Grand Traverse Light is a lighthouse

Lighthouse

A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

, located at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula

Leelanau Peninsula

The Leelanau Peninsula is a peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan that extends about from the Lower Peninsula of Michigan into Lake Michigan. Leelanau County encompasses the entire peninsula. It is often referred to as the "little finger" of the mitten-shaped lower peninsula.Sleeping Bear Dunes...

, which separates Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 and Grand Traverse Bay

Grand Traverse Bay

Grand Traverse Bay is a bay of Lake Michigan formed by part of Northern Michigan. The bay is long, 10 miles wide, and up to deep in spots. It is divided into two arms by the Old Mission Peninsula...

. It marks the Manitou passage, where Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 elides into Grand Traverse Bay

Grand Traverse Bay

Grand Traverse Bay is a bay of Lake Michigan formed by part of Northern Michigan. The bay is long, 10 miles wide, and up to deep in spots. It is divided into two arms by the Old Mission Peninsula...

. In 1858, the present light was built, replacing a separate round tower built in 1852. The lighthouse is located inside Leelanau State Park

Leelanau State Park

Leelanau State Park is a state park located on the Leelanau Peninsula in Leelanau County, Michigan. The park encompasses the entire tip of the peninsula and features both a day-use area and campground....

, 8 miles (12.9 km) north of Northport

Northport, Michigan

Northport is a village in Leelanau Township, Leelanau County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 648 at the 2000 census. When Leelanau County was formed in 1863, Northport served as the first county seat from 1863 to 1883.-Geography:...

, a town of about 650 people. This area, in the Michigan wine

Michigan wine

Michigan wine refers to any wine that is made in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of 2007, there were under wine-grape cultivation and 64 commercial wineries in Michigan, producing 425,000 cases of wine . According to another count there were 112 operating wineries in Michigan in 2007.Wine and...

 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." 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

Millard Fillmore

Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...

 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.

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

Alpena, Michigan

Alpena is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Alpena County. It is considered to be part of Northern Michigan. The Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is located in the city. The population was 10,483 at the 2010 census...

's Fourth Order Fresnel Lens

Fresnel lens

A Fresnel lens is a type of lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for lighthouses.The design allows the construction of lenses of large aperture and short focal length without the mass and volume of material that would be required by a lens of conventional design...

 is on display in the lighthouse keeper

Lighthouse keeper

A lighthouse keeper is the person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Keepers were needed to trim the wicks, replenish fuel, wind clockworks and perform maintenance tasks such as cleaning...

's house. The complex is listed as Michigan Registered Site S0615, and a state historical marker was erected in 1993.

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

Diaphone

For Diaphone, the Noctuid moth species see Diaphone The diaphone was a noisemaking device best known for its use as a foghorn: it could produce deep, powerful tones able to carry a long distance...

 foghorn

Foghorn

A foghorn or fog signal or fog bell is a device that uses sound to warn vehicles of hazards or boats of the presence of other vehicles in foggy conditions. The term is most often used in relation to marine transport...

 is demonstrated throughout the year, and visitors can climb the tower for a spectacular view of Lake Michigan. An admission fee is charged.

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
• 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).
• 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
• Map of Michigan Lighthouse in PDF Format.
• Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Grand Traverse Light.
• National Park Service
  National Park Service
  The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
  
  Maritime Heritage, Inventory of Historic Light Stations Grand Traverse Light.
• Terry Pepper, Grand Traverse lighthouse at Seeing the Light.
• Wobser, David, boatnerd.com Grand Traverse Light.
• Bibliography on Michigan lighthouses.