North Point Lighthouse - Milwaukee
2650 N. Wahl Avenue, Milwaukee, WI  53211
Situated where the Milwaukee, Menomonee, and Kinnicknnick Rivers merge before emptying into Lake Michigan, Milwaukee was judged one of the most natural places for a harbor on the Great Lakes.  Recommendations had a lighthouse site at the mouth of the river, but the lighthouse was erected about a mile to the north.

Wisconsin Lighthouse Downloads and Prints

Map

Eli Bates, a former school teacher, was the first keeper of the lighthouse

Location

From Interstate 43 in Milwaukee, drive east on Interstate 794. Take the Lakefront exit and go north on Lincoln Memorial Drive for 2.2 miles. Turn left opposite the North Point Snack Bar/McKinley Park Beach and drive up the hill on E. Water Tower Road. Turn right along the bluff on Terrace Avenue and make a quick right onto Wahl Avenue. The lighthouse will be on your right after about half a mile, just before the southern end of the golf course in Lake Park.
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​​Google Maps HERE

History

Key Historical Highlights:​

1851 -- Present two-acre site from Wahl Avenue to the lakeshore was acquired by the U.S. Lighthouse Service for a cost of $1000.
1855 -- Original North Point Lighthouse is built with Cream City brick and officially begins operation on November 2, 1855. The 28-foot tower built on the bluff put the elevation of the beacon 107 feet above the water, the highest on the Great Lakes. 

1870s -- When shore erosion causes 16 feet of the Lighthouse’s front yard to break loose and drop to the beach, the government decides to build a new lighthouse 100 feet inland.

Source:  https://northpointlighthouse.org/learn/history/

Photography
Parking is available on Wahl Avenue and surrounding streets. There is no general visitor parking on lighthouse grounds but the small lot on site may be used only for handicapped access.
There are weekend hours to enter the lighthouse.  See their website.  

The grounds are open 24x7 to view outside.  Its a City Park.

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