Stannard Rock Light: One of Americas Greatest Engineering Feats

[@megaprojects9649]

Get 20% OFF + Free International Shipping + 2 FREE GIFTS @manscaped with promo code MGP20 at Manscaped.com! #teammanscaped

[@michaelmayhem350]

Simon we need DTU March 8 1994 Michigan Please make it happen also this light house isn't even nuclear powered lol

[@fredred8371]

Video starts at 1:44

[@steveshoemaker6347]

🇺🇸

[@clarencesmith2305]

You need to do one on the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse.

[@viciousstarfish]

Big deal, you live somewhere, cold and miserable. Yeah

[@ceirwynsinclair4198]

I've heard many Minnesotans say, when they see an ocean for a first time, "It looks like Lake Superior!" So yes, it's huge!

[@baddadjoker9570]

I’m a Michigan native. I love seeing things about Michigan here. You should do one on the whitefish point lighthouse. Connections with the civil war and WW1

[@tarentino8o814]

Agree with this. Also should do one about Drummond island and how it was a map error after the war of 1812 that Michigan even came into possession of it.

[@dazoosocialworker]

Kalamazoo Baby!!!!

[@myboicyndaquil2824]

Michigander here

[@RussellRiker]

Traverse city here.

[@baddadjoker9570]

@@RussellRiker kalkaska for me!

[@whyjnot420]

Lighthouses seem boring on the surface, but these structures really represent some of the toughest buildings built in the most inhospitable spots, crowned with glorious examples of the optical technology of the day.

[@eliaswreford4523]

Another Michigan native and I live in upper Michigan. It’s hard to quantify the size of the lakes other then saying they are inland seas. You cannot see across them and behave much more like oceans then one would initially believe. Tides, weather, waves that can top 25ft or more during storms. You can surf in a lot of places along the Great Lakes. There are thousands of shipwrecks recorded in the Great Lakes.

[@Mark-pp7jy]

In 2017, a wave was recorded to be 28.8 feet on Lake Superior. Not sure how someone is able to measure a wave that precisely, but I'm not foolish enough to go measure ANYTHING on that behemoth! 🚣 😉

[@eliaswreford4523]

@@Mark-pp7jy NOAA buoys. The lakes are a major shipping channel for all sorts of stuff. There are only a couple industrial sailing colleges in the US one is in Traverse city. The amount of freight moved throughout the Great Lakes is staggering. I have a very good friend who pilots freighters all over them.

[@the-chillian]

Most of the lighthouses that were sold off are actually still in use as navigation aids, as boats are not expected to rely solely on their own systems. Things can go wrong, and if their computer equipment isn't working they need to be able to fall back on traditional methods. It was in fact a condition of the sale of these lighthouses that the new owners keep them maintained. Being automated and electrified they no longer require constant tending, but they do need just a little looking after.

[@clockbuilderhg]

Thanks for highlighting Standard Rock! A few facts that weren't mentioned: One of the most impressive parts of the stone light tower is that it's built of large limestone blocks which are tied together with large iron bolts, which are set in pure Portland cement. Because of the bonding strength of the pure Portland, the tower is considered a monolith of stone. A typical stay at Stannard Rock would be 3 weeks on, and then one week of shore leave, if the boat could get out on schedule. Most keepers at the rock didn't stay long. Louis Wilks had the longest service at Stannard Rock which lasted 20 years. He also had the longest continuous stay on the rock at 99 days, mostly due to bad weather which delayed the boat coming to take him off. Along with the rough water, Ice was one of the biggest threats to keepers staying in the light. Some years the light couldn't be opened until June because of the feet of ice built up over the tower from the winter months of freezing spray. The worst freeze up happened in November 1913 when Keepers became trapped as the base of the tower, which was covered by 13 feet of ice when the freezing weather hit. When the Lighthouse Board made it out to the light to take the men off for the winter, it took them a week to break through the ice with steam hoses and picks.

