The Holland Harbor Light, known as Big Red, is located in

Ottawa County, Michigan Ottawa County ( ) is a Counties of the United States, county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, United States 2020 Census, the population was 296,200. The county seat is Grand Haven, Michigan, Grand Haven ...

at the entrance of a channel connecting

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

with

Lake Macatawa Lake Macatawa is a lake in Ottawa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Geography The lake is about long with a maximum width of and a surface area of . The average depth of the lake is variable but generally less than , excluding a naviga ...

, and which gives access to the city of

Holland, Michigan Holland is a city in the western region of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated near the eastern shore of Lake Michigan on Lake Macatawa, which is fed by the Macatawa River (formerly known locally as the Black River). ...

. The lighthouse is on the south side of the channel. There are two modern lights marking the ends of the breakwaters that extend out into the Lake Michigan beyond the lighthouse.

History

After decades of local requests that went unanswered, in 1870 the

United States Lighthouse Board The United States Lighthouse Board was the second agency of the U.S. federal government, under the Department of Treasury, responsible for the construction and maintenance of all lighthouses and navigation aids in the United States, between 1852 ...

finally recommended construction of the first light at Holland Harbor. It was thereupon approved by the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...

. Text of the Michigan Historic Site marker: :When seeking a location for himself and his

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

emigrant followers in 1847, the Reverend A. C. Van Raalte was attracted by the potential of using Black Lake (

) as a harbor. However, the lake's outlet to Lake Michigan was blocked by sandbars and silt. Van Raalte appealed to

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

for help. The channel was surveyed in 1849, but was not successfully opened due to inadequate appropriations. Frustrated, the Dutch settlers dug the channel themselves. On July 1, 1859, the small steamboat Huron put into port. Here, in 1886, the government established the harbor's first lifesaving station. By 1899 the channel had been relocated and harbor work completed. This spurred business and resort expansion. In 1900 over 1,095

schooners A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

, steamers and

barges Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed boat, flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by Pusher (boat) ...

used the harbor. :The first lighthouse built at this location was a small, square wooden structure erected in 1872, after the U.S. Congress, appropriated $4,000 to the project. This was in large part due to Senator Thomas Ferry's influence. In 1880 the lighthouse service installed a new light atop a metal pole in a protective cage. The oil lantern was lowered by pulleys for service. At the turn of the century, a steel tower was built for the light and in 1907 the present structure was erected. Named the Holland Harbor South Pierhead Lighthouse, it has a gabled roof that reflects the Dutch influence in the area. The lighthouse, popularly referred to as "Big Red," was automated in 1932. When the U. S. Coast Guard recommended that it be abandoned in 1970, citizens circulated petitions to rescue it. The Holland Harbor Lighthouse Historical Commission was then organized to preserve and restore this landmark. Except for its color, it is a virtual twin of the

Kewaunee Pierhead Light The Kewaunee Pierhead lighthouse is a lighthouse located near Kewaunee in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin. The lighthouse looks nearly identical to the Holland Harbor Lighthouse, except that it is colored white. History The original light marking ...

on the Wisconsin side of

. In 2007, the

United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...

announced that the Holland Harbor Light would be protected, making it the 12th Michigan lighthouse to have such status.

Accessibility

Public access to Big Red is somewhat limited due to the fact one must cross private property to see the lighthouse up close. However, there are no barriers for walking into the lighthouse area. The best vantage points that are easily accessible to the general public are from across the channel at

Holland State Park Holland State Park is a public recreation area covering in Park Township, Ottawa County, four miles (6 km) west of the city of Holland, Michigan. The state park consists of separate Lake Macatawa Lake Macatawa is a lake in Ottawa ...

. As of May 27, 2013 access by foot to the lighthouse is restricted to Tuesdays and Thursdays, from mid-morning to sunset.

References

External links

Detroit News, Interactive map on Michigan lighthouses.
*

* * {{authority control Lighthouses completed in 1872 Houses completed in 1872 Lighthouses completed in 1907 Houses completed in 1907 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Holland, Michigan Buildings and structures in Ottawa County, Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Ottawa County, Michigan 1872 establishments in Michigan

History

Accessibility

See also

References

Further reading

External links