Council Point Park is a city-owned park in Wayne County in the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. It is located along the

Ecorse River The Ecorse River is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed November 7, 2011 river in southern Michigan. Because of its small size, it is often identified as Ecorse Creek. ...

within the city of

Lincoln Park Lincoln Park is a park along Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Named after US president Abraham Lincoln, it is the city's largest public park and stretches for from Grand Avenue (500 N), on the south, to near Ardmore Avenu ...

. The park is 27 acres, and borders the cities of Wyandotte and

Ecorse Ecorse ( ') is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 9,305 at the 2020 census. Ecorse is part of the Downriver community within Metro Detroit. The city shares a northwestern border with the city of Detroit ...

. The point itself is formed by the northern and southern branches of the Ecorse River, just before it reaches the

Detroit River The Detroit River is an List of international river borders, international river in North America. The river, which forms part of the border between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ont ...

. The land for the park was purchased in the late 1980s. The park's dimensions were courtesy of Wade Trim and Associates. The park includes a 1.9 mile jogging track along the Ecorse River, two baseball/softball diamonds, two soccer fields, a picnic pavilion, a children's park with a playscape, an inline hockey arena, and a permanent restroom/storage building.

History

Council Point Park is the site of a significant event in the history of the state of

. In 1763,

Chief Pontiac Pontiac or Obwaandi'eyaag (c. 1714/20 – April 20, 1769) was an Odawa war chief known for his role in Pontiac's War, the war named for him, from 1763 to 1766 leading Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans in an armed strugg ...

, the chief of the Ottawa tribe in Michigan, called for a council along the Ecorse River of all of the tribes in what is now Michigan. The tribes that were present at this council were the

Wyandot Wyandot may refer to: Native American ethnography * Wyandot people, who have been called Wyandotte, Huron, Wendat and Quendat * Wyandot language, an Iroquoian language * Wyandot Nation of Kansas, an unrecognized tribe and nonprofit organization ...

, Detroit Ottawa, and the

Potawatomi The Potawatomi (), also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American tribe of the Great Plains, upper Mississippi River, and western Great Lakes region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, ...

. Pontiac called these tribes to action, stating that not only did he and other

Natives There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

want the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

gone, but that it was a special task sent from the King of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

to attack and remove the British from the former French territories. Pontiac's plan was to attack

Fort Detroit A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

in 3 days. After a few abortive attempts to take the fort by trickery, Pontiac and his people laid siege to the fort, and kept it besieged for six months. A series of small farm fields and woods was purchased from the Levy Company by the City of Lincoln Park in the late 1980s to become Council Point Park. The city partnered with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources in order to clean up a small toxic waste spill. Hazardous chemicals, including heavy metals used in steel making, had spilled into the park and needed to be cleaned up before the park was opened. The

Department of Natural Resources This article lists subnational environmental agencies in the United States, by state. Agencies that are responsible for state-level regulating, monitoring, managing, and protecting environmental and public health concerns. The exact duties of ...

cleaned up the land to make it a safe park. The 1915 Musta family farmhouse, located at 3051 River Drive (at Mayflower) along the western edge of the park, still remains. An Army Corps of Engineers water access was modified and rebuilt in WWII and is still buried beneath the property and is also documented in the Washington CoE register.

Activities

Council Point Park is host to a variety of activities. The park has two

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

diamonds in which little league practices and games are held. The park has two youth

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

fields used during the summer. There is a 1.9 mile walking/jogging track that outlines the perimeter of the park. One of the park's new attractions is an

inline hockey Inline hockey or roller hockey is a variant of hockey played on a hard, smooth surface, with players using inline skates to move and ice hockey sticks to shoot a hard, plastic puck into their opponent's goal to score points. The sport is a v ...

rink in which inline summer roller hockey leagues are played. Local inline hockey players can also skate year round. The park also includes a picnic pavilion in which many families and organizations host picnics and parties. The Lincoln Park Relay for Life is held at Council Point, every year on Mother's Day weekend.

Entertainment

Council Point Park is used for a

Pow Wow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations communities. Inaugurated in 1923, powwows today are an opportunity for Indigenous people to socialize, dance, sing, and honor their ...

by the American Indian Movement of Michigan, to commemorate Pontiac's great meeting back in the 1760s. The Pow Wow offers the opportunity for children and adults both to learn about the happenings of the Council of Pontiac, and the rich cultural heritage of the original inhabitants of this area, along with dancing, fun games and other activities. Council Point Park also has several different venues for visitors of the park to sit down and watch sporting events including baseball,

softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

, soccer, and inline hockey.

Geography

Council Point Park is a 27-acre park on the eastern edge of the City of Lincoln Park. The park is bordered by the Northern and Southern branches of the Ecorse Creek to the east, and River Drive to the west. The Creek forms the borders between the City of Lincoln Park, Wyandotte on the southern end, and Ecorse on the north end.

References

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External links

Lincoln Park official page
Parks in Michigan Protected areas of Wayne County, Michigan