Grosse Point Light
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Grosse Point Light Station |
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| Location: | Evanston, Illinois |
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| Coordinates WGS-84 (GPS) |
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| Construction: | Brick, steel and glass. |
| Year first lit: | 1874[1] |
| Year first constructed: | 1873[1] |
| Deactivated: | 1941[2] |
| Height: | 113 feet[3] |
| Original lens: | Second order Frensel[2] |
| Range: | Original: 21 miles [3] |
The historic Grosse Point Lighthouse is located in Evanston, Illinois. Following several shipping disasters near Evanston, residents successfully lobbied the federal government for a lighthouse. Construction was completed in 1873. As of January 20, 1999 it is a National Historic Landmark, and part of Evanston's Lighthouse Park District, an independent taxing authority.[citation needed] The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 8, 1976.[4]
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[edit] History
[edit] Impetus
The United States government agreed to construct the lighthouse at Grosse Point after several maritime disasters near the area showed need for it. Particularly influential was the 1860 sinking of the Lady Elgin, a disaster which purportedly claimed up to 400 lives.[3][5] The citizens of Evanston petitioned the government for the light station during the Civil War but the project was delayed by the war.[1]
[edit] Construction
The project to construct a lighthouse began in 1872, supervised by Orlando Metcalf Poe. Most of the construction was completed by June 30, 1873, though the lamp would not be lit for several months. Finally, in March 1874, the light commenced operation.[1]
[edit] Deactivation
In 1935 the federal government turned over the grounds and the buildings, save the lighthouse tower and light, to the city of Evanston. The Grosse Point Light Station was decommissioned by the United States Coast Guard in 1941 as a precaution against possible air raids in the wake of the attack on Pearl Harbor. After the shut down the city received the tower and the light as well.[1] Even so, the lease allowed the government to take the light station back if it was ever needed for official use.[6]The light was reignited in 1945 and has served as a secondary navigational aid ever since.[3] The lighthouse is operated by the Lighthouse Park District of Evanston, Illinois, once known as the Northeast Park District but renamed in honor of the lighthouse.[3][1]
[edit] Grosse Point legends
The site of the Grosse Point Lighthouse is the purported site where Father Jacques Marquette landed in 1674 during his trip down the west side of Lake Michigan to visit various Illinois Native American tribes. This tale is largely anecdotal as there is no real historical proof that this ever occurred.[6]
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c d e f Grosse Point Lighthouse, (PDF), National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, HAARGIS Database [1], Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Retrieved 10 February 2007.
- ^ a b Grosse Point Lighthouse, NHL Database, National Historic Landmark Program. Retrieved 9 February 2007.
- ^ a b c d e History, Grosse Point Lighthouse. Retrieved 10 February 2007
- ^ NRIS Database, National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 9 February 2007.
- ^ Claims vary as to the exact number killed in the sinking of the Lady Elgin. Estimates of 300 are available in the January 1990 issue of Illinois Issues via Northern Illinois University Libraries. The estimate was reasserted by Northwestern University's Medill News Service on April 15, 1999. An excerpt from the 1860 diary of Fannie Seward indicates that the reports of the day stated 300 dead. However, for every estimate of 300 easily accessible there are others, such as a webpage hosted on Stanford University's servers which estimates 470 dead. It is hard to know with any great certainty how many were lost on the Lady Elgin but it appears stating that up to 400 dead would not be too much of a stretch.
- ^ a b Grosse Point Lighthouse, (PDF), Illinois Historic Sites Survey Inventory, HAARGIS Database [2], Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Retrieved 10 February 2007.
[edit] External links
- Grosse Point Lighthouse
- Survey number HABS IL-1212 - Grosse Point Lighthouse, 2601 Sheridan Road, Evanston, Cook County, IL
