{"nrhp_refnum":"83002242","name":"Presque Isle Light","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Presque Isle Pennisula on Lake Erie","address_restricted":false,"city":"Erie","county":"Erie County","state":"PA","lat":42.16585155000007,"lon":-80.11539378399993,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-08-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Presque Isle Light is a lighthouse on the north shore of Presque Isle Peninsula, the sand bar that shelters Erie Harbor on Lake Erie in Erie County, Pennsylvania. Its tower, keeper's dwelling and iron oil house form a coast light station.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the light played an important role in the development of Erie as a port. The first lighthouse at Erie, on the mainland near the harbor entrance, was judged poorly placed because the island blocked its view, which led to a new light on the peninsula. The station is documented as a coast light on the Great Lakes.","narrative":"Presque Isle Light stands on the north shore of Presque Isle Peninsula, the long sand bar that shelters Erie Harbor on Lake Erie. Ground was broken for the lighthouse on 2 September 1872, and a fixed white light of the fourth order, flashing red at one-minute intervals, was first shown on 12 July 1873. Construction was slowed by the difficulty of getting materials to the exposed site, and a scow carrying 6,000 bricks was lost on the dangerous shore. The square brick tower is 68 feet high and painted white, with paired round-arched windows at mid-height, a brick cornice and a 12-sided lantern. An attached eleven-story red brick keeper's dwelling and a square iron oil house complete the station. The earlier lighthouse on the mainland had been blocked from view by the island, which is why the new light was built on the peninsula. The nomination treats the light as central to the growth of Erie as a port. The original Fresnel lens has since been replaced by a Rotary Optic beacon.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Operates as a coast light with commercial power; the original Fresnel lens has been replaced by a Rotary Optic DCB-10 beacon.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:33.758384-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/92/8910/28891092/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/83002242.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83002242/8f42524099-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83002242/8f42524099-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Emily Beck, Erie Area Convention &amp; Visitors Bureau; cropped, rotated and color-corrected by Howcheng.","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PresqueIsleLighthouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Emily Beck, Erie Area Convention &amp;amp; Visitors Bureau; cropped, rotated and color-corrected by Howcheng.</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PresqueIsleLighthouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28891092","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presque_Isle_Light","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1845915"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/erie-county/presque-isle-light-83002242/"}