Beaver Island Harbor Light

Beaver Island Harbor Light
Whiskey Point (St. James Harbor, Beaver Island)
Map
LocationBeaver Island
St. James, Michigan
United States
Coordinates45°44′34″N 85°30′31″W / 45.74278°N 85.50861°W / 45.74278; -85.50861
Tower
Constructed1856 (original tower)
1870 (current tower)
Automated1927
Height41 feet (12 m)
ShapeCylindrical
MarkingsWhite (Originally yellow) w/ black lantern
Light
First lit1870
Focal height38 feet (12 m)[1]
LensFourth Order Fresnel
Range10 nautical miles (19 km; 12 mi)
CharacteristicISO Red 6 seconds Light obscured from 127°30′ to 199°30[2]
Beaver Island Light Station
Nearest citySt. James, Michigan
Area64.2 acres (26.0 ha)
NRHP reference No.78001495[3]
Added to NRHPDecember 29, 1978

Beaver Island Harbor Light (or St. James Light) is a lighthouse located in St. James, Michigan, on the northern end of Beaver Island on Lake Michigan.[4] It has also been called "St. James Harbor Light" and "Whiskey Point Light". It is associated with a U.S. Coast Guard station, which was formerly a lifesaving station.[5] The tower is constructed of Cream City Brick.

Whiskey Point was originally named for the 1838 fur trading post that operated on the point, and for the commodity that was the post's chief item of sale. Soon afterward in the 1850s, St. James's Harbor on Beaver Island became established as a safe haven in a storm (an event quite common on Lake Michigan). The light was thus a natural extension of the emergency usage. The original light was constructed in 1856, and the light currently in use was constructed in 1870.[6]

At this time, the harbor is used by the Beaver Island ferry, so the light is still an active aid to navigation.

  1. ^ Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, St. James Harbor Light (Beaver Island)
  2. ^ Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard.
  3. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  4. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Beaver Island Harbor Lighthouse. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
  5. ^ History of the Beaver Island (Whiskey Point) Lights Archived 2008-10-10 at the Wayback Machine by the Beaver Beacon.
  6. ^ Terry Pepper. "Seeing the Light - Beaver Island Harbor Lighthouse". Archived from the original on 2 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-13.