Report for Brush Point Rear Range Light Station (Michigan) - 1909

General
District: 9th
Inspector: Ralph R. Tinkham
Location: On the S'ly shore of St. Marys River, about 3/8 mile to S'd of Brush Point, Mich., & nearly opposite Pointe auz Pins Canadian Light Station, Ontario. Rear Tower 1430 feet ENE1/2E from front tower.
Date of Report: 07/22/1909
Latitude: 46° 27' 53"
Longitude: 84° 27' 19.6"
Premises
Site: Purchase. An irregular strip being a part of S fr. 1/2, SE1/4, Sec. 17, T47N, R1W, Mich Mer.
Date of Reservation:
Date of Deed: 11/01/1885
Date of Permission:
Date of Lease:
Area of the Entire Site: 8.5 acres
Area Inclosed: None.
Character of Soil: Swamp muck, underlaid by sand.
Distance of tower from Nearest High-Water Mark:
Inclosures to Premises / Type of Fence: None.
Wharf or Landing on Premises: Boatlanding at boathouse.
Road to Land or Wharf Chararacter of and Distance: Board walk to boathouse from dwelling.
Means to Reach Light Station: By boat. A foot path, poorly cut out & wet, leads from the rear tower back through the reservation about 1000' to high ground, where it joins a read to Sault Ste. Marie, a distance of 1/2 mile from station.
Distance to Nearest Road: 4 miles to Algonquin by water. 6 miles to Sault Ste. Marie by read, 1/2 mile in rear of station.
Distance to Post Office: 4 miles to Algonquin, by water.
Distance to Village: Algonquin is part of Sault Ste. Marie & is connected by carline & railway.
Facilities for Public Conveyance: None.
Facilities for Private Conveyance: By boat or rig from Sault Ste. Marie. If by rig, can get only within 1/2 mile of station, thence by poor footpath.
Means Used for Support of Lantern: Tower
Number of Separate Lights: 2
First Built or Established: 1887
Last Rebuilt, Repaired, or Renovated:
Condition at This Date: Good.
Shape of Tower in Plan: Square
Form of Tower: Pyramidal.
Height from Base to Ventilator Ball: 37 feet
Height of Focal Plane Above Mean High Water: 33 feet.
Background of Lighthouse as Seen from Sea: Wooded.
Color of Tower: White with black lanterns.
Color of Tower/ How Produced: Paint
Tower Connection: 1300 ft. E'ly of dwelling.
Object of Navigation: Range for upper St. Marys River, lower channel.
Building Materials: Wood frame construction.
General Description:
Wall Thickness at Base: Single thickness sheathing.
Wall Thickness at Parapet: Single thickness sheathing.
Diameter at Base: 12' 6"
Diameter at Parapet: 8'
Kind of Stairway and Steps: Wood stairs with wood rail & turned stachions.
Number of Landings: 2
Size of Glass: 10" x 12"
Number of Windows and Size of Sash: 1 4lt. in service room, casement sash 24.5" x 37"
Number of Doors: 2, outside wood panel, 1 from stairs to service room.
Kind of Foundation and Depth Below Surface: Timber sills on piles.
Character of Soil Surrounding the Lighthouse: Alder & tamarach swamp with considerable water.
Soil Susceptibility: Marsh grass covers cleared portion of reservation, remainder thickly grown to alders.
Miscellaneous Remarks:
Lantern and Fixtures
Order of Lantern: 4th
Shape of Lantern: Polygonal.
Diameter to Glass: 7' 3-3/8"
Diameter in the Clear: 6' 7.75"
Number of Sides: 10
Type of Bars: Vertical.
Thickness of Bars:
Height Glazed: 36"
Number of Plates in Height: 1
Number of Plates Each Side: 1
Thickness of Plates: 5/16"
Size of Plates: Lantern plates, 36.5" x 27.5", Storm panes 36.5" x 25.25"
Number of Storm Panes: None in place; 2 on hand.
Unglazed Side of Lantern: None.
What Bearings:
Construction Material Lantern: Parapet cast iron lined with wood, verticals wrot iron.
Construction Material Roof / Cowl: Pyramidal cast iron roof lined with zinc.
Ventilator / Cowl: Cast iron.
Lightning Spindle: Brass with platinum tip.
Description of Lightning Rod: 5/8" gaspipe leads from parapet wall of lantern down outside of tower (N side) into a 6" wrot iron pipe filled with charcoal & set into the wet ground. Front tower the same.
Balustrade: Gallery 12 ft. square of plank supported on wood brackets. Balustrade; double pipe rail 3' high, pipe fittings.
