The U.S. Government bought Green Island in December 1851.

The most famous keeper of the lighthouse was Colonel Charles F. Drake, who lived on the island with his family until the lighthouse burned down on New Year's Eve in 1863.

It remained active until 1939, when the U.S. Coast Guard replaced it with a skeletal tower with an automated light on top.

Green Island is currently a wildlife refuge, managed by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and is no longer open to the public.

This Ottawa County, Ohio state location article is a stub.