Michigan Lights - Portage River (Jacobsville)

The Portage River (Jacobsville) Lighthouse.  9/17/2022 dwm photo

The Portage River Lighthouse is on a point on the east side of the Keweenaw Peninsula at the end of a dead end road on private land.  Fortunately where the road comes to a stop there is room for lighthouse fans to walk along the property.  

 

The lantern is a decagon.

 The point was chosen for a lighthouse so ships could find the entrance into the Portage River which leads to a lake and eventually to the communities of Houghton and Hancock.

 

 The first light went into service in 1856 but it wasn't built to last.  A replacement lighthouse and dwelling was built in 1869 with a taller tower and larger home.

 

The oil house.

There was a short fence along the lighthouse boundary marking its territory.  The road ended close to the fence with a driveway marked by a gate in the fence.  While we couldn't get closer we could see both sides of the lighthouse and stand behind it with no trees to obscure the view.  

This light was ultimately replaced in 1920 by the Lower Keweenaw Entrance Light which was a short drive from this point (it is next week's featured light).

The Portage River Lighthouse is sometimes called the Jacobsville lighthouse for a nearby community which had a large quarry.

 

The staircase may belong in the tower.

 Once the Lower Keneenaw Entrance Lighthouse took over, the Portage River lighthouse was dark.  

 

 It was turned over to Michigan in 1932 which left it alone.  In 1948 it was back in the hands of the Coast Guard.  

 

 It was sold at auction in 1958 to a couple for $18,000.

  

 In 2004, new owners made it the Jacobsville Lighthouse Inn.  They ran it until 2019 when illness forced them to close.  

 

It may still be for sale according to the LighthouseFriends.com website.

 

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