Are you looking for great beaches along the southern Lake Michigan shore to search for glass, marbles, pottery, and other treasures? Below I have highlighted of three of my favorite southern Wisconsin beaches to comb for treasures – beach glass, pottery, fossils, and unique rocks!
…..but first, a bit of history……The Great Lakes have historically been a dumping ground for glass and industrial waste from factories, plants, and mills. In Lake Erie, for example, a General Electric plant in Conneaut, Ohio that operated from 1941 to 2008 dumped excess glass from the production of incandescent lightbulbs into the lake to reduce beach erosion. The glass primarily used in the production of these lightbulbs was cobalt blue or black amethyst, which is commonly found along the shores of Lake Erie in this area. This is known as vitrite glass.
Glass production in the Great Lakes…In the late 1800s, glass was primarily produced in the eastern United States in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, transported across the country at great cost. Glass was not produced in Wisconsin until 1880, when the first glass company was established in Milwaukee.
Today, along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, the beaches closest to Chicago and Milwaukee offer the best opportunities to find beach glass. Bottles, pottery, and other glass items dumped into the lakes were smoothed and polished over many years by the power of Lake Michigan’s waves, sand, and rocks, smoothing sharp edges to create rounded pieces. Glass, pottery, and fossils are smoothed and rounded more quickly in fresh water than in salt water due to the lower pH level of fresh water. Common items found along Lake Michigan Beaches include pottery, glass bottle fragments and bottle stoppers, fossils such as crinoids, and the occasional marble.
Image: Lake Michigan – Simmons Island Beach
Simmons Island Beach – Kenosha
Located at 5001 4th Avenue in Kenosha, Simmons Island Park and Beach is one of my favorite locations for beachcombing. Over the years, I have found an abundance of beach glass in a variety of colors, pottery, porcelain dating back to the 1920s, various fossils, and the occasion marble.
Images: Lake Michigan – Simmons Island Beach
Days that follow big summer storms provide excellent opportunities to find beach glass. Large waves churn up sediments along the shore, mixing sand and sediments to bring larger pieces of glass and pottery ashore. For those who enjoy quiet and a good sunrise, the beach is never busy early in the morning. Although the beach is open daily from sunrise until 10pm, the best time for beachcombing is early to mid-morning in the summer, as visitors and beachgoers flock to the beach, filling the parking lot by late morning. Bathrooms are located in the recently renovated beach house (also on the National Register of Historic Places) hosts a beer garden, serving food and beverages. The Beach House also rents out recreational equipment.
Images: Lake Michigan, Beach House – Simmons Island Beach
Grant Park Beach and the 7 Bridges Trail – South Milwaukee
Located at 100 E. Hawthorne Avenue in South Milwaukee, Grant Park is a 400-acre park with over 2 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline. Within the park are picnic areas, the historic Frederick C. Wulff Lodge, and two observation decks overlooking the lake. The 7 Bridges Trail, which was once featured in Midwest Living Magazine, is located within Grant Park, and is definitely worth checking out! Beachcombers can enjoy the 2 mile stretch of beach and can expect to find glass in a variety of colors, including amber, green, clear, and cobalt blue. For the fossil lovers, crinoids, trilobites, and brachiopods can be found along this beach.
Yooperlites!
Occasionally, “Yooperlites”, fluorescent sodalite stones rich in syenite can be found at Grant Park Beach as well as along the beaches of southeastern Wisconsin. Most commonly found in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and along the Wisconsin shore of Lake Superior, these sodalite stones can be found throughout the Great Lakes. What makes Yooperlites unique is that while they appear opaque and ordinary in daylight, they glow beneath ultraviolet (UV) light due to a mineral called fluorescent sodalite, which absorbs ultraviolet light, emitting it as visible light, seen by the human eye as bright orange or yellow.
Schlitz Audubon Beach – Bayside Wisconsin
About an hour north of Simmons Island is the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, located at 1111 E. Brown Deer Road in Bayside, Wisconsin. Schlitz is a gorgeous nature center comprised of 185 acres, 6 miles of hiking trails, and an observation tower that visitors can enjoy. Admission to Schlitz Audubon Nature Center is $10, ($7 for ages 3-17 and military members), and visitors can access the beach via the paved hiking trail at the center. The admission fee is absolutely worth it – visitors have the opportunity to see all that Schlitz has to offer as well, hike the trails, spot unique birds, observe conservative native plants, and enjoy the quiet stretch of beach.
Numerous colors of beach glass can be found at Schlitz beach; the most common colors I have found are various shades of green, brown, amber, the occasional yellow, and opaque white “milk glass”. Arsenic was added to the glass in order to yield its opalescent, milky white appearance. Milk glass was popular both in the United States and England between 1835 and the late 1980s, and was used to make tableware, vases, and candles.
Check out this article from Schlitz Audubon Nature Center about searching for beach glass at the beach on site: Finding Beach Glass at Schlitz Audubon Beach
If you’re looking for a great waterproof pack for beachcombing adventures in the rain, check out the Osprey Transporter Waterproof 25 with padded shoulder straps and adjustable hipbelt. #ospreypacks @ospreypacks
If you’re looking for a simple sling pack to collect beach glass, consider the Daylite Sling or Crossbody Pouch. I love the lightweight, adjustable comfort of this sling.
These are just a few of my favorite Wisconsin beaches along Lake Michigan‘s southern shore. Each beach has its own unique charm and unique treasures to offer. Get out there and enjoy Lake Michigan’s many beaches!
– Erin
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