Sugar Island Was Almost the United Nations Headquarters

A remote Michigan island between the United States and Canada was once seriously considered as the headquarters of the United Nations.

The Creation of the United Nations

The United Nations was officially formed on October 24, 1945, when the UN Charter was ratified by the five permanent Security Council members, China, France, the Soviet Union, the UK, the U.S, and 45 other nations. The purpose of the UN, established in San Francisco to promote international peace and prevent future wars.

After the devastation of World War II, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt sought to convince the public that an international organization was the best means to prevent future wars. Although Roosevelt was the primary architect, he passed away six months before the UN Charter was officially ratified.

The United Nations’ first temporary headquarters was housed in the gymnasium of Hunter College (now Lehman College) in the Bronx, New York, from March to June 1946. Later that year, it relocated to a former Sperry Gyroscope Company factory in Lake Success, New York, before finally moving to its permanent headquarters in Manhattan in 1951.

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Before those New York locations, the original headquarters of the UN was almost on a Michigan island.

The UN’s Surprising Near-Miss: Sugar Island

According to Brian Calley's Facebook page, Sugar Island was proposed as a permanent home for the United Nations headquarters. The 33,00-acre island is located in the St. Mary's River between the United States and Canada.

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Michigan Governor Chase Osborn proposed the island as a potential site, arguing that it would serve as neutral ground for global diplomacy. Although nearly two dozen locations across the United States were considered for the UN headquarters, the offer of Sugar Island was ultimately declined.

👇BELOW: The Ruins of Governor Chase Osborn's Sugar Island Retreat👇