Indiana Harbor East Breakwater Light
 Indiana Harbor East Breakwater Light (USCG) | |
 | |
| Location | East side of Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal entrance to Lake Michigan |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°40′51″N 87°26′28″W / 41.68083°N 87.44111°W |
| Tower | |
| Construction | steel |
| Height | 23 m (75 ft)  |
| Shape | square tower |
| Light | |
| First lit | 1935 |
| Focal height | 78 ft |
| Lens | fourth-order Fresnel lens |
| Range | 14 mi |
| Characteristic | Isophase green 6s |
The Indiana Harbor East Breakwater Light is an active aid to navigation[3] that marks the end of a breakwater on the east side of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal where it enters Lake Michigan.
History
Indiana Harbor was constructed over several years, beginning in 1901, and this included a breakwater paralleling the east edge of the channel where it enters the lake. In 1914 responsibility for the waterway and its facilities was assumed by the Corps of Engineers, and there is some indication that the Corps erected a lighthouse on the breakwater in 1920; however, information on its construction is lacking.
The current light was erected in 1935, and is identical to the better known Port Washington Breakwater Light in Wisconsin.[4][5] It is an Art Deco steel tower standing on a circular pier at the tip of the breakwater. The original lantern, which housed a fourth order Fresnel lens, has been removed and replaced by a modern beacon.
It is one of a dozen past or present lighthouses in Indiana.[5]
A contemporary unmanned light in the Art Deco style is the Gravelly Shoal Light in Michigan.
Although it never had a resident lighthouse keeper, this light is a recognized 'significant light" by the National Park Service National Maritime Initiative.[6]
In June, 2009 the Coast Guard proposed changing the light to a green Light emitting diode.[7]
References
- "Historic Light Station Information & Photography: Indiana". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2008-11-24.
- "Indiana Harbor East Breakwater, IN". lighthousefriends.com. Retrieved 2008-11-24.
- Chart 14929: Calumet, Indiana and Buffington Harbors, and Lake Calumet (Map). NOAA. 2003. Retrieved 2008-11-24.
See also
Specialized additional reading
- Andreas, A.T. (1884) History of Chicago from the Earliest Period to the Present Time,
- Chicago's Front Door, Chicago Public Library Digital Collection, website.
- Chicago, Scribner's Monthly (September 1875) Vol. X, No. 5.
- Hyde, Charles K., and Ann and John Mahan. (1995) The Northern Lights: Lighthouses of the Upper Great Lakes. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, p. 132. ISBN 0814325548 ISBN 9780814325544.
- Havighurst, Walter (1943) The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes, Macmillan Publishers.
- Karamanski, T. Ed. , Historic Lighthouses and Navigational Aids of the Illinois Shore of Lake Michigan Loyola University & Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, (1989).
- Longstreet, Stephen (1973) Chicago 1860-1919 (New York: McKay).
- Lopez, Victor. "This Old Lighthouse: Chicago Harbor Beacon Gets a Facelift." Coast Guard (September, 1997), pp. 24-25.
- Mayer, Harold M. (1957) The Port of Chicago University of Chicago Press.
- Pepper, Terry. "Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes".
- Perry, W.A (1979) A History of Inland Steel Company And The Indiana Harbor Works (booklet)[8]
- Rice, Mary J., Chicago: Port to the World (Follet Publishers, 1969).
- Sapulski, Wayne S., (2001) Lighthouses of Lake Michigan: Past and Present (Paperback) (Fowlerville: Wilderness Adventure Books) ISBN 0923568476; ISBN 978-0923568474.
- Wagner, John L. "Beacons Shining in the Night: The Lighthouses of Michigan". Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University.
Notes
- ^ "Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society, Indiana Harbor East Breakwater (Lake Michigan) Light ARLHS USA-401".
- ^ "Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society, World List of Lights".
- ^ Lighthouse Depot, Indiana Harbor East Breakwater Light.
- ^ "Buckler, Melissa, Historic Light Station Information & Photography: Indiana". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2008-11-24. Note that the document has a picture of this light under "Indiana Harbor Light," and that it has the correct history and wrong picture under "Indiana Harbor East Breakwater Light,"
- ^ a b Rowlett, Russ, Lighthouse Directory, Lighthouses of Indiana, Indiana Harbor East Breakwater Light, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Cite error: The named reference "Rowlett" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ National Park Service Maritime History Project, Inventory of Historic Light Stations. Significant Unmanned Aids.
- ^ Notice of Mariners, proposed change of light, June, 2009.
- ^ Northwest Regional Collection, Calumet Regional Archives, Indiana University