About Us
In 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the 82 acre West Sister Island as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife. It was specifically designated to protect the largest wading bird nesting colony on the United States Great Lakes. The refuge is jointly owned by the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It received Ohio’s only federal wilderness designation in 1975.
Most of the island is covered with trees. Tall hackberry trees make up most of the canopy, with an understory of poison ivy that can grow 12 feet tall. Great Solomon's seal reaches seven to nine feet in height and below there is a great variety of ferns, wildflowers, mushrooms and other plant life. The island is composed of glacial fill over a limestone shelf. The island's rookery is a host for great blue herons, great egrets, snowy egrets, black-crowned night herons and double-crested cormorants. The water around the island is too deep for the wading birds to feed in, so they must travel an 18 mile round trip to the mainland marshes to hunt for food for themselves and their young.
The island took its place in history during the War of 1812. It was here, on September 10, 1813, that Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry sent the immortal message to General William Harrison after the Battle of Lake Erie: "We have met the enemy and they are ours. Two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop."
To protect this vital nesting area, access is permitted for research only.
Our Mission
The mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System is to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management and, where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Every national wildlife refuge national wildlife refuge
A national wildlife refuge is typically a contiguous area of land and water managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the conservation and, where appropriate, restoration of fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.
Learn more about national wildlife refuge was created for a special purpose. Some were created to protect migratory birds, others to protect threatened or endangered species or unique habitats, while others fulfill another special purpose. All activities allowed on refuges must be evaluated to make sure each activity will not conflict with the reason the refuge was founded.
The purpose of the refuge is to serve as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife, and specifically to protect the largest wading bird nesting colony on the United States Great Lakes.
Our History
August 2, 1938 – The refuge was established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a refuge feeding and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife.
January 3, 1975 - 77 acres of the 82-acre island was designated as a wilderness, part of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
Other Facilities in this Complex
Staff at Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge manage West Sister National Wildlife Refuge. Marshes in Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge and Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge as well as others along the shore provide feeding areas for the birds nesting on the island.
