Lighthouses fascinate me. Whenever we are on any kind of trip or adventure we try to find a lighthouse.
Many of our trips involve large bodies of water so there is a pretty good likelihood that I will see a lighthouse. My Mr. Diamond loves to find them for me and on a recent trip to Ohio he found a new one.
We were headed to the airport later in the day but had some time to kill after a weekend of gatherings so family members could meet Micah and Wendy. Chris looked at the map and decided to take a little detour on our way to the airport to a cute town called Vermillion. If my memory serves me correctly I believe my Daddy actually lived in Vermilion at one time.
Vermilion is a smallish town of around 11,000 located in Erie and Lorain counties. It started as a fishing and small boat harbor area and served the area well. The town has changed over the years and one thing that has changed along with the town is the lighthouse.
The first lighthouse in Vermilion was built back in 1847 with a $3000 grant. The structure was originally wooden and in 1886 funds were designated to build a new permanent light house from iron. The lighthouse was completed in1 877, was 34 feet high and equipped with an oil lantern and a 5th order Fresnel lens.
A view of the nice park area and beach located next to the lighthouse.
In 1929 the lighthouse it was discovered that the lighthouse was leaning so it was removed and replaced with an 18 foot steel tower. The old lighthouse was moved back to Buffalo and was later restored and reinstalled as the East Charity Shoal Light.
The current lighthouse is the result of a $55,000 public fundraising effort to bring a replica of the original lighthouse back to the shores of Lake Erie. The replica was erected on October 23, 1991 and dedicated on June 6, 1992. A 200 watt incandescent light bulb illuminates the lighthouse with a 5th order Fresnel lens. It is situated on the property of the Inland Seas Maritime Museum.
We didn’t have time to explore the museum but it looked like a pretty neat place so if you are in the area and have time check it out.
This smallish lighthouse stands proud and tall on the shores and is a great tribute to the area who wanted to preserve a bit of history. 
