Milwaukee Breakwater Lighthouse Postcard

Built in 1926, the Milwaukee Breakwater light was one of the last to be constructed on the Great Lakes. Unlike most pier and breakwater lights, which were serviced by a keeper who lived onshore and walked the pier to service the light, this structure was manned with a live-in crew. The fifty-three-foot tall structure is situated in the approximate center of the four mile long Milwaukee breakwater. Built to endure the wave-pounding that such structures endure during Lake Michigan's angriest moments, the building is constructed from quarter-inch steel plates over a steel skeletal frame, and is equipped with windows and portholes with glass a full half inch in thickness. Originally painted red, the structure has been given a coat of white paint at some point in time during the ensuing years.