Long before the development of St. Joseph Island, both shores of this area were known as Sailor's Encampment, where winter ice forced ships and travelers to stop and wait for the spring thaw before moving on. By the 1850's fuel docks had been established along the island shore to supply ships. By 1900 the Riverside Hotel was in operation, and later in the 1930's the Rainsmere Hotel became a favorite spot for islanders and tourists alike. In 1877 children in the area first attended a log school on Rains property on the Huron Line; this building is now part of the Museum Complex. In 1884 a log building was built on the C Line, replaced with a wooden structure in 1900, and in 1949 the Orrell Memorial School was built before closing in 1964. The area's post office, known as Sea Gull, opened in 1884 with H. M. Ross as postmaster and closed in 1928. Telephone service came to the Huron Line in 1901 and served the Sailor's Encampment area.