Kenosha North Pier Light

Kenosha North Pier Light

Kenosha North Pier Lighthouse
Location Wisconsin
Coordinates 43°35′19.7″N 87°48′30.83″W / 43.588806°N 87.8085639°W / 43.588806; -87.8085639Coordinates: 43°35′19.7″N 87°48′30.83″W / 43.588806°N 87.8085639°W / 43.588806; -87.8085639[1]
Year first constructed 1906
Year first lit 1906
Foundation Concrete pier
Construction Cast iron
Tower shape Frustum of a cone
Markings / pattern Red, black lantern and parapet
Height 50 feet (15 m)
Focal height 50 feet (15 m)
Original lens Fourth-order Fresnel lens
Current lens 9.8-inch (250 mm) Tideland Signal acrylic optic Fresnel lens[2]
Range 11 nautical miles (20 km; 13 mi)
Characteristic Red, Isophase, 6 sec[1]
ARLHS number USA-416
USCG number 7-20415

The Kenosha North Pier lighthouse or Kenosha Light is a lighthouse located near Kenosha in Kenosha County, Wisconsin.

"A typical 'Lake Michigan red tower'",[3] it is a sibling to the Milwaukee Pierhead Light.[4] This light was built in 1906 as a replacement for the old Kenosha Light.[3]

The station was established in 1856.[4] This pierhead light is one of a succession of lighthouses in this location, which were needed as the structures were destroyed by natural processes, or became obsolete as the piers were greatly extended.[2]

Located on the north pier, it is listed in the United States Coast Guard light list and the United States Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System as the Kenosha Light. It currently is painted red, but the lighthouse also has been painted white in the past.[2] The adjacent south pier and breakwater also had lighthouses, but now have cylindrical navigational lights. These included fog signal buildings and elevated iron catwalks, all of which have been removed.[2]

In June 2008, the Kenosha Pierhead Lighthouse was deemed "excess" by the Coast Guard. Pursuant to the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000, it was offered at no cost to eligible entities, including federal, state and local agencies, non-profit corporations, educational agencies, or community development organizations. A deadline of July 21 was created for qualified organizations to express interest.[5] At this time, no organization came forward.

In 2011, the excess property was put up for auction and was purchased by John Burhani and Heather McGee. The lighthouse is currently being used as an art studio and gallery as its name now conveys; Kenosha Lighthouse Studio. Art shows, open to the public, can be found on the kenoshalighthousestudio.com website. The Kenosha Lighthouse Studio is open for individual dinners/meetings and other events.

Directions

In Kenosha, cross the bridge to the island on 50th Street, and follow the road down to the beach at Simmons Island. From the beach, one can walk on the pier. The light is accessible for exterior inspection, but not open to the public.[3]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Kenosha Pierhead & Breakwater Lights.
  3. 1 2 3 Wobser, David, Kenosha North Pier Head Light, boatnerd.com.
  4. 1 2 Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Eastern Wisconsin". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  5. ↑ Lighthouse friends article.

Additional reading

  • Havighurst, Walter (1943) The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes, Macmillan Publishers.
  • 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.
  • Pepper, Terry. "Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes". 
  • Sapulski, Wayne S., (2001) Lighthouses of Lake Michigan: Past and Present (Paperback) (Fowlerville: Wilderness Adventure Books) ISBN 0-923568-47-6; ISBN 978-0-923568-47-4.
  • Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1-55046-399-3.
USCG archive photo, showing fog signal building
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