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The Duluth South Breakwater Inner Light is a lighthouse on the south breakwater of the
The reconstruction of the canal as part of the 1896 harbor upgrade forced rearrangement and replacement of the lights. The south breakwater was rebuilt with concrete piers from 1898 to 1900 and, upon completion, temporary lights were erected while new permanent lights were built. A new rear tower was constructed, standing at the edge of the pier near the lake shore. This structure, a square three-stage skeletal pyramid with a central cylindrical enclosed staircase, was originally painted white with a black lantern and watchroom; at some point, however, the color scheme was reversed to the current black tower and white lantern. The original lens was reused, but was replaced with a modern acrylic flasher in 1995 when it was found in need of repair. The lens was given to the
Duluth Ship Canal
The Duluth Ship Canal is an artificial canal cut through Minnesota Point, providing direct access to Duluth harbor from Lake Superior. Begun privately in 1871, it was put under federal supervision and maintenance several years later. It is still ...
in Duluth, Minnesota
, settlement_type = City
, nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City
, motto =
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...
, United States. It forms a range
Range may refer to:
Geography
* Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra)
** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands
* Range, a term used to i ...
with the Duluth South Breakwater Outer Light to guide ships into the canal from Lake Superior
Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...
. The current structure was built from 1900 to 1901.
History
The original configuration of the breakwaters was graced by a tower on the south side of the lake entrance in 1874, shortly after the canal was constructed. Requests for funds to construct a corresponding light on the inner end of the breakwater were made beginning in 1880, but an appropriation was not made until 1889. Construction proceeded quickly on an open wooden pyramidal tower surmounted by a watch room and iron lantern, the latter housing a fourth-order Fresnel lens which rotated to provide a six-second flash; the light was first displayed on September 1 of that year. On the 17th, the ''India'' struck the end of the breakwater, but the damage to the light was minor and quickly repaired.
The reconstruction of the canal as part of the 1896 harbor upgrade forced rearrangement and replacement of the lights. The south breakwater was rebuilt with concrete piers from 1898 to 1900 and, upon completion, temporary lights were erected while new permanent lights were built. A new rear tower was constructed, standing at the edge of the pier near the lake shore. This structure, a square three-stage skeletal pyramid with a central cylindrical enclosed staircase, was originally painted white with a black lantern and watchroom; at some point, however, the color scheme was reversed to the current black tower and white lantern. The original lens was reused, but was replaced with a modern acrylic flasher in 1995 when it was found in need of repair. The lens was given to the Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center
The Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center is a museum in Duluth, Minnesota, operated by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Background
The museum is in Duluth's Canal Park near the Aerial Lift Bridge and overlooks the entrance to the ...
, where it was restored and put on display.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
as the Duluth South Breakwater Inner (Duluth Range Rear) Lighthouse in 1983 for its local significance in the themes of commerce, engineering, and transportation. It was nominated for being one of the federal navigation aids essential to the development of the Great Lakes as the nation's most important transportation system in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
The light remains in service, but in 2008 the tower was sold at auction to a pair of Duluth residents after an offer to donate it to educational or non-profit organizations found no takers.
See also
* List of lighthouses in Minnesota * National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Louis County, MinnesotaReferences
External links
* {{authority control 1889 establishments in Minnesota Buildings and structures in Duluth, Minnesota Lighthouses completed in 1889 Lighthouses completed in 1901 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota National Register of Historic Places in St. Louis County, Minnesota