{"nrhp_refnum":"92000242","name":"Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Light","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"W breakwater pierhead, harbor entrance","address_restricted":false,"city":"Fairport Harbor","county":"Lake County","state":"OH","lat":41.767293910000035,"lon":-81.28134278799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-04-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel-frame, brick-walled light station with a three-story tower atop a two-story-and-basement building, on the west breakwater pierhead at the entrance to the Grand River at Fairport Harbor, Lake County, Ohio. It was built between 1921 and 1925 and is owned and operated by the U.S. Coast Guard.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the light is significant under Criteria A and C. It is tied to the contexts of Transportation and Commerce on Lake Erie and Light Stations on the Great Lakes. It is a distinct early 20th-century type of breakwater light station with an attached dwelling, steel and brick construction, iron plate cladding, and a cast iron winding stairway. It also shows American Foursquare influences in its cube shape, hip roof and symmetrical windows.","narrative":"Marking the entrance to the Grand River at Fairport Harbor, this white-painted, red-roofed light station sits on the west breakwater pierhead on Lake Erie. Built between 1921 and 1925, it has a three-story tower set on the corner of a two-story building with a basement. Steel framing supports 12-inch brick walls clad in steel plates. Its steelwork was fabricated at the Buffalo Lighthouse Depot and shipped to the site by steamer. The light first shone on June 9, 1925, and the station was automated in 1965. It replaced an older mainland light station, which now houses a marine museum. The building was listed for its link to commerce on Lake Erie, when the harbor handled iron ore, coal and chemical cargoes, and for its design. Its cube shape, hip roof and symmetrical windows echo the American Foursquare type, while its steel-and-brick construction and cast iron stairway reflect typical breakwater light stations of the period. It still guides commercial and recreational vessels.","period_of_significance":"1920-25","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Light station, with American Foursquare influences","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"In continuous service as an aid to navigation since 1925; automated in 1965. The former living quarters are no longer occupied.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.259259-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/92000242.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92000242/17ef099a60-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92000242/17ef099a60-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"Laszlo Ilyes from Cleveland, Ohio, USA","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fairport_Harbor_Lighthouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Laszlo Ilyes from Cleveland, Ohio, USA</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fairport_Harbor_Lighthouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71985638","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairport_Harbor_West_Breakwater_Light","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5430706"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/lake-county/fairport-harbor-west-breakwater-light-92000242/"}