Lantern Doors: Single-fold cast iron plate door in parapet fitted with 2 wrot iron clamps & handle & strap hinges.
Floor of Lantern: Wood flooring on 2"x6" joist.
Watchroom Doors: A wood trap door in lantern floor 25" x 34"
Parapet Diameter: 6' 7.25" Parapet wood lined.
Ventilators
Location / Number: 5 in parapet, bass valve registers inside, unproteced openings in outside parapet wall.
Ladders / Cleaning Arrangement: NOne.
Curtain Hooks / Hanger: Broad brass hooks screwed to soffit.


Watchroom
How is Watchroom Fitted: Room beneath lantern used a service room has 1 4-lt. window in front, is 6'x6' sq. in NW corner of tower, enclosed stair well, closet on S & E sides. Fitted with small cleaning table. Lower part of tower contains glass-box.
How is Relief Called:
Where is Call System Led:
Illuminating Apparatus
Kind of Apparatus:
Intensity in Candles:
Name of Maker: Henry Lepaute, Paris
Year Made: Not given
Marks and Number: None.
Order of Apparatus: 5th
Inside Diameter: 14.75"
Light Characteristic: Fixed red
Time of Revolution:
Flash Interval:
Duration of Flash:
Arc of Each Fixed Part: 2 panels each 90 degrees facing along range. The remaining 180 deg. enclosed by 2 spherical segmental brass doors opposite central drum of lens.
Number of Panels: 2
Number of Flash Panels: None.
Arc of Each:
Number of Elements in Central Drum: Central belt with 2 elements above & below.
Number of Prisms Above Center Drum: 5
Number of Prisms Below Center Drum: 3
Does Apparatus Revolve?: False
Is There a Revolving Belt?: False
Revolving Panels:
How Flash is Produced:
Number of Vertical Elements Panel:
Fixed Lens Covered:
Pedestal: Old pattern cast iron.
Service Table: None except small movable wood bench, 12" x 24" top.
Draft Tube Description: None.
Revolving Machinery: None.
Standby and Description:
Chariot Float or Balls:
Chariot Description: The apparatus is mounted on cross & ring lamp stand, supported on 4 1.25" wheels resting on pedestal top. Moved for cleaning purpuses only.
Length of Drop Tube: None.
Clock Weight:
Length of Winding Time:
Drive During Rewind:
Machinery Protection:
Regulated:
Lens Protection:
How Color is Produced: By ruby lamp chimney. Both Towers.
Red Sectors Description:
Where Color Attached:
Form of Colored Glass:
Lamp Description: Funk-Heap, 1 wick.
Type of Illuminant:
Number of Spare Lamps: 1
Number of Spare Burners: 3 (1 for each lamp)
Candle Power:
Closets and Store Rooms
Tower Closet Use: 1 closet in rear of service room fitted with 3 wood shelves & used for storing lamp supplies.
Oil House Description: 30' SW'ly of dwelling, rear of boathouse.
Oil House Inside Dimension: 9'4" x 7'5"
Oil House Construction Material: Concrete blocks, metal-slate roof, reinfored concrete ceiling.
Oil House Capacity: 100 cans.
Other (Describe): 1 closet & pantry, 1st ploor of dwelling & 4 closets 2nd floor.
Suitability: Suitable.
Healthfulness
General Opinion: The keepers has lived here 13 seasons & his wife 5. They both have contracted rheumatism & it is chronic. They both claim to experience spells of ill-health at intervals due to dampness of dwelling & premises.
Diseases: No other residents in vicinity except campers. Keeper & wife have chronic rheumstism; 1 of their sons contracted typhoid fever 1 season recently while here.
Prevalency: Particularly troubled in spring of year when ice prevents the swamp water from running off.
Local Causes: Station is buildt near lake in a low alder swamp. Old wood crib around dwelling supporting plank deck undoubtedly hods & transmits cosiderable moisture to walls of dwelling. This to be replaced by concrete retaining wall & earth filled.
Recommended Improvements: A ditch runs from rear tower through premises to lake & could be improved. However, swamp is so low as to be practically below lake level so natural drainage is impossible. Conditions could be improved by filling on all sides of crib and tiling around cri
Miscellaneous
Access to Lighthouse: Boathouse is 12' x 28' plan, boarded & battened, set on piles on beach, has weathered shingle roof. Stands 50' SW'ly from dwelling, fitted with iron winch. Landing consists of 2 log cribs, 1 each side of boarway & 30' from boathouse. Cribs are 8'x12'.
Distance and Direction: Boathouse 50' SW'ly from dwelling. Landing on W side of boathouse.
Miscellaneous Remarks: