Name and Location

Eagle Bluff Lighthouse is a historic aid-to-navigation located overlooking Green Bay on the western shore of Lake Michigan in Fish Creek, Wisconsin. Its address is 10249 Shore Road, Fish Creek, Town of Gibraltar, Door County, Wisconsin 54212, USA.

Construction and History

The lighthouse was first lit in late 1868, guiding commercial and passenger vessels through the shoal-strewn waters off Fish Creek. Congress appropriated funds in 1866 to build a light station here; construction by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was completed in 1868. The light was initially automated in 1926, and full U.S. Coast Guard control was assumed soon thereafter.

Architecture and Materials

The lighthouse is a cylindrical tower, 27 ft tall (from base to gallery rail), attached to the north side of a one-and-a-half-story cottage. It features cream-colored brick masonry laid on a limestone foundation, with wood-frame keeper's quarters clad in board-and-batten siding.

Light and Navigation

The original lens was a fourth-order Fresnel lens, replaced by a modern acrylic beacon installed during automation. The light characteristic is flashing white every 4 seconds (Fl W 4 s), with a nominal range of 17 nautical miles. Power source: battery-backed solar power.

Accessibility and Visiting

The tower is not open for climbing, but the museum in the former keeper's house is open to visitors. Seasonal hours (mid-May through mid-October) are daily 10 a.m.–5 p.m., with free admission and optional donations. Guided tours offered hourly; self-guided materials available onsite.

Notable Views and Landscape

Perched on a forested bluff, the site offers panoramic views of Fish Creek Harbor, Green Bay's shipping lanes, and the opposite shoreline of Peninsula State Park. Adjacent picnic grounds and nature trails are maintained by the Town of Gibraltar.

Anecdotes and Folklore

Local legend holds that the lighthouse is named for a pair of bald eagles that nested on the bluff in the 1870s; no official record confirms this, but the eagles became a recurring symbol on early postcards. Keeper John Schaettle, who served from 1885 to 1902, is remembered for marching daily down the bluff to row out and inspect shoal buoys—even in winter ice—stories that inspired a small children's book published in Fish Creek.

Technical and Operational Details

Still an active U.S. Coast Guard aid to navigation (Light number US 4-1225), referenced on NOAA nautical chart 14954 (Sturgeon Bay to Rock Island Point).

Further Information