Hazard Island Lighthouse

On Nov. 28, 1905, a major storm raged on Lake Superior. Waves 20-30 feet high turned this calm inland sea into a destructive torrent of wind and water. At least 29 ships were sunk and 36 men died. In response, the government began to build a string of lighthouses along the shoreline. Lighthouse Keepers were hired to keep watch and warn water craft away from the treacherous shoreline at night and during fog and storms.

This story begins in 1914 when, out of work and desperate for employment, Henry Lane of Iowa takes a job as a lighthouse keeper. This change will soon affect his entire family including his wife Mattie, and their five children; 4-year old Sam, 9-year-old Ann, 10-year-old Blake, 14-year-old Becky and 15-year-old Matt, who will now have the opportunity to spend their summer living in a newly-built lighthouse compound on an island in Lake Superior.