New alliance aims to preserve Isle Royale’s historic structures

National Park Service officials have announced the formation of the Isle Royale Heritage Alliance, which will work to protect and improve Isle Royale National Park’s historic structures, including approximately 90 cabins, 19 fish houses and four lighthouses.

The volunteer-powered organization will coordinate with the National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation, a nonprofit partner of the five national parks on Lake Superior.

“With our national parks facing budget cuts, and many historic structures falling into disrepair, it is a particularly vital time to be efficient with resources and effectively engage volunteers,” Tom Irvine, the foundation’s executive director, said in a news release. “The volunteers involved in the Isle Royale Heritage Alliance bring an enormous amount of knowledge and passion, and our work together will be an exciting model for other parks.”

The program received a grant from the National Park Foundation. Jan Reyers, a retired global business executive, preservation advocate and lifelong Lake Superior enthusiast, will serve as the alliance’s volunteer director.

The alliance hopes to create opportunities for technical experts and students to help steward the park’s historic resources.

“The alliance is really made up of a lot of stakeholders at Isle Royale that have been involved with historic preservation, or volunteerism, or just a passionate interest in historical and cultural preservation on the island,” Irvine told WTIP. “It was really meant to add additional horsepower to what the park itself was able to provide, and just elevate the voice of the interested.”

Irvine said the historic structures on Isle Royale include summer cabins and fishing cabins. When Isle Royale became a national park, those structures became part of the park, though some owners were able to retain use of their cabins for the remainder of their lives. The Isle Royale Heritage Alliance hopes to preserve the history of those buildings and their occupants.

“The park has always been interested in maintaining and showcasing the history of the island, but sometimes maintaining structures in wilderness have have created some conflicts with the Wilderness Act and just frankly capacity of the parks to maintain just a massive inventory of buildings and structures,” Irvine said.

The alliance hopes to continue building an extensive network of volunteers to work on specific cabins and other structures. The organization will actively recruit volunteers in the coming year. Those interested in the project can contact heritage@nplsf.org.

WTIP spoke with Irvine on North Shore Morning about the Isle Royale Heritage Alliance. Audio of the conversation can be found below.

Josh Hinke August 15, 2026