Ottawa Point (now called Tawas Point) presents a hazard to navigation as it juts out into Lake Huron. It also shelters Tawas Bay, protecting ships from strong north or northeast winds.
In 1850, The Federal government set aside $5000 to build a lighthouse near the end of Ottawa Point. The Lighthouse Service paid Daniel S. Ellethorpe $200 for the 30-acre property. Construction started sometime after December 12, 1852. The lighthouse marked the location of the point so mariners could either avoid it or seek refuge in a storm.
In 1876, the U. S. Lifesaving Service established a station at Ottawa Point.
The first Tawas Point lighthouse was a short tower with a wide base. The lantern room was tall, and windows in the tower provided natural lighting for the stairway.
The Ottawa Point Lighthouse joined others built on the American shore of Huron before the Civil War:
Fort Gratiot (Port Huron) 1825; Thunder Bay Island 1832; Bois Blanc 1839;
Presque Isle 1840; Saginaw Bay 1841; Point Aux Barques 1847; Detour 1847;
Cheboygan 1851; Ottawa Point (Tawas Point) 1853; Charity Island 1857

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Show me all markers in:  East Tawas, MI  |  Iosco County  |  48730  |  Michigan  |  United States of America

Preserving the Light
The Changing Shape of Tawas Point
Tawas Point Light Station
Double Dwelling
Tawas Lighthouse
Oil House
Konotin-Iosco
Alabaster
First Methodist Church
Lumberman's Monument

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