Split Rock Lighthouse, southwest of Silver Bay, Two Harbors, Lake County, Minnesota
Built in 1909.
SPLIT ROCK LIGHT
NORTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR
Station Established: 1910
Year Current Tower(s) First Lit: 1910
Operational? YES
Automated? YES
Deactivated:
Foundation Materials: NATURAL/EMPLACED
Construction Materials: BRICK/REINFORCED CONCRETE
Tower Shape: OCTAGONAL
Markings/Pattern: BUFF BRICK W/WHITE CORNICE; BLACK LENS RM
Relationship to Other Structure: SEPARATE
Original Lens: THIRD ORDER, FRESNEL (BIVALVE) 1910
Historical Information:
Located at the top of an imposing rock jutting out into Lake Superior is Split Rock Lighthouse. The station derives its name from the appearance of the rock as it is approached from the open lake. The octagonal brick tower 54 feet in height was built in 1910. Because of the height of the rock, the light was 168 feet above the level of the lake and could be seen for 22 miles. An incandescent oil-vapor lamp was used inside the third-order lens, producing a light of 450,000 candlepower. The station was also equipped with a compressed air-operated diaphone fog signal, sounding a blast every 20 seconds in time of fog. Split Rock Lighthouse is one of the most frequently visited lighthouses in the United States. The light was discontinued in 1969.