Phillip Pierce doesn’t see his recent election as secretary of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission as a moment to shine a spotlight on himself. Instead, he views it as an opportunity to continue to push forward a broader, overdue conversation about the role Black entrepreneurs, workers, and leaders have played in shaping Mackinac Island, one of Michigan’s most treasured tourist destinations.
Pierce, a longtime Grosse Pointe Shores resident and co-founder of Pierce, Monroe & Associates, was appointed to the commission by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2019. At that time, he became the first African American to serve on the commission since its creation in 1895. This May, his fellow commissioners unanimously voted him into the secretary’s seat, making him not only the first Black commissioner in the body’s 130-year history, but also its first Black officer.
The Mackinac Island State Park Commission is the seven-member board that oversees Mackinac State Historic Parks – a collection of parkland, 110 historic structures, and nearly 1.7 million artifacts that span across Mackinac Island and the mainland. Its charge is wide-reaching, but Pierce’s influence within the group has turned attention to something the island had long left unexamined: its Black history.
Shortly after joining the commission, Pierce began asking questions of staff about what research had been done on African Americans and Caribbean workers who had helped shape the island’s tourism and hospitality economy. The answer, he was told, was almost nothing.
“I posed a simple question: what about the contributions of Black people?” Pierce recalled. “And the staff came back to me and admitted they didn’t really have much on record. They went back and did the work, and that’s when the revelations started to come forward.”
Those revelations were stunning.
Researchers discovered that Jean and Jeanette Bonga, a Black couple and formerly enslaved people, opened the first-known hotel on the island in the 1780s. Their establishment, the Bonga Tavern, stood on Main Street near the site where Starbucks operates today. The discovery places Black entrepreneurship at the very foundation of Mackinac’s modern identity, which today is synonymous with its bustling hotel and restaurant scene.
“That’s incredibly significant,” Pierce said. “Given what hospitality means to the island today, to know that the first known hotel was opened and run by a Black couple – it changes the way people think about Mackinac.”
The state park has since placed a Michigan Historical Marker downtown, just off Main Street near Millie’s restaurant and a public park, commemorating the Bongas’ contribution. A dedication ceremony earlier this summer drew more than a hundred attendees, including the island’s mayor, local officials, and community members.
The discoveries didn’t stop there.
With the support of Pierce and his fellow commissioners, researcher Jack Swartzinski and historian M. Christine Byron dug deeper. They confirmed that Emma and Joseph Ford, a Black couple from Grand Rapids, operated a restaurant on Main Street from roughly 1890 to 1903, on the site where the Chippewa Hotel now stands.
Emma Ford wasn’t only a business owner, but she was a formidable Civil Rights leader, too. Born in Windsor, Ontario, she moved to Michigan as a child and became a prominent activist for both women’s rights and racial equality. She was a member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, and worked alongside nationally recognized leaders such as Lucy Thurman. She was selected by then-Governor Woodbridge Ferris to represent Michigan at the 50th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation ceremony in New York in 1913.
Her husband, Joseph Ford, born enslaved in Virginia around 1851, became a respected figure in both politics and civil rights in Grand Rapids. Known locally as “Senator Joe Ford” for his decades-long appointment as keeper of the cloakroom at the Michigan Senate, he also worked for more than 40 years with the Pennsylvania Railroad.
“These are stories that have been hiding in plain sight,” Pierce said. “The photographs of Emma Ford had been sitting in collections for decades, but without the context that she was a Civil Rights leader. It shows how history is always evolving, and how important it is to keep asking the right questions.”
The presence of the Bongas and Fords underscores a larger, ongoing truth: Black people have been deeply embedded in Mackinac Island’s hospitality economy since its earliest days. That continues to be the case in the 21st century, though in a different form.
Today, while year-round Black residents of Mackinac are few, hundreds of seasonal Black workers – many hailing from Jamaica and other Caribbean nations – travel to the island each year to staff hotels, restaurants, and shops during the May-to-October peak tourist season. They are the backbone of the island’s workforce, sustaining the same hospitality economy that the Bongas helped establish more than two centuries ago.
Still, when it comes to ownership, the island tells a different story. Currently, Kingston Kitchen at the Village Inn is believed to be the only Black-owned restaurant on Mackinac Island. Operated by Jamaican natives, the restaurant has earned a loyal following for its authentic island cuisine, blending the flavors of the Caribbean with Mackinac’s tourist appeal.
The gap between ownership and labor is a reality Pierce acknowledges. While his commission does not directly oversee business development (its jurisdiction is tied to parkland, preservation, and interpretation), he believes the recognition of Black contributions through historical markers and research is a first step toward creating more inclusive opportunities in the future.
“I don’t know of efforts specifically to support more Black ownership on the island,” Pierce said. “That may fall to the chamber of commerce or other bodies. But what we can do as a commission is make sure the history is told honestly, that it reflects the real diversity of people who built this place.”
The move to commemorate the Bonga Tavern has already sparked conversation among residents and visitors. Many at the dedication expressed surprise at learning about the Bongas and the Fords for the first time.
“It was all very positive,” Pierce said. “People came up and thanked me, but really it was about the research and the recognition. History is shaped by whoever writes it. If you don’t ask these questions, things get left out. I think this will inspire others to keep digging.”
For Mackinac Island, the timing of this recognition matters. Tourism remains the island’s lifeblood, and the season is in full swing as September turns to October. Visitors still have several weeks left to ride bikes along the shoreline, wander the trails of Mackinac Island State Park, or enjoy the views from Fort Mackinac before the season officially winds down at the end of October. By November, the ferries slow, the streets grow quiet, and the island’s year-round population of roughly 500 people settles in for the winter.
For those who make the trip in the coming weeks, the new historical marker offers a fresh lens through which to view the island’s famed downtown strip. Just steps away from fudge shops and horse-drawn carriages, it reminds visitors that the story of Mackinac Island is not just one of Victorian cottages and summer resorts, but also a story of Black resilience, entrepreneurship, and activism.
“This story isn’t about me. I did what I was supposed to do and asked some questions,” he said. “It’s about the Bongas, the Fords, and everyone who came before us. If they could persevere and build something back then, think about what we can do today.”
For Michigan, the discoveries mark a chance to expand the way the state tells its own story. Mackinac Island, often marketed as a postcard-perfect escape, is now also home to a historical marker that highlights Black entrepreneurship in one of the nation’s oldest tourist economies. It’s a reminder, as Pierce put it, that history is ever-evolving, and that sometimes the most important stories are the ones we’ve overlooked the longest.
As the season winds down, visitors who stroll past the new marker on Main Street will have the opportunity to leave with more than just souvenirs and fudge. They’ll carry with them a fuller understanding of the people who helped build Mackinac Island into what it is today and, perhaps, a deeper appreciation for the unfinished work of expanding opportunity for Black entrepreneurs in one of Michigan’s crown jewels.
About Post Author

Miss AJ Williams

AJ Williams is a spiritual & wellness educator, speaker, author, and travel enthusiast with experience in print, radio, and television. She is currently Michigan Chronicle’s managing editor, City.Life.Style. editor and resident astrologer. Follow her on IG, TikTok and Twitter @MissAJWilliams — www.MissAJWilliams.com or email: aj.williams@michronicle.com

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