Manistee Pierhead lights

North Pierhead Light

File:ManisteeLight.jpg Manistee Breakwater Lighthouse
Location	Manistee, Michigan
Coordinates
Year first constructed	1870
Year first lit	1870
Automated	1927
Foundation	pier
Construction	Cast Iron
Tower shape	cylindrical
Markings / pattern	white with black lantern
Height	39 feet (12 m)
Focal height	55 feet (17 m)
Original lens	fifth order Fresnel Lens
Current lens	12-inch (300 mm) Tideland Signal ML-300 Acrylic Optic
Intensity	5000 candlepower
Range	12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi)
Characteristic	group occulting white light over 30 seconds
Fog signal	HORN: 1 blast every 15s (2s bl) Operates from April 1 to November 1
ARLHS number	USA-468
USCG number	7-18450
Manistee North Pier
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
NRHP Reference #	90000718

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. Unfortunately, it burnt in the Great fire of 1871, October 8, 1871, along with the town of Manistee. Coincidentally, Manistee burnt on the same day as the Great Chicago Fire, Peshtigo Fire in Wisconsin, and fires in Port Huron and Holland, Michigan.

Two lighthouses were built, one on each pier in 1875. Over the years the lights have been moved several times, including moves to and from the mainland, and to and from the south to the north pier. Lights have been torn down and rebuilt.

The current tower is located on the north pier. It is constructed of cast iron, and was first listed in 1927. The tower is a white cylinder, and the keepers house is separate. The original lens was a Fifth Order Fresnel lens. The tower has also been rebuilt as the pier has been extended. Other changes have involved the placement and configuration of the fog horn. The present tower is 39 feet (12 m) tall. The catwalk is one of only four that survive in the State of Michigan. National Register of Historic Places, Reference # 90000718 The tower is capped with a ten-sided steel lantern. The light uses a 5,000 candlepower incandescent electric bulb, and has a flashing mechanism which displays "a group occulting white light" over 30 seconds. Its focal plane is 55 feet (17 m), and is visible for 12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi) in clear weather. The "Type C" diaphone is powered by an electric compressor housed in the tower, and emits a group of three blasts every 30 seconds. There is also a radio beacon.

The northern pier light is located on the same side of the river as the Manistee Coast Guard station, and within shouting distance of the Manistee South pier light.

The south pier has a 37-foot (11 m) steel tower navigational aid. This was constructed when the lighthouse was moved to the north pier in 1927.

Manistee Pierhead Light was put up for sale under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act in 2009. On June 30, 2011, ownership of the light was transferred to the City of Manistee. The Manistee County Historical Museum will maintain the light.

Directions

From US 31 go 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west on Memorial Drive, to the Fifth Ave. Beach and Park.

See also

• Lighthouses in the United States

Further reading

• Bibliography on Michigan lighthouses.
• Crompton, Samuel Willard & Michael J. Rhein, The Ultimate Book of Lighthouses (2002) ISBN 1-59223-102-0; ISBN 978-1-59223-102-7.
• Hyde, Charles K., and Ann and John Mahan. The Northern Lights: Lighthouses of the Upper Great Lakes. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-8143-2554-8 ISBN 9780814325544.
• Jones, Ray & Bruce Roberts, American Lighthouses (Globe Pequot, September 1, 1998, 1st Ed.) ISBN 0-7627-0324-5; ISBN 978-0-7627-0324-1.
• Jones, Ray,The Lighthouse Encyclopedia, The Definitive Reference (Globe Pequot, January 1, 2004, 1st ed.) ISBN 0-7627-2735-7; ISBN 978-0-7627-2735-3.
• Lynn, Bruce. "A Light is on in the Graveyard [Whitefish Point]." Lighthouse Digest (Aug 1997), pp. 1–3.
• Noble, Dennis, Lighthouses & Keepers: U. S. Lighthouse Service and Its Legacy (Annapolis: U. S. Naval Institute Press, 1997). ISBN 1-55750-638-8; ISBN 978-1-55750-638-2.
• 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.
• Penrod, John, Lighthouses of Michigan, (Berrien Center, Michigan: Penrod/Hiawatha, 1998) ISBN 978-0-942618-78-5 ISBN 9781893624238.
• Putnam, George R., Lighthouses and Lightships of the United States, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1933).
• United States Coast Guard, Aids to Navigation, (Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1945).

• Wagner, John L., Michigan Lighthouses: An Aerial Photographic Perspective, (East Lansing, Michigan: John L. Wagner, 1998) ISBN 1-880311-01-1 ISBN 9781880311011.
• Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1-55046-399-3.

External links

• Live Webcam Feed, Manistee North Pierhead Lighthouse, from Manistee Surf Cam.
• Aerial photos, Manistee North Pierhead Light, marinas.com.
• Detroit News, Interactive map on Michigan lighthouses.
• Interactive map of Lights in Northern Lake Michigan, mapped by Google.
• Lighthouse Central, Photographs, History, Directions and Way points for Manistee North Pierhead Light, The Ultimate Guide to West Michigan Lighthouses by Jerry Roach (Publisher: Bugs Publishing LLC - 2005). ISBN 0-9747977-0-7.
• Lighthousefriends.com Manistee North Pierhead Light
• Manistee Pierhead Lighthouse Page from Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy.
• Lighthouses of Michigan, Manistee Pierhead lights.
• Map of lighthouses in northern Lake Michigan.
• Map of Michigan Lighthouse in PDF Format.
• Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Manistee North Pierhead light.
• National Park Service, National Maritime Heritage Program, Inventory of Historic Lights, Manistee North Pier.
• Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Manistee Pierhead Lighthouse.
• Wobser, David, Manistee North Pierhead Light, Boatnerd.com.