Crowd gathers for re-opening of Point Clark Lighthouse

It cost $3.7-million to restore the Point Clark Lighthouse to its former grandeur, but it was well worth the money and the five years of waiting, as a huge crowd gathered Saturday morning, for the re-opening of the local tourist attraction.

None was more thrilled than Pat Onions who lives in Wingham and is a former resident of Point Clark.

In 1984, he and his sailboat crew were stuck in Tobermory because of fierce weather. But they were anxious to get home so they headed for Sarnia.

"The seas were rough," he said. "We saw the lights at the Bruce Nuclear plant, but then the navigation system failed and we couldn't figure out where we were. Then hurricane-force winds hit us and the waves were pouring over our sailboat."

He said they started the engine but then a line got wrapped around the propeller and they were "dead in the water."

"It was pitch black and the waves were washing into the boat," said Onions. "Then we saw a light on shore and it was the Point Clark Lighthouse. We managed to get safely ashore. Thank God for the lighthouse. That's why it's so dear to my heart."

Katherine Patterson, field unit superintendent with Parks Canada, welcomed the capacity crowd to the ribbon-cutting ceremony, and thanked the citizens of Huron-Kinloss Township for being so patient and understanding as the restoration of the lighthouse seemed to drag on so long.

"I came into this project a year ago and, as I understand it, there were some real challenges," said Patterson, noting that some of the stones being used on the structure were the size of a bathtub and deeper than one. That stone had to be of the highest quality and precision cut, in order to stand the test of time, she said. "It will be here for our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to enjoy."

"This is very exciting for Huron-Kinloss Township and the County of Bruce," said Mitch Twolan, mayor of Huron-Kinloss and county warden. "I want to thank Huron-Bruce MP Ben Lobb for his perseverance to keep Parks Canada on this project and get it completed."

He said the restoration work was first announced in 2009, when Lobb and the federal government came forward with a $500,000 grant to fix up the lighthouse. However, once work began, major structural damage was discovered which resulted in the closure of the lighthouse in 2010. He thanked the Lyman Group, the master stonemasons who completed the project, for their hard work and dedication.

"The re-opening of the lighthouse also marks the 160th anniversary of the beginning of the original construction of the Point Clark Lighthouse in 1855," said Twolan.

Lobb told the crowd that when he was first elected in 2009, one of his first announcements was the grant for restoration of the Point Clark Lighthouse.

"Since then, we've gone through five environment ministers and numerous employees at Parks Canada," he said. "This project was no easy task but the lighthouse is a key tourist destination and a point of national significance. When we think about the investment, we have to remember what the lighthouse means to this community. There are children here who are five and six years old who have never had the chance to climb the lighthouse. This national historic site is worth a lot more than we put into it."

While the weather was overcast and cool, the rain held off, as the crowd and dignitaries gathered at the front door of the lighthouse, where Lobb, Twolan, RCMP constable Jason Morton and Parks Canada employees conducted the official ribbon-cutting to re-open the structure to the public.

People were encouraged to take a tour of the lighthouse which involved climbing the 114 steps to the top and taking in the magnificent view.

During the climb, tour guide Emily Simpson pointed out that the contractors replaced 437 of the 1,400 stones in the tower. Built between 1855-1859, the limestone tower is 87 feet high to the end of the stone, 93 feet to the top of the light, and 115 feet to the top of the lightning rod.

At the top of the lighthouse, inside the 12-sided lantern, you can see for 15 miles in all directions. The navigational light was last changed in 2005, said Simpson.

The lighthouse is one of only six Imperial towers and remains a functioning navigational aid on the shores of Lake Huron. It was designated a national historic site in 1966 to commemorate the vital role of lighthouses to navigation on the Great Lakes.

While it is owned by Parks Canada, Huron-Kinloss Township has an agreement to open the lighthouse to visitors and operate the lightkeeper's house as a local museum.

Saturday night, the Point Clark Lighthouse was the place to be as the Huron Shores Lions Club hosted Canada Day festivities and a magnificent fireworks display.



Fireworks at Point Clark, Saturday night; videos by David Dadson