- Mendota (Bete Grise) Light
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Mendota (Bete Grise) Light 
Location Bete Grise, Delaware, Michigan Coordinates 47°22′27″N 87°58′00″W / 47.37417°N 87.9666667°WCoordinates: 47°22′27″N 87°58′00″W / 47.37417°N 87.9666667°W[1] Year first constructed 1895 Deactivated 1956 Construction Brick Tower shape Square, attached T-shaped bldg. w/steep gable roof.[2] Markings / pattern Yellow with black lantern Height Tower 42 feet (13 m) Focal height Focal plane - 44 feet (13 m) Original lens 4th Order Fresnel Lens Current lens 4th Order Fresnel Lens Characteristic Flash W 20 secs.[3] ARLHS number USA-489 USCG number 7-15151 The Mendota Light, also known as the Bete Grise light, was built on the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan to facilitate travel between Lake Superior and Lac La Belle, Michigan (an artificial canal having been made to connect the two).
History
The original plans were laid in 1867 and the lighthouse was constructed in 1869. Only one year later, the light was decommissioned as it was found by navigators to be of no assistance (nor was there any other commercial reason to make this trip).
The tower was removed and taken to Marquette, but the keeper's house remained in place. In 1892, ships tried to use this bay for a safe harbor during a storm, and the seafarers, observing the house (at this point deserted), suggested that the harbor would be easier to find if there was a light present. By 1895, funds had been allocated to re-establish the light, but it was determined that the existing structure had deteriorated so much that it could not be used. A new structure was built using the original foundations.
In 1933 the light was automated and in 1956 it was decommissioned.
It was a private residence until 1996. The lighthouse, only accessible by boat since no roads or private drives lead to it, was for sale in 1996.[4] It was sold to a person willing to conserve the light. The original fourth order Fresnel lens was found, restored and in 1998 relit.[5] It is still in place and in use. Efforts are being made to maintain the light for the "next 100 years".
The light is now classified as an active private aid to navigation.[3]
To view the light, travel to the Keweenaw Peninsula of Upper Michigan to the town of Bete Grise. The road ends at the Mendota Ship Canal. Take the short walk to the Ship Canal. You will see the station boathouse across the Canal, and the Mendota Light itself a little to the east.
National Register Status: PART OF LISTING; Reference #80004840 Name of Listing: HISTORIC ENGINEERING & INDUSTRIAL SITES IN MICHIGAN TR.[6]
References
- ^ Amateur Radio Light House Society.
- ^ Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Bete Grise Light.
- ^ Lighthouse depot, archive on Mendota light.
- ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/miup.htm.
- ^ National Park Service, Inventory of Historic Lighthouses, Bete Grise Light.
External links
- Aerial photos, Mendota Light, marinas.com.
- lighthousesRus - A map to the Mendota Lighthouse.
- Detroit News, Interactive map on Michigan lighthouses.
- Interactive map of lighthouses in eastern Lake Superior.
- Lighthouse Central, Mendota (Bete Grise) light The Ultimate Guide to Upper Michigan Lighthouses by Jerry Roach. (Publisher: Bugs Publishing LLC - 2007). ISBN 978-0-9747977-2-4.
- Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, Bete Grise Light.
- Michigan lighthouse fund, Bete Grise Light.
- Michigan organizations, Bete Grise Light.
- National Park Service Haritime Heritage, Inventory of Historic Lighthouses, Bete Grise Light.
- Terry Pepper, Seeing the Light, Bete Grise Light.
- "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Michigan". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses/LHMI.asp. Bete Grise Light.
- Wobser, David, Bete Grise Light (Mendota) boatnerd.com.
