Mission Point Light

{{Short description|Lighthouse in Michigan}} {{Use American English|date=September 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox lighthouse | name = Mission Point Light | image = Mission Point Light (Oct 2020).jpg | image_size = 275 | caption = Mission Point Light in October 2020 | location = Peninsula Township, Michigan | coordinates = {{coord|44|59|28.7|N|85|28|46.1|W|region:US_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}{{citation needed|date=March 2014}} | yearbuilt = 1870 | yearlit = 1870 | automated = | yeardeactivated = 1933 | foundation = | construction = Wood | shape = Square tower on dwelling | marking = White with black trim | height = {{convert|36|ft}} | focalheight = {{convert|47|ft}} | lens = Fifth order Fresnel lens | currentlens = | intensity = | range = {{convert|10|mi|nmi km|order=flip}}{{citation needed|date=March 2014}} | characteristic = Flashing W 6 seconds.<ref>{{cite uscgll|7||}}</ref> | admiralty = | module = {{designation list|embed=yes|designation1=Michigan|designation1_date=October 15, 1992}} }} '''Mission Point Light''' is a lighthouse located in Michigan at the end of Old Mission Point, a peninsula jutting into Grand Traverse Bay {{convert|17|mi|km}} north of Traverse City. It was built in 1870 as an exact copy of the Mama Juda Light<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lighthousedepot.com/lite_explorer.asp?action=display_details&LighthouseID=2824&bhcd2=1209945137 |title=Lighthouse depot, Mama Juda Light. |access-date=2008-05-04 |archive-date=2011-06-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614081701/http://www.lighthousedepot.com/lite_explorer.asp?action=display_details&LighthouseID=2824&bhcd2=1209945137 |url-status=dead }}</ref> (now destroyed), which was built on the Detroit River in 1866.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lighthousedepot.com/Digest/StoryPage.cfm?StoryKey=873 |title=Biggs, Jerry, ''Mission to Mama'', Lighthouse Digest, 10/2000. |access-date=2004-02-28 |archive-date=2003-07-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030710234635/http://www.lighthousedepot.com/Digest/StoryPage.cfm?StoryKey=873 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The foundation is natural and emplaced. The wooden structure is painted white with black trim. The square tower is attached to a dwelling.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cr.nps.gov/maritime/light/mission.htm |title=NPS Inventory of Historic Light Stations. |access-date=2004-04-19 |archive-date=2012-02-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204033824/http://www.cr.nps.gov/maritime/light/mission.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

A fixed white Fifth Order Fresnel lens was installed. The building was only one and a half stories tall. However, its placement on a sand bank 14 feet above the lake's surface created a lens focal plane of {{convert|47|ft}}. It was visible from {{convert|13|mi}} at sea. It has been an ongoing struggle to maintain the dune and protect it and the lighthouse from erosion.<ref name="terrypepper.com">[http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/michigan/oldmission/oldmission.htm Terry Pepper, Mission Point lighthouse at Seeing the Light.]</ref>

The light served to warn mariners about the shoals off the point for 63 years. It was a working lighthouse from 1870 to 1933, when it was decommissioned. However, new techniques in offshore construction and the automation of lighthouse illumination made it possible to build a navigation aid on the shoal itself. In 1938, work was completed for the new stationary buoy light in {{convert|19|ft}} of water, about {{convert|2|mi}} northwest of Mission Point. The light runs on batteries. It is on a {{convert|36|ft|adj=on}} tall tower, and its focal plane of {{convert|52|ft}} makes it visible for {{convert|13|mi}}. It has a 30-second dwell time between flashes, in order to conserve power.<ref name="terrypepper.com"/> It is still maintained by the Coast Guard today and only shines North.

Famously, the lighthouse stands a few hundred yards south of the 45th parallel north, halfway between the North Pole and the Equator. It was deactivated in 1933 and purchased by the State of Michigan.<ref name="unc.edu">{{cite rowlett|miwl}}</ref> There are a pair of signs that denote its location on the parallel,<ref>[http://www.wurlington-bros.com/Museum/45th/OldMission.html Photographs, Old Mission 45th Parallel signs.]</ref> one of 29 places in the U.S. with such signs.<ref>[http://www.wurlington-bros.com/Museum/45th/NAmer.html List and map of 45th Parallel markers, with links to pictures (accessed 2007-12-17).]</ref>

==Current status and activities== The lighthouse is located in Old Mission State Park, which is managed by Peninsula Township as Lighthouse Park at the northern end of Highway M-37.<ref>[http://www.state-ends.com/michigan/m/37/ M-37 Endpoint Photos.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130529161439/http://www.state-ends.com/michigan/m/37/ |date=2013-05-29 }}</ref> Visitors to the park enjoy the beach, hiking trails, and picnic areas. The park welcomes about 100,000 visitors annually from every state and dozens of foreign countries.

The lighthouse society sought volunteers to work and live in the Mission Point Light during 2008. There is a fee, which benefits the light.<ref>[http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=8163523&nav=menu44_2 Lighthouse directory, Mission Point volunteer story.]{{Dead link|date=December 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In 2008, the building opened for the first time to the public with a small museum after serving for many years as the park manager's residence.<ref name="unc.edu"/> Today, the lighthouse has a very popular and unique keeper program. The weekly keepers run the gift shop from May through October and get to stay in the updated lighthouse keeper's quarters.

