Cleveland East Pierhead Lighthouse


Photo Credit: C. Hanchey

Best viewed form the plaza behind the Great Lakes Science Center and the Steamship WILLIAM G. MATHER Museum.

History:
As early as 1818, Cleveland petitions the federal government for a lighthouse. The waterfront city was still quite small, but the prospect for growth based on the construction of a new canal gave the city plenty of hope. Located on a bluff where West 9th Street is today, the first lighthouse was built in 1829 near the Cuyahoga River. This 63-foot lighthouse was built by Levy Johnson, a shipwright and home builder who also built the original Cedar Point Lighthouse in 1836 and placed buoys in Sandusky Bay. Johnson also oversaw the building of a 700-foot-long stone pier east of the Cuyahoga River. A breakwall protects Cleveland’s harbor with lighthouses positioned at both ends. This cast iron lighthouse was built in 1910 and once housed a 5th Order Fresnel lens. At 30 feet tall, this lighthouse now operates with a 300mm plastic optic and is an active Coast Guard station.

Contact:
Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Cleveland, (800) 321-1001

Vistor Info:
This lighthouse can only be viewed from a distance. Lake cruises, which include close-up views of Cleveland’s lighthouses, are offered by the NAUTICA QUEEN (www.nauticaqueen.com) and the GOODTIME III (WWW.GOODTIMEIII.COM).

Address

The Ohio State University
Ohio Sea Grant College Program
1314 Kinnear Rd, Area 100
Columbus, OH 43212-1156

By Telephone

+1 614-292-8949 Phone

lucente.6@osu.edu

Ohio Department of Natural Resources Ohio Costal Management Program NOAA Ohio State University Ohio Sea Grant

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This web site was prepared by the Ohio Sea Grant College Program using Federal funds under award NA16NOS4190094 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Office of Coastal Management. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, or the Office of Coastal Management.