Many years ago when Frank Murphy gave his wife Claire a Danbury Mint lighthouse model, he had no idea what he had started. Soon a lighthouse collection was on its way, and so were the Murphys. They had been coming every summer for 12 years from Chicago to camp out in Door County Wisconsin’s Peninsula State Park and loved it, so they finally decided to make Egg Harbor, Wisconsin their permanent home.
They wanted to run a bed and breakfast, but with 42 of them already in the area, what could they do to make theirs stand out? Between Claire’s passion for lighthouses and the more than ten of these historic and popular lighthouses that dot the 300 miles of the Door County peninsula coastline, it wasn’t a hard decision to build their B&B to replicate one.
The Door County Lighthouse Inn was opened for business in 2001 and has been very successfully run ever since. What better place for lighthouse enthusiasts to stay who have come to explore the area’s remarkable lights? The Inn’s five guest rooms are named after some of the area’s most scenic lighthouses: Sherwood Point, Eagle Bluff, Cana Island, Pottawatomie, and Bailey’s Harbor Range. They offer a very comfortable accommodation in a traditional B&B setting, and, of course, lighthouse décor is featured in every room. Best of all, the light in the tower will help visitors find their way back to the Inn at night.
It was with many regrets then, that the announcement was made that the Door County Lighthouse Inn will be permanently closing this coming October. The village of Egg Harbor needs a new library/community center, and the Door County Lighthouse Inn is in the perfect location, so an offer was made that the Murphys could not refuse. They will be retiring from their inn-keeping duties and moving one block down the street to a new home. Tragically, the Door County Lighthouse Inn building will be demolished unless someone steps forward to save it!
Applications and bids will be accepted by the village of Egg Harbor to move the lighthouse intact to another location if the price is right. We certainly hope this will be the case! Meanwhile, the Door County Lighthouse Inn is still open for business until October 15th, 2016. So, if you have not yet stayed in this wonderful Door County icon, you will need to get there soon before the door closes forever on the Door County Lighthouse Inn!
For reservations and information up to October 15, please go to: www.dclighthouseinn.com or call (920) 868-9088. Specials and tour packages are still available.
If you are interested in saving this lighthouse landmark, contact deputy administrator Megan Vandermause at the Egg Harbor Village offices at 920-868-3334 for application information.
This story appeared in the
Sep/Oct 2016 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
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