Keweenaw Waterway Upper Entrance Light

Sept. 10, 2019
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Keweenaw Waterway Upper Entrance Light, north end of the Portage River, McLain State Park, Hancock Township Houghton County, Michigan

Built in 1950.

KEWEENAW WATERWAY ENTRANCE LIGHT

PORTAGE RIVER ENTRANCE, PORTAGE LAKE, LAKE SUPERIOR, NEAR JACOBSVILLE, MI
Station Established: 1868
Year Current Tower(s) First Lit: 1920
Operational? YES
Automated? 1973
Deactivated: N/A
Foundation Materials: CRIB
Construction Materials: BRICK WITH REINFORCED CONCRETE
Tower Shape: OCTAGONAL
Markings/Pattern: WHITE
Relationship to Other Structure: SEPERATE
Original Lens: FOURTH ORDER

Historical Information:

  • The original lights that marked the entrance of the Portage River, they were designed as range lights. A 19-foot tower was the front range and the rear range consisted of a lantern 25 feet above a dwelling.
  • The range lights were replaced by the current tower. The octagonal tower was built in 1920. It was designed to be automated from the start. 
  • It remains an active aid to navigation and remains in its original condition. It is not open to the public. 

Researched and written by Melissa Buckler, a volunteer through the Chesapeake Chapter of the U.S. Lighthouse Society.