Michigan Lights - Saginaw River Rear Range

Saginaw River Rear Range Light
9/24/2019 dwm photo

Sundays on this blog are for lighthouses - and this is the second of two dozen coming over the next several months.  After our most recent trip, I've "collected" nearly 100!

I want to start the series in Saginaw, Michigan which is home to one of the most difficult lights to see - the Saginaw River Rear Range Lighthouse.

Built in 1876 after the first Saginaw Bay Light was ruled ineffective, the range lights were designed to solve a problem.

Today the rear light stands surrounded by reeds on three sides alongside the Saginaw River.

The front range light was later replaced with a steel tower.  After the need for the rear light went away in 1963, it continued to serve as a Coast Guard Station until 1981.

Eventually the light became property of Dow Chemical.

The old light rises 53 feet above reeds which have invaded
the marshy area of the river. 9/24/19 dwm photo

Saginaw and its neighbor, Bay City, are old industrial cities which benefited from the ocean-going vessels which brought in raw materials and took finished products to market.

Ships still come and go.  That is one activity to which the Saginaw River Marine Historical Society pays attention.  Maritime history is another and this lighthouse is front and center.

The Society is working with Dow to save the lighthouse - providing labor and expertise while the company provides funding.

Inside the light, saving the structure meant tearing things
down to the studs.  (dwm photo)

The light is rarely open to the public - usually in conjunction with a visit to Saginaw by Tall Ships, pieces of living history.

One wall has signatures from members of the Coast Guard from when they were serving at the station decades ago.  My tour guide told me the society invited some of those former Coasties to the light where they were amused to see their old graffiti.


I didn't expect to see the inside of the light, but was thrilled to climb one flight of the spiral stairs to see the guts of the old house.

The blue prints for the light are
on display. 9/24/19 dwm photo

This was the first light I've seen that used a locomotive light to guide ships up the Saginaw River.  While it originally used a white beam it later shaded red to distinguish it from other city lights.

A locomotive light is on display.  So is a red filter and a backup wick from the day the light relied on candle power.

This light and its predecessor served marine traffic from 1841 to 1939.    15 keepers worked the two lights.  One, Julia Brawn, served from 1873 to 1877 taking over after her husband, Peter, died after 7 years as the lead keeper.

Julia's story is echoed in other lights, where the supposed "weaker sex" did all the work, cared for their ailing husband, and took care of the family.  It wasn't "man's work," light keeping is the work of resolute and determined individuals.

The house is reflected tin the
back channel. 9/24/19 (dwm) 

Those are traits which also suit those set on saving these sentinels of the sea.

The Saginaw River Rear Range Light may never be open to the public on a regular basis, but it deserves to be saved.

One condition that creates value is scarcity.  Because this light is closed to the public and only accessible by boat, there was no way I was going to see it without help.

Members of the Society, which I joined, shared their passion for the house with me and gave their time so I could shoot several pictures.

I hoped for a few minutes for some quick shots; it felt like VIP treatment as I got to spend an hour exploring the grounds and getting a guided tour of the house's first two floors.

The light - like the keepers who worked there - is tough.