Whitefish Point Light

{{Short description|Lighthouse in Michigan, United States}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2025}} {{Infobox lighthouse | image_name = Whitefish Lighthouse.JPG | caption = Whitefish Point Light in July 2018 | location = Whitefish Point<br>Whitefish Township, Michigan | coordinates = {{coord|46|46|16|N|84|57|27|W|region:US-MI_type:landmark|display=inline,title}} | yearlit = 1849<ref name=life1/> | automated = 1971 | foundation = Pier | construction = Steel | shape = Lattice Tower<ref>[http://www.terrypepper.com/Lights/lists/towertype.htm Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, "Lighthouse Tower Designs," at] terrypepper.com.</ref> | focalheight = {{cvt|80|ft}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/lists/focalheight.htm |author=Pepper, Terry |work=Seeing the Light |title=Database of Focal Heights |publisher=terrypepper.com }}</ref> | height = {{cvt|76|ft}}<ref>National Park Service [https://web.archive.org/web/20070704160518/http://www.nps.gov/history/maritime/light/whitefis.htm Maritime Heritage, Inventory of Historic Lights, Whitefish Point Light.]</ref><ref name="navcen.uscg.gov">{{cite uscgll|7|| }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/lists/towers.htm |author=Pepper, Terry |work=Seeing the Light |title=Database of Tower Heights |publisher=terrypepper.com }}</ref> | lens = 3rd order Fresnel Lens<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/lists/distribution.htm |author=Pepper, Terry |work=Seeing the Light |title=Database of Original Lenses |publisher=terrypepper.com }}</ref> (original), Light-emitting diode (LED) lantern<ref name = "Local Notice">{{cite web |url=http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/archive/lnm/2011/D09LNM2011.zip |work=Local Notice to Mariners |title=2011 Archives Imn09232011.pdf - Imn09332011.pdf |publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security/U.S. Coast Guard |access-date=February 7, 2012 }}</ref> (current) | intensity = RACON: O (– – –). Standby light of reduced intensity.<ref name="navcen.uscg.gov"/> | range = {{cvt|15|nmi}}<ref name = "Local Notice"/> | module = {{Infobox NRHP |embed = yes |name = Whitefish Point Light |added = February 28, 1973 |refnum = 73000947<ref name=nris>{{cite web |url=https://npgallery.nps.gov/nrhp |title=National Register Information System |date=March 13, 2009 |work=National Register of Historic Places |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=August 3, 2010 |archive-date=July 25, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725123211/http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |designated_other1 = Michigan State Historic Site |designated_other1_date = February 22, 1974<ref>{{cite web |last=State of Michigan |url=http://www.mcgi.state.mi.us/hso/sites/4061.htm |year=2009 |title=Whitefish Point Light |access-date=June 26, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511130204/http://www.mcgi.state.mi.us/hso/sites/4061.htm |archive-date=May 11, 2012 }}</ref> |designated_other1_number = |designated_other1_num_position = bottom }} }} The '''Whitefish Point Light''' is a lighthouse located in Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan.<ref>{{GNIS|2356419|Whitefish Point Lighthouse Historical Marker }}</ref> Located on the southeastern shores of Lake Superior, it sits at the edge of Whitefish Point leading to Whitefish Bay. Constructed in 1849 by congress, it is the oldest operating lighthouse in the Upper Peninsula.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jodie |title=Whitefish Point Light Station |url=https://shipwreckmuseum.com/visit/whitefish-point-light/#:~:text=The%20Whitefish%20Point%20Light%20Station,operating%20lighthouse%20on%20Lake%20Superior |access-date=November 17, 2024 |website=Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society |language=en-US }}</ref> All vessels entering or exiting Lake Superior pass near Whitefish Point. The area is infamously known as the "Graveyard of the Great Lakes" due to the high number of shipwrecks in the area, most famously the ''SS Edmund Fitzgerald''.<ref name ="North">[http://www.exploringthenorth.com/whitefish/whitefish.html Exploring The North: Whitefish Point Lighthouse and Museum]</ref>

The lighthouse is part of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum complex, which contains numerous relics from shipwrecks of the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve, including the bell of the ''SS Edmund Fitzgerald''. The lighthouse itself was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and again as a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974.

