GEISELMAN ISLAND & WOODLANDS

The Geiselman Island & Woodlands is a six-acre island on Long Lake in Liberty Township and six additional surrounding acres of wetlands that will be protected as a nature preserve through the Woodland Savanna Land Conservancy.

The land was donated to the non-profit conservancy by Dr. Tom and Marilyn Geiselman of Asheville, North Carolina. The property was originally settled by Dr. Geiselman's grandparents in the 1890s.

The island, which is accessible only by boat, features a hardwood forest with numerous old red oaks and other mature trees, the conservancy said. The woods and surrounding marshes provide excellent habitat for a great variety of wildlife, including aquatic mammals, waterfowl, and other birdlife.

"We are delighted to accept this property," said conservancy president Don Evans. "The island and its environs have great natural and geological significance. They lie in the center of the Valparaiso moraine, a geological feature that separates the Lake Michigan watershed from the Kankakee River basin, and the area is a wetland ecosystem that harbors many native species of plants and animals. We are proud to have the opportunity to protect this property and the important natural values it represents."

The conservancy said the island holds great sentimental value for Tom Geiselman, who spent his boyhood years living in a two-story log structure built there by his grandparents, Danish immigrant Chris Miller and his Swedish immigrant wife, Ida Marie Sonneson. Some ruins of the original structure still exist on the island.

The Valparaiso Lakes and their watershed were formed during the most recent glacial retreat of the Pleistocene era. They provide a watery environment that has been attracting hunting and fishing enthusiasts for well over a century. Geiselman's grandparents, who also owned nearby Long Lake Island, established Long Lake Island Hotel there in the 1930s to capitalize on the tourist trade. The resort, which had a pavilion extending out over the water, received crowds of patrons who arrived by rail and road from Chicago and elsewhere.

During Prohibition days, the popular hotel housed a speakeasy that served bootleg liquor. Geiselman's family sold the old hotel years ago, and the building has subsequently been converted into a private home.

Tom Geiselman is pleased that the island will remain as he remembers it. "I am deeply gratified that this special place will be preserved in perpetuity, and my wife and I are very thankful that the vision of the Woodland Savanna Land Conservancy has made this possible."