The 98-year-old Long Island Blockhouse at the West Entrance of Hessel will be demolished and rebuilt in the same style of log construction. The stone chimney will not be rebuilt, but the distinctive profile of the building will remain as it has for nearly a century. (Photograph by Joe Eger) The reconstruction of the historic Long Island blockhouse, a distinctive structure that has stood at the West Entrance to Hessel for 98 years, was approved by Clark Township Zoning Board of Appeals at its April 22 meeting. The board also approved construction of an addition and attached garage to the Sandra Lee Leffel home on Beavertail Point, which lacked the proper setback from the water, according to zoning. The board granted a three-foot variance for the Leffel addition, which will be only 32 feet from the waterfront instead of the required 35 feet. The board did not receive any public comments about either proposed variance.

Zoning board member Mike Lofdahl said granting the Leffel variance will allow "substantial improvement to the structure and the environment of abutting uses" because it will not impede the use of the abutting properties, as stated by the ordinance. Mr. Lofdahl also cited undue hardship created on the lot by the narrowness of the parcel and drain field placement. The variance, approved unanimously, will allow construction of a 20-foot by 24-foot addition to the home and a 12-foot by 27-foot attached garage.

Mr. Lofdahl cited the same reasons for approving the blockhouse reconstruction.

Considering the building too costly to repair and too much of a landmark demolish, the building's owner, Ann Davis, sought permission to rebuild it on the existing foundation. The foundation, however, is closer to the water than zoning allows. The building now has 30- foot sideyard setbacks from the lakeshore, instead of the required 35 feet, but 50 feet between the front of the building and the lakeshore, and 600 feet between the back and the building to the east.

Representing Mrs. Davis at the April 22 meeting, Cedarville contractor Brian Kenney said the new structure will be constructed of white cedar and will closely resemble the old one. The only thing missing will be the fieldstone fireplace because the family decided it would be too expensive to build a new one.

An image of the blockhouse is on the Hessel billboard on M-134.

Jutting out on the tip of a narrow peninsula on Long Island, the fort blockhouse profile can be seen in the West Entrance from the shore and by boaters in Lake Huron outside the island chain.

Mrs. Davis told The St. Ignace News the blockhouse was built around 1910, following construction of her family's Long Island lodge in 1901 and a cabin in 1905. She is a descendant of the Seiberling family of Ohio, which owned Long Island and established two family camps there. The island, which is exactly one mile long, was originally known by its American Indian name, Kauk-ge-nah-gwah ninishe, which means giant minnow, said Bonnie Mikkelson, one of the Seiberling cousins.

One of the two Long Island family camps was Cedar Lodge at the west end of the island, and the blockhouse was considered part of the family camp and used to accommodate family members and guests who couldn't fit in the lodge and cabin.

The blockhouse had no indoor plumbing or electricity. It was a favorite of the boys in the family, Mrs. Davis said, and they enjoyed pretending they were protecting a fort. The structure once had built-in bunks upstairs for sleeping, Mrs. Mikkelson said, while clothing trunks, other furnishings, and a dry sink were downstairs.

The building was driven off its foundation by ice in the late 1980s, during a period of high water levels. Only minor repairs have been performed over the years, but the ice damage dealt what Mrs. Davis called "the final fatal blow," and she has been seeking ways to keep the structure standing ever since. When those attempts failed, reconstruction seemed the last resort.

"At least we'll have that blockhouse form in the same place for hopefully another 98 years," Mrs. Davis said.