Au Sable Light Station: Cultural Landscapes Inventory, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Regions 3, 4, 5 Park Cultural Landscapes Program. 2023. Au Sable Light Station: Cultural Landscapes Inventory, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Cultural Landscapes Inventory Report. 500318. National Park Service. NPS Midwest Regional Office / CRIS-CL Database
This Cultural Landscape Inventory (CLI) park report documents the Au Sable Light Station cultural landscape, part of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan. Five acres were listed on the National Register on May 23, 1978. The nomination indicates that the site was originally 326 acres. The primary buildings include the keeper's dwelling, the lighthouse tower and the passageway, the attached assistant keepers' duplex/dwelling, and the fog signal building. Spatially the buildings are arranged linearly from west to east along the top of the sand bank to take advantage of long views and lakeshore access. The boathouse is located to the east, at a lower elevation and closer to the lakeshore; a garage is west of the keeper's dwelling. Four outbuildings are located south of the major buildings: two brick privies, a brick oil house, and a cylindrical metal oil house. The site also includes a network of concrete walks linking the major buildings, a more informal series of earthen paths and trails, and miscellaneous small-scale features that relate to either the site's original lighthouse function or its more recent visitor interpretation use. The period of significance has been identified as spanning the entire development and operation of the light station, from 1873 through 1958. The site was largely abandoned from 1959 to 1968, at which time it was acquired by NPS. It is notable because of its importance to navigation along Lake Superior’s treacherous southern shore (Criterion A), and the site also represents an excellent example of 19th century lighthouse architecture.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Regions 3, 4, 5 Park Cultural Landscapes Program
- Date of Issue
- 2023-06-30
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- MWR , PIRO
- Keywords
- architecture, assistant keeper, Big Sable Light Station, fog signal, Great Lakes, keepers dwelling, Lake Superior, light station, lighthouse, maritime history, Michigan, navigation, transportation, US Coast Guard, walkway
- Subjects
- CRIS-CL: 500318: Au Sable Light Station