The Old Presque Isle Light was the first lighthouse in the Presque Isle, Michigan area, built in 1840, supported physically by two-thirds stone and one-third brick,[3] and supported financially by funds appropriated by Congress two years earlier of $5,000.

[4] The tower and dwelling did not last long in the harsh weather, however, and by 1867 they were deteriorated enough for Congress to find need for a newer station.

When she returned, she had told her parents that she was talking to a "nice old man" in the tower's lamp room.

One keeper's wife, who was locked up and not allowed to leave, suffered from the severe isolation and went insane.

Congress appropriated 7,000 dollars to make this possible in March 1867, and the New Presque Isle Lighthouse was soon erected.