Ecorse Factoids – CSX City of the Week
Congratulations to Ecorse,
You’re the WCSX City of the Week
Ecorse factoids:
- Ecorse, the oldest downriver community, was the site of many critical battles from the French and Indian War through the War of 1812 as French and English settlers forged new homes in the Michigan wilderness.
- The name, Ecorse, was derived from the French name Rivière aux Écorses (“Tree-Bark River”), denoting a small stream along which Native Americans procured bark for canoes.
- During the Prohibition era, the peaceful riverfront of Ecorse was transformed into hideouts for rum runners and other nefarious lawbreakers.
- Ecorse (or Grandport, as the small village surrounding today’s Southfield and West Jefferson avenues was called for a while) in the 1800s was the only port between Detroit and Monroe.