Historical Information

The first light designed to guide ships negotiating the eastern entrance of the Port Des Morts passage was constructed on Plum Island in 1846. Complaining that this light was located too far west of the passage entrance to be of any use to shipping, various influential maritime interests lobbied the Lighthouse Board to relocate the light to a more easterly location where it would better suit its' intended purpose.

On May 28 1858, title to the 3.5-acre island then known as Port Du Morts was transferred to the Lighthouse board for the construction of a new light station, and later that same year, work began on constructing the new station on Port Du Morts Island.

Consisting of a two story cream city brick keepers dwelling, an integral square tower was located at the apex of the roof at its' western end. Capped with a decagonal cast iron lantern room and equipped with a Fourth Order Fresnel lens, the tower was only thirty-five feet in height, however the site's elevation of eleven feet above lake level provided the light with a forty-six foot focal plane.

As a result of the thick fogs that frequently blanketed the passage, a fog whistle was installed on the island in 1864. Powered by a caloric engine, it was soon realized that the whistle was less than effective, when once again complaints from the mariner community began to be heard.

The Lighthouse Board again proved responsive to the criticism, and erected a more powerful steam operated siren at the station in 1875. With continuing dense fog commonplace along the passage, and to ensure that the fog signal was always ready for operation a duplicate backup steam siren was installed in a separate signal building at the station in 1880.

With improvements in fog signal technology, the two steam-powered sirens were removed in 1904, and dual diaphone fog signals were installed in one of the two signal buildings.

With the addition of First and Second Assistant keepers to help man the station, the dwelling underwent significant remodeling in this same year. Enlarged and converted into a "mirror" duplex for the Head Keeper and First Assistant, each half of the building incorporated its own entrance, stairway, five living rooms and a cellar. The remaining empty fog signal building was converted into quarters for the Second Assistant Keeper. A new oil storage house, outhouse, barn and workshop were also constructed, making Pilot Island the major station in the Door County area.

Audible at a distance of forty miles, the foghorns at Pilot Island were reputed to be the loudest on all the Great Lakes. In 1890, a visitor to the island noted that all the lights in the station were hung from the ceiling by strings, to prevent the vibrations from the horns from extinguishing their flames. It was further reported that eggs laid by the station's chickens never hatched, since the vibrations of the foghorns "scrambled" their contents in the shell.

With the universal adoption of radar and LORAN, the Coast Guard determined that the fog signal was no longer essential to navigation, and it was removed while the light was being automated in 1962.

Without the constant attention of devoted Keepers, the grounds are now overgrown, and the dwelling and empty fog signal building are the only remaining structures. Seabirds have taken over the island, and almost everything is covered with a white crust of guano. A modern solar powered 300mm acrylic lantern still guides mariners from the tower.

Keepers of this Light

Click Here to see a complete listing of all Pilot Island Light keepers compiled by Phyllis L. Tag of Great Lakes Lighthouse Research.

Seeing this Light

We had planned to charter the Shoreline Resort's P.B.R. to circle Pilot Island on our return from Washington Island. However on our arrival in Gills Rock the evening before, we learned that someone had already chartered the boat for a three-day fishing excursion, and thus we would have to make-do with photographs taken with the 500mm lens during our early morning crossing to Washington Island.

The crossing to Washington Island was somewhat rough, as we encountered four to six-foot seas, accompanied by a stiff westerly blow. The ferry does not pass close to Pilot Island, and with the naked eye, one could barely make out the lighthouse sticking up above the trees in the island's center. With the rocking of the boat, the best I was able to do was to lock focus and exposure, and fire the shutter as I saw the island pass through the center on its' vertical journey in and out of the viewfinder!

Even though we did not get close to the island, through the long lens we could plainly see what an isolated place Pilot Island would have been for the keepers assigned there. We could also see that all of the trees on the island were bare, likely a result of the thousands of birds that now call the island home.

According to Keith B. Kotimko, who graciously provided us with many of the photographs on this page after his visit to the island in 2001; "The seagulls are vicious, especially when their babies are all over the place. None of them feel guilty at all about dropping bombs on you. Wear a poncho that you don't mind throwing away. After 2 days on the island, my green poncho was more white than green."

Finding this Light

Pilot Island is inaccessible from land, and without access to your own boat, there are but two ways to view the Pilot Island Lighthouse.

First, Pilot Island can be seen from the Washington Island Ferry, when making the trip from the Door peninsula to Washington Island.

For a closer view, there are a number of charter boat services which offer closer trips around the island. One of the most convenient and best is operated by the Shoreline Resort at Gills Rock. At $19.95, their narrated lighthouse cruise aboard their converted Navy P.B.R. includes close-up passes of Plum and Pilot Islands, along with views of Washington and Detroit Islands.

Reference Sources

Inventory of Historic Light Stations, National Parks Service, 1994 
Lighthouse Tales, Fred Stonehouse, 1998
Life on Pilot Island in 1955, Jack A. Eckert, Wisconsin Magazine, 1999.
Door County Maritime Museum, Pilot Island page, website
USCG Historians office, Photographic archives.
09/05/01 email from Jean Fox on the correct spelling of Keeper Kenward's name.
Wisconsin Lighthouses, A photographic & Historical guide, Ken & Barb Wardius, 2000.
Keepers of the Lights, Steven Karges, 2000
Photographs courtesy of Keith B. Kotimko and Geoff Cronk.
Lighthouses and Range Lights of Door County, Peter Bosman, 2000
Keeper listings for this light appear courtesy of Great Lakes Lighthouse Research