Eagle Bluff Light

The Eagle Bluff Light, also known as Eagle Bluff lighthouse, or simply Eagle Bluff, is a lighthouse located near Ephraim in Peninsula State Park in Door County, Wisconsin. Construction was authorized in 1866, but the lighthouse was not actually built until 1868 at a cost of $12,000. It was automated in 1926. Restoration work began on the Eagle Bluff Light in 1960 and were completed in 1963, upon completion the Lighthouse was opened for tours. The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970.[2]

Eagle Bluff Light
LocationEphraim, Wisconsin
Coordinates45°10′07.3″N 87°14′11.98″W[1]
Year first constructed1868
Year first lit1868
Automated1926
FoundationConcrete
ConstructionCream City brick
Tower shapeSquare[1]
Tower height43 feet (13 m)
Focal height23 metre 
Original lensThird and 1/2 order Fresnel lens
Range7 nautical miles (13 km; 8.1 mi)[1]
CharacteristicWhite, Flashing every 6 sec[1]
ARLHS numberUSA-252
USCG number7-21825
Heritageplace listed on the National Register of Historic Places 
Eagle Bluff Lighthouse
Area4 acres (1.6 ha)
Built1868 (1868)
NRHP reference No.70000032[2]
Added to NRHPOctober 15, 1970

Geography

Located in what is modern day Peninsula State Park. Situated on a 76 ft. bluff that overlooks the Strawberry Channel, Eagle Bluff's mission is to illuminate the islands located in the middle of the strawberry channel. This mission is what gives Eagle Bluff it's nickname "The Guardian of the Strawberry Channel".[3]

Much of Door County is located on the Niagara Escarpment, the escarpment makes it very hard to dig into the soil of Door County, for this reason it is very usual to have a basement in Door County. Eagle Bluff has two basements. One under the tower and one under the keeper's residence.

Door County Historical Society

The Door County Historical Society, also known as DCHS, has maintained the Eagle Bluff Light from 1960 to the present day.[4] DCHS was responsible for the restoration of Eagle Bluff. These restorations were led by a women known as Ida Bay.[5] Currently DCHS is raising money to reconstruct the barn, and the summer kitchen that were originally located on the property. To this day DCHS runs tours through the keepers residence and the tower of Eagle Bluff.

Keepers of the Light

There were three keepers who maintained the Eagle Bluff Light: Henry Stanley, William Duclon, and Peter Coughlin.

Henry Stanley (1868-1883)

William Duclon (1883-1918)

The longest serving keeper in Eagle Bluff's history, William Duclon and his wife Julia Duclon (née Davenport) raised their seven sons in this lighthouse. Eagle Bluff has been restored to the time period of the Duclons, some of their original possessions can be seen on display in the home today.

The youngest son of William and Julia, Walter Duclon, helped with the restorations of Eagle Bluff. He provided personal stories, artifacts, and family documents to help aid in the creation of the museum that is now housed in the keepers residence.

Peter Coughlin (1918-1926)


  • Eagle Bluff Light
  • USCG archive photo
  • Eagle Bluff Lighthouse

Further reading
  • Havighurst, Walter (1943) The Long Ships Passing: The Story of the Great Lakes, Macmillan Publishers.
  • Oleszewski, Wes, Great Lakes Lighthouses, American and Canadian: A Comprehensive Directory/Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses, (Gwinn, Michigan: Avery Color Studios, Inc., 1998) ISBN 0-932212-98-0.
  • Pepper, Terry. "Seeing the Light: Lighthouses on the western Great Lakes". Archived from the original on 2008-01-30.
  • Sapulski, Wayne S., (2001) Lighthouses of Lake Michigan: Past and Present (Paperback) (Fowlerville: Wilderness Adventure Books) ISBN 0-923568-47-6; ISBN 978-0-923568-47-4.
  • Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1-55046-399-3.

References
  1. Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard.
  2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  3. The Sturgeon Bay Maritime Museum
  4. "Eagle Bluff Light Station". Door County Historical Society. 2018-12-19. Retrieved 2019-08-12.
  5. Badtke, Frances (1964). Eagle Lighthouse. Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin: Door County Publishing Co. p. 39.


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