==History== thumb|left|250px|Vintage image of Whitefish Point Light thumb|left|alt=Whitefish Point Light 2007 |The DCB-224 Carlisle & Finch aerobeacon in operation at Whitefish Point on November 3, 2007 thumb|left|alt=Whitefish Point Light 2011 |The light-emitting diode lantern installed at Whitefish Point in August 2011 Construction on the first light began in 1847, and the lighthouse was said to resemble that at Old Presque Isle Light.<ref>[http://www.lighthousecentral.com/lighthouse_gallery.php4?lighthouse=Whitefish%20Point%20Light%20Station Lighthouse Central, Photos of the Whitefish Point Light Station, ''The Ultimate Guide to Upper Michigan Lighthouses'' by Jerry Roach (Publisher: Bugs Publishing LLC – 2007).] {{ISBN|978-0-9747977-2-4}}.</ref> First lit in 1849, it was one of the first lighthouses on the shores of Lake Superior.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jodie |title=Whitefish Point Light Station |url=https://shipwreckmuseum.com/visit/whitefish-point-light/#:~:text=The%20Whitefish%20Point%20Light%20Station,operating%20lighthouse%20on%20Lake%20Superior |access-date=November 17, 2024 |website=Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society |language=en-US }}</ref> It is the oldest active light on the lake, standing at the point of land that marks the course change for vessels coming from the southern coast of Lake Superior, known as the "Graveyard of the Great Lakes", to the Soo Locks.<ref name=life1>{{cite book |last1=Allen |first1=Thomas |last2=Canfield |first2=Edward |title=Life on a Lonely Shore |page=3 |publisher=Lake Superior State University |location=Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan |year=2001 |edition=6th |orig-year=First published 1991 |isbn=0-9706903-0-4 }}</ref> All vessels entering or leaving Lake Superior must past Whitefish Point. Whitefish Point Light is arguably the most important light on Lake Superior. The Whitefish Point area has more shipwrecks than any other area in Lake Superior.<ref name="Stonehouse">{{cite book |last=Stonehouse |first=Frederick |title=Lake Superior's Shipwreck Coast |pages=11–12, 176, 267 |publisher=Avery Color Studios |location=Gwinn, Michigan |year=1998 |edition=6th |orig-year=First published 1985 |isbn=0-932212-43-3 }}</ref>

The original structure was outfitted with Lewis lamps, which were thereafter upgraded to a fourth order Fresnel lens. The current structure, while modern looking, is a Civil War relic. Built in 1861, the iron skeletal steel framework was designed to relieve stress caused by high winds.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jodie |title=Whitefish Point Light Station |url=https://shipwreckmuseum.com/visit/whitefish-point-light/#:~:text=The%20Whitefish%20Point%20Light%20Station,operating%20lighthouse%20on%20Lake%20Superior |access-date=November 17, 2024 |website=Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society |language=en-US }}</ref> A similar design is used at Manitou Island Light in Lake Superior. It was equipped with a third order Fresnel lens.<ref>[http://www.terrypepper.com/Lights/superior/whitefish/whitefish.htm Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light – Whitefish Point Lighthouse.]</ref>

In 1968, the light was replaced with a DCB-224 aero beacon<ref>[http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/closeups/illumination/aerobeacon/dcb224.htm Aero beacon, Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light.]</ref> manufactured by the Carlisle & Finch Company.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.carlislefinch.com/marine/aidsnav.htm |title=Carlisle & Finch Company. |access-date=May 16, 2008 |archive-date=March 9, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090309202653/http://carlislefinch.com/marine/aidsnav.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> According to Volume 7 of the U.S. Coast Guard light list, it was visible for a distance of {{convert|26|nmi}} in clear weather conditions, and had two unevenly spaced eclipses, and two flashes within every 20 second period.<ref name="navcen.uscg.gov"/> Putting aside questions of nostalgia, aesthetics, or appreciation for the engineering of a bygone era (as exemplified by the Fresnel lens), this iteration of lighthouse illumination was itself incredibly effective, and an endangered remnant of another bygone era.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.stormheroes.com/aton/dcb36.htm |title=Trapani, Bob, ''DCB-36 Beacon... Fading Away and All but Forgotten by History'', Stormherocs.com. |access-date=October 31, 2009 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303213446/http://www.stormheroes.com/aton/dcb36.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The station was automated in 1971.

