This week’s Monday Morning Moaning’s is going to open up the research I have been doing on this new venture I have begun on the Great Lakes Lights.
In 1867 lumbering was the main business in Golden Township on Lake Michigan where Little Sable Point Light is located. With very little roads at the time, most of the lumber and supplies were shipped in by boat. Shipwrecks in the area put out a call for a lighthouse to ease the navigational problems. Since ships had very limited navigational equipment , lighthouses were a very important contribution to safety on the lakes. Plans were drawn up by the Major of Engineers, O.M.Poe, and building began in April of 1873, were the crew and supplies would again come in by boat.
Construction of the 115′ tower and 2 1/2 story brick dwelling was completed in the spring of 1879 and be the first time the light would shine. The was produced by a lamp with three concentric wicks which initially burned lard oil, but later burned kerosene. A lens made of hand-ground glass prisms intensified the light so it could be seen for 19 miles out into the lake. In order to make the tower more visible as a day mark, the tower was painted white in May, 1899. 1910 brought a change in name to the lighthouse, being that the original name of the lighthouse was Petite Point au Sable, French for Little Point of Sand. It would go on to be known as Little Sable Point Light Station. In 1911 the house was enlarged to better accommodate the keepers growing families, were dormers on the north and south sides and windows in the Attica were added. In 1915 the light was changed to an incandescent oil vapor lamp, which produced a brighter light.
President Franklin Roosevelt abolished the U.S. Lighthouse Service in 1939 and jurisdiction for all the lighthouses was transferred to the U.S Coast Guard. A land exchange between the U.S. Federal Government and the State of Michigan was approved in 1973, and the State received the deed to the lighthouse and land in 1974. To reduce the maintenance the Coast Guard removed the white paint from the tower in 1976.
There were 14 keepers at Little Sable. The last last keeper was Henry ‘Hank’ Vavrina, who transferred to Big Sable Lighthouse when Little Sable was automated. No date information is known, as to when the keepers house was removed.
On that ‘wee note’, till next week.
I wish to thank the Sable Points Lighthouse Keepers Association in Ludington, Michigan, you can check out http://www.splka.org for even more information.
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Linda Osborne Cynowa 