Presque Isle Lighthouses

Presque Isle Lighthouses. . Lake Huron mariners of the early 1800s considered Presque Isle the best natural harbor between Port Huron and Mackinac. Because many ships anchored here for shelter and cordwood to fuel their boilers, Congress appropriated $5,000 to build a lighthouse. , , Old Presque Isle Lighthouse. The Old Presque Isle Lighthouse was completed in 1840. Its 30 high conical tower has an 18' diameter base and tapers to 9 at the top. The upper third is built of brick and the lower part of stone, with walls 4' thick. Chiseled stone blocks form the circular staircase. When trees obscured the light for southbound ships, it was decided to build a taller light station. The old light and small keeper’s cottage are now a museum. , New Presque Isle Lighthouse. In 1871, the New Presque Isle Light went into service. It still functions today, now automated and electrically lit. Its 113' high brick tower is the tallest light structure on the Great Lakes. In the lantern housing, the original Third Order Fresnel Lens has a range of over 10 miles. The keeper’s family lived comfortably in an attached 2-story house, now also a museum. Front and rear range lights built in 1870, once marked the channel for approaching ships. , Keepers , The Garrity Family. Patrick Garrity was the last keeper of the old lighthouse and the first at the new one, serving from 1861 to 1885. His son Thomas took over the post from 1885 to 1935. Son Patrick was assistant keeper here from 1890 to 1904, and elsewhere until 1937. John, a third son, served as a lightkeeper on Lakes Huron and Superior. Their sister, Anna kept the Presque Isle Range Lights aglow from 1903 to 1926-keeping a nightly watch from a rocking chair on her porch.