3 Must-See Lighthouses of the North Shore
There’s something about Minnesota’s North Shore that just pulls you in, the rugged cliffs, endless pines, huge rocks, I think it’s the deep, cold sweeps of Lake Superior itself - I could watch those huge waves for hours. Right along those shores still stand a few sentinels of history: the lighthouses! Whether you’re on historic Highway 61 or just dreaming about it from home, these three North Shore lighthouses deserve a spot on your travel list.
They’re beautiful, absolutely, but they’re also full of history, character, and some of the best views on Lake Superior. If you’re planning a Minnesota road trip, make sure to include these lighthouses for iconic photography opportunities and scenic views.
As new navigational technology began to emerge, the use of lighthouses as a navigational tool declined. Their history lives on thanks to historical societies like the Minnesota Historical Society and the Coast Guard families living in the old keepers' houses, as well as caretakers who maintain the properties today.
FUN FACT: The Boston Light in Massachusetts (1716) is the oldest lighthouse station in the United States, it was actually destroyed by the British and rebuilt in 1784. Congress has declared that this lighthouse will always be a staffed station, making the Boston Light the only official lighthouse with a keeper in the entire nation, while most other major lighthouses have been automated.
Split Rock Lighthouse, Two Harbors
The Storm That Started It All: Building the North Shore Icon
Back in the early 1900s, Lake Superior was booming. Iron ore was in huge demand and ships were constantly hauling it across the lake.
1901 – There were around 130 steel freighters on Lake Superior, most owned by U.S. Steel.
1905 – In late November, a massive storm hit – and it was bad. Nearly one-third of the steel freighters were damaged, and many of the wrecked ships belonged to U.S. Steel and weren’t insured. Two ships even went down along the cliffs near where Split Rock Lighthouse stands today.
1907 – After the disaster, U.S. Steel’s president and others went to Washington, D.C. to push for a new lighthouse. Congress approved $75,000 to build a lighthouse and fog signal at Split Rock in Two Harbors.
1910 to 1924 – Split Rock Lighthouse was completed, standing high on the cliffs of Lake Superior. However, for the first 15 years, the lighthouse was only accessible by boat.
1924 – The Lake Superior International Highway (now Highway 61) was built finally connecting the lighthouse by land and making it more accessible for everyone.
1930s – Tourism took off. In the early 1930s, about 5,000 people visited each year just to see the lighthouse. By the late 1930s, one keeper estimated that number had soared to nearly 100,000 visitors a year, making it one of the most visited lighthouses in the country.
FUN FACT: That area near Two Harbors was originally called Stony Point, but while lobbying for funding, they kept referring to it as “Split Rock” and the name stuck.
Visiting Split Rock Lighthouse Today
The site has been restored to look like it did in the 1920s when it was still only reachable by water. No matter when you visit, you’ll definitely want to explore the lighthouse itself and the historic buildings around it: the fog signal building, the oil house, and the keeper’s home.
You must go up into the top of the lighthouse and see the huge 3rd-order bivalve Fresnel lens manufactured in and brought all the way from Paris! Trace the steps of the lighthouse keepers that walked them long ago.
If you come in summer, just know it’s the busiest season so getting there early helps with parking and trail access, and it’s smart to plan lodging ahead of time. Spring on the other hand, has a much calmer feel. It’s the same great views just without the rush of crowds.
Start your trip at the Visitor Center, watch their film, explore all the exhibits to get oriented, and check out Photography and Art at the Rock in the lobby. It’s a rotating monthly display featuring local landscape and wildlife photographers and artists.
Speaking of, photography at and all around the lighthouse grounds is excellent, especially during the fall colors. The way the lighthouse sits on the cliff edge, with the lake behind it and the forest around it, it just works, no matter the season.
While visiting I got to witness a marriage proposal; he popped the question on the lake-side of the lighthouse on a clear and sunny late summer day, surrounded by full green trees and blue water, it was honestly perfect.
TIP: There is a trailhead west of Split Rock lighthouse, you must take the Little Two Harbors trail. It leads from the southwest to the northeast towards the lighthouse; it’s flat and only ¾ of a mile long. This trail gives you the best views of the lighthouse, Ellingsen Island, pebble beaches, and the Little Two Harbors Fishing Village location (active from 1910 through the 1940s). That's where we got that awesome shot of Alyssa looking as tall as the lighthouse! This trail is ideal for nature photographers and families alike looking for North Shore adventure.
