Archives

The Lonely Sentinel of Isle Royale Far out in the waters of northwestern Lake Superior, a narrow reef known as Rock of Ages posed a serious threat to ships for generations. Hidden beneath the surface, it was battered by some of the most powerful storms on the Great Lakes. As a result, the rocky outcropping earned a reputation among mariners as one of the most dangerous navigational hazards in the region. Today, Rock of Ages Lighthouse rises from that reef like a stone fortress, standing watch over the shipping lanes west of Isle Royale. Moreover, it was built in one… Read More »

The Isolated Beacon of Green Bay Far from the mainland and surrounded by the waters of northwestern Lake Michigan, Poverty Island Light has stood watch over one of the Great Lakes’ important shipping passages for more than 150 years. Located on Poverty Island, nearly six miles south of the Garden Peninsula, the lighthouse was built to guide vessels through the narrow Poverty Island Passage, a route that became increasingly important as Michigan’s iron industry expanded during the nineteenth century. Today, the lighthouse stands abandoned and weather worn, yet its history remains closely tied to the growth of Upper Peninsula commerce… Read More »

The Beacon of the Manitou Passage Standing above the dunes on South Manitou Island, the South Manitou Island Lighthouse has watched over one of the busiest and most important waterways in Lake Michigan for nearly two centuries. Located sixteen miles west of Leland, the lighthouse guided generations of mariners through the Manitou Passage, a shortcut between Chicago and the Straits of Mackinac that saved both time and fuel. For sailors and steamship captains navigating the often-unpredictable waters of Lake Michigan, the light represented safety, shelter, and a reliable path through a busy maritime corridor. Today, the lighthouse is preserved as… Read More »

Isle Royale’s First Lighthouse Long before Isle Royale became a national park known for wilderness, moose, and remote hiking trails, it was a place of bustling mining camps, commercial fishing operations, and growing maritime traffic. Standing at the entrance to Rock Harbor, the Rock Harbor Lighthouse was the first lighthouse ever built on Isle Royale. Although it spent surprisingly little time in active service, the lighthouse played an important role during the island’s early mining era and remains one of the most historic structures in Isle Royale National Park. Its story reflects the rise and fall of copper mining on… Read More »

Where Iron, Railroads and Lake Superior Came Together Stand along Marquette’s waterfront today and it is difficult to miss the enormous ore dock reaching into Lake Superior from the Lower Harbor. It is massive, unmistakable, and strangely beautiful. Travel a few miles north to Presque Isle and you will find another one. This dock is not simply a reminder of Marquette’s industrial past. More than a century after it was built, it is still doing the job it was designed to do. Together, Marquette’s Lower and Upper Harbor ore docks tell a much larger story. It is a story that… Read More »

Guiding Ships and Monarch Butterflies At the southern tip of the Stonington Peninsula, where the waters of Big Bay de Noc, Little Bay de Noc, and Green Bay meet, stands one of Michigan’s most scenic and historically significant lighthouse sites. The Peninsula Point Lighthouse once served as a critical navigational aid for vessels traveling the busy shipping routes of northern Lake Michigan. Today, although its light no longer shines across the water, the lighthouse remains a beloved landmark. In addition, it is now an unexpected destination for another group of travelers: thousands of migrating monarch butterflies. Its story combines maritime… Read More »

The Lighthouse with Two Towers Far out in northern Lake Michigan, South Fox Island rises from the water as one of the most remote places in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. For generations of mariners navigating the waters between Green Bay, the Manitou Passage, and the Straits of Mackinac, the island served as an important landmark and a vital navigational aid. Today, South Fox Island Light Station is unusual among Great Lakes lighthouses because it has two towers standing side by side in its history. One is the original nineteenth century lighthouse, while the other is a towering steel skeletal structure that… Read More »