Kenosha Southport Lighthouse
Encyclopedia
The Kenosha Southport lighthouse is a lighthouse
located near Kenosha
in Kenosha County
, Wisconsin
.
house continued to be used for many years, however.
The light is listed in the National Register of Historic Places
as the Kenosha Light Station, Reference #90000995. It has been an active aid to navigation since 1996, but is not listed in Volume VII United States Coast Guard
light list. The lantern room was removed in 1913 but replicated in 1994. The Fresnel Lens
was replaced by a 300 mm Tidaland Signal plastic lens – a medium range lens commonly used on the Great Lakes
.
A historical marker in front of the lighthouse reads:
The keeper
's house is open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays during the tourist season, although it is currently under renovation (see the Kenosha History Center website, below, for further information). The tower is open for climbers many weekends of the summer.
The lighthouse can be seen from the street. In Kenosha on 50th Street and 4th Avenue, just cross the bridge to Simmons Island, around the curve onto Lighthouse Drive.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
located near Kenosha
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha is a city and the county seat of Kenosha County in the State of Wisconsin in United States. With a population of 99,218 as of May 2011, Kenosha is the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Kenosha is also the fourth-largest city on the western shore of Lake Michigan, following Chicago,...
in Kenosha County
Kenosha County, Wisconsin
-Demographics: As of the census of 2000, there were 149,577 people, 56,057 households, and 38,455 families residing in the county. The population density was 548 people per square mile . There were 59,989 housing units at an average density of 220 per square mile...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
.
History
Also known as the "Old Kenosha Light", it was replaced by the Kenosha North Pier Light in 1906." The keeper'sLighthouse keeper
A lighthouse keeper is the person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Keepers were needed to trim the wicks, replenish fuel, wind clockworks and perform maintenance tasks such as cleaning...
house continued to be used for many years, however.
The light is listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as the Kenosha Light Station, Reference #90000995. It has been an active aid to navigation since 1996, but is not listed in Volume VII United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
light list. The lantern room was removed in 1913 but replicated in 1994. The Fresnel Lens
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens is a type of lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for lighthouses.The design allows the construction of lenses of large aperture and short focal length without the mass and volume of material that would be required by a lens of conventional design...
was replaced by a 300 mm Tidaland Signal plastic lens – a medium range lens commonly used on the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
.
A historical marker in front of the lighthouse reads:
- Built by the federal government in 1866, the Kenosha Lighthouse replaces two other lighthouses constructed at this site in 1848? and 1858?. Originally designated a coast and harbor light for Southport, now Kenosha, WI provided the first navigational illumination a mariner would see upon entering Wisconsin from the Chicago area. Standing 55 feet (16.8 m) [17 m] tall and situated on a hill, the lighthouse projected light from 74 feet (22.6 m) [23 m] above lake level. The tower is built of yellow Milwaukee Cream City brick and is conical in shape. Originally the lighthouse contained a fourth order Fresnel lens fueled by kerosene with a fixed?-white light which varied by flashes. Officially discontinued in 1906, the lantern room was later removed and replaced by a 25 feet (7.6 m) [8 m] tripod mast for displaying storm warning flags and lights. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1990, the lighthouse has been restored and holds an automated electric light. (1996)
Current status and directions
The building is currently maintained by the City of Kenosha and the Kenosha County Historical Society. It is also on the State List/Inventory, having been listed in 1975.The keeper
Lighthouse keeper
A lighthouse keeper is the person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Keepers were needed to trim the wicks, replenish fuel, wind clockworks and perform maintenance tasks such as cleaning...
's house is open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays during the tourist season, although it is currently under renovation (see the Kenosha History Center website, below, for further information). The tower is open for climbers many weekends of the summer.
The lighthouse can be seen from the street. In Kenosha on 50th Street and 4th Avenue, just cross the bridge to Simmons Island, around the curve onto Lighthouse Drive.
Specialized Additional reading
- Havighurst, Walter (1943) The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes, Macmillan PublishersMacmillan PublishersMacmillan Publishers Ltd, also known as The Macmillan Group, is a privately held international publishing company owned by Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. It has offices in 41 countries worldwide and operates in more than thirty others.-History:...
. - 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.
- Sapulski, Wayne S., (2001) Lighthouses of Lake Michigan: Past and Present (Paperback) (Fowlerville: Wilderness Adventure Books) ISBN 0923568476; ISBN 978-0923568474.
- Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1-55046-399-3.
External links
- Anderson, Kraig, Lighthouse friends, Kenosha Southport Light article.
- Kenosha History Center.
- National Park ServiceNational Park ServiceThe National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
Maritime History Project, Inventory of Historic Light Stations - Wisconsin - Kenosha Southport Light. - Satellite view, Southport Lighthouse, Google earthGoogle EarthGoogle Earth is a virtual globe, map and geographical information program that was originally called EarthViewer 3D, and was created by Keyhole, Inc, a Central Intelligence Agency funded company acquired by Google in 2004 . It maps the Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite...
. - Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Southport Lighthouse: Simmons Island, Kenosha, Wisconsin.
- Wobser, David, Milwaukee Kenosha Southport Light, boatnerd.com.