Seeing The Light - Lighthouse Tower Heights

Tower Heights	Seeing The Light

Heights from base to vent ball	Home	Back

Lighthouse tower heights in the Western Great Lakes vary from the diminutive 16-foot Dunlap Front Range light to the Mighty Rock of Ages Light, with its vent ball soaring 130 feet above the crib deck. For the purpose of this listing, tower height is defined as the distance from the base of the structure to the vent ball, which was a metric used by the Lighthouse Board and Lighthouse Service in a number of their publications. This list was compiled from a number of sources, with each entry annotated as to its source document, a list of which appear at the bottom of this page. If you feel you have any additions or corrections to this list, please feel free to email me.

Towers with heights above 100 feet
	130’ - Rock of Ages⁶124’ - White Shoal¹⁰111’ – Twin River Point⁹	109’ - Presque Isle⁶107’ - Big Sable⁶107’ - Little Sable⁶

Towers with heights between 80 and 99 feet
	99’ - South Manitou⁶99’ - Grosse Point³98’ - Sturgeon Bay Canal⁶ 91’ - Sand Hills⁷ 88’ - Vidal Shoals Channel Rear⁶86’ - Au Sable⁶	86’ - Outer Island⁶86’ - Cana Island⁶85’ - Fort Gratiot⁶85’ - Pointe aux Barques⁶80’ - Spectacle Reef⁶80’ - Devils Island⁶

Towers with heights from 60 to 79 feet
	78’ – Detour⁶78’ - Whitefish Point⁹78’ - Stannard Rock⁶78’ – Manitou⁶77’ - Grays Reef¹³77’ - Cheboygan River Rear Range⁶77’ - Seul Choix Pointe⁶76’ - Middle Island⁶75’ - St. Martin Island⁶71’ - Sturgeon Point⁶70’ - Minneapolis Shoal¹⁴70’ - Poverty Island⁶67’ - Tawas Point⁶67’ - Duluth Rear⁶67’ - Frankfort North Breakwater¹⁰66’ - Chicago Harbor⁶66’ - Racine Reef⁶65‘ - LaPointe⁶	65’ - Rock Harbor¹65’ - North Manitou⁶65’ - Plum Island Range Rear⁶64’ - Big Bay Point⁶64’ - Cedar River⁶63’ - Detour Reef¹⁴63’ - North Manitou Shoal¹⁴63’ - St. Helena³63’ - Waugoshance³62’ - Thunder Bay Island⁶62’ - Point Iroquois⁶62’ - Grand Marais (MI) Rear⁶62’ - Ludington South Pierhead⁶61’ - Isle Royale⁶60’ - Port Austin Reef⁶60’ - Grand Island Harbor Rear⁶60’ - Frankfort Pierhead Rear⁶

Towers with heights from 50 to 59 feet
	59’ - Port Sanilac⁶59’ - Saginaw River Rear Range⁶59’ - Lansing Shoal⁹58’ - Ashland Breakwater 58’ - Crisp Point⁶58’ - Ile aux Galets⁶57’ - Round Island⁷56’ - Poe Reef¹²56’ - Old Mackinac Point⁵56’ - Charlevoix North Pierhead⁶55’ – Southport¹¹55’ - Munising Front Range⁶55’ - Fourteen Mile Point⁶54’ - Split Rock⁶53’ - Superior Entry South Breakwater⁶	53’ - St. Joseph Pierhead Rear⁶53’ - Milwaukee Breakwater⁹53’ - Squaw Island⁶52’ - Martin Reef¹⁴52’ - Forty Mile Point⁶52’ - Baileys Harbor⁶51’ - Portage River⁶51’ - Michigan Islan⁶d 51’ - Grand Haven Pierhead Rear⁶50’ - Harbor Beach⁶50’ - Cheboygan Main⁶50’ - Two Harbors⁶50’ - Kenosha⁶50’ - Sheboygan Pierhead⁶

