- Date
- 1971-01-22
- Kind
- Weather
- Where
- Beaver Island
- Eras
- Modern era
- Concepts
- communityenvironmentshipping
- Within
- Beaver Island
Summary
A severe late-January 1971 blizzard disrupted Beaver Island’s transportation and mail. Drifting snow plugged the roads and airport; the Beaver Beacon says it was nearly a week before supplies and mail could be flown in. The issue also describes an incomplete January 28 trip, supplies stockpiled at Charlevoix Airport, and two visiting families stranded on the island’s mainland side.
On January 24, Father Donahue reached the McCafferty home by snowmobile to hold Mass for families confined by the storm. The newspaper says regular trips had been absent for nearly two weeks from January 22 at the time of writing, but it does not provide a final reopening date.
Evidence and limits
The source supplies a dated beginning and operational effects, not a formal meteorological storm record. No aircraft, ferry, pilot, crew, casualty, or precise snowfall measurement is inferred.
Open questions
- What weather-service record identifies the storm and its snowfall or wind?
- Which aircraft and surface carrier restored mail and supplies?
- When did regular passenger and freight service resume?
See also
Sources
- Reports a severe late-January blizzard, roads and airport plugged by drifting snow, nearly a week before supplies and mail could be flown in, a January 24 home Mass reached by snowmobile, an incomplete January 28 trip, and nearly two weeks without regular trips beginning January 22; the issue does not identify the storm formally or give a final reopening date.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-01_Beaver-Beacon
- The held ten-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1971-01_Beaver-Beacon
Added 1 August 2026 · revised 3 August 2026. Recent changes
Cite this article
Beaver Island Archive, “January 1971 Beaver Island blizzard and supply disruption”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/events/january-1971-beaver-island-blizzard-supply-disruption/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, January 1971, “Snow Flys.” (and 1 further source listed on the page).
Last revised 2026-08-03. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.
BibTeX for “January 1971 Beaver Island blizzard and supply disruption”RIS for “January 1971 Beaver Island blizzard and supply disruption”