Fourth in a Series
Cana Island Lighthouse, Door County
By Ken and Barb Wardius
In its long and storied maritime history, Wisconsin shorelines have been graced by forty-eight lighthouses. From Lake Superior to Lake Michigan and inland Lake Winnebago, lighthouses are an integral part of our heritage. No symbol is more synonymous with the Great Lakes’ rich nautical past than the lighthouse. For more than a century, lighthouses provided a measure of safety for mariners plying these inland seas. The Badger State has the second highest number of lighthouses on the Great Lakes, behind Michigan, which reigns as the champion with well over one hundred beacons.
Like most lighthouses throughout the world, those in Wisconsin were built primarily to guide ships to specific cities or towns, while others identified hazardous shoals, reefs and shallows. These historic beacons have saved countless sailors, ships and cargo.
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The tales of these structures are less about the dates they were constructed or their heights, but more about the innumerable years of service provided by dedicated lighthouse keepers and their families. Great Lakes mariners relied on these folks “keeping the light” to afford them safe harbor. Wisconsin’s lighthouses blazed a trail through the darkness and played a tremendous role in shaping our diverse state. Wisconsin attracted European settlers and the maritime trade that became the backbone of local economies. Water-borne commerce, the thread that weaves through the entire Great Lakes region, was the lifeblood of early Wisconsin. Lighthouses were essential in this process.
Door County
With more than 250 miles of shoreline, Door County quickly became a hub of maritime business. Door County’s beautiful scenery and rugged coastline belies dangerous currents, shoals and shallow areas. Accordingly, lighthouses have played a crucial role in Door County’s nautical history since 1852. Part of the Niagara escarpment, the approximately seventy mile long peninsula boasts eleven lighthouses, one of the highest concentrations of any county in the country. The county’s name is derived from the French, Porte des Mortes, or Door to Death, located between the end of the peninsula and Washington Island to the northeast.
Many Door County lighthouses are noteworthy. They include Cana Island, the most visited lighthouse in Wisconsin, Eagle Bluff in Peninsula State Park, Pottawatomie on Rock Island, the Baileys Harbor Range Lights in the Ridges Sanctuary, and Plum and Pilot Island in the Death’s Door Strait among others.
Photo: Cana Island Lighthouse Credit: Ken and Barb Wardius
Ken and Barb Wardius talk about lighthouses on Wisconsin Public Radio.
Ken and Barb Wardius are the authors of Wisconsin Lighthouses, A Photographic & Historical Guide. They have also written books on the Cana Island Lighthouse, the Wind Point Lighthouse and the North Point Milwaukee Lighthouse. They live in Glendale, Wisconsin, and are members of the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society. Their website is www.gowisconsinlighthouses.com
