Muskegon
South Pierhead Completed in 1903, this conical red tower replaced a shore light that had been built in 1852. The light is at the end of a concrete pier on the south side of the channel that connects Lake Michigan and Muskegon Lake. The tower is cast iron and stands 48 feet tall. The lantern room holds a Fourth Order Fresnel lens that is semi-circular and has a brass reflector panel. The light shines over 180 degrees of the horizon. The U.S. Coast Guard Station Muskegon is located on shore at the base of the pier. The light is located next to Pere Marquette Park on Beach Street, at the end of either Lakeshore Drive or Sherman Boulevard. Also located in Muskegon, near the
lighthouse, is the WWII museum submarine USS Silversides.
2010 Update - Public tower
climbs are one eventual goal of a volunteer group that's taking possession
of the two red-painted lighthouses next to Muskegon's Pere Marquette Park.
The U.S. General Services Administration transferred ownership of the more
than century-old lighthouses from the federal government to a Fenton-based
historic preservation group called the Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy.
Conservancy members, none of them from
the Muskegon area, hope to garner help from local volunteers and raise money
from local donors for a preservation and restoration drive. "It's a new
beginning for the lights, and hopefully their future will be bright," said
Jeff Shook, Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy president. "We're very excited
to start working on preserving the lights and getting the community
involvement." It won't be cheap, and it will take
time. Rough cost estimates range up to $250,000 apiece for full restoration
of the towers, Shook said. "The whole process is just at the very, very
beginning," Shook said. "This will be a several-year process, and it all
depends on how willing people are in the community to support the project.
We'll be looking at local partners." He said the small group has had some
preliminary contacts with potential Muskegon partners whom he declined to
name. He said preservation is the top
priority for the lighthouses, but at some point the conservancy hopes to
open up at least one of them to the public. Attention likely will focus
first on the South Pierhead Light, the likelier candidate for tower climbs,
Shook said. Getting to the top of the South Breakwater Light is more
difficult, and it has less of a safety railing. Even the South Pierhead Light needs
major restoration before it can be opened to visitors. For example, the
watchroom just below the lantern room has a hole in the floor, Shook said.
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