Lake Erie has historically been very important in the history of Lorain. Because people have used the lake for fishing and shipping for as long as people have lived around it. The first navagation light was a lantern hanging from a pole near the mouth of Black River. However small, it was a help to vessels on the lake. Still, there was a need for something better in the early years of the 1800s. The first lighthouse on the Black River was built in 1836-37. It was a brick structure built close to the shore. The light used lard oil fuel,which was later changed to kerosene.