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| Rawley Point Light and the keeper's residence on Lake Michigan. |
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| Map of walk to Rawley Point Light. Click for larger version. |
The walk to the Rawley Point Light is a brief 0.15-miles round trip. Access to a Lake Michigan beachfront also is available.
To reach Rawley Point, from the intersection of Wis. Hwy. 42 and County Road O (22nd Street) in Two Rivers, take County O east/north. After passing Point Beach State Forest, turn right/east onto Park Road. Leave your vehicle in the lot on the road’s right/south side just before it curves north. Go to the lot’s east side and walk the trail heading right/south.
After passing through a small grove, the trail opens up to the lighthouse grounds with the beach and Lake Michigan beyond.
Long history of lighthouses
Standing 113-feet high, the lighthouse isn’t your standard brick or sandstone structure that make up so many of Wisconsin’s charming light stations. This light instead is the octagonal skeletal structure of the 1859 Chicago Harbor Light, which was dismantled and then reconstructed on the point in 1894.
The lighthouse and point is named for Peter Rowley, who set up a trading post nearby in 1835. A 1888 government records misspelling of his name led to the current use of “Rawley” rather than “Rowley.”
Records are not entirely clear, but a 75-foot tall light consisting of four poles and a lantern is thought to have been erected on the site in 1853. A wooden tower and house was built soon after. Because the wooden tower was in a poor location, though, a brick structure was constructed in 1874. This tower proved to be structurally unsound, however, so it was replaced with the current lighthouse. Trusswork was added to the steel tower’s base to increase the height, a new service room below the lantern was built, and a better lens installed.
The current lighthouse effectively ended shipping accidents on the dangerous shoals around Rawley Point. Prior to it, 26 ships foundered or were left stranded on the point. In 1887, the steamship Vernon sunk nearby, drowning 36 crew members and passengers.
Name change
The lighthouse was known as Two River Point Light until 1956, when it was given its current name. In 1962, a fire destroyed part of the residence. Then in 1979, the lighthouse was automated.
It continues in service today with Coast Guard personnel using the residence. The light can be seen up to 19 miles away and operates a half-hour before sunset until a half-hour after sunrise.
Tours of the lighthouse are not available, but on occasion self-guided tours of the residence are.
After taking in the lighthouse grounds, feel free to walk to the beach and dip your feet into Lake Michigan’s cold waters. The beach stretches about 300 feet from the lighthouse to the lake, so this can at least double the distance of the hike to a minimum of 0.3-miles round trip.
