Sandusky Pierhead Light Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard

Although hardly worthy of a postcard, the light tower did make the news during the summer of 1933. On July 2 of that year, more than 100 men were enjoying themselves fishing along the jetty when a sudden northeaster sent them scrambling for shelter. The native Sanduskians headed for shore, but a group of ten Clevelanders sought refuge in the lantern room at the outer end of the jetty. What they didn't know was that at the time the structure was both unmanned and locked, and soon the rising water swept away any hope of retreat. As the waves reached almost forty feet, the men were forced to cling to the steel supports to keep from drowning. No rescue boat could brave the violent storm, leaving the men stranded for the rest of the day and all through the subsequent night. The fishermen clung tenaciously to the tower for their lives, as the waves incessantly battered them and the temperature steadily dropped.

The oldest man in the group, John Chappel, told of the fishermen's efforts to stay awake and alive. "It was awful cold. We were standing with our feet on the concrete base of the structure and our arms wrapped in the steel support. There was just about room for us. My son was with me, and all night I had to see that he kept awake. That is what we all had to watch. As soon as somebody got looking as if he would go to sleep we jabbed him in the ribs. We had to do it. It was awful cold."

Aaron Fisher, one of the younger ones, related, "I got sleepy and I knew what would happen if I let go. So I started singing. I sang all night long. Finally my voice sounded like a fog horn, but I kept on singing. I found that every time I stopped singing I got cold."

By the next morning, a Coast Guard boat maneuvered close enough to shoot a line to the men with the key to the lighthouse attached. The fishermen quickly pulled in the line, unfastened the key, and unlocked the door to the structure. Once safely inside, the men lit a lantern and used the tower's private phone line to communicate with keeper on the mainland. Around 11:00 a.m., the lighthouse keeper's wife, Mrs. Waibel, called to check on the men and learned they were quite hungry. Soon, the trusty Coast Guard shot another line to the tower, this time attached to a waterproof can full of sandwiches.

The storm slowly weakened during the day, and that afternoon the Coast Guard rescued the group and returned them to shore where they were reunited with their families.

The small, square light tower continued to mark the entrance to Sandusky Bay, growing older and rustier in the process, until it was replaced with the current tower in the mid-1990s.

References

1. "Men Rescued From Cedar Point Jetty Tell Story of Their Fight for Life," Star Journal, July 5, 1933.

The light can also be seen from the Jet Express ferries to Put-in-Bay and Kellys Island that operate out of Sandusky.