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The Wisconsin Point Light is a lighthouse located in Superior, on Wisconsin Point, in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States.

Wisconsin Point Light

Wisconsin Point Lighthouse
Location	Superior Wisconsin
Coordinates	46°42′36.5″N 92°00′23″W[1]
Tower
Constructed	1913
Foundation	Concrete pier
Construction	Concrete
Automated	1970
Height	56 feet (17 m)
Shape	Cylindrical, atop square (rounded corners) keeper's house
Markings	White with red lantern, red roof on house
Heritage	National Register of Historic Places listed place
Fog signal	HORN: 1 blast ev 30s (3s bl); operates from May 1 to October 20
Light
First lit	1913
Focal height	70 feet (21 m)[2]
Lens	Fourth order Fresnel lens (original), DCB 24 Carlisle & Finch Aerobeacon[3] (current)
Range	21 nautical miles (39 km; 24 mi)[1]
Characteristic	Green flashing, 5 s[1]
Superior Entry South Breakwater Light
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Area	less than one acre
Built by	U.S. Bureau of Lighthouses
MPS	Light Stations of the United States MPS
NRHP reference No.	07000102[4]
Added to NRHP	March 1, 2007

The light and attached fog horn building sits within a 10-mile (16 km) long sand bar – stretching between the ports of Duluth and Superior. This sand bar makes the Duluth–Superior Harbor one of the safest harbors in the world. It is "reputedly the longest freshwater sand bar in the world" and is split by this opening near its center, where the lighthouse is located. The Minnesota side of the opening is known as "Minnesota Point" (Park Point) and the Wisconsin side is known as "Wisconsin Point."[5] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.[4] It stands erect at 70 ft. tall.

History

The original Fresnel lens was manufactured by Sautter, Lemonnier, and Company of Paris in 1890.[6] It was replaced with a DCB-224 aero beacon[7] manufactured by the Carlisle & Finch Company.[8]

It is an active navigational aid and is known as the South Breakwater Light by the United States Coast Guard in the Volume VII light list and the United States Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System.

It is located on the southern Superior Harbor entry breakwall. The Saint Louis River, which rises in Minnesota, becomes the Saint Louis Bay, then flows into Superior Bay and exits into Lake Superior via the ship canals, at each end of (Park Point) Minnesota Point.

In July 2019, the lighthouse superstructure was put up for sale in an online auction by the U.S. GSA. The breakwater upon which it sits and the navigational aid housed within would remain U.S. Government property after the sale.[9]

References

Further reading

External links

Media related to Wisconsin Point Light at Wikimedia Commons

• Aerial photos of Wisconsin Point, South Breakwater Light, Marina.com.
• Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Northern Wisconsin". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
• Lighthouse friends, Wisconsin Point Light article
• Satellite view, Superior Entry South Breakwater (Wisconsin Point) Light, by Google.com.
• "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Wisconsin". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.
• Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard.

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