ASHLAND BREAKWATER

Type:
Year Established:
1913
Existing:
Yes
close up of the lighthouse
Download:
File Type:
jpg (image/jpeg)
Photo Courtesy of:
US Lighthouse Society Archives
Collection / Donor:

LOCATION

Location:
CHEQUAMEGON BAY/LAKE SUPERIOR
Latitude:
46° 37.7'
Longitude:
90° 52.2'
City / Town:
ASHLAND
U.S. State:
Wisconsin
Location County:
ASHLAND
Country:
United States

OWNER & ACCESS

Owner / Manager:
National Park Service - Apostle Islands NL
Open to Public:
No
Light List Data:
  1. ASHLAND BREAKWATER
Light list data courtesy Gary Riemenschneider

STRUCTURE

Year Tower Established:
1915
Tower Construction Material:
REINFORCED CONCRETE/STEEL
Tower Foundation:
CONCRETE PIER ON CRIB
Height of light above mean high water, in feet:
65
Height, in feet, from base of structure to center of lantern:
55
Tower Shape:
CYL. WATCHROOM ON HEX. PYR. TOWER
Tower Daymark:
White
Fog Signal Building?:
No
Keeper's Quarters?:
Yes
Year Keeper's Quarters:
1916
Keeper's Quarters Style:
INTEGRAL
Keeper's Quarters Construction:
WOOD

OPTICS

Active Aid to Navigation?:
Yes
Current Optic:
250 MM, SOLAR POWERED
Original Optic Type:
FOURTH ORDER, FRESNEL
Year Original Lens Installed:
1915
Private Aid:
No
Year Automated:
1980
USCG Access to Optics:
No
Comments:

HISTORICAL INFORMATION:

  • 1889 thru 1912 the army corps of engineers built two large parallel breakwaters in Chequamegon Bay in order to protect the harbor at Ashland where exports of iron ore had begun. This was the only protection against the violent storms that could frequent the area. The breakwaters served their purpose but they also made it difficult for ships to find the entrance to the harbor. As a temporary measure a 10 foot pole was erected on the west end of the breakwater and a fixed red lantern was hung from it.
  • 1913 Once the breakwater was completed, congress appropriated money for a pier light.
  • 1915 A concrete and steel tower was built and a fourth order Fresnel was installed and lit.
  • 1916 A keeper’s house was built on shore and the keeper moved out of the light.
  • 1980 The light was listed on Wisconsin’s Register of Historic Sites and the Coast Guard removed the Fresnel lens and replaced it with a solar-powered acrylic optic.
  • 2015 This light was transferred to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.
Entered by:
t.wheeler
Entered Date:
Jul 21, 2017