[@dg9388]

Another interesting topic in the upper great lakes region is the elf stations. One in the upper peninsula of Michigan, and one in Wisconsin. They would use extremely low frequencies to send messages to submarines during the cold war.

[@ZanyYooper]

Definitely would love to see one this!

[@ZanyYooper]

@Banter Maestro2 grew up down the street (nearly so) from Republic

[@ed-gw3ov]

@@ZanyYooper I had a chance in the early 1990s to get into the E.L.F. facility south of Ishpeming, Michigan. It was quite impressive, and self-sustaining for weeks. It had a machine shop, underground diesel fuel tank/tanks, and tracked vehicles for maintenance where the antenna was layed. The only room we couldn't access was the control room, the computer room was quite large with banks of computers like storage lockers....

[@ZanyYooper]

I grew up on Ishpeming, joined the Navy, eventually serving on SSBN, so this all hits home. Thank you for what you shared; brings back good memories!

[@citylimits8927]

Thanks for doing a video on this lighthouse! I'm a Michigan native and I enjoy Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Another extreme lighthouse would be St.George's Reef light in Northern California.

[@SneezingEagle]

Only recently discovered your selection of channels recently and already I'm hooked. Some really interesting and informative topics!

[@joeyr7294]

Man has 13 channels lol you're in for a lot of amazing content!

[@joeyr7294]

Welcome to the Whistlerverse 🍻

[@SneezingEagle]

@@joeyr7294 cheers! It's a wormhole I'm looking forward to exploring more that's for sure! I can't belive how much content this dude has out on KZbin!

[@terrancebrown87]

You have years of content ahead of you 👏

[@joeyr7294]

@@SneezingEagle he definitely produces more content than anyone I've came across on youtube

[@elainewurtz2729]

The lake is so large it creates its own weather

[@chuckerdusenbrew2515]

Hey Simon! I'm a huge fan, an Upper Michigan native, and this was so interesting. Standard rock is such a fascinating piece of engineering and history. You should do a video on the history of the copper mining in the keewenaw peninsula. Absolutely fascinating stuff. Cheers, Simon!

[@ridethecurve55]

I wonder what happened to that hand-made glass lens from France. It looked like a work of genius!

[@ignitionfrn2223]

3:25 - Chapter 1 - Early attempts 6:05 - Chapter 2 - Construction 10:25 - Chapter 3 - Life in stannard rock light 13:15 - Chapter 4 - The end of an era 15:30 - Chapter 5 - Wrap up

[@junemacdonald44]

A grandfather (great great) of mine and his two brothers were all 3 keepers at Stannard Rock, and then later on the Big Bay lighthouse. Really cool to see Simon talking about it!

[@anamkarajoy]

It’s beautiful up there. My late mother loved lighthouses, and we spent many a Michigan summer including them in our adventures-yet I still haven’t seen all of the ones in Michigan. It’s on my bucket list for my mom’s sake, because she didn’t get to see them all, either.

[@rubiconnn]

I've always wanted to go up there. I like travelling places just to see the scenery.

[@anamkarajoy]

@@rubiconnn Come with, friend. It’s a lovely adventure.

[@susan_beaver]

Fantastic episode! I only heard of Stannard Rock Lighthouse because of its minor plot importance in Jon Bois' epic college football speculative fiction project 20020, so it was really great to experience a deep dive on its history.

[@royerick1173]

Hello 👋 Susan, how are you doing and the weather there?

[@zata1197]

It's not as epic a feat as this one in terms of construction but I'd love to see a video on cape hatteras lighthouse, it's the tallest brick lighthouse in the US and had to be moved almost 3000 feet away from the shore. Its my favorite lighthouse, very beautiful construction

[@JohnFleshman]

I used to live near Saint George Reef Light house in northern California. its built on a reef that sunk a steam paddle wheel boat the same week Oregon became a state. Always cool to hear about the really crazy light houses America built.

