Because of encroaching European settlements in the Great Lakes region during the late 17th and 18th centuries, Native American tribes were forced westward and southward. As a result, many came to rest in the Maumee River Valley, which soon became one of the last Native American strongholds in the “Ohio Country.” The Maumee River Valley was the site of many battles during the French and Indian War, but the definitive struggle came in 1794, when General Anthony Wayne, on orders from George Washington, gained control of the Maumee Valley for the United States of America. Several years later, the river valley was again the site of battles, this time during the War of 1812. Victory in that conflict solidified America’s control of the region and helped open the Northwest Territory for settlement.

Increasing traffic on the Maumee River led to the construction of the first Manhattan Range Lights. First activated in 1895, the pair of wooden towers, outfitted with lights from the discontinued Maumee inner range lights, guided ships into the Maumee River and the Port of Toledo. They followed the pattern of all range lights: they were built as a pair and spaced at least 1000 feet apart, with the front light shorter and the rear light taller. Captains would align their vessels with the lights so that one was positioned directly above the other, and, keeping their view of the lights in the same configuration, proceed safely up the river. The establishment of the Manhattan Range Lights, located at the eastern end of Manhattan Boulevard, allowed for the inner, middle, and outer Maumee ranges to be discontinued.

Aerial view of Manhattan Range Front Lighthouse Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard

In 1918, a new set of range lights replaced the original ones. Each of these modern towers consisted of a square, steel lantern room surrounded by a walkway, resting atop a skeletal steel tower. The focal plane of the front light was 40 feet tall, while the rear light was at 86 feet and had the brighter beacon, a fifth-order bull's-eye Fresnel lens.

In the late 1980s, the Coast Guard offered to sell the Manhattan Range Lights to Hansen Industries, but a deal was instead agreed upon whereby Hansen Industries would be given the lights if they would simply remove them. Late one summer afternoon, a few employees of Hansen Industries departed their workplace aboard a boat with a barge and crane in tow. Cutting down the towers proved more difficult than expected, but after trimming the taller rear tower to match the 20-foot height of its mate, the pair were transported back to Hansen Industries where they were placed in the parking lot. The owner of the Lighthouse Cafe later purchased the front tower and relocated it to his business at 2605 Broadway. (The restaurant has since been converted to the Six Pack Bar & Grill.) The Front Range is now painted a solid white, while the Rear Range is pale yellow with a blue roof and ventilator ball.

After their removal, the range lights were replaced by a skeletal tower and day marker.

References

1. Ohio Department of Natural Resources website.