![]() The current tower | |
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Location | Michigan Island, Wisconsin |
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Coordinates | 46°52′17.154″N 90°29′49.545″W / 46.87143167°N 90.49709583°W[1] |
Tower | |
Constructed | 1857 |
Foundation | Concrete |
Construction | Steel |
Automated | 1943 |
Height | 118 feet (36 m) |
Shape | White, Skeletal with a central column |
Heritage | National Register of Historic Places contributing property ![]() |
Light | |
First lit | 1869 |
Focal height | 170 feet (52 m) |
Lens | Third and half order Fresnel lens (original), 12-inch (300 mm)Tideland Signal ML-300 Acrylic Optic (current) |
Range | 11 nautical miles (20 km; 13 mi)[1] |
Characteristic | White, Flashing, 6 sec[1] |
Michigan Island Light | |
Area | 33.8 acres (13.7 ha) |
Built | 1857 |
Built by | U.S. Lighthouse Service |
Part of | Apostle Islands Lighthouses (ID77000145[2]) |
Designated CP | March 8, 1977 |
The Michigan Island Lighthouse is a lighthouse operated by the National Park Service and located on Michigan Island on western Lake Superior in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.
History
[edit]Two historical lighthouses have served as the Michigan Island light. The older was constructed in 1857, but not activated until 1869. It served until 1929, when it was replaced by a taller, 118-foot (36 m) skeletal tower, which is still operational.
The 3½-order Fresnel lens, coupled with a 24,000-candela electric light and the 170-foot (52 m) focal plane (aided by its placement on a cliff) aided by the tower's location atop the cliff, made the light range of visibility to a "remarkable 22 miles."[3] This was a relative rarity, being one of only a dozen used around the country, most of which were on the Great Lakes,[4] These lights were typically reserved for places that were an especially serious hazard to navigation. See, for example, Sturgeon Point Light. Other Great Lakes lights that had 3½-order Fresnel lenses were at (in alphabetical order): DeTour Reef, Eagle Bluff, Grays Reef, Huron Island, St. Helena Island, and Toledo Harbor.[4]
In 1972, the original Fresnel lens was replaced with a DCB-224 aero beacon[5] manufactured by the Carlisle & Finch Company. In turn, that was replaced by the 12-inch (300 mm)Tideland Signal ML-300 acrylic optic.[6] The restored Fresnel lens is on display at the visitor center of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Bayfield.[3]
The structure shares its design with towers at Rawley Point Light on Lake Michigan and Whitefish Point Light at Lake Superior's eastern end. However, the Michigan Island tower has a small brick building located at the base of the center tube, apparently a workroom for the early lighthouse keepers.[7]
Status
[edit]Currently owned by the National Park Service and part of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, it is a contributing property of the Apostle Islands Lighthouses, added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.[2] It is also listed in the Library of Congress, Historic American Buildings Survey, WI-317 (A-C).
Transportation
[edit]Most of the Apostle Islands light stations can be reached on the Apostle Islands Cruise Service[8] water taxi or by private boat during the summer. During the Annual Apostle Island Lighthouse Celebration,[9] a ferry tour service is available for all the lighthouses. During the tourist season, volunteer park rangers are on many of the islands to greet visitors.[10]
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U.S. Coast Guard archive photo
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The original Michigan Island light
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Original Michigan Island lighthouse lens, on display at the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore office in Bayfield
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard.
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
- ^ a b Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Michigan Island Light (New).
- ^ a b Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light 3½-order Fresnel lens.
- ^ Aero beacon, Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light.
- ^ Tideland Signal 300 mm Acrylic Optic, Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light.
- ^ Wobser, David, Michigan Island Lights, Great Laker Magazine Archived 2008-07-25 at the Wayback Machine, Boatnerd
- ^ Apostle Islands Cruise Service.
- ^ Apostle Island Lighthouse Celebration.
- ^ Wobser, David. La Pointe Light Archived 2009-01-07 at the Wayback Machine, Boatnerd Originally in Great Laker Magazine
Further reading
[edit]- Havighurst, Walter (1943) The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes, Macmillan Publishers.
- Michigan Island: The Mistake that Became a Treasure. Lighthouse Digest (Mar 1999), pp. 21–24.
- Oleszewski, Wes (1998). Great Lakes Lighthouses, American and Canadian: A Comprehensive Directory/Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses. Gwinn, Michigan: Avery Color Studios, Inc. ISBN 0-932212-98-0.
- Pepper, Terry. "Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes".
- Wobser, David, Michigan Island Lights, Great Laker Magazine Archived 2008-07-25 at the Wayback Machine, Boatnerd
- Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1-55046-399-3.
External links
[edit]- Aerial photos of Michigan Island Light, Marina.com.
- Lighthouse tour preview.
- Old tower Lighthouse friends article.