[@christopherjensen794]

I'm a lighthouse geek! I've been a radio operator at 2 of them, and never met one I didn't like. If you're looking a lighthouse with a really amazing history attached to it, ( they're all amazing, in their own ways ) check out Cape Florida Light, just hollering distance from the south end of Key Biscayne Fla., near Miami. I can guarantee you will not be disappointed!

[@juliannar2793]

Could you pretty please please please do something on one of your channels about Orlando Metcalfe Poe?? He's my favourite lighthouse architect. His life was, pretty awesome, and he's documented sufficiently. Everything from his roles in the civil war to how he ended up as a lighthouse architect. A lot of his lighthouses stand to this day. A lot of his civil war era structures, including forts, are preserved here and there in various national and state parks.

[@tugboattedd]

I worked on it in the coast guard in the 90s. Thanks for sharing this.

[@rosscarr6817]

Thank you so much for doing this one! I requested it a little while ago, but I didn't expect it to amount to anything. Awesome to see!!

[@GWIZZ2]

Great episode. Perhaps you could do a list episode featuring extreme light houses or ones of historic significance. Bell rock light house is a good one.

[@Not-THAT-ChrisPratt]

Bell Rock is a great story, I'd love to see that one too!

[@michaelgehrke8272]

I've actually been fishing at Stannard Rock and seen the lighthouse there. It would truly be a lonely place to live. Thanks for sharing about this little known, but important part of the history of Lake Superior.

[@christopherjohnson1803]

I can't imagine enduring a November gale out there. Feeling the structure rock and be beat upon for days. It took a special breed of person.

[@brycewipper788]

I love the idea of a series of lighthouses. You should consider doing a video on the Tillamook Rock lighthouse off the coast of Oregon. Locally known as “Terrible Tilly”, it was built on an island and was subject to immense storms and hardships during construction. A lot of really interesting history there.

[@jackFPV442]

Please do a video on the Fasnet Light house in Ireland.

[@briancox8422]

Superior is the largest lake by surface area if you exclude the Caspian Sea(which is a lake), but Lake Baikal is larger by volume

[@wickerm]

More lighthouses! Love this Simon :D

[@kevinquist]

I have lived my entire life in Michigan. Im a history NUT. I read stories of my ancestors traveling. (weve been here in Michigan since the 1835) it took a week to travel from Grand Rapids to Cadillac (can do it in 1 1/2 hours now). and that was with "roads". you get into the UP (upper peninsula) and that time was doubled. to GET TO some of these land base light houses took many weeks. quicker by boat. You had to be the essence of a loaner and self sufficient. though there were cases where wife and children went with the light keeper to these "edge of the world" type places.

[@zaco-km3su]

Very interesting. Hope it gets restored.

[@timothycivis8757]

thanks for posting! From Michigan

[@brendakrieger7000]

I adore lighthouses❤

[@punkfan97]

In the summer there's daily fishing charters to the light many record lake trout have been caught near the light

[@1Cichfishy]

Check the story of Minot's Ledge lighthouse. Amazing technique back then.

[@jeffgregor3951]

Thank you for this video, I am a Michigander and take pride in my state and our great lakes!

[@John-ci8yk]

Thank you for teaching me something about American history which I had no idea even existed. Thumbs up.

[@The_Ecclesiarch]

Now I want a sequel to Robert Eggers' The Lighthouse but here. The claustrophobia turned up to 11

[@viridiscoyote7038]

You'll have to check out the Eddystone Lighthouse in Cornwall. It took 4 attempts before a permanent structure was established there.

[@linkizlinkizzon8427]

JAS 39 GRIPEN! Please Simon, i have been asking for this so long

[@nicholasjohnson1295]

You should do a video on cape Hatteras lighthouse and how the moved it!

[@tommyj387]

Love seeing you cover topic related to Michigan. Keep up the good work

[@petemelbourne42]

@Megaprojects If you want to do a lighthouse then the logical one should be the Eddystone which predated this by 180 years and was the worlds first open sea lighthouse. Or you could do a biographics on the Stevensons and Smith who are without doubt the greatest family of lighthouse builds there has been

[@patrickmonks9761]

As always Simon, great job

[@theblackbear211]

Stannard Rock, Tillamook Rock, and the Saint George Reef all have well deserved and fearsome reputations.