Lighthouses of Michigan See also: List of lighthouses in Michigan Northern upper peninsula Au Sable Light • Big Bay Point Light • Copper Harbor Light • Copper Harbor Front Range Light • Crisp Point Light • Eagle Harbor Light • Eagle Harbor Range Lights • Eagle River Light • Fourteen Mile Point Light • Grand Island East Channel Light • Grand Island Harbor Rear Range Light • Grand Island North Light • Granite Island Light • Gull Rock Light Station • Huron Island Light • Isle Royale Light • Manitou Island Light Station • Marquette Harbor Light • Mendota (Bete Grise) Light • Munising Front Range Light • Munising Rear Range Light • Portage River (Jacobsville) Light • Passage Island Light • Rock Harbor Light • Rock of Ages Light • Sand Hills Light • St. Martin Island Light • Stannard Rock Light • Thunder Bay Island Light • Whitefish Point LightSouthern upper peninsula DeTour Reef Light • Manistique East Breakwater Light • Martin Reef Light • Menominee Pier Light • Naubinway Island Light • Peninsula Point Light • Poverty Island Light • Sand Point Light Escanaba • Sand Point Light Baraga • Seul Choix Light • Squaw Island Light • White Shoal LightSt. Mary's River Frying Pan Island Light • Pipe Island Light • Point Iroquois Light • Round Island Light (St. Mary's River) • Six Mile Point Range Rear LightPortage River/Ship Canal Keweenaw Waterway (Portage Lake) Lower Entrance • Keweenaw Waterway Upper Entrance Light • Rouleau Point Range Front and Rear LightsStraits of Mackinac Bois Blanc Light • McGulpin Point Light • Old Mackinac Point Light • Round Island Light • Round Island Passage • St. Helena Island LightWestern lower peninsula Beaver Island Harbor Light • Beaver Island Head Light • Big Sable Point Light • Charlevoix Light • Charlevoix South Pier Light • Frankfort Light • Frankfort South Range Light • Grand Haven Light • Grand Haven South Pierhead Outer Light • Grand Haven Main Light • Gray's Reef Light • Holland Harbor Light • Ile Aux Galets • Little Sable Point Light • Little Traverse Light • Ludington Light • Manistee Main Light • Manistee Pierhead lights • Miller Memorial Light • Mission Point Light • Mission Point Light (2) • Muskegon Breakwater Light • Muskegon Pier Light • Point Betsie Light • South Fox Island • South Haven Light • South Manitou Island Light • Waugoshance Light • White River LightEastern lower peninsula Alpena Light • Bellanger Park (Ecorse) Light • Caseville Harbor (Saginaw Bay) • Belle Isle Light • Charity Island Light • Cheboygan River Range Front Light • Cheboygan Crib Light • Detroit River Light • Fort Gratiot Light • Forty Mile Point Light • Fourteen Foot Shoal Light • Gibraltar Light • Gravelly Shoal Light • Harbor Beach Light • Manning Memorial Light • Mariners Memorial (River Rouge) Light • New Presque Isle Light • Old Presque Isle Light • Poe Reef Light • Pointe aux Barques Light • Port Austin Light • Port Sanilac Light • Saginaw River Range Front Light • Saginaw River Rear Range Light • Spectacle Reef Light • St. Clair Flats Front and Rear Range Light • Sturgeon Point Light • Tawas Point Light • Tri-Centennial Light of Detroit • William Livingtone Memorial LightHistorical (lost) lights Au Sable North Pierhead • Clinton River Light • Ecorse Light • Ecorse Range Rear • Gibraltar Light • Grassy Island Lighthouse • Grassy Island North Channel Range • Grassy Island South Channel Range • Grosse Isle South Channel Range • Harwood Point East Range Front (St. Mary's River) • Mama Juda Light • Mama Juda Range Front • Middle Lake George • Monroe Pier • New Buffalo • North Manitou Island • Rouleau Point Range Front and Rear • Saginaw Bay • Sand Beach North Entrance East • Squaw Point • St. Mary's River Lower Range Front • Turtle Island Light • Vidal Shoals Channel Range Front and Rear • Windmill Point Range Front and Rear • Winter Point Range FrontRelated – Lightship Huron, List of lifesaving stations in Michigan Categories:- Lighthouses in Michigan
- Buildings and structures completed in 1895
- National Register of Historic Places in Michigan
- Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places
- Lighthouses in Keweenaw County, Michigan
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