 61 harbors in the system. The harbors of refuge are approximately apart along the Great Lakes shoreline to provide shelter from storms and often provide boat launches and supplies. There are 13 state underwater preserves covering of Great Lakes bottomland and ten of them have a maritime museum or interpretive center in a nearby coastal community.The DNR Parks and Recreation Division also manages 138 state forest campgrounds. The Michigan state game and wildlife areas encompass more than. DNR also oversees the trail systems in the state. This includes of non-motorized trails, of rail-trails, of off-road vehicle routes and of snowmobile trails.
Michigan trail state parks
The following state trails are units of the State Park System. Several other state trails fall under Department of Natural Resources jurisdiction and/or maintenance, but are not state park units and are not included here.Former state park units
- Benzie State Park – donated to the National Park Service in 1975 and is now the Platte River Campground of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
- Bloomer State Park No. 1 – 36 acres, absorbed into Proud Lake State Recreation Area; now Bloomer Park in West [Bloomfield Township, Michigan|West Bloomfield Township]
- Bloomer State Park No. 2 – 50 acres, originally Dodge Brothers State Park No. 7; incorporated into Rochester-Utica State Recreation Area, now Bloomer Park in Rochester Hills
- Bloomer State Park No. 3 – 100 acres, later incorporated into Ortonville State Recreation Area, northeast of Ortonville
- Bloomer State Park No. 4 –, 28 acres, now Bloomer Park in White [Lake Township, Michigan|White Lake Township], undeveloped site sold as it was "not of state park calibre" with funds used to purchased additional lands for the new Rochester-Utica State Recreation Area
- Cheboygan State Park – 15 acres, original state park located on the site of the current Cheboygan County Fairground, originally known as O'Brien's Grove
- D.H. Day State Park – later consolidated with nearby Sleeping Bear-Glen Lake State Park ; donated to the National Park Service in 1975 and is now the D.H. Day Campground of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
- Detour State Park – 403 acres, now Detour State Forest Campground in Lake Superior State Forest, west of De Tour Village
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 1 – 22 acres, name later changes to Island Lake Dodge Brothers No.1 State Park; incorporated into Island Lake State Recreation Area in 1944
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 2 – 26 acres, now Lakeshore Park in Novi
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 3 – 13 acres, on Crescent Lake west of Pontiac, now Optimist Park, in Waterford.
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 5 – 80 acres, now Dodge Park V in Commerce Township
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 6 – 35 acres, now Beverly Park in Beverly Hills
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 7 – originally designated Dodge Brothers State Park No. 11, renamed to No. 7 when the original No. 7 became Bloomer State Park No. 2; 240 acres, now Horseshoe Lake State Game Area near Oxford
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 8 – 41.2 acres, now Dodge Park in Sterling Heights
- Dodge Brothers State Park No. 9 – 30 acres, now Dodge Park in South Rockwood
- Dodge Brothers State Park No.10 – 78 acres, incorporated into Highland State Recreation Area near Highland in 1944
- East Tawas State Park - now East Tawas City Park in East Tawas
- Frank W. Fletcher State Park – 160 acres, now Sunken Lake County Park northwest of Alpena
- Gladwin State Park – 302 acres, now Gladwin City Park in Gladwin
- Grand Marais State Park - incorporated into the easternmost portion of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
- Hanson Military Reservation – southwest of Grayling, managed as a state park for recreation purposes, included the Grayling Winter Sports Park
- Lake City State Park – at Lake City, now the Missaukee County Park
- Magnus State Park – 16 acres, now Magnus City Park in Petoskey
- Marquette State Park – Not operated in the 1946 season, deeded back to the City of Marquette in 1947. Now a subdivision of homes west of Marquette.
- Munuskong State Park – a Dodge Brothers state park on Munuscong Bay northeast of Pickford, now part of the Munuscong State Wildlife Management Area
- Paw Paw State Park – in Paw Paw on Maple Lake. Park turned back to the City of Paw Paw in spring 1926.
- Pere Marquette River State Park – four sites—33, 12, 77 and 189 acres, respectively, along the Pere Marquette River in Mason County
- Pictured Rocks State Park – Originated with the gift to the state of 27 acres around Miners Castle from Alger County in 1931, later incorporated into the westernmost portion of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in 1966.
- Rochester-Utica State Recreation Area – a portion was also part of Spring Hill Farm, the country estate of boxer Joe Louis, ; now Bloomer City Park and River Bends Park
- Saint Clair State Park – 17 acres, former St. Clair County Park gifted to the state; abandoned as a state park in 1949 due to the proximity of nearby Port Huron State Park and given its small size; deeded to township and is now Burtchville Township Park.
- Sidnaw State Park – 1,500 acres, formed from the Sidnaw Fish Hatchery lands near Sidnaw
- Sleeping Bear-Glen Lake State Park – 2,044 acres, centered on state lands received from the federal government in the Sleeping Bear Dunes area, later consolidated with D.H. Day State Park ; donated to the National Park Service in 1975 and is now part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
- Van Etten Lake State Park – now Van Etten Lake State Forest Campground near Oscoda. Removed from state park system so timber in the park could be harvested for the war effort during World War II.
- White Cloud State Park – now White Cloud City Park in White Cloud