Portal:Islands

2005 USDA aerial imagery of Powder House Island

Powder House Island (also known as Dynamite Island) is an artificial island on the lower Detroit River in southeast Michigan, directly adjacent to the Canada–United States border. It was constructed in the late 1880s by the Dunbar & Sullivan Company to store explosives during their dredging of the Livingstone Channel, with the purpose of circumventing an 1880 court order forbidding the company to store explosives on nearby Fox Island.

Powder House Island was the location of dynamite storage sheds, as well as a dynamite factory and several ice houses. During this time, it was the site of a series of accidents, including fires in 1895 and 1919 (which both burned the island "to the water's edge"). Twenty short tons (18,000 kg) of the island's dynamite exploded in 1906 after two men "had been shooting with a revolver" near it; while there were no deaths (and only minor injuries to the two men), windows were shattered 3 mi (4.8 km) away and the explosion was clearly audible from 85 mi (137 km) away. (Full article...)

Bahamian cuisine refers to the foods and beverages of The Bahamas. It includes seafood such as fish, shellfish, lobster, crab, and conch, as well as tropical fruits, rice, peas, pigeon peas, and pork. Popular seasonings commonly used in dishes include chilies (hot pepper), lime, tomatoes, onions, garlic, allspice, ginger, cinnamon, rum, and coconut. Rum-based beverages are popular on the islands. Since the Bahamas consist of a multitude of islands, notable culinary variations exist.

Bahamian cuisine is somewhat related to that of the American South, with dishes held in common such as "fish 'n' grits". A large portion of Bahamian foodstuffs are imported (cf. economy of the Bahamas). International cuisine is offered, especially at hotels. (Full article...)

• ... that Barren Island, located in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, is the only active volcano in India?
• ... that the wirebird on the flag of Saint Helena is the last species of bird that is endemic to the island?
• ... that after depopulating the island of Samson, Augustus Smith established a deer park there, only for the deer to escape to the neighbouring island of Tresco?
• ... that Chadd Cumberbatch, a Montserratian poet and playwright, wrote a play called 1768 to tell the story of the island's St Patrick's Day slave rebellion?
• ... that the Cannonball, a commuter train on the Long Island Rail Road, was once operated exclusively with parlor cars?
• ... that one threatened species of plant endemic to the North Island of New Zealand is colloquially known as a forget-me-not?