Property Record
4725 LIGHTHOUSE DR
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Wind Point Lighthouse |
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| Other Name: | Wind Point Light Station |
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| Reference Number: | 10721 |
| Location (Address): | 4725 LIGHTHOUSE DR |
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| County: | Racine |
| City: | Wind Point |
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| Year Built: | 1880 |
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| Additions: | 1900 |
| Survey Date: | 1975 |
| Historic Use: | light house |
| Architectural Style: | Other Vernacular |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
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| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Windpoint Light Station |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 7/19/1984 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: | US Coast Guard Lighthouses and Light Stations on the Great Lakes |
| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation. Described as the "oldest and tallest still standing on the Great Lakes", this lighthouse rises 112 feet above Lake Michigan. In the beginning it was equipped with kerosene lanterns, and the keeper had to climb the tower twice a day (284 steps, round trip) carrying two 5-gallon cans of oil. In 1964 the light house was equipped with an automatic 1,000-watt lamp that throws a 2 milllion candlepower beam which can be seen 19 miles away. A cast iron lantern, identical to Milwaukee's North Point house, tops the CCB twer. In 1880, the federal Lighthouse Board erected this light to help guide southbound ships into Racine Harbor. The conical brick tower rises 108 feet from a stone foundation, tapering from a 22-foot-diameter to a little less than 13 feet. The ten-sided cast-iron lantern crowning the light originally flashed a white coastal light and a red light, which warned ships around Racine Reef. Both beacons had Fresnel lenses, intricate arrays of glass prisms surrounding the light source, magnifying the light and then refracting and focusing it into a single beam that could stab through cloud and darkness. Twice daily, the keeper climbed the spiral staircase’s 142 steps, lugging two five-gallon cans of oil to keep the lamps lit. Today the light is automated, the original kerosene lamps replaced by a rotating electric beacon. Several auxiliary buildings complete the site. The lighthouse keeper and his two assistants lived in the Keeper’s House, a rambling clapboard building with hipped dormers. It is connected to the tower by a covered passageway. In times of dense fog, the keeper would dash to the brick Signal Building, built in 1900 right near the lake, to blare a loud warning horn. Covenant/Easement: From 5/16/1990 to 5/16/1995. A 'covenant file' exists for this property. It may contain additional information such as photos, drawings and correspondence. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office. |
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| Bibliographic References: | ZIMMERMANN, RUSSELL "THE HERITAGE GUIDEBOOK" (HERITAGE BANKS 1976) Racine Jornal Times 12/6/1997. Menomonie Dunn County News 4/19/1998. Racine Journal Times 6/3/1999. Racine Landmarks brochure, 2003. Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |