The Northern Lights

Symbols of safety, reassurance, and guidance, lighthouses hold a special fascination for many people. On the Great Lakes, lighthouses - "northern lights" - helped to open the region to settlement and supported the growth of commercial trade. To this day, they continue to light the way for thousands of recreational boaters. In this definitive guide to the lighthouses of the Great Lakes, Charles Hyde describes the histories of more than one hundred and sixty individual lighthouses that still exist on Lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan, and Superior, and the straits of Mackinac. He also describes the lives of early lighthouse keepers and their families, the heroes and heroines who lived in isolation, dedicated to aiding travelers in distress. Hyde documents maritime history from the early eighteenth century, when the first lighthouses were built in North America, and the subsequent growth of commerce on the Great Lakes. He also provides a general history of the United States Lighthouse Service and its descendants and examines how these organizations have functioned on the Great Lakes. As the shipping industry flourished, so too did the necessity for lighthouses. With their proliferation came a demand for more sophisticated structures. This book describes the changing design of lighthouses and the equipment that produces their beacons.