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Kewaunee, WI. - The Wisconsin Historical Society announces the listing of the Kewaunee Pierhead Lighthouse in Kewaunee, Kewaunee County, on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Kewaunee Pierhead Lighthouse has been added to the National Register for its contribution to the broad historical patterns of maritime transportation and commerce associated with Kewaunee County and Wisconsin’s state waters in Lake Michigan. Located at the entry to the port of Kewaunee, it was originally constructed as a fog signal building in 1909 and was converted to a lighthouse in 1931. Four stories tall, it includes the original two-story fog signal building with an integral light tower and lantern. The two-story superstructure includes rooms previously used for machinery and office spaces, along with living quarters for the lighthouse keepers. The tower supports an octagonal lantern relocated in 1931 from a lighthouse that had been built at the south pierhead in 1891. The existing optic is a fifth order Fresnel lens that signals a flashing white light. A modern automated fog signal and a fog detector are mounted on the lantern gallery.

It is historically significant because lighthouses such as this have enabled safe passage for thousands of ships and exemplify the Federal government’s role in providing a nationwide system of aids to navigation. The Kewaunee Lighthouse’s signal light, fog signal, and daymark have safely guided mariners through northern Lake Michigan waters. They have been an important enhancement to navigational safety in and around Kewaunee County for nearly seven decades.

Additional information for this theater is available at

https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/NationalRegister/NR2710

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit: www.wisconsinhistory.org.

About the Wisconsin Historical Society

The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit wisconsinhistory.org.