- **** Presque
Isle (2 ) (New Presque Isle)
- 1871 (O.M.
Poe). Active; focal plane 113 ft (34.5 m); white
flash every 15 s. 109 ft (33 m) round brick tower with lantern and gallery
attached to 1-1/2 story brick keeper's house. Tower painted white, gallery
black, lantern roof red. 2-story wood assistant keeper's house (1905). The
original 3rd order Fresnel lens, removed in 2003, was restored in 2012 and is on display in the principal keeper's house. Jigar Rajgor's 2022 photo is at the top of this page, Brandon Cirillo
has a great photo,
Nolan Williams has a good 2019 photo, Anderson has a good page for the lighthouse,
Pepper also has a fine page, Larry Myhre has a photo, Marinas.com has aerial photos,
Huelse has a historic postcard
view, the Coast Guard has a 1913 photo, and Google has a satellite
view and a closeup street view. This is the tallest Lake Huron lighthouse. This elegant lighthouse was the first of a series of
six Great Lakes lighthouses now known as the Poe Towers (the others are at
Au Sable in the Southern Upper Peninsula, Big Sable
and Little Sable in the Western Lower Peninsula, Outer
Island in Northern Wisconsin and Grosse Point in Illinois).
The Presque Isle Township Museum Society works for maintenance and
restoration of the light station. As part of a thorough restoration during
the 1990s the tower was enclosed with a new course of brick; this makes the
lighthouse noticeably "fatter" than it appears in older photos. Restoration
of the 1905 principal keeper's house was completed in 2002 and the house now serves
as the Presque Isle Keeper's House Museum. In late 2003 a $91,500 state grant provided funds to complete
restoration of the lens and lantern room. In 2020 fundraising was underway for a more complete restoration to include repairs to cracks appearing in the tower. Located at the end of Grand Lake
Road at the north point of the peninsula, about 1.5 miles (2.5 km) northwest
of the older lighthouse. Site open; museum open Friday through Monday Memorial Day (late May) through Labor Day (early September); gift shop and tower open Friday through Monday Memorial Day weekend to mid June, daily except Thursday mid June through Labor Day (early September) and Friday through Monday for the rest of September through mid October. Owner: Presque
Isle Township. Site manager: Presque
Isle Township Museum Society
. ARLHS USA-667; USCG 7-11550.
- *** Presque
Isle (1) (Old Presque Isle)
- 1840 (extensively rebuilt). Inactive since 1871 but charted as a landmark. 38 ft (11.5 m)
round tower with lantern and gallery, lower 2/3 stone and upper portion
brick. Tower painted white, lantern black. The 2-story brick keeper's
house was demolished; a new house was built on its foundations in the 1960s. The replica lantern (1957) contains
a 4th order Fresnel
lens relocated from the older South Fox Island Light on Lake Michigan.
Clark Van Halsema's 2021 photo is at right, Anderson has a good page,
Pepper also has a fine page, Marinas.com has aerial
photos, Ed Roth's 2006 photo
shows the lighthouse freshly repainted, Bash also has a 2006 photo, Andrew Nold has a 2019 street view, and Google has a satellite
view. The lighthouse was sold in 1897 and came into the hands of the Stebbins family in 1912. In the 1950s Francis Stebbins decided to redevelop the property as a museum; he restored the tower and added the lantern and lens. His son James Stebbins sold the property to the state in 1995 but the buildings
were donated to the township. The lighthouse was restored
in 2002 through volunteer efforts and is now operated by the Presque Isle Township Museum Society. In October 2018 a campaign was launched to raise $250,000 for restoration and preservation of the lighthouse. Work was underway throughout 2019, concentrating on the outer walls of the tower, and continued with restoration of the inner walls in 2020. Located on the southeastern point of the Presque Isle peninsula
at the entrance to Presque Isle Harbor. Site open, tower
open Friday through Monday Memorial Day weekend to mid June, daily except Thursday mid June through Labor Day (early September) and Friday through Monday for the rest of September through mid October. Owner: Presque
Isle Township. Site manager: Presque
Isle Township Museum Society
. ARLHS USA-668.
- * Presque Isle Range Front (1)
- 1871. Inactive since 1967. Approx. 17 ft (5 m) octagonal cylindrical wood tower
on a square base, painted white with green trim and a red roof. Anderson has a good page for the range lights,
George Dawson has a 2021 photo, Andrew Nold has a 2019 street view, Google has a 2024 street view, and the tower is centered in Google's satellite view. Sibling of the Copper Harbor Range Front Light (see Western
Upper Peninsula). After deactivation this little lighthouse was
relocated to the Old Presque Isle Light (previous entry). Bash has
a 2006 photo of the light at that location. Subsequently the light was relocated a
second time to a new Range
Light Park, near its original location in Presque Isle, where
it was restored by the Robert Burseky family for the township. A statue of longtime keeper Anna Garrity was placed near the lighthouse. The first replacement for the front range light, a post with a rectangulary daymark, is now on display at the New Presque Isle lighthouse. The active light (focal plane 23 ft (7 m); continuous green light) is on the beach east of the historic light. The range is the entrance range for Presque Isle Harbor. Site
open, tower closed. Owner: Presque
Isle Township. Site manager: Presque
Isle Township Museum Society
. ARLHS USA-669. Active light: USCG 7-11565.
- Presque
Isle Range Rear (1)
- 1871. Inactive since 1967. Approx. 33 ft (10 m) square cupola-style lantern mounted
on the roof of 1-1/2 story wood keepers quarters. Building painted white with
red roofs. Frank Post's 2024 photo is at right, Dawn Carlson has a 2020 photo, and Google has a satellite
view. Sibling of Copper Harbor Range Rear Light. Operated for a number of years as a tearoom, the lighthouse
is now a private residence. Located on Grand Lake Road in Presque Isle. Site and tower closed but the light can be seen from outside the fence, near the Range Light Park parking area.Owner/site manager: private. ARLHS USA-670.
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1840 Presque Isle Light, Presque Isle, July 2021
Google Maps photo
by Clark Van Halsema

1871 Range Rear Light, Presque Isle, February 2024
Google Maps photo by Frank Post
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