For the lighthouse of the same name in the St. Mary's River, see Round Island Light (St. Mary's River) The Round Island Light, also known as the "Old Round Island Point Lighthouse" is a lighthouse located on the west shore of Round Island in the shipping lanes of the Straits of Mackinac, which connect Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. It was deemed necessary because the island is a significant hazard to navigation in the straits, and was seen as an effective complement to the other lights in the area. Because of its color scheme and form — red stone base and wood tower — it has been likened to an old-fashioned schoolhouse.

Ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

regularly pass it on their way to (and from) Mackinac Island, and it is a recognizable icon of the upper

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...

History

This light is a twin of the

Two Harbors Light The Two Harbors Light is the oldest operating lighthouse in the United States, US state of Minnesota. Overlooking Lake Superior's Agate Bay, the lighthouse is located in Two Harbors, Minnesota. The construction of the lighthouse began in 1891 and ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. Located in Coast Guard District 9, the Round Island Light was built of painted brick in 1895 by a predecessor agency of the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

and Mackinac island carpenter Frank Rounds. It served as an active, manned lighthouse and fog signal from 1895 to 1947. It was abandoned in 1947 and replaced by the

Round Island Passage Light Round Island Passage Light is an automated, unmanned lighthouse located in the Round Island Channel in the Straits of Mackinac, Michigan. The channel is a branch of Lake Huron. History The Round Island Lighthouse was constructed in 1895 to m ...

, an automated light tower located in the adjacent

Round Island Channel The Round Island Channel is a navigable Lake Huron waterway located between Mackinac Island and Round Island in the Straits of Mackinac. It forms a key link in the lake freighter route between Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, on which millions of t ...

.Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Round Island Light.
/ref> Abandoned, the lighthouse fell prey to plunderers and vandals. The structure's deterioration was almost complete in 1972 when a storm caused a corner of the lighthouse structure to collapse.Postcard – 1978 before restoration – at

Boatnerd The boatnerd corporation, a registered not for profit corporation, circulates information about vessels that ply the North American Great Lakes. When Acheson Ventures provided space for a headquarters for the organization in their Maritime Center ...

This event spurred preservation efforts. Round Island Light 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 ...

in September 1974, and was added to the list of registered Michigan historic sites in 1978. Emergency work to stabilize the light tower structure was conducted in the 1970s, but the light tower remained gutted and inoperative. Restoration work was conducted in 1995 by the Friends of the Round Island Lighthouse and led by the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Association (GLLKA), aided by

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded ...

Troop 323. The work was partially funded by the state of Michigan, with the help of funds from a special

license plate A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate (British English), license plate (American English), or licence plate (Canadian English), is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identificatio ...

developed by the state to raise donations for lighthouse restoration. In 1973

rip rap Rest in peace (RIP), a phrase from the Latin (), is sometimes used in traditional Christian services and prayers, such as in the Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, and Methodist denominations, to wish the soul of a decedent eternal rest and peace. ...

was spread around the lighthouse base to help prevent more deterioration. The following year, after it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, local fundraising efforts collected $12,000 for the project. The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation appropriated $125,000 in 1977 for the project. As a result of the success of this restoration work, the Coast Guard granted permission to relight the Round Island Light. The light was re-lit in 1996. The original brick

outhouse An outhouse is a small structure, separate from a main building, which covers a toilet. This is typically either a pit latrine or a bucket toilet, but other forms of dry (non-flushing) toilets may be encountered. The term may also be used ...

and oil house are still intact. The Round Island Light is a registered Michigan historic site and is the focus of an official Michigan Historical Marker erected in 1978, Registered Site No. L0107. The text of the marker notes: Mackinac Island topographic map-en

Getting there

Because Round Island is not accessible to most visitors (but it can be visited), the "Round Island Lighthouse" historical marker is located on Biddle's Point on nearby Mackinac Island, within easy view of the light tower. Photography of the light is possible if using a

telephoto lens A telephoto lens, in photography and cinematography, is a specific type of a long-focus lens in which the physical length of the lens is shorter than the focal length. This is achieved by incorporating a special lens group known as a ''telephoto ...

. A private boat is the best way to see this light close up. Short of that, Sheplers Ferry Service out of Mackinaw City offers periodic lighthouse cruises in the summer season. Its "Eastbound Tour" includes passes by Round Island Light, Bois Blanc Island and

Light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 te ...

Poe Reef Light Poe Reef is a lighthouse located at the east end of South Channel between Bois Blanc Island and the mainland of the Lower Peninsula, about east of Cheboygan, Michigan. Poe Reef has historically caused problems for shipping. Powered vessels hea ...

and Fourteen Foot Shoal Light. Schedules and rates are available from Shepler's. An expensive but exciting alternative is to charter a

seaplane A seaplane is a powered fixed-wing aircraft capable of taking off and landing (alighting) on water.Gunston, "The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary", 2009. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories based on their technological characteri ...

to tour the lights in the straits. Round Island Light is one of over 150 past and present lighthouses in Michigan. Michigan has more lighthouses than any other state. See

Lighthouses in the United States This is a list of lighthouses in the United States. The United States has had approximately a thousand lights as well as light towers, range lights, and pier head lights. Michigan has the most lights of any state with over 150 past and present l ...

Light in popular culture

This lighthouse, with Biddle's Point on Mackinac Island, forms the finish line for the annual

Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac The Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac is a annual yacht race starting in Lake Michigan off Chicago, Illinois, and ending in Lake Huron off Mackinac Island, Michigan. It is hosted and managed by the Chicago Yacht Club. The "Mac" (as it is know ...

, run since 1898. The lighthouse was prominently featured in the 1980 movie '' Somewhere in Time''. The light's location makes it "somewhat of a wilderness" but it has been depicted in sculptures and even bird houses. Because of its picturesque color and form and its location near Mackinac Island (in the path of passing ferries) and the

Mackinac Bridge The Mackinac Bridge ( ) is a suspension bridge spanning the Straits of Mackinac, connecting the Upper and Lower peninsulas of the U.S. state of Michigan. Opened in 1957, the bridge (familiarly known as "Big Mac" and "Mighty Mac") is the worl ...

, it is often the subject of photographs, and drawings. Even needlepoint illustrations have been created. It has long been the ongoing subject of

postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...

s. A children's book written by Robert A. Lytle and Karen Howell is titled ''Mackinac Passage: Mystery at Round Island Light''.Lytle, Robert A. and Howell, Karen ''Mackinac Passage: Mystery at Round Island Light'' (Paperback) (Auburn Hills: Edco, 2001) ; .

References

External links

Round Island Lighthouse Preservation Society

Round Island Lighthouse history and many photos

Aerial photos, Round Island Light, marinas.com.
* ttp://www.lighthousefriends.com/macstraits.html Lighthouses in the Mackinac Straits.
Michigan in Pictures, Round Island Light.
{{authority control Lighthouses completed in 1895 Houses completed in 1895 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Lighthouses in Mackinac County, Michigan Hiawatha National Forest National Register of Historic Places in Mackinac County, Michigan

History

Getting there

Light in popular culture

See also

References

Further reading

External links