Winter is a different kind of magic. Some of the buildings close, but the grounds stay open, and the surrounding Split Rock Lighthouse State Park becomes a snow-lover’s playground. People snowshoe, fat-tire bike, or just hike along the frozen shoreline; Gitchi Gami State Trail is paved and runs right through the park as well. Just make sure to check trail conditions ahead of time, some parking areas require permits depending on what part of the park you’re exploring.
The lakeshore in winter feels totally transformed: huge waves, ice formations, that cold lake mist hanging in the air, it’s like the lighthouse is standing guard in a whole new world. You can watercolor your very own version of Split Rock the way you saw it during your visit!
TIP: If you're in Two Harbors and can't get enough lighthouses, go check out the Two Harbors Lighthouse and Pierhead lighthouse in Agate Bay, the Pierhead light and breakwater is very similar to Artist's point, as you can see in the photo above. There in town you can see the huge ore docks used to load minerals into freighters, and check out the Two Harbors Lighthouse Museum. I did find some (tiny) agates there!
North and South Pier Lighthouses, Duluth Ship Canal
The Lights that Frame the Harbor
As you know, we love Duluth, and we especially love all that Duluth Harbor and Canal Park has to offer. In the late 1800s, Duluth/Superior was booming with ore, grain, and timber all moving out through the harbor, and ships needed a clear, safe path into the narrow canal.
1871 – The canal through Minnesota Point opened, but by the 1890s the amount of shipping had exploded.
1897 – The canal was widened to make room for the millions of tons of cargo coming through every year. To guide all that traffic, the federal government built the concrete piers that still frame the canal today. Construction ran from 1899 to 1902, and once the piers were finished, a lighthouse was placed at the end of each one.
1901 – The South Pier light was built and is actually one of the oldest skeletal steel-frame lighthouses anywhere on Lake Superior.
1904 – Lighting along the piers was switched to electricity, it originally ran on natural gas.
1905 – The disastrous SS Mataafa wreck after a major storm helped push for stronger navigational aids, mainly the North Pier lighthouse.
1909 – The North Pier Lighthouse was built and stands about 37 feet tall, it also had fog signals to help ships find the harbor when Lake Superior did its usual fog-heavy moodiness.
1980s – Lake Superior didn’t go easy on it, waves, ice, and winter storms regularly smashed lighting equipment and took chunks out of the piers annually.
1985 to 1987 – The constant battering meant the structures needed major repairs; a full rehabilitation happened to keep them standing strong as they do today.
FUN FACT: The same 1905 storm that wrecked the Madeira near Split Rock Lighthouse also sank the Mataafa near Duluth’s Canal Park.
Even after the United States Coast Guard automated operations and the lighthouse keepers were no longer needed, the light didn’t fade from the town’s life. It’s still a working navigational guide today, signaling vessels, posing for photos, and embodying that “watch-the-boats-come-in” vibe that Duluth people know. Families strolled the pier, kids watched the freighters heave into the harbor, and the lighthouse became a familiar silhouette on the horizon.
Alyssa actually has a sticker of the Duluth lighthouse at night that is the perfect souvenir for your trip, or even better, the full Lighthouse print with vast starry sky just as it would be during a clear night on Lake Superior (this print’s sky is one of my favorites).
Check Out Duluth Harbor Piers
So when you visit, you’ve gotta walk down the pier, at least one of them. The breakwater leads you out toward the light, with sweeping views of Lake Superior, the shipping channel, and the massive ships threading beneath the lift bridge. There are few better spots to see big-lake freighters navigating into the harbor, or to see a beautiful Lake Superior sunrise or sunset on the water.
Be sure to add the Duluth Harbor to your Lake Superior travel itinerary and capture those iconic freighter shots for your travel journal or social media. Canal Park is full of placards and interpretive signs at the site that outline the story of the canal, the pier construction, the lighthouse’s role, and how the town grew around all of it. The small area is still full of a variety of restraunts, things to do, and places to stay. Be sure to check out the Lake Superior Maritime Visitors Center - it's right there on the canal!
TIP: Don't forget a windbreaker, you should walk the pier solely to experience the wind (It's fun to take travel pictures with everyone’s hair going crazy).
Artist's Point Lighthouse, Grand Marais
Shoutout to Zach for taking such awesome photos on film!
From a Fishing Village to an Artist’s Haven
Technically part of the Superior National Forest, the Grand Marias Artist's Point Lighthouse sits on a tombolo creating two natural bays that the Ojibwe named ‘Gitchi-bitobig’ or ‘Great Duplicate Water’. The area around the Point has been home to people for thousands of years, including the Anishinabe, who lived there long before European settlement.
