William C. Sterling State Park is a public recreation area located in Frenchtown Charter Township with a small portion lying within the city limits of Monroe, Michigan.

[2] The park is named for William Clark Sterling (1849–1924),[3] a businessman and outdoorsman who bought marshland at the mouth of the Detroit River and was one of the first to see the value in protecting swamps for future generations and the good of the environment.

[5] For quite some time, Sterling State Park was greatly polluted by river runoff from Detroit, and swimming in the water was not recommended and even illegal.

Today, the park boasts many lagoons and marshes, providing good habitat for a variety of wildlife and bird life that have returned to the area.

The once severely polluted lake has undergone much restoration in the past decade, which has greatly benefited William C. Sterling State Park.