Treasure Island (Ontario) facts for kids
Treasure Island, also known as Mindemoya, is a big island located in Lake Mindemoya. This lake is found on Manitoulin Island, which itself is in Lake Huron.
Treasure Island is the largest island on Manitoulin Island. It's famous for being the world's biggest island that is in a lake, which is on another island, which is also in a lake! That's a lot of layers!
No one lives on Treasure Island all the time, but there are some cottages there. The island is about 200 meters (656 feet) above sea level. Its highest point reaches about 225 meters (738 feet) high. It's about 1.4 kilometers (0.87 miles) long and 400 meters (1,312 feet) wide, covering about 110 acres.
A Look Back: Treasure Island's Story
The island has an interesting history of ownership. In 1883, a man named William McPherson, who was a deputy chief of police in Toronto, bought the island for $60.
Many years later, in 1928, the island was sold to Joe and Jean Hodgson. They decided to open a place for tourists called Treasure Island Resort. This resort stayed open until Joe Hodgson passed away in 1968. Jean tried to keep it going, but it became too difficult.
The resort was sold a few more times and started to look quite old and worn out. Finally, in 1980, the Moeller Family from Ohio bought Treasure Island. They turned it into a private place for their family and for company events.
The Legend of Mindemoya: An Old Tale
Before it was called Treasure Island, the island was known as Mindemoya. This name came from the island's unique shape. One end of the island rises up like a long, flat hill, then it drops steeply to a lower, shorter area.
According to a local legend, a powerful leader or demi-god once lived in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. He had a wife who was always bothering him. One day, he got so frustrated that he kicked her! She flew through the air and landed on her hands and knees in Lake Mindemoya. The legend says that her back and bottom stayed above the water, and that's what we see today as the island.
The word "Mindemoya" is said to mean "old lady's bottom." The island gave its name to Lake Mindemoya, and then the nearby village of Mindemoya, Ontario was also named after the lake. The island was later renamed "Treasure Island" by a person who built a tourist resort there in the early 1900s.