Towers with heights from 40 to 49 feet
	49’ - Portage Lake Ship Canals⁶49’ - Michigan City East Pierhead⁶ 48’ - Muskegon Pierhead Rear⁶48’ - Green Island⁶46’ - Beaver Island⁶46’ - Kalamazoo⁶46’ - St. Joseph Main⁶46’ - Racine Pierhead⁶45’ - Charity Island⁶45’ - Ontonagon⁶45’ - Minnesota Point⁶45’ - Holland Rear⁶45’ - Windmill Point44’ - Cheboygan River Front Range⁶44’ - Bois Blanc⁶44’ - Eagle Harbor⁶44’ - Passage Island⁶44’ - South Fox Island⁶44’ - Frankfort Pierhead Front⁶44’ - Manistee Main⁶44’ - Sand Point⁶43’ - Grand Marais (MI) Front⁶43’ - Raspberry Island⁶	43’ - Grand Marais (MN)⁷43’ - Kewaunee Pierhead⁹43’ - Eagle Bluff⁶42’ - Mendota⁶42’ - Gull Rock⁶42’ - Copper Harbor⁶42’ - Sand Island⁶42’ - Chambers Island⁶41’ - Vidal Shoals Channel Front⁶41’ - Beaver Island Harbor⁶41’ - Little Traverse⁶41’ - Grand Traverse⁶41’ - Milwaukee South Pierhead⁶41’ - North Point⁶41’ - Port Washington Pierhead⁶41’ - Pilot Island⁶41’ - Pottawatomie⁶40’ - Round Island⁶40’ - Granite Island⁶40’ - Chequamegon Point⁶40’ - Michigan City¹40’ - Calumet Harbor⁶

Towers with heights from 30 to 39 feet
	39’ - Grand Island⁶39’ - Marquette⁶39’ - Manistee Pierhead⁶39’ - Sturgeon Bay Canal Pierhead⁶38’ - McGulpin Point³38’ - White River⁶38’ - Point Peninsula⁶38’ - Dunlap Reef rear⁶37’ - Sand Point⁶37’ - Duluth North Pier⁶37’ - Point Betsie⁶37’ - Portage Lake Rear⁶37’ - Manitowoc Breakwater⁹36’ - Fourteen Foot Shoal¹²36’ - Saginaw River Front Range⁶36’ - Marquette Breakwater⁶36’ - Mission Point⁶36’ - Grand Haven Pierhead Front⁶36’ - Tail Point⁶36’ - Racine Pierhead¹¹35’ - Manistique East Breakwater¹⁴35’ - Duluth Front⁶35’ - South Haven Pierhead⁶35’ - Waukegan Harbor⁶35’ - Two Rivers Pierhead⁵35’ - Algoma Pierhead⁵	35’ - Sherwood Point⁶35’ - Little Fort¹¹34’ - Alpena⁶34’ - Huron Island⁶34’ - Copper Harbor Rear⁶34’ - Petoskey Pierhead⁶34’ - Port DU Morts¹¹34’ - Menominee Pierhead⁶34’ - Sheboygan¹¹34’ - Manitowoc¹¹33’ - Cheboygan Crib⁶33’ - Pipe Island⁶33’ - Ontonagon Pierhead⁶33’ - Two Harbors Breakwater⁶33’ - Grassy Island Upper⁶31’ - Munising Rear Range⁶31’ - Pentwater Pierhead Rear⁶31’ - White River Pierhead⁶30’ - Round Island¹¹30’ – Mamajuda¹30’ - Grassy Island¹30’ - Presque Isle Rear⁶30’ - Grand Island Harbor²30’ - St. Joseph Pierhead Front⁶30’ - Baileys Harbor Rear⁶30’ - Muskegon Main¹¹

	Towers with heights of less than 30 feet
	29’ - Frankfort South Pierhead⁶28’ - Au Sable Pierhead⁶28’ - Muskegon Pierhead Front⁶27’ - Holland Front⁶27’ - Plum Island Range Front⁶26’ - Grand Haven North Pierhead⁶26’ - Grassy Island Lower⁶25’ - Portage River Pierhead⁶25’ - New Buffalo¹ 24’ - Grand Island Harbor Front⁶24’ - Eagle River²24’ - Ludington North Breakwater⁶	24’ - Ludington South Breakwater⁶22’ - Grand River Main¹22’ - Port Clinton¹22’ - Taylorsport¹21’ - Presque Isle Front⁶21’ - Copper Harbor Front⁶21’ - Baileys Harbor Front⁶19’ - Pentwater Pierhead Front⁶18’ - Frying Pan Island⁶17’ - Portage Lake Front⁶16’ - Dunlap Reef Front⁶

	Sources
	1 - 1857 Light List 2 - 1871 Great Lakes Light List 3 - 1878 Great Lakes Light List 4 - 1898 Great Lakes Light List 5 - 1909 Station Survey 6 - 1910 Great Lakes Light List 7 - 1917 Great Lakes Light List	8 - 1931 Great Lakes Light List 9 - 1937 Great Lakes Light List 10 - 1940 Great Lakes Light List 11 - 1868 Light List 12 - 1930 description of station 13 - 1934 Lake Carriers Annual Report 14 - Calculated focal plane less crib height


This page last updated 05/18/2008 Copyright Terry Pepper	Home	Back