The community and the township are named for Presque Isle (literally, "almost an island") which is French for "peninsula".

This peninsula, for which the entire county is named, sits in the northern part of the township and is home to two historic lighthouses.

Only one narrow strip of land, a tombolo, at the southern end of the peninsula connects it to the mainland.

Sunrise and sunset over Lake Huron are both viewable from the sandy beaches along this strip of land.

The community of Presque Isle is located a few miles south of this peninsula and includes a post office, seasonal gas station, chapel, community center, library, and a historic inn, the Presque Isle Lodge.

As early as the 1880s Presque Isle was frequented by hunters, fisherman, and summer vacationers and eventually the Fireside Inn, Birch Hill Hotel, and Grand Lake Hotel were built at the turn of the century to meet this demand.

The New Presque Isle Lighthouse was built in 1870 and is the tallest climbable tower on the Great Lakes.

The 1870 lighthouse museum houses a beautifully preserved Third Order Fresnel Lens which remained active in the tower until recent years.