Pointe aux Barques Lighthouse
Pointe aux Barques Light and Oil House
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| Location | Port Hope, Michigan |
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| Coordinates | 44°01′24″N 82°47′36″W / 44.02333°N 82.79333°WCoordinates: 44°01′24″N 82°47′36″W / 44.02333°N 82.79333°W |
| Year first constructed | 1848 |
| Year first lit | 1848 |
| Foundation | Dressed stone and timber |
| Construction | Brick |
| Tower shape | Conical |
| Markings / pattern | White with black and red trim |
| Height | 89 feet (27 m) |
| Focal height | 93 feet (28 m) |
| Original lens | Third order Fresnel lens with bullseyes |
| Current lens | DCB 224 Carlisle & Finch Aerobeacon |
| Range | 28 nautical miles (52 km; 32 mi) |
| Characteristic | 20 sec./ .2" fl., 4.8" ec.; .2" fl. 14.8" ec. |
| ARLHS number | USA-615 |
| USCG number |
7-10210 |
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The Pointe aux Barques Lighthouse
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| NRHP Reference # | 73000949 |
| Heritage | place listed on the National Register of Historic Places 
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7-10210
The Pointe aux Barques Lighthouse ranks among the ten oldest lighthouses in Michigan. It is an active lighthouse maintained by the US Coast Guard remotely, located in Lighthouse County Park on Lake Huron near Port Hope, Michigan in Huron County. "Pointe aux Barques" means 'Point of Little Boats', a descriptor of the shallow shoals and reefs that lurk beneath these waves, presenting a hazard to boats as they round Michigan's Thumb.
In the mid-19th century most travel was by sailing vessel. There were few or no roads, and only a few steamships were operating on the Great Lakes. Navigation was still primitive by today’s standards. Vessels followed the coastline of the lakes until there was a need to cross a large body of water, and then a compass and sextant were the major navigation tools.
Sailing schooners left Detroit and the St. Clair River and soon left the sight of the 1825 Fort Gratiot Light and began the perilous trip north along the Lake Huron shore. The next light to the north was located at Thunder Bay Island (1832), more than 150 miles (240 km) north of Fort Gratiot. Any vessel sailing up the Lake Huron coast stood a good chance of running aground on the reef extending out from Pointe aux Barques. The reef is only covered by some two feet of water and stuck out nearly two miles into Lake Huron.
Pointe aux Barques was also used as a turning point for vessels destined to the Saginaw River. A lighthouse had been established at the mouth of the Saginaw River as early as 1841, but the trip to Saginaw Bay required steering clear of Pointe aux Barques reef.
The lighthouse was intended to be constructed near the Thumb's most northwestern point at Pointe Aux Barques however it was ultimately constructed approximately 4.5 miles (7.2 km) east / southeast in what is now Huron Township.
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Wikipedia