Discover Marine City

MARINE CITY — Marine City is a charming town located at the confluence of the St. Clair and Belle rivers. The land had been Ojibwa territory for centuries before European contact. Initially, founded by the French and their “Ribbon farms,” The French heritage is still evident in the names of many people and places here. The land was deeded to settlers by the Chippewa Indians in the 1780’s. The American’s deemed the town “Yankee Point” because most of the settlers arrived there from New England.  Marine City was platted as “Newport” in 1835 by Sam Ward. In 1865, it was incorporated as the Village of Marine City and was reincorporated as a city in 1887 after significant growth as a result of the booming lumber and commodity trade.

​The Shipbuilding industry made Marine City one of the largest Shipbuilding towns on the Great Lakes. It was also home to four other very important local industries of the 19th Century. These were the production of Sugar, Salt, Logging and Barrel making industries.

​Marine City today has retained much of its original charm and is now a vibrant tourist town along the banks of the St. Clair River. It is becoming a hub for local theater productions, hotel, museums, antique shops, art galleries, small specialty shops, a growing number of great restaurants and specialty foods (candy, popcorn, coffee, bakeries).  Many of our local businesses have been deemed destinations for the Detroit Metro Area.

​Many parks dot the waterfront and have many fine examples of marine artifacts. These comprise the Marine City Outdoor Maritime Museum.  A sand beach on the St Clair River, a transient marina and a kayak/canoe launch are all within walking distance of the downtown district.

Marine City is in close proximity to the metropolitan Detroit area, yet far enough away to retain our rural, small town atmosphere.