Summary
Cheyenne Point is a GNIS-named cape at the south end of Beaver Island. A February 1969 winter account describes a snowmobile caravan traveling from the Lake Geneserath area around Iron Ore Bay to Cheyenne Point. The writer noted large numbers of deer, a visible browse line in the cedars, and cedar trees and mineral blocks used during the outing. This is evidence of contemporary winter recreation and observations of the landscape, not a wildlife-management survey.
A May 1973 local story recounts a beachcombing trip in which a vehicle became stuck near Cheyenne Point. A Coast Guard helicopter reportedly landed on the beach after seeing the party’s signals and helped arrange their return. Because the item is an anecdotal newspaper feature, it does not establish a permanent road, public access route, or Coast Guard facility at the point.
A Helen Collar research card independently records that local informants did not know the name’s origin. It preserves a speculative explanation connecting the name with island men who worked on western railroad construction. The account is useful evidence for the history of local explanation, but does not settle the toponymy.
Open questions
- What historic maps or land records define access to the point and its relation to Iron Ore Bay?
- Is the name Cheyenne Point explained in local, Indigenous, or land-record sources beyond the speculative railroad-worker explanation preserved in the research card?
- Can the 1973 beach location be identified without treating the anecdote as a formal navigation or rescue record?
Sources
- U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System, Domestic Names (Michigan), retrieved 2026-07-28.GNIS feature 623177; feature class 'Cape'.federal · gnis · gnis_names
- Beaver Beacon, February 1969, "Sno-Fun."Describes a winter snowmobile excursion from Lake Geneserath around Iron Ore Bay to Cheyenne Point, with observations of deer, cedar browse, and mineral blocks placed for wildlife.
- Beaver Beacon, May 1973, "The Adventures of Martha Miller."A humorous local account says a vehicle became stuck near Cheyenne Point during beachcombing and that a Coast Guard helicopter landed on the beach to assist; the anecdote is not treated as proof of a formal road or landing facility.
- Helen Collar Papers, Beaver Island history subject cards, Q-Z, Place Names, Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, retrieved 2026.The local research card says no one seemed to know the origin of Cheyenne Point and preserves Lawrence's speculation that the name may have come from island men who worked on western railroads. This is explicitly an unresolved oral/local explanation, not an established etymology.web · collar_subject_cards_q-z