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| Windpoint Lighthouse in Racine, Wis., was built in 1880. |
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| Windpoint Lighthouse map. Click for larger version. |
The 0.2-mile round trip walk crosses the grounds for the Windpoint Lighthouse. It’s located at the north end of Racine Harbor on Lake Michigan.
To reach the lighthouse, from the junction of Wis. Hwy. 32 and 3 Mile Road north of Racine, take the latter street east toward Lake Michigan. As 3 Mile Road curves north along the lake, it becomes Lighthouse Drive. Next, turn right/east onto Village Hall Drive. A parking lot for the lighthouse is at the street’s end.
The lighthouse, constructed of cream city brick and painted white, rises 108 feet in the center of the calm and peaceful grounds. Several other buildings, including the keeper’s quarters, signal house (with two red fog horns protruding from its front), an oil house with a stepped gable, garage, and two storage buildings, are on the site.
A lighthouse was built on Racine Harbor in 1837. But Racine Point, about 3.5 miles, away kept south-traveling ships from seeing it. In 1880, at a different point on the harbor, the Windpoint Lighthouse was built to solve that problem.
Its light can be seen up to 19 miles away on Lake Michigan. The foghorn when it operated could be heard up to 10 miles away.
U.S. Army officer and engineer Orlando Metcalfe Poe, who served in Sherman’s famous March to the Sea, designed the lighthouse and grounds. He oversaw the design and construction of several Great Lakes lighthouses following the Civil War. One of the locks at Soo Locks, which connect Lakes Huron and Superior, even bears his name.
Originally a three-wicked kerosene lamp magnified by a Fresnel lens served as the beacon in Poe’s Windpoint Lighthouse. Fuel for the light had to be carried up 144 cast iron steps wind to the top of the 11-story tower. The beacon light was electrified in 1924, the second of all Great Lakes lighthouses to receive such an upgrade. The light was automated in 1964. Today, the original lens can be seen at the keeper’s quarters.
In 2007, the lighthouse underwent a $210,000 restoration. The porthole windows were replaced with arched window recesses while the brickwork was tuckpointed and the tower repainted. The Village of Wind Point uses the keeper’s quarters as its village hall and police headquarters.
Tours of the lighthouse are offered the first Sunday of the month from June to October between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. as well as select Saturdays. No children under age 6 are allowed in the tower, and to climb the steps you must wear sturdy walking or tennis shoes; no flip-flops, high heels or bare feet are allowed.
The lighthouse grounds, however, are open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. To extend the walk, hikers can stroll from the grounds through a brick garden to a somewhat rocky beach. The area is a great spot for a picnic.
