Milwaukee Breakwater Light Explained

Location:Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Coordinates:43.027°N -87.882°W
Yearbuilt:1926
Yearlit:1926
Automated:1966
Foundation:Concrete
Construction: steel plate, steel frame, cast iron lantern
Shape:Square on square house, topped by round lantern
Height:[1]
Focalheight:67feet[2] [3]
Characteristic:Fl R 10 seconds
Fogsignal:HORN: 2 blasts ev 20s (2s bl- 2s si-2s bl-14s si). Operates from Apr. 1 to Nov.
Module:
Embed:yes
Milwaukee Breakwater Light
Location:South end of north breakwater, .7 miles east of the mouth of the Milwaukee River
Added:September 16, 2011
Mpsub:Light Stations of the United States MPS
Refnum:11000678[4]

The Milwaukee Breakwater lighthouse was built in 1926 in the harbor of Milwaukee in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin to mark the entrance to the harbor. One of the last fully enclosed breakwater lighthouses in the Great Lakes,[5] [6] [7] the structure was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.

History

This lighthouse, owned and operated by the United States Coast Guard, is an active aid to navigation. The steel tower has a square Balcony and "round cast iron lantern room [that] features helical astragals" in the lantern.[8] The two-story steel lighthouse keeper's quarters are in the art deco style. The structure rests on a 60by concrete pier, which rises more than above the lake's surface.[9] The tower rests above the second floor and is tall overall. The red light has a focal plane of feet above Lake Michigan.[3] The lantern and parapet are painted black.

The structure is near the middle of the four-mile-long Milwaukee breakwater. It is built to withstand heavy weather and waves when Lake Michigan becomes roughest. The building is made of "steel plates over a steel skeletal frame, and is equipped with windows and portholes with glass a full half inch in thickness." The structure was originally painted red, but became white thereafter.[8] In 1926, the original fourth order Fresnel lens was transferred from the Milwaukee Pierhead Light.[8] The "helical barred lantern is also thought to have come from the pierhead light".[9] The lens was removed in 1994,[10] and is now an exhibit in Manitowoc at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum.[11]

The resident lighthouse keepers serviced not only this light, but all of the lights in the harbor, however boat launching and landing from this structure was especially risky.[8] A list of keepers is available.[12]

In June 2011 the United States Coast Guard declared that they no longer need the lighthouse, and that they will transfer it to eligible organizations, or if none are found, auction it.[13] [14] In 2013, Optima Enrichment acquired the lighthouse from the Coast Guard and is currently raising funds in order to open the lighthouse to the public.[15]

Access

The lighthouse is situated on the north side of the harbor at the end of the breakwater. Because the shore and breakwater are disconnected, it is necessary to use a boat to reach it. The best view is from the parking lot at the end of East Erie Street, adjacent to the Milwaukee Pierhead Light.[9] Those who are interested in photographing it will need a telephoto or zoom lens.[16] The tower and site are closed.

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Database of Tower Heights . Pepper, Terry . Seeing the Light . terrypepper.com . 2009-10-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20000918211817/http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/lists/towers.htm . 2000-09-18 . dead .
  2. Web site: Database of Focal Heights . Pepper, Terry . Seeing the Light . terrypepper.com . 2009-10-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080830100452/http://www.terrypepper.com/Lights/lists/focalheight.htm . 2008-08-30 . dead .
  3. Web site: Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes, database.. Pepper, Terry.
  4. Web site: Weekly list of actions taken on properties: 9/12/11 through 9/16/11 . September 23, 2011 . . September 27, 2011.
  5. Web site: Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society, Milwaukee Pierhead (Lake Michigan) Light ARLHS USA-497.
  6. Web site: Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society, World List of Lights. . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090421203756/http://arlhs.com/awards/U_list.html . 2009-04-21 .
  7. Web site: Milwaukee Breakwater Lighthouse. Wisconsin Shipwrecks . Wisconsin Sea Grant, Wisconsin Historical Society. 2019-12-28.
  8. http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/michigan/milwbreakwtr/milwbreakwtr.htm Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Milwaukee Breakwater Light.
  9. http://lighthouse.boatnerd.com/gallery/Michigan/milwaukee-break.htm Wobser, David, Milwaukee Breakwater Light
  10. http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=243 Lighthouse friends, Milwaukee Breakwater Light article
  11. https://www.ibiblio.org/lighthouse/photos/GreatLakes/Manitowoc_lenses.htm Photograph, Milwaukee Breakwater Light Fresnel lens (and others)
  12. http://www.terrypepper.com/lights/michigan/milwbreakwtr/keepers.htm Tag, Phyllis L., Great Lakes Lighthouse Research, List of keepers, Milwaukee Pier/Breakwater Lights.
  13. Web site: Milwaukee Breakwater Lighthouse, Wisconsin . lighthousefriends.com . 5 July 2011.
  14. Web site: Beatty. MaryAnne. GSA Making 12 Historic Lighthouses Available at No Cost to Public Organizations Willing to Preserve Them. GSA Website. US General Services Administration. 12 July 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110622054934/http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/286133. 22 June 2011. dead.
  15. "Brookfield nonprofit acquires historic Milwaukee Breakwater Light," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel September 16, 2013
  16. See, Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Milwaukee Breakwater Light.

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