Cultural Landscape Report and Environmental Assessment Raspberry Island Light Station, Apostle Islands National Lakeshore Bayfield County, Wisconsin

National Park Service; HRA Gray & Pape, LLC; Woolpert, LLP

Raspberry Island Light Station is one of six light stations located within Apostle Islands National Lakeshore (the Lakeshore). The park, located at the northeast point of the Bayfield Peninsula in Bayfield County Wisconsin, encompasses most of Lake Superior's Apostle Islands Archipelago, as well as a portion of the mainland (Figure 1). At roughly 296 acres, Raspberry Island is one of the smaller islands in the archipelago. Originally operated under the auspices of the U.S. Lighthouse Service, and then the U.S. Coast Guard, the Raspberry Island light station came under managerial control of the National Park Service in 1975, nearly five years after passage of Public Law 91-424, which established the Lakeshore. The enabling legislation for the park charges the National Park Service with conserving and developing the historical resources located on its lands, for "inspiration, education, recreational use, and public enjoyment." 1 The legislation states specifically that historic resources within the lakeshore will be preserved. To that end, the park has undertaken stabilization projects at several light stations, as well as general contextual studies concerning the importance of Great Lakes light stations to the regional shipping industry and economy. Previous work completed at Raspberry Island has included stabilization of the lighthouse and reconstruction of the station's ornamental flowerbeds. Recently, the Lakeshore contracted for completion of a historic structures report for the lighthouse, which contains various alternatives for rehabilitation of this significant building. Although previous studies have provided excellent information regarding the evolution of the site's buildings and structures and its native and introduced vegetation, they have not analyzed the relationship of the built environment to the remainder of the island, nor have they documented, analyzed, and evaluated the relationships between all the various buildings and structures extant at the light station and the surrounding environment. This cultural landscape report (CLR) employs a holistic approach to the analysis of the historic site, identifying general landscape characteristics and associated features that define the historical character of the property. The CLR is intended to serve two important functions. It will serve as the principal treatment document for cultural landscapes at Raspberry Island and will also serve as the primary tool for long-term management of those landscapes. The CLR establishes preservation goals for the cultural landscape that are grounded in research, inventory, documentation, and analysis and evaluation of the landscape's characteristics and associated features. It provides the basis for making sound decisions about management, treatment, and use.