Michigan Boat Party Jobbie Nooner Date Set This June

The biggest Michigan Boat Party Jobbie Nooner is a large boat party that takes place around Gull Island in Lake Saint Clair, Michigan. This annual boat owner party is known for hundreds of party friends two times a year on the lake.

"The very first Jobbie Nooner occurred Friday, June 28th, 1974. According to an interview on JobbieCrew.com

Original Co-Creator LEE O’DELL Sets the Record Straight! The First Jobbie Nooner started out small. Over the years, there have been many pieces of misinformation and Jobbie folklore.

 The first Jobbie Nooner, ‘Lee & Lee’s Jobbie Nooner,’ was held on Friday, June 28th, 1974, at Strawberry Island in Lake St. Clair, about two miles north of Gull Island.

It was started by Engineers who were pullin’ a Nooner. ( Nooner was leaving work early to play) There were 17 guys, all auto industry job shop designers, on four boats and no ladies, yet.

“Jobbie Nooner, which was always one-word Jobbienooner, by the way, was an all-guys event for about 4-5 years. It was at Strawberry Island the first two years, 1974 and 1975, then they moved to Fisher Bay from 1976 to 1986 to accommodate the larger boats.

Rows of boats in shallow Fisher Bay, you could walk around in the water there. Maybe 20-50 boats per row, all in rows in front of each other.

Each year, the party just kept getting bigger and bigger, with more and more boats.

According to the local sheriff's department, around 60,000 to 100,000+ people attend Jobbie Nooner every year, and it's a bit like Mardi Gras on water.

I went to a dozen or more Jobbie Nooner parties, all due to a friend of mine, Rob Jullian. He and other draftsmen from Chrysler were in the early 90s. It was controlled chaos and fun. The weather was always great when we went. So many boats were all playing their favorite radio stations, or 10,000 boats were doing their best to be their own DJs.

The Men all had shirts, and the ladies? Just use some imagination. For the most part, back then, boaters were responsible. I can't imagine what the local Macomb County Sheriff's Department goes through every party, which is now twice a year, including a raft off every year.

Pure Michigan: Jobbie Nooner Parody