Marquette Maritime Museum facts for kids
The Marquette Maritime Museum is a cool place to visit in Marquette, Michigan. It's a museum all about ships and the sea, and it's right next to a real lighthouse! Since 2002, the museum has worked closely with the Marquette Harbor Light. This lighthouse helps guide boats safely in Marquette Harbor and on Lake Superior. Lake Superior is one of the five huge Great Lakes.
At the museum, you can learn about Marquette's history with boats and the important iron ore trade. You can even take tours of the lighthouse! The United States Coast Guard still uses the lighthouse to help ships find their way.
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About the Museum Building
The museum is located in a historic building called the Marquette City Water Works. This building was made in 1891 from beautiful Lake Superior sandstone. It was built during a time when the Marquette Iron Range was very busy with iron ore mining.
The Marquette Maritime Museum Association started in 1980. They opened the museum in the old Water Works building in 1984. In 2002, the museum began offering guided tours of the Marquette Harbor Light.
Lighthouse Tours and Ownership
In July 2016, the Coast Guard gave the ownership of Lighthouse Point to the City of Marquette. This happened on the lighthouse's 150th birthday! Now, Lighthouse Park is open for everyone to visit.
The museum still offers guided tours of the lighthouse. These tours usually run from mid-May to mid-October. You can find more information about tour times and tickets on the museum's website.
Amazing Lighthouse Lenses
Inside the museum, you can see a display of special lenses called Fresnel lenses. These lenses were invented in the 1800s. They use carefully shaped glass pieces to focus a strong beam of light. This light helped ships see the lighthouses, even on stormy waters.
Today, most lighthouses use modern, bright lamps instead of Fresnel lenses. So, many of these old lenses have been given to museums like this one. It's a great way to see how lighthouses used to work!
Outdoor Memorials
Outside the Marquette Maritime Museum, there's a special memorial by the harbor. It honors two United States Navy submarines from World War II: the USS Darter and the USS Dace. These submarines played a very important part in a big battle in 1944 called the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
One reason these submarines are honored here is because David McClintock, who was on the Darter, was from Marquette. He was given a special award called the Navy Cross for his bravery and his crew's actions during the battle.
The museum is located at 300 North Lakeshore Boulevard, Marquette, Michigan 49855.
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