![]() These, along with diaries, journals, letters and photographs, will By focusing on the Twentieth century, weĬan utilize the reminiscences of people who once lived at the lighthouse asĬhildren. Historians are using a wide variety of research to make Interacted with the local community and how the lighthouse played an important Point Lighthouse will focus on how the lighthouse keepers and their families Reflect its appearance during a certain period. Each room of the first floor will be restored to Quarters were used into the 1990s as housing for the nearby Coast Guard station.Ĭurrent plans are to restore the keeper's quarters to reflect life at Tawas Last full-time light house keeper left the lighthouse in 1946, but the keeper's ![]() Since 1935, it has been powered by electricity. The two walls is a two-foot wide air space, which acted as a chimney to bringĪir up to the lantern to fuel the lamp. Outer wall is 22 inches thick and the inner wall is eight inches thick. The tower is made up of two brick and masonry walls. The tower slopes from a sixteen-foot diameter base to 9-1/2 feet diameter at the This gives the light a seventy-foot highįocal plane, which can be seen approximately sixteen miles out into Lake Huron. The tower of the Tawas Point Lighthouse is sixty-seven feet The current fourth order lens, which was constructed in Original lens of the 1853 lighthouse (and moved to the 1876 lighthouse) was aįifth order fresnel. Great Lakes lighthouses generally have lenses of third order and smaller. Sizes range from first being the largest to sixth being the smallest. Of fresnel lenses: First, second, third, three-and-a-half, fourth, fifth, and Fourth order refers to the size of the lens. ![]() This is named for Augistin Fresnel, the French Engineer who The lens, which magnifies the light, is known as a fourth Of theseīuildings, only the oil house and storage building remain. Signal building, a storage building and an assistant keepers dwelling. Also added through the years were an oil house, a boathouse, a fog Of Tawas Harbor, where boats known as lighthouse tenders could tie up and unload As Tawas Point grew, a large dock was built to reach the deep water When the new lighthouse wasĬonstructed, it was located at the very end of what was beginning to be known as Government $30,000 (purchasing of land included). Short tower with a wide base) was of little realistic use for mariners.Ĭonstruction on the new lighthouse began on Augand finished by theĮnd of the shipping season of that year. By 1870 the original lighthouse (which was a Natural accretion of sand, Tawas Point had been steadily extending itself out The building of the first lighthouse in 1853 and the early 1870's, due to the The name of Ottawas Bay was shortened to Tawas Bay and the City of Tawas In 1854, the first European settlers arrived in theĪrea. Point so mariners could either avoid it or seek refuge behind the point in ![]() The lighthouse marked the location of the Construction wasīegun in 1852 and completed in 1853. The lighthouse was the first permanent structure in the area. The lard oil would have been stored in the Kerosene was quite volatile, it had to be stored in a separate, Kerosene, most likely in 1898, when the oil house was built. Of Ottawa Point (about where the state park's contact station is In 1850, theįederal government set aside $5,000 to build a lighthouse near the end Protecting ships from strong north or northeast winds. Navigation as it juts out into Lake Huron. You can visit this link to apply for the program and learn more.Point (officially changed to Tawas Point in 1902) presents a hazard to "Mostly it's 'I love it, it was amazing, I've already recommended it to my friends and family'," said Pine. She says the work is not too intense, and for most people the trade off of living in a lighthouse for two weeks is well worth it. "You're going to have to go up and down the tower every day, 85 stairs and clean the spider webs out of there," explained Pine. In exchange for the free stay, the volunteers spend 35 hours each week as tour guides and clean the building. "Unfortunately, we do have to say no to a lot of really excited people, and I feel awful because I want to give as many people as possible the opportunity to stay here, but it is such a popular program,” said Pine. Last year there were 200 applicants for eleven available spots. She says they've done this lighthouse keeper program for eleven years and the response is overwhelming. "They get this awesome opportunity to stay here in the lighthouse for two weeks," said Hillary Pine, a historian for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, which owns the Tawas Point Lighthouse. From May to October, teams of two to four people can serve as lighthouse keepers.
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