Grosse Ile Township is a general law township of Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The township is situated on several islands in the Detroit River, but the largest island is also referred to as simply Grosse Ile. The name comes from the French Grosse Île, meaning "Fat Island". The population was 10,371 at the 2010 census.GeographyAccording to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of, of which is land and, or 47.4%, is water.Grosse Ile is the largest island on the Detroit River. The township of Grosse Ile is actually composed of twelve islands, although the community is most often identified with the main island (which residents simply refer to as "The Island"). Grosse Ile's main island is technically composed of two islands.The tip of the main island's northern section is named Hennepen Point in honor of the 17th century French explorer Father Louis Hennepin. It is uninhabited and separated from the remainder of the northern section by an unnamed canal that cannot be navigated in a power boat.The southern section of the main island is separated from the northern section by the Thorofare Canal, which runs on a diagonal course from east to west connecting the main channel of the Detroit River with the Trenton Channel of the river. The southern section of the main island is connected by bridges to Elba Island, Meso Island (also known as Upper Hickory Island), Hickory Island, and Swan Island, which are all inhabited.