Point Iroquois Lighthouse in Sault Ste. Marie, Chippewa County, United States | Lighthouse

This lighthouse stands watch where Lake Superior begins its treacherous rush into the St. Mary's River. The Ojibwa Indians massacred a group of invading Iroquois warriors at this location in 1662, giving the point its original Indian name. It was noted by the early explorers, but did not become significant until the St. Mary's Falls Ship Canal opened in 1855.
Ships passing from Lake Superior into the canal came close to Point Iroquois, through a narrow passage between the sandy shores on the American side and the reefs on the Canadian side.
The original Congressional appropriation of 1853, provided $5,000 to build a light either at Point Iroquois or on an unspecified island in Lake Michigan near the Straits of Mackinac. The Lighthouse Board decided that the Lake Superior light was more urgent and a simple wooden house with an attached tower was completed in 1855.