In 2011, the U.S. Coast Guard Local Notice to Mariners reported reduced intensity of the Whitefish Point light from June 7, 2011, until August 16, 2011, when the DCB-224 Series Carlisle & Finch aerobeacon lens was changed to a light-emitting diode (LED) lantern with a reduced range of {{convert|15|nmi}}<ref name="Local Notice"/> as permitted by Coast Guard rules and regulations adopted in 2003 for private aids to navigation.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=USCG-2000-7466-0010;oldLink=false |work=Federal Register |title=33 CFR Part 66: Final Rule: Allowing Alternatives to Incandescent Lights, and Establishing Standards for New Lights, in Private Aids to Navigation |publisher=regulations.gov |access-date=February 7, 2012 }}</ref> The aerobeacon lens is stored in a building at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum complex for possible future public display.

The lighthouse is home to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, which has many artifacts from numerous shipwrecks in the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve, most notably, the bell from the SS ''Edmund Fitzgerald'', which was recovered from the wreck in 1995. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum is open during the tourist season from 10 am to 6 pm, every day through October 31.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.shipwreckmuseum.com/tour.phtml |title=Virtual tour of Whitefish Point Light. |access-date=April 7, 2008 |archive-date=May 14, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080514202851/http://www.shipwreckmuseum.com/tour.phtml |url-status=dead }}</ref> The organization that operates the museum got 80.079% of its funding from the public in the year 2010.<ref>{{cite web |title=Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society 2010 Form 990 |year=2010 |url=http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990_pdf_archive/382/382198482/382198482_201012_990.pdf |publisher=National Center for Charitable Statistics |access-date=February 5, 2012}}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

The light is considered iconic, and has been the subject of memorabilia.<ref>Rubber Stamp, [http://northwoodsmemories.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=36 Whitefish Point Light.]</ref> An official Michigan Historical Marker was erected in 1974. It is Registered Site L0272. The marker notes:

* This light, the oldest on Lake Superior, began operating in 1849, though the present tower was constructed later. An early stopping place for Indians, Voyageurs, Coureur des bois and Jesuit missionaries, the point marks the course change for ore boats and other ships navigating this treacherous coastline to and from St. Mary's Canal. Since 1971 the light, fog signal, and radio beacon have been automated and controlled from Sault Ste. Marie.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20120629210909/http://www.michmarkers.com/Frameset.htm Michigan Historical Markers.] }}</ref>

The keepers were: * 1848–1851: James B. Van Rensselaer * 1851–1853: Amos Stiles * 1853–1856: William C. Crampton * 1856–1859: Belloni McGulpin * 1859–1861: Charles Garland * 1861–1864: Joseph Kemp * 1864–1868: Thomas Stafford * 1868–1874: Edward Ashman * 1874–1882: Charles J. Linke * 1882–1883: Edward Chambers * 1883–1903: Charles Kimball * 1903–1931: Robert Carlson<ref>{{cite uscghist|MI }}</ref>

Whitefish Point is on the Lake Superior coastline known as the “Graveyard of the Great Lakes”. The numerous shipwrecks of Whitefish Bay include: * ''Comet'' * ''John B. Cowle'' * ''Drake'' * ''Samuel Mather'' * ''Miztec'' * ''Myron'' * ''Niagara'' * ''John M. Osborn'' * ''Sagamore'' * ''{{SS|Superior City||2}}'' * ''Vienna''

