One of Michigan's oldest cities, St. Ignace was founded in 1671 when French Jesuit explorer Jacques Marquette (Marquette, Jacques) established a mission there named for St. Ignatius of Loyola (Loyola, Saint Ignatius of), founder of the Jesuits. The missionary activities were protected by a French garrison, Fort de Buade (1681), also known as Fort Michilimackinac (a name later applied to forts at Mackinaw City and on Mackinac Island). Fur traders and fishermen then settled the site, and rail-ferry service across the straits was inaugurated in 1881.

Iron smelting and lumbering industries developed in the locality but declined by the beginning of the 20th century. The city's economy is now sustained by dairying, fisheries, the summer tourist trade (which includes frequent ferry service to Mackinac Island), and winter recreation. Marquette is buried in St. Ignace; Marquette Mission Park and the Museum of Ojibwa Culture are located on the site of the old mission in the city, and Straits State Park and Father Marquette National Memorial are nearby. Inc. village, 1882; city, 1883. Pop. (2000) 2,678; (2005 est.) 2,446.