On a recent trip to the UP, my friend and I had prearranged for a tour of the Ontonagon Lighthouse and Pierhead Light with the Ontonagon Historical Society. This organization has finally gained possession of this lighthouse from the USCG and restoration plans are underway. The only way you can access this light is with a tour, because it sits on the property of a very active papermill with coal piles everywhere. Anyhow, we got some great information and were able to spend two hours with Dave Bishop, one of the members involved with the lighthouse restoration.



This was the original lighthouse and main keepers light. It is the same floor plan inside as the Sand Point Light in Baraga. The reason it is sitting so far back off the water and on papermill property is because the shoreline has been added to so much by Lake Superior over the last 100+ years it now sits 1/2 mile from the lakeshore.



View as I was walking back from the channel. You can see the coal dust on the ground.



View from the lantern room looking over the channel flowing into Lake Superior.



Looking down on the roof from the lantern room.

Here are a few photos of the pierhead light, installed around ca. 1895. The pier has been extended over the years because of the changing shoreline.



Taken from the beach on the papermill property.



Taken through the trees on the path to the beach.



View of the Porcupine Mountains from the beach.

Great photos Jen. Thanks for taking us with you on your trip!

Thanks for sharing the pics, Jen. Ontonagon is a light you don't often see pictures of. We saw this light several years ago, but did so on a distant "drive by". Unfortunately, on that trip we weren't sure when we would be through Ontonagon so didn't call ahead.

Dave

Thanks for the virtual tour. I really enjoy it when people show us the views from up in the lantern room.

Jen, thank you for sharing the photos. They're great. Pictures of lights that I may never get out to see are always enjoyable.

Bert

Great to see the photos of Ontonagon! Last time I was there, the smell from the papermill was awful! It really made it difficult to breathe.

Suzanne

Thanks Jen for sharing your pictures. The lighthouse looks to be in fairly good condition from the outside. How did the inside look?

To Susan - I was so stuffed up with allergies I didn't smell a thing!

The inside was in great shape too. They have filled it with period furniture - some original, some not. Like any of the 100+ year old structures, there are repairs that need to be made - but well insulated from the wind and pretty sound proof inside. This historical society really cares a lot about this light and from what I was told, a LOT of work has been planned and underway for making it in tip-top shape.

PS - The one unique thing about this light is in order to access the second floor, you climb up the same stairway that leads to the lantern room. Pretty convenient design and I'm sure the previous keepers of this light appreciated it!

This is a great light. Jeff and I visited it last month when we were on vacation. We had a great tour of the lighthouse. We did not prearrange the tour. We just got to the museum at the right time to take the tour. We also watched a semi truck being picked up vertically and dumped of its load of wood chips while driving through the paper mill property. Yes, the group has control of it but not the all of the land around it that they wanted. When it was turned over the papers left off 49 feet of the property that the group had asked for. They want that to do some resoration work to make it more original.

Mary and Jeff

Mary and Jeff, the reason I had a prearranged tour is because I was going to be in Ontonagon after the scheduled tour time. I think the Historical Society does them at 11am and 1pm daily. We were not in until almost 5:30pm so I called ahead. I was flattered that they went out of their way to accomodate me.

I think the deal with the land might have to do with a fence. There were some old photos of the light with a picket fence around the perimeter. Really added a nice touch to the light.

Very nice photos Jen and thanks for sharing them.

Perhaps this is true with other similarly designed lighthouses. It was also the case at the Sodus Point, NY lighthouse which I revisited last weekend with Jakers. But in more recent times a second stairway has been added from the interior of the house.

That light looks like it is in decent shape. Are there things that the picture doesn't show that really need attention?

Bob

Great photo-set & text, Jenifer!! Thanks for sharing them with us.
Its good to know that Ontonagon will begin to get the attention that it truly deserves.
I visited that light many years ago and wondered what its fate would be.

Definitely a Good News story!