History Repeats Itself…Or Does It?

There is richness in the history of Eagle Bluff Light Station: lessons learned, plans made, and dreams achieved. When reading the archives of the Door County Historical Society, we blink in recognition of situations that continue to resonate today.

THEN: From 1961 through 1963, memos, letters, telephone calls, and license notices passed from the Historical Society through Peninsula State Park, to the Wisconsin Conservation Department, to the Coast Guard Commandant and on to the Milwaukee Port Director. Then a jump through the local legislative offices to the federal government offices of Comptroller, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury and into the Senate and House. This chain of correspondence all concerned the lease for the Historical Society to operate the museum and to collect a nominal fee for its upkeep.

NOW: Fortunately for our current plans we achieved a 15-year lease in 2020. This means that our plans for a solar power station at the lighthouse is on its way to being approved by the state engineer. Thanks to Chuck Baum for continuing to put energy into this project.

center and gift shop and present interpretative information for guests not able to access the lighthouse. John Swanson has talked to local suppliers and builders about how this may be achieved and we hope to have a drawing on-site this summer.

THEN: “The barn was more like a house. Men who came to work on (or repair) the light used it for their living quarters.” Circa 1800s.

NOW: Indeed the barn of our future will serve multiple uses as well. We will move the gift shop and visitors center out of the lighthouse and restore the winter kitchen. The newly built barn can be a visitors

THEN: September 26, l963, “Mr. Van Handel, Industrial Commissioner, was here today. He left word that the first floor was okay and could be opened to the public…But the upstairs should not be opened as yet he objects to the spiral staircase. Lowell Hansen”

NOW: Special attention has to be given to the spiral staircase for safety reasons. We have leaks in the lantern room that dampen the stairs. Extra care must be taken to wipe them off and caution guests on their use above the second floor. Over the winter, committee members are working on solutions to this continuing problem. By this summer, we will still be thrilling, but safer.

Eagle Bluff is a living, breathing lighthouse station. The Door County Historical Society staff and volunteers love presenting stories such as this one written by Mabel Spencer Kalmbach.

“One summer many years ago, my mother and sisters and I were spending a month on the old Kalmbach homestead on the shore of Detroit Harbor, Washington Island. We were surprised early one Sunday morning when our father and brother landed at the old log dock with a slow, clumsy old fish

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