Minnesota Point Light
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The Minnesota Point Light was a historic
lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...
on
Minnesota Point Minnesota Point, also known as the Park Point Neighborhoods of Duluth, Minnesota, neighborhood of Duluth, Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, United States; is a long, narrow Spit (landform), sand spit that extends out from the Canal Park (Duluth), ...
in
Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...
, United States, on the shores of
Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...
. Built in 1858, it was the first lighthouse in the state, but is now a truncated ruined tower. The ruin was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1974 for its state-level significance in the theme of transportation. It was nominated for being the first high-powered lighthouse on Lake Superior, and the zero-point for all original surveys of the lake.


History

The first survey of Lake Superior was undertaken in 1823 by Henry W. Bayfield of the British Navy, who chose a spot on
Minnesota Point Minnesota Point, also known as the Park Point Neighborhoods of Duluth, Minnesota, neighborhood of Duluth, Minnesota, Duluth, Minnesota, United States; is a long, narrow Spit (landform), sand spit that extends out from the Canal Park (Duluth), ...
as the zero point of his mapping. The point is the eastern end of a great sand bar separating Superior Bay from the lake; the passage to the east of the point (known as Superior Entry) was the original outlet of the Saint Louis River. The Saint Louis River, which rises in Minnesota, becomes the Saint Louis Bay, then flows into
Superior Bay Superior Bay is a narrow inlet of Lake Superior along the border of Minnesota and Wisconsin. It is long and wide. A small strait connects it to the Saint Louis Bay to the west, into which the Saint Louis River empties. Superior Bay is located be ...
and exits into
Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...
via the ship canals, at each end of Minnesota Point (Park Point). Both
Superior, Wisconsin Superior (; ) is a city in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 26,751 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the western end of Lake Superior in northwestern Wisconsin, the city l ...
, and
Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...
, sprang up on opposite banks of the river and bay to take advantage of the excellent natural harbor; thus plans for a lighthouse to mark the entrance preceded Minnesota statehood, and appropriation was made by Congress in 1855. Due to delays from the cold winters, the light was not lit until spring of 1858. The spot chosen for the tower was Bayfield's zero point; a circular tower forty feet high and twelve feet in diameter was constructed of red brick brought in from Cleveland and coated with white mortar. This was topped with a wooden cupola, shingled except for windows on the lake side for the beacon. A -story dwelling of the same brick was built alongside the tower, topped with a slate roof. A fifth order
Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens (optics), lens which reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional lens by dividing the lens into a set of concentric annular sections. The simpler Dioptrics, d ...
was installed, giving a fixed red indication. Construction of the dwelling was apparently substandard, as an 1868 report complained of leaks and fallen plaster. In any case, the station was to be relatively short-lived. In the same year, construction began on the first piers built to protect the Superior Entry inlet, and in 1871 a new channel was cut at the opposite end of the sand bar to allow direct entry into Duluth harbor. All of these required additional navigational aids. In 1878 a light was placed on the north pier of the Superior Entry, and the Minnesota Point Light was extinguished; this proved to be temporary, however, and it was re-lit in 1880. A new pierhead light was constructed in 1885, and the old light was again extinguished, this time for good. The dwelling continued in use as housing for the keepers of the north pierhead light, but in 1893 this light was transferred to the south pier (succeeded by the present
Wisconsin Point Light The Wisconsin Point Light is a lighthouse located in Superior, on Wisconsin Point, in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The light and attached fog horn building sits within a long sand bar – stretching between the ports of Duluth ...
in 1913). This necessitated a new keeper's house on the other side of the inlet as well, and the old dwelling was abandoned, eventually completely disappearing. The tower continues to stand, its lantern gone and the brickwork truncated, the mortar gradually disappearing from the brickwork. A buoy depot was built on the grounds in 1903, but it too has been abandoned. The remains of the tower were put on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1974.


See also

* List of lighthouses in Minnesota * National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Louis County, Minnesota


References

{{authority control 1858 establishments in Minnesota 1913 disestablishments in Minnesota Buildings and structures in Duluth, Minnesota Lighthouses completed in 1858 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota National Register of Historic Places in St. Louis County, Minnesota Ruins on the National Register of Historic Places