Put-in-Bay Perspective
Once upon a time, there was a young girl who lived in Ohio. She spent every summer swimming and boating on beautiful Lake Erie and felt very lucky to grow up down the street from the beach. As she got older and began to travel far and wide across the planet, she was often asked by people where Ohio was or if it was only farmland as it looked like on American television and films. Though she explained that she was from the Great Lakes, they had often never heard of the Lake Erie Islands. For all those blank stares she received when mentioning the islands, she will now tell you all about the playground of her misspent youth, Put-in-Bay—also known as South Bass Island.
Put-in-Bay has a disproportionately large history for tiny size. Under four miles in length, the year-round population was last counted at 138 people in 2010. In the summer, however, college students and boaters number in the thousands. The bay’s unique name has various urban legends associated with it, but is thought to have come from the expression of sailors to “put it in the bay” when seas were too rough to sail. There is also a theory about the bay being in the shape of a “pudding bag” but since I don’t have any idea what that is, let’s move on.
One cannot visit the island without seeing the enormous Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial which stands at 352 feet high. The monument commemorates Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry’s victory in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. Though the battle is largely lost in world history due to the Napoleonic Wars of the same period, it was significant for the fledgling nation of the United States of America and is often referred to as the “second war of American independence.”
On September 13, 1813, Perry sailed from Put-in-Bay to take on the British Royal Navy and was victorious—capturing six British Navy vessels and issuing the declaration:
Dear General —
We have met the enemy and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop.
Yours with great respect and esteem,
O.H. Perr y
Considering that it was the first time in history that an entire British squadron had surrendered, Commodore Perry had just made a very big name for himself and catapulted this small Ohio island into the history books forever. Today, the monument stands less than five miles from the longest unguarded international border in the world and commemorates over 150 years of peace with Canada.
In the 1860’s, a German count bought nearby Middle Bass island and imported German experts to begin wine-making on the island. By 1875, the Golden Eagle Winery was the largest wine producer in the United States. French-Canadians were making wine on North Bass as well. The cool climate Reislings of the area were becoming well-known as tourist boats brought city folk for day trips.
By 1888, five luxury hotels had been built on South Bass (Put-in-Bay)—including the largest resort complex in the United States at the time and the first co-ed swimming pool. Vacationers flocked to the Lake Erie Islands to get away from it all. Steamers then began moving between Toledo, Detroit, and Cedar Point ferrying 150,000 tourists a season. At one point, twelve steamers a day stopped at Put-in-Bay—but the Depression and Prohibition put an end to all that fun and frolicking for years to come.
Though the island has always been a summer resort town for Ohioans, it suffered greatly from the severe lake pollution of the 1970’s. That was the decade I first laid eyes on this little beauty from the deck of a sailboat and it remained a favorite stomping ground for the next twenty years.
Today it is known for water sports and fishing along with the time-honored pastimes of drinking and debauchery. There are world-class walleye and sailing tournaments as well as a plethora of new hotels and accommodation choices. When I visited last summer for the first time since the 90’s, I barely recognized the place I’d once known. She is all grown up now with twenty-five bars to choose from.
Put In Bay (aka South Bass Island), Ohio June 2015
Despite its turbulent ups and downs, “the Bay” remains a favorite place and one I’ll never hesitate to go back to when the opportunity appears. Lake Erie boaters are a friendly lot and one known for their laid-back attitudes. Though there is no doubt that the place remains special to me for its many memories, I’d venture to guess that first time visitors will relish the island’s sun and fun as much as anyone who has a history there. You may not make the books in Commodore Perry-style, but you’ll surely have an experience not soon forgotten. Just remember, not matter matter how many cocktails make their way to you–be sure to borrow a page from Perry’s battle plan and “DON’T GIVE UP THE SHIP” or you’ll have a very long swim in your no-so-distant future.
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