Manitou Island (Lake Superior)
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| Manitou | |
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| Geography | |
  Manitou Island
Manitou Island (Michigan)
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| Location | Lake Superior, Michigan |
| Coordinates |
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| Administration | |
 Michigan |
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| County | Keweenaw County
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| Manitou Island (Lake Superior) | |
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 Vintage image of the station |
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| Location: | Manitou Island, Michigan |
| Year first constructed: | 1861 |
| Year first lit: | 1862 |
| Automated: | 1978 |
| Construction: | Iron |
| Tower shape: | Skeletal with central column |
| Markings/Pattern: | White |
| Original lens: | Third order Fresnel lens |
| Current lens: | 12-volt solar powered 190 mm acrylic |
Manitou Island is a small island in Lake Superior, off the northeastern tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located approximately 3 miles from the mainland, it encompasses around 1000 acres. Manitou has seen limited impact from human activity, due to its remote location and the often-treacherous waters caused by a strong current at the peninsula’s tip. It is mostly forested, with scattered bogs and an inland lake known as "Perch Lake." Dense underbrush can make travel around the island rather difficult, though a few unimproved trails do exist.
Test pits have been found on the island, hinting at a short-lived past as a possible mining site. Though trees abound, Manitou's remoteness and its lack of quality timber make logging economically inviable. Commercial fisherman have used the island as a camping site in the past, staying overnight on the south beaches while setting their nets in the area. Today public access is facilitated by a timber and rock crib dock near the old lighthouse.
Manitou Island's most important use to date has been the Manitou Island Light Station on its eastern tip. First built in 1849, this lighthouse is still in use, although it is unmanned and solar powered. The island is presently in the custody of the Keweenaw Land Trust, which acquired the Light Station and surrounding land in 2004. The new owners have announced plans to encourage public use of Manitou through camping, rock collecting, hiking, boating, sea kayaking, fishing, and sightseeing at the old light station, while preserving the island's unspoilt scenery and natural habitats.[1]
Beginning in 2002, Manitou Island became the focus of an effort by local bird-watchers to explore and document the various avian spieces there. Approximately 203 separate species have been recorded, including large numbers of migratory raptors and waterbirds.[2] Efforts to investigate this unique habitat and its feathered residents are ongoing, in conjunction with the conservation activities of the Land Trust.
Gull Rock, a tiny islet about one-half mile off Manitou's western tip, contains a historic lighthouse built in 1867 which still functions (like the Manitou light) as an unattended navigational aid. Recently a local preservation society acquired the islet and its dilapidated light station, with a view to its ultimate restoration.[3]
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[edit] Notes
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading
- Bibliography on Michigan lighthouses.
- Crompton, Samuel Willard & Michael J. Rhein, The Ultimate Book of Lighthouses (2002) ISBN 1592231020; ISBN 978-1592231027.
- Hyde, Charles K., and Ann and John Mahan. The Northern Lights: Lighthouses of the Upper Great Lakes. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1995. ISBN 0814325548 ISBN 9780814325544.
- Jones, Ray & Bruce Roberts, American Lighthouses (Globe Pequot, September 1, 1998, 1st Ed.) ISBN 0762703245; ISBN 978-0762703241.
- Jones, Ray,The Lighthouse Encyclopedia, The Definitive Reference (Globe Pequot, January 1, 2004, 1st ed.) ISBN 0762727357; ISBN 978-0762727353.
- Lynn, Bruce. "A Light is on in the Graveyard [Whitefish Point]." Lighthouse Digest (Aug 1997), pp. 1-3.
- Noble, Dennis, Lighthouses & Keepers: U. S. Lighthouse Service and Its Legacy (Annapolis: U. S. Naval Institute Press, 1997). ISBN 1557506388; ISBN 9781557506382.
- 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 9780942618785 ISBN 9781893624238.
- Pepper, Terry. Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes.
- Putnam, George R., Lighthouses and Lightships of the United States, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1933).
- Splake, T. Kilgore. Superior Land Lights. Battle Creek, MI: Angst Productions, 1984.
- United States Coast Guard, Aids to Navigation, (Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1945).
- United States Coast Guard, Aids to Navigation Historical Bibliography.
- Wagner, John L.. Beacons Shining in the Night: The Lighthouses of Michigan. Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University.
- Wagner, John L., Michigan Lighthouses: An Aerial Photographic Perspective, (East Lansing, Michigan: John L. Wagner, 1998) ISBN 1880311011 ISBN 9781880311011.
- Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1550463993.
[edit] External links
- Manitou Island at Keweenaw Land Trust. Includes large aerial photo of Manitou Island.
- Manitou Island Light at NPS Inventory of Historic Light Stations.
- Manitou Island Lighthouse at Terry Pepper, Seeing The Light.
- Manitou Island Bird Survey Manitou Island Bird Survey Website. Includes several photos of the island.
- Yahoo Images: Manitou Island More photos of Manitou Island, including the lighthouse (be sure not to confuse images of "Manitou Island" with those from "North Manitou Island" or "South Manitou Island," which are both in Lake Michigan!).
- Gull Rock Lightkeepers Web site dedicated to restoration and preservation of Gull Rock Lighthouse. Includes pictures of Gull Rock and the old light station there.
- United States Coast Guard's complete list of Michigan lights.
- Volume 7, US Coast Guard Lightlist (PDF).
- Wagner, John L., Beacons Shining in the Night, Michigan Lighthouse Bibliography, Chronology, History, and Photographs, Clarke Historical Library, Central, Michigan University.
- Wobser, David, "Manitou Island Light", Boatnerd.com.
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