Places to exploreMuseums, parks, neighborhoods and icons
Metro Detroit mapWhat Metro Detroit is, and what every town is about
The Henry FordRosa Parks’ bus, Greenfield Village and the Ford Rouge Factory
RenCen: live trackerThe Renaissance Center’s past, present and future, up to the minute
Gordie Howe BridgeThe new bridge to Canada: live waits, tolls, and yes, you can walk it
ToursBy boat, by bike or on foot, with a local guide
Escape roomsOne hour, one lock and your crew
Plan a meetingVenues, hotels and what’s on in town on your dates
Metro Detroit St. Clair County City
Where Lake Huron pours into the river: a border bridge, a lighthouse and young Edison
Nothing on our calendar here this week yet.
01 / Why it matters
Port Huron is the St. Clair County seat, right where Lake Huron empties into the St. Clair River. Sarnia, Ontario, sits across the water, linked by the Blue Water Bridge at the eastern end of I-69 and I-94. It's also home to the easternmost point of land in Michigan, and from shore the lake freighters slide past close enough to wave at.
The city grew on lumber, shipbuilding and the railroad. Thomas Edison spent his boyhood here from 1854 and at 12 was already selling newspapers and candy on the Port Huron–Detroit train; and in 1891 the world's first international underwater railway tunnel opened here, heading to Canada.
St. Clair County is part of the six-county Detroit–Warren–Dearborn metro area, and Port Huron is one of its northernmost communities, so it's officially Metro Detroit. Every year the Bayview Mackinac Race, run since 1925, starts here and sails the length of Lake Huron to Mackinac Island.
02 / Known for
The Blue Water Bridge, twin spans over the St. Clair River to Canada; the first opened in 1938, the second in 1997.
Fort Gratiot Lighthouse, Michigan's first lighthouse; the current tower dates to 1829 and was raised to 84 feet in the 1860s.
Thomas Edison's boyhood: he rode out daily on the Detroit train from the Grand Trunk depot, now the Thomas Edison Depot Museum.
The Bayview Mackinac Race, held since 1925, starting just north of the Blue Water Bridge.
The St. Clair Tunnel, the world's first international underwater railway tunnel, completed in 1891 between Port Huron and Sarnia.
03 / What’s on
Jul 10, 2027Start: southern Lake Huron off Port Huron (boats leave from the Black River); finish: Mackinac Island · Detroit's Bayview Yacht Club sends its Bayview Mackinac Race off from southern Lake Huron near Port Huron on Saturday, July 10, 2027, bound for Mackinac Island. Watch from shore as boats start leaving the Black River around 8 a.m. and head up the St. Clair River under the Blue Water Bridge.
04 / Places
Lynch's Irish Tavern210 Huron Ave, Port Huron, MI 48060
The Hallway Entertainment1219 Military St, Port Huron, MI 4806005 / What to do
Four sites in one museum family: the Thomas Edison Depot Museum under the Blue Water Bridge, Fort Gratiot Lighthouse, the Huron Lightship and the Carnegie Museum.
Official site ↗About 4,700 feet of waterfront walkway where the St. Clair River meets Lake Huron, great for boat watching, running and biking.
Official site ↗City beaches on Lake Huron. Lakeside has a playground, volleyball and a splash pad; Lighthouse Beach has deep water and strong currents, so skip swimming there with kids. Neither has lifeguards.
Official site ↗06 / History
After the War of 1812, the U.S. builds Fort Gratiot at the foot of Lake Huron, and a community grows up around it.
Port Huron incorporates as a city.
The state Supreme Court makes Port Huron the St. Clair County seat; on October 8 the Port Huron Fire sweeps through the city and the Thumb.
On May 27 a white mob storms the county jail and lynches Albert Martin, a 23-year-old mixed-race man; a memorial has marked the site since 2018.
The St. Clair Tunnel, the world's first international underwater railway tunnel, is completed.
The first span of the Blue Water Bridge opens on October 10.
07 / People
Population and area are Census Bureau figures (Port Huron city).
Change since 2020, per the Census Bureau estimate: −2.4 percent.
