The Michigan City Breakwater

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

is located in the harbor of

Michigan City, Indiana Michigan City is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, United States. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan statistical area, which is included in the Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City Combined sta ...

. This is the successor to the

Old Michigan City Light The Old Michigan City Light is a decommissioned lighthouse located in the harbor of Michigan City, Indiana. Built in 1858 at a cost of $8,000, this lighthouse, replaced an 1837 brick & stone light built at the edge of Lake Michigan. It was the s ...

, when the lantern, lens and light was moved to the new light at the end of the newly extended pier. This is one of very few lights on the Great Lakes which still has the iron walkway atop the pier (see

Manistee Pierhead lights The Manistee Pierhead lights are a pair of active aids to navigation located on the north and south pier in the harbor of Manistee, Michigan, "Lake Michigan’s Victorian Port City." History The first light was on the south pier in 1870. Unfort ...

and

Grand Haven South Pierhead Inner Light Grand Haven South Pierhead Inner Light is the inner light of two lighthouses on the south pier of Grand Haven, Michigan where the Grand River (Michigan), Grand River enters Lake Michigan. A lighthouse was first lit there in 1839. The lighthouse w ...

). There has been a lighthouse in Michigan City for 170 years. However, "most people in Indiana don’t realize there is a lighthouse in the state." Mayor Oberlie passes out lapel pins to illustrate its importance and scope. He calls Lake Michigan "the city’s crown jewel," which became prominent when he was city planner in the 1970s. In May 2007, this aid to navigation was deemed excess by the Coast Guard. It was offered at no cost to eligible entities, including federal, state and local agencies, non-profit corporations, educational agencies, or community development organizations under the terms of the

National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act The National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000 (NHLPA; Public Law 106-355; 16 U.S.C. 470w-7) is American legislation creating a process for the transfer of federally owned lighthouses into private hands. It was created as an extension o ...

. "According to Mayor Chuck Oberlie, Michigan City filed a letter of interest for the lighthouse and will seek ownership." It is one of a dozen past or present lighthouses in Indiana. The old 1858 lighthouse, near the entrance to the park, is open as a museum every day except Mondays from 1 to 4 p.m.

References

* Andreas, A.T. (1884) ''History of Chicago from the Earliest Period to the Present Time'' * ''Chicago's Front Door'', Chicago Public Library Digital Collection, website. * ''Chicago'', Scribner's Monthly (September 1875) Vol. X, No. 5.
Graham, Charlote, ''Another Step into History at Old Michigan City Light'' (August, 2003)

Lighthouse Digest ''Lighthouse Digest'', a specialty magazine from FogHorn Publishing in East Machias, Maine, is about maritime history with particular attention to the preservation of lighthouses and their past. Though it is geared toward enthusiasts and antiqu ...

. * Harris, Patricia. ''Michigan City: Indiana's Only Lighthouse''. The Keeper's Log (Spring, 1987), pp. 22–25. * Hyde, Charles K., and Ann and John Mahan. (1995) ''The Northern Lights: Lighthouses of the Upper Great Lakes''. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. . * Havighurst, Walter (1943) ''The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes'', Macmillan Publishers. * Karamanski, T. Ed., ''Historic Lighthouses and Navigational Aids of the Illinois Shore of Lake Michigan'' Loyola University & Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, (1989). * Longstreet, Stephen (1973) ''Chicago 1860-1919'' (New York: McKay). * Lopez, Victor. "This Old Lighthouse: Chicago Harbor Beacon Gets a Facelift." Coast Guard (September, 1997), pp. 24–25. * Mayer, Harold M. (1957) ''The Port of Chicago'' University of Chicago Press. * * Rice, Mary J., ''Chicago: Port to the World'' (

Follet Publishers Follet may refer to: Surname: *Michel Follet (born 1959), Flemish radio and TV host and a film critic *Nelson le Follet, stage name of Bartolomeo Viganego (1859–1943), Italian illusionist, impersonator and acrobat *René Follet (1931–2020), Be ...

, 1969).
Richards, Rick A. ''Michigan City's Love Affair With Its Lighthouse'' July, 2009

. * Sapulski, Wayne S., (2001) ''Lighthouses of Lake Michigan: Past and Present'' (Paperback) (Fowlerville: Wilderness Adventure Books) ; . *

External links

* National Park Service
Maritime History Project, Inventory of Historic Lights, Michigan City Lights.

Satellite view at
Google Maps. * {{authority control Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana Lighthouses completed in 1904 National Register of Historic Places in LaPorte County, Indiana Transportation buildings and structures in LaPorte County, Indiana Tourist attractions in LaPorte County, Indiana 1904 establishments in Indiana

See also

References

Further reading

External links