Love for Lake Erie Lighthouses

Throughout the years, lighthouses have maintained their appeal as destinations all around the world. People flock to walk their grounds, tour interiors and relive important histories. We share that fascination at Lake Erie Living and see lighthouses as connections to our Great Lake’s past when a bright light atop a stone tower would keep sailors and cargo safe from harm. 

Today, Lake Erie boasts more than 50 lighthouses, each with its own captivating story to tell. Whether they’re made from wood or brick or are public or private, these structures are an invitation to explore.

Use this list as a helpful resource to learn more about these treasures and create your own lighthouse tour. Whether you visit one lighthouse or 10, we hope you and your family and friends relish in the beauty of the lake and the historical charm of each masterpiece. 

Lighthouses are listed by region from west to east.

Lake Erie Islands

West Sister Island Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.7398, -83.107
Year Built: 1847
Height: 40 feet
Website: lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=273

Green Island Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.6451, -82.8677

South Bass Island Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.6291, -82.8414
Year Built: 1897
Height: 60 feet
Website: ohioseagrant.osu.edu/visit/south-bass-lighthouse
Did You Know? Spacious by most lighthouse standards, this brick lighthouse contained two-and-a-half stories of living space with an attached 60-foot tower. Its fourth order Fresnel lens was first lit in 1897. The lighthouse was automated in 1962. Today it’s owned by The Ohio State University.

Northern Ohio
Point Place Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.70002, -83.4789

Toledo Harbor Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.7395, -83.3814
Year Built: 1904
Height: 85 feet
Website: toledolighthouse.org
Did You Know? The lighthouse’s buff brick color (golden tan) varies from the blacks and reds on most other lighthouses. Also, to combat vandalism, a phantom was placed in the second-story window. Other than the mannequin, affectionately known as Sarah, the inside is empty.

Port Clinton Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.519, -82.9353
Year Built: 1896
Height: 26 feet
Website: portclintonlighthouse.org
Did You Know? The Port Clinton Lighthouse is the only timber-frame pierhead lighthouse remaining on Lake Erie and one of only four left on the American side of the Great Lakes.

Marblehead Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.5364, -82.7118
Year Built: 1821
Height: 67 feet
Website: marbleheadlighthouseohio.org
Did You Know? The Marblehead Lighthouse is the oldest lighthouse in continuous service on the Great Lakes. The original light consisted of 13 whale oil-burning lamps aimed in slightly different directions to cover the 180 degrees necessary to warn mariners.

Cedar Point Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.4882, -82.6934

Sandusky Harbor Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.4993, -82.6744

Huron Harbor Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.4047, -82.5438
Year Built: 1939
Height: 72 feet
Website: cityofhuron.org
Did You Know? The white steel tower, pyramidal lighthouse was one of the first electrically powered beacons on Lake Erie. The light was formerly operated by remote control from an on-shore brick station, but was automated in 1972. The light can be seen over a 12-mile radius. This is the sister lighthouse to the one in Conneaut.

Vermilion Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.4249, -82.3666
Year Built: 1991
Height: 35 feet
Website: mainstreetvermilion.org
Did You Know? Using only a 100-watt equivalent LED bulb, the light can be seen for 10 miles or more. The fresnel lens in the current lighthouse is a replica fifth order Barbier and Fenestre lens made with high impact acrylic — the same material used for fighter jet windshields.

Lorain Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.4775, -82.1905
Year Built: 1917
Height: 58 feet
Website: lorainlighthouse.com
Did You Know? The restoration program for “the Jewel of the Port” in 1990-1991 was helped by the Lorain city private and public school students through the “Pounds of Pennies” campaign, which collected 2,861 pounds of pennies with the value of $5,000.05.

Cleveland Harbor West Pierhead Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.5091, -81.7177

Cleveland Harbor East Pierhead Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.5103, -81.7154

Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.7677, -81.2811

Grand River (Fairport Harbor) Light
Latitude and Longitude: 41.7569, -81.2773
Year Built: 1825
Height: 60 feet
Website: fairportharborlighthouse.org
Did You Know? The original lighthouse stood 30 feet, but it was rebuilt in 1871 at a height of 60 feet. It also has a spiral staircase with 69 steps that lead to an observation platform.

Ashtabula Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.9185, -80.7956
Year Built: 1916
Height: 51 feet
Website: ashtabulalighthouse.com
Did You Know? In 1927, the steamer Gleneagles of the Canadian Steamship Lines rammed the lighthouse and drove it back 6 inches, heavily damaging the ship. No injuries were reported. In 1928, an ice storm imprisoned two keepers in the lighthouse. The Coast Guard had to tunnel through 5 feet of ice to free them.

Conneaut West Breakwater Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.9799, -80.5576

Pennsylvania

Presque Isle Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.1657, -80.1153
Year Built: 1872
Height: 60 feet
Website: presqueislelighthouse.org
Did You Know? The lighthouse’s longest-serving family was the Shaws. They oversaw the lighthouse for 26 years. On the other hand, one lightkeeper only lasted a day. He called it the “loneliest place in the world.”

Presque Isle North Pier Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.1561, -80.071

Erie Land Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.1439, -80.0622
Year Built: 1867
Height: 49 feet
Website: visiterie.com
Did You Know? Built of wood in 1818, it was the first lighthouse on the Great Lakes. After 40 years, it was replaced with a lighthouse built of brick, but the second one only lasted nine years before it began to sink. In 1876, another site was selected for the new tower, which was made of sandstone with a brick lining.

