Talk:South Manitou Island Light

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	South Manitou Island Light is part of WikiProject Lighthouses, a WikiProject related to lighthouses and other water navigational aids worldwide. It may include the lighthouses infobox. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion.
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search WikiProject Lighthouses Tawas Point Light is part of WikiProject Lighthouses, a WikiProject related to lighthouses and other water navigational aids worldwide. It may include the lighthouses infobox. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion. ??? This article has not yet received a rating on the quality scale. ??? This article has not yet received a rating on the importance scale. Categories: Unassessed Lighthouses articles | Unknown-importance Lighthouses articles | WikiProject Lighthouses articles

Can somebody fix this? Thanks. 7&6=thirteen (talk) 23:36, 27 February 2008 (UTC)Stan

[edit] Operational or not

Some of the sources cited in the article say the light is not operational. I think the Fresnel lens was removed at least. Hoewver, the National Park website says it is operational. http://www.sleepingbeardunes.com/info/area_southmanitou.php

Any ideas? 7&6=thirteen (talk) 00:34, 28 February 2008 (UTC)Stan

I've been in the tower of this lighthouse and can attest to the fact that it has no lens and is not operational. I've found some of these government web sites to be seriously deficient in their facts.----Asher196 (talk) 03:31, 28 February 2008 (UTC)

My reading suggests that there is a smallish (105 mm? not sure of the size) plastic "hazard warning light" and that the 3rd order Fresnel lens is on loan to a museum somewhere. The details are in one of the websites as I recall.

IMHO, that is not "operational." I've been through similar issues in the neighborhood of my cottage a year and a half ago. The Coast Guard attempted to close down the Sturgeon Point Light Station and wanted to remove the lens and put on a similar hazard marker. A big petition drive and the intervention of senators and congressmen put a stop to that. They close down these lights, even though they were actually put up for a reason -- somebody will rn into the rocks, shoal, shallows, etc. Their theory is said to be that 'everyone has G.P.S.' and that these extra safety systems are unnecessary. Of course, redundancy in safety systems is (to my way of thinking) a good thing. Whatever electrical systems you have don't guarantee against a malfunction. Not to mention that small boaters don't necessarily have G.P.S. In fact, even as the Coast Gaurd was trying to remove the light (and it was on), a large cruiser ran up on the rocks near Sturgeon Point. In short, those lights are part of the history and culture of the local environment -- and a tourist attraction -- and were put there at great expense because there was a real hazard to navigation, which doesn't go away. As I wrote to the USCG at the time, "they are not just a big lawn ornament." 11:39, 28 February 2008 (UTC)Stan