[@b.thomas8926]

Neat stuff. Never even heard of this place before. Thanks Simon!

[@kacijohnson9584]

You should look at the construction of Split Rock Lighthouse!

[@CaliforniaFly]

There's a lighthouse off the coast of Crescent City California that I've flown over several times. I have a photo or two. How it was supplied and manned still makes me wonder.

[@pensepf49]

Excellent!

[@danwolf307]

I caught a master angler lake trout at stannard rock, best fishing trip of my life!

[@VisibilityFoggy]

If that preservation group wants to save this place, they better figure out some type of ferry tour for public access. You run into this dealing with environmental groups often - they want to buy or improve something, then ban you from even seeing it. This would be a huge hit today in the age of selfies and drone photography.

[@inkydoug]

You can take a charter fishing trip out to Stannard Rock for epic lake trout fishing.

[@peterclark6290]

You've done some work to elevate your presentation skills. Thank you Simon. No more the bored arrogance of the landed gentry. I might even subscribe, after a few more 'verification' videos. Your subject matter would be a loss, as it was for me for years, I had clicked on the 'don't include in my feed' option. Then done a recent 'reset'

[@biggestroadhog6755]

You’ve mentioned it many times on this channel, but is it possible to do a video on DARPA? I’m guessing it would all be classified information but it would be really cool. If not the United States interstate system?

[@stitch626aloha]

Biltmore Mansion deserves an episode as it was DRFINITELY a MegaProject as it required its own railroad spur and blacksmith and brick masonry shop JUST to START construction

[@ZAV1944]

A video about St. George Reef Light would be pretty cool.

[@MostlyIC]

Stannard Rock Light House Bed and Breakfast, I can see the Tee-shirts now, "I survived the Rock" :-) !!!

[@wolfvontyr2266]

I've been watching too much Brain Blaze. When Simon referred to the 'floating bell' (at 3:32), my mind when to a floating bell of a different kind.

[@pigbenis8366]

You should do a video on the top ten engineering feats on America!!

[@monckey44]

I gotta look into lighthouse keeping

[@sschmidtevalue]

On the album "Hope," the band Klaatu has a mini-opera based on a lighthouse keeper who is the lonliest creature in the universe.

[@annalorree]

The Point Saint George Light off of Northern California is another light house that was amazingly difficult to build and staff.

[@royerick1173]

Hello 👋 Anna, how are you doing and the weather there?

[@fredred8371]

Video starts at 1:44

[@edwardloomis887]

Next time do Minot's Ledge Lighthouse, which was built on a rock below the water most time in ridiculously rough conditions.

[@Bikerboy2023Today]

Great video

[@211212112]

They could of engineered a way to keep the interior warm and dry. Have the entrances be inclined with a right angle and a watertight door at the beginning and end of the entrance hall. Store oil and have an oil burning heater

[@excaliburthemighty]

Have you guys looked into the Washington national cathedral? Those are some massive stones

[@Johnny_Shields]

Imagine your GPS failing for any reason at all, and your navigator tells you, "Sorry captain, they turned off the lighthouses last week. Said no one needs them anymore."

[@barrybarry1117]

You could do the new capital city been built in egypt on your next video

[@vareast]

Interesting. Would like to see a video on my great, great, great uncle Sir James Douglass of Eddystone Lighthouse fame and his rivalry with John Smeaton....

[@JoshuaC923]

Should give them a boat and do some fishing maybe

[@ME10920]

Love this very clever. I was at first imagining some buider laying the first brick underwater 🤪

[@Ozzypup1]

Enjoyed the video as I live in Michigan myself. But not a fan of having to watch a minute and a half long ad when I pay for KZbin Premium so I dont have to watch ads.