The area around the lighthouse attracts many cross country skiers. The location is becoming increasingly popular, which has subjected it to environmental issues that are being addressed by Peninsula Township.<ref name="Penninsula">{{Cite web |url=http://www.peninsulatownship.com/parks/index.php |title=Peninsula Township Parks. |access-date=2008-05-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509132204/http://www.peninsulatownship.com/parks/index.php |archive-date=2008-05-09 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The Old Mission Peninsula is said to be a premier place to sea kayak.<ref name="Penninsula"/> Maps, rentals, and guided tours are available.<ref>[http://www.trails.com/tcatalog_trail.asp?trailid=CGM024-024 Sea kayaking] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120729081555/http://www.trails.com/tcatalog_trail.aspx?trailid=CGM024-024 |date=2012-07-29 }}</ref>

Mission Point is visited by about 100,000 people annually.

== Gallery == <gallery> File:Missionpoint.jpg|Vintage image of the lighthouse File:Mission Point Light 35mm.jpg|The lighthouse from the beach in August 2023 File:Old Mission Light sign 08-04-98.jpg|Sign adjacent to the lighthouse File:OldMission-MI-lighthouse.jpg|Rear of the lighthouse in July 2006 File:Mission Point Light.jpg|The lighthouse in winter of 2009 File:Mission Point Light (8740757835).jpg|The lighthouse from the water in July 2010 </gallery>

==See also== *Lighthouses in the United States

==References== {{reflist|33em}}

==Bibliography== {{refbegin|33em}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20080531005328/http://www.michiganlighthouse.org/bibliography.html Bibliography on Michigan lighthouses.] * Crompton, Samuel Willard & Michael J. Rhein, ''The Ultimate Book of Lighthouses'' (2002) {{ISBN|1-59223-102-0}}; {{ISBN|978-1-59223-102-7}}. * Hyde, Charles K., and Ann and John Mahan. ''The Northern Lights: Lighthouses of the Upper Great Lakes.'' Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1995. {{ISBN|0-8143-2554-8}} {{ISBN|978-0-8143-2554-4}}. * Jones, Ray & Bruce Roberts, ''American Lighthouses'' (Globe Pequot, September 1, 1998, 1st Ed.) {{ISBN|0-7627-0324-5}}; {{ISBN|978-0-7627-0324-1}}. * Jones, Ray,''The Lighthouse Encyclopedia, The Definitive Reference'' (Globe Pequot, January 1, 2004, 1st ed.) {{ISBN|0-7627-2735-7}}; {{ISBN|978-0-7627-2735-3}}. * Noble, Dennis, ''Lighthouses & Keepers: U. S. Lighthouse Service and Its Legacy'' (Annapolis: U. S. Naval Institute Press, 1997). {{ISBN|1-55750-638-8}}; {{ISBN|978-1-55750-638-2}}. * Oleszewski, Wes, ''Great Lakes Lighthouses, American and Canadian: A Comprehensive Directory/Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses'', (Gwinn, Michigan: Avery Color Studios, Inc., 1998) {{ISBN|0-932212-98-0}}. * Penrod, John, ''Lighthouses of Michigan'', (Berrien Center, Michigan: Penrod/Hiawatha, 1998) {{ISBN|978-0-942618-78-5}} {{ISBN|978-1-893624-23-8}}. * Penrose, Laurie and Bill, A'' Traveler's Guide to 116 Michigan Lighthouses'' (Petoskey, Michigan: Friede Publications, 1999). {{ISBN|0-923756-03-5}} {{ISBN|978-0-923756-03-1}} * {{cite web|url=http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/index.htm |author=Pepper, Terry|title=''Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes''}} * Putnam, George R., ''Lighthouses and Lightships of the United States'', (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1933). * United States Coast Guard, ''Aids to Navigation'', (Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1945). * {{cite uscgnavbib}} * {{cite web|url=http://clarke.cmich.edu/lighthouses/index.htm |author= Wagner, John L. |title=''Beacons Shining in the Night: The Lighthouses of Michigan'' | publisher=Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University}} * Wagner, John L., ''Michigan Lighthouses: An Aerial Photographic Perspective'', (East Lansing, Michigan: John L. Wagner, 1998) {{ISBN|1-880311-01-1}} {{ISBN|978-1-880311-01-1}}. * Wargin, Ed, ''Legends of Light: A Michigan Lighthouse Portfolio'' (Ann Arbor Media Group, 2006). {{ISBN|978-1-58726-251-7}}. * Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, ''Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia'' Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) {{ISBN|1-55046-399-3}}. {{refend}}

==External links== {{Commons category|Mission Point Light}} *{{Official website|http://missionpointlighthouse.com/ Mission Point Lighthouse}} *[http://marinas.com/view/lighthouse/991 Aerial photos, Old Mission Point Light, marinas.com.] *[http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080520/SPECIAL01/80519001 Detroit News, Interactive map on Michigan lighthouses.]

{{Lighthouses of Michigan}}

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Category:Lighthouses completed in 1870 Category:Houses completed in 1870 Category:Museums in Grand Traverse County, Michigan Category:Lighthouse museums in Michigan Category:1870 establishments in Michigan Category:Transportation in Grand Traverse County, Michigan Category:Museums established in 2008 Category:2008 establishments in Michigan Category:Lighthouses of Lake Michigan Category:Houses in Grand Traverse County, Michigan Category:State parks of Michigan