Grand Traverse Light

Grand Traverse Light is a lighthouse in the U.S. state of Michigan, located at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula, which separates Lake Michigan and Grand Traverse Bay. It marks the Manitou passage, where Lake Michigan elides into Grand Traverse Bay. In 1858, the present light was built, replacing a separate round tower built in 1852.^[4] The lighthouse is located inside Leelanau State Park, 8 miles (13 km) north of Northport, a town of about 650 people. This area, in the Michigan wine country, is known for its exquisite beauty and is a popular spot for tourists during the summer months.

History

Some call this "Cat's head point light."^[4] It is also locally called Northport Light, in honor of the nearby town of Northport.

The first version of this light, which no longer exists, was ordered built by President Millard Fillmore in July 1850. A brick tower with separate keeper's quarters was constructed at a site east of the present Lighthouse in the state park campground. This first house and tower were deemed inadequate and razed in 1858 when the present structure was built. Still visible is a portion of the lighthouse foundation and the original tower site was located in 1999.^[5]

The 1858 light is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, Reference #84001799, Name of Listing: GRAND TRAVERSE LIGHT (U.S. COAST GUARD/GREAT LAKES TR). It is also on the State List/Inventory having been listed in 1991. Alpena, Michigan's Fourth Order Fresnel Lens is on display in the lighthouse keeper's house.^[1] The complex is listed as Michigan Registered Site S0615, and a state historical marker was erected in 1993.^[6]

Today, one can tour the restored lighthouse resembling a keeper's home of the 1920s and 1930s. Exhibits on area lighthouses, foghorns, shipwrecks and local history are located in the Lighthouse and Fog Signal Building. The restored air diaphone foghorn is demonstrated throughout the year, and visitors can climb the tower for a spectacular view of Lake Michigan. An admission fee is charged.^[5]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Grand Traverse Light.
2. ^ National Park Service, Maritime Heritage, Inventory of Historic Light Stations Grand Traverse Light.
3. ^ Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Focal Plane database.
4. ^ ^{a b} Wobser, David, boatnerd.com Grand Traverse Light.
5. ^ ^{a b} Grand Traverse Lighthouse
6. ^ Michigan Historical Markers.

Further reading

• 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.
• 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.
• Penrose, Laurie and Bill, A Traveler’s Guide to 116 Michigan Lighthouses (Petoskey, Michigan: Friede Publications, 1999). ISBN 0923756035 ISBN 9780923756031
• Pepper, Terry. "Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes". http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/index.htm. 
• 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).
• Scott T. Price. "U. S. Coast Guard Aids to Navigation: A Historical Bibliography". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. http://www.uscg.mil/History/weblighthouses/h_lhbib.asp. 

• Wagner, John L.. "Beacons Shining in the Night: The Lighthouses of Michigan". Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University. http://clarke.cmich.edu/lighthouses/index.htm. 
• Wagner, John L., Michigan Lighthouses: An Aerial Photographic Perspective, (East Lansing, Michigan: John L. Wagner, 1998) ISBN 1880311011 ISBN 9781880311011.
• Wargin, Ed, Legends of Light: A Michigan Lighthouse Portfolio (Ann Arbor Media Group, 2006). ISBN 9781587262517.
• Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1550463993.

External links

• Detroit News, Interactive map on Michigan lighthouses.
• Grand Traverse Lighthouse official site
• Interactive list/information of lighthouses in northeastern Lake Michigan by LighthousesRus.
• Interactive map of Lights in Northern Lake Michigan, mapped by Google.
• Northport - Omena Chamber of Commerce
• Leelanau Township Website
• Leelanau Township Library Website
• Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Michigan's Western Lower Peninsula". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/miwl.htm. 
• Map of Michigan Lighthouse in PDF Format.
• Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Grand Traverse Light.
• National Park Service Maritime Heritage, Inventory of Historic Light Stations Grand Traverse Light.
• Terry Pepper, Grand Traverse lighthouse at Seeing the Light.
• "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Michigan". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses/LHMI.asp. 
• (PDF) Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes. Light List. United States Coast Guard. http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/pdf/lightLists/LightList%20V7.pdf. 
• Wobser, David, boatnerd.com Grand Traverse Light.
• Bibliography on Michigan lighthouses.