These wreck sites are protected for future generations of sports divers by the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve.<ref>[http://www.michiganpreserves.org/whitefish.htm Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve]</ref>

The site is a venue for remembrance of the S.S. ''Edmund Fitzgerald'', and extends back to the 1816 loss of "the very first ship known to sail on Superior, the sixty-foot trading vessel Invincible," which upended in gale force winds and towering waves near there. "[E]very loss was tragic."<ref name ="North"/>

There are critics that claim that the stewardship of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society over this lighthouse caused it to be "overdeveloped."<ref>{{cite rowlett|miup }}</ref><ref name="Revered site">{{cite news |title=Birdwaters, shipwreck buffs seek deal in fight over revered site |date=April 7, 2002 |page=5A |url=http://hermes.lssu.edu/~library |newspaper=The Evening News |location=Sault Ste. Marie, MI |access-date=January 26, 2011 |archive-date=July 19, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719231742/http://hermes.lssu.edu/~library/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Michigan Audubon Society filed a lawsuit that accused the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society of over-developing Whitefish Point and the United States Fish & Wildlife Service of not protecting the site.<ref name="Lively">{{cite web |last=Lively |first=Jim |title=Human use/natural resource management plan for Whitefish Point |publisher=Michigan Land Use Institute |year=2002 |page=13 |url=http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/seney/pdf/WhiteFishPlan.pdf |access-date=May 22, 2013 }}</ref> The lawsuit was settled in 2002 when the parties agreed to govern the site with a management plan.<ref>{{cite court |litigants=Michigan Audubon Society v. Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society and United States Fish and Wildlife Service |vol= |reporter= |opinion= |pinpoint= |court=W.D. MI |date=2001 |url=http://www.pacer.gov/ U.S. Courts: public access to court electronic records |quote=…the structure and use of the proposed museum wings will not impair or interfere with the conservation values as provided in the Transfer Statutes… }}</ref> The former 44-acre Coast Guard site at Whitefish Point consists of 2.7 acres transferred to the Michigan Audubon Society and the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory, 8.3 acres transferred to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, and 33 acres transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife Service administered by Seney National Wildlife Refuge.<ref>[http://www.michigandnr.com/publications/pdfs/wildlife/viewingguide/up/33Whitefish/index.htm Whitefish Point Bird Observatory] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040318143527/http://www.michigandnr.com/publications/pdfs/wildlife/viewingguide/up/33Whitefish/index.htm |date=March 18, 2004 }}, Michigan Department of Natural Resources</ref><ref>Lively, p. 10</ref> The 20-acre Helstrom Addition was added to the Whitefish Point Unit of the Seney National Wildlife Refuge in 2012 so that the US Fish and Wildlife Service now holds a total of 55 acres at Whitefish Point.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fws.gov/refuge/seney/ |title=Seney National Wildlife Refuge |author= |access-date=May 21, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fws.gov/midwest/news/WhitefishPoint.html |title=Michigan Birder Leaves a Legacy for Great Lakes Piping Plovers |author= |date=April 29, 2013 |access-date=May 21, 2013 }}</ref>

==Other uses== The Whitefish Point Unit of the Seney National Wildlife Refuge<ref>{{cite web |last=Casselman |first=Tracy |title=Seney National Wildlife Refuge Comprehensive Conservation Plan |publisher=United States Fish and Wildlife Service |year=2009 |url=http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/seney/FinalCCP/seneyCCP.pdf |access-date=January 21, 2011 }}</ref> provides important migratory bird migration habitat for raptors, waterbirds, and songbirds. Whitefish Point is a designated Important Bird Area .<ref>[https://michiganiba.blogspot.com/ Whitefish Point Important Bird Area]</ref> The Whitefish Point Bird Observatory<ref>[http://www.wpbo.org/index.html Whitefish Point Bird Observatory] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081029051308/http://www.wpbo.org/index.html |date=October 29, 2008 }},</ref> is a research and education facility operated in affiliation with Michigan Audubon, a State Chapter of the National Audubon Society. Whitefish Point is the best place in North America to observe the saw-whet owl.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gFyH_cKWjk Owl Banding at Whitefish Point]</ref><ref>[http://www.exploringthenorth.com/birds/birds.html Exploring the North, Birds at Whitefish Point.]</ref> Most of Whitefish Point is a wildlife sanctuary, renowned for the variety of birds that pass through. The Michigan Audubon Society maintains a small information room informing birders particular species to observe as they hike along the trails network. A wooden walkway has been constructed to allow the visitor a chance to venture into the sanctuary area and observe wildlife. Whitefish Point is a target for migrating birds, including eagles, Northern goshawks, geese, falcons, hawks and owls.<ref name ="North"/>

