Ship Island is the collective name for two barrier island

Barrier island

Barrier islands, a coastal landform and a type of barrier system, are relatively narrow strips of sand that parallel the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a few islands to more than a dozen...

s off the Gulf Coast of Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

, part of Gulf Islands National Seashore

Gulf Islands National Seashore

Gulf Islands National Seashore offers recreation opportunities and preserves natural and historic resources along the Gulf of Mexico barrier islands of Florida and Mississippi. The protected regions include mainland areas and parts of 7 islands...

: East Ship Island and West Ship Island. Hurricane Camille

Hurricane Camille

Hurricane Camille was the third and strongest tropical cyclone and second hurricane during the 1969 Atlantic hurricane season. The second of three catastrophic Category 5 hurricanes to make landfall in the United States during the 20th century , which it did near the mouth of the Mississippi River...

 split the once single island into 2 separate islands in 1969. West Ship Island is the site of Fort Massachusetts

Fort Massachusetts (Mississippi)

Fort Massachusetts is a fort on West Ship Island along the Mississippi Gulf Coast of the United States. It was built following the War of 1812, with brick walls during 1859-1866, and remained in use until 1903. Currently, it is a historical tourist attraction within the Gulf Islands National Seashore...

 (built 1859-1866), as a Third System fortification.
Having the only deep-water harbor between Mobile Bay

Mobile Bay

Mobile Bay is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, lying within the state of Alabama in the United States. Its mouth is formed by the Fort Morgan Peninsula on the eastern side and Dauphin Island, a barrier island on the western side. The Mobile River and Tensaw River empty into the northern end of the...

 and the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

, the island served as a vital anchorage for ships bearing explorers, colonists, sailors, soldiers, defenders and invaders.