Western New York

Barcelona Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.3411, -79.5948

Dunkirk Lighthouse 
Latitude and Longitude: 42.4938, -79.3539
Year Built: 1875
Height: 61 feet
Website: dunkirklighthouse.com
Did You Know? Explore the lighthouse at night (7 p.m. to 1 a.m.) during ghost hunt tours. Take a brief tour of the house and tower before breaking up into small groups and attempting to speak with the paranormal through the Village Haunts. Visit the website for ticket information and schedule.

Buffalo Intake Crib Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.8796, -78.9121

Buffalo North Breakwater South End Light
Latitude and Longitude: 42.8776, -78.89

Buffalo Main Light
Latitude and Longitude: 42.8778, -78.8895
Year Built: 1833
Height: 68 feet
Website: buffalolight.org
Did You Know? According to the Buffalo Lighthouse Association Inc., lighthouses come in various shapes and sizes, dictated both by site conditions and the need to make sure they didn’t look confusingly similar to sailors. The octagonal form is a relatively
uncommon, but graceful, type that makes good use of locally available limestone blocks.

Buffalo Harbor South Entrance Light
Latitude and Longitude: 42.8337, -78.8673

Southern Ontario

Bois Blanc (Boblo) Island Lighthouse 
Latitude and Longitude: 42.087, -83.1194
Year Built: 1836
Height: 40 feet
Website: pc.gc.ca
Did You Know? The scene of an 1838 invasion by Canadian “Patriots” and their American supporters, the Bois Blanc (Boblo Island) Lighthouse near Amherstburg, Ontario, has stood for more than 100 years. The tall limestone lighthouse marked
the entrance/gateway to the mouth of the Detroit River and access to the Upper Great Lakes and, though not now open to the public, still reminds us of its importance to those who relied on its beams.

Pelee Passage Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.3407, -82.9309

Colchester Reef Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.931, -82.8921

Southeast Shoal Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.0022, -82.7448

Kingsville Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.0326, -82.7377

Pelee Island Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.832, -82.6386
Year Built: 1833
Height: 40 feet
Website: pelee.com/lighthouse-point-provincial-nature-reserve

Leamington Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.0303, -82.603

Pelee Passage New Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.8544, -82.5815
Year Built: 1902
Height: 66 feet
Tours: Not available. Tower is closed to the public, but grounds are open.
Website: lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?id=1040
Did You Know? By the 1960s, the lighthouse’s foundation was heavily damaged, so, in 1975, a modern structure, with a helicopter landing pad and cylindrical light tower at one corner, replaced the steel-plated Pelee Passage tower. It was dismantled in 1980 and re-erected on the shores of the Detroit River as a gift to the City of Windsor. repair damages, if necessary. This tunnel was created from cement on shore, floated on barges and sunk in place.

Rondeau West Breakwater Range Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.2535, -81.9094

Rondeau East Pier Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.2562, -81.9075

Port Stanley Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.6551, -81.2134
Year Built: 1911
Height: 33 feet
Website: portstanley.net
Did You Know? This lighthouse was built in the first decades of the 20th century with a pyramidal reinforced-concrete design. In 1913, a 1-inch diaphone operated by electricity was installed in the lighthouse. During periods of low visibility, this fog alarm would sound a two-second blast every 15 seconds.

Port Burwell Historic Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.6452, -80.8069
Year Built: 1840
Height: 45.6 feet
Website: bayham.on.ca/pages/museums
Did You Know? Constructed in 1840 as part of a national network of light stations equipped with beacon lights to warn or guide ships at sea, the lighthouse’s fixed white light is visible for 19 kilometers. It is the oldest wooden lighthouse on the Canadian shore of Lake Erie.

Old Cut Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.5816, -80.3966

Port Dover Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.7811, -80.2016
Year Built: 1905
Height: 35 feet
Website: norfolktourism.ca/port-dover-webcam
Did You Know? Visit the above website for an up to date look at this Heritage Lighthouse, which boasts a wooden, square-tapered design. Its architecture makes it durable and able to withstand heavy winds due to its low center of gravity. The webcam is operated by Norfolk County Tourism.

Long Point Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.5486, -80.0494

Port Maitland Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.853, -79.5798

Mohawk Island Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.834, -79.5226

Port Colborne Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.8626, -79.2548
Year Built: 1903
Height: 60 feet
Website: portcolborne.com/page/lighthouse_tours
Did You Know? A half-mile tunnel runs between the inner lighthouse and outer lighthouse, which allowed keepers to walk safely between the two during storms.

Point Abino Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.8355, -79.0953

Southeastern Michigan

Luna Pier Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 41.8091, -83.4413

Detroit River Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.0005, -83.1404

Grosse Ile Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.1687, -83.1403

River Rouge Mariners Memorial Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.2731, -83.1113

Milliken State Park Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.3335, -83.0249
Year Built: 2004
Height: 63 feet
Website: detroitriverfront.org/riverfront/east-riverfront/milliken-state-park-lighthouse
Did You Know? Milliken State Park Lighthouse is a scaled down replica of the renovated lighthouse at Tawas Point State Park. The park, which includes several covered picnic areas, shoreline fishing and a 52-slip harbor, was the first urban park in Michigan, and provides a 31-acre green oasis in the midst of downtown Detroit.

William Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.3477, -82.9544
Year Built: 1929
Height: 80 feet
Website: ipl.org/div/light/GL/WmLivingstoneMem.html
Did You Know? The only lighthouse in the nation constructed of marble is in honor of William Livingstone, who was the president of the Lake Carriers Association from 1902 to 1925.

Windmill Point Lighthouse
Latitude and Longitude: 42.3587, -82.9298

Do you have an update to this list — or beautiful photo of a Lake Erie lighthouse that you'd like to share? Email csmitek@glpublishing.com.

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