Old Presque Isle Lighthouse (1840)

When You Visit

When you visit, you will find Presque Isle’s Old Lighthouse (1840) sitting on the north arm of  Presque Isle Bay, opposite Crystal Point, the Bay’s south arm. The Bay — with its harbor of  refuge and marina, operated by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources — is located at  the south end of Presque Isle Peninsula, at the place called The Portage. Native American, and in  time European, travelers used this little neck of land to avoid paddling around the peninsula.

Patrick Garrity Sr., Presque Isle’s longest-serving lighthouse keeper, greets you as you enter. In  August 2012 Presque Isle Township dedicated a statue of Patrick, Keeper of the Old Light from  1861-70, and then of the New Light from 1870-1903. His wife and four of their children also  served as lighthouse keepers. According to Coast Guard records, the Garrity family’s years of  service, taken together, make them the second longest serving keeper family in U.S. history.  Patrick’s statue — created in high carbon steel at Moran Iron Works in Onaway, Michigan, by  sculptor Dawn Barr of Cheboygan — honors not only Patrick’s service, but also the dedication  of all Great Lakes lighthouse keepers.

The lighthouse sits near the water with its detached Keeper’s House directly behind. You may  climb the tower, weather permitting. A circular staircase of well worn stone takes you up to the  lantern room where a Fourth Order Fresnel Lens is in place. This perch affords a lovely view of  Presque Isle Bay, the Harbor, North Bay, and Huron’s rocky shoreline.

Close by the lighthouse tower is the bell which once hung in the clock tower of Old City Hall at  Lansing, Michigan’s capital. When the hall was demolished, Francis Stebbins acquired this piece of Michigan history and brought it to the Sunrise Shore. The bell weighs 3,425 pounds,  making it considerably larger than Philadelphia’s 2,080-pound Liberty Bell. You may ring the  bell, which can be heard at quite a distance. Nearby, a set of stocks— the kind used for punishment, not investment! — offers an unusual here’s-what-I-did-last-summer “photo op.”

The Keeper’s House serves as a visitor center, museum, and gift shop. The Township's employee on duty will  be happy to discuss the park’s history, and to point out the many artifacts on display. The exhibit  is changed periodically for the benefit of repeat visitors. Prominent among these artifacts are  photographs of the Old Lighthouse and its Keeper’s House from the 1930s when the property  was more or less a wreck.

The Old Lighthouse Park is a splendid spot for a picnic lunch or an hour with a good book. On  sunny days you can sit next to the tower and watch freighters making their way up- or down-lake.  These boats will be headed for the limestone quarry just south of the Harbor, or the quarry at Rogers City (the world’s largest limestone quarry), or cities from Chicago to Duluth.

A History of the 1840 Lighthouse

On July 5, 1838, the year after Michigan gained statehood, Congress appropriated $5,000 for  construction of a lighthouse at Presque Isle. An advertisement inviting proposals for this project  ran in the Detroit newspapers on July 10, 1839. Sixteen days later Abraham Wendell, U.S.  Superintendent of Lighthouses for this district, and Jeremiah Moors, a Detroit architect and  builder, signed an agreement to “build and complete in all respects agreeable to the specifications  [for a lighthouse] contained in said advertisement for proposals for the sum of $5,000.00.”

In the late summer of 1839 A.E. Hathon surveyed the Lighthouse Reservation at Presque Isle.  Later surveys would show that the point opposite the lighthouse property, now called Crystal  Point, was the center of harbor activity during this period. On September 4, 1840, John Scott  certified that construction of the lighthouse had been completed according to contract. On  September 23 Henry Woolsey was appointed first Keeper, with his annual salary set at $350.

Woolsey served until his death sometime in 1847. He was succeeded by George Murray  (1847-48), Stephen V. Thornton (1848-53), and Louis J. Metivier (1853-61). On July 15, 1861,  upon being commissioned by President Abraham Lincoln, Patrick Garrity Sr. took up his duties,  becoming the Old Light’s fifth and last Keeper.

By 1868, less than 30 years after construction, the original Keeper’s House was rapidly  deteriorating. Plans to renovate the dwelling and attach it to the tower were drawn up. It is  possible that the $7,500 price tag for this project helped trigger reassessment of the Light’s  suitability as an aid to navigation. In July 1870 Congress appropriated an additional $28,000 for  construction of a new, taller lighthouse at the north end of Presque Isle Peninsula.

In February 1871 notice was given to mariners that the new Presque Isle Lighthouse would go  into service for that year’s shipping season. Patrick Garrity Sr. and his family moved up the road  to the New Light, where he would serve for an additional 30 years. Mary, Patrick’s wife, served  as Assistant Keeper, and in time four of their children also took up the profession.

With the 1840 Light extinguished, a Range Light was constructed in 1870 to safely guide mariners into Presque Isle Harbor. In 1903 Anna Garrity, daughter of Mary and Patrick, would  become Keeper of the Range Light at Presque Isle Harbor, making her one of a small, select group of female keepers on the  Great Lakes.  A statue of Anna has been erected at the Range Light to honor her service.

After being decommissioned, the Old Lighthouse seems to have languished in disuse for over a  quarter century. In 1897 it was sold to E.O. Avery, the highest bidder. Later it was owned briefly  by General Duffield, and then sold to Bliss Stebbins. In 1930 Bliss Stebbins sold the property to  Francis B. Stebbins. In the late 1930s Francis demolished the original Keeper’s House and built  a new dwelling on the original foundation. At his death in 1969 the property was inherited by his son James Stebbins.

Over the years the original lantern room was dismantled or destroyed. In photos from that time  the tower looks like the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow fame! As the U.S. Coast Guard  automated its lighthouses, many unwanted lenses were either destroyed or sold. In 1961 Francis  Stebbins purchased a surplus Fourth Order Fresnel lens, most likely from the South Fox Island  Lighthouse on Lake Michigan. To house this artifact he commissioned Fred May, a Grand Lake  resident, to construct a new lantern room. This structure was hoisted into place atop the 1840  tower and the horseman was no longer headless!

On November 14, 1964, the Old Light was listed on the Michigan Register of Historic Places,  and a state historical marker was dedicated on June 19, 1965 (Site No. P24577). On April 11,  1973, the 1840 Lighthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (Ref. No.  73000957). In 1995, with funding provided by the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund and  several private donors, the property was purchased by Presque Isle Township for use as a park  and museum.