The sandy beach along the point is an exciting place to look for banded agates, especially after a storm or to take a walk along the sandy shoreline and enjoy the magic of Lake Superior.

In 2012, for the fourth year in a row after a 23-year absence, piping plovers nested at Whitefish Point, and successfully fledged offspring.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fws.gov/fieldnotes/regmap.cfm?ARSKey=32555&emailFlag=1 |title=Return of the Piping Plover: A Seney National Wildlife Refuge Success Story |last1=Maslowski |first1=Jeremy |date=August 1, 2012 |publisher=USFWS |access-date=October 1, 2012 }}</ref>

From 25px M-123 in Paradise, go north on Whitefish Point Road for just over {{convert|11|mi}} to Whitefish Point Lighthouse. It is well marked.<ref>[http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=567 Anderson, Kraig, Lighthouse Friends, Whitefish Point Lighthouse.]</ref>

==Specialized further reading== * Hermanson, Don, ''True Lighthouse Hauntings, Revisited'' including Whitefish Point Light.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://keweenawvideo.com/images/TrueLighthouseRevised.jpg |title=Hermanson, Don, ''True Lighthouse Hauntings, Revisited'', (Keweenaw Video) including Whitefish Point Light. (cover art) |access-date=November 15, 2009 |archive-date=October 31, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101031153519/http://keweenawvideo.com/images/TrueLighthouseRevised.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref> * Lynn, Bruce. "A Light is on in the Graveyard, Whitefish Point." (Aug 1997), pp. 1–3 Lighthouse Digest.

==Notes== {{Reflist|33em}}

==External links== * {{Commons category inline|Whitefish Point Light Station}} * {{ARLHS link}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110320093115/http://www.fws.gov/midwest/seney/whitefish_point.html Whitefish Point Unit of Seney National Wildlife Refuge] * [http://marinas.com/view/lighthouse/875 Aerial photos, Whitefish Point Light, marinas.com.] * National Park Service [https://web.archive.org/web/20070704160518/http://www.nps.gov/history/maritime/light/whitefis.htm Maritime Heritage, Inventory of Historic Lights, Whitefish Point Light.] * [http://www.shipwreckmuseum.com/ Shipwreck Museum] at Whitefish Point Light. * [http://www.terrypepper.com/Lights/superior/whitefish/whitefish.htm Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light – Whitefish Point Lighthouse] * [http://unitedstateslighthouses.com/explore-us-lighthouses/midwest-region/16-whitefish-point-lighthouse.html Whitefish Point Lighthouse - United States Lighthouses]

{{Lighthouses of Michigan}} {{National Register of Historic Places listings in Chippewa County, Michigan}} {{National Register of Historic Places}}

Category:Lighthouses completed in 1849 Category:Lighthouses completed in 1861 Category:Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Category:Michigan State Historic Sites Category:Marine parks of Michigan Category:Important Bird Areas of Michigan Category:Lighthouse museums in Michigan Category:Museums in Chippewa County, Michigan Category:Protected areas of Chippewa County, Michigan Category:1849 establishments in Michigan Category:National Register of Historic Places in Chippewa County, Michigan Category:Lighthouses in Chippewa County, Michigan Category:Lighthouses of Lake Superior Category:1861 establishments in Michigan