[@thejudgmentalcat]

For a long time I thought it would be a cool job, being introverted. Then I watched "The Lighthouse" 😳

[@lawrenceallen8096]

When your Light House mate begins to repeat "RedRum," you know its time to leave!

[@JK50with10]

Both the Eddystone and Bell Rock lighthouses in the UK are older and bigger. The Bell Rock is still the worlds oldest offshore lighthouse.

[@kevinquist]

I love light houses.

[@chriszachary8104]

Lake superior can be a wild body of water i live on the north shore in canada

[@chrisnason3903]

Are you aware of Ripple Rock at Seymore Narrows, BC, the site of the largest non-nuclear explosion, used in an attempt to clear the channel? Interesting reading, if nothing else. Love your multi site programming.

[@stevesyncox9893]

That was cool.

[@chrisolsen5280]

I really wish I would have had the chance to live there.

[@mercuryvincent6796]

Leave it to Fact Boy to get me interested in a topic I clicked on jst cause i watched all the other videos in his other channels and ended up fascinated with Lighthouse 💡😮

[@timothythompson3042]

The man that was going to start swimming to shore had me crying 😂😂

[@fukkitful]

My luck they would call my bluff on that 24 mile swim. I would have threatened to turn off the light instead.

[@didyasaysomethin2me]

Finally, a Gitche Gumee story that doesn't mention the Edmund Fitzgerald even once. I'm not knocking the Fitzgerald. I'm just pointing out how disproportionate the amount of programming about it is by comparison to other topics owing to the same lake.

[@lizardskinard3485]

Any idea on how many labor hours were expended making this project happen? i imagine 450K plus. That would be an interesting stat to add to this already impressive project!

[@buffalomerkis7603]

Sounds a bit like the Bell Rock lighthouse in the North Sea.

[@someoneelse7629]

I would love to stay a summer there, with modern equipment (starlink/radios) but back in the day I would imagine it being lonely and boring.

[@onebridge7231]

I’m more impressed the U.S. Congress was full of a bunch of penny pinchers. Needed $20k, got $10k. Needed $300k, got only $50k to start! 🤯

[@sammyseguin2978]

And if that were attempted today, it would be years behind schedule and millions over budget.

[@danielyoho7783]

I work at a foundry and we have a glass case showing things we’ve made over the last 140 years, that rot iron thing we helped make Apparently

[@griffinmckenzie7203]

Wrought iron* Rot iron sounds horrible. lmfao

[@vanpenguin22]

Hey next PowerBar jackpot winner! You could have saving a national monument to your credit without even significantly denting your stash!!! It could be the "insert your name" lighthouse.

[@hannahp1108]

I really hope they get the funding for restoration. The government should be paying for that.

[@hobinrood710]

I'm having the worst day. Had a seizure on the bus, lost my wallet and then when I get home from the ER, everything wrong in my life starts stabbing me in the dick (metaphorically) and it all seems to be my fault. I'm balling my eyes out and can't do anything about my problems because they're really out of my control. Thanks for doing this Simon and Co. I need to just lay down for twenty minutes and try to calm down. This seriously helps. Doesn't cure anything, but definitely lowers the stress level.

[@Yeet42069]

Damn bruh, stay strong man, I hope you get better.

[@didyasaysomethin2me]

I wish you well.

[@geiroveeilertsen7112]

And th.ere are still some that say "the pyramids are impossible to build with modern technology!"..

[@roberthogue5138]

I am surprised that you implied that radio communication existed in the 19th century, when, in fact, it was not utilized, until 1900.

[@lordgarion514]

So a grand wouldn't pay for a boat with a bell, but 3 decades later, 10 grand paid for the building of that beacon? Sounds like someone in the government made a bonus.

[@jk03h45]

Tempelhof Airport?

[@MikeZ8709]

It's the Alcatraz of light houses

[@xuser48]

The 's' in fresnel is silent.

[@xdanbo1859]

Michigan has a lot of lighthouses. Most are more assessable to the public than this one.

[@lindakaye7935]

Michigan has the most light houses of any state.