|Rock Harbor Lighthouse||Seeing The Light| After the signing of
the treaty of LaPointe with the Chippewa Nation in 1843, Isle
Royale was opened to mineral exploration, and by 1847 more than
a dozen mining companies were working the island. Of these, the
two largest were located in Siskiwit Bay on the southeastern end
of the island and at Rock Harbor to the north. Thriving towns in
the area around the mines to support the needs of both mine and
miner, and an increasing number of vessels began arriving to
deliver supplies and transport copper to the hungry industrial
centers on the southern lakes. With Congressional approval of
the new lock at the Sault granted in 1852, expectations of boom
times on Superior were high, and with this boom, maritime
traffic in the Isle Royale area was expected to grow
exponentially. In his annual report to the Fifth Auditor of the
Treasury for 1852, Henry B Miller the Superintendent of lights
on the upper lakes recommended that $5,000 be appropriated for
the establishment of a li