John Grant recounts how when he first ran for city councilor, he traveled to Thorah Island and was told that he was the first to come to the island to campaign and once he was in office, he could count on the people of the island to support him. He describes how the island has a small harbour built in the 1930s and only recently rebuilt, with one dirt road circling the island. He purchased a property there in 1993 on the north side of the island. As someone who enjoyed hearing stories of the island, he recalls how the Chippewa First Nations sold the island in the 1870s, and it was eventually divided into eleven 100-acre lots for European use. The deal was re-ratified in the Williams Treaty in the 1920s, and the Chippewas still retain seven acres for camping, hunting, and fishing. The original farmsteaders had sheep, cattle, grain, and tried to be as self-sufficient as possible, though barges were still necessary to move livestock and goods. Descendants of the original settlers still live on the island, and John repeats a saying that if you buy property on the island but aren't related to anyone on the island, you will be in 20 years.
