The Sand Point Lighthouse, in Baraga County, was established in 1878, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Located on the west side of Keweenaw Bay, near Baraga, the bay and protected harbor made it an ideal harbor for shipping iron ore in the beginning of the 1870s. The Marquette, Houghton and Ontonagon Railroad was scheduled to be completed in 1872 with the tracks ending in L’Anse. Wharfs and docks soon lined the shore. The need for a lighthouse was apparent, states the USCG.

Lighthousefriends.com says that Congress provided $10,000 for a lighthouse at L’Anse on March 3, 1873, but it wasn’t until May 1876 that a deed to a parcel on Sand Point, situated on the opposite side of the bay from the Village of L’Anse, was obtained. Work at the site commenced on August 1877, using plans that called for a rectangular, one-and-a-half-story dwelling with an eight-and-a-half-foot-square tower centered in its lakeward-facing gable. The lighthouse was built of red brick, and wooden stairs in the tower provided access to the lantern room and to both floors of the five-room dwelling. Nearly identical lighthouses were built at Sherwood Point in 1883 and at Little Traverse in 1884.

The first keeper was John Crebassa, says the USCG. He lit the light for the first time on August 10, 1878. He would serve as keeper for 30 years, retiring on March 1, 1908.

The light was automated in 1922, and a tank was erected with a 35 foot tall mast attached. A light was placed at the top of the mast and the Sand Point Lighthouse was replaced. The lighthouse has passed in private ownership and is currently owned by the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. It is not open to the public.

Reader response:

Sand Point Lighthouse, Baraga MI. Visited there years ago – neat place!

— Scott Sullivan