Port Washington Lighthouse
by Ben Prepelka
Title
Port Washington Lighthouse
Artist
Ben Prepelka
Medium
Photograph
Description
The Port Washington Lighthouse has been watching over the harbor and Lake Michigan from up on St. Mary's Hill since it was first lit in 1860. After the North Breakwater Light was placed on a 2500 foot-long breakwater in 1935, the services of the original Port Washington Light were no longer needed. The old light station, built of cream city brick, was converted into a keepers' quarters. Unable to recognize the historic value at the time, the tower and lantern room were removed and scrapped.
Out of commission for 80 years, in 1993 the Port Washington Historical Society stepped in to save the lighthouse and started the process to have the property listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Planning to reopen it as a museum, in the fall of 2000 the Historical Society met up with a most surprising project partner, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. In honor of the American GIs who liberated their country from Germany during World War II, Luxembourg artisans built an exact replica of the original tower and lantern room. Shipped across the Atlantic, the lantern room, tower and six Luxembourg craftsmen arrived in April 2002 to assemble the structure and install it in place. Today the lighthouse mirrors the 1860 floor plan and is open to the public for tours.
Uploaded
August 26th, 2018
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Viewed 449 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/18/2024 at 12:21 PM
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