Lighthouses of Manitoba

The central Canadian province of Manitoba seems at first like an unlikely location for lighthouses. Nonetheless, Manitoba once had about a dozen lighthouses built on the navigable lakes and rivers in the southern part of the province. Six of these lighthouses remain active today, and fortunately three of the others have been preserved.

Manitoba also has a salt-water coastline on Hudson's Bay, in the far north, but there were never any lighthouses on that coast.

ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Notmar numbers are from the Inland Waters volume of the List of Lights, Buoys, and Fog Signals of Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

General Sources
Manitoba Lighthouses
Photos and comments by Lorne Hull.
Manitoba Lighthouse Images
Rare photos contributed by Ron Walker, Canadian Coast Guard.

1898 Gull Harbour Light
1898 Gull Harbour Light, June 2008
Creative Commons photo by Ted Sali

Historic Lighthouses at Selkirk
* Red River Range Front (2)
1914 (station established 1895). Inactive since 1992 (a decorative light is displayed). 8 m (27 ft) square pyramidal wood tower with lantern and gallery, painted white with red trim. Originally located at the mouth of the Red River on Lake Winnipeg; Ron Walker has contributed a historic photo. In 1992 it was deactivated and relocated to the Marine Museum of Manitoba on the Red River at Queen Avenue and Evelyn Street in Selkirk; Google has a satellite view. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Marine Museum of Manitoba. ARLHS CAN-738M.
* Black Bear Island
1898. Inactive. 8 m (27 ft) square pyramidal wood tower, painted white with red trim. Clark McCaw has a good photo (note the Red River Range Light in the background). Originally located on an island in Lake Winnipeg, the lighthouse has been relocated to the Marine Museum of Manitoba at Queen Avenue and Evelyn Street in Selkirk; Google has a satellite view. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Marine Museum of Manitoba. ARLHS CAN-736M.

Lake Winnipeg Lighthouses
* [Gimli]
1910. Inactive since 1973. The original lighthouse has been demolished, but the lantern was saved and is now mounted on a 7 m (23 ft) square wood replica lighthouse at the Lake Winnipeg Visitor Centre. A small photo is available. Located at the foot of Centre Street in Gimli, on the southwestern shore of the lake. Site open, visitor center open daily May through September, tower status unknown. Owner/site manager: New Iceland Heritage Museum. ARLHS CAN-846.
* Gull Harbour (1)
1898. Inactive since 1926. 8 m (27 ft) square pyramidal wood tower, painted white with red trim. Michael Linton has posted a good photo. The Gull Harbour lighthouses mark the Lake Winnipeg Narrows, a passage between Black Island and Hecla Island. Accessible by an easy 1-1/2 hour hike from Gull Harbour, at the end of MB 8. Site open, tower closed. Owner: Canadian Coast Guard. Site manager: Hecla Provincial Park. ARLHS CAN-847.
* Gull Harbour (2)
1926. Active; focal plane 27.5 m (90 ft); white flash every 4 s. 23.5 m (77 ft) square pyramidal steel skeletal tower with enclosed lantern, gallery, and wood watchroom. Lantern and skeletal tower painted red, watchroom white. Heather Hinam has a 2007 closeup photo, and Michael Linton has posted a photo showing both lighthouses. This substantial lighthouse is visible for at least 10 miles up and down the lake. Accessible by an easy 1-1/2 hour hike from Gull Harbour, at the end of MB 8. Site open, tower closed. Owner: Canadian Coast Guard. Site manager: Hecla Provincial Park. ARLHS CAN-848; Notmar 1583.
George Island
1906. Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); white flash every 4 s. 15.5 m (51 ft) square pyramidal steel skeletal tower with enclosed lantern and wood watchroom. Lantern and skeletal tower painted red, watchroom white. Ron Walker has also contributed a historic photo. Remote and rarely visited, this lighthouse is roughly 190 km (120 mi) north of Gull Harbour. Located on the east point of the island in northern Lake Winnipeg. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Canadian Coast Guard. ARLHS CAN-845; Notmar 1608.
Warren Landing Upper Range Front
1908. Active; focal plane 9 m (30 ft); continuous white light. 6 m (19 ft) square pyramidal wood tower, painted white with a red lantern and a red vertical stripe on the range line. Warren Landing is at the north end of Lake Winnipeg, where the lake empties into the Nelson River. Located on the west side of the river entrance. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Canadian Coast Guard. ARLHS CAN-851; Notmar 1622.
Warren Landing Upper Range Rear (2)
Date unknown (station established 1908). Active; focal plane 15 m (49 ft); continuous white light. 14 m (46 ft) square pyramidal steel skeletal tower with a triangular daymark painted white with a red vertical stripe on the range line. Lantern and skeletal tower painted red, watchroom white. Located on the west side of the river entrance. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Canadian Coast Guard. ARLHS CAN-852; Notmar 1623.
George Island Light
George Island Light, Lake Winnipeg
Canadian Coast Guard photo courtesy of Ron Walker
Warren Landing Lower Range Front
1908. Active; focal plane 13 m (43 ft); continuous white light. 6 m (20 ft) square pyramidal wood tower, painted white with red trim, a red lantern, and a black (not red) vertical stripe on the range line. Located on Purvis Island in the entrance to the Nelson River. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Canadian Coast Guard. ARLHS CAN-849; Notmar 1620.
Warren Landing Lower Range Rear (2)
Date unknown (station established 1908). Active; focal plane 17 m (56 ft); continuous white light. 13.5 m (44 ft) square pyramidal steel skeletal tower with enclosed lantern and wood watchroom. Lantern and skeletal tower painted red, watchroom white. No photo available. Located on Purvis Island in the entrance to the Nelson River. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Owner/site manager: Canadian Coast Guard. ARLHS CAN-850; Notmar 1621.
 

Information available on lost lighthouses:

  • Cox Reef (1905-?), Lake Winnipeg. ARLHS CAN-844.
  • Winnipegosis (1910-?), Lake Winnipegosis. ARLHS CAN-860.

Notable faux lighthouses

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Posted December 17, 2003. Checked and revised November 10, 2008. Lighthouses: 9. Site copyright 2008 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.