North Point Lighthouse Garden

Abandoned by the U.S. Coast Guard in 1994, the once beautiful North Point Light Station sat derelict and in disrepair until it caught the eye of a group of dedicated volunteers. After several years of extensive renovation, the North Point Lighthouse opened its doors to the public in 2008. Today, the 1888 keeper’s quarters features a spacious gallery, used to exhibit relics of Wisconsin’s rich maritime history, and provides a unique space for special events. The restored steel and cast iron tower draws visitors, guided by volunteers to the breathtaking views of the lantern room. Besides year-round weekend tours, North Point Lighthouse continues to share its rich history through children’s summer camps, holiday programming, and guest lecture series. Upon completion of the structural renovation, North Point Lighthouse Friends, Inc. turned its attention to preserving the history of its gardens. In 1893, renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead was selected by the Milwaukee Park Commission to design Lake Park around the North Point Light Station. His design called for two ornamental lion bridges to be built spanning the ravines east of the lighthouse; the carriage road connecting these two bridges became so popular that the keeper’s quarters were repositioned to face east towards the carriage road, rather than west towards Wahl Avenue. At that time, a woman by the name of Georgia Stebbins was responsible for the care of the lighthouse. Her magnificent gardens, particularly her beds of pansies and verbenas, became the highlight of an afternoon in the park. It is this legacy that North Point Lighthouse hopes to continue by reclaiming its two acre site. Unfortunately, recreating Mrs. Stebbins’ beautiful Victorian gardens has become a challenge for North Point Lighthouse. Due to the economic downturn, little funding has been available to finance the expansion of our landscaping. We hope to create a period-appropriate kitchen garden, in order to introduce our visitors to the uses of Victorian herbs and plants. We also have plans to incorporate Victorian flowers, such as Georgia’s praised verbenas and pansies, to our planting beds. Regrettably finding financial support for these plans has been difficult and has made our dreams of creating an educational garden a dim possibility.