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Apostle Islands Lighthouses
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
The original Michigan Island light, one of the six lighthouses listed
Show map of WisconsinShow map of the United States
Nearest city	Bayfield, Wisconsin
Built	1857
Architect	U.S. Lighthouse Service
NRHP reference No.	77000145
Added to NRHP	March 8, 1977

There are several historic lighthouses on Lake Superior on or near the Apostle Islands in Wisconsin. Six of these lighthouses, all in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, were listed as a group on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977 under the name Apostle Islands Lighthouses.

The lighthouses are generally located at the edge of the group of islands, as beacons to guide shipping through and around the islands. The need for guidance increased in 1855 when the Soo Locks opened, connecting Lake Superior to the St. Lawrence Seaway to the east. Shipping also increased as Duluth-Superior grew, and with the opening of Ashland's first ore dock in 1886.

The Apostle Islands lighthouses are popular among tourists. Lighthouse historian Terry Pepper has described them as "one of the more interesting geographically centered collection of structures" in the United States. Another lighthouse historian, F. Ross Holland, has called them "the largest and finest single collection of lighthouses in the country."

The following lighthouses were included in the 1977 National Register listing:

• Michigan Island Lighthouse 1857 (Two lighthouses located at this site)
• Raspberry Island Lighthouse 1862
• Outer Island Lighthouse 1874
• Sand Island Light 1881
• Devils Island Lighthouse 1891

Other lighthouses are in the area, but are not included in the Apostle Islands Lighthouses listing:

• La Pointe Lighthouse and Chequamegon Point Lighthouse (listed together as the La Pointe Light Station, #83003366)
• Ashland Harbor Breakwater Lighthouse - In the vicinity, but not technically in the Apostle Islands.
• Gull Island Light, Gull Island

Major restoration projects were initiated at several of the lighthouses of the Apostle Islands in 2013.

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
2. ^ "Lighthouses of the Apostles". Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. National Park Service. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
3. ^ Herschel L.D. Parnes (May 26, 1976). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Apostle Islands Lighthouses". National Park Service. Retrieved April 15, 2018. With 12 photos.
4. ^ Jones, Meg (September 21, 2013). "$7 million project keeps Apostle Islands lighthouses shining". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
5. "Michigan Island Light". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
6. "Raspberry Island Light". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
7. "Outer Island Light". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
8. "Sand Island Light". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
9. "Devil's Island Light". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2018.

External links

Media related to Apostle Islands Lighthouses at Wikimedia Commons

• NPS - Inventory of Historic Light Stations - Wisconsin
• Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Northern Wisconsin". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
• "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Wisconsin". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on May 1, 2017.
• Pepper, Terry. "Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes". Archived from the original on January 30, 2008.

Further reading

• Busch, Jane (2008) People and Places: A Human History of the Apostle Islands. National Park Service.
• Havighurst, Walter (1943) The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes, Macmillan Publishers.
• Oleszewski, Wes, Great Lakes Lighthouses, American and Canadian: A Comprehensive Directory/Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses, (Gwinn, Michigan: Avery Color Studios, Inc., 1998) ISBN 0-932212-98-0.
• Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 978-1-55046-399-6.

v t e Lighthouses of Wisconsin
Main: List of lighthouses in the United States
Lake Superior	Ashland Harbor Breakwater Chequamegon Point Devils Island Gull Island La Pointe Michigan Island Outer Island Raspberry Island Sand Island Wisconsin Point
Lake Michigan	Algoma Baileys Harbor Baileys Harbor Range Cana Island Chambers Island Dunlap Reef Range Eagle Bluff Grassy Island Range Green Bay Harbor Entrance Green island Kenosha Kenosha North Pier Kevich Kewaunee Pierhead Long Tail Manitowoc Breakwater Milwaukee Breakwater Milwaukee Pierhead North Point Peshtigo Reef Pilot Island Plum Island Range Port Washington Port Washington Breakwater Pottawatomie Racine Harbor Racine North Breakwater Racine Reef Rawley Point Sheboygan Sherwood Point Sturgeon Bay Canal Sturgeon Bay Canal North Pierhead Two Rivers Wind Point
Lake Winnebago	Asylum Calumet Fond du Lac Neenah Rockwell
Historical (lost) lights	Dunlap Reef Range Front Manitowoc Main Manitowoc North Pierhead Plum Island Range Front Racine North Pierhead
Apostle Islands Lighthouses

v t e Apostle Islands
Islands	Madeline Island Stockton Island Gull Island Eagle Island Outer Island Oak Island Sand Island Basswood Island Bear Island Michigan Island Hermit Island Cat Island Otter Island Manitou Island Rocky Island Long Island Ironwood Island York Island Raspberry Island Devils Island South Twin Island North Twin Island
Lighthouses	Michigan Island Light Raspberry Island Light Outer Island Light Sand Island Light Devils Island Light Gull Island Light La Pointe Light Chequamegon Point Light Ashland Harbor Breakwater Light
Shipwrecks	Antelope Big Bay sloop City of Ashland D.R. Owen Lucerne Manistee Marquette Moonlight Noquebay Ottawa Pretoria R.G. Stewart Sevona Ira H. Owen T.H. Camp
Related historic sites	Hadland Fishing Camp Bass Island Brownstone Company Quarry La Pointe Indian Cemetery Manitou Camp Rocky Island Historic District Madeline Island Historical Museum
Protected designations	Apostle Islands National Lakeshore Big Bay State Park

• National Register of Historic Places in Apostle Islands National Lakeshore
• Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Wisconsin
• Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Wisconsin
• National Register of Historic Places in Bayfield County, Wisconsin