From the northern end of Lake Winnipeg, Nelson River continues north for 644 kilometres (400 miles) before emptying into Hudson Bay. Along the way, the river passes through Playgreen Lake, Cross Lake, Sipiwesk Lake, Split Lake, and Stephens Lake before reaching Hudson Bay. Fort Nelson, a Hudson’s Bay Company trading post, was built at the mouth of Nelson River on Hudson Bay and was a key trading post in the eighteenth century.

Warren Landing, a settlement situated at the entrance to Nelson River from Lake Winnipeg, is named after John Warren of the Hudson’s Bay Company who died there from a wound suffered during the Red River Rebellion.

In 1908, the Department of Marine had two pairs of range lights built at Warren Landing, and they were described in the department’s annual report for that year:

Two pairs of range lights were erected at the mouth of the Nelson river, at the north end of Lake Winnipeg. The lower range lights consist of two inclosed wooden towers, square in plan, with sloping sides, and are painted white. The front tower is erected on the southeast end of the island, opposite Warrens landing; it is 25 feet high from its base to the ventilator on the lantern, and shows a fixed white light elevated 32 feet above level of the water and visible eleven miles in the line of range. The back tower is situated a third of a mile from the front light, is 30 feet high from its base to the ventilator on the lantern, and shows a fixed white light elevated 38 feet above level of the water, and visible eleven miles in the line of range. The upper range lights consist of two inclosed wooden towers, square in plan, with sloping sides, and are painted white. The front tower is erected at Warrens landing, on the west side of the mouth of Nelson river; it is 31 feet high from its base to the ventilator on the lantern, and shows a fixed white light elevated 33 feet above level of lake and visible elven miles in line of range. The back tower is 40 feet high from its base to ventilator on lantern, and shows a fixed white light, elevated 42 feet above level of lake and visible elven miles in line of range. The towers were erected by day’s labour, under the supervision of Mr. M.J. Egan of this department, and cost $1,725.51.

The lower set of range lights was also known as Warrens Island Range, and the front light of this range was initially equipped with a seventh-order, 180° Change lens and a duplex lamp while its rear light feature a seventh-order 120° Change lens also with a duplex lamp. The upper range lights employed constant level lamps set in a twenty-four-inch silvered copper reflector.

Mariners would use the lower range lights on a bearing of 32° 40’ to approach Warren Landing within one mile, and then would follow the upper range lights on a bearing of 3° 40’ to reach the settlement.

In 1910, William Dewar of Warren Landing was paid $275 to move the back light of the upper range to a new site.

Hugh McDonald was appointed the first keeper of the range lights. He served until 1924, when J. Robertson took charge of the lights. Keeper Roberts was responsible for the lights through at least 1937.

At some point, skeletal towers replaced the enclosed towers that were used for the back lights on both sets of range lights, but the original white, square, wooden towers remain in use at the front lights.

In 2007, Canada Post issued five lighthouse stamps in its flag series. This set of stamps features Pachena Point in British Columbia, Warren Landing Upper Front Range in Manitoba, Point Clark in Ontario, Cap-de-Rosiers in Quebec, and Sambro Island in Nova Scotia.

Keepers: Hugh McDonald (1908 – 1924), J. Robertson (1924 – at least 1937).

References

1. Annual Report of the Department of Marine and Fisheries, various years.

The range is visible from Warren Landing.

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