I always have to stop and get some pics of lighthouses when I am nearby. I was north of Rogers City on the coast of Lake Huron so I had to stop by and visit the 40 Mile Point Lighthouse. I will visit even in the middle of winter if it is open to the public. A Michigan historical marker proudly stands near the lighthouse with some facts and reads:

During the late 1800s, the U.S. Lighthouse Board created a system of coastal lights along Lake Huron’s Michigan shore so that mariners would always be within sight of at least one. With a light south of Forty Mile Point on the Presque Isle Peninsula and one to the north at Cheboygan, and eighteen mile stretch of shoreline remained unlighted and dangerous. In1890 the board recommended that a light be built at Forty Mile Point. The light was completed in 1896, and Xavier Rains served as the first keeper, The lighthouse was transferred to Presque Isle County in 1998, but the Coast Guard retained ownership of its Fresnal lens. The site was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

If you are in the northeast lower peninsula stop by for a visit. Besides the lighthouse, they have other things on display including a pilothouse from an old freighter.  You can also see the remains of an old shipwreck on the beach if it is not covered up by the high water levels.

The Fort Gratiot Light standing near the Mouth of the St. Clare River in Port Huron is the oldest lighthouse still standing in Michigan. It was first constructed in 1825 and the first lighthouse on Lake Huron. It was rebuilt in 1861 and still stands as an active aid to navigation today.

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I looked all around the internets and through the books that I have. I found little information on this unique looking lighthouse. It stands at the city beach in New Buffalo at the mouth of the Galien River. The town did have an official lighthouse built way back in the 1830s and it was demolished in the 1850s.

Strangely I could not find when the current light was built. I fould a reference that said it was a replica of the original light. I am not sure about that since the original was built with stone and not cinder blocks and vinyl siding.

The current light does not show up on the Coast Guard’s official list of aid to navigation. It also does not appear on Terry Pepper’s website or Lighthouse Friends website. It as if this cute little light on the beach was shunned and forgotten about.

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For those of us who have lived in Michigan a long time we know not to rely too much on the weather forecast, especially if they say it is gonna be nice a sunny tomorrow. Inevitably tomorrow gets here and the weather is less than ideal. When I am up north and it’s cold and raining I like to go ” into town ” and on this particular day I took a trip to Charlevoix. The light at the end of the pier is probably not the most ascetically pleasing of lights on the Great Lakes, but I imagine to the sailors caught in a storm, seeing the beacon shining on a gloomy day was a welcomed sight. I take a lot of photos of lighthouses, and my favorites are pics on stormy days. I figure that is the purpose of a lighthouse, and it’s the friends that stick around on those not so perfect days that you can rely on.

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This post is a little different than what I normally post. Dianna Higgs Stampfler was kind enough to send me a copy of her book Michigan’s Haunted Lighthouses. It tells the story of several great lakes Lighthouses and whose spirit might possibly be haunting them to this day. I liked that it explored the history of the lighthouse along with the hauntings. She has done a lot of research for the book and has done a wonderful job of telling their stories making it a pleasure to read. If you love Michigan lighthouses and like a good ghost story be sure to check out her book. By the way, she used my photo of the Saginaw River rear range lighthouse for creating the image on the cover.  You can get a copy of her book on Amazon HERE or learn more at her facebook page HERE

It is a little bit of a trip south of the Sleeping Bear Dunes to visit the red white and green lighthouse but it is well worth the trip.  Completed in 1858 the Point Betsie Lighthouse, north of Frankfort, is the oldest building in Benzie County. Standing along the shores of Lake Michigan marking the southern entrance to the Manitou Passage. In 1875 one of the first life-saving stations was established by the U. S. Life Saving Service at the lighthouse. This was the last manned lighthouse on Lake Michigan, and the last Michigan lighthouse to lose its keeper after it was automated in 1982.

Erosion of the sandy point has always been a problem threatening the lighthouse, and in 1890 a ring of concrete was inserted under the tower. A curved breakwall was constructed at the water’s edge to absorb the energy of the waves crashing into the shore. I am thinking the blocks protruding from the surface of the concrete are there to keep the ice from Lake Michigan from pushing up to the lighthouse, but I could not find anything to confirm this.

Point Betsie Lighthouse is said to be one of Americas most photographed lighthouses, and with its red gamble roof and its green trim, it is a beautiful lighthouse standing watch guiding ships as they pass by. if you want to visit the lighthouse you can find out more at their page HERE http://www.pointbetsie.org/

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