Fourteen Foot Shoal Light
The light in 2001 (note the solar panels that provide the current power)
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| Location | Lake Huron, Michigan |
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| Coordinates | 45°40′47.3″N 84°26′6″W / 45.679806°N 84.43500°WCoordinates: 45°40′47.3″N 84°26′6″W / 45.679806°N 84.43500°W |
| Year first constructed | 1929 |
| Year first lit | 1930 |
| Foundation | Pneumatic/sub |
| Construction | Reinforced concrete and steel |
| Tower shape | square building; frustum of a cone tower |
| Markings / pattern | White with red trim |
| Height | Tower – 36 feet (11 m) |
| Focal height | Focal plane – 55 feet (17 m) |
| Original lens | Fourth-order Fresnel lens |
| Current lens | 9.8-inch (250 mm) Tidelands acrylic optic Fresnel lens |
| Range | 14 nautical miles (26 km; 16 mi) |
| Characteristic |
0cculting W 4 seconds Operates year round. |
| Fog signal | HORN: 1 blast ev 15 s (2s bl) Diaphone |
| ARLHS number | USA-306 |
| USCG number |
7-11765 |
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Fourteen Foot Shoal Light Station
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| NRHP Reference # | 05000742 |
| Added to NRHP | July 27, 2005 |
| Heritage | place listed on the National Register of Historic Places 
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0cculting W 4 seconds
7-11765
The lighthouse at Fourteen Foot Shoal was named to note that the lake is only 14 feet (4.3 m) deep at this point, which is a hazard to navigation, ships and mariners.
This light is located at the northern end of Lake Huron, Michigan, US, where it is necessary for boats heading to Chicago to pass through a narrow strait and still avoid shallow water. The most common path is to go south of Bois Blanc Island (Michigan). In this channel, the Poe Reef Light marks the northern end of the safe channel and the Fourteen Foot Shoal light marks the southern side of the channel.
The United States Lighthouse Service intended from the time of design that this light would be automated (possibly the first such instance) and operated by radio control from the nearby Poe Reef Light which is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) away; the keeper's house was never intended to be used as a residence. In 1925 a temporary acetylene buoy was installed there and construction of the permanent light began in 1929 such that the light could begin operation in 1930.
The original light was a fourth-order Fresnel lens. The focal plane is 56 feet (17 m). It now has a 9.8-inch (250 mm) acrylic optic Fresnel lens, and assuming it is properly installed and adjusted, has a maximum visible range of 9 nmi (17 km). A diaphone fog horn is attached.
It is in U.S. Coast Guard District 9, and is still an active aid to navigation.
In 2002 the crew of the Cutter USCGC Mackinaw (WAGB-83) painted and refurbished the light.
The light has been added to the National Register of Historic Places; but is not on the state registry, although it was determined to be eligible by the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office.
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Wikipedia