ST. JOSEPH NORTH PIER LIGHTS LIGHTHOUSE-ST. JOSEPH, MICHIGAN

 

 

On July 15, 1870, Congress appropriated $3,000 for a new pierhead beacon, which was subsequently built on the south pier along with an elevated walkway. In 1881, the pierhead beacon was transferred to the outer end of the north pier, and its light was changed from fixed white to fixed red. A new open-frame tower, which was fifteen-and-a-half feet taller than the previous pierhead beacon, was built on the north pier in 1885, and upon the opening of navigation in 1886, it began displaying a fixed white light from a fourth-order lens. This light was deemed sufficient for the harbor, and the 1859 lighthouse was discontinued on March 18, 1886. On November 1, 1887, a 1,500-pound fog bell, struck by a Stevens striking apparatus, was added to the pierhead tower. The 1859 lighthouse was re-established on July 10, 1889, and later that year a conduit light was added to the pier to form range lights for entering the river. A fifth-order lens replaced the fourth-order lens used on the pier, and it is likely that the fourth-order lens was installed in the 1859 lighthouse. The characteristic of the 1859 lighthouse was fixed white with a flash every ninety seconds, with the flashes being produced by a panel that revolved around the fixed Henry-Lepaute lens. In 1892, the frequency of the flashes was increased to one every forty-five seconds through the addition of another flash panel. The frequency of the flashes was increased again in 1901 to a white flash every thirty seconds.  On June 11, 1896, after years of petitioning by the Lighthouse Board, Congress appropriated $5,000 for a steam fog signal to replace the bell, which was often ineffective. A “well” for the steam fog signal was created in the crib by removing stone from one pocket and placing therein a plank box. A ten-inch steam whistle was established on February 1, 1897, with a parabolic deflector constructed behind the whistle to focus the sound lakeward. The front range light was discontinued at this time as the beacon and signal had been moved to the end of the pier, but a pole light was established 400 feet shoreward to serve as the rear light. After the War Department had extended the north pier, the range lights and steam whistle were relocated 1,000 feet lakeward in 1904. The present set of range lights on the north pier was constructed in 1907. The front tower consists of steel framing covered with metal sheets and tapers from a diameter of eight feet, three inches at its base to seven feet, three inches at its nine-sided lantern room. The tower was originally equipped with a fifth-order Barbier and Benard lens the produced a fixed red light. The rear tower consists of a twenty-four-foot-square steel structure whose pyramidal roof is surmounted by an octagonal tower and circular lantern room with helical bars. A fourth-order lens manufactured by Chance Brothers was used to produce a fixed red light. The pier’s original ten-inch steam whistle, constructed by J. P. McGuire of Cleveland, Ohio, was transferred to the lower portion of the new structure. A diaphone fog signal was installed in the rear tower in 1933. In May 2008, the St. Joseph Pierhead and Inner Lights, deemed excess by the Coast Guard, were offered at no cost to eligible entities, including federal, state and local agencies, non-profit corporations, educational agencies, or community development organizations. The City of St. Joseph was the only entity to submit an application, and after reviewing it, the National Park Service requested more information on how the city would share stewardship of the lights with the Heritage Museum and Cultural Center and during what time the lights would be open to the public. A more complete application was returned to the National Park Service in April 2009, and a formal ceremony celebrating the transfer of the lighthouses to the city was held on October 7, 2013. In August of 2008, a historical architect assessed the inner and outer lighthouse structures, at a cost of $17,000, and concluded that $1 million in repairs would be necessary before public access to the lights could be permitted. The inner light requires more attention as part of its ceiling has collapsed. The city might not need to fund the entire restoration, as the Coast Guard may perform some rehabilitation work on the structures before the ownership transfer.