Pottawatomie Light

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pottawatomie Light
Potawatomi Lighthouse 2004
Location:	Rock Island, Door County, Wisconsin
Coordinates WGS-84 (GPS)	45°25′39″N, 86°49′41″W
Year first lit:	1836
Automated:	1966
Deactivated:	Active
Foundation:	Stone
Construction:	Limestone
Tower shape:	Square
Height:	41 feet (12.5 m)
Original lens:	Fresnel lens

Pottawatomie Lighthouse, also known as the Rock Island Light, is located in Rock Island State Park, on Rock Island in Door County, Wisconsin. Established in 1836, it is the oldest light station in Wisconsin and on Lake Michigan. It was served by civilian light keepers from 1836 to the 1940s, at which point it was taken over by the US Coast Guard.

The first lighthouse on the spot was a structure built in 1836. It was demolished in the late 1850s and replaced by the existing lighthouse. The current building was first lit in 1858 and continued in active service until 1988, when it was replaced with a modern skeletal tower and automated system.^[1]

The lighthouse has been restored to a state illustrating its appearance circa 1882-1910. The restoration was performed with the help from the non-profit Friends Of Rock Island State Park. It now serves as a museum that is open for tours daily from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

The lighthouse was listed as Pottawatomie Lighthouse in the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, as reference #79000074. The fresnel lens, lost after the lighthouse was shut down in the late 1980s, was replaced by a plexiglass copy in 1999.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Door County Maritime Museum on the Pottowatomie Light
• Seeing the light
• NPS Inventory of Historic Light Stations
• Lighthouse friends

v • d • e U.S. National Register of Historic Places Keeper of the Register · History of the National Register of Historic Places · Property types · Historic district · Contributing property List of entries National Park Service · National Historic Landmarks · National Battlefields · National Historic Sites · National Historical Parks · National Memorials · National Monuments

This article about a Registered Historic Place in Wisconsin is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.