Mackinac Island

Mackinac Island (/ˈmækᵻnɔː/ MAK-in-aw) is an island and resort area, covering 3.8 square miles (9.8 km²) in land area, in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Lake Huron, at the eastern end of the Straits of Mackinac, between the state's Upper and Lower Peninsulas. The island was home to an Odawa settlement before European exploration began in the 17th century. It served a strategic position as a center on the commerce of the Great Lakes fur trade. This led to the establishment of Fort Mackinac on the island by the British during the American Revolutionary War. It was the site of two battles during the War of 1812.

In the late 19th century, Mackinac Island became a popular tourist attraction and summer colony. Much of the island has undergone extensive historical preservation and restoration; as a result, the entire island is listed as a National Historic Landmark. It is well known for its numerous cultural events; its wide variety of architectural styles, including the famous Victorian Grand Hotel; its fudge; and its ban on almost all motor vehicles. More than 80 percent of the island is preserved as Mackinac Island State Park.

Michigan

Michigan ⁱ/ˈmɪʃᵻɡən/ is a state located in the Great Lakes and midwestern regions of the United States. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake". Michigan is the tenth most populous of the 50 United States, with the 11th most extensive total area (the largest state by total area east of the Mississippi River). Its capital is Lansing, and the largest city is Detroit.

Michigan is the only state to consist of two peninsulas. The Lower Peninsula, to which the name Michigan was originally applied, is often noted to be shaped like a mitten. The Upper Peninsula (often referred to as "the U.P.") is separated from the Lower Peninsula by the Straits of Mackinac, a five-mile (8 km) channel that joins Lake Huron to Lake Michigan. The two peninsulas are connected by the Mackinac Bridge. The state has the longest freshwater coastline of any political subdivision in the world, being bounded by four of the five Great Lakes, plus Lake Saint Clair. As a result, it is one of the leading U.S. states for recreational boating. Michigan also has 64,980 inland lakes and ponds. A person in the state is never more than six miles (9.7 km) from a natural water source or more than 85 miles (137 km) from a Great Lakes shoreline.

Island

An island /ˈaɪlənd/ or isle /ˈaɪl/ is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be called an eyot or ait, or a holm. A grouping of geographically or geologically related islands is called an archipelago, e.g. the Philippines.

An island may be described as such despite the presence of an artificial land bridge, for example Singapore and its causeway, or the various Dutch delta islands, such as IJsselmonde. Some places may even retain "island" in their names for historical reasons after being connected to a larger landmass by a wide land bridge, such as Coney Island or Coronado Island. Conversely, when a piece of land is separated from the mainland by a man-made canal, for example the Peloponnese by the Corinth Canal, it is generally not considered an island.

There are two main types of islands: continental islands and oceanic islands. There are also artificial islands.

Mackinac Island, Michigan

Mackinac Island (/ˈmækᵻnɔː/ MAK-in-aw) is a city in Mackinac County in the U.S. state of Michigan. In the 2010 census, the city had a permanent population of 492, although there are thousands of seasonal workers and tourists during the summer months.

An important fur trading center from the eighteenth century, with a predominately French-speaking population of French Canadians and Métis, after the War of 1812, it gained more Anglo-American residents. From 1818–1882 the city was the county seat of the former Michilimackinac County, which was later organized as Mackinac County with St. Ignace designated as the county seat. The city includes all of Mackinac Island and the unpopulated Round Island, which is federally owned and part of Hiawatha National Forest. The city limits include all of Mackinac Island State Park, which area makes up 80% of Mackinac Island; it is governed by the Mackinac Island State Park Commission. The city is served by the Mackinac Island Public School.

Pure Michigan

Pure Michigan began as an advertising campaign launched in 2006 by the state of Michigan, featuring the voice of actor and comedian Tim Allen. The Pure Michigan campaign, which aims to market the state of Michigan as a travel and tourism destination, received state and international attention beginning in 2008 when Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm approved $45 million in additional funding for the Pure Michigan campaign from the 21st Century Jobs Trust Fund. The unprecedented tourism fund amount for the state allowed the Pure Michigan campaign to be broadcast on a national level beginning in March 2009. Annual funding for fiscal 2014 was $29 million.

Pure Michigan also refers to the brand created by Travel Michigan and embodied by the organization's website. The site was relaunched in March 2008 to support the Pure Michigan brand. Travel Michigan is itself a division of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, a state-funded economic development corporation founded in 1999 to support the economic development of Michigan. Campaign commercials and radio announcements depict Michigan as adventurous and rustic.