1871 – The Mayhew family became prominent in the area: Henry Mayhew built the first permanent house after securing the coastland and later opened a general store, while his brother Joseph would become the lighthouse keeper.
1875 – Tragedy struck in December when the schooner Stranger, carrying winter supplies like sugar and flour, attempted to reach Grand Marais but ran into a fierce gale and grounding ice, ultimately breaking apart on Lake Superior with three crewmen lost.
1876 – In response, a dock was built mainly for the Mayhew brothers on the harbor side of the Point.
1889 – Following the successful use of a concrete breakwater at Buffalo Harbor, concrete became the standard for breakwaters on the Great Lakes. Breakwaters were initially constructed from wooden cribs filled with stone, but they didn’t last long in harsh winter storms and ice.
Early 1900s – The original Artist’s Point Lighthouse in Grand Marais was built as part of the early 20th-century effort to create “harbors of refuge” along isolated stretches of the Great Lakes.
1910s – The lighthouse’s isolated location prompted its automation, making it one of the earliest and more practical navigational structures at the time.
1922 – The original wooden lighthouse was replaced by the current concrete structure, though the original’s Fresnel lens remained in use until 2008. Navigational lights were also placed at breakwater entrances, and a second light was added to the opposite side of the Grand Marais harbor entrance. The lighthouse was a practical steel skeletal tower about thirty feet tall, simply designed to guide ships safely into the harbor.
1928 – By this time, visitors just like you would have seen two prominent towers: a USDA Forest Service fire tower on the west end, built in 1928 to watch for forest fires, and a Coast Guard watchtower on the east, monitoring the lake for ships in distress, and of course, during Prohibition, for potential rum runners.
1936 – A concrete seawall connecting the breakwater to Grand Marais land was built, now serving as a walkway to the lighthouse.
1943 – The Forest Service tower was removed, but the concrete footings of both towers remain visible today.
FUN FACT: Believe it or not, “The Point Interpretive Site” has no official name! When the town of Grand Marais was founded, the local name of Mayhew Point appeared on early maps. In the 1970s, the name Artists’ Point caught on (and it’s clear why) but officially, the Point in Grand Marais still remains unnamed.
Step Into the Scene at Artist's Point
If you too are heading out to Artist’s Point Lighthouse, get ready to explore! The old Light Keeper’s house has been converted into the Cook County Historical Museum which is worth a stop. You can park at the paved Lake Superior Grand Marais Public Water Access lot, right by the water.
Stroll along the breakwater and climb on the massive basalt rocks for some epic views of Lake Superior. On the north side of the isthmus, it’s a great spot to do a little rockhounding, and if you love birds, bring your binoculars, there’s lots to see. The scenery here practically paints itself, and lucky for you, you can bring a piece of that artistry home with a print of the Artists' Point Lighthouse.
Keep an eye out on the water, too; you might spot a freighter or even the Hjordis, a 50-foot schooner rigged in the traditional style. After your lighthouse adventure the city of Grand Marais has lots of awesome breweries and activities waiting for you, too.
There are paths along the island and peninsula if you want to stretch your legs and take in the scenery. This is the best palace for photography and art, or relaxing and enjoying the views. My favorite thing was to simply stare at the coastline, you can see the North Shore hills overlap and slowly disappear down the shore. It’s the perfect mix of nature, history, and lake beauty.
Follow the Light
Exploring lighthouses is about more than just the towers themselves, it’s the stories they tell, the storms they’ve weathered, and the ways they’ve shaped the communities around them. From the towering waves at Split Rock to the bustling harbor lights of Duluth and the tranquil charm of Artist’s Point, each lighthouse has its own personality and history waiting to be discovered.
These lighthouse prints and watercolor pages make perfect gifts and souvenirs for travel and maritime enthusiasts or North Shore collectors.
If these scenes inspire you as much as they do me, why not take that inspiration home? Check out Alyssa’s lighthouse art, featuring watercolors, prints, and original pieces capturing the beauty of lakeshore life.
Feeling inspired to capture your own scenes of the North Shore?
Her courses and workbooks, her newest one actually featuring Split Rock Lighthouse, make it easy to turn your own travel memories into art. Let every lighthouse you visit or paint be a little guiding light for your own adventures and artistic journey. Also, remember to tell your Minnesota friends that they rock.
