Metro Detroit Macomb County City
St. Clair Shores
Michigan's boating capital: canals, marinas and the Nautical Mile on Lake St. Clair
- People (2025 estimate)
- 57,872
- Land area
- 11.7 sq mi · 30.3 km²
- From downtown
- 13.7 miles · 22 km · northeast
- Incorporated
- 1951
Nothing on our calendar here this week yet.
01 / Why it matters
Why St. Clair Shores matters
St. Clair Shores is Detroit's lakefront suburb: marinas, yacht clubs and canals line Jefferson Avenue, and it calls itself the Boating Capital of Michigan for good reason. Canals wind through the neighborhoods, so plenty of people can step off their backyard dock and head out onto the lake.
The shoreline used to be all about a good time. During Prohibition the lakefront, so close to Canada, was a haven for rum runners and gamblers, and the Blossom Heath Inn on Jefferson was a favorite spot for illegal drinking and gambling. From 1927 to 1959, Jefferson Beach Amusement Park drew crowds with its giant wooden roller coaster and dance pavilion.
After World War II it was Detroit's fastest-growing suburb of the 1950s, and the old French and German farm families still live on in the street names. It's a serious hockey town too: Gordie Howe Hockeyland, Michigan's first indoor ice rink, opened here in 1964, and locals will tell you this was the original Hockeytown.
02 / Known for
What St. Clair Shores is known for
The Nautical Mile, the lakefront stretch of Jefferson between 9 Mile and 10 Mile, packed with marinas, boat dealers and restaurants and watched over by the 28-story Shore Club tower.
Jefferson Beach Amusement Park, 1927 to 1959: a wooden roller coaster, Ferris wheel, carousel and a lighted beach for night swimming; a marina stands there now.
The Blossom Heath Inn, reached in the 1920s straight off the Jefferson Avenue interurban, and a favorite spot for illegal gambling and drinks during Prohibition.
Gordie Howe Hockeyland, opened in 1964 as Michigan's first indoor ice rink; the “Hockeytown USA” legacy still hangs around the Civic Arena.
The Selinsky-Green farmhouse, an 1868 log house moved to 11 Mile in 1975 to make way for I-696 and now a local history museum.
03 / What’s on
What’s on in St. Clair Shores
Nothing on our calendar in St. Clair Shores right now. Try the neighbors:
04 / Places
13 places on our site in St. Clair Shores
05 / What to do
If you’re in St. Clair Shores
Nautical Mile
Stroll the lakefront mile of Jefferson between 9 Mile and 10 Mile: marinas, parks, restaurants and boats everywhere you look in summer.
Official site ↗Blossom Heath Park
A city lakefront park on Jefferson with the Blossom Heath Activity Pier, which a 10 million dollar upgrade extended 395 feet out into Lake St. Clair.
Official site ↗
06 / History
St. Clair Shores through the years
- 1710
French settlers live along the shore, and the area is known as L'anse Creuse.
- 1843
Orange Township is renamed Erin Township in honor of its Irish immigrants; today's St. Clair Shores is part of it.
- 1911
Lake Township is carved out of eastern Erin Township, and future St. Clair Shores becomes part of it.
- 1925
St. Clair Shores incorporates as a village within Lake Township.
- 1927
Jefferson Beach Amusement Park opens on Jefferson just north of 9 Mile.
- 1951
After several failed tries, residents vote in January to incorporate as a city.
07 / Born here
4 people in our lexicon were born here
08 / People
Famous names from here
- Dave Coulier Full House's Uncle Joey was born in Detroit and raised in St. Clair Shores.
- John Ziegler Jr. The NHL's first American president (1977 to 1992) grew up in St. Clair Shores and graduated from Lake Shore High School in 1951.
Sources
Population and area are Census Bureau figures (St. Clair Shores city).
- 2020 Census, Michigan (PL 94-171)
- Census Bureau population estimates: cities and towns
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Clair_Shores,_Michigan
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_St._Clair
- yahoo.com/news/michigans-boating-capital-why-st-110152558.html
- macombnowmagazine.com/project/jefferson-beach-thrills-of-the-past-1927
- d.lib.msu.edu/mmm/36706
- candgnews.com/news/looking-back-st-clair-shores-civic-arena-expansion-9745
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colleen_Howe
- migrationmemorials.trinity.duke.edu/items/selinsky-green-log-house.html
- michmemories.org/records/selinsky-green-farmhouse-museum-151
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Coulier
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ziegler_Jr.
- scsmi.net
Change since 2020, per the Census Bureau estimate: −1.7 percent.
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