Owned and operated by J. D. McAuliffe from 1872, this island was hailed as “a shady retreat for pleasure seekers...(with) a fine collection of animals and a museum of rare specimens”. Eaton Rapids bought it in 1897 for a city park. From 1908 to 1929 the Eaton County Battalion of the G.A.R. held its annual encampment there when it was named Grand Army Park. Summer concerts, reunions, and picnics brought many people there over the years, and a group formed in 1973 to save the island from erosion refocused attention on the spot.